Racers from all over the world converged just outside of Pittsburgh this weekend, meeting up for the season's third U.S. National Championship Series event in Seven Springs, PA. With plenty of action taking place over three days, it made for an excellent weekend of racing under an unseasonably warm spring sun.

Seven Springs is a picturesque family resort in the woods of Champion, the huge compound stocked with bars, bowling alley, alpine slide and – oh yeah – one huge mountain bike race. While conventioneers and their families gawked at the sight of bikes flying down the mountainside, the industry dug in and prepared for two cross-country races and two DH events. Here then, is what went down.

Cross-Country: Travis and Paola Win XC
Action kicked off Friday morning when world cup superstar Paola Pezzo (ITA, Gary Fisher Saab) rode off the front of the women’s field, followed by a steadily powerful performance from U.S. honch Travis Brown (USA, Trek Volkswagen) in a long, tough cross-country event.

With warm sunny skies and modest crowds gracing the course, pro racing got underway with traditional east-coast rock riding. First up were the women who, lining up against multi-champion Pezzo, probably knew they would be fighting for second place in their 2 1/2 lap race.

	Paola Pezzo

Absent were Gretchen Reeves (USA, Catera/Pure Energy) and Jimena Florit-Juarez (ARG, Polo Sport) - down in Columbia for the weekend, fighting for national Olympic spots at the Pan Am Championships and thus missing this round of racing. Plus, the two Alisons – Sydor and Dunlap – were off racing in the HP roadie event, so the remaining podium spots were wide open.

Mary Grigson of Australia took second place behind Pezzo, with a powerful ride that clocked in under two minutes behind the Italian. She and a trio of other women - including National Champ Ruthie Matthes (USA, Trek Volkswagen), Ann Trombley (USA, Airborne/Kore) and Rene Marshman (USA, Moots) – rode together in the first lap, but were soon broken up when Grigson attacked, followed by a battle between Matthes and Trombley. Marshman rode alone in a chase as the front group slowly splintered under Pezzo’s blistering pace.

Each NORBA course has its own special characteristic, and the XC course in Seven Springs is known for its rocky singletrack. The 9-mile circuit is relentless in its rock gardens, full of "baby heads" and sharp boulders half buried in the dark dirt. The climbs are steep, but provide recovery between them so it becomes a matter of survival through the jarring sections. The women raced 22 miles, while the men went 31.

	Travis Brown

Travis Brown rode a smart race for those 31 miles, patiently waiting until the right time to unseat any early-race upstarts. First to go was early race leader Roland Green who, after leading the first one and a half laps, double-flatted and went quickly off the back. Brown had been pacing behind him, along with Kiwi newcomer Kashi Leuchs who was riding his first NCS event after three years as a world-cupper.

Tinker Juarez (USA, Volvo-Cannondale) and Steve Larsen were also riding up front and when Green flatted out, Travis and Kashi went hard at each other into lap two. Brown saw Leuchs falter, however, and went to the lead with an attack from which the field would not recover. By the second lap he put 20 seconds gap on Leuchs, and over a minute on Larsen. Larsen also attacked in pursuit of points, leaving Leuchs in third place as he chased Travis. He couldn’t catch Brown though, and ended the day more than a minute back, with Leuchs in third. Patrick Bower made an impressive ride in 4th, the 19-year-old riding in only his third NCS event.

When the points were added up, Steve Larsen and Ann Trombley donned the gray leader’s jersey for the XC event.

STXC (Short Track Cross-Country):
One day after the long XC race, Paola Pezzo again beat the women’s field by a huge margin in the fast-moving STXC, while Roland Green (CAN, Team GT) took a convincing win in the men’s field.

Weather was again clear and sunny, with plenty of dust whirling around in the afternoon wind. The course, a short crit-style track that can be seen from any one spot near the start/finish, was tough - grassy and partly off-camber. Both women and men raced for about 25 minutes plus three laps, going anaerobic the entire time.

It was no contest in the women’s event, Pezzo leaving her chasers strung out. Rene Marshman (USA, Moots) came in second, chasing alone with Ruthie Matthes (USA, Trek Volkswagen) battling Mary Grigson (AUS, A.I.S.) for much of the race and finally finishing third.

Men’s racing saw Roland Green go out hard and early, shaking Steve Larsen (USA, L.L. Bean / Mongoose) who chased hard but couldn’t reel him in. Larsen landed second, with Marin’s Marc Gullickson taking third.

— Ari Cheren, working the stateside tour for MountainZone.com