There are two reasons cyclists flock to Leadville, Colorado in August: to test their mettle at the Trail 100 mountain bike race or catch a glimpse of Lance Armstrong and Dave Wiens testing theirs. This year there is a yet another reason to visit, the third annual Rocky Mountain Bicycle Festival.
The festival will take place on the same weekend as the now famous endurance race, which is said to draw upwards of 20,000 people to the sleepy former mining town.
The 2010 Rocky Mountain Bicycle Festival opens Friday 13 August and runs through early Saturday evening with a break in the afternoon to highlight race finishes.
The race starts at 6:30am on Saturday, 14 August. The festival opens at 6:45 with breakfast. Though sharing the same weekend, the events will run independent of each other.
The festival event features a custom framebuilder’s gallery, an outdoor demo guided by members of the local Cloud City Wheelers both on and off-road, not to mention local food and plenty of Colorado craft-brewed beer.
The move to Leadville was assisted by the City of Leadville and Lake County to provide additional attractions for the Leadville racers and to relieve some of the pressure on the town from the event’s massive crowds.
“We’re thrilled to have the Rocky Mountain Bike Festival in Leadville during the Trail 100 weekend,” said Leadville Mayor Bud Elliot. “There is a huge audience for something like this. We hope to see it back here year after year.”
The Festival will be open 9am - 5pm on Friday, and Saturday right after the racers have headed out on course until 6:00pm. The RMB Festival is located on the racecourse - 300m from the start/finish - at 6th and Leiter. Admission is $5.
The 2010 festival offers demo rides, which are new to the event and facilitated by its move to Leadville.
“With the Lake County Pump Track, the Mineral Belt Trail and dozens of other off-road trails and the miles of breath-taking roads around Leadville we are concentrating on reaching out to companies with demo fleets right now,” said Carol Johnson the event director. “At the same time, we have always had a strong relationship with custom frame builders around the country and each year we’re excited to see this feature of the festival grow.”
For more information on the Rocky Mountain Bicycle Festival or to register to exhibit visit www.RMBFestival.com
