Watch: Mass Rider Crash At The Mountain Of Hell Event

The Mountain of Hell event in takes place every year at the end of June in Les Deux Alpes giving riders from around the world an MTB derby that starts at the top of a mountain glacier, with 2500m descent over 25 bone shaking kilometres.

The route takes in snow, ice, shingle and rock, and every year the organisers change the route to add adrenaline and spice to the competition.

The final event is on Sunday is the highlight of the weekend. The riders set off in a massed start from the glacier at 3400m, and then it’s downhill in the snow to 900m – giving an incredible 2500m of altitude drop.

With 700 riders ready to hurtle down the mountain it’s like the starting blocks of the 24 hours of Le Mans and you’d be right in thinking there might be a few spills, but this is another level.

We’re glad to hear from friends on the ground that everyone is generally ok, which is something to be very thankful for given the severity and the speeds involved

. The event was eventually won by Frenchman Kilian Bron who was quoted in the French press as saying he reaches speeds of 125km/h which is a whopping 78mph, on the glacier.

Last year I remember, it was about 125 km / h on the glacier, there were 1000 people around me. You had to be in it, no choice. It is much anticipation and do not let yourself run on adrenaline, […] you have to reason, to do things intelligently to finish in front. “

You can watch his entire race winning awesome run here

If you want to get started in mountain biking we’d recommend getting hold of a Rockrider MTB or a Vitus MTB heading out to your local woods or bridleways to start out with. If you live in a hilly area and don’t like the idea of tiring climbs, take a look at electric mountain bikes from the likes of Specialized or Trek, or if you just want a good no nonsense MTB that is more than capable for anything then check out the range of Voodoo Bikes as well. As you gain more experience you can try out a long distance trail such as our favourite South Downs Way or venture out to trail centres in Wales to see how you get on in big mountains. If you find you have a real penchant for hurtling down mountains at high speed you can also enter the MegaAvalance or Mountain Of Hell yourself! For anyone looking for a more affordable and sedate way of enjoying cycling we’ve also picked out the best electric bikes for under £500 to get you introduced to the world of cycling

Live updates to follow as we get them