<p>The Specialized Global Racing team sped to one victory and two additional podium places at the first UCI Mountain Bike World Cup in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, on Saturday, April 23. The team's two female and four male cross country racers got the team off to a successful start of the 2011 World Cup season.</p><p>
</p><p>
Elite women cross country</p><p>
</p><p>
Ren Chengyuan, new to the Specialized team for 2011, cruised to a decisive victory in the elite women's cross country race with a time of 1:32:36. It was the Chinese racer's first World Cup with the team and her fourth World Cup victory of her career.</p><p>
</p><p>
Her teammate Lene Byberg proved her position as one of the best elite female mountain bikers in the world with an impressive fifth place finish. Byberg, who hails from Norway, finished 3:16 behind Chengyuan, and seemed to get stronger and stronger as the race progressed.</p><p>
</p><p>
"The race went well," said a happy Byberg. "I had an ok start and picked off girls on every lap. I felt good, and it was nice to be back again." </p><p>
</p><p>
Byberg enjoyed racing a good course in good weather. "It was not too hot, not too cold, and the course dried out from last week." Many racers had competed in a test event the previous weekend in horrendously wet and muddy conditions that left some sections unrideable.</p><p>
</p><p>
Byberg, racing a Specialized Era bike, ended lap one of five in 15th place, but by the fifth and final lap, she had clawed her way up to clinch that final podium spot.</p><p>
</p><p>
"My bike was brilliant. I felt like I was one with it," said the petite Norwegian racer. "I've used the Era for awhile now." Byberg was also pleased with her tires, the new Renegades, even after one of her competitors had questioned her choice the day prior. "The new Renegades look fast and they also have a good grip."</p><p>
</p><p>
Elite men cross country</p><p>
</p><p>
Jaroslav Kulhavy led the Specialized Team's charge in the elite men's cross country race. The Czech, who went into the day's race as the number one ranked rider in the world, rode to an impressive third place in the season opening World Cup. He finished 1:07 behind winner Nino Schurter and runner-up Julien Absalon.</p><p>
</p><p>
US cross country national champion Todd Wells, fresh off last weekend's Sea Otter cross country victory, finished in 10th place at 2:36 behind the winner and delighted his many North American fans.</p><p>
</p><p>
"The race went well for me. I had a good start - maybe top 15 going into the first singletrack and then I slowly moved my way up and made it as high as eighth by the middle of the race," said Wells, who was easy to pick out in his distinctive stars and stripes Specialized national champion's jersey.</p><p>
</p><p>
Wells is famous for his blistering starts, a talent that benefits him at the notoriously quick-paced World Cups. </p><p>
</p><p>
"I faded a little toward the end, but I wound up 10th. I was shooting for a top 10, and I was happy to achieve that goal," said Wells. "Of course, you always want to do better if you don't win, but for me this was a great way to start the World Cup season."</p><p>
</p><p>
Thanks also to Burry Stander and Christoph Sauser, the Specialized Team's elite men claimed four places in the top 13.</p><p>
</p><p>
South African cross country national champion Stander, who was the crowd favorite by virtue of racing his home World Cup, managed to make a good day out of some tough luck.</p><p>
</p><p>
"Unfortunately for me, I slipped on one of the turns when I was in the lead group on the first lap," said Stander. "I did some damage to my derailleur. That meant I couldn't shift properly the whole race, and I had to run up some of the climbs because I didn't have all the gears."</p><p>
</p><p>
Nonetheless, a motivated Stander carried on and had worked his way up to ninth going into the final lap when the fatigue seemed to catch up with him.</p><p>
</p><p>
"I lost concentration and took the wrong line, and I unfortunately crashed again on the hard (dowhill) rock section." It was the kind of dramatic downhill front endo that would have cost some racers a broken collarbone or wrist. But Stander quickly recovered his composure and rode to the end of the race.</p><p>
</p><p>
"Luckily for me, there was only 1km to the finish because my bike was skewed after that crash. All in all it wasn't a great day for me. I ended up 11th," said Stander, who was hoping for a podium finish in front of family and friends, but he put the day in perspective."</p><p>
</p><p>
"It could have been a lot worse and going into the second round, at least I salvaged some points," said Stander. "I'm trying to be more consistent this year and take points when I can."</p><p>
</p><p>
Sauser was the team's final rider to finish. The Swiss racer proved he still has some cross country World Cup-level speed despite being only a few weeks off winning the world's most prestigious mountain bike stage race, the Cape Epic, with Stander, less than one month ago.</p><p>
</p><p>
"I didn't have a good start at all. I slipped out of my pedal and hit the ground, and I came out of the first singletrack in 50th position, one minute down," said Sauser. "It was very hard to catch up." He completed lap one of six in 35th place.</p><p>
</p><p>
"You'd pass one rider and have to recover again, the level (of competition) is so high. Only after the speed slowed a bit could I pick off more people," said Sauser. "I started passing and passing and I ended up 15th."</p><p>
</p><p>
Sauser also battled an upset stomach. "I couldn't eat or drink much today, but at least I will be in the second row for the next World Cup. Dalby's course suits me well, and I'm hoping for a dry race."</p><p>
</p><p>
Between them, the four men rode three different bikes. Kulhavy was on a Specialized full suspension 29er while Stander and Wells rode 29er Specialized Stumpjumper hardtails. Sauser rode the more traditional 26er full suspension, but with a unique setup.</p><p>
</p><p>
"My Stumpjumper was the perfect bike for this course, which was very smooth with a lot of accelerations," said Wells. "There were a few rock gardens, but in those you were going downhill, so having a hardtail wasn't a disadvantage. The bike was super light and responsive. The 29er's big wheels really held their speed. In one section in particular, with about 600m to go each lap, you'd go down a steep hill and up another, and there I'd always roll up on the guys in front of me."</p><p>
</p><p>
Stander credited his Stumpjumper with helping him off to a strong start. "On the start straight, I made up so many places coming from the second row. I think I was fifth going into the first singletrack and as we went over the first hill, I was sitting comfortably in the lead group. Whenever we hit an uphill straight section, the bike rolled faster than anything out there."</p><p>
</p><p>
Sauser described the special setup he was using for his Specialized Epic 26er. "I rode with a single 34-tooth chainring in the front on my compact carbon Specialized spider. In the rear, I had a SRAM 11-36 rear cassette. I also used a custom Specialized rear derailleur. My setup was incredible. I didn't have to shift in the front, so there was no dropping chains or chain suck."</p><p>
</p><p>
The Specialized Global Racing team will race the next cross country World Cup in Dalby in the United Kingdom on May 20-22.</p><p>
</p><p>
Optimistic about the season, Stander summed up the team's day. "It feels like we're stronger than ever and we have great riders this year."</p>
More...
</p><p>
Elite women cross country</p><p>
</p><p>
Ren Chengyuan, new to the Specialized team for 2011, cruised to a decisive victory in the elite women's cross country race with a time of 1:32:36. It was the Chinese racer's first World Cup with the team and her fourth World Cup victory of her career.</p><p>
</p><p>
Her teammate Lene Byberg proved her position as one of the best elite female mountain bikers in the world with an impressive fifth place finish. Byberg, who hails from Norway, finished 3:16 behind Chengyuan, and seemed to get stronger and stronger as the race progressed.</p><p>
</p><p>
"The race went well," said a happy Byberg. "I had an ok start and picked off girls on every lap. I felt good, and it was nice to be back again." </p><p>
</p><p>
Byberg enjoyed racing a good course in good weather. "It was not too hot, not too cold, and the course dried out from last week." Many racers had competed in a test event the previous weekend in horrendously wet and muddy conditions that left some sections unrideable.</p><p>
</p><p>
Byberg, racing a Specialized Era bike, ended lap one of five in 15th place, but by the fifth and final lap, she had clawed her way up to clinch that final podium spot.</p><p>
</p><p>
"My bike was brilliant. I felt like I was one with it," said the petite Norwegian racer. "I've used the Era for awhile now." Byberg was also pleased with her tires, the new Renegades, even after one of her competitors had questioned her choice the day prior. "The new Renegades look fast and they also have a good grip."</p><p>
</p><p>
Elite men cross country</p><p>
</p><p>
Jaroslav Kulhavy led the Specialized Team's charge in the elite men's cross country race. The Czech, who went into the day's race as the number one ranked rider in the world, rode to an impressive third place in the season opening World Cup. He finished 1:07 behind winner Nino Schurter and runner-up Julien Absalon.</p><p>
</p><p>
US cross country national champion Todd Wells, fresh off last weekend's Sea Otter cross country victory, finished in 10th place at 2:36 behind the winner and delighted his many North American fans.</p><p>
</p><p>
"The race went well for me. I had a good start - maybe top 15 going into the first singletrack and then I slowly moved my way up and made it as high as eighth by the middle of the race," said Wells, who was easy to pick out in his distinctive stars and stripes Specialized national champion's jersey.</p><p>
</p><p>
Wells is famous for his blistering starts, a talent that benefits him at the notoriously quick-paced World Cups. </p><p>
</p><p>
"I faded a little toward the end, but I wound up 10th. I was shooting for a top 10, and I was happy to achieve that goal," said Wells. "Of course, you always want to do better if you don't win, but for me this was a great way to start the World Cup season."</p><p>
</p><p>
Thanks also to Burry Stander and Christoph Sauser, the Specialized Team's elite men claimed four places in the top 13.</p><p>
</p><p>
South African cross country national champion Stander, who was the crowd favorite by virtue of racing his home World Cup, managed to make a good day out of some tough luck.</p><p>
</p><p>
"Unfortunately for me, I slipped on one of the turns when I was in the lead group on the first lap," said Stander. "I did some damage to my derailleur. That meant I couldn't shift properly the whole race, and I had to run up some of the climbs because I didn't have all the gears."</p><p>
</p><p>
Nonetheless, a motivated Stander carried on and had worked his way up to ninth going into the final lap when the fatigue seemed to catch up with him.</p><p>
</p><p>
"I lost concentration and took the wrong line, and I unfortunately crashed again on the hard (dowhill) rock section." It was the kind of dramatic downhill front endo that would have cost some racers a broken collarbone or wrist. But Stander quickly recovered his composure and rode to the end of the race.</p><p>
</p><p>
"Luckily for me, there was only 1km to the finish because my bike was skewed after that crash. All in all it wasn't a great day for me. I ended up 11th," said Stander, who was hoping for a podium finish in front of family and friends, but he put the day in perspective."</p><p>
</p><p>
"It could have been a lot worse and going into the second round, at least I salvaged some points," said Stander. "I'm trying to be more consistent this year and take points when I can."</p><p>
</p><p>
Sauser was the team's final rider to finish. The Swiss racer proved he still has some cross country World Cup-level speed despite being only a few weeks off winning the world's most prestigious mountain bike stage race, the Cape Epic, with Stander, less than one month ago.</p><p>
</p><p>
"I didn't have a good start at all. I slipped out of my pedal and hit the ground, and I came out of the first singletrack in 50th position, one minute down," said Sauser. "It was very hard to catch up." He completed lap one of six in 35th place.</p><p>
</p><p>
"You'd pass one rider and have to recover again, the level (of competition) is so high. Only after the speed slowed a bit could I pick off more people," said Sauser. "I started passing and passing and I ended up 15th."</p><p>
</p><p>
Sauser also battled an upset stomach. "I couldn't eat or drink much today, but at least I will be in the second row for the next World Cup. Dalby's course suits me well, and I'm hoping for a dry race."</p><p>
</p><p>
Between them, the four men rode three different bikes. Kulhavy was on a Specialized full suspension 29er while Stander and Wells rode 29er Specialized Stumpjumper hardtails. Sauser rode the more traditional 26er full suspension, but with a unique setup.</p><p>
</p><p>
"My Stumpjumper was the perfect bike for this course, which was very smooth with a lot of accelerations," said Wells. "There were a few rock gardens, but in those you were going downhill, so having a hardtail wasn't a disadvantage. The bike was super light and responsive. The 29er's big wheels really held their speed. In one section in particular, with about 600m to go each lap, you'd go down a steep hill and up another, and there I'd always roll up on the guys in front of me."</p><p>
</p><p>
Stander credited his Stumpjumper with helping him off to a strong start. "On the start straight, I made up so many places coming from the second row. I think I was fifth going into the first singletrack and as we went over the first hill, I was sitting comfortably in the lead group. Whenever we hit an uphill straight section, the bike rolled faster than anything out there."</p><p>
</p><p>
Sauser described the special setup he was using for his Specialized Epic 26er. "I rode with a single 34-tooth chainring in the front on my compact carbon Specialized spider. In the rear, I had a SRAM 11-36 rear cassette. I also used a custom Specialized rear derailleur. My setup was incredible. I didn't have to shift in the front, so there was no dropping chains or chain suck."</p><p>
</p><p>
The Specialized Global Racing team will race the next cross country World Cup in Dalby in the United Kingdom on May 20-22.</p><p>
</p><p>
Optimistic about the season, Stander summed up the team's day. "It feels like we're stronger than ever and we have great riders this year."</p>
More...