The 2009 Fluidride Cup Schedule Announced!!

MattPatt · Feb 26, 2009

I for one am stoked to get out and race this year. Been getting plenty of XC miles in over the winter and looking forward to another successful season!

It's also exciting to see that the Fluidride Series coincides with the newly announced Pro Mountain Bike Gravity Tour.

Here's the full announcement:

USA Cycling announced today the creation of a new professional gravity mountain bike series designed to recognize the top gravity racers in America. The USA Cycling Pro Mountain Bike Gravity Tour (ProGRT) will consist of five events, including three UCI-sanctioned races, throughout the United States. Together, these races will provide world-class athletes with a consistent stage to showcase their downhill and 4-Cross skills.
Beginning in May of 2009, the ProGRT will visit four states and offer series ranking points to top finishers, resulting in overall individual titles for men and women. In addition, competitors will also have the opportunity to accumulate international ranking points as three of the five races are inscripted on the UCI calendar.

The series opens with the downhill contest at the Fluidride Cup in Port Angeles, Wash., May 1-3 and then heads south to the Chile Challenge in New Mexico where both the downhill and 4-Cross contests will be a part of the ProGRT. The tour then picks back up on Aug. 8 with both the downhill and 4-Cross at the Blast the Mass in Snowmass, Colo. The following weekend, the ProGRT moves east to the Yankee Clipper at Windham Mountain, the only race on both the Pro Cross Country Tour (ProXCT) and ProGRT. Wrapping up the tour will be the Whiteface 5K Downhill in Wilmington, N.Y. on Aug. 29.

“The Whiteface Mountain Bike Park is honored to be part of the Pro Gravity Tour. Five of the premier venues in the U.S. have been chosen for this historical series that will surely last for generations,” said Downhill Mike, promoter of the Whiteface 5K Downhill. “It is only fitting to be the last race on the tour with our eight-minute downhill track as racers should be in their best condition of the season by late August. The Lake Placid/Whiteface region has hosted two Winter Olympics (1932 & 1980) and has attracted numerous top athletes of all kinds ever since. The time has now come to bring a new breed of world class athletes to Whiteface Mountain and Lake Placid. Welcome Pro Gravity Tour.”

The objectives of the inaugural USA Cycling Pro GRT are to provide a sequence of international-caliber events for elite gravity racers, to recognize the best gravity athletes competing on U.S. soil, to spotlight America’s top races that have made a commitment to host high-level events and ultimately to raise the level of competitive gravity racing in the U.S.

“With the development of the ProGRT we were looking to showcase the country’s strongest gravity venues,” said USA Cycling Mountain Bike Events and Program Director Kelli Lusk. “We want to bring the elite riders together to compete against the best on the country’s top courses and ultimately crown the season’s preeminent gravity riders.”

2009 USA Cycling Pro Gravity MTB Tour (Pro GRT):

May 1-3: Fluidride Cup – Port Angeles, Wash. (DH $5,000 purse)

May 23-25: Chile Challenge – Angel Fire, N.M. (DH and 4-Cross UCI category 2)

Aug. 8-9: Blast the Mass – Snowmass, Colo. (DH and 4-Cross UCI category 2)

August 15-16: Yankee Clipper at Windham Mountain – Windham, N.Y. (DH and 4-Cross UCI category 1)

August 29: Whiteface 5K (DH) – Wilmington, N.Y. (DH $5,000 purse)

seand · Feb 27, 2009

MattPatt said:
2009 USA Cycling Pro Gravity MTB Tour (Pro GRT):

May 1-3: Fluidride Cup Port Angeles, Wash. (DH $5,000 purse)

May 23-25: Chile Challenge Angel Fire, N.M. (DH and 4-Cross UCI category 2)

Aug. 8-9: Blast the Mass Snowmass, Colo. (DH and 4-Cross UCI category 2)

August 15-16: Yankee Clipper at Windham Mountain Windham, N.Y. (DH and 4-Cross UCI category 1)

August 29: Whiteface 5K (DH) Wilmington, N.Y. (DH $5,000 purse)[/INDENT]

So does this mean that both the FR Cup and the Whiteface 5k will not have UCI points associated with those who take their respective categories (that are UCI pointable)?

iridebikes · Feb 28, 2009

It looks like the Whiteface and Fluidride races are not on the UCI schedule. Meaning no UCI points. Being a "national" vs. a UCI race is a hole-nava-leval... But hey, a $5000 purse isn't too bad though! There are other oportunities for UCI points in the area. You'll just have to go to Canada. Arduum is a Canada Cup from what I'm hearing... First year it was just a somewhat underground race, second year it was a BC Cup, now a Canada Cup?! Crazy what those comi canadians are able to do sometimes.

Uruk-hai · Mar 9, 2009

I see that the Silver Mountain race is no longer on the schedule posted on the Fluidride website. Conflicting dates with another event? Cold feet? Any news?

Lumpy930 · Mar 17, 2009

Any word on what the race #1 course is going to be for the different categories.

ods · Mar 17, 2009

We will make an anoucement of courses in the next week or so.

Casey

Curler · Mar 18, 2009

Wait why not???? I was really looking forward to idaho.....

ride · Mar 18, 2009

They basically pulled the plug. It sucks, but it is what it is.

Lars

DHRracer · Mar 18, 2009

ride said:
They basically pulled the plug. It sucks, but it is what it is.

Lars

Do you know if they are going to do the SilverOx?Or was the Fluidride cup race takeing its place?Did they give a reason?

swan3609 · Mar 25, 2009

DHRracer said:
Do you know if they are going to do the SilverOx?Or was the Fluidride cup race takeing its place?Did they give a reason?

Silver has pretty much run them selves into debt.. The were something like 8 million over budget with the water park.. and as a result, I herd from a few good sources that they have either laid off or seriously deminished the summer jobs as trail crew positions go.. I herd that there isnt going to be any trail work done this spring and that the trails will just be as they were when last season was done.. and then that the summer schedule will only run the gondola on selected weekends.
And then on PB it was said that silver was asking to much to host the race and wouldnt respond to emails from the FR guys so they just pulled the race... as far as Silverroxx, I hope they still have it.. that was the most fun weekend last year. (1st in jam session, 1st in class in Super D and 1st in Endero DH

) and its only 40 miles from my house to silver. and a mile from our rental house to the base of silver so its waay conveniant for me. But damn I hope we dont see Silver doing away with biking any time soon.

Uruk-hai · Mar 25, 2009

I was told that, as of right now, they will still have mtb operations this summer but things will be scaled back. The gondola will run on weekends only. I assume every weekend but I suppose it could be select weekends. We'll have to wait and see.

They also still plan on holding Silveroxx but at this time they have not set a firm date.

I think the current economic situation is affecting them and things could change between now and this summer, but it sounds like they are still planning on having mountain bike operations in 2009.

ggrubb · Mar 25, 2009

No Dual-slalom at the first race (according to an ODS post on PinkBike).
Bummer..... I bought a new lens just for the DS.

ride · Mar 25, 2009

I know it's a bummer. We waited until the last minute to see if we could work it out. For one the Peninsula Hurricane Ridge ski school is still running, so we don't have access to the gates that we normally use.
Our main focus is the DH- straight up. Don't get me wrong we love the DS as much as everybody else, but we want to make sure the Downhill absolutely goes off.
With the weather we've been getting hit with lately, and a few other things going on we've had some un-expected additional work.
Needless to say we made the executive decision to cut the slalom at the first one. PA #'s 2 & 3 will for sure have the infamous DUAL SLALOM again.

I hope you all understand. Apologies for the late notice, but we tried to work it out.

Sorry, and cheers!

Lars

downhillracer · Mar 25, 2009

ride said:
Our main focus is the DH- straight up. Don't get me wrong we love the DS as much as everybody else, but we want to make sure the Downhill absolutely goes off.

that is good to hear!

smbisig · Mar 25, 2009

i will be there shooting photos. cant wait to go back, its been a few years.

Five · Mar 27, 2009

ggrubb said:
No Dual-slalom at the first race (according to an ODS post on PinkBike).
Bummer..... I bought a new lens just for the DS.

You can use that lens on the DH...that is if you got skills

ggrubb · Mar 27, 2009

Five said:
You can use that lens on the DH...that is if you got skills

But this thing is like the Hubble space telescope. I have it mounted in the bed of my truck.

You know I'm a hack.

stinky6 · Mar 27, 2009

Any info on what the course is going to be yet or is it still up in the air? Also will it be Pro and Cat 1 on one course and Cat 2 + 3 on another? Just curious how thats going to work out.

Cheese · Mar 31, 2009

Question for promoters:

On the Fluidride website under Purse info it states that the Pro Men purse will be paid 10 deep. Is this correct? Last year the top 10 times regardless of catagory were paid out.

Reason I ask is the difference in policy from last year. As well as last weekend at the Double Down Hoe Down in Spokane there was an expert time on Saturday that was faster than the 2nd and 3rd pro/open times that got paid out.

With licensing you are "suppossed" to race in your catagory which happened last Saturday. Fastest times of the day are just that, the fastest times of the day as long as you are running the same course. Should it matter what catagory a racer is in? I don't think so.

Any info and insight would be appreciated. Thank you.

-Colin

smbisig · Apr 5, 2009

smbisig said:
i will be there shooting photos. cant wait to go back, its been a few years.

well, didn't make it to PA today to photograph the race. i left seattle at around 5 am and had some vehicle issues.

hopefully, depending on my photo schedule, i will make it out to future races.

anyways, good luck to everyone racing today.

steven bisig
steven bisig photography

DHRracer · Apr 6, 2009

I believe the total was 410 racers,good showing from California,Colorado,BC and everywhere in between.No shortage of quality Photographers as well.

DBR X6 RIDER · Apr 6, 2009

Wow...massive showing and a great weekend! Weather was great and the trails were op-ti-mal. Mad props to the N Dub crew for doing their best with keeping up with so many racers. Also, thanks a ton to all the folks hooting and hollering along the course today...not quite as loud as it was for the pros, but loud enough to keep me flying!!!

Pisser you got held up, Anthony. I had the same thing happen to me last year - you get over it in time. Usually by the next race!

bockner · Apr 6, 2009

for my first time out I couldn't have picekd a better event, was amazing from the organization to the weather!!!

Dont worry anthony, next time you will get top five...

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The 2009 Fluidride Cup Schedule Announced!!

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