Ear to the ground:

“Isn’t it weird how when you’re fat the only clothes you can fit into are exercise clothes?”
– Overheard recently at a Front Range women’s dressing room

Durango fond-ango

It’s the biggest thing to hit local singletrack in 25 years – or at least since the Singlespeed World Championships descended on town for a few days in 2009.

Next fall, two of Durango’s fat tire legends, Ned Overend and Todd Wells, will combine forces for  the first-ever Durango Dirt Fondo.

Slated for Sept. 12, Todd and Ned’s excellent adventure commemorates the 25-year anniversary of the first-ever World MTB Championships, held in Durango back in the sport’s infancy in 1990. (Which, for history buffs, was won by Overend.)

For those unfamiliar with the term “fondo,” rest assured it has nothing to do with sticks and melted cheese over a can of Sterno. Rather, it is an Italian term (as in the “Gran Fondo”) for a large, mass-start bike race of both long and short varieties.

The Durango version will cap the merriment at 500 riders and feature “the challenging singletrack that has served as the training ground for the duo’s combined countless victories,” according to a press release.  Course options include a 30-miler and a 50-miler, each with food, mechanical and – god forbid – medical – support. The 50-mile course will make a cloverleaf loop around Durango, using various different trail systems connected by transitions of paths and roads. Befitting of the fondo’s namesake, the final stretch will wind through Overend Mountain Park.

Riders can expect to see sections familiar to them from the SSWC09, the Iron Horse Bicycle Classic and even the 2001 World Cup, depending upon one’s memory and longevity in the saddle.  Both courses will start and finish at the Powerhouse Science Center, for a party for riders (note: a fondo is not a race per se, although there will be timed sections for those so inclined).

The 50-mile long course will cap out at 350 riders and the 30-mile course at 150. Cost is $150 and $125 respectively and includes an exclusive swag bag, a finisher’s trophy, party and invitation to the 25th anniversary World’s party later that night.

A portion of event proceeds will benefit Ned and Todd’s favorite causes: Trails 2000 and the Mercy Health Foundation.

But to get in on the fandango, don’t delay. Registration opens March 23 and is expected to fill up faster than Ned zooming by you in the Gulch like you’re standing still. To sign up, go to www.toddandneds fondo.com. Todd and Ned’s Durango Dirt Fondo is a production of The Iron Horse Bicycle Classic.