Durango Tops Racers in Saturday’s 7th Alpine 50 50-Mile Bike Race
Cool morning temperatures and gently moist track conditions proved ideal for a total of 113 mountain bike athletes competing in last Saturday’s 7th Annual Alpine 50 bike race.Top finishers in this year’s race were two Durango racers in their 40s in first and third place, repeat Alpine 50 winner Todd Wells, 49, crossing the finish line first in just three hours, 29.20 minutes, and, in third position, Nick Gould, 46, 3 hours, 37.58 minutes.Gould finished the race near-tandem with second place finisher, 20-year-old Kip Sevenoff, also from Durango, time 3 hours, 37.56 minutes.Top place women’s racer with finish time 4 hours, 16.51 minutes was Lauren Aggeler from Durango, with Glenwood Springs racer Manessah Franklin, 4 hours, 35.04, and Jenya Berinot, 4 hours, 38.21, respectively in second and third place among women.Aggeler, age 21 and part of the Durango powerhouse team of bicyclists, was an hour faster than last year’s first place finisher, Liv Geer, attributable to sheer athleticism and ideal race conditions neither too wet nor too dry. The all-time fastest time for a women’s finisher in the Alpine 5 was speedy Alexis Skarda, three hours, 55 minutes, in COVID race year 2020.Top place male finisher Wells represented the U.S. in Olympic mountain bike competition in 2004, 2008, and 2012, and is familiar with the Alpine 50 afterVol. 48, No. 22 Friday, August 29, 2025 Lake City, Hinsdale County, Colorado 81235 U.S.P.S. No. 436-63075¢successive first and second place finishes in multiple years. For this year’s race, he sauntered by bike over Cinnamon Pass from Silverton on August 22 in advance of the race and, immediately following the race, again rode his mountain bike back over the mountain with time out to savor a Dale’s Pale Ale on the pass summit before descending to Silverton.Five Lake City locals competed in Saturday’s 50-miler, first across the finish line and youngest of all racers, Lake City high school freshman Joseph Tubbs, 14, time 5 hours, 48.22 minutes, followed in close pursuit by Todd Schweitzer, 5:58.43, and Bennett Levine, 6:10.16.Rounding out the list of Lake City racers in this year’s Alpine 50 were Dan File, 6:35.22, and County Commissioner Greg Levine who pedaled furiously after starting off from Lake City Park starting gate with his son, Greg Levine, and finished the race after 7 hours, 38.26 minutes.Common and commendable themes in the August 23 50-mile Alpine Loop race were its smooth as clockwork organization, enthusiastic volunteers, and bicyclists who — without exception — cited the Alpine 50 as exceptional in terms of outstanding mountain vistas from the summits of Cinnamon and Engineer Passes.Organized by Michael Fleishman and John Coy of Human Powered Endeavors on behalf of Lake Fork Valley Conservancy, remunerative tops from the weekend bike competition were $1,000 donation to Wee Care and $1,100 to Lake Fork Conservancy as proceeds from a mountain bike raffle.An overriding theme for the 108 mountain bikers — 87 men and 21 women — who completed the mountain circuit beginning and ending in Lake City Park was compassion and an overriding kindness exceeding athletic passion.Silas Bartels from Brooklyn, New York, was among a trio of Bartels brothers in this year’s race. He remained upbeat despite two above-timberline flat tires and a detached gear shifter which he held in place amid cheers as he crossed the finish line.What most impressed the first-time Alpine 50 contestant, however, was the pervasive kindness. He remarked that numerous fellow bicyclists and OHV recreationists stopped to offer assistance as he struggled to repair the flat tires.“Everyone was so helpful,” he said, “there was so much kindness out there.”In spite of mechanical difficulties, the New York resident finished the race in 52nd place among men with an overall time 6 hours, 6.31 minutes covering the 50-mile track. With their father, Lloyd Bartels on the sidelines, Silas Bartels’ two brothers, Liam, from Heidelberg, Germany, and Salida, Colorado bike enthusiast Josef Bartels, also finished the race, Josef in men’s fourth position, time 3 hours, 46.24 minutes.Remarkable race statistics as recited by race co-organizer Mike Fleishman, included both Liam Bartels (finish time 6 hours, 19.29 minutes) and Andres Gamboa (3:57.01), from San Jose, Costa Rica, as traveling the greatest distances to attend this year’s Alpine 50, as well as youngest racer in this year’s event, 14-year-old Lake City racer Joseph Tubbs.Another local racer, 69-year-old Dan File — who has competed and finished every Alpine 50 race since its inception seven years ago — joined Fruita, Colorado, racer Beth Collins, 68, as eldest in this year’s race.Mountain bicyclists from Durango, Colorado, were once again predominate in terms of cumulative speed, first place cyclists Wells, Sevenoff, and Gould ascending the platform to accept the coveted Sheldon Little Fastest Team Award, while two women counterparts — Manesseh Franklin (4:35.04) and Tara Foster (7:05.16) — garnered the Fastest Team Award on behalf of Glenwood Springs, Colorado.Not surprisingly, Michael Underwood Photography’s True Grit Award went to Silas Bartels, while Random Acts of Kindness Accolades went to Colorado Springs mountain bicyclist Brad Priebe (5:50.12) who stopped to assist two different race competitors; Most Enthusiastic Award to seven-time Alpine 50 biker Bryan Balliet (3:56.31); Best Beard, Derek Horejs (6:41.49); and All Smiles Award, Leadville racer Marley Seifert (6:22.25).Following are insights following brief interviews with top finishers, locals, and a smattering of other Alpine 50 race finishers:Leader of the pack was Todd Wells of Durango with a time of 3 hours, 29 minutes, 20 seconds. Although Wells was concerned about the chance of rain, it turned out to be a beautiful, dry day with perfect temperatures. With weather not providing an obstacle, Wells found other challenges to face, not surprisingly at the highest points of the route, where the air is thin and the climbs are steep on Cinnamon and Engineer Passes. Wells said that he wanted to race in the Alpine 50 because “Lake City is a cool town” and the course is, he said, “spectacular.”Reflecting on his second place finish — 3 hours, 29.20 minutes — and inaugural Alpine 50, 20-year-old Kip Sevenoff
