MTB News & Racing Round-up, March 25, 2010

• Previous Edition
• Next Edition

Date published:

March 25, 2010, 21:09

Edited by Sue George, Mountain Bike Editor

Welcome to our regular roundup of what's happening in mountain biking. Feel free to send feedback, news, & releases to mtb@cyclingnews.com and results, reports & photos to cyclingnews@cyclingnews.com.

• Cannondale Factory Racing strengthens roster for Fontana

  

  Article published:

  March 25, 2010, 20:53

  By:

  Sue George, Mountain Bike Editor

  Sonntag, Grant join team

  Cannondale Factory Racing announced two additional signings just in time for this weekend's opening round of the US Pro XCT in Fontana, California. The team's existing riders, Jeremiah Bishop and Tinker Juarez, who are fresh off of a dominating performance in last weekend's Vision Quest race, will be reinforced by rising cross country and marathon talents Benjamin Sonntag and Alex Grant.

  Sonntag, 29, is based in Durango, Colorado, and hails from Willingen, Germany. His best results in 2009 include fifth place in the German cross country national championship and a pair of second place finishes at the challenging La Ruta de los Conquistadores. Last week at the San Dimas road stage race, Sonntag logged a top-20 finish in the time trial.

  Grant, also 29, finished fourth at last year's Leadville 100 and second overall at La Ruta de los Conquistadors. He lives in Salt Lake City, Utah, and is originally from Richmond, Vermont.

  Both riders previously raced with Bishop and Juarez on the MonaVie / Cannondale team in 2009.

  Stay tuned to Cyclingnews for coverage of the racing at Fontana this weekend.

• New Oceania champion Nic Leary looking forward to European debut

  

  Article published:

  March 24, 2010, 21:13

  By:

  Sue George, Mountain Bike Editor

  New Zealand mountain biker is working her way up the ranks

  Nic Leary's 2010 has gotten off to a stellar start. In February, she won the New Zealand national titles in both the short track and the cross country. Last weekend, racing in Dunedin, she took home the Oceania cross country championship by 1:20 over Australian favorite Rowena Fry.

  All three titles were career firsts for Leary, who is in her second season of elite mountain bike racing. The 26-year-old comes from a background of rugby, running and hockey. Coming one day after her birthday, the Oceania title was the perfect present for the rider with even bigger international ambitions.

  Leary's national title was something she'd been working toward since last season. "I raced my first national championships race last year in 2009, and I was second to Rosara Joseph, who has been the top female mountain biker from New Zealand for the past few years," said Leary to Cyclingnews. "She beat me by 10 minutes which was quite a lot. That was my first multi-lap format race. I was disappointed that she beat me by that much, but it was motivation." Based in European, Joseph wasn't at nationals this year to defend her title.

  Leary, who races for Avanti Bikes, got her first taste of international competition later in 2009, the year she stepped up to elite mountain biking. She raced both World Cups in Canada, finishing 33rd in Mont Sainte Anne and 25th in Bromont on back-to-back weekends. With just two World Cup appearances, she ended up ranked 61st in the World Cup and as the top female rider from New Zealand.

  The experience motivated Leary to continue her newfound dedication to mountain biking. "This year I'm more focused. I had some more encouraging results at the World Cup last year. It was my first taste of international racing. I want to be the best mountain biker I can be."

  Going to Europe

  "In three weeks, I fly to Europe, and I will do the first three World Cups in Dalby Forest (United Kingdom), Houffalize (Belgium) and Offenburg (Germany) as well as a national series race, in Heubach, Germany."

  "Four races in six weeks will be a great racing block. I want to use my good form and the points from my National and Oceania titles to help me get good results while I'm on my game."

  "I think my experience in Europe will be hard, but I look forward to it. The fields are deeper in quality and quantity, and I know how much my experience in Canada last year helped me." Leary will confront larger fields with plenty of strong women against whom she can measure herself.

  As a rider from the southern hemisphere, Leary has had to learn to balance her race season at home in New Zealand with that of the international calendar, which primarily features northern hemisphere races. It'd be easy to do too many races and burn out - something of which Leary is mindful.

  "We've been very selective with my race schedule here in New Zealand in the summer. To be honest, I didn't do many of the North Island and South Island Cups. I just did a few training races in January. The National Championships and Oceania Championships were the focus."

  After her European World Cup debut, Leary will return home to New Zealand for June and July.

  "I'll have a short break and rebuild for six weeks. Then I'll be based in Quebec for the month before worlds, and I plan on racing the Canada Cup and the final World Cup in New York and the World Championship." She is especially looking forward to racing in the black and white colors of her new National Champion's jersey.

  Becoming a mountain biker

  Leary, who grew up on a farm in Raetihi, now resides in Rotorua. "As a kid, I was on a farm, so I was always fit and strong. Now I ride on the farm quite a lot when I'm home," she said.

  After competing in athletics and rugby in high school, Leary attended Otago University where she continued to play rugby and then started to dabble in endurance sports. She is trained as a physiotherapist although she presently works in a bike shop to accommodate her lifestyle - along with its many hours of training - as an elite mountain bike racer.

  She first rode a mountain bike in 2007. That lead to racing multi-sport events including Xterras and she became the New Zealand champion of Xterra. "I was a jack of all trades and after watching my partner Mark (Leishman) race at nationals in 2007, I thought, 'I could do that'. I went about doing small events in 2007 and started my first season in 2008."

  In the meantime, Leary is continuing to improve her fitness and technical skills. "I'm really loving riding at the moment. The sport is challenging and gives me more to work on."

• Yellow is favorite color for Platt, Sahm at Cape Epic

  

  Article published:

  March 24, 2010, 18:20

  By:

  Sue George, Mountain Bike Editor

  Team Bulls keeps overall lead in stage four

  Karl Platt and Stefan Sahm (Team Bulls 1) successfully defended their lead in the Cape Epic mountain bike stage race on day four. The pair took over the lead yesterday, during stage three, giving themselves the yellow leaders' jerseys.

  "Yellow is still such a beautiful color - and we would like to keep it a little longer," said a happy Platt before breakfast on Wednesday morning.  He and Sahm went on to do just that.

  The Bulls' defense of the yellow was not easy during the 88km stage from Ceres to Worcester. It featured 1,640m of climbing with some steep ascents en route.

  From the start, eventual stage four winners Burry Stander and Christoph Sauser (Songo-Specialized by DCM) went on the attack to get whatever gap they could on Platt and Sahm, but other Bulls riders, from the second Bulls team, Thomas Diestch and Tim Boehme, lent their services to help the overall leaders.

  By the middle of the race, only the leaders and two other teams remained - those of Team Songo-Specialized and those of Team MTN Qhubeka Topeak Ergon which includes Kevin Evans and Alban Lakata. Everyone else was at least 1:30 back.

  Just 10km from the finish line, MTN Qhubeka Topeak Ergon fell slightly off the pace, leaving Songo-Specialized and the Bulls to fight it out. Stander and Sauser went on to take the win by one minute and 23 seconds.

  "That was a hard day. The profile was for cross country specialists, such as the Songo-Specialized team. And Burry and Christoph tried to use it to their advantage," said Sahm. "I think we delivered today though, and I'm happy with the yellow."

  "From the start, one attack followed another, but we defended and felt like we could keep going forever. Especially at the beginning, we had Tim and Thom which helped," said Platt.

  Thinking of the general classification, Platt added, "We have 6:18 on Songo-Specialized and 8:20 on MTN - Qhubeka Topeak Ergon It sounds like a lot, but it's not at the Cape Epic. So much could still happen, but we'll give everything for the overall win."

  Riders will do a time trial on Thursday during stage five.

• Australian community mourns loss of Williamson

  

  Article published:

  March 24, 2010, 02:39

  By:

  Greg Johnson

  Mountain bike community shocked by 26-year-old’s passing

  Tributes from the Australian mountain bike community have flowed in after waking to the news of endurance racer James Williamson’s passing. Williamson was competing at Cape Epic in South Africa, where team-mate Shaun Lewis was unable to wake him before yesterday’s third stage.

  Williamson was rushed to a nearby hospital in Ceres, Western Cape Province, but paramedics were unable to revive the 26-year-old.

  Mountain Bike Australia president Russ Baker led tributes for the late rider. “All of us in the Australian mountain bike community are extremely saddened to hear the news of James' passing,” said Baker. “His contributions to the sport of mountain biking in Australia, and the world, are many.

  “For me, the lasting memory of James will be his perpetual smile, often accompanied by words of encouragement as he flew past on a single-track,” he added. “Australian mountain biking has lost one of its giants today. Our thoughts go out to his family and friends, and especially to Shaun and Niki [Fisher].”

  The news of Williamson’s passing comes on the eve of one of Australia’s biggest 24 hour races, with the Mont 24 Hour to be held in Canberra this weekend. Mont 24 hour co-ordinator Alan Vogt described the Enduro Magazine editor as a bright star.

  “This news will come as a great shock to all that knew him as James was one of the nicest guys you would ever meet (on track or off) with an incredible attitude to life,” said Vogt. “James was very well known and regarded to all of us here at the Mont event. The mountain biking community has lost a very bright star and will miss him deeply. We wish to express our condolences to James' family, his partner Nikki and his friends.”

  Anthony Burton, Canberra Off Road Cyclists’ former president, described the death as a tragedy to abc.net.au. "There is certainly a great sense of shock," he said. "We are a pretty close-knit community on the whole. The news certainly rocked us to the core."

  Williamson won the World Solo 24 hour mountain bike Championships in Canmore, Canada in 2008. He rose to prominence with a string of Sydney 12 hour wins, before claiming the Australian Solo 24 Hour title in 2006. Williamson won the Scott 24 hour last year in a team that included Lewis.

  Williamson had planned to contest next month’s 100km Marathon Championships and defend his Scott 24 hour title in October.

• Pan Am Mountain Bike Championship expecting record-breaking participation

  

  Article published:

  March 23, 2010, 16:20

  By:

  Sue George, Mountain Bike Editor

  Course completed, tested and ready for international racers

  Organizers of the Pan American Mountain Bike Championships, which serve as the Continental Championships for North, South and Central America, are expecting to break attendance records for this year's event, April 7-11 in Guatemala. A total of 21 delegations have confirmed their participation.

  Work has been recently completed on the cross country, downhill and four cross courses, which now await the arrival of the racers. The cross country course is four miles long and depicted in the associated photos.  It was tested this past weekend by racers competing in a local event.

  UCI Commisioners have also been assigned, including Ludwing Johanssen (Antidoping Inspector), Josee Bedard (Head of the panel of commissioners) and Simon Burney (Technical Delegate).

  Thirty-six anti-doping controls have been planned for the international event.

  During the event, the Hotel and Conference Center Conquistador will serve as race headquarters for technical meetings, accreditation and registration.

  Delegates and some teams are expected to begin arriving in Guatemala during the first few days of April.

  Stay tuned to Cyclingnews for full coverage of the Pan American Championships.

• Former World Champion Williamson dies in South Africa

  

  Article published:

  March 23, 2010, 09:04

  By:

  Cycling News

  Australian had been taking part in Cape Epic Mountain bike race

  James Williamson passed away in Ceres, South Africa on Tuesday morning. The former World Solo 24 Hour mountain bike champion had been competing in the Argus Cape Epic Mountain bike race.

  According to South African newspaper Cape Argus, the 26-year-old Australian was taken to hospital after his teammate, Sean Lewis, had been unable to wake him on Tuesday morning. He was transported to Ceres Private Hospital where he died a short time later.

  Riding as part of two-man team Swell - Enduro Magazine, Williamson and Lewis had finished 22nd on the Cape Epic's second stage on Monday afternoon.

  In 2008, Williamson was the winner of the World Solo 24 hour mountain bike Championships in Canmore, Canada.

  Cyclingnews wishes to express its deepest condolences to James Williamson's family and friends.