Kenda Titus Hayes 1st at 12 hours of Tsali17 May
Bryson City, NC, May 17th, 2008 - Danielle Musto traveled south this past weekend and recorded her first ultra-endurance win for 2008 at the 12 Hours of Tsali. Her words tell the story best:
This past weekend I traveled down to Bryson City, North Carolina to compete in the 12 hours of Tsali. The race promoter does a super job of organizing the event and the 10 mile course is a nice mix of hills and winding single track.Bryson City saw rain showers in the days leading up to the race, resulting in sloppy conditions in the first few laps. Following a short Le Mans start I worked for the first half of my race to ride a consistent pace. As the race progressed I switched between my Titus Racer X and Titus Exogrid Hardtail, both equipped with Kenda Karma UST tires, which handled the mud very well. My new Hayes Stroker brakes and Manitou fork were also a huge help on Tsali’s slippery and rough cut singletrack.
As the race progressed the sun began to shine and the trail dried out. I kept my laps times right at 60 minutes with rolling pit stops to grab fresh hydration packs filled with Power Bar Endurance formula. I had lapped the entire women’s field by the halfway point in the race, and continued to move up in the solo men’s field.
Just before dark I pitted to mount my lights. My pit crew informed me that I had moved into 6 place overall against the solo men. For the next few laps I kept my focus on maintaining a steady pace. I was able to pick off a couple more of the solo men. I finished with 11 total laps in first place in the Solo Womens’ division and fourth place overall. Only 3 solo men bettered my performance.
Until the next race-
Danielle Musto
Team Kenda Titus Hayes
