Cycling the season

New bike styles, new events, keep Maine cyclers in the saddle all year.

Within eight days recently, Ben Grenier of Lewiston competed in three bike races at the elite level.

And each race was a different type.

Grenier competed in the burgeoning sport of cyclocross on a recent Saturday, participated in a traditional road race on Sunday and six days later he rode in a 12-hour mountain bike race.

Welcome to today’s world of competitive cycling, where new equipment and the continuing evolution of the sport mean more options, more events and year-round competition.

“On most weekends in New England, there is a mountain bike race, a sprint triathlon, a Gran Fondo, a road race and a cyclocross race happening,” said Grenier’s teammate and father, John.

Deciding which event to compete in depends on who you ask.

Dominic Giampaolo of Lewiston would choose to race on asphalt. “For me, road racing has that huge mental component,” he said.

For Dave Richard, the balancing act of work and his childrens’ dance recitals and soccer matches in various parts of the state decides what course he competes on.

Neal Coughlin’s choice is based on who he wants to support. “You want to support your local races,” said Coughlin. “This time of year, it gets tricky because a lot of things are going on.”

And for John Grenier? “Which one seems like the most fun.”

The Downeast Cyclocross Race in New Gloucester that Grenier entered two weeks ago was followed a day later by the Maine Apple Classic road race. The 12 Hours of Bradbury Mountain followed a week later.

“It used to be you were a road biker or you were a mountain biker,” said John Grenier. “Cyclocross brought those two together.”

Cyclocross is a short but intense event, raced on road bikes with off-road tires. Riders ride on a combination of road, grass and dirt while either riding or carrying their bikes over obstacles.

“Cyclocross exploded about 10 years ago,” said John Grenier. He held Lewiston-Auburn’s first cyclocross race on a hilly course at Lost Valley Ski Area in Auburn in 2002. Grenier has since moved the annual race to Pineland Farms in New Gloucester.

Grenier said there were about 10 cross races in New England that year. Now there are about 50.

Year-round racing

Bike racing in Maine was a bit like tourist season just a few years ago. Not now.

“Usually, my season would go from April to Labor Day,” said Grenier. “Now it never ends.”

Calendar dates for road and mountain bike races typically dry up by September, just in time for cyclocross racing to begin. Fat bike season will follow when the ground freezes and the snow begins to fly.

“Fat biking is so much fun, it is another sport within itself,” said Grenier.

Angelea Preston of Lewiston races road bikes and cyclocross. She started riding a bike after breaking her leg while in-line skating. “I needed some way to get out of the house. Otherwise I was going to go nuts,” said the Leavitt Area High School graduate.

Preston met Coughlin and their first date was on a bike. “We went for a 25-mile bike ride with a broken leg,” said Preston.

Richard of Vassalboro entered yet another type of cycling race last fall. He competed in the Northwoods Gravel Grind in Rangeley. He won’t compete in this year’s race across Maine’s gravel roads because he will be racing in a downhill mountain bike race on the same day.

Grenier said the wide variety of bike races is good news for the shop he owns, Rainbow Bicycle in Lewiston.

“We have more customers because of it,” said Grenier. “The hard part is to stock every one of those niche bikes. It’s impossible to stock them all.”

Grenier said that in order to compete in multiple types of races, the cost adds up.

“If you want to do it all, like Ben and I, you need a cross bike, a road racing bike, a triathlon bike, a mountain bike and a fat bike to race in the winter.”

“It takes five to six bikes in my mind to do it all,” said Grenier. “It’s a ‘dangerous’ sport to get into.”

Richard knows just how dangerous it is. He, his wife, Angela, and their daughters, Jacie, Kassidy and Mackenzie, counted 26 bikes in their garage the last time they checked.

“It’s a little on the nuts side,” said Richard.

Grenier said there are two known formulas divining how many bikes you need. N plus one, he said, is one more bike than you now own. S minus one, he continues, is one less bike than the number of bicycles you buy before your significant other says “that’s enough” and leaves you.

Both Giampaolo and Grenier say that endurance rides such as the Dempsey Challenge have contributed to the rise of competitive cycling.

Giampaolo, owner of Busytown Bikes in Lewiston and an avid road racer, said rides such as the Trek Across Maine and the Dempsey act as a gateway to more cycling.

“They start with a charity ride and get a taste of it. If they are competitive in nature, they may take it a bit further,” said Giampaolo.

“The average charity rider enters it as a race,” said Grenier.

Richard said that whether he is racing in the woods, down a mountain, over an obstacle or organizing the Maine Apple Classic road race, there is room for them all.

“We all get a little slice of the pie and it works,” said Richard. “There is a lot to choose from.”