The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
“Made for some sloppy roots, rock, reggae”
Gravity junkies on two wheels closed out their season of competitive riding last weekend at the third and final stop of the Red Bull Final Descent race series at the Angel Fire Bike Park.
And when the mud was wiped clean and the numbers tallied, two locals, Matty Robb and Ryan Sutton, stepped up to the podium in their respective classes.
The series is a three-stage tour of 12-hour downhill races where riders can compete solo, duo or in teams of four riding downhill tracks for 12 hours straight.
Angel Fire is internationally known for its downhill tracks. The bar was raised to another level for the race as snow that fell the week prior was just starting to melt off.
“It was pretty rowdy,” says Robb. “Made for some sloppy roots, rock, reggae.”
“It was some of the roughest conditions I’ve ever ridden in,” adds Sutton.
Sutton, who temporarily hails from Hawaii, is the defending Final Descent series champ from 2010. He came back to the mainland to defend his Red Bull Final Descent title as well as catch up with friends and family.
Sutton missed the series opener but placed third in the second race and won a 12-hour downhill race in Telluride.
He showed up to Angel Fire early to get some practice runs in, only to realize he left his rear wheel at home, and spent the rest of his day piecing a rear wheel together for race day.
As Sutton lined up for the Le Mans-style start, he decided to let a few other riders get on their bikes before him.
“I was an all-state 110-meter hurdler and sprinter in high school so I usually win the Le Mans start but I decided to let a couple people ahead of me and follow them down and see where the lines were,” explains Sutton.
Sutton settled into third place for the first three hours but a flat tire dropped him back to seventh place.
The 12 hours wore on Sutton but he pressed on, making his way back up through the pack.
“My hands started to feel like they were falling off. It hurts so bad but you just gotta keep going,” says Sutton. “You’ve just got to push through it—everybody’s feeling the same way.”
He charged his way up into fourth place by the time night fell and then made his final move during the night laps to finish third among solo pro men.
“I’m absolutely happy,” says Sutton. “My philosophy in racing is you’re going to lose more races than you win so you better be a good loser.
Robb, of local bike team the Crested Butte Monkey Posse, had a couple of rough seasons in 2010 and 2009 and was looking to close the 2011 year strong.
“This season I wanted some redemption,” says Robb. “I just wanted to get out there and close the season at Angel Fire.”
Robb admits the Le Mans start is not his forte. After the riders from his class sprinted uphill and jumped on their bikes, Robb was sitting somewhere around 20th place as he dropped in for his first run. In addition, there were all the other riders on course from the other classes making their way down the trail.
“There were about 130 people out on the trail,” explains Robb. “It was pure mayhem. It’s about as crazy as it gets.”
Meanwhile, the course just got sloppier as the day wore on.
“It just got muddier and muddier throughout the day,” says Robb. “You really had to keep your wits together.”
Robb had raced the 12-hour format before though and knew what to do to keep said “wits” together.
“Since I had a few under my belt, I had some strategy,” explains Robb. “I knew how many beers to have in my cooler. I snuck in a beer here and there and that kept me going. There’s some carbs and water in there.”
Most important, Robb stayed clear of mechanicals and crashes and kept it rolling all 12 hours, picking off riders in his class throughout the day.
Riders were thrown one last curveball as the sun set with two hours left to go, forcing competitors to ride the last two hours with lights.
Robb kept charging and it wasn’t until the end that he found out where he was. He ended up riding 30 laps, close to 64,000 feet of sloppy descending, to take third place among expert solo riders.
“I was glad to just get out there and survive it and I did well,” says Robb. “It was good to be out there on the horse.”
Sutton is returning to Hawaii but plans on making another showing in Crested Butte this winter.
“My goal is to come back and win the ski comp,” says Sutton.
