NORBA marathon series starts this weekend

The NOVA Desert Classic, the first stop on the 2006 National Mountain Bike Series (NMBS), is set to showcase some of the country’s top pro and amateur mountain bike riders at McDowell Regional Park Friday in Fountain Hills, Arizona.

Reborn in 2003 out of the ashes of Arizona’s long-standing Cactus Cup, the NOVA Desert Classic has continued to be a popular early season race for pro riders. With the venue so close to the metropolitan areas of Phoenix and Scottsdale, Ariz., the NMBS is making good on their promise to make mountain biking more accessible to urban areas.

“The course that the Marathon riders will race on is called ‘Competitive Track’ and was designed and built specifically for mountain bike racing by the racing community,” said Jerry Sieve, director of Team NOVA, a youth-oriented cycling foundation.

The NOVA Desert Classic encompasses plenty of racing and non-racing events for everyone from kids to the pros. The Marathon race is the only event that will count towards NMBS series points. The National Mountain Bike Series continues May 5-7, in Southern California with a multitude of downhill, cross country, and short track races that will count towards NMBS points.