Canadian enduro national championships were the final event of Crankworx’s 2023 calendar and, with two Whistler locals taking top honours, wrapped up the week’s festivities on a high note.
On the men’s side, 2022 EWS (now EDR) champion Jesse Melamed reclaims the maple leaf sleeve after a day-long battle with Squamish, B.C.’s Rhys Verner and past teammate Remi Gauvin. On the women’s side, Olympic silver medallist Brittany Phelan showed her speed isn’t limited to snowy surfaces and rolled away with the national title.
Jesse Melamed: From ‘Top of the World’ to the top of the podium
Racing on home turf can be an advantage but it also comes with added pressure. For Jesse Melamed, facing off against a long list of other pros – many also based in the Sea-to-Sky region – there was a little relief mixed in with the joy of winning in front of a home crowd.
“I’m feeling stoked and relieved. It was a big day! For the sleeve, we had really tough competition, Rhys has just been on fire this year. I really wanted the sleeve because I think it’s really cool to represent your country on the world stage,” said Melamed after the race.
The Canyon Cllctv racer’s biggest challenge came from Rhys Verner (Forbidden Synthesis). With one World Cup win to his name already this year, Verner was hunting for his own win in Whistler.
“It was great. I definitely kept him honest on three stages. Stage 3 was so long and the time gaps kind of opened up. I was pretty stoked to be close to Jesse through stages 1 and 2, and then to get a win on stage 4 was pretty cool as well,’ Verner said of the back-and-forth battle. “I was just stoked to keep him honest and make him work him work for it a little bit.”
For Verner, Whistler’s return to long, epic stages like the Top of the World trail were the separating factor more than the cumulative effect of a day of steep climbing.
“The descents were so gnarly and long, I was more exhausted from the downhill than the uphill most of the time,” said Verner. “The Top of The World run was a lot. It was like 16 minutes, that’s a long time to be really focused and really on it and everything.”
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