12 Hours of Old El Paso MTB Race

Event Notes

The 12 Hours of Old El Paso or 12 HOEP is a team relay or solo racer mountain bike event held on the northeast of the beautiful Franklin Mountains, in El Paso, Texas. The venue is at the Bowen Ranch Roundhouse.   This year our race will be held rain or shine on Saturday, November 5, 2022.  While this is a race, it’s also an amazing day on the mountain to make new friends and spend quality time with your fellow mountain bikers as well as with any outdoor enthusiasts!

12 Hours of Old El Paso (12 HOEP) Mountain Bike Race

DATE: Sat. November 5, 2022

LOCATION:

BOWEN RANCH ROUNDHOUSE

EL PASO, TEXAS 79934

EVENT IS RAIN OR SHINE – NO REFUNDS

FRIDAY SCHEDULE

1:00 pm – Camping opens up

4:00 pm – Packet pickup

SATURDAY SCHEDULE
8:00am – 12 hr Check-in Open
8:30am – 12 hr Check-in Close

8:40am – 12 hr Pre-Race Meeting
9:00am – 12 hr  Race Start
Noon – Kids (U14) Bike Race

9:30pm – Podium Awards

COSTUMES

Besides our awesome race course, one of our greatest attractions are the costumes that our competitors come up with for the event.  They can get extremely creative with their individual or team costumes. Rider with costumes get a head-start.

RACE START
12 hour race starts at 9:00am

The race will utilize a Lemans style start. The Lemans start ensures a safe and exciting method for starting a large number of riders. It consists of having all the riders line up at the starting line, at which time a pistol is fired. The racers will then run to their bikes, mount up, and enter the race course. All starting riders must have their bikes pre-positioned and be logged-in prior to the start of the race.  Racers that begin the race wearing a costume will get a headstart.  All riders on deck (those riders who are waiting for their teammate to complete a lap) must wait in the Pit Zone area and be ready for the transition.

RACE FINISH

The end time for the race is 9:00pm. All laps that count towards the final position standings must be completed by 8:59:59pm.  This means that if a racer finishes his lap at or after 9:00:00, the lap will not count.  The final finishing places are to be determined by the total number of laps completed and the order in which each team completed the final lap.  This means that if there is a tie in the number of laps completed, the tie breaker will be decided by who finished the laps in the fastest amount of time.

THE COURSE

The course is roughly 10 miles in length, and consists of smooth, fast flow trail, short sections of small-to-medium rocks, fast descents, short steep climbs, mellow rolling single track, berms, gravel roads, a few arroyo crossings, and more. All-in-all it is one of the fastest, smoothest, least technical race courses in our area!

Map of course

12 HOEP Race Course (Garmin)

12 HOEP Race Course (Strava)

12 HOEP Race Course (Garmin Connect)

THE RULES

All participants are required to have a trail-worthy mountain bike, helmet, and bike light to compete.

Riders must be registered. No poaching please. It’s rude.

Be courteous. There are plenty of passing opportunities on this course but if you must pass right this minute, please do so in a kind way. If you have a mechanical, please repair it on the side of the course and allow riders to pass easily.  All racers must conduct themselves in a civilized manner. Use of foul or intimidating language or behavior towards anyone including other racers or volunteers on or off the course will not be tolerated. Any racer found in violation of this rule will be penalized. This penalty may include the immediate disqualification of the racer and/or their team.  We’re all out here having a good time!

Be a good person. No littering, help out if someone is in need, use restrooms where available, smile and say thanks to all of the great volunteers out on and off the course.

No riding in the Pit Zone.  Succinctly put, No riding in the Pit Zone.

Riders pushing bikes or slower riders must yield the right of way to racers riding bikes.

Lap Rules. Don’t cheat, we’re (our technology is) watching! When you reach the pit area, you MUST dismount your bike and approach the check-in staff before you or your partner can go out for the next lap. No check-in = No lap registered! If you decide that you are not going to continue, please let a race official know in the main pit area.

Riders who are checking out, must do so at the Check-In table in the Pit Zone.  In general, we always want to know when you are coming or going.

Lights Required. All racers will finish in the dark, so lights are required. Every participant who begins their lap one hour before sunset will need to use a working handlebar or helmet light. Anyone found riding with their lights off can be disqualified. Please remember to turn lights off when entering the exchange tent. 

No Headphones or Bluetooth speakers . Due to the nature of our course we need to have all of our riders alert and able to hear when other riders are approaching.

Federal, State, and local ordinances must be always followed.

All bicycles must be completely human-powered. Pedal-assist bikes or E-Bikes are not permitted.

Pets.  All dogs must always be on leashes for the safety of the riders and everyone else.

REFUNDS/CREDITS
No refunds will be issued in case that the event must be cancelled due to uncontrollable circumstances including, but not limited to restrictions set forth by the State of Texas. The promoter reserves the right to make accommodations as it may deem fair or equitable in the event of an unexpected event cancellation.

DAY-OF REGISTRATION IS NOT AVAILABLE
On-site registration is not available, so please do not ask.  You MUST pre-register online.

LOCATION & PARKING
Enter at the main parking area to the Bowen Ranch Roundhouse. The address is …
Map of Bowen Ranch Roundhouse and surrounding area for camping and parking spots.

AID STATIONS

This is not a marathon race so there will NOT be any aid stations out on the course. You will be responsible for carrying enough water to sustain yourself. For solo racers (and anyone else who needs it), there will be opportunity to place water and food at the event grounds for you to grab as you pass through.

CAMPING

This event is more than just a race. It’s a weekend-long celebration of mountain biking. Therefore, camping on Friday night and especially on Saturday night is encouraged.

A $5 cash donation to the support the Sun City BMX will be collected at the entry gate for camping and event parking.

Small RVs: $10 | Extra Large RVs: $20

Designated camp area for solo racers.

It’s a long day on the bike, and the race doesn’t end until 9:00pm, so kick back, relax, stay the night, and spend some quality time with your teammates and the fat tire community. Primitive tent camping is permitted on the event grounds if you are not obstructing traffic or racers.

RV camping is permitted as space permits if you are not obstructing traffic or racers.

There are no hookups to utilities or water. You must be self-sufficient.

The camping area is not shaded, so if you want shade, you’ll need to bring canopies and/or pop-up tents to provide shade. All tents and canopies must be secured to the ground.

Port-o-johns will be provided for restrooms.

FOOD

Bring your own food and drinks.

VOLUNTEERS
Interested in volunteering? We need volunteers to help make this a successful event.  Volunteers receive a free t-shirt.  Please contact Mario Lopez lopezmario100@yahoo.com