By Kaity Brown
A new bike race is coming to Kimberley this weekend, to celebrate the multiple nature trails that Kimberley has to offer.
The event will begin at the Nordic Centre, in front of the lodge, with the races starting right at 9 a.m. Sunday, August 25.
“We have such a nice trail between the Nordic trail and the Kimberley Nature Park and I thought it would be good to have a local event, but to also try and see if we can attract people to come to Kimberley,” said organizer Charlie Cooper.
“Riders can expect a really fun course and one that offers a little bit of everything. There are lots of single tracks that have a few bumps here and there and lots of double tracks that provide a nice break.”
The course provides a good balance of elevation, to see beautiful views of the valley, some casual down hills and a few rocks and bumps to keep things exciting.
The course is a perfect one for riders of any skill level, said Cooper, from casual recreation riders to the more experienced who are looking to push themselves.
“The start and finish is at the Nordic Centre, right in front of the lodge, the whole magic line is included in the loop that we have, which is 22 kilometres. They also get down into the Nature Park and get to some nice trails like Shape-Shifter, Southwest Passage, Skid, Duck Pond, Pat Morrow and then they head back up to the cross country trails. These trails have been there for many years.”
Contestants can choose to do a single loop of the 22 km trail or a double of 44 km in three different categories: recreational, competitive, and single speed for those who only have one gear on their bike.
“This is the first one. One of the reasons it came about was because last year we had a chance to get Iron Man Canada located in the Cranbrook/Kimberley region but unfortunately the big tourist destination of Whister got it.
“I got thinking that it would be nice for this area to have even more events, between the Wasa Triathlon and the Round the Mountain, and I just thought it would be a good time for Kimberley to have another bike race.”
Sullivan Shakedown offers 2 Youth races for riders age 5-14, with a 3km and 6km option (one or two laps of the same course) on a mixture of single and double tracks at the Kimberley Nordic Centre on Saturday with a start time of 1:00pm. The entry fee is only $5 per participant and will be collected prior to the races. Participants will receive a race bib and snacks and refreshments back at the Nordic Lodge.
Pre-registration by email to charlie@rmevents.com is greatly appreciated for better planning, but new registrants may still be able to sign-up at the event.
Response from the community has already been very positive, with 40 contestants registered and a line-up of volunteers already.
“It’s been really good, the response in the last 10 days, families saying that the want to help which is a really good sign because it shows that Kimberley and the community want to support the event,” Cooper said.
Cooper explains that although for some these trails are a best-kept-secret of locals to enjoy peace and quiet, they should be showcased and advertised more because for him, they are a big part of Kimberley.
Cooper explains that this also serves as a fundraiser to support groups like the Kimberley Nature Park Society and the Kimberley Trails Society with $5 of each entry going towards the groups to maintain and improve the trails.
To register for the race, which still has spot available for this upcoming Sunday go to www.rmevents.com, click register now and sign up before this Friday at midnight at the latest.