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Rain showers fail to slow cyclists at Tour de French Gulch mountain bike race

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Cody Jones

Cody Jones/Summit Daily News
Fiammetta Niemkiewicz competes in the Tour de French Gulch mountain bike race in Breckenridge on Wednesday, June 19, 2024.
Cody Jones/Summit Daily News

As rain clouds and wind ripped across the Summit County area on Wednesday, June 19, mountain bikers made their way up French Gulch Road in Breckenridge for the third Summit Mountain Challenge mountain bike race —Tour de French Gulch.

Seemingly unaffected by the approaching clouds over the Tenmile range, local and visiting cyclists perused around the B&B Trailhead, preparing to test their limits on the course, rain or shine.

With light rain beginning to fall on the area, the junior 11-12 boys rocketed out of the starting area and began the steady climb up French Gulch Road before veering onto Sallie Barber Road and working along the rest of the kids-race course.

By the end of the 4.1-mile race it was Frisco’s Max Swenson who cruised across the finish line as the champion. Swenson clocked a time of 22 minutes and 32 seconds in order to beat out Fort Collins’ Cameron Krause in second (23:04) and Breckenridge’s Miles Drumwright in third (25:14). Gabe Loomis took fourth in 25:15 and Silverthorne’s Laird Andersen took fifth in 27:23.

Tessa Jacobs led the junior 11-12 girls race, placing first in 25:59, while Lakewood’s Annika Krum took second in 27:54 and Leadville’s Evie Nooft finished in third in 28:00. Frisco’s Caroline Brownson rounded out the top five in fourth with a time of 28:31. 

In the junior 9-10 boys and girls races it was a Leadville sweep, with James Duncan winning the boys race in 27:14 and Ingrid Majewski earning the title in the girls race with a time of 37:13. Iris Ryan followed Majewski in second in 41:01 with Summit’s Fiammetta Niemkiewicz taking third in 41:25.

Seth Allen of Salida was the lone racer in the boys eight and under race, finishing the course in 32:00.

Four girls competed in a heated battle to the finish line in the girls 8 and under race. In the end it was Reagan Flickinger who crossed the finish line in first place with a time of 40:36. Breckenridge’s Penny LaRochelle took second in 51:18 with Cora Messerschmitt following in a close third in 51:20. 

Frankie Nooft of Leadville finished in fourth in 58:05.

The rain truly picked up for the start of the long-course races, pelting the road and forcing spectators to run for cover under nearby trees. With the sun attempting to peek through the clouds, the pro open men and the expert men races sprinted up the wet road and established a sustainable pace for the 10.7-mile course.

In a tight battle to the finish line, Dillon’s Finn Brown and Summit’s Taylor Shelden spurred each other along the course, but struggled to put a gap between one another. As the two competitors neared the finish line, Brown and Shelden were still neck and neck, ultimately crossing the finish line at the same exact time of 51:58 to share the race’s title.

Breckenridge’s Tyler Zipperer followed the duo in third in 54:24.

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The expert men 16-39 race was spearheaded by a host of Summit County residents. Breckenridge’s Brian Raffio won the race in 59:33, Silverthorne’s Mason Wescott took second in 59:39 and Duncan Koehn took third in 1:01:19.

Katie Jakubowski of Dillon was crowned the champion in the sport women 16-plus race, completing the course in 1:13:58 to win by a little over a minute. Katie Schweitzer followed in second (1:15:03) with Megan Adamson taking third (1:20:58).

In the open women 45-plus race, Breckenridge’s Julie Granshaw cruised to the finish line, finishing in first in 1:13:54 with Breckenridge’s Catherine Kivlan taking second (1:17:28) and Denver’s Susan Bertelsen finishing in third (1:29:36).

Summit County dominated the sport men 35-49 race. Silverthorne’s Alex Dawson took first in 1:02:05, Breckenridge’s Jeff Morris finished in second (1:05:12), Breckenridge’s Eric Willett placed third (1:06:14) and Breckenridge’s Seth Seidel finished fourth (1:06:24).

Patrick Loerch of Colorado Springs rounded out the top five in the race, taking fifth in 1:07:44.

Colorado Springs’ Kylie Moerk won the women’s expert and singlespeed 16-plus race. Moerk won the race in 1:04:28 with Summit’s Aila Harmala taking second (1:05:15) and Breckenridge’s Carrie Juskowiak placing third (1:06:58).

The evening of racing concluded with four, 6.7-mile, short-course races. Galen Teller won the junior girls 13-15 race in 40:25 with Marin Little rounding out the competition in 46:19.

Leadville’s Owen Harris and Ben Woodcock topped the podium in the junior boys 13-15 race. Harris secured gold by crossing the finish line in 39:46 with Woodcock following in second in 40:42. 

Frisco’s Crosby Hume put together a strong race for third with a time of 41:40 with Rhys Teller taking fourth (42:23). Summit’s Cooper Osborn finished in fifth (46:20) and Silverthorne’s Ryan Levi took sixth (50:19).

Abe Baniewicz of Frisco won the beginner men’s race in 47:06 while Destiny Duarte won the title in the beginner women’s race. Summit County’s June Baniewicz took second in the beginner women’s race (56:03) and Frisco’s Kristin Brownson took third (1:00:07). 

Race Breck’s Summit Mountain Challenge mountain bike race series will now take a brief hiatus for the Firecracker 50 mountain bike race that will take place on the Fourth of July. The race series will resume on July 17 for the Basin Burnout at Arapahoe Basin Ski Area. 

To sign up for the Firecracker 50 or the Basin Burnout race, visit RaceBreck.com.

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