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Cattaneo, Deho take TransRockies opener

Published: Aug. 10, 2008
Stage 1 offered a lot of climbing.
Stage 1 offered a lot of climbing.

TransRockies VII kicked off in true mountain fashion Sunday with temperamental weather and spectacular scenery as riders wound their way from host start community Panorama Mountain Village down to the historic K2 ranch on the shores of Lake Windermere. Wind, rain sleet and snow – in addition to spots of blue sky – introduced riders early in the week to classic TransRockies conditions.

A dispatch from Checkpoint #1 noted the mid-day drop in temperature brought with it the ability to see one’s breath.

Following an introductory parade lap through Panorama, riders ascended to the literal high point of the week, at nearly 2,500 metres, after tackling a steep vertical wall that no doubt had everyone wondering early on what else TR could possibly throw at them this week.

The race began with a lot of nervous energy according to multi-TR winner Andreas Hestler. Hestler and partner Chris Sheppard, along with two other Rocky Mountain teams consisting of Kris Sneddon and Max Plaxton, and Stefan Widmer and Marty Lazarski were up against the Powerhouse Italian team of Marzio Deho and Johnny Cattaneo. Deho is ranked as one of the top three world cup marathon racers.

According to Hestler the Italians flew up the first climb like they were riding weightless hard-tails, and in fact they were, leaving their fully suspended Rocky Mountain rivals behind them. Hestler and Sheppard worked with Plaxton and Sneddon for the rest of the climb where they eventually met with freezing temperatures and high winds before cresting onto single-track.

“We were super tentative on that decent, as I’m sure most were,” said Hestler. “Our hands were frozen and we could hardly modulate braking."

Topping out at 2400 meters above sea level, Sunday’s 1000 meter climb put all teams, including the front runners, into a deep freeze, consisting of horizontally blowing snow and frozen rain but considering the elements the trails were still in pretty good condition.

One of the main difficulties with today’s geography, according to Hestler, was the challenge to get food and hydration into the body.

“We were going so hard up the climb we couldn’t eat or drink and the descent didn’t make it any easier,” he said at the finish. “By the end of the day we ended up downing maybe a bottle and a half of water.”

Sneddon and Plaxton made their move just as the big descent began putting Hestler and Sheppard behind them and into a third place position but the day was not over.

A final small grunt of a climb stood between the bottom of the big daddy descent and the finish line at K2 Ranch and it was here Marty Lazarski and Stefan Widmer made their move. I was having a bit of a No Sugar Moment, reported Hestler, with a smile on his face.

“Marty and Stefan pulled up and then pulled over the top of that last climb, then attacked on the final descent into K2,” Hestler noted. “We ended up 4th for the day but I feel good about the ride and the climb we did today.”

Overall, the top five teams are pretty tight and as Hestler pointed out, three of those teams are Rocky Mountain teams. Could a plan be in the works? According to Hestler there could be something brewing.

“I won’t say there is a set plan but I will say it looks like we have an international rivalry on our hands as of day one,” he said. “Tomorrow (Monday) is going to be another survival day so we will settle in and see what the Italians will do.”
It should be an interesting day, with three big climbs totaling over 3800 meters, and over 3600 meters of descending before reaching the finish line in Nipika.

UNOFFICIAL RESULTS, As of 6 p.m. Sunday

Open Men
1st Place – Marzio Deho & Johnny Cattaneo – ITA
2nd Place – Kris Sneddon & Max Plaxton – CAN
3rd Place – Stefan Widmer & Marty Lazarski – CAN
4th Place – Andreas Hestler & Chris Sheppard – CAN
5th Place – Keith Hickerson & Evan Plews – USA

Open Women
1st Place – Carey Lowery & Lisa Randall – USA
2nd Place – Amy Guidinger & Meghan Osborne – CAN
3rd Place – Tery Majer & Shelley Mattson – CAN
4th Place – Angie Bryans & Inga Ivany – CAN
5th Place – Emma Foster & Trina Metz – CAN

Open Mixed
1st Place – Mical Dyck & Dallas Morris – CAN
2nd Place – Wendy Simms & Normon Thibault – CAN
3rd Place – Steven Wallace & Katerina Nash – CZE
4th Place – Tom Zidek & Dean Larena – CAN
5th Place – Timmy Dougherty & Michelle Stopper – USA

80+ Men
1st Place – John Gould & Ryon Butterfield – USA
2nd Place – Geoff Clark & Pat Doyle – CAN
3rd Place – Gary Brown & Andy Reed – GBR
4th Place – Oyvind Vaagland Reiten & Olav N Birkeland – NOR
5th Place – Milan Spolc & Jan Kopka – CZE

80+ Mixed
1st Place – Dan McCarthy & Amy Kemper – USA
2nd Place – Moira-Ann Handford & Andrew Handford – CAN
3rd Place – Christiane Bouchard & Marc Payment – CAN
4th Place – Greg Kidd & Carrie Edwards – USA
5th Place – Kirk Buckman & Cindy Carroll ¬– USA

100+ Open Gender
1st Place – Howard Jones & Jon Roberts – GBR
2nd Place – Les Davidson & Tim Hudema – CAN
3rd Place – Gary Pelletier & Dale McAllister – CAN
4th Place – Mike Meagher & Garry Froehler – CAN
5th Place – Pierre Loubser & Ben Cronje – RSA