Nordic Trecker

Ski/wax recommendations for the Grand Mesa Skyway Shuffle on Saturday

2011-12-30T09:08:00.000-08:00

SKYWAY, CO - The snow on the top of the Grand Mesa is deep enough for the groomers to continue to work fairly regularly leading up to Saturday's event. This means that the snow surface will be different than the more common hardpack found throughout much of the state due to low snow levels. For instance, the trails in Aspen are very firm right now due to shallow snow depth and an inability to groom and soften and freshen the surface.

The snow for the Skyway Shuffle should run more Colorado "normal" as well as typical of the Grand Mesa...cold.

Ski recommendation: Your best "Standard Colorado Cold" setup will most likely be the best. Hard pack cambers have been working well around the state but I would be ready for more of a powder type snow for this one. There is substantial shade on the course and low temps the night before will still be well below the freezing mark. This could be a great ski testing day if you are into it, you may want to set up many skis with the same waxes to check things out.

Wax recommendation: Not much need for high flouros for this one, ski selection will be a bigger issue than the wax or the grind. LF or CH level wax should be sufficient, but the correct flex match up with the snow will probably pay off big time. If you see someone out there with super fast skis, it will probably be "great skis" rather than "hit the wax". I would put 6 on the colder pair and 7 on the warmer option and if you only have one I would err on the colder side of things.

Kikkan wins 4th World Cup race with solid tactics and execution

2011-12-03T05:18:00.001-08:00

Duesseldorf, GER - Anchorage, AK's Kikkan Randall picked up her 4th career World Cup win with a solid performance on a wet track in Duesseldorf, Germany on Saturday. Randall qualified in 10th and skied like she had a plan in the heats to advance to the final. Always dropping into a following position initially, Randall moved up as early as was comfortable and then pushed solidly from the halfway mark to the finish line.

The semi-finals and finals were marked by a strong battle between Randall and Canadian rival and friend Chandra Crawford. Looking to execute the same plan, the two sprint stars challenged each other for second position behind Russian Natalia Matveeva. Randall came out on top both times and in the championship final, secured the second spot coming into the finish. The last straight was fast, and Randall used a no-pole free skate flawlessly to "Bonnie Blair" past Matveeva to win for the 4th time in her career.

As a lifetime Nord, it's still quite unbelievable that I'm writing about Kikkan's 4th WC win, she really has become America's biggest ever super star in a sport that ranks as the toughest aerobic activity in the world. Way to go Kikkan, you continue to thrill us as fans and make as proud as compatriots!

Tandem wins for two G.O.A.T.s

2011-12-03T03:08:00.001-08:00

Tandem wins for two of the greatest skiers of all time

Beaver Creek, CO- Bode Miller and Lindsey Vonn laid down twoof the finest downhill runs of all time within two hours of each other onFriday and added to their already sizeable legend along the way. Miller’s winon Beaver Creek’s Birds of Prey course brought him all the way back to the topafter several tumultuous seasons while Vonn’s 1.95 second victory at LakeLouise, Canada was nothing less than mind blowing.

Miller was all in when it came to his approach to the Birdsof Prey downhill on Friday.

“Bode was committed to win this race.” said U.S. Ski TeamVice President Luke Bodensteiner, who witnessed the race in Beaver Creek. “Hewas nervous this morning and he said that the line he was going to try and skiwas do or die.”

To say that this race was vintage Bode is an understatement.It was a new standard of excellence from the wise old veteran that is stilloozing with talent and has the nerve to use it.

“It was an absoluterisk filled run.” said Miller after the finish.

Yet the skiing flowed and at times looked effortless. For askier that has made a career out of riding the ragged edge, Miller showed amaturity and panache we have rarely seen. When he crossed the line Miller took asizeable lead and gave a victorious fist pump of both relief and happiness.

“When I crossed the line I was 100% satisfied.” he saidafter the race.

Didier Cuche, last years World Cup champion in the Downhillwas still to attack the Birds of Prey, as were several other contenders. Cuchecould only manage 9^th after a couple of mistakes in the top halfwhile Switzerland’s Beat Feuz and Austria’s Klaus Kroell, with the help ofexcellent skis, challenged Miller in the final third of the course and finishedjust behind the American star.

Meanwhile, in Lake Louise, Alberta, Vonn was making her ownkind of history. Starting within two hours of Miller’s winning run, Vonn;stunned, embarrassed, blew away, dusted off, and took to school, the class ofwhat was supposed to be the same league as her. It took an unbelievable runfrom bib #40, Tina Wierather from Lichtenstein, to keep the winning marginunder two seconds.

Vonn’s main rival from last year, Maria Hoefl-Rieschstruggled as did many other favorites. The course conditions were variable andhigh winds with intermittent sun led many to consider the race a “wax race”,where technicians and ski companies can spell the difference in the finalresults.

Even TV analyst and former Olympic Champion Picabo Street commentedon the situation after Julia Mancuso, who started just in front of Vonn, tookthe lead at half-way and then faded to 16^th.

“It really does appear to be a bit of a wax race.” Streetsaid after Mancuso’s finish.

Then Vonn charged out of the gate with a couple of powerfulskates and settled into a winning run that was a clear cut above the rest. Hersplit times leapt away from the field and half way down, with over a secondlead, Street was beside herself.

“This is embarrassing, embarrassing for the field. Riesch isgoing to be pissed.”

Vonn crushed the field, finishing over 2 seconds ahead ofthe next skier at the time and her final winning margin of 1.95 seconds is acareer best. Her run was strong and incontrol the entire time. Maybe it was a wax race and maybe it wasn’t, but whenyou’re as good as Vonn it rarely matters.

Bodensteiner talked about Vonn, arguably the greatest womanski racer of all time, and discussed her current form.

“She is ultra-motivated this season. I think losing theWorld Cup by such a close margin allowed her to find even another gear. She isa totally determined woman right now and you can see for yourself the results.”

Beaver Creek will host several more races over the comingdays and Bodensteiner didn’t hesitate to throw in a plug for Team USA fans.

“The team is super strong right now. We saw Vonn and Ligetywin a GS earlier this season. It is really fun right now to be a part of thisand it’s going to be a great week at Beaver Creek. You should come check itout!”

Mike Trecker is a freelance writer and can be reached at nordictrecker@gmail.com and followed on Twitter: @nordictrecker

Tour of Lombardy - Race of the Falling Leaves

2011-10-13T06:44:00.000-07:00

Saturday Oct. 15th is the annual fall classic, the Tour of Lombardy or the Race of the Falling Leaves. The final "Monument" of the year, the Lombardia is a tough, hilly classic that has been won by many of the sport's greatest riders. This season's standout cyclist has been Phillipe Gilbert from the Wallonia region of Belgium. Gilbert has dominated any time the courses have been selective and Lombardy is as selective as they come. Unless he and his Omega Pharma - Lotto team stumble, look for another classic 'W' to be notched on the belt of Gilbert.

Riders to watch: Gilbert, Nicholas Roche, Emmanuel Sella, Alessandro Ballan, Domenico Pozzovivo, Giovanni Visconti, Michele Scarponi, Damiano Cunego, Jacob Fuglsang, Vincenzo Nibali, Ivan Basso, Carlos Barredo, Laurens ten Dam, Simon Gerrans, Rigoberto Uran, Dan Martin, Matt Busche, Marco Marcato.

My podium picks: 1. Gilbert, 2. Cunego, 3. Visconti

It keeps on keepin on. The winter that wouldn't let go.

2011-05-01T06:18:00.000-07:00

4 huge powder days in one week, and all after the lifts have closed. This is the winter that wouldn't let go, and for powder hounds, it has been a fantastic...ahem...spring. The week started with the closing of Aspen Highlands, the last of the Power of 4 to call it a year. The powder in The Bowl was incredible but the big story was the party, a non-stop, 10 hour celebration of the end of an awesome season. But for me the week was just beginning.

I was fortunate enough to get an invite to the Eiseman Hut north of Vail at the foot of the Gore Range. Tess Weaver, contributor to Powder Magazine, was doing a story on the 10th Mountain Huts, and the Eiseman was the chosen destination. Billed as one of the most Alpine of the 10th Mountain system, the Eiseman did not disappoint, there must be almost 600 inches up there with the hut being almost invisible among the depth of the drifts and cornices. Along with Tess to make the trip a true "hut trip", several Aspen locals and a couple of out-of-towners made the trek. Snowmobiles were used to haul extra gear to the hut, but when the machines encountered epic conditions (can I say that cause we were "close" to Vail?) and side hills, they were abandoned a mile or so from our destination. With light waning, the 11 trekkers made their way up the final pitch with the aid of a GPS that took us right to the door in a dead heat with the dark. Tess shouted Hallelujah!, and the anxiety of looking for the hut was replaced with the exuberance of finding it. Party on!

The next morning we awoke to 10" of fresh on top of fresh. Stability was always a question, so we kept it safe doing hot laps and building a big kicker OVER the hut. Colter Hinchliffe, Greg Ernst, Willie Volkheisen and Derek Koster threw big over the hut to the oohs and ahhhs of the neophytes like myself. Once again the celebration of an amazing season was in full swing, topped off that night with rousing games of Egyptian Rat Screw and BB target practice in the wood chopping room until 3:30am.

Sleep was definitely in order but Colter was on a mission and the 6am roust only partially worked. Finally out the door, another 10" of fresh awaited. The radio barked...."Siiiiiick" and I went to work. A couple quick laps on the steeper side of the ridge behind the hut proved to be my best lines of the season, shared with Steamboat Nordic coach Josh Smullin. The smiles could not be removed from our faces, even as we dug fresh paths for the snowmobiles to get out, and back to the Red Sandstone Creek trailhead. Chris Tatsuno(Tats), Mike McCabe, JF Breuger and Derek piloted the machines out, while Colter and Willie got a tow on the back for fun. The stoke just wouldn't subside and the group left each other to their separate ways vowing to "do this again next year".

Upon returning to Aspen I went into a mini hibernation to recover from the extended Highlands Closing that we took on the road. My knees were tired and the fatigue was too much to take advantage of the sun. I did manage to hook up with a few friends for some afternoon Bocce but the forecast said snow and we knew spring was not really here yet. Sure enough, by Saturday morning the Bocce lawn had been covered in another fresh 14" of fluff, GAME ON ONCE AGAIN, It's still not over. The calls went out and this time it was KDUNK, Brad Yule, Natalie and myself, joining hundreds of other Aspen locals to shred all four mountains of Aspen/Snowmass without the aid of a single lift. While snowmobiles and skiers shuttled each other up Bell Mountain, we skinned up Spar Gulch. 2 laps on Backside of Bell to Gents to Jackpot proved to trump my earlier lines at the Eiseman Hut just days prior. UNBELIEVABLE was heard all day, and the Apres smiles and stories live on in my mind as proof of the best day of the year, yes that's right, on April 30, 2011.

The forecast is finally calling for more seasonable weather starting mid-week, just in time for many scheduled float trips by all those same powder hounds. Truly blessed are we in the mountains of Colorado. We are reminded every day how lucky we are and if you haven't noticed....slow down, take it all in, and notice the smiles. A big thank you to Tess Weaver for the invite to the Eiseman Hut and to all of the Eiseman hut trippers, it was an adventure I'll never forget. And special thanks the Aspen/Snowmass for finally closing for real and leaving the sick pow to those of us who could actually earn our turns, that was indeed special. Old Man Winter...that was one of the best yet, glad you hung in there. Mother Nature....we're ready for spring, give us your best shot!

Upside Down Spring

2011-04-23T04:24:00.000-07:00

Spring has sprung around the north but for many of us it has been completely upside down. Here in the Rockies, we're used to the sunny, warm days and cold nights that produce the epic crust/corn season that many refer to as the best skiing of the year. However, the sun has barely shown here while powder hounds can get no rest. Highlands Bowl has been freshly stocked nearly every night and the conga line up the ridge has been re-set every day around 10am. The rainy/snowy valleys remind me more of the roads of Northern Europe and the spring classics than those of the Western Slope.

Meanwhile Belgium, France and Holland have experienced un-seasonably warm conditions this spring. Typically fought over roads covered in manure due to the excessive rain, the spring classics have been run under bright sun with temps in the 70s and old gits from Flanders had to go scrambling for sunscreen not used since August. The crowds in Flanders and at Roubaix looked to be near record as the mild weather encouraged the ladies in sundresses to visit Wallers Arenberg for the first time or to venture to the top of the Mur. Even though the spring classics "should" be run in adverse weather to add to the challenge, I always enjoy watching the classics under the sun. The crowds are massive and the country is breathtaking. I can only imagine how awesome it is to be in top shape and crushing the pedals in front of thousands on a warm, almost summer like day.

Tomorrow is Easter and real spring is just around the corner but I can handle just a little more of this upside down season, one more day of sick pow for us in the Rockies and one more day of brilliant sun in Wallonia will be much appreciated. My picks for Liege tomorrow: 1. Gilbert, 2. Vinokourov, 3. F. Schleck. My predictions for Highlands closing? A foot+ in the Bowl, perhaps two, Slightly White will crush the MGR, and the PBR tall boys will flow like the spring melt-off through Slaughterhouse Falls.

HAPPY EASTER, HAPPY HIGHLANDS CLOSING, HAPPY LA DOYENNE AND HAPPY SPRING EVERYBODY!!

36th Coors Classic next August in Colorado!!

2010-08-06T17:07:00.000-07:00

In our mind's eye the most epic American bicycle stage race has gone on every summer since Mo Siegel started the Red Zinger Bicycle Classic in 1975. The amazing imagery and romance of the mountains of Colorado combined with the toughness, daring and speed of road bike racing has become an absolute monument in the history of velo sport in the United States. Next August 22-28 will see the newest rendition of an old classic, the Quizno's Pro Challenge, announced by Lance Armstrong and Colorado Governor Bill Ritter, and even though it will be a first year event, this battle on two wheels has raged on in the imagination of American cyclists around the country summer after summer since the beginning.

No matter if one's heart was touched by the Red Zinger or the Coors Classic that followed, the setting, the mountains of Colorado, were always the back drop. Even if they came from the midwest or the east coast and The Hell of the West with a young Kevin Costner was all they knew of the real thing, riders around the country longed to ride in Colorado and to race up and down the high passes, just like Greg Lemond, Bernard Hinault and Davis Phinney. Even when the Coors Classic ventured to California and even on to Hawaii, the race yearned for it's home in Colorado.

Quoted earlier this week, Graham Watson, the veteran cycling photographer said,
- "I find the Colorado news more exciting than when TOC launched in '06, it's like USA cycling coming home to its birthplace..."-

Such are the memories of this race that they come dancing back periodically due to some random event... For me any ride or drive at, or near the Colorado National Monument has me thinking about the Tour of the Moon stage out of Grand Junction. Man that was awesome, such an epic course that provided amazing racing. Every time I drive into Boulder from Golden, I mean every single time, I realize that I'm on the Morgul Bismarck! And for sure, any time I see a guy riding in a full black beard, I think of the Russian from American Flyers. - YOUUU GO GET HIM, he says to Muzin every time.

This got me thinking of some possible stages and I thought I'd have a go, how about a nice look back as we go forward. This would be my ideal opening edition of the Quizno's Pro Challenge:

August 22: Tour of the Moon Road Race, Grand Junction
August 23: Aspen Circuit Race
August 24: Aspen to Copper Mountain Road Race
August 25: Vail Pass Time Trial
August 26: Vail Criterium
August 27: Morgul Bismarck Road Race, Boulder
August 28: Denver Cicuit Race

Looks AWESOME to me, I hope they do it!

How nostalgic, how joyous to have the race actually coming back for real. I mean the imagination is great, and it usually means that we're out riding, but to actually have it happen... well, THANKS QUIZNO'S.

Think I'll go get a nice toasted sammy to celebrate.

Wow, for some reason I just thought about Greg Lemond and Taco Bell.... Hhhmmmm, somebody's trying to tell me something.

Cheers to Quizno's, Lance Armstrong, Bill Ritter, The Colorado Board of Tourism, thanks a ton for getting this off the ground. Hope to see you all following the Challenge next August!

Armstrong to win 8th Tour title this July

2010-07-01T05:08:00.000-07:00

To some that may be a shocking headline. For me it's a shock to pick Lance to win this month in Paris. I've thought about this for a long time and while I do think Alberto Contador is clearly the best rider today, there can be no denying that cycling is a team sport and Alberto's squad is simply not up to the task. Astana is a top flight team, enough to deliver a super star to the top step of the podium. However, standing in the way is the Radioshack juggernaut, Team Director Johann Bruyneel at the helm. Lance and Bruyneel form a tandem rarely seen in sports, akin to Phil Jackson and Michael Jordan at their best in Chicago. Plug and play the other guys at will and knock off championships like bowling pins.

In this case Radioshack is sitting in a better situation than even the Bulls of lore. Andreas Kloden, Levi Leipheimer, Chris Horner and Janez Brajkovic are more than mere teammates, they can pretend to be Lance in their dreams and every single one of them can manifest those dreams on any given day. This gives Boss Hog Bruyneel a winning hand, one King and four Deuces Wild. Contrast this with Astana and their Team Director.....Vinokourov, the Joker. Well nobody really ever knows what will happen with Vino in charge. Contador is the Ace, but in the world of cycling the Joker on this team is the one to watch. Will Vinokourov dedicate himself to towing Contador around like a guardian angel? I doubt it. Vino attacks, that's what he does. It's probably a better tactic as well. Things that make you go hhhmmmmmm.

What about Bjarne Riis' Saxo Bank team? He's got a decent hand with one Ace, Andy Schleck, and one Jack, Frank Schleck. But without the Wild Card Sastre in the mix, Saxo is left a little short. What about Sastre? All that leads to is more and more questions; what about Basso?, what about Menchov?, what about Cadel Evans?, what about Mick Rogers? Those are all good questions. But we're talking about winning the Tour de France. Lance Armstrong and Johann Bruyneel quite simply, will not let any one of those guys win the Tour. Nope, this is about defeating Contador and Vinokourov. The others are supporting cast at best, chorus members, some may get an outstanding solo but that's it.

Lance has announced that the intention is to control from the first pedal turn to the last. He has also announced that he is close to his all time fitness with a final lead up test on the Col de la Madone near his home. This is a regular test he has done nearly throughout his career. This behavior signals a different Lance than we saw last year. This behavior is more reminiscent of his earlier self, the one who not once ever accepted defeat. When Lance announces these things, the peloton is on notice. I'm coming through, get the hell out of the way.

This year's course is yet another bike pump to throw into Contador's front wheel. Holland, Wind, Cobbles, Le Tour... these are all institutions, monuments to the sport of cycling. Alberto Contador is still but a child, almost a baby, while Radioshack is the Dream Team. You tell me, how in the world is the immature, almost infantile Contador going to handle all of this? He could barely handle it last year when he was an ally. Now he is enemy number one. By hook or by crook, Contador and Vino are going down. I just hope nobody gets hurt when it's all said and done, it could get ugly.

Trecker's Tour de France top 10 GC
1. Lance Armstrong
2. Andy Schleck
3. Alberto Contador
4. Bradley Wiggins
5. Michael Rogers
6. Roman Kreuzinger
7. Robert Gesink
8. Christian Vande Velde
9. Andreas Kloden
10. Levi Leipheimer

Points Classification (Green Jersey)
1. Oscar Freire
2. Tyler Farrar
3. Thor Hushovd

Mountains Classification (Polka Dot Jersey)
1. Damiano Cunego
2. John Gadret
3. Christophe Moreau

Giro picks - No surprises

2010-05-08T05:56:00.000-07:00

Still just time to get my Giro favorites down, race is under way in Holland right now but here goes.

Overall General Classification
1. Cadel Evans
2. Alexander Vinokourov
3. Carlos Sastre

There are several challengers to these top three. Domenico Pozzovivo is on excellent form and could pose a threat on the big climbs. The Lampre tandem reunited, Damiano Cunego and Gilberto Simoni also could challenge on the climbs. Garmin-Transitions has a trio of talent, the veteran Christian Vandevelde leads the squad but Aussie youngster Jack Bobridge and Irishman Dan Martin could also show themselves at the front. Former winner Stefano Garzelli, Marzio Bruseghin, Ivan Basso, Vincenzo Nibali and Vladimir Karpets could all find their legs as well and threaten for a podium spot by the finish. However, World Champ Evans is the most prepared and focused of the real three week challengers. Vino is certainly going to be dangerous but I feel he still lacks a little something to last three weeks with no bad days. Former Tour winner Sastre looks and sounds ready, but his fragility seems to prevent him from winning consistently. Should be fun and let's hope it's a little slower than last year.

Go VDV!!

Cancellara - a la Merckx! Swiss crushes Roubaix

2010-04-11T07:19:00.000-07:00

I sit here and watch Roubaix live on Flemish TV, and the direct quote from one of the lead announcers was perfect... "Cancellara, a la Merckx."

The Swiss chrono specialist used a perfectly timed attack to secure a place in the history books, but also a place of legend and myth. With nearly 50km to go, Spartacus slid away from a small chase group and quickly bridged to the lead trio. He dispatched to small group on the next set of cobbles and assumed his all too familiar time trial position. The chasers, particularily Belgian rock star Tom Boonen, two-champ of Roubaix, were dismayed and defeated immediately, resigned to race for 2nd and 3rd.

Comparisons to Merckx legends flashed instantly to all those familiar with such stories. But unlike Merckx, who sometimes used such moves in flashes of audacity and ego, Cancellara's move came out of pure necessity and perfect tactical timing. As the race flowed through the 50km point, race favorite number two, Boonen, showed a bit of impatience, and attacked hard to break up a large front group of 25-30 favorites. The move worked, and a small group of around a dozen emerged from the blow. A small raiding party led by Lotto's Leif Hoste, sped away on the exit of the cobbles. The chasers were ever so slightly strung out by a moderately fast pace as Boonen slipped towards the back of the group to asses the damage and take a drink. Cancellara recognized this as the perfect time. He was now isolated without teammate Matti Breschel, and his main rival Boonen, who certainly could outsprint Cancellara, was slacking at the perfect moment.

Cancellara neither lept out of the saddle, nor soft pedalled off the front... he missled his way silently but with enormous power and speed, and left the others, defeated nearly immediately.

I am literally writing this story with 23km to go and the gap is over two minutes. When Cancellara went away, I said, "It's over, he's gone, he's going to win by over two minutes!". A la Merckx indeed! Incredible win for Fabian Canellara, one I'll never forget.

Highlands Closing Party - EPIC!!

2010-04-07T14:53:00.000-07:00

Sometimes called "The largest unorganized party in skiing", and sometimes called "Gaper Day", the annual bash on the scheduled closing day of Aspen Highlands is one party not to be missed. EPIC, the best word to describe this past Sunday's events at Highlands, sick snow from top to bottom and crazy parties and partiers from top to bottom. By the time the real party starts rolling at 4PM, things start to get out of control and that's just when it starts to get good. Here are some photos from the annual craziness. Enjoy.
Above left: Natalie Ward and Brad Yule pose for the camera near the top of Highlands Bowl while Kevin Dunkelberg looks on as Russ Bollig arrives. Above Right: The party gets rolling in the Bootpacker's Lounge.

Below left: KDUNK and Trecker get ready to hit the steeps of G3. Below right: Natalie gives us the "Mancuso" pose at the top of the Bowl.

Above Left: Natalie Ward and Andre Willie partake in the fun at the Base. Above right: Dunk shows off his Sunday best.
Above left: A couple thousand revel at the Closing Party. Above right: The hike to the top was windy and tough but brought much freshness to those who perservered.

Below: more random pics

Flanders this Sunday, Devolder to Threepeat

2010-04-03T06:15:00.001-07:00

I know this is a stretch but here's my picks for De Ronde van Vlanderen this Sunday:

1. Stijn Devolder
2. Lance Armstrong
3. Tyler Farrar

Shane McConkey day March 26

2010-03-26T16:37:00.000-07:00

Today, March 26th marks the one year anniversary of the death of Shane McConkey. If you don't know the man and the legend, check him out. Thanks Shane for everything and R.I.P.

San Remo predictions

2010-03-20T05:19:00.000-07:00

Time to get going with the Spring Classics, today's, The Classicissima, La Primavera, The Milano-San Remo epic of 298km.

In brief: I believe it will come to a small bunch sprint of perhaps 30 riders and the sprinters that do well in the finale will be those with the strongest lieutenants that were represented in the earlier break.

My podium call: 1. Alejet Pettacchi, 2. Tomeke Boonen, 3. Tyler Farrar

Let's see how I do

Simi Hamilton makes the Olympics

2010-01-28T17:03:00.000-08:00

Huge congratulations to one of our own here in Aspen, Simi Hamilton, who has just been named to the U.S. Olympic Team for cross country skiing. Hamilton helped secure his spot on the team by both, winning the U.S. championship earlier this month, and by winning the sprint qualifier at the U23 World Championships in Germany earlier this week. Although he was taken out by some fellow competitors and a bad glue job on his pole grip in the subsequent heats, Simi must have shown enough speed to garner the final spot available to the United States. Once again, huge congrats to Simi!!

Gilbert wins Lombardy, scores an almost impossible "double"

2009-10-18T07:21:00.000-07:00

Phillipe Gilbert(BEL) of the Silence-Lotto team benefitted from strong team work from Cadel Evans and used a blistering attack on the San Fermo climb to break away with Sammy Sanchez. He then controlled the sprint to win his second classic in a week. The nearly impossible double of Paris Tours and Lombardy in the same season has only been accomplished thrice previous. Given the fact that Paris Tours is often called the sprinters classic and Lombardy a week later is the climbers classic, its not surprising that only Phillipe Thys in 1917, Rik Van Looy in 1959 and Jo de Roo in 1963 were able to score the double. In more recent times not even the greatest of all rounders like Sean Kelly, Eddy Merckx, Francesco Moser and Laurent Jalabert could accomplish what Gilbert has done. Bravo Phillipe, great win, and congrats on finding your place in the history books. Also a big congrats to Cadel Evans, he truly is honoring the rainbow jersey just like he said he would. And to Damiano Cunego... you're starting to sound a little bit whiny, suck it up and leave the poorly chosen post race comments to Cav.

Lombardia tomorrow, Cunego looks to repeat

2009-10-16T12:53:00.000-07:00

The annual celebration of fall in the Lombardy region of Italy, the Giro di Lombardia, or "The Race of the Falling Leaves", is set for tomorrow. Damiano Cunego of Lampre has made this race his personal playground, having scored a hat trick of wins in recent times, and he looks to have the form to win a 4th. In his way will be the new World Champion Cadel Evans of the Silence Lotto team and a host of other contenders including; Ivan Basso of Liquigas, Alexander Kolobnev of Saxo Bank and Robert Gesink of Rabobank.

The Lombardia is usually even more selective than the Worlds and because of that reason, the typical climbers usually can get away from the sprinters that can climb. This means that even though Phillipe Gilbert is on stomping form, he likely won't make it to the finish with the leaders. Another sprinter that can climb is Fillipo Pozzato, however, he no longer has to stress because he got sick and won't even take the start. Alejandro Valverde, the recent winner of the Vuelta Espana, is not at the start either due to his doping ban in Italy. Valverde is scheduled for a appeal to the ban in front of the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland this weekend instead.

Predictions: The field trims to the climbers through attrition and Cunego outguns whoever is left.

Starred favorites:

***
D. Cunego
C. Evans
A. Kolobnev

**
J. Brajkovic
C. Horner
A. Vinokourov
J. Rodriguez
S. Sanchez
D. Martin
I. Basso
R. Gesink
M. Scarponi
J. Van Den Broeck
K. Kirchen
F. Wegman
J. Fuglsang

*
A. Ballan
R. Nocentini
T. Valjevec
P. Deignan
T. Danielson
V. Milhojevic
G. Stangelj
M. Barry
M. Monfort
K. Siutsou
S. Ivanov
J. Hoogerland

Prediction:
1. D. Cunego
2. A. Kolobnev
3. C. Evans
4. M. Scarponi
5. R. Gesink
6. F. Wegman
7. C. Horner
8. A. Vinokourov
9. J. Fuglsang
10. I. Basso

Tour 2010, no walk in park for Radioshack

2009-10-14T05:04:00.000-07:00

The route and stages have been announced for next summer's Tour de France. Go to www.cyclingnews.com for the latest updates on the course. It appears that once again the Tour organizers were not pleased with the way this past year went. In 2009, from the beginning, Astana held a stranglehold on the other GC contenders. With a relatively long opening TT, a Team TT and another long individual race against the clock, the ahem, Kasakh outfit left little doubt that one in their fold would take the title.

2010 will not be the same. The opening tt(prologue this time) is only 8km. There is no TTT and the remaining race against the clock is on the second to last day. Given this formula, Lance Armstrong's Radioshack as well as Alberto Contador's team, whoever that might be, will have a hard time using the same old formula for victory. If Radioshack controls the race from the beginning, Contador, as well as several of the other contenders, will get a free ride to Paris. If Radioshack doesn't control the race, who will? Look for an attacking ride around France in 2010, perhaps even Lance will stick his nose in the wind a few times?

My early prediction for 2010: A wide open, attacking race with several surprises, but in the end a very familiar podium.

1. Alberto Contador
2. Lance Armstrong
3. Cadel Evans

Roggen Brown wins Severy Memorial

2009-10-11T08:01:00.000-07:00

Durango's Roggen Brown used a strong ascent of Raoul's Revenge to break away from the pack in the Chris Severy Memorial on Saturday. Brown won the event with a time around 18:30 for the 5k. He finished by himself, cruising down the home stretch comfortably. Brown is also a national caliber Nordic racer in the winter and a sure fire talent of the future. I was unable to secure results or the names of the other medalists on Saturday, but it was a great day of racing with fantastic weather. Especially since the Front Range was getting hammered with snow and freezing temperatures at the same time.

2010 Aspen Cup dates announced

2009-10-09T15:07:00.000-07:00

2010 Aspen Cup Nordic Series
presented by The Ute Mountaineer, Aspen Cross Country Center, Snowmass Cross Country Center

Sun. Dec. 13: Free introduction to racing / Early season training session, Aspen XC Center, Time TBD

Sun. Jan. 3: ARC/Moore Circuit Race, 9AM-8/12k classic, mass start, 10:45AM- 8/12k freestyle, mass start. Registration, S/F at The Aspen Recreation Center , 1.25 mile up Maroon Creek on the right, adjacent(west) to the public parking lot. Entry fees: Adults $15- $7 for second race, Juniors $7- 2nd race free.

Sa. Jan. 23: Aspen Pursuit Day 1, AHS Circuit Race, 11AM 10/15k freestyle, mass start. Registration, S/F at the Lower Ball Field of the AVSC/AHS trail system, Park at the Aspen Middle School parking lot about .5 mile up Maroon Creek on the left. Walk to adjacent ball field and trail system. Entry fees: Adults $15 Juniors $7.

Su. Jan. 24: Aspen Pursuit Day 2, Ashcroft Classic, 9:30AM 12k classic pursuit start. Registration, S/F at King Cabin, Aschcroft Ski Touring, 11 miles up Castle Creek, park on the left and walk to the cabin. Entry fees: Adults $15, Juniors $7

Su. Jan. 31: AXCC Circuit Race, 9:30AM 10/20k freestyle, mass start. Registration, S/F on the “Teaching Loop” of the Aspen XC Center, at the Aspen Golf Course, west of the roundabout on the north side of 82. Entry fees: Adults $15, Juniors $7

Sa. Feb. 13: Aspen Nordic Festival Day 1, Start TBD, AVSC Classic Race, see www.owlcreekchase.com for event details, 5/10k classic, individual start. Event takes place at the AVSC/AHS trail system, about 1 mile up Maroon Creek, left side. See website for all details.

Su. Feb. 14: Aspen Nordic Festival Day 2, Start TBD, Owl Creek Chase p/b City of Aspen, see www.owlcreekchase.com for event details, 25k freestyle, mass start. Race starts at Snowmass XC Center and finishes at the AVSC/AHS trails. See website for all details.

Mo. Feb. 15: Skate with the Pros free clinic, 9:30AM, Aspen XC Center, Improve you skating with the pro skiers from the Owl Creek Chase. The AXCC is located at the Aspen Golf Course, west of the roundabout, north side of 82

Su. Mar. 7: Silverboom Race, 10AM, 1/10/20k freestyle, mass start, 1k Kiddieboom to follow main event. Aspen Cup Finals, Double Points. Registration, S/F at the Snowmass XC Center, about 4 miles up Brush Creek on the left. Entry fees: Adults $15, juniors $7, Kiddieboom 1K Free

Contact: For all events see www.utemountaineer.com or contact series director Mike Trecker, trecker@utemountaineer.com , or phone (970) 925-2849 x17

Scoring: A simple yet effective scoring system will be used for all events, for overall and for age group scoring. The total number of starters will equal the first place points given, eg. 20 starters equals 20 points for first and 1 point for 20th place., regardless of age, gender, etc. Therefore, more weight will be given to those events with larger participation and it will be simple and easy to cross reference other racers in different age groups and gender. There are 8 possible scores throughout the season. A racer’s total will be the best 5 scores. A minimum of 3 starts are required to count towards the season Aspen Cup total. There will double points awarded at the end of the year event, The Silverboom on Mar. 7. Awards and BBQ will take place immediately after the Kiddieboom event after the Silverboom.

2009 Aspen Cup winners: Pierre Willie, Basalt and Natalie Ward, Woody Creek

There are some more details to work out and post on the website but at least here are the dates for your calendars.

Jason Anderson wins the 2nd annual Fall Classic, Max Taam 2nd, Tim Clement 3rd

2009-10-06T13:37:00.000-07:00

The peloton set a brisk pace all day, around 1:30 to Glenwood Springs and just over 3.5 hours total for the round trip from Woody Creek and back including stops. A fabulous crisp day for the Fall Classic #2 and some fun, fast riding from start to finish.

Jason Anderson used a well timed move to seperate from Max Taam and Tim Clement in the final kilometer to win the second edition of the Fall Classic, a fun, club ride patterned after the Fondos of Europe. Other strong finishers were Ambre Levy in 4th, Christian Garlapow in 5th as well as Charlie Eckhart and Elliott Larson. In addition to 3rd overall, Tim Clement took the sprint competition by one point over Taam with Anderson in 3rd.

Above left: Jason Anderson takes out the 2nd annual Fall Classic, right: Tim Clement takes 3rd behind Max Taam(not pictured)

Amber Levy outprints Christian Garlapow for 4th.

The Fall Classic, Woody Creek-Glenwood Springs-Woody Creek, Oct. 3, 2009

65 miles

1. Jason Anderson, Natural Grocers, 3:34

2. Max Taam, Horizon Organic, @:05

3. Tim Clement, Ute City Cycles/DBC, @:10

4. Ambre Levy, DFT p/b Treadz, @:24

5. Christian Garlapow, Zone 4/Timberline West, st

Also: Charlie Eckhart, Mike Armstrong and Elliott Larson completed the full course, finish order unknown

Sprint Competiton

1. Tim Clement - 7

2. Max Taam - 6

3. Jason Anderson - 4

4. Christian Garlapow - 4

5. Agustin Goba - 2

5. Ambre Levy - 1

Great story on Aspen's Jessica Phillips

2009-09-29T12:52:00.000-07:00

Here's a great story on Jessica Phillips of Aspen in velonews.com, congrats Jessica on a great season making it back to the top of the sport!

http://www.velonews.com/article/98831/for-phillips-just-making-it-to-mendrisio-was-a-victory

Impressive, well timed attack and victory for Aussie Cadel Evans

2009-09-28T06:30:00.000-07:00

Oft maligned Cadel Evans secured the first ever World Championship Elite Men's Road Race title for his native Australia yesterday in Mendrisio, SUI. Evans used a timely attack on the last of 19 tough circuits to spring clear of silver and bronze medalists Alexander Kolobnev(RUS) and Joacuin Rodriguez(SPA). Evans then time trialed home to the finish as Fabian Cancellara(SUI) tried desperately to bring the race back together.

Cancellara had good reason to chase, he appeared to be the strongest rider in the group, first breaking the peloton into little pieces on the penultimate lap, and then, when all his teammates were used up, continually neutralizing every attempted move. That is, until Kolobnev broke free with Rodriguez and Evans. This time Spartacus had enough of pulling 10 favorites up to every move and he looked to Belgium and Italy for help. The only problem is that Phillipe Gilbert and Damiano Cunego were left isolated and in no way wished to assist the ultra-strong Swiss to the finish. That was the lucky hesitation Evans needed, and when he found himself noodling away from Kolobnev and Rodriguez just prior to the last climb, he punched it and never looked back, taking his most glorious win since joining the roadie peloton nearly a decade ago.

What went wrong for the big favorites Italy and Spain? Well, I was partly right in my predictions, Spain was a little splintered and frustrated in their efforts. Primarily, even though Spain had three riders up the road in a big 20 man chase, they still put three more on the front of the bunch. Why? Not sure about that one... Italy did have a great day but suffered when they had to do all of the work in the big chase of the day. With three in the counter, including last year's winner Alessandro Ballan, Italy was forced into an aggressive race, and they crumbled at crunch time. Specifically, on the last lap we saw Pippo Pozzato come to the fore with Ivan Basso. They set a furious tempo up the Acqua Fresca climb, but had nothing at the top when Cancellara put in another typical acceleration. Cunego was able to respond, but while Spain had three riders in the final 10, Cunego was isolated and out-gunned. Perhaps Pozzato himself would have been better in the final? I think it would have been better for Italy to keep Basso and Pippo for a little later in the final rather than spending them, but hindsight is 20-20.

In any case the World's is filled with 'what ifs', and suffice to say that Australia raced masterfully and had at least one representative for the team in the important moves as well as several workhorses like Stuart O'Grady. Congratulations to Australia and to Cadel Evans, an artful and inspirational ride, a career defining moment, and a big monkey lifted off the back of one of the toughest yet mis-understood riders on the planet.

World Championships this Sunday

2009-09-25T14:23:00.000-07:00

Finally got to see the start list for sunday, www.uci.ch for the skinny.
Tons of people with a chance to win or get a great result, I have checked off 1,2,3 and 4 star favorites. Here's the 4's, 3's and 2's with my analysis and prediction:
　
****
Cunego
Valverde
Gilbert

***
Ballan
Sanchez
Evans
Tony Martin
Ivanov
Millar
Boom
Chavanel
Vinokourov
Hesjedal
Roche

**
Gerrans
Wegman
Kolobnev
Monfort
A. Schleck
Danielson
Brajkovic
Serpa
Paulinho
T. Lovkvist
Dan Martin
Siutsou

I see a more unified team in the Squadra Azzura than the Spaniards, just like last year. When the real, real selection is made, Spain will hesitate, leaving Cunego free to win a small group sprint from those attentive enough to jump at the right time.

1. Cunego
2. Gerrans
3. Vinokourov

I know that's a stretch for Vino but who knows, he may find the "magic" once again.

Darkhorse strongman - David Millar, GBR

Floyd into the top 20! Well almost.

2009-09-02T06:09:00.000-07:00

When I saw the start list for the US Pro time trial championships I instantly predicted Floyd Landis' first top 20 placing of the season. Riding for OUCH/pb Maxxis, Landis, the former non-winner of the Tour de France, has had a difficult time re-integrating into domestic racing. For some reason Floyd can't seem to ride his way out of a paper bag and he has barely sniffed the top 20 all season, even in such places as Arkansas, Floyd can't ride with the leaders.

But when the start list came out for the pro tt, I knew it would happen. No, not because Floyd's form was finally on the rise, but becase there were only 20 starters on the list! It was a lock, top 20 for sure.

But wait, those damn late entries. Shit! Floyd Landis 21st at US Pro.

Wiggins publishes blood values - BRAVO

2009-07-31T05:31:00.000-07:00

Bradley Wiggins, GBR, recent 4th place finisher in the Tour de France, has published all of his blood testing work from the last several years. Info on the exact data can be found at cyclingnews.com and I'm sure other sources as well. Wiggins' values represent a fairly confident conclusion that he is a clean rider. His data from this year's Giro and Tour show naturally occuring changes in the blood values easily and logically attributed to the demands of a tough 3 week Grand Tour, basically, they went down. Wiggins also shows a caluculation of his "Off Score" which shows a relationship with hemoglobin and reticulites.

The following is a direct quote from the cyclingnews.com story.....

- The Off Score was developed as a more robust measure because reticulocytes tend to decrease when haemoglobin is artificially high. The upper limit for the Off Score is 134; Wiggins' haemoglobin, hematocrit, and off score values were 14.93 ± 0.8 g/dl, 44.9 ± 1.9 %, and 89.4 ± 9.4, respectively, well below the cut off parameters that indicate potential artificial performance enhancement.The best indication that Wiggins rode clean is in the fact that his hemoglobin and Off Score values followed the same curve - according to the logic employed in the Off Score, if there was artificial performance enhancement occurring, the end of each curve would point in the opposite direction. - cyclingnews.com -

Given this new data I feel very comfortable that my eyes have not deceived me and indeed the peloton looks a little slower (at least in France) than it has been AND it actually is. I do love that new term, 'cleanish'.

BRAVO BRAD WIGGINS, VIVE LE TOUR

Whispers about rumors and people on bikes

2009-07-30T12:45:00.000-07:00

Ahhh, bike racing. As soon as a major race is over the rumor mill begins to grind away...... Have you heard anything about Wiggins going to Sky? Did you hear that Hincapie and Lance have a new deal? I heard the AFLD may have some trouble on the boil...... Wait, what was that last one? What did you hear? Oh nothing, just whispers about a possible thing about that one guy that's really fast. But you didn't hear it from me. Didn't hear what? Exactly.

Tour wrap - Stage 1 of 2010 Tour was fun

2009-07-28T06:12:00.000-07:00

After three weeks full of drama the 2009 Tour feels more like the first stage of next year's race, than an event in and of itself. The internal struggle of the Astana team was of course at the forefront of events, but there were plenty of side stories as well. Here's my lasting impressions:

Lance Armstrong has been great for the sport of cycling. Regardless of what you think of the man, cycling is more important now than ever before and that's largly because of Big Tex.

Alberto Contador may be a great champion but he's still very immature and has much to learn. Look for Lance himself to be dishing out the lessons next July. El Pistolero shot off his mouth and his little toy gun plenty but many of those shots were backfires that we won't know the full affect until next summer.

Garmin and Columbia-HTC and in an all out battle. We saw plenty of fireworks from these two teams throughout France and the rivalry is just beginning. There are many questions surrounding these teams, will Wiggins, Millar and Cavendish all ditch for the Sky team out of Britain? Will Hincapie leave Columbia to go back to Lance and Johann? Will Vaughters really try to sign Alberto Contador into the squad and if so, does that mean the end of Christian Vandevelde's chances as a GC rider?

The Team Time Trial is a critical event. We can see from this year's race that Cadel Evans and Carlos Sastre, without a good TTT, were left adrift with no hope of returning to the front of the GC. Should Contador try to build a team around him ala Lance, he will have a hard time finding the firepower it takes to contend in the TTT and ultimately the Tour. ASO, the Tour organizers, now find themselves in an orchestrating position of deciding two options for two greatly different champions. The 2010 Tour without a TTT will favor Contador, however if ASO brings the TTT in for 2010, look out for Lance and the new Radioshack team to dominate next year's race.

The Tour is as popular as ever. The crowds in France this summer were massive and it made the event even more dramatic. Aside from the transgressions from a couple kids who used a pellet gun to shoot at the peloton, the crowds were largely well behaved.

The pressure of the AFLD and ASO in their fight against performance enhancement, has slowed the Tour to a more human level. This year's Tour looked better than last summer and looked better than the Giro from this spring. Danilo Diluca got busted for EPO in this Giro, what really? You don't say.... Meanwhile I didn't really have to yell at the TV for riders to breath, there was more pain and suffering in this Tour than I've seen in awhile. Quite a bit less robotic racing and that's definitely a good thing.

I'm looking forward to next July already. I am having less withdrawls from this year's Tour while really anticipating next summer. The Tour organizers really put on a great show and the sport seems to me to have stabilized a little. To coin a term I heard recently, bike racing looks fairly 'cleanish' to me right now, at least in France, and I'm more happy because of it.

And what about my picks? Well, not too bad. I hit Contador and Lance dead on in 1st and 3rd, and although I had Andy and Frank Schleck in 4th and 7th, those were two pretty good picks as well. My big surprise, just like everyone else..... Brad Wiggins, wow!! Way to go on that Tour! Congrats!

That's about it for today. VIVE LE TOUR!!

Immature Contador isolates himself and puts team at risk

2009-07-22T12:35:00.000-07:00

Today's stage saw more spectacular racing in the Tour de France highlighted by Alberto Contador's risky acceleration near the top of the Columbiere climb. Contador instantly dropped his teammate Andreas Kloden and isolated himself against the two Schleck brothers. Although he's the fastest climber in the race, the young Spaniard has plenty to learn about bike racing. This latest transgression is sure to fuel the fires of vengence by next summer when Lance and Kloden look to put Contador in the corner for his mis-behavior.

Max Taam doing well in Wisconsin/Illinois Superweek

2009-07-20T07:26:00.000-07:00

Max Taam is still upping his game and looking good, last night 8th place in the Evanston Crit at Superweek. Right in there with the heavies like Sulzberger and Cantwell. Good job Max.

Dave Z. cutting George H. out of Yellow

2009-07-19T05:23:00.000-07:00

I know there have been alot of comments about yesterday's stage into Briancon and Hincapie's loss of the yellow jersey by a scant 5 seconds, and, who's fault was it. Hincapie partly blamed Astana, while much of the venting has fell on Garmin. Let's get personal..... I'm with Lance on this one, Astana was setting a false tempo to prevent massive time gains like 15 to 20 minutes, which would certainly make Hincapie nearly as dangerous as Pereiro a couple years ago. When the gap went out to 8 minutes AG2R took over, and when they flailed is was indeed Garmin drove to the finish. And to be exact, it was Dave Zabriskie, front and center, driving it like a mad man. Now you can call that protecting Wiggins or whatever, NOT. Dave Z. was not on the wing, in the wind protecting Wiggins, he was at the top of the arrow head, down low, giving it all he had. Now that's personal. And it cost Hincapie yellow.

Another side of the story: Hincapie certainly knows how to cry and complain and look around for help from the others in the group. Whether it's L'enfer du Nord or Le Grand Boucle, Hincapie can be seen looking around and gesticulating, and for all his complaining, he could have saved those 5 seconds himself.

Tomorrow starts the Tour for reals

2009-07-09T14:02:00.000-07:00

Andorra - Arcallis. The last time the Tour finished on this HC climb, the youthful Jan Ullrich rocketed away from all of his rivals to win solo and signal the start of a new era. Tomorrow starts the Tour for real and by the end of the day we'll have a pretty good idea who will finish in the top ten in Paris. In the meantime, Bradley Wiggins of the Garmin Slipstream team, has posted that he heard some news tonight that will shock the cycing world when the press gets ahold of the news. Uh Oh, looks like all the favorites might not even get to start. Get up early tomorrow folks and check your news, there may be some crap in there.

2 picks destroyed, Menchov and Pellizotti left their form in Italy

2009-07-05T06:17:00.000-07:00

So much for the big talk and dreams from two of the Giro podium finishers a month ago, Denis Menchov and Franco Pellizotti were both shattered yesterday in the opening time trial. Menchov in 53rd and Pellizotti in 61st and both lost so much time that it will take an amazing team situation to put either back in contention. So much for overall Giro contenders doing well in France this July. On the other hand, Astana looks unbeatable with 4 riders in the top ten and a plethora of tactical choices at their disposal. Looks to me like it will be impossible for another team to win the overall, and by the way, look for Astana to take the team comp as well. Bruyneel could use all the props he can get by the end of July, he'll need the publicity now in order to secure the best situation for him and his team in the off season.

TOUR PICKS

2009-07-03T15:10:00.000-07:00

TDF top 10 unless someone from this group gets popped or hurt in the next 12 hours.

1. Alberto Contador, Astana
2. Cadel Evans, Silence Lotto
3. Lance Armstrong, Astana
4. Andy Schleck, Saxo Bank
5. Carlos Sastre, Cervelo Test Team
6. Denis Menchov, Rabobank
7. Frank Schleck, Saxo Bank
8. Franco Pellizotti, Liquigas
9. Levi Leipheimer, Astana
10. Roman Krueziger, Liquigas

Side notes: Lance takes the opening TT and the jersey to get a good publicity splash right off the bat. Contador will be clearly the strongest rider, not only on Astana, but in the whole race. Thus, Lance will stay close in case Alberto suffers or crashes out while Kloden and Levi do the bulk of the pacing. Evans will remain a very solid rider that lacks the panache to win. Saxo's powerful brothers Andy and Frank will come up just short. Carlos Sastre, the defending champion, will not have the benefit of such a strong team as he did last year but will make the top 5 in his second GT in a row.

Greipel - Henderson - O'Bee in Philly

2009-06-08T06:07:00.000-07:00

Congrats to me. Picked two of the top three in Philly and won the over/under on the 65+/55+ women's field at City Park.

Philly Classic
Columbia came, saw, conquered. Henderson launched Greipel for the W and had enough left to hold on for 2nd. I could see this coming also as Henderson is a former winner of this event and loves the course. If I had the guts I might have scored the exacta. Jonathan Cantwell ended in 14th, not too bad either.

City Park
Sure enough, eight 65+ men and only two 55+ women in that prime 4PM slot yesterday at City Park. The over/under was 10. If you had 11 or more, you lose. Didn't think it would be that close but I'll take it.

Side note: Not only did City Park not have a Pro race this year, the 2/3's race they did offer got screwed up anyway. Somehow the lead moto neutralized the field on the last lap of the 75 minute race without proper instructions from the officials at the finish, who wished to continue and score the race. Granted, strong wind and a bit of hail were mitigating factors that led to the confusion. However, when the lead moto yellow flagged the race, he was mistaken. Not sure the gap in communication but needless to say, those 2/3's racing weren't too happy to do the entire race only to have it shut down on the last lap and roll across the line like a tour. Perhaps this is the new way for Colorado promotors to stash a little extra cash. I'm sure they weren't refunding any entry fees after the fiasco and also withholding the prize money on offer. Congrats City Park, better luck next year, if there is one.

Philly Classic this Sunday

2009-06-03T10:12:00.000-07:00

The most important one day cycling race in the U.S. is this Sunday, The Philadelphia Classic. Follow cyclingnews.com for live updates.

My top three picks:

1. Andre Greipel - Columbia
2. Kirk O'Bee - Bissell
3. Johnathan Cantwell - Fly V Australia

The short of it: Columbia is totally stacked with Greipel, Bernard Eisel, Greg Henderson and Edvald Boassen Hagen, there is virtually no way they can lose this race. Expect a Columbia controlled race and a small bunch kick of around 20 riders. Greg Henderson launches Greipel to the win with 200 meters to go as O'Bee and Cantwell are best of the rest.

History at City Park

2009-06-02T13:28:00.000-07:00

Well, it's history, but not the kind I would prefer to report. This weekend at the annual City Park Criterium, there will be no Pro 1/2 race. NO PRO 1/2 RACE! Yes indeed, for the first time that anyone can remember, perhaps the first time in the history of the great State of Colorado, perhaps the country, the fastest racers will not be invited to participate.

What has the ACA been up to? An absolute travesty at best. In place of the traditional Pro 1/2 race, City Park will host a 2/3's race, no Pros and no Cat 1's, unless they're older than 35, will be allowed to race. I absolutely cannot believe this turn of events. And in the feature position, 4PM start for the Men's 65+ and Women's 55+ 40 minute race. WHAT? Is that going to be a combined field of 6?

Here's the bet, the over and under for participants in the 4PM 65+, W's 55+ race is 10. If you want to pick 11 or higher, I'll take 10 and under. Give me a call, I'll take your money.

Blaaaagggghhhh, what a yoke mang.

Young Colorado cyclists shine

2009-05-20T15:43:00.000-07:00

Here's a little more on the junior development of cycling in Colorado. Just this past weekend at the North Boulder Park Crit several young racers proved that development in this state is still cranking along despite the fact that there is very little quality junior racing. Here's a story published by cyclingnews.com:

Young racers shine in Boulder
By Bruce Hildenbrand
A bit of history met the next generation at the Excel Sports Boulder North Boulder Park Criterium held Sunday May 18th. Back in the 1970s and 1980s the Red Zinger and Coors Classic used the North Boulder Park venue to showcase and launch the careers of such racing icons as Davis Phinney, Andy Hampsten and Steve Bauer. While Ian MacGregor (unattached) and Gina Grain Webcor Builders) won the pro events, it was the youngsters who stole the show at the 2009 edition of the race.

13-year old Michael Dessau of Jonathan Vaughters' Team 5280 development squad was clearly the class of the field in the Men's Category 4 event grabbing a number of primes and ultimately outsprinting riders over twice his age to take the victory. Not to be outdone, 15-year old Yannick Eckmann (Team 5280) soloed off the front halfway into the 60-minute Men's Category 3 race and held off the entire field for a very convincing win. Yannick's 17-year old brother, Robin (also with Team 5280), finished 6th in the Senior 1/2/Pro race.
On the women's side, 16-year-old Maddie Godby (Rocky Mounts/Izze Racing) won the Category 4 race. Her 14-year old brother, Zane (Team 5280), was third in the Men's Category 4 race behind Dessau.

Boulder and the Colorado Front Range has had a long history of producing 'Senior Slayers'. Current phenomena Taylor Phinney, Peter Stetina and Danny Summerhill have all recently distinguished themselves on the world and national stage. It appears the supply chain is well-stocked with a fresh crop of riders to keep the flow of talent going strong.

This just in: Taylor Phinney has won the prologue of the Fleche du Sud in France, a top stage race for U23s and it was Phinney's first win in the new colors of the Trek/Livestrong team.

Here's the thing about Colorado junior cycling, it's all about family. Many junior riders attend races that their Dads or Moms or both are doing. The juniors in turn get to ride some smaller races and when they're big enough (not old enough), they're thrown to the wolves, in this case, the Cat 4s and 3s. If these kids can prove themselves against aggresive racers sometimes twice their age or more, well, they're ready.

Contrast this to junior cross country ski development where the junior coaches are virtually afraid to have their fragile little juniors racing against seniors ever. With juniors in skiing it's all about fun, it has to be because the coaches and parents have to virtually bribe their kids to go into skiing. See, in skiing it's all about participation and having a good time. That's there in cycling also, but for sure the emphasis is much more on winning, winning at any and all levels.

The proof is in the results. Junior cross country skiing development- Peer driven, major money spent on a nation wide development and competition program that doesn't work(JOs), millions of dollars spent with no tangible accountability or results, all of the top juniors showed themselves more at Senior Nationals than at Junior Olympics. Junior cycling development - Family driven, conservative money spent on training and racing opportunities against tougher competition that produces top international racers year after year with tangible results multiple times a month.

We as cross-country skiers are constantly whining about the cost for juniors and their families to participate, well, how bout we start spending less money and start training more. That's right, I said the junior skiers aren't training, that's because the sport is driven by the social aspects, the kids care much more about their friends and going to Junior Olympic Prom than they care about training and racing well. Time for a revolution in U.S. Nordic skiing, dump the JOs down the drain and let's focus our junior development regionally. This needs to be the main focus, less travel, more training. A state championship costs way less and is just as inspiring, how do you think running is successful?

Sports Tidbits

2009-05-20T05:17:00.000-07:00

The Killer Diluca at Il Giro
Former Giro champ Danilo Diluca is on fine form and is currently dominating the Giro. That could all change tomorrow with a 61km individual time trial, which Diluca isn't the best at. Poised to challenge Diluca are quie a few time trialists that can climb well and are close enough to look at. Leading these are Denis Menchov, perhaps the best climber of the challengers, the others are Michael Rogers, Levi Leipheimer and Ivan Basso. Universal Sports network has been covering the Giro both on the computer as well as on cable tv. Make sure to check the coverage tomorrow and see how things shake out.

Tejay in Europe
Coloradan Tejay Van Garderen, who is currently residing in Holland and racing for the Rabobank Continental team, won the French stage race the Tour of the Haut Anjou which finished on May 10th. Van Garderen used a strong opening stage in which he finished second to put himself into contention for the overall and he took third the next day in the individual time trial to put himself into the lead. With the strong Rabo Conti team at his disposal, Van Garderen was able to defend the lead and take out the overall victory. More young Colorado fire power getting ready to conquer Europe. With the likes of Taylor Phinney, Peter Stetina, Daniel Summerhill and so many others, Colorado continues to show the way for American bike racing. Too bad the local event organizers and the ACA can't step up to the plate quite as well. There's just not enough great events in Colorado any more.

Armstrong pumps up Ritter
It was curious to see a press release in the papers last week from Colorado Governor Bill Ritter. What made it interesting was the fact that Lance Armstrong had called Ritter to express concern and interest in helping to re-vitalize the flailing Colorado cycling scene. The days of the Coors Classic are long gone and Armstrong was looking to get something going. The interesting part was that the press release indicated that Lance had called and wanted to talk. Hhhmmmm, Ritter release a statement to the press that basically said, "Lance called me, wow that's sooooo coooool." Right on Gov, it is cool.

Tiny Crit courses
This past Sunday saw the traditional North Boulder Park Criterium which takes place at the former finish of the great Coors Classic. Many years of summer fun were highlighted by the raucous party at North Boulder Park as the likes of Davis Phinney, Greg Lemond and Bernard Hinault did battle around the quaint venue. Today's event bares little resemblance to the old race however and today's version is coming under substantial scrutiny. It seems the course is just to tight and short to provide a proper test. One racer who finished the Pro 1/2 race towards the back of the 31 strong lead group commented, "I spent the entire day trying to move up, I had a teammate in the front but as hard as I tried, I never saw him and could never do anything to get to the front, the course was just to tight to get up there." Come on Colorado promoters, enough of the 1km, twisty crit courses. People don't want to pay $30 to come out and line up on the front line out of panic and fear and race single file for 15 minutes until they get dropped or crashed. Then, if they made the selection, they can look forward to a backpack or gift certificate for a prize. Awesome. Seriously, it can be better, stop doing just the minimum, stop being lazy and provide a great race, not just a "race".

Aspen Weekend
The Independence Pass hill climb on Saturday and the Aspen Criterium on Sunday has turned into one of the best bike racing weekends in the state. Even though these are both un-sanctioned events, the lameness of both the ACA and the USAC make the Aspen weekend a refreshing, less stressful experience. Remember next May when considering where to race, consider coming to Aspen, lodging is cheap that time of year, the weather is great, the Pass is still closed to traffic and the downtown crit is fun, exciting and fast. Next spring make it Aspen.

SHANE MCCONKEY - MR. INCREDIBLE

2009-05-05T16:09:00.000-07:00

It's been a month since the death of Shane McConkey and in that time I've thought about him more than in the previous 19 years combined. What? Yes, 1990 was 19 years ago.

Shane was a friend of a friend as they say, Mike Jaquet was the friend. Mike and Shane were cut from the same cloth, 2 of the craziest guys that I knew. We hung out a little in Boulder after they were both kicked off the ski team. Or did they quit? I can't remember. It doesn't matter.

What I do remember is that nudity in public got them both in trouble on more than one occasion. Jaquet was on the Nordic team and Shane was on the Alpine. I was coach of the Nordic Devo team and worked with Mike quite a bit. He excelled at skiing but couldn't quite focus enough to make the Varsity. One day Jaquet started taking roller skiing to the next level and his nude training in the quaint subdivisions north of Boulder got our squad banned forever. He must have learned that stunt from McConkey. I remember Mike introducing me to Shane at their place and Shane had an air about him that said, "Nice to meet you man, now we're buddies for life". Incredibly refreshing and uplifting, little did I know that Shane would turn out to be Mr. Incredible on skis. I never saw him again after the Boulder days but I followed his exploits from afar. I didn't know him well but I knew if we ran in the same circles we would have been great friends.

When I heard of his death it hit like a bolt of lightning. Believable but unbelievable. Damnitall! Since then I have learned more of his amazing ski career, his product developments, the founding of the International Free Skiers Association, SaucerBoy, and of course the jaw-dropping stunts.

Rest In Peace Shane, I'm honored to have known you.

For those that don't know Shane, google - Shane McConkey tribute - and enjoy. Also check out his many films, it's absolutely mind boggling how far he took it.

Longo and go and go and go takes another W

2009-05-03T06:19:00.000-07:00

50 year old Jeannie Longo of France, arch rival of Connie Carpenter in the 80's, took yet another big win today in France. Coming in 53 seconds ahead of second place, Longo scooped up her 5th Trophee des Grimpeurs (the Climber's Trophy). She is also expected to defend her French national time trial and road championships in late June. The legendary French rider who has made plenty of enemies in the peloton over 3 decades has more than 1,100 victories to her credit.

Local bits
Roaring Fork Valley has a group of talented racers competing in Silver City, NM at the Tour of the Gila this weekend. Max Taam sits in 9th overall in the Men's Cat 2 division, Jason Anderson is 22nd in the 3's, Amber Levy is 52nd in the women's Pro 1,2, Chip Chilson is 36th in the men's 40+ and Annie Gonzalez is 3rd in the women's 3/4 race.

Kentucky Derby
I know you won't read about horse racing here very often, but yesterday's Kentucky Derby was one of the most fun races I've been entertained by in awhile. Jockey Carl Borel, a semi-toothless Cajun with energy and spirit in excess, piloted Mine that Bird perfectly along the rail to win going away on a muddy track by over 6 lengths. The 50-1 long shot was pinched immediately at the start and Borel held back and dropped into last place. Asked later when he thought he had it won, he amazingly replied "by the 3/8's pole, if I could navigate through I knew we'd do it".

Borel, who guided Street Sense to the win two years ago in similar fashion, hugged the rail until the home stretch. He slid into the open to go around a slower horse and then back onto the rail and opened it up. Mine that Bird responded with full gas and sprayed the rest of the field with mud as he ripped to the line. Overhead camera shots showed the true speed difference, Mine that Bird made the rest of the horses look like they were in the wrong event, speeding by like the agro driver in the fast lane. And once the race was over the real fun started. I'm not sure I've ever seen a more happy victor than Carl Borel. I witnessed his win two years ago on Steet Sense also, and this jockey seems to have it dialed in. Perhaps any other jockey would have failed in taking a 50-1 from last place, guide him along the rail through traffic and finish off the deal. An amazing event for sure.

Davide - "I was just bein Rebellion" tests positive for CERA

2009-04-29T06:12:00.000-07:00

Davide Rebellin and Stefan Schumacher aka Mr. Big Head, have both tested positive for CERA at last summer's Olympic Games. These test results came after retro-active testing was conducted due to the new discovery of a test that was successful.

Rebellin won his third Fleche Wallone last Wednesday and was trumpeted with fanfare around the globe, but now all comes crashing down. Schumacher, who has consistently denied any wrong doing, now plays an updated version of Tyler Hamilton, sticking to his story until the bitter end with mountains of evidence against him. Good luck with that Stefan.

Bummer for Rebellin who has long been thought to be clean, at least until he pulled the Amstel- Fleche-Liege triple a few years ago. Because of that amazing week, D. Reb. began to lose his Mr. Clean image, and now he's in the trash. He will certainly lose his Olympic silver as well as all of his other victories between then and now, he is 37 years old and is most certainly done for good. So long D Reb, it was fun, I guess.....

Legendary coach John Caldwell speaks on doping

2009-04-18T11:25:00.000-07:00

Thanks to a lively discussion on fasterskier.com on the subject of doping in cross country skiing, we have heard an incredible and inspirational story by legendary U.S. Nordic coach John Caldwell, patriarch of the East Coast Nordic scene. For the entire thread go to fasterskier and click on the story "The U.S. Doper Problem" by Zach Caldwell, one of the younger Caldwells from Putney, VT.

On fasterskier John Caldwell relates his first going to Europe as a rookie ski coach with the U.S. Ski Team ....

15 caldxski - Apr 18, 2009 at 7:00 am

I first went to Europe as a rookie coach in 1966 when I headed–all alone– the FIS Team to Oslo. We had five guys. Women weren’t on the scene. We had a manager, no doctor. We shared a fairly crappy, old rooming house with the Russians. The Cold War being in the Norwegians’ minds, they said they did not want to appear to favor either country at these championships and so we both got the least good accommodations in town. It worked out well for us because the Russians shared their staff with us, especially their masseur, who gave all the guys massages.
Some of the team had raced in Europe before and so before the first race I asked them who they wanted splits on. One or two wanted splits on their teammates and I knew we were in trouble. I told them we didn’t come to Norway to race each other and so we eventually settled on the East Germans. It was a good match-up and along the way we got to know some of their team, guys like Klause and Grimmer.

Two years later we went to Grenoble for the Games, same splits, same two teams basically, and we weren’t embarrassed by the DDR. Then came Czechoslovakia in 1970. Again, basically the same two teams, figuring on the same splits. First race I’m out on the course and in checking my first split I thought my watch was screwed up or I figured on the wrong start time for someone. Next split, worse! It didn’t take long to figure out that we were being totally outclassed by the DDR guys.

After that race I skied around the stadium and talked to a bunch of coaches that I knew well by know, using my best fractured German, “Was gibt mit DDR?” To a man they all looked around to see who was watching, then rolled up their sleeves and pretended to do an injection.
So there it was, right out in the open. Naturally, there had been rumors long before, years before in fact, not just about the DDR, but other countries as well. But here the jump in results was so startling as to give the game away.

I’ve always figured there at least three things we can do about the drug scene in skiing. We can try to adopt it, but I know of no one who would favor that. I surely don’t. Next, we can wimper about it and use it as an excuse and sort of give up. Well, that’s never been my forte. Finally, we can take advantage of it, get a bit pissed off and work like hell to beat the cheaters. This is clearly what many other countries have done. The doping actually raised the bar for cross-country racing. How to beat the cheaters is I think what Zach was talking about. Unfortunately, too much of the discussion has degenerated into who’s doping, what good results are, how good our skiers really are, and so on.

Until I’m convinced that our skiers are training harder (especially more hours) than I think they are AND that they have learned to ski technically well, I will consider statements about our prowess, about our having some of the best skiers in the world but they’re being pushed down the ladder by the dopers, etc., as self-defeating. This sort of talk sounds too much like an excuse. Are we accusing the Swedes and the Norwegians of doping? They generally trounce almost all our skiers. How about Babikov, Kershaw and Harvey of Canada? These guys doping? I doubt it and so we should ask what the story is here instead of talking about doping. How are these skiers doing it?

We can get into arguments on what constitutes good results, so let’s look at our US distance skiers, men’s division. (Most of the world focuses on these skiers, while we in the US have focussed on the sprints of late.) If there’s anyone in the US who can hold a candle to Kris Freeman, I ‘d like to meet him. The rest of our field is distant! We need to ask ourselves why we don’t have more Kris Freemans. (His medical problems may actually help him better focus on big event races since he’s into the business of listening to his body. Someone suggested Zach supply info on Freeman’s training program and I think most of us know that has been forthcoming, almost to the point of boredom.)

We can go back–and I know you younger folks hate this–to around 1982, long after acknowledged doping was taking place and look at the club of Caldwell, Galanes, Koch and Simoneau. If these guys were doping–they were all in the Red group–it sure fooled me and would have to be classed as the most successful, undiscovered drug program in the world. The team didn’t even have a doctor along on their trips to the WC events and to the FIS in Oslo in 1982.

The same question comes up again–how did these guys do it? I can tell you that they trained damned hard and skied damned well and knew how to get up for races. After we can get our skiers into this mode we can start paying attention to less important items which often deflect us too much these days, such as equipment, waxes, pole lengths, proper clothing, levels one through five or whatever, charts, graphs, pulse rate monitors, snow conditions, specialty events, doping, etc. Yup, sounds old-fashioned and that’s exactly what it is. But it works.

John Caldwell

From Fasterskier.com

Wow!! This has to be one of the best stories I've ever heard and I really have to thank Mr. Caldwell for being so forthcoming with this and thanks to the fasterskier web site for providing the forum. Well done.

Tyler Hamilton down and out

2009-04-17T12:31:00.000-07:00

Citing advancing depression, Tyler Hamilton admitted taking an over the counter, natural hebal anti-depression remedy which contained the steroid pre-cursor DHEA. Hamilton has subsequently retired from the sport of cycling which brought so much fame and fortune as well as the tainted Olympic Gold medal he won in Athens. How far the mighty have fallen. Hamilton, once the Golden Boy of American cycling, now leaves as the disgraced shadow of his former self and the reigining U.S. Pro road champion, a title he will be unable to defend.

Doping scandal simmers in Austria

2009-04-10T13:17:00.000-07:00

Of course it's a doping story, duh.

Several interconnected events in Austria have led investigators to believe that a clinic called Human Plasma was the center for a grand doping scheme used by several top athletes in Europe over the past decade. Fasterskier.com is reporting that Human Plasma was used as the main facility for Austrian cyclist Bernard Kohl as well as cross country racer Christian Hoffman and several other named athletes. The controversy has been confusing as several reports have been deemed erroneous yet investigators continue to expose a giant mess about to unfold. Stay tuned for another summer of ugliness on the doping front.

Dopeheads still rule results page

2009-03-23T06:49:00.000-07:00

Although the sporting world seems more fair and down to earth than the last decade, the dopeheads are still at the top of the results page more often than not. Just because Le Tour has busted some big names recently and the pace seems more "real", don't think that doping has been eradicated. Recent positives including 3 Russian biathletes, Russian XC racer Natalie Matveeva and the arrest of disgraced former Austrian coach Walter Mayer, demonstrate that the cheats are still hard at work. Just last week I watched the women's 30k classic race from Trondheim, NOR and I was stunned to see the pace, RELENTLESS! Now I know that you can't just "see" dopers. However, when it looks to good to be true, it often is. Gone are the days when nobody seemed to be breathing hard after the finish, having just crushed in the toughest sport in the world, but you still see it. Let's just hope that all of our American racers are on the up and up, how dissapointing it would be to experience a positive test come through on one of our new World Champs.

Kikkan Randall 2nd at World Sprint

2009-02-24T05:54:00.000-08:00

Anchorage, AK's Kikkan Randall took 2nd place today at the World Nordic Ski Championships today in Liberec, CZH. Randall was fast throughout the competition, qualifying in 7th and winning her semi-final heat. The silver medal for Kikkan marks her first medal at a major tournament and sends a strong message for 2010.......WATCH OUT FOR KIKKAN IN VANCOUVER!! Andy Newell was also fast throughout the day in the men's competition, however he ran into trouble in the semis and failed to qualify for the finals. Newell finished 6th in the B final to end up 12th overall.

Historically Kikkan's silver is the first American medal since Bill Koch in 1982 in Oslo, NOR and the first ever for an American woman at the World or Olympic Championship level.

FREEBIRD 4TH AT WORLD'S!!

2009-02-20T11:56:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to America's best cross country skier, Kris Freeman, who finished 4th today in the 15k classic at the World Nordic Championships in Liberec, CZH. The 15k classic is one of the most traditional of all nordic events. The roots of the event date back nearly 100 years and the 18km was included at the first Olympic Winter Games in Chamonix in 1924 and was won by Thorleif Haug of Norway. Perhaps the greatest cross country race of all time was the 15km from Lake Placid in 1980 when Thomas Wassberg defeated Juha Mieto of Finland by 1/100th of a second. Since that day the cross country officials only time to the 1/10ths.

Nordic industry rolls out the latest gimicks

2009-02-19T07:30:00.001-08:00

The cross country ski industry, led by giants Fischer, Salomon, Rossignol and Atomic, have long been addicted to gimicky hype rather than actual product development. Witness the "Cobra Cut" from Rossi, the "Canoe Padal" grips from Swix, the "SkateCut" from Fischer and the "Dual Cap" concept from Atomic. These are all "innovations" which proved to be more hype and gimmick than actual development.

The Nordic industry is again set to roll out the latest "improvements" which are nothing more than hype. Fischer is producing a new ski for the 2010 Olympics that has a hole in the tip to provide a lighter swingweight. I seem to remember plenty of downhill racing skis with holes in the tips some time ago, and as you can see, they rarely exist anymore, if at all. Fischer claims that the ski now provides 100% swing weight efficiency resulting in energy savings. However, the claims of - direct quote from Fischer

"The Nordic Hole Ski also optimizes the skating angle of each skating stride. The reduction of weight in the tip means that the angle of each skating ski is virtually identical on each skating stroke providing the best power transfer for each stride and faster speeds."

- this statement is nothing more than drivel. The skier is still responsible for how well they ski and how consistent their "angle" is, whatever that is. Remeber that this is the company that brought the infamous "skatecut" which was rejected by the World Cup racers as soon as it came out. What happens when you ski the Birkie on fresh, ungroomed snow and all that powder is coming through the tip instead of under the ski?

Salomon also is producing more hype than actual improvements. Their new Equipe 10 Lab Skate promises new, All Wheel Drive for their skis. These claims now say that their new design puts 50% of the skiers weight to the rear of the skis and 50% to the front of the skis. This is another ridiculous statement that, while it may be true, it is also true of every other ski on the market. When a person stands on a ski, presumably in the center of that ski, half of the person's weight is distributed to the rear and half is distributed to the front. Why do these companies continue to spend on marketing and hype rather than actual development? This reminds me of the recent Mac and Windows commercials. Instead of fixing Vista, Microsoft has chosen to advertise more.

If you're looking for the Mac of skis, stick to the smaller companies that still make their skis at their home factories in Finland, Norway and Italy. I'm talking about Peltonen, Madshus and SkiTrab. These smaller factories still make their skis by hand in small batches, they have extremely high quality control and match their skis better than the "big guys". Ski development is still all about the flex and camber, not gimmicks. Flex and camber design absolutely dictate how a ski will perform, not the endless hours and money devoted to hype. If you want a ski with a long, arcing camber, and a smooth flex with no "dead spots", stick to the small guys.

CHAMPIONSHIP NIGHT PHOTOS

2009-02-18T14:59:00.000-08:00

The Ute Crew; Justin, Becca and Sydney.

Larry Oheren and Carolyn Holland.

Gonz, Charlie and Natalie.

Casey and KDunk discuss rule changes for 2010.

Jim Finch was nearly un-defeated.

Drew and Noelle Larson cheer the season with Erik Skarvan.

Drew Larson, Salina, KS and Woody Creek, CO, 2009 Aspen Ice Bocce League Grand Champion takes a celebretory swig from the bubbly.

The 2009 Aspen Ice Bocce League.

2009 podium Drew Larson - 1st (top), Jim Finch - 2nd (left), Casey Ward - 3rd (bottom), Agustin Goba - 4th (right).

Casey Ward utilizing his curling style delivery.

Agustin Goba switched from a Mardi Gras themed pink hat to this Monty Python inspired number which brought no luck whatsoever.

Drew Larson - Ice Bocce Champion 2009

2009-02-18T07:51:00.001-08:00

Drew Larson proved you don't have to be from ice country to be a champion in Ice Bocce. Larson, who hails from Salina, Kansas, staged a most improbable championship run, knocking out previously un-defeated and #1 ranked Casey Ward 7-2, 1-7, 7-5 and then #3 ranked Jim Finch 8-6, 7-5.

Larson, who finished the regular season 2-2 and ranked 13th, was un-flappable in the playoffs. In fact, after an initial hiccup which saw him sitting at 1-2, Larson was downright dominant. He won on the last chance qualifier night and then took out the #4 seed Natalie Ward and #7 Mike Trecker back to back. His run to the championship continued in glorious fashion on Tuesday night. Taking on the #1 ranked Casey Ward, Larson seemed to relish under the pressure while Ward succumbed for the first time. Larson took the opener 7-2, signaling to the large group of spectators that there would indeed be a challenge ahead. Ward then answered the call taking the second game 7-1, the third would decide semi number one.

Battling point for point, the two titans of the ice rolled and measured for over half an hour to tie it up 5-5. Rolling on the River Court which has some technical breaks, Ward left a small opening for Larson to score two points and close it out. Missing on the first attempt, Larson nailed the second and sent Casey to the 3rd place game. It has been an incredible run for Ward who has won the big tournament 2 out of 3 times and had never lost a match until last night.

Meanwhile, Jim (The Iceman) Finch took on the notorious Agustin Goba the #3 and #6 respectively. Finch set the tone early with his steady, rally from behind style while Goba's lucky hat proved quite the opposite, Finch 7-2 in the first. Goba then rallied just as Ward had done on the River court, taking the second 7-3. Agustin had his chances in the decisive game but once again small mistakes combined with Finch's knack for capitalizing meant no final for Goba, Finch won 7-5 to advance to the championship game and face Larson.

Goba changed hats for the 3rd place game but his luck went further down and down some more, as Casey Ward closed him out in around 20 minutes 7-0, 7-0. Just as the consolation match was finishing it's second game on the House court, the championship final was just warming up, Larson led Finch 2-1 in the first!! What a difference a championship final versus a consolation match means to the pressure and speed of the game.

Hammer and Tong, Finch and Larson exchanged blows one point at a time to a 6-6 tie in the first. There have been some great matches this season but this championship game absolutely lived up to the hype. Larson then took advantage of the moment and closed out the first with a 2 point score to take it 8-6. Finch looked to extend to match to a third game taking a small lead in the second but it was Larson who battled this time to a 5-5 tie and then again scored twice in the last inning to win the championship 8-6, 7-5.

What a season it has been! We started before Christmas and had a total of 33 players participate in league play. We had over 20 players reach the league minimum of 4 matches played and 16 then advanced to the tournament playoffs. Championship Night saw a major party and many spectators come out to cheer or jeer, and they were rewarded with an incredible night of Bocce Fever. Thanks to everyone who made this experience a reality, it was a blast. We hope to do it again next year, but in the meantime, get ready for the summer season, I know Agustin will be priming his game early this spring, so get your lawn skills together. See ya next time.

The Commish
Mike Trecker

Championship Night scores:

Semi #1: Drew Larson d. Casey Ward 7-2, 1-7, 7-5
Semi #2: Jim Finch d. Agustin Goba 7-2, 3-7, 7-5

3rd Place: Casey Ward d. Agustin Goba 7-0, 7-0

Championship: Drew Larson d. Jim Finch 8-6, 7-5

International Biathlon catches 3 Russians

2009-02-14T06:32:00.000-08:00

CHEATERS CHEAT, THAT'S WHAT THEY DO! The International Biathlon Union has caught 3 Russians doping just prior to the Biathlon World Championships, adding to the mix of sports embroiled in travesty. Cycling, cross country skiing, biathlon, soccer, baseball, swimming, American football, track and field, and the beat goes on. Why are so many sports shackled with controversy? Because there will never be an end to athletes, coaches, trainers and doctors looking for an advantage in competition, fair or not. Cheaters cheat, that's what they do. All we can do in sports is accept that this morally questionable behavior is never going to go away and thus, never give up the fight of catching the cheats.

What the cheats don't realize is that they are robbing from themselves. If the quality and popularity of a given sport goes down because of the negative publicity, the cheats themselves make less money overall. A quality mid-level athlete in a top level sport with no controversy, such as basketball, can make much more money over the long term than a top athlete in a sport roiled in controversy. Take cycling for example. Many cyclists were making pretty good money in the late 90's and early 2000's, even rivaling entry level NBA basketball salaries. However, with all of the recent hits on cycling, even the top riders are not comanding the salaries they once were, much less the mid level riders. In that mix of top riders are plenty of cheats who tax the sport heavily as they try for the microscopic victory in hopes they will get a contract next year. These facts plus the reality of these riders taking their lives in their hands every time they inject has put a major damper on the popularity of cycling and in the overall, long term, the cheats are making less and less and risking more and more. Doesn't really show the smarts of the top athletes does it?

CHAMPIONSHIP NIGHT set for Tuesday

2009-02-14T05:43:00.000-08:00

Tuesday night is the Grand Finale of the Aspen Ice Bocce League 2009. We have had a total of 33 players participate in league matches, 16 players then qualified for the playoffs and we're now down to 4. Casey Ward, the top favorite at 6-0 +50, will face the upstart Drew Larson while Agustin Goba will take on the #3 Jim Finch. The winners will then square off while the losers will play for 3rd and 4th. The court should be ready to go around 5:30 for Open Bocce and for the semi finalists to warm up their games. Semi finals should begin between 7 and 7:30.

Jim Finch advances to the semis after Clement loses 6-0 lead

2009-02-13T06:43:00.000-08:00

The storm blew in just as the players were taking the court and subsided just as they were leaving. The epic weather provided a fitting backdrop to the storm that Jim Finch brought to the playoffs. Finch, 6-0, put paid to Erik Skarvan's championship hopes 7-5, 7-3 and then took on Tim Clement. Clement was a top favorite having knocked out the #5 seed Alena Gauba in the first round, and he appeared to be on the way to the semis as he took a 6-0 lead in the opening game. But Finch re-focused his energies and rallied, unbelievably, to an 8-6 win. Clement then jumped to a 4-0 lead in the second trying to extend the match, but he couldn't close the deal and Finch rallied once again 7-5 to take out the match and move into a showdown against Agustin Goba in the semi-finals.

Championship night is set and looks to be either Tuesday or Thursday of next week. Casey Ward is the big favorite ala the N.E. Patriots from last season. He has never lost a winter Bocce match in 3 seasons and currently holds a 6-0 record with a +50 points differential. Stay tuned.

Playoff scores from last night:
1st round, J. Finch d. E. Skarvan 7-5, 7-3

1/4 finals, J. Finch d. T. Clement 8-6, 7-5

Semi-finals:
#1 Casey Ward (6-0) vs. #13 Drew Larson (4-2)

#3 Jim Finch (6-0) vs. #6 Agustin Goba (6-1)

Net tightens around Valverde/ Italians link blood from '08 Tour, Operation Puerto

2009-02-11T09:14:00.000-08:00

News has broken this morning of the Italian Olympic Commitee summoning reigning Spanish Champion Alejandro Valverde for quesioning in regards to the Operation Puerto drugs investigation. The Italians obtained blood samples from Valverde at last year's Tour de France which passed through Italy on Stage 20 and have subsequently linked the samples with blood from the 2006 Operation Puerto in bags marked in code as Piti and 18. This could spell disaster for Valverde who has had an amazing career marked with classics and stage race victories. Definitive proof is something that has eluded authorities in the Puerto case but with DNA matching Valverde and two seperate bags of blood that match, conviction and suspension could be just around the corner.

Photos from the Ice Bocce League

2009-02-06T14:57:00.001-08:00

Here a few shots from the season so far.

Top seeds from the left, Jim Ward, Jim Finch and Casey Ward, get ready for some heated action. Sarah Schmidt and Lori Woodring spectate from the cheap seats.

Christian Crannell keeps score from press box/VIP section. Natalie Ward concentrates on an early round match against Tim Clement.

Bryan Sax was a champion

2008-12-09T06:59:00.000-08:00

One of our brothers from the CU Ski Team days, Bryan Sax, has died in a plane crash in Florida. Sax was our own "Tomba" on the CU team, his boisterous personality anchoring the Buffs as we cruised towards the NCAA title. He was champion of the GS at NCAAs in '95 and also had a strong impact on his home region of Colorado. After graduation, Sax moved back to Aspen where he continued to infect those around him with his huge smile and monster hugs. Sax became a pilot and was in the process of getting advanced teaching certification for multi-engine aircraft at the time of the accident. Bryan Sax, a giant of a human being, will be sorely missed. Rest in Peace Saxy.

Rock's Leogrande suspended for 2 years for Superweek doping

2008-12-02T06:59:00.000-08:00

Michael Ball's Rock Racing team continues to impress, NOT! Kayle Leogrande, the tatted up rebel without a cause, has been suspended by WADA and USADA for two years for doping violations that stemmed from an incident at Superweek in 2007. Leogrande won 3 stages at Superweek and came just short of winning the overall honors, falling just 5 points short of Marco Rios from Mexico. The two years suspension will begin on Dec. 1, 2008, meaning Leogrande won't be able to make a successful return until the spring of 2011. Leogrande's transgressions are the latest for Rock Racing, who are making a habit of attracting, or generating negative attention on the sport of cycling, something the sport hardly needs at this time. But this incident brings more speculation. Is it likely that Leogrande doped without any knowledge from management or other teammates. Actually, not likely at all, so, who knew what and who else was involved, where did he get the EPO, etc.? Given the fact that the Rock was on fire again this year at Superweek with Rashaan Bahati and Sterling Magnell, and given the fact that CERA was not outed until after Superweek took place. ??????????????????????? How can anyone trust Rock Racing at all anymore? Or why would we trust them ever in the first place? Answer - We don't, we never did, we never will.

Something for everyone at the 2009 Aspen Parks and Recreation Owl Creek Chase

2008-11-04T05:15:00.000-08:00

ASPEN, CO- “Something for Everyone” is the theme for the 22nd Aspen Parks and Recreation Owl Creek Chase, which is moving to January 17, 2009, its original date on the calendar. Since 1985 the Owl Creek Chase has been one of Colorado’s favorite Nordic events, drawing hundreds of Citizen racers annually, and has since grown into the largest multi-day event in Colorado, the Aspen Nordic Festival. With the Owl Creek Chase, the 21km freestyle race on the legendary Owl Creek Trail, as the centerpiece of the multi-day event, the Aspen Nordic Festival features races and activities for all ages. Events included are; Junior Olympic Qualifiers, Citizen level Colorado Cup racing and a free clinic, Elite level events in the USSA SuperTour, Sprint racing at Wagner Park, and for the first time this year, the University of Colorado NCAA Invitational.

The Owl Creek Chase and Aspen Nordic Festival is organized by a small, but enthusiastic group of local Nordic entities including representatives from; The Ute Mountaineer, The City of Aspen, The Aspen Valley Ski/Snowboard Club and The Aspen/Snowmass Nordic Council. These groups have come together to organize and steer The Owl Creek Chase into the future as one of the top events in the country, and are leading the way in an ongoing effort to bring various elements of the Nordic community together. 2009 will be the first year to see all of Colorado’s Nordic racers together at the same time.

“This year we are really excited to have the college kids coming to Aspen for the first time to join us here at the Owl Creek Chase, for many years we’ve invited CU and DU and the other schools but this year is the first time they’ve been able to make it work with their complicated schedule.” said Mike Trecker, one of the organizers of the Aspen Nordic Festival. “The NCAA racing is at a level just below the World Cup, and that, combined with the large number of Citizen racers and juniors, really brings the energy levels up to the maximum. For the last couple of editions of The Owl Creek Chase, the atmosphere and the energy here have really fostered a greater sense of community for Nordic skiers around Colorado as well as those who have traveled here from around the country. Our mission is to provide a quality event for everyone and to be a part of a greater developmental mission for the U.S. Nordic scene, and that is something we are tremendously proud of.”

The USSA SuperTour, the leading FIS sanctioned series in the United States, is again the major draw for the Owl Creek Chase, and Aspen is the 6th stop on the 14 event Tour. In addition, The Owl Creek Chase is the 2nd of 5 Colorado Cup events, the top series in the state for Citizen racers and also the opening event on the FIS North America Marathon Cup. The AVSC will host Junior Olympic Qualifying races as well as a youth festival, and everything kicks off Friday, January 16th.

Aspen Nordic Festival set to host NCAA collegiates
The AVSC will play host to the SuperTour racers on Friday, Jan. 16th, with a 5 and 10km classical race. The event will take place at the Aspen High School trails and will also play host to the Rocky Mountain Division junior racers. The NCAA collegiates will come to Aspen for the first time this year as the University of Colorado will stage their invitational meet here in association with the SuperTour events. Citizen racers will also be welcome to challenge themselves in the classic race on Friday. After the race, the AVSC will host the RMN Junior Festival with games and fun in the afternoon. Racers from 6 to 60 will be on hand to really experience Aspen's signature in-town trail network the Aspen High School trails.

Owl Creek Chase presented by the Aspen Parks and Recreation Department
The 22nd Owl Creek Chase will be held on Saturday the 17th with a new, later start time, 11am at the Snowmass XC Center. The event has been shortened slightly to 21km to accommodate the back-to-back racing for the SuperTour as well as those who wish to do the race but felt 25 or 30km was a little too much. In addition to the Owl Creek Chase, Saturday will also see Junior Tryout and Citizen races at the Aspen XC Center, the finish venue for the Owl Creek Chase. Junior and Citizen racing at the AXCC will start at 8:30am on Saturday.

AVSC Elite Sprints at Wagner Park Saturday night
The Aspen Valley Ski Club Elite Sprints will take place Saturday night under the lights in Wagner Park, downtown Aspen. Festivities and racer introductions will begin at 5:30 with racing starting at 6. 16 of the fastest men and women will compete head to head for cash prizes in a single elimination tournament format. Bleacher seating, music and play-by-play announcing will highlight the action and there are also plans for a food tent and beer garden. The AVSC Elite Sprints are the perfect kick off to a Saturday night on the town after a hard Owl Creek Chase.

Skate with the Pros on Sunday
Another tradition with the Owl Creek weekend is the Skate with the Pros clinic on Sunday morning at the Aspen XC Center. Citizen racers can join several of the pros from Saturday's Owl Creek Chase for a free skating clinic. The session will be broken down into small groups of various ability levels in order to accommodate everyone, and it is a fine way to wrap up a full cross country ski weekend in Aspen. Go to the host website for all event details and information. www.owlcreekchase.com

Aspen Nordic Festival / Owl Creek Chase event schedule

Friday, Jan. 16th -AVSC SuperTour, 5/10k Classic, Aspen High/AVSC Trails, USSA SuperTour, RMN JOQ, CU NCAA Invitational, Citizen Race, 9AM, RMN Youth Festival races and activities, 12:30PM

Saturday, Jan. 17th -Aspen Parks and Rec Owl Creek Chase, 21km Freestyle, Snowmass XC Center to Aspen XC Center, USSA SuperTour, CU NCAA Invitational, Colorado Cup Citizens Race, 11AM

Saturday, Jan. 17th -AVSC Junior Olympic Qualifier and Citizens Race, 5/10/15km Freestyle, Aspen XC Center, RMN JOQ, Citizens Race, 8:30AM

Saturday, Jan. 17th -AVSC Elite Sprints, 80m Freestyle, Wagner Park Downtown Aspen, Elite head to head tournament format, 5:30PM

Sunday, Jan. 18th - Ute Mountaineer Skate with the Pros, instructional free clinic for citizen skiers, Aspen XC Center, 10AM

Colorado Cup Nordic Series 2008-09
Dec. 20 - Steamboat Springs, CO, 10k classic
Jan. 17 - Aspen, CO, 21km freestyle
Jan. 31 - Crested Butte, CO, 42km freestyle
Feb. 7 - Tabernash, CO, 15km freestyle
Feb. 28 - Fraser, CO, 21km class

Rocky Mountain Junior Olympic Qualifiers 2008-09
Dec. 19-20 - Steamboat Springs, CO
Jan. 16-17 - Aspen, CO
Jan. 30-31 - Soldier Hollow, UT
Feb. 13-14 - Eldora, CO

USSA SuperTour 2008-09
Nov. 28-29 West Yellowstone, MT
Dec. 2 Bozeman, MT
Dec. 6, 7 Soldier Hollow, UT
Jan. 3-8 Anchorage, AK
Jan. 16-17 Aspen, CO
Jan. 24-25 Mt. Itasca, MN
Jan. 28 Duluth, MN
Jan. 31-Feb. 1 Telemark, WI
Feb. 4 Rumford, ME
Feb 7 – 8 Stowe, VT
Feb. 14-15 Madison, WI
Feb. 21 Hayward, WI
Mar. 27-29 Fairbanks, AK

FIS North America Marathon Cup 2008-09
Jan. 17 - Aspen, CO, Owl Creek Chase
Feb. 23 - Hayward, WI, American Birkebeiner
March 28 - Fairbanks, AK, National Pursuit
March 30 - Fairbanks, AK, National Marathon

Owl Creek Chase 2008 results
Men
1. Noah Hoffman, USA, SVSEF/AVSC
2. Tad Elliott, USA, Durango Nordic
3. Zack Simons, USA, Rossignol
4. Andrew Johnson, USA, Fischer/Craft
5. Lars Flora, USA, Saab

Women
1. Evelyn Dong, USA, Saab
2. Kristina Strandberg, SWE, Saab
3. Abigail Larson, USA, Saab
4. Sarah Konrad, USA, Madshus
5. Karin Camenisch, SUI, Rossignol

Owl Creek Chase / Aspen Nordic Festival website: www.owlcreekchase.com

For media information: contact Mike Trecker at The Ute Mountaineer, (970) 925-2849 x17 or trecker@utemountaineer.com

UCI to initiate 4 year bans in '09

2008-10-15T06:02:00.000-07:00

Pat McQuaid, president of the Union Cycliste International, the governing body of the sport of cycling, has announced plans to bring in 4 year bans for riders who willfully participate in doping. I, for one, think this is a fantastic idea, it seems the 2-year penalties are simply not enough deterrent. I'm not the biggest fan of McQuaid and the UCI recently, however, this is a good step forward in the battle against cheating. My only frustration with this is it's just a little too late to ensnare the Cobra Ricco, I really don't need to see his return in a couple of years. One of the loudest squeaky wheels in the bunch, Ricco displayed all the cockiness of a peacock while pretending he was pure and clean. Ricco has been handed down a 2 years suspension, but 4 seems like so much more.

AMIGO DI BIRILLO IS FRANK SCHLECK

2008-09-26T12:43:00.000-07:00

Cyclingnews.com is reporting that Frank Schleck is being investigated for a 2006 payment to Eufemeniano Fuentes, the central character in the Operation Puerto. Schleck is also being identified as "Amigo di Birillo" or friend of Birillo whom we already know to be Ivan Basso, Schleck's former teammate at CSC under admitted doper Bjarne Riis. This is devastating news for Schleck and Team Saxo Bank - CSC. It remains to be seen if Schleck will still race this Sunday's World Championships as co-leader of the Luxembourg team with his brother Andy.

Julich retires, brings end to Roaring Fork cycling's "glory days"

2008-09-08T06:49:00.000-07:00

Former Tour de France 3rd place finisher and Olympic medalist Bobby Julich, originally from Glenwood Springs, has retired from bicycle racing, and thus, brings an end to the 'glory days' of the Roaring Fork Valley's biking scene. The late 70's, 80's and early 90's saw a tremendous display of talent in cycling in the Roaring Fork, the Coors Classic was raging and the Grewal brothers were dominating, Tom Hayles was racking up national titles in cyclocross. The spirit was strong and inspirational and part of the result was Glenwood's Bobby Julich ascending to the top of the sport as well.

Times have changed however, the Coors is long gone, as are such races as the Munsingwear Classic in Crested Butte and the Tour of the Alpine Banks in Glenwood Springs. Gone also is a development system to help inspire the next generation. Sure, Alex Hagman just finished in 21st place at US Pro road nationals, and Max Taam's 4th and 6th places in the Leadville 100 show some solid talent here in the valley, but it really has been a long time since Alexi won gold and brother Rishi dominated on the road and then the mountain bike, and, it has been a decade since Bobby took third in the Tour. It's not as if there is a void of talent in the valley either, a long list of junior talent has come and gone without grabbing ahold of cycling. Nathan Waldron, Simi Hamilton, Noah Hoffman, Brandon Cooper and many others might have taken up cycling a little more had there only been a junior development system here in the valley that other sports have like Nordic racing and running.

The Aspen Cycling Club is in a perfect position to take up the cause, but alas, "It's all about the points" at the ACC, masters points at that. Come on Aspen Cycling, pick up the ball that has been fumbled over 15 years ago, and lead the way for western slope junior development, it's about time to make it more than just the points.

Day 17 Whitefish Bay, Series finals

2008-07-30T14:44:00.000-07:00

From reports, Day 17 was a bit anti-climactic after the showdown the night before at Downer. Rock's Magnell repeatedly attacked with Jittery Joes defending Cantwell's lead and chasing him down every time. Magnell tried one last time on the last lap but that too was neutralized as the Columbians took first and third on the stage. Cantwell finished in 13th, locking up the overall title as Magnell finished in 25th on the stage. Jittery Joes also locked up the red sprint jersey with Chad Hartley. Other notable finishers in the series; Johnathan Page in 8th overall, Cole House in 28th overall, Max Taam 48th, Steve Tilford 58th, and Kip Spaude did not score.

Superweek '08, the 40th anniversary was hard fought all the way, one of the most competitive editions I've seen and I've seen alot. It was tough to come to Superweek underprepared and I had to live with that, but it was a great competition and I'm psyched to have seen the battle between Rock Racing, the Columbians, Jittery Joes, Virgin Blue, KBS/Medifast, Texas Roadhouse and all the other top teams. Max raced quite well and looks to improve quickly over the next few years.

Up next, not really sure yet, but for Max, he looks to defend his 4th overall at the Leadville 100 MTB race in a couple of weeks, against last year's champ Dave Wiens and non other than Lance Armstrong himself. Good luck Max, take down the champ.

T

Day 16 Great Downer Ave. Bike Race

2008-07-29T14:29:00.000-07:00

After the fireworks from the night before in Kenosha, and with the extra incentive of the "Super Prime", the Downer Ave. stage was shaping up to be a barn burner. The Super Prime reached $7,000 and the Columbians were in full flight trying to get their hands on that cash, but Justin Williams of Rock Racing got the better of them and took the money just before the finale of the race itself. There was some debate about the KBS/Medifast leadout train and if they were going fast enough to do a proper leadout, and I guess not, because Rock's Sterling Magnell took a flyer with 3/4 of a lap to go and gave it full gas. The Jittery Joes boys, trying to defend the lead of Johnathan Cantwell, deferred to the KBS leadout hoping that they would pull back the former yellow jersey. However, the leadout fizzled and Magnell soloed in for the victory, perhaps the biggest of his career and he was reduced to tears afterwards. The strain of over two weeks of racing was showing through and the battle lines have been fierce. Rock Racing came out on top tonight but it still looks to be Jittery Joes in control of both the red and yellow jerseys with one day left, the Whitefish Bay Criterium.

T

Superweek Distractions and other Photos

2008-07-24T11:24:00.000-07:00

Marlboros are still more than gas and somehow Goth is still around on Milwaukee's East Side. This girl had her corset tied so tight it seemed like a straight jacket.

Rock's Sterling Magnell and Rashan Bahati held the yellow and red jerseys for over 13 days until Australia's Johnny Cantwell took yellow at Whitnall Park. Superweek announcer for 30 years, Eddy van Guys who played the bad Italian from Team Cinzano in Breaking Away.

The women's podium from Shorewood, one of the biggest Superweek stages. Founder Otto Wenz with registrar Kris Franklin. Otto started Superweek in 1969 with one stage and it grew and grew.

Souvenirs available from the International Cycling Classic, otherwise known as the Superweek Pro Tour or just Superweek. 90/90, heat and humidity meant that the outfits were small and many cold beverages were needed at Shorewood. Here the local barkeep serves up the cold ones and of course, Brats.

Shorewood also has a public beach nearby, clearly a distraction. The House of Guiness right on the course at Waukesha.

The view from inside the House of Guiness where I sampled a nice black and tan while the action heated up out on the street.

The peloton climbs to the feed zone at The Tour of Holy Hill, one of the classics in American bike racing. Canadian Ryan Roth jumped away from a 10 man break with only 2 miles or less in the race to take the stage and the title, King of Holy Hill.

Rock Racing's Ashley Diamond was quite distracting. Clearly we're in farm country, the men's podium from Holy Hill, L to R, Ben King, Ryan Roth and Frank Pipp.

Brat Fest '08, Tom Schuler's annual party on Milwaukee's west side. Former US Pro Champ and 7 time Bastille Day's Champ, Tom Schuler and yours truly. I met Tom when he broke into Nordic racing in the late '80's.

Max Taam from Aspen getting ready to race the Whitnall Park RR in his new kit from The Hub. Series leader Sterling Magnell talks with legendary 2-wheeled warrior Steve Tilford.

Ashley Diamond, training for road nationals later in the year, held her own for 50 of the 60 miles at the Whitnall Park Road Race against the men, while many had dropped out. SRAM neutral support follows the field up the final hill at Whitnall.

The Jittery Joe's team with Johhny Cantwell on the right, were ecstatic having lifted the leader's yellow jersey off of Rock Racing. Eddy van Guys uses a local Columbian as an interpreter to interview the winner of the Whitnall Park stage.

Today is Racine but Max is taking the day off and we'll go to Kenosha tomorrow. Then Saturday is the big one, the Great Downer Avenue Bike Race with thousands of fans and a all day long Belgian Beer Fest, should be great. We'll skip the final stage in Whitefish Bay in favor of going back down to Chicago on Sunday for the first ever Chicago Criterium with $40,000 in prize money for the Pro, 1/2 race. Then it's back onto I-80 and homeward bound. Look forward to seeing you all again when we get back. Stay tuned. Trecker.

Day 12 and 13, Cedarburg, Whitnall Park and a new yellow jersey

2008-07-23T20:34:00.000-07:00

Day 12 was in Cedarburg, hometown of the Sun Dawg Erik Skarvan. Cedarburg has only been on the circuit for a few years but it is already one of the top events at Superweek. Max carpooled with another rider staying in Milwaukee and I rode up with my Mom and Aunt and met up with Max at the race. It wasn't quite as hot as it has been, in fact it was quite cool in comparison, nevertheless, cold beverages were still in order. After getting Max started on another 100k journey round and round, I set out to find some ice for the cooler and head to the feed zone. My quest took me to Maxwell's bar right on the course as I couldn't find a gas station very close. The barkeep hooked me up with some ice from the back and I decided I buy a New Glarus Spotted Cow off of him for his help. When he asked if I wanted it in a "to go" cup, I knew it was going to be a great stage. Of course I took the offer, by the way, the Spotted Cow is one of the top 5 beers I've ever tried, so if you ever find yourself in Wisconsin, give it a go.

The race was blistering fast, probably averaging over 30 MPH for the whole distance. This made things a bit challenging in the feed zone and a neighboring photographer snapped more than a few shots of bottles flying out of the hands of the riders trying to grab feeds from their support crews. Max was cool and collected and bided his time for the finale, sitting in the wheels and moving up towards the end. We were able to get a good handup after only one failed attempt, and I then headed to the finish to check out the action. Crowds 3 deep or more lined the barriers and made a wall of sound as the finish approached. A four man break made it's way clear in the last 30k and looked to lap the field, but they decided to hold back and contest the sprint without the interference of the rest of the peloton. A member of the Columbian nationl track squad took a hard fought sprint and the field dashed in behind for the rest of the lower placings. Max took 23rd out of 140 or so starters, once again in the money and a job well done.

Day 13 was a road race stage at Whitnall Park in Hales Corners. Rock Racing was still defending the lead of Sterling Magnell who has had the yellow jersey since the opening stage in Beverly Hills, but today was to be the end of it for now as Johnny Cantwell from Jittery Joes finished 2nd on the stage behind another Columbian winner. Magnell finished in 6th, while Max took home 16th. Great job by Max who said he wasn't really feeling it today. The big story was the crybabies from Rock Racing, who having lost the jersey, didn't stick around for one second longer than it took to pack up their shit in their two Escalades and another Cadillac sedan. Even though Rashan Bahati still held the red points jersey and there was a podium presentation just like after every other stage, when announcer Eddy van Guys called for Bahati, everyone saw their caravan heading out of the parking lot post haste. Really classy and professional from the SoCal playaz, NOT! Oh well, the crowd was treated to the podium presentation which also saw Jonathan Page, the noted cyclocrosser pick up 3rd on the stage, and of course the new Maillot Jaune, Jonathan Cantwell from Jittery Joes. With only 4 races left on the docket, and Cantwell seemingly having a better top end gear than Rock's Magnell, it looks as if the coffee boys will be able to hang on to the lead and relegate the Rockers to the runnerup spot for the 2nd consecutive year. Michael Ball says, "YOU'RE FIRED!"

The organizers this year at Superweek have been taking a little heat about the lack of more road races, late starts, shortened races and the like but I have to say they are undertaking a really hard thing, putting on a two week extravaganza and more than 17 different venues, day after day. Superweek is the longest event in the the U.S. and this is the 40th anniversary and I have to give solid props to founder Otto Wenz and the current owners, Mike and Andy Garrison. They have been respectful to critique and assure that small improvements will continue to be made from year to year. Here's hoping the racers don't hold anything against them and keep coming back because Superweek really is a classic and I hope they have at least another 40 years.
See ya, Treck.