Midwest MTB Report
I can't recall a fall such as this one that has made for fantastic mountain biking conditions. Outside of the snow and wet weather last week (here at Maplelag almost 4" fell before it turned to rain and melted overnight but actually helped packed the track) it has been an incredible fall, now extending in to early November. We are firing up another mountain bike report with news items to note including special reports from the recent Collegiate Nationals. This week's report includes the reports from Collegiate Nationals, a new trail review from the popular Duluth mountain bike trail system and a few other items to note including a link to some incredible mountain biking in Iceland.
USA Cycling Collegiate Nationals
QBP cycling advocate and race director of the Minnesota Series, Gary Sjoquist, made the trip east to West Virginia to catch the racing action at Collegiate Nationals and sent a recap. One of those riders Carley Endersbe sent in a special report we've included as well.
Gary's Recap:
The USA Cycling Collegiate National MTB Championships took place Oct. 23 25 at Snowshoe Mountain in West Virginia, with both Division 1 and Division 2 colleges competing in a variety of events including short track, cross country, downhill, dual slalom, and team relay (4 laps, with each rider doing one lap).
Seven alumni from the Minnesota High School Cycling League's mountain bike racing program took part in the event. The Alumi Men from MN included Reece Oleson, riding for Lindenwood College in St. Louis, Sam Hedlund, riding for the University of Vermont, and Sean O'Donnell, riding for Western State College in Gunnison, CO.
Alumni Women from MN included the Endersbe Twins, Carley and Libbey, riding for Fort Lewis College in Durango, CO, Sophia Marchiando riding for Ripon College in WI, and Camille Sjoquist riding for Western State College in Gunnison, CO. Here are the results for our MN alumni at the Nationals:
Short Track Women's Division 1 Carley Endersbe 15th Libbey Endersbe 23rd
Short Track Women's Division 2 Camille Sjoquist 6th Sophia Marchiando 16th
Short Track Men's Division 1 Reece Oleson 37th Sam Hedlund 54th
Short Track Men's Division 2 Sean O'Donnell 19th
Women's XC Division 1 Carley Endersbe 10th Libby Endersbe 14th
Women's XC Division 2 Camille Sjoquist 6th Sophia Marchiando 16th
Men's XC Division 1 Reece Oleson 26th Sam Hedlund 50th
Men's XC Division 2 Sean O'Donnell 17th
Women's Downhill Division 1 Libby Endersbe 12th
Men's Downhill Division 1 Reece Oleson 52nd
Women's Dual Slalom Division 1 Libby Endersbe 16th
Women's Dual Slalom Division 2 Sophia Marchiando 10th
Team Relay Division 1 Reece Oleson put in a strong lap to help the Lindenwood College team finish 4th
Team Relay Division 2 Camille Sjoquist rode a strong lap, overtaking 3 women on the final steep uphill to help Western State take Silver.
Carley's report:
This year my sister Libbey and I were chosen to represent Fort Lewis College at the Collegiate Mountain Bike Nationals in Snowshoe, West Virginia. Merely being selected was a celebration in itself; out of the 100 mountain bike team members at our school, the coaches can only select the 16 riders they feel will have the fitness, skill, and mental toughness needed to bring home a national championship.
Once the team roster was released, Libbey and I frantically began preparing our bikes, packing, and meeting with our professors to prepare for missing a week of school and beginning our 3-flight journey to the Appalachians. While the racers flew from Durango to Denver to Houston to Charleston, two of our coaches drove our 30(ish) bikes with the team trailer to meet us in a quaint log cabin at the race venue at the Snowshoe Ski Resort.
After a pre-ride, team meeting, and lots of shenanigans at the cabin (it was now the stomping grounds of college mountain bikers, after all) we woke the next morning for the first race, short track. Short track is kind of like Nascar; racers have 20 minutes to ride as many laps of the short course as they can (usually a wide trail consisting of just one downhill and one uphill), and they go fast. This race is all about strength and pain tolerance, as well as crazy fans.
Having watched the Fort Lewis men crush it, the girls anxiously lined up for the Division 1 start. For both the short track and cross country, Libbey was called up to the 2nd row in hopes of getting a good start on the initial downhill, and I was called up to my very own last row in hopes of channeling "my feisty side." The gun was fired and from my vantage point I could easily see where the field was breaking up. There was a crash at the start, then one as the girls were jockeying going into the downhill, and another at the base of the downhill. When I got to the bottom, I saw Libbey climbing back up onto the course! She had taken the outside corner with the firmer ground and as the inside riders started bouncing to the outside they pushed her right off the course. Regardless of the new battle scars, Libbey continued racing and finished 23rd. Following my teammate Kelsay Lundberg to the finish, I placed 15th. Since Libbey was going for the Omnium title (meaning she'd race every event: short track, cross country, downhill, and dual slalom), she immediately went to session sections on the downhill course to prepare for her qualifying run as I cooled down with the endurance squad.
The next morning was an important day for Fort Lewis: the cross country and downhill events. This cross country course was unlike any we'd ridden in Colorado; while we were used to starting on a 30 minute singletrack climb, this one started down a wicked fast, rocky fire road. Unlike Colorado's dust and rock drops, West Virginia offered gnarly roots amidst mud puddles and stream crossings. Being Midwesterners from Cable, Wisconsin, Libbey and I channeled our CAMBA trail experience and passed most of the field (and one bear) on the long root sections. 2 hours, 18 miles, and hundreds of crazy(!) fans later, I crossed the line finishing 10th with Libbey finishing a couple minutes later in 14th.
The next event was the downhill race, arguably the scariest event in mountain biking. On this course, riders completed their runs in about 5 minutes having jumped road gaps, flown over rock drops, and weaved through narrow trees. Our teammate Becky Gardner was crowned National Champion, and Libbey finished 12th.
The final day of racing would break the near-tie between Brevard College, Marion University, and Fort Lewis College to determine which team would be crowned National Champions, so we decided to cheer like no one before. The team relay (2 girls and 2 boys per team would each ride a short loop and tag off) was probably the greatest race I've ever witnessed; at every section of the course was a Fort Lewis teammate running and screaming "GOGOGOGOGO" until they reached the next screaming Fort Lewis kid, and with this strategy our relay team pushed themselves to depths of the pain cave we never knew existed and won!
The last event was dual slalom, which is a short (45 second) descent over berms and through bank turns, requiring very good bike handling. One of our guys, Zach Graveson, was crowned National Champion, and at the end of the day Libbey finished 16th.
And so the waiting began. Sitting at the awards, we were anxiously awaiting which team would bring home the title of best team in the nation, especially since the top 3 teams were all so close in points. As individual podiums were announced, we were stoked that Libbey got 5th for overall individual omnium (meaning she was the 5th best "overall" D1 rider in the US)! Then the announcer paused for anticipation awaiting who was deemed best team and... Fort Lewis College won!!!! I've never been so proud to be part of such an awesome team.
A Note To Midwest NICA Racers:
Libbey and I raced the 1st and 2nd seasons of the Minnesota NICA leagues, alongside now-Western University riders Camille Sjoquist (D2 Nationals: 6th place XC and ST) and Sean O'Donnell (D2 Nationals: 17th XC and 19th ST), who both exceled at the National level. At Fort Lewis College, we couldn't be happier to be surrounded by friends who love to bike just as much as we do. If you're interested in racing in college, regardless of perceived ability level, we recommend looking into Collegiate Cycling teams. The friends and memories you'll make are invaluable :)
Kissing Booth Review
Last week I had the opportunity to sneak a ride in on the Duluth area trails, hitting up the Piedmont and Brewer Park trail clusters. Piedmont has been my personal favorite area to ride in Duluth with its more natural feel with some modern day enhancements recently being added. From the Piedmont trail you can access a newer machine built loop called Brewer Park. Last fall my son Jake and I rode Brewer what had been completed at the time in mid September. The entire loop was finished later that fall and I finally got back there last week to check it out. It was a fun loop for sure but what was most exhilarating was the loop called "Kissing Booth" that splits off the east side main loop. Jake said to be sure to check this new trail Kissing Booth as it was his favorite trail in the Duluth area which says a lot since he has been a year round resident the last three years, exploring the massive network of trails in the city.
Kissing Booth is a hand built trail, rated expert that instantly reminded me of the old Powder Monkey course at the nearby Spirit Mountain when the Minnesota Series would make a stop there during the summer. The entire trail required full on attention with the steep quick drops laced with rocks and roots very rideable with a hardtail. After weaving the down towards the lower road, the trail made a climb back up to the main brewer loop utilizing numerous switchbacks that requires skill to keep the wheels moving. Not having ridden every trail in Duluth, but close to it, I would rank this as one of my favorites as well. If you are looking for a old school feel type trail in the expert category, be sure to check out this sweet trail when riding in the Duluth area. It was probably the most exhilarating ride I did this year, getting extremely lucky on some lines. Of course it was such a rush, I had to do it twice. Fantastic stuff.
Iceland Mountain Biking
Many Nordic skiers might be familiar with Steve Gromatka who grew up in Alexandria, MN. skiing for the Nordic team there and continued his skiing collegiately at University of Wisconsin Green Bay. After graduating from college, Steve has found himself in Iceland with his partner Hekla, living the dream abroad. A month doesn't go by Steve tries to talk me in to coming over for a visit, possibly doing the famous ski race, Fossavatn, which is part of the WorldLoppet. But what sold me on putting a trip across the pond to visit Steve and Hekla was the article I saw in Outside magazine this week that really doesn't need many words to describe how awesome it looks. The raw, nature appearance looks incredibly intriguing with very little human interaction in the form of massive berms and wooden bridges so commonly found in new trail systems now. Also, by looking ah the photos, some mid summer skiing could be added on the snow packed chutes.
Article
Incredible video coverage
(Photo: Joey Schusler)
Mountain Bike Mecca Madness
The Detroit Mountain Recreation Area group is looking to expand the trail system at the ski area as well as a nearby parcels in effort bring more riders to the Detroit Lakes area and ultimately meet ridership goals at DMRA. The intentions are also to earn a coveted IMBA gold, sliver or bronze ride center designation. A local IMBA chapter is forming, Lakes Area Mountain Bike Alliance (LAMBAT) to spearhead the campaign. Full article.
(Photo: Jake Green)
Iceman Cometh
The popular point to point race in Traverse City, MI., Iceman Cometh, is on tap for this weekend. It isn't so much the distance or course that draws riders in but the prize list, the uncertainty of the weather and the year-end celebration mountain bike party/family atmosphere. The Iceman website featured a nice article last week of what the Pros are doing 8 weeks out that is a nice read.
Chequamegon 2016
The Chequemegon folks recent sent out a press release regarding registering for the 2016 Chequemegon Fat Tire Festival. New Year's Day will kick off the Chequamegon Fat Tire Festival's online registration process for the coming year. The 34th running of the event, presented by Trek and produced by Life Time The Healthy Way of Life Company, will be held over the Sept. 17, 2016 weekend. Registrations will be accepted at www.cheqfattire.com beginning Jan. 1, 2016.
Keep the wheels moving!
 | About the author... Jay Richards maintains a very active lifestyle. He somehow finds time between managing a full-time resort (Maplelag) and bringing up a family of four boys with his wife Jonell, to compete in both mountain bike and a few cross-country ski races. Jay rides for Maplelag Resort, manages the Maplelag/Paramount/Podiumwear mountain bike team and enters his 25th year of racing and promoting mountain bike races. |