Go Granny’s Go: Trials of a Desert Course Can’t Stop Winning Foursome

There was a 44-mile bike race here Friday, and no one dropped of heat stroke or dehydration.

The finishing times, however, were slow, as 70-kilometer team time trials go. Especially considering that this was the Junior National championships.

Granny’s Gourmet Muffins (Matt Johnson, Seattle; Eric Harris, Boulder, Colo.; Eric Kaiter, Boston; and Greg Strock, Boulder) took first with a time of 1:32:55.77.

In second place with a time of 1:36:36.14 was SVAA/LeMond (Chris Giedt, Morgan Hill; Ozzie Hutchins, Fremont; Colby Pearce, Boulder; and Jon Vaughters, Englewood, Colo.).

It takes a 1:26:30 to qualify for the Junior World championships.

There were reasons for the relatively slow times. Surprisingly, the searing heat was not No. 1 on the list.

Sure, it got hot out on the course--after all, Borrego Springs is at the foot of the Southern California Desert. But it was really nothing, cyclers said, compared to the terrain.

This was not the flat course of cyclists’ dreams. Fast times were just a fantasy.

“Someone said there were a couple hills,” said Pearce of SVAA/LeMond. “But it was more like a mountain pass.”

SVAA/LeMond was the fifth foursome to hit the course (in a time trial, teams are started at two-minute intervals), but was first to cross the finish line.

In fact, partial results were posted after nine teams came in, and SVAA/LeMond seemed to have first-place wrapped up with a 40-second advantage over the second-place team at the time, the Spirits of St. Louis B squad (Matt Gates, Burlington, Iowa; Jessie Ray, Columbus, Ohio; Andy Wall, Marion, Iowa; and Chris Yenkey, Salina, Kan.), which crossed at 1:37:16.28.

Well, guess who crossed 10th, after starting in the 17th slot and passing six teams?

Team Granny’s, which consisted of four riders who had not before competed as a team.

And although communication and team work is of the essence in team time trials, Team Granny’s members insisted their victory was not a surprise.

“Each of us have done a lot of time trials,” said Kaiter, the No. 3 rider. “So we felt it would be pretty easy to get into a groove.”