Erin Huck, Keegan Swenson headline USA Cycling mountain bike nationals in Colorado

USA Cycling’s mountain bike national championships are underway at Colorado’s Winter Park ski resort this week. The event returns to the high altitude venue after a hiatus in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The week-long event features enduro, downhill, dual slalom, XC, and short-track races for all ages and categories. On Saturday, July 10 the elite men’s and women’s cross-country race will see current national champ Keegan Swenson up against some 40 elite riders, as well as a smaller race between the women as Erin Huck looks for the stars and stripes before she heads to Tokyo.

How to watch

Then, the women’s XC race kicks off at 3:30 P.M., followed by the men’s event at 5:30.

On Sunday, July 1o, the women’s and men’s pro downhill races begin at 1:30 P.M.

The XC course

The elite men and women will compete on the “red” XC course, a five-mile loop with approximately 700 feet of climbing and descending.

The ascending begins right off the bat, with riders climbing nearly 500 feet in the first 1.7 miles of racing. At around mile two, the course flattens for half a mile before plummeting 400 feet over a mile of descending. From mile 3.5 to 4.5, the course climbs gently to a sharp and short eight percent climb at mile 4.5 before descending gradually back to the start/finish.

According to EF Education-Nippo rider Alex Howes (yes, you read that WorldTour team name correctly) who lives just over the Continental Divide from the venue, the course presents some unique challenges.

“The climb’s pretty hard,” he told VeloNews. “I’m not a climber in WorldTour terms, but I definitely have the engine for that climb. It also works in my favor because call-ups don’t matter too much. You can start from the back and still be in it if you have the legs.”

Although USA Cycling will not release the final lap count until Friday, elite men will likely race seven laps of the loop and women will race five. Weather could alter this.

Who to watch

Start lists will not be finalized until Friday afternoon, but the registered riders for the event can be found online. There are more than a few top U.S. riders who will miss the race due to the World Cup schedule in Europe. Noticeably absent from the start line will be Kate Courtney (Scott-SRAM), Haley Batten (Trinity Racing), Chloe Woodruff, and Christopher Blevins (Trinity Racing). Lea Davison (Garneau-Twenty24) is also not registered for the event.

Howes will face stiff competition in the men’s race from riders with far more experience on singletrack than he. One such rider is defending national champion Keegan Swenson, who comes to Colorado in excellent form with a handful of domestic wins and World Cup finishes under his belt this season.

Durango riders will be well represented in the men’s race; in addition to Grotts and McElveen, Troy Wells, Cole Paton, and Cooper Wiens will be looking to make southwestern Colorado proud.

The women’s field is much smaller, with only 14 registered riders as of Wednesday.

All eyes will be on Erin Huck, who recently announced her placement on the Team USA squad for Tokyo. Huck missed out on 2019 nationals due to an injury but finished second to Kate Courtney in 2018. The Boulder-based rider is on flying form in 2021, with victories at the U.S. Cup and GoPro Mountain Games, as well as two impressive top-15 finishes at World Cups in Albstadt and Nove Mesto.

Longtime racers Evelyn Dong and Rose Grant will also heat up the women’s race. Dong finished second at XC nationals in 2019, and Grant is a five-time marathon MTB champion.