There was nothing pointless or self-defeating about the Sunshine Coast Rat Race last weekend as 蜜桃视频appcross country and downhill mountain bikers spun their wheels with purpose to impressive finishes at Roberts Creek.Cross-country racers like Garibaldi Highlands resident and ninth-place overall finisher Dwayne Kress pedaled a 46.5-kilometre non-technical loop with 1,500 metres of vertical. Kress, racing in the Pro/Elite Men's category, finished with a time of 2:36:11 - nine minutes off the leader.And with experience came inexperience as Grade 9 Don Ross Secondary student and Team 蜜桃视频appmember Kristin Drygas got through her longest race yet, placing second behind teammate Alison MacKellar in the 15-18 Junior Women category. Besides one other racer who didn't finish, they were the only riders in their age group to choose the marathon course over the youth 8.6-kilometre loop. "I really enjoyed it because you can compare yourself," said Drygas. "It's exciting because you usually know all the kids your own age and you know how strong they are. But there, you try to push yourself a little more."MacKellar, a Grade 10 student at Don Ross, finished with a time of 4:00:30 and Drygas finished at 4:11:53. Having never tackled such a marathon, Drygas said it was a big accomplishment to take on the long loop and it will give her confidence in the future. Still, it was a tough haul."It was very hilly. It felt like it never went down and the last half hour when your legs are really tired and you don't think you can go any harder, they throw in the worst hill, a steep gravel hill in the middle of the sun," she laughed.Meanwhile, her brother Hayden Drygas placed third in the 17-18 Junior Men category and 50th overall (out of over 300) with a time of 3:00:49.Don Ross mountain bike team coach Olivier Gendron placed fourth in the 30-39 Master Men category and 30th overall with a time of 2:51:38. In the women's Pro/Elite category, Stacey Spencer placed second with a time of 3:41:31, while Julie Tennock placed seventh in the 40+ Master Women category at 3:48:59.Lisa Princic, Lorraine Ross, Kim Stegeman and Sandra Bicego placed 12th, 13th, 14th and 16th in the 30-39 Master Women.Hendren wins downhillOn the downhill, Chad Hendren raced the 1.7-kilometre course, which boasted gap jumps, huge berms, launches and hard packed lines, to a first-place finish in the 30-39 Master Men category and 31st overall out of nearly 200 riders. He reached the bottom with a time of 3:08 - 14 seconds off the leader.After staying up until 4 a.m. for Howe Sound Secondary dry grad festivities and leaving town at 5:30 a.m., Miranda Miller missed the podium by 0.24 seconds in the Pro/Elite category, recording a time of 3:29 for fourth place."I was tired. No doubt about it," said Miller. "I couldn't put any more into it. Under normal circumstances I would have gone out way stronger."Scott Halvorson also pulled an all-nighter for graduation and went on to record a time of 3:27, which placed him at the back of the pack in the 17-18 Junior Men."It felt fine but I think my legs must have been sleeping because my time was definitely from another time zone," he said. Kodi Stoddart and Craig Campbell recorded solid times at 3:12.34 and 3:12.90 respectively to place them seventh and eighth in the 17-18 Junior Men category. Clinton Gould placed 12th at 3:16.
