3rd Annual Santa Cruz Mountain Bike Festival - Aptos, California
Soquel Demonstration Forest (aka "Demo") is a unique, legitimate mountain biking destination in Santa Cruz County where steep, technically-challenging trails meander down the ridges and sides of Santa Rosalia mountain. There you can find log roll-overs, jumps, teeter-totters and skinnies created by riders using only the natural dead fall found within the forest. This is the setting where Santa Cruz will have its first ever Bell-sponsored Super Enduro race, where a limited group of highly skilled riders will climb roughly 13 miles to the top of the mountain from Aptos, and using the same bike, compete for the best times down three of the gnarliest descents in Demo. (Does this sound like your cup of tea? Apply by Friday, Feb. 17th!)
This event will be a part of the Fox 3rd Annual Santa Cruz Mountain Bike Festival put on by a small group of dedicated volunteers with Mountain Bikers of Santa Cruz, and funded by the generous patronage of some industry names you may recognize. A major highlight returning to the Festival this year is the famous Aptos (aka Post Office Jumps, aka Huge Air!) Dirt Jump Contest. As usual, there will be a fantastic menu of events for riders of all skill levels and even fun stuff for kids! This festival will be truly epic! So without further prattling on about how rad it will be, below is the official event press release:
APTOS, CA – February 3, 2012
Mountain Bikers of Santa Cruz (MBoSC) today announced the event schedule and sponsors for the Fox 3rd Annual Santa Cruz Mountain Bike Festival (SCMBF) at the Barry Swenson Builder property in Aptos Village, California, on April 14th and 15th, 2012. This is the weekend before the Sea Otter Classic in nearby Monterey. The SCMBF is Santa Cruz County’s premier mountain biking event, bringing together a mix of competitive racing, contests, and skills clinics as well as industry manufacturers and retailers with booths and demo products. Proceeds from the 2012 event will benefit projects and organizations that support mountain biking in Santa Cruz county.
For two jam-packed days, the SCMBF will be home to exciting events for riders at every level. Whether attendees want to participate, spectate, improve their skills or check out the latest gear, there’s something for everyone. In the first legally sanctioned race at Soquel Demonstration State Forest, racers will complete three climbing and three downhill stages. Other events allow professional and amateur riders to compete in dirt jump and pump track contests, and cross country short track races. Amateurs will race for bragging rights and bike product; pros will race for cash. This year’s SCMBF will debut the All Mountain Challenge which recognizes the best combined results of endurance, short track and pump track races. Beginners and intermediate riders alike can hone their dirt skills with clinics focusing on mountain bike handling and pump track skills, and shuttle rides to Soquel Demonstration State Forest will be available. A family-friendly event, SCMBF will also offer a kids’ practice area. Industry vendors will be on hand to share their latest innovations and equipment. Tasty drafts will be offered in the beer garden, and this year’s festival will feature an all-new food court.
SCMBF title sponsor Fox of Scotts Valley, California is joined by event sponsors Bell, Specialized/Scotts Valley Cycle Sport, and WTB. Platinum sponsors include Adventure Sports Journal, Barry Swenson Builder, Bike Monkey, Dirt Rag, Gamut, Saris; gold sponsors to date are American Medical Response (AMR), Bicycle Trip, and Clif Bar. Contributions from these organizations have helped underwrite the SCMBF. All our sponsors are committed to mountain biking and Santa Cruz County as a world class destination for the sport. Sponsorship opportunities are still available; refer to our 2012 Sponsorship Kit for details.
On the schedule are popular events from last year such as:
831 Jump Contest: Calling All Creative and Tricky Styles. Stand-out moves rewarded, be you Beginner, Expert or Pro. Doesn’t matter how you rate now, we want to recognize you. Announcer will call, music will bump, judges will decide. Those who push their own limits will be recognized at the 831 Jump Contest. Test yourself, the rewards will come.
Pump Track Pandemonium: It’s you against the clock! See who has the skill to shred the hardest and pump the fastest through perfectly apexed berms. Your score is your fastest timed lap.
Specialized/Scotts Valley Cycle Sport Short Track: It’s intense! It’s fast! It’s fun! Come weave and wind your way through the heart of the Santa Cruz Mountain Bike Festival on our elaborate 1/2 mile Specialized/Scotts Valley Cycle Sport Short Track race course. Speed by the vendor booths, rally through off-camber corners and pump your way through berms and rollers. You’ll go as hard as you can for a few minutes and then it’s one more lap and a mad dash to finish.
Bike Skills Clinics: Learn from the best! Pro rider, and Santa Cruz native Tammy Donahugh will team up with Kat Sweet to host two bike skills clinics – a Mountain Bike Skills Clinic, and a Pump Track Skills Clinic.
Plus, these exciting brand new events:
Bell Super Enduro at Demo: One Bike. Three Climbs. Three Descents. Be the first to race Euro style at the Bell Super Enduro at Demo – Soquel Demonstration State Forest’s first legally sanctioned race! Climb fast. Descend faster on a closed course. Then do it all over again. Do you have what it takes?
WTB All-Mountain Challenge: Pump, Shred, and Endure. Beat all your friends up the climbs, around the corners and down the mountain? Ever wonder where you really stand? The super enduro, short track, and pump track events won’t leave you hanging. Different bikes for each event welcome, best rider determined by cumulative points. Fearless and fit riders, find out who really rules the mountain.
Specialized and Scotts Valley Cycle Sport Kids Rodeo: Because You Want Them to Love This Sport. Introduce your kids to mountain biking or encourage them to improve their skills. Sign a waiver, put a helmet on them, and watch them try their skills and tackle obstacles in a challenging and supportive environment. They will gain confidence and have fun. You will love that they want to ride.
For race and contest registration, schedule and event details please visit the SCMBF website.
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The mission of the SCMBF is to celebrate mountain biking in Santa Cruz County by bringing people together to participate and spectate in competitive and recreational mountain bike events, and a festival to bring the community together to advocate an active outdoor lifestyle and promote the world class mountain biking facilities and riders in Santa Cruz County.
Sponsorship Inquiries: sponsors@santacruzmountainbikefestival.com
Expo & Demo Inquiries: expo@santacruzmountainbikefestival.com
Marketing & PR Inquiries: marketing@santacruzmountainbikefestival.com
Volunteer Inquiries: volunteers@santacruzmountainbikefestival.com
Event Inquiries: events@santacruzmountainbikefestival.com
General Festival Inquiries: info@santacruzmountainbikefestival.com
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If you are not racing, more details will be forthcoming about volunteering and spectating. In the meantime, you can always give MBOSC a shout to let them know you can help out:
volunteers@santacruzmountainbikefestival.com
I am pretty stoked about the possibilities that this race opens up for more events in the future, if all goes well. Seems like the Enduro race format is making a lot of headlines these days. Good luck to everyone who applied!