One-point-two miles is a piddling distance to a bike racer. A 4-year-old kid on a tricycle can ride 1.2 miles. So why were riders before Tuesday evening's final Mad River Riders time trial behaving with such cowering intimidation by the distance? Why was Taylor Hubbard suggesting wishfully that the ride be canceled on account of rain when there was barely a cloud in the sky?
The answer, simply, was that those 1.2 miles would be painfully hard to ride. Starting on Ellen Lane outside Warren and finishing on Golf Course Road at the Sugarbush Golf Club, the course ascended the brutally steep West Hill Road, starting with a first pitch in the 20 percent range and continuing on from there at an unrelentingly uncomfortable incline. Only a handful of riders (Hubbard among them) were either brave or dumb enough to take on the challenge.
Despite being encumbered by the burden of a few extra pounds, Hubbard did what he does best – he won. He covered the piddling distance in 9 minutes, 10 seconds, 25 seconds ahead of runner-up Marc Hammond. Amy Miner, a flat-course speed machine who winces at just the thought of a steep climb, was still able to muster enough pedaling brio to finish in 10:01 as the women's winner.
This is the way the season should have ended, with Hubbard and Miner ending up on top at the top of the hill. The two had been killing it all year, with Hubbard winning four times and Miner three in the five-race series. At the post-race, season-ending celebration, they accepted the awards, accolades and great glory that come with the honor of being series champs. Also earning recognition from the race committee was Hammond, with the title of year's most improved rider officially conferred upon him. His summer-long consistency enabled him to edge by the 60-something swiftie Bob Dillon for second place in the final standings.
Finally, Ian Buchanan, owner of Fitwerx, was bestowed with the great gratitude he earned for his support of the series. Buchanan, arriving late to the evening's festivities bearing a six-pack of Hubbard's favorite adult beverage, had been providing the winner's gift certificates that Hubbard and Miner accumulated with monthly regularity.
So the series is over, but not the local time-trialing season. For anyone interested in riding a bike uphill against the clock, the annual Allen Clark Hill Climb is scheduled for Sunday, October 5. The race route is a not-so-piddling 6.2-mile climb up the east side of App Gap, starting at the Valero station at the junction of Routes 100 and 17. The event is a benefit for Vermont Adaptive Ski and Sports. For details and registration, go to achillclimb.org.
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