The Coastal Challenge
Canada and USA Take Stage 1 Victories
Lead Media / 24.01.2012
Canadian Chris Barth takes first place on Stage1 of The Coastal Challenge. This is his second shot at this event.
It was a sunny stage with moderate wind on the rolling hills west of Lake Arenal, which rests on the skirts of the Arenal Volcano. Stage1 is one of the shortest races, preparation for Stage2 which goes from 24k to 62k passing from the Arenal Volcano to the Tenorio Volcano further north.
Roiny Villegas (CRC/Team Elmec) came in third place and continues to be one of the favorite racers to take the eighth edition, it would be his first title if he's able to keep a steady and progressive pace.
Keri Nelson (USA) was the first girl to reach the finish line of Stage1 and this is the first edition of The Coastal Challenge she takes on.
Stage1 had a distance of 24k, a total elevation gain of 1550mt and two checkpoints. It climbed Cerro Chato, an extinct volcano formation and finished on the shores of Lake Arenal.
This year, racers from Australia, Austria, Canada, Costa Rica, Japan, Latvia, México, Sweden and the United States are taking on the more than 220 kilometers at The Coastal Challenge, one of the world's toughest stage ultra distance races.
1. Christ Barth - Canadá - 2:26:07
2. Damon Goerke - Australia - 2:27:15
3. Roiny Villegas - Costa Rica/Equipo Elmec - 2:30:39
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1. Keri Nelson - (USA) - 2:51:47
2. Linda Fuqua-Jones (USA/EE.UU) - 3:30:54
3. Laura Hronik - (USA/EE.UU) - 3:40:34
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