By Wendy Booher
World 4-Cross Champions, GT teammates Jill Kintner & Brian Lopes led the way through qualifying and to the finish to claim top spots in the Sea Otter Classic Mountaincross. This was the final stage of Gravity Omnium.
This course was world-class and offered many lead changes, as well as numerous obstacles, jumps, and berms. There were also many lines that went up and down. Lopes said that qualifying number one was a good thing because it allowed me to choose my lane throughout the day. My semis (slicks) were sliding around the inside a little too much so I modified my lineup for the final. It worked well. Cedric (Gracia), shouted at me, « Watch out, watch what’s outside! »
Flyin Brian Lopes held on to first place throughout the event in order to climb to the top.
Jill Kinter rode conservatively in her qualifying rounds to make it to the final. The women’s race was a shell game during several qualifying rounds. It became a contest between Tara Llanes and Melissa Buhl. Anneke Beerten won the final. Kintner defeated a strong Llanes to win the final round.
Kintner explained that the course is very long and it’s a grind all the way to completion. It was interesting because of the top seeds in the qualifying rounds. You couldn’t play the same strategy like conserving energy, so it was a bit different. For the final, I focused on being as strong as possible down the first straightaway. I was fortunate to be in a good position at the gate.
SEA OTTER MOUNTAINCROSS RESULTS
1. Brian LopesGT
2. N.A.
3. Jared Graves (Aus).YetiFox
4. Chris Powell
5. Cedric Gracia (Fra)Commencal
6. Romain Saladin (Fra)
7. Bryn Atkinson (Aus)GT
8. Kamil Tatarkovic (Cze
9. John Kirkcaldie (NZl)Maxxis
10. Eric CarterMongoose
WOMEN
1. Jill KintnerGT
2. Tara LlanesGiant
3. Anneke Beerten (Ned)Specialized
4. Melissa BuhlKHS
6. Sabrina Jonnier (Fra)Monster Energy-Ironhorse-Madcatz
8. Vanessa Quin (NZl)Dirt-Intense
10. Fionn Griffiths (GBr)Norco
SEA OTTER GRAVITY OMNIUM
The Gravity Omnium Total was used to add up the scores of all riders who finished in the gravity stages. The overall score with the lowest total score was awarded. The tiebreaker was a better finish in mountaincross. Listed after the riders names are their overall pointsslalom/downhil/mountaincross placings.
FINAL GRAVITY OMNIUM RESULTS
1. Cedric Gracia (Fra)Commencal11 points2/
2. Jared Graves (Aus)Yeti-Fox1410/1/3
3. John Kirkcaldie (NZl)Maxxis197/3/9
4. Ryan FinneyWTB-Fox-Santa Cruz246/6/12
5. Bryn Atkinson (Aus)GT259/9/7
6. Fabien Barel (Fra)Kona-Les Gets4/2/20
7. Nathan Rennie (Aus)Santa Cruz Syn3111/7/13
8. Steve Peat (GBr)Santa Cruz Syn37
9. Kamil Tatarkovic (Cze.4018/14/8
10. Cody WarrenClub Racing423/24/15
WOMEN
1. Anneke Beerten (Ned)Specialized9 points4/2/3
2. Sabrina Jonnier (Fra)Monster-Ironhorse-Madcatz111/4/6
3. Vanessa Quin (NZl)Dirt-Intense132/3/8
4. Tara LlanesGiant2010/8/2
5. Tracy Moseley (GBr.203/1/16
6. Fionn Griffiths (GBr)Norco237/6/10
7. Melissa BuhlKHS26
8. Bernardito Pizarro (Chi)Cannondale309/9/12
9. Joanna PettersonMorewood/Cost-U-Less Insurance4113/14/14
10. Wendy ReynoldsCannondale4515/13/17
