PORT ANGELES — Look for bikers, runners and kayakers plying the hills, trails and waters in and around Port Angeles, the crown jewel of Peninsula Adventure Sports events, the Big Hurt, is being held Saturday.
This year, the Big Hurt will be bigger than ever, with a record-number 82 teams and 64 individuals in the iron division, including multiple Canadians signing up. The race has never had more than 45 teams and 45 individuals before, said race director Lorrie Mittmann.
In addition to the Big Hurt, the Little Hurt for kids is being held Sunday at Peninsula College.
The Big Hurt is a multi-discipline adventure sports event. It begins with a 15-mile mountain bike race beginning in the hills above Port Angeles, then transfers to a 2.6-mile kayak/paddleboard leg through the Port Angeles Harbor to the old Rayonier Mill site and back, then a 30-mile road cycling leg west of the city to Freshwater Bay Park and back. The race finishes with a 10K run on the Olympic Discovery Trail east of Port Angeles.
The transfer area will be at Pebble Beach Park near the Port Angeles Fields Arts and Events Hall. The mountain bike race begins at 9 a.m., so the first bike-to-kayak/paddleboard transfers should begin around 10 a.m.
People can compete either as a two- to four-person team or as a solo athlete in the grueling Ironman category. Registration remains open until Friday at www.bighurtpa.com/registration.
There will be a beer garden at the race hub with sponsors Angeles Brewing Supplies and Taproom, Barhop Brewing and Artisan Pizza and Finnriver Cidery. Barhop has a special single-hopped double IPA just for the race.
The awards ceremony will be at 2:30 p.m. at the race hub area for first, second and third in each division, as well as a legend award. There will also be live music from Dancing Hands/Zaya Marimba in the morning and Substantial Fly in the afternoon. There will also be free cowbells for fans and supporters.
Other events happening in Port Angeles after the Big Hurt ends at 4 p.m. are Beer in the Woods at Port Angeles Fine Arts Center and the FallFest at Extreme Sports Park.
Afterward, there will be Beer in the Woods Saturday night at the Field Hall and the FallFest at Extreme Sports Park.
On Sunday, the Little Hurt returns, moving this year to Peninsula College because the state BMX championship is being held the same day at Lincoln Park BMX.
This event for kids has a cycling leg, a rowing leg on machines and a running leg in around the wooded PC campus. There are four categories: first to second grades, third to fourth grades, fifth to sixth grades and seventh to eighth grades. The legs get slightly longer in the older categories.
The event is limited to a total of 160 participants. The cost is $15 and all kids will receive a T-shirt and finisher medal.
People can still register at www.bighurtpa.com/little-hurt.
This event is support and organized via a partnership between Peninsula Adventure Sports, the Olympic Peninsula Rowing Association and the Port Angeles School District AmeriCorps team.
