The Start is a mass start leaving Kippure house with a nice fast 1.5km on the road
A couple of minutes later and you will hit Athdown and you’re on fireroad and climbing for one kilometer. On from there and you head downhill on the first technical descent of the day and into some flowing fast single track for 1km before getting on to an old double track for 2km’s.

You’re now in Cloughleagh and more winding single track and double track before getting into even more single track ahead of a fireroad climb for 200meters. Head down from here and full concentration required as you have 2km’s of intense single track

After the last 2km’s of single track it’s time to get into a rhythm and focus on the steady 3km climb before you get into a steep one hundred meter climb before a short descent and a river crossing (feet up) and then more climbing through a fantastic open heather single track for another km.

Back on the road for a bit and some more tarmac let you get your breath back and it’s on to Butter Mountain and we’re back into a mix of fireroad and single track before descending down the old downhill track (just past Mick Jordan’s house, K Capital Challenge feed sponsor, so just pop in and ask for food if you’re hungry) and a bit more climbing now for about 2km’s and you’re into some nice double track climbing and descending.

From here it’s a short bit of tarmac before heading back towards Athdown to climb for the last time before hitting the fast flowing single track before the finish. Once you’re back into the grounds of Kippure house it’s head down for the final finish loop.

Notes:
There will be a feed on the course as per the other rounds.
It is hunting season in the area so pre-riding on the Saturday is not advisable.
Course and Distances are subject to change:
Long course – 28km’s
Short course – 18km’s

Round 2 of this years K Capital Challenge takes place this Sunday in Carrick Mountain, Co.Wicklow. Race HQ is based just outsie Glenealy and will see riders being truly tested on a totally new fantastic 40km loop.

Round one saw the riders face two laps of a very technically demanding lap in Kilruddery Estate just out side of Bray in county Wicklow. In round 2 riders will be on a longer course but a less technically demanding one. That doesn’t mean no fun tracks though as course desginers have searched high and low to bring you some amazing new single track most of which has never been ridden by mountain bikers before.

Robin Seymour, chief course designer today described the venue by saying ‘Carrick.. a secret Nirvana of biking..’ Asked what did he mean he was quick to add, ‘The place has tons of tracks untouched by mountain bikers..’ ‘We’ve managed to build a 30km loop which will see the riders climb up and over the near virgin soil of Carrick and enjoy some fantastic unspoiled views of the Garden of Ireland’… Worth noting also that there is a shorter loop for those riders that want to take part but feel the 30km a bit too long for them. Stuart Galloway added ‘We were in two minds about having the shorter event, but after seeing how much beginners enjoyed doing just 1 lap in round one we just couldn’t leave it out’… ‘We want everyone to enjoy these new challenge races, so it’s important to have a race that everyone can do.’

Sign on opens at 10am this Sunday. Directions can be found on the website http://www.kcapitalchallenge.com.

The race itself kicks off at noon with all senior riders starting in a mass start. No bottle necks this time though as riders start their climb to the top of Carrick Mountain on a nice open fireroad.
“Carrick Mountain is located in the eastern foothills of the Wicklow Mountains in the Republic of Ireland. It rises directly above the village of Glenealy on the R752, midway between Rathnew and Rathdrum. The mountain is, bar a few large rocky knolls, completely covered in forest. There is a network of forest roads on the hill, with long straights, steeps slopes, hair-pin bends; the forest roads, with their sand and gravel surfaces, ascend to within 100 m of the summit.”

Carrick Mountain Hill Wicklow County
Height: 381 metres OS 1/50k Mapsheet: 56 for top
Grid Ref: T23263 94064 Latitude: 52.983460 Longitude: -6.165459
ITM: 723185 694099 Prominence: 174m Isolation: 6.8km

Killruddery is the opening round of the 3 race KCapital Challenge Series, www.kcapitalchallenge.com , being held on the Sunday 26th July.
Venue is Killruddery Demense, Parking and start is in the Belmont Area [old castle], which can be accessed from the Bray to Greystones road turning off at Windgates

Event will be a Mass start for all competitors at 12.00 Noon, and will be over a 35km course [2 laps], with all the flowy singletrack in Killruddery from last years Nationals as well as a big Climb up high onto the small Sugarloaf, and long descent too. As everyone is riding the same course we are leaving out ‘The ROCK’ but We’ve found something else as spectacular

We are going to run the Underage on a Mini Challenge Course, one loop, starting just after the start of the other categories.

We are having a Top 10 prize list for the 10 fastest riders overall and awards for the various categories, and the series then for the categories also.

Entry fees:
All Senior Cats €20
Juniors €15
Underage €5

For More Info see www.kcapitalchallenge.com