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Brian Cone

@brian_conetucky

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It’s been a big and sometimes tough couple of weeks for Durner Performance athletes, with wins, course records, redemption, and plenty of grit along the way.⁠ ⁠ Katie Branham (@ktbranham) went the biggest as she returned to the Vapor Trail 125 looking for redemption after having to withdraw 14 hours into the race last year. This time, she made it happen, finishing all 125 miles and 18,000 feet of climbing in one of the toughest mountain bike races around.⁠ ⁠ Justin Spangler (@jrsprangler_) put together two huge weekends. He took the overall win at LoToJa on Sept. 12, setting a new course record in the process, then followed it up with the men’s 35–39 title at the Gran Fondo National Championships.⁠ ⁠ At Rebecca’s Private Idaho, Liz Saenz (@saenzter) took the win in the Para Female Upright category, while Brian Cone (@brian_conetucky) battled all the way to the finish to take second in the Para Male Recumbent category.⁠ ⁠ Down in New Mexico, Macky Franklin (@sydandmacky)won two stages on his way to the overall title at the inaugural New Mexico Singletrack Stage Race.⁠ ⁠ Of course, racing isn’t all sunshine and gummy bears. These past couple of weeks have also brought illness, a medical emergency, crashes, and DNFs for our athletes too. That’s part of life and sport though, and these athletes keep showing up when things get hard.
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Crossing that finish line I felt proud in a way I’ve never felt before. 118 miles gave me time to process the last 8 years and finally see how far I’ve come. Every night I went to bed with a heart more full than the day before. Grateful for the rawness each stage brought. From singletrack to some unforgiving Idaho gravel, to endless miles where the views literally took my breath away from effort and the view itself. Racing with friends all bonding through a shared sense of suffering and joy found in proving there is no limit to what’s possible. 5 days of healing my heart. Learning to trust my body again, believing in who I am the way others see me. Having others believe in you matters, thank you @rebeccarusch and @aerahh I truly didn’t know how much I needed this week. My @begoodfoundation fellows are some of the greatest friends to make these memories with. Here’s to dreaming big and loving wildly, on and off the bike. May the joy, passion, and courage we find on the bike continue to reverberate through everything we do, in our day to day lives and into our communities. Much more to come from this incredible adventure as I can’t truly fit it all in one post ✨🫶🏻🦋
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Our NAC Para Offroad Cycling Team showed up to race alongside other adaptive riders from across the region this weekend at @rebeccasprivateidaho There was big news for para off-road cycling. For the first time ever, Stage 1, the Harriman Trail, at Rebecca’s Private Idaho was open to Other Power-Driven Mobility Devices (OPDMDs). RPI has pushed for inclusive gravel racing and we are so grateful for their efforts in allowing all adaptive riders to compete. Huge thanks to @higherground_usa, the local adaptive org that had riders’ backs all weekend: a great dinner and support at several aid stations along the course. We were stoked to see the number of adaptive riders out there. Drop a comment and give these riders a shoutout! [Photos and video from Rebecca’s Private Idaho gravel race in Ketchum, Idaho. NAC athletes ride handcycles and adaptive bikes through mountain valleys, creek crossings, and a packed start line, then celebrate at the finish and on the podium.] #AdaptiveSports #AdaptiveRecreation #DisabilityInclusion #disability #Paraoffroadcycling Four photos in front of a red Rebecca's Private Idaho backdrop. Top left, two athletes in wheelchairs and NAC jerseys pose together. Top right, an athlete stands with a walker, arm raised. Bottom left, two athletes flex, one in a wheelchair and one on forearm crutches, holding prize bags. Bottom right, two athletes in wheelchairs smile side by side.
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While Brian and I are fiercely competitive on the bike, I can't imagine a better friend off the bike. Can't wait for the 2027 racing season! @salsacycles set up this chaise lounge at the finish line of stage 2 of @rebeccasprivateidaho - which made for an epic photo of two para-cyclists and their @bowheadcorp adaptive bikes.
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What an amazing week. Just got back from 3 days of gravel racing at @rebeccasprivateidaho as a member of the @nationalabilitycenter para off-road cycling team. Battled Brian on each of the 3 stages of the race. The final 115 mile race came down to a sprint finish: 7 hours of all out racing and 0.5 second time gap - what a way to end the event! Many thanks to the NAC support crew and the folks at @higherground_usa for the excellent pit stops. And to @bowheadcorp for making this all possible.
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I’m an introvert, but I’ve always craved connection and a sense of community. For a long time, I didn’t really know where to find it. Through biking I finally did. A community built around getting outside, doing hard things, and having people who just get it. This summer, I’ve gotten to ride with the @nationalabilitycenter Para Off-Road Cycling Team, and this weekend at @rebeccasprivateidaho really drove home just how much my world has grown. I carpooled with someone I originally met on the White Rim, ran into another person we did that trip with in line for the bathroom, sat next to someone I rode up Brown’s Canyon with at Summit Challenge a few weeks ago at dinner, saw folks from Wydaho last weekend and the list goes on. A few years ago, I never would have imagined showing up to an event like this and running into so many familiar faces. The race itself was no joke. The first climb was about 1,200 feet over 3 miles, followed by a pretty brutal washboarded section of road. My body was hurting and I was mentally struggling. There were moments where I was questioning why I was out there and how I would make it the rest of the way. But I kept going. And eventually, the views started making it a little easier to forget how much everything hurt. I pulled into an aid station and folks from the @higherground_usa team were there with words of encouragement and a fresh battery for my bike. There’s something pretty special about pushing through a hard moment and then looking around and realizing just how lucky you are to be out there in the first place. I know there are so many people who never get the opportunities I’ve been given, and I don’t take that for granted. Really grateful for the miles, the challenges, the views, and especially the people I’ve met along the way. Idaho stole a bit of my heart this weekend and I can’t wait to make it back out there.
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DOLLARHIDE ⛰️ There’s something beautifully uncomplicated about this stage. You ride deeper into the mountains. The pavement disappears behind you. The road gets quieter. The peaks get bigger. And eventually, everyone arrives at the same place. The bottom of a mountain. Then the clock starts. 4.5 miles. One rider at a time. All uphill. No wheel to hide behind. No pack to pull you along. Just the sound of your breathing, the dirt underneath you, and a summit somewhere above. It’s beautiful enough to make you look around. Hard enough to make you look inward. And today, four riders from the @adventureforallus , Death to Doubt Team lined up to find out what was waiting up there. Death to Doubt is about challenging the voice that tells us “I can’t.” About choosing movement, community, and possibility instead. About proving that the hardest miles aren’t always the ones measured on a course. Watching four of their riders take on Dollarhide today was a pretty damn powerful reminder of why we ride in the first place. Not every victory comes with a podium. Sometimes it’s lining up. Sometimes it’s refusing to count yourself out. Sometimes it’s reaching the top of a mountain you once weren’t sure you could climb. Death to Doubt. 💛 And after two wildly different stages, here’s your Overall QSR GC heading into Saturday: 👑 FEMALE 1. Britt Mason 2. Samantha Shields 3. Julie Ann Harner 👑 MALE 1. Allan Schroeder 2. Matt Acker 3. Adam Northup 👑 NON-BINARY 1. Kylee Rood 2. Amahl Abdul Khaliq 👑 PARA FEMALE | UPRIGHT 1. Liz Saenz 👑 PARA MALE | RECUMBENT OR KNEELING 1. Eric Wang 2. Brian Cone Two stages down. One remains. 👑 📸: @stellar_media
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Today, the Harriman Trail got a little more open. And damn, was it a beautiful day for it. For the first time in RPI history, athletes using Other Power-Driven Mobility Devices (OPDMDs) lined up for Stage 1 and raced the Harriman Trail. Read that one again. This has been years in the making. Years of conversations, advocacy, problem-solving, and people refusing to accept that access to wild places simply has to look the way it always has. Today, wheels hit dirt. And that feels pretty damn big. Meanwhile, Idaho was busy doing that thing Idaho does when it really wants to ruin every other place for you. Blue skies stretched over the Boulder Mountains. The morning chill gave way to one of those ridiculously beautiful September days. And beneath it all, the historic Harriman Trail served up miles of singletrack, doubletrack, dirt, dust, suffering, smiles, and the particular flavor of Type 2 fun that keeps this stage firmly in the RPI favorite pile. Oh, and because apparently all of that wasn’t enough... @salsacycles put the Chaise Lounge in the middle of it. 🛋️ Sooooo...who found it? 👀 Drop a 🛋️ below if you Chased the Chaise today. Stage 1 gave us a lot to celebrate. Tonight, we do exactly that. Tomorrow? We point the bikes uphill, but not before we ride one of the most beautiful neutral rollouts you’ve ever seen to get there. We’re not being clichè either. Just wait… STAGE 2: DOLLARHIDE SUMMIT. ⛰️ The first 20-ish miles are friendly. Scenic, even. A casual roll through the Warm Springs Creek basin. Eventually you reach the bottom of Dollarhide, line up one by one, and stare down 4.5 miles of you versus gravity versus the clock. No pack to hide in. No wheel to follow. No excuses. Just your legs and the mountain. Harriman gave us one hell of an opening chapter. See y’all bright and early in the morning, because tomorrow is Dollarhide Day! 📸: @wyattncaldwell for @stellar_media
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This one means a lot. Since 2018, when @rebeccasprivateidaho became one of the early gravel events to offer a dedicated para cycling category, we’ve kept asking the same question: How do we create more ways for more people to ride? This year, we get to take another step forward. For the first time, eligible athletes using OPDMDs, or Other Power-Driven Mobility Devices, will be able to participate in Stage 1 of the Queen Stage Race on the Harriman Trail. Working with the U.S. Forest Service, we’ve received permission to welcome OPDMD athletes onto a modified Harriman route designed to bypass the highly technical, steep, and loose northern loop while still delivering 30 miles and nearly 1,600 feet of beautiful Idaho riding. This didn’t happen overnight. It’s something we’ve been working toward for years, with the guidance of our para cycling advisor @megfisher and the drive and support of organizations like @higherground_usa and the @nationalabilitycenter , who have continued pushing alongside us to make greater access possible. And here’s the part that has us especially excited. What we’re learning and accomplishing together at RPI may help open the door to broader, more permanent access beyond our event. That’s a pretty damn good reason to keep pushing. There is always more work to do. More barriers to understand. More ways we can listen, learn, and improve. But this September, there will be athletes on the Harriman Trail who previously couldn’t access it during RPI. And that feels like one hell of a step forward. #rebeccasprivateidaho #gravelforall #gravelforgood #begood
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This week’s results for Durner Performance athletes ranged from a 1-km criterium course, to a 135-mile gravel race, and everything in-between.⁠ ⁠ In California, Ashley Nelson (@runswithforks_ ) put her fitness and bike handling to the test on the fast, technical Sand City Criterium course. Racing as a Cat 3 in a combined field, Ashley won the Women's race, topped the 40+ category, and crossed the line ahead of Cat 1/2 competitors.⁠ ⁠ At Dirty Dino in Utah, Brian Cone (@brian_conetucky) took the win in the 98+ mile Para Men T-Rex race, while Amanda Powell (@amanda.powellcycling) earned the victory in the Women's Para Micro Raptor 26+ mile race.⁠ ⁠ At the Pikes Peak APEX Gravel Race in Colorado Springs, Ben Steger (@beenjammin.steger) tackled 135 miles, more than 11,000 feet of climbing, and long stretches of deep gravel to finish 3rd in Men 30-39 and 12th overall.⁠ ⁠ When the APEX shifted to mountain biking on Sunday, Nikki Aisenbrey (@nhelstad) powered through the Marathon course, climbing 22 miles before a fast descent on loose singletrack. She finished 6th overall and 1st in the 30-39 age group.⁠ ⁠ And the weekend before, Katie Branham (@ktbranham) finished as the 3rd female overall at the 90-mile Salida Big Friggin' Loop as part of the Colorado Endurance Series.
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What a fantastic weekend!! Part one: First Bike race in 32 years @utahgravelseries Dirty Dino in Vernal Climbing into the Uintas....I never really understood gravel riding and certainly not a gravel race, but this great event flipped my mindart on both. I am already thinking about a training plan and finding another gravel race.... Camping, racing and hanging with the @emma_paden , @jaredrpotter , @brian_conetucky and @dale.hentzell Repping the National Ability Center MTB gravel racing team was the cherry on top of a great experience... (Even if Emma dropped me on the first hill and Brian passed me twice like I was standing still, as our courses converged.) I was loving my new hand me down bike from @jim_wedge. I was happy with my finish under 6 hours and a strong finish showing my competitive side by picking off a few riders in the last 10 miles... Part 2: Swimming at one of my favorite Utah mountain lakeswims (Smith Morehouse) with Kilo. The greatest Swim partner came bearing gifts of eggs from his coop. He was game for a cold water swim in a stunning setting. Deceivingly comfortable water temperature at shore (57 degrees), decreased to approximately 53 degrees in the center with some cold upswelling.. We stayed together for safety and comradely and warmed up in the @surffur and car sauna by the time we got back to the valley, Weekends like this make me so content, grateful, and emotionally and physically healthy. Made even more sweet when compared in contrast with times that I am not feeling so great. #Grateful #Play #Outdoor with #Friends
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Meet the NAC Para Off-Road Cycling Team 🏁 Tomorrow, the team takes on the Wild Horse Gravel Race, as part of the Utah Gravel Series, competing in the Para Athlete category alongside cyclists from across the region. The NAC Para Off-Road Cycling Team is in its second season of competition and is helping grow representation for adaptive athletes in Utah’s expanding gravel racing scene. The first photos are from the team’s pre-ride of the Wild Horse course, plus a few moments from their first race earlier this April at Salty Lizard. From training rides to race weekends, these athletes have been putting in serious work leading into Wild Horse. Wish them luck in the comments ⬇️ The Wild Horse course is known for rugged, fully unpaved roads through Utah’s Cedar Mountain Wilderness, where riders race through open desert terrain surrounded by roaming wild horses. (Full team not featured) [Photo descriptions: Men and women sitting in adaptive mountain bikes while still or moving in a desert climate with mountains in the background] Photo creds: @kris_braun (Salty Lizard racing pictures) #AdaptiveNation #UtahGravelSeries #adaptivemtb
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