Wallace and Gordon win High Cascades 100

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The fifth annual High Cascades 100 rolled out under sunny skies but considerably warmer temperatures than previous years in the low to mid nineties. The extreme heat took its toll on many racers with a record 60 DNF's although the overall finish rate was still a healthy 85%. Beginning and ending at Bachelor Village, the sold-out event treated finishing racers to grilled burgers with all the fixin's along with plenty of local brew.

Men

Cory Wallace (Kona) got his first ever win at an NUE Series race completing the 100-mile course in just 7:39:54.

"The NUE series is something I've always intended on being part of so it was nice to finally get down to one of the events," said the 30-year-old Wallace.

The race started with an unfortunate incident as favorite and last year's winner Barry Wicks (Kona) crashed hard on his collarbone and abandoned the race.

"We had both been racing on the road at the Cascades Cycling Classic all week and had been looking forward to riding together on this day. To see him go down sucked, and it was hard as hell not to stay there with him, but he's a tough guy and I knew he would be all right," said Wallace.

"It took a while to get back into race mode after the accident as my teammate Sean Babcock and I rode together for the first couple hours in the fifth and sixth positions. For the next three hours, I would pick off riders one by one but could never get the gap below two minutes to race leader, 2011 NUE Champion Christian Tanguy (Team CF)."

On the descent after Lava Lake, Wallace saw puffs of dust indicating Tanguy was not afar ahead. With 20 miles to go, Wallace caught and passed him as Tanguy pulled over to let him by.

"I pushed hard up the climb to get a gap on Tanguy, who was riding really well, and then cruised the descent at a conservative pace to avoid crashing or having mechanicals," said Wallace.

Wicks went to the ER, where doctors confirmed his broken collarbone, but he returned later to congratulate his teammates and race finishers. Just four minutes later, 38-year-old Tanguy finished second at 7:43:26.

"I started to hear braking noises from behind so I pulled over to the side and Cory flew by," said Tanguy. "The next two hours it took to get to the finish was a real struggle but I did not fall apart, pushing all the way to the line. I had a great time and hope I will have the opportunity to race here again."

Michael Tobin (G-Fit), 50, finished third in 7:56:09. Five minutes later, Carey Smith (Team CF) crossed the line in 8:01:35. Evan Plews (Reall Racing) suffered a flat tire that set him back to fifth place at 8:03:57 with the British National Marathon Champion Neal Crampton (Torq Performance)rounding out the top six at 8:12:34.

Perhaps the most amazing finish of the day was 13-year-old Brian Hart Jr. (Hapi-Go) who finished 12:57:33 riding his 26-inch full-suspension Giant Trance X. Hart Jr. became the youngest NUE finisher ever coming in 150th out of 230 starters in his division.

"This was my first 100-mile race, but it was more like a training ride than a race for me. The longest one I had finished until today was a 62-mile race two weeks ago. It also had over 11,000 feet of climbing. My only goal was to finish. I got tired but it was fun."

Women

"We were all together until we got to the first dirt section, and then there was just like a plume of dust. I saw Alice and I passed her and then I never saw her again. I took a spill coming around Bachelor which kind of hurt and my chain jammed. I was freaking out but I got that fixed. Then, at about mile 75, my stomach really started feeling bad but I rolled into Edison, got some Coke and some food, and from there on it was pretty much survival."

Following her fourth place finish last year, Jana Repulski (Broken Spoke Cycling) improved to finish second this year in 9:40:14 and then, 10 minutes later, Jennifer Shultz (Balance Point Racing/Fresh Air) in at 9:51:59, among just three to finish in sub-10 hours.

"A 100-miler has been on my bucket list for the last five years, and I finally decided to make it happen this year." Schulz has stage racing finishes that include the BC Bike Race (2011-first) and Trans Rockies 3 (2012-third). "This race was very challenging with the extreme heat and I definitely learned a lot about pacing and nutrition. I rode hard and reminded myself to smile and enjoy the experience. I am definitely pumped about a third place finish and can't wait for my next 100-miler!"

Alice Drobna (Webcyclery, CycleSoles) improved to finish fourth at 10:02:45 following her fifth place finish last year. Twenty-five minutes later, Nicole Dolney (Los Gatos Bicycle Racing Club) finished 10:27:54. Last year's race winner, Alice Pennington (Team S&M/Kona) took sixth this year in 10:41:19.

Although she was not among the top finishers this year, 16-year-old Susannah Hart (Hapi-Go), finished her first 100-mile race becoming the youngest girl to complete an NUE Series race. Adding to the wow factor, she chose a 29" hardtail Redline Monobelt singlespeed with a Gates Carbon belt-drive and 39/22 gearing.

"I switched out my 1.9" rear tire for 2.2 for better traction the day before the race and my favorite part was from Swampy aid station to Skyliner (mile 30-41). There was a nice long downhill were I had a good opportunity to sing some hymns. I enjoy doing this. It makes me very happy and helps keep my mind off the race. Lava Lake was so beautiful! The best part about these long races is the camaraderie you get from riding with other people."

Singlespeed

AJ Linnell (Fitzgerald's Bicycles/Misfit Psycles) made it two in a row in the singlespeed race. Gerry Pflug (Team CF) who has earned a commanding lead in the NUE series with four wins and just one second place finish behind Linnell at Tatanka. Ten minutes later, Joe Santos (Cyclepath) finished second at 8:53:10 on his 32/19.

Masters

Fifty-year-old Tim Phillips (Broken Spoke) captured a very narrow victory in 9:23:47, just one minute ahead of 55-year-old Marland Whaley (Red Barn Bicycles) who placed second at 9:24:50. 51-year-old Jerry Lentz (Hutchs of Bend) took third place in 10:06:54. Less than a minute later, David Saurman (Fitzgerald's Bicycles) rolled into fourth place in 10:07:00.

Full Results