Penseyres Still Leading Cyclists on 3rd Day of Race Across AMerica

Pete Penseyres of Fallbrook passed Mike Secrest of Flint, Mich. near Santa Rosa, N.M., Tuesday to regain the third-day lead in the 3,120-mile Race Across AMerica.

Penseyres, 43, was the first bicyclist to pass through Tucumcari, N.M., about 180 miles east of Albuquerque, at 6:18 PDT Tuesday night. The 1984 Race Across AMerica winner is 1,021 miles into the race after having exchanged the lead twice with Secrest, 33.

Secrest, who trailed Penseyres by about 43 miles early Tuesday evening, passed through Santa Rosa, N.M., at 3:17 p.m. Third-place Lon Haldeman of Harvard, Ill., passed Santa Rosa at 5:20 p.m., and fourth-place Matt Beerer of Garden Grove followed at 8:20.

In fifth place overall and leading the women’s division is Elaine Mariolle of Berkeley, who passed Clines Corners, N.M. at 8:30 p.m. She took the lead from second-place Shelby Hayden-Clifton of Greensboro, N.C.

Bob Forney of Evergreen, Colo., became the third rider to drop out of the race when he retired Tuesday morning near the Arizona-New Mexico boarder. Curt Eury of Huntington Beach dropped out Sunday night, and Dennis Bock of Costa Mesa dropped out Sunday near Indio after his support vehicle (a motor home) broke down.