Utah athletes dominate the 24 Hours of Moab endurance race
The race, which brings several thousand cyclists, family and support crew members to the area, is one of the biggest endurance races in the country and part of a six-race series of 24-hour races across the nation.
More than 1,000 cyclists pushed their legs, bikes and minds to the limits as they rode through the night, seeking to be the team, or individual, completing the most laps and the most miles.
Though competitors came to Moab from across the country, the race was dominated by Utah athletes.
The team of Bart Gillespie, Thomas Spannring, Jason Sager and Nina Baum blew away the field of other relay teams by completing the circuit 20 times. Their MonaVie/Cannondale team was the only group to complete 20 laps on the 14.91 mile course that included 1,360 feet of vertical climbing on each lap with 7.85 miles of uphill pedaling.
Their totals were an incredible 298.2 miles and 27,200 feet of elevation gain as each rider took turns churning out the miles.
Also putting in an amazing performance was the team of Jason Asay, Charles Gibson, Josh Wolfe and Tim Allen — riding for a team called the Jack Mormon Militia — which completed 19 laps to finish second overall. The team added the extra challenge of riding single-speed bikes.
Maryland's Chris Eatough was the top men's solo finisher, completing 14 laps — or 208 miles — without a break. The top women's solo racer was Colorado's Jari Kirkland, who also completed 14 laps, finishing her final lap a little more than an hour after Eatough called it a day.
The race will return to Moab next year on Oct. 11 and 12.
FUN IN THE MUD: While the cold temperatures and rain might scare away many cyclists, there's a group that loves nothing more than to get a little dirty.
An often unknown cycling event — cyclocross — is in full swing in the area with a series of races at courses from Ogden to Heber City and Magna. Cyclocross is kind of like a mixture of mountain biking, road biking and cross country running, with off road trails, obstacles to jump over and hills to climb — usually with a fair amount of muck to enjoy.
Three races into the season series, athletes have raced in a variety of divisions that include professional cyclists — such as Bart Gillespie — and youngsters.
Canyon Bicycles of Draper has agreed to provide free use of cyclocross bicycles to youths interested in trying out the sport, which is growing and a part of the international cycling community.
Recent comments
One of the things I love about Utah ... when you least expect something...
Flahute | Oct. 20, 2007 at 5:45 a.m.
Any pics?
Stephen | Oct. 18, 2007 at 12:55 p.m.
Thank you, Deseret News, for printing a story about a sport that...
Chad | Oct. 18, 2007 at 8:55 a.m.
