Growler riders met with mixed conditions at Hartman Rocks

Irwin, Anderson and Scheefer defend backyard

Texas clay, slick granite, tacky single track and a Kill Hill mud wrestling tournament greeted the 225 riders who competed in the second annual Growler and Half Growler bike races at Hartman Rocks on Sunday, May 24.
The race is a showcase of all that Hartman Rocks has to offer, with miles of single track that included such classics as Josho’s, Top of the World, Ridgeline and Skull Pass, to name a few.
As is to be expected, team Brick Oven/Crested Butte Builders (BO/CBB) was in full regalia for the event, with 21 riders representing the team . Three team members posted top three results.
Travis Scheefer carried the BO/CBB torch in the Half Growler, taking first place overall with a time of two hours, 49 minutes and seven seconds—10 minutes ahead of Brian Smith who won the 32-mile single-speed title.
Susan DeMattei proved she still has the pistons firing strong, taking the women’s 32-mile title and finishing in sixth place overall.
The 64-mile Full Growler race was dominated in the men’s and women’s categories by pro riders Travis Brown and Eszter Horanyi but BO/CBB riders Jeff Irwin and Laura Anderson each held strong to place second overall, with both shaving significant time off their efforts from last year’s Growler.
The race opened with a neutral start in downtown Gunnison, following the road out to the main parking lot for the Hartman Rocks Recreation area. Once the course turned to dirt it was game on, and the field of riders turned their eyes to their first climb of the day—Kill Hill. What they encountered was a bit unnerving.
 “That whole steep hill became a mud-wrestling pit. That got you thinking what the rest of the race was like,” says Anderson.
With only one “ride-able” line up the left side of the road, competitors were forced to either battle for a spot in the line or submit to the mud and push their way to the top.
Fortunately, riders were met with favorable portions of trail as the rain compacted long stretches of single track.
“There were sections that were totally faster than they usually are,” says BO/CBB directeur sportif Ben Preston.
“The course rode really fast,” adds Irwin.
Anderson agrees but also found that two significant bursts of weather greased up other sections of single track.
“It seemed to rain on me the same place on both laps,” says Anderson. “Your bike would just start going in two separate directions as you tried to keep your weight over your bottom bracket.”
Anderson remained in the hunt for first place through the first lap, using her male teammates as a benchmark for her pace.
“There were a couple of Brick Oven guys in front of me and I was just trying to keep them in my sights,” says Anderson. “I was just happy I could stay with those guys.”
Horanyi managed to increase her lead on the second lap, coming in 10 minutes ahead of Anderson by the finish.
“There was good competition out there,” says Anderson. “It was a total suffer-fest but this year it felt good to suffer rather than last year.”
Meanwhile, with Travis Brown way off the front from the start, Irwin moved into third place during the first lap and proceeded to pick away at the second-place rider in front of him, Kelly Magelky.
During the second lap, Irwin found out he was six minutes behind Magelky and then when he hit Skull Pass, Irwin found out he had pulled to within three minutes of second place.
“That was a little extra kick in the ass,” says Irwin. “On Josie’s I caught sight of him and was able to pass him on Gateway. I didn’t think I would catch him.”
Irwin carried his momentum from his blistering second lap pace to cross in second place six minutes ahead of Magelky.
“It just worked out, that’s all I can say,” says Irwin. “Overall it was a pretty fun time.”
Race organizer Dave Wiens admits that the day was still a bit hectic but praises the efforts of the city of Gunnison and the highway patrol for their help with the start downtown and the volunteer corps from start to finish. In addition, he has received rave reviews of the event from participants throughout the state.
“I’m getting letters from people raving about the course and the volunteers,” says Wiens.
As for the weather, Wiens feels it was near ideal for riding at Hartman Rocks.
“The weather almost cooperated perfectly,” says Wiens. “Best conditions you could have out there. It was a spectacular day, at least visually.”