 Gunnison-Crested Butte, Colorado] Since the 1970s, when locals started retrofitting old Schwinn paperboy bikes with multiple gears, Crested Butte has helped write the history of mountain biking and is home to the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame. Today, some of the sport’s most thrilling chapters are still unfolding in the Gunnison Valley, with both classic and cutting-edge events and backcountry trails straight out of mountain biker fantasies.
The Gunnison-Crested Butte area hosts the world’s oldest mountain bike festival, the Annual Fat Tire Bike Week in June, as well as a new generation of events that range from 24-hour marathons to race courses plunging down Mt. Crested Butte’s ski slopes. The Annual Pearl Pass Mountain Bike Tour, from Crested Butte to Aspen in September, is the oldest mountain bike event in the world and chronicles a friendly rivalry between these two ski towns.
The full range of summer and fall biking events take advantage of the area’s diverse terrain, from Crested Butte’s legendary alpine single track to Gunnison’s high-desert sage and slickrock at Hartman Rocks Multi-Use Recreation Area. They also reflect the fit-and-fun spirit of the communities. To view trail reports and sign up for email trail report newsletters that include current information about mountain biking, hiking and wildflower viewing, visit www.coloradomountainbiking.info.
Annual PowerAde Pinnacle Summer Race Series
July & August. This regional recreational racing series was created in 1998 by Crested Butte Mountain Resort. The popular event is geared for fun and competition in a total of 12 racing categories for beginner to expert riders. The races consist of varying lengths and difficulty to challenge riders on Mt. Crested Butte's network of trails and quality single-track.
Annual PowerAde Pinnacle Summer Race Series
July & August. This regional recreational racing series was created in 1998 by Crested Butte Mountain Resort. The popular event is geared for fun and competition in a total of 12 racing categories for beginner to expert riders. The races consist of varying lengths and difficulty to challenge riders on Mt. Crested Butte's network of trails and quality single-track.
Annual Crested Butte Bank Xterra, Crested Butte
July. The Annual Crested Butte Bank Xterra (previously known as the Crested Butte Bank Trails Triathlon) is a triathlon for individuals and teams that consists of a 1K swim, 24K mountain bike ride and 9K trail run. Music, food and enthusiastic spectators lend a festive atmosphere to the triathlon whih includes a pro category and a challenged athlete division in addition to several age groups for men and women.
The triathlon course is set in and around Skyland, a residential community south of Crested Butte. Swimming takes place at Skyland’s Grant Lake, while mountain biking is a mix of the area’s most popular single track (Upper Loop, Upper-Upper Loop and Strand Hill). In the last leg of the race, competitors begin by running the Upper Loop, then descend Whetstone Vista and return back to Grant Lake to cross the finish line.
All proceeds from the Crested Butte Bank Trails Triathlon go to local causes, including the Crested Butte Land Trust for the protection of open space. For more information, contact Crested Butte Bank at 970-349-0170.
Colorado Rocky Mountain Bicycle Tour
August. Seven days of great riding in the Colorado Rocky Mountains begins and ends in Gunnison. Arrive in Gunnison for check in and an early kick-off party for the second annual Colorado Rocky Mountain Bicycle Tour. Enjoy the 65-mile route ride from Gunnison to Montrose next to Blue Mesa Reservoir. Visit Carbondale, Aspen, Leadville, Frisco and Salida along the way before returning to Gunnison.
To register and for more information, visit www.crmbt.com.
Annual 24 Hours in the Sage - Loop relay race
August. Gunnison’s Hartman Rocks Multi-Use Recreation Area again sets the stage for a summer race of a different sort: a 24-hour relay. Individual entrants, duo teams, four-person men’s and women’s teams, and five-person co-ed teams ride a 13-mile loop continuously. The person/team in each category with the most laps wins. The loop incorporates 14 different trails, with almost 80 percent single track and 1,100 feet vertical gain per lap, which race organizer Mitch Fedak describes as “substantial, but not killer.”
The weekend also includes live entertainment, the World Townie Championships (with entrants riding single-speed bikes with mandatory fenders and either horns or fuzzy seat covers) and more. The event typically attracts approximately 150 racers, with proceeds benefiting Gunnison community projects. To register or for more information, contact 303-507-1148 or visit www.24hoursinthesage.com. |
Annual Pearl Pass Mountain Bike Tour
September. The Annual Pearl Pass Mountain Bike Tour, the oldest mountain bike event in the world, runs from Crested Butte to Aspen via Pearl Pass. In 1976, the first group of 15 or 20 cyclists from The Butte rode one-speed town bikes over the 12,705-foot Pearl Pass to Aspen in response to a group of Aspenites riding their motorcycles over Pearl Pass and parking them in front of the old Grubstake Saloon (now the Brick Oven) in Crested Butte. The Crested Butte rowdies pulled up in downtown Aspen in front of the historic Hotel Jerome upon arrival.
The following year, a majority of the Buttians were out fighting forest fires so skipped a year and began making the ride an annual party starting in 1978. By the early 1980s, the event had grown and become a weeklong event known as Fat Tire Bike Week, which at the time was the only mountain bike festival anywhere. Today, Fat Tire Bike Week is held in June and the Pearl Pass Mountain Bike Tour is in September to honor the origins of mountain biking in Crested Butte. For more Pearl Pass Tour information and registration, call 970-349-6817 or visit the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame web site.
Annual Gunni-Cross (ACA Cyclo-cross)
October. Day one takes place in Gunnison’s Jorgensen Park, utilizing the local BMX track and tight turns around the park. This is part of the ACA BCR/BCT point series. Western State College is the site of the action on day two, utilizing natural features and amazing terrain to create laps straight out of European cyclo-cross. Quick accelerations, tricky off-camber corners, pristine grass sections and a mammoth run-up are highlights on day two.
Both days are sanctioned by the ACA, with all ACA rules applying. Great prizes and a cash purse can be won by top finishers on both days. Proceeds benefit local organizations. For more information, call 970-275-8191.
Ride the Slopes All Aummer
Chairlift rides at Crested Butte Mountain Resort are available to bikers and hikers. Red Lady Express lift transports mountain bikers and hikers. From rolling single-track to more advanced technical terrain, Crested Butte Mountain offers miles of summer trails to entice bikers of all abilities and ages. Silver Queen lift transports hikers to just below the summit at 11,400 feet. From there, sightseers can climb to the 12,162-foot Mt. Crested Butte peak, stop for a picnic or simply take in the spectacular views of the Elk Mountains Range of the Colorado Rocky Mountains. Both lifts open in mid-June, with Silver Queen operating through Labor Day and Red Lady Express running through mid-August. For more information, contact 970-349- 2262 or visit www.skicb.com as the summer season nears.
Mountain Bike Hall of Fame
& Crested Butte Mountain Association
Those interested in the story of mountain biking can see it first-hand at the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame located in the Crested Butte Mountain Heritage Museum in downtown Crested Butte. Classic bikes, photos, mementos and media clips tell the lively story of this home-grown sport and the characters who gave it life. Visit Mountain Bike Hall of Fame online at www.mtnbikehalloffame.com/
The Crested Butte Mountain Bike Association (CBMBA) has been involved in trail maintenance, trail protection, access and land holder trust since 1983. Most of the small trail signs bikers see along the way are compliments of CBMBA and the local forest service. CBMBA works to educate cyclists on responsible mountain biking, advocate for appropriate access and promote cohesion among trail users.
CBMA assists the local U.S. Forest Service by coordinating trail work projects, which help repair damage done to trails by mountain bikers and other users. On National Trails Day in June, volunteers will work on an area trail. Additional trail work days will be announced in the near future, watch www.cbmba.org.
|