OCEANSIDE — From the desk of Kebble Sheaff a reminder ‘the Ramble’ is back.
Slated to start and finish at Hugh Fletcher’s spread in Errington Sept. 18, the eighth annual cross country mountain bike race that winds its way through the backcountry between Errington and Mt. Arrowsmith is always changing, and this year is no different.
Sheaff said this year’s course is 50 km in length — 30 km less than last year’s race, one of the most gruelling on record.
Also, for the first time, “we are introducing a less than a full lap category. There is a climb that we used last year that the less than full-lap people will not ride up... (that) climb took me one hour last year.”
The ‘easy lappers’ will ride a flatter route past the climb.
“It will be one of the shorter Rambles, but one of the best courses with lots of fun single track,” said the longtime local MTB booster. “We try to have a different course every year... we expect the winning times to be under four hours, which is fast for a Ramble.”
Registration gets underway at 8 a.m. and the race starts at 9.
The cost to enter is $40 and all riders must have a club membership. If they don’t have one, they can buy a one-day licence for $10.
As always, “we could use a few volunteers as well.”
Anyone able to help out can email Liz at liz_dyck@yahoo.com.