4,200 Racers Descend on the Twentieth Annual Iceman Cometh
The twentieth-annual Iceman Cometh Challenge is in the books, and thanks to a registration glitch, the ever-popular end-of-season Midwest classic saw its largest field to date—with some 4,200 racers taking on the rolling 28.5-mile course. In addition to the Icemen and Icewomen, nearly 400 kids competed in shorter Slush Cup races.
The race’s reputation for unpredictable weather had most competitors showing up at the start line considerably overdressed for the balmy 50-plus-degree temperatures. Instead of ice, or even slush, racers were met with bluebird skies and an unusually fast course thanks to recent rains tamping down the sandy soil. The result: a wide-open drag strip of a course that rewarded big legs, big lungs and big wheels.
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Gary Fisher teammates Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski and Sam Schultz delivered a one-two punch in the pro men’s class, taking first and second, respectively—decisively ending a winless streak for the team at the Iceman. The duo also ended Wisconsin bike shop manager Brian Matter’s chances of repeating his 2004 feat of winning the so-called Triple Crown of Midwest Mountain Biking. Matter, who finished third, had already won the Ore to Shore in Marquette, Michigan, back in August and the Chequamegon Fat Tire 40 in Cable, Wisconsin, in September. Rounding out the top-five were Brian Decker, racing for Team Giant, and Mike Anderson, flying the Bells Beer flag.
In the pro women’s race, five-time Iceman Champ Kelli Emmett lost the top-spot to Alison Dunlap, competing in her first Iceman. Emmett, however, had no one to blame but herself, as she was the one who suggested that Dunlap try her hand at the Iceman this year. Gary Fisher rider Heather Irmiger took the third podium spot, and Amanda Carey took fourth. Minnesota rider Jenna Rinehart, like Matter, also was going for the Midwest trifecta, but settled for fifth.
The Iceman course changes a little every year, and with this year’s extra-large field, race organizer Steve “Iceman” Brown added a mile to the beginning of the course to help thin the field before riders entered the singletrack.
“We really want it to be about the competition of the day, rather than having racers comparing their 1:41:27 this year to their 1:40:26 from the year before,” Brown said.
Eighty percent of the racers hailed from Michigan, and the remaining racers travled from 38 states and Canada. “We were in Outside magazine this year and I think we’re on a lot of people’s bucket list,” Brown said, adding that the race has always been capped at 2,500 because of parking issues. But by all accounts, despite some reported congestion in the heart of the sport-class heats, the race went smoothly. Forty people were carted off the course due to injury or mechanical, with no hospital visit ranking any worse than a broken collar bone.
Asked whether next year’s field will again break the 2,500-mark, Brown said he had to debrief with his staff, but to keep an eye on www.iceman.com next spring for registration information.
2009 Iceman Cometh Pro Men’s Results
1. Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski 1:34:02
2. Sam Schultz 1:34:14
3. Brian Matter 1:34:16
4. Carl Decker 1:34:23
5. Mike Anderson 1:34:30
2009 Iceman Cometh Pro Women’s Results
1. Alison Dunlap 1:46:40
2. Kelli Emmet 1:46:41
3. Heather Irmiger 1:46:52
4. Amanda Carey 1:47:53
5. Jenna Rinehart 1:48:45
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