Pageau and Shandro win muddy Windrock Pro GRT DH
Canadian show early speed at U.S. season opener, sweeping junior men's race
Downhill season got off to a wild, muddy start at Windrock Bike Park in Tennessee over the weekend. Canadians seemed especially well suited to the slick conditions at the opening Pro GRT round. Rachel Pageau won the Pro women’s race and Ethan Shandro dominated the junior men’s event.
It was Pageau’s first race for her new Pivot Cycles sponsor. The new bike must be feeling alright, even caked in thick mud, as she dominated the Pro women’s field by a massive 22 second margin. In second place was SRAM-Liv Racing’s Caroline Washam, and Frida Roenning in third.
RELATED: Rachel Pageau; Elle gravi les échelons du circuit Enduro et DH en même temps.
Canadian juniors sweep Tennessee National DH
Windrock Pro GRT marked Ethan Shandro’s first race in the junior men’s category. While he’s only recently old enough to sign with Trek Factory Racing, he’s already showing showing he has what it takes to compete in the highly competitive junior men’s scene. Shandro’s winning time of 3:07.989 was nine seconds faster than Pemberton’s Lucas Cruz in second, fast enough for fifth overall in the Pro Men’s race.
Shandro wasn’t the only speedy junior from north of 49. Lucas Cruz (SRAM-TLD Racing) was second, and Norco Factory Team’s Eliot Jamieson third in a Canadian sweep of the junior men’s podium. Tristan Lemire (Kona) and Ian Milley (Blueprint Athlete Development) added to Canada’s tally in eighth and 12th, respectively.
In the Pro Men’s race, Santa Cruz Syndicate’s Loris Vergier handled the peanut butter-thick mud with ease. The French rider topped Charlie Harrison (Trek Factory Racing) to win in a thoroughly international field of racers. Mark Wallace (Canyon Factory Racing) was the top Canadian, in eighth. Forrest Riesco (Commencal) joined Wallace in the top-10. Ben Wallace made a strong first showing in his first racing moving up from the junior category, finishing 12th in Tennessee. Benjamin Despres Morin (Sport Aux Puces Longueil / LTP / Fox) was the fianal Canadian in the top-20
The weekends only half over, though. Several Canadians will be on hand for Sunday’s Windrock Enduro. The EWS qualifier event will be the final, and for many riders, first tune up race before the Enduro World Series starts in Rotorua, New Zealand on March 24.
Results: Windrock Pro GRT DH 2019
Pro Women
- Rachel Pageau – 00:04:37.413 – Pivot Cycles / Julbo Eyewear
- Caroline Washam – 00:04:59.981 – SRAM | Liv Racing | TLD | Industry Nine | Schwalbe | Flat Tire Defender
- Frida Roenning – 00:05:02.067 – Lillehammer CK
- Sarah Olsen – 00:05:18.095 – CyclepathPDX
- Kera Linn – 00:05:34.045 – Canfield Brother
- Autumn Parham – 00:05:42.089 –
- Samantha Soriano – 00:05:45.500 – Commencal USA
- Riley Weidman – 00:07:14.164 – Fastline Racing
- Kerstin Holster – 00:07:39.411 – Pivot Cycles
- Mckenna Merten – 00:11:43.866 – Intense/100%
- Amber Price – 00:12:09.561 – O’Neal
- Rachel Kelleher – 00:12:11.686 – Coqui Cyclery / Vasen Brewing Company
Pro Men
- LORIS VERGIER – 00:03:01.668 – SANTA CRUZ BICYCLES
- CHARLIE HARRISON – 00:03:02.174 – Trek Factory Racing
- JACOB DICKSON – 00:03:07.141 – Giant Factory Off-Road Team
- NEKO MULALLY – 00:03:07.555 – Intense Factory Racing
- MAX MORGAN – 00:03:13.733 – Santa Cruz Bicycles
- LUCA SHAW – 00:03:13.830 – SANTA CRUZ BICYCLES
- MARCELO GUTIERREZ – 00:03:13.838 – Giant Factory Off-Road Team
- MARK WALLACE – 00:03:14.015 – Canyon Factory Downhill Team
- NIKOLAS NESTOROFF – 00:03:14.469 – KHS FACTORY RACING
- FORREST RIESCO – 00:03:15.717 – Commencal
- MITCH ROPELATO – 00:03:17.404 – Santa Cruz SRAM
- BEN WALLACE – 00:03:22.298 –
- STEVEN CEBALLOS – 00:03:22.674 – Specialized Colombia
- WALKER SHAW – 00:03:26.613 –
- STEVE ESTABROOK – 00:03:26.661 – Defiant Racing
- TREVOR BOLDI – 00:03:26.870 – Micheal David Winery
- MAURICIO ESTRADA – 00:03:27.780 – Danny’s Cycles Racing
- BENJAMIN DESPRES MORIN – 00:03:28.155 – Sport Aux Puces Longueil/Live to play/fox racing
- DILLON FLINDERS – 00:03:28.661 – Commencal USA
- KIRAN MACKINNON – 00:03:29.867 – Santa Cruz Bicycles
- CHARLES FRYDENDAL – 00:03:30.038 – My Buddy?s Bike Shop
- ISAAC ALLAIRE – 00:03:32.327 – Defiant Racing
- WILEY KAUPAS – 00:03:35.317 – Specialized
- SETH HANSON – 00:03:35.330 – SEI Racing
- HENRY FITZGERALD – 00:03:37.962 – Norco Factory Team
- BRACKEN CAMILLERI – 00:03:38.753 –
- CONRAD HAEHNER – 00:03:42.255 –
- KIRK MCDOWALL – 00:03:43.498 – Unior/Devinci Factory Racing
- ARMEN DAVIS – 00:03:43.850 – Commencal USA
- HARRISON ORY – 00:03:46.288 – Rooted MTB
- TITUS NICHOLSON – 00:03:49.049 – Defiant Racing
- GRAEME PITTS – 00:03:49.132 – Graeme Pitts racing – Oz racing lifestyle/JJ’s cyclery
- JAKE KHAN – 00:03:52.125 –
- GARRETT MACINTOSH – 00:03:52.305 – Dunbar cycles
- STEVEN WALTON – 00:03:52.663 – KHS FACTORY RACING
- TANNER STEPHENS – 00:03:54.069 – Sean leader and Dakotah norton factory racing
- WARREN KNISS – 00:03:56.854 – Santa Cruz
- BRYCE HELBLING – 00:03:57.782 – KHS factory racing
- QUINTIN KURTZ – 00:04:00.704 –
- BRANDON DOUGLAS – 00:04:00.721 –
- STEVE RIOUX – 00:04:21.313 – BOSK VeLO CAFe
- IAN NORRIS – 00:04:34.291 – Filz Built Bicycles
- RAFAEL FERREIRA – 00:04:38.745 – ALTA/100%/E*13/ODI/CushCore/Carolina Pro Flooring
- OWEN WITCHER – 00:04:40.693 – Double Black Bikes/Gravity Crew
- TOBIE BOUCHER – 00:06:59.826 – Commencal Canada
- COREY ZELL – 00:12:44.781 –
Junior Men
-
-
- ETHAN SHANDRO – 00:03:07.989 – Trek Factory Racing
- LUCAS CRUZ – 00:03:17.687 – SRAM-TLD Racing
- ELLIOT JAMIESON – 00:03:25.679 – Norco Factory DH Team
- MATTHEW STERLING – 00:03:26.628 – Pivot Cycles
- COLE SUETOS – 00:03:30.150 – Incycle Race Team
- ZACH GAREIS – 00:03:33.540 – Billy Goat Bikes/Devinci
- TYLER ERVIN – 00:03:33.564 – Commencal
- TRISTAN LEMIRE – 00:03:34.017 – Kona Factory
- KYE A’HERN – 00:03:34.178 – Canyon Factory Downhill Team
- DANTE SILVA – 00:03:35.155 – Commencal Junior Cartel/100%/WD-40/ONYX/CushCore/Sensus
- AUSTIN DOOLEY – 00:03:37.892 – 100%/Monster Army/Fox Factory/Maxxis/RynoPower/GoPro/Muc-Off
- IAN MILLEY – 00:03:48.714 – Blueprint Athlete Development
- GIDEON BENDER – 00:03:55.276 – B-Line Racing
- RIVER KEY – 00:04:09.815 –
- ETHAN HECK – 00:04:14.943 – Double Black Bikes
- COOPER RODRIGUES – 00:04:16.263 – Cycling Spoken Here
- JAMES BEZEAU-TREMBLAY – 00:04:47.562 – MSS BIKE PARK/Caf? v?lo des nations
- PHILIP BILODEAU – 00:04:50.884 – Devinci / trees mountain apparel
- MATTHEW SPONG – 00:04:57.857 – Afton Shoes
- SPENCER ERVIN – 00:05:16.498 – B-line Racing
- GAGE COLLINA – 00:05:27.190 –
- PHILLIP STEELE – 00:06:44.982
-