Registration Is Now Open for Expanded Sixth Güdrun – Northwoods Mountain Bike Festival Set for November 8 – 10 in Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas
HOT SPRINGS NATIONAL PARK, Arkansas — Registration is now open for the Sixth Annual Güdrun - Northwoods Mountain Bike Festival, which will take place on the internationally acclaimed Northwoods Trail System in Hot Springs.
The newly expanded festival will run from November 8 through November 10 and will mark the sixth anniversary of the opening of the Northwoods Trail System in the lushly forested hills on the northern edge of the city.
Early bird registration is now open and ends June 17 at noon, when registration fees will increase, Berry said. Registration is available at https://www.bikereg.com/gudrun. The first 400 entrants are guaranteed to receive race swag bags.
“Six years goes by super fast when you’re having fun,” Visit Hot Springs Northwoods Trails Coordinator Traci Berry said. “It feels like just yesterday we were celebrating the grand opening of Northwoods.
“We have grown from 15.7 miles of trails with the completion of Phase 1 in 2019 to 22.5 miles of trail now. And with Northwoods connection to Cedar Glades Park, we have 32.5 miles of some of the best trails the South has to offer. And that’s all just five minutes from downtown Hot Springs.”
“When we started the festival in 2019, we had three events,“ Berry said. “We had the slow roll, the mini-enduro and jump jam. Now we offer seven events for folks to participate in.
“We are pleased to be able to change the festival up a bit this year. We’re having the festival a week earlier than in previous years, and will be spending all three days out at the trails. We hope to see more folks come join the fun and help us celebrate our awesome trail system in November.”
Once again this year, the events will begin Friday evening, November 8, at 5 o’clock, with the famous Güdrun Slow Roll Fun Ride through downtown Hot Springs and through the lobby of the Arlington Resort Hotel and Spa, Berry said.
“Put your Viking gear on, load up your bike and join us for our famous fun ride through downtown Hot Springs and through the historic Arlington Hotel lobby,” she said. “The ride is four easy miles that starts and finishes at 420 Eats in the parking lot to the north off Malvern Avenue at Church Street.”
The rest of the 2024 festival schedule includes:
• Güdrun Packet Pickup and Pre-rides - Friday, November 8, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Packet pickup will be at Cedar Glades Park and festival courses will be marked and ready for pre-riding.
• Güdrun Full Enduro - Saturday, November 9, at 8 a.m. The full enduro course will be 15 to 18 miles, taking racers through six downhill stages. The start and finish will be at the Cedar Glades Park hilltop.
• Güdrun Mini-Enduro - Saturday, November 9, at 9 a.m. The mini- enduro course will be approximately eight miles, taking racers through three downhill stages. Start and finish will be at the Cedar Glades Park hilltop.
• Güdrun Waffles & Coffee Time Trial - Saturday, November 9, at 10 a.m. The Time Trial is an XC (cross country) short course race. Racers will ride the Waffles & Coffee Trail at Cedar Glades Park for one short 2.2-mile lap as fast as they can. There are six categories: youth 12 and under; junior women 17 and under; junior men 17 and under; open women’s, open men’s, and open one wheel. The start and finish will be on the Cedar Glades Park hilltop.
• Güdrun Strider Race - Saturday, November 9, at 1 p.m. Spa City Cycling will once again design a fun course for the youngest cyclists. The course will be open for balance-bike riders to ride all weekend, with the race taking place Saturday afternoon. The race is free and will take walk-up registrations. It will be a timed race, seeing how many laps each rider can make in a given amount of time. The course and race location will be on the Cedar Glades Park hilltop.
• Güdrun Jump Jam - Saturday, November 9, at 2:30 p.m. The Jump Jam is a spectator favorite. Open to only 25 participants, the Jump Jam gives the participants a chance to show off their air-catching skills. This event will be at the Cedar Glades Park Jump Zone.
• Güdrun Awards for the Enduros, Time Trial, Strider Race and Jump Jam will be given directly following the Jump Jam Competition on the stage at the Cedar Glades Hilltop.
• Güdrun Dual Slalom - Saturday, November 9, at 5 p.m. The Dual Slalom has racers racing side by side on a double-lane course designed to zigzag the racers back and forth down the hillside at Cedar Glades Park. Participants will be placed in a bracket, racing head to head, and will race twice, once in each lane. The fastest cumulative time moves on in the bracket.
• Güdrun BonFire (if conditions allow) - Saturday, November 9, at 5 p.m. Gudrun Dual Slalom Awards. The Dual Slalom Awards will take place immediately following the conclusion of the event on the stage at the Cedar Glades Hilltop.
• Attila the Hun XC Race - AMBCS - Sunday, November 10, at 8 a.m. Attila the Hun, now in its 32nd year, is the final event of the festival and the last race of the Arkansas Mountain Bike Championship Series (AMBCS). The event has 44 categories with First Timers, Novice, Cat 2, Cat 1, Clydesdale, EBike, tandem, and Single Speed options and is open to all. The start and finish will be located on the Cedar Glades Park hilltop.
Berry said times in this schedule are subject to change, according to circumstances and conditions.
“We will, once again, have a Güdrun Enduro Purse for the Pro and Expert categories of the Full Enduro,” she said. “Think you got what it takes to win your category in the Güdrun Full Enduro and Attila the Hun XC Race? Get registered and compete for the Güdrun Valkyrie (female) and the Gudrun Berserker (male) awards. These awards will be given to the male and female with the best cumulative time in their Enduro and Attila categories.”
“The AMBCS is always excited about the Güdrun MTB festival,” said Logan Hall, president. “It's a full weekend of mountain biking for all ages and disciplines. There's the slow roll ride, the jump jam, and the enduro. To cap off the weekend, you have the Attila the Hun XC race, which also marks the conclusion of the Arkansas Mountain Bike Championship Series.
“The festival culminates in a thrilling awards ceremony on Sunday, where we celebrate the achievements of all participants in the Championship series. Racers in the Arkansas Mountain Bike Championship Series vie for top honors, with podium finishers (first, second and third place) receiving commemorative medals and coveted championship jerseys. These jerseys are a symbol of achievement and are worn with pride throughout the following year.”
For more information contact Traci Berry, tberry@hotsprings.org