Tannins And Tribulations 2025

After recently moving to northern Wisconsin I began to explore and put together routes that I thought would be fun and challenging. The Hayward/Cable area, where I live, has over 150 miles of singletrack and a ton more backroads to explore. There are lots of supported races held in this area throughout the year centered around going fast. Not to mention the expensive entry fees. I wanted to put together a free event that focused on the bikepacking ethos, self supported/unsupported, while presenting a similar challenge to a long distance bikepacking race. Thus the Tannins and Tribulations 24 Hour Challenge. My hope is that this format of 24 hour bikepacking style event catches on and is something people can organize in their own back yard, even if they only have a few miles of trails to work with.

A 24-hour unsupported challenge. It’s a 13.3 Mile loop of single track with a hint of gravel. Around Mt. Telemark and Bayfield/Sawyer County Forest in northern Wisconsin.

This is an unsupported challenge with a Grand Depart: 10/04/25 – 7am – at the Top of the Mt. Telemark Observation Tower.

Ride the route for a 24 hour period, logging as many laps as you can. Keep a tally so you don’t forget what lap you’re on. Each lap starts and ends at the top of the observation tower on the top of Mt. Telemark. The Last lap may start as late as 23:59:59.

Rules:
Unsupported means you must carry everything you need from start to finish. This includes any and all food, gear, equipment, etc. You may obtain water from publicly available or natural water sources only. If you leave the route for any reason you must re-enter the route in the exact same location you left it.

– No stashing gear
– No Crew
– No leaving any electronics at an outlet to charge for a lap
– No cars or campers
– No use of commercial services

You may discard trash at publicly available trash cans.
You may use publicly available bathrooms.

If you choose to sleep, do so at your own discretion. This is an Unofficial challenge and anyone participating is doing so as an individual.

Be courteous of other trail users and don’t be a dingus.

Have fun, bikes are fun!

** There is NO 24 hour parking at Mt. Telemark – The CAMBA Cable Cluster Trailhead has a large 24 hour lot. It’s about a 3 mile ride to the base of Mt. Telemark. Remember, the Challenge starts at the TOP of the Mt Telemark Observation Tower.