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New High School Races beginning Fall 2012
Welcome to High School Mountain Bike Racing in Minnesota!
It’s snowy and cold right now, but it’s a good time to start building your team for the Fall debut of our league. A good place to start is the Advocate Map on our new website. If you click the rotating graphic on the right, you’ll be asked to provide some basic information. Once we update our MN Advocate Map, you’ll be able to find other parents, coaches, and student athletes interested in racing. Click here to visit the site: www.minnesotamtb.org
2012 Leaders' Summit Registration
The Minnesota Leaders’ Summit will be held on April 14–15, 2012. Attend the Summit to learn the intricacies of coaching high school cyclists.
Tentative 2012 Race Schedule
Sept. 9 Race #1 (Twin Cities)
Sept. 23 Race #2 (Rochester)
Oct. 7 Race #3 (St. Cloud or Elk River)
Oct. 21 Race #4 (Twin Cities)
Special Events
April 14–15 Leaders' Summit
Spring 2012 Team Development Meeting
Spring 2012 Coaching Certification Class
Summer 2012 Rider Camps
Please review your Series results. Review peroid will close on October 13. Final Standings will be posted on October 16. If you note any errors please send me the information (race, rider, class, finish position, etc.) so that we can ensure the results are accurate.
Please respond to Jeff Robertson at jrob5630@aol.com.
The Series end of season celebration and awards party will be hosted again this year by Quality Bicycle Products (QBP) on Saturday, November 5 from 5:00 – 8:00. It will be an informal family setting. There will be light snacks, beverages, and SWAG.
QBP's address is 6400 W. 105th Street, Bloomington, MN 55438.
COGGS' spectacular race course in Duluth's Lester Park shows why North Shore riding is among the best in the state.
If you've ever wondered why people want to live in Duluth—some 2 hours north of the Twin Cities, away from the excitement and hustle of "big city" life—you need look no further than Duluth's Lester Park.
Nestled along the shores of Lake Superior just north of Duluth, Lester Park is a gem in the crown of northern Minnesota.
With its canyon-like feel, split by the Lester River and Amity Creek running up several miles into Superior's lakeside bluffs, the park could just as well be a series of canyon trails in the foothills of Colorado. It's picturesque, challenging, and by far one of the best race courses in the Minnesota Mountain Bike Series.
That's not just me talking. That's any number of racers you would have caught at the end of the popular Great Hawk Chase mountain bike race, in just its second year at Lester Park.
"This is one of the best designed trails in Minnesota," said Duluth resident and Expert Racer Kari Gates. "It gives you a great mixup of the rocks and roots and overall the singletrack has some challenging parts to it. There are parts where you really hang on for dear life."
The trails have long been popular in the mountain biking circuit, but have only been legally recognized since 2009 when COGGS (Cyclists of Gitchee Gumee Shores) worked with the City of Duluth to formally open the trails to bikes.
Brilliant move. These trails are comparable to anything you'll find on the Front Range of Colorado, not to mention mountains of the East or West Coast. From its snaking singletrack trails that overlook babbling streams, to its screaming doubletrack descent through pine forests, these trails rank among the best the Midwest has to offer mountain bikers.
"There are some uniquely positive things about this course," said Race Director Adam Sundberg. "It's just very scenic riding along the river. And then it's just some fantastic singletrack.
"I think it's a course that just about anybody can have a really good experience at."
And how. Even some heavy rain the night before this year's race didn't dampen the course. Sundberg said the course was designed with water runoff in mind so it could dry quickly.
"It was really awesome," said Comp Racer Matt Leizinger of the Angry Catfish bicycle shop team. "The course flowed really nicely. It was a lot more fun than we really expected."
And continues to be.
Thank you, COGGS. Already looking forward to next year's race.
Troy Melhus is a racer for the Peace Coffee Bicycle Racing Team. He can be reached at tmelhus@mac.com.
Extreme heat and humidity didn't stop more than 300 mountain bikers from making the trek to the popular Elk River Hillside Park for a day of racing and family fun.
There are lots of ways one could describe the 2011 Single Track Attack at Elk River's Hillside Park. But the word at the top of the list: HOT.
As in there's hot—and then there's Elk River Single Track Attack hot.
With both temperatures and humidity well above 90 mark this year, more than 300 mountain bike racers still turned out to suffer and sweat through one of the most popular and fun races in the Minnesota Mountain Bike Series.
"It was plenty humid and warm, but luckily this is one of the courses that is almost all shade," said Race Director Rich Omdahl. "And when you're moving you have a breeze. So while you're racing it's a little less painful. It's just stopping out here in the sun that hurts a little."
Expert racer Chris Ames enjoyed the shade tent that Omdahl provided after the Expert race almost nearly as much as he enjoyed the race itself.
"It's a little hotter than I enjoy so I felt good for about a half hour of the two hours I was out there," Ames said. "But this course is the real deal. It's a real mountain bike course. There's stuff out here that's fast, there's stuff out here that's rough. There's stuff out here that's fast and rough."
And then some. As most Twin Cities racers know all too well, the Elk River course is super fast—packed with twists, fast turns and short punchy switchback climbs that will quickly bust a quad.
In some ways, actually, the humidity was a blessing. The thick air came largely because of the heavy late thunderstorms that soaked the course and left the trails with a perfect tack. Of course, those same thunderstorms also knocked down trees in Hillside Park just hours before the race on Sunday morning—much like last year—which meant for some last-minute scrambling.
"There was a lot of work to get the course ready—a lot of storms moved through last night," Omdahl said. "So we didn't get to polish the course maybe the way we wanted to, but it still turned out really well."
Expert racer Jan Rybar said this was one of his favorite courses to race in the Minnesota series.
"Race was great. It was nice and fast and the technical was beautiful," Rybar said. " "The rock gardens were great. This was perfectly organized. I loved it."
Cool breezes and overcast skies lead to a perfect day on the trails at Red Wing's Memorial Park.
Traditionally, the Red Wing Wheelhouse Classic is hot, humid and one of the more taxing races of the Minnesota Mountain Bike Series.
This year broke tradition.
Cool breezes and cloudy skies greeted racers this year in Red Wing — a far cry from the heat that's broken many a rider in past years.
"It's usually very hot," said Expert Racer Ladric Grant, after the race. "In past years you'd see people passing out at the finish line. This year was a cool 85 degrees."
And the course itself? Nothing short of perfect.
"It was a great day—the weather turned out awesome. Got a little warm in the afternoon but we couldn't have asked for more," said Race Director Adam Schmidt.
And how. Actually it had been raining several days leading up to the race, leaving organizers worried that the course would be too sloppy to ride. But Sunday's race was anything but.
"I think the beginners and the Sport Class did a really good job of taking all that mud and taking it home with them," Grant said with a laugh.
Expert Racer Jen Nowlin was glad to find the Expert loop perfectly tacky. She said it was the terrain at Red Wing's Memorial Park that brings her back every year.
"The quarry and the loop-to-loops—it's just like riding a skateboard," Nowlin said. "You can't beat that feeling. I specifically come here to ride those sections. It's totally worth it."
Troy Melhus is a racer for the Peace Coffee Racing Team. He can be reached at troy.melhus@patch.com.
A tough course delivered an even tougher challenge in the Minnesota Mountain Biking Series
Like many racers in the Minnesota Mountain Bike Series, I have a love/hate relationship with the annual race at Afton Alps—namely, I love to hate it.
The 16th Annual Afton Avalanche race gave all of us racer plenty of moments to love, and plenty of moments to hate.
The bad times came quickly, even before the first climbs, starting with the mud. Nearly a half-inch of rain the day before the race left the lower sections of the course sloppy, messy and wet.
The mud carried over in the comp and expert races as many riders then found themselves slipping on a number of climbs on the Bridge Loop with the wet ground.
But there was also plenty to celebrate. First off, the course itself was a roller coast blast. And, by its very design, the course dries quickly.
"This course drains really well," said Race Director Adam Schmidt.
"John Rentz, Larry Sauber and the crew do a fantastic job. We had a rain course in mind but we didn't even need to use it."
Expert Racer Devin Curran agreed.
"The race was good. We were all worried the course was going to be wet, but it was dry and tacky," Curran said.
The other good news: The heat and humidity was sporadic thanks to some breeze and clouds. Not to say the heat wasn't a challenge.
"I kept thinking I couldn't keep going—but then I just kept going," said Expert Racer Heath Weisbrod. "You know you're going to suffer at Afton, so you just keep on going. That's the only way you finish."
"It's kind of a race of attrition," Curran added. "If everybody else is going into the fourth lap between the mileage, the vertical and the heat, it's just a matter of keeping the wheels moving."
That said, organizers of this year's race intentionally kept the Manhandler climb out of the race this year.
"Just to get the laps down was the idea since we run on time not miles," Schmidt said. "It still ended up being a plenty long race. I think people still got their mileage worth out of the race."
Full results can be found here.
Troy Melhus is a member of the Peace Coffee Racing Team. He rode a 29er 36x17 Single Speed and is still feeling it.
It's difficult to say what was most exciting about the 2011 Bluff Rider’s Charge in Mankato, MN.
One could easily say the weather: Sunday’s race was near perfect conditions, a long overdue joy for many of the series racers.
One could also easily say it was the course: With a couple nice long climbs, hairpin turns, jumps, and most importantly dryness! “One of the best races in a long time” was overheard from a mid lap racer.
I'd say the most exciting thing was seeing everybody having such a great time out on the course. So much laughter and chatting… pure joy and contentment for a favorable day of racing.
Brendan Moore (Trek) took the overall win for the Elite field by 2 min 19 sec over Penn Cycles Jesse Rients. Jenna Zander won first in the women’s elite field.
Some new names grace the leadership board of the Comp class with Augustin Deltour taking the overall win, John Sandberg in close second, and Andrew Dahl rounding up the top three.
Daniel Munoz stole first in the Sport class by coming in only 39 secs before 2nd place Michael McKinney.
James Kauth took the overall win in Citizen and Owen Woodward kicked butt by a minute and a half in the Kids Comp Class.
While these individuals may have stolen the show, great job to all the participants this past weekend!!
We look forward to seeing you at our next event, The Afton Avalanche, Sunday June 19th at the beautiful Afton Alps Ski Resort .
Pre-riding is available at Afton with a $9 trail fee and the hours are sunrise- sunset.
Racers
This year we will recognize your favorite Minnesota Series race at the Awards Party at the end of the season. However, instead of waiting for the season to be over we will be voting immediately after each race. Votes will be accepted for the week immediately following each race – from Sunday evening through the following Saturday evening. For the Freewheel Frolic voting will take place from Friday, May 27 through Thursday June 2 at 8:00 PM. All persons who raced in the MNMBS Series are eligible to vote once for each category.
Overview – this award acknowledges the efforts of a Promoter and the volunteers who help staff a MNMBS event. All races from the 2011 season, with the exception of the Border Battle, are eligible for this award.
Selection Criteria - We are using a rating of one (1) to four (4) with four (4) being the highest.
1. Race course – clarity of markings (caution, directional flow, passing areas, etc.), mix of technical, climbs, single track, etc.
2. Facilities – good parking, restroom access, food vendors on site, etc.
3. Registration/check-in – friendly, helpful volunteers, easy to follow process.
Please click on the “Race of the Year” button to the left to vote. Please note - we are using the Site's registration program to count the votes, the word "register " really means "vote".
A new season, another wet start, and a few mechanicals…
Series Update - 05/29/2010
Many thanks to those who attended the Freewheel Frolic and endured our altered schedule due to the bad weather. Now that the season has begun, we’d like to remind our racers about the following Series Race Procedures:
1. Lightning – lightning was a key factor in the Freewheel race delay. We cannot race when lightning is present. If lightning occurs during a race, we need to shut the race down immediately. So if lightning is imminent, we’d rather wait for it to pass than start a race and have to cancel it halfway. The good news is that intense weather generally moves quickly, so delays will be relatively brief.
2. Race delays – we will do everything possible to complete our races on race day in the event of bad weather. As indicated at registration, there are no transfers or refunds due to a race being held later than the published time on race day.
3. Race results – it is the responsibility of the racer to check the race results timing sheet to ensure proper placement. Typically, preliminary race results will be posted after the first 50 racers have finished. Often a second results sheet will be posted when almost everyone is in. A final results sheet will be posted once the course has been cleared. Between the posting of this final result sheet and the awards ceremony (typically right after the next race begins), it is the responsibility of the racer to bring any discrepancies to the Timing tent (look for the tent with the blue top next to the finish line). Once the award ceremony has taken place, results are final and cannot be changed.
4. Medals – generally, we try to begin the awards ceremony right after the next race has started. The race announcer will also announce a time for the award ceremony to begin. For those who placed in the Kids Comp and Citizens classes in the Freewheel race, but did not pick up your medal, please stop by the Series desk at the Lifetime Avalanche at Afton Alps and pick up your Freewheel Frolic medal. If you were told at the Freewheel Frolic that we would mail your award, and cannot pick your award up at the Afton race, please contact Gary Sjoquist (garys@qbp.com) with your name, class, and age.
5. DNF - If you DNF a race, you must report your DNF to the blue timing tent at the finish line in order to receive points credit in the Series standings. You can also leave your transponder at the blue timing tent.
6. Lapped riders – with a full day of racing scheduled, and classes approaching 200 racers, it is simply not possible to allow everyone to complete their races at their own pace. A full day of races is scheduled with reasonable intervals between classes. Any rider who is lapped by the race leaders before the last lap should complete their lap and leave the race at the finish line. Racers who have been lapped and need to leave the race will be placed according to the number of laps they are down and their position at the finish. If you cannot complete a race within a reasonable amount of time behind the leading racers, you should consider moving to a class with fewer laps of racing.
