Written by: Teri Grout
Posted: Monday, 05 May 2008
The road race season in Michigan kicked off in April with Spring Training Series Races in Ann Arbor and Waterford and the Ciociaro Can Am Challenge Series in Windsor. Now that roadies are all warmed up, it's time to stretch their legs in some good old-fashioned road and criterium racing. In the coming weeks road cyclists can look forward to the Grattan Race Series kick-off, the Cone Azalia Classic road race, the Tour of Kensington Valley, the Priority Health Tour De Leelanau, the Tour DeGaslight Criterium and in June, a race that is quickly becoming a favorite among all racers, citizen and professional alike - The Superior Bike Fest in Marquette.
The story has it that the plans for Superior Bike Fest were hatched by a couple of Ski Patrollers on Marquette Mountain's chair lift in the middle of winter.
Whether it was the view alone that inspired them or the fact that the view included the course for the Mountain Chase bike race, we may never know. But that day, Donn Wolf and Jim Grundstrom, part of the Ski Patrol crew that put on the Mountain Chase, were thinking less about skiing than about a bigger and better bike race.Their summit meeting (so to speak) set the ball rolling. The Mountain Chase expanded to include a popular new road racing event. Wolf and Grundstrom agreed to share race director duties. And they renamed the enterprise 'Superior Bike Fest' to reflect its wider scope.
The Superior Bike Fest has boomed since 2005. USA Cycling, bike racing's governing body, now sanctions several of the events, attracting top competitors from Maine to Arizona. The number of riders has increased from 85 the final year of the Mountain Chase to around 500 last year. And spectators have discovered the thrill of the race: thousands of them gather in downtown Marquette to watch the Superior Bike Fest's Friday twilight criterium.
A criterium, or "crit" is a bike race held on a course of closed streets in an urban setting. Cyclists pedal laps for a specified time, trying to stay with the pack. If the pack circles around and overtakes you so that you're a lap behind, you've been 'lapped', and you're out. The first cyclist to cross the finish line after time runs out wins.
Most crit racing, said Wolf, takes place in slightly less-populated sections of a city, such as old industrial areas. But SuperiorBike Fest's directors are just crazy-or visionary-enough to put their course inthe heart of downtown Marquette. "Riders are just blown away to find themselves riding in the streets of a real city," Wolf said.
You can imagine what a blast it is for spectators, too.They're an arm's length (should they be so foolish as to stick out an arm) from a swarm of cyclists zooming by at speeds up to twenty-eight miles per hour.
Cycling, even at these velocities, is still a silent sport. If you're listening closely as the pack passes, you'll hear breathing and maybe a whirr of spinning chain. They come upon you with the swift silence of a cougar taking down its prey, gone before you can focus your thoughts or your camera. It takes your breath away.
If that intrigues you, you can take the next step and participate. Superior Bike Fest has 'citizen' categories for the amateur racer in each of its five major events, including the criterium.
There are even two one-lap classes in the criterium for kids up to age 12, and the effect on young riders is electric. "These kids' eyes are like silver dollars when they cross the finish line," Wolf said. There's no charge to enter the youth classes, so your kid can get a taste of racing and it won't cost you a cent (at least until he or she gets addicted to the rush and requires you to purchase a high-end racing bike).
Saturday's road race takes riders out of the city and into the country side. The pro classes race a 100-mile course that loops twice through Gwinn and Palmer before returning to the starting point in Marquette. Too far for you? Try the 55-mile or 35-mile versions. Rather ride your mountain bike in the road race? There's a class for that too. There's even a non-competitive touring category for riders who want the fun and logistical support of the race without the pressure.
The old Mountain Chase lives on in Saturday's downhill event. The concept of the race is pretty straightforward. You start at the top; you end at the bottom. Between you and the finish line is a single-track path twisting back and forth across Marquette Mountain. The curves are expertly banked, designed by trail architects Doug Pennala and Mike Brunet to optimize the physics of getting to the bottom as fast as your daredevil soul will allow.This event is almost as spectator-friendly as Friday's criterium. You can observe from practically any point along the trail, as long as you earn that right with a little uphill hike.
Sunday's cross-country race is another holdover from theMountain Chase. The eight-mile single-track course circles Marquette Mountain.You can ride the one, two, or three-lap category, or get a couple of buddies and enter the three-lap race as a team, each of you taking one spin around thecourse.
The circuit race at K.I. Sawyer on Sunday morning is sort of a cross between a criterium and a road race. Cyclists loop a 2.2 mile course for a set amount of time that varies by class, starting and finishing at the W. There're plenty of spectator opportunities there, too.
And there's plenty of incentive to give a couple ofevents a whirl yourself. Besides cash prizes, the Fest awards riders points for all events in which they compete. Riders with the highest totals get the Omnium award-an overall prize for the Renaissance man and woman of the Bike Fest. You don't have to be the best at one thing; you can do reasonably well in several categories and rank.
Or you can just watch. That's okay too.
This year's Superior Bike Fest is June 20-22. Click here for details on all of the events.
The author writes for Marquette Magazine, which is published by Lake Superior Press. This article was edited from a story that originally appeared in Marquette Magazine.
The road race season in Michigan kicked off in April with Spring Training Series Races in Ann Arbor and Waterford and the Ciociaro Can Am Challenge Series in Windsor. Now that roadies are all warmed up, it's time to stretch their legs in some good old-fashioned road and criterium racing. In the coming weeks road cyclists can look forward to the Grattan Race Series kick-off, the Cone Azalia Classic road race, the Tour of Kensington Valley, the Priority Health Tour De Leelanau, the Tour De Gaslight Criterium and in June, a race that is quickly becoming a favorite among all racers, citizen and professional alike - The Superior Bike Fest in Marquette.
I just received a grim e-mail to end an otherwise unremarkable day. The subject line read "Ryan Shay Autopsy Released." 
