“When I start a new project, I know I have many many chances not to finish, but that’s not a failure, that’s an opportunity to try it again” Kilian Jornet

Overview

#XDW18 runs on the first weekend in July​​:
The 2017 event is open from April to end of September:
  • If you missed the 1-2 April 2017 weekend but still fancy racing this route with a couple of mates, follow the entry instructions below and get riding... we'll announce the winner in October.

​​Key points:
  • This is the first time the event has been run so it will be very much a test event; we're going to keep it small and low-key to minimise problems but don't get your chamois in a twist if things don't work out as planned.
  • The route is 295km long with 6,700m of ascent and lots of off-road (>25% of the distance), to be ridden in two days.
  • The race consists of 5 segments (in red below) made up of ~145km and ~3900m of climbing, lowest aggregate time wins.
  • The off-road sections of this route are rough so >30mm tyres are encouraged but of course you can do whatever you want.
The photos above show what kind of terrain you'll encounter which should help when deciding what bike setup to go for... a gravel/adventure/cx bike with ~35mm tyres would be ideal.

Race Manual

v003 of the Race Manual is now live. It contains enough information so you can decide if you wish to enter the race.  If yes, then book your transport/accommodation now and sign-up to the matesrace event.  All the details are in the Race Manual to the right.

The final (v100) race manual and route will be published prior to the start of the race. 

You are advised to record on multiple GPS devices in case a segment isn't picked up on your primary GPS.

Entry

  1. Join our club on Strava if not already a member
  2. Click “I’m in” on the Strava Event
  3. Take part in the event on matesrace
  4. Star each segment so they appear in Strava (see Section 3.3 of race manual above for segment details)
  5. Spread the word about the race using #crossdurowales17 hashtag

Results

A brief history of the CrossduroWales race

This event started life in 2016 when the Welsh Tourist Board asked one of the team to come up with a ride as part of The Great Weekend of Adventure.

On 2-3 April 2016 a group of four rode the trails at Antur Stiniog trial centre in Snowdonia on the Saturday, semi-reluctantly boshed it 250km across Wales, in time for a quick ceremonial run down a trail at Bike Park Wales in Brecon Beacons late Sunday afternoon.

Was it a good idea to grind out a 250km ride on full suspension bikes on A-roads?  No. 
Was it the start of something beautiful? Yes.
 
After months of recces the CrossduroWales route was borne.  The Crossduro format strikes the perfect balance between sociable riding and all-out racing.  The stories told over the campfire on the Saturday night add to the camaraderie that this race creates.

See you on the start line next year.