Perfect summer weather and Thunder Mountain Bike Park's growing reputation as a must-ride destination drew a big crowd of riders to Round Two of the Vittoria Eastern States Cup New England Downhill Series on Father's Day Weekend. Mason Guarino was one of nearly 120 racers who came out to get loose in the dusty and fast conditions.
Thunder Mountain Bike Park is located at the Berkshire East Ski Area in northwestern Massachusetts and is in the midst of a massive trail building bonanza, spearheaded by Gravity Logic trail builders. Since the ESC tour visited late last summer, the mountain has opened several new top-to-bottom runs, including an incredible new expert jump line called Hawleywood. Additional bike trays have also been added to the lift, making for much-improved uphill capacity.
The race was held on The Schist, a rowdy, mostly-natural line down the center of the mountain. The track began with a steep plunge into a slabby jumble at the top of the mountain. Local Junior-X rider Collin McBride sent it deep into the opening rock garden and took fourth on the day.
A brief sprint beneath the lift carrying zip liners was the final chance for racers to relax before heading into the technical bulk of the track.
A thorny rock and root garden, sent here by pro Jordan Newth, was a major obstacle and took racers into the woods for the remainder of the of track.
The track then crisscrossed the steep upper portion of the mountain. The dark shadows, bright sun spots and hanging dust made for challenging visual conditions. Pro Isaac Allaire earned his second-straight podium with a solid 4th-place finish.
Loamy holes and rooty webs waited to snag unwary riders.
A series of switchbacks had racers alternating between rough traverses and steep fall away corners. Pro rider Ian Turner romped through the softwoods for a 9th-place finish.
Thunder Mountain taped the course fairly wide so there was plenty of room for line choices and made some thought-provoking decisions on race day. Junior-X rider Joe Montano dropped into a steep chute with multiple line options.
Tangles of roots on off-camber sections made racers thankful for the dry conditions.
Natural features kept things spicy through the middle section of the track. Drummer Racing's Jack Williams dropped off a rock roller and took the runner-up position for the second time in two weeks for Cat 1 30-39.
Though mostly a natural trail, there was the occasional man-made berm thrown into the mix, and nobody does berms better than Thunder Mountain. Jeffrey L'Heureux tasted the goods on his way to a 3rd-place finish for the 30-39 experts.
Lower on the mountain, the pitch eased and racers slalomed through trees and rock lines. Local rider Brad Patches, racing for The Collective and Competitive Edge, took home a podium spot in the 40+ expert class.
Bigger rocks dotted the track and threatened pedals and derailleurs. Defiant Racing's Nelson Maldonado avoided trouble and sped to a 2nd-place finish in the 40+ expert class.
The track became more blown out as the weekend progressed and racers, like Speed Legion pro Chris Mari, had to keep it loose to keep it fast.
The final feature in the woods was the oddly-named Gravitron. Though the massive rock berm had been reworked and filled-in since last season, the inside line was still the faster line and few racers actually rode the impressive wall. James Bissey earned a seven-second win in the amateur 20-29 class.
Bursting out into the open just above the finish line riders launched off a sendy step-down and into the Fly Zone speed trap. Pro rider Adam Delonais was fast and stylish off the launch pad.
A final monster berm brought racers across the line at speeds hitting 40 MPH.
The thick dust was an all-natural alternative to a spray-on tan.
After practice on Saturday, much of the field went swimming in the cool waters of the Deerfield River just below the mountain.
Bike check time! For this week's edition, let's take a look at Danny's Cycle pro Phil Kmetz and his sweet new Huffy Carnage 27.5 plus bike with cantilever brakes and a stout...(insert sound of a needle scratching across a record). Kmetz took the Huffy for a fun run on Hawleywood and wrecked himself and the bike on one of the trail's opening features.
Our actual Father's Day edition of the bike check is with one of the nicest guys and best dads on the tour: Defiant Racing's Nelson Maldonado.
Frame: 2016 Intense M16 Carbon 27.5, weighing in at 31 pounds for the complete bike
Fork: RockShox Boxxer World Cup
Shock: RockShox Vivid Air
Wheels: DT Swiss FR570
Hubs: Industry Nine
Tires: Maxxis DHR II 3C 2.4 tubeless
Brakes: SRAM Guide RSC levers with Avid Code calipers and metallic pads
Cranks: SRAM XO carbon
Chainring: SRAM X-sync 34T
Cassette: SRAM 7-speed
Derailleur: SRAM XO
Shifter: SRAM XO
Bars: Deity Black Label, 787mm, 25mm rise
Stem: Deity Cavity 50mm
Grips: ODI Cross trainer
Seat post: SDG Carbon I-Beam
Seat: SDG Fly I-Beam
Pedals: Shimano DX
Chain guide: MRP
Photo bomb: George Ulmer
Race day was a repeat of practice with beautiful sunny skies, a light breeze and temperatures in the upper 80s.
Gravity Logic trail builder Chris Conrad was on a mission to keep things lively trackside during the race and his banging shovel was a near-constant presence throughout the day.
The Fly Zone speed trap winners. Mason Guarino and Ming Goetz were the fastest amateurs on the day.
Canadian junior Adam Robbins, a member of the ESC North American Downhill Team, took the Junior-X event by a 3.5-second margin over teammate Jake Kahn.
For the second straight week, the women’s pro race was won handily by Lauren Daney, topping Simona Croccolo by more than twenty seconds. Daney was thrilled with her first race experience at Thunder Mountain: "This weekend was so much fun! I absolutely loved the course they ran. It was my first time doing Schist and the thing I loved about it was the open line choice. It was definitely a little tricky the first few runs and was one of those courses where you could easily blow out vital turns if you didn't brake check into them. After a handful of runs, I had to stop myself cause it was beating me up. Hands down my favorite course this year. How a DH track should be. Cheers to Thunder Mountain and the ESC for a great venue!"
The men's pro race featured the biggest field of the day with 21 speedsters doing battle. It also featured some tight racing with the top five separated by under three seconds. Reigning collegiate national champion Phil Kmetz, racing for Danny’s Cycles, eked out the win with an impressive 2:08. Asked about his race run, Kmetz answered: "For a course that was so short, it was surprisingly rough and harsh on the body. I tried to pace myself not take too many practice runs, that way I wouldn’t be too worn out by race time. That helped me avoid making silly mistakes during my race run. Since pedal opportunities were limited, I focused on finding lines that helped me maintain speed out of the turns. Honestly, the straights in between turns were a blur. The course was rough and it was near impossible to hit the line I wanted every time. I just tried to pick a visual reference before a turn and get over to that point." Like most racers, Kmetz had high marks for the venue. "Thunder Mountain is a welcome addition to the Northeast and is located in a beautiful area. Many bike parks seem to have forgotten about natural DH trails and Thunder has a good balance between groomed jump trails and raw DH trails."
Canadian Hugo Langevin recovered from a major bobble at the top of the track to take home the second spot. Langevin recently topped a large field to win the Canada Cup event at Mont Tremblant and is a podium favorite at any event he attends.
In third place was Dan O'Connor, earning his best result since a second at Mount Snow last August.
The men’s pro podium from left: Alex McAndrew-5th, Dan O’Connor-3rd, Phil Kmetz-1st, Hugo Langevin-2nd, Isaac Allaire-4th
Call your friends, the next Vittoria ESC event will be the New York State downhill championships at Plattekill this coming weekend, followed by the always huge BOX Components enduro/downhill combo at Killington on the first weekend in July.
Pics and words by Jeb Wallace-Brodeur
Results:
https://www.rootsandrain.com/race4206/2016-jun-19-vittoria-esc-new-england-cup-dh-2-thunder-mountain-ma/categories/www.easternstatescup.comwww.facebook.com/easternstatescupAtlantic DownhillMay 22 Plattekill Gravity Open – Roxbury, NY
May 29 Mountain Creek UCI ProGRT – Vernon, NJ – USAC State Championship
June 5 Blue Mountain East Coast Showdown #1– Palmerton, PA
June 26 Plattekill– Roxbury, NY – USAC State Championship
Aug 14 Windham ProGRT – Windham, NY
Aug 28 Blue Mountain East Coast Showdown #6- USAC State Championship, Palmerton, PA
Oct 9 Plattekill– Roxbury, NY – New England and Atlantic DH Finals
New England DownhillJune 12 Pats Peak MTB Bike Festival- USAC State Championship – Henniker, NH
June 19 Thunder Mountain– Charlemont, MA
July 2 Killington East Coast Showdown #2– Killington, VT
July 10 Mount Snow – USAC State Championship, Dover, VT
July 24 Attitash Mountain East Coast Showdown #3- Bartlett, NH
July 31 Killington ProGRT– Killington, VT
Aug 7 Thunder Mountain East Coast Showdown #4- USAC State Championship, Claremont, MA
Aug 21 Sugarbush East Coast Showdown
#5 – Warren, VT
Oct 9 Plattekill– Roxbury, NY – New England and Atlantic DH Finals
EnduroApril 17 Diamond Hill Enduro – State Championship, Cumberland RI
May 15 Victory Hill at Kingdom Trails – State Championship, Victory VT
June 5 Blue Mountain East Coast Showdown #1– Palmerton, PA
July 3 Killington East Coast Showdown #2– Killington, VT
July 17 Plattekill – State Championship, Roxbury, NY
July 23 Attitash Mountain East Coast Showdown #3- State Championship, Bartlett, NH
Aug 7 Thunder Mountain East Coast Showdown #4– – State Championship, Charlemont,MA
Aug 20 Sugarbush East Coast Showdown
#5 – Warren, VT
Aug 28 Blue Mountain East Coast Showdown #6- State Championship, Palmerton, PA
Sept 11 Killington Enduro Finals – Killington, VT
BOX East Coast Showdown SeriesJune 5 Blue Mountain East Coast Showdown #1– Palmerton, PA
July 3 Killington East Coast Showdown #2– Killington, VT
July 24 Attitash Mountain East Coast Showdown #3- Bartlett, NH
Aug 7 Thunder Mountain East Coast Showdown #4– Claremont, MA
Aug 21 Sugarbush East Coast Showdown
#5 – Warren, VT
Aug 28 Blue Mountain East Coast Showdown #6– Palmerton, PA
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