The Laramie Mountain Bike Race series first official race will begin June 21, but last Sunday’s preliminary race, the third annual Gowdy Grinder, tested riders abilities to handle weather, rough terrain and setbacks.  

Many riders persevere to finish the race despite facing rough terrain and weather on the trail. (Photo: Sara Davis)

Mountain bikers from all over the world competed in The Gowdy Grinder in Curt Gowdy National Park, which revealed itself as more than a competition of man versus man--It was a competition of man versus nature and man versus himself. 

It had rained all week and there was an uncertainty that the event was going to happen.  Sunday morning came and the sun decided to peek out.  Temperatures rose to 63 degrees, higher than it had been for days, and it became official the race was going to happen.  Nature was not going to give in so easily though.

Many people sought refuge from the 45 mph winds in their cars waiting for the race to start.  For others, they wore beanies, windbreakers and hid behind tents.  But for many competitors, they spent this time to test bicycles and do practice runs.  

Evan O’Toole, one of the coordinators of the Laramie Mountain Bike Series, said: “A lot of local riders haven’t had as much opportunity to ride as many of the cyclists from the Front Range have.  I think it was the first race of the year for a lot of people, and it’s always a little difficult to shake off the dust.”  

The course at Gowdy is a lot more technical than a regular cross-country race, O’Toole continued. Knowing the trails can give a rider a huge home court advantage.  Just knowing where to shift or what line to take through a rocky section you can easily put some time on a trailing competitor.

The rocky terrain of the trail contains steep inclines and slightly damp soil, which can be a challenge for even the most experienced riders.  By 10 a.m., the exposed part of the trail had dried and created mini dust bowls at the riders’ feet at the start and finish lines.  Yet, the trail remained slippery and proved to be tricky. 

One rider said he saw a girl wipe out on a trail in front of him. She flew 20 feet from her bike and crashed into a fence.  The girl may have not won the race, but she got back on the bike and finished it out, a recurring theme at the Gowdy Grinder.     

Another female competitor’s bike came out from under her rounding one of the exposed curves of the trail.  The audience gasped when the woman fell and scrapped her leg.  Instead of quitting, she got up, brushed off the dirt, hobbled onto the bike and pedaled with fortitude to finish. 

Others were not so lucky.  One competitor ran along his bike to the finish because of a flat tire.  Another competitor was spotted carrying his bicycle on his shoulder down the hill.  The twisted wheel of the bike resembled a Dali clock. 

The race was divided into heats determined by level of skill, even the beginner level had challenges. 

O’Toole explained, “Curt Gowdy State Park is a pretty technical area.  The company hired to design and build the trail system did a great job of incorporating the geology of the area into the trails, so there is a lot of over and around these huge rock formations.  The beginner and intermediate classes had one big climb each lap, while the open categories had three.”

The times and locations of the races are yet to be determined.  O’Toole said, “All of the Tuesday night Laramie Mountain Bike Series races are held at the Tie City trailhead at Happy Jack.  There are a lot of trails up there, which makes it pretty easy to come up with a different course for each race.  They are also a lot more mellow than the trails at Gowdy, so the series races are much more beginner friendly.”

For more information on schedules, check out the Laramie Mountain Bike Series Website http://laramiemtbseries.com/index.php. 

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