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1998 World Cup Mountain Biking
Plymouth, Great Britain
May 16-17, 1998

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Cross Country #5
Evans and Leboucher Make Merry in England

It was hot and wild on the southern coast of England this weekend as the big boys' race — the Grundig/UCI world cup — shared the same time slot with NORBA's Big Bear opener and turned out to be the warmer race of the two. Compared to the conditions of Big Bear's snowboard - er, bike race event, Plymouth was a warm El Niño festival of cross-country fun.

Evans Seeing Red

Where Australian Cadel Evans (Volvo-Cannondale) last season bailed on the Czech Republic WC event to appear in Big Bear and perhaps blow his chances for an overall title, no such shenanigans happened this season as little boy blue continued his domination of the circuit and won the fifth round of the Grundig/UCI world cup.

France's Laurence Leboucher (Peugeot LaPoste) broke through Saturday for country and team, claiming her first big win against a powerful women's field. The men's race was too fast for the second week as 139 men sped around a 11.5km course five times at a breakneck speed and looked like a road peleton, waiting for their chance to sprint. Six to nine riders went off the front at Mach 2, lead by no less than six different riders during the afternoon.

Leboucher Wins

Surrounded by 20,000 enthusiastic (and polite!) English fans, the decidedly non-American field motored over hill and dale for 55 km and made 30 deep creek crossings. Names like Nick Craig, Filip Meirhaeghe, Miguel Martinez, Rune Hoydahl, Hubert Pallhuber and Christoph Sauser all took their turns at the lead, joined by the surprisingly strong Be-One team's Bas Van Dooren.

The low point of the race came when Martinez and Meirhaeghe crashed into each other on a fast and steep descent, after the small Frenchman cut in front of the leading Specialized rider. In the wise words of circuit photographer Malcolm Fearon "Mig shoots down Belgium bomber!" The lead that counted - the one at the end - was all Evans when Van Dooren made a break for it in the last lap and Evans followed, then passed him for the win in the last lap. Sauser then outsprinted Vollet for 3rd and Pallhuber rounded it out in 5th.

Evans Flanked

Twenty-four hours prior, Laurence Leboucher (FRA, Peugeot LaPoste) capped her longtime-coming rise to power and beat the top women, giving the field its fifth winner as new women continue to win each week. A trio of Leboucher, Margarita Fullana (Mt. Dew/Specialized) and Gunn-Rita Dahle (American Eagle) - who last week tore it up in Germany - again lead the race tape to tape with the swift Frenchwoman controlling the pace on this day, Dahle taking second.

Sydor then finished in third place after her bike's drivetrain jammed at the end and forced her to run around the finish arena at a full sprint while Caroline Alexander (Ritchey) chased in a last effort to the cheers of the crowd. After Fullana rolled through soon thereafter, spectators were treated to a second sprint as Alison Dunlap (GT) sprinted just ahead of Barbara Blatter.

Fiction and Fact: The Mountain Zone Almanac

Alexander

Paola Pezzo missed England and her hopes of a WC title diminish and plans for a one hour record take hold. Dahle sported a lovely new 'do of hair dyed blue. "Now if I can get the jersey to match..." she quipped.

Brits love Caroline Alexander - their national champ - and cheered voraciously for her Saturday. Mary Grigson's results don't tell the story of how dominant this comer was. Leboucher is a full-on net-head, she even reads the 'Zone.

Team Be-One has a great hair coloring/shaving bet based on top results. Martinez dnf'd as a result of his crash and nearly went into shock as a result.

Volvo-Cannondale, DBR and Sunn-un lead the trade team rankings. XC WC racing next picks up July 4th weekend in Canada.

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