Photo courtesy of Jen Burt.

Hometown: Novato, California, USA
Age: 21
Team: WTB/Cannondale/Shimano/Fox Racing Shox
Discipline: Downhill, Endurance DH, Super D, XC

Ben Cruz is the most recent addition to Team WTB – Wilderness Trail Bike’s factory squad, joining Mark Weir and Jason Moeschler on the WTB//Fox Racing Shox/Cannondale/Shimano Team in 2010 and the Cannondale Over Mountain crew in 2011.

Over the course of a year, Cruz has competed in the 2010 and 2011 Trans-Sylvania Epic seven-day mountain bike stage races, the Whiskey Offroad 50 miler in Prescott, Arizona—choosing to face the stacked field of stiff, XC competition on his Cannondale Jekyll all-mountain machine instead of the more popular 29er option.

Ben shredding the downhill at the Ashland Spring Thaw. Photo courtesy of Jen Burt.

Later that spring, Cruz joined Weir on the podium in Ashland, Oregon for the Ashland Spring Thaw and put in a solid effort in the Ashland Mountain Challenge event. He also just completed the Downieville Classic, placing fifth in the downhill and top 20 in the XC, a significant accomplishment given the complexity of the course. Thanks to substantial snow levels, race organizers were forced to redirect the course while elevated snow melt made the infamous waterfall section both treacherous and fun for those who could charge it without hesitation, something Cruz had no problem doing!

According to the July 2011 Decline Magazine profile on Cruz, it was Cruz’s lethal combination of endurance and being wicked fast on a trail bike that caught his neighbor, Mark Weir’s, eye. Living just a few blocks from Cruz in Novato, California, they would often ride the same local trails, where it became evident that his friend’s fitness and skills would be ideal for enduro events.

To train for the enduro season, Ben puts in at least 10 to 15 hours of trail riding a week with some additional time spent on the road bike to build fitness. “A big part of my core workout is digging,” Cruz explains. “I dig lots of trail and not only is it a good (physical) workout it’s a mental one too!” With a goal to climb a million feet of elevation this year, Cruz will make every race and workout count. “It’s really hard and I’m off the back right now but I’m gonna keep goin’ for it,” adding that he is just stoked to be riding every day. “When I graduated from high school, I told myself I didn’t want to do anything not bike related so every day that I ride is another goal achieved.”

Photo courtesy of Milliman/Cannondale.

The summer race season will provide ample opportunity for Cruz to continue on his quest to climb a million feet and to meet his goals on the bike as he puts his rigorous training to the test, joining Weir in the High Race in Valloire, France for the closing event in the French Enduro Series. After which, he and Weir will join fellow Cannondale Over Mountain teammate, Chris Van Dine, to represent the USA as a three-man team in the Enduro de Nation in Sauze d’Oulx, Italy. And in October, Cruz and Weir will compete as a duo team in the Trans-Provence seven-day stage race.

2011 is shaping up to be an exciting race season for this young, NorCal talent! Season race results below.

• Sea Otter Classic Downhill Competition- 41st Place
• Whiskey Offroad XC – 45th Place
• Napa Valley Dirt Classic – 15th Place
• Trans-Sylvania Mountain Bike Epic, 7-day stage race – 15th Place
• Ashland Spring Thaw Pro Downhill – 4th Place
• Ashland Spring Thaw Cat 1 XC – 1st Place
• Downieville Classic Pro Downhill – 5th Place
• Downieville Classic Pro XC – 17th Place

Weir’s 29er race debut at the 2011 Ashland Spring Thaw XC. Photo courtesy of LM.

The 2011 Ashland Spring Thaw was full of surprises complete with teeth-chattering temperatures and snow levels so high, race organizers had to re-route the XC course. There was even talk of snow the next day at the start of the downhill. The start of the XC bore its own natural wonders, as there was more than one double take when Team WTB/Cannondale rider Mark Weir showed up on a Flash 29 hardtail. For a guy who is almost synonymous with endurance downhill riding, one had to stop and take a gander.

Not one to compromise performance especially on race day, Weir ran Stryker 29” wheels with the new 29” Wolverine 2.2 tire on the front and 29” Bronson 2.2 on the back. The result: a fifth place finish and trip to the podium for the overall. Weir was just 41 seconds off local favorite and WTB-sponsored rider Nathan Riddle (Santa Cruz/SRAM), who came in fourth with a smoking fast time of 1:43:34. Kenny Burt (WTB/Ibis) stayed true to his 26” roots, and finished in the top 10 in 1:47:01 on Stryker wheels and Nano TCS tires.

Ben Cruz chases down Team Chico rider, Aren Timmel in the XC on his 29er. Photo courtesy of LM.

Also making his race debut on a 29er hardtail was Team WTB/Cannondale rider Ben Cruz, who finished first in the Men’s Cat 1 (19-34) event in 1:46:34, seven minutes ahead of the second-place finisher. He ran Stryker 29” rims with one of the new Bronson 29” tires up front and a 29”Nano on the back—a combination he said worked “super perfect.” He explained that the Bronson’s traction handled well on the flowy course while the fast-rolling Nano helped him out on the climb.

Weir on his way to a second-place finish in the Spring Thaw DH. Photo courtesy of Jen Burt.
For the Downhill competition, it was back to the full-suspension 26” format for the Team, with Weir finishing second in 4:15.88, three seconds behind first-place finisher Nathan Riddle. For this event, Weir ran Stryker wheels and tested the new Moto 2.3 AM TCS tire up front with a Bronson 2.1 AM TCS tire on the rear. Ben Cruz took fourth place, missing third by only .03 of a second! Bobby McMullen, despite freezing afternoon temperatures, had a few surprises of his own as he cleared the rock garden and finished the tacky, unpredictable course like a champ! For those who may not know, Bobby McMullen is legally blind and an inspiration on and off the course!
Bobby McMullen is guided through the rock garden in the Spring Thaw DH event. Photo courtesy of LM.
Kenny Burt shredding the DH on Strykers! Photo courtesy of Jen Burt.

Thank you to Echelon Events for hosting another fantastic Spring Thaw event. Rain or shine, you can count WTB in for next year’s surprise party!

Photo courtesy of Jen Burt.

The crowd can barely catch a glimpse of Mark Weir as he blasts by to win the Downhill event at the 2010 Ashland Spring Thaw. Photo by Jeff Anderson.

It was another great year for Team WTB at the Ashland Spring Thaw. They ate deer, drank tasty Lithia water and soaked in icy creeks. Whatever they ate, drank or just plain wallowed in, paid off when it came time to punch in on race day!

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