Team Peloton-Specialized was represented at the Mountain States Cup #4 Wildflower Rush on June 26, 2010, in Crested Butte by riders Greg Scanlan and Jim Fu.
Crested Butte sits at 8924' and its namesake mountain peaks at 12162'. Photo: Devon Balet/MountainFlyer
It was both riders’ first time in Crested Butte, for which the Fat Tire 40 XC race provided Greg and Jim quite the introduction to its epic reputation.
A racer's eye-view of some of the Fat Tire 40 course scenery. Photo: Tim Gillies/PreRace.com
The course spanned 40.4 miles with nearly 8000′ of climbing all happening between 11000′ and 12500′.
As spectacular as it was brutal, the Fat Tire 40 was characterized by Greg as “perhaps the hardest effort of the season so far, with the highest race altitude I have ever competed at.”
That’s saying a lot coming from Greg, who is an experienced powerhouse rider and all-around athlete. Greg rode his Specialized S-Works Epic running Specialized Renegade tires front and rear. He adds, “I had a great day, my legs were there. Great event and course!”
Greg Scanlan seeking a line... and some oxygen molecules. Photo: Tim Gillies/PreRace.com
For Jim, who in July will be anniversarying his first year of racing, the Fat Tire 40 was a “monumental experience-building and conditioning” venue. “Comprehending a course profile versus actually riding it at elevation and race-pace are two different things, and I just took things as they came, as a big training race,” recalls Jim of his race plan. Jim rode the Specialized Stumpjumper Expert Carbon 29 and ran Specialized The Captain tires in front and back. ”Seeing Greg before the race, and knowing he was out there with me was a great source of motivation, particularly after witnessing several gnarly crashes happen right in front of me which claimed at least one pro and left another rider with some pretty severe facial injuries.”
Jim Fu dances on the pedals threading the aspens. Photo: Tim Gillies/PreRace.com
As for results, Greg finished 7th in the Men’s Cat 1 40-49 with a time of 4:32:22, while Jim placed 35th in the “Wildcat” (non-MSC scoring) division with a time of 5:27:41. Both sense great achievement from participating in this excellent event for their first time, especially in light of a DNF rate claiming 1/3 of racers who started that morning.
For more coverage and photos of this event, see MountainFlyer and PreRace.com featuring photography and commentary by Devon Balet and Tim Gillies.