It’s early into the mountain biking season but Squamish’s Quinn Moberg is off to a blazing hot start.
He won Sechelt’s Sunshine Coaster on May 2 and followed that up with a win at the Orecrusher in Brackendale on Saturday (May 9).
Moberg completed the course in 1:50:48, about 90 seconds behind Neal Kindree’s Orecrusher record and said it was a good day on the trails.
“I was content to follow at first but when I saw the race slow down a bit I turned it on at the end of the first lap,” he said. “It was a hard race today and we rode fast. In year’s past there have been times where we’ve let up but not this year.”
He said he battled with new Ƶappresident Jamie Sparling, who finished second with a time of 1:51:53. North Vancouver’s Kevin Calhoun was third, posting a time of 1:53:23.
Moberg said it’s been a good start to the 2015 season and hopes he can continue his success.
“The last two weeks have given me a lot of confidence and things are going great so far,” the 21-year-old said. “I get great support from my family, friends and sponsors so that really helps.”
Moberg heads to Mt. Tremblant, QC for a Canada Cup race next weekend and also has a full slate of local races on his plate for the next few months.
The top ten in the Orecrusher was dominated by Ƶappriders, with seven of the top 10 spots occupied by local racers. Ƶapptop 10 finishers included: Greg Day (fourth), Dwayne Kress (fifth), Rhys Verner (sixth), Luke Di Marzo (ninth) and Eric Goodwin (10th).
Verner and Di Marzo are both still technically juniors and the Team Ƶappteammates were happy with their top ten showings.
“I’m really happy with how it went,” Verner said, noting he’s been battling mono for the past few months. “I didn’t really know where my fitness was as I’d just come back last week but when the pack went down to five I was in that group for a while so that felt really good.”
Di Marzo said he was gunning for the $100 prime at the start of the race but was edged out by Day. He said he felt good the entire race.
“I settled in after the prime and rode with the lead pack for a while,” he said. “I dropped back a bit in the second lap but then I slowly started picking it up as the race went on.”
He said the Ƶappraces are fun but can also be a little nerve racking.
“These local races mean so much more,” he said. “I get more nervous for these. The whole town is watching and you’re racing in front of friends and family so the pressure is on.”
Verner and Di Marzo both head to Quebec for the Canada Cup next weekend and are also participating in the Test of Metal series races this summer.
Coquitlam’s Sandra Walter continued her dominance in the women’s division with her fourth straight Orecrusher title. Walter completed the course in 2:06:15.
Zoe Dawson had the top local female time, finishing fourth with a time of 2:15:52. Other top local females included: Catherine Gendron (13th), Diana Lussier (14th), Jenn Thiel (16th), Barb Cooke (21st) and Julie Phoenix (24th).
Ƶappmales riders in the top 50 included: JD Disney (11th), Ethan Toom (20th), Nathan McKay (21st), Holden Jones (29th), Jean-Sebastien Lareau (30th), Nick Kleban (35th), Tristan Galbraith (41st) and Rob Phoenix (43rd).
Ƶappage group winners included: Dawson (20 to 29 females), Goodwin (30 to 39 males), Kress (40 to 49 males) and Mike Reed (60 to 69 males).
The event drew a total of 277 racers, identical to last year’s race. For complete results from the race, visit www.webscorer.com/race?raceid=42204.