thedrifter
07-17-08, 05:56 AM
Bikers Crank it up for 12-hour Race
7/16/2008 By Wandoo Makurdi , Marine Corps Base Quantico
MARINE CORPS BASE QUANTICO, Va. — More than 350 cyclists gathered on the base Saturday for the start of the second annual 12 Hours of Cranky Monkey Mountain Bike Relay Race, which was organized by EX2Adventures and Marine Corps Community Services.
The main purpose of the event was for racers to complete as many 10.7-mile laps as possible within a 12-hour window, Jim Harman, race promoter for EX2, a mountain bike promotions company, said. By 8 a.m. , 369 racers — 65 solos, 38 dual, and 76 three-pair teams — began the Cranky Monkey by running to the baseball field near the Child Development Center to grab their bikes with hopes of conquering the challenge. Teams relayed, with runners changing partners after each lap.
Plum Grove Cyclery was the overall winner, completing 12 laps in 11:15.12 hours. The duo male team of Stewart Stanton, a 31-year-old from Ashburn, Va., and 43-year-old Bob Anderson of Crozet, Va., was one of only two teams to complete 12 laps. The three-person team known as This One Goes to Eleven, competing in the Masters Open category was the other, finishing second overall in 11:56.09 hours.
‘‘Bob and I are used to doing 24-hour races solo,” Stanton said, commenting on the difficulty of the race. ‘‘So doing a 12-hour race, split up into six hours, was sort of a relief.”
Stanton, a first time racer on Quantico’s trail, also had plenty to say about the condition of the trail.
‘‘They’ve got the technical steep climb, but they also have some fast downhills,” Stanton said. ‘‘For someone who’s a novice of biking, you’ll really enjoy the trail.”
Harman, a nine-year race promoter, said the trails are some of the best in the area, and it was one of the reasons he accepted an invitation from MCCS a few years back to host some events on it. Harman now holds two races on the base every year.
‘‘I’ve been working with MCCS and the Marine Corps bike team on maintaining the trails, Harman said before the race. ‘‘Quantico has a really, really nice network of single track trails.”
Harman said that after last year’s race, which he dubbed ‘a magical experience’ which was overwhelmingly positive, the number of interested participants increased this year.
‘‘We think [hosting mountain bike races] is important because a lot of times people just focus on running, and there’s a whole community of Marines and a lot of people that are mountain bikers,” Gary Gutshall, the operations manager of Larson’s Gym and MCCS representative at the race, said of the growing interest in mountain biking on base. ‘‘We thought to expand the program so that audience and those patrons that may not run the foot races ... had the same opportunities available for them.”
In the solo male category, Zach Rogers, the 35th overall finisher, took the lead by the end of the first lap, and held on to take the top spot by completing nine laps in 10:29.23. Dilcia Davis, the 123rd overall finisher, was the top female solo finisher, completing six laps in 10:27.51.
Members of the Quantico varsity bike team participate in different categories – three teams in the three-person category; two in the beginner male and one in the sport male. Captain of the team, Daryl Crane, was part of the sport male team, which placed third in its category, and 11th overall. Yomen English and John Field were Crane’s teammates in the race.
‘‘The hardest part was the mental aspect knowing you had to go back out there for another lap,” Crane, who ran the final lap for his team, said. ‘‘My least favorite portion was the long steep climb three-quarters of the way through the race because at that point you’re already tired.”
Crane said he thought his team had a nice showing and a lot of fun, despite some mechanical problems his two beginner teams suffered in the early part of their race. Crane also said he hopes the attention the race brought to the base would encourage more people to consider joining the team, which he is currently trying to convert into a club. Of the 10 team members, most are senior Marines and all are males. Crane is hoping to get some interest from females and younger Marines.
Gutshall said the proceeds from the entry fee would be used to help support Crane’s effort in forming the Quantico mountain bike club. For more information on the club, visit its Web site at Quanticomtb.org. To view the complete list of winners and other results from the Cranky Monkey, visit EX2’s Web site at www.ex2adventures.com .
Ellie
7/16/2008 By Wandoo Makurdi , Marine Corps Base Quantico
MARINE CORPS BASE QUANTICO, Va. — More than 350 cyclists gathered on the base Saturday for the start of the second annual 12 Hours of Cranky Monkey Mountain Bike Relay Race, which was organized by EX2Adventures and Marine Corps Community Services.
The main purpose of the event was for racers to complete as many 10.7-mile laps as possible within a 12-hour window, Jim Harman, race promoter for EX2, a mountain bike promotions company, said. By 8 a.m. , 369 racers — 65 solos, 38 dual, and 76 three-pair teams — began the Cranky Monkey by running to the baseball field near the Child Development Center to grab their bikes with hopes of conquering the challenge. Teams relayed, with runners changing partners after each lap.
Plum Grove Cyclery was the overall winner, completing 12 laps in 11:15.12 hours. The duo male team of Stewart Stanton, a 31-year-old from Ashburn, Va., and 43-year-old Bob Anderson of Crozet, Va., was one of only two teams to complete 12 laps. The three-person team known as This One Goes to Eleven, competing in the Masters Open category was the other, finishing second overall in 11:56.09 hours.
‘‘Bob and I are used to doing 24-hour races solo,” Stanton said, commenting on the difficulty of the race. ‘‘So doing a 12-hour race, split up into six hours, was sort of a relief.”
Stanton, a first time racer on Quantico’s trail, also had plenty to say about the condition of the trail.
‘‘They’ve got the technical steep climb, but they also have some fast downhills,” Stanton said. ‘‘For someone who’s a novice of biking, you’ll really enjoy the trail.”
Harman, a nine-year race promoter, said the trails are some of the best in the area, and it was one of the reasons he accepted an invitation from MCCS a few years back to host some events on it. Harman now holds two races on the base every year.
‘‘I’ve been working with MCCS and the Marine Corps bike team on maintaining the trails, Harman said before the race. ‘‘Quantico has a really, really nice network of single track trails.”
Harman said that after last year’s race, which he dubbed ‘a magical experience’ which was overwhelmingly positive, the number of interested participants increased this year.
‘‘We think [hosting mountain bike races] is important because a lot of times people just focus on running, and there’s a whole community of Marines and a lot of people that are mountain bikers,” Gary Gutshall, the operations manager of Larson’s Gym and MCCS representative at the race, said of the growing interest in mountain biking on base. ‘‘We thought to expand the program so that audience and those patrons that may not run the foot races ... had the same opportunities available for them.”
In the solo male category, Zach Rogers, the 35th overall finisher, took the lead by the end of the first lap, and held on to take the top spot by completing nine laps in 10:29.23. Dilcia Davis, the 123rd overall finisher, was the top female solo finisher, completing six laps in 10:27.51.
Members of the Quantico varsity bike team participate in different categories – three teams in the three-person category; two in the beginner male and one in the sport male. Captain of the team, Daryl Crane, was part of the sport male team, which placed third in its category, and 11th overall. Yomen English and John Field were Crane’s teammates in the race.
‘‘The hardest part was the mental aspect knowing you had to go back out there for another lap,” Crane, who ran the final lap for his team, said. ‘‘My least favorite portion was the long steep climb three-quarters of the way through the race because at that point you’re already tired.”
Crane said he thought his team had a nice showing and a lot of fun, despite some mechanical problems his two beginner teams suffered in the early part of their race. Crane also said he hopes the attention the race brought to the base would encourage more people to consider joining the team, which he is currently trying to convert into a club. Of the 10 team members, most are senior Marines and all are males. Crane is hoping to get some interest from females and younger Marines.
Gutshall said the proceeds from the entry fee would be used to help support Crane’s effort in forming the Quantico mountain bike club. For more information on the club, visit its Web site at Quanticomtb.org. To view the complete list of winners and other results from the Cranky Monkey, visit EX2’s Web site at www.ex2adventures.com .
Ellie