The Marquette General Ore to Shore Mountain Bike Epic, August 8, 2009, is race number six of the Golden Race Series. At each of seven Golden Bike Series cross country mountain bike races, GT will crown the fastest amateur as the Golden Bike Winner. But there’s a catch: the winner must defend their title by racing the GT Golden Bike at the next event in the series – or they forfeit the prize package worth more than $10,000 to the 2nd place finisher.

“The only way to get the Golden Bike is to crush the competition,” said Jenni Cathcart, Director of Marketing for GT Bicycles. “There’s no silver or bronze in this competition…it’s all about the gold.”

Each Golden Bike Winner will receive an all-expense-paid trip for two to the next race in the Golden Bike Series, a commemorative GT Golden Bike, a $250 Sugoi gift certificate and a swag bag of cycling gear. But wait, there’s more. At the race, the Golden Bike Winner will be supported by a professional bike mechanic and a personal cheerleading squad known as The Gold Diggers. To defend the title, the Golden Bike Winner will select one of two Golden race machines: GT’s iconic Zaskar hardtail or the Marathon, GT’s lightest full suspension bike. Both models feature a golden monocoque carbon fiber frame and top-of-the-line XTR components. They’re light. They’re fast. And most importantly, they’re not for sale.

If the winner secures another victory, then they will be flown to the next race in the series to defend the title again. If they lose, then the official GT Golden Bike, the Golden Jersey, the Gold Diggers cheerleading squad, and the professional mechanic are awarded to the newly crowned winner. One note: the GT Golden Bike isn’t for pros. Any rider who gets paid to race, got their bike from a sponsor or holds a professional cycling license is not eligible for the Golden Bike. And sorry, but all racers must be 18 or older.

Race information, official rules and more will be featured on www.GTisGolden.com

The complete Golden Bike Series is as follows:

1. APRIL --Monterey, CA 4/19/09 Sea Otter Classic
2. MAY --             Coldspring, TX 5/2/09 GHORBA
3. MAY --             Big Ring Challenge Ashland 5/16/09 Spring Thaw Mountain Bike Festival
4. JUNE --            Harrisonburg, VA 6/7/09 Massanutten HOO-HA!
5. JULY --            Breckenridge, CO 7/4/09 Firecracker 50
6. AUGUST -- Marquette, MI 8/8/09 Ore to Shore
7. SEPTEMBER -- Hingham, MA 9/13/09 Landmine Classic