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US Open 2009 – Jill Kintner and Miranda Miller are in the money

US Open 2009The US Open is an event Martha Hucker gives a big thumbs up to – it’s a race that has equal prize money for the same number of places for both men and women. If you’ve done a bit of racing you may be aware of how ‘acceptable’ it’s become to give completely unequal prizes to the mens’ and womens’ fields, but we don’t like that much, and neither do the organizers of the US Open. Yay! With a $50,000US total prize purse and prizes 5 deep in even the amateur field, get it in your schedule for next year. You might even win your airfare back, check out the prize money!

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Anyway, this year’s US Open at Diablo Park attracted a large number of top riders from North America as well as international riders. The Giant Slalom was won by Jill Kintner, who will be stoked to take home 2k in cold hard cash after a disappointing crash at the last World Cup 4x round. The course featured sweeping man-made berms, rollers and rythm sections and favoured the BMX and 4x specialists, with Melissa Buhl coming second ahead of downhillers Kathy Pruitt, Fionn Griffiths and Joanna Petterson. The GS was run in a new format this year, with riders hitting the course individually for two runs on the 40sec track, and their best time counting as their race time.

In the DH, damp weather made the familiar course a little interesting for riders. Fionn Griffiths qualified first with a 3.05 which was 8 seconds ahead of anyone else. However, in race runs the other riders stepped it up ,with the top three women finishing on the same second. Miranda Miller came down the mountain early in race runs, but took over 30 seconds off her ‘unlucky-13th’-place qualifying time to set a smokin’ 3.05.47, and no-one else could beat it. Kathy Pruitt and her pink Jamis were a few hundredths of a second off in second place, and Fionn Griffths had to settle for third. She and fourth-placed Melissa Buhl will still have plenty to take home however, since they podiumed in both GS and DH. Ka-ching! Micayla Gatto rounds out the DH top 5, riding for Commencal.

In the mens, Sam Hill won it, proving that he can stay on his bike and still ride faster than anyone else… sometimes. There were a lot of international riders in the men’s field, hopefully there will be more international female riders who travel to it next time.

Unofficial results from Live Timing
Pro Women
1 Miranda MILLER Santa Cruz 3:05.47
2 Kathy PRUITT Jamis Bike 3:05.56
3 Fionn GRIFFITHS Norco Worl 3:05.96
4 Melissa BUHL Khs Bicycl 3:07.73
5 Micayla GATTO Commencal 3:15.67
6 Katrina STRAND Oakley Sh 3:16.90
7 Joanna PETTERSON Commencal 3:17.54
8 Karen EAGAN Sam Adams 3:19.90
9 Stephanie GUBERNAT Vertical E 3:22.75
10 Alexis WRUBLE Team Sam A 3:28.50
11 Rebecca MCQUEEN Race Face 3:30.72
12 Katie HOLDEN Specialize 3:31.44
13 Lauren PETERSEN Drummer Ra 3:36.38
14 Rae GANDOLF Sierra Nev 3:56.90
15 Allegra BURCH Velo Bella 4:03.94
16 Linden LANE Soulcraft 4:06.80
17 Amanda PILLING Highgear R 4:14.82

Amateur Women
1 Johanne TUTTLE Sycamore C 3:25.99
2 Rosy METCALFE Spooky 3:36.62
3 Lauren DANEY Inspired 3:43.58
4 Rebecca GARDNER Beacon Bom 3:43.69
5 Becky BAGLEY Von Cooper 3:58.41
6 Desiree SAAD MILES High Gear 3:58.74
7 Taylor ALLISON Mad March 3:58.94
8 Hannah TRIMBLE 3:48.45
9 Meredith MANSFIELD Drummer Ra 4:32.34