becuase I was born N raised in Michigan/Indiana and a) we didn't have mountians there
ack! i get the weirdest looks when i tell people that i'm going to a mtn bike race in illinois/wisconsin/indiana/michigan.

my last race was in wisconsin, and it was amazingly technical! some of the guys on my team are used to biking out east (Pennsylvania, NY, Mass, NH, Maine) and said it was pretty comparable. lots of rocks. lots and lots. 1/2 the people in the men's intermediate field dropped because of mechanicals!

there are some pretty decent trails in MI, especially in the northern LP and UP. one of the biggest mtn bike races in the country is in Traverse City, MI in November... Subaru's Iceman Cometh (i tried to register, but it was closed for this year... next year!!)

this isn't to say that there is any sort of climbing here like there is out west, but the trails here can be pretty technical and tons of fun.

anywho, just thought i'd clear up the confusion regarding the flatlands