Before mountain biking caught on, Farmington already had a race. About 25 riders lined up for the first Road Apple Rally in 1981. More than four decades later, the Road Apple Rally is billed as the oldest continually running mountain bike race in the United States.
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Transcript
Road Apple Rally to this community, the whole Four Corners community is held pretty close, close to the heart. A lot of people are, are really into this traditional mountain bike race. It’s been something that’s been going on since 1981. The community’s passionate about it. They love being involved with it. Local businesses promote bike shops here in town in the Four Corners region. It’s a great way to get out there healthy and have a nice little run on a bike, get out and enjoy nature and, and what it has to offer.
You’re watching the Local News Network, brought to you by Durango Motor Company and Home2 Suites by Hilton. Since 1981, Farmington has hosted the Road Apple Rally every single year, making it the oldest continually running mountain bike race in the United States. In those early days, modern mountain bikes, like we know them today, didn’t really exist. So the first roughly 25 riders that showed up in 1981 did the race on cruisers, BMX bikes, and anything else that could handle dirt. Those early trails were shared with horses and riders spent plenty of time swerving around what the horses left behind. Locals called them road apples and the name stuck.
It’s a 30 mile course along the Road Apple Rally Trail, and then we have a 15 miler that goes along the Kinsey’s Trail and Anastasia Trail. And then last year we introduced a sprint course, which is a four and a half mile track. It’s a good track just for some beginners and some of the younger athletes that are getting into mountain biking to try it out. And it’s also just a, a good opportunity to race as fast as you can and just knock out a real quick run.
The race has grown into a full weekend, opening with a Friday night bike party at the Farmington Civic Center. The rally has been a volunteer run city event for over four decades, keeping the race alive even through the 2020 pandemic.
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After more than four decades, the Road Apple Rally is still going strong. The bikes are better and the weekend is bigger, but the streak that started in 1981 still hasn’t missed a year. For Farmington, keeping it alive is a point of pride. Thank you for watching this edition of the local news network. To learn more, visit farmingtonnm.gov. And for more stories like this, visit LNN.news.
