We compiled data from over 40 submissions for the Rigs of the 2024 Colorado Trail Race to gain insights into the bikes and equipment featured in this year’s event. In this mini stats analysis, we examine the bike types, gearing, and bag styles riders are using. Find it here…

The 20th annual Colorado Trail Race started early yesterday morning from the Waterton Canyon Trailhead, just south of Denver. The singletrack-heavy, self-supported race is roughly 515 miles with over 62,000 feet of climbing, featuring many rough stretches and sustained hike-a-bikes, all at high elevations; the route elevation averages above 10,000 feet, with many mountain passes at or above 12,000 feet.

We collected rider and rig details for over 40 of the 68 riders registered for the grand depart and sifted through some of the data to provide a glimpse of trends for this year’s race. Dig into the stats below, and then head over to the 2026 Colorado Trail Race Tracker page for coverage and updates from the route.

Bikes

Because of the amount of singletrack on the Colorado Trail, it’s typical to see more mountain bikes than at other bikepacking events. Last year, full-suspension mountain bikes made up over 50% of the 40+ rigs we sampled, and this year is looking similar with 53% of riders riding full-suspension mountain bikes, 42% on hardtails, and just two riders on rigid bikes. Once again, carbon bikes reign supreme at 53%, followed by titanium at 34%, and just 11% on steel bikes. It’s difficult to know the exact reasoning, but it’s fair to assume riders appreciate the weight savings of carbon and titanium.

Nearly 70% of the riders are on geared setups, the vast majority running modern 1×12 systems. A whopping 27% of our sample size are tackling the Colorado Trail on singlespeeds, which is high compared to other years. Trackleaders shows 17 of the 68 riders signed up for the grand depart listed as singlespeed riders. The most popular gear ratio for the rigs we looked at is 32 x 22T.

Bags

Light and tight is the name of the game for the Colorado Trail Race, at least for those planning to push the pace. Most riders are running a handlebar roll or cradle, a frame bag, and a top tube bag. An impressive 34% don’t have a seat pack or rack, while the rest are a close split between a rear rack and a seat pack. Of the 11 riders using racks, 4 are using the Mica Rat Tail, and the others are split between Tailfin, Old Man Mountain, and custom-made options.

Navigation

In the last few years, we’ve started asking everyone submitting rigs to include their navigation device. It has always been an important topic, but with the development of solar-powered GPS devices like the Coros Dura and Garmin’s Edge Solar range, bikepackers can travel worry-free and potentially battery bank-free, knowing their device will keep chugging along. Coros and Garmin were the two most popular brands represented, and the Coros Dura took the top spot this year by a wide margin, with 27 riders using one.

Riders

Trackleaders shows 68 riders participating in this year’s grand depart. Among them are just 8 women, 1 non-binary rider, and 58 men. The vast majority of riders live in the United States, with Colorado being the most represented state. Still, there are also riders from Canada, England, Belgium, France, Australia, Israel, and Ecuador. There are folks of all ages out on the course, too, spanning five decades. Among the most common ages, 23 of the racers are in the 30-39 bracket, followed by 19 in the 40-49 bracket, and 16 in the 20-29 group.

Check out the 2026 Colorado Trail Race Tracker page to follow along on the live tracking map, and stay tuned in for more event coverage. Find it here.

Further Reading

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