USA Cycling announced today that it will hold the 2009 24-Hour Mountain Bike National Championship at the 24-Hours of
Moab in
Moab,
Utah on Oct. 10-11, 2009. Originally slated to be held in
Arizona, the
USA Cycling 24-Hour Mountain Bike National Championships were re-set due to schedule and location conflicts.
Photo:
xavi@rmi.netPreviously held in conjunction with the 24-Hours of 9 Mile in
Wisconsin, the event will now be run through Granny Gear Productions for the next two years, coinciding with the 24-Hours of
Moab event in 2009 and 24-Hours of Big Bear, in
Hazelton, West Virginia, in 2010.
"
Moab will be the perfect battle ground for a National Championship race. The course is a classic mix of high-speed double-track, technical sections and power-sucking sand-traps. Likewise, I'm very excited about Big Bear being the National Championships for 24-hour racing in 2010. Our
West Virginia venue represents the roots of 24-hour racing and for the first time the USA Cycling 24-hour National Championships will be held at an East-coast venue. Just as the Moab course represents the quintessential western course, Big Bear represents the ultimate east-coast course with mile after mile of wooded single-track, moss-covered rock gardens, birch and hickory forests and beautiful mountain laurel just be coming into bloom,•bCrLf said Laird Knight, President of Granny Gear Productions. "We've just recently purchased the 24 Hours of 9-Mile from Kevin Eccles and will be bidding for the Nationals to return to 9-mile in 2011.•bCrLf
The national championship competition in
Moab will be open to American riders only. The 24-Hours of
Moab event however will offer more than 20 divisions open to various age groups, skill, levels and team sizes.
Prior to the addition of an American-only national championship race, the 24-Hours of Moab has a fourteen year history as one of the most popular mountain bike races in North America. The annual event draws more than 4,000 racers, support members and spectators to a stunningly beautiful biking venue. Traditionally, the event pays well too, with a $20,000 total cash purse and more than $30,000 in prizes.
About 24 Hours of Moab
Since its inception in 1995, the 24 Hours of Moab has earned a reputation as one of the largest and most prestigious 24-hour races in the world. Rightly so, Moab, Utah is recognized, around the world, as the Mecca of mountain biking. Attracting upwards of 400 teams and an elite field of world-class, ultra-endurance soloists, the 24 Hours of Moab delivers the richest awards table in mountain biking with a prize value approaching $30,000 and more than $20,000 in cold cash.
The 24 Hours of Moab is also unique in that it is operated in a completely remote venue, 12 miles from the nearest utilities. Each year, a mountain bike city grows up in the high-desert grazelands hosting 4,000+ racers, support crew and spectators. This amazing location provides a 15-mile race course that is breathtakingly scenic and brutally challenging. Typically, teams and soloists together, log more than 79,000 miles and more than 1,300 miles of vertical elevation gain during this epic event.
Since 2002, The 24 Hours of Moab has been designated as the AMTRI World Championships of 24-hour mountain bike racing. In 2005, it also became the series finale of The Inaugural 24 Hour National Point Series.
www.grannygear.com/Races/Moab