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Mountain Biking News - Tuesday 7 September 2010
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Wednesday, 8 September 2010
Mont-Sainte-Anne, Quebec – The 2010 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships continued with the U23 women’s cross country contest and elite men’s and women’s four-cross qualification rounds.
Two young women donned the red, white and blue in the Thursday morning cross country event – Lydia Tanner (San Clemente, Calif./Montana State University) who was 31st and Sage Wilderman (Fraser, Colo. /Team Totally Wired) who was 35th.
The ladies toed the line with the best U23 riders from 21 other nations and set out for a total of 21.4 kilometers of racing under a nice morning cloud cover. The field strung out pretty quickly and with start positions in the back row, the Americans didn’t have optimal positions heading onto a course that makes passing quite difficult.
“There was a lot of traffic toward the start so a lot of hiking where I didn’t want to hike and a lot of getting off the bike,” Tanner explained after the race.
Regardless of the start, Tanner says she really enjoyed the technical course. “I really enjoyed it,” she said. “All my pre-rides went great. I was feeling really strong but I crashed more times in that first lap than I think I crashed all season.”
At the start, British rider Annie Last set the front pace. She held the number one position until fading on the final lap and giving up the lead to winner Alexandra Egen of Sweden. After Last crossed the line for the silver medal, Polish rider Paula Gorycka collected the bronze.
In addition to the U23 women’s cross country event, Friday saw the elite men and women’s four-cross qualification rounds. On the men’s side, American Barry Nobles (Wetumpka, Ala.) qualified in seventh while compatriots Blake Carney (Camarillo, Calif.), Erik Nelson (Gilbert, Ariz.), and Ross Milan (Arvada, Colo./Yeti-Cycles) qualified in ninth, 15th, and 30th respectively. For the U.S. ladies, Neven Steinmetz (Boulder, Colo./Ellsworth Bikes) qualified in 13th. The four-cross finals will be held Saturday evening.
In addition to the four-cross finals, the Mountain Bike World Championships will continue Saturday with the junior men’s cross country race and the U23 men’s cross country race.
Stay tuned to www.usacycling.org for full reports of all American action.
Source: reviews.mtbr.com
Tuesday, 7 September 2010
Photo by Matthew DeLorme
Caroline Buchanan (Canberra, 19 yr) defended her Mountain Bike World title after a dominating performance in Mont-Sainte-Anne in Quebec, Canada. Racing in only her third international four cross race this season the BMX Olympic hopeful dominated the heats and was closely shadowed by two Czech riders, Jana Horakova and Romana Labounkova finished with silver and bronze respectively.
The men’s defending World Champion, Jared Graves (Toowoomba, 27 yr) was passed just before the finish by Czech Republic rider Tomas Slavik. Graves lost pace in the final section of the course allowing Slavik to claim his first ever international win. Third place in the men’s race went to top Czech rider, Michal Prokop.
Both Buchanan and Graves will hope to qualify for the Australian BMX team and eventually compete in the London Olympics, 2012.
For further media information please contact:
Sharon Payne
Bike Media
Mob +61 (0) 412 773500
sharon@bikemedia.com.au
Monday, 6 September 2010
Mont-Sainte-Anne, Quebec – The 2010 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships kicked off with the U.S. placing ninth in the team relay and junior rider Essence Barton (Thousand Oak, Calif.) riding to 13th place in the junior women’s cross country event.
The morning opened with the team relay in which each of the 17 participating nations entered an elite male, U23 male, junior male, and eli te female who each contested one lap of the 4.6 kilometer cross country loop before tagging the next rider on their team. The U.S. foursome consisted of Todd Wells (Durango, Colo./Specialized), Rob Squire (Sandy, Utah/Garmin-Felt-Holowesko), Seth Kemp (Campobella, S.C.), and Katie Compton (Colorado Springs, Colo./Planet Bike).
USA Cycling’s squad decided to start off with its fastest, most experienced rider – Todd Wells. Completing his lap in 16 minutes and four seconds, the 2008 Olympian put the U.S. into eighth place when he handed off to U23 racer Rob Squire.
“The course was pretty dusty today. It’s the first time Mont Sainte Anne doesn’t have any water or mud,” Wells said after the competition. “I didn’t have the best start but worked my way up and had a decent race. I hoped to give the U.S. the pass with a little better placing but did my best and I think the team had a decent race.”
The second fastest rider for the American contingent, Squire completed his duties with a time of 16:58 before passing the race off to junior rider Seth Kemp who finished his lap in 17:57.
“It was really one of the hardest courses I’ve done,” Kemp said after his turn on the course. “There were a lot of short steep climbs that were really hard and then the rocky down hills. You didn’t really have any time to recover.”
The red, white and blue ended their team relay with elite woman Katie Compton who posted a 19:43 after suffering a crash on one of the rocky sections. In the end, the U.S. final time was 1:10:42 compared to the 1:06:00 posted by the gold medal winning Swiss team. The silver and bronze medals went to the German and Czech squads.
Following the team relay, the world’s best junior women toed the start line in the mid-day heat to battle it out over 16.8 kilometers. The ladies raced one start loop and then three laps of the course, and the field was spread out quite a bit by the first time through the start/finish.
Essence Barton grabbed 13th place – the top finish for the red, white and blue – after working her way up from a less-than-desirable start position.
“I was so far back in the standings that I took off 22nd back in the line-up,” she explained afterwards. “Slowly but surely, all the efforts I put in when I was younger…. all the climbing my dad made me do really paid off. I slowly started picking through people and moving forward. It burned the whole way.”
Barton’s compatriots, Alicia Rose Pastore (Durango, Colo./Rocky Mountain Chocolate) and Sofia Hamilton (San Anselmo, Calif./Whole Athlete) were 19th and 26th respectively in the contest.
The Mountain Bike World Championships continue on Thursday with the U23 Women’s Cross Country event and the Four-Cross qualifying rounds. Stay tuned to www.usacycling.org for full reports of all American action.
Source: reviews.mtbr.com
Friday, 3 September 2010
The multi-lap relay mountain bike event, 8hrs@Jacks, scheduled for
October 23, has attracted leading outdoor sports company Patagonia as
its head sponsor and the event is expected to attract a large field
keen to compete on the challenging and scenic Jack’s Point course
overlooking Queenstown’s Lake Wakatipu.
The event was staged for the first time last year by Southern Traverse and Race Director Geoff Hunt says it was inspired by the demand for a new and different style mountain biking race.
“We were delighted with the response, and anticipate that there will be a lot more teams this year, now that the word is out there that it is a very different and quite stunning course.”
“We are particularly excited about the new relationship with Patagonia which was an associate sponsor last year,” says Hunt. “It reflects their confidence in the 8hrs@Jacks and it is significant that they have decided to make a bigger commitment to the event.”
Patagonia Director Hamish Cochran says there is strong synergy between the outdoor clothing and footwear company’s brand and 8hrs@Jacks. We have been looking for a good event to title sponsor that reflects our brands philosophy of making the best technical products that are also nice to wear for fun outdoor activities or casually. It is a serious race at the elite end and a fun race for recreational bikers and we look forward to playing a bigger role as head sponsor this year.”
The race involves individuals and teams of two, three or four members competing on an eight kilometre course through Jack’s Point over a period of eight hours. Teams compete in Junior, Open (men’s, women’s or mixed) and Veteran (men’s, open and mixed) sections. One rider per team rides a lap then tags a team mate and elite riders will complete the lap in about 35 minutes while recreational competitors average 45 minutes.
The track, known as Straggler’s Loop, has been developed specifically for the event and traverses areas through rocky outcrops, and even a small gum forest on the northern edge of Jack’s Point resort, before returning to the internal trails.
“The course is designed technically to suit recreational bikers. It is the same as for last year’s inaugural event but there will be no stiles to cross this year,” says Hunt. “Last year there was a great atmosphere around the base, a lot of camaraderie and friendly rivalry.”
Jack’s Point spokesperson Sara Roy has welcomed the 8hrs@Jacks for a second year.
“We are looking forward to hosting competitors and supporters during the race and at the prize giving which is being held this year at the Jack’s Point clubhouse. Geoff Hunt and the Southern Traverse team provide great organisation for the event and the challenging and fun race, taking in outstanding scenery and tracks, complements the growing number of community events at Jack’s Point.”
The individual winner of the 2009 8hrs@Jacks was Andrew Ballantyne of Invercargill who completed 15 laps, just pipping leading Queenstown multisporter Jim Hawkridge, to take the title.
The Patagonia 8hrs@Jacks will help promote the work of the Wakatipu Trails Trust in developing trails in the district.
For further information contact:
Geoff Hunt
p. 0274 967 530
e. traverse@queenstown.co.nz
Thursday, 2 September 2010
Cyclists are invited to a memorable day of Marin cycling when the fundraising season for the Northern California High School Cycling League begins Sunday September 19th, with the Chileno Valley Cycling Classic. Based at Baumann Ranch near Petaluma, this is a fully-supported recreational road bicycle ride through some of Marin County's most beautiful coast lands.
Vanessa Hauswald, Execu tive Director of the NorCal League says, “Cyclists really love this event, it’s a beautiful ride and a great post-ride party. The Chileno Classic is an important fundraiser for the League and we encourage Bay Area cyclists to be part of it.”
The Chileno Valley Cycling Classic exemplifies cycling in coastal Marin. With 45 and 65-mile routes including the fabled Chileno Valley Road, described by some as 'the perfect cycling road,' participants can expect breathtaking scenery, gorgeous roads and challenging, but not overwhelming, climbs.
Rides begin at 10:00 a.m. from Baumann Ranch. Drivers are encouraged to carpool and advised to plan approximately 75 minutes travel time from San Francisco and the East Bay. Participants are advised to bring warm clothes for dinner, just in case, since the fog usually rolls into the Ranch in the early evening.
An afternoon of festivities is planned post-ride, including live music, delicious dining and beverages in a garden setting. Participation in the ride requires a fundraising minimum of $250.00. In addition to the ride, attendees will receive a ticket to the Chileno Valley Feast and a commemorative event t-shirt.
There are some incredible prizes at the Chileno Classic, including Specialized optics, which will be awarded to the five top student and the five top adult fundraisers. Additionally, two gorgeous bikes will be given to our champion fundraisers!
The top adult fundraiser will receive a Live 2, Vienna 4 or Haul 1 bicycle from Globe Bicycle. The top teen fundraiser will win District bicycle from Trek Bicycle.
The minimum age for participation in the ride is 14 years.
Day's schedule:
Check-in 9:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.
Ride start times: 10:00 a.m. - 65 mile; 10:45 a.m. - 45 mile
Chileno Valley Classic Festivities 2-7:30 p.m. snacks, beverages, massage, dinner, music, awards and prizes!
What: Chileno Valley Cycling Classic, 2010
Where: Baumann Ranch, Petaluma
When: Sunday, September 19th, 2010
Why: Fundraiser for high school cycling in Northern California
Who: All welcome, aged 14 and up
Website: http://www.norcalmtb.org/events/Chileno/index.htm
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