TransRockies Media
Stage One Report
The 10th TransRockies starts under clear high Rocky Mountain skies
On form Max Plaxton siezes TR3 lead, local riders show well in TR7
Fernie-Fernie Time Trial
32km/1400m climbing/1400m descending
The TransRockies is the first North American epic to reach its 10th Anniversary and the riders who turned up in Fernie for Sunday’s start were treated to perfect clear, dry high mountain weather for the 32km Stage 1 Time Trial. Two racers were to be held on the trails at the same time: TR3, a UCI-sanctioned three-day solo event and TR7, the classic 7-day team event.
Run on much the same course as 2010, Stage 1 is the shortest ride of the week and gives the riders and chance to stretch their legs and get used to the endless singletrack before the first mass start on Day 2. Given the vastly different conditions from 2010 to 2011, finish times were faster even though the route contained even more trail and less doubletrack. On the start line, riders were more concerned about sunscreen and hydration than mud and traction.
TR3
Max Plaxton hammers on Stage 1
Defending champion Max Plaxton of Team Specialized honestly assessed that he thought he’d be his own toughest competition before starting Stage 1 and, given his run of results which included his first-ever senior National Championship and his 2011 US Pro XC Series title, the confidence was well earned. In order to give the elite riders the clearest run at the trails, they started in the first wave and Plaxton left the line first at the stroke of 9am.
He shredded the course 6 minutes faster than the year before setting a new course record of 1:48:41 and laying a marker down that would be difficult for the rest of the field to follow. Sure enough, the next closest finisher was American Barry Wicks of Team Kona who was half of last year’s TR7 winning team. He finished in 1:54:32 edging third-placed Neal Kindree (Republic Cycles/SRAM) of Squamish, BC and fourth-placed Matt Hadley of Cycles Xprezo who finished within a minute of Wicks meaning a wide-open race for the podium placings.
In the Open Women’s division, multi-time TR7 winner Mical Dyck followed up on another strong showing at the Canadian National Championships with a first place finish on Stage 1. She was followed across the line by former World Cup mountain bike racer-turned Xterra World Champion Melanie McQuaid who showed she’s still a force on the bike beating current National Team members Catherin Vipond (3rd) and Jean Ann Berkenpas (4th).
Three riders from Alberta showed early dominance in the Master 40+ Men category led by current Canadian National Champion (40-49) Ian Auld who scorched the course in a time of 2:03:17 which would have placed him well into the Top 10 in Open. Second placed went to former TR7 Champion Jeff Neilson and he was followed closely by former Xterra Masters World Champion Cal Zaryski only a minute behind.
TR7
When it began in 2002, the TransRockies was the first marathon stage race in North America and the 10th Edition of the TransRockies (TRX) is not only another chance for riders to test themselves against the epic riding of the Rockies but a moment of celebration. A number of riders from the wild and woolly early days have returned to be part of TRX. During the week, we’ll catch up with some of them to hear about their most memorable TransRockies experience.
The migration of some elite teams to TR3 to grab the important UCI International Ranking Points offered has thrown the competition wide open in the TR7 team event wide open. Stage 1 gave a good indication of who’s going to be fighting for leaders’ jerseys and stage wins during the week.
Fittingly enough given that it’s the only stage host to have been part of all 10 TransRockies, Fernie was given strong representation by their local riders and as their local riders grabbed the leaders jerseys in the Open Men’s and Open Women’s Divisions. The Team Fernie Men’s duo of Martin Vale and Carter Hovey both have long and impressive resumes which include National Championship medals and World Cup appearances. While they’ve switched gears to the recreational side of riding, they powered through Stage 1 in 2:04:46, over three minutes ahead of the Swiss duo of Mat Haussener and Damian Perrin (Zaboo Pro Team) to grab the first leaders’ jerseys of the week. The Open Women’s team representing local outdoor magazine the Fernie Fix, Krista Turcasso and Angie Krasnay likewise put in an impressive ride to finish in 2:46:10 and wear the the first leaders’ jerseys as they set off in front of home town fans tomorrow for Stage 2.
The Master Men 80+ Years combined ages always offers some close racing and it lived up to expectations with the top two teams coming in on 26 seconds apart. Multi-time TransRockies champions Milan Spolc and Martin Horak were forced into second place by a great ride from the Team Deadgoat pair of Geoff Clark and Devin Erfle while another pair of Deadgoat riders Pat Doyle and Craig Bartlett finished third. Other category winners on the day who’ll claim their leaders jerseys at the nightly awards ceremonies included Ryan Schellenberg/Trish Gracyzk (Open Mixed), Clint Ball and Karen Tremaine (80+ Mixed) and Stan Magee/Jon Gould (100+ Open).
Tomorrow riders will leave in a mass start allowing teams in the same category to race head to head for the stage win and overall leadership.
Stage Two Report
Fernie-Porky Blue
51.6km.2000m climbing/2000m descending
The field rolls out from Fernie
Stage 2 of the TransRockies switched up the challenge from the rolling technical trails of the opening day to a long leg-crushing climb and descent of over 1000 metres vertical on Porky Blue, one of the signature rides in the area. The day dawned clear and the thermometer rose even more quickly on the second day baking the remaining moisture out of the trails leaving clouds of dust and an extra level of difficulty on the descents for the riders. As is so often the case, a different type of route brought different riders to the front of the action and the GC leader jerseys changed teams in several categories.
TR7
The racing stared off literally with a bang as the starter’s pistol was fired for the traditional loop of downtown Fernie behind the vintage fire engine. Team Fernie, the leaders in the Men’s Open TR7 category experienced a more ominous bang shortly after as Martin Vale blew his rear shock a short way into the course.
Upon hearing of the incident from Carter Hovey, the other half of Team Fernie, former TR winner Marty Lazarski offered his bike as a loaner but they had to chase Vale who’d headed back to the start to seek repairs. They caught Vale, switched pedals and Team Fernie began their chase now over a half hour behind the rest of the field with the entire field to pass ahead of them. The reports came in from checkpoints that Team Fernie was on a rampage tearing through the field back toward the front and by the finish they’d recovered to 5th place and had reduced the gap to only 15 minutes. The bike change and charge probably saved their race as they now stand only 11 minutes back behind Stage 2 TR7 winners Travis Hauck and Brian Cooke (Bicycle Café/Gericks Cycle) who also took the leaders jerseys.
Carter Hovey of Team Fernie on the charge
The other Fernie team leading their category, the Open Women duo of Krista Turcasso and Angie Krasnay won their second straight stage to make sure that they’ll be wearing the leaders’ jerseys again in front of their family and friends when the riders roll out of Fernie for the last time on Stage 3.
Crashes were also a story of the day with Ryan Schellenberg of Stage 1 Open Mixed winners being taken down in a multi-bike crash and being forced to limp home to the finish line where they held their overall lead by only 16 seconds over the Swiss Team Zaboo 29 of Simon Zahnd and Yvonne Burgi who won stage 2. The long climb also suited Swedish two-time Olympic Biathlon medallist Anna-Carin Zidek who’s at the TransRockies competing in her first mountain bike race with husband Tom Zidek. They moved up several places and grabbed 2nd place on the day. Likewise, the Czech Masters found the course to their liking and grabbed the stage and overall lead in the Mens Master 80+ division from two Canadian teams chasing them. The overall leaders in the 80+ Mixed and 100+ Open Gender divisions remained the same.
TR3
After finishing 3rd on Stage 1, newly-crowned 2011 Canada Cup Champion Catherine Vipond stomped her pedals hard on the gruelling 25km ascent to the top of Porky Blue and held on for the stage win ahead of 3-time Xterra World Champion Melanie McQuaid with Dyck coming in 3rd. The changing places mean that the overall win is wide open between these three riders with only 4 minutes separating Vipond in 1st overall and McQuaid in third. Stage 3 is expected to be another 3+ hour test with 2400 metres of climbing, much of it on singletrack.
Canadian National Champion Max Plaxton seemed to establish his dominance on a Stage 1 which he won by 6 ½ minutes over Neal Kindree but the former 2-time National Espoir Champion continued his remarkable comeback from long-term injury with a storming ride which pushed Plaxton to his limit. Kindree went over the top of the day’s main climb with a minute’s lead on Plaxton who fought hard to reel him back in. They entered town together and Plaxton took the stage win by only a second from Kindree. They remain 1st and 2nd in the overall standings with one day to go.
Kindree has one more chance to try and take a stage from Plaxton on the tough Stage 3 which serves up a relentless route of singletrack up and down across the North flank of the Elk Valley. Seven major climbs await and over 30km of tight, rooty singletrack must be mastered before riders arrive at the plush world-class facilities of Island Lake Lodge.
Stage 3 Preview
Fernie-Island Lake Lodge
44.8km/2275m climbing/1897m descending
After a time trial and a loop, Stage 3 is the TransRockies first point to point ride of the year starting in downtown Fernie and working West across the mountains North of the town including Mt Hosmer, Mt. Fernie, into the trails of the Fernie Alpine Resort and then a final climb up to the finish line at spectacular Island Lake Lodge. While the highest point of the day is less than 400 metres above the start line, the route has at least seven tough climbs, many on singletrack so the 44.8km length includes nearly 2300 metres of climbing. Expect average speeds to be slower and finish times to be close to the same or slower than Stage 2.
Stage Three Report
Fernie-Island Lake Lodge
42.4km/2200m climbing/1900m descending
One of the strange things about endurance racing is that many times the hardest days are also the most memorable days for athletes. The type of person who signs up for epic events is there to be tested and the greatest rewards are to be found on the days when the course and conditions are the most difficult. By that measure, Stage 3 of the 2011 TransRockies is going to be found on page of many scrapbooks as one of the best, toughest days ever.
The 42km-long stage 3 was always going to be one of the biggest challenges for the riders from 20 different counries who came to the Rockies in 2011 and baking hot weather and dry trail conditions only added an extra level of difficulty to a course profile which featured seven steeps climbs and lots of technical singletrack. The profile, technical riding and heat made the ride challenging enough that finish times were slower than they were for Stage 2 which was 13km longer! “Hardest day” and “best day” were the two common themes at the finish line as riders relaxed in the scenic surroundings of Island Lake Lodge, a world-class Cat-ski resort in the mountains above Fernie.
TR3
While the top placings in the Open Men’s division seemed settled, the Open Women’s race was wide up for grabs with three athletes separated by only 4 minutes in the overall at the start of the Day. Stage 1 winner Mical Dyck used her world-class technical riding skills to surge to the win in Stage 3 and jump from 3rd place to the overall win ahead of Catherine Vipond who grabbed third on the day behind Jean-Ann Berkenpass who grabbed her first podium of the race but could not dislodge Melanie McQuaid from the overall standings podium.
The winner of stages 1 and 2 in the Open Men’s Division, Victoria, BC-based Max Plaxton said he suffered from the elevation during stage 2 and even though the route was going to be an immense technical challenge, he was happy to be back closer to the valley floor for Stage 3. With sea level lungs back, National Champion Plaxton laid down another tough pace and soloed to a convincing 4-minute victory to sew up his second straight TR3 title. The World Championships in Champery, Switzerland are the next race on his schedule and TR3 kicked off a block of hard training to take on the best in the World in this, his best season yet.
As they had since the start of the event, three riders from Alberta dominated the Men’s 40+ category finishing Stage 3 in the same 1-2-3 placing they had since day 1. Masters National Champion Ian Auld showed that his jersey had been well-earned with another strong ride to secure the overall win ahead of Jeff Neilson and Calvin Zaryski.
TR7
Sometimes, the overall placings in a race like the TransRockies settle down pretty quickly and leaders jerseys are given to the same team over and over. The Open Men’s division in 2011 has been nothing like that as, for the third straight day, a different team will pull on the coveted leaders jerseys at the evening’s ceremonies. The Swiss Team Zaboo Duo of Mat Haussener and Damian Perrin have not won a stage yet but their consistent podium placings and ability to avoid mechanical problems has rewarded them with the overall lead after three days. They took the jerseys from Brian Cooke and Travis Hauck (Bicycle Café/Gericks), the leaders after day two, who finished six minutes behind in third place.
First place went to the hard-charging Fernie team of Martin Vale and Carter Hovey who managed to eat up most of the 15 minutes they lost due to a mechanical on Stage 2. Sitting in third overall, just 4 ½ minutes behind Team Zaboo, they’re poised to make a run at the jerseys, if not on the shorter Stage 4 then definitely on the longer, tougher Stage 5.
Local knowledge is one of the key parts of endurance racing and the leading women’s team, Team Fernie Fix, said after Days 1 and 2 that they were holding some energy in reserve for Day 3 in anticipation of a gruelling day. Their strategy paid off with their third straight stage win and an increasing margin over the Australian pair of Simone McCallum and Claire Garcia-Webb who moved into second place overall with a strong finish on day 2. Team Make-a-Wish from Canmore slipped into third place after day 3 but with four days on their home turf in Kananaskis Country, they may yet move back up the podium.
For a decade, the TransRockies has been an international destination for adventure-seeking athletes and the 2011 edition is no different. The multinational flavour of the 10th TransRockies can be seen on each day’s podiums where there are teams from the Netherlands, Switzerland, Australia, the Czech Republic and Austria grabbing daily prizes. The Austrian pair of René Reidinger and Axel Strauss (Team Integraglobal.com) made their first podium visit a good one, snatching 1st place in the Men 80+ division moving closer to the overall podium which is still led by the Czech Masters.
As the TR3 riders wrap up their ride in the Rockies, TR7 riders look forward to moving from the trails of Fernie to the rugged wilderness of Kananaskis Country where they spend four days moving North through some of the best mountain bike riding in the Rockies.
Stage 4 Preview
North Fork Recreation Area-Little Elbow Campground.
47.3km/1300m climbing
The only bus transfer of 2011 takes riders to the start of Stage 4 which is brand new for 2011 and starts four straight days in Alberta’s spectacular Kananaskis Country. From the startline at North Fork Recreation you head south on the Gorge Creek Road which quickly takes riders to the base of the biggest climb of the day to the top of Volcano Ridge. This tough but rideable climb is followed by rolling trails to the spectacular Black Rock Canyon. Then it’s onto the last climb of the day on Wildhorse trail, and a blast down one of the funnest descents of the week. A great introduction to Kananaskis riding!
Stage Four Report
North Fork Recreation Area-Little Elbow Campground.
47.3km/1300m climbing/1050m descending
There’s an old saying that goes “be careful what you ask for, you just might get it”. After three dusty days in Fernie, riders finally got a break from the dry conditions, but it probably wasn’t the one they wanted. While the fastest riders got through the 47km stage in less than two and a half hours beating the onrushing black clouds, the rest of the field found themselves high and exposed in pounding hail, thunder and rain. Or, as they call it in the Rockies, “Summer”.
The day started off well enough with riders gathered under humid sunny skies at North Fork Recreation Area. The route ahead promised to be one of the shortest rides of the week, a fast 47km over Volcano Ridge and through Black Rock Canyon to the finish line at Little Elbow Campground situated in one of the most spectacular valleys of the Front Range. The views of rugged Powderface Ridge which welcomed the support crew and early finishers quickly covered as dark clouds rolled in and the skies opened dropping hail and pouring rain on the 200 plus riders who were still on course when the weather arrived.
This is biking not baseball, though, and the game goes on regardless of the weather. Stage 4 brought a new winner to the front of the Open Men’s Division as Team Honey Stinger finally reached the top step of the podium after two years of trying. The top four teams raced closely most of the day but Team Fernie continued their run of bad luck with a flat tire and hunger knock to drop out of the group and eventually finish 4th on the day. Overall leaders Team Zaboo of Switzerland held to their jerseys with a third place finish on the day. It was down to the teams from Bicycle Café/Gericks and Honey Stinger to fight for top honours and a very happy Nate Bird and Dax Massey took the win.
It’s become a familiar story but not even a change of Province could slow down the leading Fernie Fix Open Women’s team who grabbed their fourth straight stage win and solidified an overall lead which is starting to look insurmountable. One team which has been putting on a dominant performance is the Open 100+ Combined age team of Stan Magee from Canmore and Jon Gould from Tamarack, Idaho. This cross-border partnership has been stomping since Stage 1 riding with the fastest teams in the race and looks set to grow their lead all the way to the finish. In the Open Mixed Division, Ryan Schellenberg and Trish Gracyzk seem to have completely recovered from their near-disastrous Stage 2 crash and powered to another stage win. Two-time Olympic biathlon medallist Anna Carin Zidek seems to have adapted well to her first mountain bike race and holds down second place overall with her husband Tom Zidek who’s competing in his 5th TransRockies.
The TR4 is a newly created solo event which includes the last four stages of the full TR7 route and its creation for the 10th Anniversary Event allows solo riders to officially complete the full seven days for the first time. While a large number of riders arrived fresh at the start line at North Fork, they were joined by a large group of solo riders taking on all seven days. Despite the three extra days of riding in their legs, Team Kona’s Barry Wicks and Kris Sneddon took the top two places on Stage 1 of the TR4 and were followed by another TR3 racer David Gonda who rounded out the podium. The 40+ Men’s division saw new arrival Simon Pulfrey beat Jeff Neilson who grabbed his 4th straight solo race second place. Kira McLellan signed up for the full 7-day solo effort and she was rewarded with her first stage victory on the ride to Little Elbow Campground.
One of TR4 rider who put in a great showing on the first day was retired World Cup Slalom skier Thomas Grandi who placed 9th in the Open Men’s division showing that it takes a good set of lungs to compete at the international level in Alpine skiing.
No TransRockies would be complete without some challenge from the weather and 2011 has now joined the list of epic TransRockies. The storm dumped a deep coating of hail onto the route for Stage 5 but rain which fell all afternoon had washed most of it away by dinnertime. Stage 5 promises to be a slippery ride through some of epic riding in K-Country.
Stage 5 Preview
Little Elbow-Little Elbow
66km/2000m climbing/2000m descending
Stage 5 of the TransRockies brings back the big loop format which has been popular since it was introduced in 2008, This Little Elbow based-loop features an incredible loop of mountain bike trails including classic area rides like Prairie Creek, Sulphur Springs and Moose Packers Trail with newly developed purpose-built mountain biking trails like Pnuema and Ridgemont. We’ve put together the ultimate combination of trails in the Moose Mountain area.
Stage Five Report
Little Elbow-Little Elbow
66km/2000m climbing/2000m descending
Lance Armstrong once described the Tour de France as “3500km of pointless suffering and with few exceptions, most ultra-endurance events fit this same description. The kind of people who sign up for epic adventures and races aren’t the kind of people who go home and brag about how great the weather was and how much time they spent by the swimming pool, instead, they talk about the pain, the difficulties, and the discomfort.
For these people, Day 5 of the 2011 TransRockies was a perfect day on the bike. The first sections of the course were coated with a thick layer of hail which fell the night before making traction hard to find and good lines through the singletrack impossible. With average speeds chopped by the conditions, even the fastest riders were out on course for 4 hours in the rain and cold and the average finishing time was closer to 6 hours on this classic TransRockies day.
Rolling out from Little Elbow Campground under cloudy skies, none of the riders were taken by surprise as they had been the day before and everyone took their extra clothes out of their gear bags and were prepared for an epic day in the high mountains. For most, this would be a day for survival, not racing.
This has been one of the closest races ever in the Open Men’s Division of the TR7 with four teams from three countries trading the top placings on a daily basis. The battle for first place tightened up again as former Canadian National Team riders Martin Vale and Carter Hovey (Team Fernie) grabbed the stage win and took three minutes out of the overall lead of Team Zaboo cutting their gap down to less than four minutes with two stages to go. Behind them, Team Honey Stinger (Nate Bird and Dax Massey) continued their methodical ride picking up another podium finish and closing in on an overall podium spot. After a mechanical-plagued 2010, their 2011 approach has put them in striking distance of their first overall podium at the TransRockies.
While the status quo held in the other Open Divisions, the Swiss KRAFTWERK -
rockthisbike.ch team of Marco Carrer and Eva Carrer-Enz found the tough conditions to their liking and grabbed their first stage win of the week. The 80+ leaders from
After the baking hot, dry conditions for the TR3, TR4 solo racers have seen the exact opposite side of the Rockies with back-to-back days of cold and stormy weather. As they had the day before, Team Kona Barry Wicks and Kris Sneddon, who won TR7 as a team last year, grabbed the top two places in the TR4 Open Men’s division. Wicks again set the fastest time of the day with a scorching 3:55:49 and Sneddon was the only other athlete to finish in less than 4 hours with a 3:59:15. Another former TR7 winner, Marty Lazarski had a strong day to grab 3rd overall and move up into 3rd on GC. Kira McLellan secured her second straight win in the Women’s division to extend her GC lead.
For many riders, the commitment and sacrifice necessary to complete an event like the TransRockies is a great platform for fundraising around important causes and one team from Canmore has managed to raise over $40,000 for the Make a Wish Foundation through their riding. Team Zach Attack/Make a Wish Foundation is named for Zach Goodman, a heroic 13 year-old from Canmore who was able to take 14 of his family on a vacation to Hawaii with the help of Make-a-Wish before he died of brain tumours. Zach’s mom Dana and his aunt, Margie Smith are not only competing for a podium spot in the Open Women’s division but are close to completing a $50,000 fundraising drive for the Make-a-Wish Foundation.
Day 5 might have been the toughest day that many 2011 TransRockies riders have spent on a bike they came to the Rockies to test themselves against the toughest mountain bike race in North America. The thousand-yard stares at the finish were quickly replaced with war story telling around the campfire and over the endless dinner buffet and with two more tough stages to go before the finish line in Canmore including the legendary ridge rides of Stage 6, there will be more suffering and more new stories to tell at the closing banquet on Saturday night and when they get home to friends and family.
Stage Six Report
A perfect TransRockies day
Little Elbow Campground-Stoney Nakoda Resort
72km/2050m climbing/2350m descending
Water? Check. Food? Check. Tube, tools, rain jacket? Check. Bear spray? Bear spray! There aren’t many bike races which list bear spray as mandatory equipment but the TransRockies route travels through some very active bear country and route changes due to wildlife are part of the TransRockies.
After conservation authorities contacted TR organizers during the week to let them know that there was a grizzly bear mother and cubs on the trails of Stage 6, a new stage finale was quickly implemented which would see racers finishing at Stoney Nakoda Resort rather than at Rafter Six Ranch, the traditional last night stopover of the TransRockies.
If a small route change counts as a hiccup, it was the only one on a day which was as perfect as the TransRockies has ever seen. Riders and crew woke up to a clear mountain morning and the temperatures rose quickly before the 9am rollout under the . The weather held, temperatures stayed moderate, the winds never picked up and the field was able to enjoy the Queen Stage of 2011 in pristine Rocky Mountain weather. Three times they ascended trails to above 2000m metres where the rode in jaw-dropping panoramas of the rugged front ranges of the Rockies and three times they rode down legendary descents. On the day riders would accumulate a mile and a half of descending.
If it was a beautiful ride, it was also a long a tough one, and winning times for the pros were again close to 4 hours. After two straight TR4 wins, Barry Wicks took second place behind his teammate Kris Sneddon. After two trying days in the bad weather, the teammates called a truce and rode the day together with Sneddon taking the win as they rolled across the finish line together in the same time of 3:42:52. Behind them David Gonda finsihed a clear third to grab the final overall podium spot. Marty Lazarski, his closest competition suffered a number of mechanicals on the day, losing over a half hour and slipping to fourth overall.
Mechanicals blew apart the Men’s 40+ podium race as former TR7 winner Jeff Neilson suffered a double tire cut while in the lead. After a long repair process he knew top spot had slipped away and showed epic mountain bike spirit, stopping to help Marty Lazarski with his mechanical problems. Neilson’s bad luck was Simon Pulfrey’s fortune as he rolls into the last day with an almost-insurmountable 26 minute lead.
The women’s TR4 race has been a one-rider show with Kira McClellan winning all three stages but behind her, Cassandra Stamm and Pam Pearson are separated by only 40 seconds so the ride into Canmore will be anything but ceremonial.
The Open Men’s category of the TR7 event has produced some the best racing of the week with four fast teams battling for the podium spots all week. Stage 6 produced another battle which was eventually decided by the fickle hand of mechanical fate. The leading team from Switzerland, Team Zaboo, has had a relatively mechanical-free week but their luck changed on Stage 6 when both Mat Haussener and Damian Perrin broke their saddles but they managed to stay with the other teams and lost only 1:27 to second placed Team Fernie who worked with eventual stage winners Team Honey Stinger to paceline the last few KM of the rerouted course to increase the gap.
Team Fernie who have lost almost 20 minutes during the week to mechanical issues have cut Team Zaboo’s lead down to a mere 2:16 with one stage to go. The former World Cup racers Marty Vale and Carter Hovey of Team Fernie have promised to come out guns firing on Stage 7 in an effort to overcome the gap and win the overall.
The battle for third is just as interesting as Team Honey Stinger’s late surge has cut their gap from the overall podium from 18 minutes after Stage 3 to a hair under 4 with one day to go. Third-placed Team Bicycle Café/Gericks Cycle might have the locals advantage but Honey Stinger has seen this stage before and will be chasing the last overall podium spot along with their third stage win of 2011.
Stage 7 Preview
Rafter Six Ranch-Canmore
45km/1330m climbing/1330m descending
The final stage of 2011 takes riders up the beautiful Bow Valley to the town of Canmore, just outside Banff National Park with more than 1300 metres of climbing and lots of singletrack, this is more than a ceremonial champagne ride to the finish.
This stage features long sections of the TransCanada Trail which includes challenging rooty sections and fast fun trails leading to the town of Canmore. Once in the town, the route will explore some of the Quarry Lake trail network, and then into the Canmore Nordic Centre, host venue of the 1988 Winter Olympics and UCI Mountain Bike World Cup racing from 1998-2000. Finally, the route will descend into the Town of Canmore and the cheers of the assembled crowd on Canmore’s Main Street.
Stage 7 Report
Rafter Six Resort—Canmore
45km/1330m climbing/1330m descending
The traditional ride into Canmore on the last day of the TransRockies rolled out from Rafter Six Ranch under clear skies with one of the tightest-ever battles for the overall win still to be decided. After six days of evenly matched racing, Mat Haussener and Damian Perrin of Team Zaboo held a slim 2:14 lead over Carter Hovey and Martin Vale of Team Fernie. During an interview on the start line Hovey and Vale said they were going to give it their all on the singletrack and trust that their British Columbia-built technical skills would get them to the finish line with enough of a gap to take the overall win.
When the gun went off, the race started with enough intensity that it seemed like was day 1 not day 7 and, at the first checkpoint 20km into the stage, Team Fernie’s strategy seemed to be paying off. They’d opened a 1:10 gap on Team Zaboo and were more than halfway to overtaking the Swiss pair. Then disaster struck as the next three teams on the road, Team Zaboo, Team Honey Stinger and Team Bicycle Café/Gericks missed a turn and shortcut the course emerging back on course ahead of Team Fernie. Vale and Hovey were able to catch and pass Team Zaboo and gain another 54 seconds before the finish line but now, the result was in confusion and was referred to race officials.
After discussing the events with all the affected teams, race officials assessed a penalty of 1:22 to Team Zaboo, and 3 minutes to the other teams who shortcut the course, giving Team Fernie the stage win and producing a tie between Team Fernie and Team Zaboo for the TransRockies first-ever deadlocked finish. “It’s unfortunate to end the race with a controversy after such a great week of racing but the teams showed a great sporting spirit in welcoming this outcome.”
The decision of the TranRockies Race Committee was influenced by the events of Stage 2 when Team Zaboo chose not to protest Martin Vale’s bike switch with another racer. It was hard to imagine after Team Fernie’s 15 minute loss, that the race result would come down to seconds. “The Committee felt that it would be unfair to have Team Zaboo lose the race because of their sporting gesture on Stage 2 so our first tie was the best outcome. We hope that both teams will return next year’s TransRockies to break the tie.”
The outcome of the other categories was not so difficult to discern. In the Open Women’s Division the Australian pair of Simone McCallum and Claire Garcia Webb had spend the whole week chasing the leading Team Fernie Fix pair of Krista Turcasso and Angie Krasnay and had five straight second place finishes to show for it. The last stage was going to be their last chance to grab a stage victory and they found the technical and testing singletrack to their liking riding away from the rest of the women’s field to grab the stage win and confirm their second place overall behind Fernie Fix who entered the last day with an insurmountable overall lead. Third place was taken by Team Zach Attack/Make-a-Wish who finished in front of family and friends on a perfect Canmore summer day.
The 80+ Mixed category has been fought between three teams all week and the last day was no exception as local riders Alana Heise and Steve Walsh confirmed their overall victory but finished second on the day behind Erica and Doug Krumpelman who took the stage in a quick 2:58:42. Third place on the day and second place overall went to the Swiss Team of Marco Carrer and Eva Carrer-Enz. In an unprecedented post Stage 6 ceremony Team Here Comes the Bride went from “mixed” to “married” when Clint Ball and Karen Tremaine tied the knot in front of the whole TransRockies family and a group of friends who had come along to cheer the race and the ceremony. Now that the TransRockies has had its first wedding, perhaps the next couple who are thinking about repeating the act will have to up the ante and get married on-course?
The Open Mixed and 100+ Open Divisions were really a one-team shows throughout the event and both winning teams cemented their overall wins with stage wins on the run into Canmore. Multi-time TR vet Jon Gould and his partner Stan Magee won all seven stages in the 100+ Open Division and Trish Graczyk and Ryan Schellenberg won six out of seven in the Open Mixed Division.
The 80+ Men’s Division always sees some of the best racing at the TransRockies and the defending champion Czech Masters team of Milan Spolc and Martin Horak had to fight every inch to get the win in 2011 as Martin crashed on Stage 5 injuring his hand and riding the last two stages with his right hand splinted so that he could hold the handlebars. Just behind them, two local teams, both from Deadgoat Racing, fought over the last podium places with Geoff Clark and Devin Erfle taking the honours ahead of Pat Doyle and Craig Bartlett.
The brand-new TR4 event at TransRockies allowed solo riders to officially complete the full seven days of riding for the first time and also allowed bikers ride just the four days through spectacular Kananaskis Country west of Calgary. Over the first three days the Kona Factory Racing pair of Barry Wicks and Kris Sneddon had split the honours with Wicks holding onto the overall. Wicks jumped out to an early lead on Stage 7 and looked set to solo to the win before Sneddon and Marty Lazarski reeled him in. The Kona boys then took turns working over Lazarski until they were able to drop him and ride to the finish line together to cross the line in a scorching 2:17:42, the fastest time of the day, Wicks being given the win by race officials. Lazarski finished third but was unable to make up the massive time loss he suffered due to mechanicals on Stage 6. David Gonda finished fourth on the day to confirm his 3rd overall place. Simon Pulfrey and Kira McClellan won their respective divisions to clinch the overall Men 40+ and Women’s races.
It’s fitting that for this anniversary edition, the 2011 TransRockies offered riders a full spectrum experience with trail conditions which varied from dry and dusty to snowy and muddy and a quick dose of violent mountain weather in an otherwise perfect week for good measure. It was as if the Rocky Mountains decided to sum up 10 epic years in one week. The tie in the Open Men’s Race was a first and showed that even a decade in, there are still new TransRockies stories to be told.
Registration for 2012 is now open!
