Ridge Riders of the Black Hills Mountain Bike Club (Spearfish) hosted the 2nd Annual Tinton Trail Stupor D. A variety of mountain cyclists and ages showed up to support the Ridge Riders efforts to celebrate cyclism. Riders registered and pre-rode the 7 mile downhill course in the morning. Rushmore Mountain Sports shuttled riders back to the trailhead in the big silver bullet, a modified school bus. With the parking area full and everyone finishing the pre-rides, it was time for the riders meeting.

The riders meeting consisted of a safety talk and instructions on how a time trial works. Riders are sent off the starting line in 1-minute intervals. It allows riders to spread out over the course and have the challenge to gain the rider ahead or be caught by faster riders behind them. Riders were also instructed on trail etiquette and proper passing techniques.

Riders pedaled a short distance to the starting line for a 12:30 start. Men’s Dash for Cash (expert) was the first category off the line with a total of 14 riders. Kevin Forrester from Sturgis was the men’s fastest rider again this year setting a course record in 19 minutes 53 seconds. David Olson (Spearfish) stepped it up to the expert class this year and had a fast 20min 10sec. second place finish. Jesse Hansen (Spearfish-Rushmore Mountain Sports) crossed the line in 20min 29seconds for 3rd place. The top 3 finishers were awarded custom made Tinton Trail Mugs from Funk Pottery in Spearfish, filled with cash, for their hard work and hanging out some fast times. All 14 riders in the Dash for Cash were good, experienced riders and were all just minutes apart.

The always popular and purely recreational class, Steer For Beer, had 19 riders competing for fun and prizes. The top 3 finishers were awarded Crow Peak Brewery Growlers with refill certificates. 1st Eli Olson (Spearfish) 22:19, 2nd Josh Tjeerdsma (Rapid City) 23:19, 3rd Chad Thorman (Spearfish) 23:28.

Women’s Open class had 14 fast girls and mommas. For many it was their first mountain bike race/ride. The fastest woman of the day happened to be one of the fastest riders of all the classes. Petra Hansen (Rushmore Mountain Sports-Spearfish/Germany) rode the course in 22:35, followed by Kristi Jewett 2nd 24:52 and 3rd Mieke Meyer 26:22 both from Spearfish. Last place women, Heather Munro was awarded $20.00 courtesy of Acme Bicycles of Rapid City for finishing. It just goes to show we are about riding not all racing. Many of these girls improved their times and all seemed to enjoy the dirt!

The 17 & Under class was one of the largest with 18 riders. It was an honor to have so many youth come to our event. 1st place Nick Pickett (Whitewood, age 15) 24:11, 2nd place Logan Burke (Spearfish) 24:40, 3rd place Keegan Weyrich (MCA, Whitewood) 24:44. This class was exciting to watch and everyone admired their energy and enthusiasm for cycling and racing.

We also had an exhibition race from two potential Lance Armstrong’s, Ty Forrester (Sturgis) age 8 and Timo Schacht (Fort Meade) age 7. These two little tikes rode their bikes down the 7 mile course and battled it out till the end. Ty Forrester with fast dad coaching him won in the end. These two guys are on fire for cycling now and will never forget this day.

We had one Tandem this year, with Tim Rangitsch piloting and wife Marta pedaling. They put down a fast time of 24:16. It was very surprising to see this experienced Tandem couple maneuver this challenging course.

This year’s event proved that Spearfish is a cycling community. Many of the riders brought their families and spent the day in the woods riding bikes. All participants were treated to a barbeque and microbrew from Crow Peak Brewery. A kids race was held before the awards ceremony with 7 riders between 3-8 years old. This was a fun event for everyone. The award table was full of prizes from the various bike shops and sponsors throughout the hills. Smith Sunglasses, Dakine riding jerseys and gloves, Funk Mugs, and many other prizes. Riders were awarded and prizes were raffled off, everyone received a prize! Ridge Riders would like to thank all the Riders, Volunteers, and Sponsors who made this event possible.

2007 Tinton Time Trial Finishing Times >
2007 Tinton Time Trial Photos >

2006 Tinton Time Trial Finishing Times >