But, it didn't take long for things to get stirred up, and the riders were contending with fine dust choking their lungs within the first lap. These riders were just finishing lap #1 with more dust and heat to come.
Covering mainly single track mountain bike trails with some forest road sections, the course began off Cascade Lakes Highway. It was a 10.58 mile loop with an elevation gain of 1,014 ft as described on the official race web site. The Garmin race profile shows the elevation change throughout the course, which ranged between 5,382 to 5,758 feet.
After the final climb at mile 8, the riders rounded a corner and headed into a wide, fast downhill section with ample opportunities to overtake unsuspecting opponents.
Solo rider, Jeff Sanders, took advantage of the fast descent.
The relief from the downhill sections was short-lived, however, and before they knew it, the riders were back into the grueling uphill sections with little shade and the full force of the sun causing their heads to throb.
Dusk provided some level of "relief" with temperatures abating. However, even at dusk the riders still had 14 hours of riding ahead of them. The race went on, loop after loop, throughout the night. By morning, everyone was red-eyed and caked with dust. The race results are provided on the official web site. Jason Perez of Brentwood (Solo Open Singlespeed) completed an impressive 19 laps with Sean Evans of Calgary, Alberta Canada (Solo Master Men 40-49) finishing 17 laps. Good job to all of the riders. As a spectator, the hot and dusty conditions were miserable, so I can only imagine the strong will it took everyone to keep going. Great work!
