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2001-2002 Winter Mountain Bike Series |
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THE FROSTY DASH
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Saturday, January
12 |
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Finally, a winter race with all of the weather elements of a winter race. A little bit of cold and wet coarse made for a tough day on the trails. It still didn't stop the diehard racers from lining up on the start line to head into the woods.
The Expert race started out a little crazy as Johnny Madrigal and John Benoit of South Park Cycles tangled heading into the woods. The crash gave Eric Klefman of Bike Source the a chance to put time on Benoit. Benoit battled back and caught Kleffman during the first lap of the three lap race. Kleffman and Benoit battled nose-to-nose for the remaining two laps of the race. The duo came out of the woods together, which staged the most exciting finish of the day, with Benoit taking Kleffman by a half a wheel at the line. After the duo were able to catch their breath they rolled backed over to the finish line to ask for the medical kit. Benoit had gashed his knee open at the beginning of the race in the crash but managed to suffer through the pain to take first, once again. Charles Robison of Bike Line road a strong race taking third with, Tom Esposito of Hearts and Mac Cannon of Bike Source rounding out the top five.
Kevin Mullins turned in another spectacular performance in the Sport 19 - 29 race taking first in 1:02:24. Alvin Thomas of Team Spinz took second just 1:31 behind Mullins with Anthony McClain finishing third. The Sport 30+ lined up the largest field for the third straight race. Carl Woodworth of the Rocky River Road Club, Scott Nelson, and Sean Bell raced neck-in-neck through the first lap and a half of the race. After climbing the gravel road for the final time Nelson and Bell put the pressure on Woodworth as he begin to fade just a bit. Then misfortune struck, Bell flatted as he crossed the rocks in the creek crossing. This gave Nelson the opportunity to pull away and pick up his first win of the season and gain a couple of points on Woodworth in the overall. Nelson took first in 1:02:54 with Woodworth taking second, and Doug Nelson taking third. Great racing guys!!
Patty Smith took first in the expert women's race in 1:13:42. The second and third place women were two far behind to even mention. The Beginners Women category lined up 5 strong women who wanted a little revenge from the previous two races. Margot Rott of the Gaston County Cyclists turned in another superb performance taking first in 42:54 with Terry Satterwhite of the Dirt Divas taking second and Anna Herrnstein rounding out the top three. Keep up the great work ladies!!!
Clay Holder fresh off his first victory was seeking back-to-back wins in the Beginner Men 19 - 29 but Brad Taylor and Tim Brady stepped up their performances to keep Holder from the repeat. Taylor took first in 34:55, while Brady took second 35:59, and Holder finished third i36:17. The Beginner Men 30+ lined up 19 strong men but Clifton Abare proved to be the strongest of the day taking his first win in 35:32. Kevin Anderberg turned in a strong performance finishing second just 22 seconds behind Abare while Carl Anderson took 3rd in 36:09.
Once again, both Junior Categories lined up a fierce field of competitors. In the Juniors 8 - 14, Taylor Ross took home the gold in 41:01 with Travis Mathews taking second in 43:32. Kyle Runyon rounded out the top three in 44:45. The Junior 14 - 18 had several new faces on the start line. New comer Jerry Motter of Kens Bike Shop raced an excellent race taking first in 35:20 with David Lemond finishing second in 36:08. Cole Edmonson took third place in 37:05. Great riding guys, our future pro mountain bikers had at work.
Neal
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