Mountain bikers in 24-hour event

Mountain bikers in 24-hour event

8 November 2017

FIFTY adrenaline chasing mountain bikers took to the forest trails in Castlewellan Forest Park recently for a 24-hour endurance event.

The mountain bikers were taking part in Mourne Psycle 24, a unique event for Northern Ireland, featuring riders attempting to complete as many laps of a 14km route as possible in a 24 -hour period. 

They were allowed no sleep, little rest and hours riding in the dark around the park.

Event organiser, Martin McMullan, from Life Adventure Centre, in Castlewellan, said  the atmosphere at the event was special.

“We had tried the eight hour Psycle last year which went great, but this is the first time we’ve done a 24-hour endurance event and thankfully the reaction we’ve received has been fantastic,” he said. 

“The atmosphere was special, even when the riders were getting it tight in the small hours of the morning.”

Castlewellan also saw a great buzz from the event as, in addition to the influx of mountain bikers, a small army of supporters travelled to the town to cheer the riders on.

Castlewellan Mountain Bike Trails are some of the most popular in Northern Ireland, with hundreds of riders tackling the 19km of red trails, 4.5km of blue trails and the more difficult black options every month. 

The trails also play host to several mountain bike competitions throughout the year, including the Vitus First Tracks Enduro Cup and the Ulster XC Series.

The winner of the solo category at last weekends event was Ger Jackson from Giant Dublin Off-Road team. Ger successfully completed a staggering 22 laps of the 14km course.

Ethan Loughrey from MountainBikeNI.com was thrilled to see the event taking place in Castlewellan. “We’re very fortunate in Northern Ireland to have such fantastic mountain bike trails,” he said.

‘Riding through the heart of the Mournes is an attractive appeal to anyone, and doing so at such a well organised event with riders from all over Ireland taking part is a real treat. Everyone that took part deserves a huge congratulations.”

For information on upcoming events taking place at Castlewellan Mountain Bike Trails or at any of the other mountain bike trail centres in Northern Ireland visit MountainBikeNI.com.