 |
Draper Fall Classic
Corner Canyon, September 21, 2013It
was clear and sunny for the Draper Fall Classic. After a chilly morning,
temperatures climbed into the low 80s. A stiff breeze kept racers from
overheating. UMB was represented by 18 racers, with 4 doing the mini-race
of 23 miles and 14 going for the 50-mile version. Bruce Argyle secured
UMB's only first-place win, with John Twitchell taking a second place.
Left: Adam closes on Ben as they head down
the Bonneville Shoreline Trail four miles into the race.
|
| The race offered a one-lap Mini-Endurance
race as well as the two-lap "50 mile" which was actually 46.8
miles. Close enough. Climbing on the two-lap version was 6030 vertical
feet. The course used most of the trails in Corner Canyon and Traverse
Mountain. In addition to climbing up to some "giveback"
descents on Ann's Trail and the Bonneville Shoreline, the race course
ran to the top of Traverse Ridge twice each lap. |
 |
 |
The maples are beginning to
show the effects of fall, with
some leaves beginning to drop. The oaks were still green. |
The morning was nippy as Mike
chats with Sally. Mike set
up the team support canopy to prep bikes before the race. |
| Mini-Endurance 25-mile Category: |
 |
Left: In the Mini-Endurace category, Joel
Quinn
was UMB's top finisher with 12th place for his 24
miles. Here Joel is popping over the hump in the
Canyon Hollow Trail into the Silica Pit.Right:
Joe Benson hits the meanders of the Aqueduct
Trail at mile 2.2 of the race. Joe takes 17th place
among the half-distance racers. |
|
 |
Left: Adam Reynders has finished 21
miles of the
Mini-Endurance race as he diverts off Rush onto
Canyon Hollow, finishing with 18th place.Right:
Corey
Spencer cranks along the Aqueduct Trail
on the way to the 19th place spot in the Open Men
35-plus Category of the Mini-Endurance race. |
|
 |
 |
Racers climb the stiff path up
to the Aqueduct Trail early
in the first lap of the race. |
The new lower Canyon Hollow
Trail makes the trip to the
Silica Pitt fun. No more killer hike-a-bike. |
|
|
Left: Turning from the
doubletrack climb onto the
Aqueduct Trail, Mitt Stewart moved to the Pro Men
category for this race and takes a respectable 9th place.Right: Chris
Cole heads into the Silica Pit near the end of
his first lap, taking 12th place among the Pro riders. |
|
 |
Left: Stephan Bergen heads
downhill through
the trees near Coyote Hollow as he heads for the
Creekview trail to finish his second and last lap,
nailing 7th place in Expert Men 40-plus. Right: Sunflowers
wave in the south wind on
the mountainside above Draper. |
|
|
|
|
|
Looking southeast uphill to Traverse
Ridge, we see
Box Elder Peak in the distance. It was a beautiful day!
The clear air made it tempting to look around. |
There were four tunnel-plunges per lap.
The worst was on the BST,
where the surface was
sloppy and the passage long and dark.
This is the tunnel by the start/finish area, with two-way traffic. |
 |
Left: Geno Smith hits the Silica
Pit as he nails
the 4th place spot in the Men 50-plus group.Right:
After battling for miles on a squishy tire,
Rick Morris doesn't have enough leg left to
make the second climb up Clark's, taking a
DNF after 40 tough miles. |
|
 |
Left: Bruce
Argyle rolls a downhill on the
Aqueduct Trail on lap one, finishing the
50-miler with 1st place for Men 60-plus.Right:
It's satisfying to hear the crunch of
fresh fall leaves under the tires. Many riders
think fall is the best of all seasons for a
mountain bike. |
|
 |
Left: Battling the mountain
with a rigid bike
(no shock absorbers at all) and only one gear,
Steven Bonney takes 7th place in the Singlespeed
category. Right: View to
the west across Draper and Riverton
toward the Kennecott mine tailings in the
Oquirrh Mountains. |
|
 |
Left: Just a mile or so left! John Twitchell
hits the bridge on the Creekview Trail as he
turns toward the finish area. John makes a
solid ride to take 2nd place in Clydesdale.
Right: A quail
sneaks through the leaf litter
under the gambel oak. |
|
 |
 |
Bob Saffel sits at the scoring
table as he waits for riders
to come to the finish line. |
Sally snaps a photo of Ben as
he finishes the 50-mile
race.
Great job by all our racers! |
 |
Left: Dallin Hatch cranks
through a colorful spot
in the Silica Pit as he nears the end of lap one,
taking 4th place in the Sport Men 19-29 group.Right:
Tackling a race three times as long as the
biggest race he's ever done, Daniel
Truong
makes a great showing as he takes 5th place. |
|
 |
Left: Cranking north on the
Creekview Trail near
the end of his last lap, Michael Dodge gets an
8th place spot in Sport Men 30-39. Right:
Ben Hutchings has some tire trouble that
knocks him back, but hustles along the Bonneville
Shoreline Trail on the way to 11th place. |
|
 |
Left: Denmark Jensen tips
into the Silica Pit area
as he takes the 17th place finish in Sport Men 40-49. Right: Greg
Sironen is looking strong as he nears the
end of his first lap, but has to take a DNF for the race. |
|
 |
 |
The bling was impressively
heavy. These are the awards
for podium finishers. |
Taking the steed back to the
corral. Bruce grabs his cooler from
the feed zone, where he restocked for his second lap. |
 |
Great race, well-run. Terrific trails, beautiful day.
More pictures:
Kay
Hutchings photos
Resources:
GPX track
Corner Canyon race loop
Higher
resolution satellite
map
of race course
Team awards for the 2013 season:
UtahMountainBiking.com
team season honors
Left: Map of the 23-mile loop. A little meander down the
railroad tracks and back, through the tunnel, up Corner Canyon.
Doubletrack to the Aqueduct Trail, up to Corner Canyon Road. Down the BST
then up Ghost Falls. Over to Canyon Hollow and up to the Peakview TH.
Around the mountain on Ann's with a visit to Little Valley. Back downhill
then eastbound on the BST. Up Clark's to the top again. Down Rush with a
side trip to The Trees. Detour on Canyon Hollow to Creekview, then under
the road for another miniloop near the Equestrian Center.
|
[Team Index Page] [Team
Roster by Category] [Team Member Profiles]
[Team
Signup]
|
