Video & Race Report: Eastern States Cup Enduro - Diamond Hill, RI
Plans and stages were originally laid out for a spring race at Diamond Hill, then Covid happened. Thankfully, local mountain bike lover & long time ESC supporter Chris Nichols was able to work with Cumberland's new Covid Event Committee on their first large event, bringing racing back to Rhode Island. Turned out the wait was well worth it, as Nichols and Joe Culgin of Pro Equipment Rentals were able to work out a fresh trail which was completed the day before racers arrived for practice.
Despite lacking significant vertical, the smallest state in the union packs a punch when it comes to the variety of riding terrain. You'll find everything from steep rocky chutes on the old ski hill side of the park to flowing singletrack, large rock rollers and classic New England winding trails on the opposite side of Route 114. There are so many trails here that even the other four stages all have new routes from our past races. Maxxis ESC racers were ecstatic to be back racing at one of their favorite venues and the new sections of trail were just the icing on the cake. Shorter than usual stages made for extra tight times and a truly exciting race day, as everyone went flat out to chase the win in the Ocean State.
No lift service here, it's pure pedal power to get to all five stages, totaling nearly 12 miles and 1,600 feet of climbing.
The first three stages were on the ski hill side of Diamond Hill, where things got steep and dusty right off the bat. Hudson Nablo makes the bike dance over the baby head rocks littered about Stage 1 on his way toward a third win in the Clif Kids class this season.
There's no shortage of rock features in the Cumberland hills, Brennan Delphia navigates his way to fourth place in the 30-39 men's class.
Ben Poirier blasts through the bottom of Stage 1, he would earn his first U20 win with the third fastest overall time of the day.
There's even a bit of moon dust in these parts! Ian Johnson surfs through it on his way to third place in the U15 class.
Odin Adolphson sends it over some Rhode Island jank, three stage wins and his first 40-49 men's class win of the season.
While speeds here are obviously slower than a bike park, there are plenty of sharp rocks poking out of the ground that will eat tires.
Airline Cycles racer Justin Green tames the rocky steeps of Stage 2 as he rides toward the U15 win in his first race.
Nils Berg finds the flow on Stage 3, he would win this stage and remain on pace all day to take the runner up position in the extremely competitive 30-39 men's class.
This weekend's Fox Transfer Seat Post Challenge took place on the lengthy pedal out from the bottom Stage 3 near the Diamond Hill Reservoir, Brian Hughes put down the watts to take home a new Fox Transfer dropper post.
After a quick suburban transfer across Route 114, riders would take on the freshly cut Stage 4 before completing a loop to the final stage of the day. Luke Gurnon gets his roll on, first race and first place in the Enduro Lite class.
Ryan Bigham jumps through a break in this classic New England stone wall, earning his third 30-39 men's win this season with the sixth fastest overall time of the day. Apparently this section of Stage 4 is part of an old post road from Providence to Boston which was traveled by George Washington & Thomas Jefferson.
While there are a lot of fun, flowy downhill downhill sections at Diamond Hill, Stage 5 mixed in a good amount of short, punchy uphills and awkward technical sections to really challenge racers.
Adrian Hayden never turns down an opportunity to catch some air, third place for the U20 men.
Chelsea Crooke was able to win three stages and take her first Amateur women's win in four years by 27 seconds.
Chris Miller sends a sizeable drop on the final stage of the day, he would finish in fourth place for the Pro men.
The end of Stage 5 featured a massive rock roller, Jaxon Schmitz avoids the slick patches of moss on his way to third place in the Clif Kids class.
Rounding out the Pro women's podium was Sophie Allen.
Jena Greaser was able to improve one position over her last Maxxis ESC Specialized Enduro race, taking three stage wins and second place for the Pro Women.
Lauren Breza put forth a fantastic effort on race day, winning the Pro women's class by over 17 seconds with a final race time of 9:43. "Diamond Hill is a tough venue because there are some very pedally and physical stages! I tried to be smart and strategic this weekend by attacking the stages that played to my strengths, and then giving my all on the stages that I struggled with. At the end of the day my strategy worked and I kept things rubber side down!"
Pro Women: 2nd - Jena Greaser, 1st - Lauren Breza, 3rd - Sophie Allen
Saben Rossi had a solid race weekend, a pair of stage wins and third place for the Pro Men.
Kory Nagy was able to win three of five stages but fell short of the Pro men's win by just 6.8 seconds.
Team Granite's Matt Sebas was on a roll from the start, winning the first two stages and earning his first Pro win with a final race time of 7:52. He's been racing the series since 2013 so it's gotta feel good to finally reach that top step. "The type of terrain at Diamond Hill was very similar to many MA and southern NH spots that I frequent. Practice went well and I focused on committing everything to memory as I knew small mistakes or hesitations would be costly on the short and fast stages. I felt confident going into the race and focused on not blowing turns on 1 & 2, hammered on the pedals on 3-5 and ended up with no major mistakes. I was surprised to do so well on 1 & 2 but really wanted a good time on 5 as it was the hardest overall test and I feel the pedaling suits my style. All came together and I love how close some of the times were. So damn fun!"
Pro Men: 4th - Chris Miller, 2nd - Kory Nagy, 1st - Matt Sebas, 3rd - Saben Rossi, 5th - Jason Scheiding
Nothing makes riders happier than the sight of 45 pizzas after an exhausting day in the woods.
The kids never stop, pump track sessions went down both before and after the race.
If you missed this race you'll want to be sure to register for the DH at Connecticut's Powder Ridge next weekend. Bring your trail bike, bring your downhill bike, just come ride bikes! It's been a trying season to organize races but the Maxxis ESC crew is going to keep it going 'til the wheels fall off.
Full Results
Easternstatescup.com
Words & photos: Andrew Santoro
Video: Jason Scheiding
Maxxis ESC Specialized Enduro
Working on more dates to be announced soon! Unfortunately Mt. Abrams cancelled our scheduled Sept. 20th race due to unforeseen circumstances.
Maxxis ESC Intense Downhill
Sept 13 - Powder Ridge, CT
October 26 Mountain Creek, NJ
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19 Comments
- 10 0
LRod1018
(Sep 8, 2020 at 9:40)
Such a fantastic event! George and crew have been working their asses off to get us racing in 2020; hats off to them. Diamond Hill never disappoints; already can’t wait for next time!
- 4 0
802mama
(Sep 8, 2020 at 17:25)
Chris and George have worked SO hard to put together what they can for races and as always, they put on a killer event. THANK YOU.
- 2 0
bikehike22
(Sep 9, 2020 at 12:53)
Thank you to the ESC crew, local guys that cut trails, volunteers, and Andrew for the coverage. This event ran sooo smoothly with well paced start times and efficient awards ceremony. The transfer to stage 4 that took you by race supporter's houses was a highlight; great weekend of celebrating the love of bikes.
- 6 0
Mattysville
(Sep 8, 2020 at 9:54)
Thanks for coming to RI and throwing another awesome bike party!!!
- 4 0
mmfreak
FL (Sep 8, 2020 at 17:25)
Diamond hill is an Enduro goldmine! So thankful to Chris and the town of Cumberland for letting us race this weekend. Maybe we can do it again soon.....
- 2 0
Mattysville
(Sep 8, 2020 at 18:10)
And people wonder why all the RI kids are bike assassins?! We have some serious training grounds and no lifts so every lap is earned!
- 4 0
ranchcampvt
(Sep 8, 2020 at 11:52)
Tough season, glad to see you guys pulled one off this weekend!
- 4 0
mgs781HD
(Sep 8, 2020 at 11:54)
Great ESC race weekend. Fun, challenging, and safe. Let's do more...
- 1 0
shadowman
(Sep 14, 2020 at 10:35)
Thank you. you're awesome
- 2 0
Lankycrank
(Sep 8, 2020 at 17:09)
Fantastic race! Had a blast, thank you so much ESC crew for giving us a chance to race this year. It was neat exploring some brand new trails in DiHi.
- 1 0
FullFaceMan
(Sep 10, 2020 at 10:17)
Was a really fun race at a great venue, a crash on first stage left me with a separated and broken left shoulder, a very sad 66th place in U20 but at least I finished.
- 3 0
liv2ryder
(Sep 8, 2020 at 17:50)
Well done ESC and the promoters. Lots of stoke going on at this event.
- 3 0
jebcas
(Sep 9, 2020 at 6:48)
Killer shots as usual Andrew Santoro!
- 2 0
papawondermonkey
(Sep 8, 2020 at 20:56)
Fantastic event! Thanks!!
- 3 0
themickeyd
(Sep 8, 2020 at 13:58)
Yeah Sebas!
- 1 0
CamNeelyCantWheelie
(Sep 9, 2020 at 9:11)
Seabass was finally the fastest!
- 2 0
projectnortheast
(Sep 9, 2020 at 6:41)
Sorry I missed it had a wedding! DH is always one of my favorites!
- 1 0
fowler22
(Sep 10, 2020 at 6:22)
Really well run event! Chris Nichols and the ESC crew did a bang up job on this one!
- 1 0
wheelsmith
(Sep 10, 2020 at 5:58)
KICK HIS ASS SEEBASS!!
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