I don’t race much, but there are a few races which I enjoy. These are generally the sort of grass roots or fund raising events where the fees are usually low and the atmosphere is generally awesome. I’m going to try and report on all the local/grass roots races in Norcal that interest me. Don’t expect to see Sea Otter or any of the big venues show up here. They just don’t interest me a lot and get plenty of coverage elsewhere. The first grassroots race I want to cover is actually a weekly series in the Sacramento area.
The Prarie City Race Series is a weekly mountain bike race series held at the Prarie City OHV park located between Rancho Cordova and Folsom off of Grant Line Road. The races are held every Wednesday evening at 6:15 PM (show up early for registration) starting April 2nd. The only prizes awarded on race day are random door prizes. This event has been growing significantly over the last few years and currently they average over 350 racers per week. The laps are short, 3-4 miles and the different classes all race varying lengths; 2 laps for beginner, 3 for sport class, 4 for expert and 5 for expert ‘plus’ (instead of pro). The course is very fast, SS friendly with lots of short ups and downs rather than any prolonged climbing.