Over the years several events have been added to the classic train race. There have been criteriums, circuit races, road races, tours, BMX races, Trials, dual slaloms, team trail rides, and mountain bike races. There has been a full weekend of events every Memorial Day for the past 41 years. In 2011 the IHBC had over 3500 participants in 5 events. Not bad for a town of only 16,000 people nestled in the mountains of Southwest Colorado!
The Iron Horse Bicycle Classic was the brain child of Tom Mayer and his
older brother Jim. Jim worked as a brakeman on the D & R G W
railroad which had run the steam powered locomotive between Durango
and Silverton since the 1880's. Tom was a young bicycle enthusiast who
grew up alongside the tracks to Silverton. Tom challenged Jim to a
race to Silverton. As the train came by the house, the steam whistle
screamed and Tom climbed on his trusty steel framed 10 speed and
pedaled up over the rim of the old volcano and descended into the
caldera to the mining town of Silverton. The train takes a shorter and
easier route, but with limited speed, so it is truly a race between
man and machine. When Tom became strong enough to win, the bragging
rights were his, and the whole town knew it.
