HAMSTERLEY Forest is set to have a new mountain bike trail after a County Durham mountain biking club donated £2,750 to the cause.

The trail, which is currently under construction, will be named in honour of The Beamish OddSox club, the North-East’s biggest and oldest mountain biking club.

Its members made the donation to the Hamsterley Trailblazers, the official trail-building partner working with the Forestry Commission at the County Durham venue.

The Hamsterley Trailblazers has promised to find £20,000 from club funds over two years to release a £22,000 grant, agreed in a deal between Defra and the Forestry Commission.

It will also be supplying £13,000 worth of volunteer labour to help build the trails.

The cheque from the Beamish OddSox means that the first year’s financial commitment has now been met.

Volunteers are currently working to complete a section of red-grade trail to replace the legendary “Star Wars” trail which was lost to forest harvesting operations.

When opened, it will be named “OddSox”.

Neil Gander, the Chairman of the Hamsterley Trailblazers, said: “We are so grateful for this contribution from the Beamish OddSox.

“By agreeing to this grant they have benefited the mountain biking community as a whole.

“We hope every rider will give them a little vote of thanks each time they ride the OddSox trail.”

The chairman of the Beamish OddSox, Neil Thompson, said: “The majority of our members have benefitted from riding and racing on the trails in Hamsterley Forest over many years and it’s a place we still regularly ride.

“It was just too good an opportunity to pass up, plus it’s a great bit of kudos to have a trail named after us too. We’re all really looking forward to being able to try it out.”