Bidwell BUMP 50th Anniversary Oldest MTB Race in the WORLD

The Bidwell Bump is a mountain bike race in Chico, California, claiming to be the oldest MTB race globally. It takes place in Bidwell Park, a 12-mile creekside area extending northeast from downtown Chico into a canyon. The event features several race distances, ranging from 8.5 km to 28.8 km. The start is located near Wildwood Avenue, North Rim Trail, and the Easter Cross parking lot, with Chico CORSA and Shawn Hughes as organizers. The inaugural race was "The Great Chico Bike Race," with an original 9-mile course entirely on dirt. Riders began where the upper-park dirt road started, rode to Brown’s Hole, entered the creek, and returned to the start. The origin story reflects a distinct Chico character: the flyer was printed during intense Sacramento Valley heat, and the shaded park creek was a key element. Bodfish later documented it in Mountain Bike Magazine as "THE VERY FIRST OFF-ROAD BIKE RACE (MAYBE)," aligning with the race’s unpolished early-mountain-bike spirit rather than a refined origin narrative.