Pro CX Series Winner Mani Continues on in 2015 with a Sea Otter Win
Caroline Mani managed to stay ahead of Maximenko for the 2015 Sea Otter win. © Matthew Lasala / Cyclocross Magazine
With shortened races for the Elite Riders, 30 minutes for the Elite Women and 45 for the Elite Men, riders had to step out of their longer-spaced comfort zones and push hard right from contesting the holeshot. Caroline Mani (Raleigh/Clement), winner of the Pro CX series in 2014-15, continued her winning ways at Sea Otter, with a fiercely close finish in front of Cassie Maximenko of Rare Vos/Van Dessel. Mani nearly finished in the top ten at Tabor, taking an 11th in one of the most thrilling cyclocross races at a World Championship.
Emily Kachorek of Squid Bikes rode on for a fifth place today. © Matthew Lasala / Cyclocross Magazine
Mani and Maximenko finished within five seconds of each other at the head of the field, shortening the race to a brutally fast 23 minutes. Caitlyn Vestal was 12 seconds back in third, while Caroline Dezendorf finished fourth, over a minute ahead of the rest of the field that included names like Emily Kachorek and Nicole Duke.
Tobin Heads Out Young Men’s Elite Race
In the Men’s Elite Race, Tobin Ortenblad of Cal Giant stepped onto a cyclocross course for the first time since Tabor, finishing his season with a fifth place at the U23 race at the 2015 National Championship and a 28th place at Worlds. He didn’t take off right from the gun, and worked with the field for much of the race before leading out with Ben Berden trailing behind by over 20 seconds.
Young riders certainly showed off their skills at Sea Otter, making their mark on the race. Besides Ortenblad, Junior rider Lance Haidet, who is one of Raleigh-Clement’s newest additions, spent the early goings near the front, even spending some time pulling the older riders around the course.
Lance Haidet (Raleigh Clement)) impressed in his first pro race for the 2015 Sea Otter Cyclocross Race. © Mike Albright / Cyclocross Magazine
Gavin Haley also made his presence felt, just as he did in the Junior race in Tabor when he finish 11th.
While Ortenblad established himself as the lone winner by the end, several close sprints dictated the rest of the placings, with Jérémy Martin being edged out by Ben Berden for second place and Carl Decker winning the following group sprint ahead of Jamey Driscoll and the two Junior riders, all who finished with the same time.
Ontenbald rides the barriers to keep himself in the lead position at Sea Otter. © Matthew Lasala / Cyclocross Magazine
2015 Sea Otter Cyclocross Race Gallery
2015 Sea Otter Elite Women's Cyclocross Race Results
| Rank | Last | First | City | Time | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | MANI | Caroline | Colorado Springs CO | 23:09 | |
| 2 | MAXIMENKO | Cassandra | Naugatuck CT | 23:14 | 5 |
| 3 | VESTAL | Caitlyn | Golden CO | 23:21 | 12 |
| 4 | DEZENDORF | Caroline | San Rafael CA | 23:41 | 32 |
| 5 | KACHOREK | Emily | 24:46:00 | 1:37 | |
| 6 | DRUSE DUKE | Nicole | Boulder CO | 25:02:00 | 1:53 |
| 7 | UETRECHT | Stephanie | Bend OR | 25:06:00 | 1:57 |
| 8 | SCHAPER | Amanda | Santa Cruz CA | 25:06:00 | s.t. |
| 9 | GROSSMAN | Tanya | Castro Valley CA | 25:15:00 | 2:06 |
| 10 | DEHORNEY | Tiziana | Abluquerque NM | 26:01:00 | 2:52 |
| 11 | LEHNERT | Gabrielle | Eugene OR | 26:26:00 | 3:17 |
| 12 | WHITELEY | Liz | Santa Cruz CA | 26:26:00 | s.t. |
| 13 | RATHBUN | Luarel | Monument CO | 26:42:00 | 3:33 |
| 14 | WILKINSON | Karen | Seattle WA | @LAP |
2015 Sea Otter Elite Men's Cyclocross Race Results
| Rank | Last | First | City | Time | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ORTENBLAD | Tobin | 37:44:00 | ||
| 2 | BERDEN | ben | 38:05:00 | 21 | |
| 3 | MARTIN | Jérémy | Boischatel QC | 38:06:00 | s.t. |
| 4 | DECKER | Carl | 38:09:00 | 25 | |
| 5 | DRISCOLL | Jamey | Park City UT | 38:10:00 | s.t. |
| 6 | HAIDET | Lance | San Luis Obispo CA | 38:10:00 | s.t. |
| 7 | HALEY | Gavin | Santa Rosa CA | 38:10:00 | s.t. |
| 8 | SCHOOLER | Aaron | Tübingen DE | 38:18:00 | 34 |
| 9 | GAFFNEY | Lewis | Angel Fire NM | 38:43:00 | 59 |
| 10 | RICHEY | Craig | North Vancouver BC | 39:01:00 | 1:17 |
| 11 | CHAPIN | Scott | Santa Cruz CA | 39:09:00 | 1:25 |
| 12 | MARION | Robert | Mount Airy NC | 39:11:00 | 1:27 |
| 13 | KELLEY | Josh | 40:03:00 | 2:19 | |
| 14 | 40:26:00 | 2:42 | |||
| 15 | Allen | Tim | 40:49:00 | 3:05 | |
| 16 | HILLIER | Keith | Millbrae CA | 40:56:00 | 3:12 |
| 17 | SMITH | Shadd | 40:56:00 | s.t. | |
| 18 | SWANSON | Murray | Woodside CA | 40:57:00 | s.t. |
| 19 | HOEPPNER | Dan | San Ramon CA | 40:57:00 | s.t. |
| 20 | PAYTON | Tom | Kingswinford | 41:24:00 | 3:40 |
| 21 | KAPPIUS | Brady | Boulder CO | 42:11:00 | 4:27 |
| 22 | SHEPARD | Anderson | Santa Cruz CA | @LAP | |
| 23 | SMITH | Curtis | South Lake Tahoe CA | @LAP | |
| 24 | WATTS | Brook | Longmont CO | @LAP | |
| DNF | VAN DEN HAM | Michael | Edmonton AB | ||
| DNF | Felastein | Gareth |
