Over 900 of nation's best descend on Sun Valley for MTB XC Nats
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Wells will be looking to defend his pro cross country national title on Saturday.
For the first time, USA Cycling has separated its mountain bike national championships into two distinct events: cross-country and gravity, with the cross-country portion this week in Idaho. Mountain bikers across various age groups will compete for national titles in cross-country, short track cross-country and Super D, in the same venue as the country’s top professionals.
Reigning national champion and local hero Georgia Gould (Ketchum, Idaho/Fort Collins, Colo./Luna) will be on a mission to defend her Stars-and-Stripes in front of a hometown crowd in Saturday’s pro women’s cross-country race. Fresh off his own hometown performance at the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup in Windham, N.Y., Todd Wells (Durango, Colo./Specialized) will look to continue his momentum after 2010 saw him become the first-ever pro to win national titles in both mountain bike cross-country, short track and cyclo-cross.
Husband and wife duo, Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski (Boulder, Colo./Subaru-Trek) and Heather Irmiger (Boulder, Colo./Subaru-Trek), will also be out to regain the national titles they won in tandem in Granby, Colo., in 2009. Another former national champion hoping to complete his road to recovery following knee surgery, Adam Craig (Bend, Ore./Giant) is another likely contender for the pro XC crown, not to mention a crowd favorite. Young Sam Schultz (Missoula, Mont./Subaru-Trek) who was hot on the World Cup circuit early is also expected to be in the mix in the men’s events, along with former cyclo-cross national champion Ryan Trebon (Bend, Ore./Kona).
Other endurance specialists to be on the lookout for on the women’s side over the weekend include seven-time cyclo-cross national champion and world championship medalist Katie Compton (Colorado Springs, Colo./RaboBank-Giant), Kelli Emmett (Colorado Springs/Giant) and youngsters Chloe Forsman (Tucson, Ariz./BMC Development) and Amy Dombroski (Boulder, Colo.).
In the various age group races, expect to see the top riders from more than 30 states compete for the coveted Stars-and-Stripes across the three events.
For a complete list of registered riders, schedule, news and more visit the official event webpage of the USA Cycling Mountain Bike Cross-Country National Championships.
More information surrounding ancillary events, including Thursday’s $7,500 Fat Tire Criterium in the Ketchum Town Square, is available on the Ride Sun Valley Bike Festival webpage.
Stay tuned to www.usacycling.org throughout the event for complete results, race reports, and a photo gallery. Follow along with all of the national championship races on Twitter, using the hastag #MTBNats.
This Article Published July 11, 2011 For more information contact:
