Mike Broderick and Mary McConneloug won this competitive (mixed) division (Image credit: Rebecca Rusch)
Cyclingnews bloggers Mary McConneloug and Mike Broderick (Kenda / Seven / No Tubes) confirmed that they are safe and sound following the 8.8 magnitude earthquake last weekend on February 27 in Chile. Thanks to some fortunate timing, the pair had left the country to return to the US just prior to the quake.
"We are fine," they wrote in a email to Cyclingnews. "Made it out of there 72 hours before it happened!"
The American couple had been racing and training Chile for several weeks before the quake happened. They won the mixed division while competing at the Trans Andes Challenge, and then stayed on for additional time to train in the warmer climate of the Southern Hemisphere and to visit with friends.
Fortunately, their friends, still in Chile, were physically ok following the quake and resulting tsunamis. "Our friends in Chile are a bit shaken up, so to speak, but thankfully, they are ok. We feel very blessed."
McConneloug and Broderick were touched by the concern of Cyclingnews' readers who inquired about their wellbeing.
With the domestic season about to begin in earnest, the two are training in Sebastapol, California. They will begin racing in a few weeks.
Stay tuned to Cyclingnews for future blogs from McConneloug and Broderick.
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Sue George is an editor at Cyclingnews. She coordinates all of the site's mountain bike race coverage and assists with the road, 'cross and track coverage.
