Targhee 5 Hour Race Report

Wooohoo, that was fun! Michelle and I teamed up for the inaugural Targhee 5 Hour lap race this past Sunday and we had a blast. Grand Targhee added a new piece of singletrack late last fall and I didn’t get to ride it before the snow fell so it was brand new to me. We climbed the lower cat track and descended the Lightening Ridge singletrack. The Lightening Ridge loop addition makes the lap about 10 miles and takes roughly an hour depending on how sparkly you are feeling. NOTE: The Pierre’s Hole course will climb the Lightening Ridge singletrack…nice!

Coed Duo Team Byers

The 5 hour lap format was a huge hit and I think this race could easily grow if we can figure out the best standalone date and bump the start time back a bit so the Jackson folks don’t have to wake up at 4 AM. Andy Williams always does a tremendous job with course marking, timing, and awards and this was no exception. Grand Targhee deserves a BIG thank you for continuing to support mountain bike racing in Teton Valley by putting on races and donating generously to the prizes (more on this in a minute).

The race rules state that you have to complete your last lap before 12 PM or it doesn’t count and Michelle and I really wanted to get in 5 laps. The plan was that I would do laps 1, 3 and 5 (hopefully). My first lap was a 54:30 and my second was a 53:42. As Michelle was out on our 4th lap I was getting nervous because I knew it would be close but I was stoked to try and beat the clock. She threw down another consistent lap, we tagged, and I was off with Metalica pulsing in my single ear bud (safety is no accident). I focused on railing the descents and pumping anything that could help me carry momentum. My Giant AnthemX 29er and I were “en fuego”. That last lap went by so fast and I crossed the line in 52:45 and beat the 12 PM cutoff. Team Byers takes 1st...High Fives...Stoked!

Ripping the lower Sidewinder in the early morning light

Michelle was descending like a blur

Speaking of Grand Targhee’s awesome support of races, Michelle and I won two passes for snow cat skiing at Targhee worth $349 each! How cool is that? In addition to giving away four snow cat ski days, there were great prizes from Mtn Khakis and Smith Optics as well.