Here's the full statement from the team about the 2025 event:

Dearest competitors

It’s with heavy hearts that we have had to make the decision to postpone the upcoming 2025 Prospector MTB Stage Race, scheduled to be held 7-9 March. We all know how tough the current economic environment is and with increasing costs across the board it has left us in tricky situation where we have a major funding shortage.

At this point in time we are down roughly 60% in entries compared to where we were at this time in previous years, as well as dealing with a drop in funding available to events in our region. The truth is that each event so far having been run at a break-even as we have battled to keep up with inflation so we simply cannot afford to go ahead with a drop in numbers of any amount.

We had discussed waiting another month to see if things improved but in fact this will only makes things more difficult if a decision to post pone is made at a later date in regards to refunds, changing travel arrangements etc. and would also mean we have to start outlaying significant funds in preparation for the event.

We have made the decision now with immediate effect in order to have as minimal impact as possible on everyone and allow people to reset their plans for the season.

We have loved hosting you all at the Prospector over the years and realise that it has become a favourite event on many rider’s calendars so there will be some disappointment out there. You can trust that we will be taking the opportunity to use the time this space has given us to go back to the drawing board and come up with a way to keep the event going in the future.

We will be in touch with all those who have entered to arrange the details for refunding.

Wishing you all the best for your summer of riding and we hope that you still find it worthwhile to come and visit us in Alexandra for some riding!

Kind regards

James, Phil & Lisa

No we have individual entries too, but part of the fun of it all is working with your teammate to push each other to do your best. It gives you someone to train with, to moan to, have a beer with after and, most of all, have an epicly great time with

Prospector is all about pushing boundaries and challenging yourself so we do encourage people to give it a shot, you might surprise yourself - particularly if you've got a teammate to train with, to commiserate with and to celebrate with. However for those new to multi-day day rides or those who haven't had the chance to train as much as they would like we have a relay option available. This means you ride the Prologue together with your teammate but you share the load on Stage 1 and Stage 2 with each of you doing half the days riding. You still get to experience the epicness of Prospector, but in a more accessible way

All our riders in the Prospector need to be 16 years or above on the first day of racing. If you're entering the Matangi Claim you need to be 14 years or above, or be able to prove an appropriate skill and fitness level.

In order to be eligible for a category, both team members must be within the age brackets otherwise the age of the youngest rider determines category (apart from junior riders for whom both need to be in the junior age bracket)

You can choose one of three options - pay by credit or debit card when you register; pay via electronic funds transfer or we have a three part payment plan. Full details when you go through to register

Each Rider must carry: 1x Windproof, water resistant jacket 1x Spare Tube (if tubeless set-up), 2xTubes if non-tubeless 1x Spare chain link 1x disposable face mask (for use if you come across an accident) Each Team/Individual must carry: Bike tool kit – including Chain breaker, multi tool, tyre patch kit, tyre lever, bike pump Basic first aid kit – includingwhistle, band-aids, tape, gauze. We highly recommend that you have your bike fully serviced and checked at your local Bike shop prior to travelling to the Prospector. We will be doing safety checks on riders helmets and bikes at registration, to ensure that the bike frame, tyres and brakes are in a safe condition to take part in the event.

Absolutely. We have a limited amount of e-bike entries available - get in quick to secure your spot.

We will send you a reminder when your next payment is due. Entries up to the 1st December 2024 are eligible for payment by instalment. 1st payment is required at time of sign up 2nd payment due 1 December 2024 (or at time of sign up if after this date). Final payment due 31 January 2025. Full payment must be received by 31 January 2025 otherwise your entry will be released. If payment is not made in full a 50% refund will be available of the amount already paid.

There are currently no Government restrictions in place that we have to adhere to, but if that changes we will assess and develop plans accordingly. We are in a lucky position that as a relatively small field of competitors and a mobile team of event professionals we have flexibility that some bigger events don't have which meant that we could still run in 2021 and 2022 when others couldn't so we don't forsee any problems.