Growler race registration opens hot, filling up fast

Event promises to be bigger than ever

Gunnison Trails quietly opened registration for the 2013 Original Growler this past weekend and within 24 hours the mountain bike race, now in its sixth year, was nearly half sold out, with more than 300 participants committed to ride either 32 or 64 miles of trails at Hartman Rocks over Memorial Day weekend.

The 2012 version of the Growler saw capacity doubled over previous years as the racing expanded to two days. “When we offered one race capped at 350 riders, we sold out in less than ten minutes,” explained Gunnison Trails executive director and race director Dave Wiens.
“Last year we added an additional day and an additional 350 riders and realized that the acute demand was more than 350 but not 700,” said Wiens. “We eventually sold out Saturday’s race and only fell about 25 riders short of selling out Sunday, too. We’ll see what happens for 2013 but a complete sellout looks promising.”
Part of the registration process for the 2013 event includes required questions pertaining to various demographic and behavioral aspects of the participants and their plans for the Growler weekend.
Based on 310 responses, data about the 2013 Original Growler participants show:
—Colorado, and particular the Front Range, are heavily represented.
—87 percent of all riders are from Colorado, while 13 percent are from out of state.
—This is the highest number of out of state riders ever and represented so far are: Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Massachusetts, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas, Utah and Virginia.
—The average age of competitors is 41 years old.
—80 percent are male; 20 percent are female.
—5 percent live in Gunnison or Crested Butte
—31 percent said they would make one additional trip to Gunnison to ride mountain bikes, not including the Growler weekend
—43 percent said they would make two or three additional trips to Gunnison to ride mountain bikes, not including the Growler weekend
—7 percent said they would make four or more additional trips to Gunnison to ride mountain bikes, not including the Growler weekend. (Gunnison and Crested Butte residents were excluded from these stats.)
When it comes to accommodations:
—43 percent plan to stay in a hotel, hostel, or rented house or condo
—33 percent plan to stay in an improved fee campground like the KOA
—7 percent plan to camp for free on public lands
And concerning spending, estimated total spending in Gunnison during the Growler weekend based on registrant responses (310 respondents; financial data has been adjusted to reflect a full starting field of 700 competitors):
—Low end: $175,000 including race entry fees
—High end: $290,000 including race entry fees