We were lucky enough to be granted an interview with Lisa Nye-Salladin, the Race Director of The Camp Eagle Classic Mountain Bike Festival to ask some questions about their upcoming event happening on Sept. 3-5, 2010
How long has the event been around and how did it start?
The first Camp Eagle Classic was in 2006. We promoted the Kelly Creek Classic for 8 years before that. Kelly Creek was sold and we needed a new venue- Camp Eagle was looking to expand to do some events and the match was made
What was the motivation behind starting this event and who benefits from it? How have they been able to utilize the funds in the past?
We wanted to keep a mountain bike race in the hill country- unique terrain, challenging trails, etc. We also like to do more than the standard fare of just the cross country race. We created a few fun events, the Adult/ Junior Team Time Trial, the $100 costume crit, the $100 downhill We are a small group of cyclists that put on the race- we donate to the local Kerrville community- we have donated a bike to the Kerrville Bike Patrol, we sent some firefighters to the firefighters “Olympics”, we donated medical panniers and equipment for the EMTS to work big events, we donated money to build a skate park, and we have started a fund to build bicycle racks in downtown Kerrville. The Boy Scout Troop 111 comes and helps for the weekend and they get the proceeds from any T-shirt sales- we buy the tshirts and give them to the Scouts to sell.
Logistically, can you give us an idea how many volunteers, finances and planning it takes to put on this event?
Being at the Camp, it takes about 30 of the Camp Staff, 40 additional volunteers, $15,000 or so budget, planning, never enough!!
What’s the average number of riders per year who finish the race?
400
How many riders do you medically assist during the average race?
2-3
What was the worst accident you had in this event?
This event hasn’t been bad, Kelly Creek we had a punctured lung
What can folks do to support you and your mission?
Come to the race and participate
How many port-a-potties do you have?
18 but there are lots of bathrooms at the Camp
Any celebrities joining the ride?
We have a pro dirt bike racer, Cole Kirkpatrick racing this year. And of course, everyone is a celebrity in their own mind!!
Additional stuff you would like to let folks know about this years ride?
This is a great festival, the Camp opens up the property to all the participants of the weekend and there’s tons of fun stuff to do. It is a great event for the entire family on one of the more challenging mountain bike courses in the state. We’re offering up everything from kids races, to unicycle races, high school and collegiate races plus all the fun stuff.
Thank you Lisa for granting this quick interview and we hope we can catch up with everyone at the event.
Click here to view the event details for the The Camp Eagle Classic Mountain Bike Festival
