In a week’s time Balmashanner quarry in Forfar (or “Bummy” as it’s know locally) will be alive with the sound of clicking free-hubs, whooping riders and shredding tyres as Forfar Funduro returns to Angus for a third year. 

I’ve said it before but I’ll repeat myself anyway as there’s nobody here to stop me, these events are a bit like having kids.  You love them all just for being them and each of them has it’s own inimitable charm.  If you spend a lot of time with one particular “child”, you tend to tune into it’s funny wee ways and it becomes your temporary favourite (conversely, on a bad day you’d like to lock the wee bugger in a cupboard and walk away) but we’ll focus on the positives for the purposes of this post 🙂

Yes, they’re all lovely in their own way; Cream o’ the Croft has it’s; “blade-of-grass-in-the-mouth-and-a-cider-in-each-hand-I-haven’t-seen-the-kids-for-6-hours-but-I’m-sure-they’re-ok” vibe going on.  Fair City Enduro has it’s; “I’m-sure-I’ve-just-seen-a-tail-whipping-Oompa-Loompa-closely-followed-by-Fat-Santa-what-the-hell-was-in-that-energy-gel?” sort of vibe and Falkirk Funduro has more of a; “huddle-round-the-fire-with-a-hot-Buritto-and-please-could-you-pour-that-hot-chocolate-down-my-crotch-to-keep-me-warm” kind of vibe.

All very special and more than just a bit weird.

Forfar Funduro also has many unique charms of it’s own.  Firstly, it hangs around with the Angus Cycling Festival, which means as well as the Funduro there are a whole host of other cycling shenanigans going on across the two days, from the Scottish XC Championships to kid’s racing to live bands and circus skills workshops.

But ignoring the fantastic variety of festival attractions for a minute, Forfar hides without doubt some of the most FUN Enduro stages you will ride anywhere if you know how to link up the trails, not just in Angus or North East Scotland…….anywhere in this actual real-life Galaxy.  Although apparently there is some quality riding in Uranus (snigger).

Anyway, back to Bummy.

When we were first invited to Forfar in 2014 with a view to hosting an Enduro there, we honestly weren’t sure if it would be any good.  With the help of Angus Bike Chain Cycle Club’s local knowledge we had a really good scout around the surrounding hills of Forfar to see what we could come up with, but it was limited.  In fact the more we looked around, the more we realised if we stayed within Balmashanner we could have some amazingly fun stages and people could just ride them twice.  Who wouldn’t want to ride four awesome stages twice!?

So, we had our stages and we had the site for our event village which was going to be at Forfar Loch Leisure Centre, but then Mike from ABC uttered those famous words that have since changed the course of Mountain Biking forever; “Have ye heard of Reid Park?” he asked casually.  “Nup.” we said.  “It’s a big park” he replied.  Sorry, this is dragging on a bit so I’ll get to the point.  It turned out Reid Park was not just a big park, but it was a beautiful and underused swathe of green space near the centre of Forfar.  Built on a great big steep hill with lots of different terraces and embankments, here was a place you could ride down on a bike and have a whole lot of fun!  With a bandstand at the bottom of the hill this would be the perfect place for a grand finale Dual Slalom into a bustling event village.

That night, the creative juices were flowing……

Next day we made a very strong case to Angus Council as to why the brand-new Angus Cycling Festival should now be based at Reid Park instead of Forfar Loch.  Our sales pitch went a bit like; “Please can we use Reid Park for Angus Cycling Festival oh please, please, pleeeeeaase??!  It’s braw and can we build a big wooden kicker into the hillside and let people jump off the embankments on their big bouncy bikes, if you don’t say yes we’ll hold our breath and stick our fingers in our ears until we’re siiiiick.”

Our argument for economic growth and benefit to the community was clearly undeniable so it was game on and we now had the potential for a stonker of a new event on our hands.

So, in a week’s time we return to Reid Park for the third consecutive year and oh-my-dog have we got a great course lined up for you?!  Thanks to our good pals in Angus there have been a few wee tweaks to the stages here and there, with some lovely new wee hip jumps and berms and other trails delights!  Don’t worry, everything is still roll-able if you’re not confident on big jumps but if you like the feeling of having 10ft of fresh air beneath your tyres, you will absolutely LOVE this!

We’re not too far off capacity now which is fantastic and shows how the reputation for this event has grown over the past three years.  We’ll take entries until Wednesday at midnight and after that, if we still have some spaces left, we’ll take limited entries on the day (£45 cash only please).

So, who’s ready for some Bummy action then?

Here are a few things you need to know if you’re coming to Forfar Funduro 2016:

Parking

Event parking is within Reid Park, Forfar. Access is via the Viewmount entrance (off the A932/St James Road – DD81LL).

A one-way system and 5mph speed limit will be in operation within Reid Park and all vehicles will exit Reid Park via Hillside Road.  You will be instructed to park on the grass on either side of the main perimeter path by parking marshals who will be stopping traffic and directing vehicles to allow safe access for the general public and event goers.  Please follow the marshal’s instructions at all times and keep emergency access roads within Reid Park clear at all times.

DO NOT DRIVE ON THE GRASS UNLESS INSTRUCTED TO DO SO BY A PARKING ATTENDANT!

Registration

  • Registration at the Muckmedden tent opens at 8am and closes at 9.30am.
  • You must fill out a wave form at registration to determine your start time and waves are issued on a first come, first served basis.
  • You will be issued with a number board which must be attached to your handlebars and visible at all times during the race and you will also be issued with a timing “dibber” and shown how to use it.

Compulsory Rider Briefing

  • All riders must attend a compulsory safety briefing at 8.30am near the start line.

Race Overview

  • Forfar Funduro is a multi-stage MTB race consisting of 10 timed stages.
  • 8 of the stages are on Balmashanner hill and 2 are within Reid Park.
  • You will leave the start line in waves of 10 riders every five minutes from 9am and will ride a variety of trails, from fast singletrack to bike-park style quarry trails with jumps, drops, chutes and berms.
  • Please be aware of your wave start time and be ready to go.  Listen for your name to be called out and come up to the start line.

Note: Some of the larger jumps in the quarry are suitable for confident riders only, so if you are not comfortable being air-born, please read the signs and look for the easier option. All large features either have an easier option to the side, or are roll-able.  You will have a second chance to ride all the quarry stages so familiarise yourself with the trails before “going big”.

Timed Stages

  • You will leave the start of each timed stage individually at roughly 20 second intervals.
  • You must “Dib-In” at the start of each stage and “Dib-Out” at the end of each stage.
  • Be aware that some finish dibbing stations may be un-manned, so dibbing stations may be on posts at the bottom of the stage.  Look out for a big red sign that says DIB HERE!
  • You are responsible for your own timing and must ensure you have dibbed in and out correctly on each stage.

Stage Running Order

  • There are 10 Stages in total. Stages 1 – 4 are in Balmashanner and must be ridden twice each in numerical order

i.e. 1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 2, 3, 4 (This equates to 8 stages)

Dual Slalom

  • Stages 9 and 10 form the Dual Slalom in Reid Park and each side must be ridden once (these stages can be ridden in either order as long as you do one run on each side).
  • When it comes to the Dual Slalom you will leave the start line in pairs at roughly 20 second intervals.
  • The Starting Marshal will count each pair in with; 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, GO!
  • Each rider must “Dib-In” at the top and “Dib-Out” at the bottom just like every other stage.
  • It is essential that you stay in lane – if you start on the left you must finish on the left.  If you swap lanes halfway down your times will not count! DO NOT FORGET THIS RULE!

Safety

  • If you’re coming up behind someone on a timed stage and you want to pass, politely shout “Rider passing on your right/left!” and overtake when they pull over.  If a rider is coming up fast behind you, look for a safe place to pull in and let them overtake.  Don’t get angry or frustrated, it’s not the World Cup and we’re all here to have fun!
  • You all have a duty to make sure other riders are okay, so if you see a crash, stop and make sure the rider is okay.  If someone needs medical assistance, flag down the next approaching rider and one of you notify the nearest Marshal ASAP.
  • If you are forced to retire early through injury or a mechanical, please inform a Marshal and remember to hand in your dibber. If you do not report a retirement, we will presume you’re lost somewhere and call out a search party.

Transitions

  • All stages are connected by untimed transitions. Balmashanner and Reid Park are very popular spots for dog walkers and families. Please ride courteously at all times in these areas, particularly on the return leg from Balmashanner to Reid Park and coming out onto the main path from the bottom of the quarry. Beware of dog walkers, spectators and children.
  • Any anti-social riding on transitions will result in instant disqualification. Be warned!

Once You’ve Finished Racing you must return your dibber to the timing tent and collect your race times.  We can’t compile the final race results until every dibber has been handed in so please do this before you go and get lunch, get changed etc.  The charge for a missing dibber is £25.

Prizes and Medals

As always it’s not just the fast boys and girls who win at a Muckmedden Event.  After the podium ceremony, we’ll be giving away bundles of goodies courtesy of our fantastic sponsors in our Random Raffle, so hang around and cheer on the medal winners and hopefully go home with some swag!