New bike event could come to Carson City

A new biking event may be coming to Carson City.

The Culture and Tourism Authority is negotiating to bring a race operated by Bike Monkey, a Santa Rosa, Calif.-based professional events manager.

The proposed event would be a gravel bike race taking place on the east side of town on Sept. 19-22, James Salanoa, events manager, told the CTA board on Monday.

“I’m told (gravel bikes) are like if you took a road bike and a mountain bike and they had a baby,” he said.

The bike event organizer hosts about 10 other bike races including Fish Rock, a 72.4-mile race in Booneville, Calif., in March, and Sagan Fondo, a 66-mile event in Truckee in May, both gravel bike races. Salanoa said the event would shoot for 400 riders in its inaugural year.

He also told the board of another new event already set to come here, a new youth fast-pitch tournament on June 15-16, the weekend of Epic Rides.

And two other events are changing. The Outlaw Flat Track Motorcycle Race, the biggest event at Fuji Park with 236 riders and 1,500-1,700 attendees, will be a two-day event this year, on Aug. 23-24, and the Rockabilly Riot car show is moving from June to Sept. 19-21.

The board approved a $90,000 payment from the V&T Capital Projects fund to the Nevada Commission for the Reconstruction of the V&T Railway.

The money will be used to make several improvements at the Eastgate Depot, including improving and enlarging the parking lot, closing off an open wall of the passenger building, and adding a covered gazebo, said Stan Jones, the governor’s appointee on the railway commission. The commission is asking Storey County for an equal payment to cover the costs.

“It’s the 150th anniversary of the V&T and it’s important we showcase it in the best light,” said Matt Robinson with Argentum Partners, the railway’s marketing consultant.

Kyle Shulz, research manager, Nevada Division of Tourism, gave a presentation on economic impacts of tourism in Carson City.

Data for 2018 will be available in the spring so Shulz provided information based on 2017 data.

In 2017, visitor spending was $191.8 million, up from $186.7 million in 2016. Nearly three quarters of that was spent nearly equally on three categories: gaming, recreation, and retail. The remaining 28 percent was spent on food and beverage, lodging, and transportation.

Shulz said 28.4 percent visited on vacation while 24.7 percent were here to see family and friends, a higher percentage than the state average.

“There is a higher propensity to stay with friends and relatives,” said Shulz. “If you can get some of them to stay in hotels it will increase spending.”