Peter Disera surges into lead on Stage 1 of 2022 BC Bike Race
Canadians in the lead as racing moves from Kelowna to Salmon Arm
Photo by:
Dave Silver
After testing the legs with a quick prologue, the 16th annual BC Bike Race dove into the first full stage of racing on Saturday in Kelowna’s Crawford trails. With two big climbs on the day, real time gaps started to emerge between the leaders on the pro men’s and women’s races.
Sandra Walter continues to lead the women’s race while Canadian XCO national champion Peter Disera emerged from Kelowna as the new men’s leader.
Peter Disera solos to Stage 1 win
A new leader emerged in the men’s competition. After finishing two seconds behind Luke Vrouwenvelder in Friday’s Prologue, Canadian national champion Peter Disera went on the attack early on Stage 1. The Norco rider created the first major climb alone, off the front, and never looked back. By the finish line, Disera had 1:31 over the next closest rider.
Vrouwenvelder made a sharp pass down a rock roll to get ahead of World Tour road racer-turned-mountain biker Rob Britton, using the clear trail to solidify his second place on the day. Britton held off a hard charging Carter Nieuwesteeg for the second climb, but couldn’t keep him behind on the high speed descent to the finish. Nieuwesteeg, a Fernie, B.C. local, crushed the final decent to close to within 30 seconds of Vrouwenvelder, taking third on the day. Britton finished fourth with BCBR veteran Geoff Kabush lurking not far behind in sixth.
Disera has the early lead, but with give big days of racing, and the field bunched together breathing down his neck, the race is still wide open.
Sandra Walter’s long-awaited BCBR return
At the front of the women’s race Catharine Pendrel set the pace early on. The recently retired world champion put herself on the front up Stage 1’s opening climb, but with Sandra Walter locked to her wheel.
“Yesterday, I went all out. I thought if I could get time from the gun, that would be good,” Walter said of adjusting to the longer day after her blistering time in the prologue. “Catharine [Pendrel] actually led it out today, and was going really hard.”
By the time they hit the Stage’s high point, Walter was on the front. By the finish line, she’d amassed an advantage in excess of eight minutes.
“You always have to manage your effort, but I’m still going to race. For me, there’s no point in holding back, you have to go for it,” Walter said of her strategy this week. While she has a solid advantage, she knows stage racing is different than a one-day event. “Anything can happen. If I get a mechanical I could lose a lot of time. You want to make sure you have a buffer.”
Walter’s back at BC Bike Race for the first time in a decade. The Coquitlam rider first contested the third edition back in 2009 in the mixed team category. That year, Pendrel won the women’s race with Luna Chix teammate Katerina Nash. A lot has changed in the decade since. Stages are shorter and much more singletrack-heavy.
“In my personal view, it’s more fun than suffering through longer distances,” Walter said of the change. The Canadian chose BCBR to end her season on. “Honestly, I’ve been looking forward to this all season. It’s my reward. I love racing World Cups, but it takes a lot of effort and mental energy. Racing this, is a celebration of my season. I’m trying to be more relaxed about it, but I still want to win.”
Chloe Cross lands her first BCBR podium of 2022, in third. But Lauren Cantwell and Amity Rockwell followed, spaced out a minute apart each setting up a solid battle for podium positions.
After two solid days on Kelowna’s singletrack, BC Bike Race says farewell to Crawford and moves on to Salmon Arm. Stage 2 is set to be a proper epic and one of two Queen stages this week. It could also be one of the longest days in BC Bike Race’s 16 year history. 52 km of racing, and a staggering 2,000m of climbing, await racers in the South Canoe, Larch Hills and Rubberhead Trails.
