KELLI EMMETT 2ND IN CYCLO-CROSS RACE

(October 15, 2007) Editor’s note: Kelli Emmett, usually featured in this space for her skills as a member of Giant’s pro MTB Team, occasionally races skinnier tires in cyclo-cross. In the just-completed (and strangely-named) Bio Wheels/United Dairy Farmers Cyclo-cross race in Cincinnati, Ohio, Kelli placed 2nd in the Women’s division event. Katie Compton, of Team Spike Shooter, won the event, finishing :24 seconds ahead of Kelli. For a list of complete results, as well as a cool picture of Kelli on the podium, visit:

http://www.cyclingnews.com/cross.php?id=cross/2007/oct07/biowheels07

The photos you see here are from an exhibition ‘cross event in Las Vegas Kelli raced just two weeks ago. Clearly, Kelli is as strong on her Giant TCX as she is on her Anthem Advanced.

Kelli’s race in Cincinnati coincides with her work on the Giant Ride Maestro tour, where she’s helping show off Maestro suspension technology to Giant Bicycle retailers across the country. She had been in Madison, WI on Friday October 12, and then needed to be in Cleveland by Tuesday October 16. So she thought she’d work the race into her schedule. She blogs about her ride below.

KELLI’S BLOG: RACING CYCLO-CROSS IN THE MTB OFF-SEASON
The race was pretty fun... It just kinda of worked out in the schedule since I was in Wisconsin for this dirt demo on Friday and then needing to be in Cleveland this afternoon...At first I thought both cities were a little closer but found out they were at opposite points.. Guess, my Midwest geography isn't as good as I thought!

But, I was also able to spend a few days on the apple farm in Michigan and see the family.. The weather has been great and it is officially fall time here. Weather has been a little cloudy and overcast and in the 70's...Ahhh...
This is truly the best time to be back in the Midwest.

The course this weekend was super fun... Luckily, it suited the mountain bikers a little more with its high-speed descending and cornering... Oh, and I can't forget the sweet technical section which was a super-sandy volleyball court. I have to admit, the sand did cause me some troubles and I struggled a bit.... At that moment, I lost my contact with Katie who was pretty experienced with the whole sand bit and would actually increase her speed through the section...After the race, Steve Tilford, long-time pro, gave me a few tips on how get through it a little more efficiently so next time I will be ready.

There were a few other girls at the race from Portland trying to pick up some UCI points to get better starting positions for the Grand Prix Cyclo-Cross series which kicks off in a few weeks in Louisville, KY...

So, I will do some ‘cross racing this year. I am planning on doing the first race of the GP series and then playing it by ear from there. I want to make sure I get some down time this winter and not travel too much. Luckily, it is only a 3 race series so it is pretty short and seems doable. I will have to keep you posted... There are definitely a few things I would like to do this fall—like take a little motorcycle trip and ride some sweet trails in Colorado that I never get to ride during the season. So, if I can fit all that in and race cross then I will continue to race cross. I am sure I will get a little downtime in December when the snowboarding gets good and the holidays are in full swing.

Well, it looks like I will be making it back for Iceman on Nov. 10th (Editors note: Kelli is 2-time defending champion and 4-time winner among the women pros at Iceman. Check out: http://www.iceman.com/index.php). I have been getting harassed and it sounds like there is going to be some good competition here. So, why not give it a try?? It will be a fun week... My mom, brother, and I are all planning on doing the race together for my dad... It is my mom's first time ever doing a mountain bike race so it will be pretty interesting to see how she likes it...