The Whiskey Off-Road in Prescott, Arizona just turned 20. It has grown from a 200 person, mostly local event into a well-recognized pillar of mountain biking that hosts over 2,000 participants from around the globe with thousands more attending to volunteer or watch the race. Unfortunately, a 21st birthday party celebration may be at risk due to the Prescott City Council looking to possibly downgrade their financial support.
I have only been involved for the last 8 years, but running around town and the race course to photograph, volunteering as a SAG (support and gear), cheering on the middle school students that I coach, and participating as a racer has been some of the most enjoyable moments of my life in Prescott. Throughout it all, one theme has always resonated: the event is much more than just a bike race.
The Whiskey Off-Road has partnered with the community of Prescott for two decades and has been a huge catalyst for our mountain biking movement, including with the Prescott Mountain Bike Alliance (PMBA), Prescott high school and middle school cycling teams, leagues like the Arizona Cycling Association, and the building, improving, and maintaining of 450+ miles of trails that are enjoyed by bikers, hikers, and equestrians. A recent Bean Peaks ribbon cutting ceremony celebrated years of collaboration between a diversity of partners, including Epic Rides, to build one-way, bike-optimized gravity flow trails in Prescott that feature jumps, berms, and technical rock features. The Whiskey has also financially contributed to community organizations unrelated to biking, such as the Prescott School District Education Foundation and Yavapai County Food Bank. I once heard Todd Sadow, Epic Rides founder, say that “every one of our races is a fundraising event,” which includes around $70,000 raised annually for Prescott non-profits these past several years.
The Whiskey Off-Road does a fantastic job of showcasing the beauty of our entire community. The backcountry race starts and ends on Prescott’s infamous “Whiskey Row,” the event’s namesake. A Fat Tire Crit weaves past historical downtown buildings like the county courthouse with leaves from a springtime bloom backlit from the sun setting over Thumb Butte.
After a challenging climb up Copper Basin Road that helps thin out the pack a bit, the race lives up to its “Off-Road” name by riding through some beautiful Prescott National Forest singletrack…
…while also offering something for every rider type, from pro cyclists Cole Paton and Keegan Swenson dropping down this gnarly Juniper Gate rock feature to easier paths for more novice riders.
The Whiskey Off-Road isn’t just put on by Epic Rides, but by hundreds of volunteers. Many are Prescott locals who love to be part of such a collaborative event that brings the entire community together. Some are easy to spot while others are spread across the backcountry course to provide valuable support throughout the 15, 25, or 50 mile race.
The Whiskey Off-Road offers a fun time for all ages, including the Kids Ride where both local and visiting youth complete a 1 or 3 mile ride that starts and ends in the very same location as the pros race. It is especially awesome to see the middle school bike team that I coach volunteer to put on the kids ride, with Epic Rides then making a generous donation to our team that helps fund the ongoing maintenance of our loaner bike fleet.
Many of our Prescott youth also compete in the Whiskey. Prescott High School Freshman Molly Mitzel (far right) earned her spot on the 25-Proof podium in 2024, which motivated even more student athletes to give the race a try in 2025.
All cycling demographics are welcomed by the Whiskey Off-Road: young and old, amateur or pro, traditional or adaptive. The pro race is one of very few in the nation to provide an equal cash purse, same to the females as the males.
Speaking of the pros, many come into town for only a few days but spend weeks raving about how awesome Prescott is, including posting photos showing the beauty of our downtown and national forest. My friends and I have enjoyed hosting those who need a place to stay during the event, many of whom have done things like speak to our local youth cycling teams. Best of all, local pros like Julie Momber (pictured) get to prove their skills amongst the world’s best cyclists, all in front of a hometown crowd!
We all owe a huge thanks to the City of Prescott, PMBA, Epic Rides, and so many others who have partnered for the past two decades to put on such a rad event. The growth of the Whiskey Off-Road in those early years was a true catalyst for the 450+ miles of trails that we all now enjoy in Prescott, including bikers, hikers, and equestrians.
And yet, the future of this epic event might now be at risk, with the Prescott city council looking to possibly downgrade their financial support of the event. To an event organizer like Epic Rides, this downgrade could very well represent the cancellation or moving of the event. If you don’t want to see that happen, please email the city council (city.council@prescott-az.gov) and city manager (citystaff@prescott-az.gov) to share your Whiskey stories and positive support (250 words or less is best) while also asking them to continue supporting the event at the same financial level, or even higher, as they did previously.
