Mountain Bike Race Series

2025 Rates

Become a Conservation Halton member and save! Renewal discounts are also available for current members with a membership set to expire over the race season. Please contact Visitor Services for more information at visitorservices@hrca.on.ca or 905-878-5011.

Sign-up for all 12 races and the finale event at one amazing price point, plus you’ll get a free race series t-shirt!

Note: Kelso gate fees for race nights are included in all non-member registration fees below.

Race Series – Novice, Intermediate, Sport, Expert (All Weeks)

Member:
$189 +HST

Non-Member
$279 +HST

Beginner Series (All Weeks) 

Member:
$85 +HST

Non-Member
$135 +HST

Single Event Race Entry

Please note single event riders will NOT be included in season end standings, even if you race multiple events.

Member:
$33 +HST

Non-Member
$38 + HST

Kids Race Series (All Weeks) 

Member
$60 +HST

Non-Member
$60 +HST

2025 Nightly Schedule

Racer safety and trail health are the top priorities for the Tuesday Night Race Series at Kelso. Our races run so long as we can operate with confidence that these priorities can be supported that evening based on trail conditions and weather.

Our Tuesday Night Race Series will consist of twelve races over four heats. 

Each heat will be comprised of three race nights followed by a make-up or ‘Flex’ Night. Should we be able to run all three races in a heat, the Flex Night will serve as a break for riders from racing and no formal race will be held that evening.  

If conditions are unsafe for a race, however, the Flex Night of that heat will serve as a make-up race date and a race will be rescheduled for that date.  

Kelso MTB Series kicks off with the first race on May 13, 2025 and runs every Tuesday until the last race on August 19, 2025. The finale will be held on August 26, 2025.

We offer 5 categories to choose from:

Kids Race – A dedicated short track that targets young riders. The course is exceptionally easy, rideable on run-bikes and nearly every other options. Parental assistance is encouraged if needed and the focus is on fun and accomplishment.

Beginner Race – A dedicated short track that is built for newer riders that want to build some skill and participate in a race environment. We recommend a minimum of a 20″ wheel as well as a handlebar controlled front, and rear brakes.

Novice – 1 lap of our full course. This is a great category for younger riders, or riders with less stamina or ability. You will ride with the sport and expert riders, but you will have your own separate start. The single lap makes this an easier full race option. Keep an eye out for the Novice Race Cut-offs on course!

Intermediate – 2 laps of our Novice course. This is a great category for riders who have stronger endurance, but aren’t quite at the skill level of the sport riders. You will be on course with all the riders but have your own start time. Keep an eye out for the novice and intermediate cut off signs!  

Sport – 2 laps of our full course. This is typically our largest categories with a wide age and ability range. You should have the ability to manage 2 laps of the course without depleting your energy level to exhaustion. 2 laps may take you 45 min to an hour and 20 min. Sport riders should be more confident riding at faster speeds and comfortable with the 12 to 16 km (approx.) in length.

Expert – 3 laps of our full course. This is our most advanced category. Most riders in this pack have previous race experience, and can ride laps at reasonable speed with relative ease. Riders should be comfortable riding the longer distances at greater speeds. Expert riders will typically finish between 45 minutes and 1 hour.

Your ability will heavily dictate your race experience. Each ability category is based on a distance or # of laps… following that, your speed will dictate how long you will ride for.

• Kids Lap = approx. 250m, ride as many laps as you can in 20 minutes
• Beginner Race = 1.5 – 2 km, ride how ever many laps you can in 20 minutes
• Novice Race = 1 lap of full course (usually 6 to 8 km) at a race pace
• Intermediate = 2 laps of full course (roughly 12-16km) at race pace 
• Sport Race = 2 laps of full course (12 to 16 km) at a race pace
• Expert Race = 3 laps of full course (18 to 24km) at a race pace

As a general rule, our fastest riders can complete a full lap in roughly 18 to 20 min. While some of the more entry level riders will ride that loop in 35+ minutes.

You will select which category you want to ride in when you register. This should ideally be the category you wish to race in for the season. As a series rider you will earn points every time you race, these points are calculated based on the category you are in. If you wish to move UP a category (Sport to Expert for example) you will take your points with you and then begin to earn points within your new category. If you drop DOWN a category, we will need to wipe all your accumulated points to zero. We strongly recommend selecting one category and sticking with it for the season. That way you can focus on improving your times at that distance and then add laps in future years!

*In rare circumstances we will strongly “suggest” that a rider move up or down a category if there are safety or fair play concerns.

We have been proud to offer a FREE option for our newest riders for several years now and continue to do so in 2025! Kids wishing to come and try their hand on the kids loop are still welcome to come and do so for FREE. Those wishing to join us for the whole season, have their laps tracked and receive a draw ticket each week for some amazing prizes are now asked to pay a fee of $60+HST to cover some basic costs. If you wish to race for free, please come out to the start line and keep pace with the other riders! We won’t track your laps, but the focus is on having fun! If you decide you want to compete, you can always sign up in future weeks! You may sample the race as often as you would like.

Uh oh! Such is life… this does happen. If you happen to forget your race plate, we will replace it for you for a fee. Each replacement chip/plate is $10. Come see us at the Visitor Centre on race night and we can re-issue you a plate.

Our race season runs for the weeks scheduled.

We will only cancel a race if the trails are:

• Too wet, muddy, or covered in water to ride safely
• There is active thunder or lightning at the start of the race.
• There is what we feel to be a relatively certain chance that it will be raining, up to or during the start of the race. i.e. If it is starting to rain at 3:00 pm, and the radar shows imminent storms for the area through the evening, and the forecast indicates the same or worse weather, we will cancel proactively.

About Heats: In 2024, we modified the format for our race series to include 4 heats with a make-up Flex evening built in. This format continues for the 2025 series. As an example, if one of the races from #1–3 had to be cancelled, the Flex Date for the first heat (June 3) would serve as a formal race counted towards end of series point totals. If all races 1-3 ran as planned, the Flex Date would be a break from racing with no formal race on that evening. Check the race schedule above throughout the season for the most up to date information on our scheduled race dates.

This page is your best and most frequently updated resource and will be updated whenever decisions on race cancellations are made. For more info, follow us on Facebook and Twitter! Follow us on social media (@ConservationHalton) and we will provide updates on races through the day. We will also post updates to our website, but will only do this once a decision has been finalized. Race cancellations are made with our best available detail / forecasts by 4:30 pm on race days. We would only cancel a race after 4:30 pm for emergency reasons such as a thunderstorm that was not in the forecast.

All Full Series Riders who register before Week #3 will receive a race t-shirt. We will issue these mid-season (early August). Wear them with pride!

Yes! The series is priced such that even if you miss a few races, it’s still cheaper to sign up for the series! It’s also a great way to support your trail network and sponsors!