A REGIONAL moutain biking series for children and young people is set to be launched in Central Fife following a successful inaugural event.

The ‘Big Tree Campervans Tayside & Fife Regional Youth MTB Series 2014’, a multi-discipline race series which will run from September until November, was first held last year and such was the success of the event, it will return to Lochore Meadows on Sunday 16th November.

Lochore will host the final event in the six-round series, which began on Saturday 13th September in Forfar.

All races in the series are suitable for a basic hard-tail mountain bike and will serve as a local introduction to the sport of mountain biking. It will also allow young riders to develop a range of mountain bike skills and try all disciplines of the sport.

Young cyclists will get to experience the thrill of downhill on a mini course, the exhilaration of cross country racing, and the burn of endurance mountain biking. The series will provide a pathway for aspiring mountain bikers aged from 6-16 to get their first taste of bike racing.

And to top it off, the series winners of the under-10 to under-16 age categories (both boys and girls) will win an amazing two-day family hire of a Big Tree Campervan to create their own adventure.

The cost for each round is £6 per racer (in advance) and they encourage riders to enter all rounds to help their chances of winning a fantastic holiday Graeme McLean, project manager of Developing Mountain Biking in Scotland, said, “There is a growing mountain bike scene in Tayside and Fife. The race series will provide children and young people with a local, fun, and accessible entry into the sport of mountain biking.

“The Tayside and Fife area is set for a mountain biking boom with new trails in Lochore Meadows in Fife, Comrie Croft and Alyth Hill in Perthshire, and Templeton Woods in Dundee. I have no doubt that the Commonwealth Games will increase the interest in mountain biking and added to our already global reputation of being a world-class destination. It truly is an exciting time for mountain biking in Scotland.” You can enter the event by visiting www.scottishcycling.org.uk, and for more information about the race series go to www.bigtreecampervans.com/mtb.