La Bresse World Cup Report and PHOTOS – Pendrel 4th, Plaxton a Breakthrough 9th

by Mike Sarnecki

May 21, 2012 (La Bresse, France) – The forecasted rain showers stayed away and the sun came out at the ski resort in La Bresse, France on Sunday for the 4th round of the UCI RockyRoads Mountain Bike World Cup.

The 4.8-kilometre circuit featured steep technical climbing soon after the start and a long downhill descent that required 100% focus. Adding to the importance of the event was the fact that this it was the last World Cup that counts towards Olympic team qualification – the final chance for riders to earn a spot on their respective London 2012 Olympic team.

In the Elite women’s event, it was a heated battle at the head of the race as multiple women exchanged turns at the front. Norway’s Gunn-Rita Dahle Flesjaa (Multivan Merida Biking Team) opened it up on the first lap, while Canadian Catharine Pendrel (Luna Pro) found herself in 15th position following the short start loop as the women started the 1st of five laps.

Pendrel had her work cut out for her and clawed her way back to third by the second lap behind leader Julie Bresset (Fra) BH-SR Suntour-Peisey Vallandry, who was eager to put on a good show at home, while teammate Katerina Nash (Cze) Luna Pro Team was having a great start battling with Bresset in second. Dahle Flesjaa was just behind riding steadily in 4th.

On the tough climb on Lap 3 Pendrel attacked Bresset and took over the lead while Nash sat on Bresset’s wheel. But the feisty French rider made up time on the descent and closed the gap to Pendrel. Then the unthinkable happened.

On the last tough downhill section to the flats Pendrel bobbled and came off the bike. Behind Bresset was unable to manoevre and crashed into her going over her handlebars as the two went down. Nash could see the carnage and veered left around them and was the new leader. Then Pendrel suffered a chain problem and lost more time. There were more crashes on the course and more to come from our lead group as well.

At the start of the fourth lap Bresset banged her seat trying to straighten it out while Dahle Flesjaa bridged to Pendrel. Up the massive climb Nash continued to lead as Pendrel regained second with Dahle Flesjaa in third and Bresset fourth. Then Nash crashed suddenly but recovered quick and was back on her. The descents were not working well for Pendrel today and Dahle Flesjaa took over second as Bresset was making up time as well.

By the final lap it was a battle between Nash and Dahle Flesjaa at the font as Pendrel and Bresset wrestled for third. Nash was holding her own and pulling away and then suddenly she crashed again as Dahle Flesjaa kept the pressure on. Near the end of the downhill section Nash gave away the race with yet another fumble landing in the bushes as the Norwegian, the most successful female mountain biker of all time, claimed her first WCup victory since 2008. Bresset was able to pass Pendrel and take the final podium spot to the delight of the home crowd.

On her Facebook page, Pendrel admitted she was not at her best on the downhills, as she quipped, “…was that me or my grandma out there on the descents?” Pendrel hung in there though, and was strong enough to finish in 4th place, just behind Bresset.

Emily Batty (Subaru Trek) suffered a slow start but maintained her composure on the tough course and battled back from 26th position to end up in 9th overall on the day. Marie-Helene Premont (Rocky Mountain Factory Team) had a solid start and was in 9th place following the start loop, but couldn’t quite hold the pace of the race and slipped back to finish 21st.

Like Pendrel and Batty, Amanda Sin (SCOTT – 3Rox) did not have a good start but was vigilant as she worked her way up each lap, picking off rider after rider. “The course suited me and I really liked the technical sections,” Sin told Pedal. “My Maxxis Beavers were awesome and the right choice for the conditions.” Sin finished in 30th place, her best result in a World Cup this season.

The other Canadian woman in the field was Jean Ann Berkenpas (Canadian National Team) who finished in in 42nd place.

Awesome Absalon – Plaxton Breakthrough
In men’s race, it was clear that this course was designed for hometown favourite, Julien Absalon (Orbea Racing Team), who lead most of the race to claim the victory over the hard-chasing Czech, Jaroslav Kulhavy (Specialized Racing).

It was a dogfight for 3rd, 4th, and 5th, as the Olympic team selection was on the line for the Swiss men, as two of three spots were up for grabs. Nino Schurter (Sui) Scott-Swisspower MTB Racing Team had already claimed a nomination to the team and was not racing in La Bresse due to a stomach bug.

In the end it was Ralph Naef (Multivan Merida Biking Team) and Florian Vogel (SCOTT – Swisspower MTB Racing Team) who finished 3rd and 4th respectively to qualify for the Swiss Team over fellow countryman Fabian Giger (Rabobank Giant Offroad Team) and Christoph Sauser (Specialized Racing) who were 5th and 6th on the day.

In a breakthrough performance, Canadian Max Plaxton (Team Specialized Racing USA) achieved his goal of cracking the top ten in a World Cup by finishing 9th on the day.

“It feels great to crack the top-10,” said Plaxton. With a decent start, Plaxton stayed patient and continued to move up the field. “It was a very tough race course and I was being careful to not to go into the red zone, but looking back, I felt so good that maybe I should of set my goal for the top 5.”

Plaxton once again was aboard his Specialized S-Works 29er Epic. “It was amazing out there once again and each lap the course got rougher. If another bike company made such a fast 29er dual suspension I think you would see more guys out there on one.”

When asked if we’d ever see Max racing a 26″ bike again, he thought that 29ers were the norm now. “The whole 26 vs 29 is a thing of the past!”

Plaxton returns to Canada with four races on home soil, which he is pretty stoked about. Plaxton will be on the start line in Pemberton for the Nimby Fifty marathon MTB race, then on to the Nationals in Quebec mid-June, and the North American World Cups (Mont-Sainte Anne & Windham).

Fellow Olympic hopeful Geoff Kabush (SCOTT – 3Rox Racing) didn’t have the result he was hoping for and battling a cold all week did not help his efforts. “I wasn’t playing with a full deck today but challenged myself to battle as hard as I could,” Kabush told Pedal.

“I fought hard until the 5th lap when I had a mechanical that ended my day.”
This minor setback won’t get Kabush down as this seasoned pro knows what he has to do.

“I am looking forward to regrouping, recharging, and getting back at it when the series resumes in Mont-Sainte Anne. I’m heading home briefly before rejoining my Scott-3Rox Racing teammates at the Hardwood Hills Canada Cup.