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Hestler repeats as Cheakamus champion

Newcomer McKirdy wins women’s event; Whistler riders win junior, masters titles
cheakamus_challenge04

North Vancouver’s Andreas Hestler looked back on one climb in the Cheakamus Challenge Fall Classic and saw that, at last, he was alone.

Even so, he couldn’t relax and enjoy the ride. For the rest of the ride he saw shadows out of the corners of his eyes – usually just trees and tricks of the light – but he picked his pace up just to be certain, and didn’t let up until he was safely over the finish line with close to nine minutes on his closest competition.

"I don’t know if it was all the climbing or what, but I was definitely seeing things out there. Any minute I expected to see a rider coming up behind me. I kept looking back and looking back, and kept going and going," said Hestler, won the race for the second year in a row.

He finished the Sept. 25 race in three hours, 16 minutes and 37 seconds, eight minutes slower than his time last year.

The course was slightly longer for 2004, at 72.8 km, with two hard climbs near the end and some more technical singletrack with the addition of Tunnel Vision and Big Timber. In total there was almost 2,100 metres of vertical climbing.

"It’s one of the hardest courses I think I’ve ever ridden, with all those hills (race organizer) Grant (Lamont) put in at the end of the race, the Northwest Passage, Microwave Tower, Riverside – I was cursing his name the whole way," said Hestler.

At 34, Hestler is still one of Canada’s top cross-country riders. He’s also a strong downhill rider, and plans to spend the next month racing bikercross.

"I’m happy to still be out there pushing hard, and feeling good at the end of a race like this. It’s also nice to see all these young guys coming up," said Hestler. "There’s a really strong group of up and coming riders in Canada, like (second place finisher) Max (Plaxton), who are going to be taking over, but it’s nice to get the win today.

"I’ve been biking the Cheakamus for 12 years now, and I’ve been beaten so many times. All of those guys, Roland Green, Ryder (Hesjedal), Kirk Molday, all of them kicked my ass. But I’m still here, still going, and I’m really happy to be here."

Tofino’s Plaxton finished second overall in 3:25:07, followed by Vancouver’s Matthew Martindill in 3:29:19. Whistler’s Matt Ryan, winner of the 24 Hours of Adrenalin (Team of Four), the Samurai of Singletrack, the West Side Wheel Up and countless Loonie Races this year, finished a close fourth in 3:29:46.

"It was actually pretty tough," said Ryan. "I didn’t know the course with all the new stuff on it, but I think I could have pushed a little harder.

"It was definitely a course for the guys who do all the road stuff, but it was nice to have Trash and Tunnel Vision in there for the singletrack guys."

Ryan says he’s relieved the cross-country season is over, especially with all the epic races in the last month.

"It’s time to do a little downhilling and drink some beer and show the locals how to party," he said. "Put the spandex away for a little while."

The women’s elite title went to a Cheakamus Challenge newcomer, Jean-Anne McKirdy of Valemont, who finished the ride in 4:19:34, more than 20 minutes ahead of her only challenger, Karen Eller, whose time was 4:41:01.

Riding for the Rock Mountain/Business Objects team, along with Hestler, McKirdy had a strong first season on the Canada Cup circuit, improving her standings at every race until she was fifth in the finals at Kamloops (and second among Under 23 racers).

The Cheakamus Challenge was harder than all of those races, says McKirdy.

"I thought I knew what to expect, but it was a lot hard than I thought, and it kept getting harder and harder as the day went on. The last third of the race was the hardest, with all the climbing and descending, it was up and down, up and down," she said.

"It was kind of fun. I love a challenge when I’m mountain biking, and this had it all. It was fast, it had technical, twisty sections. They really mixed it up, which makes races like this so much fun. You don’t know what to expect around the next corner."

Eric Crowe won the Master Expert 40 and Over title for a second straight year, crossing the line in 3:37:46.

"I was duking it out with a few of the guys (in my age category), like Tony Routley and Peter Findlay heading into the canyon, and I think I finally lost Tony on the highway," said Crowe. "I had a lot of fun this year. It was a little chaotic in the bike park, coming down the same run as everyone in the park, and having to dodge a group of Japanese girls, but it’s all part of the experience.

"I like the course a lot. It really pushed you right to the end, with a lot of steep climbs right to the finish. Tunnel Vision is just a great technical descent as well, so that was nice addition this year."

Tony Routley finished second in the category with a time of 3:45:53, while Peter Findlay was third in 3:48:43.

Crowe’s son, James Crowe, raced alone in the Junior Expert category, posting a time of 4:07:02, a time which would have won the senior expert category and placed him eighth in the men’s pro elite race.

Twelve-year-old Tyler Allison won the Men’s Under 15 race, coming in at a time of 5:19:33, more than 40 minutes faster than Erik Mulder of North Vancouver.

"It was okay, not too crazy," said Allison, who was racing the Cheakamus Challenge for the first time this year. His father Bob Allison stayed with him on the ride, helping him to get through some of the tough spots.

His favourite part of the trail was Tunnel Vision, where he took a break from cross-country racing to hit the jumps on the side of the trail. The Northwest Passage climb was tough he says, but he knew he was going to finish.

"I was just trying to keep my own pace, I wasn’t racing anybody. I just tried to be steady on the climbs, and to pass as many people as I could on the downhills," said Allison.

Next year Allison hopes to race in all of the B.C. Cup events as an Under 15, and might try a few downhill races as well. He put in 11 laps of the Garbanzo zone in the four-hour Max Vert Enduro the day after the Cheakamus Challenge, keeping up with most of the adults in the race.

Kim Stace almost didn’t race this year, but decided to sign up at the last minute. It’s a good thing, because she won the women’s Sport 30 and Over category by almost nine minutes with a time of 5:26:31.

In the men’s Senior Sport category, Johnny Lloyd and Mark Knight of Whistler were third and fourth respectively behind a pair of Squamish riders with times of 4:29:21 and 4:34:05. Tange Makoto was sixth and Ryuji Segami 15 th .

Michael Boehm won the men’s Sport 30 to 39 category by almost 10 minutes with a time of 3:50:39. Also from Whistler, Jason Simpson, Greg McDonnell, Richard Potter and Scott Wheeler were seventh through 10 th with times of 4:26:23, 4:27:46, 4:28:11 and 4:31:34 respectively. Ken Kozel was 14 th in 4:45:17, Stu Ridley 23 rd in 4:54:11, John Minton 58 th in 6:01:04, Brett MacDonald 59 th in 6:10:31, and Zane Littrell 60 th in 6:12:43.

In the men’s Senior Expert 30 to 39 group, Matthew Ball and Gavin Christie were 12 th and 13 th respectively with times of 4:44:59 and 4:47:54.

In the men’s Sport 40 and Over, Vesa Suomalainen and John Blok were second and third with times of 3:57:07 and 4:21:43. Shizuo Kashino was sixth in 4:39:57, Scott Brunning eighth in 4:47:48, Milo Rusimovic 13 th in 5:11:02, Bob Allison 17 th in 5:19:29. Rick Reid was 19 th in 5:21:57, Stu Snowball 28 th in 5:33:49, Gary Baker was 36 th in 5:41:16, Hiromasa Sato was 38 th in 5:42:11, John Townsend 45 th in 6:06:44, and Eric St. John 50 th in 6:55:45.

In addition to awards for each category, Epic Events, the producers of the race, presented $700 to the Cops for Cancer fund to thank the RCMP for their assistance with the highway sections of race each year.

Grant Lamont also added four new names to the Whistler Mountain Bike Hall of Fame at the Brew House in the fourth annual Cheaky Awards. The first went to Mike Watton, who is stepping down as the president of WORCA after two years. In addition to running the club, Watton has donated his time to trail maintenance, youth coaching, and running events.

Milo Rusimovic was also honoured, as one of the first locals to put together a bike team for races.

Boyd McTavish, who was WORCA’s trail director last year, has also helped out the mountain bike community wherever he was needed, and donated thousands of hours to improving our local bike trails.

Last of all was Geoff Weddell, the general manager of the Brew House, for hosting the mountain bike Hall of Fame, and supporting the bike community by hosting Loonie Races and events like the Cheakamus Challenge.

Complete results from the 2004 Cheakamus Challenge are available online on the WORCA site at www.worca.com.