Kabanen, Lintu and Hirvonen are the firsts of the heavy Jaama Winter

Denis Kabanen of the Joensuu Cyclists, Niina Lintu of the Kuopio Cycling Association and Sportsource ION, and Juha Hirvonen of the Niekka Racing Team were the fastest in the 40 km mountain bike race of the Jaama Winter event.

The conditions were difficult due to warm weather and snow and sleet.

"For me, this was my first winter race on a bike. The bike worked really well and the rider kept up. The route was partly challenging. There were a lot of ruts and you had to watch carefully where to pedal. It left me with very good feelings," said the rider on the electric bike in 1:49 of the route: 38 toured by Juha Hirvonen.

Denis Kabanen, who has been involved in winter cycling for more than 15 years, enjoyed himself, even though the conditions were difficult.

Kabanen pedaled on a bike with clearly narrower tires than the other participants. He felt he could drive it in the mud and over bumps.

"It was a really fun day. I was impressed by how well the routes were after a warm week," said Kabanen, who clocked a time of 2:12:44,

"I also liked the 10 km circular route, along which the conditions varied and the route changed from a narrow path to a wider road. This route had a perfect balance between flat and technical sections, I liked it a lot."

Jaama Winter MTB 25/03/2023: results

M15 10 km

1. Eeli Ikonen Joensuu Cyclists 51:11

M 20 km

1. Olavi Kekäläinen 1:56:59

About 40 km

1. Niina Lintu Kuopio Cycling Society / Sportsource ION 3:04:41

M 40 km, ebike

1. Juha Hirvonen Niekka Racing Team 1:49:38

M 40 km

1. Denis Kabanen Joensuu Cyclists 2:12:44
2. Pasi Savolainen Kuopio Cycling Association 2:51:48
3. Topi Pajarinen Joensuu Cyclists 2:56:35
4. Alain Minguet Joensuu Cyclists 3:20:04