80-mile Bodenburg Loop race decided by final sprint

June 17, 2007

By MATT TUNSETH/Frontiersman

BUTTE - Jim Peot won a mad sprint to the finish by less than a bicycle length to claim the Arctic Bicycle Club's Bodenburg Loop expert class race Saturday in the Butte.

Peot, Joe Pollock and Mark Lickingteller broke away from the pack with 50 yards to the finish line and went head-to-head to the finish up a short hill. Peot's final push put him just ahead of Pollock, while Lickingteller wound up third.

&#8220I barely won,” Peot said at the finish line.

In the women's expert class, Tiffanie Novakovich beat Janice Tower by more than a minute to claim the title.

37 racers in eight classes competed in the race, which consisted of 6.7 mile-laps around Bodenburg Butte along Bodenburg Loop and the Old Glenn Highway. Expert-class men did the most laps, 12, for a total of approximately 80.4 total miles. Peot's winning time was 3 hours, 43 minutes and 40.8 seconds.

Other winners included robin Leighty in the beginner women division, Anne Larsche for the master women, Annette Cartier in the sport women. For the men, Curtis Morris won the beginner class, Tol Fishburn was tops in the master class and Bill Flemming placed first in the sport division.

The race course consisted of flat riding, which Peot said played to his strength.

&#8220It was probably more my kind of course,” he said.

The race was contested under bright sunny skies with temperatures in the mid-70s. Peot said the head didn't bother him a bit, and said he enjoyed riding in the sun.

&#8220I love the heat,” he said.

Riders in the expert men class said the race was relatively easy, as none of the racers made many attempts to break away from the pack. Since the Bodenburg course is so flat, second-place finisher Pollock said riders elected instead to conserve their energy for the final sprint.

&#8220A lot of times when it's like that, nobody wants to do all the work,” he said.

Most of Saturday's riders hail from Anchorage and are among a small but close community of competitive cyclists in the state. As such, many spent much of the race bunched together in tight groups, talking among themselves and taking turns at the front of the pack.

Following the final sprint, riders relaxed and congratulated each other on a successful ride.

&#8220It's good to leave it all on the course, but everyone is friends after it's over,” Pollack said.

Contact Matt Tunseth at 352-2265 or matt.tunseth@

frontiersman.com

Arctic Bicycle Club

Bodenburg Loop

June 16, 2007

Beginner Women 40 Miles- 1) Robin Leighty. 2:21:37.

Master Women 53 Miles- 1) Anne Larsche. 3:00:18; 2) Jane Whitsett. 3:00:31.

Sport Women 53 Miles- 1) Annette Cartier. 3:00:24; 2) Gina Taylor. 3:00:25.

Expert Women 67 Miles- 1) Tiffanie Novakovich. 3:07:41; 2) Janice Tower. 3:08:58.

Beginner Men 53 Miles- 1) Curtis Morris. 3:00:20; 2) Justin Harris. 3:01:16; 3) Rick Dennis. 3:17:23.

Master Men 67 Miles- 1) Tol Fishburn. 3:08:14; 2) Jack Anderson. 3:08:35; 3) Ed Whitterholt. 3:08:43; 4) Jim Cardwell. 3:08:51; 5) Greg McDuffie. 3:08:54. 6) Chris Waythomas. 3:15:40; 7) Jim Hayes. 3:35:54; 8) Ron Pollock. 3:35:55.

Sport Men 67 Miles- 1) Bill Fleming. 3:04:07.5; 2) Doug Zellmer. 3:04:07.7; 3) Jeff Dusenbury. 3:04:9; 4) Peter Van Tuyn. 3:04:13; 5) Andy Garrigus. 3:04:14; 6) Eric Taylor. 3:07:46; 7) Alex Matson. 3:11:53; Cullen McAlpine DNF.

Expert Men 80 Miles- 1) Jim Peot. 3:43:40.8; 2) Joe Pollock. 3:43:41.0; 3) Mark Lickingteller. 3:43:41.1; 4) Tony Turrini. 3:43:47; 5) John Craft. 3:43:52; 6) Jim Galanes. 3:43:54; 7) Greg Hillyer. 3:44:01; 8) Ed Sniffen. 3:44:07; 9) Peter Morris. 3:44:37; Ranjodh Gill DNF; Dennis Ronnse DNF.