Angel Fire Pro GRT Final Results
Sunday's Pro GRT finals were bumped because of a storm that would hit New Mexico with a fury that substantiated a National Weather Service Severe Storm Warning. Areas of the state saw winds in excess of 60mph with hail the size of a half-dollar coin. Even the airport in Albuquerque had to cancel flights, so the time change for the finals at the Angel Fire resort seemed warranted despite some racers disappointed that they had a 6am practice with an 8am race start. Essentially the entire schedule was bumped about three and a half hours early. Here's how the final day of competition wrapped up.
The Juniors charged the hill first. If this is what the future looks like, watching them develop and transition to the Pro Category is going to be entertaining.
![Cole Suetos of the Incycle Team wrapping up a fifth place finish. Look for big things from this up and comer. It seems the Incycle team is breeding some serious talent having formed Klein to step up to Factory Rider status I wouldn t be surprised to see Suetos or Hanson get there soon.]()
![Damon Sedivy looking smooth on the bridge feature. He placed 3rd on the final day of competition for the Junior Experts.]()
![Steven Walton Railing in to another podium finish aboard his Factory Commencal steed.]()
The Women had a good showing with ten competitors. The previous day found Amanda Batty on top, qualifying first by over eight seconds, but the finals would have a different outcome.
![Kialani Hines smashing the garden at the top of World Cup on her way to a 4th place in Pro Women.]()
![Amanda Batty coming in to the step down double with the New Mexico Rockies in the background. You can see the snow caps on them still the elevation in this part of the US is unreal.]()
![Jacqueline Thomas pumps the course finishing second on the day in the Pro Women division.]()
![Samantha Kingshill showed the USA why she is a force to be reckoned with. Someone get her a factory ride.]()
The Pro Men wrapped up the last group of competitors for the 2017 Angel Fire GRT.
![Logan Bingelli with mint form through the trees on his way to a back to back 4th place finish in the GRT.]()
![Shane Leslie absolutely squashing the biggest hip jump on the planet.]()
![Bruce Klein scrubs the final table before the sprint to the finish and another GRT win.]()
![Fox Racing donated a bunch of swag for give aways during the protest period which lasted longer than usual.]()
The Pro GRT Winners
![Samantha Kingshill with a bike check at the end of the day. USAC is sending her oversees for some training to represent the USA once again at Worlds.]()
![After back to back GRT wins Bruce Klein is All the Way Up]()
Angel Fire Pro GRT Podiums
![Junior Expert GRT Podium - 1st Place Devin Kjaer 4 59.603 2nd Place Steven Walton 5 09.777 3rd Place Damon Sedivy 5 13.919 4th Place Alex Holtzen 5 15.125 5th Place Cole Suetos 5 15.799]()
![Women s Pro GRT Podium - 1st Place Samantha Kingshill 5 38.599 2nd Place Jacqueline Thomas 5 48.922 3rd Place Amanda Batty 5 53.487 4th Place Kialani Hines 6 01.909 5th Place Angelina Palermo 6 15.146]()
![Men s Pro GRT Podium - 1st Place Bruce Klein 4 45.190 2nd Place Shane Leslie 4 50.845 3rd Place Austin Hackett-Klaube 4 51.753 4th Place Logan Binggeli 4 56.035 5th Place Carson Eiswald 4 56.954]()
Men's Pro GRT Podium: 1. Bruce Klein: 4:45.190, 2. Shane Leslie: 4:50.845, 3. Austin Hackett-Klaube: 4:51.753, 4. Logan Binggeli: 4:56.035, 5. Carson Eiswald: 4:56.954
Despite the issues related to UCI/USAC, many of the riders agreed that the Staff of Angel Fire Resort, including Bike Park Director Hogan Koesis, did a phenomenal job hosting and putting on another successful Pro GRT/Pro XCT weekend, myself included. If you are within a reasonable drive time, visit Angel Fire Resort, it doesn't disappoint.
MENTIONS: @calledtocreation
The Juniors charged the hill first. If this is what the future looks like, watching them develop and transition to the Pro Category is going to be entertaining.
Cole Suetos of the Incycle Team wrapping up a fifth place finish. Look for big things from this up and comer. It seems the Incycle team is breeding some serious talent, having formed Klein to step up to Factory Rider status, I wouldn't be surprised to see Suetos, or any other rider on their current team, transition to factory status soon.
Damon Sedivy looking smooth on the bridge feature. He placed 3rd on the final day of competition for the Junior Experts.
Steven Walton Railing into another podium finish aboard his Factory Commencal steed. He finished nearly 10 seconds behind Junior Expert winner Devin Kjaer.
The Women had a good showing with ten competitors. The previous day found Amanda Batty on top, qualifying first by over eight seconds, but the finals would have a different outcome.
Kialani Hines, smashing the garden at the top of World Cup, on her way to a fourth place in Pro Women.
Amanda Batty, coming into the step-down double with the New Mexico Rockies in the background. You can see the snow caps on them still; the elevation in this part of the US is a factor for sure. The top of the DH course was near ten-thousand feet with two-thousand feet of descending. The snow capped mountains across the valley sat near thirteen-thousand feet. An incident with a tree would have Batty finishing third on the day.
Jacqueline Thomas, pumps the course, finishing second on the day in the Pro Women division.
Samantha Kingshill showed the USA why she is a force to be reckoned with and worthy of representing the USA once again this year at Worlds. She would take the top step by a margin of over ten seconds. Someone get her a factory ride!
The Pro Men wrapped up the last group of competitors for the 2017 Angel Fire GRT.
Logan Bingelli, with mint form through the trees on his way to a back to back fourth place finish in the GRT.
Shane Leslie, squashing the biggest jump on the hill, putting himself on the podium in second place, nine-tenths of a second faster than third-place finisher Austin Hackett-Klaube.
Bruce Klein scrubs the final table before the sprint to the finish and another GRT win.
Fox Racing donated a bunch of swag for giveaways during the protest period, which lasted longer than usual. The weekend certainly wasn't without some issues that were brought up with USAC and UCI officials including lumping Junior Experts into Pro Qualifying and Fouled timing system issues that were addressed by reiterating that the digital timing system times matched the "manual system". Nevertheless here are the final results.
The Pro GRT Winners
Samantha Kingshill with a bike check at the end of the day. USAC is sending her overseas for some training to represent the USA once again at Worlds.
After back to back GRT wins, Bruce Klein is All the Way Up!
Angel Fire Pro GRT Podiums
Junior Expert GRT Podium: 1. Devin Kjaer: 4:59.603, 2. Steven Walton: 5:09.777, 3. Damon Sedivy: 5:13.919, 4. Alex Holtzen: 5:15.125, 5. Cole Suetos: 5:15.799
Women's Pro GRT Podium: 1. Samantha Kingshill: 5:38.599, 2. Jacqueline Thomas: 5:48.922, 3. Amanda Batty: 5:53.487, 4. Kialani Hines: 6:01.909, 5. Angelina Palermo: 6:15.146
Men's Pro GRT Podium: 1. Bruce Klein: 4:45.190, 2. Shane Leslie: 4:50.845, 3. Austin Hackett-Klaube: 4:51.753, 4. Logan Binggeli: 4:56.035, 5. Carson Eiswald: 4:56.954
Despite the issues related to UCI/USAC, many of the riders agreed that the Staff of Angel Fire Resort, including Bike Park Director Hogan Koesis, did a phenomenal job hosting and putting on another successful Pro GRT/Pro XCT weekend, myself included. If you are within a reasonable drive time, visit Angel Fire Resort, it doesn't disappoint.
MENTIONS: @calledtocreation
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Full results in that link. Found them on Vital MTB's US DH thread.