Mother Nature is ruling with an iron fist.
For the second time in as many days to start this year’s Iron Horse Bicycle Classic, the 43rd annual Memorial Day weekend showcase has been affected by the weather.
The Fort Lewis College Cross Country race was canceled Sunday because of poor trail conditions.
The Iron Horse’s other brand new event this year under first-year race director Jeff Frost, the Mountain Horse, a Durango Mountain Resort to Silverton option for Saturday’s signature road race, also was canceled late Friday when snow started to fall on the passes.
Marisa Asplund and Troy Wells were the first man and woman to reach DMR at Purgatory in the shortened road race. Asplund was planning on competing in Sunday’s criterium, while Wells and his three-time Olympic mountain biker of a brother Todd Wells were expected to compete for the King of the Mountain crown.
Alas, there will be no King or Queen of the Mountain.
There was no word yet whether Wells - Todd or Troy - and some of the other mountain bikers will switch their fat tires for skinny ones to ride in the criteriums instead.
The criterium, race organizers said at the mountain bike start/finish line on FLC campus, is very much alive and remains on schedule Sunday afternoon in downtown Durango, as is the individual time trial Monday on County Road 250 to wrap this year’s Iron Horse Bicycle Classic.
Using social media site Twitter, organizers said there would be a Fat Tire Criterium at 1 p.m. for mountain bikes only.
heraldsports@durangoherald.com
