During last year’s reinvented Sedona Mountain Bike Festival, more than 1,000 mountain bikers descended on Red Rock Country to ride the trails and celebrate the biking community. Organizer Mike Raney, who co-owns Over the Edge bike shop, says he’s had even more interest ahead of this year’s event, which happens March 4-6. The festival’s home base will move from Tlaquepaque Arts & Crafts Village to Posse Grounds Park in West Sedona. The new location will make it easier for bikers to get to area trailheads for group rides, says Mike. Expect to find a beer garden featuring five local breweries, plus food trucks, vendors, demonstrations, clinics and live music at Posse Grounds.
Everyone is invited to the festival at Posse Grounds, even if you’ve never been on a mountain bike in your life. The beer garden will open at 2 p.m. on March 4 with a performance by Flagstaff-based alt-grove band VeloValo on the main stage from 4 to 6 p.m. On Saturday, the beer garden opens at noon. Catch rock band Planet Sandwich, also from Flagstaff, on the main stage at noon. The Invincible Grins from the Verde Valley take the stage at 3 p.m. The festival will be open until midnight Friday and Saturday. On Sunday, there will be a free yoga session at 8 a.m. The beer garden will open at 1 p.m., and the festival wraps up at 4 p.m.
It’s free to attend the festival (there is a charge for beer and food). To participate in the clinics and group rides, mountain bikers will need passes. Pass prices range from $50 for a single day to $100 for three days. Event camping is also available. Mike says it’s exciting to see how the festival continues to grow and take on a life of its own, even if that means he doesn’t have much time to participate in the group rides.
“It was a learning experience last year,” he says. “I didn’t expect it to be so huge. We’re expecting even more people this year – more bike companies, too. It’s becoming a regional thing – not just an event for Sedona and northern Arizona.” – Erika Ayn Finch. Photo by Colin Meager.
SEDONA CALENDAR: Events, activities, shows, happenings
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