Last weekend saw the first running of the Biker-X race at Buck Hill hosted by the Midwest Freeride Community. It was a beautiful day to be out on the hill. While the warm temperatures were welcome after a long winter, it made for a soft course. But that just meant that no one got hurt when the inevitable carnage that follows sending four riders hurtling down a steep course happened. The riders navigated ten foot berms and rollers, all the while trying to keep it between the gates — and oh yeah, everything was made of snow — soft, slushy snow.

The Results

Men’s Beginner
1. Luke Baenish
2. Justin Roberts
3. Brian Paulson
4. Ray Osowski

Men’s Open
1. Thor Shellum
2. Rich Ohmdahl
3. Shawn Sheely
4. Zach Osowski

Media

Video

Helmet cam footage from the race. Rider: Josh Abrahamson

We even made the local news. Maybe next year we can tell them it’s pronounced Biker-Cross and not Biker-EX.

I myself shot a bunch of video, which I’m working on editing. Given my usual video timelines you should look for that sometime in the next 6 months.

Photos

We had almost as many photographers as riders at this race, which was great because they got some excellent shots.

More of Thomas Dunning’s Biker-X Photos

More of Michael Boehnlein’s Biker-X Photos

More of Buck Hill’s Biker-X photos

More of Peter Ryan’s Biker-X Photos

More of my Biker-X Photos

Thanks to Shockspital, Buck Hill, ODI, Kali Protectives and Spank for sponsoring the race.

Thanks to all the riders and spectators who came out to support gravity racing.

Thanks to Larry Martin for manning the starting gate, Kos for manning the finish line and Richzilla for helping Tony makes sense of double elimination brackets with four riders per round. Also thanks to Josh Sweet, Nick Ice and the dude in the blue t-shirt whose name I don’t know for keeping the last two jumps groomed throughout the race.

And finally thanks to Buck Hill for allowing us to run a race there and for all their work in getting the course ready. Special thanks to Jason the snow cat operator who let Tony and I ride along and give input on the course construction.

Did you manage to stay on your bike during the race? Share your stories here.