Wade Bootes: Official Web Site

WADE'S JOURNAL

July 8th

Jeep King of the Mountain
San Luis Obispo , CA. –July 8, 2006

The Madonna Inn was the host of Round 1 of the Jeep King of the Mountain World Championship Series this past weekend in San Luis Obispo , California . With thousands of race enthusiasts on hand from across the Central Coast area were met with blue skies, ideal temperatures and action packed racing that resulted in several wipe-outs and numerous photo finishes before the outcome was decided. At the end of the day, Prokop, the event's defending World Professional Champions, held off hid rivals to earn the top spot on the podium . Here is how the results unfolded for TeamWBR.

Bootes made a quick trip to California in hopes to regain his World Championship crown that he lost by 0.2 of a sec to Michal Prokolp last season. In qualifying, Bootes managed to take 3 rd spot even though he has not ridden his Mountain bike since the National Championships in Feb due to the hectic BMX schedule. In the first round Bootes had a clean sweep again Mike King to transfer to the semi final against Brian Lopes. Lopes took the first race of two with Bootes on the charge in the second. Lopes again got the start which seen Bootes going for a move that just did not come through which seen Lopes transferring to the final again Michal Prokolp, leaving Bootes racing against Eric Carter for 3 rd and 4 th . Carter took the first round by 0.46 of a sec. In the second round Bootes had the hole shot and looked good to take the 3 rd position overall. In the last corner Bootes slid out which allowed Carter to catch up. Bootes still won by 0.31, which meant EC won overall by 0.15 of a sec to take the final podium spot.

Adding to the intrigue of the head-to-head match-ups featuring the sport's top names was the racecourse on which they competed. The exclusive “Y” course utilized by the Jeep King of the Mountain Series, combines the two most dramatic and popular forms of mountain bike racing into one unique discipline. Competitors begin the race on separate sides of the course (the prongs of the Y) before converging midway into a single course (the crux of the Y). In the bottom section, racers must navigate a series of banked turns, tabletops, step-down jumps and rollers before the track climaxes with an all-out sprint to the finish. The Y has been described as the ultimate format for mountain bike racing, as the overall winners must have a diverse set of skills to win the coveted title of World Professional Champion.

World Professional Champions are crowned based on a system of cumulative points earned throughout the Jeep King of the Mountain season. In addition to competing for the coveted overall title, the racers are battling for a share of the richest cash payout in the sport, topping $100,000, and the keys to a new 2007 Jeep Compass.

Having completed this first leg of competition in San Luis Obispo , the Jeep King of the Mountain Series will continue its tour to some of the most spectacular, scenic outdoor havens in the U.S. The Mountain Biking World Professional Championships will resume in Elkhart Lake , Wis. , on Aug. 12, before culminating with the grand finale on Sept. 3 in Beaver Creek , Colo.

Each event in the 2006 season will be televised to a national audience on CBS Sports, representing the most extensive national coverage offered to professional racing in recent history. The Mountain Biking World Professional Championships from San Luis Obispo will air on CBS Sports on Aug. 13, from 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. EST.

Bootes is now heading down to Adelaide to catch up with the Australia BMX team before they head to Brazil this weekend to compete at the BMX World Championships.

MEN'S FINAL STANDINGS

Michal Prokop – Czech Republic

Brian Lopes – San Clemente , Calif. ,

Eric Carter – Temecula, Calif.a

Wade Bootes – Gold Coast , Australia

Chris Powell – Carmel Valley , Calif.

Mike King – San Diego , Calif.

Travis Collins – San Luis Obispo , Calif.

Brian Schmith – Lancaster , Calif.