Evan Elken 6th in Joe Martin Stage 3 circuit race

Land Rover-ORBEA's Evan Elken of Portland finished sixth in the third stage of the Joe Martin Stage Race in Fayetteville, Ark., Saturday.

Colavita Sutter Home's Lucas Sebastian Haedo won the 92-mile circuit race in 3:17:34. Jonathan Cantwell (Fly V Australia) was second. Rock Racing's Nic Sanderson finished third.

Elken came in ahead of Jelly Belly's Brad Huff in 7th. Land Rover-ORBEA'S Roman Van Uden, fresh off his stage win at the Tour of the Gila, was 8th. Despite a breakaway containing many of the top general classification riders staying away late into the race, the stage came down to a massive field sprint.

Portland's Jacob Erker (Kelly Benefit Strategies) is 15th overall in the men's race. Oregonian Christina Ruiter (Valueact Capital Cycling Team) is 9th overall in the women's race. Veloforma's Alice Pennington of Hood River is 19th.

The Joe Martin Stage Race concludes with Sunday's criterium.

Erik Kautzky Track Race partial results

Erik Kautzky Track Race
Alpenrose Velodrome, May 9

Junior Women
1. Cartwright, Liz (Beaverton Bicycle Club) 8
Women Master
1. Chateaubriand, Jane (Starbucks) 21
2. Mautner, Meg (Bike Central) 15
3. Windus, Debra (Finnegans Toys/Discover Chiropractic) 8
Women Cat 4
1. Turnbull, Lisa (Therapeutic Associates Cycling/GENR8) 21
2. Larson, Elena (Brihop) 15
3. McCarthy, Kristin (Ironclad Performance Wear) 7
Senior Women
1. Featheringill, Jen (Bike Central) 19
2. Hook, Camille 28 (Brihop) 12
3. Bihlmaier, Jeanie (Specialized River City Bicycles) 11
4. Fisk, Andrea (Velo Bella) 7
5. Charbonneau, Emily (Brihop) 3
Junior Men
1. McElroy Grant (Beaverton Bicycle Club) 21
2. Sullivan, John (Beaverton Bicycle Club) 13
3. Pelman, Naiqwan (Word-RCB) 11
Masters 50+
1. Provencher, Darell (Team Rose City) 14
2. Field Joe, (Fred Meyer/Lakeside Cycling Team) 13
3. Hemminger, Stephen (Southtown Velo) 11
Master Men 40-49
1. Bigwood, Robert (Portland Velo) 19
2. Dunn, Michael (ZteaM) 11
3. Abers, Brian (Bike Central) 10
Men Category 5
1. Sheagley, Eric (Veloce Bicycles) 21
2. Bedford, STephen (Word-RCB) 11
3. Hansen, Jake Word (Word-RCB) 7
Men Category 4
1. Wessel, Robin (Team Oregon) 19
2. Spahr, Trevor (Ironclad Performance Wear) 15
3. Nickerson, Randy (Kraynicks's) 8
Men Category 3
1. Kim, John (Beaverton Bicycle Club) 12
2. La Vigne, Justin (Team Oregon) 8
3. Emoff, Brent (Brihop) 7
Senior Men
1. Blackwelder, Mark (Gentle Lovers) 19
2. Beardsley, Steven (Gentle Lovers) 10
3. Kovalcik, Zak 21 (Team Beer) 7
4. Hosmer, Seth 34 (HPChiropractic/Hammer Nutrition) 6
5. Hemenway, Daryl 37 (Brihop) 6

Complete OBRA results for the Erik Kautzky Track Race are HERE.

Driscoll, Swart win Collegiate National Champ jerseys in Fort Collins

Ever wonder how tough Collegiate racing is? Check out the winners in the Div. 1 road race at the USA Cycling National Road Race Championships this weekend in Colorado:

Jamey Driscoll, the Cyclocrossworld/Cannondale rider who finished second to Ryan Trebon (Kona) and ahead of a host of seasoned pros at the Cyclocross National Championships this past fall in Kansas, won the Men's 1 road race for the University of Vermont. Carla Swart, the Lip Smackers pro who also recently won the criterium stage of the Gila in new Mexico, took yet another stars-and-stripes jersey Friday with her win the Women's 1 event for Lees-McRae.

USA Cycling Junior National Team rider Adam Leibovitz (Marian College), who came close to winning a stage race in Belgium last month with the USA team, finished third in the men's race behind Driscoll's Vermont teammate William Dugan, who won the Collegiate Cyclocross National Championship last December. Portland-based pro team Land Rover-ORBEA rider Bobby Sweeting finished fourth for the University of Florida.

Swart finished ahead of Harvard's Anna McLoon and Team Type 1 pro Jacquelyn Crowell (University of Florida). Specialized Designs for Women mountain bike pro Melanie Meyers and Luna Womens MTB Team pro Chloe Forsman finished fourth and fifth for the University of Arizona.

Former OBRA rider Ally Stacher, who now rides for Kenda and is Swart's Lees-McRae teammate, made it into the nine-person break that defined the race.

By sheer force of numbers, Washington's Whitman College, whose riders are occasionally seen in the Oregon peloton, took control of the Div. II team standings after the first of two days of racing.

Last year’s defending Div. 1 team overall road champion, Lees-McRae College, used a balanced attack by both its men and women to take the early lead in the team omnium standings. With the team battle heating up, racing will continue on Saturday morning with the men’s and women’s criteriums in Old Town Fort Collins.

Division I Men’s Road Race
1. Jamey Driscoll (University of Vermont) 2:52:47
2. William Dugan (University of Vermont) 2:53:31
3. Adam Leibovitz (Marian College) 2:53:34
4. Bobby Sweeting (University of Florida) 2:53:35
5. Rotem Ishay (Fort Lewis College) 2:53:35

Division I Women’s Road Race
1. Carla Swart (Lees-McRae) 2:28:21
2. Anna McLoon (Harvard University) 2:28:24
3. Jacquelyn Crowell (University of Florida) 2:28:47
4. Melanie Meyers (University of Arizona) 2:28:56
5. Chloe Forsman (University of Arizona) 2:29:26

Track opens with time trials; Erik Kautzky Memorial Race Saturday

BEAVERTON -- Alpenrose Velodrome's spring and summer schedule of racing spun into action Thursday night with blistering laps around the track for individual kilos and 500-meter events.

Fast Twitch Fridays starts tonight at 6:30 p.m. with flying 200-meter sprints. Fridays are all about the top-end speed and G-forces, featuring match sprints and motor-paced keirin racing, plus an omnium for beginner men and women. The Tuesday night series starting in June caters to masters and juniors.

The first mass-start racing will take place Saturday at The 4th Annual Erik Kautzky Memorial Track Race. Nine categories of juniors, masters, men and women will compete in a full menu of events, including scratch races, points races, miss-and-out and more.

Thursday night races in May will focus on time trials and then move on to pursuits and eventually mass-start racing. At the May 7 event, Per Bjesse rode the fastest kilo of the night with a 1:10.98. Gentle Lovers' Steven Beardsley was second at 1:12.48. Team Beer's Zak Kovalcik rode a 1:14.32. Amelia Bjesse-Puffin claimed the fastest 500 meters for the Senior Women, clocking a 40.32. VeloBella's Andrea Fisk came in at 40.6, and Jen Featheringill (Bike Central) was third with a time of 40.88.

Erik Kautzky Track Race info:
- Saturday, May 9
- Registration starts at 9 a.m., racing starts at 10 a.m.
- Kiddie Kilo is FREE and starts at 10 a.m.
(Training wheels and 3-wheelers are welcome).
- Estimated event finish time between 2-3 p.m.
- Approximately 30 separate races.

Thursday, May 7, Results:

Junior Women/500
1 Cartwright, Liza (BBC) 47.1
Women Masters/500
1 Hughes-Godfrey, Lynn (Bike Central) 43.67
2 Windus, Debra (Finnegan's) 49.29
3 Mautner, Meg (Bike Central) 49.81
Women Cat 3/500
1 Hook, Camille (Brihop) 45.02
2 Graham, Fiona (Specialized/River City) 47.05
Women Cat 4/500
1 Knoblock, Anna (Bike Central) 44.16
2 Larson, Elena (Therapeutic Assoc.) 47.4
Senior Women/500
1 Bjesse-Puffin, Amelia 40.32
2 Fisk, Andrea (VeloBella) 40.6
3 Featheringill, Jen (Bike Central) 40.88
4 Charboneau, Emily (Brihop) 42.77
5 VanValkenburg, Heather (Landrover-ORBEA) 43.65
Junior Men/500
1 Prettyman, Joe (BBC) 40.28
2 Stretch, Jerome 44
3 McElroy, Grant (BBC) 45.81
Junior Men/kilo
1 Birman, Dan BBC 1:18.56
Masters Men 60+/500
1 Magnus, Ron (Fred Meyer) 44.47
2 Forbes, John (Fred Meyer) 46.26
3 Traa, Einar (Portland Velo) 49.75
Masters Men 50+/500
1 Brown, Steve (MAC) 39.59
2 Provencher, Darell (Team Rose City) 39.67
3 Burney, Robert (MAC) 41.32
Masters Men/kilo
1 Huff, Bob Half Fast Velo 1:24.89
Category 5/kilo
1 Tardif, Adam 1:23.57
2 Charboneau, Clayton (Brihop Track) 1:27.47
3 Trigg, Jesse 1:29.58
Category 4/kilo
1 Copperwaite, David (Team Oregon) 1:19.21
2 Bigwood, Robert (Portland Velo) 1:20.95
3 Spahr, Trevor (Ironclad Performance Wear) 1:21.35
Category 3/kilo
1 Mensher, Daniel (Gentle Lovers) 1:17.37
2 Kim, John (BBC) 1:17.41
3 Emoff, Brent (Brihop Track) 1:21.64
Senior Men/kilo
1 Bjesse, Per 1:10.98
2 Beardsley, Steven (Gentle Lovers) 1:12.48
3 Kovalcik, Zak (Team Beer) 1:14.32
4 Frechen, Nathan (Team Beer) 1:16.62
5 Harrison, Rambo (BBC) 1:17.14

Mt. Hood Women's Cat. 3/4 field will race three days

After taking input from OBRA's Cat 3 and 4 women, Mt. Hood Cycling Classic promoter Chad Sperry reduced the Women's Cat 3/4 race to three stages over three days instead of a four-day race as originally planned.

The race will start Friday, June 5, with the 42-mile Scenic Gorge Time Trial. It will continue Saturday with the Wy’East Road Race and finish Sunday with the Hood River Criterium.

Registration fees for that field have been reduced to $80. Anyone who has already registered will be refunded the difference.

Cycling's tweet of the week

From Dave Zabriske, Apr. 30:

"Just watched my tt bike fly off roof on the highway."

Land Rover-ORBEA headed south for Joe Martin Stage Race

(Photo courtesy of Brian Hodes / veloimages.com)

Fresh off its biggest win of the season in front of Levi and Lance at the Gila criterium in New Mexico, the Portland-based Land Rover-ORBEA Professional Cycling Team is headed to Fayetteville, Ark., for the Joe Martin Stage Race May 7-10.

Twenty-year-old Roman van Uden of Aukland, New Zealand, shocked the domestic cycling world May 2 when he avoided several late-race crashes to win the Silver City Criterium of the Tour of the Gila, a race that included the big-name Astana Euro pros and a talented domestic pro field.

"This is a huge win for the young Land Rover-ORBEA squad," said team co-founder Norrene Godfrey, "especially in our first year as a professional cycling team."

Van Uden, who also won the Cherry City Criterium stage of the Cherry City Classic in The Dalles in April, explained his win as a combination of skill and luck.

"I got into a good position," van Uden said. "Guys were riding pretty fast at the front, crashes took out Levi and a few other guys and I snuck through, so we had gaps forming behind. A rider shot through the front trying to get away a bit with half mile to go and then sat up, and I snuck around him outside on the very last corner. He sort of opened a gap and it gave me enough room to take the win."

After the race, Armstrong complimented the Land Rover-ORBEA squad on its professionalism as the team handed out LIVESTRONG wristbands to the crowd and to all the kids who participated in the kid’s event. The team has two core missions, raise funds and awareness for the Lance Armstrong Foundation and help develop young cycling athletes into the next generation professional. Each year the team raises funds for the Lance Armstrong Foundation, and each year the team gives away it’s spot in the Seattle LIVESTRONG Challenge to a cancer survivor.

After Joe Martin, the team will be leading a LIVESTRONG Block Party ride in Portland on May 24. Racing continues at the TD Bank Philadelphia International Championship in Philadelphia on June 7 and the Nature Valley Grand Prix in Minneapolis June 11–14.

Tabor construction means Wednesday night series may be moved back

The same construction project that canceled the Mt. Tabor Circuit Race that was scheduled for May 16 is causing problems for the six-race June-July Velo on the Volcano Wednesday night series as well.

Although the original schedule is definitely out, promoters have tentatively rescheduled the event as a four-race series for July 29, Aug. 12, 19 and 26. Stay tuned!

Ryan takes win at crash-shortened PIR Tuesday night

(UPDATE: Complete photo galleries are now posted HERE).

Portland Bicycle Studio's Kelly Ryan claimed the PIR Pro/1/2/3 win Tuesday after a nasty crash at the back of the Cat. 3/4 field sprint prematurely ended the race. Two riders hit the tarmac hard and required medical attention. Both riders were eventually able to stand up on their own.

Results for the Pro/1/2/3 race were based on hot-spot sprint points, with Ryan's four points enough to take the win. Land Rover-Orbea's Ryan Taylor and Bridgetown Velo's Chris Haverty each finished with three points. Guiness Cycling's Cliff Heaberlin and Hammer/CMG's Marcel deLisser trailed with two points each.

In the Cat 3/4 race, the Ironclad crew seemed determined to animate the race early, frequently sending riders down the road in pairs or alone. Specialized River City Bicycles, Gentle Lovers and Portland Velo were also well represented, and Beaverton Bicycle Club had a strong contingent working for the Cherry Blossom Classic cat. 4 overall winner, 15-year-old Joe Prettyman, who made it into at least one break attempt.

In the end, River City and Gentle Lovers won the day. Walton Brush (River City) and Kevin Condron (Gentle Lovers) each tallied 15 points. Jacob Cummings finished with 10. Brian Gumpert (Showers Pass) notched eight.

RESULTS
Pro/1/2/3
1. Ryan, Kelly (Portland Bicycle Studio) 4
2. Taylor, Ryan (Land Rover/ORBEA) 3
3. Haverty, Chris (Bridgetown Velo) 3
4. Heaberlin, Cliff (Guinness Cycling Team) 2
5. deLisser, Marcel (Hammer/CMG Racing Team) 2
Cat 3/4
1. Brush, Walton (River City Bicycles) 15
2. Condron, Kevin (Gentle Lovers) 15
3. Cummings, Jacob 10
4. Gumpert, Brian (Showers Pass) 8
5. Cornilles, Gary (Specialized River City Bicycles)
Cat 4/5
1. Weber, Johannes (Ironclad Performance Wear) 15
2. McDade, stephen (Beaverton Bicycle Club) 12
3. Anderson, Eric (Pacific Power/Blue Sky) 10
4. Brown, christopher 8
5. McCasker, David 7

Pacific Power agrees to sponsor June's Mt. Hood Cycling Classic

HOOD RIVER, Ore. -- This year’s Mt. Hood Cycling Classic, presented by Pacific Power, will take place Wednesday, June 3 through Sunday, June 7. Oregon’s top stage race, it draws professional riders from around the country who compete for $20,000 in cash and merchandise.

Last year, 500 riders participated and the race drew crowds of more than 15,000. The 2009 race features many of the traditional courses that have made the Mt. Hood Cycling Classic the toughest and most scenic race in the country and culminates with a new criterium in downtown Hood River.

2009 STAGES:
Panorama Point Prologue - Wednesday, June 3*
*Pro/1/2 Women, Pro/1/2 Men only
Stage 1: Cooper Spur Circuit Race - Thurs., June 4
Stage 2: Scenic Gorge Time Trial - Friday, June 5
Stage 3: Wy’East Road Race - Saturday, June 6
Stage 4: Hood River Criterium - Sunday, June 7

Not only is the Mt. Hood Cycling Classic a great chance for people to see a world-class race in their Pacific Northwest backyard, but cyclists of all ages and abilities can also get in on the action. New this year is the Tour de Hood, which runs June 6-7. This event offers recreational riders and the general public the chance to ride two of the same courses that challenge elite racers in the Mt. Hood Cycling Classic stage race: the legendary Wy’East professional course (90 miles) and the Scenic Gorge Time Trial course (42 miles). Riders can go at their own pace and receive full mechanical support, plus food and drinks, along the route. For complete information and registration, go to www.tourdehoodride.com.

Kicking off the Mt. Hood Cycling Classic on Sunday, May 31 is the Second Annual Mt. Hood Cycling Classic Kid's Race, presented by Mid Columbia Medical Center, in downtown The Dalles. Young riders from training wheels to 12 years old will take part in this fun criterium race. Registration opens at 1 p.m. on race day; the race begins at 3 p.m. The event is free. Free bike check and helmet fits will be provided and any child that does not have a helmet will be given one free by the MCMC trauma nurses.

The Mt. Hood Cycling Classic is open to amateur racers. Riders can register online or via mail. Standard registration ends May 20 at midnight. Riders registering after May 20 will pay an additional $25 and can register up to midnight on June 1.

CATEGORIES
* Pro/1/2 Men
* Masters Men 35+/45+
* Pro/1/2/3 Women
* CAT 3 Men
* CAT 4 Men
* CAT 3/4 Women