Cold front moving through today bringing a big time change in the weather. Temps in the lower 30’s and our first flakes of snow!! Latest trail report on the trail report page.
Fall Bluejay
Category Archives: News
Items for the News Archive — usually front page items go here, especially once no longer on front page
Scrapbooking at Maplelag
Weekend scrapbooking photos on the event page.
September 2013 scrapbooking photos on the event page.
First Down
Latest trail report on the trail report page. Watch the change in color on the Maplelag webcam.
Laddies Loppet 2014
Laddies Loppet is a mountain bike stage race we hold every Labor Day weekend at Maplelag. We have been hosting the event since 1990, making it one of the oldest mountain bike races in Minnesota! This years dates are August 30st and 31st, 2014. Saturday’s racing includes a time trial & short track, and Sunday’s racing features the main event, cross country racing. Once again we are proud to be a part of the Minnesota Mountain Bike Series. Laddies Loppet will be race #9 in the series this year. The race is named after our former, friendly dog, Laddie. This is a great event for the whole family with races and age categories for every type of rider. Laddies Loppet was named race of the year of the Series in 2012 and 2011. Note: Canadian riders are now able to race without any extra license requirement.
Short track racing action. (skinnyski.com photo)
Stage Race: The two day stage race returns for the nineth year, featuring a time trail, short track and cross country! We will have a open class for male and female riders in the Kids Comp, Citizen, Sport and Comp (male only) and Expert/Pro classes. General classification will be scored on a timed system with the rider with the lowest accumulative time taking the overall win. Awards for the top three overall stage winners in each class with cash to Pros.
Weekend Schedule:
Friday: Supper 7pm (all meals are served family style please come to the dining hall at meal time)
Saturday:
Breakfast 8am
Race Registration opens at 9am and closes at 10am
Time Trial 10:30am Elite, Comp, Sport, Citizen and Kids Comp in this order. Elites should be ready at 10:15am
Lunch 12:30pm
Short track racing 4pm (schedule below)
Supper 7pm
Registration for Sunday at 8:30pm
Sunday:
Breakfast 8am
XC racing begins at 9am with Kids Comp and ends with Elites at 1:35pm
Lunch served in lodge at 11am to 1pm for registered guests only (food available for sale by concession)
Supper 7pm
Bonfire 8:15pm sponsored by Fargo Brewing
Monday: Breakfast 9am
Racing Details:
Stage race cash payout as follows for top five overall male and female Pro/Elite in stage race: 1st-$200, 2nd-$150, 3rd-$100, 4th-$95, 5th-$85
Cash payback awarded to the top five as a minimum in Elite men and women time trial and short track with special awards to the top overall finishers in Comp, Sport and Citizen.
Note: You do not need to race in the time trial and short track to be counted (point wise) in the MNMBS. The Sunday cross country race is the race that counts in the point standings for the series.
Time Trial: Racing action begins on Saturday with a time trial at 10am. The course will be approximately 3 miles in length running mainly on cross country ski trails with a few short sections of singletrack. Cash primes to male and females who break course record set in 2009. All classes will be riding the same course. (This a a great event for the first time racer as well as the distance is short and is a good introduction to mountain bike racing). Cost of the time trial event is $10. You may register online in advance here.
Short Track: Saturday afternoon is the short track criterium. The laps are 1-2 minutes in length and run in between the cabins and lodge making for a great spectator event. Total race time is around 10-20 minutes. Kids Comp starts at 3:45pm, Citizen short track at 4:00pm, Sport at 4:30pm, Comp and Pro Expert Women at 5:00pm and Pro Men at 5:30pm. Cost of the short track event is $20. You may register online in advance here.
Rolling along the infamous lakeside drops (skinnyski.com photo)
Cross Country: Sunday the main event will be the cross-country mountain bike race. We will have kids comp, citizen, sport, comp and pro/expert race categories. We will also offer the NEW Marathon class, a 3+ hour endurance challenge. The citizen and kids comp race runs on the cross-country ski trails at Maplelag and include a few small sections of singletrack. The kids comp race is one lap of the citizen course. Citizen riders will do three laps. Laps are around 3 miles. The sport, comp, expert and marathon races run on the ski trails and also include sections of the famous singletrack at Maplelag. Laps are around 10 miles. You may register online in advance here.
Kids Comp (1 lap) race starts at 9am, Citizen (3 laps) starts at 9:30am, Sport (1 full lap of Sport/Comp/Expert loop) is at 11am, Marathon (full laps of Sport/Comp/Expert loop) is at 11:30am, Comp (2 laps 19 miles) 1:15pm and Pro/Expert (2 laps 19 miles) at 1:10pm and 1:12pm for Expert women (2 laps). Kids race at 12:45pm, (The kids race will be a short spectator friendly loop near the start finish area and will include a small section of ski trail suitable for kids 3-10).
T-shirts are given to all registrants and awards are given in the different age classes. Our great sponsors provide us with many door prizes to give away. What a great chance to experience Maplelag, other than during the winter season, at a very reasonable rate! For those of you not interested in racing, please consider hiking, canoeing, fishing, or bird watching as other activities to enjoy during the weekend including the bonfire on Sunday night.
Twitter: Follow us on Twitter for course updates and race details @LaddiesLoppet
Lodging: Call 1-800-654-7711 or e-mail us for more information on lodging. The special rate of $92 per adult per night includes at least two meals and use of Maplelag amenities. The rate for children ages 10-15 is $39, ages 6-9 is $19. Children ages 5 and under are free. We will also have a limited number of camping spots available. Cost of camping is $10 per person. There is a food service option with camping (camping and meal option). The cost will be $49 per person and include at least two meals. CAMPING AND MEAL PLAN FULL. We will also reduce the cost on the Tier 1 units (rooms without a bath) for this weekend at a rate of $59 per person. Call or e-mail [email protected] to make reservations. A two night minimum. With Labor Day on Monday, why not stay Sunday night and relax at Maplelag before heading back home!! Note: You must pre-register for camping. Please do not show up and camp without registering. Please register by phone or e-mail for camping at least 3 days before the event!!
Our Sponsors:
Premier
At Fredrikson & Byron, we’ve built a reputation as the firm “where law and business meet” by bringing business acumen and entrepreneurial thinking to our work with clients, and by operating as business advisors and strategic partners as well as legal counselors. Our lawyers blend a common sense approach with in-the-field experience, and we utilize our firm’s strong reputation and our lawyers’ broad networks of business and industry contacts to get things done for clients. Clients have relied on us since 1948 for great solutions that help them minimize legal risks and maximize business benefits. We look forward to an opportunity to show you what it is like where law and business meet. www.fredlaw.com
Matt Engen is a Wealth Management Advisor and is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ certificant, a designation awarded by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. and has been in the financial services industry since 1991 and with Merrill Lynch since 1999. In 2009, 2011 and 2012, Matt was included among an elite group of Financial Advisors ranked in Barron’s magazine’s “The Top 1,000 Advisors”, “The Top Ranked Advisors in America State-by-State.” Matt’s experience and intimate knowledge of wealth management enables him to establish objectives, develop an appropriate strategy and recommendations that draw upon the breadth and depth of Total Merrill™ to connect all the pieces of your financial life. We appreciate Matt’s support of the Laddies Loppet. http://fa.ml.com/el_group
Midwest Bank is a rapidly-growing, locally-owned, independent bank with offices located in West Central Minnesota. Through our rapid growth, we have developed the financial and technological resources to meet the needs of our small and large customers alike. Being locally-owned, we have a vested interest in seeing our communities thrive. Being independent allows us to provide a banking atmosphere that our customers appreciate — a responsiveness not matched by our competition, decisions made by the people you talk to rather than a committee in a distant city, and fees that are considerably below our competition. These items, combined with top-notch customer service, make us believe that we offer banking the way you want it — “Banking Your Way.” www.midwestbank.net
At Wolf Tooth Components, we are a group of hardcore cyclists that found ourselves spending a lot of time talking about bike components. Like most racers we were always looking for new products that could make our bikes lighter, faster, or more reliable. Since we all come from engineering and manufacturing backgrounds our conversations often focused on how we could make the products on the market today even better. The company was founded to design and manufacture unique cycling components that emphasize function, performance, and reliability to meet the needs of fellow racers and riders. We are excited to support the Laddies Loppet. www.wolftoothcycling.com
Supporting
1up USA is a small company in Wisconsin that manufactures and sells quality products directly to the customer. They guarantee everything they sell, and want all of their customers to be completely satisfied. We were so impressed with their receiver bike rack design we wanted to partner with them for the Laddies Loppet. www.1upusa.com
Fargo Brewing: From a garage to a full fledged brewery in five short years sums up a dream come true for us Fargo natives with our heart set on bringing craft brewing to the heartland. It was a like-mindedness that brought our paths together, and a Midwestern work ethic that maintained that path, through thick and thin, to see an idea through and bring as fine a product as we can to our home. Ah hell, it’s just beer, chief. Bottoms up. Sounds like a great fit for the Laddies Loppet to us! www.fargobrewing.com
At Kühl, the passion remains to get outdoors and have fun. Kühl® is what it means to be comfortable and relaxed in the challenging environment of life and sport. Kühl® means creating the best environment for you and knowing the importance of following your own beliefs and desires. We are excited to welcome them as a sponsor of the Laddies Loppet. www.kuhl.com
We are excited to working with Podiumwear on some exiting gear for the Laddies Loppet. St. Paul based Podiumwear creates custom quality made sublimated athletic apparel based on their clients specific design. All of their clothing is made right here in Minnesota. www.podiumwear.com
Our long time partner Skinnysk.com is back again this year providing media coverage all weekend. Watch for outstanding photos from across all classes posted on their site. www.skinnyski.com
Retailers
These retailers support our event and are the best place to start when you need the right cycling gear.
Freewheel Bike offers 3 Twin Cities locations catering to all types of cyclists and supports multiple events including the Murphy Mountain Bike Time Trial Series. www.freewheelbike.com
Hollywood Cycles offers up front service, custom fitting, and racing experience across virtually every cycling discipline at their Minneapolis location. www.hwoodcycles.com
Jakes Bikes offers friendly knowledgeable service in Alexandria, MN. Whether you are buying bikes for the first time or just need a tired pumped up. www.jakesbikes.com
We are exited to welcome back this long time sponsor. If you are in the Fargo Moorhead area please stop into see them, they will be sure you are ready for the race. www.paramountsports.net
Penn Cycle has 7 Twin Cities locations and promotes a Thursday Night Mountain Bike racing series at Buck Hill in Burnsville, a great way to get ready for the Laddies Loppet. www.penncycle.com
Risk Taker
