Vail town series presents AC/DC competition
Mountain bikers will combine times from Davos Dash and Son of Middle Creek Enduro to crown champions
Vail Recreation District/Courtesy photo
It’s old meets new. It’s uphill plus down.
The 2022 VRD Bloch & Chapleau Town Mountain Bike Race Series has combined its oldest race, the uphill only Davos Dash, with its newest race, the downhill timed Son of Middle Creek Enduro, to create the AC/DC competition.
Vail Rec’s Events/Partnership manager Beth Pappas wanted to include the enduro in the series to encourage people who wouldn’t normally try downhill to give it a shot.
“Then I was like, well, it’s like the yin of the yang of Davos,” she said of the competition’s genesis.
“We thought it would be a fun way to encourage people who like to climb to give the enduro a shot and vice-versa — give the downhillers incentive to try to Davos.”
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Having just celebrated its 40th running on June 22, the Davos Dash was the first race in the town series, which is in its 39th year.
“Through that, the series grew. That was the original race that started it all,” said Pappas. Now, its newest race, the Son of Middle Creek (SOM) enduro, will be linked in a cumulative time contest. Those with the fastest combined marks from Davos and SOM enduro in each age category will receive a prize from The Feed, the sponsors of the mid-series mini-competition.
“It’s going to recognize, in a way, the best overall rider in each category,” said Pappas.
“I think it allows everyone to play to their strengths, and it’s another fun thing to incentivize people to come out and race.”
The “A” in the AC/DC commercial ploy stands for “ascent,” with the “D” highlighting SOM’s descent. Pappas and company have designed a logo that plays off of the famous band’s image, though she isn’t worried about copyright.
“I think it’s different enough — and we’re not selling anything — it’s just something fun to brand the contest,” she said.
Competitors will have to ride to the start of the race — no shuttles allowed. From there, an approximately 3-mile descent will run from the Son of Middle Trail at its Lost Lake Road beginning, down to the intersection with the North Trail. Athletes will take the North Trail to where it ends on Sandstone Road, right by the Forest Service gate.
“We actually did this race as a circuit course about eight years ago when logging operations were going on by Lost Lake, but this year we’re just going to time the downhill,” Pappas commented.