Tucson, AZ February 17, 208 - Members of the Kenda Titus Hayes women's mountain bike team took their first podium of the 2008 season by winning the 24 Hours in the Old Pueblo this past weekend in Tucson, AZ. Team members Zephanie Blasi, Heather Holmes, Krista Park and Amanda Riley covered 19 laps of the 16 mile course during the 24 hour event, finishing 2 laps ahead of their closest competitors.

But the weekend didn't start off the way we expected... With team sponsors Kenda USA and Hayes set-up behind the Titus frame factory to assemble the new bikes, a fire broke out in the welding area of the factory. Fortunately, it was quickly under control and no one was injured. We were able to move our base of operations to the team hotel where we tried on our new Voler team kits,  Answer shoes and Specialized S-Works helmets.  Then off for a team dinner to celebrate the new season.

Day two started at 6 am for sunrise photo shoot. Instead of sun breaking over the horizon, we were met by a steady drizzle. With the cars packed with athletes, equipment and cameras, we waited almost two hours for cleared weather. In between storms, we managed to get everyone arranged and photos taken before Hillary Harrison caught a flight home. We then loaded up and headed for Tucson and the race venue only to be by more met rain turning to snow. After braving the nine mile dirt road leading to into Willow Springs Ranch, we quickly decided not to unpack the new Titus Fireline and Racer-X Carbon race bikes and Sun Ringle Black Flag Wheels. Instead, we joined in the dinner festivities for mountain biking legend Richard Cunningham and then decided to find a hotel for the night. By that time, all I can say is that the only rooms available were at a place that reminded us all of The Bates Motel...

 
The morning brought dry skies but cold temperatures in the low 30's. After a quick shop and the gas station/grocery store where the owner made mention of his relation to Casey Kasem, we again braved the 9 miles of mud to the venue. 2/3 of the way there, we found ourselves headed to the ditch. After being pulled out, we finally made it to venue again and organized two teams for the next 24 hours. Zephanie, Heather, Krista and Amanda made up the four woman team. while Robert Marion, Philicia Marion and Wendy Caldwell were joined by Jeff Titone (TItus) and Clayton Goldsmith (Hayes) to make up the five person co-ed team. Danielle Musto entered the solo category as testing ground for new equipment and training.

Into the night, we kept all 10 athletes going. A plentiful supply of Finish Line lubrication and Genuine Innovations inflation products really helped. By day break Sunday, the women's team had established a one-lap lead while the five person co-ed traded positions in the top five. With the temperature rising into the high 50's with clear skies, we were finally able to break out our new Kinesys Sunscreen for testing. By late morning, it was evident that the women's team was on solid ground for the win, our first for 2008. The co-ed team would hold on the the final podium spot while solo rider Danielle would get plenty of training and equipment testing in in preparation for her assault on the National ultra-endurance series later this summer.

Big thanks go out to Jim (Kenda USA), Jeff, Foye and Daryl (Titus), Clayton and Matt (Hayes), Jason (Crank Bros.) and Jeff (Ergon) all who were on site with us all week to make this event possible. More thanks to Voler, Kinesys, Finish Line, Specialized, Tifosi and Genuine Innovations who made sure we had all our equipment and clothing on hand this early in the season.

To see a gallery of photos from the weekend, go to the Quick Release Old Pueblo Gallery

Until the next race-
Team Kenda Titus Hayes

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You can find out more about the team, our sponsors and program by visiting the Quick Release website. For more information on the corporation, mission statement and board members, visit Quick Release Racing.