Sea Otter Classic
Encyclopedia
Sea Otter Classic is a bicycling and outdoor life sports festival
and trade show held on the former Fort Ord
in Monterey, California
since 1990. The classic is named in honor of the sea otter
, an indigenous mammal which flourishes on the neighboring Pacific Coast
.
The Sea Otter Classic offers international racing, beginner through professional and includes mountain biking events, such as cross country
(XC), downhill
(DH), dual slalom
(DS), Dual Stunt, Super Downhill (SuperD), and short track (SXTC). The elite professional mountain bike races are sanctioned by USA Cycling
.
The event was co-founded by brothers Ron and Rick Sutton, and Frank Yohannan. In addition to mountain bike races Sea Otter offers road bicycle racing
and a Gran Fondo.
Velonews wrote of the event,
Multi-sport event
A multi-sport event is an organized sporting event, often held over multiple days, featuring competition in many different sports between organized teams of athletes from nation-states. The first major, modern, multi-sport event of international significance was the modern Olympic Games.Many...
and trade show held on the former Fort Ord
Fort Ord
Fort Ord was a U.S. Army post on Monterey Bay in California. It was established in 1917 as a maneuver area and field artillery target range and was closed in September 1994. Fort Ord was one of the most attractive locations of any U.S. Army post, because of its proximity to the beach and California...
in Monterey, California
Monterey, California
The City of Monterey in Monterey County is located on Monterey Bay along the Pacific coast in Central California. Monterey lies at an elevation of 26 feet above sea level. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 27,810. Monterey is of historical importance because it was the capital of...
since 1990. The classic is named in honor of the sea otter
Sea Otter
The sea otter is a marine mammal native to the coasts of the northern and eastern North Pacific Ocean. Adult sea otters typically weigh between 14 and 45 kg , making them the heaviest members of the weasel family, but among the smallest marine mammals...
, an indigenous mammal which flourishes on the neighboring Pacific Coast
Pacific Coast
A country's Pacific coast is the part of its coast bordering the Pacific Ocean.-The Americas:Countries on the western side of the Americas have a Pacific coast as their western border.* Geography of Canada* Geography of Chile* Geography of Colombia...
.
Mountain biking
Mountain biking is a sport which consists of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, using specially adapted mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes, but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and performance in rough terrain.Mountain biking can...
(XC), downhill
Downhill cycling
Downhill biking is a gravity-assisted time trial mountain biking event. Riders race against the clock, usually starting at intervals of 30 seconds , on courses which typically take two to five minutes to complete. Riders come from all around the world. Riders are timed with equipment similar to...
(DH), dual slalom
Dual slalom
Dual slalom is an older mountain bike racing discipline similar to 4X racing.It consists of two racers racing two almost identical tracks next to each other down a slope. The courses are usually short; one run lasting about 30 seconds. It is filled with tabletop jumps, doubles and bermed turns...
(DS), Dual Stunt, Super Downhill (SuperD), and short track (SXTC). The elite professional mountain bike races are sanctioned by USA Cycling
USA Cycling
USA Cycling or USAC, based in Colorado Springs, Colorado, is the national governing body for bicycle racing in the United States. It covers the disciplines of road, track, mountain bike, cyclo-cross, BMX and collegiate racing...
.
The event was co-founded by brothers Ron and Rick Sutton, and Frank Yohannan. In addition to mountain bike races Sea Otter offers road bicycle racing
Road bicycle racing
Road bicycle racing is a bicycle racing sport held on roads, using racing bicycles. The term "road racing" is usually applied to events where competing riders start simultaneously with the winner being the first to the line at the end of the course .Historically, the most...
and a Gran Fondo.
Velonews wrote of the event,
From humble origins in 1991, when just 450 attendees populated the event, to 2008, when almost 10,000 participants and 50,000 spectators packed the venue for the four-day festival, Sea Otter has become a fixture on the spring calendar. While the event began as a bicycle race, and continues to feature road and mountain bike races, the consumer expo has become a primary draw. These days, the Sea Otter Classic has become a de-facto spring trade show and consumer fair, where industry insiders launch new products, tease future releases, and use the opportunity to interact directly with a captive spectator audience.
Lists of Winners
Cross-country stage race
- 2009 Christoph SauserChristoph SauserChristoph Sauser is a cross-country mountain biker, who won the bronze medal at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia. He currently races on the Specialized Cross Country Team....
(Swi) Specialized Factory Racing- Georgia GouldGeorgia GouldGeorgia Gould is an American professional mountain bike and cyclocross competitor. She has earned three career national championships – two in cross-country mountain bike in 2006 and 2010, and one in short track mountain bike in 2009. Since 2006 Gould has been employed by the LUNA Chix Pro...
(USA) Luna Women's MTB Team
- Georgia Gould
- 2008 Miguel MartinezMiguel Martinez (cyclist)Miguel Martinez is a French cyclist specializing in competitive cross-country mountain biking. He won the gold medal at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia after having finished in third place in the inaugural event at the 1996 Summer Olympics.-References:...
(Fra) Amore & Vita - McDonald's- Kelli Emmett (USA) Giant
- 2007 Geoff Kabush (Can) Team Maxxis
- Georgia GouldGeorgia GouldGeorgia Gould is an American professional mountain bike and cyclocross competitor. She has earned three career national championships – two in cross-country mountain bike in 2006 and 2010, and one in short track mountain bike in 2009. Since 2006 Gould has been employed by the LUNA Chix Pro...
(USA) Luna Women's MTB Team
- Georgia Gould
- 2006 Liam KilleenLiam KilleenLiam Killeen , is a professional mountain biker. He represented England at the Commonwealth Games in 2002 where he came 3rd, and in 2006 he won the Cross Country race...
(GBr) Specialized Factory Racing- Gunn-Rita Dahle Flesjaa (Nor) Multivan Merida Biking Team
- 2005 Geoff Kabush (Can) Team Maxxis
- Alison SydorAlison SydorAlison Sydor is a retired Canadian professional cross country mountain cyclist. She began cycling at age 20 and is a graduate of the University of Victoria...
(Can) Rocky Mountain/Business Objects
- Alison Sydor
- 2004 Filip MeirhaegheFilip MeirhaegheFilip Meirhaeghe is a Belgian racing cyclist. His primary focus was in mountain bike racing, however, he has also taken part in elite road, cyclo-cross and track cycling. He has won four Mountain Bike World Championships medals, one Olympic medal and a total of eleven mountain bike World Cup events...
(Bel) Specialized- Alison DunlapAlison DunlapAlison Dunlap is an American professional cyclist. She won the world cross-country mountain bike championship in 2001 and two Mountain Bike World Cup races...
(USA) Luna
- Alison Dunlap
- 2003 Roland Green (Can) Trek-Volkswagen
- Alison DunlapAlison DunlapAlison Dunlap is an American professional cyclist. She won the world cross-country mountain bike championship in 2001 and two Mountain Bike World Cup races...
(USA) Luna
- Alison Dunlap
- 2002 Roland Green (Can) Trek-Volkswagen
- Alison DunlapAlison DunlapAlison Dunlap is an American professional cyclist. She won the world cross-country mountain bike championship in 2001 and two Mountain Bike World Cup races...
(USA) Luna Chix
- Alison Dunlap
- 2001 Bart BrentjensBart BrentjensBart Jan-Baptist Marie Brentjens is a Dutch racing cyclist in mountain biking.Brentjens won a gold medal for mountain biking in the 1996 Summer Olympics, the first to recognize cross-country mountain biking as an event. He followed this with bronze in the 2004 Summer Olympics...
(Ned) Giant- Caroline AlexanderCaroline AlexanderCaroline Alexander is a cross country mountain biker and road cyclist born in Barrow in Furness, Lancashire. She represented Great Britain at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta and the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney...
(GBr) Specialized
- Caroline Alexander
- 2000 Bas Van Dooren (Ned) Be-One
- Laurence LeboucherLaurence LeboucherLaurence Leboucher is a French professional cross-country mountain bike and cyclo-cross racer. She is a three-time Olympian and two-time world cyclo-cross champion.- Major achievements :...
(Fra) GT
- Laurence Leboucher
- 1999 Cadel EvansCadel EvansCadel Lee Evans is an Australian professional racing cyclist and winner of the 2011 Tour de France. Early in his career, Evans was a champion mountain biker, winning the World Cup in 1998 and 1999 and placing seventh in the men's cross-country mountain bike race at the 2000 Summer Olympics in...
(Aus) Volvo/Cannondale- Alison Dunlap (USA) GT
- 1998 Cadel EvansCadel EvansCadel Lee Evans is an Australian professional racing cyclist and winner of the 2011 Tour de France. Early in his career, Evans was a champion mountain biker, winning the World Cup in 1998 and 1999 and placing seventh in the men's cross-country mountain bike race at the 2000 Summer Olympics in...
(Aus) Volvo/Cannondale
Gravity omnium
- 2005 Jared GravesJared GravesJared Graves is an Australian cyclist who has represented Australia in BMX, 4x and DH mountain biking.In 2006, he finished second in the mountain bike 4x world cup series...
(Aus)- Tracy MoseleyTracy MoseleyTracy Marie Moseley is a British professional racing cyclist who was born in Worcester, specialising in downhill mountain bike racing. Moseley's brother, Ed, was also a mountain biker, it was after he began riding cross country mountain bike races that a race was held on their farm in 1992; this...
(GBr) Kona/Les Gets
- Tracy Moseley
- 2004 Eric CarterEric CarterEric Robert Carter is a former American professional "Old/Mid School" Bicycle Motocross racer whose prime competitive years were from 1983 to 1998...
(USA) Hyundai /Mongoose- Leigh DonovanLeigh DonovanLeigh Donovan is an American downhill mountain biker.Leigh Donovan was a champion mountain bike racer, competing from 1993 to 2001, the most decorated U.S. downhill and slalom rider. Leigh retired from her professional career in 2001, with the world championships in Vail, Co...
(USA) GT-Fox
- Leigh Donovan