Beautiful weather and exciting racing greeted spectators of the NMBS Short Track finals at Brian Head Resort. Nestled at a hypoxic 9,400 feet above sea level Brian Head provides some of the best racing available on the NMBS. And it was clear right from the start the the Trek/VW team came ready to race.
In the Women's Short Track the Trek team was aggressive at the front, pushing the pace in the thin air. With Lea Davison taking the first of 3 primes on the opening lap the Trek team dominated the early race action with Mical Dyck, Jennifer Smith, and Davison all taking their turns at the front. Trek seemed determined to end the Luna girls streak of Short Track wins.
Despite all their work the first selection of the race happened at halfway leabing Trek with just one rider. The group of four included Luna girls Katerina Nash and Georgia Gould,Lea Davison and Kelli Emmett (Giant). With two Lunas in the group it appeared as if they would be a lock for yet another win.
With two laps left Katerina Nash launched one of her patented scorching attacks which usually leave the rest of the field in the dust. This time she would unseat everyone except Davison. With one lap to go Nash attacked again still unable to rid herself of the tenacious Davison. On the back side of the final lap Davison took the lead and held strong until the line. The first time winner was ecstatic after the race saying " I am ridiculously stoked about my first win! I'm from like below sea level in Vermont so I'm pretty excited. I knew if I could stay with that acceleration [from Nash] I had a chance to win. And win she did.
In the Men's race we would also see a first time winner. With a short fast course lacking any significant features or hills the pace was fast and the pack got strung out early.
Ryan Trebon (Kona)took the opening lap prime. Several riders would take their turn pulling the pack throughout the opening half of the race. Short Track National Champion Jeremiah Bishop, Subaru/Gary Fisher front man Jeremy Horgan-Kobleski, and Sam Jurekovic would all take their turns at the front. At about the time JHK was suffered a flat rear tire the first selection of the day took place. Bishop and Ross Schnell (Trek/VW) went clear with youngsters Jurekovic, Colin Cares (U23), and McConnell Franklin (Devo).
They quickly established a gap over the rest of the field. In the early laps of the break, the group worked well together increasing their lead over the others. As the laps ticked off, the cooperation quickly fell apart and the Trek team didn't wait to let the others catch up. Schnell immediately went off the front getting a small gap. Cares took up the chase and Bishop played the consummate teammate sticking to the chasers wheels while never contributing to their pursuit.
Schnell proved too much for the U23 riders. His lead grew with each lap, finally taking his first Short Track win with a healthy margin allowing him to cross the line with hands in the air standing on his bike. Cares stayed strong for second with Bishop crossing the line behind unaware it was the last lap. "They didn't use the bell so I thought we had another lap to go until I saw Ross raise his arms across the finish." The mix up didn't dampen Trek/VW spirits.
"We ate our Wheaties this morning" said Schnell in reference to his team's break out wins. "That was a tough act to follow with Lea winning... I came in really fresh and it's at altitude, I like altitude."
Jurekovic and Franklin held onto their positions for 4th and 5th. Tomorrow's Cross Country should provide even more excitement as the Trek riders will be looking to continue their domination while teams like Luna and Subaru/Gary Fisher look to improve.