LUMBERJACK 100

Location Wellston, Mich. Date June 17 Distance 160 km Cost US$155 Website lumberjack100.com

Manistee National Forest is located in the northwest of Michigan’s lower peninsula. The Lumberjack 100 course uses a 33.3-mile (53.59-km) section of the park’s trails and is more than 90 per cent singletrack. Riders climb nearly 2,500 m, looping through plenty of winding and flowy sections. The start is busy, justifying the 450-rider cap that makes the event sell out quickly, but riders spread out. The fastest riders vie for more than $7,000 in awards and prizes. The top finishers also get a trophy of an axe buried in a log.