NorCal Cycling News

This Sunday we scoured over LagunaSeca to document the suffering …

 Pictures are all over the place, but i tossed a couple hundred up on the flickr account.

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What a turnout for the CCCX Series #3 and the first stop on the NorCal Cup’s schedule.  The course was a classic painfest put together by KeithD and Crew.  300 poles and a few football fields of marking tape were set up and knocked down by a few hundred bicycle racers on a perfect Monterey day.  Some racers thought it horrid, some racers couldn’t wipe smiles off their faces.  Results are here.

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The Elite Men’s winner was Bissel’s BenJacquesMaynes.  He took it in a sprint from Giant Strawberries Matt Mark Santurbane … a new SLO-town crosser to the NorCal scene.  Santurbane used his big-roadie-engine on the minute+ road climb section to shoot out to a significant lead on the first lap, with only HRS/RockLobster’s new phenom, Scott ‘bucket’ Chapin, crazy enough to attempt to match pace.

By mid-way through the race, faces were caked in sweatydust and etched with lines of pain.  Santurbane continued to lead through the midway point, but Chapin would settle into reality a minute back with his teammate JoshSnead.  BJM would take Bucket’s place with Santurbane and the win would be decided between them.

Bucket and Snead would stay away from the age-less metronome of cross - NedOverand, as he fought tooth and nail with CameronFalconer most of the race.

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The Elite Women’s winner was StellaCarey, showing that her form is great this year … as the LagunaSeca course’s long climb would normally hinder the HRS/RockLobster.  Carey is more reknowned for her mad technical skilz and brute power to the pedals than her climbing prowess.  Sarah Maile would give a good battle each time up the long climb, but Carey’s experience and saavy would see her skoot away on each slidey-slip turn, each bumper-buggy descent.

Behind those two would see solid rides put in by Piccolo, Chaney, and JenJordan.  These are all riders who have advanced through the NorCal Cyclocross scene … learning each year, getting stronger each year … displaying bucketloads of hotness.

KarenBrehms was the stormer of the day, though - giving the field a signficant cushion on the first lap as she dropped her chain in the first few minutes.  Brehms would put the throttle on ‘painful’ and move up through the field the entirety of the race … finishing off with a very fine 4th.  Great race.

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Johnathan Mayfield of Scotts Valley Cycle Sport was the BIG SPLASH in the Elite SingleSpeeds.   What a race put in by this young stallion.  We can expect good things from this guy.  He was able to use his fitness and cool-head to stave off the “regulars” of CaesarC, TimmyC, McNamara and others.

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AnaFlores put in a huge ride on Sunday to take the mini-Master’s A’s (35+), with HRS/RockLobster’s Brett Lambert grabbing the victory in the real-Masters event (45+).

Brett was under pressure to keep the CCCX 45+ HRS/RockLobster domination in-house … as ‘SweetG’ StevenGile was taking this week off from racing after winning the first two stops on the series.  Brett was up to the task, taking the win in a vicious final meters battle with Livermore’s Shane Huntoon.

great, great racing. See you at the next one.
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