Thanks to the efforts of many, the inaugural Growler Mountain Bike Race went off in fine fashion Sunday. The turnout of participants and volunteers was fantastic; the weather was classic, providing some moody ambiance in the early morning hours; and, other than being a bit on the dry and loose side, our trails at Hartman Rocks provided a memorable experience for everyone who gave the Original Growler a go.

Our goal is to run a "leave no trace" event. The course markings should all be gone. If you find any errant markings or other signs of the race, grab them or let us know. While cleaning up the course, we have a great opportunity to get some other ancillary garbage picked up, too. For example, that Gatorade bottle filled with chew spit that has been on the double-track just past Top O' the World for who knows how long. We picked that up. Yuk! Our goal is to leave the area in better shape after our event than it was in before. Feedback and comments always welcome.

It all starts with our public lands and we very much appreciate the efforts of Arden Anderson and Sally Thode at the Bureau of Land Management for generously allowing this event to take place at the Hartman Rocks area. Also, kudos to the City of Gunnison and Gunnison County for the use of the base area as well as IOOF Park.

Special thanks go out to all of our volunteers without whom this event couldn't have happened: Rick Garcia provided constant support, and then on race day erected an oasis of shade, chairs, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, bananas and Gatorade above the Aberdeen Quarry with his wife Kathy. Heather Nelson, Loren Ahonen, Adam Brown, Erin Rogers and Sean Brown staffed this area for the duration of the race. They provided nutrition, as well as moral support; directed a tricky course crossing; monitored one of the sketchier trails on the course; and managed cows and riders at one of the two gates we needed to watch.

Brian Riepe was instrumental in early planning, materials creation, photography, logistics, course clean-up, registration, results, what else? Susan DeMattei was involved start to finish: among other things, she helped make trophies, headed up registration, watched a gate for two hours and organized things in IOOF Park after the race.

Greg Morin and Ann Michel spent the entire day timing the event and compiling all of the results. Also helping out with registration were Steve Marler, Mary Burt, Steve Mabry and Aaron Huckstep. John Holder, in addition to being on course and providing peace of mind and helping to break down the "oasis", also did some time at a gate with the cows. Chris Hanna from CB Printers did our race poster; Dave Kozlowski provided our course map; Bryan Miller, our IT specialist, got said map and race results up onto the website; Matt Burt provided our tunes at the park; and Jordan Carr, Mitch Fedak and Ryan Sullivan were always quick to lend a hand.

The Sage Burner running race organizers Jake Jones, Scott Drum, Chris Martinez and Christina Buchanan were key in the entire planning effort as well as with race day execution and clean-up.

Barb Carroll at Mochas provided gift certificates for volunteers and also opened up at 5am both Saturday and Sunday to feed and caffeinate staff and competitors. Dave Taylor, from the KOA Campround, provided us with goodie bags for the competitors.

Supporters for both the Original Growler as well as the Thursday night Growler Series races includes: Pie Zans Pizzeria; Back at the Ranch Home Furnishings; Tune Up Bike and Ski; Tomichi Cycles; Rock 'n' Roll Sports; Crested Butte Printers; The Gunnison Bank; Alpine Orthopedics; Crested Butte Builders. Supporters from outside the valley include Oakley; Ergon; Magura and the Oskar Blues Brewery.

Through all of this, someone who helped may have slipped through the cracks. If we forgot about you, we apologize. Finally, big thanks to all of the competitors who woke up early, braved some chilly weather and pedaled out into the wild blue sagebrush. It was kinda blueish in that flat, early morning light. Really, it was. Guess you had to of been there. Perhaps next year!

 

Results are complete and will be posted ASAP. If you can't wait, email us at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it and we'll send you the PDF. Thanks for your patience!