The Forestry Commission and Trail Cyclists Association are staging the 14th Kielder Reiver Challenge mountain bike event in the 155,000 acre Kielder Forest, Northumberland, on Saturday 20 May.

It’s an orienteering event – gather points by visiting checkpoints, whoever gets the most in five hours wins. And just like the border bandits from whom the event gets its name, you’ll be able to raid Scotland’s Newcastleton Forest just across the border for extra points.

The Reiver Challenge is the centrepiece of the first Tynedale Bike Festival being staged at Kielder Castle. Amongst the activities available will be the chance to try out Kielder’s new purpose-built trails, test ride the latest bikes, get a trained mechanic to tune your bike and off-load (or acquire) some lightly-used bike gear at a “bike boot sale”. There’ll also be an off-road treasure hunt for the younger riders.

Riders taking part in the Reiver Challenge compete on in various categories and get five hours to plot a route between 30 control stations. Each check-point carries a different score, which are tallied-up to produce a final ranking. The event forms part of the TCA’s Trail Quest Regional Championships and the North East Mountain Bike Orienteering Series 2006. On the day event registration is between 8.30am and 9.30am at Kielder Castle. Entry fees are from £10 and registration forms are available by contacting 01434 220242, faxing 01434 220756 or by email from Nicola Swailes. For more details on the Bike Festival contact Kielder Castle on 01434 250209.