Locals close bike season with 25-hour race in Utah

Whole lotta Loftus

Just like Spinal Tap turned it up to 11, so does the 25 Hours in Frog Hollow bike race. Most endurance bike races culminate in one of two ways. Either it’s a 100-miler or 24 hours long. The gang down in Frog Hollow outside of Hurricane (pronounced Hurrican), Utah takes it “one higher” with the 25 Hours in Frog Hollow.
Race organizers take advantage of daylight savings to add one more hour to a 24-hour race.
Last weekend two Brick Oven/Crested Butte Builders/Avery Brewing Company (BO/CBB/AB) teams headed down to the 25-hour challenge. Rider Dan Loftus teamed up with former Crested Butte resident and current Jackson Hole, Wyo. resident Casey Wilson to compete in the duo coed class, while Mark Robbins and Logan Jones rode in the duo men’s class.
Loftus decided to make the trip to Frog Hollow while recuperating from a race-ending injury at the 24 Hours of Moab last month.
“When I was sitting there all hopped up on Percocets and beer I said I wanted to do one more,” says Loftus.
Loftus won the 24 Hours in the Sage solo race and had a solid season of racing; the thought of finishing with a crash in Moab was unsettling to him.
“That wasn’t the way I wanted to go out,” says Loftus. “I wanted to finish strong.”
Loftus and Wilson saw each other in Moab and he knew she would be a great partner for Frog Hollow.
“I used to ride with her a lot here and she’s super strong,” says Loftus.
The two riders dominated the field in Frog Hollow, so much so that by the 10th hour, they were able to throttle back and take the win with 20 laps, over 130 miles of riding each.
“After 10 hours we had a two-lap lead so we toned it way back and just kind of cruised,” says Loftus. “It was a great way to finish the season. Now I’m ready to ski.”
Meanwhile, BO/CBB/AB riders Jones and Robbins were in their own situation in the duo men’s class.
Robbins caught the endurance-riding bug this summer competing in the Fat Tire 40, the CB Classic and with Jones on a four-person team at the 24 Hours of Moab.
The two riders also made the decision while in Moab to try one more race before summer’s done.
“We had an open schedule and Logan and I decided to check it out,” says Robbins.
With a couple of endurance races under their belts, the two set a pre-race goal of 20 laps prior to the race. Robbins started off at race pace before coming to a distinct realization.
“The first two laps I rode really strong but by the third lap I realized this was going to go on for a long time and I started pacing myself,” says Robbins.
As day turned to night, the two figured out they were on pace to reach 20 laps easy, so they upped the ante at about 4 a.m.
“As we got going and got into nighttime we realized we could fit in 22 and to go for that,” says Robbins.
That move made all the difference in the final standings when the race was over.
“By putting in that extra effort, we were able to get the second-place spot,” says Robbins.