Lalonde and Sable win Reforestation Ramble

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The Reforestation Ramble, the ninth race in the 2009 Wisconsin Off Road Series, was held Sunday, August 30, outside Green Bay, Wisconsin. Steady rainfall on Saturday afternoon caused race officials to close the course to preview, but Sunday dawned with sunny skies and perfect conditions on the sandy trails. At the end of the 36-mile race, WORS 2008 Overall Series winner Jesse Lalonde (Gary Fisher 29 / T6 / BKB) took home the victory in the men's field and Lori Sable (Twin Six) enjoyed her first visit to the top of the WORS ladies podium.

The distance at the Ramble's marathon format course was longer than the average WORS race, though greater inclusion of doubletrack and open sections meant that finishing times were comparable. Many top finishers used the race as a preview of the upcoming Chequamegon Fat Tire Festival on September 19, and the race attracted several top riders from outside the series, including former WORS champion Rebecca Cleveland (Bike Hub) and cyclo-cross racer Kristin Wentworth (Planet Bike).

"Yesterday was a great race to prepare for Chequamegon," said 2009 Triple Crown contender Brian Matter. The Triple Crown has been passed to those few who win three celebrated upper Midwest point-to-point events during a single season, the Ore to Shore, the Chequamegon Fat Tire Festival, and the Iceman Cometh. Matter took home the honors after the 2007 Iceman, when he launched a solo attack to hold off national stars Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski and Ned Overend as well as Midwest favorites Michael Simonsen, Jesse Lalonde and Tristan Schouten.

On Sunday at the Ramble, it was Jesse Lalonde who held Matter's wheel during a final attack and came around for the win.

"It wasn't until midway through the final lap that the moves started flying with Brian Matter looking to be the strong man," said Lalonde after the race. "I latched on to a strong uphill surge as we gapped the other riders enough to sneak away. I road Brian's wheel until we were half a mile out and punched it for the victory."

Despite riding away from a tightly-packed and fast-moving field, neither Lalonde nor Matter felt they were in their top form for the Ramble.

Matter, who is a strong contender for the WORS Overall series win in 2009, said, "I was happy with my result after a couple weeks off the bike, and now it's time to start ramping up for the second half of the season!"

Lalonde, who was undefeated last season for the WORS Overall series win, was likewise modest. "This season has been full of transitions with a job and buying a new house. My priority of pedaling a bike has taken a back seat many times so my intent is to salvage what I can out of the season, and what better way to start than at the Ramble."

A tight race until the final moments

With the top five podium spots in the Belgioioso Men's Pro / Cat 1 race coming across the line within a minute of Jesse Lalonde, the races for third and fourth place were even tighter. Younger brother Mark Lalonde (Planet Bike / GT / T6) outsprinted Adventure 212 / Specialized teammates Chris Peariso and Travis (TJ) Woodruff by tenths of a second.

"The race allowed a large group of seven to eight riders to stay together until late in the race," said race winner Jesse Lalonde. "During the first tow laps I spent a lot of time on the front trying to stretch the elastic without luck."

"It was very important to be patient in the lead group at the front of the race," said Matter. "The singletrack was smooth, and when you got in the right rhythm you would make guys chase coming out into the open sections. When I made my move with a half lap to go, it worked to drop five of the guys in the lead group. However Jesse suffered up to my wheel and raced smart at the end to just beat me at the finish."

"I chose to ride my rigid single with a larger gear ratio than in the past as an experiment for the upcoming Chequamegon race, which worked in my favor," said Lalonde. "This style of course suited me well despite the wide open stretches and the longer distance. The course was near perfect in terms of conditions and the mix of single track and double track was superb. I'm hoping this will be the slingshot I needed to get back into the swing of things."

A hard-fought battle for a first overall in the ladies' race

Heading into the first section of singletrack, Rebecca Cleveland took the holeshot and charged to an early lead. "Most of my riding this year has been long endurance riding to prepare for the Leadville 100," said Cleveland. "It's now time to 'kick it up a notch' and work on building some top end speed before Chequamegon. This race was definitely the hardest thing I've done all year!

Cleveland, who finished the Leadville Trail 100 in just 11:08:33, didn't mind the marathon format. "After finishing at Leadville two weeks ago, the 'longer' format at the Ramble was a breeze! It was very fun being able to race on my hometown course. I grew up in Suamico and have skied, hiked, and biked out there for almost 30 years."

Riding to close the early gap was Lori Sable (Twin Six). The petite Sable recently took delivery of a new bike, and is enjoying a great season with the custom fit. A consistent top-five finisher in the WORS series, Sable had yet to step onto the top of the ladies podium, but the Ramble was her day.

"I am a fan of the longer races, as I tend to be a slow starter," said Sable after her victory. "I am not a sprinter, so the longer courses actually suit me because it seems that I get 'into my zone' as the race goes on. I didn't know what to expect going into the race and, for whatever reason, was extremely nervous. Of course, as soon as race director Shawn Hauser said 'Go', that all changed and I settled in and started racing. Rebecca got away initially and I just though to myself, 'I need to ride my own race and not make any mistakes'. Of course, shortly after that, I crashed on a slippery root!"

Sable and Cleveland ultimately crossed the line over five minutes ahead of the third place finisher, Kristin Wentworth. However, the battle between the two women in the lead was close until the very end.

"I knew I had a solid second place going into the second lap, and I also knew that I was feeling pretty good so, when Twin Six teammate Rick Walls came by halfway through the second lap, I sucked his wheel and, basically, he pulled me until we caught Rebecca towards the beginning of the third lap. At that point, I thought to myself 'no need to blow myself up', and let Rick go. After the last portion of singletrack, Rebecca was slightly ahead of me, maybe 15 seconds, and, at that point, another male rider, Dan Schaefer, not only bridged us up to Rebecca, but passed her. I sat on his wheel knowing it was now or never and it paid off! When I turned and looked back, just prior to the finish, Rebecca was not in sight!"

Cleveland rolled across the line just 23 seconds behind Sable. "Knowing the singletrack definitely gave me an advantage over the other women," said Cleveland, "but unfortunately, we ended on a mile of wide open trail and I just couldn't hold off Lori, who tactically rode a very smart race and had energy left when it counted.

Both women commented on the great condition of the course, and improvements in the layout of the race this year made by the local organizer, Shawn Hauser of the TitleTown Flyers.

"The course conditions were perfect! Trust me, I am not one to pray for rain because I like racing in the dry conditions but knowing that Ramble tends to be very sandy and absorbs the rain so well, I knew rain would only help the course. And that it did," said Sable. "The singletrack flows so well and is a blast to ride and with the rain the previous evening, the ski trails, although usually very sandy, were like concrete."

Cleveland agreed. "Shawn did a great job mixing up the sections of singletrack, running some of it backwards and including the hilly maples ski trail which got steeper and steeper each lap. The rain kept the sand packed down nicely, but it also made the many tree roots deserving of respect on the corners."

WORS Series still in contention

With only three races to go in the series, the race for the overall spot in the Belgioioso Pro / Cat 1 men's field is still wide open, with top contenders Brian Matter, Mark Lalonde, and current series leader Nathan Guerra in close competition with several others. In the women's series, 2008 winner Abigail Strigel (Mafia Racing / Pabst / Felt) is defending her title well, though some serious shuffling could still occur with Holly Liske (Hayes Disc Brakes), Lisa Krayer (Wildside Velo Club), and Twin Six teammates Meghan Korol and Lori Sable in the mix.

The next race in the series will be held on September 13 outside Lake Geneva, Wisconsin at Treadfest.

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