TAYLOR LIDEEN AND THE LURE OF THE VAPOR TRAIL 125

THE WHITE WHALE OF CHAFFEE COUNTY

The Vapor Trail 125 is a bit of a white whale for Taylor Lideen. The epically challenging, overnight, mountain bike race through the grand, remote, high-altitude ruggedness of Chaffee County, Colorado, is the stuff of madness. Drawn to it by Josh Tostado's legendary conquests of the event, Taylor crashed out on his first attempt, leaving a scar and a thirst for redemption. In his second, a strained back forced him to end his chase again. And like any adventure nut worth their merit, you bet he's already planning attempt number three, proving sometimes it's the pursuit of success that keeps us in the hunt, rather than success itself. 

Taylor is what you might call a purist mountain biker. While he loves a race, the efforts bespoke to the adventure-wired are what pique his interests. Quests into the high mountains where it's you and the bike, riding tandem in essential codependency. The real Point A to Point B stuff, when mountain lions, lightning, and perils of a torch-lit night on singletrack are parts of the assumed risks. This is what Vapor Trail is all about. And there's a certain level of commitment Taylor feels riders must bring when lining up for the 10pm start. You brace for all conditions, and race into the 13,000' mountain range toward a finish 125 miles away. 

Last year was Taylor's first attempt, and coming off a record-setting ride at the 24 Hours In The Old Pueblo endurance race, he was feeling capable of blitzing the night with laser focus. But there's that adage: "Don't drive faster than your angels can fly." And at night, on a rugged singletrack, that feels especially valid. He got tripped up and crashed out in a feature he'd clear easily in daylight. A race-ending moment that stings all the more considering how strong he was feeling. Yet, all things considered, not much had actually gone wrong—just not everything went right. 

This year, he'd reset and reupped. An impressively strong ride at the Leadville 100 proved he'd managed excellent fitness, and he'd also taken extra care to equip his BC40 with 130mm travel and cush tires for the demanding Vapor Trail course. At Vapor, racers start at 7,000' and climb to 13,000' in the middle of the night, then descend through hyper-crisp, high-altitude morning air for over an hour as they rush back to town.

Taylor says, take your Leadville 100 finish time, double it, factor in higher climbs and harsher trails, and then add in the chance for every alpine weather event hitting you in the dark 30 miles from the next aid station. That's Vapor Trail. And it's highly prone to Murphy's Law. 

There are approximately 40 minutes of hike-a-bike before dawn at Vapor Trail, and a catch-22: needing a beefier build on your XC bike to descend hour-long tracks. Meaning, your back better be in perfect condition to carry/push your rig up scree fields at 11,000 feet. Taylor's, unfortunately, gave out on a tricky section of off-the-bike schlepping: the return of an old nemesis at the most inconvenient and isolated time. 

Race over. 0 for 2. Maddening doesn't quite cover it.

Missing a result goal race in a discipline you genuinely love cuts deeper than most DNFs. What makes Vapor Trail so challenging are the endless variables. What makes it addictive is the desire to conquer them all. When you're chasing something like that, Taylor suggests what he's found helpful: The Daily Stoic by Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman, in which he finds calmness and wisdom to focus on controlling what you can while also not limiting your goals in the face of perceived failure. 

For 2026, Taylor will be back at the 10pm Vapor Trail startline, driven by a modest goal of completing it. But that doesn't mean he's not focused on bringing his A-game again. Who knows, maybe the third time is a charm. 

BC40: TAYLOR'S BIKE OF CHOICE 

The BC40 is the complete cross-country mountain bike, ideal for full-gas, big-watt races like Leadville 100 and versatile challenge untamed landscapes of Vapor Trail. Get on Taylor's weapon of choice, and build it to conquer every trail in your path.