Log In


Reset Password
News Education Local News Nation & World New Mexico

Weather models differ for race day

Wet or dry? Iron Horse meteorologist says both are plausible
Ned Overend first appeared in the Iron Horse Bicycle Classic in 1982 as a 27-year-old when he won the Senior IV division in just over two hours time and just less than two minutes behind the Senior I and II men’s winner. And for the first time since Mike Elliott won the inaugural Iron Horse in 1972, Overend kept the title in Durango with his first of a record five championships in 1983.

Each day through Sunday, The Durango Herald will look ahead to race weekend as well as back at some key moments in Iron Horse history.

Weekend forecast

For the first time in Iron Horse Bicycle Classic history, race organizers have hired a meteorologist to help them best prepare for all Memorial Day weekend activities. Joel Gratz of opensnow.com is providing daily reports to IHBC race director Gaige Sippy.

“At this point, I can’t say which model (the European model and/or the Canadian and American GFS model) will be correct,” Gratz said. “Both the wetter and drier solutions are plausible. Going with persistence of the pattern and a very wet ground (which leads to more evaporation and moisture in the air), I would lean slightly toward the European’s wetter/snowier forecast. I hope that we’ll see more consistency in the predictions by Wednesday afternoon.”

From the Iron Horse archives

Ned Overend first appeared in the Iron Horse Bicycle Classic in 1982 as a 27-year-old when he won the Senior IV division in just over two hours time and just less than two minutes behind the Senior I and II men’s winner. And for the first time since Mike Elliott won the inaugural Iron Horse in 1972, Overend kept the title in Durango with his first of a record five championships in 1983. Over the years, the Hall of Fame cyclist affectionately known as “Deadly Nedly” and the “San Juan Mountain Man” has accumulated 11 top-three finishes, including the very first King of the Mountain Bike crown in 1985. Overend won his historic fifth road-race title in 2011, and he earned his record sixth runner-up finish last year at 59 years old.

May 19, 2015
‘Uncertainty’ clouds race weather forecast


Reader Comments