Mountain bike stage race now includes "weekend" option
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You never know when Dracula might appear at the NoTubes Trans-Sylvania Epic mountain bike stage race. Did you know that he can ride an impressive line through a rock garden?(Image credit: A.E Landes Photography)
Wes Richards rides some pristine Pennsylvania singletrack during the NoTubes Trans-Sylvania Epic mountain bike stage race(Image credit: A.E Landes Photography)
Spectacular views of Pennsylvania’s summer greenery and mountains await racers on the Tussey Mountain ridgeline singletrack at the NoTubes Trans-Sylvania Epic mountain bike stage race.(Image credit: A.E Landes Photography)
In celebration of its fifth birthday, the NoTubes Trans-Sylvania Epic mountain bike stage race announced it is adding a three-day version, named the TS3, which will kick off on May 25, 2014.
"A shortened version of the event is something we've considered since we started, and we are very happy to be able to introduce the TS3 this year," said Mike Kuhn of the Outdoor Experience Organization, which organizes the race. "This shorter option will allow a lot of people who have wanted to ride the TSEpic to take part in some of the fun of the week while managing everything else that life throws at you."
Held on Sunday, May 25 through Tuesday, May 27, 2014, the TS3 will overlap with the first three days of the seven-day Trans-Sylvania Epic (TSEpic), which will happen on May 25-31, 2014. It also overlaps with the US Memorial Day holiday weekend.
TS3 racers will have a blast on the same initial three courses as their TSEpic-contending peers but will spend more time on the Bald Eagle course on the first day. Instead of an individual time trial around a single 15-mile lap, three-day racers will compete in a mass start event for two laps and 30 total miles on a wide mix of almost every kind of terrain that the TSEpic throws at participants through the week. The 45-mile Cooper's Gap "King Stage" on Tuesday will take racers on a tour of some of the best singletrack they'll find anywhere in the world, and finally, stage 3's Galbraith Enduro - the only enduro-only stage in any endurance stage race - will wrap up the TS3 action.
"Being in a position to launch TS3 is a lot more than just saying, 'Come on out, we're doing a three-day'," said Kuhn. "We greatly appreciate the fantastic support of Pennsylvania's Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) and local mountain bike clubs like Seven Mountain Conservation Corps, Nittany Mountain Bike Association and the new Bald Eagle Mountain Bike Association."
The TS3 will be a part of the Mid Atlantic Super Series (MASS) for 2013.
"I am very happy to have TS3 as part of the MASS Endurance Series," said Mid Atlantic Super Series Director John Miller. "TS3 gives Mid Atlantic Super Series racers an opportunity to experience stage racing on some of the best trails in Pennsylvania."
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Racers can participate in the NoTubes Trans-Sylvania Epic in any of several ways, making it possible for those of all levels to be involved. The three-day NoTubes Trans-Sylvania Epic offers solo categories while the seven-day race options include the solo categories as well as duo and multi-person Epic team categories.
The Epic team option lets groups of racers - from beginners to elites - band together in a team and flexibly choose their own adventure in ways that let all participants make the race fit their lives, goals and abilities.
Mountain bike lovers looking to ride every mile of the incredible trails in a more relaxed vacation-like way can do so by signing up for the "Experience category", for which stopping to take in the beautiful views of rolling green ridges stretching into the distance is encouraged and rewarded.
Enduro enthusiasts have a reason to cheer, too. In addition to one stage being fully devoted to the popular enduro format, an enduro classification runs throughout the NoTubes Trans-Sylvania Epic, with several timed enduro segments featuring in every stage of both the three-day and seven day versions of the race. TSEpic is the only stage race offering a single-day enduro as part of the week's worth of fun. Stay tuned for more info soon about what will be a refined and expanded enduro general classification (GC) competition for 2014.
