By Nate Gibby – Eden, UTAH—Nicole Tittensor (Jan’s Park City/Scott Bikes/Reynolds Cycling) won the Elite Women’s division while Apex/NBX/Trek’s Justin Lindine took top spot on the podium of the Elite men’s category at the Intermountain Cup’s series conclusion at Powder Mountain on August 26.
With a record-setting number of participants, the Powder Mountain course started just east of the Ogden Valley overlooking Pineview Reservoir, the race christened the new 15-mile lap, with approximately 1,800’ of climbing per lap. Featuring a hefty ~500’ climb up a service road right out of the gates, the course leveled out entering single track across several of Powder Mountain’s pristine high-valley trails.
With an initial push up the first climb, Tittensor was able to beat out KC Holley (Kuhl, Racer Cycle Service) and Ami Stuart (Storm Cycles) to the single track and pull away for the top spot on the podium. “I did a little attack before the single track hit and just kept charging after that,” said Tittensor. “I had about a 15-second gap at the top and tried to catch as many of the men’s group in front of us before the single track to give myself a little barrier.”
“We took off and I thought we were going to start out kind of easy but then [Tittensor] took off and [Stuart] followed her,” said Holley, the second-place finisher. “I’m not a good starter so I just tried to hang. [Tittensor] continued to pull away, but I was able to beat [Stuart] to the single track and pull away on the fast, fun decent.”
With the win at Powder Mountain, Tittensor edged out Holley for the series title.
On men’s side, Lindine followed a similar strategy to fend off stiff competition from Jamey Driscoll (DNA Cycling) and Chris Holley (Kuhl, Race Cycle Service), the second- and third-place finishers respectively. “I was able to lead over the first climb, out of the start, which I was kind of surprised about actually but that let me get into the singletrack on Paper Airplane first,” Lindine said. “I opened up a little gap by the end of that and decided to keep pushing it. I was able to race really hard on the parts of the course that suited be best and then just try and maintain on the longer climbs where I was suffering a little more.”
Chris Holley’s second-place finish at Powder Mountain secured a second-place finish in the series standings.
The Powder Mountain race also introduced a freshman/sophomore category. With almost 70 participants, the addition resulted in that category having more racers than any other.
“The Utah high school MTB racing scene is becoming incredibly competitive,” said Joel Rackham, managing partner of Intermountain Cup. “The overwhelming response in the freshman/sophomore category not only shows the need to get these competing and ready for their high school season, but also gives the kids a first-hand look at world-class MTB competition.”
For a complete listing of the results from all categories, please visit intermountaincup.com
