Hawarden Castle was home to William Gladstone the most important Prime Minister of the Victorian period. The present castle was built alongside the twelfth century “Old Hawarden Castle.” In 1157, as Henry II prepared to invade Wales, he sent an advance guard to flush out Owain Gwynedd, the “Prince of North Wales.” Owain’s men ambushed Henry’s forces at Hawarden and forced them to withdraw to the safety of the coast. 1282 the Old Castle was attacked by Dafydd ap Gruffuddin’s militia. This was the last Welsh assault on the forces of Norman England. During the English (and Welsh) Civil War Oliver Cromwell destroyed the Castle to deny royalists any possible defensive position. The modern Castle was built in the 1750s although Hawarden itself, situated on high ground, has been a stronghold since the Iron Age, 3,000 years ago.
NWCX League are guests of the award winning Hawarden Estate Farm Shop. Please follow the parking signs and occupy the reserved car park. Event HQ is adjacent to the Farm Shop. Teas, coffees and cooked food will be on sale from the Farm Shop Cafe. NWCX visitors are invited into the Shop and Cafe but please no bikes near the store entrance. The tarmac car park at the front of the Shop is reserved for regular Farm Shop visitors. NWCX are to park in the reserved car parks and fields.
The course consists of grass, banking, gravel tracks and stretches of woodland single track. The race enjoys a 1960s/70s style “full width start” before funneling down into dirt track
This is a retail venue with a reputation for fine produce and a popular cafe. Please treat WCs and facilities with respect. Please keep the Farm Shop Car Park free for regular visitors. Please refrain from cleaning your bike in the car park because we want a return invite. Children are of course allowed to play in the Childrens’ play area but for visitor safety there must be no cycling (adult or children) in the Childrens’ Play Area or bikes left in the Farm Shop entrance.
Dog prohibition. Dogs are banned at this site for livestock and nature conservancy reasons.
NWCX requires competitors to assist course clearance post-race.
