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It came down to a frantic sprint finish among the lead group of 12 riders at the end of the 48km stage and the red clad Holy Brother trio took the spoils going 1-2-3, with Cui Hao taking the win ahead of Feng Kuangjie and Wang Lei. Jim Knudson (Denmark) continued his strong showing coming in fourth just ahead of a charging Bjorn Lind (Sweden).
Welcome to Inner Mongolia!
Holy Brothers Trio take Top Three
Daniel Carruthers (Champion System) showed a dramatic improvement on his 18th placing during Stage one to round out the top six.
How it unfolded
Riders were greeted with warmer conditions today on the Inner Mongolian grassland plains (high of 33 degrees) and close to 50 starters tackled the 48km course that traversed a mixture of gravel, dirt, sandy and bumpy grassland routes to make for quite a technically challenging race at times; especially with the sandy sections that was akin to skiing on bikes! The pace at the start was electric and once onto the dirt track, riders slotted themselves into position to ride single file but two abreast as the tracks had rough grass in the middle.
Daniel Carruthers feeling great and riding strong. Photos courtesy QQride.com
After 10 minutes of racing, Carruthers from Champion System initiated the first attack and went off the front for a few minutes, however Feng Kuangjie and several others chased the Champion System rider back. This move served to split the field and a breakaway group of 13 riders formed and powered away. Bertrand Jouve (France) was unlucky to suffer the misfortune of a puncture and dropped out of the lead group.
There was only one major climb during Stage two, and Bjorn Lind (Sweden) launched a vicious attack up the steepest section to open up a substantial gap that had the Holy Brother Trio working very hard to catch. Going over the top of the climb, the lead group was whittled down to six riders with the rest in ones and twos. However, due to some committed riding by the remaining six riders, the lead group eventually swelled back up to 12 riders!
Some of the tricky sandy sections along the trail threatened to split the group up again, but somehow all 12 riders managed to stay together to duel it out, heading into the wind at the long, straight 3km finish on sealed road. At times, the jostling for position caused a few anxious moments among riders. But fortunately everyone made it through unscathed.
Today's stage was especially dusty and riders were covered from head to toe. After enjoying unlimited bananas and freshly cut watermelon, riders made good use of the city square fountain for an impromptu reinvigorating shower and a way to clean the dirty bikes efficiently.
Team Holy Brother took the entire podium - the strength of their program is really showing through. Photos courtesy QQride.com
The Holy Brother Team continue their domination of the Genghis Khan MTB Adventure put on by Nordic Ways and tomorrow's stage promises to be an epic one - 83kms - and will be a test of one's endurance and speed to complete the distance in a good time. Jim Knudson (Denmark) could be one rider to mount any serious challenge against the Holy Brother's dynamic duo in Feng Kuangjie and Wang Lei. Bjorn Lind (Sweden) is also looking stronger as each day goes by, as is Radek Tuma (Czech) who is preparing for the Cape Epic in South Africa in March 2011. Stay tuned for the third and final stage.
Top 3 Results (Genghis Khan Stage One Story Here)
30km Women
- Wang Siwen Inner Mongolia
- Yu Yangxue Tianjin
- Nina Thye Denmark
30km Men
- A’La Teng Sha Inner Mongolia
- Hu Si Leng Inner Mongolia
- Ba Yin Ji Ri Ga La Inner Mongolia
48km Women
- Cheng Shasha China
- Jennifer Hillman Canada
- Joanna Turnbull New Zealand
48km Men
- Cui Hao China
- Feng Kuanjie China
- Wang lei China
This article submitted by Daniel Carruthers. Daniel is a New Zealander who is based in Hangzhou, China and races for Team Champion System. Daniel is a freelance writer and photographer who is currently studying his PhD at Zhejiang University. Find out more about Daniel at www.danielcarruthers.com
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