World-Renowned Athlete Comes to Mountain Bike at Las Catalinas

{This post was provided by a Las Catalinas resident who had the pleasure of meeting the famous Costa Rican mountain biker, who was in our community for a ride.}

We were pleased to welcome Federico "Lico" Ramirez Mendez, a Costa Rican mountain biker, to Las Catalinas this past weekend.   The five-time La Ruta Champion is a celebrity among locals.   La Ruta Conquistadores, held annually over a four day period in Costa Rica, is one of the most difficult mountain biking races in the world. This past August, Lico won the Breck Epic race, which takes place in Colorado.

Saturday, Lico led a group of local friends and fellow mountain biking enthusiasts on a less arduous ride beginning at Plaza Danta in Las Catalinas through Potrero, along the monkey trail and Zapotal valley. The group finished the ride along the 10 Km of trails through the mountains of Las Catalinas.

Currently, Lico holds the Las Catalinas trail record:   30 minutes 3 seconds (going clockwise on the trails).   And if that wasn't fast enough, he returned to ride the route again, counter clockwise with a time of 30 minutes and 30 seconds.   Our second fastest time to date is avid Las Catalinas biker John Zepeda, with a time of 43 minutes.[gallery]

{For those of you in the US experiencing near-freezing December temps:   Doesn't that make you wish you were in balmy Costa Rica on a bike?   Hope to see you in Las Catalinas soon.}