Saturday, May 10, 2008 -- Harrisonburg, VA
Massanutten Yee-Ha! Downhill Race 2008
[Details] [Coverage] [Photos] [Overall Results] [Results by Class]
Coverage:
[2000]
[2001]
[2002]
[2003]
[2004]
[2005]
[2006]
[2007]
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The Yee-Ha! downhill race returned to Massanutten Resort again in 2008 and along with it came unwelcome rain. The worst of it came on Friday night and made for less than ideal camping. But on race day most of the rain was gone and replaced with very cool temperatures, wind, and a misty fog on top of the mountain.
The weather wasn't going to keep the riders away as this was the USA Cycling Virginia State Downhill Championship and the first event in the Gravity East North Atlantic Regional Championship Series. In fact, racers of just about every shape, size, age, and skill level were ready to take on the downhill challenge.
The crew at Massanutten worked hard to keep the course in good shape and it actually held up pretty well. But there was no avoiding a few sections of mud and the wet and slippery roots and rocks. Did I say "rocks"? The course has more than it's fair share of rocks and they varied in size and shape just as much as the competitors.
The first riders to bust through the foggy mountain top and down the
course were the hardtail class where rear suspension isn't used. From
then on it was a constant parade of bicycles heading down the course for
the next three and a half hours.
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The first rider through that really displayed expert skills was 15
year-old phenom Neko Mulally
(Photo). As Mulally flashed by making the tricky
obstacles seem trivial the fans were in awe. One spectator commented
in a rather politically incorrect compliment, "that guy is just
retarded". The "freak" skills of Mulally earned him a third overall
finish and first in the Junior Expert 15-18 class with a time of
3:34.77. But he needed all his skills as second place Jr Expert,
Ethan Quehl (3:37.66)
(Photo), followed him down the mountain less than
three seconds slower (or less fast should we say) and finished fifth
overall.
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It wasn't until Jurgen Beneke (Photo) took to the course that Mulally's claim to the fastest time would fall. The 36 year-old Beneke, old enough to be Mullaly's father, lit up the course to post the day's best time of 3:22.66, a full 12 seconds better than Mullaly.
Beneke (see his MySpace page) has recently come out of downhill retirement and has obviously been good at dusting off the cob webs. He won a gold in the 98' winter X-Games and the NORBA National Championship in 99' and is now adding a few more trophies to his collection.
Jason Memmelaar (3:32.94)
(Photo) was the only other rider to best Mullaly but
he was still more than 10 seconds behind Beneke. Memmelaar did finish
ahead of Newpher, the only rider to beat him last year, but still had to
settle for second overall for the second year in a row.
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Talking to Haywood after the race she glanced over the prize table and said, "I just hope I win one of those downhill helmets." And sure enough her prize was a nice new full face helmet... oh, and a check for several hundred dollars as well. The 36 years-old Haywood also mentioned that this would be her last year of professional XC racing and then she will retire. Might she be coming out of retirement to race downhill? If Beneke's example and her Yee-Ha! success were any indication, that just might not be a bad career move.
Don't miss the Massanutten Hoo-Ha! Mountain Bike Race on June 1. It's the WVVUS #3 and USAC-MTB Final!
