By Dave Iltis
The Park City Point to Point Mountain Bike Race is this Saturday, August 30, 2014 in Park City, Utah.
We asked organizer Jay Burke to fill us in on the best places to watch, and what makes the P2P a great race.
What makes this race unique?
Jay: The fact that Park City has such a diversely huge trail system, it blows me away that you can be riding in the high desert terrain of Round Valley and with 25 miles you in the deep coniferous forest. Couple that with the fact the race is 90% singletrack and it never uses the same trail twice or crosses itself.
Where are the best places to watch and when?
Jay: The start is in Round Valley at 7AM, they do a 13-mile loop in Round Valley and then come back past the start, they actually finish at Canyons Resort. The race passes through each resort here in Park City, and both Deer Valley Resort and Park City Mountain Resort are great places to see the action. All of the racers get two lift tickets for a scenic ride up Deer Valley and to the first support station – a lot of racers have supports that watch the action there. Another great spot is at mile 53, at this is at the bottom of Park City Mountain Resort (bottom parking lot near first time lift). Of course, the finish is always fun, watching the racers complete this grueling course. This year a band called the Slide Brothers will be playing at 6PM, should be a great time!
Preview Video:
Who are the riders to watch in the men’s and women’s categories? (and where is the start list posted)
Jay: In the women’s division we have three Colorado racers I feel will be very evenly matched, Gretchen Reeves, Kelly Boniface, and Marlee Dixon. They should be pushing one another the entire distance.
On the men’s side we have 5 time returning champ, Alex Grant, coming back for another run at it. Challenging him this year we’ve got a few racers from Colorado, Josh Tostado (returning for like his 4th time I believe), Jay Henry, and Nick Truitt. I personally am really excited to have a Utah favorite back in the field, and that is Bart Gillespie – he can always mix things up in a race. I really think we have a very competitive Open Mens’s field this year, and deep – I bet the top 20 are all within 30 minutes of each other.
Tell us about what makes your prize list stand out?
Jay: This year we have a $12,000 Cash purse on the podium and $6,000 in-kind awards – and that is only on the Podium (5 Deep in each of 9 Categories)! As well, each of our age group category winners take home a check.
We’ve got great partners, Scott Sports has been our title sponsor for the last three years and they are so kind to us. Additionally we have SRAM, Swire Coke, GoalZero, Zeal Optics, Liberty Bottleworks and Evol Foods. All these partners are at the Presenting Level and have helped greatly in off-setting our hard cost or have contributed cash to our payout.
Who is the event sponsored by?
Jay: I mentioned some key players above, not that they all aren’t, but we also have product sponsors like Jaybird, Helly Hansen, Barebones, Kenda Tires, RAMP Sports, and TruckerCo.
It’s no secret that the P2P has one of the best racer raffles around, we try to give everyone a chance to be a winner at the P2P.
Anything else to add?
Jay: Yes I do! The race isn’t possible without the commitment of Park City organizations like Park City Municipal, Basin Recreation, Summit Land Conservancy, Mountain Trails Foundation and the three resorts (Deer Valley, Park City Mountain Resort and Canyons Resort). The trail system here is really second to none, and the race is simply a product of their efforts.
August 30 — Park City Point 2 Point|, Park City, UT, A true point 2 point race! Thanks to the plethora of trails in this area, the race will never be on the same trail twice. Over 90% of the race is single-track. 75 miles & 12,000ft of climbing., Jay Burke, 801-330-3214, [email protected], thepcpp.com
2014 Race Report:
Alex Grant Makes it Six in a Row at the Park City Point 2 Point in 2014! Reeves takes the Women’s Win
