Kate Courtney obliterates 10-year-old Leadville Trail 100 MTB record

Earlier this week, Kate Courtney likened her upcoming Leadville Trail 100 MTB debut to “a sprinter taking on a marathon.” One could argue the World Cup short-track and cross-country mountain bike specialist was a little outside of her natural habitat when she lined up at Harrison Avenue and 6th Street on Saturday morning. Apparently, the ultimate survival of the fittest, off-road bike race rewards those willing to adapt.

“I maybe found a habitat I thrive in,” Courtney said after obliterating Annika Langvad’s 10-year-old course record. The 2018 mountain bike world champion finished the 105.3-mile course in 6 hours, 48 minutes and 55 seconds to defeat defending champion Melisa Rollins — who also dipped under 7-hours.

“It was an amazing day. Super tough, super different,” Courtney continued. “Challenging in a bunch of new ways. And just really proud that I was able to put it together.”

A group of seven riders arrived together at the base of Columbine, with Bighorn Gravel champion Cecily Decker pushing the pace along the flat section from Turquoise Lake to Twin Lakes. Courtney — who rode in the Leadville Stage Race last month — used her recent recon to make a gap on the 7-plus-mile climb. After dropping all challengers, she rode the remaining 55 miles by herself.

“I had a long time out there with my thoughts and my aero position,” Courtney told the assembled media at the finish. “A lot of it was pretty simple — focusing on staying aero, eating, managing my energy and avoiding stopping pedaling.”

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Two-time national gravel champion Lauren Stephens moved into the silver medal position going up Powerline on the return trip to Leadville, but Rollins was able to make a pass in the final five miles. The Utah rider finished in 6:59:16, also faster than Langvad’s old record.

“I could see glimpses of her, and then I caught her just before the bottom of Boulevard. I knew there’s a steep pitch at the bottom and I just did it as hard as I could,” said Rollins.

Decker (7:09:48) rounded out the podium as 2023 winner Sofia Gomez Villafane (7:16:52) finished fourth.

Courtney’s victory comes just eight weeks after surgery to repair a fractured scaphoid bone in her wrist. Initially, she hoped to get back to the World Cup as soon as possible, but her strength coach Matt Smith advised her to think about doing Leadville first.

“It just ended up being perfect timing,” she said. “I think it gave me the space to actually recover from a big injury and then have time to go back and not just like rush back.”

The change of pace also helped her adopt a “growth mindset,” she said.

“I’ve never raced this long on a mountain bike; I’ve never raced this high on a mountain bike; I’ve never raced this course,” Courtney continued. “I think it just kind of freed me up.”

Minturn cyclist places 28th

Minturn’s Haley Dumke (8:39:43) finished 28th overall but admitted feeling a little disappointed with her second Leadville Trail 100.

“It just wasn’t my day today. I honestly was hoping for significantly better, but it was really awesome to see a lot of the points on the course that I rode two years ago,” the 32-year-old said. “I could remember the emotions and how I felt riding it then and how I felt today. I just didn’t feel great, but it’s still a great day out there.”

Dumke said her legs lacked their normal “spark.”

“They didn’t feel terrible, but they didn’t have any fire or the excitement of the day to race,” she said before maintaining her characteristically upbeat attitude with a positive remark: “They got me back (to Leadville), which is good!”

As a member of the Life Time Grand Prix, Dumke plans to race the remaining three races of the professional off-road series. That means she’ll line up at the Chequamegon MTB Festival in Wisconsin on Sept. 13 before heading to Arkansas in October for Little Sugar MTB and Big Sugar Gravel. Looking farther into the future, it’s safe to say, there’s unfinished business in the Cloud City, too.

“I think I need another shot at it. I don’t think I got what I was coming for today, which is OK. You can’t have the best day every day,” Dumke said. “I’ll have to come back and take another whack at it.”