A trail blazed for Steve Larsen

Published 5:00 am Sunday, October 9, 2011

A fierce competitor who helped put Central Oregon on the map as a destination for world-class endurance athletes now has his own place on the map.

The Central Oregon Trails Alliance gathered Saturday at Wanoga Sno-park to dedicate the Steve Larsen Trailhead and the Steve Larsen Trail, named for the professional mountain biker, road cyclist and triathlete who suffered a heart attack in May 2009 and died at the age of 39.

A Bend resident from 1995 to 2000 and from 2003 until his death, Larsen left behind his wife, Carrie, and five children.

President Woody Starr said COTA had been planning a trailhead at the sno-park and a new trail before Larsen’s death. Most trails in the area have acquired their names informally, he said, but in this case, it was decided early on that both the trail and trailhead would be named for Larsen.

The Steve Larsen Trail covers about three miles, linking the lower portions of the Tiddlywinks and Funner trails with Kiwa Butte. The trailhead at the east end of the sno park includes a kiosk with trail maps and a memorial to Larsen, as well as a multi-acre pump track.

Starr said people who knew Larsen best have put in long hours volunteering to see the project to completion.

When COTA announced its first work party for the Steve Larsen Trail in the fall after Larsen’s death, Starr was expecting 10 or 20 people to show up. Instead, there were nearly 80.

“In the last couple years, the support from his family and friends has just been above and beyond,” Starr said.

Saturday’s trail dedication was held in conjunction with “The Event Previously Known as Biketoberfest,” an annual COTA event that was forced to change its name under threat of legal action by the Daytona Beach Area Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Around 100 COTA supporters came out to the sno-park for several hours of trail building and trail maintenance in the morning, a barbecue lunch and beers, followed by the organization’s annual awards and the dedication of the new trail and trailhead.

Opening the dedication ceremony, Starr recalled one of the first times he met Larsen, years ago during the Cascade Chainbreaker race. Starr had suffered a flat tire and was fuming about his race being cut short. Larsen had won and was making an extra lap of the course, when he pulled over to talk with Starr and offer a few tips on “riding lighter.”

Starr said a racer as successful as Larsen had no obligation to take notice of his sour mood and offer encouragement, but he did.

“He didn’t really know me then, but he took the time to chat with me, and I just thought, what a kind and generous person,” he said.

In a short speech, Larsen’s daughter, Amalia, said she could think of no better way to remember her father than with the new trail.

“This is something he would love to see, all the people being out here being active, building trails, and improving the community of Bend,” she said.

After her speech, Amalia, 15, said her family is adapting well to her father’s absence. Her four younger brothers are avid cyclists and are developing an appetite for competitive cyclocross racing.

Longtime friend Michael Nyberg said even though Larsen spent years living in the spotlight, winning races and being on magazine covers, he would have been touched had he lived to see a trailhead named in his honor.

“Steve wasn’t humbled by a lot, being a great athlete, they’re not humbled by much. But I think this would have humbled him,” he said.