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The Victorian XCO MTB Series is focused on rebuilding and bringing back XCO racing to Victoria

A race series held over multiple weekends of summer, the season is aiming to help provide pathways for riders of all levels and backgrounds to come together, compete and have a fantastic time in a positive environment.

You can either aim to battle it out with the best, or come riding and plug away to achieve the rewarding feeling of finishing the ride.

Your training doesn’t need to be too extreme to achieve a finish in these events and you can try to improve on your skill and fitness as the series progresses throughout the summer.

Here’s the upcoming calendar or check out the FAQs below to find out more about the race format, rules and categories of race.

FALLS CREEK

Falls Creek MTB Park is the naming rights partner of the series and also plays host to two rounds of the season. The Falls Creek hosted rounds are worth 1.5 x points, so are a great way to get some extra points if you’re looking to claim the overall title!

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

ABOUT THE XCO RACE FORMAT

XCO or Cross country Olympic Format is one of the most common disciplines of mountain biking. Cross-country MTB became an Olympic sport in 1996 and is the only form of mountain biking practised at the Olympics. The rules for cross-country mountain biking for the Olympics are actually pretty simple.

The race has a mass start, with all of the riders starting at the same time, and the riders then have to finish a set amount of laps around a course between 4km and 6km in length. The number of laps to be completed is dependant on the category entered.

WHAT TIME DO THE RACES START?

At each round, there will be 2 race start times.  The groups for these start times have been created to group riders who through Aus Cycling recommendations are to compete for similar time lengths.  This also means that as a general rule faster riders are not sharing the course with more beginner slower riders which makes it more enjoyable for everybody.

Each from below starts 2 minutes apart. Ie. 1B starts at 9:02am

CATEGORIES

There a variety of categories so you’re only competing against people at the same level as you.
  • Elite Men & Women
  • Under 30 Men & Women (18-29)
  • Masters 1/2 Men & Women (30-39)
  • Masters 3/4 Men & Women (40-49)
  • Master 5/6 Men & Women (50-59)
  • Masters 7 Men & Women (60+)
  • U19 Men & Women
  • U17 Men & Women
  • U15 Men & Women
  • U13 Men & Women
  • E-Bike Open Men & Women
  • E-Bike Recreational

The current standard XCO format uses a course between 4km and 6km in length. Depending on the category entered there will be a certain number of laps to be completed to create a race time within a given range

WHAT CATEGORY/AGE GROUP AM I IN?

Based on the UCI Rules for the National MTB Championships: The date on which the age of a rider is calculated is December 31 of the year the National Championships occurs during or concluding the series in which an event takes place. For the 2024 – 2025 Victorian MTB championship Series, this is December 31, 2025.

HOW LONG ARE RACES? (TARGET TIMES)

These are indicative times and the exact number of laps will be subject to change based on weather and course conditions.
  • Elite Men & Women (1h30 – 1h45)
  • Under 30 Men & Women (1h00 – 1h15)
  • Masters 1/2 Men & Women (1h15 – 1h30)
  • Masters 3/4 Men & Women (1h00 – 1h15)
  • Master 5/6 Men & Women (0.45 – 1h00)
  • Masters 7 Men & Women (0.45 – 1h00)
  • U19 Men & Women (1h00 – 1h15)
  • U17 Men & Women (0.45 – 1h00)
  • U15 Men & Women (0.30 – 0.45)
  • U13 Men & Women (0.30 – 0.45)
  • E-Bike Men & Women (1.30 – 1.45)
  • E-Bike Recreational Men & Women (0.45 – 1.00)

HOW THE SERIES WORKS

There are 8 rounds in this series and your best 5 results will be counted towards your series result. The means if you miss a race or have a mechanical etc you still have a chance at winning the overall title!

HOW ARE POINTS AWARDED?

1st – 80, 2nd 65, 3rd 55, 4th 48, 5th 43, 6th 38, 7th 33, 8th 29, 9th 25, 10th 22, 11th 20, 12th 19, 13th 18, 14th 17, 15th 16 and 16th to last all get 15 points each.

Did not finish (DNF) will get 15 points
Did not start (DNS) will get 0

The Championship round at FALLS CREEK will be worth 1.5 x points.

INSURANCE

All our events are cover by AusCycling’s insurance policy.

You can purchase a 1 or 7-day event license part and it must be valid on the day of the event go to the AUS CYCLING MEMBERSHIP page purchase this day permit and show proof of this at registration. Failure to do so will mean the event host is unable to allow you to compete

There are two options – a 1-day event license for $44 or a 7-day event license for $74. If you are going to race for both days on an event weekend we suggest you buy the 7-day option

e-MTB POLICY + RULES

eBikes have a race category for both men and women. They also have 2 start options. 9:55am BOOST start group for those that want to go full speed ahead or start between 10:05 and 10:15 if you want to take a more relaxed time out there. 

New rules in 2024

  • E-Bikes must be limited to the Australian standard of 25km/ph motor support
  • Battery swaps are allowed but discouraged and hope riders can challenge themselves to finishing the full race on a single battery.

GET IN TOUCH

 

info@bighillevents.com.au