The world of endurance road cycling will crown its champions this April, with 250 cyclists descending upon Busselton.
Riders will test themselves against the best in the business over 24 electrifying hours of racing on a super-fast two kilometre course around Barnard Park.
D7, the seventh edition of the Delirium 24 Hour Road Race will hit Busselton on April 8 and 9 after a highly successful event on the foreshore last year. It brings with it the possibility of a World Championship Medal for all those competing in the solo 24-hour categories.
For event organiser Brendon Morrison, the new world championship status is a step toward gaining much-deserved recognition for endurance cyclists.
“Endurance racing is not yet officially recognised by either the UCI or the Olympics, yet the people who compete in this event are some of the finest, most dedicated and toughest sportswomen and men you will ever see,” Morrison said.
“They take their bodies and their minds to places most people will never go and we want them to be recognised alongside Tour de France and Paris-Roubaix winners.
“We’ve assembled a very high quality field of riders and we expect the eventual winner of the open category to get near the 800 kilometre mark. That’s like riding from Perth to Carnarvon on a bicycle in one day...seriously fast.”
The objective of Delirium is for competitors to ride the most laps possible in 24 hours, with those completing the most crowned as champions in their categories. Delirium is for all cycling enthusiasts of all levels, with options for elite and social teams and duos as well as soloists in 24-hour and 12-hour categories.
With World Champion status up for grabs for the first time in the Open, 50+, 60+ male and female categories, the 24-hour solo competitions will be the major drawcards in 2017.
On battle this is bound to draw significant attention from competitors and spectators alike is the Men’s Open 24-hour solo clash between last year’s local champion and current delirium record holder Lee Scurlock and Victorian endurance specialist and previous Delirium record holder Joel Nicholson. Both riders come to D7 in top form, with their eye on breaking Scurlock’s Delirium record of 812 kilometres.
Also in the field again is Veris Women’s Racing team member Sabine Bird, vying for the Open Women’s title for the third year in a row, but faces some tough competition from Kim Ogden and Amy van Dijk who are both moving up from the 12-hour event, their eyes now fixed on the 24-hour title.
Morrison said Delirium’s 24 hours of fast and furious action would make for a weekend of entertainment.