Durango mountain bike racer Riley Amos finished off his week in Fayetteville, Arkansas at the U.S. Pro Cup on a high note with a win in the men’s elite race on Saturday.
Amos won the men’s elite race on Saturday with team Trek Factory Racing around Centennial Park’s 3.2-mile circuit. Amos came in first after eight laps with a time of 1 hour and 23.15 minutes.
Durango’s Christopher Blevins finished sixth on Saturday with team Specialized Factory Racing after winning the men’s elite race on Wednesday. On Saturday, Blevins completed eight laps with a time of 1:25.13.
“A couple of wins for me before a rough day on the last one, but we did the job well of collecting points and getting ready for the trip to Brazil,” Blevins wrote on Instagram. “It's all happening these next two weeks … Olympic dreams on the line and the best in the world all feeling the same feelings before the first World Cup of the year. Reminding myself it's all a gift, and this is what we do it all for.”
Fort Lewis sophomore and Durango native Bailey Cioppa finished first in the women’s under-23 race on Saturday with a time of 1:15.25 after six laps.
On Friday, Amos won the men’s under-23 race in front of second-place Fort Lewis sophomore Carson Beard from team Durango Segment 28. Amos finished the seven laps with a time of 1:12.57 and Beard finished with a time of 1:13.23.
Cioppa finished second in the women’s elite race on Friday also.
Amos and Blevins are now down in Brazil for the Whoop UCI Mountain Bike World Cup in Mairiporã from April 12-14.
The United States is in a good position at the moment to send two riders to the Paris Olympics this summer. The United States is fourth in the world at the moment in UCI points with 3,228 points. Switzerland is first in the world with 5,148 points followed by France in second with 4,967 points and Great Britain in third with 3,299 points.
bkelly@durangoherald.com
