She Shreds

dual slalom 2010

This was one of the best Sea Otter’s I’ve ever been to!  Granted, helping set up the event this year and winning cat 1 dual slalom definitely added to my fun factor, it felt like everyone was as stoked as I was to be there.  It seemed like every top ranked pro showed up from the mountain bike world….from 2009 DH World Champion Steve Peat, to Jared Graves and Greg Minaarr.

Pro Katie Holden, DH

On the women’s side 27 women filled the DH pro class and the max 16 competed in dual slalom.  Melissa Buhl won the DH. Rachel Atherton is back racing after she took a pick-up truck windshield to the shoulder over a year ago…and looking fast taking the silver in dual slalom and downhill.  Jill Kitner won dual slalom, and took sixth in one of her first recent downhill races since she decided to focus on downhill.  Leigh Donovan convincingly emerged from her racing retirement, or break, whatever you want to call it.  She took an impressive fifth place in dual slalom and downhill!  I even saw park rider/dirt jumper Nadia Steinbrecher out there racing the downhill on her 45 lb Iron Horse Sunday.  I guess no one told her what a pedally course it is.

(from left) Heather McFadden, Annemarie Hennes, Kelsey Anderson, Hannah Trimble

On the amateur side, 47 women competed in the downhill.  Essence Barton won the cat 1 downhill, Cathy (Cat) Chevron from Santa Cruz won the cat 2 downhill, or as I like to say, “Cat won Cat 2″.  Karla Kingsley out of Oakland won the Cat 3 gold.  In dual slalom, Annemarie Hennes (me) won the cat 1 category, and Sally Hermansen took first in cat 2.

Rosie Bernhard, cat 1 Dual Slalom (photo by: Rick Rasmussen)

For full Sea Otter results click here