Back in February we reported that the World Cup DH and 4-Cross events on 1st and 2nd June at Fort William had received funding from the SportScotland lottery fund. The event organisers have shifted up a gear in making preparations since then, and we can now bring you more details on the Scottish event, as well as the full World Cup schedule.

The Fort William event is part of an eight-venue series that determines overall World Cup rankings (for a full list of fixtures see below). Once again the series, comprised of cross-country, downhill and 4-cross, is being sponsored by Tissot. Fort William is hosting downhill and 4-cross events.

The Downhill will take place on a modified version of the permanent Off Beat Downhill Course, a spectacular track that drops 525m in 2.6km. The course has fantastic views of Ben Nevis, the sea lochs of Loch Linnhe and Loch Eil and the islands of the Inner Hebrides, not that competitors wil be gazing round at the scenery. It’s one of the longest and most demanding courses on the 2002 World Cup circuit and is the longest DH course in the UK.

Competitors and spectators will be ferried to the top of the course via the Nevis Range Gondola, a mountain cableway used for skiing in the winter.

For anyone who doesn’t know already, 4-Cross is a new competition to the World Cup to replace the dual event, and the Fort William race will be the first 4-Cross event in the series. Four riders start together and battle down a custom-built course of berms, jumps, step ups and other testing features. The two fastest proceed to the next round until the ultimate winner is crowned.

For spectators there’s going to be a special World Cup Village which will occupy most of the Nevis Range car park and the finish arena. As well as the Team Technical area there will be Trade stands offering mountain bike goodies, demonstrations, competitions, food and drink, live music and what the organisers call “some unusual entertainment”. The mind boggles.

Due to the level of demand for the Gondola during the World Cup, organisers say that pre-booking of tickets will be essential (call 01397 705825 to book).

There are various types of tickets available from a single day pass (with no gondola access) to a full 3 day world cup pass. Prices start from £3 for children and £6 for adults. A full World Cup pass with up to three gondola trips costs between £25 (advance) and £35 for an adult. Family tickets are also available.

Radiating from the main car park are more than 50km of established mountain bike trails into the Leanachan Forest. So as a spectator you’ll have chance to get out and do some riding of your own.

Getting there
The competition site itself is about 9km to the east of Fort William, and 7k away from the nearest parking (1,800 places) at the ski-centre, but shuttle buses will operate from off-site parking as well as from train and bus stations in Fort William.

For further details and the complete programme will be updated on the event website (not yet complete) fortwilliamworldcup.co.uk

Who can enter?
The UCI MTB World Cup is a competition for Elite MTB riders with a UCI License (consequently they must also be a British Cycling member).

The Downhill competition is only open to riders who have a UCI ranking. To get a UCI ranking riders must have at least 1 UCI point which can be obtained from an event on the international calendar. A rider can check if they have a point or not on the UCI website.

Any rider who has a point will be contacted by British Cycling at least 6 weeks before the event with a form so they can enter. British Riders can only enter via British Cycling.

A Junior rider (Born 85 / 84) can also enter the world cup but they must have permission from their governing body and a UCI point.

The 4X competition is open to Elite and Junior riders with a UCI license but they DO NOT have to have a UCI point to compete – once again entries for British riders are handled by Chris Furber at British Cycling.

Chris Furber
British Cycling

National Cycling Centre

Stuart Street

Manchester

M11 4DQ

Tel: 0870 871 2000
www.bcf.uk.com.