Brendan Johnston has timed his form well. Over the span of eight days, the Australian scored a second-place finish at round 4 of the Life Time Grand Prix in Wisconsin and a win at the elite men’s XC Marathon National Championship in Canberra, his seventh career national title in the discipline.
Podium in Wisconsin
The 40-mile point-to-point from Hayward to Cable is one of the fastest races on the Grand Prix calendar. The track is made up of forest roads, snowmobile trails and short, punchy climbs that typically keep the front group together deep into the race. Johnston was aggressive on his Anthem Advanced SL race bike, which was built up with a prototype CADEX WheelSystem. He covered moves and stayed in the lead group throughout the race.
When Matthew Wilson made his decisive move on the final climb, Johnston kept his composure and held off all other challengers to score second. He ended up 58 seconds behind the winner and 2 seconds clear of third-place finisher Keegan Swenson. Also representing Giant was U.S. XCM national champion Cole Paton, who sprinted to 9th for a top-10 finish. Paton also rode the Giant Anthem Advanced SL and wore his Giant Pursuit helmet.
The podium in Wisconsin strengthened Johnston’s position in the series, moving him up to second overall with two rounds to go. Paton is also in the mix, sitting 7th overall in the series.
Dominant Back Home
One week later, Johnston lined up for the Australian XC Marathon National Championships on his home trails in Canberra. He took control early in the 90km, three-lap race through Stromlo Forest Park, building a two-minute lead over Brent Rees and defending champion James Kelly by the end of the opening lap. Johnston extended that advantage over the remaining two laps to win in 3:32:18, more than 4 minutes ahead of Rees, with Kelly a further 10 seconds back in third.
The Australian once again chose his Anthem Advanced SL and prototype CADEX WheelSystem to earn the win on home soil. He also wore the Giant Rev Pro helmet for both the Chequamegon race and the Australian nationals.
“Winning my seventh Australian Marathon National title is really special,” said Johnston. “The plan was to take the lead from the first singletrack and commit from there, and that’s exactly how the race played out. From that point on, it was just me and my Anthem out there for the rest of the race. I found a great flow on trails I know really well and focused on riding as fast, smooth and efficiently as I could. It was a special day and a great marker of where my form is heading into the final rounds of the Life Time Grand Prix next month.”
All Eyes on Arkansas
The Life Time Grand Prix now heads to northwest Arkansas for a two-race finale. Little Sugar MTB on October 11 brings 100km of relentless technical singletrack in Bella Vista, before Big Sugar Gravel closes the season October 17 with 100 miles of gravel through the Ozarks.