Huff and puff sees cyclists come back to Strathpuffer 24
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FOR anyone who rides a mountain bike seriously, it has become an event which cyclists must tick off the bucket list.
Since it was established 15 years ago, Strathpuffer 24 has became a major competition on the mountain biking calendar in Scotland.
More than 1000 people will navigate through Torrachilty Forest over 24 hours this weekend.
Pedalling across rough terrain in tough weather conditions most of the time in the dark can make it a brutal experience.
But for event co-founder Steven Macdonald, it is what gives the event its appeal.
“Competitors cycle in the darkness for 17 hours,” he said.
“It can be demoralising when it gets dark at 3.30pm until around 9am the next day.
“But some people do it every year and keep coming back as they see the same people who also love it.
“It has become a festival and there are groups of people who know they are not going to win it but want to beat their mates.
“There’s a lot of effort put into camps. People bring campervans and mini buses and decorate them, they have karaoke and fairy lights and barbecues. People cheer riders on with bells and hooters. It has a nice atmosphere.”
Macdonald, who ran a cycling shop in Strathpeffer, was inspired to be involved in creating the event while working at a mountain bike event at Invermoriston.
It was initially intended to create an event in the Highlands during the summer, but was persuaded that an event in the middle of winter would have more appeal.
“A friend of mine called Patrick Adams was running 24-hour cycling events in England and we wanted to do one in the Highlands in the summer,” he said.
“But he said we should do it in winter as that is what people want, they want a challenge.
“We thought it would just be a one off 15 years ago,
“I didn’t think people would want to do it, but it got media interest because there is little on in January.
“We decided to organise the race and 300 people turned up and it was a mud fest. At the end we got piles of emails saying that it was great and they wanted to come back.
“The rest is history.”
Strathpuffer 24 is also a welcome boost to the economy at what is traditionally a quiet time of the year.
“It is good for the economy as garages, shops and hotels all do well out of it, says Macdonald.
“Around 70 per cent of riders come from within 150 miles of the course. But we also have competitors from across Europe and North America.”
Preparations for Strathpuffer 24 are on schedule with more than 1000 cyclists set to head to Torrachilty Forest near Contin.
The race starts at 10am on Saturday when riders will travel around an eight mile course as many times as possible in the space of 24 hours.
Macdonald says the biggest challenge competitors will face is the unpredictable weather conditions.
“The biggest issue is the weather as you do not know what to expect,” he said.
“You are always trying to figure out how much grit you will need and how many bodies you will need to dig snow from the course.”
While cyclists are challenged to complete the course as many as times possible, Macdonald emphasised it is the taking part that counts.
“People of all ages can come and do it.
“If you do one lap, you’ve done the race.
“You don’t get disqualified half way through if you pull out.
“But for some people, they see it as a challenge for people to do it more than the previous year.”
Last year’s winner, Marty Ross from Maryburgh, who was the only person to complete 25 laps of the course, is set to defend his men’s title this weekend.
