According to a draft schedule, next year's 2008 National Mountain Bike Series (NMBS) will visit eight American venues throughout the season, including new locations - one East coast venue in New York and one in Idaho for the finals. The series jumps up from seven to eight venues. One stop not on the docket for 2008 is in Angel Fire, New Mexico.
The season will open at warm weather venues starting the final weekend of March in Fontana, Calfornia, with Round #1, which will include cross country and gravity events. The next weekend, April 5-6, it will move to Fountain Hills, Arizona, just outside of Phoenix, for a cross-country and Super-D only Round #2. The NOVA national will be the only one without a full slate of gravity events.
A May 17-18 Round #3 stop will take racers back to Los Olivos, California, for the Santa Ynez National. Then June's Round #4 will be hosted in Deer Valley, Utah. Back to back East coast stops follow during the first two weekends in July, including July 5-6 Round #5 at Sugar Mountain, North Carolina, and July 12-13 Round #6 at Windham Resort, New York. The latter is a new venue for the NMBS Series in the Catskill mountains.
After a break for US Nationals, which will be held again in Mount Snow, Vermont, the penultimate round is set for Snowmass, Colorado, on August 16-17. Snowmass hosted the finals in 2007 when Geoff Kabush (Team Maxxis) won both the short track and cross country overalls for the men. Team Luna dominated the women's series with Georgia Gould taking the cross country and Katerina Nash winning the short track classification.
2008 finals will conclude in at Tamarack Resort in McCall, Idaho, on September 6-7.
The Fontana, NOVA, Santa Ynez Valley, Deer Valley and Final rounds will offer UCI cross country points. Santa Ynez and Tamarack will award C2 points while the others will award C1 points.
2008 NMBS Schedule
March 29 - 30: NMBS #1
Fontana National, Southridge Park, Fontana, California (XCO/DHI/ST/4X/Super D)
April 5 - 6: NMBS #2
NOVA National, McDowell Mountain Regional Park, Fountain Hills, Arizona (XCO/ST/Super D)
May 17- 18: NMBS #3
Santa Ynez Valley National, Ted Chamberlin Ranch, Los Olivos, California (XCO/DHI/DS/ST/Super D)
June 28 - 29: NMBS #4
Deer Valley National, Deer Valley Resort, Park City, Utah (XCO/DHI/DS/ST/Super D)
July 5 – 6: NMBS #5
Showdown at Sugar National Sugar Mountain Resort Village, Sugar Mountain, North Carolina (XCO/DHI/ST/DS/Super D)
July 12 – 13: NMBS #6
East Coast National Windham Resort, Windham, New York (XCO/DHI/DS/ST/Super D)
August 16 – 17: NMBS #7
Snowmass National, Aspen-Snowmass Resort Snowmass, Colorado (XCO/DHI/4X/ST/Super D)
September 6 - 7: NMBS #8
National Mountain Bike Series Finals, Tamarack Resort, McCall, Idaho (XCO/DHI/DS/ST/Super D)
Final confirmation of the 2008 schedule is expected soon from Blue Wolf Events.
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