The Trans BC has completed its third and fourth days on the sublime trails of Rossland, catch all the action from the previous days:

Trans BC Day 3 — Rossland: Everything You’ve Ever Dreamed of… On Steroids

NORTH VANCOUVER, B.C.— High alpine, rocks, roots, trees, and loam— the elements of a mountain bike ride made in paradise. The Trans BC Enduro powered by Stages Cycling took all of this to an astronomical level on Day 3 in Rossland, B.C.

“The first two days were basically in the desert of B.C. Bringing the event into Rossland brings the true feel of what B.C. is all about,” said Megan Rose, founder and race director of the Trans BC. “The Seven Summits is an iconic route. In its entirety, it would not be the right fit. But getting racers up to one summit and descending from the ridge line was a real treat, considering that we didn’t know until four days ago that it would be passible after the biggest snow year in quite some time.”

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A bit of hike a bike action up to the top of stage 1.

The transfer to the start of Stage 1 was an adventure of its own. Racers traveled 9.6 kilometers and ascended 765m along the IMBA Epic Seven Summits Ride, a 36km trail that runs the ridgeline of seven mountains.

“The first transfer stage was phenomenal— amazing pedaling through many different zones,” said Jen Mader, Open Women (USA). “The moss, the dank forest, up into the high alpine, walking over snow and descending the ridge to the start line. Every bit of it was simply amazing.”

Although racers diverted from the prominent ridge line of the Rossland Range, they were rewarded with a descent from the alpine back into deep mountain forests. The longest of the day, Stage 1, activated the adrenaline glands for 10-15 minutes with several technical rock gardens, slippery roots, and swooping corners to revel in.

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Riders are being treated to some of the worlds finest trails, and they get to race them!

“The first track was like Colorado on steroids— steep and rocky with awesome trail building,” said Dylan Stucki, Open Men (Durango, Colo.) “Not as many switchbacks which was very rad.”

Rose threw in an extra stage, which will only be known as Stage 1X, to link riders into the transition up to Stage 2.

“My favorite stage was 1X, the little bonus stage. It was really short, loamy, and just fun with tons of little turns, dips and dives. It was short, so it was an all out sprint,” said Scott Countryman, Open Men (Flagstaff, Ariz.)
Having fun is an approach that many racers are finding a successful rhythm with. Countryman led Day 3 with (insert) seconds over Aaron Bradford, Open Men (Seattle, Wash.)

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Steep chutes waited to pluck the unwary.

Stage 2 turned the aerobic dial up on two fun and flowy local trails. Hands finally felt reprieve from the steeper slopes above, and racers were able to let loose and feed the soul. Dual lines through the trees and small jumps made BS and Monticola the perfect playground for a ladytrain of Open Women who hopped in together for a run.

“We had a blast all jumping in together. Having fun with my fellow female shredders has been a key component to doing well,” said Leigh Bowe, Open Women (Frisco, Colo.) “And it doesn’t hurt that every stage today upped the previous one. I had a new favorite trail all day long.” Although she may be out for the overall after a devastating flat on Day 2, Bowe sat in third place on both Day 1 and 3.

Hot tubs and cold beer awaited racers back at the base area of Red Mountain Resort, however they had one more transition of 500m to the top of the ski area before they could settled in for a relaxing night at the beautiful accommodations in the heart of the Kootenay Rockies.

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The scenery just gets better and better…

While racers begrudgingly climbed up the ski area, the moans soon dissipated by feelings of appreciation for perfectly cut trail and the natural beauty surrounding them. After all, what would you normally be doing on a Wednesday afternoon? The final switchbacks popped out of the top of the conical ski hill with one more stage to go on an old school downhill track, which holds history back to 1998-2003.

“The pain is forgotten, and the pleasure is remembered,” said Rene Damseaux (ZAF), moments before dropping into the final stage of the day. For those who could hold onto the handlebars, it was a fast and wild ride down steep g-outs, rooty chutes, rutted corners and a high speed meadow, dropping 430m over 1.5km, at an average grade of 31 percent. Some found the end of the day to be overwhelming for their forearms, but they were soon remedied by a beer and gourmet dinner in the base area.

Racers still have one more day of riding in Rossland before they are whisked away to their final destination in Nelson, B.C. “Over the last year, being able to explore what else Rossland has to offer in terms of trails has expanded our horizons, and allows us to offer two days in one location which is nice for the racers to stay put for a while and soak in their surroundings,” Rose said.

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Tight and tricky woods were contrasted with wide, flat out open sections.

A special thanks to Nelson Kootenay Lake Tourism, Kootenay Columbia Trails Society (KCTS) and Ryan Kuhn for supporting the Trans BC Enduro in Rossland, B.C. “Ryan was meant to be part of our medic team all week, but we kept him in Rossland to open up trails, rebuild bridges, and prepare the area for the Trans BC’s debut. We can’t thank him enough!” Rose said.

Trans BC Day 4 — Rossland: Old School Meets New School

NORTH VANCOUVER, B.C.— Day 4 of the Trans BC Enduro powered by Stages Cycling merged two distinct styles of trail into a high speed, flowy, steep, off-camber, freeride mashup that took riders on the Tour de Rossland over 40km and 2333m of descending. Fatigue has started to set in, but the trails continue to demand everyone’s attention and energy to navigate racing blind.

“I am definitely a little more tired today. Racing the Trans Provence two weeks ago is catching up with me,” said Alex Petitdemange, Open Men (Sedona, Ariz.) “Comparatively, the Trans BC is more flow, roots and dirt, and less rock. But both deliver big days. Today, my favorite stages were one and four. Fast versus gnarly, steep with a few awkward moments. But still fun to try and go hard on both.”

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Big days in the saddle and after 4 days rider’s bodies and mid are feeling it.

Stage 1 dropped 680m straight out of the gate after a long shuttle to the top of Dewdney Trail with little to no warm-up. A fast sprint through a minefield of logging debris did not claim any victims by mechanicals, but the high speeds later on caught a few pedal strokes on rocks, sending some people down early on in their 8 hour day on the bike.

The transition to the top of Stage 2 was an arduous climb through singletrack with an unrelenting pitch at times for nearly two hours through the Malde Creek trail network. However, the short and sweet run down Whiskey Trail afforded racers the opportunity to flow through a variance of machine cut trail that tied together rocky rolls. The finale was a perfectly pitched 1.5m drop to a swift finish.

“I was the last one down Stage 2, but it was still super tacky. The rock rolls were a bit awkward, but it was one of those trails that you’d want to ride over and over again, and you’d still be wearing a grin the whole time, ” said Ben Ferrante, Open Men (Breckenridge, Colo.) “Having to process that much information on the spot is such a cool and unique sensation.”

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Its deep and dark in the dense woods.

Stage 3 foreshadowed what was to come in Stage 4. Wood became introduced into the mix of sideways roots, muddy ravines, and skinnies that attempted to suck wheels off their preferred line. The second hefty transfer remained between the two, which allowed racers to clear the slate, refuel with sandwiches and sugar, and march up to the top of one of the hardest stages of the week. In the previous evening’s riders meeting, race director Megan Rose mentioned that if it rained too much, this stage would be skipped.

At the top of Stage 4, riders were greeted with a few sprinkles, however not enough to cancel the stage. Little did they know that the description at the top was switched with Stage 5, which read “Have fun!” for 4-7 minutes. This was the description that they were supposed to receive:

“This is the old school DH classic thrown in for good measure! There are some big boy lines for sure, but nothing you would want to hit blind – so follow the course tape for the ‘keep your wheels on the ground’ flow. Most tech stage of the day, with a spectatorship start. There is some pedal at the bottom, and when you think you are close to the bottom, it just keeps going out past the woods back into the open where it becomes rockier and looser. 13-20 minutes.”

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Jamie Nicholl dropped behind Aaron Bradford and Adam Craig in the day 4 result.

Little did they know, but racers were dropping into one of the most rowdy stages of the week— an old school freeride ride trail that had never been raced on. As one racer described, it was as if North Vancouver and Pemberton had a baby, and the Flume trail was it.

“I think most people would agree that Stage 4 was the rowdiest of all the stages,” said Aaron Bradford, Open Men who won Day 4 overall. “As I went into it first turn, it was real from the get-go. It was definitely playing it live and taking it as it comes.”

Maggie Bichard’s dominant presence has been felt every stage, every day with a winning streak all week. “I chose to do multi-day enduros this year. It’s really what I do enjoy, and I prefer it to the EWS. It’s just as gnarly, maybe more, since you’re riding it blind,” Bichard said. “Stage 4 was almost like an EWS stage. It started with rock chunder for the entrance, and then straight into steep chutes. It was awesome!” With a string of enduro stage races coming up, Bichard’s strong performance at the Trans BC bodes well for the Trans-Savoie and Trans-Cascadia.

The final two stages back at Red Mountain Resort were mellow compared to Stage 4. Stage 5 was a fast “fun” run down Redhead, followed by a seemingly shorter transition to the top of Stage 6 for the most bikeparkesque run of the week down Paydirt, ending with jumps, doubles and endless berms all the way back to the base area where beer and more hot tubbing commenced.

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Meggie Bichard is dominant and untroubled.

Stu Dickson (Revelstoke, CAN) has been volunteering at the event in lieu of racing, but for the stages he has clocked in for, he has held a strong lead ahead of Open Men approximately 10 seconds for every stage. “I usually race full time, but didn’t have the funds for registration, so I figured I’d volunteer. This has been good training for upcoming EWS races.”

Racers head to Nelson, B.C., a place of legend to conclude their week for Days 5 and 6. Showcased in many mountain bike films, Nelson offers a variety of trails in the shadows of the Selkirk Mountains. A special thanks to Nelson Kootenay Lake Tourism, Kootenay Columbia Trails Society (KCTS) and Ryan Kuhn for supporting the Trans BC Enduro in Rossland, B.C. Stay tuned to regular updates on Facebook and Instagram and core online media outlets throughout the week. Hashtag your photos #transbcenduro to make their way onto the live stream of the Trans BC’s Media HQ. For more information email megan@ridingbc.com or visit transbcenduro.com.


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Words: Trans BC Photos: Colin Meagher / James Cattanach / Dane Cronin