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 World Hour Record Holder and 1999 winner Tristan Loy may have lost the battle for the millenial edition of the Athens to Atlanta Road Skate, but his Salomon teammate Benoit Perthuis certainly won the war. Despite a nearly 3 minute wait at a rail crossing, missed turns, swirling winds, a prolonged slowdown, average-speed sapping stop-and-go-attacks, and in-town traffic, Benoit still shattered the previous course record by skating 86 miles in 4:19:24 (on the women's side, Empire Speed's Barrie Hartman also smashed the women's record). Oh, what a difference a year makes. Whether it was the weather, the legs, or the preparation, something went worse for last year's big winner, and better for last year's big loser (Eddy Matzger). Matzger finished a single second behind Perthuis while Loy fell of the pace by mile 55 and finished third in 4:24:59. Perthuis countered his own earlier attack at mile six and was hunted down by TWINCAM/Salomon/Explore's Eddy Matzger. The two worked smoothly together, trading pulls equably without one trying to shake the other. Meanwhile TWINCAM teammates Dan Burger and Tomi Wuetrich kept the pace in the pack congested and covered Loy's attempts at bridging by himself. The gap grew to almost 3 minutes by the halfway mark. Eventually Loy shook free from the pack after ditching Colombian Luis Carlos Meija in Dacula. When word came back to the fleeing duo that Loy was only a minute forty back, the mutual cooperation between Perthuis and Matzger shut down . Matzger boned-up for the inevitable 2 on 1 conflict to come. When it did, Matzger could only cover, not counter, the vicious volleys alternately thrown by the two Frenchmen. Escape together they could not. Benoit's attacks were so crisp and fresh that they hurt his own teammate, Loy. Tristan started losing contact on the uphills but came storming back like some Schwarzenegger movie character. After being granted a temporary reprieve at a rail crossing before Silver Hill, Loy was gone for good and Eddy and Benoit forged ahead toward a sprint finish. And what a difference a week makes. Whereas Matzger was the animator and outsprinted Benoit at the New York 100K, it was was Benoit who attacked relentlessly within the Atlanta city limits and gained the upper hand in the final analysis. By the length of two of Duane van Abema's legs (some very long legs). See provisional results. Check out the results of all 248 finishers! News Home |