Most emerging from the murk bearing resemblance to Asaro Mudmen of Papua New Guinea, more than 250 cyclists braved rain, bears and heat to conquer the Cyclemeister’s Organ Grinder Enduro-Challenge, (June 12) at the Canmore Nordic Centre.
The race, which will act as a tuneup for the Canadian cross-country mountain bike nationals in July, is considered one of the most technical in the province. The nationals will basically take place on the same route, and Organ Grinder participants are now very familiar with the challenge ahead.
Racers were given five hours to compete as many 13-kilometre laps as possible around the grueling technical course, which also had riders on the lookout for bears. A cinnamon-coloured black bear and her two cubs have taken up residence at the Nordic Centre and a few riders reported run-ins with the family.
Cochrane’s Graham Torrie won the race, completing seven laps in the allotted time. Riding his Giant Anthem mountain bike, he pulled away from second place rider Travis Hauck on the Georgetown climb, one of the tougher hills on the course, and didn’t look back.
“It got sloppy with the rain, but I knew the hill would serve me well,” Torrie said.
The lanky rider said weather played a factor in the result, making several features more dangerous than usual, such as the Laundry Chutes, which became a slippery mess.
“The mud isolated the technical abilities of the riders,” Torrie said.
Leading from early on, Torrie shredded the course in a remarkable 35:30 on his first lap (compared to 46:58 on his last lap), clocking 84 kilometres over the five hours. That works out to an average speed of 17.6 km/h.
He’ll return for the Canadian nationals and hopes to be a contender in the shorter race.
For the women, Kate Aardal of Calgary took top spot, although her day was far from pain-free.
“From the first lap, I started to think about quitting,” Aardal said. “Then I started riding better, but then I started to relax. That’s when the others almost caught me.”
Once the track started to dry, her cycling came together.
“The track became tacky and I got in a good grove,” she said.
Second place finisher Margie Smith, racing for the Children’s Make a Wish foundation, loved the mud.
“The worse the course, the better I do,” she said, as was evident in her lap times. Smith kept a steady pace throughout, as there wasn’t much difference between her first (47:51) and last (51:45) lap times.
Smith is now focusing on the TransRockies races, where she’ll ride with her sister Dana Goodman to raise money for the Children’s Make a Wish foundation.
Organizers fell short of their registration goal of 400 competitors, but still put together a top knotch race in their second year.
“Everyone loves it because it’s the most technical race in Alberta and it’s a brutal cardio workout,” said race organizer Amy Barnett.
The Organ Grinder endurance race comes on the heels of the Iron Maiden cross-country bike race. Bartlett said they wanted to add an enduro component so cyclists travelling from afar could have more selection.
The 2011 Canadian national mountain bike championship will take place July 16-17 at the Canmore Nordic Centre. It will be partnered with the Iron Lung Grand nationals event and the Little Lung kids races. For more information, visit www.2011mtbnationals.com
