Race Report: 2022 Reaper Madness - Bootleg

The 2022 DVO Winter Gravity Series Enduro presented by GT Bicycles at Bootleg Canyon is a wrap with nearly 1,000 gnarly racers. These gravity racers took on the challenge of the Bootleg trails all winter as well as battled the elements. For that, they were rewarded with cash, prizes, medals, and bragging rights.

The Enduro Race
The stages were shorter than the typical Enduro Bootleg stages and a bit on the easier side. However, Saturday's winds of 25-35mph with gusts reaching 49mph made this Enduro more challenging than the others.

Taking the top spot on the box is Arkansas's own Jake Ingram with the fastest time of the day and the fastest on all 3-stages! Jake's combined stages came in at just under 10 minutes with an impressive 9:58. That time even beat Brian Lopes E-Bike time on the very same course by .07 of a second. This led to a full Fezzari/DVO sweep in the GT-sponsored Enduro race taking 1st, 2nd, and 3rd in the Men's Pro.


Coming in 2nd in the Men's Pro Enduro was Jason Tullis with a 10:27.1.


Rob Brown is seen here cruising into his 3rd place finish in the Men's Pro Enduro with all 3 stages totaling just 10:31.3.


The Women's Pro Enduro race had 2 Pro Women competing against each other. Taking 1st place in the Women's Pro was Durango, Colorado's was Fiona Dougherty taking only 12:09.7 to complete all 3-stages.


2nd place is Newbury's Park, California's Sydney Phillips racing for Mynesweeper/Monster Army.


The majority of racers are amateurs at these and most other races. Below we will share some pictures of these very talented amateurs. Olivia Salt is on her way to a 1st place finish in the Women's combined Category 2 & 3/15+ with a fast time of 12:55.7 beating 6 other women to claim that position.


William Dickson racing for DVO Suspension won the combined Category 2 & 3/50+ with a time of 12:19.


Jason Vanzant in the combined Category 2 & 3/40-49 on stage 3.


Dylan Stout coming in 3rd for the day with a 12:22.5 and racing for Southwest Bikes.


Alex Branch is racing in the Boy's 11-14. Alex came down from St. George, Utah, and represents Velo Love.


Addy Jacobsend from Park City, Utah racing in the Category 1/15+ Women.


Enduro categories were stacked and there were even 15 racers in the E-Bike Open with Brian Lopes winning the Men's and Aubrey Adams taking the top spot in the Open/Pro Women E-Bike race. We have no podium shots for Saturday as that is when the winds really picked up. There was a short ceremony, but all were getting sandblasted and trying to get out of the elements.

The Downhill Race
If you have never been to Bootleg in the past, there are no lifts, just one sketchy service road. In all, three 26-foot flatbeds were used for this event with 2 trucks taking racers up top from the race village and one truck designated for picking up racers at the somewhat remote finish only to bring them back to the race village. This set-up can bring 160 riders up the mountain each hour!


The new kid on the block this year has been Asa Vermette. Asa rides for DVO and GT Bicycles is 15 years old and beat all the pros with his time of 4:12.08. If you have not heard this name yet, you will from this Durango youth. His time was fast enough to earn him the series overall for Category 1/15-16, and $100 at each event courtesy of Trucker Co. Trucker Co awards the fastest Junior Expert of the day with $100 cash for at least a dozen Downhill races across the US and Mexico.


Category 1/15-16 podium with Asa Vermette/DVO/GT 1st (4:12.0 , Jacob Taylor/Racekraft 2nd (4:35.9), and Mattox Ochoa/Racekraft (4:43.5)


Team Outlaw brought over 30 junior racers to the event making it difficult for others to get on the DH podium. The 13-14 age bracket had 22 racers trying to oust each other. Boston Bryant/Team Outlaw is on his way to a 7th place finish with a 5:12.19 on the gnarliest of gnar DH courses. Fezzari Factory/DVO, Racekraft, Kore North Bikes, E-Migos, Mojo Wheels, Guru Suspension, and RAD Bikes were some of the other teams that showed up in the masses.


In the Elite Boy's 6-10 that used the same challenging course as the Pros, there were two groms that have been competing against each other all series/winter. The winner in the Elite Boy's 6-10 was Kole Compton. Kole took only 6:52.02 down a course that most grown-ups would have to walk. Kole may just be the next Asa Vermette?


Boulder City's Brayden Carlisle taking 2nd in this race and the series.


Before we go into the Pro Men and Women the battle of the Elite Boy's 6-10 is just too good not to share. On the podium are Brayden Carlisle 2nd and Cole Compton in 1st. The reason there is an Elite 6-10 and a Beginner 6-10 is that for the 1st race of the series we tried a super easy DH course for this super young age bracket to attract more. It turned out that the easy course was perfect for a few of the groms, but not for these 2. Ask and you will receive, so a new Elite Boy's 6-10 was created for the last 2 races with these guys racing the same course as the big boys and adults.


Trustin Pendergrass was just off the podium with a 4th place finish in the popular 13-14 Boy's age bracket. Trustin was fast and had a time of 5:06.54


Mattox Ochoa/Racekraft with a time of 4:43.50 put him in 3rd place in the Men's Category 1/15-16.


The 11-14 Girls age bracket saw 3 competitors. Here are Samantha Porras repping RAD Bikes. Samantha is pretty rad herself and crossed the finish line with a scary injury. She is on the mend and already asking when the next race is.


Coming in 1st place in the 11-14 Girls was Lillee Jenkins. Jenkins's time of 5:45.95 was more than 4 seconds faster than the Pro Women's time. Yep, 14-year-old Jenkins is ready for the pro ranks 4 years ahead of schedule. This sizeable win made it an easy decision for USA Cycling to upgrade Lillee to the Category 1/Expert rankings. Lillee is off to the 1st NW Cup race to prove herself in Category 1.


Another notable podium is the 11-14 Girls with Lillee Jenkins having the fastest time of the day among all females racing, even the pros. Samantha Porras returned from the hospital with her sewn-up elbow to claim her 2nd place medal. Great Job Lillee and Samantha!


Che Gonzalez styling it out in front of the cheering crowd. With a 5:01.6, Che has been moving up in the Category 1/17-18 DH all season.


In the Men's Open DH there was a mix-up for the 1st place Series Overall during the award ceremony. The Series Overall winner in the Open Men's category is Cannondale's, Nick Dru. Nick absolutely killed in the 1st 2 races of the series and had a mechanical during this event. The picture below is from a previous race. Nick has not missed a Bootleg race in the past 10 years other than Sunday's final due to a mechanical. The dude is loyal, fast, and righteous. Our sincerest apologies to Nick for this mistake.


Fiona Dougherty is on her way to 1st place in the Pro Women with a sizzling time of 5:49.72


Meghan McDonough 3rd Pro Women with a 6:04.3


Pro Women DH podium has Fiona Dougherty in 1st, Hannah Mirsepassi 2nd on her pro debut, and Meghan McDonough 3rd.


The winner of the Pro Men's DH is Joey Foresta/GT and DVO. This was Joey's 1st win at Bootleg Canyon as a pro even though he makes the podium each race. We knew Joey's day was coming and it happened on Sunday, April 17, 2022. Joey rides for GT Factory Racing and DVO Suspension. The winning time was 4:14.03


Timothy Ochoa/Racekraft is flying into 2nd Pro Men's DH while wowing the crowd.


Justin Fiero/Nezium with a solid 3rd in Pro Men's DH.


Pro Men DH podium has Joey Foresta 1st (4:14.03), Timothy Ochoa 2nd (4:36), and Justin Fiero 3rd (4:37.75)


Lyndsey and Katie working the DH finish.


Official results, where to buy pictures and more can be found on the event webpage HERE

A huge thanks go out to the late Brent Thomson for having the vision, passion, strength, and friends for making these mountain bike trails. Also, not possible without the Boulder City Parks Department, DVO Suspension, GT Bicycles, ODI Grips, Intense Cycles, CushCore, All Mountain Cyclery, Box Components, Trucker Co, Mynesweepers, Kore North Bikes, Alta Racks, Enjoy the Ride Hat Company, RAD Bikes, Peaks and Pedals Gear Exchange, and Fezzari Bikes.