Inaugural Nelson festival set for weekend

A weekend of fat tyre fun kicks off with the inaugural Nelson's Creek three-day mountain bike festival beginning Friday, September 7 in South Africa. Organized by Dirtopia, the festival will be hosted by Nelson's Creek Wine Estate and will draw upon the regional knowledge of the Paarl MTB Club.

"The MTB Festival will give participants the opportunity to sample some of the best mountain biking trails in the Boland area," said Dirtopia's Meurant Botha. Daily rides of three distances will be available: a short 15 – 25 km route, a medium 45 – 55 km route and a long and challenging 80 – 100 km route. Riders can decide whether they want to participate in the series of competitions or simply enjoy a weekend of social riding.

The main competition will take the form of a three-day, stage format race for individual riders tackling the long distance routes. The secondary competition is open to riders of the medium and short distances. A two-day competition is open to those who are unable to participate on the Friday, and combines the Saturday and Sunday route options.

For more information, visit www.3daymtb.wordpress.com or www.dirtopia.co.za.