Nick Bax (Clean Currents p/b Don Beyer Volvo) won the Pro/1/2/3 race at the inaugural Altarum Lost River Classic p/b GamJams in a high-drama finale over Keck Baker (Battley Harley-Davidson). The two broke free with just over 2 laps remaining on the torturous 10-mile loop through bucolic West Virginia mountains. At the bell lap they held a tenuous lead ahead of the chasing peloton, but continued to work well through the final lap to stay away until the finish. Even with only 100M to go the race was undecided, with the two swapping blows up the finishing climb, before Bax took the win by a length.
Bax powers head-down up the hill to beat Baker (also head-down) by a single length. (Photo courtesy of Drew Wisniewski)
The women's 1/2/3 race saw Kate Veronneau (Altarum Women's Cycling Team) solo the last lap and a half to win by over a minute. A 3-woman chase group consisting of Erin Silliman (Artemis), Amanda Watson (Artemis) and Leslie Jennings (Team CycleLife p/b Specialized) contained the gap but couldn't close it. Watson outsprinted Jennings for second, with Silliman following 30-seconds later.
As predicted, no finishes were contested by pack sprints, with the course splitting fields as early as the first climb on lap 1. The closes to a bunch gallop was in the Men's Cat 3 race, where the top 7 or 8 racers crossed the line over a 25-second span.
The race attracted an impressive 220+ combatants and went a long way towards securing its position as a must-attend event for 2010.
2009 Altarum Lost River Classic p/b GamJams winners:
Masters 35+: Chuch Hutcheson (Battley Harley-Davidson)*
Masters 50+: Art Brown (ABRT / Lattitude)
Cat 4: Thomas Blonkowski (Squadra Coppi / IM Saab)
Cat 5: Matias Palavecino (Team Snapple)
Pro/1/2/3: Nick Bax (Clean Currents p/b Don Beyer Volvo)*
Cat 3: Ryan Tuttle (unattached)
Women 1/2/3: Kate Veronneau (Altarum Women's Cycling Team)
Women Cat 4: Beth Catherwood (NCVC / Inova Health System)
*Awarded a $100 bounty for winning in GamJams socks
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