MTB World Cup 2018

We know the arena like the back of our hands. Nové Město na Moravě hosts the race year on year, which is why we only address minor changes and improvements after each race – the positioning of the tents, stalls, and LED screens or the choice of furniture and accessories. We prepare a list of the materials needed and assess what to rent and what to produce ourselves. The office phones keep ringing, the handsfree phones in our cars ring more than ever and everyone on the team gets used to hearing their phone ring before their alarm clock. Thanks to the smooth collaboration of the sales and production teams, we prepare all the proposals on time and have the assembly schedule and the budget ready.

We start our preparations about two months before the world cup when it’s high time to start producing those items we’ll need. The non-traditional solutions, which take production a step further, are particularly time-consuming. At the same time, we produce the tents and inflatable ads for Mitas and Kilpi – the race partners.

The giant starts to move. Three weeks before the event, we put up our tent in Nové Město. We prepare the construction locations, temporary warehouses, and production team facilities. Having been involved for quite a few years in this race, we know it’s going to be a long party. Our trucks packed with equipment will burden the local roads – all within the rules and regulations, of course. When all the material including the furniture and accessories is in place, we start the rough assembly.

The hustle and bustle reaches its peak during the last 14 days. Everything we have hauled in must be put up on the planned locations by our 20 strong team. The tents for the organisers, accreditations, the racers’ facilities, the stage for the awards ceremony, the giant tents for merchandising and parties, and the technology. When the construction is ready, we make a final inspection of the tents, decorations, furniture, and the home straight perimeter followed by a trial run of the four LED screens and all the technology on the winners’ stage. During this phase, we are grateful if we can find a minute for a snack and a cup of coffee.

The handover is not the end. The posts have to be managed – and serviced, when it comes to it. Our people are in charge of the video mixer for all the LED screens. We’re like Japanese tourists when it comes to photographic documentation. We supervise everything 24 hours a day – and feel it would be wonderful if these days had just a few more hours.

The week has flown by, so we pack our gear and set out on new adventures. After the madness of the race, corporate parties, weddings, and festivals are our favourite events. We do a brief evaluation with the client – a real quickie – because all the organisers must have a good 15 to 20 hours sleep for a few days in a row.

We’re finally through this. The weeks following the race are about assessment, feedback, and revisions on both sides. The years of experience pay off. We then sit with our team and revise what went well and what didn’t. We also watch all the fun photos and videos. We can do without a bike for some time and would gladly swap the 10,000 strong crowds for a quieter party.