FBTC Masters = National Champs in Spokane!
Get ready for a three-peat, people! Hopefully they'll encounter better weather in 2009 in Lexington, KY, but the Fluffy Bunnies masters squad seems to just get better with each passing year.
This year in Spokane, they rolled to a 58 - 77 victory over Fleet Feet Racing of Boulder, Colorado despite the fact that Fleet Feet's all-star squad came down from altitude and was led by race winner and trail and mountain running star Simon Gutierrez.
Here's how FBTC's winning team shaped up against Fleet Feet...
Gutierrez (1st, age 42, 33:50) pretty much beat down the whole field in the very cold and windy conditions and was quickly followed across the line by Fleet Feet's #2, James Johnson (4th, age 40, 34:25). Then the team race advantage flipped in the Bunnies' direction as the FBTC 1-2-3 group of Dave Schumacher (age 40, 34:31), Pete Magill (age 47, 34:42), and Christian Cushing-Murray (age 41, 34:45) packed it up in 6th, 7th, and 8th places, respectively. Fleet Feet's 3rd man, Andrew Ames (age 45, 34:52) got across the line in 11th to keep the team race close through three.
At this point, team scores were:
Fleet Feet = 1+4+11 = 16
FBTC = 6+7+8 = 21
Despite great front packs for both teams, the superior depth of the FBTC squad would prove to be the difference. The tight team race came to a quick end as Jeff Ambos (age 47, 35:29) and Kevin Vidana-Barda (age 41, 35:35) crossed the line in 18th and 19th, respectively. Both were well ahead of Fleet Feet's 4th and 5th men, Richard Dissly (27th, age 43, 36:04) and Bernie Boettcher (34th, age 46, 36:44).
Final Team Standings - USATF XC Club National Championship - Masters Men
1. Fluffy Bunny Track Club - 58
2. Fleet Feet Racing, Boulder - 77
3. Bowerman AC - 100