Check it. Looks heavy. Who says you need money to go out in London?? What the hell is freeriding: Think BMX tricks on a bigger more er, stunt-tastic, bikes. You can sign upto have a go too.
Here's the press release - check the href="http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=10817072094">facebook group for more info, vids and to register.
NISSAN QASHQAI CHALLENGE BRINGS FREERIDING'S FINEST TO TATE MODERN
Nissan will host the grand final of the Nissan QASHQAI Challenge 2008 in London, seeing the world's best freeriders compete for the coveted title.
The Nissan QASHQAI Challenge 2008 is the second annual Nissan mountain bike freeriding series and will culminate on Saturday 24th May with the grand final being held outside Tate Modern, on London's South Bank.
The museum will provide an exciting backdrop to the urban freeriding challenge, as the Nissan QASHQAI-sponsored Street Art exhibition, which features work from some of the most exciting street artists in the world, will be unveiled while the world's best freeriders compete in a variety of mountain bike disciplines.
Urban freeriding is an exhilarating form of mountain biking which sees riders take on challenging man-made terrain to perform extreme stunts. The riders will perform physically demanding tricks while airborne, taking on drops of up to 30 feet high, narrow platforms, jumps and landings.
The London event is the final in a series of four challenges across Europe, with events being held in Milan, Madrid and Munich in late April and May. Four weekends will provide Europe with first class mountain bike action in the heart of its most exciting cities.
Thousands of spectators, including riders and enthusiasts, are expected to attend the grand final of the Nissan QASHQAI Challenge in London, which demonstrates Nissan's passion and commitment to adventure sports, as part of the Nissan Sports Adventure Programme.
In total there will be 30 of the world's best mountain bikers showing off their unbelievable skills in a bid to become the Freeride Champion of the year and win the overall prize of 100,000 euros.
Course builders from all over the world will work together to create individual dirt and wood tracks for the event, setting a new standard in the sport.
Darren Berrecloth, Canadian winner of the 2007 Nissan QASHQAI Challenge series said: "Nissan's support of the mountain biking scene is fantastic! Last year the QASHQAI Challenge provided me and the other tour riders with some of the most insane courses to ride, and add to that the incredible prize fund that was on offer, that just proves that the QASHQAI Challenge is a serious mountain biking fixture."
Urban freeriding is the most progressive discipline in mountain biking and illustrates the changing trend of focus from open woodland areas into urban city centres.
Andy Connell, Nissan Motor (GB) Limited's senior manager for marketing communications, said: "The Nissan Sports Adventure Programme is committed to adventure sports and aims to inspire hundreds of thousands of people by bringing freeride mountain biking from the slopes of the mountain to the streets of the city.
"We're incredibly excited about staging the second Nissan QASHQAI Challenge, particularly following last year's success. We're expecting thousands of spectators to
attend the event and watch as the world's best riders take part in the grand final of the Challenge.
"The partnership with the Street Art exhibition at Tate Modern also enables us to maximise the sense of 'urban adventure' and provides the event with the perfect location by using an art form that re-interprets the urban environment in the same way the QASHQAI does."
The 2008 format has undergone a series of changes with feedback from the Nissan QASHQAI Riders Committee, including the addition of open events.
By splitting the series into two opens & two challenge events, Nissan has opened up the contest to a wider range of riders. Five winners from each open event will have the chance to compete against the 15 professional riders at the challenge events. The winners from these challenges will then compete in the grand final in London.
Visit the Nissan QASHQAI Challenge website for more information on the competition at www.nissan-qashqaichallenge.com
