Sanj Peterson-Rajala, Dickinson Trail Network vice president and events director, gets the Tour de Dickinson banner ready for this weekend. In addition to the Tour de Dickinson race Saturday, the DTN will host the Pine Mountain 500 on Sunday. (Terri Castelaz/Daily News photo)

IRON MOUNTAIN — The Dickinson Trail Network is gearing up to host two of the area’s popular race events this weekend.

The Tour de Dickinson takes place Saturday, with the return of the Pine Mountain 500 on Sunday.

The 18th-annual bike ride will start and finish at Pine Mountain Resort in Iron Mountain.

“There are options for riders of any age — from the non-timed family fun 8k to the competitive, timed 100k Duel at Dickinson,” DTN Vice President and Events Director Sanj Peterson-Rajala said. “There’s something for everyone.”

Participants can select from a 8k, a 5-mile family route; the 45k, 70k and 100k Tours; 100k Duel at Dickinson or the Dirty 30k MTB.

The Dirty 30k, which will showcase the Norway trail system, is more of a fun mountain bike ride than a race, she noted.

Moving forward, DTN will highlight a different area trail system each year.

“This way, everyone can get a good feel of what we have cooking up here,” she said.

Peterson-Rajala explained that due to road construction, routes have been modified.

“Our 100k dips into a couple different counties,” she said. “So we are doing more of a tour of the area than just a tour of Dickinson.”

The courses were mapped out by a local rider. “They are all amazing routes,” Peterson-Rajala said. “He is confident they’re going to make for some really good riding.”

DNT will have several rest stops along the route for riders.

New this year, the non-profit has added the Veteran’s Freedom Ride that offers free registration to any veteran.

“This also includes the 100k Duel, which if they win they can receive cash prizes,” she said. “For us, it’s a fantastic opportunity to give back to those who have given so much to us.”

Currently, DNT has 100 participants signed up for Tour de Dickinson.

Registration will be open until 7:30 a.m. Saturday; however, those who sign up after the threshold will not be guaranteed a T-shirt.

“We have already passed what we were expecting, which is great,” Peterson-Rajala said, adding they hope to place a second shirt order.

The Duel races will have a shotgun start at 8 a.m., with Veteran’s Freedom Ride riders to depart at 8:15 a.m. The remaining participants and spectators will line the staging area to cheer and pay tribute to the veteran riders.

The 45k, 70k and 100k groups will start to leave about 8:20 a.m., followed by the family and mountain bike riders.

An awards ceremony is set for noon when all the duel participants return. They will present awards to the top three men and women finishers.

“We will have a post-race party with a DJ playing music, food and vendors,” Peterson-Rajala said.

Meat Sweats BBQ food truck will offer lunch to all the racers. Spectators can also purchase at the food truck as well.

The Pine Mountain 500 offers three races that start at the top of the hill near the Veterans Memorial.

The PM500 is a 2.5-mile gradual downhill run, PM500 Duel is 5.4 miles and PM500 Extreme is 10.8 miles.

“All finish with a grueling 500 steps back up to the top of the hill,” Peterson-Rajala said.

The PM500 Extreme runners depart at 8:30 a.m., PM500 Deuce runners will leave at 8:45 a.m., followed by the PM500 runners at 9 a.m.

“We currently have more than 200 PM500 registered participants,” she said. “Ages range from 7 to 71.”

DNT will host an awards ceremony at 11 a.m. at the Veterans Memorial Pavilion to wrap up the event. They will also serve pancakes and have a DJ providing music.

TdD and PM500 packet pick up is from 4 to 7 p.m. Friday at the Pine Mountain lodge lobby and 7 to 7:45 a.m. Saturday in Popple Palace at the bottom of Pine Mountain Ski Jump.

DNT will also provide shuttle rides for spectators Sunday to the top of the hill from the parking lot.

PM500 packets will also be available from 7:30 to 8 a.m. Sunday. If spots are still available, anyone interested can sign up during this time.

“We encourage spectators to come out for two super-fun days,” Peterson-Rajala said.

“You are not going to want to miss Saturday — last year was a sprint to the finish,” she said. “And Sunday will have some fantastic running.”

DTN is a 501(c)(3) non-profit group of dedicated volunteers whose mission is to build, maintain and promote non-motorized trails throughout Dickinson County.

Anyone who has questions and is interested in learning more about DTN can reach out to board members at the events or go to their website at https://www.dtntrails.org.

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Terri Castelaz can be reached at 906-774-2772, ext. 85241, or tcastelaz@ironmountaindailynews.com.