Racers in the 10th annual Poor Mountain Hill Climb bicycle race were greeted by blue skies and cool temps on Sunday morning. The mass-start race begins at the base of Poor Mountain near Camp Roanoke and winds it’s way up mostly dirt roads to the top of the region’s highest peak. This year’s event marked a decade of the race promoted by the Blue Ridge Bicycle Club and Roanoke County Parks and Recreation.
Robert Marion was the first to crest the 3000 foot ascent, clocking in a time of 39:24. Marion’s time was just two minutes off the record set by professional mountain bike racer Jeremiah Bishop in 2007. Perhaps even more impressive was the 42:42 second place time of Marion’s Kenda Tires teammate Chase Dickens, who is just 15 years old. The women’s race was also won by a Kenda Tires rider from North Carolina – Anina Aaron.
This race is unique in that the rider has his or her choice of bike to ride. Most, including all of the category winners, chose to use their mountain bikes since the steep dirt road sections are more easily-handled with knobby tires. Local rider Ron Glowczynski used a cyclocross bike, which is more like a road racing bike but has slightly knobby tires. John DeLong, a former professional racer from Blacksburg, was the only rider on a pure road racing bike with small, smooth tires. He led through the early paved section but quickly fell back when the road turned to dirt.
Race director Skip Huffman was happy with the turnout: “This is a brutal event so you don’t expect a huge amount of local recreational riders to sign up. It’s on the extreme end of bike racing and at attracts a special breed of rider.”
A good crowd along with an amplified race announcer welcomed the racers to the top of the mountain. After the finish everyone returned to Camp Roanoke for lunch and the presentation of the winner’s jerseys.
Stratton Delany
Bike Blast Kid’s Race
The Poor Mountain Hill Climb featured a first ever youth only race geared to expose kids to bike racing. There was a half mile, spectator friendly course set up for kids ages of 10-14 in which they raced for about 20 minutes. The under 10 race utilized just the field section of the course and let the kids vote on how many laps they wanted to do. This was the first ever bike event for all participants!
