By Tom Degun

Selkirk MTB MarathonMarch 15 - British Cycling have announced that the 2013 British MTB Marathon Championships on June 8 will be staged in the Scottish Borders at Selkirk Rugby Club as part of the Selkirk MTB Marathon.


The Selkirk MTB Marathon, previously known as "the Merida" and the "CRC'm" is under new management and is being staged by Selkirk-based Durty Events.

The British MTB Championships are open to male and female riders aged 19 or older who are British citizens and hold a full International Cycling Union (UCI) British Cycling racing licence.

There are also integrated Championship categories for veteran men and women.

For those non license holders who are taking part in The Selkirk MTB Marathon, there are three fully marked courses with distances of 25 kilometres, 50km and 80km that offer something for families, novices, intermediates and enthusiasts alike.

"We're really chuffed to have been asked to organise the British Championships alongside the popular Selkirk Mountain Bike Marathon," said Paul McGreal of Durty Events.

"We're expecting the very best riders in the UK to come and test themselves on the very best single-lap course in the country.

"We believe we have the best trails the Scottish Borders has to offer and the most popular and challenging course in the UK which is why Selkirk has been voted 'Best MTB Marathon' several times.

"We aim to provide an achievable challenge for riders of every ability in fantastic surroundings with a lot of fun thrown in as well."

All the courses are mainly "real" mountain biking with a mix of natural and hand-made singletrack, twin-track forest roads and ancient drove roads.

Riders will visit the valleys of the Rivers Tweed, Yarrow and Ettrick.

The 80km course will also include some of the very best man-made trail centre routes at Innerleithen.

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