MAD Club Championships 2005

[Morgan O'Connell]

What's all this then?
The 2005 MAD Club Championships are the highlight of our club calendar. It's an opportunity to test yourself against other club members and to challenge your own skills. It's also an opportunity to have a social winter spin and enjoy seasonal fare on the side of a hill. This year it's taking place on December 18th - our last organised spin before Christmas.

Race format
The Club Champs this year will be in two parts - we'll start with a hill climb followed by a short XC race. Points will be awarded depending on your place in each race and the person with the most points will be the MAD Club Champion 2005! However, to keep things interesting, you can earn points by other means. Anyone who took part in the trailbuilding sessions is already in the lead. Also, since this is our pre-Christmas spin, anyone who races in fancy dress will get bonus points. The race organisers reserve the right to award extra points where deserved.

Meeting up
The hillclimb will start at the bottom of Kilmashogue lane (under the M50 bridge). We'll meet up at the Yellow House at 10am sharp and ride over there. If you prefer you can park at Kilmashogue car park and freewheel down the hill to meet us. We can arrange to head back via the car park if necessary. The race will start at 10.30.

The course
The hill climb is from the M50 flyover, up Kilmashogue lane and then up the fire road to the gatepost at the top. It's not particularly steep but it goes on for a while. Apparently the record is just over 12 minutes! We'll take a break at this stage to recover and then cruise over to the XC course. This will begin near the summit of Three Rock, head down through the old MAD club circuit and then continue down the hill on a restored singletrack section which we prepared recently. You'll then climb back up to the aerials and head down the course again, finishing at the bottom. It's 1.5 laps in total, with only one big climb in between.

Who should enter?
Everyone who has ever ridden with us, beginner or expert, should be there for this event. However, only signed up club members are eligible to win the club trophy. We encourage you to take out your 2006 membership before then or you can join on the day. Even if you don't like the idea of racing you can come along to ride the course or help out with the organisation and eating. No particular level of fitness is required - you can take it at whatever pace you like.

Entry fees
There are no entry fees but cake, mince pies, mulled wine etc would be very welcome.

Prizegiving
The prizegiving will take place immediately after the race so you can enjoy the cheers of you fellow competitors. We may do this on the finish line or, depending on the weather, we may retire to MAD HQ in Terenure where mince pies and hot whiskeys will be served by your hosts Paddy and Mick. The winner will take home the MAD Club Trophy to proudly display on their mantelpiece until next years race.

If you have any questions please drop me an email or ask anyone on the committee.

Regards,
Morgan

[Morgan O'Connell]

Hi,
Just so we can get an idea of numbers for this Sunday - let us know if you think you'll be coming along.

Thanks,
Morgan

[Richie Byrne]

what are you mental..The EPICmtb fancy dress downhill is on..

would have definitely been there otherwise..I hope you win Morgan..

cheers Richie