Andréane Lanthier Nadeau speeds to third in Spain
Rude and Ravanel rule in Ainsa-Sobrarba at the seventh round of Enduro World Series racing
After a long return from injury, Andréane Lanthier Nadeau was back on the podium at the Enduro World Series in Ainsa-Sobrarba, Spain on Sunday.
ALN’s teammates landed Canada’s top results in the men’s division as well, with Jesse Melamed eighth and Remi Gauvin close behind in 12th.
Lanthier Nadeau started her weekend by winning Friday’s town centre prologue in Ainsa. The win didn’t count toward the weekend’s results, but ALN did get a large axe as a prize which should be fun getting through customs on the way home.
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The Canadian rode consistently over two days of racing, finishing third both days. It’s an impressive return for Rocky Mountain / Race Face’s rider, who has moved up the rankings every round since returning from a broken wrist. Complications to that injury kept ALN out of racing for nearly a year.
With the World Cup downhill season wrapping up, Squamish’s Miranda Miller took the opportunity to race her first EWS event of the year. Building speed throughout the weekend, Miller finished seventh in a tight cluster of top enduro racers. Revelstoke’s Casey Brown returned to enduro after the Crankworx World Tour, finishing 15th in Spain.
The ’76 throwback jerseys of Rocky Mountain / Race Face led the Canadians in the men’s race as well. Jesse Melamed made a quick return from his own broken wrist, which sidelined him from racing his hometown EWS round in Whistler in August. Melamed was right back on pace in Spain, finishing eighth. Close behind, Remi Gauvin finished just outside the top-12, twelfth after two days or racing.
Giant Factory Off-Road Team’s Mckay Vezina was the next Canuck across the line, finishing 32nd in Spain. Sea-to-Sky’s fan favourite Yoann Barelli (Commencal Vallnord) was racing in the top-15 before a mishap on the penultimate stage pushed him down to 41st at the finish. Next up was North Vancouver privateer Brendon Edgar in 80th, Trever Thew in 83rd and Takoda Crawford in 100th. Kipp Fennall finished 126th in the massive men’s field that saw 259 riders start the race.
Richie Rude returned to the front of the race in Spain. The Yeti / Fox Shox racer won his second EWS roundof 2018 in Spain. Rude beat out GT Factory Racing’s multidisciplinary star Martin Maes by 7.90 seconds to take the win after 37 minutes of racing.
Damien Oton (Unior Devinci Factory Racing) finished third, while Sunn’s Kevin Miquel rocketed up into fourth. Florian Nicolai (Canyon Factory Enduro Team) rounded out the podium in fifth.
In the women’s race it was once again Cecile Ravanel (Commencal Vallnord) stamping her authority on the Enduro World Series. The Frenchwoman’s perfect record for 2018 remains intact after Ainsa. Isabeau Cordurier (Intense Mavic Collective) reprises her position in second, with ALN in third.
Anita Gehrig finished fourth for Norco Twins Racing, while Noga Korem added a second podium finish for GT Factory Racing with her fifth place position.
Canada had two athletes in the under-21 category. Wyatt Mclaughlin finished in 22nd, as the country’s top u-21. Kasper Woolley started fast, with two top-5 stages finishes. The young rider ran into trouble on the fifth stage, dropping 10 minutes on the stage and tumbling down the overall standings. He finished out the race, laying down two more fast stage times to finish out the weekend.
Canada had some excellent finishes in the masters division as well, with Trail Bicycles Jeff Beeston of Courtenay, B.C. nabbing sixth place. Shane Kroeger was not far behind in 13th, and Victoria’s Dave Pfaffenberger placed 25th.
