Vaughn Larsen said he was so psyched he turned in a perfect "Superman seat-grab."

Doll and Larsen, the top two finishers in the pro/expert division of the fourth annual Big Belly Air Contest, say Bellingham is well on its way to becoming the dirt jumping capital of Washington.

"The course is absolutely awesome," said meet champion Doll, a 24-year-old Ferndale High School graduate, referring to the new layout on Puget Street, adjacent to the skate park on the east side of Civic Stadium. "I'm glad Bellingham has finally stepped up and done something like this for the kids."

"This is a really positive thing for the riding community," said runner-up Vaughn Larsen, an 18-year-old Whatcom Community College student from Bellingham. "It's been a long time coming. It's the best thing that could have happened for dirt jumpers."

Doll and Larsen agreed that the new course, built by Ram Construction, is the best between Seattle and Vancouver, B.C.

Doll won with 181 points on a 200-point scale, claiming $100 in prizes.

"The highlight was when I performed an 'x-up,'" Doll said. "That's when you jump with the handlebars in the opposite direction. I got excited when I got to the top of my jump and just threw the bars the other way. I'm sure glad the judges noticed."

Larsen finished a close second, nine points behind Doll, thanks in part to his "Superman seat-grab."

"That's when you extend your body flat, like Superman flying, and grab the seat," Larsen said. "It's one of my best tricks."

Not all the competitors were always so skilled. The crowd gasped every time a jumper would take what looked like a nasty tumble onto one of the imposing hills.

"It's safer than football," Doll said. "I've been doing this for nine years, and I've taken some nasty falls. But I've never broken anything. The worst thing that has happened to me has been a lacerated kidney."

"I think it's safe," Larsen said. "You learn how to fall when you ride bikes like this."

Spencer Baldwin of Bellingham finished third in the six-man field with 166 points, followed by Josh Maurer of Abbottsford, B.C. with 164, Trevor Louviere of North Bend with 159 and Cameron McVicker of Ferndale with 156.

Nick Schwarzmiller of North Bend topped the four-man amateur field, followed by Taylor Ross of Maple Ridge, B.C., Seth Miner of Ferndale and Daniel Penrod of Bellingham.

"I'd love to see women enter this," said co-organizer Ben Cashman of Bellingham. "I know of only two women who compete in dirt jumping."

Co-organizer Mark Peterson of Bellingham agreed with Cashman that it was a successful first event on the new track, especially considering that two events in British Columbia conflicted with the competition. Big Belly Air previously was held on ramps.

"I'm glad for the spectators, because they get a chance to see something new in Bellingham," said Doll, a gas pipe installer for Northwest Energy Systems. "The people don't just have to watch it on TV."

Doll is one of the oldest dirt jump competitors. Does the sport keep him young?

Three-year-old Holden Berg had a good excuse, though, for sleeping through his mother's women's pro/open victory Sunday under a shady tree. He earlier finished a youth race as the youngest competitor.

Holden's grandmother, Sue Isaacson, held up the cheering end for Kristi Berg. But then, she knows what cheers are all about - she once was one of the few women who raced hydroplanes.

Berg, a 28-year-old former downhill pro cyclist from Marysville, captured the feel of the 12th annual event with her family's participation. All that was missing was her husband, Chad Berg, an expert cyclist himself but sidelined Sunday because of his job as a firefighter.

"(Sunday) was a wonderful day, winning and having Holden here, even if he was asleep," said Kristi Berg, who has won dozens of races in her 10-year career. "Usually it's, 'Go, Mom, go!' from Holden.

"Hey, we're a real cycling family. Having a child makes cycling special. I think I'm faster now than before I had a kid."

Berg took time to praise the first three pro men - Andrew Kyle of Vancouver, B.C., Russell Stevenson of Seattle and Jason Jablonski of Wenatchee.

"They just fly by, they're so fast. But they're always so polite about it on the trail," she said.

Kyle, 25, has been mountain biking for five years and has won more than 20 races. He set an unofficial course record of 1 hour, 40 minutes, 30 seconds as the fastest of about 150 entrants in all the divisions combined.

"It was an amazingly fast course," he said of the perfect racing conditions on the 3.4-mile expert loop, including 800 feet of climbing per lap. "This was my second time in the race. Last time, I finished about 15th.

"My only worries were that this fast guy (Stevenson) would race right by me. My only problem was having to remove a stick (from the rear wheel assembly). I was a little worried about going flying into the bushes, which can happen when you get up too much speed around a corner, but that never happened."

Stevenson, 28, is a pro road racer who does mountain biking for fun. He finished a little less than a minute behind Kyle.

"Andrew was much smoother and faster in the technical parts of the race," Stevenson said.

The technical aspects included plenty of switchbacks, climbing and vegetation.

"It was awesome, just a fun course," said Jablonski, 30.

Women's pro runner-up Maribeth Evezich of Seattle and third-placer Pamela Robertson also praised the course.

"It's one of the best courses I've ever raced on," Evezich said. "It's a classic mountain biker's course, with everything you could want. I love it."

Robertson, 36, moved to Bellingham seven months ago from British Columbia. She was inspired to enter her first race in five years.

"I'm going to race here every year from now on," Robertson said. "The course is really hilly and fun. I'm a total roadie when it comes to biking. It's good for the city to know about this."

Race organizer Mark Peterson said it was a day of increased interest for the WHIMP Fest (Whatcom Independent Mountain Peddlers), with about 50 more entrants than last year.

"We're the oldest continuously run mountain bike race in the state," he said. "For a lot of people in Whatcom County, this is the one mountain bike race a year they do."

Peterson likes to throw in new wrinkles. He told the crowd that next year, they'll even start a one-lap race backwards.

PADDEN MOUNTAIN PEDAL

Sunday

Men

Pro/open - 1. Andrew Kyle; 2. Russell Stevenson; 3. Jason Jablonski.

Expert open - 1. Andrew Leese; 2. Derek Jordan; 3. Ryan Rickerts.

Junior expert - 1. Nathan Bannerman; 2. Shawn Obra.

Expert 19-29 - 1. Jason Leber; 2. Tom Birk.

Expert 30-39 - 1. Beau Whitehead; 2. Michael McAuley; 3. Arthur Fitzpatrick.

Expert 40-plus - 1. Jeff Cummings; 2. Randy Iddings; 3. Justin Bannerman.

Junior sport - 1. Luciano Worl (4 laps); 1. Steven Tauscheck (3 laps).

Sport 19-29 - 1. Matt Vanselow; 2. Luis Rojas; 3. Brock Johnson.

Sport 30-35 - 1. David Cook; 2. Jack Hardy; 3. Byron Grubbs.

Sport 40-plus - 1. Rick Davies; 2. Gary Berklund; 3. Art Tuftee.

Youth 10-12 - 1. Eric Obra; 2. John Dennis; 3. Clayton Cummings.

Youth 13-15 - 1. Zachary Johnson; 2. Galen O'Moore; 3. Tommy Chisholm.

Beginners 30-39 - 1. Joe Martin; 2. Robinson; 3. Tom Swetish.

Beginners 40-plus - 1. Tom Chisolm; 2. Ron Kocor; 3. Nando Benish.

Single speed - 1. Greg Heath; 2. Mike Hammer; 3. Brent Larson.

Free ride - 1. Josh Seylor; 2. Russ Barlow; 3. John Pitton.

Women

Pro/open - 1. Kristi Berg; 2. Maribeth Evezich; 3. Pamela Robertson.

Sport 19-29 - Jill Kelley.

Sport 30-plus - Jodi Hess.

Junior beginners - 1. Freya Fennwood. 30-plus beginners - 1. Katie Sokocik.

Youth 10-12 - 1. Meridien Rhode.