Marin Racers Finish on the Podium at Sea Otter
TUESDAY, 29 APRIL 2008
Marin Bikes, manufacturer of performance bicycles, added seasoned professional racers as well as a new amateur team to its squad for 2008. With less than one season and in some cases less than one month on Marin's improved Quad-Link 2.0 suspensions and proven race hardtails, racers had exceptional podium placements at this last weekend's Sea Otter Classic event in Monterey, California.
Leading the wave of gravity riders was former World Cup Champion and new Marin athlete, German born Jurgen Beneke. After coming back last year from a seven-year hiatus, Beneke again confirmed his World Cup abilities by riding a Quad XC to 2nd place in the Pro Super D field and 8th in the Downhill aboard the Quake XLT. Beneke represents an important class of riders on the racing scene, an athlete whose life is not spent training 40 hours a week, but working to support his family. Riding a stock 120mm travel Quad XC Mount Vision, Beneke's Super D finish is an endorsement of the well-balanced and race proven design. In 2007, the previous iteration of the Mount Vision garnered Mountain Biking Magazine's All Mountain Bike of the Year.
Also racing Downhill, current two-time Masters Downhill World Champion, Shaums March finished 22nd in the event, riding the Quad XLT series Quake 7.3. Shaums took the time to race when he wasn't busy coaching the members of his Mad March Racing team. Representing the MMR/Marin Bikes development team, neo pro Miranda Miller made a strong showing with 14th in the Women's Pro Downhill field. The high school senior was the 2006 Canadian Junior Downhill National Champion and 2007 Canadian Junior Downhill silver medalist as well a member of the 2007 Canadian National Team in Fort William, Scotland. Both riders choose to eschew longer travel downhill bikes for the Quake 7.3, with 170mm of travel (7 inches) and offering greater pedaling efficiency and maneuverability on the fast Sea Otter course.
In the XC fields, newly partnered Team Lost Coast Brewery and Marin factory endurance racer Yuri Hauswald had an exceptional showing across the professional and amateur ranks riding Marin's Hydro-Light Hardtails and the American built Team Titanium models. Lost Coast riders Brian Astell, Tsering Alleyne, Emma Worldpeace, and Maureen Kunz, finishing 15th in the Women's Professional XC race, used the races as tune-ups for the upcoming of National Mountain Bike Series (NSMB) series while Hauswald utilized both the XC and the Road Race as preparation for his upcoming Dirt Sweat & Gears 12 Hour endurance race in Tennessee.
“The addition to Marin's racing support program is unique in that it was developed to support riders who are real world athletes,” stated Marin Bikes Marketing Manager, Mark Vanek. “All the athletes that competed are either employed full time or are full time students. It's important that their bikes are efficient, lightweight, and ready to race when they are. We're proud of our new riders and their finishes this weekend.”
Source:
www.pinkbike.com
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