McGrath and Sheppard lock up BC Bike overall win

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The seventh and final stage of the BC Bike Race ran through Whistler. 370 racers from more than 16 countries were ready for the last test of their bodies, bikes and in some cases, friendships.

The final Whistler stage was a mere 30km long, roughly half the distance of the other stages in the race. In speaking to racers after Stage 6 in Squamish, many were relieved to have less distance to cover on the final day.

It turned out that the shorter distance was not indicative of the amount of effort required to complete the final stage. Day 7 course designer, Grant Lamont, knows the Whistler trail network like no one else and took advantage of that inside track to create a course that racers would remember.

From the Creekside start, racers rode up some tough, steep climbs right to the top of an aptly named trail, "See Colours & Puke". From there, they worked their way into trails like "Tunnel Vision", which had some challenging sections that some riders elected to walk.

It was not a sit back and relax kind of day, but it did allow many riders to realize their skills progression through the week. And there was an endless stream of smiles, cheers, and tears of joy as riders crossed the finish line anywhere from one hour 46 minutes to four hours and 50 minutes later.

Each rider that crossed the line received either a finisher medal - if they completed all seven days within the cutoff range; or a participant medal - if they completed some of the stages but not all.

The most intense battle of the weekend was in the men's duo category. Seamus McGrath and Chris Sheppard (Jamis / Santa Cruz) came out with the win after taking the lead early in the race. They were challenged throughout by Kona's Barry Wicks and Kris Sneddon, who finished second overall. Team's DCM Chrome's Brandon Stewart and Max Knox were third overall.

Katerina Nash and Catharine Pendrel (Luna) won the women's duo category with a comfortable nearly one hour lead over runners-up Alison Sydor and Lea Davison of Rocky Mountain. Third place went to Lisa Ludwig and Dawn Anderson.

Ryan Trebon and Georgia Gould won the mixed duo race. They finished ahead of Jeff Neilson and Mical Dyck of Terrascape / Trek Toronto. Sue Butler and Bryan Alders were third.

Colin Kerr and Megan Rose won the solo men's and women's categories respectively.