2011 Table of Contents

02 Executive Summary 03 League Defintion 06 League Leadership 08 League Following 09 League Partnerships 11 Race Event Venues 18 Event Venues 20 League Fundraising & Development 21 Conclusion

UT HIGH SCHOOL CYCLING LEAGUE :: 2011 1 Executive Summary

WHY SHOULD BE AWARDED LEAGUE STATUS

NICA is a developing governing body with a goal to be across the country by 2020. NICA needs states who believe in their way of running operations and who believe in NICA’s success. NICA needs a state who can not only jump on board but do so in a way that makes a powerful statement to other states that NICA is the way to go.

Utah makes that powerful statement by moving to Project League for 2012. We are able to save NICA the expenses of overseeing an Emerging League for extended periods and jumping straight to Project League status demonstrates a strong belief in the NICA system. We have done all the work and we are ready to go.

Additionally, we feel we can confidently say we will claim the title of being NICA’s largest first-year League with our current number of committed schools. We have had time for non-committed leaders, volunteers and coaches to come and go. Our current committee leaders are in for the long haul. Another positive factor is that the state’s population disbursement will lead to high participation in this state as many race venues will be approximately a one hour drive for most participants.

Utah makes a powerful statement from the involvement of key organizations and individuals. We have the Superintendent of the Canyons School District who is completely supportive and has a staff member helping us. We have the support of government officials like Heinrich Dieters and Charlie Sturgis in Park City. We have the support of the Utah Cycling Association, The Intermountain Cup, MTB Race Productions, Cycling Utah Magazine, and other race promoters like Park City Point to Point. We have personally been in communication with the cycling clubs and have their support. Most of our venues are donated and the bike shops are very excited and supportive and want to be involved.

A league in Utah will offer world-class venues in anticipation of national and regional growth. With 2002 Olympic venue sites in Park City and Soldier Hollow, we can and want to host a NICA national event. The leaders of Park City have already expressed this desire.

In summary, Utah is already a cycling mecca with a strong cycling community that is supportive of our League. With 80% of our state population condensed in a small area, our League will be easy to run and attract large numbers because of ease in travel times. Our leadership is highly committed and hard working to become a successful league. Our Leader Advocate has been putting in a full-time effort to make our league a reality and a success. The support of the community is fantastic. We have actually been out to the venues to make sure they will function, deciding where to place fencing, the pit, parking, etc. We have ridden the courses several times to find the best options for racing. Utah can offer NICA world-class venues for future national and regional events. This bid is not just a dream on paper. We have been out in the community meeting with people, schools, venue operators, etc. We have actually done the work and are ready to go with 25 schools and over 50 coaches. We are excited to offer up our preparation for your review and approval.

2 UT HIGH SCHOOL CYCLING LEAGUE :: 2011 Executive Summary League Definition

STATE LEAGUE DEMOGRAPHICS We are proposing a league for the state of Utah. The state of Utah is 84,849 square miles. It is 270 miles wide and 350 miles in length. The overall population is 2,763,885 according to the 2010 census. One unique aspect of Utah is that that 80% of the entire population resides in what is called the “”, an area 80 miles long running along the of the Rocky Mountains. The Wasatch Front includes the 3 major cities of Utah: Ogden, population 547,184; , population 1,124,197; and the Provo-Orem metropolis with a population of 555,551. This unique population disbursement has a positive affect for Utah’s future high school cycling league. It not only facilitates management of the league itself, but provides close proximity for all events. By disbursing the race venues along the Wasatch Front, schools will have drive times that will average only one hour to get to the events. This will also increase potential participation greatly.

HIGH SCHOOLS There are 187 total high schools in the state of Utah, with 152,751 students in grades 9 through 12. Again, you can witness the population disbursement as 117,581 students live in the Wasatch Front among 69 public high schools and 27 private/charter high schools. The range in the sizes of schools throughout the state is great. Rural high schools will have numbers anywhere from 2 to 1200. Along the Wasatch Front, high schools fall between 1200 and 2500 students in 10th to 12th grade. Most ninth grade classes are part of junior high school in Utah. However, ninth graders can and do participate in their high school athletic programs.

COLLEGIATE CLUBS There are four collegiate clubs in Utah. The University of Utah in Salt Lake, Utah Valley University in Orem, Weber State University in Odgen, and Utah State University in Logan.

UT HIGH SCHOOL CYCLING LEAGUE :: 2011 3 League Definition

CYCLING DEMOGRAPHICS OF UTAH

Utah is a cycling mecca. We are famous for our “Slickrock” mountain bike trails and beautiful rocky mountain alpine trails. People literally travel from all over the world to mountain bike in Utah. However, there are some surprising facts about our cycling community. Utah hosts the largest women’s ride in the country. The 3,000 cyclist spots for the “Little Red” ride literally filled up this year in less than a day. Utah also hosts the longest one- day USA Cycling sanctioned bicycle race in the country, LOTOJA. The Tour of Utah received UCI sanctioning for 2011. This demonstrating Utah’s support and enthusiasm for cycling and racing.

There are 61 cycling clubs in Utah. Besides the four collegiate clubs, there are only three clubs who specialize in just one area of cycling. PCIM, a women’s road racing team, UtahMountainBiking.com, and The Young Riders, a junior’s mountain bike racing/development team. All the other teams have a combination of racers, masters, juniors, road, mountain, cyclocross, touring and recreation riders. Two clubs have about 600 members. A few clubs are small like Cakewalk’s Vegan Athletes. Three clubs are focused on fundraising: Teamgive, The Huntsman Hometown Heros and Team Bad Ass Coffee. While they have over 200 members each, those members can also be a part of other riding/racing teams. The average club membership size is 100. Most importantly, we have been in contact with every single club through phone and email conversation and they are behind having a high school league here in Utah and are willing to help in any way they can. The team leaders have sent out emails to all their club members and have asked them to like our facebook page and to be prepared to get involved.

There are 1291 licensed racers in Utah. Utah’s road races are sanctioned with USA Cycling and require riders to be licensed. However, Utah’s mountain and cyclocross races are not sanctioned and do not require licensing. The Intermountain Cup is Utah’s main mountain bike race series and ranges in participation size of 135 to 243 for all categories among 11 different races. Photos courtesy of Christopher See

There are 82 bike shops in Utah, 57 of RACING SEASON those are along the Wasatch Front. Currently, mountain bike racing in Utah begins in March with two races in Southern Utah. Mountain bike racing Depending on how you define bike compa- nies, there are 21 companies that deal with along the Wasatch Front starts in May at lower valley elevations and moves progressively to high mountain making bikes and components specifically elevations as winter snow melts and lasts through August. Cyclocross starts at the end of September. like Specialized, Enve, and Reynolds. If you include all companies that deal with any form of cycling like touring groups, etc. A race series for a high school league would work best for Utah in the fall. The Wasatch Front is exactly what it that number is increased to over 200. implies, the lower, front valleys of the Wasatch Range of the Rocky Mountains. The mountains are home to ski resorts and winter snow recreation. At the same time, we are considered a desert and summer temperatures in the valleys reach 100 degrees. One of the problems with having a spring/early summer race season is that you are dealing with snow melt on top of occasional rain and/or snow creating more difficulties and wet conditions. The second problem would be training time for the high schools. Those of us who train before racing in May

4 UT HIGH SCHOOL CYCLING LEAGUE :: 2011 League Definition League Definition

typically put in a lot of time on indoor trainers or on the road with road bikes, creating obvious problems and expenses for high school teams. Thus, we propose a fall race schedule. With a fall race series, kids can start their training in August. The summer temperatures are beginning to drop, making for better training conditions. The weather will be perfect for starting our races at the higher elevations. Even if there are fall rain storms, the courses typically dry quickly and are ready to ride. As we get further into the fall season, we will bring the races into the valleys which are at lower altitude to accommodate oncoming winter. Specifically, we would like to have our first race September 8, 2012. Both football and soccer are examples of high school sports that begin training in the summer and have their first competitions as soon as school starts.

UNIQUE UTAH CULTURE AFFECTING RACE SCHEDULE One factor affecting our race schedule is Utah’s unique culture and its predominant religion. We completely understand NICA’s vision and desire to run accordingly. As NICA encourages its coaches to be sensitive to diversity, we hope you can respect Utah’s unique culture. We could not be successful running races in Utah on Sundays because of the strong religious LDS culture (over 60% LDS). Not only would the kids not participate on Sundays, but many of our coaches and League Leaders are themselves LDS and would not participate. Right or wrong, it is what it is and we have to realistically think about what will work for this area. The majority of road and mountain races run on Saturdays. As leaders, we have asked input from all involved as to how to best make this program work. We have come up with excellent solutions. First, we will provide race course venue maps to the coaches before they start their training. They can actually take their youth to practice the races anytime. Secondly, driving time to race courses is minimal thus eliminating costly travel expenses for all involved, and providing accessibility. We will mark each site a week in advance so coaches can take their kids to practice either during the week or the Saturday before the race. We believe we can still accomplish the atmosphere NICA desires during races and make it a great one-day event for all to enjoy. Also, we can increase community participation and support by having our races accessible in this manner.

OPERATING HIGH SCHOOL CYLCING CLUBS

t -POF1FBL)JHIBMSFBEZIBEBNPVOUBJOCJLFDMVCPSHBOJ[FECZUIFLJETUIFNTFMWFT5IFZIBEOPDPBDI and their teacher had abandoned them. Our volunteer coach for that high school has taken over and will start riding with the kids this spring. t .PVOE'PSE+S)JHISFDFJWFEBHSBOUGPSCJLFTBOEPSHBOJ[FEUIFJSQSPHSBNUIJTZFBS5IFJSDPBDI has joined our league and has gone to ’s Leaders Summit to begin her licensing with NICA. t %JYJFBOE4OPX$BOZPO)JHI4DIPPMTJO4U(FPSHFEFDJEFEUPTUBSUUIFJSDMVCTUIJTZFBSBTXFMM5IFJS coaches are also working on their NICA licensing and are planning on attending the Leader’s Summit in SoCal. t 3PZ3PZBMTBSFBIJHITDIPPMDZDMJOHUFBNJO3PZ8FIBWFNBEFDPOUBDUXJUIUIFJSMFBEFSTUPIBWFUIFN join us. t 0BLMFZ4DIPPM t #SJHIUPO)JHI4DIPPMJTDVSSFOUMZEFWFMPQJOHBSPBEUFBNBTXFMM

UT HIGH SCHOOL CYCLING LEAGUE :: 2011 5 League Leadership

DIRECTOR/LEADER ADVOCATE Lori Harward started her cycling passion in eighth grade. Her background started in the fitness industry as a personal trainer and instructor. She tried her first mountain bike race in 2002, and it changed her life—she was hooked. She has been training and racing ever since. She also got her coaching certification through USA Cycling. She has worked with JR Smith Coaching since 2004 teaching beginning cyclists. She is currently one of only four Level 2 USA Cycling coaches in Utah. She loves racing with her team in the Pro/1/2 women and races Expert level in mountain. She has five kids and is passionately committed to make a difference for Utah’s youth through this positive program. While she has certainly never done anything like this before, she is a very hard worker who doesn’t give up. She is willing to learn and excited to do things NICA’s way and is fully committed to their amazing program.

LEAGUE DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE Dave Harward has been riding bikes and involved in endurance sports for most of his life. His racing accomplish- ments include several Utah State Championships, UCA’s 2010 Male Cyclist of the Year, UCA Series Champion and 7-time Utah Criterium Series Champion, and helping the Canyon Bicycles Racing Team place Francisco Mancebo 2nd in the 2010 Tour of Utah. He has been coaching full time for over seven years and owns Plan 7 Endurance Coaching . He will soon be a USA Cycling Level 1 Coach. He received both his BA in Journalism and Master of Public Administration degrees from the U of U. Dave is a BG Fit Master Technician and is educated in the BikeFit Systems bike fitting method. Cycling is a huge part of Dave’s life. He is excited to put his energy into the Utah League.

COMMITTEE LEADERS Team Development—Wesley Rassmussen. Wesley was introduced to mountain biking in high school and instantly fell in love it. He has done self-supported touring in China and Alberta and supported touring in Costa Rica. He graduated from BYU with a BS in Manufacturing Engineering Technology and works for a small aerospace manufacturing company. He completed the Cromoly Brazing Frame Building course at United Bicycle Institute and Bicycle Repair and Overhaul course at Barnett Bicycle Institute. He works part time for his local bike shop.

Fundraising—Karl Vizmeg. Karl is an ER physician at Mountain View Hospital in Payson, Utah, and runs an investment company. He is on the Board of Directors at Channing Hall charter school and serves on the fundraising committee. He is also on the Capital campaign committee at his church. He previously started and ran a non-profit 501(c)3 non profit called Global Emergency Medicine Support. He is on Mad Dog Cycling team and an avid mountain bike racer in the expert 40+ category. His wife and two boys race as well. Karl is the kind of person who replies and gets things done immediately.

Sponsorship—Trent Wignal. Trent graduated from the University of Utah with a BS in Communications. He is in Business Development for a national company, Parallel HR Solutions and has been in business development his entire career. He has been involved in fundraising for the MS Society of Utah, The MDA and American Cancer Society. He started out as a Junior Olympian in skiing, when a torn ACL turned him onto cycling. He races both mountain and road bikes and is a PSIA Certified Ski Instructor.

6 UT HIGH SCHOOL CYCLING LEAGUE :: 2011 League Leadership League Leadership

Race Venue—Dan Roper is a Colorado native and spent his childhood enjoying the great outdoors. In 1988, he bought his first mountain bike and without a clue of what to expect, entered the world of racing at the 1994 Breckenridge Fall Classic. He graduated from Western State College in Gunnison, CO receiving a degree in Recreation and a minor in “mountain biking”. After graduating from college, Dan enthusiastically enjoyed life as a ski bum and ski shop employee in Aspen, CO, before getting serious with a career in parks and recreation. In 2010, he joined the team of Mountain Sports International; a Salt Lake based event marketing company. Dan loves to ride his bike all over the foothills and mountains outside of Salt Lake, is a member of Cutthroat Racing and races in Utah’s Cyclocross series every fall.

UT HIGH SCHOOL CYCLING LEAGUE :: 2011 7 League Following

FACEBOOK 1052 LIKES 1033 MONTHLY ACTIVE USERS BLOGPAGE 1062 VIEWS

Our League following literally grows continuously. Our mailing lists are separated into coaches/assistants, general volunteers, league leaders, cycling club leaders, bike shops, and sponsors and are included at the end of the bid. We have 55 people interested in coaching. Mike Ball (the amazing computer web site designer) has volunteered to run our timing system. Paul said we needed someone with good computer skills. He will be fantastic! All of the cycling clubs are willing to help with events and provide volunteers when the time comes. We have not yet advertised in the schools to the kids. That will happen at club rush in the 2011/12 school year. We are estimating 10 kids per school and between 200-300 total participants. However, Salt Lake Center for Science Education has 50 bikes and is hoping to have 50 participants.

8 UT HIGH SCHOOL CYCLING LEAGUE :: 2011 League Following League Partnerships

EVENT ORGANIZERS SUPPORTING THE LEAGUE We have the support of all key organizations in Utah. The organizers of MTB Race Productions are willing to let us use their race venue equipment. Intermountain Cup is promoting us on their web site and at their races. Their organizers are also willing to guide us and provide consultation. Utah Cycling Association has sent out emails and is promoting us on their web site. The Utah Bike Summit organizers have not only provided free booth space at their event, but want to help us with fundraisers. All organizations have let us promote high school mountain biking at their events and while they do not want to run the races, they are willing to help in any capacity when they can.

PROFESSIONAL COACHES AND INSTRUCTORS WILLING TO HELP WITH RIDER CAMPS. There are 18 USA Cycling Licensed coaches in Utah who can help with rider camps. Dave and Lori are 2 of those and will obviously help. Kathy Sherwin and Lynda Wallenfels are both Pro Mountain Bikers and licensed coaches who are excited to help. Kathy will also assist at her local high school. Lynda has also offered to help with training programs, as she has written programs for some of the schools in the SoCal League. Chris Pullos, Robert Lofgran, Jill Smith, and JR Smith are also licensed coaches willing to help. Chris is also considering coaching at a high school. We also have a variety of non-licensed coaches who want to help and former pro mountain bikers who want to help like Chris Bingham and Glen Adams. Alex Grant, Chuck Gibson, Greg Gibson, Jake Pantone, Brandon Firth, Jen Hanks, KC Holley, Kevin Day, Evan Hyde, and Sarah Kaufmann are all current pros who want to help with rider camps. Both Brandon and Kevin will be helping out at their local high school as well. Brandon has also helped map out a race venue. Jake works at Enve Composites and is the man behind our receiving sponsorship from them. These riders are the kind of role-models NICA talks about having for kids. Tiana Row, a SoCal girl, in an article about the Kenda Cup talked about Sarah Kaufmann being her hero because Sarah pulled over to help Tiana fix a flat. We have some fantastic volunteers for our rider camps.

UT HIGH SCHOOL CYCLING LEAGUE :: 2011 9 League Partnerships

DISTRICTS & SCHOOLS PARTICIPATING The Superintendent of Canyons School District is an avid mountain biker and wants his district to “lead the way” for all others in supporting high school cycling! We already have coaches and assistants for Alta and Brighton High Schools in that district. There are two other high schools in his district, Jordan and Hillcrest, that we will work together to get coaches for. He also wants to host a race in his area. The Draper venue we mapped out is in that district. Another possible venue could be Solitude. Park City is it’s own school district and is on board.

We have met with the Athletic Director over the Ogden School District, Ken Crawford, who is excited to make this program happen. While it will work best in that area as non official clubs for financial reasons to the district, they are really supportive in advertising and involving their teachers and getting the clubs up and running. Heather Williams is a teacher there and is heading up the efforts. Their plan is to start a composite team with Ben Lomond and Ogden High Schools and Mound Ford Junior, but will split if there are enough kids. Mound Ford received a grant this past year for 10 bikes and started a cycling club this spring.

We are also working with Sam Jarman, the administrator over the high schools in the Alpine School District. For legal issues we need to operate as non official clubs in that district. However, they are supportive of cycling and already have cycling classes in most of their high schools and will work with us. We already have coaches for West Lake, Lone Peak, Orem, and Timpanogos High Schools in that district. Lone Peak already has a mountain biking club that will participate.

East High, Juan Diego (private school), Bingham, Herriman, Mapleton, Murray, Provo, Skyline, Olympus, Desert Hills, Paro- wan, and Wasatch High Schools will all be participating. Snow Canyon in St. George also started their program this year. Orem and Walden will start out as a composite team.

Salt Lake Center for Science Education has 50 bikes and is planning on filling all those bikes with participants. Larry Madden, the director of this unique charter school, is very excited for this program. He already runs a bike repair shop out of the school. The kids learn how to fix bikes and run a business through their program.

10 UT HIGH SCHOOL CYCLING LEAGUE :: 2011 League Partnerships Race Event Venues

SOLDIER HOLLOW Soldier Hollow is the site for the 2002 Olympic Cross-Country Skiing. It has parking for literally thousands. The design of this venue was to enable spectators to have great views of the events. Parents will be able to see most of the race from the spectator stands. The Competition Center can also offer timing, scoreboard, sound and video system use. The average drive time for most participants will be around one hour. It is a lower elevation venue than a typical ski resort and has a longer riding season.

We have chosen this as our first race starting either September 8th or 15th of 2012. While the elevation gain is 449 in 4.16 miles, the course is very rolling. You truly don’t feel like you have climbed that much because your momentum from the descents typically launches you into the climbs and over the short climbs. The course is technically very easy and the easiest of all the race venues. It’s mostly big, open grass land with plenty of passing opportunity on frequent double-track and has few obstacles.

The stadium-sized grass field will serve as a great pit location and spectating point. We decided to send the race around it for spectator thrill. Brandon Firth, a local pro mountain biker, worked with us in designing both the courses we have submitted. His knowledge of the course and previous races run there helped us get something unique and different within NICA specifications. Emergency access is available around the entire course and there is a major hospital less the 20 minutes away. There are several campgrounds and facilities only minutes away listed on page 14.

Howard Peterson (435-640-3084) is the contact person for scheduling and overseeing events. Brandon and Lori have already met with him and he is excited to host an event and will cut trail or do whatever we need. We do need to book as soon as possible as the Sheepdog World Championships is hosted annually in September and it can be a busy time in general. Cost is normally $6 per racer. They have offered us $3 per racer. The fee does include use of the sound system and all facilities. We would need to get port-a-johns to accommodate a large crowd.

UT HIGH SCHOOL CYCLING LEAGUE :: 2011 11 Race Event Venues

ROUND VALLEY Located in Park City Utah, Round Valley is a fantastic area with an amazing trails system. It is host to the Mid- week Mountain Bike Race Series and several other cycling events. We decided on a unique starting area and course. First, the start/finish area of the current races did not have enough room for a pit, nor was it spectator friendly. By starting ours off this well-maintained dirt road, we have a vast amount of open space for parking and the pit. Spectators can walk a short distance to the start where they will enter the valley and be able to see almost the entire race. We also feel this start area will create a great atmosphere as you feel completely away from the city and immersed in the beauty of the mountains. This area is a sun-exposed valley area in Park City, in contrast to the ski resorts which are north facing. Round Valley has a longer riding season than the resort trails.

We chose this course for the second race for two reasons. First, while the elevation gain is actually less than Soldier Hollow, it does not feel that way. It does not have the fast rollers that Soldier Hollow does. The course has a very gradual yet steady climb. The elevation gain is 407 and is 4.50 miles in length. Second, it is more technically difficult. This course provides the perfect introduction into some technical difficulty. The rocky sections are short and in safe locations where there is no fear of crashing. They are also scattered so kids have an “easy” break to relax and enjoy racing between them.

If you look at our map, there is a line we titled “preferred ending”. A section of single track needs to be cut for this. We have already contacted the Executive Director of the Mountain Trails Foundation, Charlie Sturgis 801.435.8710 and we will work with him. He is the person in charge and to contact for using this area. We are also discussing possible donation of venue here as well. There is great emergency access and the hospital is five minutes away and several camping options close by. Peaks hotel has offered us great discounts to use their hotel at $50 per night. There are many resorts and hotels for a variety of price ranges in Park City, Heber, and Salt Lake.

Park City RV Resort 2200 W Rasmussen RD Park City, UT 84098 Phone :: 435.649.2535

Jordanelle 2 Miles West off SR 32 Francis Phone :: 800.322.3770

Park City Peaks Hotel 2121 Park Avenue Park City, UT 84060 Phone :: 800.649.5012

12 UT HIGH SCHOOL CYCLING LEAGUE :: 2011 Race Event Venues Race Event Venues

LAMBERT PARK Trails in the valley are great for this time of year because they tend to be sandy and dry out quickly after a rain. Some of these “bench” trails can be ridden all year, depending on valley snow which does not typically last like in the mountains. Located in Alipine, Utah, Lambert Park has a lot of trails. The total elevation gain for this course is 505 in 4.09 miles. The only possible way to lengthen the mileage would be to cross a small residential road (with very few homes on it) and connect to the trails above, on the other side of the road. MTB Race Productions runs a race here and they crossed the road to utilize all the trails. They had a flagger on the road and the city gave permission and it worked fine. We did not know if NICA would approve of that and kept to the lower trails in designing a race course.

The church provides 277 parking spots. Additional parking is on the entrance road which is wide enough to park at 45 degree angles. This is another spectator friendly race course. Parents will be able to see their kids as they wind across this open “bench” section where the mountains ease into the valley floor.

The course itself is moderately technical. As you can see, there is a lot of cornering. Many of the snaking sections are bermed and fast flowing making this a really fun course! We think that after a practice loop, the kids will get the hang of it and really love it. There are just a couple rocky sections which might need cleanup. Most of the rocky sections are easy to pick a good line through.

Emergency access is plentiful on dirt roads connected throughout the entire race and American Fork Hospital is a 20 minute drive away. There is camping at Timpooneke Campground in American Fork Canyon. We will check into on-site camping for the event. Again, plenty of hotel options as this is in the city.

Scheduling for an even is done through the city. Ron Devey 801.420.3102 is the contact person. There is $1,000 refundable deposit. Fee for use is a voluntary donation for trail maintenance.

UT HIGH SCHOOL CYCLING LEAGUE :: 2011 13 Race Event Venues

SNOWBASIN is a ski resort located in Ogden Canyon. They boast the most trails for summer use in Utah for a ski area. The resort hosts a variety of X-Terra and mountain biking events. This year’s record-breaking snow in Utah have this particular course still under snow. We are planning on using a course that is already used and is plotted here and on the map. It is 5.23 miles with 709 feet of elevation gain. We can alter this course to take out elevation by starting the course higher. If you look closely in Google maps, you can see a dirt parking lot above the current paved lots below. We can start the course either there or somewhere in between the two parking areas. If you notice the elevation gain, taking out that first half mile will eliminate a big climb. The two trails are not far apart and we can connect easily to shorten the loop. There is one section of rock garden that will be a challenge. This is a really great course. Camping is available at the resort in the Maples Campground. There are lodging options at Snowbasin resort, in nearby Huntsville, or in Ogden for a variety of price ranges.

This is the highest altitude course. However, Steve says it’s typically rideable through October. If that ends up being true this year, this would actually make a great final venue if we raced the full course. That added hill would make quite the challenge for the final race.

Steve Andrus 801.620.1000 is the contact for events at the resort and has offered their facility at no charge. He is great to work with and excited to have us. There are a few different options for the pit depending on where we start.

14 UT HIGH SCHOOL CYCLING LEAGUE :: 2011 Race Event Venues Race Event Venues

DRAPER/CORNER CANYON Draper is at the south end of the Salt Lake Valley. Corner Canyon is host to not only an Intermountain Cup race, but is also part of the Mid-week Mountain Bike Race Series. In the summer the more sandy soil is not prime riding, but for late fall it will be perfect. Again, as a valley course, it dries quickly after rain or snow.

The course has 650 feet elevation gain in 4.84 miles. You can see from the profile it is a simple up and down course with a flat looping section at the end at the bottom to add distance. Because of the make up of the trails in this area, there are no other options to provide a loop within the specifications. There is a tunnel which has a paved road running inside of it to cross under the street and onto the course. We can put a barrier down the middle to separate uphill and downhill traffic. Coming out of the tunnel there is a very short but steep little hill to get onto the uphill trail. That is the most technical spot in the whole course and might require dismounting for some riders. The rest of the course has a good combination of single track and road with plenty of passing areas on the single track. There is one other section about half way up that will require us putting either snow- fencing or other separation for about 20 feet on a double-wide road to separate uphill and downhill traffic. The elevation gain will definitely make this the hardest course even though it is not as technically demanding at Lambert Park.

There are a lot of positives about this course. It has parking to accommodate thousands as it starts in an arena which hosts a large rodeo. Being in town it will draw large crowds of community members to watch the event besides just the parent spectators. The city is great to work with and takes a lot of pride in the trails and keeps them well maintained. The area of the loop at the bottom is in the process of improvements this summer to become a bike skills park.

The Canyons School District hopes to host this race since it is in their district and could possibly be a donated venue with district and Draper City cooperation. Otherwise there is $3 per racer fee. It is scheduled through Jamie Pogue, 801.625.3700, and is owned by Draper City. There are many hotel options within a few minutes of driving for a variety of prices.

Mountain Shadows RV Park 13275 S. Minuteman Dr. Draper, Utah Phone :: 801.571.4024

UT HIGH SCHOOL CYCLING LEAGUE :: 2011 15 Race Event Venues

SOLDIER HOLLOW 2 This is another course layout at Soldier Hollow. This venue has so many options. Racing here can really be anytime during the season because of the possible course layout options. We can add more mileage and more climbing for a final event and it’s location and elevation are another bonus as it is rideable through October.

Surprisingly, most of the races run here typically follow one course, so we had a lot of fun changing things up and doing different routes and directions.

This is also a venue that would be great for any type of NICA regional or national event because of the ample parking and it’s ability to accommodate large numbers—both participants and spectators. It’s also close to a hospital and both Heber and Park City. There are several camping options as close as 5 miles away and many resorts, hotels, and bed and breakfast lodging right there in Midway and Heber.

CAMPING Wasatch Mountain State Park Midway-2 mi NW off Hwy 220/224 Midway, UT Phone :: 800.322.3770

Deer Creek State Park Hwy 189 Phone :: 800.322.3770

Mountain Spa 800 N. Mountain Spa Ln. Midway, UT Phone :: 435.654.0721

High Country Inn Campground 1000 S. Main Street Heber, UT Phone :: 535.654.0201

16 UT HIGH SCHOOL CYCLING LEAGUE :: 2011 Race Event Venues Race Event Venues

ADDITIONAL RACE VENUES Sundance Ski Resort :: Sundance has already expressed desire to host a race event. They feel they can meet the course criteria and we will work with Czar Johnson this summer to map a course. Czar is the Director of Mountain Operations. We have met with him and Jerry Warren and they are excited about hosting an event at Sundance. Czar’s contact info is 801.223.4123, [email protected]. They will donate the venue for a race.

Canyons Ski Resort :: Dan Roper met with Canyons recently as they want to attract more summer events to their area. They are wanting to cut new trails. They have ample parking for our needs. Can be a possible venue next summer.

Ogden Bench :: Ogden valley has great potential as another venue. Weber State is great to work with and we can park in their stadium parking. The trails in the area have some construction going on this year (water tanks going in) and we are hoping it will work out once construction is done for the future. Daniel Turner is the contact at 801.626.7354, [email protected]. The cost is a voluntary donation to Weber State University and he said the cycling clubs will help sponsor the race.

UT HIGH SCHOOL CYCLING LEAGUE :: 2011 17 Event Venues

LEADERS SUMMIT Trailside Park is located in Park City, Utah. Not only does it have a cross-country bike skills park that is scheduled to be completed this summer, but it houses a recreational facility with two different meeting rooms available to rent. One room can fit up to 52 people and includes a kitchenette with sink, microwave, and fridge. The other room can hold 73 people. This facility can be rented for free if booked through our Park City High School coach, Tom Cartwright. While it is at a higher elevation than Salt Lake, this location in Park City is in a sun exposed area of the basin and does not accumulate snow like the resorts do on the north facing side. Holding a summit here in April could potentially work and would be our first choice of venue site. With the drive time averaging one hour for most participants, we anticipate most will not spend the night. However, Peaks Hotel in Park City has offered us a fantastic deal of $50 a night for those who want to stay. The park also has picnic facilities to possibly eat lunch outside.

USSA Center of Excellence :: Located in Park City and is literally on the other side of Round Valley from Trailside Park. This 85,000 square foot facility includes meeting rooms with the most modern technology. They too will offer donation of facility. Tom Cartwright, our Park City Coach, has arranged this. It has access to the Round Valley Trail system and we can use Peaks Hotel deal.

Wheeler Farm :: Another option for Leaders Summit that is in the Salt Lake Valley. This 75-acre regional park is owned by Salt Lake County and is booked directly through the farm. Besides buildings, it has several spacious lawn areas with picnic tables and pavilion, and overnight camping facilities. Their dirt trail system in the back 40 acres is host to a variety of events including cyclocross races. It has several different sized meeting event buildings. The Ice House accommodates up to 30 people seated at tables and has a full kitchen. The cost of $30 per hour includes not only the meeting room but all facilities at the park. Hence, meals can be eaten either in the meeting room or outside at picnic tables. Participants can enjoy the park while on break. Skills/drills clinics with bicycles can be done right there on site. Because of its convenient location, most participants will be able to drive there in under an hour and will not have to purchase lodging to participate. Those who do require lodging can either camp on site or select from a multitude of hotels in the Salt Lake area. While we need to check into possible discount or donation of facilities, this might be a great choice if the weather is anything like this year with record snow. There would not be snow in the valley during April and these trails tend to be more sandy and dry quickly in the rain.

Photos left to right :: Wheeler Farm, Trailside Bike Park, and USSA Center of Excellence.

18 UT HIGH SCHOOL CYCLING LEAGUE :: 2011 Event Venues Event Venues

RIDER CAMP Trailside Park will additionally be a great location for Rider Camps. It has picnic facilities, water and restrooms. The bike park will be perfect for skills/drills. Detailed info previously provided. Again, donation of facilities.

Wheeler Farm is also a great location for Rider Camp. It has picnic facilities, water, and restrooms. There is plenty of dirt and open grassy areas for drills. It’s an accessible location in the city will provide for high participation. Cost to rent the pavilion and lawn area is $80 and $100 refundable cleaning deposit.

Corner Canyon/Draper has a bike skills park under construction due to be done this summer. It is next to both a grass park and the equestrian center for breaks. Water, restrooms, and places to rest are all available here.

Lambert Park Pavillion can be an alternative for Rider Camp in the Utah Valley area, south of Salt Lake. It has picnic facilities with restrooms and great trails for skill practice. No cost. All of these sites with their contact info have been previously mentioned.

CYCLE FEST :: Nestled at the base of Mount Timpanogos, Sundance offers mountain seclusion yet is accessible to the Wasatch Front. The drive is a quick 30 minutes from the Provo/Orem area and less than an hour from Salt Lake City. Both indoor and outdoor meeting facilities are available to accommodate groups of varying sizes. Renowned for their ambiance and exquisite cuisine, the resort is cyclist friendly hosting many cycling events in the summer months. We are working with Jerry Warren and Czar Johnson, past and current Director of Mountain Operations respectively. They have offered donation of venue for both racing and possible Cycle Fest. They are working on race venue according to NICA specifications. We will ride it this summer. Czar Johnson’s can be contacted at 801.223.4123.

When you consider paying several thousand dollars to rent a facility, it might be worth the drive to Sundance for the possibility of a donated venue.

Red Butte Gardens :: Located in Salt Lake City, Red Butte Gardens is another great place to hold a Cycle Fest event. The Orangerie room is an indoor garden suitable for elegant private parties and receptions. Large floor to ceiling windows offer magnificent views of the fragrant and colorful Gardens and the expansive valley and city below. Great doors open onto large patios offering extra space for guests during the warmer months. The Orangerie accommodates up to 150 guests for a formal sit-down dinner inside. The central location would provide ease for attendees. Prices vary. May through October 5-10 pm the cost is $3,000 for Friday nights and $3,500 for Saturday nights. The winter season, November through April, sees a drop in cost. Friday through Sunday nights are $2,000. It is booked through their office 801.585.0556.

UT HIGH SCHOOL CYCLING LEAGUE :: 2011 19 League Fundraising & Development

CORPORATE SPONSORS Larry H. Miller :: $1,500 Park City Point to Point :: $1,500 Harristone :: $2,500 National Guard :: $2,500 Enve Composites :: $2,000 or product depending on fall budgeting SunnyStGeorgeCondos.Com :: $1000 Café Rio is committed to sponsorship but is awaiting budget decisions We are continuing to seek additional sponsorship

GRANTS & FOUNDATIONS After searching literally thousands of grants, there are three grants we specifically will apply for upon attaining League status: The Sorenson Legacy Foundation, R. Harold Burton Foundation and the Simmons Family Foundation. All three require a non-profit 501(c)3 determination letter from the IRS.

At the school level, we have two schools who have already attained grants to purchase bikes. Those involved are willing to educate other teachers/educators in that process so that hopefully other schools can get grants for bikes.

INDIVIDUAL DONORS Individual cash donors include Thom Sorrenson for $500 and Curtis Doman for $250. Both have pledge sheets. Donors of services include Wasatch Bike Support in Salt Lake donating their time in bike support at all races. Stuart Talley is also volunteering to provide bike support. The Sugar House Health Center of the University of Utah Health Care is donating first aid care for races. Joel Zenger has volunteered his services as an attorney. Michael T. Bringhurst has also volunteered his services as an attorney. Autoliv is working with coaches in their area to donate bikes for their school’s club. Mike Ball and Russ Page have offered their services in Web design/support. Mike is a programmer and Russ owns Studio Fifty, a web-design business. DNA Cycling and Blackbottoms want to support the league in offering cycling clothing deals to participants.

FUNDRAISING IDEAS We will ask other cycling events to have a donation section for us on their registration so when people sign up they can chose to donate to us. We also want to host a movie night. Tara McKee, who is in charge of the Utah Bike Summit, held a movie night and it was very successful. She wants to help us put one on as well. We have thought about checking into Facebook Causes for fundraising. We can use dealsthatmatter.com. It is similar to groupon.com. A portion of each deal goes to a group or charity that is registered with them.

We would really like to have a big “announcement party” when we are announced a League in the fall. Instead of a formal dinner like Cycle Fest, we want it to be a casual party. We are thinking $15 per person to get in. People can buy their own drinks and/or food. We will have a band and a silent auction. We think we can get some great products for auction. We are going to ask Steve Miller to get the League signed jerseys from the Tour of Utah. We will also ask Mike Fogarty with First Endurance if he can get signed jerseys from BMC and Columbia HTC. Sundance has already offered free tickets and Zagg Inc. will provide product donation. There was recently a fundraiser for a cyclist with cancer that provided opportunity to donate through auction and was very successful. We want to attract a large number of people both for fundraising and also to start off with a big bang.

20 UT HIGH SCHOOL CYCLING LEAGUE :: 2011 League Fundraising & Development Conclusion

In conclusion, Utah is ready to start a NICA League. Community support is strong and our coaches are chomping at the bit to get started. The race venues have been identified and mapped and we have plenty more to develop. We have over a year before our first season starts and it will give us plenty of time to refine the courses, train our volunteer coaches, and prepare to be one of the largest first-year NICA Leagues.

Once Emerging League status is granted we feel that there will be greater opportunities for fund raising and sponsorship. As organizers, we are confident in the structure of what we are doing. Gaining actual League status will give potential sponsors the same vision our current volunteers see. It is not a matter of whether it will be a success in Utah, but more a matter of how quick the growth will be.

The reason we are so confident in the success of the future league is due in large part to how quickly we saw support from the larger community. As soon as a Facebook page was created the “Likes” built up quickly. It wasn’t long before the were over 1,000 “Likes”. In the short time of putting organization to the bid process there are over 50 committed volunteer coaches ready to go. There is also administrative support in the likes of the Canyons School District, government support from communities like Park City and Draper, and venue sites like Soldier Hollow, Sundance and Snowbasin to name a few.

There are also a number of professional mountain bike and road racers who are interested in being involved. They have shown interest in being involved as volunteers for skill clinics and a few of them are interested in coaching at their local high schools. Many parents of kids who have a few years before the reach high school are interested and committed to get programs in place to be ready for their own kids.

Another group committed to bringing success to this project are the variety of mountain bike race promoters here in the state. The Intermountain Cup race series is advertising Utah High School Mountain Biking on the website as well as at events. The Utah State Championship Series promoters are donating use of their race venue equipment. The Park City Point to Point promoter is a cash sponsor and will promote the league as well.

Excitement is strong for high school mountain biking in Utah. The cycling community in Utah is ripe for a structure to develop cycling among the young population. The only thing lacking over the years was a structure to implement the program. With NICA’s help this can become a reality in Utah. We look forward to attaining Project League status and moving forward.

UT HIGH SCHOOL CYCLING LEAGUE :: 2011 21