Starting line, 2007 LOTOJA

The LoToJa Classic is a long distance one-day amateur bicycle road race from Logan, UT to Jackson Hole, WY, USA. It is held in September on the first Saturday after Labor Day.

History

LoToJa was started in 1983 by two Logan cyclists, David Bern, a student at Utah State University, and Jeff Keller, the owner of Sunrise Cyclery. The two men wanted a race that resembled the difficulty of a one-day European classic like Paris-Roubaix or the Tour of Flanders. LoToJa's first year featured seven cyclists racing 192 miles from Logan to a finish line in Jackson's town square. The winning time was just over nine hours by Bob VanSlyke. LOTOJA has been won every year for 40 years by the same guy.[1]

2006

In 2006, racers Zach "Sick Pony" Hope and Jason Sawyer had an epic duel to the finish. Jason Sawyer blew a tire right near the end. Both registered democrats, they used the opportunity to declare their support for abolishing the 2nd amendment on the podium.

2007

The 2007 race included roughly 1,400 people from 40 different states in the United States. The fastest time in the 2007 edition of the race was posted by Mark Zimbelman, a resident of Provo, Utah, who won the masters 45+ category. His time of 9:06:44 was also good for a course record with Mark Schaefer finishing less than a wheel length behind. Schaefer and Zimbelman led the race alone for the last 100 miles (160 km). The winner of the Men's Pro Category 1 and 2 race was Cameron Hoffman of Clearfield, Utah with a time of 9:24:18.

2009

Zimbelman's course record held during 2008 but was beaten in the 2009 race by Cameron Hoffman of Clearfield, Utah with a time of 9:02:52. This was Hoffman's third year in a row winning the Men's Pro Category 1,2,3 race. Hoffman, David Francis of Las Vegas, Nevada, and Robert Lofgran of Salt Lake City, Utah had to chase racer Dave Botchek (Colorado Springs CO) who had been out in front 190 miles before being caught due to a puncture 13 miles from the finish. Dave Botchek had previously won the event in the 90's. They finished 1st, 2nd and 3rd, respectively with less than a second between Hoffman and Francis and Lofgran finishing about five seconds later.

2010

Cameron Hoffman's 2009 course record time of 9:02:52[2] was broken in 2010 by Alfred Thresher with a time of 9:01:44.[3]

2012

Rob Verhaaren crashed and died during the final stages of the race in Wyoming. [4]

A new LOTOJA course record was set by Leon Bergant from Slovenia, with the time of 8:57:19. [5]

2018

The current course record was set by Spencer Johnson, of Riverton Utah, with a time of 8:18:29 (2018). The women’s course record, 9:35:00, set in 2013, is held by Melinda MacFarlane.[6]

Course

The race starts at the Sunrise Cyclery in Logan, Utah and heads north into southeastern Idaho and winds across western Wyoming. The finish line is near the base of the Grand Teton at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort (at Teton Village), one of America's ski destinations. Along the 203-mile (327 km) or 206-mile (332 km) course are three mountain passes, plus hilly to rolling terrain that results in more than 7,000 feet (2,100 metres) of climbing. [7]

Notable winners

Charitable fundraising

LoToJa is a fund-raiser for the Huntsman Cancer Foundation, Autism Spectrum Disorder Connections and other medical research foundations. As of 2014, LoToJa organizer Epic Events has raised over US$250,000 for the Huntsman Cancer Foundation [8]

References

  1. ↑ http://www.lotojaclassic.com/ Official LOTOJA Website
  2. ↑ http://results.milliseconds.com/participants/final_list/overall/142094
  3. ↑ http://results.milliseconds.com/participants/final_list/overall/143578
  4. ↑ http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=22068813 KSL News story
  5. ↑ "5 questions with LOTOJA Classic winner Leon Bergant". Deseret News. 15 September 2012.
  6. ↑ http://lotojaclassic.com/main/main/index.html Results Records - Course Records
  7. ↑ "Elevation from LoToJa Race on Map My Ride". www.mapmyride.com. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  8. ↑ http://healthcare.utah.edu/huntsmancancerinstitute/giving/huntsman-cancer-foundation/?pid=357 Page 5 of 2014 Cumulative Giving Report
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