by Mat Churchill

The mountain bike festival, originally planned to run in conjunction with the Challenge Cairns triathlon in 2012, will be bought forward to next year according to Tourism Port Douglas and Daintree boss, Doug Ryan, who met with event organisers last Wednesday.

The event will ensure a packed Port Douglas with a number of other high profile events happening in May and early June including Carnivale, the Coral Coast Triathlon, and a long distance kayak event from Palm Cove to Port Douglas also planned.

"We could have up to 2,000 athletes plus their families before the big event (Challenge Cairns)," said Mr Doug Ryan.

"The first weekend of Carnivale will concentrate on arts and food, while the second weekend will be sport orientated. It provides us with a massive opportunity on the second weekend of Carnivale."

While many plans around Challenge Cairns are yet to be finalised, Mr Ryan said that event organisers USM Events are looking to bring Port Douglas to life.

"They're currently looking at a sponsorship deal with an overseas television company, and they're hoping to have a big screen at the end of Macrossan Street. There's also talk of major bands and entertainment in the park." he said.