Fall, finals and epics: the last weekend review of 2018?
Summer may be gone but mountain bikers are still racing across Canada
As summer racing winds down and fall sets in, here is one final weekend review from two busy weekends of racing across Canada. Two? Yes, two. With Interbike’s flashing lights, shiny bike parts and weird casino noises, a whole weekend of racing slipped by undetected. Catch up with the final mountain bike events of 2018, then head out for some Fall riding of your own. Racing or not, the dirt is perfect right now, so get out there!
Dodge City Enduro – Island Cup (Cumberland, B.C.)
Soaking wet conditions weren’t exactly #alltimefalltime racing, but Vancouver Islands enduro enthused still headed out for five stages of mud and mayhem on the extensive Cumberland, B.C. trail network. Old classics like the DCDH course met with newer stages, and 20-30mm of rain over a couple of days just to keep racers on their toes. Hot off his top-15 finish at in the junior men’s race at UCI mountain bike world championships in Lenzerheide, Switzerland, Cumberland local Carter Woods defended his home trails by winning the expert mens race. Max McCulloch rode to second and Patrick Laffey third. Mical Dyck won the women’s expert race, just staying ahead of some hard charging youth. Emilly Johnston finished second and Lucy Schick third.
Quebec Enduro Championships –Â Marin Wildside Enduro (Mont Sutton, Quebec)
Marin Wildside Enduro series wrapped up its 2018 season at Mont Sutton by crowning the inaugural Quebec Enduro Champions. The first Quebec provincial championship race for enduro was won by Jonathan Lefrancois and Rebecca Beaumont. Philippe Ricard followed Lefrancois for second with Samual Thibault in third. Behind Beaumont was Kayla Morin-Blanchette in second and Audrey McManiman in third. Mont Sutton also crowned the overall winners of the Marin Wildside series, which splits its venues between B.C.’s interior and Quebec. Full race and series results can be found here.
MooseDuro (Moose Mountain, Alta)
Moose Mountain Bike Trail Society and Alberta 66 teamed up to host the second annual MooseDuro on Moose Mountain in Alberta. Late season racing made for especially slick conditions, as racers faced rain, snow and plenty of mud on course. Jena Greaser was the top woman, sliding to the MooseDuro win ahead of Heather Cleveland and Clara Brown. Sean Alexander made the most sense of the muddy course to win the men’s race over Marcus Henry and Quinn Hepburn.
Fall Epic 8-Hour Relay – Pulse Racing (Hardwood Hills, Ont.)
With cross country season winding down, Pulse Racing sent racers off for a full eight hours of racing at the Fall Epic. Held on the trails of Hardwood Hills, riders could team up or go solo for as long as possible. The most laps after eight hours of racing took top honours. In the end, it was two AWI Racers notching the most laps at the Fall Epic. Adam Hill finished 16 laps for the fastest Solo man while Jenn Jackson rode 15 laps for the fastest Solo woman. Full team relay and solo results can be found at the Pulse Racing site here.
Steve Smith Memorial DH – BC Downhill Series Finals (Mount Washington, B.C.)
Mount Washington on Vanouver Island hosted another wet edition of the Steve Smith Memorial Downhill on 16 September. The race honours late Canadian downhill legend Steve Smith, and was the final of the 2018 BC Cup series. Canadian downhill national champion Magnus Manson (Canyon) won the men’s race ahead of Kirk McDowall and Forrest Riesco. Mark Wallace (Canyon Factory Racing), a teammate and training partner of Smith, finished fourth. Laurie Citynski beat Celia Ferguson to win the elite women’s race.
Revelstoke Women’s Enduro (Revelstoke, B.C.)
108 women showed up to race the 2018 Revelstoke Women’s Enduro. Now in its second year, the B.C. interior’s only women’s specific enduro traversed the Macpherson and Boulder Mountain trails. Lindsey Corrigan was the days fastest female, with Elinor Brown and Bronwyn Cormack not far behind.
