Midwest MTB Racing Report
Another Chequamegon weekend is in the books! There was much drama leading up to the weekend with mother nature wrecking havoc on the course and forcing some directional changes in the 40 race but Gary Crandall and crew backed by a top notch volunteer group put forth another great weekend with a excellent conditions reported by most rider accounts. This weeks report will include a couple first hand reports and a look ahead to the weekend.
Chequamegon Fat Tire Festival
Early reports were course conditions of being muddy but long time participant and cycling ambassador Matt Johnson echoed the sentiments of most riders, tweeting "There is nothing like Chequamegon. Course was tacky, fast and just a few puddles. Great to see friends. Had a fast ride and finished strong" Each year Chequamegon provides special memories for all riders, good and bad including mechanicals and bike failures that simply prevent riders from finishing the race. One unfortunate incident taking place at the start of the 40 was Team Hollywood rider Devin Curran going down hard and requiring transport via helicopter to Duluth with head injury concerns. Monday morning he was doing okay, no bleeding on the brain but a lot of soreness, ready to go back home shortly. Denny Barry comments on the 40 start, before Rosie's field:
My race Sat began seeing and avoiding the accordion crashes on the highway. Feelings here after seeing awful crashes, two years in a row is the speeds and passing on the highway heading to Rosie's has become insane. Starting the race, picking up the ATV speed at a wide spot in the field might make more sense, instead of having a road race start. Riders were passing at high speeds on Main Street during the low speed portion. This year they knew there would be a bottleneck at Rosie's, everyone wanted to be at the front. It was a fun race from Rosie's to the finish line.
As usual, there were all types of bicycles toeing the line including one of a handful of cross bikes including that of winning rider Josey Weik in the short and fat. Fellow particpant and top five rider Samuel Elson from the Breezy Point area with the Cuyuna ride area as his training area, provides a recap from the Short and Fat:
It was a chilly morning, and everything was covered in frost. At the start of the race, it was about 45 degrees, and we were all shaking at the start line. I got a great start position, at the front of gate one, in front of 893 other riders. We took off and the start was much easier than I had anticipated. We were just coasting for the first mile. When the course turned to dirt and we hit the first hill, it was game on. Josie and Fletcher attacked immediately, and we never saw them again. I decided not to take too big of a risk and stick with the main pack. The trail condition was great until we hit the grass trail. The ground was soaked from the recent rains and the grass was slippery. Near the end, there were some pretty good sized puddles that we had to ride through. About halfway through, Samuel Olsen attacked up Big Bertha, and I knew I had to stick with him. We dropped the rest of the pack by the time we reached the top of the hill. From here on out, I put my head down and did the best I could to stick on his wheel. In the end, he had enough to drop me in the last quarter mile, but I still finished just 14 seconds behind him in 4th place with a time of 54:43. This was the first time I have raced the Short and Fat, and I loved it. It was something different, and very challenging. Can't wait for next year!
Also, hoping for a speedy recovery for my teammate Devin Curran, who crashed hard in the 40.
In the 40 race, Brian Matter and Jenna Rinehart continued their dominance of the event and show no signs of slowing down! The dry conditions eliminated the mud factor, giving the roadie based riders a bit more of an edge. Not listed on the press release among the rider favorites but clearly a racer to watch among rider circles was Erik Thompson of Shoreview, MN who exclaimed on social media:
Couldn't be happier with how the race went and was able to snag a 4th place this year! There were perfect conditions on the course with some mud to mix things up and keep everything very exciting. Lot's of fast guys out there this year once again and it was a battle to the very end, with Matter writing the textbook on how to win yet another year. Very impressive. Lot's of great people out there and its so amazing to race with so many great friends and family. Congrats to everyone!
In the women's race the elements of pacing group riding are not the same as the men as often times the women are racing with groups of men and relying on support crews to know their position. Alicia Fisk, mother of three and Woolly bike club member who recorded a top 20 finish, provides a recap:
Friday afternoon, I loaded up my car and started my journey, to the north country. It seems the whole drive, I was in a 'pack' of bike laden cars, headed for The Chequamegon Fat Tire Festival. Hayward, Seeley, Cable and Telemark was a buzz with race excitement.
Saturday morning was brisk, to say the least. My husband, being the great guy he is, rolled out of bed 5:30am and 29degrees. Frost covered the seats and handle bars of our Ghost Bikes. His effort paid off, front row, in each of our perspective gates. We spent the rest of the remaining 'wait time' deliberating how warm we should dress. I ended up with a long sleeved jersey and regular bibs. It ended up being too warm during the race, know better next time.
My ghost bike was ready to go at the front of gate 4. For some reason on race mornings, time seems to run on double time. We were at the race venue by 9:30am, switched our bikes, dropped our race bags and lined up. Once they opened up the gates and squeezed everyone together, I was in and amongst a fair amount of gate three racers.
The canon sounded and we were off. Everything seemed to going well. I was grabbing onto wheels and being smart about the traffic. As I was anticipating dumping into Rosie's Field, the masses suddenly slowed. No one seemed to know what was going on around us. I was on the left hand shoulder of the road, focused on the task at hand, when I heard someone yell, "Rider Down!" I glanced over as was shocked to see my teammate Devin Curran. Sick to my stomach is what I felt. My first thought was to stop and help. Then my second thought was that I most definitely would cause another crash. There were two men there assisting Devin and decided I would find course marshals and alert them. Luckily, not far up there were two waiting to assist.
Into Rosie's and the next few miles, riders were shoulder to shoulder. The course was soggy for sure. There was one bog area where many riders walked instead of rode. Chequamy's first few miles seems to be an endless grassy climb. Thankfully, it doesn't seem as bad with all the positive race energy, in the air. As soon as my body numbed to grassy climbs, descents, and evading mud, I found myself on gravel fire roads. Latched onto a group of fast guys and hung on for dear life. The miles seemed to tick by REALLY fast. Before I knew it, we were past OO. The miles went just as quickly to the base of Fire Tower. Ahh, dear old Fire Tower. The climb itself isn't daunting, it's evading all the walkers, not walking on the right side of the hill. The last two FT sections seem to have weeded out most and was able to ride with 'ease' to the top. The 'Boss' (Jay Henderson) was awaiting with cheers and Mountain Dew. I skipped the Dew and bombed the downhill. So nice to finally breathe and save up energy for the remaining climbs.
About mile 32, riders are back on Birkie trails. Long, Velcro like hills are the Grand Finale for the 40mile course. In my head I kept thinking, "Another climb, are you kidding me?" When I saw the last climb a new surge of adrenaline coursed through my legs and I felt normal-ish. The last decent is glorious fun! Let it rip and roll into the bowl. Before I got to the finish line, there is one last little climb that seemed to just punch me in the face. Done and done! Shaved 10min off my previous time and into the top 20 women. Super pumped about my finish time and excited what next year holds. Top 10?
Chequamegon coverage on Skinnyski.com
Drone video from Trail Genius
Recap video from Kaitlin Randolph
Looking Ahead
The Minnesota Series picks up this weekend, heading to St Cloud for racing on Saturday to accommodate the Minnesota Cycling League race on Sunday. The course features plenty of tight and twisty fast flowing singletrack, hand built by local riders including former Pro and Super D specialist Kyia Anderson. The Singletrack Escape will once again be host to the Minnesota State Single Speed Championships with prizes awarded for the Sport Single Speed Race for top men and women and a State Champion for each will be designated. These races will be a part of the sport class races starting at 11:00 AM. For this race, Comp single speed racers will race with the Sport class. (Photo: Tom Warner)
"Everyone's favorite race of the year", The Deer Fly Chase is back for its 4th year! From humble beginnings, the event is quickly gaining popularity and is a must on many racers calendars. The course will be "epic" and cover some outstanding terrain, a mix of gravel roads, ski trails and singletrack with new sections added again for this year, report race organizers.
The open class has two race distances: Long course, 28 miles , Short course, 17 miles. NEW this year: High School race, 17 miles, Middle School race, 9 miles! And discounted entry fee of just $10.
For those familiar with the area, key route highlights are: Rolling paced start on blacktop from Dog Island; the race will start with the Rattlesnake hill equalizer climb; rolling dirt roads offer plenty of fast riding; balanced with technical singletrack and ski trails for passing; a long gravel climb on Deer Fly Trail will further separate the contenders; fast open ski trail finish near Dog Island. $25 pre-registration, sponsored food and Fat Tire beer to all finishers (ages 21+), prizes and awards to top finishers.
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 24th year of racing and promoting mountain bike races. |