Beardsley wins PIR Tuesday race; Ironclad supports hospitalized teammate

Gentle Lovers' Steven Beardsley picked off his first PIR win of the season Tuesday night as the Pro/1/2/3 field covered 16 laps of the 1.9-mile racetrack. Beardsley finished ahead of Land Rover-ORBEA's Mike Northley and Cyclepath Racing's Christian Tresser.

The Ironclad Performance Wear Cycling Team led the peloton at a cruising pace through the first two laps of the Cat. 3/4 race in a show of solidarity with teammate Kristin McCarthy, who was hospitalized with serious injuries she suffered in a crash in the women's race Monday night.

Once the racing started, Liberty Cycles' Gary Allen took the top prize in the Cat. 3/4 race ahead of Ironclad riders Dave Dezellem and Mark Crawford. In the Cat. 4/5 event, Capo Racing's Sam Radokovich finished ahead of Trevor O'Neal and James Ralston (Hammer Velo).

UNOFFICIAL RESULTS
PIR Tuesday Night Series, June 2

Cat. 4/5 - 30 finishers
1. Radokovich, Sam (Capo Racing) 15
2. O'Neal, Trevor 15
3. Ralston, James (Hammer Velo) 10
4. Pugh Lance, (Beaverton Bicycle Club) 8
5. Anderson, Eric (Pacific Power Blue Sky) 7

Cat. 3/4 - 58 finishers
1. Allen, Gary (Liberty Cycle) 15
2. Dezellem, Dave (Ironclad Performance Wear) 13
3. Crawford, Mark (Ironclad Performance Wear) 13
4. Thompson, Cliff (Beaverton Bicycle Club) 12
5. Ballantine, Jeff (Portland Velo) 7

Cat. Pro/1/2/3 - 85 finishers
1. Beardsley, Steven (Gentle Lovers) 22
2. Northley, Mike (Land Rover-ORBEA) 12
3. Tresser, Christian (Cyclepath Racing) 12
4. N/A
5. Leonard, John (Rapha Racing) 10

Brubaker takes first June PIR Monday; Steger repeats in shortened Masters race

Veloforma's Tina Brubaker won the first night of the Monday PIR June series in a race marred by a crash in the last lap that required medical attention for at least one rider.

Brubaker won the Open Women's race ahead of Nissy Cobb, Laura McGraw and Dawn Riddle.

In the shortened Masters 1/2/3 race, Mark Steger (Nike) repeated last week's win by racking up five hot-spot points. Charles Warner (Veloce-felt) and Christian Tresser (Cyclepath Racing) finished with three points each.

UNOFFICIAL RESULTS
PIR Monday Night Series, June 1

Novice Masters Men
1. Hagmeier, David
2. Munson, John
3. Gotting, Tad
4. Gornick, Jon (Hammer Velo)
5. Koller Mark

Novice Women
1. D'Elia, Traci (Portland Velo)
2. Graham, Lisa
3. Heathman, Lisa
4. Gibbs, Zan (Sorella Forte)
5. Parker, Rachael (Olson's Bikes)

*Masters Men 4/5
1. Pollock, Jeffrey 6
2. Borum, Jason 4
3. Cagampang, Juan 3
4. Emerson, Mike 2
5. Martin, Joe 2

Women's Open
1. Brubaker, Tina 20
2. Cobb, Nissy 14
3. McGraw, Laura 10
4. Riddle, Dawn 9
5. Krill, Deann 7

*Masters Men 1/2/3
1. Steger, Mark (Nike) 5
2. Warner, Charles (Veloce/Felt) 3
3. Tresser, Christian (Cyclepath Racing) 3
4. N/A
5. Quirk, Dan (Veloce/Felt) 2

*finish canceled due to crash, based on hot spots only

Baldwin signs with OUCH-Maxxis, will ride Mt. Hood Classic

Chris Baldwin, One of the country's top domestic riders, will start the Mt. Hood Cycling Classic Wednesday in the OUCH-Maxxis team kit after the former Rock Racing rider signed with the team this week. VeloNews.com has the complete story.

Registration deadline near for USA Cycling's NW Athlete Development Camp

Youth racers aspiring to higher levels have a chance to learn from some of the Northwest's most experienced and successful coaches at the USA Cycling Northwest Athlete Development Camp June 14-19 on the campus of Pacific University in Forest Grove.

"It's gonna be a sweet set up," said camp manager Jim Anderson. "We're going to be housed in the newest dorm on campus, and we've got some great rides planned around the area."

USA Cycling will be sending the lead coach from Colorado to work with a contingent of top Northwest coaches. Anderson said campers can expect a coach-to-racer ratio of about one to five.

The camp will feature two days of skills training that will include bumping, maneuvering and cornering, along with other handling skills specific to racing. Campers will have the opportunity to learn and practice fundamentals including team time trialing, working a paceline as if in a small breakaway, criterium starts and endurance rides.

Participants will get a chance to ride with top local amateurs and members of Land Rover-ORBEA, Portland's UCI Contintental Men's Cycling Team. Campers will also be hooked up for testing, once for five minutes and then another 20-minute power test and will benefit from one-on-one meetings with coaches.

"There won't be a dull minute," Anderson said.

Evenings in the dorm will feature presentations on bike maintenance, pre-race preparations, nutrition for races and for training, and race tactics, including videos.

The top-two athletes at the camp will get recommended for the next level of development camp at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado, where they will have the chance to meet more coaches, undergo more testing and more training.

"It's a little more intense and advanced," Anderson said of the Olympic Training Center camps. He said Oregon juniors Austin Arguello, Ian Boswell and Jacob Rathe, all currently racing the with the USA Cycling Junior National Team in Europe, benefited from attending development camps.

Cost for the camp is $750 for the week. Room, board and all instructional fees are included.

The camp is open to female and male cyclists. Juniors of racing age 14­-18, and Seniors aged 19­-22 are eligible. Some racing experience is preferred (Collegiate A/B, Cat 3/4), but high school or collegiate varsity sport experience is acceptable.

Automatic qualifiers can sign up online at www.usacycling.org by clicking on the "My USA Cycling" link. You can request eligibility at the following link: http://tinyurl.com/dmnzzv

Registration ends this week. Interested participants can contact Anderson by phone at 503-975-8229 or by email at info@nwcyclingcamp.com

(Photos courtesy of USA Cycling)

Midtown-Hutch's takes OBRA Men's TTT crown, Therapeutic Associates tops women's field

CORVALLIS -- It took a little Masters power Sunday to finally unseat the Land Rover-ORBEA squad's month-long domination of the senior men's top podium rung.

The four-man Midtown Direct/Hutch's-OIC squad of Paul Bourcier (40), Robert English (44), Galen Mitterman (28) and Nick Skenzick (30) covered the 28-mile course in 56 minutes, 40 seconds to take the Senior Men's crown and set the fastest overall pace of the day.

The Land Rover-ORBEA "Kiwi" team of Logan Hunn, Mike Northey, Aaron Tuckerman and Roman Van Uden had to settle for second on the day, crossing the line 11 seconds slower at 0:56:51.

The ZteaM Masters powerhouse of Mick Walsh, Clint Chase, Matt Slater and Karsten Hagen set the third fastest time of the day at 0:57:15, good enough to easily win the Masters 160-199 event. The HP Chiropractic/Hammer Nutrition team of Aaron Coker, Seth Hosmer, Jason Riffle and Kyle Valenta finished fourth on the day at 0:57:26.

The Land Rover-ORBEA "USA" group of Bobby Sweeting, Jim Camut, Josh Bartlett and Carson Miller settled for the eighth best time on the day at 0:59:08, possibly still recovering from Saturday's effort when Sweeting, Camut and Bartlett swept the OBRA Road Race Championship podium.

Therapeutic Associates/GENR8 Cycling Team's Pamela Archer, Karey Miles, Jill Howe and Lisa Turnbull took the top spot in the Senior Women's event, covering the 28 miles in 1:06:27. The Gentle Lovers squad of Joanna Mensher, Sirkit Valentin, Erin Plomin and Dawn Riddle set the second fastest women's time of the day at 1:08:06. The Cat. 3 IJM.org team of Sile Kiernan, Martha Brown, Audrey Baldessari and Allison Howard set the third fastest women's time at 1:08:55.

RESULTS
OBRA Team Time Trial Champions
May 31, Corvallis

Junior Women
1. Carolyn Cartwright, Liz Cartwright, Fiona Graham 1:45:18.
Junior Men
1.Dan Birman, Joe Prettyman Lance Pugh, George Zack (BBC) 1:07:36.
Masters Men 160-199
1. Mick Walsh, Clint Chase, Matt Slater, Karsten Hagen (ZteaM) 0:57:15
Masters Men 200-239
1. Steven Holland, George Shrek, Ivan Meadors, Rob Annen (Finnegan's Toys/Discover Chiro) 1:00:26.
Masters Men 240+
1. Dave Russell, Michale manning, Lance Brigman, Greg Hartman (Three Rivers Racing) 1:04:08
Men Cat. 3
1. Ron Babcock, John banks, Steve Brown, Todd Rosier (Portland Velo) 0:58:30.
Men Cat. 4/5
1. Sean Bagshaw, Ian Bagshaw, Cory Longiotti, Jason Peters (Flywheel) 1:01:38.
Senior Men
1. Paul Bourcier, Robert English, Galen Mittermann, Nick Skenzick, (Midtown Direct\Hutch's OIC) 0:56:40
Senior Women
1. Pamela Archer, Karey Miles, Jill Howe, Lisa Turnbull (Therapeutic Associates/Genr8 Cycling) 1:06:27
Masters Women 160-199
1. Anne Linton, Kim Reuter, Rhonda Marin, Colleen McClenahan (Sorella Forte) 1:11:48
Women Masters 200-240
1. Debra Windus, Barb Thiele, Pam Reid, Renata Hahn (Team Rose City) 1:14:27
Women Cat. 3
1. Sile Kiernan, Martha Brown, Audrey Baldessari, Allison Howard (IJM.org) 1:08:55
Women Cat. 4
1. Sunny Gilbert, Gretchen Landis, Heather Paris, Brenda Spinney (Pacific Power Blue Sky) 1:09:04

Land Rover sweeps Senior Men's podium at OBRA champs

(UPDATE, Sunday, 6:30 p.m. -- The complete Cycling Action OBRA Road Race Championship photo gallery is now posted online HERE).


RAINIER – Shadows of the 1986 Tour de France Lemond-Hinault summit finish fell over the Oregon Bicycle Racing Association Senior Men’s Road Race Championship Saturday as Land Rover-ORBEA teammates Bobby Sweeting and Jim Camut crossed the line hand in hand after shedding the rest of the competition.

Sweeting, who got the win, broke away with Camut early in the first lap of the 80-mile race and held off the field to take the top two spots. Teammate Josh Bartlett won the sprint for third from a three-man chase group to cap the green-and-yellow squad's podium sweep.

“We were both on the rivet the whole time and just giving it everything we had,” Sweeting said of the winning move. “With a couple miles to go, when we knew we had it, we just said, ‘What do you want to do? Do you want to race for it?’ Jim was like, ‘No, let’s come across together and you can take it.’”

Camut, who won the Silverton Road Race May 17, said it was easy to decide how to end the race.

“It was a team effort,” he said. “So I thought it was probably appropriate we came over together. We worked really well together. That’s the advantage of having a teammate up there. You’re not trying to trick the other guy. We were both just going as hard as we could the whole time.”

Sweeting agreed, saying the pair’s selfless cooperation may have been the difference.

“When you’re not saving something for the end, and both guys are just maxed out, you’re going pretty good,” he said, although the pair’s pace didn’t leave them overconfident.

“I was worried pretty much the whole time,” Sweeting admitted. “The gap was really inconsistent. It got up to two minutes at one point, then back down to a minute. So I knew the guys in the field were attacking each other. I knew if something got away and a chase group got established with five or six guys, we could come back”

Attacks in the chasing bunch were shedding riders off the back, but none of the moves seemed to get much permanent traction until Team Oregon’s Kennett Peterson and Cyclepath Racing’s Aaron Sander got away with Bartlett with about one and a half laps to go.

“Aaron (Sander) had been up the road by himself for five or 10 minutes kind of riding tempo,” Peterson said. “Josh (Bartlett) attacked. I got onto his wheel and we bridged up to Aaron.”

Bartlett said his team had been attacking to try and get another group going but not actually bringing back the two leaders up the road. He found success with a lukewarm attack that bridged to Sander.

“It was one of those attacks that’s not really that hard,” he said. “You just go and no one follows you. We worked together pretty well pulling through. Toward the end I was like, ‘Sorry guys but I’ve got three field sprinters back in the group, I’m not going to pull though.’ It’s unfortunate, but that’s how it works.”

Bartlett’s chess move proved to be the advantage on the climb to the finish, as Sander dropped off the pace early and Bartlett sailed past Peterson to take the final podium spot by several bike lengths.

Peterson said he wasn’t sure what happened to Sander in the finale, but he had a pretty clear idea why he didn’t repeat his own performance last week at the Rehearsal Road Race when he snagged the final podium spot.

“(Sander) was on the front and then he was gone,” Peterson said. “And that’s right when I attacked. I attacked for a couple hundred meters and then sat up to let Josh pass me because I thought it would be smart to have his draft coming into the sprint. But that was a bad idea. I should have just kept going because he went straight by me. He had plenty of space for third place.”

Sander just managed to hold off Land Rover-ORBEA’s Evan Elken and a charging field for fifth.

UNOFFICIAL RESULTS
2009 OBRA Road Race Championships
Rainier, Oregon - May 30, 2009

Jr. Women 15-16
1. Sara Slawta (Land Shark)
2. Fiona Graham (Specialized River City)
Masters Women 30-39
1. Anne Davis Usher (Bridgetown Velo)
2. Kelly McKean (Veloce/Felt)
3. Tessa Sugahara (Team Group Health)
Masters Women 40-49
1. Jenny Slawta (Land Shark)
2. Martha Walsh (ZteaM)
3. Debra Stolt-Krichko
Masters Women 50+
1. Mary Ross (Nomad Sports Club)
2. Helen Grogan Sunnyside Sports
3. Debra Windus (Finnegans Toys/Discover Chiropractic)
Jr. Men 15-16
1. Colby Wait-Molyneux (North River Racing)
2. Joe Prettyman (Beaverton Bicycle Club)
3. Andy Su (Hutch's/Clear Choice/Bend Dental)
Jr. Men 17-18
1. George Zack (Beaverton Bicycle Club)
2. Zack Bowden (Fred Meyer/Lakeside Cycling)
3. Michael Burton (Fred Meyer/Lakeside Cycling)
Masters Men 30-39
1. Mark Hibbard
2. Nick Skenzick (Hutch's-OIC)
3. David Gates (Bridgetown Velo)
Masters Men 40-49
1. Chris Haverty (Bridgetown Velo)
2. Mark Steger (Nike)
3. Matthew Slater (ZteaM)
Masters Men 50-59
1. Scott Seaton (Hutch's/ClearChoice/Bend Dental)
2. Peter Serrurier
3. Luis Valls (Fred Meyer/Lakeside Cycling)
Masters Men 60+
1. Terry Brown (Nike)
2. Lance Brigman (Three Rivers Racing)
3. Ron Magnus (Fred Meyer/Lakeside Cycling)
Senior Men
1. Bobby Sweeting (Land Rover-ORBEA Benefiting LAF)
2. Jim Camut (Land Rover-ORBEA)
3. Josh Bartlett (Land Rover-ORBEA)
4. Kennett Peterson (Team Oregon)
5. Aaron Sander (Cyclepath Racing)

Alpenrose Thursday Night Omnium results

MAY 28

Cat. 4
1. Brush, Walton (River City Bicycles) 21
2. Tardif, Adam 15
3. Wessel, Robin (Team Oregon) 8
4. Cowperthwaite, David (Team Oregon) 5
5. Blanton, William 3

Cat. 3 (B Field)
1. Nicoletti, Samuel (Gentle Lovers) 12
2. Pilz, David (Gentle Lovers) 12
3. Valentin, Greg (Gentle Lovers) 8
4. Bergquist, Curtis Aloha 7
5. Prettyman, Joe (Beaverton Bicycle Club) 7

Cat. 3 (A Field)
1. Kim, John(Beaverton Bicycle Club) 19
2. Hulick, Kevin (Gentle Lovers) 10
3. Birman, Dan (Beaverton Bicycle Club)7
4. Culpepper, Clint (Team Beer) 6
5. La Vigne, Justin (Team Oregon) 5

Women
1. Charbonneau, Emily (Therapeutic Associates Cycling/GENR8) 19
2. Bjesse-Puffin, Amelia (House of Pain) 12
3. Turnbull, Lisa (Therapeutic Associates Cycling/GENR8) 10
4. Hook, Camille 8
5. VanValkenburg, Heather (Land Rover/ORBEA)

Cat. 1/2
1. Blackwelder, Mark (Gentle Lovers) 12
2. Beardsley, Steven (Gentle Lovers) 11
3. Drake, Peter (Fred Meyer/Lakeside Cycling) 10
4. Cameron, Molly (Portland Bicycle Studio)3
5. Kovalcik, Zak (Team Beer) 3

Horner has 'stable fracture of the tibia,' still hopes to start Tour

Bend resident Chris Horner suffered injuries in his Giro d'Italia crash that are more serious than originally believed. The Astana rider and Lance Armstrong teammate reported today on his Twitter page that an MRI revealed he suffered a "stable fracture of the tibia," but he still hopes to start the Tour in July.

Horner crashed during a descent in the Italian Grand Tour's May 19 Stage 10. He finished the stage and had hoped to start the next day but awoke to terrible pain in his leg, making it too painful to walk. Horner quit the Giro and returned to Bend to recover and prepare for the start of the Tour De France July 5-27.

Horner reported Tuesday that his leg was sore during and after a two-plus-hour training ride and that he hoped to learn more today.

Browning wins PIR Tuesday Nighter

Cyclepath's John Browning took the overall Pro/1/2/3 win at the Portland International Raceway Tuesday Night Series, which covered 33 miles on the counterclockwise course in just over 70 minutes for an average speed of nearly 28 mph.

Racers, who faced a stiff headwind on the backside of the course but were pushed through the long finishing straight by a corresponding tailwind, circled 18 laps with three hot spot sprints. Land Rover-ORBEA showed up in full force and spent a lot of time on the front pushing the pace, but in the end Browning finished ahead of Evan Elken (Land Rover-ORBEA), John Leonard (Casa Bruno), Aaron Coker (HPChiropractic-Hammer Nutrition) and Cyclepath Racing's Christian Tresser, PIR's perennial front runner.

In the Cat. 3/4 race, Liberty Cycle's Stephen Fitzgerald took the top prize ahead of Kevin Condon (Gentle Lovers), Jeff Nelson (Yakima Bike Vigilantes), Gary Allen (Liberty Cycle) and North River Racing's Dean Anderson. Beaverton Bicycle Club's George Zack won the Cat. 4/5 race, ahead of Johannes Weber (Ironclad Performance Wear), Mark Biedrzycki (Portland Velo), Patrick Jason (Webcyclery.com) and Andrew Trask (Team cthulu).

UNOFFICIAL RESULTS
PIR Tuesday Night Series, May 26

Cat. 4/5 - 32 Finishers
1. Zack, George (Beaverton Bicycle Club) 17
2. Weber, Johannes F.B. (Ironclad Performance Wear) 13
3. Biedrzycki, Mark (Portland Velo) 10
4. Jackson, Patrick (WebCyclery.com) 9
5. Trask, Andrew (Team cthulu) 8
Cat. 3/4 - 59 Finishers
1. Fitzgerald, Stephen (Liberty Cycle) 15
2. Condron, Kevin (Gentle Lovers) 14
3. Nelson, Jeff (Yakima Bike Vigilantes) 12
4. Allen, Gary (Liberty Cycle) 10
5. Anderson, Dean (North River Racing) 8
Cat. Pro/1/2/3 - 68 Finishers
1. Browning, John (Cyclepath Racing) 15
2. Elken, Evan (Land Rover/ORBEA) 12
3. Leonard, John (Casa Bruno) 12
4. Coker, Aaron (HPChiropractic/Hammer Nutrition) 11
5. Tresser, Christian (Cyclepath Racing) 10

Steger, Miles top PIR Monday night fields

Mark Steger (Nike) returned to PIR for another win Monday night, following up on his victory last week in the Masters Men 1/2/3 race. Steger finished ahead of ZteaM's Kartsen Hagen, Portland Velo's Brian Ratliff, Cyclepath's Christian Tresser and Vanilla Bicycles' Shannon Skerritt.

Karey Miles (Therapeutic Associates Racing/GENR8) took her first Monday night win of the season in the Senior Women's race. Miles finished ahead of Land Rover-ORBEA's Heather VanValkenburg, Wenzel Coaching's Kendra Wenzel, Wines of Washington rider Pam Massey and Sorella Forte's Anne Linton.

RESULTS
PIR Monday Night Series, May 25

Novice Women - 13 finishers
1. Hackenberg, Emily (ZteaM) 15
2. Gibbs, Zan (Sorella Forte) 12
3. Shepard, Amy 10
4. Pranian, Katy (Sorella Forte) 8
5. Kennedy, Anne (Team Guinness) 7
Novice Men - 16 finishers
1. Hagmeier, david 15
2. Wolf, Jeff (Organic Athlete) 12
3. Stewart, Donovan (Portland Velo) 10
4. Pool, Eric 8
5. Payson, Matt 7
Masters Men Cat. 4/5 - 33 finishers
1. Desmond, Richard (Team Oregon) 15
2. McDade, Stephen (Beaverton Bicycle Club) 14
3. N/A
4. Aldersebaes, Dave (Ironclad Performance Wear) 10
5. Rich, Tim (Team Rose City) 7
Senior Women - 23 finishers
1. Miles, Karey (Therapeutic Associates Cycling/GENR8) 21
2. VanValkenburg, Heather (Land Rover-Orbea) 14
3. Wenzel, Kendra (Wenzel Coaching) 10
4. Massey, Pam (Wines of Washington) 8
5. Linton, Anne (Sorella Forte) 7
Masters Men Cat. 1/2/3 - 43 finishers
1. Steger Mark (Nike) 15
2. Hagen, Karsten (ZteaM) 12
3. Ratliff, Brian (Portland Velo) 10
4. Tresser, Christian (Cyclepath Racing) 10
5. Skerritt, Shannon (Vanilla Bicycles) 8