2nd Annual Coonamessett Eco Cross
Presented by
People Cycle, Inc. & The Coonamessett Farm
East Falmouth, MA
Sunday, November 07, 2004

Strong Turnout, McCormack raises the bar at Coonamessett Eco Cross

By Chris Harnish & Whittey Bouchard

On a day that saw glaring sunshine, temperatures in the mid-60�s and free flowing beer, the 2nd Annual Coonamessett Eco Cross proved that bike races don�t need a lot of razzle-dazzle to be fun and exciting. The course challenged both riders� fitness and bike handling skills. Racers started on a fast dirt road before plunging down an embankment into a short section of sand before winding their way around the back section of the farm and into the first barrier section and run-up. Back on the bikes, the riders sped through a row of blueberry bushes and onto a tricky off-camber section before heading back into the blueberries for three more passes which were complicated by some very tight turns. From the blueberries, racers flew down a fast winding downhill and up to the Buzzards Bay Beer Tent and a second set of barriers before doubling back on the course and up to the top of a short climb. Bisecting the farm, the course made another technical descent before winding back on itself and making a slow climb back on dirt roads and a very fast, loose turn before hitting the final back section of the course. Here the riders threaded themselves through the trees and up an embankment before making a hard right to climb back up to the start road and into the sand again.

Racing started in earnest with the Beginner Race. Despite a tight group in the early laps, Aaron Oaks took the honors in the Beginners race, with Adam Ring taking second, and Talbot Ingram rounding out the top 3. Jessica Ingram took the beginner woman�s race and Elizabeth White took the cubs title.

The Masters race saw another strong field and close starting lap. But it was former National Champion Paul Curley who showed everyone how it�s done, opening up a 20 sec gap by the second time through the Buzzards Bay Beer Tent and never looked back. However, the racing behind was beginning to heat up, with several local riders from Corner Cycle in the mix, including Chris �Breadman� Brown and Gray Eldridge, as well as mountain biker Dan Gagliarde. By lap 3, though, the Breadman�s fast start took its toll and he began to fade as Gagliarde and Eldridge surged. In the end, Gagliarde solidified 2nd with his expert bike handling skills in the sand plunge, and Eldridge pulled clear of David Belknap for 3rd.

A reshuffling of the schedule moved the women up with the Open Men and Juniors. Star power was in force for the Open Men�s race with appearance of former National Cross and Pro Road Champion Mark McCormack and local pro Larry �the Piranha� Perera. As with previous races, the race was close entering the sand plunge. However, local junior phenom Toby Marzot put the hammer down and opened up a gap by the Buzzards Bay Beer tent with McCormack trailing behind. Despite the slow start, McCormack made it clear who the teacher was by lap 2, bypassing Marzot and moving to what would be over a minute advantage by the finish. Further behind, though, the placings were shifting, with race promoter Harnish moving into 6th before succumbing to CCB�s ace in the hole, �Famous� Amos Brumble. By the end of the race, McCormack came out on top, followed by local strongman Jonny Bold of Corner Cycle, and Toby Marzot rounding out the podium and taking the junior title in the process.

Wrapping up the other categories, Jon Belcher took second in the junior race, with Noah Harwood in 3rd. Meanwhile, reining 13 � 14 Junior National Champion Stephanie White took the Open Woman�s race, with Rebecca Sox and Jennifer Rhodes rounding out the podium.

Special Thanks to our Sponsors: Buzzards Bay Brewing, Pepsi, and the Coonamessett farm for hosting the race. We also wish to thank all the volunteers and the riders for coming out in force to support the event.

These results are provided for informational purposes only.  Please note that
the protest period for this event has expired and no changes can or will be made
to these results.


OPEN Women

1     Stephanie White
2     Rebecca Sox
3     Jennifer Rhodes
4     Janet Sestokas
5     Dawn Moran

OPEN Men

1     Mark McCormack
2     Jonny Bold
3     Toby Marzot
4     Matt Demeis
5     Larry Perera
6     Amos Brumble
7     Chris Harnish
8     Conor Coffey
9     Noah Harwood
10    Jeff Craddock
11    Jeremy Burton
12    Jude Demeis
13    Ryan Pomajevich
14    Steven Morse
15    Christopher Rehm
16    David Hartman
DNF   Skip Salo

Beginner Men

1     Aaron Oakes
2     Adam Ring
3     Talbot Ingram
4     Robert Bauer
5     Stephen Kelly
6     Rick Desmarias
7     James English
8     Chris Pare
9     Erin Bennett
10    Neal Scott
11    John Plump
12    Scott Hanson
13    Sean Baker Carter
14    Jose Ardila
15    Alex Dugan
16    Chris Parsons
17    Thomas Downey
18    Richard Deandrea
19    John Wilde
20    Jason Hyatt
21    James Rawstrom
22    Tom Thomson
23    Jose Monterros
24    Lawerence Purtill
25    Michael Lowry
26    Dan Fishkin
27    David Rioux
28    Jeff Oakes
29    Chris Lambert

Beginner Women

1     Jessica Ingram
2     Caitlin Trahan

Cub Juniors

1     Elizabeth White

Masters 35+

1     Paul Curley
2     Dan Gagliarde
3     Gray Eldridge
4     David Belknap
5     Paul Cusick
6     Bob Bisson
7     Rob Belcher
8     Paul Lynch
9     Jay Busse
10    Kevin Callahan
11    Richard Katch
12    Gene Garneau
13    Edmund Geschickter
14    Chris Brown
15    Robert Kramer
16    Barry Doubleday
17    Nathan Simms
18    Todd Savage
19    Timothy Bailey
20    Paul Pontonc
21    Chip Baker
22    John Stonebarger
23    Timothy Crowley
24    Chris Daigneault
25    Arnold Kalmbach
26    Brian Blondin
27    Danny Joakim
DNF   Thomas Downey

Junior Men

1     Toby Marzot
2     John Belcher
3     Noah Harwood
4     Nathan Belcher