For one weekend, at least, it felt just like old times. A flashback to when Durango seemed to be the center of the mountain bike universe.
The Colorado High School Cycling League state championships came to town just over a week ago, bringing over 800 young cyclists and their coaches and families for the crowning of their season.
The event, preceded by some welcome rains, a noticeable rise in the Animas River and a cap of snow on the peaks, was a welcome shot in our local arm.
Great to see as well was the racing, as the teams from Southwest Colorado did more than hold their own on the carefully-designed and challenging trails constructed for the event at Durango Mesa Park.
Places on mountain bike podiums during the weekend were not limited to local high schoolers. From Bozeman, Montana, came news that the Fort Lewis College cycling team, led by champions McCauley Smith and Cole Paton, secured its second consecutive USA Cycling Collegiate Mountain Bike national title, the tradition-rich Skyhawk’s 24th national cycling title overall.
Congratulations go out to all the Skyhawks and their coaches, to Durango High School riders for their Division 2 state title and to Animas High for a strong second-place showing in the same division.
We also praise the sponsors, parents, volunteers and trail crews whose work made the local event possible, including those who organized tours of the campus at FLC for the student competitors.
At the top of that list is Gaige Sippy, director of the Iron Horse Bicycle Classic, who began planning several years ago to bring the event to town. The first task was to find a venue; the next was to build a course that met the requirements set out by league directors. Thanks to the generosity of the Katz family, tons of help from Trails 2000 and the topography of Ewing Mesa, all involved came up with a perfect fit for the seven-mile course.
They also got some help from the weather: “We built (the course) a year ago thinking we would get some rain and snow on it, but then winter passed us by,” Sippy said. “We got real concerned this summer before it started to rain.” With volunteer group rides, “it turned from a dusty, loose course into just what we wanted.”
Those volunteer riders included every age group of mountain bikers in the community, and after having 800-odd racers on the course over the championship weekend, Sippy says the course will hold up for years. Which is a bit problematic, because the course is located on private property and definitely not open to the public at this time, though Sippy hopes it can be utilized on occasion while the city, county and the Katz family determine the future features of Durango Mesa Park.
And look for Durango in cycling news a year from now. The college championships will be held at Purgatory, and the high school league is eager to return again next year.
“We knew (Durango was) a perfect fit,” said Sippy. “and we knew it was a great chance to get all those kids down here and get them interested in Fort Lewis.”
A smart move, and one he’s proud of.
“No doubt,” he said. “There were ulterior motives in everything we did.”
