\u201cI learned to attack earlier this year,\u201d Sturm said. \u201cNot on Shalona, but I wanted to put the pressure on. Aimee is such a strong climber, and it was clear to me when she hit Shalona that she was comfortable.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve been working on my descending and not breaking. After the descent from Coal Bank, I used my momentum and tested the water. Aimee didn\u2019t come with me, and I tried to die out there and hide from her because mentally that can be tough on an opponent.\u201d<\/p>\n
Two-time IHBC winner Mindy Caruso finished third in 2:54:17.<\/p>\n
\u201cGetting on the podium this year is icing on the cake because it\u2019s my first race this year,\u201d Caruso said. \u201cIt\u2019s been a challenging year for many reasons. Love coming here with Team New Mexico and Team Colorado and everyone else. I keep coming up here and have the time of my life and hope to keep coming up here until I\u2019m an old, old lady.\u201d<\/p>\n
The 47-year-old Caruso is from Albuquerque. While Sturm now calls Durango home, she is from Albuquerque, and Caruso was elated for her fellow New Mexico rider.<\/p>\n
\u201cI love it. I remember Sarah when she was a little girl on the back of her dad\u2019s bike riding,\u201d Caruso said. \u201cShe\u2019s always been such a positive and mature competitor. She\u2019s definitely a role model to women in this sport and I\u2019m so proud of her to take the win.\u201d<\/p>\n
Durango\u2019s Emily Jordan turned in a stellar fourth-place finish in 2:55:43. Durango\u2019s Jennifer Gersbach was seventh in 3:03:25, and 16-year-old Durangoan Ruth Holcomb was eighth in 3:06:24. Holcomb will be favored to win the Queen of the Mountain on Sunday when she will also compete in the pro women\u2019s mountain bike race in downtown Durango. The top overall finisher of both races is crowned the overall champion.<\/p>\n McKenzie Winebarger of Durango was ninth in 3:06:24, and Durango\u2019s 15-year-old Lauren Aggeler rounded out the top 10 in 3:06:27. Fort Lewis College\u2019s Tristen Musselman was the top Skyhawk in 12th in 3:10:12.<\/p>\n \u201cToday was super fun,\u201d Holcomb said. \u201cIt was definitely a new experience for me racing road with some really fast ladies, but once I got to the passes, I felt really good.<\/p>\n \u201cI rode with (Aggeler) for a while and we began to catch some people. She was very helpful, and it was amazing to have a teammate. Overall, I\u2019m happy with how I did and surprised as well. I\u2019m super happy for Sturm, and it was so cool to see her win.\u201d<\/p>\n Sturm won\u2019t compete at the IHBC mountain bike race Sunday, as she left town Saturday for a wedding in Albuquerque. She was part of a driving force along with Durango\u2019s Emily Schaldach and Kaylee Blevins to get equal prize pay for the women\u2019s field at the IHBC pro women\u2019s road race this year, and the IHBC matched the women\u2019s prize purse to the $3,000 the men are paid out across the top 10 placers.<\/p>\n The win was special for the 30-year-old Sturm, who remembered walking her bike up Shalona Hill in her first IHBC road race attempt. After a storied collegiate career at FLC followed by a now surging pro career, Sturm was grateful for Saturday\u2019s moment on top of the podium in Silverton and will look forward to more big results across the globe in 2019.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve come a ways,\u201d Sturm said. \u201cI think it just hit me that I finally won the Iron Horse. It\u2019s been a crazy year. I think women have an advantage because we have such longevity in the sport. Pro women mountain bikers winning world cups at age 50. My support from my team has been incredible in getting me to races and experience, and women are just creatures of endurance.<\/p>\n \u201cI think if you just stick with it long enough, you\u2019ll do some cool stuff in this sport.\u201d<\/p>\n