2018 Iron Horse Bicycle Classic

 

Photo: Scott DW Smith Photography

Which is faster: a train or a bicycle? That was the pressing question between two competitive brothers who raced each other from Durango to Silverton.

In 1971, cycling enthusiast Tom Mayer was living in Durango and loved riding the roads in the area. His brother, Jim, was a brakeman on the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad. One day they bet a candy bar to see who would reach Silverton first: Tom on his 10-speed or Jim on the Durango train. Jim was surprised to pull into the Silverton station to see Tom waiting for him.

That famous ride birthed Tom’s idea to turn it into a race, and now the Iron Horse Bicycle Classic has been a favorite Durango bike race since 1972. This year will be the 47th year of the classic road race that includes three days of events over Memorial Day weekend:

Friday, May 25, 2018

• 3-7 p.m. — Final Packet Pickup Buckley Park
• Narrow Horse Swim
• 3-8 p.m. — Steamworks Faceplant Party with beer, live music, vendors and bike parade at Buckley Park in downtown Durango
• Iron BMX

Saturday, May 26, 2018

• 7:30 a.m. — Durango Coca-Cola Road Race
• 8 a.m. — McDonald’s Citizens Tour to Silverton
• 8:15 a.m. — Quarter Horse to Purgatory
• MBS King/Queen of Mountain (Road & MTB Omnium)
• 3-7 p.m. — Bike pickup at Durango High School
• 9 a.m.-1 p.m. — Silverton Finish Line Festival will feature a beer garden, food, vendors and racing at Memorial Park in Silverton
• 10 a.m. — Kid’s Treasure Hunt at Memorial Park in Silverton
• 12:30 p.m. — Veterans Memorial Ceremony, Memorial Park in Silverton

Sunday May 27, 2018

• 9 a.m. start — La Strada La Plata Gravel Ride
• 11 a.m.-4 p.m. (category times vary) — Morehart Murphy Subaru MTB Race
• 8 a.m. (registration) — Sprite Kids Race & Alpine Kids Village
• 9 a.m.-3 p.m. — Alpine Bank Kids Village
• 1-4 p.m. — BP BMX Straight Rhythm
• 5 p.m. — Durango Cyclery Cruiser Crit
• Durango downtown bike festival will include kids festival with fun activities, live music, vendors and racing and copper mug specials around town.

Whether you’re in Durango to compete in the Iron Horse Bicycle Classic, to support an athlete or simply to enjoy the festivities, stay with us at the Durango Econo Lodge Inn & Suites! We’re one of the best Durango hotels for this event. We’re located only half a mile north of Buckley Park, which is a straight shot on Main Avenue. The Econo Lodge Durango is under new ownership, so come check us out and reserve your room today!

Durango Train: Narrow Gauge Day

Photo: Durangotrain.com

Train season has arrived in Durango! Well, technically, every season is train season in Durango, but the time has come for the Durango train to start running all the way to Silverton for the summer.

The Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad begins its 137th year of continuous train operations between Durango and Silverton. The train first started running the route in 1882. Every winter, the train stops running the full route to Silverton and instead offers scenic rides to Cascade Canyon wye, which is “train talk” for a place to turn locomotives or trains around, then returns to Durango.

During the summer, passengers can do the full round-trip route to and from Silverton or opt to take the Durango train one way (up or down) and a bus back to shave some time off the journey.

Narrow Gauge Day

May 4th is Narrow Gauge Day for the Durango train! Come out to kick off another year of Durango-to-Silverton train service at the depot in downtown Durango. This year marks the 20th anniversary since American Heritage Railways bought the Durango train, so this year’s festivities will celebrate that anniversary.

Things get crackin’ with the annual free picnic from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday, May 4, at the Durango depot in downtown. Volunteers will be grilling hot dogs and serving up chips and soda. Snoopy will be making an appearance to say howdy to kids and kids-at-heart. And The Bar D Wranglers will be singing some amazing tunes, so don’t miss out!

Two recently renovated passenger cars — the premium Nomad and standard Coach 333 — will be on display as well as some locomotives and other railroad equipment. Guests are welcome to take tours and visit the D&SNG Railroad Museumto explore the

exhibits and check out a crowd favorite: the model train. If you haven’t been for a while, you can’t miss the museum’s new 600-gallon aquarium that houses Colorado River Cut Throat Trout!

Also, if you’re not familiar with the annual Durango Cowboy Gathering, you should be — and now you can be because they’ll be at Narrow Gauge Day to tell you about the festival coming up in October.

Free tree seedlings will be available on a first-come, first-served basis, so get there early to get your free tree, courtesy of owner/CEO Al Harper.

Ride the First Train of the Season!

You can ride the first (or second) train of the season to Silverton on Saturday, May 5. Board the first train departing Durango at 8:45 a.m. or the second one at 9:30 a.m. — the first Silverton passenger trains of the 2018 season. Costumed interpreters will be on board strolling from car to car, entertaining passengers with stories and historic tidbits.

Stay with us!

The Durango Econo Lodge Inn & Suites is located at 2002 Main Ave., a straight 1.2-mile shot north of the Durango depot in downtown. We’re a quick drive or an even easier trolley ride to downtown Durango and the Durango train depot. Come for Narrow Gauge Day, stay to ride the first Silverton trains on Saturday and spend Sunday exploring the town! Book your room at the Econo Lodge Durango today!