In the first two legs of the Jeep King of the Mountain World Professional Championships, Michal Prokop of the Czech Republic and Jill Kintner of Seattle, WA captured their respective titles in convincing fashion. It would take a brilliant day of racing by a star studded field at the grand finale in Beaver Creek, CO to prevent a season sweep by the two top riders.
Several thousand spectators took advantage of the pristine fall weather conditions and extended Labor Day holiday weekend to take in the world class racing, which coincided with the city's renowned Oktoberfest celebration. They didn't leave disappointed, as the day was filled with a wealth of tight passes, unnerving crashes, extreme air and down to the wire finishes that resulted in numerous upsets.
At the end of the day Brian Lopes of San Clemente, CA brought home the individual event title following an outstanding head-to-head victory over Michal Prokop. On the women's side, 31-year-old Katrina Miller of Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia, fought neck and neck with Kintner in the Championship Heat before watching the defending Jeep King of the Mountain World Professional Champion suffer a horrific spill on a 30 foot jump.
Despite having their two race streaks snapped, Prokop and Kintner were still able to successfully defend their crowns. Both were named Jeep King of the Mountain 2006 World Professional Champions based on points earned for their second place finishes in Beaver Creek and first place finishes earlier in the season at San Luis Obispo, CA, and Elkhart Lake, WI. The pair will leave Beaver Creek with the keys to a new 2007 Jeep Compass, as well as a healthy share of the record $100,000 purse.
Lopes began the day with a tough first round match against Brian Schmith of Lancaster, CA. After being disqualified in the first heat for passing over a gate, Lopes was relentless in the second heat as he made up the time penalty and nipped Schmith by four tenths of a second to move into the semifinals. There, he defeated Eric Carter of Temecula, CA to earn a spot in the finals against longtime nemesis Prokop. The Czech Republic star had an equally unsettling start to the competition during a first round battle against former World Champion Mike King of San Diego. In both heats, Prokop had to come from behind to defeat King and eventually move into the semifinals. There he took out local favorite Chris Del Bosco of Vail, CO, a winner of the 2006 Blast at the Mass in Snowmass, CO. In the Championship Heat, Lopes showed masterful form in hitting the turns and managing his speed, out-dueling Prokop in two straight races to earn the Beaver Creek Jeep King of the Mountain title. Carter outlasted Del Bosco in the Consolation Heat to capture third place.
For Lopes it was just redemption after dirty tactics from Prokop's Czech team had cost Brian a chance at the World Championships in Rotorua. "Today was wonderful, with a great crowd, great weather and a solid lineup of racers," said Lopes. "I couldn't be happier with how I ended my season."
In the women's competition, Miller began her day with a victory over Bobbi Kae Watt of Broomfield, CO, a former Sea Otter Classic Champion and Mountain States Classic titlist. In the semifinal Miller met Corona, CA's Tara Llanes, the 2006 U.S. National Downhill Champion. After losing the first heat to Llanes, Miller stormed back to defeat her good friend and rival to move into the finals. In the other half of the bracket, Kintner first defeated 2005 Collegiate Mountaincross and Downhill Champ Jessica Vogt of Boulder, CO. From there Kintner faced Anneke Beerten of The Netherlands, the 2006 Sea Otter Classic runner-up and JKOM event titlists in 2005. Kintner topped Beerten in two straight races to move into the Championship Heat. In the first race of the finals, Kintner moved out to a considerable lead against Miller before attempting to clear one of the largest jumps of the racecourse. Her front tire landed clean, but the back tire caught the lip and she flew awkwardly over the handlebars. Kintner was able to walk off the course unassisted, but could not participate in the second heat. Miller earned the Jeep King of the Mountain title, with Kintner finishing second and Llanes capturing third after a win over Beerten in the Consolation Heat.
"I had nothing to lose our there, and I knew Katrina was going to go for it, so I wanted to go strong at the end," said Kintner. "Even though I crashed, it was a great milestone for me. It's the biggest jump I have ever made, and I'm not sure what happened, but I'm stoked to win the Jeep."
Brian Lopes himself was the one who designed Beaver Creek's Y-Cross layout. "This was by far one of my favorite racing venues, and we were able to put together a course that had nice slope, technical elements and a little something for everyone," said Lopes. "It was definitely the most challenging one we've faced this season, and the most fun. Hopefully we were able to show the spectators what we can do on our bikes."
Each race of the 2006 Mountain Biking World Professional Championships is televised to a national broadcast audience on CBS Sports, representing the most expansive coverage of professional mountain bike racing in recent history. The race from Beaver Creek will air on CBS Sports on Oct 8 from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. EST.
The Mountain Biking World Professional Championships are the sister competition to wintertime's Jeep King of the Mountain Skiing & Snowboarding World Professional Championships. Other marketing partners include Columbia Sportswear Company, Edge ActiveCare, Giant, John Paul Mitchell Systems, Michelin, Mopar and Nalgene. During each race of the World Professional Championships, the athletes competed for the right to don the John Paul Mitchell Systems leaders jersey, as well as the accompanying bonus points associated with this honor. Prokop and Kintner, based on their wins in San Luis Obispo and Elkhart Lake, and second place finishes in Beaver Creek, earned the most overall points and the championship cash and prize bonuses.
BEAVER CREEK JKOM RESULTS
1. Brian Lopes...GT
2. Michal Prokop (Cze)...Author
3. Eric Carter...Mongoose
4. Chris Del Bosco...Go-Ride
5. Jared Rando (Aus)...Giant-Michelin
6. Roger Rinderknecht (Swi)
7. Mike King
8. Brian Schmith
WOMEN
1. Katrina Miller (Aus)
2. Jill Kintner...GT
3. Tara Llanes...Giant
4. Anneke Beerten (Ned)...Specialized
5. Fionn Griffiths (GBr)...Norco
6. Melissa Buhl...KHS
7. Bobbi Kae Watt...The Fix Specialized
8. Jessica Vogt...Turner-Wahoos
2006 JKOM SEASON STANDINGS
1. Michal Prokop
2. Brian Lopes
3. Eric Carter
WOMEN
1. Jill Kintner
2. Katrina Miller
3. Tara Llanes |