The Test of Metal group of races will roll out with the Orecrusher three weeks earlier than usual, on April 16. A multi-lap cross-country mountain bike race through the relatively flat Cheekeye Fan single-track trails of Brackendale, the Orecrusher is a great warm-up for the mountain bike race season.
The series will continue on May 7 with the Gearjammer, which in the past has been held in mid-July. This point-to-point cross-country mountain bike race starts near Alice Lake and finishes in Rose Park near downtown Squamish. The 52-kilometre course covers a lot of great Squamish singletrack. This second “spring classic” race of the season will get riders into great shape before the Test.
The flagship event of the series, the 67-kilometre Test of Metal, retains its usual position with a June 18 date to kick off the summer.
The series then will take a hiatus until it returns with a new season-ending date of September 17. Just Another Bike Race will close out the summer and usher in the fall. The JABR course winds its way through some of the best single-track Squamish has to offer, including trails such as Rupert, Tinder, Your Mom, and Half Nelson.
The new dates for the race series provide racers with an earlier start to the season leading up to the Test of Metal, give riders and volunteers a well deserved mid-summer break, and offer a great race to close out the summer in September, says Test of Metal race director, Cliff Miller.
“With July and August getting so busy in Squamish and throughout B.C., we hope that this allows racers and volunteers to have a great early start to the mountain bike season, more opportunity to enjoy their summers and then end the season with a fall classic,” Miller said.
For those people who would like to do all four of the Test of Metal group of races, the 4-Pack registration will open on November 1.
The 4-Pack, at a price of $216 (plus GST), is a 20 % discount from the regular price of the four races if entries were purchased individually. There are a limited number of 4-Packs available.
In addition, a 3-Pack registration for the Orecrusher, the Gearjammer and the JABR is another option and is priced at $120 (plus GST). Registration opens on November 1.
The Test of Metal registration opens with locals only registration on December 1, 6:00pm with a limited number of entries. The general registration for the Test of Metal will open on January 1, 2016 at 6:00pm.
As in 2015, the Test of Metal group of races will be using the Webscorer system to provide race registration services. Access registration pages here.
Please see the results for the 2015 Test of Metal group of races here.