Dubai: Residents and sport enthusiasts can still join the mountain bike race taking place in Hatta this Friday, as the free registration is still open.
Dubai Municipality’s Hatta Centre has invited residents to take up the six-hour challenge on a new 17-km mountain bike trail scheduled to open on the same day of the race followed by draws and activities to keep everyone entertained.
The contest, being held under the patronage of the Zabeel Office For His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, will start at 10am and has been arranged in five categories — men’s solo, women’s solo, men’s team, women’s team and mixed team. Teams can have only have two members.
Omar Saeed Al Mutaiwe’e, head of the municipality’s Hatta centre, said the municipality is launching the trail to encourage people to be healthy and enjoy the natural attractions and local culture of the area.
“We are happy to announce that the Hatta Centre is done with the final preparations before launching the new trail on Friday, and we have already received 1.000 participants. We are expecting the number to increase to 5,000 by the time the race begins,” he said.
Hatta is about 110km south of Dubai and a popular tourist destination known for its rugged terrain, springs, and small-town traditional life and local heritage.
Al Mutaiwe’e said that the municipality is always keen to launch such community-driven initiatives in the same location because “we want to encourage citizens, residents and tourists to stay healthy by participating in such sport activities”.
The initiative has been organised by the Hatta section of Dubai Municipality and a few members of HOT-COG-MTB, a Dubai-based mountain bike club. Residents can register for the race on www.hattamtb.ae.
