In March of 2009, Senate Bill 102 passed the Utah State Legislature making available a “Share the Road” special group license plate. The Bill was sponsored by Senator Wayne Niederhauser and co-sponsored by Representative Todd Kiser. In order to get the bill before the legislature, Utah cyclists, Bonneville Cycling Club, and Bike Utah raised $18,000 to demonstrate interest among the cycling community. This money was used to purchase 2500 plates for distribution throughout all of the Utah DMV offices.
During the 2011 legislative session, House Bill 206 entitled “Special Group License Plate Amendment” was passed. This law requires that each special group license plate have at least 500 issued plates for it to remain in the DMV inventory beyond January 1, 2012. It was sponsored by Representative Wayne Harper and co-sponsored by Senator Kevin Van Tassel.
As of August 2011, the DMV has issued 417 Share the Road license plates. In order for Utah to maintain this special group license plate, 83 more Share the Road license plates will need to be issued prior to 2012.
Utah is the 17th state to adopt a “Share the Road” license plate. Other states include Washington, Oregon, Texas, Colorado, Oklahoma, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Ohio, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Mississippi, and Maryland.
The license plate has an annual fee of $25 that goes to bicycle advocacy. Vehicle owners can switch over to this special group license plate at anytime even if their vehicles registration is current. The license plate is available at all DMV offices throughout the state. For more information on the plates, visit: http://dmv.utah.gov/licensespecialplates.html#sharetheroad. The license plate is a great way for Utah vehicle owners to encourage motorists and cyclists to share the road.
Money raised through the annual fee goes to non-profit statewide bicycle advocacy that promotes education, trail and road accommodations, law enforcement, legal resources, commercial development, and cycling as a part of a healthy lifestyle. Funds will also ensure that “Share the Road license plates will remain available at DMV’s throughout Utah.
The Dixie Mountain Bike Trail Association (DMBTA) along with DocUtah would like to invite everyone to Southern Utah to enjoy a showing of the bikeumentary, Pedal Driven. The showing will take place September 16th at 8 p.m.
The film showcases trailbuilding and the movement from illegal trailbuilding to partnerning with land managment to build sustainable trails.
There will be a Pre-Show celebration starting at 6 pm and consists of live music, raffle drawings, and an expo of bike related awesomeness. It will definitely be the place to be that Friday for everything bike.
The screening of Pedal Driven will be proceeded by a sampling of local bike film talent. If you have a film you would like to submit for consideration please email [email protected]. After the screening of Pedal Driven the film makers will be available for a Q & A.
And then the fun continues.
After the show, there will be a group night ride on some of our local trails. The exact route hasn’t been determined yet but will be fun for the advanced and rideable for the novice. Bike parking will be provided at the theater. After the ride, everyone is invited for a social at the Red Rock Service Center to help you wind down and let everyone tell their stories of how awesome the ride was.
Tickets are available for purchase at Over the Edge Sports in Hurricane or at Red Rock Bicycle Co. in St. George. Tickets purchased early are $10, four of those bucks will go directly to the DMBTA to help support the growing bicycle community in Southern Utah.
The happenings will all start at 6 pm at the Electric Theater in St. George. The theater is located at 68 East Tabernacle in downtown St. George.
More information on the film is at pedaldriven.howellatthemoon.com.
More information on the film festival is at docutah.com.
Unlike many big races, the Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah seeks to reward its own. By offering a Best Utah Rider jersey, sponsored this year by Miller Lite, the Tour of Utah hopes to keep Utah cyclists interested in the race and competitive throughout.
[Editor’s Note: As the Tour of Utah has climbed the UCI ladder, the Best Utah Rider competition was eliminated, reflecting the race’s increasing international status.]
BMC’s Jeff Louder wearing the Miller Lite Best Utah Rider jersey during the Stage 3 Time Trial, at the 2011 Tour of Utah. Photo by Dave Iltis.
This year [Editor’s Note: 2011], only five people were eligible for the honor. Favorites Levi Leipheimer and Dave Zabriskie, because they no longer maintain Utah residences, were not included in the race for the jersey and that left Salt Lake City natives Jeff Louder (BMC), Reid Mumford (Kelly Benefits) and Chase Pinkham (Bissell) fighting it out with new Utah residents Tyler Wren (Jamis-Sutter Home) and Evan Hyde (RealCyclist.com) as they hit the Wasatch Front roads and mountains.
Wren grabbed the jersey first based on a strong opening prologue time of 4:16 that left him in ninth place overall and just 11 seconds off the pace. Louder was just six seconds back.
Wren managed to hold on to the jersey through Stage 1 in Ogden and Pinkham, who crashed earlier but fought back to finish well, maintained his spot just 26 seconds back.
Stage 2 proved to be problematic for Wren, unfortunately, as he was involved in a crash with just a few kilometers left to go. The accident left his rear wheel bent and barely rideable. That cost him valuable time and allowed Louder to claim the Miller Lite Best Utah Rider jersey.
“It’s something I’m proud of,” Louder said. “It’s kind of bittersweet because Tyler had some trouble out there, but that’s bike racing.”
Louder fought off the best efforts of the field during the Stage 3 time trial and held his own during Stage 4 in Salt Lake City.
With a nice payday associated with the jersey, Louder stuck with the overall leaders through most of the decisive Stage 4 and pulled away up Little Cottonwood Canyon to maintain his grip on the jersey with an edge of 2:40 over Wren.
Pinkham suffered through Stages 4 and 5 and finished third among Utah riders at 19:05 back. Mumford finished 33:07 back and Hyde, riding in support of GC hopeful Francisco Mancebo throughout the race, was 40:00 back when he finished the race.
By Dr. Michael Cerami – As part of the medical team for the Tour of Utah, I was hoping for a good race that kept the riders injury free. Treatment for the athlete in these races generally falls into two categories: emergent care for accidents that happen on the race course and injury treatment performed at the host hotel medical suite. Different physicians are available for each category.
The Team at the prologue. Photo: Dave Iltis
Dr. Ken Yonemura, the medical director, stated that it was a testament to the quality of the riders in a UCI 2.1 race that we only had a few crashes. The first on Stage 1 at the end to the second lap, where he had to get Chase Pinkham (Bissell prior Ski Utah rider) back on his bike after some road rash (he promptly finished 3rd in the field sprint to take 8th for the day). Stage 2 had two successive crashes in the last 5k to the finish but all of the riders were able to finish and only 4 needed bandaging. There was also the most dramatic crash (albeit not involving riders) with Medical Moto 1 on the Alpine Loop. Both riders walked away from the crash despite totaling a BMW motorcycle.
The medical team also supplied on-bike support for the Ultimate Challenge and the only medical incident occurred 18 miles from the start with more road rash. Ken and his wife Grace rode down the Alpine Loop on the tandem and hit 61 MPH on the Suncrest descent. They also supported the VIP fun ride in Park City with Eric Heiden & Bob Roll on Friday morning August 12th prior to the time trial.
The level and budget of the teams dictated what kind of support would be needed as some larger international teams such as Radio Shack and Garmin Cervelo have budgets to transport support staff whereas smaller teams need all the help they can get.
In my experience, it doesn’t matter what size team it is, all riders put themselves on the line 100% every day to either: a) keep the status they worked so hard to attain or b) to scratch and claw their way up the food chain to get in a break and possibly win a stage or finish high in the overall GC and get recognized.
Bicycle racers push hard day in and day out and are constantly on the edge of what the body can tolerate. When these limitations are exceeded there are eventual breakdowns that need to be fixed quickly. It’s also important for the treating physician to find distortions or problems that are non-symptomatic or sub-threshold in order to prevent future injury as well as enhance performance.
I saw athletes from 5 teams and provided a variety of services including chiropractic adjustments, Cold Laser therapy, extremity manipulation, Rock-taping and Frequency Specific Microcurrent. The riders were very thankful for all the help they received and it was exciting for me to watch their progress the following day secretly hoping they would ride strong and finish well.
Dr. Cerami works on a Spider Tech rider at the time trial. Photo: Kandy Ranae
As expected, as the race advanced there were more and more athletes seeking help. I worked Wednesday through Saturday night at the medical suite treating a variety of problems including hip pain, knee and foot pain as well as neck shoulder and back problems. I also saw a variety of officials from the UCI, Cycling USA, members of the race promotion management staff as well as motorcycle riders. An added treat was being able to have the evening meal with the teams at the end of the day.
I had the most fun on Friday at the Miller Motor Sports Park for the Time Trial. I got there after office hours and was able to pre and post treat a number of riders in the medical bay as they had plenty of time and easy access to me.
The medical team comprised physicians from many backgrounds and included: The medical director; Dr. Ken Yonemura, Dr. Jonathan Guenter, Dr. Brad Rockwell, Dr. Ellen Guthrie, Dr. Casey Jowers, Grace Noda MPAS, Trevor Leavitt EMT, Fernando Rivero EMT, Corey Ames NP, Jason Ball EMT.
Just like the race itself, what goes on behind the scenes takes constant attention to every possible detail. A race like this couldn’t happen without all of the passion and support of the volunteers, staff, and sponsors. I feel fortunate to be a part of this event every year and get excited to see our community pull together to host such a wonderful event.
Dr. Michael Cerami is an avid cyclist and sports chiropractor. He operates Utah Sports and Well- ness located at 1550 East 3300 South in Salt Lake City. More information can be found at www. UtahSportsandWellness.com
If the morning chill brings back memories of dirt, mud, sweat and the pungent smell of embrocation then you my friend must be a fan of cyclocross. Wanting to fill a cyclocross void in Utah County and at the same time get in some training rides after the road season has ended, Orem’s SBR Triathlon bike shop has started a new early season mid-week cyclocross series. Every Tuesday from Aug. 31 – Oct. 18th you’ll be able to get your cyclocross fix and get in peak shape for the Utah Cyclocross Series. The series started off well with 38 people lining up for the first race. Cyclocross Pro Jonathan Page even showed up for the first race. If you’ve always wanted to give Cyclocross a try, SBR even has Blue Norcross bikes to demo at the races. For complete information, series info at http://www.facebook.com/sbrcyclocross
Location: Canyon River Office Park – mouth of Provo Canyon off 800 S. in Orem
Time: B and C classes 6:10 pm. A class 7:00 pm.
Cost: $15
Raffle prizes at each race and a chance to win a Blue Norcross frame at the end of the season.
(Fruita, CO) – The Trek Dirt Series will be bringing its instructional mountain bike camp to one of off-road cycling’s promised lands; The Kokopelli Trailhead of Fruita, CO the weekend of September 24-25. The women’s-only camp is a full weekend designed to help riders of all levels, from beginner to expert, hone their mountain biking skills in a safe, educational and fun environment and will include morning skill development sessions and afternoon rides to incorporate new techniques and explore local trails. The 2-day camp features some of the continent’s most experienced female coaches and will include access to the trail, bikes, food, and more.
“These camps are designed for women and coached by women. It’s as educational an atmosphere as it is inspirational,” said Dirt Series Manager Candace Shadley. “Our camps are completely customizable to whatever our participants want to get out of them and our campers walk away with an unforgettable experience and a whole new set of skills to hit the trails with.”
In its twelfth year of existence, the Trek Dirt Series delivers world-class instruction with the goal of developing skills through a supportive, step-by-step process that helps riders move beyond their fears to discover the fun of mountain biking. A member of the Trek Women Demo Tour will be on hand offering a full array of Trek mountain bikes, including Women’s Specific Design models made to fit better from the start.
Online registration is now open at dirtseries.com. Women are encouraged to register sooner rather than later as open enrollment is expected to fill up fast.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced in August $12.6 million in grants to fund an array of highway-related efforts in Utah, including the additions of safety lanes in Big and Little Cottonwood Canyons.
Four miles of safety shoulders will be added to SR210 in Little Cottonwood Canyon. Three miles of safety shoulders will be added to SR209 in Big Cottonwood Canyon.
USADA announced on August 12, 2011 that David Clinger, 34, of Murray, Utah, an athlete in the sport of cycling, has accepted a sanction for his second doping offense. This offense is the result of an adverse analytical finding for the anabolic agent, clenbuterol, in an out-of-competition sample collected on June 29, 2011 while Clinger was approaching the end of a two-year period of ineligibility for his first offense, the result of an adverse analytical finding for the presence of testosterone and modafinil in a sample collected in June of 2009. Clinger accepted responsibility for using clenbuterol to enhance his performance. Clenbuterol is a prohibited Anabolic Agent under the USADA Protocol for Olympic and Paralympic Movement Testing and the rules of the International Cycling Union (UCI), both of which have adopted the World Anti-Doping Code and the World Anti-Doping Agency Prohibited List. For this second offense, Clinger received a lifetime period of ineligibility, which began on August 9, 2011.
Amanda Carey topped the women’s field. Photo Courtesy of Park City Point 2 Point.
By Shannon Boffeli
Early Saturday morning, 350 hardy mountain biking souls lined up for the 3rd edition of the Park City Point 2 Point on a clear day.
The Point 2 Point, as it’s known, is a race like no other. At 78-miles, it’s the longest mountain bike race in Utah, but the over 90% singletrack is what really sets it apart. This is the first year the PCP2P has been included in the National Ultra Endurance (NUE) Series and is the only race stop in 2011 with a distance under 100 miles.
As riders huddled for the start, temperatures dipped into the low 40s just before the sun rose over the Uinta Mountains.
As always, the race got off to a fast start with an ultra high-powered lead group of men pushing the pace off the front.
Josh Tostado (Bach Builders), Kelly Magelky (Honey Stinger), Cary Smith (Hammer Nutrition), Cannondale teammates Tinker Juarez, and Alex Grant as well as Lifetime Fitness rider Bryson Perry took up positions at the head of the race.
By the first feed zone, at mile 28, an elite group of Grant, Juarez, and Tostado began to get a gap. Bryson Perry, Smith, and Kelly Magelky hung on just behind the leaders.
At mile 37 the gaps were virtually the same as the riders entered the most technical section of the course.
Unfortunately, for Kelly Magelky the wheels had already started to come off of his day. Once firmly contesting the lead, the Honey Stinger rider was now dropping back while Perry and Smith continued to look strong.
It was here where the Cannondale riders began to pull clear of Tostado.
After the feed zone at Park City Mountain Resort, Grant and Juarez had moved 4 minutes ahead of the chaser Tostado.
It was clear the race would come down to a battle between Cannondale teammates and Grant didn’t leave much time to ponder the outcome. As the lead duo entered the 40-minute Spiro Trail climb Grant put in the
Alex Grant threepeats. Josh Tostado is on his wheel. Photo by: Photo John.
decisive attack. He surged away from Tinker, immediately opening a gap. Grant, riding a 26-inch Scalpel, continued to push it through the rough and rugged Iron Mountain section of the course without incident.
At the final checkpoint, less than 10 miles from the finish, Grant was 7 minutes into the lead. By the time he crossed the line he was an amazing 11 minutes in front of his Cannondale teammate, setting a new fastest time of 6:48:58.
Tinker Juarez came in to claim a well-deserved second place with Josh Tostado hot on his heals for third.
Bryson Perry put together a nice ride and avoided any mishaps to take fourth place while Cary Smith came in fifth.
Alex Grant has won all three runnings of the Park City Point 2 Point. Each year facing more-and-more difficult competition, Grant has proved to be unstoppable in the Park City singletrack.
The women’s race featured the most elite collection of female endurance mountain bike racers of any event in the west.
National Ultra Endurance racer Amanda Carey (Kenda/Felt) would be lining up against 3-time Leadville champion Rebecca Rusch (Specialized), last year’s P2P runner-up Kelly Boniface, endurance specialist Jenny Smith (Alpine Orthopedics), Breck Epic winner Sonya Looney (Topeak/Ergon), and local fast girls Erica Tingey (White Pine Touring), and Evelyn Dong.
Right from the gun it was Carey trying to stir things up. The Kenda rider powered through the opening 10-miles gapping all but Jenny Smith.
Tingey and Boniface hooked up just 30 seconds behind the lead duo with Rebecca Rusch another 30 seconds back.
After feed one at Deer Valley Resort, the battle up front remained tight. Jenny Smith and Carey were trading turns up front with Smith taking the lead through Guardsman Pass and into the treacherous TG trail section. Despite Smith’s best efforts, Carey was always right behind and by the time they entered Johns’ Trail and the climb up to Shadow Lake, Carey was beginning to pull away.
Erica Tingey finished a well deserved second in the women’s pro field. Photo by: Chris See. Find more at fredmarx.photoshelter.com
At the next feed, Carey had a buffer of several minutes and Smith was now feeling pressure from Erica Tingey and Sonya Looney, who after a moderate start, had moved into fourth place, ahead of Rusch and Kelly Boniface who was struggling with back pain.
Now on the home stretch, Carey was destined for another win and an undefeated National Ultra Endurance racing season.
Behind, Erica Tingey was making her move. Through Spiro and Iron Mountain she closed the 2-minute gap on Smith quickly taking up the second place position.
Smith continued to fade. Sonya Looney was the next to overtake her, as would Rebecca Rusch before the finish.
In the end, Amanda Carey outclassed one of the strongest women’s field ever assembled in ultra-endurance racing. Her unique combination of power and desire pushed the Kenda/Felt rider to an impressive win and a second National Ultra Endurance series title in as many years.
Erica Tingey crossed the line for a commanding second place. The Utah rider turned in a best-ever performance to take the second step on the podium
At the finish a very happy Sonya Looney had ridden herself all the way to third just over a minute ahead of fourth place finisher Rebecca Rusch. And after a difficult final 15-miles, Jenny Smith held on for fifth.
Organized mountain bike programs in the high schools will be the latest sport to debut for Utah teenagers. The formation of the Utah High School Cycling League will be announced at Interbike on September 14th. The new mountain bike focused league will start in the fall of 2012 with an anticipated 4-race season. Volunteer coaches are already organizing clubs at schools throughout Utah.
Lori Harward will be the League Director for Utah. She has been working since February with a group of interested individuals to meet the requirements the National Interscholastic Cycling Association (NICA) has in place to start a high school cycling league.
“Utah is a great place to start a new NICA League for a number of reasons,” said Matt Fritzinger, the Executive Director of NICA. “The leadership of Lori Harward has been a strong driving force behind getting a league established; she has been working hard since last winter to make it happen,” he continued. “She has also recruited an impressive group of coaches and volunteers.”
Harward said she had thought for a while about how to get more kids involved with cycling. That thought grew in to finding out about NICA and starting the bid process to get a league.
“When we found out about NICA,” said Harward, “we recognized that not only would their program get Utah kids on bikes but had great value in youth development and in impacting the entire community.”
The infrastructure for risk management and coach education and licensing were also appealing.
“NICA’s focus is truly on what is best for kids, which I believe comes from Matt Fritzinger’s teaching background. They demonstrate this care by having the vision of life-long cycling for the kids,” stated Harward.
Finally, she was impressed with the 5 core principles of the organization: Inclusivity, Equality, Strong Body, Strong Mind, and Strong Character.
NICA is making a push to have cycling leagues coast to coast by 2020 and Utah is the latest to come on board. Utah joins leagues in Northern California, Southern California, Washington, Colorado, Texas and Minnesota. The current leagues served 1,100 student athletes in 2011. Fritzinger expects 2,000 in 2012.
NICA was formed in 2009 out of the NorCal League in an effort to bring cycling opportunities to high school aged kids. Fritzinger started a program at Berkeley High School in 2001 and it grew to the NorCal League of over 600 participants. He took the successful model to Southern California and the SoCal League started up in 2009.
Fritzinger, a former math teacher at Berkeley High School, intended to start a road cycling club with kids in his class. However, they chose mountain biking. “A group of student responded to the school bulletin, but they all wanted to ride dirt, so the Berkeley High School Mountain Bike Team was born,” he explained
NICA is a sanctioning body with a focus on high school cycling, and for now specifically mountain biking. NICA offers educational and licensing services for coaches, insurance for both coach and athlete, rules and policies, as well as fundraising services and support to name a few.
High school cycling is expected to explode across the country, according to Fritzinger. “We have been blown away by the enthusiasm for high school mountain biking everywhere we go,” he says. “Anytime we go to a new place, whether it be Iowa, North Carolina, or Vermont, the enthusiasm is mind blowing. It’s very reassuring to me and to NICA that our model can work all over the country.”
Utah local mountain bike and cyclocross star Bart Gillespie is excited that mountain biking will be an option for high schoolers. “I used to daydream about having a highschool mountain biking program. I figured it would be just like crosscountry but way more fun,” reminisced Gillespie.
More importantly, he noted how important it would have been to have some direction. “Having an organized program would have been huge for development,” Gillespie noted. “I had tons of enthusiasm and needed someone to reel me in a little. Teach me the importance of rest and help me develop some patience.”
Gillespie plans to be a coach at Olympus High School and he hopes to have an impact on the kids who join the club. He said he hopes to pass along his love for cycling. When asked he said he wants the kids to learn, “a passion for exercising outdoors and exercising for life, how to be prepared, and how to shred!”
As a Physical Therapist, Gillespie knows the importance of healthy living. That’s another reason he wants to be involved at the high school level. He mentioned the amount of chronic health problems related to a lifestyle without exercise.
“The human body was designed for massive amounts of physical work and only thrives if it gets it,” explained Gillespie. “Because we enjoy the luxury of an automated world we need to find fun ways to provide the body with that work. Our recreation needs to be physical and cycling is the perfect lifestyle sport!”
The Utah League needs community support according to Harward. There are many ways to help from volunteering at the events, coaching at your local high school, helping with fundraising or becoming a sponsor. For more information contact Lori at [email protected] or visit utahmtb.org.
Difficult Day of Racing Gives Riders a Taste of the Climbing Ahead
MT. CRESTED BUTTE, COLO. (August 23, 2011) – Enthusiastic crowds welcomed the field of 130 cyclists to Mt. Crested Butte for the Stage 1 finish of the USA Pro Cycling Challenge today, as Levi Leipheimer (USA) of Team RadioShack showed an impressive finish taking the stage win and claiming the lead in the general classification and sprint competitions. Known for his climbing skills and after a first place finish in this year’s Tour of Switzerland and Tour of Utah, Leipheimer is a fan favorite in American cycling.
“I am very happy to get the win and get the Quiznos Leader Jersey,” said Leipheimer. “We’re all proud to get this jersey and win the first stage of the USA Pro Cycling Challenge.”
Leipheimer attacked out of the lead group on the steep mile-long trek up to Mt. Crested Butte ski station, as he out-climbed Sergio Luis Henao (COL) of Gobernacion de Antioquia by four seconds and Frank Schleck (LUX) of team Leopard-Trek by seven seconds. By winning, Leipheimer added a 10-second bonus to his overall time and leads fellow American Christian Vande Velde of Garmin-Cervelo by 11 seconds. American Tejay Van Garderen of HTC-Highroad and Tour de France winner Cadel Evans (AUS) of BMC Racing Team remain in third and fourth respectively.
“All of a sudden there were attacks,” Leipheimer (37) explained. “Andy Schleck went, Cadel Evans was up there and then my teammate Ivan Rovny did a fantastic job. I can’t say enough about him. We brought Andy Schleck back with just one kilometer to go. Rovny continued to pull really hard and I know he wanted to stop but I kept telling him to ‘Go! Go! Go!’ At 500 meters to go Frank Schleck put in a little attack and I followed him. I looked under my arm and I saw no one on my wheel. I knew it was rather early to go but I went for it anyway and it worked out. I’ve never won a stage like that with an explosive effort so in my old age I guess I’m learning some new tricks. I grew up in Butte, Montana and it’s a mile high plus I’ve spent the last three weeks at altitude in Park City, Utah. I feel like I’m acclimated and ready to race hard here in Colorado.”
With warm weather, blue skies and a picturesque backdrop, Stage 1 of the USA Pro Cycling Challenge got underway in Salida this morning with an outpouring of support from local residents and visiting fans. After a neutral start that included two laps through the city, the race headed out of town on a 99.4-mile route to Mt. Crested Butte.
Early in the stage, Bradley White (USA) of UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team, Will Dickeson (AUS) of Jelly Belly Pro Cycling Team, Jay Thomson (RSA) of Bissell Pro Cycling Team and Eduard Alexander Beltran (COL) of UNE-EPM formed a break that would stick for a good part of the race and in the first 25 miles built more than a five-minute lead.
After heading over rolling hills the route took the riders to their first climb of the race – Monarch Pass (11,315 ft.). Lined with throngs of cheering fans, some of whom had camped out to catch a glimpse of the top riders in the world, the first King of the Mountains (KOM) competition of the race was taken by Beltran. Following the KOM, Dickeson and Beltran eventually fell back, leaving White and Thomson in the lead.
“There was a bit of a headwind and I was kind of in the break,” said White. “We dropped the first two guys in the descent and we weren’t sure if we should wait for them. We decided to ride and were going to see if they would come back, but they didn’t.”
After a fast decent on which the riders reached speeds of 60 mph on one inch of rubber, they crossed a slightly uphill, windy valley leading into Gunnison, all while battling strong, up to 20 mph headwinds. Once in Gunnison, the location of tomorrow’s start, the riders faced the first Smashburger Sprint Line, which was taken by White, at which point they took a sharp right and headed north to Crested Butte. A gradual climb, the course then wrapped around the historic town heading up a steep, but short climb to the small ski community.
With 15 km to go, the peloton caught the break and the race was on to the finish. At 5 km the riders reached the second and final Smashburger Sprint Line of the day and the points went to Elia Viviani (ITA) of Liquigas. Heading up the hill to the finish line the group saw several attacks, which eventually lead to a first place finish for Leipheimer.
“Today was a great day of racing that really gave the riders and fans a taste of what’s ahead in the coming days,” said Shawn Hunter, co-chairman and CEO of the USA Pro Cycling Challenge. “The USA Pro Cycling Challenge is going to take everyone to new heights, allowing us to showcase all the state has to offer while pushing the riders to their limit.”
Leipheimer claimed the Quiznos Leader Jersey and the Smashburger Sprint Jersey. Van Garderen kept the Sheets Best Young Rider’s Jersey. The Exergy Most Aggressive Jersey went to Bradley White (USA) of UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team. And the Nissan King of the Mountain (KOM) Jersey was awarded to Beltran Suarez for his performance on Monarch Pass.
Results:
STAGE CLASSIFICATION 1
Distance: 158,800 km
Leader’s time: 4h29’22”
Average: 35,372 km/h
Salida to Crested Butte / Mt. Crested Butte
TUESDAY, 23, 2011
Pl Bib Name First Name Team Nat B P Split Pl Bib Name First Name Team Nat B P Split
COLORADO SPRINGS (August 22, 2011) – The inaugural USA Pro Cycling Challenge started on a high note in Colorado Springs when Patrick Gretsch (GER) of HTC-Highroad bested a world-class field containing the 2011 Tour de France podium finishers and five World Champions to claim victory on a fast, mainly downhill course lined shoulder-to-shoulder with cheering fans. The enthusiastic crowd cheered on the cyclists as they made their way from The Garden of the Gods to downtown Colorado Springs where Gretsch became the first rider ever to wear the Quiznos Leader Jersey in the USA Pro Cycling Challenge.
“Winning the Prologue of the USA Pro Cycling Challenge today is a really nice feeling,” said Gretsch. “I put a lot of my focus on the Prologue. I had really good preparation and I felt really good in training this morning. It felt great out there and I’m super happy to get the win. I think all the other teams have to watch out for us.”
Gretsch completed one of the fastest time trials ever in a major professional cycling race on American soil, covering the 5.2-mile (8.3 km) course in 8 minutes and 27 seconds. He will begin day two of the race wearing the yellow Quiznos Leader Jersey when Stage 1 takes the riders from Salida to Mt. Crested Butte, a 99.3-mile (159.8 km) on Tuesday afternoon.
In second place, two seconds behind Gretsch, was Christian Vande Velde (USA) of Team Garmin-Cervelo, followed by Brent Bookwalter (USA) of BMC Racing Team, who came in third, four seconds off the pace. BMC Racing Team became the general team classification leader after the first day of racing with a total time of 25 minutes and 40 seconds.
Featuring a mostly declining profile, the course had cycling fans lined up five-deep in places to see the race action.
“That was about as fun a day as I’ve ever had and it was a spectacular moment of truth,” said Shawn Hunter, co-founder and CEO, USA Pro Cycling Challenge. “It was a phenomenal first day with fans along every corner. I think the riders can feel that enthusiasm and it is only going to build. Colorado Springs set the bar very high.”
Early race favorites finishing in the top-25 included Jens Voigt (GER) of Leopard-Trek, Levi Leipheimer (USA) of Team RadioShack, Cadel Evans (AUS) of BMC Racing Team, Tom Danielson (USA) of Team Garmin-Cervelo, Robert Gesink (NED) of Rabobank, Rory Sutherland (AUS) of UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team, Sergio Luis Henao (COL) of Gobernacion de Antioquia-Indeportes Antiquia and Tejay Van Garderen (USA) of HTC-Highroad.
In a sweep for HTC-Highroad, the team took all the jerseys that were awarded today. The Quiznos Leader Jersey was awarded to Gretsch. The Sheets Best Young Rider’s Jersey was claimed by Van Garderen, who finished at 8 minutes and 35 seconds. The Exergy Most Aggressive Jersey went to Danny Pate (USA). The Smashburger Sprint Jersey and Nissan King of the Mountain (KOM) Jersey will be awarded for the first time tomorrow.
STAGE CLASSIFICATION 0
Distance: 8,300 km
Leader’s time: 08’27″46
Average: 58,935 km/h
Colorado Springs Prologue
MONDAY, 22, 2011
Pl Bib Name First Name Team Nat Time P Split Pl Bib Name First Name Team Nat Time P Split
1 43 GRETSCH Patrick THR GER 08’27″46 00″
2 36 VANDEVELDE Christian GRM USA 08’29″17 02″
3 3 BOOKWALTER Brent BMC USA 08’31″27 04″
4 83 FÖRSTER Robert UHC GER 08’32″51 05″
5 27 VOIGT Jens LEO GER 08’34″19 07″
6 2 HINCAPIE George BMC USA 08’34″48 ‘ ‘
7 11 LEIPHEIMER Levi RSH USA 08’35″17 08″
8 41 *VAN GARDEREN Tejay THR USA 08’35″31 ‘ ‘
9 1 EVANS Cadel BMC AUS 08’35″85 ‘ ‘
10 118 ROTH Ryan CSM CAN 08’37″56 10″
11 44 PATE Danny THR USA 08’38″14 11″
12 5 LOUDER Jeffry BMC USA 08’38″89 ‘ ‘
13 132 ALZATE ESCOBAR Carlos XRG COL 08’40″69 13″
14 85 HEGYVARY Adrian UHC USA 08’41″47 14″
15 81 SUTHERLAND Rory UHC AUS 08’42″20 15″
16 37 ZABRISKIE David GRM USA 08’42″75 ‘ ‘
17 15 *KING Benjamin RSH USA 08’43″74 16″
18 72 CLEMENT Stef RAB NED 08’43″82 ‘ ‘
19 116 PARISIEN Francois CSM CAN 08’44″05 17″
20 31 DANIELSON Tom GRM USA 08’44″50 ‘ ‘
21 71 GESINK Robert RAB NED 08’45″16 18″
22 18 HERMANS Ben RSH BEL 08’47″33 20″
23 88 ZWIZANSKI Scott UHC USA 08’47″85 ‘ ‘
24 64 LARSSON Gustav SBS SWE 08’48″67 21″
25 38 *SUMMERHILL Daniel GRM USA 08’48″73 ‘ ‘
26 17 ROVNY Ivan RSH RUS 08’49″22 22″
27 35 STETINA Peter GRM USA 08’49″59 ‘ ‘
28 127 THOMSON Jay Robert BPC RSA 08’50″57 23″
29 32 HESJEDAL Ryder GRM CAN 08’50″96 ‘ ‘
30 82 CLARKE Jonathan UHC AUS 08’51″50 24″
31 122 PIPP Frank BPC USA 08’53″24 26″
32 55 OSS Daniel LIQ ITA 08’53″33 ‘ ‘
33 114 *BOILY David CSM CAN 08’53″89 ‘ ‘
34 125 BRITTON Rob BPC CAN 08’53″96 ‘ ‘
35 117 RANDELL Andrew CSM CAN 08’54″90 27″
36 156 OSPINA Carlos GOB COL 08’55″25 28″
37 48 NORRIS Lachlan THR AUS 08’56″57 29″
38 46 ROULSTON Hayden THR NZL 08’57″75 30″
39 65 MORKOV Michael SBS DEN 08’58″19 31″
40 87 WHITE Bradley UHC USA 08’58″78 ‘ ‘
41 104 OOSTLANDER Sander SKS NED 08’59″22 32″
42 152 SEVILLA RIBIERO Oscar GOB ESP 08’59″63 ‘ ‘
43 123 VENNELL Jeremy BPC NZL 08’59″70 ‘ ‘
44 161 BAEZ Giovany EPM COL 09’00″29 33″
45 23 DENIFL Stefan LEO AUT 09’00″30 ‘ ‘
46 162 SUAREZ Juan Pablo EPM COL 09’00″33 ‘ ‘
47 4 *BARTON Chris BMC USA 09’00″53 ‘ ‘
48 25 MORTENSEN Martin LEO DEN 09’00″91 ‘ ‘
49 54 KING Edward LIQ USA 09’00″96 ‘ ‘
50 93 BERTOGLIATI Rubens TT1 SUI 09’01″53 34″
51 12 MURAVYEV Dmitriy RSH KAZ 09’01″87 ‘ ‘
52 144 DICKESON William JBC AUS 09’02″15 35″
53 148 HAMLTON Nic JBC CAN 09’02″69 ‘ ‘
54 52 *CIMOLAI Davide LIQ ITA 09’02″75 ‘ ‘
55 57 SZMYD Sylvester LIQ POL 09’03″47 36″
56 133 RODRIGUEZ Fred XRG USA 09’03″69 ‘ ‘
57 21 SCHLECK Andy LEO LUX 09’03″90 ‘ ‘
58 128 JACQUES-MAYNES Ben BPC USA 09’04″08 37″
59 14 DEIGNAN Philip RSH IRL 09’04″42 ‘ ‘
60 22 SCHLECK Frank LEO LUX 09’04″88 ‘ ‘
61 58 *VIVIANI Elia LIQ ITA 09’04″92 ‘ ‘
62 47 VELITS Peter THR SVK 09’05″19 38″
63 13 *BENNETT George RSH NZL 09’05″37 ‘ ‘
64 143 VAN ULDEN Bernard JBC USA 09’05″47 ‘ ‘
65 135 JOHNSON Sam XRG USA 09’05″69 ‘ ‘
66 53 DUGGAN Timothy LIQ USA 09’05″93 ‘ ‘
67 33 LLOYD Daniel GRM GBR 09’05″99 ‘ ‘
68 63 NAVARRO GARCIA Daniel SBS ESP 09’06″44 39″
69 142 *LOUTIT Alastair JBC AUS 09’06″47 ‘ ‘
70 165 INFANTINO ABREU Rafael EPM COL 09’07″56 40″
71 121 BALDWIN Christopher BPC USA 09’08″24 41″
72 95 MEGIAS LEAL Javier TT1 ESP 09’08″27 ‘ ‘
73 113 MCCARTY Jonathan Patrick CSM USA 09’08″73 ‘ ‘
74 16 MCCARTNEY Jason RSH USA 09’08″82 ‘ ‘
75 126 MACH Paul BPC USA 09’09″33 42″
76 134 COOKE Matt XRG USA 09’09″75 ‘ ‘
77 84 FRATTINI Davide UHC ITA 09’09″83 ‘ ‘
78 66 DIDIER Laurent SBS LUX 09’10″28 43″
79 115 LANGLOIS Bruno CSM CAN 09’10″36 ‘ ‘
80 34 PETERSON Thomas GRM USA 09’11″03 44″
81 94 KOBZARENKO Valeryi TT1 UKR 09’11″90 ‘ ‘
82 147 HAGMAN Alex JBC USA 09’11″99 ‘ ‘
83 131 DÍAZ Andrés Miguel XRG COL 09’12″44 45″
84 151 HENAO MONTOYA Sergio GOB COL 09’12″51 ‘ ‘
85 62 VANDBORG BACH Brian SBS DEN 09’14″48 47″
86 86 JONES Christopher UHC USA 09’14″58 ‘ ‘
87 24 LUND Anders LEO DEN 09’15″57 48″
88 166 PIAMONTE Carlos EPM COL 09’16″46 49″
89 146 POWERS Jeremy JBC USA 09’16″92 ‘ ‘
90 138 APPLEQUIST Kai XRG USA 09’17″33 50″
91 45 LEWIS Craig THR USA 09’17″39 ‘ ‘
92 61 STEENSEN André SBS DEN 09’18″54 51″
93 42 FAIRLY Caleb THR USA 09’18″67 ‘ ‘
94 153 ACEVEDO CALLE Janier GOB COL 09’18″99 ‘ ‘
95 74 TEN DAM Laurens RAB NED 09’19″20 52″
96 7 *ROE Timothy BMC AUS 09’19″26 ‘ ‘
97 51 BASSO Ivan LIQ ITA 09’19″35 ‘ ‘
98 56 *SAGAN Juraj LIQ SVK 09’19″82 ‘ ‘
99 111 EUSER Lucas CSM USA 09’20″10 53″
100 26 PIRES Bruno LEO POR 09’21″26 54″
101 168 CASTANEDA Jaime EPM COL 09’21″61 ‘ ‘
102 91 EFIMKIN Alexander TT1 RUS 09’22″13 55″
103 8 *BUTLER Christopher BMC USA 09’22″33 ‘ ‘
104 97 DUGAN William TT1 USA 09’23″12 56″
105 145 HANSON Kenneth JBC USA 09’23″33 ‘ ‘
106 105 *LUDVIGSSON Tobias SKS SWE 09’24″56 57″
107 167 *BELTRAN SUAREZ Eduard EPM COL 09’25″49 58″
108 98 CALABRIA Fabio TT1 AUS 09’25″97 ‘ ‘
109 124 *DAHLHEIM Andrew BPC USA 09’26″12 59″
110 164 ORTIZ CARO Edwar Stiber EPM COL 09’26″68 ‘ ‘
111 112 *DE LUNA Flavio CSM MEX 09’26″79 ‘ ‘
112 101 VAN HUMMEL Kenny Robert SKS NED 09’28″50 01’01”
113 141 HERNANDEZ Sergio JBC USA 09’28″73 ‘ ‘
114 157 ALVAREZ Oscar GOB COL 09’28″75 ‘ ‘
115 92 EFIMKIN Vladimir TT1 RUS 09’28″76 ‘ ‘
116 73 NIERMANN Grischa RAB GER 09’28″82 ‘ ‘
117 155 MONTIEL Rafael Anibal GOB COL 09’29″00 01’02”
118 136 SALAS Sébastien XRG CAN 09’30″60 01’03”
119 6 BEYER Chad BMC USA 09’31″11 01’04”
120 107 HUPOND Thierry SKS FRA 09’35″85 01’08”
121 75 WEENING Pieter RAB NED 09’37″41 01’10”
122 106 *RIES Philipp SKS GER 09’40″49 01’13”
123 137 *SLACK Erik XRG USA 09’41″48 01’14”
124 163 PEDRAZA MORALES Walter EPM COL 09’42″33 01’15”
125 76 VAN WINDEN Dennis RAB NED 09’46″30 01’19”
126 154 RAMIREZ Alejandro GOB COL 09’46″92 ‘ ‘
127 96 CALLEGARIN Daniele TT1 ITA 09’47″18 01’20”
128 158 *MONTOYA Cristhian GOB COL 09’51″10 01’24”
August 19, 2011—Los Angeles—Universal Sports will broadcast live, exclusive coverage of every stage of the Vuelta a España—more than 45 total hours—beginning Saturday, August 20 at 11 a.m. ET. On the Wasatch Front, this is on digital channel 5-2.
Coverage of the third and final Grand Tour of the European cycling season continues every day at 10 a.m. ET throughout the three-week race, during which Universal Sports will follow the riders through all 21 stages to the finish in Madrid on September 11. On both rest days—August 30 and September 5—Universal Sports will present special Vuelta Recap Shows at 10 a.m. ET. The network will also present primetime re-airs of each stage nightly at 8 p.m. ET.
The Universal Sports broadcast team will feature Steve Schlanger on play-by-play and Todd Gogulski, former teammate of Lance Armstrong and Greg LeMond, serving as color commentator. The Vuelta will be produced by Universal Sports’ David Michaels, who will be the first U.S. TV supervising producer in recent memory to produce all three Grand Tour cycling events in a single year. Michaels and Gogulski worked on Universal Sports’ coverage of the Giro d’Italia in May, then collaborated on Versus’ broadcast of the Tour de France in July. Coverage on the network will include interviews with team directors and cyclists as well as insight from cycling experts and on-site media.
Gogulski on this year’s race:
“While it has been the outright season goal for some, the 2011 Vuelta a España is a place for redemption for many whose seasons have been hampered by injury, illness or otherwise sub-par results, and it’s a great place to gain the final conditioning and confidence leading into the World Championships.”
“This year’s race promises to be a battle between last year’s champion, Italian Vincenzo Nibali, compatriot Michele Scarponi, and Spaniard Igor Anton, along with a strong wild-card contingent of several big stars who crashed out of the Tour de France.”
“The most interesting sprint battles will be between Mark Cavendish and American Tyler Farrar, both multi-stage winners last year, against 10 other strong field sprinters shooting for sprint stage wins.”
Online:
UniversalSports.com will also provide LIVE streaming coverage of every stage, plus full-length video recaps, highlights, stage profiles, elevation profiles, real-time rider location, blogs, standings, photos and recaps for $14.99. To sign up, fans should visit: http://www.universalsports.com/cycling/la-vuelta/video-live.html. Fans can also access Universal Sports’ new iPad app to get the most up-to-date highlights, news and analysis on-the-go.
The Field:
This year’s race boasts an all-star field including 2010 Vuelta a España winner Vincenzo Nibali, who posted a third-place finish earlier this year at the Giro d’Italia. Nibali’s quest to repeat will not be easy, as he will face elite competition in Denis Menchov, Michele Scarponi and Bradley Wiggins. Wiggins retuns to the final grand tour stop coming off a tough Tour de France, where he broke his collarbone in a crash.
The sprint stages will feature two of the world’s best sprinters facing off in American Tyler Farrar and Britain’s Mark Cavendish. If Cavendish were to get a stage win in this year’s Vuelta, he would become the first rider since 2003 to have a stage win in all three Grand Tour events in the same season, and only the fourth in history.
Joining Farrar from the U.S. will be Andrew Talansky, Matthew Busche and Taylor Phinney. Phinney, the son of famous cyclist Davis Phinney, is set to make his Grand Tour debut. A former track cyclist, the 20 year-old Phinney will be facing the biggest challenge yet in his transformation to being a road racer.
Tinker Juarez takes the win. Photo Courtesy: Butte 100.
It began with about 40 local racers headed out for little more than a day in the saddle. But even that number is debatable between those in Triple Ring Productions (TRP), the organizing body of the Butte 100 endurance mountain bike race. Back then, record keeping ranked just below figuring out who’s buying the post-race beer. Fast forward five short years and the race has evolved from its Montana-esque, grassroots approach into one of the nation’s newest elite endurance mountain bike races.
This past July, a record 228 racers came from 14 states and Canada to test their endurance at the fifth annual event. The routes, a 50- and 100-mile figure eight course, ramble over frontage roads, technical pitches, sandy duel-tracks, and endless miles of smooth Continental Divide Trail singletrack. The draw is seeing over 16,000 feet of climbing recorded on the racer’s GPS; 9,000 feet for the 50-milers. The Butte 100 is quickly becoming known as the most difficult race in the country. At least that’s what mountain biking legend Tinker Juarez says.
Tinker was back for a second year of competing in his favorite race—and posted a course record (9 hours 36 minutes) on his way to winning the 100 mile open class. He was made aware of the race in 2009 through a friend, while racing in Costa Rica. He did some research, called then race director Bob Waggoner, and committed. Tinker saw an opportunity—an opportunity for a race, a town, and a gauge of his own conditioning in the critical weeks leading up to Leadville.
Word of Tinker’s 2010 registration in this little, down-home race somewhere on Montana’s Continental Divide seemed to sweep through the bike community. Riders from around the country now set their sights upon Butte. Overnight, the 2010 Butte 100 had literally tripled in size.
The four making up TRP, Gina Evans, Guy Vesco, Bob and Gwen Waggoner, knew very well that 2010 could mark a turning point in the race—everyone knew. The opportunity to put the race on ‘map,’ and to realize the long-held vision of bringing endurance mountain bike racing to Montana, had just fell out of the sky.
However, knowing little more than organizing a race for a handful of locals, the organizers went about their tasks as they had only ever known. The explosion in numbers exposed weaknesses: a poorly marked turn sent racers off course; a late afternoon squall ripped canopies and poles into one congealed mess; handwritten results melted under the rain; and the post-race food were sorely underestimated. Weeks after the event, results were finally posted—skewed at best. The opportunity to showcase itself to the mountain biking world was a failure and the future of the Butte 100 was uncertain.
Not long after the race, an employee at The Outdoorsman bike shop was visiting with Bob and Gina about the race. A guidebook author and graduate student at Montana Tech saw an opportunity to apply his technical communication thesis to the race and offered his time. The crew agreed to bring him on board. It turned out to be just what they were looking for. The addition of Jon Wick and his race bible thesis injected life into the veins of the depleted TRP.
It became time for introspection. The members of TRP took a long look at needed to be done to improve the race. A unanimous consensus was reached: if the Butte 100 was going to attract world-class athletes, it needed to be a world-class race. Period. The group recommitted themselves to the vision and a series of events never before seen in the history of the Butte 100 were sent into motion.
TRP turned proactive, seeing the onslaught of criticisms as constructive—valuable feedback to help the race. People began to catch wind of the newly energized crew and offered themselves to the cause. Ryan Munsen, an aid-station worker in years past, offered his time to redevelop the race’s almost counter-productive website: www.butte100.com was born, providing a much needed avenue between the race and its racers. Not long after that, Phil Dean, a former racer himself, approached the team to aid in the organization and recruitment of volunteers. The original four members of TRP had nearly doubled.
TRP brought on Montana Timing, a top-shelf timing company able to handle accurate and near instantaneous results. Race bibles were published and sent as racers registered, providing valuable course information months before the snow had even cleared from the course. The website became indispensible. All this allowed TRP to focus on other necessities: recruiting sponsors, volunteers, and perfecting course markings. Rob Leipheimer, owner of The Outdoorsman Sport Shop in Butte, generously donated a brand-new Specialized mountain bike for a volunteer raffle. Confidence in the race was building. One short year after the wheels fell off, the 2011 Butte 100 closed registration with 228 racers and over 60 volunteers—both are race records.
That confidence spilled over to race day. The riders hammered under a typical summertime bluebird day. The elite racers relentlessly pressed Tinker throughout the day. Reports surfaced that John Curry surpassed Tinker for nearly 11 miles until cramping ensued. On the notorious climb out of the Basin Creek aid station, Tinker regained the lead and danced along the CDT never looking back. He crossed the finish line eight minutes ahead of John and almost an hour before the next chaser, Bill Martin. An epic race, on all fronts, was recorded that day.
The TRP crew doesn’t look to slow down either. Trail scouting is already underway and possible improvements are getting scribbled down. Their sites are set on August 4th, 2012, the date of next year’s Butte 100 mountain bike race.
Unfortunately, growing pains are a necessary evil for every race. But the flawless 2011 race proved the Butte 100 has officially moved beyond infancy and has shown the world it’s now ready to line up next to any race in the country.
It’s no longer a vision; it’s as real as Tinker Juarez passing you on the Basin Creek climb.
