Health & Fitness
Come Check Out the State's Largest Mountain Bike Race
Meet Patch's newest blogger Gina Kenny, who will be blogging about biking, and read about the state's largest mountain bike race, which will be this Sunday.
I am excited to be the newest blogger for Patch and will be writing about a variety of biking issues. But, today, I want to focus on mountain biking and mountain bike racing. Specifically, I want to focus on the Palos Meltdown which will be this Sunday.
If you have ever been interested in mountain biking, you should come check out the race and cheer on the racers on Aug. 14 at Pulaski Woods, Palos Forest Preserve, near the intersection of 95th Street and Archer Avenue in Willow Springs.
This is the largest mountain bike race in Chicagoland! Of course, it is the only mountain bike race in Chicagoland; but, it is also the largest mountain bike race in the state. Last year, there were more than 500 racers and even more are expected this year. People from across Chicagoland, and throughout the state, will ride between 8-29 miles of trail with roots, rocks, ravines, climbs and more. Races will go on all day starting with the beginners at 10 a.m., sport riders at 11:30 a.m. and the expert racers going off at 1:30 p.m. A free kids “race” will also occur around 1 p.m.
Find out what's happening in Orland Parkwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Not interested in racing? Come cheer on, or heckle, the racers. Go for a hike or ride on the trails not used in the race. Interested in biking and trails but need more info? There will be several groups there including the Chicago Area Mountain Bikers, League of Illinois Bicyclists, Friends of the Cal-Sag Trail, Active Transportation Alliance and the Forest Preserve District of Cook County. There will also be several local businesses and bike-related businesses, such as local bike shops, SRAM and Specialized.
The Chicago Area Mountain Bikers, a not-for-profit group, organizes the annual race as a fundraiser as well as a way to show off the trails that they build and maintain. If you have ever rode or hiked the singletrack trails there, you have CAMBr to thank. If you have never been on the trails, this is the perfect opportunity to check out the trails and CAMBr.
Find out what's happening in Orland Parkwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
I will be there all day as I am on this year’s Palos Meltdown race committee and am lucky to work for the League of Illinois Bicyclists. Feel free to come by and talk to me about biking and cheer me on (or heckle me) when I start racing at 1:30 p.m.
I am excited for the race to happen -- I'm excited to race and will also be happy for the race to occur since the committee has been working hard for more than half a year planning the event. I will write a post on the race but am also looking for ideas on future blog posts. What bicycling topics are you interested in reading about?
