After going virtual in 2020 due to COVID-19, the Big Pig annual mountain biking festival organized by Ride Burns is back and in full swing.
Executive member of Ride Burns Patti Dube told Lakes District News that the three day festival is set to take place from Sept. 17 to Sept. 19 on the biking trails on Boer Mountain, and will include several planned events.
Registration for the festival will begin at 4:30 p.m. on the Friday, an hour prior to start time. The first event is called Strong Children of the North hosted by Spirit North. It will begin at 5:30 p.m., and is an event for kids of all ages. The activities will include a run bike rally, a bike parade in which kids can decorate their bikes and dress up, a scavenger hung, and the Wee Piggy skills park course.
The following day will consist of cross country events, starting with the 40km outer perimeter challenge from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. From noon to 4 p.m., the Dante’s Inferno cross country event will take place, which is 1okm long and can be done solo or with a team. Next, beginning at 1 p.m. and going to 4 p.m. is Wilbur’s Wheelay, which is 5 km long and also can be done solo or with a team.
Following the full day of biking, a free live music event will be held on the grassy area at 6 30 p.m.
To wrap up the festival, Sunday will offer a new event called The Enduros, which includes two activities; a short and a long course. The new event is replacing the downhill race from previous festivals. The short course is called the Half Rack, it begins at 9 a.m. and will span 5km going up the Huff and Puff trail and down the lower Charlotte’s Web trail. The final activity is the Full Rack long course, which starts at the Water Lew trail and heads down several trails including Pigasus, Charlotte’s Web and FireCrew. The course is subject to changes if the weather is poor.
The cost per event is $20 for Ride Burns members, and $25 for non members.
It’s a return to the 2019 format after last year’s virtual festival, which was created to accommodate COVID-19 restrictions.
READ MORE: Big Pig goes virtual this year
In 2020, the festival was stretched from three days to a whole month of activities, which included dares and challenges that participants had to complete on their own and take photo confirmation as proof.
According to Dube, the return to the regular format is a welcome sight. “We are thrilled to be having this event in person. We are hoping people from all over the North will come for the weekend and have a great time.”