Pittstop Racing brought three riders to 2026 Canadian XC nationals. They left with seven podiums, including three wins, across seven races. If this were baseball, there’d be some wild stat that I’d be quoting here but, no matter how you look at it, it’s a truly impressive effort from the small, Bromont, Que-based team.

To recap: Mika Comaniuk win the under-23 XCO, his first national title, and finshed second in short track (XCC). Eliane Blais dominated the junior women’s races, winning XCC and XCO. Emilien Belzile won the XCC and was second behind Ethan Wood in the XCO. The trio then teamed up to finish second in the team relay, racing with just three riders against teams of four, and with two juniors.

Eliane Blais wins the junior women’s XCO title two days after taking the XCC championships.
Pittstop Racing: An evolving family

2026 is the fourth year for the squad, with former racer Rebecca Beaumont still at the helm for a calendar of World Cup and North American racing. We caught up with the tireless Beaumont late one evening after she’d finished a full day of work at her full-time job, around which she organizes and runs Pittstop racing.

“We’re very happy,” Beamont says of the teams stand-out weekend in Langford. “It was the first mountain bike national title for Mika, so it was very emotional and he was very happy. It’s very well deserved.”

For Blais, the situation was the opposite. The first-year junior landed in Victoria after some very strong results.

“Eliane had the pressure of winning. She was a little nervous, but she made everything work and she’s very proud she could show what she is capable of,” Beaumont adds. “We didn’t put any pressure on her, but it’s a different mindset to start the race knowing you can win. The whole week, we just kept repeating, be yourself, race how youknow you can race, don’t try do anythign crazy or try have a magical race.”

If you’re thinking that sounds a little more rounded than your average team managers post-race results report, you’d be right. Beaumont’s kept Pittstop small, tight-knit and with a focus beyond just performance. That can be hard to maintain with a changing roster.

“The goal of the team is still to help younger athletes reach pro teams. We’ve had good outcomes with Marin [Lowe, now on Liv Factory Racing] and we’re still close to her. Also Zorak [Paille], we’re very proud to be part of their journey,” Beaumont explains. “So the goal is always trying to find kinds that have potential, but not all the support they could have. I try to have athletes that are very positive, or have good energy together, and are willing to learn. They train a lot, but we talk about being good athletes outside of teh bike. Talking to people, learning to do PR, being grateful and thanking everybody when you go to events and just noticing that people are doing this in their free time.”

Mika Comaniuk on course in Langford.
Teaming up for survival

That’s not just Canadian politeness. Beaumont sees that as setting her riders up for success for responsibilities beyond the bike if they do earn spots on the rosters of larger teams.

For Beaumont, that commitment to helping athletes extends beyond just the Pittstop racers. Even when discussing Belzile getting beat by Wood, she is full of respect for Charge’s young Pemberton racer. “Emilien was disappointed, but he’s also very proud of his race. There’s no shame in being beaten by Ethan Wood.”

Part of that might be being a small team with World Cup ambitions. With Pittstop’s 2026 roster split between Comaniuk, who has a full World Cup calendar, and the two juniors whose opportunities to race are primarily in North America, Beaumont’s split between two continents. Teaming together with several similarly sized Canadain teams, like Pivot Cycles-OTE and Blue Bridge Racing, means everyone has a better outcome with limited individual resources.

“That’s a big challenge. With only me, and only a couple people that sometimes support, it’s been difficult,” Beaumont says of keeping a small squad competitive overseas. “We’re workign toether with Pivot to help each other when we go to Europe and, this year, working with Logan [Sadesky] and Soren [Weselake]’s team, just trying to support each other because we cannot always be at all the events. It’s just all a big group of friends.”

Beaumont, right, with Pittstop Racing Team’s 2024 roseter of Laurie Arseneault, Mika Comaniuk and Marin Lowe
The big show, and a grand farewell?

This week, the Pittstop riders will officially be under the same umbrella as many of those friends, with all three qualifying for the Canadian squad for 2026 UCI mountain bike world championships.

“It’s a big goal for everybody. It’s always a good occasion to show your potential and to be seen by the biggest teams,” Beamont says. “Val di Sole’s a great venue, and one I think suits the three athletes. It’s a lot of climbing, but also very technical.”

It could also be the squad’s last race together as a trio. Belzile heads to Brevard for school in September. Blais will go into CGEP. Comaniuk will continue to race the World Cups, in Lake Placid, and the new Crankworx at Mont-Sainte-Anne.

After four years at the helm, Beaumont says she’s already told the team there might not be a 2027 roster.

“I would like to tell you we have projects for next year, but right now it’s a little bit on the shelf. We’re working to find teams for the three of them for next year. Otherwise, we’ll try to work to support them next year.”

With the industry under pressure, and even prominent World Cup teams folding, she says this season’s been harder to get financial support than in the past.

“We have very strong support in terms of equipment, from Shimano, Lazer, Santa Cruz, Cervelo, 4iiii that have been helping us since the beginning, but we still need to fine more money,” Beaumont explains. That ends up putting more pressure on her. “It’s a matter of finding human resources right now. I’m the staff running the team. But I also have a full time job, so this is all of my vacation time, my evenings, my weekends. I’ve been doing it for four years.”

Emilien Belzile in the junior men’s XCC
An extra-special relay result

Knowing that the project might not continue unless Beaumont could find more people to help, or resources to pay someone to help, made XC nationals in Langford all the more special.

“It was very emotional, but I told them we might not continue for next year,” Beaumont says.

Knowing that made the podium performance in the team relay all the more special. In past years, Pittstops included a fourth rider to fill out the roster. This year, they decided to race as a trio. With two juniors and an under-23, and just three riders against teams of four, they finished second to the power-house Pivot Cycles-OTE squad.

“We wanted to do it as a family,” Beaumont says. “They finished second with only three riders, they were very proud of that”