Windham World Cup Mountain Bike Finals
Dirty, yes. Dangerous-- sure. But kinda cool.
Italy, France, Belgium, Windham N.Y.
The final leg of the Tour De France of Mountain Biking-- The World Cup Mountain Bike Finals -- gets rolling this week about an hour from Albany. The best mountain bikers in the world are gathering on Windham Mountain this weekend to compete for the World Cup title.
This is the first time the World Cup final will be held in the U.S., and it's the first East Coast World Cup race ever.
After the jump, a few details about the weekend and some video of what you can expect to see.
The new Windham Mountain course was developed by Phil Saxena an international mountain bike course designer (we so want that job).
The terrain is pretty dangerous, rocks and hills and one jump that sends the cyclist about 50 feet in the air. Here's a preview:
The qualifiers start on Thursday (spectators are welcome) and the big races are on Saturday and Sunday. Cyclists from 40 countries will be represented.
"Citizen bicyclists" will get a chance to ride the course as well, so if you're a daredevil with a good mountain bike, you can register here. We'll wave to you from our chairs at the bottom.
Other events include:
A Block Party from 8:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m with music, fire jugglers, a bike stunt show and a demonstration by the Albany All Stars Roller Derby.Â
A Saturday night concert by Chris Barron (of The Spin Doctors) and The Time Bandits
 A Kids' Fun Race (for children up to age 10) on Sunday.
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Indoor and outdoor expos showcasing bikes and accessories, local crafts and retail products and a "Big Wheel" race.
Wear sensible shoes and give your friends a ride --parking is $10, but all the events are free.
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Comments
I've been pre-registered for a while for the Downhill Citizen's race. Should be fun! Luckily it's on a "slightly" easier course than the WC one.
... said James at 43 on Aug 24, 2010 at 1:00 PM | link
Great promo for the event. I'm stoked for the WC to hit Windham. Correct me if I am wrong but the article says it's the first US finals and first east coast WC but I think Hunter Mtn. hosted a WC finals back in the early 1990's. I know the level of WC DH is far and above what it was then. In those days Johnny Tomac would race XC Saturday then throw some knobies on the same bike and race it "DH" on Sunday.
... said Jube on Aug 24, 2010 at 6:51 PM | link
@Jube- I believe you are correct. Hunter did host a WC final. There was also a WC event at Massanutten VA in the early 90's and a later WC at Angel Fire, NM but that's about it. It's nice to not have to travel to Mt. St Anne in Canada to see a race of this caliber.
... said James at 43 on Aug 25, 2010 at 2:27 PM | link