Beaver Creek Blast ends season?

BEAVER CREEK – “Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?,” asked Bluto Blutarsky in “Animal House.”

Of course, not. Who are we to argue with the future senator?

That was the feeling after Wednesday’s Beaver Creek Blast, the final race of the 2012 Athletic Club at the Westin Mountain Bike Series. It may be the end of August, but there’s more pedaling to be done.

“I’m going to be trying to make top five on varsity,” said sport rider Caleb Krueger, who will compete this fall for the Vail Valley Composite Team, which is in the Colorado High School Cycling League.

“We’ll probably do the Boneyard (trail in Eagle) a few more times,” said women’s beginner rider Bernadette Anders, while standing next to her Ell’s Angels teammate Anya Kurronen.

Gretchen Reeves ended up winning the women’s pro division with Jay Henry edging Jake Wells for the men’s crowd. The season’s team title wasn’t determined as of press time.

But keeping in the theme, even the Vail Recreation District isn’t done with cycling yet. The VRD will hold a cycle-cross race Sept. 12 at Maloit Park in Minturn and it’s being hosted by none other than Wells. There will also be a cycle-cross camp the weekend beforehand. All the details are at http://www.vailrec.com.

Wednesday night, riders took varying loops around Beaver Creek. The beginners made their way up to Red Tail Camp, and looped around the Larkspur Lift before coming back by Allie’s Way and Cinch.

“We saw a bear right by the horse stable,” Kurronen said.

No word yet if said bear was related to the one which made an appearance in Avon Wednesday.

The rest of the field worked its way west, skimming the top of Bachelor Gulch with the pros taking an extra dip down and up Arrowhead.

“It was good,” Krueger said. “I had three days rest before, so I was really pumped. It was tough and dry. The switchbacks were a bit tricky, but more problems are more fun.”

“The sport and pro guys keep you pushing,” Anders said. “They keep pushing you and not letting you stop.”

The Beaver Creek Blast capped the 28th year for the annual summer series, which has become firmly ensconced as a tradition in Eagle County.

“Despite some challenging weather which caused some scheduling issues, it was another great year for the Athletic Club at the Westin Mountain Bike Series with big numbers in racers of all ages,” series director Beth Pappas said. “We returned to Camp Hale, which was fun, and had two races down in Eagle. We’d like to thank everyone for coming out and we hope to see everyone next year.”

Sports Editor Chris Freud can be reached at 970-748-2934 or cfreud@vaildaily.com.

Beaver Creek Blast winners

Boys 8-10: Aidan Duffy

Girls 8-10: Josephine Trueblood

Boys 11-14: Zane Worrell

Girls 11-14: Lily Demuth

Men’s pro: Josiah Middaugh

Women’s pro: Tamara Donelson

Men’s expert: Damien Fraser

Women’s expert: Jennifer Razee

Men’s vet expert: Ryan Van Ness

Women’s vet expert: Kelli Rohrig

Women’s vet sport: Kim Salani

Men’s singlespeed: Paul Gorbald

Men’s master expert: Peter Davis

Men’s master sport: Ken Hawkins

Men’s sport: Christian Shanley

Women’s sport: Tara Picklo

Clydesdale: Bob Letson

Legends: Ron Gruber

Juniors: Nolan Herzog