GES #2 Wisp Capital Cup Results
McHENRY, Maryland (derailedonline.com) - Neko Mulally of Specialized Team America took revenge and then some for his narrow loss in the season opener at Massanutten by winning both ends of the Downhill and Dual Slalom double-header this past weekend at Wisp Resort in far western Maryland. The fourth edition of the Chumba Racing Capital Cup, with a 26% increase in entries from the 2008 edition.
Mike Hartlove the Promoter for the event was a great asset to the event with his announcing adding to the events feel, and got the crowd roaring and racers pumped up. The Downhill portion of the Capital Cup is unusual in that it has always been run as a two-run combined-time final on different courses over the course of two days. Saturday’s first downhill run took place on a smooth flowing track that was made more difficult by the previous day’s wet weather. Portions of the track, particularly the freshly cut section, were so slick they were essentially un-transversable. Beytagh (Moorewood Bikes) took the overnight lead into the ski lodge after squeaking out Neko Mulally for the fastest time on the first run.
Saturday's biggest excitement, however, was the debut of Gravity East’s new e.thirteen Dual Slalom Series held on Wisp’s massive bermed Y-track that hosts mountain bikes in the summer and snowboards in the winter. You have to love a season-opening dual that takes place next to a place called “Accident” (Accident Maryland, one of the bigger towns in the area, is the closest town to the north just five miles from Wisp Resort), though some racers took the accident connection a bit too far. Following the early morning qualifiers and the Saturday Downhill, the brackets were set for the evening eliminations. The e.thirteen Dual Slalom final round featured Neko Mulally (Specialized Team America) against three time winner of the event Jason Beckley (Marin Bikes - Mad March Racing) in the last-man-standing, take-no-prisoners, side-by-side battle in front of a raucous crowd. The final was back-and-forth until the final hip jump just yards before the finish line. With both racers entering the hip together, Mulally took control of the inside. Beckly continued to charge, but ran out of real estate as he caught the fencing and crashed spectacularly giving Neko the first Pro win of the inaugural e-thirteen Dual Slalom.
On Sunday, the riders brought their full-suspension rigs back out to play on a much faster and steeper course than Saturday’s first run. Beytagh maintained the lead he had established on Saturday’s first run until Neko Mulally came through the finish with a scorching time of 2:13 to win the second run. Combined with his second place run on Saturday, Mulally’s two-day combined time was fast enough to take the Capitol Cup, and the lion’s share of the $10,000 prize list, home as the overall Pro Winner.
Next up, the Gravity East Series travels about an hour north for the first major downhill in several years at Pennsylvania’s 7 Springs Resort June 13-14. Information on this and other races can be found at the Gravity East Website www.GravityEastSeries.com
Pro DH Men:
1 Neko Mulally 8 Pro Men Specialized team America 02:16.3 02:13.7 04:30.0
2 Geritt Beytagh 6 Pro Men Morewood Bikers 02:15.2 02:17.6 04:32.9
3 Jason Memmelaar 21 Pro Men Hayes / Manitou 02:18.5 02:18.5 04:37.0
4 Alejandro Ortiz 16 Pro Men Trail Youth Adventures / Hayes 02:18.4 02:24.5 04:42.9
5 Jonathan Gaber 20 Pro Men Cutters Bike Shop 02:21.7 02:25.5 04:47.2
Pro DH Women:
1 Hillary Elgert 27 Pro Women Racers Edge 02:48.7 02:52.0 05:40.7
2 Stephanie Gubernat 12 Pro Women 02:55.0 02:55.3 05:50.3
3 Rae Gandolf 13 Pro Women Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. 02:56.7 03:02.9 05:59.7
Pro DS Men:
1 Neko Mulally Specialized/Team America
2 Jason Beckley MMR/ Marin/ Nema
3 Geritt Begtagh Moorwood Bikes
4 Ben Hulse Sycamore Cycles
5 Trevyn Newpher Snowshoe/ Kona
Pro DS Women:
1 Lauren Daney Inspired Atheletes
2 Hillary Elgert Racer's Edge, Inc.
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Posted on Jun 9, 2009 18:22:47 -0400 by Brady.