August 29/04 1:51 am - NORBA Short Track Final

Posted by Editoress on 08/29/04
 

Thrilling short track races highlighted the afternoon at Durango Mountain Resort, with Katerina Hanusova (Cze) and Geoff Kabush (Can) reigning victorious. Kabush put his stamp on the series, claiming the overall short track title after making it two for two at the NORBA Series finale, while Alison Dunlap (Colorado Springs, Colo.) walked away with the women's overall crown.

The women's race was an incredible display of team tactics by the Luna Chix. Forming an immediate gap right from the gun, Hanusova, Dunlap and Shonny Vanlandingham (Durango, Colo.) set an unbelievable pace, causing the field to quickly spread apart.

Willow Koerber (Gunnison, Colo.), Chrissy Redden (Golden, Colo.), Kerry Barnholt (Boulder, Colo.) and Sue Haywood (Davis, W.Va.) made up the talented chase group, but the Luna women were unstoppable.

Redden broke away from the chasers and made the solo effort to catch the Luna powerhouse. By the time the lap cards came out, the rest of the chasers were spread apart, unable to match the fast pace set at the front.

Hanusova crossed the line to claim the victory, while Vanlandingham finished second. Finishing third behind her teammates, Dunlap was able to hold onto her #1 spot in the standings. Redden and Haywood rounded out the podium's final spots. The Luna women wrapped up their season as a powerful trio by claiming the top three spots in the overall short track standings.

The men's race started fast, as Geoff Kabush set an unbelievable pace, matched at first by Chris Sheppard (CAN) and Ryan Trebon (Corvallis, Ore.). The third lap saw Kabush pick up the pace, while Trebon and Sheppard gave it their all to keep up. Barry Wicks (Santa Cruz, Calif.) and Frank Mapel (Durango, Colo.) tried to catch the two chasers.

About ten minutes into the race, Sheppard fell off pace, and Trebon made a solo effort to catch Kabush. Travis Brown (Boulder, Colo.) and Adam Craig (Corinth, Maine), who had been moving up through the field, passed Sheppard. Just a few minutes before the lap cards came out, Craig made his move and dropped Brown, and then passed Trebon to take over the silver medal spot. Sam Schultz (Colorado Springs, Colo.), riding for the U23 National Team, had an incredible day and worked his way into fifth place.

Nobody came close to catching Kabush, who was obviously determined to take the race wins and the series wins in both cross-country and short track this weekend. Craig and Brown took the silver and bronze medals, while Trebon and Schultz rounded out the podium in fourth and fifth respectively.

Men's Short Track

1. Geoff Kabush (Can) Maxxis
2. Adam Craig (USA)
3. Travis Brown (USA)
4. Ryan Trebon (USA)
5. Sam Schultz (USA)

Women's Short Track

1. Katerina Hanusova (Cze) Luna MTB
2. Shonny Vanlandingham (USA) Luna MTB
3. Alison Dunlap (USA) Luna MTB
4. Chrissy Redden (Can)Subaru - Gary Fisher
5. Sue Haywood (USA)

Women's Overall Standings

1. Alison Dunlap (USA) Luna MTB
2. Shonny Vanlandingham (USA) Luna MTB
3. Katerina Hanusova (Cze) Luna MTB
4. Kerry Barnholt (USA)
5. Willow Koerber (USA) RLX Ralph Lauren

Men's Overall Standings

1. Geoff Kabush (Can) Maxxis
2. Travis Brown (USA)
3. Chris Sheppard (Can) Haro-adidas
4. Trent Lowe (USA)
5. Ryan Trebon (USA)