Are you a mountain or road biker who wants the challenge of off-road cycling without the gnarly, technical terrain that threatens to eject you over the handlebars? Then the Fire Road Cycling event in Cedar City on July 9 is the ticket. It’s an event for bikers of all types and ability levels to gather in the mountains of southern Utah to test their endurance on the network of fire roads that spiderweb throughout the area.
Fire Road Cycling is a two-day event, featuring mountain bike races and an expo at Main Street Park in downtown Cedar City. There will be bike demos, family activities, food and drink, and cycling companies hawking their wares. The expo is also the start and finish line for the races, which are divided up by distance so anyone can participate, whether you are a hammerhead training for the Leadville 100, or a beginner just getting into the sport.
The Fire Road Cycling races will include courses of 25K, 60K and 100K in distance all on improved dirt roads around Southern Utah – no technical singletrack here.
The race is happening thanks to Multisports Events, and one of its partners, Paul Huddle, says Fire Road Cycling is truly an all-inclusive activity. “Our goal is to offer an off-road cycling event that is accessible to anyone and everyone. You won’t need extreme skills to enjoy this event but the 60 and 100km courses will definitely provide a nice challenge in terms of fitness – yes, there is a climb or two.
“With the explosion in popularity of epic 100-mile mountain bike events, we believe that Fire Road Cedar City could be used as the perfect tune-up or even a chance to get a taste of what comes with events of that magnitude. It’s a challenging course that combines the elements of altitude, climbing, and spectacular scenery but without the need for extreme mountain bike handling skills. Of course, we’ll have all of the aid, SAG, technical and EMS support that comes with our experience in putting on large scale professional events. If you can ride a bike, you can be part of this event.”
The 100km course will feature over 7500-feet of climbing with vistas of Kolob Canyon, Zion National Park, Brian Head & Cedar Breaks before descending back down to Cedar City. The 60km course has a total elevation gained of almost 5000-feet and includes the same ascent of Kanarra Mountain Road (over 3000-feet in 8-miles) that the 100km riders will climb. Novices will appreciate the gentle terrain of the 25km course that will include the same neutral roll-out on Main Street but skip the big climb for a tour of the west side’s trails to the finish line at Main Street Park where the expo, awards, post-race food, and other festivities await. In addition to age-group awards for the 25, 60 & 100km events, there will be a $3,000 prize purse in the 100km event.
Registration is happening now, but the closing date is Thursday, July 07 at 11:59 PM. So register here and sign up now.
Here is the cost of the event:
25km: $35/ $40 (after 6/18/2011)/ $55 on-site
60km: $55/ $65 (after 6/18/2011) / $80 on-site
100km: $70/ $80 (after 6/18/2011)/ $95 on-site
Age Requirements
The following minimum age requirements will apply
100km – 18 years of age
60km – 16 years of age
25km – 12 years of age
**Anyone under 18 years of age at the time of the event must have a waiver signed by their parent or legal guardian at packet pick-up.
Registration and Packet Pick-up
LOCATION: Main Street Park – Cedar City, UT
Friday, July 8, 2011 – 12noon – 6pm
Saturday, July 9, 2011 – 6am-7:45am
For more information or to sign up, visit www.fireroadcycling.com