Plaxton wins his third consecutive Mellow Johnny's

Max Plaxton (Specialized) made it three in a row at the Mellow Johnny's Classic, winning by a comfortable margin after a hard-fought battle with Geoff Kabush (Scott-3Rox Racing) who finished second. Todd Wells (Specialized), unable to match the pace of the leaders, finished third. Derek Zanstra (Scott-3Rox Racing) finished fourth, while Sam Schultz (Subaru-Trek) took the last spot on the podium.

Kabush immediately went to the front after the start and led for the first few laps. Several riders commented after the race about the blistering pace he set. Plaxton said, "I felt good but Geoff was riding stuff really fast and smooth."

Wells added, "It was so fast. Kabush was just flying on the fast singletrack and the technical sections."

There was little doubt from the start that Plaxton was marking Kabush. The two waged war last season with Plaxton coming out on top of every meeting. "I went to the front and set a hard tempo and hoped for a mistake (behind me) but Todd and Max were working together," said Kabush after the race.

Within two laps, Kabush, Plaxton, and Wells had separated themselves from the pack behind them. Kabush, outnumbered by the strong Specialized duo, chose to maintain the lead for as long as possible rather than be beaten up by Plaxton and Wells.

Wells came unglued from the group when Plaxton finally attacked on lap four. Wells said, "I was suffering on the technical stuff and the climbs. Plaxton hit it just before the climb on the fourth lap and I just watched them ride away."

Kabush held Plaxton's wheel for a while longer but a separation finally occurred that grew slightly for the rest of the race.

The Canadian contingent put in a very strong performance today taking first, second, and fourth places on the podium. "They are always strong in the spring," said Wells. "They come out ready to race and were really strong today."

All three of them are in competition to be named to the Canadian Olympic Team.

This was Kabush's first race for his Scott-3Rox Racing Team. "It's been an exciting winter with the changes with Scott and 3Rox. It's my first time (racing) on a 29er but we have four bikes to choose from. The 29er will be my bike for the first World Cup so I wanted to be comfortable on it," said Kabush.

Plaxton and Wells, on the other hand, rode their dual suspension Specialized Epics on the bumpy course. "I think than anyone who chose to ride a hardtail on this course is crazy," said Plaxton.

Behind the leaders today, Jeremiah Bishop (Cannondale) and Sam Schultz battled for fifth place nearly the whole race. Bishop led Schultz for most of the race and took advantage of being able to ride all the "A" lines on the course. With one lap to go, it appeared that Schultz had been dropped but by the finish he emerged ahead. It is unknown if Bishop suffered a last lap mishap. The two are likely to compete all spring for one of the spots on the USA Olympic Team.

Most of the top riders will now travel to the first World Cup in South Africa. Wells will be joining his Specialized teammates, who had an amazing 2011 season. "Suzy (Christoph Sauser) always says we won everything that mattered last year," said Wells. "He won marathon Worlds, Jaraslov (Kulhavy) won the World Cup series and the world championship. Burry (Stander) and Suzy won the Cape Epic, Max won the Pro XCT, and I won Leadville."

Full Results

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Elite men
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Max Plaxton (Specialized Racing)1:16:22
2Geoff Kabush (Scott-3Rox)0:00:43
3Todd Wells (Specialized Racing)0:02:05
4Derek Zandstra (Scott-3 Rox Racing)0:03:10
5Sam Schultz (Subaru-Trek)0:03:50
6Jeremiah Bishop (Cannondale Factory Racing)0:03:51
7Adam Craig (Giant Rabo Bank)0:04:35
8Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski (Subaru-Trek)0:04:44
9Spencer Paxson (Team S&M)0:05:01
10Brendon Davids (Sho-Air/Specialized)0:05:02
11Ryan Woodall (Top Gear Bicycles/MTFmx.com)0:05:24
12Jason Sager (Team Jamis)0:05:28
13Colin Cares (Kenda/Felt)0:05:34
14Cameron Jette (Scott-3 Rox Racing)0:05:58
15Russell Finsterwald (Subaru-Trek)0:06:01
16Carl Decker (Giant Factory Team)0:06:26
17Raphael Gagne (Rocky Mountain Factory)0:06:51
18Evan Guthrie (Team Canada)0:07:04
19Kris Sneddon (Kona)0:07:23
20Victor Alber (Super Cool Bike Shop/American Classic)0:07:34
21Howard Grotts (Specialized)0:07:36
22Adam Morka (Trek Canada)0:07:43
23TJ Woodruff (Momtentum Endurance Arizona Cyclist)0:07:44
24Payson McElveen (Rock Mountain Chocolate Factory Devo)0:07:53
25Bryan Alders (Epic Pro Cycling Team)0:08:08
26Seamus Powell (Giant-Mid Atlantic MTB Team)0:08:36
27Ben Bostrom (Sho-Air/Specialized)0:08:57
28Cody Canning (Trek Red Truck p/b Mosaic Homes)0:08:58
29Zachary Valdez (Whole Athlete-Specialized)0:09:15
30Tyson Wagler (SCOTT-3RoxRacing)0:09:16
31Andy Schultz (Kenda-Felt)0:09:58
32Macky Franklin (Orbea Tuff Shed)0:10:04
33Bryan Fawley (Orbea Tuff Shed)0:10:11
34Matt Gordon (Team Cycle Progression)0:10:24
35Kerry Werner (BMC Mountainbike Development Team USA)0:10:43
36Robert Marion (American Classic/Xpedo p/b Max)0:10:54
37Brennan Wodtli0:11:11
38Rotem Ishay (Team Jamis)0:11:13
39Kalan Beisel (Orbea Tuff Shed)0:11:14
40Blake Harlan (Ya Gotta Giv'r)0:11:36
41Drew Edsall (Kenda-Felt)0:11:39
42Graham Aldredge (Specialized/Carmichael Training Systems)0:11:49
43Chris Drummond (Bike One Racing)0:11:50
44Evan McNeely (Team Canada)0:12:18
45JT Cody (Bicycle Heaven)0:12:19
46Cole Oberman (Breakawaybikes.com)0:12:57
47Tony Smith (Whole Athlete-Specialized)0:13:00
48Lucas Brusseau (Athletes on Track/Subaru/Sun & Ski)0:13:49
49Stephen Dempsey0:13:51
50Jordan Kahlenberg (GIANT Mid-Atlantic Off-Road Team)0:14:07
51Kevin Bradford-Parish (Unattached)0:14:08
52Craig Wohlschlaeger (The Hub Bicycle Shop)0:14:31
53Hadji Corona (Ra Racing Apparel)0:14:51
54Rick Wetherald (Athletes On Track)0:15:00
55John Nobil (Bear Valley Bikes)0:15:03
56Scott Henry (Chicken and Waffles)0:15:56
57Travis Glysson (AZ Devo)0:16:32
58Jack Hinkens (BMC Mountainbike Development Team USA)0:16:38
59David Hanes (Ride Away Bicycles)0:16:40
60Craig Kunz (Team Bicycle Sport Shop)0:18:49
61Matt Miller (Giant Mid-Atlantic Off-Road Team)0:20:19
62Frank Webber (Orbea Tuff-Shed)0:20:59
63Felix Wilberg (Cyclemeisters/Bow Cycle)0:21:35
DNFAlex Vasquez (Team Tilson Homes)Row 63 - Cell 2
DNFKeith Hargis (RBM/Matrix)Row 64 - Cell 2
DNFBrent Steinberg (Livetrainrace.com)Row 65 - Cell 2
DNFWiley Mosley (Team Super Awesome)Row 66 - Cell 2
DNFAaron Elwell (TwinSix)Row 67 - Cell 2
DNFRich Weis (Trek-Subaru)Row 68 - Cell 2
DNFErnie Watenpaugh (Peloton/Specialized)Row 69 - Cell 2
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Junior men 10 & under
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Noah Given (Hill Country Bicycle Works)0:10:20
2Samuel Watts (Hill Country Bicycle Works)0:00:21
3Aidan Bond (Bike World Racing)0:00:28
4Bill Perret (Team Bicycle Sport Shop)0:01:07
5Michael Herzog (Indy Lake Racing)0:01:37
6Duncan McEwan (Team Bicycle Sport Shop)0:01:39
7Dawson Layne (Bikeland Developmental Factory Team)0:02:22
8Ethan Adams0:03:21
9Will Drummond (Bell & Company MTB Team)0:03:22
10Connor Rainey (Bicycles Outback p/b Jubilee Mitsubishi)0:03:41
11Gabe Kotick (APARD)0:03:43
12Joshua Mathis (Bicycles Outback p/b Jubilee Mitsubishi)0:03:54
13Ian Petko (Unlimited Sports Adventure)0:03:56
14Nate Lawrence0:04:17
15Andrew Waldrip (Hill Country Bike Works)0:05:35
16Lucas Dodson (LAME)0:06:06
17Hunter Schneider (Nitrocross BMX)0:06:07
18Jake Roberts (Hill Country Bicycle Works)0:06:25
19Maxwell Anderson (Bicycles Outback p/b Jubilee Mitsubishi)0:09:47
20Blake Davis0:22:01
DNFRyan LoaderRow 20 - Cell 2
DNFBrent DavisRow 21 - Cell 2
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Junior men 11-12
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Michael Mace (Firstplaceracing.com/MTBMike.com)0:18:47
2Mauricio Garcia (Sun & Ski Sports)0:01:49
3John Drummond (Bell & Company MTG Team)0:02:08
4Jayden Hakala (Ride Away Bikes)0:02:24
5Logan Rainey (Bicycles Outback p/b Jubilee Mitsubishi)0:02:30
6Ethan Dowdy (Tri-City Bicycles)0:05:22
7Devin Carlson (RBM/Matrix)0:05:42
8Mateo Benitez (Joe Pro Bikes)0:10:34
9Matthew Payne0:10:49
10Joey Barrera (787 Racing)0:11:16
11Luke Roberts (Hill Country Bicycle Works)0:15:38
12Paris Foster (Lucky Spoke Pro Bike Service)0:17:04
13Ethan Bernick0:17:46
14Jack Bratton0:20:35
DNFOscar Lay (Lucky Spoke Pro Bike Service)Row 14 - Cell 2
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Junior men 13-14
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Ethan Storm (Matrix / Richardson Bike Mart)0:37:57
2Austin Wagner (Richardson Bike Mart/Matrix)0:00:02
3Colton Sacket (Tri-City Bicycles)0:00:31
4Andrew Bobb (whiskey springs jr. devo)0:00:56
5Parker Given (Hill Country Bicycle Works)0:02:17
6Max Underhill (Hill Country Bicycle Works)0:04:06
7Trevor Meegan (Bike World Racing)0:05:44
8Harrison Worzel (Southern Elite/Sun & Ski Sports/PARD)0:05:55
9Chad k Bobbitt (Retro Racing USA)0:06:15
10Henry Sandusky (Matrix/RBM)0:08:03
11Aidan Scott (Hill Country Bicycle Works)0:08:24
12Thomas Madden (Tile Roofs of Texas/Bike Barn Houston)0:09:25
13Nash Lilly (Matrix RBM)0:14:18
14Austin Schneider0:22:07
15Dillon Roberts (Hill Country Bicycle Works)0:26:35
16Woodrow Hazel0:36:37
17Dylan Layne (Bikeland Developmental Factory Team)0:48:37
DNFWill JohnsonRow 17 - Cell 2
DNFJacob Howitt (McKinney Velo)Row 18 - Cell 2
DNFGilbert JohnsonRow 19 - Cell 2
DNFAshton Dubroc (EnivroInks.com/Bike Route)Row 20 - Cell 2
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Junior men 15-18
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Krendon Reynolds0:40:51
2Connor Simmons0:03:04
3Travis Raymond (Off Road Peddler)0:03:19
4Adam Moreau0:03:56
5Dakota Burklund (Team Bicycle Sport Shop)0:07:13
6Winston Baxter-Harwell0:20:16
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Senior men 19-29
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Rob Robertson0:36:39
2Jaron Crocker (AJ Cyclery / 512-Racing)0:01:20
3Thomas Sebring0:03:39
4Arnold Haffner (Team Sage Cycles)0:04:54
5Jerod Rollins0:05:40
6Raul Henao0:07:17
7Justin Luna (A1 Alarm & Tint)0:09:20
8Patrick Storer (NorthWest Cycling)0:10:16
9Eric Uniacke0:11:40
10Andrew Myers (Team Twin Six)0:12:46
11Ian McMahon0:15:21
12Jay Lopez (OMW)0:16:51
13William Trang (AJ's Cyclery)0:18:17
14Kendall Haynes (Cycleworks)0:19:00
15Jesus Vasuez (Level X Cycling)0:19:46
16Tirso J Melendez0:45:34
DNFBladimir CastellanosRow 16 - Cell 2
DNFBlake HansonRow 17 - Cell 2
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Master men 30-39
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Kris Kwolek (Boneshaker/Hotel San Jose)0:36:16
2Mike Schwarzkopf (Team Bike Lane)0:00:10
3Alan Abdine (Monkey Wrench Racing)0:01:19
4Markus Beeby (Team Chain Drop)0:01:34
5Richard Carr (Neilson Development Racing Team)0:01:37
6Nemo Cockrell (Epic Racing)0:02:04
7Rex Yackee (OCM)0:02:05
8Eric Swarvar (www.ericswarvar.com)0:02:38
9Brian Miller (BikeTown)0:02:57
10Anthony Wynd (Off Camber Cycling)0:03:17
11Douglass Rauls (Team Chain Drop)0:03:18
12Scott Boldt (Midwest Dental)0:03:26
13Matt Anderson (Bicycles Outback p/b Jubilee Mistsubishi)0:03:27
14Jason Amezquita0:03:28
15Ben Ploetz0:03:29
16Alan Rodriguez (Superior Haulers)0:03:41
17Shawn Slack0:03:42
18Aaron Zander0:03:48
19Bill Maroon (Tender Gooch Racing)0:04:22
20Christopher Vachon (VT Bike Stuff)0:04:23
21John Dodge (Team Seton Brain & Spine)0:06:35
22Rodman Reyes0:06:58
23Nelson Herrera0:07:02
24Todd Sage (Biketown)0:07:04
25Mark Anderson (Bicycles Outback p/b Jubilee Mitsubishi)0:07:05
26Jorge Lozano (Dominion/Falcon)0:07:34
27Chris Kucharski0:07:53
28Omar Avila (OMW Racing)0:08:29
29Dave Hafner0:08:46
30Ladislav Onhajzer0:08:48
31Alberto Salas (Level X Cycling Association)0:08:55
32Bill Cooper Sellers0:09:56
33Ian Armstrong (Brooks Motorsports)0:10:04
34Alex Burn0:10:10
35Gabiel Ayala (The Chain Link)0:10:12
36Richard Chen0:11:15
37Neil Decker0:11:25
38Carlos Barrios (AUPAZ)0:13:03
39Jeremy Watkins0:13:38
40Billy Brooks (COBB Tuning/AJ's Cyclery)0:13:45
41Trieu Phan0:15:37
42Juan Pagan (Bikeland Developmental Factory Team/WTF)0:17:04
43David Knight (Velossimo Racing)0:17:20
44David Laviolette0:21:40
45Daniel Ramos (Jaguares)0:27:20
46Juan Hetor Gonzalez (Jaguares)0:28:47
DNFAlfredo Lopez (OMW Racing)Row 46 - Cell 2
DNFRobert Discher (Chain Drop)Row 47 - Cell 2
DNFJason Berry (OMW Racing)Row 48 - Cell 2
DNFSteve Mace (Firstplaceracing.com/MTBMike.com)Row 49 - Cell 2
DNFElias Ellsworth (Team Cycle Progression)Row 50 - Cell 2
DNFDavid Baker (Orange Seal/TX Cycle Works)Row 51 - Cell 2
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Master men 40-49
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1David Larrabee (Action Bikes)0:37:32
2Brad Harmon (OrangeSeal Cycling)0:00:24
3Bill Simons (ICS)0:00:43
4Rob Spooner (iRuniTri Mulitisports)0:00:50
5Murray Kaiman0:01:08
6Shawn Toth (Boneshaker/Hotel San Jose)0:01:21
7Craig Maatta (Tri-City Bikes)0:02:41
8Shae Tribout (Tri-City Bicycles)0:02:59
9Rick Denney (Hill Country Bicycle Works/Joe's Pro)0:03:15
10Kirby Walls0:03:17
11Lee Stott (The Bicycle Shack)0:03:31
12Devin Wedward0:03:46
13Alex Link0:04:19
14Gary Crowell (L.A.M.E.)0:04:20
15David Gonzalez (Level X)0:05:08
16Timothy Lawrence0:05:51
17Jaime Calata0:05:58
18Paul Pinholster0:06:08
19Ben Adair (GKA Realty)0:06:10
20John Dotson0:06:14
21Cliff Kinder (Team IMBA)0:06:29
22Miguel Villarreal (West End Bikes)0:06:30
23David Cervera (Bike Barn)0:06:31
24Damon Landry0:06:55
25Thomas Aardahl0:06:57
26David Calvo (A1 Alarm & Tint)0:07:00
27Steve White (Tri Team Transport)0:07:35
28Martin Rojas0:09:55
29Joe Gabriel (Bicycle World of Houston / HTFU)0:10:47
30Joey Anzaldua (Bicycles Inc.)0:11:01
31Tracy Jarvis0:11:28
32Fernando Sosa (Level X)0:11:30
33John Eltiste0:12:43
34Andrew Tidrick0:12:45
35Steven Thompson (Splatter Paint Racing)0:13:08
36Eduardo Lozano (Level X)0:14:15
37Vlado Barun0:14:31
38Jose Torres (Let's Do This)0:14:33
39Chris Dorsett0:14:38
40Rich Eguchi0:14:48
41Lawerence Case0:15:26
42Richard Raymond0:15:53
43Chris Robbins0:17:06
44Haroeel Godinez (Level X)0:17:59
45Jason Laviolette (Anything but DNF or DFL)0:25:11
DNFRoger Prachyl (Rockwall Cycling)Row 45 - Cell 2
DNFBryan Christner (Sa-sa-satoshi)Row 46 - Cell 2
DNFJay DavisRow 47 - Cell 2
DNFJonathan Dubroc (enviroINKS/Bike Route)Row 48 - Cell 2
DNFFrancisco CanoRow 49 - Cell 2
DNFTim Schmidt (Fasthouse)Row 50 - Cell 2
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Master men 50+
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Jeff Westerheide (Rockwall Cycling)0:41:58
2Paul Guenther (Chain Link)0:01:43
3George Dawkins (BikeMojo.com)0:02:04
4Tom Ketterhagen (787 Racing)0:02:05
5Don Schwieters (OMW)0:02:08
6Clark Buxton0:02:09
7Don Armentrout (Bronze Body)0:03:18
8Troy Coleman0:03:51
9Bill Petko0:05:27
10Jim Olmsted0:06:20
11Tony Coakley (Tri City Bicycles)0:06:38
12Mark Yeamans0:07:51
13Rick Westervelt (Boneshaker/Hotel San Jose)0:08:27
14Frank Rotnofsky (Level X)0:08:36
15Bobby J Baker0:10:17
16Perry Haney (SpineOne)0:11:42
17Hal McCown0:12:16
DNSKarl Stoecklein (Team Bobby Ray)Row 17 - Cell 2

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