Hoosier mountain bikers may be crafting some new resolutions New Years Eve, as a new race series springs to life for 2012.

Planet Adventure’s IndianaMTB.com inaugural event will be held Dec. 31 in Zionsville, coinciding with the Indiana Cup cyclocross series finale. Upland Brewery will provide free beer to help warm up racers, or at least help them forget about the cold temperatures. On April 14, the series kicks off in earnest at Winona Lake, near Warsaw.

Long-time Planet Adventure supporter Gray Goat Sports is the title sponsor for the new race series. Series payouts for the various category winners are currently being determined and will be announced closer to the first race of the season.

Already one of the largest cycling promoters in the state thanks to its success putting on road and cyclocross races, Planet Adventure seeks to expand on those triumphs with the new mountain bike series. Event Director James Nichols promises competitors will love the new series’ chip timing – allowing for quick and accurate results posting – and multiple single-category races.

“This series was designed with racer experience as top priority and launched only after we determined we had the best technology, schedule, resources and staff available,” Nichols said. “It will continue to evolve and improve as mountain-biking trends change, and we receive valuable feedback from our racers.”

Fourteen events are scheduled for 2012, including four June Wednesday night races in Indianapolis. The series will reward strong, all-around riders; courses will range from .5-mile short-track dirt crits to longer cross-country races to relay events, as well as a few surprises. Nichols said most event weekends will include a time-trial element as well.

For more information, check out the series’ website, www.indianamtb.com, and enter a contest to win a free race entry.


By Robert Annis For Planet Adventure