For immediate release
Contact: Gary Crandall, cheqfat@cheqnet.net
Sept. 18, 2004

Brian Matter wins Chequamegon Fat Tire Fest Cable, Wis. – One final surge in the last 100 yards gave Brian Matter of Sheboygan, Wis. a three-second victory over Steve Tilford of Topeka, Kan. in the Chequamegon 40. It was one of the most competitive races in Fat Tire Festival history with five riders finishing within two minutes of each other.

Matter attacked up Mount Telemark, the last climb, dropping Salsa rider Jeff Hall. Tilford responded to the attack, then passed Matter on the final descent in this point-to-point mountain bike race, setting up the final sprint to the finish as Hall faded.

“Tilford is the grand master of sprinting,” said Matter. Tilford, a cagey sprinter with years of experience, is a three-time winner of the event. “I was just glad my legs didn’t cramp,” Matter said. The usually warm temperatures in the mid-70s caught many riders by surprise.

Matter finished the 40-mile off-road race in just under two hours and eighteen minutes. Hall, also a former winner, finished third, trailing the pair by 20 seconds. US team member John Devine finished 5th, a little over a minute back. Last year’s winner Doug Swanson (Trek/VW) dropped off the lead group before Highway OO, 16 miles into the race, and eventually finished 40th.

The Chequamegon 40 top ten overall featured a diverse collection of bicycles and riders. Jed Schneider of Athens, Ga. finished 6th overall three minutes off Matter. He rode a fully Alan rigid cyclocross bike with 38-48 chainrings and sew-up tires. Jesse La Londe had perhaps the ride of the day, coming in 7th overall on a singlespeed, the highest placing for a singlespeeder. La Londe of Madison used a 38-16 gear ratio. And Iowa City, Ia, couple Kim and Brian Eppen placed 10th overall, a bit over six minutes down. They beat all other tandems, including the team of Gene Oberprillar and Joe Parkin, both former winners of the 40.

Travis Brown (Trek/VW) and former Postal Service rider Frankie Andreu struggled to keep pace with the lead group. Both came off after a series of attacks on the Lake Helane loop. “I just cracked. I went as hard as I could for as long as I could,” Andreu said.

In the women’s race, Sue Haywood of Davis, W. Va. caught Subaru-Gary Fisher rider Kerry Barnholt with seven miles to go on a long hilly section of the American Birkebeiner ski trail. Haywood said “Hi” to Barnholt and never looked back. “I knew my pace was pretty good,” said Haywood.

Haywood, who rides on the Trek/VW team, got caught behind two crashes early in the race and chased the entire day. Barnholt, who prefers shorter races, knew that Haywood could potentially reel her in. “I knew she had good endurance – she comes on strong. She was gone before I got my second wind.” Barnholt finished over two and a half minutes back. “I was a little parched,” she said.

Haywood finished 41st overall in 2:32:27.51. Over 1700 riders competed in the 22nd annual Chequamegon 40.

Chequamegon 40 - Men

Bib #	Gender Place	Overall Place	Age Group Place	Name	City, State	Time	Time Back	Pace	Team
96	1	1	M CHAMP	BRIAN F MATTER	SHEBOYGAN, WI	2:17:51.34		17.4 MPH	PCW CYCLING.ORG
176	2	2	1M 40-44	STEVE TILFORD	TOPEKA, KS	2:17:54.80	0:03.45	17.4 MPH	MOOTS/SHIMANO
59	3	3	1 M 25-29	JEFF T HALL	FARMINGTON, MN	2:18:13.17	0:21.82	17.4 MPH	SALSA CYCLES
160	4	4	1 M 30-34	IAN J STANFORD	BOULDER, CO	2:19:09.82	1:18.47	17.2 MPH	PENN CYCLE/TREK
36	5	5	1 M 18-24	JOHN M DEVINE	DIXON, IL	2:19:12.78	1:21.44	17.2 MPH	US NATIONAL TEAM
147	6	6	2 M 25-29	JED SCHNEIDER	ATHENS, GA	2:20:54.96	3:03.61	17.0 MPH	ALAN FACTORY
84	7	7	1 M SS	JESSE E LALONDE	MADISON, WI	2:23:08.36	5:17.02	16.8 MPH	KENWOOD/GUNNAR
98	8	8	2 M 40-44	TODD W MCFADDEN	MINNEAPOLIS, MN	2:23:44.69	5:53.35	16.7 MPH	TREK/VW
175	9	9	2 M 18-24	RUSS TILES	GRAND HAVEN, MI	2:24:01.07	6:09.73	16.7 MPH	SLINGSHOT
157	10	10	3 M 18-24	CHAD R SOVA	SPOONER, WI	2:24:34.60	6:43.26	16.6 MPH	RIVERBROOK BIKE N SKI

Chequamegon 40 - Women

Bib #	Overall Place	Gender Place	Age Group Place	Name	City, State	Time	Time Back	Pace	Team
2212	1	41	F CHAMP	SUSAN M HAYWOOD	DAVIS, WV	2:32:27.51		15.7 MPH	TREK/VW
2201	2	54	1 F 30-34	KERRY R BARNHOLT	BOULDER, CO	2:35:06.67	2:39.16	15.5 MPH	SUBARU/GARY FISHER
2223	3	155	1 F 25-29	KYIA A MALENKOVICH	ST CLOUD, MN	2:45:33.53	13:06.02	14.5 MPH
2218	4	175	2 F 30-34	SARA KYLANDERJOHNSON	DULUTH, MN	2:47:19.30	14:51.78	14.3 MPH	TREK MIDWEST REG TEAM
2246	5	224	1 F 40-44	CATHERINE WALBERG	TOPEKA, KS	2:51:17.02	18:49.51	14.0 MPH	KENDA TIRES
2209	6	254	1 F 35-39	ANNE GRABOWSKI	ST ANTHONY, MN	2:53:28.81	21:01.30	13.8 MPH	PENN CYCLE/NATURE VALLEY
2247	7	287	2 F 35-39	SYRAE WEIKLE	DENVER, CO	2:56:06.35	23:38.84	13.6 MPH	SPORTS GARAGE/TITUS
2226	8	298	3 F 30-34	LAURIE MURRAY	GLENBORA, MAN	2:56:36.25	24:08.74	13.6 MPH
2221	9	301	3 F 35-39	KATIE J LINDQUIST	STEAMBOAT SPG, CO	2:56:44.24	24:16.73	13.6 MPH	MOOTS CYCLE
2206	10	312	2 F 40-44	MICHELLE M FLANAGAN-HAAG	HAYWARD, WI	2:57:31.72	25:04.21	13.5 MPH	RIVERBROOK