Capping a season that saw her spring to the top of American women’s cross-country racing, Georgia Gould won the sixth and final round of the 2007 National Mountain Bike Series on Sunday in Snowmass, Colorado. In doing so, the Coloradan became only the second woman in series history to sweep the series. Mountain biking great Juli Furtado, owner of 26 NORBA cross-country wins, swept the old NORBA series in 1993.

Gould already had the overall locked up heading into the Snowmass finals. Still, the 27-year-old admitted the buzz surrounding her potentially flawless season brought some extra pressure to bear.

“I tried not to think about it too much. I like to take each race as it comes to me,” Gould said. “But everyone was talking about it this whole week.”

The talk ceased on the opening climb when, as she has done all season, the Luna rider distanced herself from the chasers early on. Behind, teammate Katerina Nash dueled with Heather Irmiger (Subaru-Gary Fisher) for second place, while another teammate, Shonny Vanlandingham, fought it out with Willow Koerber (Subaru-Gary Fisher) for fourth.

A switch in venue forced NMBS organizers to alter the cross-country course for 2007. Instead of completing three loops around Snowmass’s climb-heavy lap, riders rode a lollipop-shaped out-and back route. From the new base area, riders climbed 1200 feet up to the familiar loop, which they completed twice before descending back to the start/finish.

The course change sent team managers and mechanics onto ski lifts to reach the far-off tech and feed zone.

“It was back to that old-school, epic style of racing where you’re relying on bringing your own supplies,” said Irmiger, who finished third. “I was definitely riding conservatively on the final descent.”

Gould also rode gingerly down to the start/finish area to cross the line nearly two minutes up on Nash with Irmiger, Vanlandingham and Koerber rounding out the podium.

After the win, Gould said her 2007 season had far exceeded her hopes.

“My goals were to be on the podium in the cross-country races because last year I was barely making it on there, and one of my goals was to win a race,” Gould said.

Gould’s breakthrough season has given her confidence going into an Olympic year, where she is on the short list to grab one of USA Cycling’s two slots for the Games in Beijing.

“I think it’s an attainable goal. It’s not going to be easy,” Gould said. “There are a lot of good women going for the spot, but it’s a good goal and attainable for me.”

Gould took the series with a perfect 910 points, while Luna teammates Nash and Vanlandingham grabbed the second and third spots on the podium. Irmiger and Koerber rounded out the top five.

Kabush goes kaboom
Like Gould, Canadian Geoff Kabush (Maxxis) came into the NMBS finals with the title in the bag. Kabush took the opening three rounds of the 2007 NMBS and finished second at the fourth and fifth rounds in Deer Valley, Utah, and Banner Elk, North Carolina. Kabush only had to finish at Snowmass to take the series ahead of American Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski (Subaru-Gary Fisher), the 2006 series champ.

Kabush: Hey, a win's a win

Photo: Fred Dreier

But the Canadian threw caution to the wind, running an ultra-thin set of 310-gram Maxxis tires on a technical course strewn with sharp rocks. The gamble paid off, and Kabush climbed away from the men’s field and held off a hard-charging Jeremiah Bishop (Trek-Volkswagen) for the win.

“A win is a win. I’m not just going to go out there and take it easy,” Kabush said. “I took some risks today with a really light setup and definitely had the climbing tires on today, so I had to be cautious on the descents.”

Kabush sprang to the front early and used quick accelerations to whittle down the men’s field on the opening fire-road climb. By the time the Canadian crested the ascent, he held a 15-second advantage on Bishop, with the rest of the field strung out behind.

“He was using those tires to his advantage on the climbs. He’d snap them up to speed and accelerate away,” Bishop said. “I knew that if I kept him within 30 seconds or so I could catch him on the descents.”

Indeed, Bishop caught the cautious Canadian on the rocky, bumpy descents. But time and time again, Kabush powered away on the climbing sections. Like the women, the men completed an out-and-back lollipop-shaped course, with two laps around the circular inner loop.

“I was playing catchup today,” said Bishop, who took the Snowmass victory in 2006. “He earned it. He was climbing better than I was, but I felt good. To be on a heavier rig and to be able to keep up with him, I knew I was riding well.”

Bishop used his descending skills to catch Kabush on the final bumpy downhill into the start/finish area. But the tight single-track kept him from coming around the Canadian. The two sped through the final kilometer neck and neck, until Kabush gained a small gap on a flat section leading into the finish. It was all he needed.

“I know that if I come into the final five minutes of the race in the front group I have a good shot at winning,” Kabush said.

Recently crowned U.S. cross-country champ Adam Craig fended off Todd Wells (GT) and Horgan-Kobelski to grab third.

Kabush thus claimed his third victory in the series, beating Horgan-Kobelski 900-832. Bishop wound up third with Wells and Barry Wicks (Kona-Les Gets) rounding out the podium.

2007 National Mountain Bike Series Finals
Cross country
Men
1. Geoff Kabush (Can), Maxxis, 1:38:20
2. Jeremiah Bishop, Trek-Volkswagen, 1:38:21
3. Adam Craig, Giant, 1:40:50
4. Todd Wells, GT, 1:41:30
5. Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski, Subaru-Gary Fisher, 1:1:42:49
6. Sam Jurekovic, U-23 National, 1:44:12
7. Jay Henry, Tokyo Joe’s, 1:14:42
8. Jeff Hall, Salsa Cycles, 1:46:48
9. Ryan Trebon, Kona-Les Gets, 1:47:51
10. Carl Decker, Giant, 1:47:33

Women
1. Georgia Gould, Luna, 1:58:51
2. Katerina Nash (CZ), Luna, 2:00:39
3. Heather Irmiger, Subaru-Gary Fisher, 2:02:33
4. Shonny Vanlandingham, Luna, 2:03:01
5. Willow Koerber, Subaru-Gary Fisher, 2:04:06
6. Zephanie Blasi, Kenda-X Fusion, 2:06:47
7. Jennifer Smith (NZ), Trek-Volkswagen, 2:07:53
8. Melanie McQuaid (Can), BMC-Nature Valley, 2:07:56
9. Jamie Whitmore, Cannondale, 2:08:00
10. Mical Dyck (Can), Trek-Terra Racing, 2:10:13

Final 2007 NMBS cross-country standings
Men
1. Kabush, 900 pts
2. Horgan-Kobelski, 836
3. Bishop, 771
4. Wells, 761
5. Wicks, 739
6. Decker, 668
7. Craig, 616
8. Andy Schultz, Bear Naked-Cannondale, 600
9. Chris Sneedon (Can), Kona-Les Gets, 600
10. Matieu Toulouse (Can), Maxxis, 590

Women
1. Gould, 910 pts
2. Nash, 825
3. Vanlandingham, 771
4. Irmiger, 747
5. Koerber, 742
6. Zephanie Blasi, Kenda-X Fusion, 676
7. Chloe Forsman, Luna, 586
8. Jenna Zander, Bear Naked-Cannondale, 574
9. Kathy Sherwin, Titus, 562
10. Lea Davison, Trek-Volkswagen, 558