How she spent her summer: St. Paul girl, 11, tackles epic mountain bike trail on Continental Divide

Hanging at a pool with friends, sleepovers and crafts were on hold this summer for Molly Ehlers.

Instead, the 11-year-old St. Paul girl did something audacious. She rode her gear-laden mountain bike nearly 2,500 miles up, down and through the mountainous backcountry of the western United States.

In mid-June, Molly and her father, Aaron Ehlers, began their epic ride in the Tour Divide race. It follows a labyrinth of mostly dirt roads and trails known as the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route (GDMBR) and runs over 2,700 miles from the Canadian Rockies to Antelope Wells, N.M., at the border with Mexico.

The two were forced to change their designation from racers to tourers early on because a major wheel malfunction delayed them several days.

The change allowed them to ride some GDMBR alternate routes and also loosened restrictions in a race already devoid of many rules: There are no clocks, no entry fees, no aid stations and no age limits, but racing is intended to be solo. Touring allows for assistance from others and riding together.

Still, the two were trackable by GPS (as are entrants in the Tour) and rode 2,488 miles over 45 days, including two for rest. Their climbing was off the charts, too, at more than 145,000 feet as they worked their way from the Canadian border through Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado and New Mexico.

“I felt like I was doing something different,” Molly said about how she spent her summer. “I was adding to my list of adventures.”

“That is where it clicked for me, like this is something we are going to make happen,” Aaron said.

He knew what they were getting into: Aaron Ehlers had raced the Tour Divide twice; her mother, Mary Ehlers, once.

The Ehlerses consulted a pediatrician. They also knew their daughter: Good sleep and plenty of calories were mandatory, especially for an 80-pound girl pedaling a bike loaded with 60 pounds of gear.

“We put a huge amount of our focus on those two things, and we kind of nailed it,” Aaron Ehlers said.

Sleep “could have been longer,” Molly shot back. “I like my 10-hour nights instead of eight-hour nights.”

“I really like bacon,” she said with a grin.

The hardest part of the adventure, Molly said, was cycling in the heat in large expanses with little to no shade.

Cold drinks during resupplies, or dips in cool streams, were a balm.

Keeping the mood light also helped. The Ehlerses came up with a B-I-K-E-S version of B-I-N-G-O. Their scorecards, however, related to their ride. Each square had achievements, such as see a bear; don’t talk to another rider for the entire day; or spot a shooting star. Also, no swearing. “Someone wasn’t able to do that one,” Molly said with a hint of sarcasm, glancing at her dad.

The Ehlerses rolled 60 miles per day on average. Aaron said he let Molly make decisions about the rhythm of each day. They talked about destinations they hoped for, or towns where they could resupply.

Aaron said that, as a parent, the mental game was as taxing as the physical.

“You always have to be on,” he added. “You still have to look after yourself, but now you are making sure Molly’s needs are met. I gave her the freedom to make a lot of the decisions for us. But it was always looking over her shoulder to make sure the right decisions were being made.”

Two-time Tour Divide winner Alexandera Houchin, also from Minnesota, is friends with the Ehlerses. She said Molly’s mental and physical strength came through.

“Molly’s tenacity and drive to stick with something as long as the Tour Divide will certainly gift her lessons that will serve her for her entire life,” said Houchin, who won the race back-to-back in 2018 and 2019.

University of Minnesota professor Jodi Dworkin, who specializes in youth development, saw many healthy dividends in Molly testing her limits.

When the Ehlerses rolled into Antelope Wells on Aug 2, Molly’s mother, Mary, brother Joey, 13, other relatives and friends were on the road to welcome her and her dad. The celebration continued a little more than a week ago back in St. Paul, too. Joey helped plan a party, which drew nearly 70 people. Molly understands the keen interest.

“I like that people want to know about it,” she said.

Of course, there was a cotton candy machine.