The St Fattys Day event was held March 31, 2012 at Marsh Ridge Resort in Gaylord MI. Gomez and I attacked the Michigan event from different directions with G heading around the southern end of Lake Michigan and heading up through Grand Rapids where he met up with 616 Fabrications and Quiring Cycles as well as a few other stops we will have reports on over the next couple of weeks while Puck and I went over the top investigating the state of fatbiking along the northern Lake Michigan shoreline. The journey as well as the event were top notch! Look for reports from the trip over the next couple of weeks.
Meanwhile the following St Fattys Day event report is from host Casey Buckleitner. Enjoy! (Photos by Greg Smith)
Event Trophies
We could have not asked for a better venue, weather or turn-out at the first St Fattys Day on Saturday, March 31, 2012. For a first-year event, it was an undisputed success. Over 60 racers made the trip and each one was critical to making the event a success. Racers traveled from as far as Wisconsin, Chicago and Canada, and several from Gaylord, MI, where Marsh Ridge is located.
Two ways through the sand. The fat way rules!
The crew from Einstein Cycles in Traverse City, in conjunction with the staff at Marsh Ridge laid out a course that was a blend of grass, dirt single track, pavement, sand, mud and wooden bridges. This was perfect for the omni-terrain Fatbike. The course had good flow and was challenging enough for the elite racers like Ron Sanborn but mild enough where everyone barely finished. Above all, each person agreed the course was fun.
Scott and Jan duking it out!
In addition to the fun race, everyone who attended mixed it up in the convention center and enjoyed beer courtesy of the sponsor, Shorts Brewing, from Bellaire, MI. There were booths from Gore Bike Wear, Club Ride Apparel, Einstein Cycles, Barking Bear Bag Works, Michigan Youth Cycling, Quiring Cycles and Trail Spotters. Visitors new to fat-bikes were treated to a demo fleet sent via Minnesota courtesy of Surly Bikes.
Fat Tire Podium:
- 1st – Jan Roubic
- 2nd – Scott Quiring
- 3rd – Chris Kushman
Women’s Fat Tire Podium:
- 1st – Sherri Engler
- 2nd – Christina Peer
Skinny Tire Podium:
- 1st – Ron Sanborn,
- 2nd -Ryan Kennedy
- 3rd -Steve Andriese
Skinny Tire Women’s Podium: (they both lapped some of the guys…)
- 1st – Melissa Ryba
- 2nd – Vita Morse
Team Relay Podium:
- 1st – Kim Luks / Dan Krajcovic
- 2nd – Dave Lunz/Gary Lake(Gomez)
Wrestling for Prizes!
Post-race entertainment at Jac's Restaurant
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