Everything you need to know about the 2nd round of National DH Series at Fort William
The 2018 HSBC British Cycling National Downhill Series continues with its second round at Nevis Range, Fort William in Scotland on May 12th and 13th.
The Fort William British national race is a favourite for the sport’s big guns who use it as a warm for the upcoming World Cup at the same venue. The sold-out field includes homegrown heroes Danny Hart, Brendan Fairclough, Gee Atherton, Rachel Atherton and Tahnee Seagrave as well as international elites Thibaut and Gaetan Ruffin, Remi Thirion, Alexandre Fayolle and 2017 overall World Cup winner Myriam Nicole.
The race is the second in the brand new British National Downhill Series and is organised by the team behind the Scottish Downhill Association.
The Fort William British National event is a firm favourite with riders and offers them the chance to test their skills on the UK’s toughest race track. It is the UK’s only World Cup track and gives racers proper, first-hand experience of racing at an international level alongside some of the World’s fastest elites.
The race is classed as a UCI Category 1 event and is the only UK downhill event where elite riders can bag UCI points.
As an added bonus, the National 4X Series will race alongside the downhill with motos held on Saturday night and promises great action for riders and spectators.
The track and the venue
The race track descends 555m and is over 2.5km in length. It throws riders across a high speed mix of rocks, roots and big jumps with stunning views across Loch Linnhe. It’s one of the UK’s most challenging tracks with a race winning time coming in at around 4.5 minutes.
The race track will be taped out from 11th May and available for riders to walk the course, with official practice all day on Saturday and Sunday morning.
Spectators are welcome
As with all British National events, spectators are welcome. There will be no charge for spectators at this event.
The event village will guarantee the best show of the year for spectators with World Cup teams and riders in attendance. Spectators will be able to meet World Cup superstars and see their pro-pits, equipment and support crews in action. It’s a racing fan's best chance to meet their heroes outside of a World Cup. Almost all of the track is visible from the gondola, offering an unmatched experience of the racing.
The Nevis Range’s Pinemarten cafe will be open and serving freshly prepared food and drink from local suppliers to keep spectators and racers fuelled up. For those making the trip up on the gondola, the Snowgoose restaurant and bar offers great refreshments with stunning views and a great spot to watch the racing.
Supporting the event
The Shimano Tech Team, Sprung Suspension and Schwalbe tyres will be on hand to support the riders and there will be prizes from Horizon Watches, Start Fitness and more.
British Cycling will provide cash prizes to the Elite and Junior Men and Women’s categories.
Sold-out Field
Entries are now closed for the race and are not available in advance or on the day.
Event schedule
FRIDAY 11 MAY
08:00 23:00 Venue open
10:15 14:45 Gondola open with bike access
15:00 17:30 Commissaire course walk / inspection
16:00 Course open for on-foot inspection
15:00 20:00 Registration office open
23:00 Venue closed – no access
SATURDAY 12 MAY
07:00 Venue open. Course open for on-foot inspection
07:30 09:30 Registration office open
07:30 Marshal, media, commissaire, organiser, first aid, chief marshal briefing
08:15 1st gondola – Marshals and Medics
09:00 1st gondola – Riders
09:30 Training – all categories EXCLUDING Elite / Expert
10:30 Training – all categories
12:00 4X registration opens
13:00 4X practice (80% of the track)
15:00 Full runs only DHI and 4X gate practice
17:00 Training – Expert / Elite and top 5 ranked Juniors
17:30 Last gondola
18:00 DH Course closed and 4X motos
18:15 Riders / Managers meeting
18:30 Course open for on-foot inspection
23:00 Venue closed
SUNDAY 13 MAY
07:00 Venue open
07:30 Marshal, media, commissaire, organiser, first aid, chief marshal briefing
08:15 1st gondola
08:45 Training – All categories, full runs only
10:45 11:00 Training – ELITE only
11:15 Seeding runs
14:30 Race runs
17:45 Presentation – top 5 each class
19:00 Venue closed and cleared.
The venue:
The race is being held at:
Nevis Range,
Fort William,
Inverness-Shire,
Scotland,
PH33 6SW
By Car:
The postcode for Nevis Range ski area is PH33 6SQ.
By Air:
Inverness is the nearest airport though Glasgow and Edinburgh both offer frequent UK and international connections.
By Rail:
Fort William train station offers daily connections to and from Glasgow.
For more information on the event you can visit British Cycling’s website here.
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