2002 Year Review
Racer of the Year - Part 4
Rob / 19.01.2003
Marc Laithwaite – ACE in the Pack.
At the end of the 2001 season Tom Gibbs said, “If Marc gets his navigation right no one will catch him� and that’s just what happened. In 2001 he was often to be seen (but not approached) in a dark mood on the finish line, glaring at his map, but last year man and map were in greater harmony and Marc Laithwaite won the solo class of the ACE Races series.
He was pushed all the way as it was intensely competitive, and both Tom Gibbs and Chris McSweeny won one of the 4 races, with Laithwaite staying ahead in the other two. The final count showed him the winner by 34 points from Gibbs, a tiny margin from a total of over 7000. For many slower ACE Racers his speed and the distance he covered were almost beyond belief and when Phil Humphreys’ read the points totals at the prize giving there were gasps of disbelief. There’s no doubt his performance over the series was one of the best of the year.
Marc’s other priority was with Team Saab Salomon and he was a key squad member, racing in 3 of the 5 series races. In both the French Alpine and USA races the team were 5th, though only separated by narrow margins from those in 3rd and 4th, and at the final race in Spain they were 3rd and clinched their place in the Raid Gauloises next year. He finished the year racing with Saab Salmon in Borneo at the Mild Seven Outdoor Quest, where they had a few problems with illness and the organisation of the race, but still came a creditable 5th, a result which made a few teams on the world stage sit up and take notice.
You can read Marc’s profile here.
Norman Dunroy – ‘Stormin’
‘Stormin’ Norm had a long and successful season - he may have raced more than anyone else at the top level in the UK in 2002, often as a key member of Team The North Face. He was on winning TNF teams in Ford Ranger and ACE races, and with them again in Adrenalin Rush. There was an unfortunate controversy over their final position, but whatever their rank there was no doubt the team were the strongest on the course in the later part of the race, having a great time and outperforming everyone else.
He also found time to put in an amazing ride at the Red Bull 24 hour Mountain Mayhem, comfortably winning the solo class. This is primarily a team event, after all how many riders would tackle non-stop 24 hour circuits, but he rode further than many of the teams doing relays! He used to be professional road racer and there are few on the AR scene stronger on a bike.
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