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WELCOME
We are delighted to be welcoming you to Round 1 of the 2023 Scottish Mountain Bike Cross-Country series. With a new team at the helm, we’re excited to be kickstarting the 2023 season at the same place as last year - Comrie Croft. This is a fun and thrilling venue, and we’re extremely grateful to the team at Comrie Croft for all their work in preparation for this year’s event. Please be sure to pop into the bike shop on the day, say hello and browse their extensive range of cycling stock!
REMEMBERING RAB WARDELL
As we make our final preparations for this weekends race, there is one number that will not appear on the start sheet.
806 was Rab Wardell’s number at the last event we hosted, the Scottish Championships in Kirroughtree in August.
Rab loved the SXC, whether racing himself or inspiring and encouraging others. As a community our events will be a little quieter without him, but we’re sure that generations that follow in his tyre tracks will continue to make Scottish MTB XC what it is.
Before the whistle goes for Race 3 this Sunday, we’d like all riders on the start line to join us for one minute of applause in memory of Rab.
As he would say - bikes are gid!
YOUR 2023 SXC TEAM
Event Organiser(s) - Fraser Johnston / Kate Jackson
Chief Marshal - Ruth Kennedy
Event Welfare Officer - Lesley Archibald
Social Media - Reuben Allanson
Equipment - Callum McNicol
DATE
Sunday 19 March 2023
EVENT LOCATION
Comrie Croft, Comrie, Perthshire PH7 4JZ
PARKING & CAMPING DETAILS
Please buy a day parking ticket in advance here for £5. We can take payment on the day but it is so much easier if you pay in advance. All income covers the cost of delivering the event. One ticket per vehicle, follow signs for parking on arrival (one way system in operation, with parking in a field adjacent to the normal Car Park). Please park considerately and don’t take up too much space! You can camp on the Saturday night before the race. Tents, motorhomes & campervans are all permitted but must be self-sufficient as there is no electric hook-up. You can only pay in advance here
NEAREST A&E DEPARTMENT
Perth Royal Infirmary
Taymount Terrace
Perth PH1 1NX
EVENT CATEGORY
MTB XC Regional A run under British Cycling regulations.
SXC Racing Guide available on our website here.
SXC Series Regulations available on our website here.
RACE HQ LOCATION
Up the hill, behind the Croft. Please follow the fire road up to the Event HQ and please note that the Pits are some way up the hill so give yourself plenty of time to get up here before the race starts as they can only be accessed by walking up the fire road which is part of the race route.
COURSE MAP – MAIN COURSE
Please note – the course may be altered between publication of this document and the day of the event. Any significant alterations will be communicated by the Chief Commissaire during the pre-race briefing. Always follow course markings.
EVENT COMMISSAIRES
Averil Milligan (Chief Commissaire)
Trevor Williams (Commissaire 2)
Helen Findlay (Commissaire 3)
TIMING
Electronic chip timing provided by Timing Up North. We will confirm on the day where results can be found.
EVENT MARSHALS
Marshals at our events are all volunteers, and without them giving up their time, you wouldn’t be able to race. So please be nice to them! If you know anyone who could join this awesome group of people at the event - even if it’s for only part of the day!
Sign up to volunteer via our Google Form here.
All volunteer enquiries should email Chief Marshal Ruth Kennedy at Volunteer@sxc.org.uk
RACE DAY TIMETABLE
FIRST AID
Event first aid provided by MX Medical, who will be based in a gazebo at Event HQ. Should you need first aid, or become aware of anyone else who does, please let an official or a marshal know, or just go and see them.
TECHNICAL/FEED ZONE
The area marked PITS on the course map is available for rider feeding and technical assistance. Please refer to the regulations on what’s allowed and what isn’t, and please take care not to obstruct riders passing the technical/feed zone. It is possible to move between the two technical zones during the race, if you do so, please ensure that you do not obstruct any riders during their race while moving between the two locations.
UNDER 8/UNDER 10 RACES
At this first round, we’re delighted that these races will be run as part of Scottish Cycling’s Experience the Worlds programme, an initiative connected to this year's 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships. There’s been huge demand for these races and as such we are going to split them as follows:
1300 - Under 8 Girls
1315 - Under 8 Boys
1330 - Under 10 Girls
1350 - 2013 Boys
1410 - 2014 Boys
Entries are available on the day for £10.
Sign on opens at 1130 and closes at 1230. All riders can practice the course from around 1200 onwards.
We need parents/guardians to volunteer as course marshals to make this possible! Please make yourself known to the organisers if you can help!
COURSE INSPECTION & PRACTICE
The main course will be open for inspection by riders from Saturday at 4pm. The Chief Commissaire has to fully inspect the course beforehand and sign it off before we can allow access. Please do not ride the course before this and be aware members of the public may be on the course.
Course inspection on Saturday is not supported by event first aid and is undertaken at your own risk. Please keep this in mind and ride to your own limits!
Race day practice, supported by first aid and event marshals, is available to all riders at the times shown on the race day timetable. We recommend all riders take the opportunity to practice the course. Please ensure you have your race number attached before accessing the course, marshals are instructed to prevent access to the course by anyone without a race number.
GRIDDING
Gridding will be carried out as follows:
For Round 1, the previous years National Rankings will be used to determine gridding position.
For riders who have moved up an age category or didn’t compete in the previous season, the Event Organiser in consultation with the Race Officials will place them fairly within the gridding list.
For riders who have no ranking points and haven’t raced previously, you will be placed randomly on the gridding list at Round 1 after the above riders have been placed.
The gridding rules do not apply to the Under 8, 10, 12 or Taster categories which will all be gridded at random.
RACE DURATION
The number of laps each category will race for will be confirmed on the day before the race and posted on our social media channels. A board showing this information will also be available at sign-on.
EVENT CATERING
We’ll be joined at Comrie by Well-Fired Pizza and Bumblebean Coffee within the Event Village and the Bonnie Mountain truck next to the Bike Shop - be sure to check them out!
LIVE STREAMING
Race 3 (which includes Junior riders) will be live streamed on YouTube between 13:45 & 16:00 on Sunday 19th March. Reuben Allanson from xcomtb will monitor the live stream. The footage will be uploaded to YouTube after the live has ended & viewable to the public. The live stream will be set to public.
If you wish to revoke your consent please email web@xcomtb.com stating your name, this only applies if you are under 18.
PHOTOGRAPHY
British Cycling’s are currently piloting an accreditation system to record details of all individuals wishing to use telescopic or zoom lens photography. This supports safeguarding, child protection and good practice policies and procedures.
All individuals fitting this criteria must attend the Event HQ desk and provide their name, address and contact details. This information must be confirmed by production of ID details (eg driving licence, passport etc). Once your ID has been checked you will be issued with a media vest which you need to wear to identify yourself as an event photographer.
Riders reserve the right to refuse permission to be photographed. Riders who do not give permission will be asked to identify themselves by displaying a red band on their handlebars and and will have circular red stickers on their number board. If you inadvertently take a photograph of a rider wearing a red wrist band, please delete this and do not publish the photo.
MENTAL HEALTH, WELLBEING & SUPPORT
This year we're yet again pleased to offer a dedicated Sports Chaplaincy service, for anyone at the event who'd like a bit of practical, emotional, mental or spiritual support on the day - a shoulder to cry on or just someone to talk to. It's OK to not be OK! Ruth Kennedy is our SXC sports chaplain – just ask a marshal or the sign-on team and she’ll find you.