Christophe Sauser of Switzerland scored a powerful victory in the cross-country leg of the Mountain Bike Omnium. On a rugged Rocky Mountain course that climbed above 10,000 feet, the Olympic bronze medalist rode away from the field and completed a solo victory.

Sauser's Volvo/Cannondale teammate, Kashi Leuchs, recovered after a difficult first lap to give his sponsor a 1-2 finish. Colorado's Travis Brown (Trek/Volkswagen) posted an impressive 3rd-place ride, his best result in recent years.

The pressure was then on Volvo/Cannnondale for a victory in the short track race, given the omnium format, which factors both days' races in determining a champion.

World Champion Alison Dunlap (Luna Chix), from Colorado Springs, won the women's cross country, but had to ride a flawless race to fend off a solid challenge from Shonny Vanlandingham (SoBe/Cannondale), who also enjoyed racing close to home. Pre-race favorite Jimena Florit (RLX Polo Sport) started hard but with the altitude eventually blew like a fuse.

"I kept saying to myself, 'We're at 10,000 feet, we're at 10,000 feet, she has got to slow down," said Dunlap of Florit's opening artillery.

"I gave a good example of how you shouldn't start a race at altitude," said Florit, who's beaten Dunlap twice on tough courses. "It was big time blowing, a mushroom cloud."

Dunlap pressed on for the three-lap race. The course featured 1,100 feet of climbing for every 5.5-mile lap. As hard as she pushed, however, Vandlandingham never quit, staying within eyesight of the rainbow jersey.

"A million things go through your head every time you do a race and every time you turn around she's there. You're like, 'Why won't she slow down?," said Dunlap.

"It helps to have someone in reach," said Vanlandingham. "I kind of turned off mentally at the top of the climbs because there's not much oxygen up there; I just let my body do the work."

Dunlap finished just 48 seconds ahead of Vanlandingham. Florit stuck for third. Mary Grigson (Subaru/Gary Fisher) ended up 4th, despite two crashes. Luna Chix got its second podium finisher with Czech Olympian Katerina Hanusova in 5th.

The men's race saw Ryder Hesjedal (Subaru/Gary Fisher) blast off the start line, Kashi Leuchs launch a counter, and Christoph Sauser counter punch even harder.

"I was the first to pop off the back," said Leuchs, who nearly fell apart from the early effort. "I was in 5th and I just saw everyone just pop off the back."

"This course really suits me; where I live it's a 20-minute ride uphill to my house," said Sauser, noting the altitude proved high even for a Swiss rider. "I really didn't know how good I would go. I had just had the flu so I didn't what to expect."

After Sauser cut the deck down to one, the re-shuffle saw three local heroes, Travis Brown, Walker Ferguson (Subaru/Gary Fisher), and Jay Henry (Specialized) regroup and press forward.

"I love racing in Colorado," said Brown, who rose to prominence in nearby Durango. "But you know, everybody has to breathe the same dust."

Ferguson, in his first big race since breaking his collarbone in Europe, rode in second position on the first lap. Having attended high school in Telluride, the young star's knowledge of the course helped him. Unfortunately, a puncture took him out of contention and then a second puncture took him out of the race.

On the second lap, Leuchs recovered and launched a savage attack on Brown at the top of the climb to take second for good. Brown hung for third. In fourth rode Henry, a resident of Vail who finally got a good start position in a big race.

"I skipped two World Cups to come home and prepare for this race," said Henry, who Travis Brown called a "secret weapon." "Being able to start on the second row and with a steep climb at altitude right off the start was great."

Henry came through the wreckage that included several NORBA stars and went past Ryder Hesjedal (Subaru/Gary Fisher). "I'm just happy to be in this company," said a blushing Henry.

Sauser finished with an amazing gap of 3:25 over Leuchs. Then came Brown, Henry and Hesjedal, respectively.

Colorado upstarts were the storyline. Dunlap, Vanlandingham, Brown and Henry took four of 10 podium spots. Deeper down the results, Colorado riders took seven of the top 10 spots in the men's race and five of the top 10 spots in the women's race.

— Courtesy Race Organizers