Ear to the ground:

"God-damned stripper poles."

– Recent wedding attendee explaining a shoulder injury

Road Apple warriors

One of the area's oldest, if not storied, mountain bike races took another lap last weekend. The 32nd annual Road Apple Rally took place Sat., Oct. 5, in Farmington, with local riders out in full force.

Durango Olympian Todd Wells defended his 2012 title as King of the Road Apple, wiping up the 30-mile course in one hour, 42 minutes and 55 seconds. Albuquerque’s Damian Calvert was close on his wheels, finishing a minute and 37 seconds later, with Ned Overend showing he's still a freak of nature, coming in 41 seconds behind to clinch third.

Overend, at 58 years young, reportedly gave Calvert, 18 years his junior, his money's worth.

"He was riding that bike like a 15-year-old on a BMX track," Calvert told the Farmington Daily Times.

Durango was also well represented in other divisions, with FLC grad Sarah Sturm finishing first in the womens, with a time of two hours, six minutes and 37 seconds. She was two minutes and 42 seconds ahead of second place finisher Brianne Marshall, also of Durango.

In the pipsqueak division, 12-year-old Devo teammates Madeline Robbins and Sadie Schafer took first and second for the girls, respectively, split by mere nanoseconds. For the boys, Devo riders Wiley Corra and Nick Unkovskoy, both 11, battled it out for first and second, again separated by a thread of tire tread.

A shot at the title

And speaking of local riders, Fort Lewis College has chosen the team that will represent the Skyhawks at the upcoming 2013 USA Cycling Collegiate Mountain Bike Nationals at Lees McRae College in Beech Mountain, N.C., on Oct. 25-27.

The team will be seeking its ninth consecutive Collegiate MTB title and 18th overall. FLC cycling manager Dave Hagen said choosing the nationals team was a tough choice. "These are some of the toughest decisions that the coaches, Chad Cheeney, Elke Brutsaert, Justin Biser and Lucas LeMaire, ever have to make simply because there are so many talented riders," Hagen said. 

The 16 riders who will be making the trek East are: Brittany Clawson; Becky Gardener; Meghan Kane; Leila Carrillo; Adam Digby; Zach Graveson; Phil Cowan; Brian White; Lauren Catlin; Sofia Gomez Villafane; Liz Schwab; Sage Kitson; Payson McElveen; Stephan Davoust; Garrett Lundberg; and Michael Sampson. This year, the Skyhawks have two returning National Champions: Catlin (XC, ST) and Clawson (DH).

The Nationals team will complete in a variety of disciplines, including: gravity (downhill and dual slalom); endurance (cross country and short track); and team relay, a new event that does not count in overall points. The Skyhawks are primed and ready after last weekend's showing in Grand Junction at Colorado Mesa's home meet. The Skyhawks won the Rocky Mountain Collegiate Cycling Conference's overall title, beating out such teams as the University of Colorado, Colorado State University and the University of Wyoming.

"Having such good competition in the RMCCC is great preparation for the National competitions against not only top teams for the RMCCC but teams from perennial national powerhouses Marian University, host Lees McRae College and Lindsay Wilson College," said Hagen.

To follow the action, go to the team's blog at http://cycling.fortlewis.edu, or follow them on Facebook or Twitter @FLCCYCLING. Official results will be posted on usacycling.org.