LUNA Women's Mountain Bike Team Manager Dave McGlaughlin announced that former Czech National Champion Katerina Nash announced she will be withdrawing from mountain bike competition for the 2009 season.In a prepared statement, McGlaughlin stated, "Recently Katerina Nash informed the LUNA Team that she has decided to sit out the 2009 mountain bike season while she attends to family matters but has not ruled out the possibility of racing the '09/'10 cross season. We don't expect a final decision from her for at least 30 days. Regardless, Nash will continue her association with LUNA and will make appearances on the team's behalf throughout the season."
Nash had her best mountain bike season in 2008. Highlights for the Truckee, CA resident, included a third place at the World Cup in Bromont, Canada as well as multiple top-10 finishes on the World Cup circuit which led to a personal best UCI ranking of 14th. On the National scene, she had short track wins at the National Mountain Bike Series events in Fountain Hills, Windham, and Park City, while also taking the XC title at the Park City event. She posted a second place in the Open Mixed category at the Transrockies Stage Race. Perhaps the one dark spot in 2008 came when a knee injury prevented Nash from qualifying to compete at the Beijing Olympics.
Over the past several years, Katerina Nash has used her aggressive and opportunistic riding style to elevate the Luna Women's Team to the pinnacle of U.S. mountain bike racing. Her absence will undoubtedly impact the Luna team's dominance of domestic bike racing. I am sure LUNA along with all mountain bike racing fans wish her the best and hope to see her racing again soon.Writing and Photos by: Shannon Boffeli