Fondo fantastico
DEVIN WEEKS/Press file Coeur d’Fondo race director Isaac Mann congratulates Stephen Ayers of Coeur d’Alene at the finish line after he completes the Medio Fondo race during the 2017 event. The seventh annual Coeur d’Fondo is Saturday and will feature international professional cyclists from Italy as well as participants from Canada and around the U.S.
Courtesy photo Italian pro cyclists from METER-sponsored Team Wilier Triestina - Selle Italia will compete in the Gran Fondo of the seventh annual Coeur d’Fondo around Lake Coeur d’Alene on Saturday. The event will have more participants then ever and will end in downtown Coeur d’Alene, where riders will enjoy the Coeur d’Alene Downtown Association’s Oktoberfest.
By DEVIN WEEKS
Staff Writer
COEUR d’ALENE — The seventh annual Coeur d'Fondo is gearing up to be a fantastic one, or in the language of this year's special guests, "fantastico."
"We're going to set some records this time, for sure," race director Isaac Mann said Tuesday afternoon. "If registration stays as good as it has been, I'm about 200 (riders) ahead of where I was last year, so we're easily at 1,400."
Among those participating in the scenic bike rides around Lake Coeur d'Alene are Italian pro cyclists from METER-sponsored Team Wilier Triestina - Selle Italia — Liam Bertazzo, Alex Turrin and sport director Luca Scinto.
"This is definitely going to be our first year on the international scene," Mann said. "The Gran Fondo was born in Italy. Having Italy’s cycling elite in Idaho to celebrate the ‘big ride’ is an honor."
The Coeur d'Fondo features five distances cyclists can choose to ride: Gran Fondo, 120 miles; Medio Fondo, 90 miles; Centro Fondo, 50 miles; Piccolo Fondo, 40 miles; and the Family Fun Ride, 15 miles.
The routes showcase the forest, roads and scenery along Idaho's Scenic Byway, Highway 97, and take riders through many lakeside communities before finishing in downtown Coeur d'Alene, where Fondo guests can enjoy the Coeur d'Alene Downtown Association's Oktoberfest.
Mann said other visitors will be making the Fondo a destination, including groups from Oklahoma and Utah and more than 100 riders from Canada.
"It’s nice to come full circle and now have a race of my own that we put on from scratch," said Mann, who started out as a volunteer with local races before leading Coeur d'Fondo. "We’ve been really growing it. We’ve been reaching out."
Mann said he wants riders and community members to be aware that because of road construction, some course changes have been made. One tough section at Mile 108 has been designated as the "Motivational Mile," he said, where every 100 feet the long-distance riders will see signs with motivational quotes collected from athletes.
Rerouting has also been planned for Yellowstone Trail and Highway 97 south. Mann said he is emphasizing that riders stay to the right and ride single file where they can to not obstruct traffic.
"The way I see it, we want four hours of one day out of 365 days to ride our bikes around the lake," he said. "If citizens on 97 would share the road with us, we’d be grateful."
Coeur d'Fondo starts at 8 a.m. Saturday. Boarding for the Centro boat ride begins at 7:30 a.m.
Info: www.cdagranfondo.com or email cdagranfondo@gmail.com