Riders need more cowbells
Powell River is playing host this year to the BC High School Mountain Bike Championships and organizers are asking the public to come out with their cowbells and noisemakers to cheer the racers on.
The race is happening on Saturday, May 23, and will run all day from about 9 am to 5 pm.
It is the first time Powell River has hosted the event, but Brooks Secondary School mountain bike coaches Graham Cocksedge and James Hanson said they are planning to have the championships return again in a few years. The pair of coaches bid to host the event a few years before the Powell River bike and skate park was built, Cocksedge said.
Though the day will wind up at the skills park at Powell River Recreation Complex, with a barbecue for the riders, it will be Powell River’s trails that are of primary importance for the race.
Two venues are being set up, but spectators will not be forced to choose which portion of the race they want to see.
“Everyone will have the opportunity to see both if they want,” Cocksedge said, explaining that the morning cross-country races will take place near Haslam Lake on Bob’s Your Uncle, Cream Soda, 51 Dodge and Myrtle Springs trails. Then in the afternoon the enduro races will be held on the downhill course between the recreation complex and Marine Avenue.
Cocksedge said he hopes spectators can come out and cheer the riders on and show the province that the town supports competitive mountain biking.
Signs will be posted from the top of Haslam Road, past the water treatment plant, to direct people unfamiliar with the area. The race start is about 10 minutes from the water treatment plant just off Duck Lake Road. The cross-country races will run from 9 am to noon, then riders will have the chance to take a break until 2 pm when the downhill races from the bike park begin.
“I’ve put up public notices on the trails that they are not closed but will be heavily used,” said Cocksedge, adding that they will be tapped off with some sections restricted to public access due to safety concerns.
Over 150 riders are expected from schools as far away as Burns Lake and Salmon Arm. In total about 20 high schools from the Interior, Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island are sending coaches and riders to compete.
Brooks’ team includes a full complement of male and female riders in grades eight and nine divisions, but fewer girls in the junior and senior ones. Cocksedge added that Brooks riders will be easy to spot with their brightly coloured school jerseys. All the local competitors will be riding both courses, he said.
The downhill races will finish at about 4 pm and then a barbecue with music is planned for the racers, but closed to the public, at the bike park. Awards will be presented at 5 pm.
Cocksedge said he hopes the community can support the race and “see what can happen when forests are left standing.”
Shellfish festival shuttle
With Lund’s Shellfish Festival happening this weekend, Powell River Regional District has teamed up with BC Transit to provide rides to the event.
On Saturday and Sunday, May 23 and 24, the Shellfish Shuttle will depart from the north end of Powell River Town Centre Mall between 10 am and 6 pm daily. Stops are at Willingdon Beach, Townsite, Wildwood and Tla’amin (Sliammon) Nation along the way. Fares are the regular $2 for adults, $1.75 for students or seniors.
For more information and full schedule contact 604.483.2008 or go online.
