July's Featured Rider: Leana Gerrard

Leana Gerrard is the face of Cannondale's Mona Vie racing team. While gated racing is her forte, Leana slays it on the downhill track too. She has a drive to excel and a passion to ride that's hard to match. Leana recently graduated from Western Washington University with a degree in marketing and business. After recovering from an ankle injury that cut her 2008 season a bit short, Leana is back to her hard-charging self!--FF


Name: Leana Gerrard
Home: Lake Tapps, WA
Age: 23
Favorite type of riding: I like a lot of different types of riding, but my favorite would have to be a flowy trail with berms and jumps.
Why you ride: I ride because bikes are my sanity. I find that the longer I stay off a bike, the more agitated and unpleasant I get. But after a ride, I am just stoked on life. Mountain bikes are my safe haven, so when I feel the world is spinning out of control around me, getting on a bike out in the woods is the only way for me to slow it all down again.
Sponsors: Mona Vie, Cannondale, Bell, E-Thirteen, KORE, Oakley, Azonic, Kenda and Fabel Headwear
Website: LeanaGerrard.com

I started riding bikes when my older brother was racing BMX at the local track. I had just quit ballet and was looking for something a little more exciting, so BMX looked awesome. I was seven at that point and my life has never been the same. But, as I grew older and got tired of BMX, I tried some cross country racing as cross training. One cross country race however, had a dual slalom event as well, and once I saw that, I knew I found my calling.

I think perseverance is key to being a successful rider. Everyone falls, everyone gets hurt at one point or another, but it's those that hop back on the bike that find success. The hardest thing for me to learn was that failure is imperative to reach success. You have to slide out in a corner to find the limit, never fun, but necessary.

Bikes and the people I have met through biking have shaped me into the person I am today. I look at my friends and paths that they are taking, and every day I am thankful that I'm not on the same track. The experiences I've had, the places I've gone and the people I've met have all been because I have the passion to ride a bicycle.

Ride for Free at Whiteface!

That's right. Ladies' Day is back at Whiteface Mountain Bike Park in Lake Placid, NY. The first Saturday of each month is free for female riders. That means the the 4th of July will give you even more reason to celebrate this year!
Visit DownhillMike.com to get your coupon to ride free at Whiteface!

Slope Sistair 2009

It's on! Visit Slopesistair.wordpress.com for more details!

Utah Downhill Series Wolf Creek Results

The third race in the Utah Downhill Series took place June 20-21 at Wolf Creek Resort, UT. Addie Stewart represented for the Pro Women, winning both the downhill race and the trail bike category. Sarah Kaufmann won the Super D. The next race in the Utah Downhill Series will be held July 25-26 at White Pine Ski Resort, WY. For more information, visit Go-Ride.com.

Downhill
Pro Women
1. Addie Stewart

Trail Bike
Pro Women
1. Addie Stewart
2. Connie Misket

Super D
Pro Women
1. Sarah Kaufmann
2. Addie Stewart

Dincus Tees and Jerseys in Stock

We just received a few new tees and jerseys from Dincus clothing. Dincus is a Canadian company that makes eco-friendly, rider-friendly clothing. The tees are made from organic cotton and bamboo--making them super soft and easy to wear. The jerseys are lightweight and abrasion-resistant, so they're perfect for summer riding! Click here to check out our selection of Dincus tops.

CCCX #6 Results and Final Standings

The last CCCX downhill race of the season was held a few weekends ago--June 6--at Toro Park, CA. Sharon Hill laid down the fastest women's time of day. Sharon also accumulated the most points of any girl in any class throughout this year's 6-race series. To check out all of the results and standings, visit CCCX.org.

Expert Women
1. Sharon Hill
2. Kelsey Anderson
3. Anne Marie Hennes
4. Kelly Moore

Sport Women
1. Kelly Johnson
2. Ashley Hernandez

Beginner Women
1. Amy Forward
2. Jill Henrich
3. Ayshe Tuncer
4. Kim Krueger

Snowshoe Powerade Race Series #1

The first downhill and dual stunt races of the Snowshoe Powerade Race Series were held at Snowshoe, WV last weekend. Hillary Elgert took the downhill win, and Tamara Peloquin represented for the women in the dual stunt race. The next race in the series will be held July 24-26. For more information, visit Ride.Snowshoe.com.

Downhill
Pro Women
1. Hillary Elgert
2. Ellen Adams
3. Rae Gandolf
4. Lauren Daney
5. Johanne Tuttle

Amateur Women
1. Kirstin Cousin
2. Liz Scoville

Intro Women
1. Anne Galyean
2. Leslie Litton
3. Elaine Daniels

Dual Stunt
1. Tamara Peloquin

Plattekill Results (June 13-14)

We have some catching up to do. The second Plattekill, NY downhill race, and first dual slalom race, of the season were held on June 13 and 14. Junior rider Taylor Allison won the dual slalom, and she also posted the fastest women's downhill time by more than 30 seconds. The next race at Plattekill will be held on July 25-26. For more information, visit Plattekill.com.

Downhill
Cat. 2/3 Women
1. Rebecca Bagley
2. Felicia Kearsley

Junior Women
1. Taylor Allison
2. Maddie Crowley
3. Olivia Allison

Dual Slalom
Junior Women
1. Taylor Allison
2. Maddie Crowley
3. Olivia Allison

Northstar at Tahoe DH #1 Results

Northstar's first downhill race of the season was held last weekend. Tasa Herdon took the decisive win for the pro women on a course that started on Karpiel and rand through Dogbone. The next race will be held July 26 on Gypsy. For more information, visit NorthstaratTahoe.com.

Pro Women
1. Tasa Herndon
2. Kelly Moore
3. Adrienne Garbiel

Junior Women
1. Cierra Smith

Women 29 and Under
1. Danielle Griffin
2. Christina Telezinski
3. Mollie Shkin
4. Keri Albrecht

Women 30+
1. Kathy Chevron
2. Kelly Johnson
3. Ayshe Tuncer
4. Jodie Flood

Spa Season

The spring and summer 2009 have officially been declared “Spa Season”. From the West to the East, inches of rain have soaked the ground days upon weeks at a time, leaving the trails filled with a mix of sloppy goo.

During a recent event, I mashed the pedals navigating through the stewy sludge, and as gobs of mud splashed into my eyes, up my nose and covered my shorts, I pondered the advantages of being a mountain biking girl.

Women, and I realize I’m making a huge generalization here, love to be pampered. Go to any spa and you’ll see mud treatments because your skin’s too rough, seaweed treatments because you’re too fat, sugar treatments because you’re, oh, I don’t know, too sour from a mundane daily routine of driving the kids to hell and beyond for soccer practice, preparing a “home-nuked” sodium-laden pile of pseudo food from a bag for a bunch of gobbling ingrates, then collapsing on the sofa to be screamed at by any number of talking heads on TV who insist that you must know what they’re telling you, lest you be left out of the water cooler chatter at your job, which you hate. Then you get to do it all over again the next day! A girl really needs a break, and what better way to do that then have someone else cover you with mud, salt, and seaweed then hose it all off of you in “Shawshank Redemption” fashion.

This person looks positively miserable.

Well, I have already spent most of the season covered in mud. And no one has needed to back me up into a stall and spray me down. There has been plenty of rain to do that for me. The mud from the trail has left my legs smoother than ever, (mind you, I never said bruise or scratch-free) the bags under my eyes are nearly gone from all of the grinning and my teeth are glistening white! I get at least two very intense treatments a week, for free!

Exercise, exfoliation, aromatherapy, and teeth whitening treatments, along with communing with nature. What could be a more perfect way to wash away the stresses of life?

I’m planning on another treatment yet tonight and according to the weather it looks like I’ll be getting the deep cleaning session with a slight chance of electro-stim. In fact, I think I hear the “gongs of tranquility” rumbling overhead. Ahhhhhhh!

Wildflower Rush Results

There were parallel podiums at the Wildflower Rush downhill and mountaincross races this weekend. Jackie Harmony threw down the winning run on a new downhill track at Crested Butte's Wildflower Rush this weekend. She had 7 seconds to spare over second place rider Rachel Bauer. This Mountain States Cup race was the third gravity event of the series. Also new to Crested Butte was a mountaincross event. Jackie took the win here too, over Rachel Bauer and Darian Harvey. For more information, visit RaceMSC.com.

Downhill
Pro Women
1. Jacqueline Harmony
2. Rachel Bauer
3. Darian Harvey
4. Stephanie Leonard
5. Sarah Elworthy
6. Sage Wilderman
7. Michelle Rivera
8. Julie Olsen
9. Nadia Steinbrecher

Cat. 1 Women
1. Emma Millar
2. Alisha Gibson
3. Soraya Khalje
4. Sabina Kraushaar
5. Christen Boyer
6. Katy Monger
7. Aubrey Aragon

Cat. 2 Women
1. Jessica Kirkpatrick
2. Melissa O'Connell
3. Kyra Alexander
4. Bonnie Miller
5. Krisin Buell
6. Lauren Heitzman
7. Billie Mohrbach
8. Lana Lawson
9. Amy Patrick

4X
Pro Women
1. Jacqueline Harmony
2. Rachel Bauer
3. Darian Harvey

Cat. 1/2 Women
1. Christen Boyer
2. Katy Monger
3. Soraya Khalje
4. Lana Lawson

Cat. 3/Jr. Women
1. Lucy Stevens
2. Danika Gillespie
3. Jenna Haas

Maribor World Cup Results

Sabrina Jonnier continues her mid-season reign of the World Cup downhill series. Tracy Moseley's stellar start to the season seems to have fizzled as the French ladies continue to dominate the podium. Sabrina barely bested fellow countrywoman Emmeline Ragot for the win in Maribor, Slovenia. In 4X, Caroline Buchanan took the second World Cup win of her career, and her first World Cup win of the season. She prevailed over one of the the toughest final rounds of the season, as it included Anneke Beerten, Melissa Buhl and Jill Kintner.

Downhill
1. Sabrina Jonnier
2. Emmeline Ragot
3. Floriane Pugin
4. Celine Gros
5. Mio Suemasa
6. Myriam Nicole
7. Emilie Siegenthaler
8. Fionn Griffiths
9. Tracy Moseley
10. Claire Buchar
10. Miriam Ruchti
12. Anita Molcik
13. Joanna Petterson
14. Petra Bernhard
15. Melissa Buhl
16. Caroline Sax
17. Fanny Lombard
18. Emma Atkinson
19. Sophie Borderes

4X
1. Caroline Buchanan
2. Melissa Buhl
3. Anneke Beerten
4. Jill Kintner
5. Emmeline Ragot
6. Jana Horakova
7. Mio Suemasa
8. Diana Marggraff
9. Anita Molcik
10. Fionn Griffiths
11. Joanna Petterson
12. Eva Castro Fernandez
13. Katy Curd
14. Lucia Oetjen
15. Rachel Seydoux
16. Tereza Votavova

Gravity East Series, Seven Springs

The 3rd event in the Gravity East Series was held at Seven Springs, PA last weekend. Stephanie Gubernat took the win, though it looks like it's becoming a battle between her and Hillary Elgert for the series lead. The next race in the series will be run at Windham Mountain, NY June 27-28. For more info, visit GravityEastSeries.com.

Pro/Cat. 1 Women
1. Stephanie Gubernat
2. Rae Gandolf
3. Hillary Elgert
4. Lauren Daney
5. Kristin Cousin

Cat. 2/3 Women
1. Heather Cowell
2. Liz Scorille
3. Consuelo Bodie
4. Kristin Custer

European Downhill Championships

The European Downhill Championships were held this weekend in Solvenia. Florian Pugin took the win, extending France's downhill domination this season. In fact, the top 4 Elite Women, and the top Junior Woman are French. Interesting, no? The only Frenchwoman missing from that line-up is Sabrina Jonnier, who must have been a favorite going into the race, but who ended up finishing mid-pack in 10th.

Elite Women
1. Florian Pugin
2. Emmeline Ragot
3. Celine Gros
4. Myriam Nicole
5. Emilie Siegenthaler
6. Fionn Griffiths
7. Miriam Ruchti
8. Petra Bernhard
9. Victoria Hernandez
10. Sabrina Jonnier
11. Elisa Canepa
12. Elin Berglund
13. Katarina Tothova
14. Katarina Pialova
15. Rebeka Barlic
16. Radovana Slizikova
17. Helena Boskova
18. Dubravka Druzeta
19. Birgit Braumann

Junior Women
1. Fanny Lombard
2. Leoni Dickerhoff
3. Alia Marcellini
4. Tereza Horka

Masters Women
1. Meave Baxter
2. Gloria Salvatori

Bountiful Bomber Downhill Results

No one expects a muddy race in Utah, but that's what we've been getting lately. And last weekend's Bountiful Bomber downhill race was no exception. Just a few girls braved the conditions, and Addie Stewart put down the fastest time for the women. The next race in the Utah Downhill Series will be held June 20-21 at Wolf Creek. For more information, visit Go-Ride.com.

Downhill
Pro Women
1. Addie Stewart

Cat. 1 Women
1. Ana Rodriguez

Trail Bike
Cat. 3 Women
1. Jessica Padour

Wisp Capital Cup Results

The Capital Cup downhill and dual slalom races were held at Wisp Resort in Maryland this weekend. It was the second race in the Gravity East Series. Hillary Elgert took the downhill win, as the fastest rider in each run of the two-run-combined format. The dual slalom results aren't posted yet, but I'll get them up as soon as I find them. The downhill results are at the Gravity East website.

Downhill
Pro Women
1. Hillary Elgert
2. Stephanie Gubernat
3. Rae Gandolf

Cat. 1 Women
1. Lauren Daney
2. Hannah Trimble
3. Kristin Cousin

Cat. 3 Women
1. Leslie Litton

Golden State Downhill Series Round 2 Results

Margaret Gregory won her first pro downhill race, which was the Golden State downhill at Woodward West, CA last weekend. This race was also the first time she raced as a pro. Christine Hirst now leads the series in points. The next race will be held July 11-12 at Fontana, CA. You can find more information at SouthridgeUSA.com.

Downhill
Pro Women
1. Margaret Gregory
2. Francine Johnson
3. Christine Hirst
4. Joy Martin

Open Women
1. Erica Phillips

Sport Women 35+
1 Lisa Tucker

Beginner Women 35+
1. Kim Finch
2. Tracy Adams
3. Wendy Engelbury
4. Lala Mijares
5. Carla Bray

Ft. William World Cup Results

The French women ruled the downhill podium at the Ft. William, Scotland World Cup this weekend. Sabrina Jonnier took her third win in a row, and extended her series points lead over Great Britain's Tracy Moseley. Sabrina finished 8 seconds ahead of second-place rider Emmeline Ragot.

In 4X, Jill Kintner returned to her winning ways. Both she and Melissa Buhl made their way to the final round, where Jill dominated the entire race. Anneke Beerten didn't make the final, and gave up the series points lead to Jill.

Downhill
1. Sabrina Jonnier
2. Emmeline Ragot
3. Celine Gros
4. Floriane Pugin
5. Myriam Nicole
6. Mio Suemasa
7. Tracy Moseley
8. Claire Buchar
9. Micayla Gatto
10. Emilie Siegenthaler
11. Melissa Buhl
12. Fionn Griffiths
13. Anita Molcik
14. Katy Curd
15. Miriam Ruchti
16. Joanna Petterson
17. Harriet Rucknagel
18. Sarah Newman
19. Sophie Borderes
20. Jessica Stone

4X
1. Jill Kintner
2. Caroline Buchanan
3. Fionn Griffiths
4. Melissa Buhl
5. Anneke Beerten
6. Jana Horakova
7. Anita Molcik
8. Mio Suemasa

We found these results on CyclingNews.com.

Midwest Women's Mountain Bike Clinic

Over the past four years, the Midwest Women's Mountain Bike Clinic has grown from 9 participants to a sold-out 50. The clinic is held at Brown County State Park in Nashville, IN and attracts riders from all over the Midwest. Mountain-bike-specific trails make this park an ideal place to hold the clinic, and riders are able to camp on-site to get the most riding out of their weekend.

The clinic utilizes trained instructors, professional mechanics, and trail advocacy professionals to cover everything from why trail maintenance is important, to how to change a flat, to how to negotiate technical sections of trail.

While the skills and educational portions of the clinic take place on Saturday, there is a social on Friday night, and plenty of trail riding to practice new skills on Sunday. If you weren't able to sign up for the clinic this year, definitely keep it on your radar for next season, when it promises to be even bigger!

For more information, visit MidwestWomensClinic.com.

Lots of European Racing Results

What do World Cup downhillers do in between World Cup races? They race. And this weekend, there was no lack of racing options. Big races in France, Austria, Switzerland, and Great Britain attracted many of the world's top female racers. Florian Pugin, Helen Gaskell, Emmeline Ragot, and Anita Molcik all racked up wins during the off weekend between Vallnord and Ft. William.

European Downhill Cup #1
Verbier, Switzerland
Elite Women
1. Florian Pugin
2. Emilie Siegenthaler
3. Diana Marggraff
4. Martina Bruehlmann
5. Miriam Ruchti
6. Miriam Maurer

British National Points Series #2
Llangollen, Great Britain
Elite Women
1. Helen Gaskell
2. Katy Curd
3. Sabrina Jonnier
4. Mio Suemasa
5. Aimee Dix
6. Sarah Newman

Coupe de France Downhill
Lac Blanc, France
Elite Women
1. Emmeline Ragot
2. Celine Gros
3. Sandra Reynier
4. Melanie Pugin
5. Fanny Lombard
6. Caroline Sax
7. Morgane Charre
8. Sophie Borderes
9. Laura Lohner
10. Severine Cigana
11. Laura Guillaume
12. Marjorie Cholez
13. Chloe Gallean
14. Lea Fourton
15. Elodie Chesseret
16. Agnes Delest
17. Marlene Jugier
18. Marine Poirot
19. Alizee Arthus

Austrian 4X National Championships
Koppl, Austria
1. Anita Molcik
2. Angelika Hohenwarter
3. Helene Valerie Fruhwirth
4. Elke Rabeder

We found these results on CyclingNews.com.

Pajarito Punishment Results

The Pajarito Punishment downhill race was held this Sunday at Pajarito Ski Resort in Los Alamos, NM. Lindi Martin represented for the women, posting the fastest time for the girls. For more information about the race, visit Southwest Freeride's website.

Open Women
1. Lindi Martin
2. Melissa Gonzales