| The 9th Annual Off Road Assault on Mt. MitchellSam Koerber shatters course record
63 miles in 4:57:25!
WINS $900
The blistering sun beat down as 350 riders lined up to start the 9th Annual Off Road Assault on Mt. Mitchell on the morning of July 27th 2008. Old Fort police led the peloton out Mill Creek Road to the climb up Old Highway 70 where the race really began. Sam Koerber quickly took off and secured a 30 minute lead. The course record, set in 2006 by Jeremiah Bishop at 5:08:05, was shattered by over 10 minutes with Sam finishing at 4:57:25! He won $900 for his vigorous effort and a trophy nearly as tall as he is!
315 riders crossed the finish line, including a 14 year old and a 68 year old, leaving only 35 riders to DNF. All of the trail work done by Blue Ridge Adventures and volunteers in the weeks before the race allowed for one of the fastest courses yet, even without Mill Creek Road being paved. Heartbreak Ridge had not a single tree across its tread making for a fast, fun descent. Kitsuma only had one logover and it's been cut out for next year.
A temporary water shortage at some of the rest stops forced some to wait and this issue has already been resolved for next year. The McDowell County Fire Department will be helping out at the rest stops and they do not run dry on water! Sorry to all the folks who were forced to wait. Thanks to the great rest stop volunteers who offered their support to all the riders.
Rest Stop 1 provided by Walker Mounts
Rest Stop 2 provided by Families Together
Rest Stop 3 provided by BioWheels
Rest Stop 4 provided by SORBA
Rest Stop 5 provided by Brevard College Cycling TeamOver $9000 in cash and prizes given away!
Thanks to our many sponsors for the cool swag including Emergen-C, Chamois Butt'r, Hammer Gel, Tifosi sunglasses, Waterfall Rappelling Tours from Hairy Scary Evolutions, hubs from Industry Nine, Walker Mounts, custom trophies by Jenny Kalista, tshirts & wool jersey from Biowheels, mechanic service from Liberty Bicycles, and tubes & lube at rest stops by Sycamore Cycles. Thanks for helping make this a great event.Blue Ridge Adventures once
again offered Massage after the race for $1/minute. Didn't get enough?
Contact Elizabeth Ropp -
Voted 2007's Best Massage Therapist by Mountain Xpress readers.
The Off
Road Assault on Mt. Mitchell is a 63 mile mostly off road Bicycle route
with 11,000 feet of climbing. From Old Fort you climb over the Blue
Ridge Parkway two times and just below Mt. Mitchell on beautiful Forest
Service roads and unbelievable N.C. single track. There are fully
stocked rest stops approximately every 10 miles. You can also send
anything you wish to any of the rest areas with our staff. Mt. Mitchell
peaks at 6684 ft and is the highest mountain east of the Mississippi
river. The town of Old Fort where you start and finish sits at around
1400 feet. Most of the climbing is on Forest Service roads while most
of the single track points downhill!
See what people are saying about the race:ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:Todd Branham828.606.5107epicrides@gmail.com |
