Race series aims to give back to local community by benefitting trail development and maintenance.Answering the need for a regional enduro series, the Washington state cycling industry and advocacy organizations have banded together to create the ‘Cascadia Dirt Cup’, a new series consisting of five races that will take place this year between June and October, with plans to grow in subsequent years.Driven by cooperation between Diamondback Bikes, Transition Bikes, and Shimano, the series aims to produce high-quality races while donating proceeds from each race to its advocacy and trail maintenance partners: The Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance, Friends of Capitol Forest, Whatcom Mountain Bike Coalition and the Olympic Dirt Society.With the growth of the enduro format worldwide, the leadership of the Cascadia Dirt Cup recognized the need to formalize a Washington state series. Hosted on the west side of the Cascades for 2013, each venue will provide a unique blend of climbing and descending through a single-day, multi-stage event. While utilizing pre-existing races at Capitol Forest and Tiger Mountain, the series is excited to bring three new events to the table: Yacolt Burn (permit pending), Port Angeles Dry Hill and Bellingham area trails (permit pending). These venues each offer incredible terrain and a unique experience. Each venue was selected for its ability to stay true to mountain biking in its purest form through the enduro format. The series is limited to five races this year with a plan to expand through the next two years through new venues and multi-day events.“Our ultimate goal is to run the series well enough that we can return significant contributions to each of the trail systems we race on. Builders are facing tougher budget constraints and need all the support they can get,” said James Whitesides of the MODUS Sport Group, the Shimano representatives for Washington.“We’re rallying the local outdoor industry in Washington State,” said Jon Kennedy, Marketing Manager for Diamondback Bicycles. “The bike industry here identified that the riders in the area wanted this and that Washington advocacy and trail organizations needed this. By multiple bike and component manufacturers coming together to do what’s right for the riders of this state, we’ve been able to put something truly remarkable together.”“We’re excited to provide a ‘Taste of the Cascades’ with these races and are fortunate enough to have access to these riding areas through the hard work and dedication of each land steward’s efforts. It’s time to give back to the trails and trail advocacy groups, and to the riders who haven’t been exposed to this type of experience. We have so much to offer and this series is going to blow people away.” – Lars Sternberg, Transition Bikes Airtime engineer/ Professional MTB racer guy.6/29 Yacolt Burn Enduro - Battle Ground7/20 Dry Hill Enduro - Port Angeles9/14 Capitol Forest Enduro - Olympia9/28 Tiger Mountain Enduro - Issaquah ( Check out last year's event 10/20 TBA - BellinghamStay in touch with the series through cascadiadirtcup.org