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Colorado’s Iron Horse Classic ready to roll

by VeloNews.com

• May 22, 2009
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By Fred Dreier

The 2000-plus bicycle racers descending on Durango, Colorado, for this weekend’s 38th Iron Horse Bicycle Classic are all begging Mother Nature for sunshine.

And no snow.

It was one year ago that a spring snowstorm forced the cancellation of the road race, which debuted in 1972. After an unseasonably wet 2008 winter, snow clouds gathered over Durango three days before the event. By race day, the 47-mile course, which includes two summits over 10,000 feet, was covered in six to 10 inches of the white stuff.

“It was a major low pressure system that looked like one of our February storms, but the scary part was that it had the cold temperatures to go with it,” remembers race director Gaige Sippy. “The State Patrol made the ultimate decision. I met with them at 5 a.m. Saturday morning, and they told me it wasn’t possible. It was a pit in my stomach, but we didn’t want to get anybody hypothermic or hurt.”

The race has been seriously affected by snow before. In 1996, many riders finished in blizzard conditions, and about 400 riders were stopped mid-route, told to leave their bikes on the side of the road and brought to the finish in buses. In 1997 the race was stopped at the Durango Mountain Resort (then known as Purgatory ski area), because of snow.

Last year Sippy’s backup plan, racing the 25 miles to Durango Mountain, was also thwarted, as the roads to the ski area were also coated in snow. The race committee, which is made up of Durango locals, had to call off the road race completely.

Much to the chagrin of the racers, the event did not offer refunds on the $65 registration fee.

Sippy, who has helped with the race since the late 1980’s, said the decision was tough to swallow, however the event had already paid out large sums for its infrastructure. Closing the road to Silverton alone cost upwards of $5000. Renting portable toilets was another $3500. Those, and the numerous other race day services couldn’t go unpaid simply because the race didn’t take place. And the race’s annual fundraising dollars were already scheduled to go to the local breast cancer center.

Since the Iron Horse does not rely on major sponsorship, the registration money is needed to keep the event alive.

“It takes a lot of money to run the race, and if we’d have passed it all back, we would have bankrupt the organization,” Sippy said. “Some people had an issue with that, but if we were going to make it to year number 38, we had to make that decision.”

Sippy instead pumped more prize cash into the following day’s criterium races, and then offered all 2008 participants a discount on registration for 2009. The rest of the cash went to the breast cancer center as a donation. Still, when the 2009 race went on sale, many wondered if the previous year’s cancellation — matched with the hard economic times — would drive business elsewhere.

It hasn’t – for the third consecutive year the Iron Horse has sold out all 2500 spots (1100 racers, 1400 tour riders) for the annual trek along the scenic Highway 550 from Durango (elevation 6512 feet) to Silverton (9318 feet). The route includes the ascent of Coal Bank and Molas passes, and the fast descent to the finish line.

And for the second straight year, the race weekend will feature a three-event omnium of Saturday’s road race, Sunday’s downtown criterium and a 13-mile East Animas time trial on Monday. The races are all USA Cycling-licensed and stand as the third racing weekend in the Tour of Colorado series, which includes Boulder’s Koppenburg Road Race, Sunshine Hillclimb and North Boulder Park Criterium; Glenwood Springs’ June 12-14 road race weekend and the Salida Omnium, held July 31-August 2.

This year the Iron Horse features its largest-ever pro field, with 60 men and 48 women toeing the line. Local heavy hitters Anthony Colby, Matt Shriver and Chris Wherry should give visitors Dan Bowman, Jonathan Garcia and 2007 champ Phil Zajicek a serious challenge. Noticeably absent will be mountain bike legend Ned Overend, who will miss there race for the first time in two decades due to a back injury.

In the women’s race most eyes will be on Mara Abbott, the 2007 national champion. Abbott headlines a field that includes Webcor riders Amy Dombroski and Rebecca Much, and climbing talents Kristin McGrath, Marisa Asplund and Australian Tiffany Cromwell.

Weather predictions call for some moisture this weekend; however a repeat of last year’s snow is unlikely. If the high passes are too dangerous, the event will continue with its backup 25-mile road race to Durango Mountain ski resort.