Midwest MTB Racing Recap

by Jay Richards
June 15, 2010

A busy weekend of mountain bike racing in the upper Midwest with racing in North Dakota, Minnesota and Wisconsin. Reports from Race to Sunset, Dirtspanker (with a short discussion about riding in mud!) and Sunburst Showdown plus a look ahead at the upcoming Woolly race this weekend, highlights this weeks report.

Race to Sunset

The Race to Sunset is the biggest event in North Dakota over the summer, featuring 5 and 10 hour endurance events. Taking the overall win in the 10 hour event was Kelly Magelky who logged 33 laps en route to racking up 125.40 miles over 10 hours and 21 minutes. Steve Wenzel files a recap from the race:

"The 6th annual 10 Hour Race to Sunset held June 11 and 12 at the Sleepy Hollow City Park in Bismarck, ND is in the books as another successful event.  The Sleepy Hollow course is a 4 mile single track that mixes in climbing, long flowing down hills and tight sections through trees, perfect for two days of racing.

Race activities started Friday evening with a timed Hot Lap - one loop around most of the course with riders leaving at two minute intervals.  Following the Hot Lap is a Slow Race where the idea is to get over the finish line last, perfect for the track stand experts.

The Hot Lap race set things up nicely for the 10 hour event Saturday.  Unlike eastern ND and all of MN, there was no mud to be found which lead to super fast times with a number of riders coming over the line under 14 minutes.  Kelly Megelky, pro Trek endurance rider came across the line in 12:13, a minute faster then the next guy!

The 10 hour event Saturday starts lemond style where the bikes are parked about 100 yards on the course and the riders run to their bike and jump on making it wide open for the hole shot.  Tactics come into play from the start as to how many laps each rider will do before their next team member takes their turn.  Correct food and hydration, rest with your legs up between laps and a proper warm up are key in making teams successful throughout the day.  The solo guys work closely with their support crews to make sure they refueled.  Kelly M always has a great support crew making sure he is set, a big deal which helps him with top results across the country.

The weather was near perfect for racers on the course but a bit cool for those milling about waiting their turn to ride.  Much preferred over baking sun and heat that is typical. Teams mix it up all day with the lapped times and total times posted on a board and the start finish line.  Chip timing makes it easier and more accurate.

The G-Garage team out of Bismarck won the overall team event.  Kelly Megelkey rode over 125 miles to take the solo event.  Check out all of the results on the Pickle Events web page.

Race Results

Overall, the race promoters from Bismarck; Mark Liebig, Brian Beattie and Dennis Kemmesat (and not to leave out all of their support crew) do a great job in making this a top notch event.  There were a lot of racing options that took place the same weekend but a well attended two day deal like this shows they are doing a good job. I will be there again next year."

Dirt Spanker

Mud. Sticky, gooey, sloppy peanut buttery mud -- pretty much sums up the Dirt Spanker at Mon Du Lac ski area near Duluth this past weekend. Steady rain leading up to race day measuring over 3" with no drying whatsover made for very challenging conditions on race day. Seasoned racers reported never racing in the conditions before that existed at Mon Du Lac. "Worst mud I can remember racing in ever " said Doug Swanson on a Twitter post. " I have never seen singletrack so DESTROYED. It went from a tight twisty Midwest style track to a 5 foot wide cow trail." reports Brendan Moore. The ability to ride the mud, helped by proper tire selection was the key to having success at Dirt Spanker. Making a last minute tire change to a narrow more knobbier tire after seeing earlier racers bikes smothered in mud was Lars Ellefson who flew in the day before from Durango, CO, to record a top five finish. "Even with the mud, I would say I rode about 75% of the course. It was still a bike race to me. Mainly ran the up hills. The tires worked great!" states Ellefson who scored a pair of Euro treads from Jack Hinkens last minute to make the switch.  Hinkens, who returned earlier in the week from a U23 training/racing camp in Switzerland, made his way to the singletrack first after the initial climb and rode steady and smooth en route to his first series win. "Riding in the mud over there really helped me a lot today. I just focused on keeping it upright" reported Hinkens.

Notching the win in the women Elite race was Sara Kylander-Johnson who rode to a most convincing win, pulling away from former U23 National champs Jenna Rinehart and Chole Forsman, who was back with TJ Woodfuff from Arizona, visiting family in preparation for the Subaru Cup in Wiconsin in a few weeks. "We only brought back one set of mud tires and TJ was the lucky one to get to use them....I was able to manage one lap before I pulled out" said Forsman. Many riders that did dnf'd simply could not get their bikes to move, as I witnessed riders in all classes having trouble getting the wheels to even rotate pushing their bikes while the tires were locked up.  

After the race I met up with Scott Kylander-Johnson, who rode to a solid 2nd place finish, banking on his fine bike handling skills in the goo and slop. SKJ and I engaged in conversation about riding in muddy conditions and how to train for this type of riding: "Sara and I spend a lot of time riding on snowmobile trails during the winter. The trails will get rutted from the skis on the snowmobiles and we try to ride the ski track, keeping balance. Not only does in work on bike handling but it is amazing how anaerobic you get riding so slow when the snow is softer." Even as Nordic skiing enthusiasts that appreciate good conditions, the husband and wife still try to ride the snow covered trails once a week in the winter. "It's hard sometimes when the skiing is so good but we know keeping on top of the bike handling pays big dividends on days like today."

I shared a similar story with Scott how in the Spring, Jake and I will ride on the trails after a few days of melt/freeze, trying to stay in the icy classic ski track after it has frozen hard the night before. Trying to keep in the track really helps with the handling. There is a small window where this is possible and we always try to get as many days as we can riding as we wait for trails to be rideable in the dirt. With trails being regulated and frowned upon for riding when muddy, it is difficult for people to practice riding in mud and winter riding is something to think of in the future. If riding on ski trails, best to ask for permission obviously but if timed properly, there is no damage to the trails and not only works on the handling nicely, it make for good fun and a break from maybe riding on the road in the cold of winter. Another good piece of advice for improve handling skills that would carry over to mud riding comes from former state champion Gene "Geno" Obrepriller. Geno would advocate riding on a loose gravel road with a road bike. Run the pressure a bit lower for slightly better traction. Living on a gravel road with at least 2 miles of gravel to hit the pavement, it definitely has helped and makes the downhills interesting for sure.

Coverage on Skinnyski

Jack Hinkens post race


Sunburst Showdown

Both Abbigail Strigel and Bary Wicks repeated their wins from the last WORS. Junior Open winner Casey Hildenbrandt files a report:

"After I warmed up with Aris Peters, I headed to the to the line up.  I got a call up being 5th in points, and had a front row spot at the start.  I've never taken the holeshot before in a race, and focused on getting a good position for the singletrack climb right away.  I did just that.  I got a quick start, and jumped the first corner with a gap.  I led the wave of juniors into the grassy switchback on the side of the ski hill.  Greg K., passed me before the singletrack climb, and we already had a nice gap before the singletrack. I sat  his wheel for the first lap.  After the second lap, we still had a good gap on third place, and it only increased more each spot back.  I started to pull more after the first and second laps, after seeing where I was faster than him on the course. Figured those spots out, and on the last lap, made my move with plenty of room to go, about a half mile or so....  jumped out of the saddle and hammered the last short switchback and gapped Greg.  Made him chase me enough to hold of 3rd place, Kyle W.  A good course to open up your motor, and the second race of heat this year.  Lack of eating and drinking last year cost me and I learned my lesson.  It payed off Sunday -- my first ever win in mountain biking was awesome, hopefully many more to come. Thanks to everyone who supported and handed off gels and water.  Till the cup, ride fast and safe."

Results

Looking Ahead

With a break in series racing, the Woolly Race near St Croix Falls, MN, hopes to capitalize riders itch to race with two different race options to choose from, 8 and 24 mile events with the long race starting at 10am. Race director Mark Fisk reports one mile of new singletrack added this year and said "the course is in great shape considering all the rain we have had (soil drains very well - no standing water or puddles) the course will be 100% marked for pre riding on Friday PM"  Kyia Anderson raced last year and had this to say about the event:  "The course is single track, bike path, ski trail, backyards and a railroad bed.  Some good steep pitches in many different parts of the course making for a lot of climbing! It's right in the town of St. Croix Falls and a really great event.  The community is really behind it and the group that organizes it has been building more single track, etc. so I'm sure it will be a great day of bike racing!"

Keep the wheels moving!