For the 2020 Growler, we have introduced a new team category for the main event. Two-person teams compete on the same course as the Full-Growler, with each rider racing one 32-mile lap at a time. The rider who starts the race from downtown Gunnison will tag their teammate at the Hartman Rocks base area after they have finished their 32-mile lap, where the second rider will then take off. The teammates combined lap times will determine their overall standing, with three team categories: Women, Men and Co-ed. The team category is great for those that want to experience the Growler, but prefer racing with a buddy.
NEW (MORE!) TRAILS AND LESS ROADS
We have shuffled the course deck and added the new Graceland trails and a new section of Skyline (both of which your entry fees helped to build), losing the Powerlines Road and the pavement of Gold Basin Road. Apologies, but this change up just added more techy singletrack! Check out the new map HERE.
MIDDLE SCHOOL AND HIGH SCHOOL CATEGORIES
New Half Growler and (Sunday’s Half Growler, too) categories for young riders based on grade in school (as of fall 2020): 8th graders and younger; high school freshman and sophomores; high school juniors and seniors. We also have Collegiate and the all new CLYDESDALE category for both the Full and Half Growler.
ORIGINAL GROWLER KID’S RACES
ORIGINAL GROWLER KID’S RACES will take place on spectator, family friendly multi-lap courses at the Hartman Rocks base area on Saturday, May 23. While this event is free, we’ll still need you to stop by and sign a waiver before participating. Please visit the “KIDS RACE PAGE” for all the juicy details!
For ten years, the Original Growler has not wavered from our guiding principal of asking you to trade your hard earned dollars for three things:
- An awesome day on the bike. The Growler offers a challenging, singletrack heavy mountain biking experience on some of the finest trails on the planet.
- A killer party. Food, drink and camaraderie, post race, in downtown Gunnison (for those that still have some party left in them!)
- Top shelf trails, both existing and developing. Regardless of where you live, you become a stakeholder in Gunnison area trails as every penny of your entry fee goes directly to the 501c3 not for profit, Gunnison Trails, and Gunnison Trails’ mission is focused solely on improving and expanding area trails.
The Original Growler showcases most of the trails at the Hartman Rocks recreation area on BLM public lands. “Hartman’s,” as we call it, was chosen as one of the top 20 mountain biking destinations on BLM lands and offers a one-of-kind trail riding experience. If you have ridden Hartman’s, you know all about the magic of these high desert trails.
If you haven’t, you owe it to yourself as an experienced mountain biker to test your skills and fitness on the trails at Hartman Rocks. You’ll be forced to alternate relentlessly between fast and flow in seas of sagebrush and tricky and technical through weathered and twisted juniper on islands of granite and in the many micro canyons that pock this primal landscape. While there are no big climbs and the total vertical gain isn’t remarkable, the seesaw nature of the Growler course is a supreme test of all around mountain biking. Go ahead, commit. But be prepared to challenge your mind, your body and your skills.
