2024
Women’s Race Series
Thanks to Burnside Women’s Health, we are hosting an
all-female race series in 2024.
There are three races, each a different MTB discipline, so you can try them all out.
If you have never raced before and are curious what it’s all about, this series is for you. If you’re an experienced racer wanting the chance to race with a group of awesome female riders, this series is also for you.
There will be competitive categories for those wishing to challenge themselves, along with non-competitive “just for fun” categories, for those wishing to soak up the event experience and get to ride on closed trails without the pressure of competition. You can either race as an individual or enter as part of a team.
There will be a cross-country (XCM), a gravity enduro (GE) and a downhill (DH) race. You can race one or race them all. The series will be supported by guided reccy rides so you can test the waters before you jump in.
You will find the races and reccy rides in our calendar, with more of the nitty gritty details you need to know below. You can check out our socials to stay up to date too.
RACE INFO
RACE INFO
Cross Country Race
Date: 24th March
Venue: Craigburn Farm
Our Women’s Race Series kicks off with an XC race at Craigburn Farm. This will be a fun event to get everyone into the race groove. It will be a three-hour cross-country marathon-style race where you do as many laps of a course as you can in three hours. You can do it on your own or in a team. Check out the course preview below.
Course Preview
Will Ride Gravity Enduro Race
Date: 7th April
Venue: O’Halloran Hill Recreation Park
Presented by Will Ride, the second race in the Burnside Women’s Health Race Series is a Gravity Enduro. Essentially, gravity enduro means the descents are timed, and the climbs are not. Riders will complete between 3-5 stages with at least 30 seconds to the rider in front, and then cruise up the hill with mates.
Course Preview
Forestry SA/Fox Creek Bike Park Downhill Race
Date: 14th April
Venue: Fox Creek Bike Park
Presented by Forestry SA / Fox Creek Bike Park, the final race of the Burnside Women’s Health 2024 Women’s Race Series is a downhill race. This means shuttles! We will race at Fox Creek Bike Park on a blue trail (Blue Groove) and will have all the good vibes to finish off the season.
Course Preview
Event Recap
A bit more about racing and the race series
Racing is an opportunity to ride on closed trails in a controlled environment and test your own abilities as a rider. There are a number of different disciplines of mountain bike racing. Our race series covers 3 of the more popular disciplines, Cross Country Marathon, Gravity Enduro and Downhill.
Races are governed by AusCycling technical regulations, which in turn comply with UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale) regulations. These regulations have been developed to ensure the safety of all participants and to encourage fair competition.
At each race there will be a race village set up, where riders can congregate before and after races and where there will be food, toilets and medical support available. There will also be a dedicated parking area close to the race village. Racers are asked to observe signage or directions from the parking attendant and park in the dedicated parking areas.
There will be a registration area in the race village. Riders are required to register when they arrive at the race and receive their race plate and timing chip. Riders must return their timing chip at the end of the race.
If you are new to racing, please let the people know on registration. We will have a small team of race mentors to help out on the day and we can also answer any questions you may have.
There will be a riders briefing given by the race director prior to each race, where key information about the race will be provided. It is compulsory for all riders to attend the riders briefing.
Overall Series
Riders in the competitive categories will be able to compete for individual race wins and points from the 3 races will accumulate towards an overall series championship.
Individual and Team Entries
Riders can either compete as individuals, or as part of a team of two. For riders that nominate to be a part of a team, they will race as a team at the Cross Country XCM race. For the Gravity Enduro and Downhill races, the pair will have their times added together for that race to determine team points for that race.
There will be a series pairs championship winner for each of the junior and senior competitive categories. We will also award an individual series championship winner of the competitive categories in the same manner. Riders may not compete for both the individual and the teams series award.
Due to unknown entry numbers, we won’t be offering an E-bike team category, and E-bike riders will only be able to compete Solo. In future years we may offer E-bike teams if there is sufficient demand.
Prizes will not be awarded in the “just for fun” non-competitive categories.
Categories
The series will offer the following female categories
Senior competitive
Senior “Just for fun”
E-bike
Junior (combined U17/19 age group) competitive
Junior (combined U13/15 age group) competitive
In the XCM race, all categories will either be able to be raced solo or as a relay team of two (pairs). For the other races, competitors can nominate a team name to compete for the overall series title in a team of two.
Points
Points from each race will be allocated to award an overall race series champion for each of the competitive categories.
Licensing requirements
All riders will be required to have a race off-road’ AusCycling Licence as minimum. Day licences and 4-week free trials will be accepted. Riders from other clubs will be accepted.
Riders may be asked to show their licence details upon registration, so please make sure you have your licence information available (you can download into you digital wallet).
For more information on licencing see https://www.auscycling.org.au/membership.
If you currently have a lifestyle membership and wish to upgrade to a race licence you can do so here.
Minimum equipment
Each race has its own minimum equipment and clothing requirements, which are specified in more detail within the race information below.
All riders must wear an Australian Standard Helmet (AS/NZS 2063) while riding for the duration of the event. This includes around the village and on liaison stages.
All bikes must have working and effective front and rear hand brakes, bar plugs, ‘MTB style tyres’ and flat bars. It is recommended (although not required) for bikes to have gears and suspension.
E-bikes are permitted, however they must race in the dedicated E-Bike category. E-Bikes must be commercially available, not be modified or chipped and comply with AusCycling Technical Regulations for E-Bikes.
Timing and race plates
Race plates will be provided to participants at the first race of the series. Competitors will keep their race plates for the duration of the race series and are expected to bring their own race plate to each event. If riders forget their race plates, they will be charged $50 for a replacement plate.
Race book
All the key information on each of the races is available in our race book.
