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Sunday, January 7, 2001 -- Sissonville, WV
WV Cyclocross Series Championship Race
Story and photos by Dave McKain

[Details] [Coverage]
[Overall Results]
Pictures: [Set 1] [Set 2] [Set 3] [Set 4] [Set 5] [Set 6] [Set 7]

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Style points in Sissonville
After it seemed like temperatures would never again get above freezing, someone turned up the thermostat and pushed away the clouds long enough to melt the snow and warm things up for the 2000/2001 WVMBA Championship race in Sissonville. Some racers were even overheard saying that they weren't prepared for the warm weather.

Luckily, just below the surface, the ground was still quite frozen which prevented what could have been quite a quagmire. With double points on the line, there was definitely some action packed racing ahead.

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Joey Riddle asks for a derailleur?
The race course for the day was similar to that used in last years races, very spectator friendly with not too much climbing. Perrenial mountain bike and cyclocross strongmen Ryan O'Connor and Gunnar Shogren took no time in setting a wicked pace, leaving the rest of the field behind after the mass start. O'Connor stayed just ahead of Shogren (38:44) for the first two laps before lenghtening the gap to take the win at 37:51 (6 laps). Randy Gibbs quickly established himself in third place and stayed there finish with a 40:06. the leaders. Mike Boyes (44:17) came over from the Huntington area to take first place in the Vet Class over Rick Elkins (46:09) and Tim Toole (46:46).

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Close racing for the girls
The womens class was a tight battle between Jenette Williams, Jennifer Shogren and Mandi Williams. The lead changed hands several times until Mandi Williams was able to establish a decent lead two laps in with Shogren and Jenette Williams chasing. Mandi was able to hold on for the win (42:30 - 5 laps) followed by Shogren(44:38) with Jenette Williams taking third (45:23)

In the sport class, Brady Campbell (36:40) took first while Darin Shriver (37:12) finshing a strong second - enough points for Shriver to garner the Overall Series title. Benjamin Kuhlman (37:33) continued to get better, finishing third in the class. In the Junior class, Thomas Krpicak (33:02) ran unopposed to take first and sweep the five race series. David Robbins (42:55) took first over Dan Casdorph (48:08) in the Masters class while Josh O'Brien (35:04) took the clydesdale class victory. Brandon Elkins and Cai Clothier duked it out over 3 laps in the kids class with Elkins coming out on top with a time of 29:37.

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Sissonville's Finest Race Directors
Steve Thaxton and the crew at Worldwide Chiropractic, as usual, put on a fine event with a good course, plenty of food and great prizes. Ridge Rider of Charleston, along with many other sponsors, came together to provide excellent support. While its still a ways off, they (along with promoters from Morgantown) are already thinking about next year.