Alexander Wetterhall and Jennie Stenerhag won Cykelvasan 2015
Alexander Wetterhall, Team Tre Berg Bianchi, and Jennie Stenerhag, Falu CK, won the mountain bike race Cykelvasan 2015. The gents' winner won by a large margin while the ladies' class was determined through a dramatic sprint.
Today, Cykelvasan 90 was held for the seventh year in a row, between Sälen and Mora and with 12,000 registered participants!
The elite group starts, just like Vasaloppet in winter, as early as 08:00 in Berga by in Sälen. At the first timing checkpoint in Mångsbodarna, a large group of about a hundred cyclists came in, with Alges Maaksimets from Estonia leading the gents’ class.
First across the new 250 metres long and four metres wide wooden decking over the marshes before Risberg, was Calle Friberg, Järfälla CK/Team Scott. A few attempts were made to break away, and first up to Evertsberg, winning the Hill prize, was Ludvig Bengtsson, Team Tre Berg Bianchi. Together with Norwegian Eirik Fiskvik, he was then 37 seconds ahead of the leading group, which then consisted of about thirty men.
This year, the track has been altered to more resemble the Vasaloppet track in winter, and Cykelvasan’s participants could therefore, for the first time, bike up the classic Lundbäcksbackarna slopes (named after Sven-Åke Lundbäcks sprint for the win in 1981). But the group did not break up significantly. Matthias Wengelin, SCS Racingteam, was in the lead in Oxberg, but there were still 26 cyclists within a 10 second span, who then whizzed on in a dusty cloud through the Dalarna forests down towards Mora.
Five out of six previous times, Cykelvasan’s gents’ class has been determined through a sprint on the Vasagatan finishing stretch in Mora. (Though Cykelvasan 2013 was won by Fredrik Ericsson with a margin of 44 seconds.)
But by the last checkpoint in Eldris, Alexander Wetterhall, Team Tre Berg Bianchi, held a lead of eleven seconds. He increased his lead and could pass the finish line 23 seconds ahead of Christofer Stevenson, Motala AIF/Cyclecomponents, who took second place, and third place Matthias Wengelin.
The winner was happy:
”Winning felt great,” said Alexander Wetterhall after crossing the finish line. ”I’ve been here twice before and both times my bike got a puncture, so third time was the charm. It was a few kilometres before Eldris that I gave it my all, and it worked! I’d been able to save my energy during the race and thought my legs had the strength needed, but you never know if it will last. You have to create a gap and then maintain it.”
Ladies
The two favourites, Hildegunn Gjertrud Hovdenak, Norway, and Jennie Stenerhag, Falu CK, shot off and passed the Mångsbodarna checkpoint together. By the Evertsberg checkpoint, Jennie was four seconds ahead of the Norwegian, while Hanna Bergman had caught up and was 16 seconds behind her club mate Jennie. In Lundbäcksbackarna, these three former Cykelvasan winners were very close together.
The question was now who would be the first woman to win Cykelvasan two times? The three remained close in Hökberg, Eldris and into the finishing stretch. Last year, Jennie Stenerhag lost the sprint to Hildegunn Gjertrud Hovdenak, but this year the order was reversed: Jennie Stenerhag got her second Cykelvasan win, in yet another tight sprint, barely ahead of Hovdenak and with Hanna Bergman in third place. (It was Hanna’s fourth podium placement in Cykelvasan.)
When Jennie Stenerhag won in 2012 she didn’t get the victory until afterwards since the first woman to cross the finish line was later disqualified:
”Of course I’m really happy to be the only one who’s won twice,” said Jennie Stenerhag after the flower ceremony. ”This time felt a bit better, since I didn’t stand highest on the podium last time. But now I could get on top and receive the people’s cheers. It feels really good.”
Stenerhag, grown up in Smedjebacken and living in Falun, thought it was particularly fun to win Cykelvasan since it is, so to speak, on her home turf. For 2016 she can aim at being the first to win two years in a row.
RESULTS
Cykelvasan, competition class 94 km Sälen-Mora, gents, 2015-08-15
1 Wetterhall, Alexander (SWE) Team Tre Berg – BIANCHI, 02:44:35
2 Stevenson, Christofer (SWE) Motala AIF-Cyclecomponents, 02:44:58
3 Wengelin, Matthias (SWE) SCS Racingteam, 02:44:59
4 Mehl, Vidar (NOR) Sepura Toyota racing, 02:44:59
5 Friberg, Calle (SWE) Järfälla CK/Team Scott, 02:44:59
6 Gustavsson, Niklas (SWE) Team Tre Berg – BIANCHI, 02:44:59
7 Landström, Johan (SWE) Motala AIF, 02:44:59
8 Bleckur, Lars (SWE) Cykloteket Racing Team, 02:45:00
9 Eriksson, Lucas (SWE) Team Tre Berg – BIANCHI, 02:45:00
10 Maasikmets, Alges (EST), 02:45:00
Cykelvasan, competition class 94 km Sälen-Mora, ladies, 2015-08-15
1 Stenerhag, Jennie (SWE) Falu CK, 02:57:22
2 Hovdenak, Hildegunn Gjertrud (NOR) Sogn CK, 02:57:22
3 Bergman, Hanna (SWE) Falu CK, 02:57:23
4 Thelberg, Emmy (SWE) Härnösands CK, 03:02:52
5 Erlandsson, Åsa (SWE) Varbergs MTB/Haibike, 03:03:11
6 Larsson, Nellie (SWE) CKX, 03:06:30
7J ansson, Ida (SWE) Falu CK, 03:07:19
8 Rissveds, Jenny (SWE) Falu CK, 03:14:23
9 Foss, Marianne (NOR), 03:14:58
10 Bergfeldt, Louise (SWE) Mora CK, 03:16:46
Footnote: Hill prizes in Evertsberg were won by Ludvig Bengtsson, with a time of 1.31.32, and Jennie Stenerhag, 1.36.58
NOTE! See statistics, passing times and all results
Live streaming from the finish line all day
Earlier winners in Cykelvasan, gents
2009 Matthias Wengelin, Cykloteket RT, 2.43.27
2010 Magnus Darvell, Team Kalas/Pedalogerna, 2.39.00 (Record time!)
2011 Jesper Dahlström, Motala AIF Cykelklubb, 2.47.32
2012 Jesper Dahlström, Team Cykelcity, 2.47.20
2013 Fredrik Ericsson, CK Cykelcity.se, 2.43.01
2014 Johan Landström, Motala AIF/SCOTT 2.45.59
Earlier winners in Cykelvasan, ladies
2009 Hanna Bergman, Falu CK, 3.09.05
2010 Emmy Thelberg, Härnösands CK, 2.54.53
2011 Pia Sundstedt, Finland, 2.56.19
2012 Jennie Stenerhag, Falu CK, 3.02.06
2013 Alexandra Engen, GHOST Factory RT/Jönköpings CK, 2.55.37
2014 Hildegunn Gjertrud Hovdenak, Norway, 2.53.44 (Record time!)
Vasaloppet TV broadcasts summaries from Cykelvasan
The whole events programme for Vasaloppet’s Summer Week 2015
Vasaloppet Summer Week 2015
Fri 14 Aug: Cykelvasan 30. 32 km. Start Oxberg.
Fri 14 Aug: Ungdomscykelvasan. 32 km. Start Oxberg.
Fri 14 Aug: Cykelvasan 45. 45 km. Start Oxberg.
Fri 14 Aug: Cykelvasan Öppet Spår. 94 km. Start Sälen.
Sat 15 Aug: Cykelvasan 90. 94 km. Start Sälen. (12,000 entries. FULL 1/10/2014)
Sat 22 Aug: Ultravasan 45. 45 km. Start Oxberg.
Sat 22 Aug: Ultravasan 90. 90 km. Start Sälen.
Sat 22 Aug: Vasastafetten. 4.5–15 km. Running relay race for ten-person teams. Start Sälen.
Vasaloppet Winter Week 2016
Fri 26 Feb: Kortvasan. 30 km. Start Oxberg.
Sat 27 Feb: Tjejvasan. 30 km. Start Oxberg.
Sun 28 Feb: Ungdomsvasan. 3, 5, 7 or 9 km. Start Mora Ski Stadium.
Sun 28 Feb: Öppet Spår Sunday. 90 km. Start Sälen.
Mon 29 Feb: Öppet Spår Monday. 90 km. Start Sälen.
Tue 1 Mar: Halvvasan. 45 km. Start Oxberg.
Fri 4 Mar: Stafettvasan. 9–24 km. Relay race for five-person teams. Start Sälen. (9,000 entries. FULL 22/3/2015.)
Sun 6 Mar: Vasaloppet. 90 km. Start Sälen. (15,800 entries. FULL 22/3/2015.)
