Scottish Borders to host festival

The Scottish Borders will host a multi-sport adventure festival on July 5-6 in the UK. In addition to an ACE Race adventure race and a 12km Dirty Dozen trail run, mountain bikers will have the chance to tackle the Polaris Challenge.

The two-day Polaris Challenge is a joint challenge of navigation and endurance. Mountain bikers much reach as many checkpoints as possible within the allotted times. Riders will be given a list of checkpoints and sent out from the base camp at Traquair where they ride for between five and seven hours before returning to base to receive further instructions. As a two day event, riders will camp over night before taking on the second half of the challenge and will finish mid-afternoon allowing plenty of time to enjoy the festival atmosphere at the main event village.

The weekend's activities are part of regional efforts to establish the South of Scotland as a UK destination for mountain biking and adventure sports.