Bike Kentucky

The United States Cycling Team closed out its 2008 Olympic Games campaign on Saturday with mixed results as it claimed a pair of top-ten finishes in the women's cross country mountain bike race, but failed to earn a placing in the men's event. Mary McConneloug placed seventh to lead all Americans on the day while compatriot Georgia Gould finished eighth. On the men's side, both Adam Craig and Todd Wells were pulled from the race after being lapped by the lead riders.

The Snomass G3 marked the eighth race on the USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Gravity Calendar on August 11. Aaron Gwin won the pro men's downhill in Snomass, Colo. while Lisa Myklak won the pro women's race. With only two events remaining Petr Hanak leads the men's standings, while Melissa Buhl has a commanding lead on the women's side. The ninth event on the USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Gravity Calendar will be the Mountain States Cup Gravity Finals, in Sol Vista, Colo., Aug 29-31.

The 20th race on the USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Cross Country Calendar took place on August 3 with Ross Schnell and Judy Freeman taking the pro cross country wins at the category-three Sol Survivor in Colorado. With only five races remaining on the calendar Barry Wicks leads the men's standings while Olympian Georgia Gould leads the women's standings.

Chris Eatough and Pua Sawicki repeated as 24-Hour Mountain Bike National Champions, winning the solo competitions at the 24-Hours of Nine Mile in Wausau,Wis. on Aug. 2-3. With only three events remaining Joshua Tostada leads the men's standings while Pua Sawicki and Rebecca Rusch are tied atop the women's rankings.

Nine national champions were crowned at the USA Cycling 24-Hour Mountain Bike National Championships this morning after the nationandrsquo;s best ultra-endurance mountain bikers wrapped up 24 grueling hours on the trails of Wisconsinandrsquo;s Nine Mile County Forest. Riders set out on Saturday for as many laps as they could complete on the 14-mile course in a 24-hour period. When time ran out this morning, Chris Eautough and Pua Sawicki both defended their titles in the menandrsquo;s and womenandrsquo;s solo divisions.

Attention USA Cycling Mountain Bike Clubs and Race Promoters! USA Cycling and the International Mountain Biking Association (IMBA) have teamed up again this year to offer seven $500 USA Cycling/IMBA Trail Tune-Up Grants. These stipends are available to mountain bike groups seeking to jump-start various trail improvement projects. Projects that create or improve trails for mountain bike racing will receive the highest consideration, but funding can also be used to improve trails for training and recreational riding. All applicants MUST be a current IMBA member as well as a USA Cycling-sanctioned club or race promoter. All applications must be submitted by Sept. 1.

The USA Cycling 24 Hour Mountain Bike National Championships are set to kick off August 2 as a part of the 24 Hours of 9 Mile at 9 Mile County Forest in Wausau, Wis. Reigning champions Chris Eatough and Pua Sawicki are set to defend their Stars-and-Stripes jerseys in the male and female solo divisions. The open four person and duo winners for both males and females will also be awarded national titles as well as the top mixed male and female teams in duo, four person 18 and under and master four person 30 and over.

The downhill, dual slalom and super D contests at the USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Championships made up the sixth race on the USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Gravity Calendar. Geritt Beytagh and Melissa Buhl won the men's and women's downhill contests respectively. 2008 World Champion Buhl also took the women's dual slalom title while Eric Carter won the men's race. In the super D defending champions Adam Craig and Rachel Lloyd not only earned another Stars-and-Stripes jersey, but also earned points toward the gravity calendar.

The 19th on the USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Cross Country Calendar took place on July 19. 2008 Olympians Mary McConneloug and Adam Craig defended their national titles at the USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Championships at Mount Snow Resort in Vermont to earn points toward the overall standings. With only five races remaining Barry Wicks currently leads the men's standings while Georgia Gould leads the women.

Jeremiah Bishop brought home his second national title in the month of July, winning the pro menandrsquo;s short track contest on the final day of competition at the USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Championships, while 2007 UCI Cyclo-cross World Championship silver medalist Katie Compton earned the pro womenandrsquo;s victory. Adam Craig also added to his list of national titles winning the super D competition as Gerritt Beytagh and Melissa Buhl took home national titles in pro menandrsquo;s and womenandrsquo;s downhill.

Reigning national champions and 2008 Olympians Adam Craig and Mary McConneloug showed their readiness for Beijing only weeks before the opening of the Olympic Games winning the menandrsquo;s and womenandrsquo;s 2008 USA Cycling Mountain Bike National cross country titles on Saturday. After four consecutive podium appearances, including his 2007 national title, Craig put on a dominant performance to take his second consecutive Stars-and-Stripes jersey in the pro menandrsquo;s cross country race at Southern Vermontandrsquo;s Mount Snow Resort, while McConneloug defended her national title by less than a wheel over fellow 2008 Olympian Georgia Gould.

The semi-pro and junior expert cross country races highlighted the second day of competition at the USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Championships at Mount Snow Resort. Weston Schempf earned the Stars-and-Stripes jersey in the semi-pro menandrsquo;s cross country race, while Robbie Squire won his first national championship in the junior expert menandrsquo;s 17-18 contest. Seth Kemp earned the junior expert 15-16 menandrsquo;s cross country title and Essence Barton won the junior expert womenandrsquo;s race.

The USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Championships opened on Thursday with Tad Elliott and Chloe Forsman riding to respective victories in the U23 menandrsquo;s and womenandrsquo;s cross country contests. With her win, Forsman successfully defended her Stars-and-Stripes from a year ago at Southern Vermontandrsquo;s Mount Snow Resort while the 20-year old Elliott earned his first national title.

The 2008 USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Championships will return to Mount Snow Resort in West Dover, Vt. for the second year in a row, July 17-20. More than 1,000 athletes are already registered to compete for a Stars-and-Stripes jersey in seven different styles of off-road racing, including the four riders set to represent the United States in the upcoming Olympic Games in Beijing, China.

Following the fifth race on the USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Gravity Calendar, the Blast the Mass in Snowmass, Colo., Petr Hanak and Melissa Buhl lead the standings. The next event on the USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Gravity Calendar will include the downhill, dual slalom and super D contests at the USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Championships in West Dover, Vt., July 17-20.

After last weekend's Blast the Mass and Windham Mountain National, Brad Stephenson and Georgia Gould lead the USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Cross Country Calendar Standings. Only six races remain on the USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Ultra Endurance Calendar in 2008. The next race on the USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Cross Country Calendar will be the USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Championships, July 17-20 in West Dover, Vt.

Following the Firecracker 50 on July 4, only four events remain on the USA Cycling Mountain Bike Ultra-Endurance Calendar. Joshua Tostada and Rebecca Rusch currently lead the men's and women's overall standings respectively. The next event on the USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Ultra-Endurance Calendar will be the marathon race at the Galena Grinder on July 26 in Ketchum, Idaho.

More than 800 off-road racers gathered on a picturesque July 4th day to compete for one of a dozen stars-and-stripes jerseys awarded at the 50-mile marathon distance at the Firecracker 50. Last yearandrsquo;s national championship runner-up in Olympic-style cross country, Jeremiah Bishop came away with the overall victory after completing the marathon event in less than four hours. In the womenandrsquo;s pro/open category a relative newcomer to the mountain bike scene, Sari Anderson took home her first USA Cycling National Championship, besting a packed womenandrsquo;s field.