Zandstra wins Canadian cross country national championships

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Derek Zandstra (Scott-3Rox) took the first elite cross country title of his career at the Canadian National Championships on Saturday, at the Hardwood Mountain Bike Centre, one hour north of Toronto.

After energy-sapping temperatures in the mid-30s (degrees Celsius) and high humidity all week, thunderstorms blew through overnight Friday, knocking the temperature down to a more reasonable mid-20s and dampening down the dust which was choking riders during training. Organizers were out in the early hours removing downed branches and cleaning up the course before racing began. The six kilometre course won praise from riders for offering a a mixture of technical singletrack and open passing sections, with short, punchy climbs to separate out the potential winners.

The elite men's six-lap race was expected to be a showdown between Canada's top-two World Cup riders - two-time defending national champion Max Plaxton (Sho-Air/Cannondale) and six-time national champion Geoff Kabush (Scott-3Rox). The duo have both scored top-10 finishes in the World Cup this season.

Scott-3Rox had the numbers, and used them to great effect. Cameron Jette went out hard on the first lap, with Plaxton leading the chase while Zandstra and Kabush sat on. Once Jette was caught and dropped, Kabush went off the front, and Plaxton had to chase him down while Zandstra got a free ride. The race was down to these three riders by early in the second lap.

"Yeah, the wind came into play and there was a fair bit of drafting. They were just smart," agreed Plaxton. "I mean, if I had three or four teammates, we would have done exactly the same thing. I'm happy. I've won twice in a row, but I was third today. I'm extremely happy; overall it's been a great year. Hat's off to Derek, it was a great win for him."

"When Geoff went off, I was hoping for Raph [Gagne - Equipe du Quebec] to be an ally, but I don't think he was riding as strong today. So it was up to me against Derek and Geoff. It was a big effort to pull Geoff back, but I was feeling good. With a lap and a half to go, I wiped out in an off-camber corner and laid it down, and unfortunately that was it. Derek got a good gap and Geoff put on the brakes. Those guys were working tactics; brake checking here, blocking ... but it's a bike race, you expect it."

Zandstra went clear late in lap four, and steadily opened a gap on Plaxton and his shadow, Kabush. The Ontario rider, who had never won a national title to this point, was 15 seconds ahead by the end of the fourth lap and 30 seconds up as he started his final lap. Kabush then jumped Plaxton in the final lap to make it a one-two finish for Scott-3Rox.

"We had three strong guys in the field, so we used our strength and numbers to get that win," said Zandstra. "We wanted to get one of us at the top, and it worked out. It just turned out that it was my turn, I guess. When we caught back up [to Kabush], we played a little cat and mouse, and mistakes happen, and that's when we capitalized. It feels pretty awesome; I've always gotten second or third, so I'm pretty fired up to get the win. I've always wanted this title, ever since I was a Cadet, but it's always just been out of my grasp. I'm really happy to get the jersey."

Kabush said, "Derek really deserves it. This title will be great for him. To get that jersey was our main goal."

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