Registration opens for Carson City Epic Ride event

Epic Rides Off-Road Series will bring a new mountain-bike event and music festival June 17-19 to Carson City — the Carson City Off-Road. It compliments two other series locations — the Whiskey Off-Road in Prescott, Ariz., and Grand Junction Off-Road in Grand Junction, Colo.

Registration opened for all three Off-Road Series rides Thursday. Those who register for a race by Jan. 6 are going to be entered to win sponsor prizes totaling almost $7,000. Winners will be announced Jan. 7 over social media — www.facebook.com/epicrides and www.instagram.com/epicrides.

Local races include 15, 35 or 45-plus-mile backcountry rides for pros and amateurs athletes spanning both genders. Events cost $120, with deals available for multiple events. Both the 35- and 45-mile routes will feature sections of the Tahoe Rim Trail and views of Lake Tahoe.

“Epic Rides is excited to expand into the Lake Tahoe region by way of Carson City because of the expansive trail offerings,” Todd Sadow, event organizer, said by email. “The opportunity to tie a trails destination like Lake Tahoe to a lesser known but highly accessible and destination-worthy community like Carson City was too good to pass up. The trails in Carson City have been experiencing a genesis of their own in recent years. Supported by the trail building folks at Muscle Powered and backed by a high level of cooperation from the Combined Municipality of Carson City, Epic Rides is stoked to share an assortment of trails on both sides of the Sierra Nevada mountains eastern edge with out-of-town guests.”

Sadow said total rider attendance expected at the Sierra Nevada race was estimated to be 2,400 people in the first year, along with concert attendees.

According to an Epic Rides Off-Road Series news release, “Each Off-Road Series host community possesses a unique, friendly and rugged frontier city charm, blessed with thousands of acres of breathtaking terrain and hundreds of miles of incredible singletrack. The quality of the trails and the family-friendly environment of each Off-Road Series event attracts top professional athletes as well as amateur riders looking for an authentic backcountry mountain biking experience. Whether gunning for the $100,000 Pro Series Purse, getting the latest gear at huge industry expos, taking in the free music festivals, enjoying the Sierra Nevada Brewing beer gardens or simply accomplishing a big goal of finishing a choice of three different graduated event distances, there’s something for everyone at each stop in the Off-Road Series.”

In its third year, the Grand Junction Off-Road, hosted more than 2,000 guests, including 500-plus high-level racers in Colorado bike country last May 2015. The Grand Junction Free Press reported an economic impact of $885,000 for the three-day event, according to Epic Rides, including sales tax projections ($67,702), hotel stays (70 percent of participants stay in hotels — 42 percent stayed two nights; 21 percent stayed three nights; and 14 percent stayed four nights) and restaurant spending ($271.88 was the average).

Learn more at www.epicrides.com/off_road_series.