A wiser fella than myself once said: Sometimes you eat the bear, and sometimes the bear, well, he eats you. 

There were once grizzly bears in Colorado. These majestic, massive beasts made the forests of Colorado their home until they were declared extinct in the 1950s. Residents from Walden to Craig would bike the beaten trails of Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest to get a glimpse of the grizzlies and other woodland creatures. A general lack of knowledge about how territorial grizzly bears actually are led to some “misunderstandings” — as the saying goes “you don’t have to outrun the bear, you just have to outrun everyone else.” 

Thus, the “Bike for Your Life” race was conceived. Today, grizzlies don’t get too close to Colorado; the remaining black bears are generally pretty wary of visitors. But it’s a time-honored tradition and one of Colorado’s most exciting and scenic races.