PARK CITY, UTAH – OCTOBER 6, 2015 – Gephardt Daily
The 36th annual Tour Des Suds mountain bike race could be called a costume party.
A colorful field of contestants dress in elaborate costumes and begin the 2,700 foot race up Park City’s Main Street to the top of Empire Pass.
This year’s course was longer than previous years forcing racers to dig a little deeper for the strength to finish. Race organizer Charlie Sturgis puts it like this, “This year we added a little bit of the Flagstaff Loop which made it a little bit longer, about a half mile longer.”
The costumes can cause racers to over heat as they navigate obstacles along the 7.5 mile course through the forest. Some racers experience mechanical problems with chains and pedals but the most unusual malfunctions involve costumes becoming entangled in sprockets.
Dressed as Captain America, 25-year-old Taylor Fletcher wins this year’s event in 47 minutes. “I got a bunch of crap last year when I won without a costume.” This year, Fletcher decided to silent critics by wearing an extra heavy costume. “It’s a couple inches thick so it’s not the best.” It virtually guarantees heat will be trapped inside. “I think I lost quite a few kilos.”
At the finish line, Fletcher ripped his costume off to cool down. Like former winners, Fletcher is a competitive athlete. During the winter he competes for the U.S. Olympic Team in nordic combined events, ski jumping and cross country skiing. In second place is another Captain America. Matt Behrens and Taylor Fletcher greet each other with a fist bump proclaiming this is the year of Captain America. In third is Taylor’s older brother Brian. His ice princess costume is ripped by branches. “It ripped down the back and then got caught in my bike so I had to take it off.”
In 2011, Keegan Swenson, then 17 years old, set a course record for the Tour Des Suds by completing the old course in 39 minutes. Not surprisingly, Swenson competes on the U.S. national cycling team.
The name Tour-Des-Suds began as a joke. The original purpose of the race was to spoof the serious nature of big time racing. What could achieve this better than a handful of Park City locals celebrating the end of summer by filling the water bottle with beer, dressing in costumes and racing to the top of Empire Pass. Back then, racers were greeted by a keg of beer at the summit. Now the party and costume contest wait for them at the bottom of the mountain on Park City’s town lift plaza.
The 2015 event saw a record turnout with two-hundred ninety-six riders enrolled. Their costumes covered a wide cast of characters -from winged cartoon characters to caped super heroes, the list is long. The Ginger Bread Man stands next to Caesar and the Pope stands next to Fred Flintstone. A young girl and her father are even dressed as super girl and super dad. Applause from a fickle audience will determine the winner of the costume contest.
The end result is a tie. Which would you pick, the Pope or the Ginger Bread Man. I guess it all depends on whether you like gum drop buttons.
Proceeds from the Tour-Des-Suds will benefit the Mountain Trails Foundation and will be used to maintain more than 400 miles of trails around Park City.
Results for the 2015 Tour-Des-Suds are posted on the Mountain Trails Foundation website: www.mountaintrails.org
