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Garbanzo opening on Saturday

Warm weather has let crews open the Garbanzo Zone of the Whistler Mountain Bike Park a week ahead of schedule, with approximately 80 per cent of the trails ready to go on Saturday.

Warm weather has let crews open the Garbanzo Zone of the Whistler Mountain Bike Park a week ahead of schedule, with approximately 80 per cent of the trails ready to go on Saturday.

There is still some snow at the highest elevations, but otherwise crews are reporting good conditions on the trail.

Meanwhile crews are continuing to maintain and upgrade trails. Some recent work has been done to armour Heart of Darkness and both sections of Crank It Up. As well, the new lower section of Crank It Up is reportedly weeks from completion.

Also getting some work was Dirt Merchant, which was rebuilt, as well as Upper and Lower Angry Pirate which were given a face lift and a few new features to improve the flow.

Routley seventh in Nature Valley Grand Prix

In a race that included European riders and Tour de France alumni, Whistler's Will Routley managed to place seventh overall in the rankings after five days and six events. His combined time of nine hours, 29 minutes and 10 seconds was just 41 seconds back of Grand Prix winner Rory Sutherland of Maxxis. Tom Zirbel of Bissell Pro Cycling was second, and Lucas Sebastian Haedo of Colavita/Sutter Home/Cooking Light was third.

Routley's teammate Bernard Vaulden finished one spot back in eighth, propelling Team Jelly Belly to third in the team general classification and fifth overall in the National Racing Calendar rankings for the U.S.

Routley was a power player from the start. He was 15 th in the opening time trial on June 10, but made it up with a seventh place finishing the criterium on the same day. Routley rode consistently through the other stages, and was eighth in the second criterium on the closing day to take seventh overall.

Routley's plan was to head home after the race and continue to train, racing in a few Superweek events in the Lower Mainland before rejoining Team Jelly Belly for a race in China, the U.S. nationals and the Tour of Missouri.

Race the Ranch downhill results

Results were not available last week for the second Race the Ranch B.C. Cup event at Kamloops, a dusty downhill that brought out a field of over 330 riders.

Whistler's Tyler Allison once again competed in the Elite Men's category, placing sixth overall - one spot back of Squamish's JS Therrien. American Kyle Thomas, who coaches in Whistler during the summer, was fourth.

Whistler's James McSkimming was 18 th and Squamish's Scott Halvorson was 31 st .

In Elite Women, Squamish's Miranda Miller placed second, while Whistler's Bethany Parsons placed fourth.

In the Under 19 Citizen Men, Squamish's Ryan Bompas-Brown was eighth, Alexander Cairns was 45 th and Whistler's Carter Faulkner 53 rd .

In Master 30-plus Women, Meghan Illingworth of Squamish was first.

In Senior Women 19 to 29, Jaime Hill was first.

In Under 15 Men, Whistler's Jack Iles placed third, Montana Michel of Squamish was seventh, Matthew Scully was 10 th , and Lee Jackson 12 th .

In Master 40 to 49 Leonard Black of Squamish was seventh.

In Under 17 Men, Max Horner of Whistler was sixth, Jordan Gostel of Squamish was ninth, Kip Shortreeed 12 th , Dixon Black 19 th , Owen Scully 22 nd , Jonny Dempsey 30 th and Davis Morton 35 th .

Whistler's Paul Stevens won Senior Men 19 to 29, placing first out of 33 riders. Philip Cairns of Squamish was 17 th .

Lauren Rosser of Squamish won Junior Women 15 to 18.

In Junior Men 17 to 18, Conner MacDougall of Squamish was sixth, Jesse Ballhausen of Pemberton seventh, Kyle Quesnel 11 th , Whistler's Jesse Melamed 13 th , Ian Morrison 26 th and Leo Brandvold 34 th .

Runners tackle second peak

The second event in the B.C. 5 Peaks trial running series took place in a new location this past weekend, with runners starting and finishing at Simon Fraser University while running a selection of trails on Burnaby Mountain.

Barry McClure was the top Whistler runner on the 9.8 km Enduro course in 26 th overall, as well as third out of 17 in the 50 to 59 age category with a time of 56:36.

Three spots back in 29 th was Walter Wallgram, who placed fourth in the category. In 57:02.

Cathy Jenkins was sixth in the women's 40 to 49 category in 1:04:38, while Ghlee McLeod was 19 th in the same group in 1:18:06.

In the 6.3 km Sport category, Tracy Jackson was seventh in female 40 to 49 in 44:25. Dori Faulkner was 18 th in the same category in 48:47,

Comfortably Numb trail run drawing closer

If you still haven't registered for the Comfortably Numb Trail Run, organizers are encouraging you to get off the fence sooner than later so they know how much water they'll need at midstation and how much food to provide at the finish. June 9 was the deadline to receive a free long-sleeved t-shirt, but late entries can still get technical running hats and water bottles.

Comfortably Numb is a 25 km trail run that starts at Wedgemont Creek and follows the mountain bike trail to Spruce Grove Park, via Lost Lake Park. There is 800 metres of climbing from start to finish, spectacular views of the valley, and enough singletrack to make the run interesting from start to finish.

Registration is $50, and you can sign on at www.comfortablynumb.ca.

Sea to Sky Trail Challenge rolls July 11

Large sections of the Sea to Sky Trail from D'Arcy to Squamish are now established, thanks to the combined efforts of local governments, trail builders and advocates throughout the corridor. There are also some new sections, including two new sections to the south of Whistler that were completed over the past two years and two new sections of a trail that will one day link all of Squamish.

While that's a lot of trail, the 14th annual Sea to Sky Trail Challenge breaks the ride up over two days, and gives riders the option of missing the highway section from Pemberton to Whistler.

This year's event takes place on July 11 and 12. Organizers have limited the number of participants to 150 for logistical reasons, and are expecting to sell out. Early registration is recommended.

The first day goes from D'Arcy to Pemberton, following a selection of roads and trails to One Mile Lake where riders have the option of loading their bikes onto trucks or to keep pedaling. Day two is from Whistler to Squamish, and includes four recently added trails to the south of Whistler.

Overall the race has very little technical riding, and there are regular aid stations along the way.

For more information or registration visit http://greatexplorations.com/trips/canada/cyclingevents/seatosky.asp. Registration forms are also available at The Bike Co in Pemberton and both Corsa Cycles and Tantalus Bike Shop in Squamish.