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    Colorado’s Highline Lake State Park Hosts 8th Annual “18 Hours of Fruita at Highline” Race

    Highline Lake State Park is excited to once again host the 8th Annual 18 Hours of Fruita @ Highline Race on Friday and Saturday, May 4 and 5. This is the world-famous, demanding, exhausting eighteen-hour mountain biking test for endurance!

    Beginning at midnight Saturday, May 5, mountain biking teams and solo riders from all over the country, and the world, will ride a loop around Highline and Mack Mesa Lakes on the challenging 6.5-mile course. For eighteen grueling, continuous hours bikers compete to ride the most laps.

    For a map of the entire 18-Hour Trail, please see http://www.parks.state.co.us/Parks/HighlineLake/MapsandDirections/. The race finishes at 6 p.m., Saturday, May 5 with a celebration that includes lots of great food and special-recipe thirst quenchers.

    Spectators are welcome to attend the race, and may enter through the east or west entrances of the park; a $7 daily parks pass or a valid Colorado State Parks annual pass is required on each vehicle entering the park.

    Visitors coming to the park for boating, fishing and picnicking are required to use the west park entrance from noon on Friday, May 4 through Saturday, May 5. The entire trail system, east day use area and campground are reserved for the endurance race. Camping at Highline Lake is not available on Friday, May 4 or Saturday, May 5.

    Highline Lake State Park is approximately 10 miles northwest of Fruita. Take I-70 to the Loma exit, right on Highway 139 to Q Road, then follow the signs to the park.

    Highline Lake State Park is the only reservoir in the Grand Valley that offers power boating, water-skiing and jet-skiing opportunities. Located just west of Grand Junction, the park is popular for fishing and swimming as well. Many visitors also use Highline State Park as a camping base for mountain biking or river rafting. Large shade trees and turf grass areas offer a pleasant place to rest after a hard day of playing or to cool off from summer heat. Additional information on Highline Lake State Park is available at: www.parks.state.co.us/Parks/HighlineLake.