In many long distance mountain bike races, the same trails are reused in the race path to meet the distance requirement.
With about 400 miles of continuous recreational trail in Park City, according to the Mountain Trails Foundation, race organizers in Park City are able to do things differently.
The Park City Point 2 Point race takes advantage of that continuous trail system by hosting a 75 mile race every Labor Day weekend in which bikers never have to ride the same path twice.
The Point 2 Point race will return for the 18th time on Saturday morning, starting in Quinn’s Junction at 6:30 a.m. Bikers will climb over 10,000 feet in their journey to the finish at the Utah Olympic Park.
The race sold out at 425 bikers, ranging from amateurs to professionals chasing $12,000 in prize money.
Race organizers are proud that the race will still not close off any of the trails in Park City to bikers not in the race.
“There’s no way that we could close (trails). Nor do we want to,” said race director Steve Aderholt. “Very challenging and hard mountain bike race, showcasing the amazing trails we have here in Park City.”
Aderholt said non Point 2 Point bikers this weekend should take a peek at the race course on their website: parkcitypoint2point.com/race/the-course. He doesn’t envision any issues between racers and casual bikers unless the casual bikers are biking the opposite direction of the racers. Aderholt also encouraged racers to get to know the course well if they want to better understand its technical sections and prepare themselves for success.
Point 2 Point men’s and women’s record holders Zach Calton and Chelsea Bolton will be in Saturday’s race chasing the winning prizes of $3,000. Second place finishers in the men’s and women’s open/pro categories will receive $2,000, and third place finishers in those categories will receive $1,000. There are eight additional categories in the race.
“The trails are in really great shape with the rain we’ve had over the past week,” Aderholt said. “So the course conditions are great. And we have a new finish line at the Utah Olympic Park this year, and we’re really excited about that.”
While the Point 2 Point is a for-profit race, Aderholt said they will be donating about $3,000 to the Mountain Trails Foundation after Saturday.
For further information about the race, see Point 2 Point’s website at parkcitypoint2point.com.