USA Cycling Collegiate Mountain Bike National Championships open with cross country contests
Truckee, Calif. (October 16, 2009) – The USA Cycling Collegiate Mountain Bike National Championships kicked off on Friday as nearly 300 student athletes converged on the Northstar at Tahoe Resort to compete for a total of 22 national titles over three days.
The first day of racing saw the coeds battle it out for individual titles in the cross country contests. The rain from earlier in the week settled down what is normally a dusty course, making for perfect racing conditions. The women in Divisions I and II went off bright and early at 8:00 a.m. for three chilly laps of the 7.5-mile loop while the men in both divisions toed the line at high noon for four laps.
Arguably putting forth the most dominating performance of the day was Fort Lewis College’s Rotem Ishay. The Israeli National immediately took control of the 30-mile contest, building a substantial lead in lap one. Eventually growing his lead to eight minutes by the end, he rolled into the finish area for the win, looking like he still had the energy to go another lap.
