Canada’s mountain bike race season is just over a month away from kicking off on Vancouver Island. The long-running Island Cup series is ready to bring grassroots cross country and enduro racing to B.C.’s west coast with a big calendar of 12 races.
The cross country series starts in early spring, with the first racing taking place at Hartland in Victoria on March 19. The Island Cup XC events are always an opportunity for locals and visitors to get early-season racing in, often while much of Canada is still under a blanket of snow. Current and aspiring national team members mix it up with new and experienced island racers in a low-key and welcoming race environment.
The Island Cup enduro calendar gets started one month later, with Sooke hosting the opening round of gravity racing on April 23. Island Cup’s enduro races have exploded in popularity and frequently sell out within hours of registration opening.
Six enduro events take Island Cup racing from Sooke north to Nanaimo, Parksville, Cumberland and even includes a stop on the Sunshine Coast before returning to Duncan for the series finals.
Registration dates and information are on the Island Cup website.
2023 Island Cup XC series
March 19 – Island Cup XC #1 – Hartland Classic
March 26 – Island Cup XC #2 – Hammerfest
April 16 – Island Cup XC #3 – Cobble Hill Classic
April 30 – Island Cup XC #4 – Duck Lake XC: The Rise of the Buttersnake
May 14 – Island Cup XC #5 – Cumberland
June 11 – Island Cup XC #6 – Campbell River (Finals)
2023 Island Cup Enduro series
April 23 – Island Cup Enduro #1 – Sooke
May 7 – Island Cup Enduro #2 – Hammerfest
June 18 – Island Cup Enduro #3 – Gnarnaimo
July 16 – Island Cup Enduro #4 – Powell River
August 13 – Island Cup Enduro #5 -Trail Bicycles Forbidden Enduro
September 24 – Island Cup Enduro #6 – Duncan (Finals)
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