This Years NORBA's (National Off Road Bike Associations) 24 hour mountain bike national championships were hosted in Wasuau, Wi. Individuals and teams from all over the world came in order to attempt a shot at the epic race.

Competitors compete in a one of two categories including solo, 4 man/woman team and the competitors are challenged to ride the most number of 14 mile laps that they can complete in a 24 hour period.

The race was highlighted by the presence of 6 time world champion Chris Eatough riding for Trek/VW. Chris was on his way to preparing for a 7th world championship and came to Wasau to try and prove once again his is the best at what he does. Chris is known for his short pits and incredible pace. He has been said to be a revolutionary 24 hour cyclist reducing pit stop to 12 seconds and rarely if ever getting off his bike.

In this years race Chris rode his way home to another national tile and finished 226 miles of riding in 19 hours. The next closest contender was Nat Ross riding for Subaru/Gary Fisher. Nat pounded out 212.8 miles in the 19 hour period.

The race had to be cut short for the first time ever due to tornado warnings. Riders rode in blinding rain and lighting starting at about 5 in the morning, after approximately 18 hours of racing. Water was building up on the trail and was so deep in spots that your feet would be underwater when you were pedaling. These conditions sparked many riders and drained other. 24 hours on a bike is a long time and when you are wet it is even longer, one rider said. Neil Swanson riding for Micheal's Cycles turned in quite the opposite remark seeting a blistering pace in the rain and putting up his best lap of the race and one of the best laps any one in the race recorded he simply said "man I live for this".

At nineteen hours the race was called and the soaked exhausted riders returned to there wet camps and cleaned up for awards. Many local area teams placed quite well in the National Championship. With Gary Fisher/Subaru featuring four local racers (Jesse Lalonde and Marko Lalonde of Madison WI, Brian Matter and Tristan Schouten of Sheboygan WI) taking first in the 4 Man Team championship and Micheals Cycles and fitness (Neil Swanson, Bill Livingston of Janesville WI, Cory Gwin of Madison WI and Chris Barron of LaGrange WI) placing fourth.