While organizers work to find the secret to building a good 4X course, this third track again served up good spectating for Saturday evening's large crowd - but also again went to the fastest starter and provided precious little passing.

There were also problems with the hydraulic start gate, as well as timing controversies that saw Brian Lopes (USA, Fox/GT) only qualify 2nd behind Jared Graves (we hadn't heard of him either) and had the gate releasing early. Lopes and Gracia worked on it before the finals (see the photo), and at last, with the light fading, the finals got underway in the evening.

Chausson seemed happy with her race this week, saying "This was definitely mountain biking. I felt like I was in a little downhill run, but it was hard to pass." Chausson had once again beaten all comers, including 2nd place Katrina Miller (AUS, Jamis) in the final round.

"I liked the dirt and the turns," she added "You could slide out and it was fun to ride. The course wasn't perfect, but it's hard to describe a 4X course - we still don't know how to design the courses yet."

Sabrina Jonnier (FRA, Intense Cycles) finished 3rd and Lisa Sher (USA, Chumba Wumba) 4th. "Anne got the gate, and once that happens where they get the jump on you, it's over," stated Miller after finishing second. "I enjoy the 4X; it's nice knowing there are other people there around you - it's a good adrenaline boost."

Miller had arrived in the final run against Chausson, Jonnier and Sher after beating Tara Llanes (USA, Yeti/Pearl Izumi) and Celine Gros (FRA, Morzine Avoriaz) in the second semi final. Gros crashed hard in that run, but eventually rode to the finish under her own power.

With her third straight win in the 4X, Chausson has a huge lead in the overall championship, and wears the Tissot leader's jersey. The men's 4X event had some exciting moments in its five rounds as well. One was a thriller final between some of the sport's best riders in World and World Cup Champion Brian Lopes (USA, Fox/GT), former champions Wade Bootes (AUS, Trek-Volkswagen) and Eric Carter (USA, Mongoose-Hyundai) - and newcomer Michel Prokop (CZE, Be-One).

In that final run Carter got the lead and held it to the end, winning his first world cup of the season after missing the first two rounds in Europe. It was an auspicious beginning to his season, as he beat 2nd place Prokop - while Lopes and Bootes trailed for 3rd and 4th place, respectively.

"It's good to be on top!" exclaimed Carter after his win. "It was a good race tonight, and I think we put on a good show for the spectators. Mont Sainte-Anne is always a prime event, so we look forward to racing here."

Carter had worked his way through some tough competition, including the winner of round 2, Mike King (USA, Haro/Lee Dungarees). King finished second against Carter in the quarter-finals to advance to the semi-finals, but was finally eliminated and went on to win the small final.

Carter advanced to the finals along with Prokop, where they met the top two finishers of semi-final 2; Lopes and Bootes. "It was tight after the first turn, and it took aggressive moves to win," said Carter. "This is my first world cup of the season, and hopefully I can be there at the end - we're coming in to the fast part of the season. But my main focus is the World Championships."

Prokop finished 2nd behind him, matching his previous career's best finish earned last season in Kaprun. "Today was really good for me, and I liked the course more as I rode it," he said.

"You had to have some good luck here and in the 4X," added Prokop. "But I've been doing well in BMX racing also, and I think that helps me." Behind Prokop, Lopes finished 3rd and Bootes 4th - giving the consistent Lopes enough points to retain the Tissot leader's jersey for another week.

With the 4X finished, some riders and industry folks (including the voice of mountain biking Peter Graves) headed over to the Global Racing tent for this week's rider-inspired food party, which was Japanese noodles. Then it was time to party all night, and get ready for Sunday's big event, the XC.

— Ari Cheren, MountainZone.com Correspondent