Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship announces that registration is officially open for Mountains to Meadows Endurofest, the nonproft’s new enduro-focused festival this fall in Quincy, anchored by two races: Grinduro and the Mt. Hough Enduro. Race dates are Sept. 13 and 14 and they both take place on Mount Hough, with the festival based out of the Plumas-Sierra County Fairgrounds in Quincy.
Organizers report that Grinduro, the pioneering gravel-enduro race, is returning to Quincy, where it started 10 years ago. This year’s race will have many similarities to the race as it was held for five years on the flanks of Mount Hough. Racers can choose between the 55-mile Grinduro course with 7,800 feet of climbing and four timed sections, or the 27-mile Grindurito course with 3,200 feet of climbing and three timed stages.
The full course includes a mix of singletrack and double-track dirt and includes the Tear Drops gravel climb, Rouler’s Revenge rolling dirt, Grizzly Plunge gravel descent and Smokechaser singletrack descent. “There are no bike requirements; choose your wheels wisely!” suggest organizers. The race is not based on overall time, but the sum total of the timed stages. Racers only need to make the cutoffs for each stage. Race maps for the Grinduro and Grindurito are available online.
The next day, SBTS is adding the inaugural Mt. Hough Enduro into the mix for mountain bikes and Class 1 pedal-assist electric mountain bikes. Following the traditional blind format style of enduro, racers won’t know the timed stages until they roll up to them and overall finishing time is based only on the timed downhill stages.
The course distance, elevation and number of timed stages depends on the category raced: beginner, sport, expert, pro or eMTB and all the stats are available here. The race takes place on the fast, flowy, fun trails of Mount Hough, say organizers: “Think more blue square than black diamond.”
Full weekend festival
The races are just one part of the weekend of fun, says SBTS, which also includes camping, two nights of live music on the main stage, dancing, a DJ, a custom frame builders’ bike show, popup shops, food trucks and a beverage garden. All proceeds from Mountains to Meadows Endurofest benefit SBTS’ work to build and maintain trails across the region — work that the group says will need more support than ever this season due to federal budget and staffing cuts that will impact California’s rural communities.
Details on registration, volunteer opportunities and the festival are all available on SBTS’ website.
Information provided by Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship
