Fat Bike Racing Arrives in Central Oregon

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Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Üma Kleppinger, GoLocalPDX Contributor

What's better than fat biking in the snow? Fat bike racing in the snow in Bend! Mark your calendars for maximum fun on January 31 and head to Central Oregon for the Desert Orthopedics Great Nordeen.

The Desert Orthopedics Great Nordeen is the largest cross country ski race in Central Oregon, and is adding a Fat Bike Division for 2015. The event runs from Mt. Bachelor to Wanoga Snow Park on Deschutes National Forest trails.  

The fat bike race division is sponsored by WebCyclery/Webskis. "It's something I’ve wanted to see for a couple years," said owner Kevin Gorman. “Fat bikes continue to grow in popularity with both bike enthusiasts and people who just like to play in the snow. I’m confident we’ll have a good turnout for the event.”

The Desert Orthopedics Great Nordeen is a 30k and 18k cross country ski race in its 13th year. The race starts in front of the Main Lodge at Mt. Bachelor and descends to Wanoga Snow Park. The Fat Bike division will be a 15k event starting from Mt. Bachelor’s Sunrise Lodge and following the same route as the 18k skiers.  

"There's about a 1,000 foot elevation loss, most of it in the first 5K," reports Mount Bachelor Sports Education Foundation's (MBSEF) Dan Simoneau. "The rest of the race is on groomed National Forest roads and trails. We'll be out there in the week before really working to make the trails as hard-packed as we can for both the skiers and the bike racers."

A true community event, the program operates under a special use permit from the National Forest Service.  Grooming is provided by Mt. Bachelor, Meissner Nordic, and the Central Oregon Snowbusters snowmobile club. The event benefits MBSEF which provides athletic, academic and personal education and coaching to youth.

The race is a point-to-pint race, with shuttles running continuously to get participants back to the start. Following the race MBSEF will provide transportation back to Mt. Bachelor. An awards ceremony will follow at Webcyclery. 

Register online: http://www.mbsef.org/login-sign-up

In-person registration Jan 30 at Webcyclery, located at 550 Southwest Industrial Way, Bend 

 

 

Üma Kleppinger is a Portland-based copy writer, author and bike addict. A recovering sesquipedalian who blogs about life in the saddle and outdoor adventure, she is also the author of Bike Yoga, a flexibility and recovery program for cyclists. When not writing, she can be found riding and racing her mountain bike throughout the Pacific Northwest. If you have cycling-related news to share, events to promote, or  deep thoughts about this or any other cycling related matters, shoot her a nice email.

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