Junior Bike Week is the only multi-day festival in the world that exclusively celebrates KIDS ON BIKES!
Since 2016, we’ve been throwing down the BIGGEST KIDS’ BIKE PARTY ON THE PLANET right here in Crested Butte, ColoRADo - the birthplace of mountain biking! We have both competitive and festive events happening throughout the long weekend for kids of all ages and abilities with everything from trail work, skills clinics, and hucking tires to action packed racing on some of the best dirt you will ever lay your tires on. Most importantly, let’s not forget the THIRD BOWL HOMEMADE ICE CREAM…and yes, we did say ICE CREAM!
Your Junior Bike Week event registration fees directly support the following efforts:
Provide the opportunity for juniors to participate in a festival that exists to celebrate KIDS ON BIKES.
To support the future of our sport by creating lifelong memories with our children at Junior Bike Week so they are able to experience the genuine magic that can only be found riding bikes with friends.
As a fundraiser for the Crested Butte Development Team, Junior Bike Week revenue helps our nonprofit organization offer the safest, highest quality, progress-based programming available for youth ages 2-18 at the most affordable cost possible.
JUNIOR BIKE WEEK SCHEDULE - While our 2024 schedule is currently being updated, the high notes are outlined below. Please note, there is a high probability that events will be added as we get closer to the festival. PLEASE BE SURE TO CHECK BACK ON THIS PAGE FOR EVENT UPDATES AS WE GET CLOSER!! This site was most recently updated on April 9, 2024.
You can also follow us on Instagram @Junior_Bike_Week and/or Facebook @JuniorBikeWeek for all the latest details. Better yet, request access to the Junior Bike Week Team App using the link below.
WE LOVE VOLUNTEERS!!! IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN JOINING US AS A VOLUNTEER DURING JUNIOR BIKE WEEK, PLEASE SEND US AN EMAIL. ALL VOLUNTEERS RECEIVE A CUSTOM JUNIOR BIKE WEEK MIIR MUG OR A PAIR OF SOCKS.
Wednesday, June 26 - TRAIL WORK DAY
2:30 pm: Join us for a brief, HIGH ENERGY presentation by the Crested Butte Conservation Corps (CBCC) to learn about what all goes into making our trails and backcountry so awesome. We will meet at Tommy V. Field just across from the Town of Crested Butte Bike Park. This event is recommended for ages 6-12.
3:00 pm: In partnership with the Crested Butte Mountain Bike Association, the Nature Connection, and the Crested Butte Development Team, Junior Bike Week will host a family-friendly trail work day at the Town of Crested Butte Bike Park located next to the Crested Butte Community School at 1005 9th Street. Please be sure to bring gloves, close-toed shoes, sunscreen, and a water bottle. We will meet at Junior Bike Week HQ (Town of Crested Butte Bike Park) and get the pump track dialed for the weekend festivities, including the Pump Track Challenge, that will be held on Saturday, June 29 for younger riders. Due to the nature of the trail work that we have scheduled for this event, we ask that participants be 12+ years of age.
Thursday, June 27 - JUNIOR BIKE WEEK KICK OFF PARTY - PRESENTED BY ORANGE SEAL
All ticket pricing and purchase windows below are from 2023, we will have 2024 details updated when we finalize those with Crested Butte Mountain Resort.
9:00 am: Crested Butte Mountain Resort lifts start spinning for DH practice laps on the Avery. All lines will be open, including the “French” go-arounds that will likely be used by many younger racers to navigate the more technical sections. More details are outlined below.
Discounted athlete and spectator tickets will be available on the top floor of the Treasury Building at the Crested Butte Mountain Resort base area for $25 (regular price is $52) and $30 (regular price is $60), respectively. This ticket window will be open from 8:30 am - 4 pm on Thursday for practice and 8:30 am - noon on Friday for race day. Please have your Downhill registration confirmation available for discounted athlete tickets.
3:00 pm: All Junior Wildflower Classic race courses will be marked today for pre-ride.
4:00 pm: Early Rider Check-In for DH, Short Track, Pump Track Challenge (riders under eight-years-old only), and Junior Wildflower Classic events. We will be in the Crested Butte Community School Multi-Purpose Room ready to distribute race plates, swag, etc. until 7 pm. We’ll have Junior Bike Week + CB Devo merchandise for sale at this time.
5:00 pm: We’ll meet at the Junior Bike Week event tent at the Town of Crested Butte Bike Park for music, Schwalbe Tire Huck, and summer-inspired mocktails by The Horsefeather Mobile Bar for everyone. Mocktails are free for all race participants with a $5 suggested donation for everyone else. Bring your Junior Bike Week/Orange Seal Silipint from past festivals to be entered in a fun drawing at the Kick Off Party. We’ll be closing things down at 7 pm to get ready for our racer/volunteer meetings.
6:00 pm: Tire Huck, supported by Schwalbe Tires
7:00 pm: Downhill Racer Meeting in the Junior Bike Week event tent
7:30 pm: Downhill Volunteer Meeting in the Junior Bike Week event tent; please email director@JuniorBikeWeek.com if you are interested in joining us as a volunteer for this event
Friday, June 28 - DOWNHILL & THE RITUAL FILM TOUR
We are excited to share that the 2024 Junior Bike Week Downhill will be held on the AVERY TRAIL at Crested Butte Mountain Resort! We STRONGLY RECOMMEND that you request to join the Junior Bike Week Team App to access all Downhill race details, as well as other event information, as this website will not be updated during the festival. The information below is subject to change based on weather or other unforeseen logistics. There are NO REFUNDS if this event needs to be cancelled by Crested Butte Mountain Resort due to lightning or other inclement weather conditions. Rider safety is priority ONE..
EVENT DETAILS ARE AS FOLLOWS:
Course will be open for practice laps on Thursday, June 27. If you are not familiar with the trails, it is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED that ALL COMPETITORS pre-ride before race day. We also STRONGLY RECOMMEND knee pads, gloves, and chest protector. A downhill mountain biking specific full face helmet is REQUIRED for this race.
All lines will be open, including the “French” go-arounds that will likely be used by many younger racers to navigate the more technical sections.
There is NO RACE DAY REGISTRATION for the Junior Bike Week Downhill race! Online registration closes at 10 pm on Friday, June 21 so we have plenty of time to get start lists race ready. If you missed the early rider check-in on Thursday evening, please come to the CB Devo/Junior Bike Week tent, located at the base of the Silver Queen lift at the CBMR base area, at 8 am to grab your race plate. OMNIUM participants will use the same plate for chip timing in all three events - Downhill, Short Track, and Cross-Country.
Neutral support will be provided by Stan’s NoTubes.
9 am - 11 am: Official downhill practice, course will be closed to the public. All lines will be open, including the “French” go-arounds that will likely be used by many younger racers to navigate the more technical sections.
11:15 am - 2:30 pm: The Junior Bike Week Downhill Race…this will be the first event of the Junior Bike Week OMNIUM Competition which will combine results in gravity, short track, and cross-country disciplines.
8 am - 9 am: Athlete Check-In; see details below:
Race fee for all categories is $60/participant (before June 1, 2024; price increases to $80/participant on this date) and includes one complimentary mocktail and appetizers at the Junior Bike Week Kick Off Party, exceptional course marking & marshals, medical response, custom race plate with chip timing, and your choice of Junior Bike Week or CB Devo swag. Registration and race fee must be completed/paid online where you will submit electronic waivers for all Junior Bike Week events.
Participants who are registered for all three events - Downhill, Short Track, and Cross-Country will automatically be entered in the Junior Bike Week OMNIUM competition.
8:00 am: Late athlete plate pick-up at Junior Bike Week check in table at the base of the Silver Queen lift located at the Crested Butte Mountain Resort base area.
8:30 am: Racers check in with Junior Bike Week staff at the CB Devo/Junior Bike Week tent, located at the base of the Silver Queen lift at the Crested Butte Mountain Resort base area. We will start check-in with 8-10, followed by 11-12, 13-14, 15-16, and 17-18. All riders MUST check-in BEFORE loading the lift to race start so we can assess equipment. If you don’t check-in, you don’t race. More details will be sent out to all registered racers as we get closer to the event.
All lines will be open, including the “French” go-arounds that will likely be used by many younger racers to navigate the more technical sections.
Riders will compete in their respective age-group based on their official racing age determined on December 31, 2024. This is consistent with USA Cycling and we hope this alleviates some confusion for those who participate in USAC events. If you register for the wrong category, your child will automatically be placed in his/her correct race category without notice.
Parents are welcome to pedal up to the mountain or drive to the base area for spectating at the exit of the Lower Avery rock garden. In an effort to reduce congestion, we will be asking all riders and parents to clear out of the finish coral for safety considerations.
With this event being held at Crested Butte Mountain Resort, with the support of bike patrol, we are not requiring our 8-10 category riders to have an adult ride with them as we have in previous years on backcountry stages. No parents will be allowed on course EXCEPT sweeps who will have a “SWEEP” plate. Riders will be disqualified if we see/hear reports of parents riding with their child. If your child is too young to be on course alone, he/she is likely too young to be racing - please be patient and trust the process.
The minimum racer age for this event is eight-years-old, again, NO EXCEPTIONS, please. In the interest of rider safety and risk management, we feel this is an appropriate decision given the technical difficulty of the trail. We will have a “friendly” Pump Track Challenge for younger riders on Saturday.
Race categories for the Downhill event will be the same as the Short Track and Junior Wildflower Classic XC races on Saturday and Sunday, respectively, to keep things consistent for the OMNIUM COMPETITION. These categories are 8-10, 11-12, 13-14, 15-16, and 17-18. There will be awards for the top-3 finishers in each category for male and female participants.
Awards for this race will be held at the CB Devo/Junior Bike Week tent located at the base of the Silver Queen lift at the Crested Butte Mountain Resort base area at approximately 4 pm. We’ll keep you updated on our timing on the Junior Bike Week Team App.
Crested Butte is a small mountain town and we are anticipating a summer with continued labor shortages. Please consider bringing your own food, or hitting the grocery store, if you would like to have quick access to breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Junior Bike Week strives to be a PLANET FRIENDLY EVENT. All of our disposable plates and cups will be compostable. Trash and recycling will be available at the CAMP HOST location when on duty. Due to the abuse we’ve seen in the past with garbage and recycling disposal, we will be monitoring this more closely in hopes that we can do better because we can DO BETTER!
The Junior Bike Week Downhill is operating under a Special Use Permit on the GMUG National Forest.
Please visit our event registration page to get registered for all Junior Bike Week races, clinics, and to make camping reservations.
After the racing, please join us for…
THE RITUAL FILM TOUR & RAFFLE AT THE CRESTED BUTTE CENTER FOR THE ARTS, LOCATED AT 606 6TH STREET
6:00 pm Doors open for raffle ticket sales
7:00 pm Welcome + Raffle Drawing
7:15 pm Start, film run time is +/- 90-minutes
Movie is $15 to attend; raffle tickets will be 1/$5 and 5/$20. One complimentary raffle ticket per entry. Ticket price increases to $20 at 10 pm on May 1, 2024 and will be $20 at the door.
Saturday, June 29 - SKILLS CLINICS, SHORT TRACK, PUMP TRACK CHALLENGE & MORE!
9 am - Short Track racer check in at the Town of Crested Butte Bike Park (NOT CBMR); this is where you can pick up your race plate with timing chip if you missed us Thursday and did not race yesterday.
10 am - noon: Short Track racing will be mass starts for each category with males and females having separate races, if numbers permit. More information, along with start times, will be shared with registrants as we get closer to the event.
We will call up the top-8 Short Track finishers in each category (World Cup style) to the front row of the Junior Wildflower Classic on Sunday.
Riders will compete in their respective age-group based on their official racing age determined on December 31, 2024. This is consistent with USA Cycling and we hope this alleviates some confusion for those who participate in USAC events. Categories that are consistent with our Triple Crown Championships are 8-10, 11-12, 13-14, 15-16, and 17-18. We will offer a “friendly” contest for riders under eight-years-old.
12 pm: Short Track awards immediately following event (top-3 places) at the Tommy V. Field gazebo
1 pm – 3 pm: Meet at Junior Bike Week HQ (Town of Crested Butte Bike Park) adjacent to the Tommy V. Field parking lot, located at 1005 9th Street, under the CB Devo tent for Skills Clinics w/ BICP trained instructors. There will be small groups that will be broken into age/ability. These will be held in different areas, depending on skill focus! No matter how old you are, there is always something to learn. ($40/rider, youth and adults, register here) Price increases to $60/rider on June 1, 2024. All participants will receive a pair of custom CB Devo socks by SockGuy.
3:30 pm: Foot Down Competition supported by Ride Concepts, meet at the JBW event tent located at the Town of Crested Butte Bike Park
4:30 pm: Pump Track Challenge (for riders under eight-years-old only). This event will provide a ton of fun and entertainment for younger riders. This is a FREE EVENT but we’ll need you to complete online registration, which includes a waiver, before you can enter. Due to the immense popularity of this event, we are unable to accommodate walk-up registration. Online registration for the Pump Track Challenge closes at 10 pm on Wednesday, June 26. This is a “friendly event” and will be hand-timed for fun only.
5:30 pm: Junior Wildflower Classic Pre-Race Meeting at the Junior Bike Week event tent at Town of Crested Butte Bike Park. Get race plates, course details, and other important race day info.
6:30 pm: Junior Wildflower Classic Volunteer Meeting will be held in the event tent following our racer meeting. We need all hands on deck to make this event as safe and fun as possible. If you are interested in joining the fun as a volunteer, please contact Amy at director@JuniorBikeWeek.com.
WE WILL HAVE A JUNIOR WILDFLOWER CLASSIC RACER MEETING AT 5:30 PM WITH OUR RACE VOLUNTEER MEETING IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING AT 6:30 PM IN THE EVENT TENT AT THE TOWN OF CRESTED BUTTE BIKE PARK.
Sunday, June 30 “Crested Butte Junior Wildflower Classic” Presented by: Berkshire-Hathaway HomeServices and CUORE
8:30 am: 2024 Crested Butte Junior Wildflower Classic XC Race (event #3 for the Inaugural OMNIUM competition)
We will call up the top-8 Short Track finishers in each category (World Cup style) to the front row of the Junior Wildflower Classic.
Neutral support will be provided by Stan’s NoTubes.
There is NO RACE DAY REGISTRATION! Online registration for the Junior Wildflower Classic XC race closes at 10 pm on Sunday, June 23.
Registration Fee: $80 (all categories), fee increases after June 1, 2024
Entry fee includes one complementary mocktail and appetizers at the Junior Bike Week Kick Off Party, exceptional course markings & marshals, medical response, custom race plate with chip timing, finishers medal (8-10 category only), and your choice Junior Bike Week or CB Devo swag.
Riders will compete in their respective age-group based on their official racing age determined on December 31, 2024. If you register for the wrong category, your child will automatically be placed in his/her correct race category without notice.
All courses will be marked no later than 3 pm on Thursday, June 27 for pre-ride.
Start & Awards Location: Tommy V. Field, located at 910 9th Street behind the Crested Butte Community School. Please note on our course descriptions that we will not be using the boardwalk bridge to access the Rec Path. We will lead racers to the Rec Path via 9th Street to Elk Avenue.
Racer Meeting: Saturday, June 29 at 5:30 pm in the Junior Bike Week event tent located at the Crested Butte Community School soccer field.
There are place awards for the top-5 male and female racers in categories 8-10 through 17-18.
Supported by: Berkshire-Hathaway HomeServices, Gunnison-Crested Butte Tourism and Prosperity Partnership, CUORE, Gunnison Valley Orthopedics, and the Crested Butte Land Trust.
Race Schedule as Follows:
17-18 | 8:30 am Start: Course is approximately 16 miles, 1,875 ft climbing RED BIBS w/ RED COURSE MARKINGS.
15-16 | 9:15 am Start: Course is approximately 12 miles, 1,500 ft climbing RED BIBS w/ RED COURSE MARKINGS.
13-14 | 9:20 am Start: Course is approximately 10 miles, 1,000 ft climbing BLUE BIBS w/BLUE COURSE MARKINGS.
11-12 | 9:25 am Start: Course is approximately 10 miles, 1,000 ft climbing BLUE BIBS w/BLUE COURSE MARKINGS. Same course as 13-14, different age category!
8-10 | 8:40 am Start: Course is approximately 8 miles, 800 ft climbing GREEN BIBS w/ GREEN COURSE MARKINGS.
Early bird pricing is listed above and is valid thru May 31, 2024. Price increases to $100 on June 1, 2024.
All races will have neutral start and will finish on dirt at Peanut Lake Road for rider safety.
Parents are not allowed on course unless they have a “SWEEP” race plate. We cannot have parents interfering with course marshals and racer experience. Any participants that fail to comply with this request will unfortunately be disqualified.
1 pm: Award Ceremony for both the Junior Wildflower Classic and the INAUGURAL OMNIUM COMPETITION following the race in the grass at Tommy V. Field at Junior Bike Week HQ. Please note this time is APPROXIMATE and we will keep you updated on the JUNIOR BIKE WEEK TEAM APP. We’ll have Third Bowl Homemade Ice Cream for all racers at the award ceremony.
JUNIOR BIKE WEEK EVENT LOCATIONS - Please note that all Junior Bike Week events take place in the same general vicinity; however, there are three different venues throughout the festival. This area is collectively referred to as Junior Bike Week HQ and includes the Town of Crested Butte Bike Park (1005 9th Street), Tommy V. Field (910 9th Street) and the Crested Butte Community School (818 Red Lady Avenue).
Photos courtesy of Nolan Blunck