The Cycle 360 Mountain Bike Series wrapped up its season with a grand finale at Stuggadhoo, between Braaid and St Mark’s on Sunday.

The course lived up to its reputation as a fun route but this time the previous heavy rainfall made for a muddy slip and slide equivalent.

As the racers gathered at the starting line, the sun made a timely appearance, blessing the event with a mild temperature of 17 degrees and therefore providing ideal racing conditions for all categories: youth, sport, veteran and elite.

In the elite men’s category, Callum Salisbury, Owen Collins, Eric Kelly and Mark Horsthuis pushed their limits in a relentless pursuit of victory. Harry Snape also put on an impressive performance, trailing not far behind the leading pack.

The final round was won by Salisbury, with Kelly in second and Collins in third.

In the women’s elite category, despite good female representation in other categories, Sacha Horsthuis was the sole competitor.

The sport category was won by Dave Cain, but there were some fine performances from female riders where Sophie Smith emerged the victor, with Emma Atkinson securing second place.

Making her debut, Saskia Kelly impressed with a third-place finish, hinting at a promising future as a cross-country rider.

In the youth female category, Flossy Griffin stood atop the podium, while Abi Clayton put up a commendable performance, finishing closely behind in second place. Unfortunately, Jess Pickavance had to withdraw from the race with only two laps to go.

Mark Kelly dominated the veterans’ category, leading the race from start to finish and securing victory with a five-minute gap ahead of his closest competitor, Stephen Honeybone.

Among the youth riders Alex Sorby showcased his prowess by taking the overall win, with Thomas Hutchinson not far behind in second place.

RESULTS

Elite/Expert men (eight laps) 1, Callum Salisbury 54.37; 2, Eric Kelly 55.03; 3, Owen Collins 56.16; 4, Mark Horsthuis 56.49; 5, Harry Snape 1:02.32; 6, Ben Corkill 1:02.40; 7, Mike Lyth 1:04.17; 8, Niall Quiggin 1:06.00; 9, John Venables 1:06.31; 10, Joseph Ricciardi 1:13.03.

Elite/Expert women (seven laps) 1, Sacha Horsthuis 1:04.26. Sport (7 laps) 1, David Cain 56.59; 2, Gavin Collins 59.07; 3, James Meakin 1:00.22; 4, Shaun Cannan 1:00.58; 5, Sophie Smith 1:01.23; 6, Ralph Jackson 1:02.56; 7, Mark Hutchinson 1:06.27; 8, Emma Atkinson 1:07.32; 9, Saskia Kelly 1:10.01; (six laps) 10, Tom Nolan 1:13.02; (4 laps) John Garrood 1:07.05.

Youth/Juvenile (seven laps) 1, Alec Sorby 56.02; 2, Thomas Hutchinson 59.35; 3, Florence Griffin 1:03.39; 4, Abi Clayton 1:05.15; (5 laps) 5, Jess Pickavance 58.07.

Veteran 50+ (seven laps) 1, Mark Kelly 58.46; 2, Stephen Honeybone 1:04.21; 3, Chris Millar 1:08.25; 4, Mario Ricciardi 1:11.58.

Results from Manx Timing Solutions.

THANK YOUS

Organisers from Cycle 360 and Manx Viking Wheelers would like thank all riders for supporting, to Manx Timing Solutions for the live timing, Steve Ormerod for being the reliable commissaire and Pete Williamson for the excellent photography each round.