Read more about the upcoming summit in the following New Mexican article:

Santa Fe finishes first in race for bike event; Officials say 2012 world summit will pump up leisure tourism

Julie Ann Grimm | The New Mexican

Santa Fe will be the site of a major gathering of mountain-biking enthusiasts — the 2012 International Mountain Bicycling Association’s World Bike Summit — city officials learned Thursday.

The October event is expected to fill more than 1,200 hotel room nights, as it draws as many as 400 mountain-biking enthusiasts from across the nation and around the globe for a four-day meeting. The event will include conference sessions on bike trail building and other issues at the Santa Fe Community Convention Center as well as organized trail rides at the city’s Dale Ball Trails and La Tierra Trails networks.

The city beat out bids from Lake Tahoe, Nev., and from Jackson Hole, Wyo. Previous World Summit events were held in Park City, Utah, and Augusta, Ga.

Bob Ward, one of the founders of the area’s fledgling Fat Tire Societyfor mountain bikers, said the news has been a well-kept secret for more than week.

“We were just chomping at the bit,” said Ward, store manager at REI in the Santa Fe Railyard. “Only a couple key, key players knew.”

The Fat Tire Society helped organize area businesses and other outdoor-recreation groups to promote Santa Fe as the summit location after a trail-building crew from the International Mountain Bicycling Association worked in the city two years in a row and recommended it as a potential biennial meeting site.

When Convention and Visitors Bureau sales director Chris Madden learned the city was on the short list for the meeting, she offered the association a package worth $100,000 in products and support, including lodging discounts and free use of the convention center for the event. Bicycle Technologies International, a bicycle-parts distributor based in Santa Fe, and other area bike shops plan to provide parts and maintenance to participants. Other businesses, including the local Subaru dealer and the Second Street Brewery, also have promised to help.

Madden said Thursday that the effort was in line with the city’s goal of increasing its marketing for leisure and recreational tourism.

“This will have some carry-over,” Ward said. “If we put on a good show here, it will open people’s eyes, and we will get on the map as a great destination. I don’t think the great-outdoor stuff has been publicized like it really should. I’m really happy to see that the Convention and Visitors Bureau is starting to take that little tack that there is more to Santa Fe than arts, history, culture and food.”

Ward said other partners are working on event plans, including arrangements for participants to help build a new planned trail in La Tierra. They also plan to create a map and brochure that showcase mountain biking opportunities in the area.

Mayor David Coss said credit for getting the event to come to Santa Fe is partly due to the years-long work of the Bicycle and Trail Advisory Committeeand investment in recreation over time.

City Councilor Patti Bushee, who chairs the committee, said the conference represents the coming of age of the bicycling community. Bicycling advocates want to work on adding economic development opportunities to the city, she said.

Officials say recognition of the city as a travel destination continues to grow. Condé Nast Traveler magazine has already told Coss the city will be named as one of its best 2011 destinations. The mayor is going to New York City next month to learn whether the city is at the top of the list. Last year, it was No. 3.

Link To Original Article

Contact Ryan Bolton and Matt Desmond

one of those is the Dale Ball trail system. In Santa Fe, unlike the other fitness “meccas”, you can access the trails within five minutes of downtown. The Dale Ball Trails are 17 miles worth of city own and maintained trails in the foothills of the rockies. This trail system also provides access to the Santa Fe National forest, and endless miles of  hiking, biking, running, snowshoeing, etc.

So please, join us in celebrating and personally thanking Dale, for the gift he has given Santa Fe.

The two of us participated in the ride last year, and chances are good you’ll find us out on the course again this year.  We’ve been pretty busy with the whole real estate thing, so neither of us are in tip-top shape, but that hasn’t discouraged us before!  If interested in joining us on this years ride we will be taking off from the Swain, MacKinnon, and Grieco accounting offices(check out their website here) at 6:45 a.m. Their offices are located at 2050 Botulph Road, just south of the hospital. This group usually rides at a pretty fair pace, and often waits for people to “regroup” at the top of the big hills outside of Madrid.

Have a great ride!

Link to the Santa Fe Century website

Contact Ryan Bolton and Matt Desmond

The race consists of a short track ride on Saturday followed by a cross country race on Sunday. With a cap of 250 riders each day, and numbers reaching around 190 by Thursday, the ride is sure to fill up. At this point online registration is no longer available, but you can sign up for one or both races at the race site on Saturday between 10:00 and 5:00 p.m.

Saturday’s short track racing starts at noon with the Cat 3 riders, and the last wave (Cat 1 and Pro) goes off at 3:45 p.m. The loop is 2 miles long and the Cat 3s go for 20 minutes, the Cat 2s go for 25 minutes, and the Cat 1 and pros go for 30 minutes. 

Sunday’s cross country race is on an approximately 9 mile loop (on some great terrain) with the Cat 3s doing 1 loop, Cat 2s doing 2, and Cat1-pros doing 3. These races start at 9:00 a.m.

For course maps, a map to the race site, and more detailed information, visit the event website below.

Link to Event Website

Have a great ride!

Contact Ryan Bolton and Matt Desmond

Registration
You can register at Active.com or on the Sante Fe Century Website. You may also register at the Century venue before the ride on either Saturday evening or Sunday morning. A Confirmation Receipt w/ your Ride Number will be mailed to all pre-registered riders. You must bring the Confirmation Receipt w/ you to the registration area to pick up your ride kit. Ride Kit contains a Santa Fe Century Water Bottle, rider number, & route maps.

If you ordered a Santa Fe Century T-shirt, it will be with your ride kit. Ride kits can be picked up on either Saturday evening or Sunday morning.

Course & Routes

Course- All rides start from the Century venue at Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center (corner of St. Michael’s Dr. & Hospital Dr.) in Santa Fe. Ride Kits have detailed route maps with ride instructions and mileages to the Food-Stops. All routes are carefully marked with signs along the entire distance.

Century Loop- This is a medium difficult Century with rollers, ascents and descents, but with a major stretch of flats and easy rollers.

Half-Century Loop- This 50 mile loop is more difficult than the 50 mile Out & Back ride.

Other Rides- Out & Back: 25, 50, & 75 miles out & back to Eldorado, Galisteo, and Stanley respectively. One-Way: Starting from the Food-Stops: 79 miles from Madrid, 66 miles from Heart Break, 56 miles from Cedar Grove, 47 miles from Stanley, 25 miles from Galisteo. There is no transportation from the Century venue for the One-Way rides. You’re on your own to get there.

Click Here For A Course Map
 
Support

SAG Wagons patrol the routes to help the riders. In addition, volunteer mechanics will help with repairs, small parts, tires & tubes at the Food-Stops. In case of injury, medical assistance is available from the fire districts along the routes. Phone 911.

 
There are 6 FOOD-STOPS w/ snacks, fresh fruit, energy drink, & water staffed by Volunteers at Madrid (25 miles), Heart Break Hill (38 miles), Cedar Grove (48 miles), Stanley (62 miles/75 mile turn around), Galisteo (80 miles / 50 mile turn around), and Eldorado (92 miles / 25 mile turn around).

We hope to see you there!

Contact Matt Desmond and Ryan Bolton