Bishop and Dunlap ride to convincing wins
 Dunlap took the top step on the podium amidst a strong field. Photo: Keri Fagan; USA Cycling |
 Bishop celebrates his first XC win on the NORBA circuit. Photo: Keri Fagan; USA Cycling |
In the women’s event, Alison Dunlap (Colorado Springs, Colo.) clearly showed that she is as strong as ever after riding to a win in her first cross country race since suffering a season-ending injury last June. Dunlap escaped from the remainder of the field with Canada’s Alison Sydor early in the race and won a two-up sprint to gain valuable UCI points necessary in her pursuit of an Olympic berth.
The men’s race, which consisted of three laps of a seven mile loop through Waco’s Cameron Park, started off quickly as riders jockeyed for position before the opening stretch of pavement led them into the narrow single-track section of the course that featured short power climbs and technical descents. A natural selection of eight riders quickly formed and included Bishop, Jeremy-Horgan Kobelski (Boulder, Colo.) local rider, Jason Sager (Austin, Texas) and five Canadians, Kabush, Ryder Hesjedal, Seamus McGrath, Max Plaxton, and Roland Green. Riding steadily behind the eight leaders were Todd Wells (Durango, Colo.) and U23 National Team rider, John Devine (Dixon, Ill.).
As the race continued to unfold, a number of factors would become important as riders like Horgan-Kobelski and Bishop were gunning for a win to help their cause for Olympic selection, while McGrath was looking to tie up the general classification and others were looking for the prestige of winning a NORBA National.
Near the end of the second lap, Bishop and Kabush had managed to open up a gap and the lead group shattered just behind. Horgan-Kobelski managed to lay claim to a solid third place position 40 seconds behind the leaders and 20 seconds ahead of the Canadians as the third and final lap began.
Recognizing the importance of leading into the single-track section on the bell lap, Bishop skipped his final opportunity for a feed just before the pavement turned to dirt and held a few second advantage over Kabush. Bishop kept the pressure on throughout the downhill and emerged from the descent with a five second gap just as near disaster struck in the form of a front flat. Keeping his focus, Bishop rode the final kilometer with the disadvantage, but managed to hang on for the win.
Afterwards, the fastest rising star on the American mountain bike circuit who rose to a level of national recognition after a solid 2003 season that included the highest American placing at the World Championships, Bishop commented on the race. “It was a hard day right from the gun,” he said. “I was lucky to be in the front group at the beginning of the race because it was so fast. In the end, I decided against better judgment to get to the single-track first and not take a feed. Geoff was just behind me on that last downhill so I tried to put the pressure on and came out of it with a few second advantage. Then, after the flat I just kept my head down and rode as hard as I could to the finish.
Kabush’s strong performance was enough to move him into the overall lead, thus taking the victory in the 2004 NORBA National Mountain Bike Series opener which was contested in a stage race format along with Friday’s time trial and Saturday’s short track race. Bishop however received first place E2 category UCI points that were allotted for the day’s win.
A determined Dunlap kept her sights focused on UCI points today as she sprinted for the win in the women’s cross-country event. Essentially a two-woman race for both laps of the same seven-mile circuit, Dunlap and Sydor broke away early on and maintained a minute and a half gap over Willow Koerber (Horseshoe, N.C.) and Katarina Hanusova (CZE).
Both key players had something on the line, as Sydor wanted the overall win and Dunlap is on the comeback trail. By the beginning of lap two, Sydor and Dunlap had a 2 minute gap on Koerber, Hanusova, and Kiara Bisaro (CAN). Sue Haywood worked her way up and took fifth over Bisaro who finished seventh behind Chrissy Redden (CAN).
“Right now I’m just picking off UCI points one race at a time,” Dunlap said afterwards. “It was fun riding with Alison and I’m thrilled because it seemed like I had twice as many fans on the course since half of them were cheering for her.”
Sydor was able to hold on to her overall win and Dunlap took second overall.
The 2004 NORBA National Mountain Bike Series continues in Sonoma California at Infineon Raceway as part of the California Outdoor Championships May 13-16.
A photo gallery from today’s action is available at www.usacycling.org/gallery.
About the 2004 NORBA National Mountain Bike Series The 2004 NORBA National Mountain Bike Series is sponsored by Gatorade (www.gatorade.com), Shimano (www.shimano.com), United Airlines (www.ual.com), Static, Answer Manitou (www.answerproducts.com), Gu, (www.gusports.com), ODI, (www.odigrips.com), EPS, and VeloNews (www.velonews.com).
About NORBA . NORBA is the mountain bike member association of USA Cycling. Recognized by the U.S. Olympic Committee and the Union Cycliste Internationale, USA Cycling promotes American cycling through its 45,000 members and 2,000 annual events. For more information, visit www.usacycling.org, or contact Communications Manager, Andy Lee, at 719 866 4867.
Blue Wolf Productions and Team Big Bear are the series management and promotions company, and are recognized as the USA's leading cycling and events management group.
This Article Published March 14, 2004 For more information contact:
