Eastern States Cup Announces East Coast Junior MTB Championships & Junior MTB Challenge

GT Bicycles Junior XC Challenge
May 1 Diamond Hill, RI – XC
July 10 Thunder Mountain, MA – XC

GT Bicycles East Coast Junior MTB Championships
Aug 14, 15 Blue Mountain, PA – DH – DS – XC – Enduro

REGISTRATION FOR ALL EVENTS HERE

Continuing their longstanding commitment to promoting and growing youth cycling, the Maxxis Eastern States Cup presented by Kate's Real Food announces the 2021 GT Bicycles East Coast Junior XC Challenge and the GT Bicycles East Coast Junior MTB Championships. This will be the third year for the Junior MTB Championships and the second year on the East Coast. As a well-established promotions company with a reputation for top-notch events, the Maxxis ESC organization is offering young riders an opportunity to compete with their peers in a series of professionally run mountain bike events that will draw athletes from all over the east coast.


The first two events will be cross-country races that coincide with Maxxis ESC Enduro weekends and will be great preparation for the Junior MTB Championships which will have an entire weekend of racing devoted solely to the juniors. "It is our goal to establish the highest level of competition and challenge for our junior racers. With a combined experience of over 75 years of putting on top-level mountain bike events we expect nothing but the best!"
George Ulmer, founder of the Maxxis Eastern States Cup presented by Kate's Real Food


“We are stoked to be able to support and help grow the youth mountain biking community in our backyard by partnering with the Eastern States Cup. It is a great opportunity to help support all levels of riders on their mountain bike journey. Whether it’s someone who is new to the sport and wants to challenge themselves to try out a race or a regular on the scene with their eyes on the podium, we know that this series will deliver the good times they are looking for! As a bonus, first-time entrants who show up to race registration with their GT bike will receive a GT swag pack."
Rachelle Boobar- GT Bicycles


"These races will complement the existing league series on the east coast youth mountain bike scene. Youth racing exploded with NICA and the recently-formed NEHSCA a few years before the pandemic. Not much has been going on these last two seasons with restrictions and safety paramount. Now it’s time to get back to that level of excitement and start racing!" Chris Nichols, Maxxis ESC Junior Race Director


The first event will be a GT Bicycles Junior XC Challenger race at Diamond Hill in Rhode Island on Saturday, May 1st. The challenger races will be a great opportunity for kids to get prepped for regional racing. Diamond Hill is a perfect venue for XC Racing with a modest vertical that is packed with a wide variety of riding terrain.


Thunder Mountain in the Berkshires of Massachusetts will be the host for the second GT Bicycles Junior XC Challenger race on Saturday, July 10th. This mountain has gained a reputation as a gravity-fed Mecca over the past few years, but long before the lift started turning the area was home to an extensive network of fantastic single track and should provide an exciting challenge for our young racers.


The big dance will be held at Blue Mountain in Palmerton, Pennsylvania on the weekend of Aug. 14th and 15th. The GT Bicycles East Coast Junior MTB Championships will crown champions in cross-country, enduro, downhill and dual slalom disciplines. The races will be divided by gender and offer racing age classes in two-year increments starting with a 10-and-under class. There will also be an elite category where any junior who feels they can be the fastest in the nation can step up to the plate. Registration is open to Juniors 18 and under from anywhere and we extend a special invitation to our friends from north of the border to come and join the fun. No licenses of any kind are needed so there is no red tape for parents to worry about. This promises to be a great family event with fun youth racing for every age level. We look forward to seeing the fastest young rippers challenging for the Championship Jerseys.


CROSS COUNTRY:
Cross Country is an endurance-based event where racers compete on a 3-4 mile lap for a certain number of laps. Lap counts will be determined by category. Laps consist of uphills and downhills on varied terrain. Usual laps times will be 15-30 minutes per lap.

ENDURO:
Enduro is a gravity-based event with multiple timed stages. The timed stages are the downhill portions. The uphill portions are not timed. The podium results will be based on an accumulation of time for all timed stages.

DOWNHILL:
Downhill riders have a single attempt to reach the finish line as fast as possible while remaining between the two tapes designating the course. Riders must choose their line by compromising between the shortest possible line and the line that can be traveled at the highest speed. Riders start at intervals, often seeded from slowest to fastest, and courses typically take two to five minutes to complete with winning margins being often less than a second.

DUAL SLALOM:
Consists of two racers racing two almost identical tracks next to each other down a slope. The courses are usually short; one run lasting about 30 seconds. It is filled with tabletop jumps, doubles, and bermed turns. Both riders’ times are taken and then they switch tracks for another round, whereafter the combined times are counted and slowest rider is eliminated. The winner moves on to the next round until they have 2 riders left racing in the final.


GT Bicycles Junior XC Challenge
May 1 Diamond Hill, RI – XC
July 10 Thunder Mountain, MA – XC

GT Bicycles East Coast Junior MTB Championships
Aug 14, 15 Blue Mountain, PA – DH – DS – XC – Enduro

REGISTRATION FOR ALL EVENTS HERE


The West Coast Junior Championships will follow a similar format and take place November 5-7 at Vail Lake Resort in Temecula, California. The West Coast Championships will be organized by SoCal Endurance, SoCal Enduro and Team Big Bear.
We are back racing in 2021! We are excited to have the top Jr racers from all over the West Coast racing and competing for the coveted Championship Jerseys! The trails at Vail Lake Resort in Temecula, CA have had a huge facelift. There are miles of brand new singletrack and doubletrack waiting to explore. Both the XC and the Enduro races will use a bunch of these new trails. The crew at Vail Lake have been working hard and we appreciate the efforts!
https://www.jrmtbchamps.com


Here are the classes for cross-country racers at both Challenger races and the Championships:
Parents and coaches may practice with the racers providing they use a number plate and submit a waiver. There is no charge for this. The exception is only racers may practice Sunday morning for the enduro.
Cross Country XC Classes
10 and Under
11-13 Boys
11-13 Girls
14-15 Boys
14-15 Girls
16-18 Boys
16-18 Girls
11-18 Elite Boys
11-18 Elite Girls

Enduro Classes
10 and Under
11-13 Boys
11-13 Girls
14-15 Boys
14-15 Girls
16-18 Boys
16-18 Girls
11-18 Elite Boys
11-18 Elite Girls

Downhill DH Classes
10 and Under
11-13 Boys
11-13 Girls
14-15 Boys
14-15 Girls
16-18 Boys
16-18 Girls
11-18 Elite Boys
11-18 Elite Girls

Dual Slalom DS Classes
10 and Under
11-13 Boys
11-13 Girls
14-15 Boys
14-15 Girls
16-18 Boys
16-18 Girls
11-18 Elite Boys
11-18 Elite Girls


This is the schedule for the GT Bicycles East Coast Junior MTB Championships:

Friday
Registration 9:00am – 2:00 pm
9:00 am – 11:15 Morning Practice all ages all disciplines
11:15am-12:30pm Meet the College Coaches – Lunch Break – All courses Closed
12:30 pm – 6:00 pm Afternoon Practice all ages all disciplines
( If xc and enduro share the same sections, we’ll have to split practice times )

Saturday
7:30am – 8:30am Late XC Registration
9:00 am – 2:00 pm DS, DH and Enduro Registration
Awards ½ hour after DS Race

XC RACE
14 – 15 classes
Start time 9:00 am: Boys 14 – 15 – 4 laps (estimated completion time 10:15 am)
Start time 9:05 am: Girls 14 – 15 – 4 laps (estimated completion time 10:30 am)

13 and under classes
Start time 9:15 am: Boys 11-13 – 3 laps (estimated completion time 10:30 am)
Start time 9:20 am: Girls 11-13 – 3 laps (estimated completion time 10:45 am)
Start time 9:25 am: Open 10 & under – 3 laps (estimated completion time 10:55 am)

Elite Boys and Girls classes
Start time 11:30 am: Elite Boys (ages 11-19) – 8 laps (estimated completion time 1:30 pm)
Start time 11:35 am: Elite Girls (ages 11-19) – 8 laps (estimated completion time 1:45 pm)

16 – 18 classes
Start time 11:45 am: Boys 16 – 18 – 5 laps (estimated completion time 12:45 pm)
Start time 11:55 am: Girls 16 – 18 – 5 laps (estimated completion time 12:55 pm)


DUAL SLALOM RACE
11:00 am – 2:30 pm Open Practice all ages
2:00 pm Qualification for DS starts
3:00 pm Race Start
(12U- Elite)

DOWNHILL – ENDURO PRACTICE
10:00 am – 6:00 pm Open Practice all ages
Some Enduro Tracks may be closed during the XC Race

Sunday
7:00 am – 8:00 am Late Onsite enduro and DH registration and packet pickup opens
Awards ½ hour after DH Race

ENDURO RACE
No Enduro Practice Allowed
8:30 am Mandatory Enduro racer meeting at the registration area
9:00 am All racer staging (Elite – 12U)

DOWNHILL RACE
Practice 9:00 am-11:30 am
12:00 noon Race (12U- Elite)

http://www.easternstatescup.com
https://www.jrmtbchamps.com/east-coast.html
https://www.facebook.com/easternstatescup
REGISTRATION FOR ALL EVENTS HERE


CAMPING – AVAILABLE ONSITE


This promises to be a great family event with fun youth racing for every age level and a unique opportunity to showcase our young bikers.

Posted In:
Racing and Events DH Racing Enduro Racing XC Racing #PBgroms