MTB clubs come together to bring back NSW/ACT XC State Series

After an absence of almost 15 years, mountain bike clubs and coaches in New South Wales and the ACT have come together to reprise a much-loved highlight on the cross-country calendar – the NSW/ACT XC State Series.

Last held in 2010, the 2024 NSW/ACT State Cross-Country Series will feature four rounds, beginning in the Southern Highlands in June, followed by Tamworth in the North West and Nowra on the South Coast, before wrapping up in Canberra in November.

2023 SCUM club series event (photo: Shannon - shanmtb.com)

As South Coast United Mountain Bikers club coach and series spokesperson Lynne Vaughan explained, the reincarnation of the series couldn’t have happened without clubs coming together and collaborating to achieve a shared vision.

“Around the state, there has been some smaller, what we would call interclub events. They’re more regional series,” Vaughan said.

“There might be one down in our area, one further north. And then we decided rather than just jumping straight to the one-off State Championship, that if we could also build a series within the state as well, just to give people a few more racing opportunities throughout the year to build them up, they could be ready for that State Championship.

“And also giving teams – whether it's the club team or the regional Academy of Sport teams – opportunities to go and learn at events that aren't going to make or break what might be their goal for the year.”

2023 NSW XC State Championships (photo: Shannon - shanmtb.com)

Vaughan expects the course at Kirrikee in the Southern Highlands to be flowy, while Tamworth features rocky parts and “lots of short little climbs.”

Coondoo on the South Coast will benefit speedsters who can wind up their top gear, while the final round will coincide with the ACT Territory Championships on the always challenging Mount Majura.

By exposing riders to a range of different trail types, Vaughan also explained how the competition fills in a critical step missing from the development pathway in NSW and the ACT.

“It's the opportunity for racing and it's the opportunity for development; understanding what other trails ride like and understanding how other people in your category are performing,” Vaughan told AusCycling.

The NSW XC State Series was last held in 2010 (photo: Lynne Vaughan)

“I work as a coach at the Illawarra Academy of Sport with Chris Clark, (and) we saw this as a way where we could offer more of that intrastate racing before the kids launch into a national series, which is usually a pretty short, very solid series where there's a fair bit of traveling.

“Or if their goal is a National Championships and to then get picked for a team to go overseas and race in Europe, if they only go and race the National Championships, they haven't had these wins and losses and experiences throughout the year where they can go, ‘oh, when I ate this I felt like that,’ or ‘when I made this attack in the race and then I couldn't get through to the end with any strength, I've learned from that.’

“If you don't have these levels of races for them to have throughout the year, they're not prepared.”

The State Series will help build the XC community in NSW & ACT  (photo: Gaye Camm/Lynne Vaughan)

Vaughan also pointed out how the return of the series will play an important role in building the XC community within NSW and the ACT.

“What we're hoping to build back up again is that sense of the mountain bike community, so that people are going to these events regularly, they’re seeing the same people. It's always a good weekend away,” Vaughan said.

“In its previous incarnation, those were the things that you looked forward to; the camaraderie, the community, just riding different trails, and also getting to enjoy racing on them.”

For more information, visit: AusCycling | 2024 NSW/ACT State Cross Country Series

The 2024 AusCycling NSW Cross-Country State Championships will be held in Wagga Wagga from October 12-13.

Main image: Shannon - shanmtb.com