Everything you need to know about the first round of National DH Series at Cwmcarn

The opening round of the 2018 HSBC National Downhill Series is just round the corner and we’ve got everything you need to know about the race at Cwmcarn.

The 2018 HSBC British Cycling National Downhill Series kicks off at Cwmcarn, South Wales on April 7th and 8th.

The race marks the beginning of the re-launched British National Downhill Series with round 1 organised by the team behind Welsh Gravity Enduro.

For years British national downhill races have been the breeding ground for Britain's domination of the top 20 at the UCI Downhill World Cup. Danny Hart, Gee Atherton, Rachel Atherton, Manon Carpenter and Steve Peat all honed their skills at British National races to become World Cup winners and World Champions.

It has been over a decade since national downhill visited Cwmcarn, won previously by Gee Atherton. The track has seen plenty of improvements since then including newly shaped jumps to please the crowds in the bottom section. Whatever the weather, Cwmcarn promises a great weekend of high speed and technical racing.

The track and the venue

The race track will be approximately 1.9km long with a vertical drop of 250m. Cwmdown, the official uplift service at Cwmcarn and Pearce Cycles will provide the uplift services to guarantee plenty of riding for anyone on track.

The race venue will be open from Friday 6th for racers to walk the course, with practice all day on Saturday and Sunday morning.

Spectators are welcome

Spectators are very welcome at the event, with a £5 charge per car to enter the venue.

The event village will guarantee a good show for racers and spectators alike. It will host the tech and team pits, bike wash and toilets and is based alongside the track's finish line. It's the ideal place to meet the racers, rub shoulders with some downhill legends and watch the action. Catering will be provided by Brian from "Drink Up" who will be onsite from Friday-Sunday.

There are showers and alternative cafe facilities on site at the visitor centre which are open from 9am till 5pm.

There is strictly no parking at the visitor centre.

Supporting the event

Silverfish/Fox UK and Sprung Suspension will be on hand in the tech area to sort any suspension issues. Stans No Tubes will be able to top up or help anyone with any tubeless issues, while Team Leslie Bike Shop/Bikers Boutique will keep your bike running smooth should you have any problems. Vee Tire UK will be able to help with any tyre issues over the weekend.

Schwalbe Tyres are partnering with British Cycling for the series to offer free tubes and tyre repairs over the weekend along with spot prizes and marshal prizes.

There will also be spot prizes from The mountain Bike Chalet and East Coast Adventure Centre, both offering a holiday each worth over £400. Category sponsors include Vee Tire Co, Leisure Lakes Bikes, Pro-Green MX, Pedal A Bike Away, Race Co Cycles, Mule MTB Apparel, Stans No Tubes and Wickens & Soderstrom.

British Cycling will provide cash prizes to the Elite and Junior Men and Women's categories.

Entries available

Entries for the event close 23:55 on Sunday April 1st and at the time of writing, the event is already 80% full.

A valid BC race licence is required to race the event in all categories except Sport Open.

Team's wishing to book pro-pits can do so via the British Cycling website.

Event schedule

Race Runs

There will be a 30 second gap between each rider on race runs, with the exception of the following:

• Elite Women 1:00 minute gap between each rider
• Elite Men 1:00 minute gap between each rider – 20th to 11th
• Elite Men 2:00 minute gap between each rider – Top 10

Friday 6th April

• 08:00-23:00 Venue open (Pit/Camping spaces allocated via pre-booking only)
• 16:00-17:30 Commissaire course walk / inspection
• 18:00 Course open for on-foot inspection
• 15:00-18:00 Registration office open
• 23:00 Venue closed – no access. Security on site from 20:00

Saturday 7th April

• 07:00 Venue open. Course open for on-foot inspection
• 07:30-09:30 Registration office opens
• 09:00 1st Uplift
• 09:30 Training – all categories EXCLUDING Elite / Expert
• 10:30 Training – all categories
• 15:00 Full runs only
• 17:00 Training – Expert / Elite and top 5 ranked Juniors
• 17:30 Last uplift
• 18:00 Course closed
• 18:15 Riders / Managers meeting
• 18:30 Course open for on-foot inspection
• 23:00 Venue closed. Security on site from 20:00

Sunday 8th April

• 07:00 Venue open
• 08:15 1st uplift
• 08:30 Training – All categories, full runs only
• 10:45-11:00 Training – ELITE only
• 11:15 Seeding runs
• 14:00 Race runs
• 17:00 Presentation – top 5 each class
• 19:00 Venue closed and cleared.

Getting to Cwmcarn by Car:

From junction 28 of the M4, follow the A467 heading north. You should see a sign for Cwmcarn Forest Drive at one of the roundabouts, turn right here, then after 150 yards or so, you'll see another sign to turn left. Go up the lane over all the speed bumps, you can either pull into the main car park on the right.

There is strictly no parking at the visitor's centre.

For those of you using sat-nav, use NP11 7FA, this will take you close to the visitor centre, but some Satnavs will lead you to a side street just around the corner. Cwmcarn Forest Drive is well sign posted, so once you get close, just follow the signs.

By Train:

You can catch a train from Cardiff platform zero to Crosskeys, this is just around the corner from Cwmcarn, about 4-5 minutes on your bike.

You can find out more about Round 1 of the National Downhill Series at welshgravityenduro.com