Organiser Geoff Hunt said the festival was attracting national and international interest in Queenstown and would help cement the resort's reputation as an essential biking destination.
"With Queenstown becoming such an important biking mecca, just like Whistler in Canada and Morzine in France, we are confident that the annual festival will develop into a real winner. We are looking forward to hosting bikers from all over who will spread the word."
First up tomorrow is one of the programme's key events - the Super D Enduro race - in which 60 individual and team competitors race non-stop for six hours in the Ben Lomond Forest.
The race route takes approximately 17 minutes from top to bottom of the hill, at which point competitors take the gondola back to the starting point to continue racing.
Mr Hunt said there would be some top talent competing, including a team led by national women's mountain bike champion Kate Fluker, of Queenstown, and another including former Olympian Kashi Leuchs.
The other headline events are the Tour de Wakatipu, a 36km or 45km ride from Arrowtown via Lake Hayes along the Shotover and Kawarau Rivers, and the three-day Ben Lomond Dirtmasters Downhill for elite riders only, to be held on a challenging three kilometre course in the Ben Lomond Forest.
He said entries for the festival were good, especially considering the relatively short timeframe available in which to organise it, and included a number of Australian athletes.
"We know next year ...
all our international riders who have had to fill their contractual obligations will be here, but they couldn't make it this year," Mr Hunt said.
Other events include family and casual mountain and road biking events, night rides and biking movies screened at several locations.
