It’s only a little more than a week before the 2005 Selkirk round of the Merida 100 Marathon series. Entries are coming in thick and fast but there are still places available for the Selkirk and Ruthin round of the series. We’re up to about 800 Selkirk entries so far, which means that we’re getting very close to the maximum amount of riders we can cope with. If you’re interested in the Selkirk round make sure you get your entry in quick. If you haven’t heard about the feedback this event had at its premier last year check out the report on the MTB-Marathon website. The easiest and quickest way to enter is to go to our entry page on the Marathon website. Fill your details in there and make sure that you send your cheque straight after – if we only get your details throught the website you don’t have an entry. Alternatively you can still send a SAE for an entry form to: The Merida 100 MTB Marathon Enduro Series, Attn: John Lloyd, Builth Wells Cycles, Weston House, West Street, Builth Wells, Powys, LD2 3AH. We can receive post and entries up to Friday the 29th July. We will let you know next week about the possibility of entering on the line and other last minute updates like weather and course conditions. The course is largely unchanged from last year, with the addition of some singletrack sections. There’ll be 50, 70 and 85km options.

Most of the riders who took part in the Merida 100 “on holiday” in Austria have been back in touch and told us what a great time they had. Most of them have recovered from the rather tough ride and are getting ready for the last two rounds of the Merida 100 series. For all the ones that missed out on the great Austria round or want to have another look, there are a couple of other fantastic short trip options available where you can experience the World Cup course in Bad Goisern or even do a three day trip around the Dachstein. Check out the details here. There are still some places available and we believe that they are well worth the trip.

Selkirk will have a busy trade area, with T-shirts from Ten Rapid, Ergon grips from Fine-ADC (give them a go in the event – if you like them, you can buy them at a special price afterwards), Manitou and other stuff (plus tech support) from Raw Experience and women’s clothing from Minx-girl. Plus a bouncy castle for the kids and a massage tent for the riders. Spot prizes will be coming from Merida, Schwalbe, Sugoi, High5 and Vertebrate Graphics.

If you need a warm up, there’ll be a “Pedro’s Spin” ride on Saturday – email [email protected] if you want to take part. All the event facilities will be available from Friday afternoon until Monday morning – Selkirk’s Rugby Club is event HQ. Registration is open from noon until 8pm on Saturday 30 July and 7-9am on Sunday. Full details at www.mtb-marathon.co.uk.