Event draws 400-plus visitors to San Benito each year
The Fifth Annual Panoche Valley Road Race is set for May 23,
with Blossom Hill Winery serving as the starting and finishing
point.
The race typically has 450 participants from Northern
California, from San Luis Obispo north to Santa Rosa, as well as
some riders from other states.
”
This is an actual race,
”
said Greg Bloom, a promoter of the event along with Jonathan
Sinclair.
”
In the past we’ve had Olympians in the race and it’s a highly
competitive event.
”
Event draws 400-plus visitors to San Benito each year
The Fifth Annual Panoche Valley Road Race is set for May 23, with Blossom Hill Winery serving as the starting and finishing point.
The race typically has 450 participants from Northern California, from San Luis Obispo north to Santa Rosa, as well as some riders from other states.
“This is an actual race,” said Greg Bloom, a promoter of the event along with Jonathan Sinclair. “In the past we’ve had Olympians in the race and it’s a highly competitive event.”
He said that some past participants are now riding in the Amgen Tour of California. The event also serves as the Northern California and Nevada state championship for junior riders, ages 10 to 18.
The riders range in age from children, up to people in their late 60s, and there are a variety of courses available from the 12-mile route for kids 10 to 12, up to a 67-mile route for adults.
“The average person is riding a bike that costs at least $5,000,” he said. “The best riders, the pros, usually do [the 67-mile course] in two hours and 45 minutes.”
Bloom said the remote Panoche Valley location works well for the race.
“It is rural so there is very little [traffic], which is very important,” Bloom said. “It’s an open race so we do not close the road down. And it is very scenic and it is challenging.”
Bloom himself has been an avid bicycle racer for 20 years.
“I’ve participated in many events and I felt that the roads around Hollister could make a good road race,” he said, of starting the event five years ago.
He and Sinclair also coordinate a race in September that goes up Fremont Peak.
“We did it for the first time last year,” he said. “That’s probably more conducive to recreational riders who want to try a race.”
The race is still open to participants, who can register online at BikeReg.com. Registration is $15 for children 18 and under, or $28.50 for other categories. Volunteers are also needed to help with the event, and will receive a T-shirt and lunch. Those interested in finding out more, can visit www.panochevalley.org or call Bloom at 455-5959.
