A year after finishing second to Quinn Simmons in the Iron Horse Bicycle Classic’s men’s pro road race, Caleb Classen of California overcame some sickness to win the event in his second try on Saturday.
“It’s definitely nice,” Classen said. “I wish Quinn (Simmons) was here so we could have a battle, but Howard (Grotts) is no slouch, so it was still a good race.”
Classen ended up winning the race in 2 hours, 7 minutes and 18.6 seconds, staying on Grotts’ rear wheel for most of the race before making his move. Grotts crossed second in 2:08:56.3.
Simmons won in 2:11:29 last year, but he was also working for his younger brother Colby and then attacked late when Colby started to slow.
By the time Saturday’s road race reached the halfway point up Coal Bank Pass, it was a two-person race between Howard Grotts and Caleb Classen. Jack Odron was a minute back riding solo in third place followed by a group of eight another minute back.
The two cyclists helped set a blistering pace in the peloton and were at the front nearly the whole time.
Grotts said he sometimes gets bored going slow through the valley so he helped get the group rolling.
“I struggle with saving energy for this race,” he said. “I’m happy we kept it rolling through the valley.”
Brian Husen, Joseph Bacala and Eddie Anderson were part of a three-man breakaway immediately out of Durango, but the peloton absorbed them around Hermosa.
Grotts and Classen along with Vaughn Veenendall led a group of about 22 riders up Shalona Hill and the peloton stayed together as they flew by Purgatory Resort. Three separate groups with seven to eight riders each followed.
“Howard and Caleb were going to the front and thrashing; people were getting popped off the back pretty consistently,” Veenendaal said. “Those two made everyone suffer.”
Going up Coal Bank, Classen let Grotts pull him, then he made his move at the top, and the descent down Coal Bank ended up being the deciding factor in the race.
“Howard pulled me the whole way up and we dropped everyone else,” Classen said. “On the descent I knew I could get Howard if I railed the corners and that’s what I did. I was by myself and just went for it.”
“He got a gap on the descent and I couldn’t catch him again,” Grotts said. “He played his cards right today … I don’t have the descending confidence that he does. I need descending lessons; I get scared.”
Odron finished third in 2:11:22.3, followed by Tayne Andrade (2:12:21.2), Jess Clapier (2:12:23.4), Veenendaal (2:12:39.5), Henry Nelson (2:12:39.8), Emmett McManus (2:13:07.0), Samuel Hart (2:13:32.6) and Fortunato Ferrara (2:13:37.7) in 10th.
“It was hard; it was a fast one from the very beginning,” Veenendaal said. “There was a reduced bunch going up Purg, and then up Coal Bank, Howard sett an unreasonable tempo. From there it was just a race of attrition.”
Local legend Ned Overend finished 15th in 2:15:31.6, just over a second after Ivan Sippy in 14th.
