Scottish Cycling is excited to see the return of the Tour Series to both Motherwell and Edinburgh in May and will be making sure that everyone can get in on the action.
It is the first time since the Pearl Izumi Tour Series was created in 2009 that Scotland has held two rounds of the unique, team based series and the second time that both Motherwell and Edinburgh have hosted rounds.
Both rounds were launched yesterday with Scottish riders James McCallum, Evan Oliphant, Fraser Martin and Charline Joiner all getting in on the excitement.
Motherwell will begin the week on Tuesday 17 May hosting the opening round of the women’s series, plus a men’s race on the same 1.2-kilometre Hamilton Road circuit as in 2015, before Edinburgh returns to the Pearl Izumi Tour Series on Thursday 19 May with an event based around the Grassmarket and Edinburgh Castle.
Scottish Cycling West, in partnership with local clubs and volunteers will again be running an afternoon of support events in Motherwell prior to the Tour Series. Active Schools will also be enjoying access to the closed roads to offer local school children the opportunity to ride the course.
The support events will include a youth race for A & B category riders, boys and girls, a race which is set to be fast and competitive. There is a women’s only race – for all category of riders, which is a 30 minute race, entries are encouraged for this event to ensure its success. The final support event will be the Men’s 2/3/4 race which last year provided a great race, with close bunch racing. Online entry for the Motherwell support events can be found here.
The Edinburgh event will also be extra special as the Brother Corporate Grand Prix will raise money in aid of former Tour Series Champion James McCallum’s Ride for Charlene, in memory of his late sister.
2011 Champion McCallum, who was among the riders on the Series’ last visit to Edinburgh, will be aiming to break Mark Beaumont’s non-stop, 38-hour, 500-mile ride around the coast of Scotland this June to raise money for Thrombosis UK.
“Edinburgh is one of the most beautiful cities you can race your bike in so it’s a real privilege to have an event here, it’s really something quite special,” said James McCallum.
“It’s one of these courses that has a bit of everything, a cobbled climb, a descent, so you’ve really got to look after yourself and not go into the red too soon, or you’ll never come back out of it. The changes they have made to the course this year are great and will make the race even more competitive. It’ll be a better race to race, and an even better race to watch.”
Dunfermline's Charline Joiner, who will be taking part in the Motherwell stage for the second time said:
"It's always great competing in front of a home crowd and having your friends and family there to cheer you on. Last year was a really tough course – I’d say you need to be in the top five going in to the final corner to get a decent placing. I just hope I can improve on last year's performance!"
You can find out more about the Tour Series by visiting www.tourseries.co.uk
