The first annual Samurai of Singletrack is a sellout, and with six weeks still to go before the contest begins.
Competitors will ride 19 Whistler trails on a single day, including Flank Trail, Industrial Disease, Lower Sproat, Whip Me Snip Me, Binty’s, Rebob, Mel’s Dilemma, Alpine X-cut, Shit Happens, Big Kahuna, Section 102, Kill Me Thrill Me, Green Lake Loop, Poler’s Road, Mainline, and Rolo Coaster.
The number of entries was limited to 100, and were snapped up within three weeks of the announcement.
"It’s mind boggling," says Tony Horn, who is organizing the Samurai with Ru Mehta of Teppan Village. "We didn’t put up any posters or anything. There were a couple of articles in the paper, and the word just kind of got around.
"It’s attracting really core riders from all over the province – not racers so much, but the same guys and girls who go to Spruce Lake to ride on the weekend."
The Samurai of Singletrack is not a race, but a challenge – if you make it, you get anointed as a Samurai at a ceremony that evening. And if you don’t, you wait until next year. The cost is $50, or $45 for WORCA members, and includes a dinner at Teppan Village, a T-shirt, and a ticket to a WORCA Samurai dance party.
If you missed the cutoff and want to enter, there is still a chance to get in. Because there is still a lot of time left before Sept. 15 – plenty of time for people to fall off their bikes or back out – Horn is keeping a standby list.
Although Horn and Mehta are still working out details and the route, they will also need a few volunteers to help out on Samurai Day.
For more information, or to receive an entry form, you can e-mail Horn at [email protected].
