Results from Red Rock Desert Rampage, St. George, Utah

Written by: Shannon Boffeli
Photos by: Brian Hester/Shannon Boffeli

Once again the Red Rock Desert Rampage, in southern Utah, provided the crystal clear blue skies and wram temperatures it has become known for. Wicked fast desert singletrack is another thing the St. George has eocome known for and today's race didn't disappoint.

Durango local and former Olympian Travis Brown (Trek) once again made the six hour drive from Colorado to enjoy the warm temps and dry trails. "This race is a lot of fun and we still have a lot of snow back home . So it's a nice excuse to get away and enjoy some time on the dirt." commented the legendary Trek racer.

The women's event featured a small but fast group. Amanda Carey (Kenda/Tomac/Hayes), KC Holley (Subaru/Gary Fisher), and Jen Hanks (Revolution/Peak Fasteners) are all accomplished national cross country racers who carry top-20 finshes on their resumes. Erika Powers (Revolution/Peak Fasteners) is the 2008 Intermountain Cup Champion.

Carey established herself early in the race. The powerful Kenda racer used her strength to open up a lead on the early flatter sections of the course and never looked back from there. She climbed the rocky desert washes and tore through the descents all the while increasing her lead on the others. "I really like this race course. Last year I double flatted here so I was happy nothing went wrong today." said the satisfied race winner.

Behind Carey a tight battle was shaping up between Powers, Hanks, and Holley. KC Holley settled into second for most of the race while Powers and Hanks traded positions never opening a gap of more than a few seconds. Holley went into the final descent with a 30 second gap on Powers. The petite Revolution racer sensed her opportunity had arrived. She attacked on the final descent and closed the gap cathcning Holley unaware. She burst past Holley on the final approach to the finish and held her off for second place. Hanks came home in 4th after getting stuck behind lapped traffic on the final descent.

The Men's event also featured a strong group of primarily local Utah racers. Along with Travis Brown, the line-up featured names like Monavie/Cannondale riders Bart Gillespie and Alex Grant, and 2008 Junior National Champion Robbie Squire.

The men broke from the line in a relatively easy pace with most riders staying in a tight group on the early double track sections. Once the group hit the first deep desert wash the riders were forced to go single file and the first selection was made.

The group featured Gillespie, Grant, Brown, and Squire. They would stay this way for the opening laps. Eventually the lead group shed Brown who would be overtaken by Kuhl/Scott rider Dave Welsh. The three leaders continued on leaving all others well behind. On the final lap the 19 year-old Squire attacked the climbs gapping Monavie rider Grant. Gillespie and Squire entered the final descent wheel to wheel. Gillespie, the accomplished veteran racer matched the younger Squire throughout the final rocky twists and turns of the descent.

As Squire emerged from the final singletrack he launched his final attack on a short climb a quarter mile from the finish. Gillespie covered the attack and had Squires wheel over the final flat double track leading to the finish. Gillespie punched it into the finishing shoot, coming around the Junior National Champ taking the win by one second.

"Robbie was stronger out there. All day he was pushing the pace. He's still young and he made a little mistake in the end which let me win." a respectful Gillespie said following the race.

Squire was happy with his form this early in the season. The talented teenager will be traveling to Fontana for the opening round of the Pro XC Tour before heading to Europe with the Under-23 National team.

Race Notes:

- Although twenty-seven Pro Men took the start line in the race's main event, promoters paid three deep in accordance with Intermountain Cup rules. This despite giving prizes to the top-4 in the sport and expert categories. Several in the Pro field voiced disappointment with the limited payout.

Pro Women
1, Amanda Carey (Kenda/Tomac/Hayes) 1:39:52
2, Erika Powers (Revolution/Peak Fasteners) 1:44:14
3, KC Holley (Subaru/Gary Fisher) 1:44:15
4, Jen Hanks (Revolution/Peak Fasteners) 1:44:50
5, D.J. Morrisette (Ellsworth)

Pro Men
1, Bart Gillespie (Monavie-cannondale.com) 1:46:58
2, Robbie Gould (USA Under-23 National Team) 1:46:59
3, Alex Grant (Monavie-cannondale.com) 1:47:25
4, Dave Welsh (Kuhl/Scott)
5, Travis Brown (Trek)
6, Chris Holley (Subaru/Gary Fisher)
7, Reed Wycoff (Contender)
8, Mitchell Peterson (Monavie-cannondale.com)
9, Chucky Gibson (Felt)
10, Jeff Montague (Delta 7)
11, Jason Asay
12, Chad Harris (Racer's Cycle Service)
13, Nathan Miller (Spot Brand Bikes)
14, Ty Hansen (Revlution/Peak Fasteners)
15, Brandon Cross (Monavie-cannondale.com)
16, Matt Ohran (Monavie-cannondale.com)
17, Scott Allen (Canyon Bikes)
18, Shannon Boffeli (MTBracenews.com/Revolution)
19, Chris Suter (NAU Cycling)
20, Art O'Connor (Monavie-cannondale.com)
21, Kevin Day (Kuhl/Scott)
22, Brandon Firth (Rocky Mountain)
23, Dave Harris (Desert Cyclery)
24, Brock Olson (Bingham's)
25, Brock Cannon (Kuhl/Scott)
26, Taylor Foss (Kuhl/Scott)
DNF Blake Zumbrunnen (Revolution/Peak Fasteners)