April 24, 2005 — Round #1 of the UCI/MTB World Cup XC takes place tomorrow in Francorchamps, Belgium and the 6km circuit begins at the Francorchamps Formula 1 race track.

The course is super muddy in spots and if it rains tonight and tomorrow as forecasted, it will be super slick and require a lot of running. It’s also quite technical with rocky, slippery roots and steep descents.

Not many Canadians are here: Marie-Hélène Prémont (Rocky Mountain/Business Objects), Trish Sinclair (CAN, Scott USA), Kiara Bisaro (Gears) and Sandra Walter (Team Adventure Bound) for the women and Max Plaxton (Maxxis) for the men. Bisaro is sick with quite a bad cold that developed after Sea Otter.

An interesting side note is that the World Cup road classic, Liege-Baston-Liege, will pass through Francorchamps tomorrow as well.

The pro women start at 11 am and the pro men begin at 1 pm. Stay tuned for more race coverage tomorrow.