Winding Trails is one of least technically demanding races but one of the most difficult in terms of aerobic effort. Imagine a 1.5hr cross race and you have Winding Trails. You need huge top end to stay glued to the front of the race in expert 40-49. This crew is know for having depth and being highly competitive; consistently posting some of the fastest expert times. The course was changed slightly and flowed really well. The weather was also fantastic. There were lots of high speed banked turns with a mix of open gear grinding double track. This is a pure big ring course. 20 miles of MTB racing in just over 80 minutes. Ouch!
On the line were some really great MTB racers. Stu Jenson, Jeff Molongoski, Ken Welch and Mike Rowell. Stu took the hole shot and lead for the first 7-8 minutes of racing and five of us established a very high speed break. Drafting was very effective on this course. When we hit the open fire road Mike Rowell launched an attack that was brutal. We all hung on for dear life. We quickly hit traffic as the group was just blowing by other age group racers. No one was slipping off the back. When we hit the backside of the course I decided to attack on a small climb to see if it would sort things out. It worked and the group was now two. Jeff Molongoski and I started working together trying to break the elastic. It worked until the last lap when Mike Rowell recovered and reeled us back. Mike got a small gap which he was able to keep. Jeff Molongoski and I started to position for the finish and slowed down a bit. It was going to be a two-up sprint to the line. Jeff got me by a wheel and I got third.
The new Fuji Team Issue Carbon Hardtail was incredible during it's maiden race. Light, stiff, and fast. I cannot wait to do a few more MTB races and represent Team Fuji Fueled by Clif Bar in the dirt.
Results for Expert Men 40-49 years old
1st Mike Rowell
2nd Jeff Molongoski
3rd Mark Gunsalus Team FUJI f/b Clif Bar
4th Ken Welch
5th Stuart Jensen
6th Paul Kolb
7th Esteban Rodriguez
8th John Nobile
9th Brian McInnis JRA Cycles (excellent FUJI and SE bikes dealer in Medford, MA)
10th DaveBarr
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
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