Cyclists and fans take note: Traverse City has landed the state's ultimate road-bike race.

The fourth annual Cherry-Roubaix – the TC-born race that zips hundreds of road bikers around downtown streets every August – will serve as the State Road Race Championship for 2011.

The honor is a two-year designation. Marquette hosted the event the last two years. The Michigan Bicycle Racing Association (MBRA), in conjunction with USA Cycling, Inc., made the selection.

“It's a big deal in the racing world of who's who,” says Bob McLain of TC’s McLain Cycle & Fitness. He founded the Cherry-Roubaix in 2008 and spearheaded the bid to land the State Road Race Championship – the only officially recognized road-biking championship in Michigan. “We were the second largest race on the circuit, and we'll be the largest one this year.”

So why did the MBRA choose TC? Why not one of the many other cities vying for host honors, like Frankenmuth or West Branch? Many factors came into play, says MBRA president Joe Lekovish. Among them: the challenging course – a 13.7-mile loop up and down several short but steep hills in Leelanau (the start and finish lines are perched atop Sugar Loaf mountain); the region's deep commitment to and enthusiasm for cycling; and the growing, well-organized and successful Cherry-Roubaix. Lekovish says the TC race’s roster of devoted volunteers also helped the case; more than 250 people pitched in to make last year's Cherry-Roubaix run smoothly.

“All of the submissions were excellent,” he says. “The bids that we had this year were really probably the highest quality that I've seen.”

“It's not something that we just say, 'Oh, yeah, Traverse City would be great,'” he adds. “There were other cities that were very eager to host this.”

Nabbing the championship is an impressive coup for such a young race. When the Cherry-Roubaix started in 2008, it began with merely a high-speed, short-course criterium race, also known as a “crit.” The second year included a road race in Leelanau County. The 2010 event featured three races – the crit, downtown sprints and a road race – plus a charity ride, a kid’s ride and a cruiser classic. Cherry-Roubaix race events fielded about 580 racers in 2010, up from 169 participants the first year.

This year's Cherry-Roubaix, scheduled August 12 through 14, will again host an array of events, as well as happen in tandem with the Third Coast Bicycle Festival. Now that it will also culminate with the state’s championship road race through Leelanau County, McLain expects the turnout for this year will be even bigger.

“Some of the pro teams will be coming and more amateurs,” he says, “because everybody wants to be a state champion.”