OCR Text |
Show | | ULLAL LU Wasatch Canyon Reporter by John Bresee The inaugural Twenty Four Hours of Moab mountain bike race was an incredible testament to — modern athleticism. On October 21 at 12 noon 120 1:20’s. Jeremy Nobis of Park, City laid down teams started the first 24 hour MTB race in Moabinan area known lap. This reporter ended up at as “Behind the rocks,’ Racers screamed through the night on a twelve mile sandy, and technical | route. The stories of midnight heroism were far more common than tales of failure. The race started with a long sprint. Racer ji im | Holland was first out of the gate for Team Full House (sponsored by the WCR). Holland noted the dust masks that all of the pro riders were wearing and — lamented “T healed these guys knew a lot that I had never heard of”’ One hundred and twenty riders sprinted across the desert and kicked up a ferocious dust storm. A solid time for the twelve mile loop was in the the 24 Shortly Hour after accidentally. arrival conscripted as he towel was boy, fr" gatorade mixer, and clueless |, bike mechanic for Team Full House. At the eight hour mark the team was a shambles. Hard core Brian VanHecky powered through two laps in strong shape. His only request was blueberry pie (It is amazing Penee is Parting Out Her Truck 1983 Toyota short bed. A few items already gone. Call now for best selection. Meticulously maintained | jmechanically- frame rust took it off the road. 200,000 miles on body, most major items .@ rebuilt. Exhaust new 10 days before park- ¢ & ing it. Lovely bucket seats. Call 7422417 and ask for Fenee! Truck located uy in vanday, Bae as pictured. ne can be found in ‘the press tent). The 24 HOURS OF MISERY BEGINS- hardest charger in the group was PHOTO BY BRIAN “BADASS” VANHECKY Joan Guetschow She drove God himself to put in a lap. After Vetta’s anemic one straight from work in Park City, ankued at - hour the batteries required fourteen or so to eleven PM chomping at the bit. Guetschow recharge...not ideal. Vista Lite and Night Sun were the turned in a strong 1:50 minute lap...never havlights of choice. The queues at the factory recharging ing seen the course in day light, and with two tents were long and ferocious. Teams were not above chain breaks. She also had never used a chain bribing the charging guy with beverages and the like to tool, but after borrowing one from a passing ' get their battery to the head of the line. Time spent racer she proceeded to self educate by sucking up to the Vista Lite guys was time well spent. starlight. Guetschow took a two hour respite by » —«Rarely has there been such a hard fought comthrowing a sleeping bag on the desert floor; at petition winning mattered so little. It was the function, which point it started snowing. Team captain — _ gestalt, process of the competition, not the result, that _ was revered. One incredibly hard man named Mike fatigable performance. He steamed through from the Vail contingent (Meg Laferriere was sorely Tom “The Organizer’ Logan put in an inde-— Bargain! Bargain! Bargain! This is your last time to get Subscriptions at the first year iow price of ¢Z0. Next year it’s gonna be like fifty bucks, maybe even a cool hunski. So pony up the cash. Make your checks payable to: Wasatch Canyon Reporter. SUR yar s0C esi IA We start publishing Bi-weekly this month so now is the time to leap on the bandwagon. a blistering _1:03, rumored to be the fastest snow, heavy wind, and anything else mother _ nature could brew up in a workmanlike 1:45...or 2:00. Guetschow let others sleep, while she turned her second. lap, a 1:45, with no lights for her last twenty minutes. “It’s easy, you just let someone with a working headlamp — go by, and then stick to their wheel. If they ride a technical section better than you, ‘then you are in trouble, and os have to wait for another rider” The lighting i issue was a prime factor in the success of the different teams. Vetta’s lights were good for one hour...not long enough for missed) rode a very fast 1:21 at night. When no one | from his team was there to pick up the baton at the end of his lap, he grabbed it back from the officials and tore — off a 1:31. Time and again there were stories of incredible athleticism, sacrifice, and human endurance that set the tone for the weekend. The pro teams were bionic in their strength. One accomplished endurance ath-Jete talked about the disheartening affect of grinding up : a hill in a granny gear, only to be passed by a pro turn-ing his big ring at lightspeed. The pros were amazing | and for the most part polite and respectful of the amateurs. ae they offered words of encouragement as_ they Passed. “You’re having a good. race” or “keep it up, you’re a hard |man.” Of course the pros were return-- — jing to Winnebago fantasy camps including: Hot food, masseuses, bike mechanics, and team managers. In the ine -Corporate World -Wide- Websites aS DY as res Zip + i oe ee Mannenrenrennennennenne VISA/MC Man gene Se dt (We don’t take them but we'll be happy to use it to buy ourselves some sweet new equipment). -Internet Training “Online Marketing “High bandwidtth connectivity. ‘The best support Xcom provides the very best in World Wide Web _ homepages and total website development. Our largest site to date is over 500 pages with over 10, 000 Hyperlinks. If you are thinking about taking ~ your company online call 1-800-662-XCOM. Page 6 world of the amateur if your bike | breaks, you have three hours to fix it, get food, rest, ee and then; turn another lap. At dawn, with the race still rolling, land snow gleaming on the peaks of the LaSalles, riders and support crew emerged from tents and began assembling near the finish. Every rider was cheered as they finished their lap. Each performance was a testament to _ will power and endurance. In the ever growing world of mountain biking, endurance racing is beha des elgttecaileas @hvision that js going to grow in the coming years. |