Rubber Side Down

Welcome, race fans! Here you will find a compendium of racing news and resources. Please email me anything I’ve left out! And be sure to check the comments section, where other readers have added even more info.

Nick Martin, Mike West and Nick Ranno duke it out at the Boulder short track series.

LOCAL RACING OPPORTUNITIES:

Winter Park Series: A fun, grassroots series with well-organized races and free beer & snacks afterward. The homey, laid-back vibe and familiar faces make you feel like it’s your hometown race series. No hype, just solid racing. But the competition shows up and delivers…you’ll never fail to be challenged. These are classic cross-country races with plenty of climbing. The good news is that a lot of the trails head into the forest behind the ski resort, so some of the climbs are mellower or have more variety than those at other resorts. (The unrelenting pain of Snowmass comes to mind here.) It’s easy to drive up there, race, and head home — or you can stay overnight and ride all day Sunday. The post-race raffles are outstanding – people have won forks, frames, clothing, sunglasses and other goodies. Winning a free pizza for dinner is an awesome prize, too. Best of all, in 2009 they have added TWO Super D races. Rad! No licenses are needed.

Winter Park racing

Mountain States Cup Series: A more professional-seeming series, in spite of some issues they had last year with results. Tents, music, announcers, and more high-profile locations give the races a slick, happenin’ feel. The drawback here is that attending them requires more time, effort and money. It’s a ton of fun to travel to Angel Fire, Telluride and Crested Butte, but you have to maintain a certain level of commitment to all that driving and wrangling of gas/food/hotels. This series has been far more popular with the gravity racers, from what I can tell; fields for the XC races have been pretty small. But the series has changed hands, and some new venues are in store this year, so maybe the disciplines will even out. This series is a great place to stretch your limits: if you’re a downhill or cross-country racer, you can try your hand at Super D. If you’re a woman and 4-Cross or Dual Slalom has caught your eye, you can often race Beginner class for free. (You can find descriptions for these racing styles here.) If you primarily race XC, hang around a day and watch the downhill racing. It’s a really fun scene, with a lot more camaraderie than I’ve noticed at XC events. A NORBA license is required to race expert or above, or to contest the overall series competition. (The National Off-Road Bicycling Association name keeps hanging around, even though it doesn’t exactly exist anymore. This is the new national series, if you’d like to race around the country.)

Boulder short-track series: In a nutshell — twenty minutes of pain. But you just can’t help yourself. The races are held at the CU Research Park, and ripping around the tight, swervy course (even if you crash or vomit) just feeds the addiction. You can race, then hang out and heckle your friends while your legs fill up with lactic acid. What’s not to love?? Seriously, I dig these races. They embody everything that’s right about the Boulder cycling scene. Come by every Wednesday night from June through August and watch the action. (And after I swore I had no earthly use for a hardtail, I caved and bought one just for short track. Sucker!!) You’ll need a USA Cycling (formerly known as NORBA) license for these.

Cyclocross series: If fall rolls around and you just haven’t had enough racing, you gotta try ‘cross. It’s quite possibly the most fun you’ll have at a bike race. It’s a great way to stay in shape, learn new skills, meet new people and suffer like never before. While mountain biking and racing will always be my first love, I still look forward to the ‘cross season all year long. The races are close by and inexpensive, a refreshing change after the rigors of traveling to mtn bike races. And best of all, the scene is really starting to gel. People show up with tents, grills, portable fire pits, beer, bratwurst, and lots more cowbell. This discipline actually has fans. Seriously — people who show up just to watch and holler. You’ll get your picture taken by the many photographers who attend the races, and you’ll feel like you’re actually a part of something, not just racing quasi-solo in the woods. The courses around here often play to the strengths of mountain bikers, with a high demand for bike-handling skills. The pavement sections and climbs are kept to a minimum, which is where the roadies often try to make their move. Cyclocross bikes are a blast to ride, but you can race your mountain bike with no problem as long as you remove bar-ends, which are prohibited. An ACA license is required, although you can buy a one-day version on site while you’re trying things out.

Rob Love tears up the 2007 Cyclocross State Championships

OTHER RACING OPTIONS:

Teva Mountain Games: This is a cross-country race tossed in with a bunch of other events in a festival atmosphere. I plan to race it for the first time this year, after hearing rave reviews about it. I was told that the course is awesome, the other sports are fun to watch, and the whole thing is just cool. Not only that, but check this out: Race prizes are actually money, and they pay all the way down to the expert category. Sick!! I am all over it. Who wouldn’t want to win some money??

Firecracker 50: This popular race, held on July 4 in Breckenridge, has the added distinction this year of being the USA Cycling Marathon National Championships. Each 25-mile lap has 5400′ of climbing, and the course is pretty rugged. If you want to ease into it, I highly recommend doing it as a two-person relay team. All the fun of one lap without the agony of two. And try to get the first lap, which starts as part of the town’s holiday parade.

The Leadville 100: At 10,000+ feet, it’s not called The Race Across the Sky for nothing. And it’s so popular that they use a lottery system in January to choose who gets to race in August. So you might have to plan for next year, but that will give you a lot of time to train, which some of us might need.

The Purgatory Challenge: This is a brand-new race, that used to be the struggling Durango 100. It takes place June 20 this year, which is great since it doesn’t conflict with some of the other long ones. This one’s only about 50 miles, but that’s awesome if you’re looking for a shorter option. And the trails it uses are seriously epic.

The Laramie Enduro: Wyoming’s closer than you think, and this race is gaining in popularity, too. Check it out soon, since they have a limit of 350 riders.

The Crested Butte Classic: This 100-mile event is so new and grassroots that it barely has any organization at all — and that could be really cool. One dude gets it going, and there’s no support, registration, waiver, entry fee, or prizes. It’s all about the fun and bragging rights. The link I’ve given above is to a post about the 2008 event, but it contains the email address of the guy who pulls the group together. Give it a run and let me know how it goes!

Zach White wins the Super D at the Snomass National in 2007

IF YOU’RE NEW TO RACING:

I am far from any kind of racing expert, but five years of doing it has taught me a few things:

1. Triple-check your race bag, and make absolutely sure you have everything. Shoes, helmet, shorts and your wallet are the critical items. You can fudge the other stuff at the race site, but no one will sell you mountain bike shoes at 7:30 a.m. on a Saturday.

2. Get there way too early. It will take you a while to figure out how much time you need to register, change clothes, prep your bike, BS with friends, take a leak, warm up, etc.

3. Warm up. I’m serious. Don’t just ride around a little and get nervous. Figure out a 30-40 minute routine that includes gently increasing intensity, finishing with some really hard but short intervals. Be nice and sweaty as you stand on the start line. If you don’t, that sprint to the singletrack or that opening climb will make you wish you were dead. Take my word for it. How long you warm up depends on your age and fitness, so experiment and find what works for you. Then throw on the iPod (or bring your race buddies along) and knock it out. Use the time, mentally, to really focus on what you want from the race. Which brings me to…

4. Use your mind. Not just to ride and try to win, but to accomplish something for yourself. We all want to win, but only one of us does. So form good mental habits from the beginning and they will serve you well. If it’s your first race, decide what your personal goal should be and stay focused on that. It could be to simply finish the race, or to avoid blowing up in the first ten minutes (which is ridiculously easy to do), or to ride every obstacle you encounter. Try not to get distracted from these goals. It’s so easy to get caught up in competition and forget what you’re trying to accomplish, and then just end up feeling bad about yourself if your result is poor. Speaking of that, I hope you don’t let bad results make you quit racing. Everyone has poor results at one time or another, and hopefully you’re not hanging your ego on that number. As an example: in 2007 I had zero fitness, since I was coming off a pretty severe back injury. I had upgraded to Expert class just in time to hurt myself, but I wasn’t going back. I finished dead last in several races as I tried to race myself into shape. One of these was the Keystone cross-country race, and by that time, “losing” was pretty old hat. I was still enjoying myself (because I had different goals than just winning), and when I lined up for the Super D later that day, I was mentally clear and focused, not down on myself about the XC. I started hard and was second into the singletrack. By the mid-point I passed the leader and won it. So I won and lost a race in the same day. If that doesn’t keep your head on straight, nothing will. So no matter what’s happening out there, keep your mind on your own plan. When you’re a more accomplished racer, you can start fixating on what the other racers are doing, but for now, stay focused on your own goals.

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