by ALYSSA BOYER
Intern Online Reporter

This weekend cyclists will flock to Banner Elk for the Collegiate Mountain Bike National Championships hosted by the National Collegiate Cycling Association (NCCA).

This event is taking place at the campus of Lees-McRae College and at Sugar Mountain from Friday through Sunday.  Organizers expect the races to draw a crowd of between four and five hundred competitors, and another seven or eight hundred supporters.

Twelve students from Appalachian State University’s cycling team will be racing.  Expectations are high, since the cycling team recently hosted conference championships, where they emerged as the overall winners out of all of the NCAA Division I and Division II schools.

Cycling Team President and senior Daniel J. Wendover has been working hard getting the team prepared and focused for the weekend.

“As team president, I’ve got to make sure everything happens,” he said.

Wendover has been organizing registration and volunteers, who are needed to pass out water bottles and to clean the bikes of the racers as they compete.

The competition includes four events: cross-country, short track, dual slalom, and downhill.  Cross-country and short track are endurance events, while dual slalom and downhill are gravity events.

The eight men and four women from the Appalachian cycling team will be participating in these events.

When asked about his goals for the team, Wendover said, “We want to get the team on the overall podium.”  This would mean finishing as one of the top three teams.

He is optimistic about accomplishing this goal, especially since the addition of women to this year’s team gives them additional points.

“You have to have strong men and women if you’re looking at podium,” Wendover said.

Wendover hopes a few team members will be able to win individual awards.

Wendover said one of the most exciting events to watch is the downhill race, which is being held at Sugar Mountain on Saturday afternoon.

“Guys come flying down on these huge bikes with like eight inches of suspension on them.  It’s incredible,” he said.

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