LONDON may have won the bid for the 2012 Olympics, and Manchester staged the 2002 Commonwealth Games, but this year, it’s Ryedale’s turn to host a world-class sporting competition.

For the first time ever, Dalby Forest will be the focus of the UCI Mountain Bike XCO World Cup, and preparations are now well under way to turn this beauty spot into a venue which will play host to international competitors, spectators flocking to see the event, and the world’s media, whose eyes will be turned to the opening event being held here in April – the first time in 11 years that the event has taken place in the UK.

The Forestry Commission, British Cycling, UK Sport, Welcome to Yorkshire, Yorkshire Forward and other local partners put in a bid last year to stage a leg of the event, which is taking place between April and September at locations around the world, including Belgium, Austria, Germany, Italy and the USA.

“The Forestry Commission was approached by Yorkshire Forward to put in a regional bid,” said Alan Eves, forest management director with the Forestry Commission in the North York Moors, who lives in Sinnington, and is a keen cyclist himself.

“We presented a whole package, as we have a track record of successful partnerships, delivering projects on time, being a single landowner, having an infrastructure in place, a reputation for great mountain biking, in house expertise and a track record of hosting and delivering events.”

A test event was held in early May last year, which was inspected by the Union Cycling International (UCI), the world’s cycling governing body, and the bid was made in June.

“We were asked if we would host the opening event in April,” said Alan.

“The opening event is the biggest one. It’s where the series kicks-off, with the most competitors and entrants – we’re expecting 700, including 150 of the elite men, who are the best cross-country mountain bikers in the world.”

The event starts on Friday, April 23, with a town centre Pro-Sprint Eliminator, featuring some of the world’s best riders racing against the clock in Pickering. This will be followed by the opening ceremony, with the town’s bars and restaurants opening late.

The action moves to Dalby Forest on Saturday with the Junior World Cup for 16-18 year olds in the morning, and in the afternoon, the public has a chance to try out the World Cup course ahead of the elite riders.

Following this, the Dalby Dare will challenge 400 brave men and women to test their own time against the world’s best elite riders.

The weekend culminates on Sunday, April 25, with the Elite Men’s and Women’s World Cup, with more than four hours of adrenaline fuelled racing, and Adderstone Field will be the event arena, where there will be plenty to see and do, including a tourism and equipment expo, activity zones, food and drink stalls and much more.

The event is perfect for a family day out and for fans of mountain biking alike, and Alan says that they are expecting at least 5,000 visitors on the Sunday.

And spectators will not only be able to soak up the atmosphere, but will also have the opportunity to ride the trails around Dalby during the weekend, including the world cup course.

“This is everyone’s world cup – it will be a spectacular event with a really good atmosphere,” said Alan.

“A whole team of Forestry Commission staff, most of whom are based at Dalby, are taking the event forward – British Cycling is running the event, and the Forestry Commission is facilitating it.”

Work on the purpose-built crosscountry course, which has cost £100,000, started in September, after much planning by civil engineer Martin O’Vaster, who designed the course; specialist MBT trail builder Hugh Clixby, who built it; and cycle ranger Stuart Startup, plus British Cycling coaches, and elite riders Nick Craig and Oli Beckingsale.

“There’s quite a specific requirement for a course like this,” said Stuart, who manages the cycling infrastructure at Dalby and other locations.

“There are hill climbs, overtaking areas, turning sections – we’re just tweaking small sections at the moment.”

The course itself is six-anda- half kilometres, which will be done in laps – seven, in the case of the elite men’s race.

“It’s made of 1,500 tonnes of local stone, and is perfect for all-weather cycling,” said Stuart.

“There’s a 500m-long climb and we have named some of the features, such as Worry Gill, Medusa’s Drop, Dixon’s Hollow and the Rabbit Run, which should get quite a following after the event. It’s a tough course and even Oli Beckingsale, one of the best riders in the country, said that it should be a challenge.”

The world cup course was due to open in January, but because of the weather, the team is now hoping it will be open in mid-February.

And, following the world cup, it will leave a legacy for cyclists using Dalby Forest, as it is a permanent course, so cyclists will be able to use it throughout the year.

“It will also leave a further legacy in that other events can be held, such as duathlons, orienteering and sponsored events, and even running events,” said Alan.

Thousands of tourists are expected to flock to the event, boosting the local economy, local B&Bs, restaurants and other businesses.

As well as this, local people will be able to watch a world-class sporting competition on their own doorsteps.

“We will also be facilitating and promoting sustainable transport, so there will be cycling links from Thornton-le-Dale and Pickering directly to the site,” said Alan.

Although access to the forest over the weekend will be free, there will be parking charges, as well as ticket prices for entry to the world cup events, available from www.ticketmaster.

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