Cyclists will flock to Hopton Woods, near Craven Arms, for Midland Downhill Championships and Gravity Enduro (From Ludlow Advertiser)

Cyclists will flock to Hopton Woods, near Craven Arms, for Midland Downhill Championships and Gravity Enduro

6:00pm Thursday 18th October 2012 in Sport By Ian Morgan

RIDERS from across the region will be flocking to Hopton Woods, near Craven Arms, this weekend for two adrenalinefilled events.

Dave Pearce and his Pearce Cycles team are hosting the Midland Downhill Championships on Saturday and the Gravity Enduro on Sunday.

The weekend’s action will be raising money for Jason ‘Gunny’ Brennan, from Rave Racing, who suffered a broken back last year in a crash at Caersws.

Pearce hopes to help Jason buy a Thera Trainer which can be attached to his wheelchair to help him exercise.

“We’ve needed to call upon the services of the Air Ambulance in the past and we will also be making a donation towards their operating costs,” said Pearce.

Saturday’s Downhill Championships is open to all riders who hold a British Cycling race licence from the West Midland or East Midland region.

Sunday’s Gravity Enduro will involve timed downhill stages of the newly-built Hopton XC trail.

“This is our first attempt at an Enduro race, so we're not trying to push the boundaries too far,” said Pearce.

“What we hope to deliver is a friendly, relaxed event which will appeal to the masses.”

The Gravity Enduro has two different stages, each will be raced twice to give an overall four timed stages.

Riders will set off at 30 second intervals and riders will be seeded according to their ability in each category.

The venue is near SY7 0QF and, for more details, call Pearce Cycles on (01584) 879288, email: shop@pearcecycles.co.uk or go to their website, pearcecycles.co.uk