Specialized Mavericks get racing fix in hills of Chiang Mai
The smooth and hilly roads of northern proved to be a happy hunting ground for the Specialized Mavericks last month, with the team returning with a bag of booty and more importantly great memories from the 2014 Masters Tour of Chiang Mai.
The Mavs had been eyeing the Chiang Mai event for the past fews years, but the race dates hadn't been right. Even in 2014, the race started only four days after the conclusion of the Maverick's traditional "autumn race", the Tour of Matabungkay in the Philippines, but it was decided to split the squad and send teams to both races.
Eight men travelled north, Ben "TimTam" Arnott and Noel "Diggler" Teh competing in the Open division, while the sextet of Richard "Oldish" Paine, Matt "Pony" Lodge, Stephen "Amezzz" Ames, Youcef "Walnut "Cummings, Conan "Boutros" Hales and Alan "Rambu" Grant were entered in the 40s category.
Spirits were high as the majority of the team boarded a Chiang Mai-bound plane from Singapore on the day before the race, but landing in a storm put a literal dampener on things, especially as the forecast for the whole four days of racing was for more of the same.
The heavy rain scuppered plans to recce the climb up Doi Suthep, a mountain which stands as a guardian over the city of Chiang Mai and which would host the closing stage of the race in a 10.6km uphill individual time trial. Instead, the team settled into their base for the week, the Sirinrat Hills Hotel, which while very basic, was clean and had huge rooms, perfect for touring cyclists to spread their substantial load of stuff around.
The Mavs had been eyeing the Chiang Mai event for the past fews years, but the race dates hadn't been right. Even in 2014, the race started only four days after the conclusion of the Maverick's traditional "autumn race", the Tour of Matabungkay in the Philippines, but it was decided to split the squad and send teams to both races.
Eight men travelled north, Ben "TimTam" Arnott and Noel "Diggler" Teh competing in the Open division, while the sextet of Richard "Oldish" Paine, Matt "Pony" Lodge, Stephen "Amezzz" Ames, Youcef "Walnut "Cummings, Conan "Boutros" Hales and Alan "Rambu" Grant were entered in the 40s category.
Spirits were high as the majority of the team boarded a Chiang Mai-bound plane from Singapore on the day before the race, but landing in a storm put a literal dampener on things, especially as the forecast for the whole four days of racing was for more of the same.
The heavy rain scuppered plans to recce the climb up Doi Suthep, a mountain which stands as a guardian over the city of Chiang Mai and which would host the closing stage of the race in a 10.6km uphill individual time trial. Instead, the team settled into their base for the week, the Sirinrat Hills Hotel, which while very basic, was clean and had huge rooms, perfect for touring cyclists to spread their substantial load of stuff around.
Stage 1 – A day for the sprinters
The tour consisted of four stages, three roads races and that ITT. Stage 1 featured a fairly straightforward course of 85km to the north of the city. The profile revealed one hill about halfway in, but averaging only 5 percent and 1.5km in length, the odds were high for a sprint finish.
A distinctive highlight of the race was the long neutralized starts for Stages 1 and 2. Rather than race straight out of the city, the entire field across all the categories rode out to the start line, where two pelotons were flagged off at five-minute intervals. The Open A and B and 30s fields rode together each day, while the 40s, 50s, 60s and Women made up the second bunch.
Stage 1's neutral zone was 30km long and so nobody could have any excuses about not being warmed up. And it stayed dry. While the rain had poured all night and the forecast was for more of the same, the roads were dry in the morning and they stayed that way.
TimTam and Diggler had a torrid time in the first group with the pace of the opening sections electrifying, in no shot part due to the local pro outfit Infinite Singha and another crack Thai squad from CCN. An initial break of around 10 riders went away until the base of the climb at the 40km mark. The Mav duo formed an unlikely alliance with DirectAsia.com to ensure the distance between the leading bunch and the peloton was kept at a manageable level. Both Mav riders made it to the final 20km drag in touch with the re-formed lead bunch, partly thanks to Diggler's super-aero descending technique. The ride to the finish was eventful for the Mav team, with Tim Tam launching a solo break from 10km out, and hanging on until 1km to the finish – the point at which Diggler took over in the bunch sprint, his kick securing an excellent third place.
In the second group, with three recognized sprinters in their midst, the 40s Mavs were happy for the race to stay together, but they rode the first half of the stage aggressively. Walnut was in the first significant move of the day, and the four-man group stayed away for 10km, keeping the peloton on its toes. The hill when it came did cause a selection with only some 15 riders making it over the top together. With five Mavs included, the opportunity was there to drive on and force a decisive break early in the race, but the group lacked cohesion and soon the whole field was back together and heading furiously towards the finish.
A huge seething mass zoomed by the 1km marker but by the time the final few hundred metres were reached the group had transformed into a thin line with Walnut at its head. The Aussie and his S-Works Venge looked set to take the win, but Pony had positioned himself perfectly and nipped out and around to snatch the glory from his mentor. Oldish, whose pre-race prep had been severely hampered by work duties, used his guile and race craft to weave his way through into fourth place.
With the Masters Tour of Chiang Mai following the norm at Asian stage races of recognizing the first five across the line, the podium had a distinctive red and black Maverick look about it. To top off a great morning, Pony proudly received the yellow jersey, the first of his racing "career".
A distinctive highlight of the race was the long neutralized starts for Stages 1 and 2. Rather than race straight out of the city, the entire field across all the categories rode out to the start line, where two pelotons were flagged off at five-minute intervals. The Open A and B and 30s fields rode together each day, while the 40s, 50s, 60s and Women made up the second bunch.
Stage 1's neutral zone was 30km long and so nobody could have any excuses about not being warmed up. And it stayed dry. While the rain had poured all night and the forecast was for more of the same, the roads were dry in the morning and they stayed that way.
TimTam and Diggler had a torrid time in the first group with the pace of the opening sections electrifying, in no shot part due to the local pro outfit Infinite Singha and another crack Thai squad from CCN. An initial break of around 10 riders went away until the base of the climb at the 40km mark. The Mav duo formed an unlikely alliance with DirectAsia.com to ensure the distance between the leading bunch and the peloton was kept at a manageable level. Both Mav riders made it to the final 20km drag in touch with the re-formed lead bunch, partly thanks to Diggler's super-aero descending technique. The ride to the finish was eventful for the Mav team, with Tim Tam launching a solo break from 10km out, and hanging on until 1km to the finish – the point at which Diggler took over in the bunch sprint, his kick securing an excellent third place.
In the second group, with three recognized sprinters in their midst, the 40s Mavs were happy for the race to stay together, but they rode the first half of the stage aggressively. Walnut was in the first significant move of the day, and the four-man group stayed away for 10km, keeping the peloton on its toes. The hill when it came did cause a selection with only some 15 riders making it over the top together. With five Mavs included, the opportunity was there to drive on and force a decisive break early in the race, but the group lacked cohesion and soon the whole field was back together and heading furiously towards the finish.
A huge seething mass zoomed by the 1km marker but by the time the final few hundred metres were reached the group had transformed into a thin line with Walnut at its head. The Aussie and his S-Works Venge looked set to take the win, but Pony had positioned himself perfectly and nipped out and around to snatch the glory from his mentor. Oldish, whose pre-race prep had been severely hampered by work duties, used his guile and race craft to weave his way through into fourth place.
With the Masters Tour of Chiang Mai following the norm at Asian stage races of recognizing the first five across the line, the podium had a distinctive red and black Maverick look about it. To top off a great morning, Pony proudly received the yellow jersey, the first of his racing "career".
The sprinters take the glory.
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Pony wins!
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Diggler delighted with third.
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Stage 2 – Things don't always go to plan
The course for Stage 2 was tougher, featuring a flat start of 20km, followed by a steady rise of some 50km leading into a nasty 3km climb after 70km.
The Open duo had hatched a plan, with TimTam agreeing to work for Diggler to try and create a repeat of the previous day's sprint finish. However, the road often scuppers plans and this one was rapidly jettisoned when TimTam found himself in the key break of the day with three Infinite riders, DirectAsia man Rowdie Loughlin and another from CCN. The six-man man worked well to the base of the climb, which arrived 7km earlier than the road book had promised. But that wasn't too much of a surprise as distances are often out when racing in Thailand. Ominously, though, it had also started raining.
This didn't seem to affect renowned Infinite climber Peter Pouly, with he and the young CCN lad Peerapol dropping everyone with a remarkable display of how to attack a mountain. Pouly duly secured the stage win and the yellow jersey. Tim Tam led the remainder of the break up the hill but the rain turned the descent into a lottery, with both Tim Tam and Rowdie being distanced, and eventually caught by an intermediate group of chasers. Diggler cruised in some time behind muttering something about "the plan" …
Back in group two, with Pony in the yellow jersey, the 40s Mavs were looking to defend the lead if possible, and so the plan was to follow rather than force moves.
But when the flag dropped, almost immediately Rambu and Amezzz found themselves with an accidental gap of some 50m. Feeling mischievous the pair decided to have a bit of fun at their mate in yellow's expense and launched forward. If the peloton had been dreaming, they quickly woke up and the Mavs pair were brought back within a couple of kilometres. Another two-man attack quickly followed but this one was Mav-less and it soon opened up a substantial lead. The Mavs were forced to chase, and a well-drilled quartet of Oldish, Amez, Rambu and Pony rotated well on front and managed to keep the leaders on a (somewhat long) leash.
With the duo still ahead after 20km, the road went up signaling the long steady climb. Amezzzz kept up such a good pace that he unwittingly dropped the rest of his teammates and with them the peloton. As he set about reeling in and joining the breakaway, the other Mavs slowed things on front, setting the scene for a remarkable string of events.
The Open duo had hatched a plan, with TimTam agreeing to work for Diggler to try and create a repeat of the previous day's sprint finish. However, the road often scuppers plans and this one was rapidly jettisoned when TimTam found himself in the key break of the day with three Infinite riders, DirectAsia man Rowdie Loughlin and another from CCN. The six-man man worked well to the base of the climb, which arrived 7km earlier than the road book had promised. But that wasn't too much of a surprise as distances are often out when racing in Thailand. Ominously, though, it had also started raining.
This didn't seem to affect renowned Infinite climber Peter Pouly, with he and the young CCN lad Peerapol dropping everyone with a remarkable display of how to attack a mountain. Pouly duly secured the stage win and the yellow jersey. Tim Tam led the remainder of the break up the hill but the rain turned the descent into a lottery, with both Tim Tam and Rowdie being distanced, and eventually caught by an intermediate group of chasers. Diggler cruised in some time behind muttering something about "the plan" …
Back in group two, with Pony in the yellow jersey, the 40s Mavs were looking to defend the lead if possible, and so the plan was to follow rather than force moves.
But when the flag dropped, almost immediately Rambu and Amezzz found themselves with an accidental gap of some 50m. Feeling mischievous the pair decided to have a bit of fun at their mate in yellow's expense and launched forward. If the peloton had been dreaming, they quickly woke up and the Mavs pair were brought back within a couple of kilometres. Another two-man attack quickly followed but this one was Mav-less and it soon opened up a substantial lead. The Mavs were forced to chase, and a well-drilled quartet of Oldish, Amez, Rambu and Pony rotated well on front and managed to keep the leaders on a (somewhat long) leash.
With the duo still ahead after 20km, the road went up signaling the long steady climb. Amezzzz kept up such a good pace that he unwittingly dropped the rest of his teammates and with them the peloton. As he set about reeling in and joining the breakaway, the other Mavs slowed things on front, setting the scene for a remarkable string of events.
TimTam at the front as always.
First a Thai rider put in a huge dig with an alert Rambu the only one to follow. This new pair tore after the leading trio but just before the catch, another five riders bridged to them, crucially including another Mav, Boutros.
Throw a few dropped 30s riders into the mix and the result was a cohesive 12-strong unit that steadily built a lead as the road twisted and turned higher towards the main climb.
Just before the road ramped up, the group were joined by a rampaging Walnut and the big Dane Henrik Tolstrup. The former had followed when the Dane launched solo from the bunch and the pair took 15km of hard chasing to join the leaders.
Throw a few dropped 30s riders into the mix and the result was a cohesive 12-strong unit that steadily built a lead as the road twisted and turned higher towards the main climb.
Just before the road ramped up, the group were joined by a rampaging Walnut and the big Dane Henrik Tolstrup. The former had followed when the Dane launched solo from the bunch and the pair took 15km of hard chasing to join the leaders.
Walnut and Boutros tackle the wet descent.
Pre-race, somebody had simply described the hill as being double the Stage 2 climb; it was a lot tougher than that. The first ramp was vicious and the group was quickly whittled down to six men, all four Mavs making the crucial selection along with the Tolstrup and Jason Toomey from 4T2. Resident Mavericks boffin Boutros used some strong legs and a memorized spreadsheet to power away from the rest and easily take the KOM prize on offer at the top.
Then came the descent. If the hill had gone up 200m in 3km, it lost 400m over the same distance on the way down. Race organizer Wisut Kasiyaphat had issued a warning about this section at the race briefing, and with the roads wet, the steep, technical descent was now doubly dangerous. A few slow-moving vehicles were thrown into the mix, but the leaders made it safely to the bottom, albeit with a few wobbles, and regrouped for the dash to the line, which lay some 20km away.
With four Mavs in the six, the onus was obviously on the Singapore squad to do most of the work, but Toomey chipped in his fair share, and while Tolstrup simply rolled through rather than contribute, at least he didn't disrupt the flow.
The paceline kept its discipline until 300m to go with Walnut well positioned to take the win when the sprint battle was finally unleashed. Alas, it was the Dane who prove strongest, just pipping the Mav on the line. Boutros followed in fourth, Amezzz in fifth, with Rambu the unlucky man of the six to miss out on the podium. Crucially, however, the sextet finished a minute ahead of the first group of three chasers, with the next group another minute back. Things were looking good for the Twilight Mavs for the GC battle.
Behind, Pony in yellow had suffered an untimely flat. With circumstances of the race having resulted in his four teammates being up the road, there were no wheels to give, and with no sign of the team van, he and Oldish lost a chunk of time before they got a spare. But Pony finished his day in yellow strongly, honouring the jersey by pushing hard all the way to the line.
Then came the descent. If the hill had gone up 200m in 3km, it lost 400m over the same distance on the way down. Race organizer Wisut Kasiyaphat had issued a warning about this section at the race briefing, and with the roads wet, the steep, technical descent was now doubly dangerous. A few slow-moving vehicles were thrown into the mix, but the leaders made it safely to the bottom, albeit with a few wobbles, and regrouped for the dash to the line, which lay some 20km away.
With four Mavs in the six, the onus was obviously on the Singapore squad to do most of the work, but Toomey chipped in his fair share, and while Tolstrup simply rolled through rather than contribute, at least he didn't disrupt the flow.
The paceline kept its discipline until 300m to go with Walnut well positioned to take the win when the sprint battle was finally unleashed. Alas, it was the Dane who prove strongest, just pipping the Mav on the line. Boutros followed in fourth, Amezzz in fifth, with Rambu the unlucky man of the six to miss out on the podium. Crucially, however, the sextet finished a minute ahead of the first group of three chasers, with the next group another minute back. Things were looking good for the Twilight Mavs for the GC battle.
Behind, Pony in yellow had suffered an untimely flat. With circumstances of the race having resulted in his four teammates being up the road, there were no wheels to give, and with no sign of the team van, he and Oldish lost a chunk of time before they got a spare. But Pony finished his day in yellow strongly, honouring the jersey by pushing hard all the way to the line.
Stage 3 – The breakaway day
Attack attack attack!
There was some confusion as to the race distance of Stage 3 caused by a start-line announcement that only the Open A riders would finish on a section of switchbacks, contradicting the race book info. This up-and-down stretch of switchbacks would come after the KOM at the 85km mark, which would now be the finish line for all other categories … but not everybody got the message amid the hubbub of a crowded race start.
What was certain was that the first 60km or so was pancake flat, featuring an out-and-back section of wide highway. Then the route turned left into a national park, gaining 450 metres in the last 20km, with most of that elevation gain stacked into the last few clicks to the KOM.
For the Mavs duo in the Open race, Stage 3 proved to be their finest hour. Bonds were formed and the respect of the peloton was gained, largely thanks to Diggler's selfless effort and mammoth turns on the highway section to bring TimTam to the base of the climb in second place. They were still two minutes behind a breakaway rider from Infinite (the aptly named Constantin Fast), but also some two and a half minutes ahead of the peloton. His job done, Diggler pulled off, leavingTim Tam to finish the job, with what he thought was a defendable advantage. Maintaining his second position to the KOM point, Tim Tam was dismayed to see Pouly and two CCN riders catch him on the punishing switchbacks. However, with the remainder of the peloton nowhere in sight, the gritty Mav hung on to take the final podium slot, and maintain hope for a top five GC placing going into the final day.
In the 40s, with four Mavs in GC contention, the plan was simple. Constantly ping pairs off the front during the flat section in a bid to make the yellow jersey work, while most of the Mavs stayed fresh in the bunch ready for the hills.
The plan started perfectly when Amezzz and Pony fired forward soon after the 8km rolling start. But the dynamic duo were never caught. The peloton did chase but a lack of cohesion and the determination of the two escapees meant that while the gap ebbed and waned, by the time the road turned left towards the hills at kilometre 60, the pair had a lead of over two minutes. With Amezzz an accomplished climber, a dream win for the Englishman was a possibility.
What was certain was that the first 60km or so was pancake flat, featuring an out-and-back section of wide highway. Then the route turned left into a national park, gaining 450 metres in the last 20km, with most of that elevation gain stacked into the last few clicks to the KOM.
For the Mavs duo in the Open race, Stage 3 proved to be their finest hour. Bonds were formed and the respect of the peloton was gained, largely thanks to Diggler's selfless effort and mammoth turns on the highway section to bring TimTam to the base of the climb in second place. They were still two minutes behind a breakaway rider from Infinite (the aptly named Constantin Fast), but also some two and a half minutes ahead of the peloton. His job done, Diggler pulled off, leavingTim Tam to finish the job, with what he thought was a defendable advantage. Maintaining his second position to the KOM point, Tim Tam was dismayed to see Pouly and two CCN riders catch him on the punishing switchbacks. However, with the remainder of the peloton nowhere in sight, the gritty Mav hung on to take the final podium slot, and maintain hope for a top five GC placing going into the final day.
In the 40s, with four Mavs in GC contention, the plan was simple. Constantly ping pairs off the front during the flat section in a bid to make the yellow jersey work, while most of the Mavs stayed fresh in the bunch ready for the hills.
The plan started perfectly when Amezzz and Pony fired forward soon after the 8km rolling start. But the dynamic duo were never caught. The peloton did chase but a lack of cohesion and the determination of the two escapees meant that while the gap ebbed and waned, by the time the road turned left towards the hills at kilometre 60, the pair had a lead of over two minutes. With Amezzz an accomplished climber, a dream win for the Englishman was a possibility.
Amezzz and Tarmac pay for heroic effort
Alas, he and Pony had put too much into their legendary breakaway. Pony was caught first in the foothills, his task done for the day, and then Amezzz was sighted with maybe 10km to go, just as the slopes got a little steeper. It wasn't the first time that the humble Amezzz, a former age-group winner of both the Tours of Friendship and Matabungkay, has sacrificed his own GC chances for the team.
The 15km of rollers did a good job of thinning out the field, and by the time the race reached the final 3.5km ramp to the finish, barely half a dozen riders were left in contention, among them Walnut, Boutros, Rambu and the yellow jersey.
Possibly drained by his heroic efforts on Stage 2, Boutros dropped off the pace slightly within the last two clicks leaving his two teammates to battle the race leader. Walnut set a fantastic tempo on front, with Rambu happy to sit second wheel. With around 2km to go the yellow jersey attacked from behind but the two Mavs easily matched his shift in pace.
At the 500m mark Rambu made his move for the glory, but the great Dane was too strong and he jumped past and clear with the line in sight to take the win. Rambu rolled over in second with Walnut a confused third. Thinking there was more to race and with watts left in his legs, Walnut was understandably frustrated at having not been able to use his formidable sprint.
With the yellow given a two-second gap on Rambu, and Rambu one second on Walnut, the top three were only separated by three seconds going into Stage 4's decisive ITT. Behind, Boutros had distanced himself from the chasers to finish just 32 seconds back from the winner. If he could find the climbing legs he'd deployed in Stage 2 he was still in with a shout.
The 15km of rollers did a good job of thinning out the field, and by the time the race reached the final 3.5km ramp to the finish, barely half a dozen riders were left in contention, among them Walnut, Boutros, Rambu and the yellow jersey.
Possibly drained by his heroic efforts on Stage 2, Boutros dropped off the pace slightly within the last two clicks leaving his two teammates to battle the race leader. Walnut set a fantastic tempo on front, with Rambu happy to sit second wheel. With around 2km to go the yellow jersey attacked from behind but the two Mavs easily matched his shift in pace.
At the 500m mark Rambu made his move for the glory, but the great Dane was too strong and he jumped past and clear with the line in sight to take the win. Rambu rolled over in second with Walnut a confused third. Thinking there was more to race and with watts left in his legs, Walnut was understandably frustrated at having not been able to use his formidable sprint.
With the yellow given a two-second gap on Rambu, and Rambu one second on Walnut, the top three were only separated by three seconds going into Stage 4's decisive ITT. Behind, Boutros had distanced himself from the chasers to finish just 32 seconds back from the winner. If he could find the climbing legs he'd deployed in Stage 2 he was still in with a shout.
Stage 4 – The race of truth
Happy the pain is over.
What a way to finish a bike race; a time trial straight up a mountain. Doi Suthep plays a central role in Chiang Mai's existence, so it was fitting the race would be decided on its slopes. The race book suggested a very tough task awaited the riders, with a course of 10.6km at an average of 5.6 percent gradient.
The competitors riders went off at 30 seconds intervals in descending order within their own categories, with the Open riders setting off last. Before that, an epic battle for the 40s title awaited. Could any of the trio of Boutros, Walnut or Rambu overhaul Tolstrup?
A time trail is about finding the right combo of power and endurance. Go too fast at the start and risk blowing up, go too steady over those first few kilometres and there's a danger of having unused energy left at the end.
Boutros was the first of the three GC Mavs to go and his initial strategy of keeping something in the bank seemed to be the wrong one when an all-out Walnut swept by him within the first few kilometres. Rambu too had Boutros within his sights just before the 4km mark, but the Scotsman soon got a shock when the yellow jersey came whooshing by. While Rambu's attemptm to follow was fruitless, the bold Boutros had enough in his legs to be able to fight a ding-dong battle with Tosltrup all the way to the top. This allowed him not only to pull away from Rambu, he also caught a fading Walnut on his way to claiming third place on the stage with a super time of 34:15.
Tolstrup won again, though, for the third day in a row and was a worthy overall champion. Boutros' fantastic time trial saw him surge to second place on the final GC, some 20 seconds ahead of Rambu, who pipped Walnut by less than a second for third place. Toomey of 4T2 took the last step on the podium in fifth.
With the 40s race over all eyes turned to the Open battle. TimTam faced a tough task as time-trialling machine Nicolas Magnan sat only 22 seconds behind him in sixth place. Both TimTam and Diggler showed their mettle in the ITT, both clocking significantly quicker times than their Mavs teammates in the 40s. Unfortunately Tim Tam's 32:24 secs was not enough to maintain a podium spot on GC, the fifth place being taken by Infinite's Nicolas Magnan, a resident of Chiang Mai and clearly familiar with the Doi Suthep profile. It resulted in a final Open A podium consisting purely of Infinite and CCN riders, however, they were pushed all the way by the plucky Mav duo, and they can expect an even stronger battle next year when the Mavs return with reinforcements.
The Specialized Mavericks will certainly return to the Chiang Mai as the routes, roads and organization were first class. The team would like to send a big thanks to Wisut Kasiyaphat and Fidel Kreuzer for putting on such a fantastic race, and to all their fellow competitors for the great battles on the road and camaraderie off it.
The competitors riders went off at 30 seconds intervals in descending order within their own categories, with the Open riders setting off last. Before that, an epic battle for the 40s title awaited. Could any of the trio of Boutros, Walnut or Rambu overhaul Tolstrup?
A time trail is about finding the right combo of power and endurance. Go too fast at the start and risk blowing up, go too steady over those first few kilometres and there's a danger of having unused energy left at the end.
Boutros was the first of the three GC Mavs to go and his initial strategy of keeping something in the bank seemed to be the wrong one when an all-out Walnut swept by him within the first few kilometres. Rambu too had Boutros within his sights just before the 4km mark, but the Scotsman soon got a shock when the yellow jersey came whooshing by. While Rambu's attemptm to follow was fruitless, the bold Boutros had enough in his legs to be able to fight a ding-dong battle with Tosltrup all the way to the top. This allowed him not only to pull away from Rambu, he also caught a fading Walnut on his way to claiming third place on the stage with a super time of 34:15.
Tolstrup won again, though, for the third day in a row and was a worthy overall champion. Boutros' fantastic time trial saw him surge to second place on the final GC, some 20 seconds ahead of Rambu, who pipped Walnut by less than a second for third place. Toomey of 4T2 took the last step on the podium in fifth.
With the 40s race over all eyes turned to the Open battle. TimTam faced a tough task as time-trialling machine Nicolas Magnan sat only 22 seconds behind him in sixth place. Both TimTam and Diggler showed their mettle in the ITT, both clocking significantly quicker times than their Mavs teammates in the 40s. Unfortunately Tim Tam's 32:24 secs was not enough to maintain a podium spot on GC, the fifth place being taken by Infinite's Nicolas Magnan, a resident of Chiang Mai and clearly familiar with the Doi Suthep profile. It resulted in a final Open A podium consisting purely of Infinite and CCN riders, however, they were pushed all the way by the plucky Mav duo, and they can expect an even stronger battle next year when the Mavs return with reinforcements.
The Specialized Mavericks will certainly return to the Chiang Mai as the routes, roads and organization were first class. The team would like to send a big thanks to Wisut Kasiyaphat and Fidel Kreuzer for putting on such a fantastic race, and to all their fellow competitors for the great battles on the road and camaraderie off it.
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Diggler, Oldish and Amezzz dig deep in the time trial up Doi Suthep.