Fort Lewis and Lees McRae win again in 2004
 Fort Lewis team omnium winners take a group shot |
In the individual omniums, it was Josh Bezecny of the University of Colorado to take the men’s Division I win, while Fort Lewis’ Susan Grandjean topped the podium in the women’s event. Division II omnium winners were Lees-Mcrae riders Brent Bookwalter and Monique Hein.
Three hundred students registered for the NCCA Mountain Bike Championships making for the most competitors since 2000. Many smaller teams were represented from the far reaches of the country like Cornell (NY), the University of Wyoming, and Chico State (Calif.).
Friday kicked off the weekend with the short track and dual slalom events which were both run on mud-slick courses with heavy rain at times. The student athletes who made the journey to this all inclusive ski and bike borough southeast of Pittsburgh were not complaining as the competition was fierce, and the focus on the coveted Team Omnium.
 Racers line up for the short track. |
The super-slick dual slalom course was the wildest thing any of the collegiate gravity crew had seen this season, with riders struggling to keep the bike up on much of the course and weather slowly deteriorating and eventually contributing to a delay in the competition’s final rounds. Everyone was ready to rock despite the on-going wet conditions, and the treacherous slalom course churned out 4 new champions: Charles Mooney, (Lindsey Wilson) and Leana Gerard, (Fort Lewis) for Division I, and Division II Michael Valach (Davis & Elkins) and Monique Hein from Lees-McRae.
Saturday’s cross-country events were clearly difficult with riders suffering through two to three hours of difficult wet conditions. In the Division I races, Colorado Buffalo Josh Bezecny rode a perfect ride to gold, followed by his teammate Nick Ranno, with Matt Shriver of Fort Lewis taking third. New Mexico’s Nina Baum doubled with another win fighting off a very strong Individual Omnium contender in Susan Grandjean of Fort Lewis. The Division II winners were Lea Davison of Middlebury and Brent Bookwalter of Lees-McRae.
Sunday’s competition boiled down to a battle of Colorado teams in the Division I competition, with Vermont the only team outside of the Rocky Mountain Conference able to wedge their way into the top five. The treacherous downhill course was the deciding factor in both team and individual omnium competitions, and though many riders on cross-country rigs struggled to make it down this typically rough eastern course, it paid off in the end.
Fort Lewis’ Paul Smith ran the fastest DH time of the day for the men, followed closely by his teammate Chris Heath, and along with Leanna Gerrard and Darian Harvey who also went 1-2 for the FLC Skyhawks, the Durango based riders sealed the overall win beating out Colorado-Boulder by 95 points. The well-rounded University of Vermont team kept the east coast in the mix taking the team bronze over Mesa State and Colorado State. The strong University of Nevada-Reno team missed the 5th podium spot by only 38 points.
Aaron Bradford (Lees-McRae) and Linden Kimmerer (Humboldt State) scored the DII Individual National Downhill Championships and both results helped place their teams on the podium for the overall. Lees- McRae took the top spot in the DII Overall with Warren-Wilson, Humboldt State, Michigan Tech and Middlebury rounding out the podium. Middlebury bumped Union College off the podium by only 9 points.
The Seven Springs Resort was an idyllic spot for the weekend’s events, and everyone agreed that the natural beauty and great riding made this location a perfect spot for a bike race. NORBA Chief Official Dick Lutz summed up the event management staff’s perspective on collegiate racing, “This was the first big collegiate event I have worked and I liked it. The kids were so courteous, and it was really fun to work with them. I hope we get to enjoy these student-athletes again in the future.” For more photos from the weekend’s competition, visit the USA Cycling Gallery.
This Article Published November 2, 2004 For more information contact:
