Furious3 Fernie, BC 2012 - Day 2

Fernie Riders Julie Kelly and Angie Krasnay still smiling after an epic day!

Canada Day, July 1 2012 in Fernie BC riders awoke to low hanging clouds, wet roads and rain in the forecast. Nothing they haven't seen before, they headed to Fernie Alpine Resort to make the 8:30am start of Day 2 of this year's Furious3 and were on their way to challenging the biggest vertical and distance of the race.

First off were epic rides at Fernie Alpine Resort, including Hollow Tree and Far Out, before heading to the Provincial Park's Verboten - a local favourite for its steep and technical sections. From there they were led to Old Goat and Happy Gilmar (named after one of Ferne's active trail builders and riders), after which they headed out to Project 9 - one of Fernie's most diverse trails with rocky, steep and sweeping sections. With the most technical rides under their belts, racers headed up Hedonism to Mushroom Head, and down Red Sonja. Many hoped this would then lead to town. That would not be the case. Racers were once again to be challenged with Ridgemont trails before finishing in downtown Fernie.

The course was an epic one, and with the on and off again rain the night before and day of, its epic proportions became even greater. Slick roots, thick mud, clogged drive trains, coated tires, soggy shorts... the stories poured in with each rider, yet the smiles remained.

Shawn Bunnin was the first to cross the finish line with an amazing time of 3:05:15. Once again, it was tight at the front with Sloane Anderson at 3:05:24 and Mike Vine at 3:05:58. Evan Plews came in fourth at 3:09:46.

In the women's category, Kate Aardal finished first with an amazing time of 3:32:01 while Mical Dyck coming in second at 3:34:25. Rose Grant once again took third at 3:43:;33 while Melanie McQuaid held fourth at 4:02:55. Full results for all categories are available below.

While it was a challenging day for everyone, the smiles and excitement for the last leg and the possibility of sunshine prevailed. Stay tuned for more race news and reports, and happy Canada Day.