The next few weeks are packed with races. Here’s a quick run down. 

There’s a lot of bike racing on tap this season, and the next few weeks are full of chances to test the legs and get ready for big targets like Mud, Sweat and Beers or the West Michigan Stage Race. No matter your favored discipline, there’s something on the schedule to get in a solid effort.

For those casting eyes on the early Mud, Sweat and Beers test May 4, there’s no better way to make up for a lack of time on the trial than by putting in a race effort. Rust Shaker has been postponed from April 13 to the 27th, clouding up alongside other races, though with the conditions in Harrison, it was certainly a mandatory move to keep a great event going in the spring. Instead, riders looking for a test will have to return to the Yankee Springs Time Trial April 21. The loop is a great mix of singletrack, fast sections and tight, technical stuff to get some handling back.

Roadies can undergo a similar test this weekend at the Fisk Knob Time Trial, taking on a 15 mile route with some healthy elevation on the return leg, as noted in yesterday’s race preview.  Those folks will be building fitness ahead of the Queen’s Day Criterium April 28, the final paved test before the West Michigan Stage Race in mid-May. The WMSR has gained in popularity and gravity in its short history, and with the biggest road races all packed into June now, it’s a perfect launching pad for the skinny tired folks.

The big weekend of the month includes Queen’s Day, with the Cannonsburg Spring Classic the day before, April 27. Mountain bikers now have to choose between the first year race and the Rust Shaker, but with everyone looking to get in some race miles, both should have record turnouts. The Spring Classic will be the first event at a loaded Cannonsburg schedule, with races nearly every month this summer and fall. For anyone targeting the State Games of Michigan or Battle at the Burg, it’s a sneak peak at the course and extra time climbing the face of the ski slope.