Last weekend in Grand Junction, the Fort Lewis College cycling team won the Rocky Mountain Collegiate Cycling Conference overall title.
Now, it turns its focus toward nationals.
The USA Cycling Collegiate Mountain Bike Nationals, hosted by perennial powerhouse Lees McRae, will take place Oct. 25-27 in Beech Mountain, N.C..
FLC, which owns 18 national championships, has won eight consecutive championships in the mountain bike discipline.
The FLC coaching staff of Justin Biser, Elke Brutsaert, Chad Cheeney, Dave Hagen and Lucas LeMaire picked the Skyhawks’ roster this week.
“These are some of the toughest decisions that the coaches ever have to make simply because there are so many talented riders to choose from,” Hagen said in an email to The Durango Herald.
Hagen said winning a competitive RMCCC over stiff competition such as Colorado, Colorado State and Wyoming proves the Skyhawks’ mettle.
“Having such good competition in the RMCCC is great preparation for the national competitions against not only top teams for the RMCCC but teams from perennial national powerhouses Marian University, host Lees McRae College and Lindsay Wilson College,” said Hagen, the Skyhawks’ team director.
FLC will compete in the cross country, downhill, dual slalom, short track and a new team relay event, which will not count toward the final standings.
Each team can bring eight riders of each gender to compete in the events, and the Skyhawks will bring a pair of defending national champions: Lauren Catlin (cross country and short track) and Brittany Clawson (downhill).
Joining Catlin and Clawson on the women’s roster is Leila Carrillo, Becky Gardner, Meghan Kane, Sage Kitson, Liz Schwab and Sofia Gomez Villafane.
The men’s roster is Phil Cowan, Stephan Davoust, Adam Digby, Payson McElveen, Zack Graveson, Garrett Lundberg, Michael Sampson and Brian White.
Clawson, Kane, Kitson, Sampson and Villafane all will compete in both the endurance and gravity events.
heraldsports@durangoherald.com
