Rocky Mountain Endurance Series #3 Battle of the Bear

(June 3, 2012)  Golden Colo.-Due to a rain cancellation a few weekends ago, the third race in the Rocky Mountain Endurance Series was rescheduled and held last weekend at Bear Creek Lake State Park under clear skies and warm temperatures. The 60-mile marathon took six laps around the park to complete. The mostly smooth and rolling course was in great condition with top riders turning in laps under 40 minutes.

In the Mens Open class, series leader Kalan Beisel (Orbea/Tuffshed) took an early lead as Brady Kappius (Clif Bar) quickly jumped on his wheel. The two set a blistering pace for the first couple of laps as Rocky Mounts/Izzie rider Amar Mannina gave chase.  By midway through the race, Kappius had fallen off the pace and Mannina had bridged up to Beisel. 

With Beisel on the front, Mannina seemed to be sitting in, letting Beisel do the majority of the workload.  On the final lap, Mannina made his move and got away from Beisel. In the end, Mannina took the win by 47 seconds over Beisel, with Kappius coming in a little over 5 minutes behind for third spot on the podium.

Series Leader Beisel had this to say about his race, “The course was super fast this year. The rain two weeks ago made it super packed and tacky. Coming off the Growler last weekend and Teva Games the day before, I was very happy with my result. Kudos to RME for putting on such great events with hundreds of people racing, and good vibes, and its always nice going home with a nice pay check! I'm super stoked to be in the leaders jersey and hope to race the Breckenridge 100 in a few weeks depending on if I decide to race the Pro XCT in Montana or not.”

In the Womens Open Marathon, Tracy Thelen (Ascent Cycling) put in the fastest time with a 4:19:16 for 60 miles of racing, with Natalie Ryan (Yeti Beti) coming in at 4:36:35 for second place on the day. In the Womens Singlespeed Open marathon, Cristina Begy (Dales Pale Ale/Reeb/Gates) and Michele Bliss (Kappius Components) battled it out until Begy eventually got away for the win with a time of 4:45:27. Asked about her race, Bliss had this to say, “This course was just the right mix of climbing and descending, I love the fast and flowy sections through the woods, and especially the creek crossing! It was the perfect course to do on my singlespeed!!!”

The Rocky Mountain Endurance Series continues in Breckinridge on July 15, 2012 for the Breck 100 and B-68 Race.  See http://www.warriorscycling.com/ for complete results and Series information.