- Columbus, GA -
Results
It was a tough final weekend of racing for the Mercer Cycling team as the squad was represented at the 12 Hours of Dauset Mountain Bike Race as well as the Uptown Columbus Omnium. The outcome of the weekend: one huge crash, a few top-10 finishes, a team trophy, and a tired squad.
Gabe Denes, Charles Weaving, and Elizabeth Lee traveled to Jackson, Georgia for the grueling endurance event. Weaving, opting for the solo division race, placed 16th in a hard fought effort while Lee would finish 3rd in the female category. Gabe Denes teamed up with another racer to win the 2-person race trophy, a coveted feat.
Meanwhile, in southwest Georgia, Kevin Roberts and Andrew Lockwood entered Saturday's time trial (6 miles) along the banks of the city's river and scorched the trial, finishing with times of 15:08 and 15:10 respectively. Lockwood would take 4th, just 8 seconds from the third place finisher while Roberts would finish in 5th.
Detecting illness, Roberts sat out of the Saturday afternoon race in Hurtsboro, Alabama where a massive crash with 1 mile to go took out any chances for a Top-5 finish for Lockwood.
"They combined the Cat 5's and juniors with us and unfortunately I was behind a rider who somehow make a huge mistake during an acceleration," said Lockwood. "I went over my handlebars, flipped over on my helmet and my bike went flying by someone's face. I was really lucky to leave with just scrapes."
Despite the crash, Lockwood lost only 2 minutes and continued to the finish line to secure an 8th place finish.
Sunday's criterium saw Denes, Lockwood, Weaving, and Denes' father (also sporting the MU kit) team up in the fast crit around downtown Columbus. Averaging over 25 mph for the race, Lockwood won an early prime but lost ground gradually through the race. Denes, despite the fatigue from the Dauset race the day before, managed a 4th place finish while Lockwood would finish 11th. Weaving, racing in his first criterium, would fall 4 laps down in 12th.
Lockwood accumulated enough points throughout the weekend to place 3rd in the Omnium Standings for Category 4. The elder Denes would also take 3rd in his respective category, sporting the Mercer jersey for the weekend.
"It was a great last weekend or racing for our team," said the team racing director. "We really made huge strides throughout the year and I think we'll be much stronger next season," he added.
