Contact & FAQs

Entries are online. Create a free account, add each rider (a parent or guardian holds the account for a child), then go to Upcoming races. For each rider choose their category, tick the rounds they want, add them to your basket and pay once for everyone.

• Round 1: Sun 14/03/2027, Potash Woods, Rochford
• Round 2: Sun 04/04/2027, Potash Woods, Rochford
• Round 3: Sun 18/04/2027, Gallows Green, Lindsell
• Round 4: Sun 09/05/2027, Potash Woods, Rochford
• Round 5: Sun 23/05/2027, Gallows Green, Lindsell
• Round 6: Sun 06/06/2027, Potash Woods, Rochford
• Round 7: Sun 04/07/2027, Potash Woods, Rochford

Add them all to your phone with the race calendar. Venue details, parking and maps are on the League page.

• U7 / U9 / U12: £7 per round when you enter early, £9 on the day, or £42 for the full season.
• U14 / U16: £17 per round when you enter early, £20 on the day, or £102 for the full season.
• Adult Fun: £23 per round when you enter early, £26 on the day, or £138 for the full season.
• E-bike: £35 per round when you enter early, £39 on the day, or £210 for the full season.
• All other adult categories: £35 per round when you enter early, £39 on the day, or £210 for the full season.

The full season is all 7 rounds with one round free, and is on sale until Round 1 has run. Entering 3 or 4 rounds together takes 5% off, and 5 or more takes 10% off (on rounds at the early price).

No. There's no separate membership fee. It's built into the price of each round, so the price you see is the price you pay.

The early price runs until 11:59pm UK time on the Wednesday before each round. After that you can still enter online at the on-the-day price, up to 30 minutes before your race starts. If a category has run out of race numbers you'll be offered a place on the waiting list instead.

Your race number is allocated automatically from your category's range and stays the same for the whole season. You collect your number board from the MTB east gazebo just once, at your first race. After that there's no signing on: keep the board safe, bring it to every round and go straight to the start. Please don't cut or alter it, and keep cables clear of the timing chip. A replacement board costs £10.

Each category has a set number of race numbers for the season. When they're all taken, a rider who is new to that category can join the waiting list and we'll email you if a place opens. Riders already entered can still add more rounds.

Entries are refundable up to 14 days before the round (for a season entry, 14 days before its first round), less an admin fee of up to £5. Withdraw from My Entries inside that window and the refund goes back to your card straight away. From My Entries you can also move a paid entry to a different round, give it to another rider on your account, or offer it to someone with their own account, up to 3 days before the round. Only the entry moves: number boards stay with the rider they were issued to, and whoever receives the entry uses their own board and number, or is issued a new one if they haven't raced with us before. If we cancel a round we'll tell you by email and on the site, and single-round entries are refunded.

Yes. We email a reminder 3 days before each round you're entered in, with your race number, the venue, parking, the forecast and the race-day timings. Don't want them? Tick “Opt out of race reminder emails” under Profile & Riders, or use the link at the bottom of any reminder. If you're marshalling, you get a reminder for your shift too, which you can switch off on the Volunteering page.

Under-16s race by age: U7, U9, U12, U14 and U16. Adult categories are based on ability (you must be 16 or over):

• Elite: highly competitive riders with strong technical skills, excellent fitness and regular race experience.
• S1 (Sport 1): experienced, fit riders who love to race but are just below Elite level.
• S2 (Sport 2): capable riders who enjoy racing at a more relaxed pace than S1, building experience or returning after time away.
• Fun: a friendly category for those new to racing, with a shorter race and no series standings.
• E-bike: for legal e-bikes (see below), open from age 16, with Open and Female results.

Every category except S2 has a Female and an Open version ("Open" replaces "Male"). It's your own responsibility to enter the category that suits your ability.

By your age on 1 January of the race year. If you're under 7 on 1 January, for example, you stay in U7 all season even if you turn 7 before or during it, so nobody has to change category part-way through. Once you've entered a category it can only be changed with the organiser's permission.

Each round awards points for your finishing position in your category. Your best 6 results count towards your final total, or all of them if you've ridden fewer than 6, and there's no minimum number of rounds. There are end-of-series prizes for every category except Fun, and no prizes for individual rounds. The top 3 in S1 and S2 at the end of the season are promoted. The full rules are on the League page.

The full running order is on the League page, and we email it in race week. U7 races last 7 minutes, U9 13 minutes and U12 18 minutes. Adult Elite, S1 and e-bike races are an hour plus a lap; the other adult and older youth waves are 45 minutes plus a lap. Everyone finishes on the same lap as the category winner, with a bell for one lap to go.

U7, U9 and U12 ride their own courses, cut-down versions of the main course: around 400m for U7, around 900m for U9 and 1 to 1.2km for U12. They ride as many laps as they can in the time allowed. U14, U16 and all adult categories ride the full main course at every venue. Every course is clearly marked with signposts, and marshals are on the course during practice to make sure riders go the right way.

The minimum is:

• A bike that can handle the conditions of an off-road course.
• A helmet that meets the British Standard for cycling helmets (BS EN 1078), worn at all times on the track.

Every bike must have end caps fitted to the handlebars, with no exceptions, because it's a safety issue. Gloves are recommended.

MTB east has liability insurance for the League. Riders are advised to have their own cycling insurance as well, which isn't a condition of entry. Some memberships, such as Cycling UK and British Cycling, include third-party liability cover, and there are standalone cyclist policies too. Check that whichever you choose covers racing.

Yes to both. Dogs are welcome on a lead, and spectators are very welcome. Please keep start and finish areas clear, and don't run alongside riders (parents may help U7 riders in the assistance zone). Cheering loudly is encouraged.

Someone is directing cars until the last race has started. Facilities differ by venue: toilets, food and parking notes for Potash Woods and Gallows Green are on their venue pages, linked from the League page. Neither venue has drinking water, so bring your own. Please take all your litter home, banana skins included.

Absolutely: the under-16 categories are built for beginners as much as keen racers. In U7 and U9 riders can be helped throughout the race, and balance bikes are welcome in U7 only. From U12 up, help with food, drink or mechanics is only allowed in the marked technical area.

E-bikes must be legal, unmodified electrically assisted pedal cycles: pedal-assist only with no throttle, 250W maximum continuous rated power, and assistance that cuts out at 15.5mph (25km/h). Riders must be 16 or older, the same as the other adult categories. Factory assist modes, including Boost, are allowed; tuning devices, modified software and speed-sensor tampering are not. You confirm all this with a declaration when you enter, bikes are checked at sign-on and can be checked at any time, and in the first season (2027) is a learning period in which we help rather than penalise honest mistakes. Both eBike races are 1 hour plus a lap, and eBikes start together with the Elite and S1 riders. No battery swaps during a race. Read the full eBike rules and guidance.

Online after each round, sometimes as provisional results first, with final results by the Wednesday after. They're on the results page, along with every past season.

Join the Marshal Club on the Volunteering page. Choose a morning, an afternoon or a full day at any round. A half day earns 50% off a race entry and a full day a free entry, which you can use or pass on to another rider, plus a free drink (and hot food for a full day). Under-16s can help with an adult alongside them.

A free squad that supports women who are new to racing with coaching from qualified coaches. To take part you need to sign up for at least one race. Dates and sessions will be announced once funding is confirmed.

Sofa to Singletrack is our free couch-to-trail programme: 2 or 3 sessions a week, based on time rather than distance so you don't need a bike computer. Racing is entirely optional. Start it at Sofa to Singletrack.

The Festival is on Saturday 22 May, the day before the League round on the Sunday, and camping is planned so you can make a weekend of it. Prices and format are still to be confirmed. The Sportive will be in August, with the date, route and price to be confirmed. See the Festival and Sportive pages, which we'll update as soon as we know more.

Email info@mtbeast.co.uk and we'll get back to you.