COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.– The top collegiate athletes from around the country will head to Durango, Colo., for the 2021 USA Cycling Collegiate Mountain Bike National Championships October 14-17. Student-athletes will have the opportunity to compete on the 1990 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships course at the Purgatory Resort. "Purgatory is excited to welcome the USA Cycling Collegiate Mountain Bike National Championships," said Dave Rathbun, General Manager for Purgatory Resort. “We are fortunate to have some of the best riding in North America to attract one of America’s premier cycling events to Purgatory. We look forward to bringing more events like this to the Durango area,” said Rathbun.
Dave Hagen, Director of Cycling Operations at Fort Lewis College and the Technical Director for the event, believes it will be an action-packed weekend for the collegiate athletes. Hagen said, “Racers will be riding on spruced-up versions of legendary courses up at Purgatory. The Cross-Country course is almost identical to the one from the 1990 UCI MTB World Championships and the World Cup Downhill from 2001 has been modernized – both the courses will be very challenging as the National Championship course should be. The entire Short Track, Cross-Country, and Dual Slalom courses will be visible from the base area and will make for some great action.”
Racing begins on Thursday, October 14 starting with the Dual Slalom qualifiers. Friday will be a full day of action with early Cross-Country racing followed by Dual Slalom finals. Downhill seedings and Short Track will take place on Saturday, and the weekend will conclude with Sunday’s Downhill finals and the ultimate collegiate omnium decider, the Team Relay.
“We are excited to bring collegiate athletes from all over the country to see what is so special about Durango, Purgatory, and the community we have. They are going to be blown away with how many fans will be there cheering them on,” said Hagen.
“USA Cycling is excited to host Collegiate Mountain Bike Nationals in historic Durango, Colo. After two previous attempts were canceled, 2019 due to forest fires and 2020 because of COVID, we are excited that the third time will be the charm! Durango will host the best collegiate mountain bike athletes and we are set for a fantastic few days of racing,” said Justin Evans, USA Cycling’s Collegiate and Youth Programs Manager.
Athletes and spectators will be in for some exciting racing! Be sure to follow @USACycling and the event hashtag #CollNats for updates. Volunteers are needed at Purgatory Resort Tuesday through Sunday for set up and tear down, course marshalling, parking, and more. Register for shifts online.
Visit USACycling.org for more information on the athletes, events and membership programs, and follow @USACycling across all channels for the latest on Team USA.
For more information, contact Katherine Santos at ksantos@usacycling.org
Volunteers are needed at Purgatory Resort Tuesday through Sunday for set up and tear down, course marshalling, parking, and more. Register for shifts online.
ABOUT USA CYCLING (usacycling.org)
USA Cycling is the national governing body for the sport of cycling and oversees the disciplines of road, track, mountain bike, cyclocross, and BMX. USA Cycling’s mission is to champion accessibility, participation, and excellence in the sport of cycling to make more Americans healthier, happier, and better on two wheels while achieving sustained international racing success. USA Cycling supports cyclists at all levels, from those just beginning in the sport and participating in fun rides to international caliber racers. The organization identifies, develops, and selects cyclists to represent the United States in international competition through the support of kids’ and interscholastic programs, amateur bike racing and grassroots development programs, and the provision of critical infrastructure to run organized racing. USA Cycling has a membership of 100,000, annually sanctions over 2,500 events, and is a proud member of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) and United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC).
