National Roller Cup

NorthShore Inline Marathon, 2011

Refresh your page to get the latest updates.

Share your race photos, videos and stories on the Skater Network.

 

 

Sept. 17, 2011

Planet report

NorthShore Inline Marathon photos by Ron Morella/K2 Empire Speed

9:30 am | Powerslide showed up large

Powerslide came to Duluth to win this year. It sent a team that included Felix Rijhnen of Germany and two of its superstars: Yann Guyader and Scott Arlidge, both flush with gold medals from last month's World Championships in South Korea.

The race, by all accounts, started fast.

"It was really fast right from the start," says Cado Motus' B.J. Steketee, who finished ninth.

After a few miles, only eight skaters were left in the lead pack, and the three Powerslide skaters were taking turns going off the front.

Each time, one of them would break away, Atom Wheel's Joey Mantia would give chase and catch him. But once Mantia would reclaim the lead, the next Powerslide skater would go flying off the front.

"They kept going over the top, over the top, over the top," says Mantia, 25, of Ocala, FL. "Eventually, I couldn't keep it up and had to let them go."

That's when the Frenchman, Yann Guyader, took off. Skating alone for the next 16 miles, he built a lead of more than two minutes.

Almost from the start of the race, Guyader was skating with his right frame bent to the right due to a loose frame bolt. "But he's such a pro that it didn't stop him," says Toronto Inline's Peter Doucet.

Guyader's time was 1 hour, 6 minutes, 33.1 seconds.

The chase pack was joined by another group of skaters before going up the ramp on the final approach to the finish line.

Stekettee, 33, of Hudsonville, MI, led out the field sprint. But six skaters passed him on the final straightway, including Mantia who went on to win the sprint for second place. Mantia also finished second in 2007 when Diego Rosero won the race on a solo breakaway.

Bont's Juan Nayib Tobon and Powerslide Felix Rijhnen finished next. (We're not sure yet who was third and who was fourth.)

Stekettee's performance was a surprise. He was an elite skater in the late-1990s, but then retired and became a chiropractor. He only returned to racing this year.

Powerslide was also a surprise. It has not sent a world-class team to the NorthShore for years ... if ever.

The first hint most skaters had that it was serious about today's race came a few minutes before the start when someone spotted Yann Guyader warming up.

9 am | Briana Kramer - women's winner

Bont's Briana Kramer wins it for the second year in a row. She sprints on the inside through a crowd of master men to reach the finish line ahead of Ezeefit's Janelle Cole.

With Cole pushing the pace, the women's lead pack shrunk to just four several miles from the finish line.

"With six miles to go, we passed one of the men's packs and then we got spooked by those ruts under the overpass and slowed down," says Kramer, 20 of West Jordan, UT.

The grand veteran men's pack caught up and passed the women's pack, and they arrived together at the finish line.

As she often does, Kramer threaded through traffic and got to the finish line first. Cole was second.

One of the other four women was Asphalt Beach's Elisabeth White, who only started inline racing last year.

8:43 am | Field sprint

Fifteen guys heading into the field sprint. Atom Wheel's Joey Mantia gets second place. Another Powerslide skater (Felix Rijhnen?) finishes next. ... Twincam's Eddy Matzger in the back of the pack.

No wind to speak of today, Kelly Springer tells us.

8:38 am | Yann Guyader Wins

He's pointing to his right skate after he crosses the line. "I've been away like 16 miles," he tells us. "I skated 16 miles alone and I have a three minute gap."

He says he attacked on a hill.

Unofficial time: 1:05

8:34 am | One mile to go

Radio guys just crown "Yann" or "Juan" as the 2011 NorthShore Inline Marathon champ with a mile to go.

8:29 am | Maybe it's Yann Guyader leading?

Can't tell if the radio guys are saying Yann or Juan. If it's Yann, which would make more sense, the leader is Powerslide's Yann Guyader on the top skaters in the World Inline Cup.

The radio guys are calling the performance amazing. Back in 1997, Diego Rosero won the race on a solo breakaway, finishing a few minutes ahead of the pack.

Maybe the radio guys don't know how to pronounce Guyader, so they are just using the first name?

8:22 am | Five miles to go

Leader arrives on London Road on the outskirts of Duluth, according to radio report. He is minutes ahead of the pack.

8:11 am | 30 minutes down the course

Sounds like Bont's Juan Nayib Tobon is out on a solo breakaway — this according to a scratchy online radio feed — although it's hard to make out the name. The radio announcers are saying the race is now for second place.

7:25 am | Cold, but not that cold

It's chilly on the starting line — about 42 degrees — but nothing like it was in 1997 when it was 18 degrees at race time, says Sports Quest's manager Kelly Springer at the starting line.

The skaters aren't wearing any extra cold weather gear. Just skinsuits.

Powerslide has sent a surprise: France's Yann Guyader, who won the 10K elimination at World's last month.

He's sure to be a factor, along with Atom Wheel's Joey Mantia and Bont's Juan Tobon.

Simmons Racing's Adam Miller is also lacing up. Miller, 29, from Independence, MO, won the race in 2008 and then retired from inline racing to devote himself to cycling.

Planet preview of the NorthShore Inline Marathon

 

Subscribe to the Inline Planet Newsletter

NROC Sponsors: