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Two gated races (on three courses), a cross-country and a short track. Sunburn, windburn, frostbite, dehydration. Some drunkenness. Short sleeves and puffies. Big dogs rolling in cow poop. The hitters came out. They rode hard. National Champions and World Champions made the trip. It was awesome.
Chalk Creek. Nathrop. Byoonah-Veesta. The Bovine Triangle. Whatever you want to call it, the homestead of Keith and Taf Darner played host to MSC#2 this weekend in Colorado’s High Country banana belt. Keith (El Toro Chocolate mas Grande) and his minions from the RPM/Yeti team spent countless hours shoveling, raking, wetting, re-wetting and just plain buttering up in general in preparation for the festivities with back-to-back days of Dual Slalom and Mountaincross scheduled. On the Endurance side, the Brown Bull’s got a multi-lap XC slated for Saturday and an STXC for Sunday that will use a portion of the MX course. MOUNTAIN STATES CUP No. 2 CHALK CREEK STAMPEDEGolden, Colo. – While most Coloradans grumbled and groaned about the late-spring blizzard that blanketed most of the state, Nathrop, Colo. lived up to its advanced billing as the heart of Colorado’s Banana Belt. Nathrop and the MacMurray Ranch played host to the second round of the 2008 Mountain States Cup—The Chalk Creek Stampede, which happily enough found itself in the donut hole of the storm. Blue skies and warm temps were abundant as National Champions, World Champions, pros and amateurs alike all turned out in droves to check out the second round of this year’s MSC which featured dual slalom, mountaincross, cross country and short track. Hanak, Milan, Carter, Big House Headline Fox Racing Shox 4X
The MSC gravity season opener brought many pros to the stage before heading off to World Cup races. In fact the men’s pro finals looked a lot like a World Cup gate with former World Champ Eric Carter (Mongoose), reigning National Champ Rich Houseman (Yeti / Fox), Czech Pro Peter Hanak (Totally Wired) and World Cup stud Ross Milan (Yeti / Fox) in the gate. Hanak took the win while Milan’s ho-holds-barred approach placed him firmly in second with Carter and Big House rounding out the podium. Joanna Petterson and Bobbi Watt (Tough Girl/Contessa) held strong for first and second in the pro women. Bill Te Selle (Orbit Racing) notched the first-ever victory in the MSC’s all new vet pro class while 16-year-old phenomenon Shawn Neer (Orbit Racing) took the win in the semi-pro field. Sport and beginner racers were treated to a completely separate course and gate on which to practice and compete on, prompting one young competitor to remark “I’ve never had this much practice before! How am I s’posed to have anything left for finals?” Henry, Smith Grind out XC Wins
Saturday’s Shimano XTR Cross Country course took riders out on a seven-mile lap through sandy bogs, technical climbs and the notorious one-mile false flat that left riders breathless for the loose descent into the winding, root-laden Chalk Creek Trail. Pros and experts circuited the course four times with the top six pro men finishing under two hours. Reigning Marathon National Champion Jay Henry (Tokyo Joes) took first with a 1:53:25 with Rotem Ishay (Spider - Kona CC) close behind in 1:53:25. Fresh off an extended stay in South Africa for the Cape Epic, Trek/VW pro Jennifer Smith and Giant Bicycles’ Kelli Emmett (fresh off a huge win in the Sea Otter XC) led the pro women with a 2:10:38 and 2:14:56 respectively. Henry, Smith Double-up with Short Track Victories
Sunday’s short track races brought added intensity to the weekend. The Dale’s Pale Ale Chalk Creek Cowpatty Short Track routed racers through parts of the sandy cross country and into a small section of the 4X course. The lactate threshold contingent rolled through the berms and over jumps with the gravity-at-heart riders doubling up for the spectators. Henry and Brian Fuentes (Waltworks/Fuentes Design) duked it out at the front in what could only be described as a sadistic combination of a tactical chess match and a punch-each-other-in-the-face suffer-fest with Henry ultimately sprinting away for the win out of the final corner. Mitchell Hoke (Tokyo Joes) steadily worked his way through most of the top half of the field to take third. On the women’s side Smith and Emmett traded pulls at the front while maintaining their positions in the lead of a large pack. Smith came around the final corner in the lead and Emmett couldn’t summon the horsepower to come around for the win. Jennifer Gersbach (Dale’s Pale Ale/Spot Brand) slugged it out in no man’s land for third. Aaron who?
Dual slalom racers were stoked about a full day of practice on the buttery smooth course with a record field qualifying to race. Newcomer Aaron Gwin (Yeti Fox) proved that you only have to ride a mountain bike for three months before getting to the top. Gwin worked his way through half of the Yeti squad before meeting his mentor and reigning 4X National Champion, Rich "Big House" Houseman in the finals. Gwin headed into the second heat with a .22 second advantage and lead throughout the second run earning the top place on the podium. Gwin’s future looks bright and Yeti looks smart (lucky?) for signing this kid whose potential seems to be relatively untapped. On the women’s side Petterson worked her way through the field with a sniper’s ruthless mentality earning herself a showdown with Lisa Myklak (Spyder/Black Market Bikes) in the big final. Petterson showed why she’s a threat at the World Cup level by powering away for a solid win in both of her heats. Gwin Interview:
MSC: So you notched a big win. Was this what you were expecting after making the long trip from California?
AG: It feels great to get the win, especially since this is only my second gated race ever. (Ed: Gwin’s first gated race was the 2008 Sea Otter Classic.) It was a little weird driving through the ranch, I mean you pass all this old farm equipment, then all the old fencing…oh yeah, and all the old campers! (laughs) I was expecting something pretty clapped out, but when we actually got to the gated venue I was really, really surprised. The courses were really, really good. MSC: So you’re staying with Darner for a bit. What’s that been like?
AG: Ummm…’interesting?’ Is that the right word? Big House (Yeti/Fox rider Rich Houseman) has been giving me a hard time telling me that when I get back to San Diego all I’m going to do is make fun of him, drink whisky and swear like a sailor. Darner’s a pretty interesting guy, but in a good way. We’re going to be working on the courses a bit, hopefully to make them even better. MSC: And Mrs. Darner?
AG: (Laughing)…it’s not too hard to tell who the real jefe is at La Casa Darner. MSC: So what’s next?
AG: Well, Darner and I are going to ride a lot, then we’re headed down to the next MSC race in Angel Fire. I’m after the UCI points there and hopefully a stars and stripes jersey in the 4X. I’ve been racing in SoCal for the past few months and have heard a lot about the 4X and DH courses down there. I’m pretty excited to ride those big courses – from what I can tell, they’re the real deal. CHALK CREEK RESULTS (for complete results head to the "Results" link at the top) Chile Challenge PreviewNext up on the tour? MSC #3, The Chile Challenge in Angel Fire, N.M. May 23-26 where there’s a lot at stake. “Chile” is part of USAC’s National Mountain Bike Calendar for both XC and Gravity and will serve as an automatic world’s team qualifier for both junior and pro gravity contenders. The DH and 4X are both UCI C2 events, plus there’ll be an additional 4X for domestic pros only that’ll serve as 4X National Championships. With 110 points going to both the male and female winners for the national championship event, plus another 60 for the inscripted races, Chile is the place to go to get points for international competition. Chile’s 4X, Super-D and DH are also a part of the 2008 NMBS series. |
