The usual group of Whistler mountain bikers took part in the Cyclepath Triple Threat 2001 races at Crystal Mountain last weekend (June 2 and 3), and, as usual, they put on a strong performance.
It was the fifth cross-country, fourth downhill and second dual slalom of the B.C. Cup season.
In the cross-country on June 3, local James Crowe’s unbeaten streak in the Under-15 race continued and he even managed to increase his lead time over the competition. His time of 59 minutes 44 seconds, was 7:22 faster than the next rider.
In the Under-17 race, local Cory Derpak finished in sixth place out of 31 racers while Jason Klimock, his teammate on the Single Track Off Road Mountain Bike Club of Whistler (STORMBC), finished 12 th .
Will Routley, a member of the national development team and a strong prospect for the Canada Games this summer, won the Junior Expert Men category by more than two minutes. Tyler West, another strong local rider, finished in seventh.
Brook Baker finished third in Junior Expert Women, just 1:11 back from the leader.
In Senior Expert Women, Angela Teng finished a close second.
Locals Tony Routley and Eric Crowe, the parents of Will Routley and James Crowe, finished second and sixth in the Master 40-plus Expert Men category.
"It’s a tough crowd out there, the same group of guys at every race," says Routley. "It’s a lot more competitive this year – there are a lot more guys out, and everybody is pedaling their hardest the whole way."
In the downhill competition on June 2, Whistler’s Sylvie Allen, a member of the national downhill team in 2000, took the Elite Women category by less than a second. Less than two seconds separated the top four competitors, including World Cup teammate Lorraine Blancher of Kelowna in second, and Tera Meade of Kamloops in fourth.
Locals Jeff Beatty and Kyle Treleaven finished ninth and 11 th in Junior Expert Men competing against a group of older and more experienced riders.
Beatty had his revenge in the dual slalom competition that afternoon, finishing second among the Junior Men.
The Sunlight B.C. Cup series will continue at Sun Peaks in Kamloops with the sixth cross-country of the season on June 17 and 18. The next triple crown event takes place two weeks later in Rossland at the Rubberhead Festival.
