News
What is Your Race Course Preference?
5/29/07 - We have been having a bit of fun in our forum discussing race course preference. For all of you old schoolers, you will recall some of the awesome downtown courses that had fun corners that came in L-shapes, figure 8's and other variations that required a certain skill and fitness level to do well. Unfortunately, a lot of these have gone by the wayside, for whatever reason. So for fun, let us know what type of course you as a rider prefers and think SoCal racing needs more of by voicing your opinion in our forum or voting below.
Amanda Duarte (Karl Strauss / SDBC) takes the win in the
Women's 4 race at the Barry Wolfe GP. photo © Dorothy Wong
Ivan Dominguez Will Miss CSC Invitational, Commerce Bank Series
6/1/07 - Toyota-United Pro Cycling Team sprinter Ivan Dominguez will miss Saturday’s CSC Invitational and the entire Commerce Bank “Triple Crown of Cycling” series while he continues his recovery from a bizarre crash at the Tri-Peaks Challenge last month. Dominguez has been Toyota-United’s most successful racer this season, winning eight races – including Stage 7 of the Amgen Tour of California. Dominguez severely bruised his back and ribs when he flipped over the handlebars 200 meters after crossing the finish line in Stage 1 of the Tri-Peaks Challenge May 17 in Russellville, Ark. more >
The Pro/Semi-Pros get underway at the Elings Park
Santa Barbara Cal State Championship Series race.
Weekend Event Update
5/31/07 - If you thought last weekend had lots of good racing, then you will be stoked to know that this weekend has more fun times in store. On Saturday, you can enjoy the lactic burn with your teammates in the TTT Championships in lovely Lake Los Angeles. On Sunday, CBR is holding the CBR State Crit Championships in Costa Mesa. And for our off road friends, the Elings Park CA State Series is happening in Santa Barbara. A little something for everyone!
Dana Point Grand Prix Delivers
5/26/07 - Riders and spectators were treated to a great course, party atmosphere and beautiful views of the California coastline. The course was a fast figure eight that was technical with a little roller and alley way. It reminds me of some of the classic crit courses at Super Week and on the east coast. The Pro 1/2's set a blistering pace, which shelled a good number of riders proving that if you didn't have the goods, it was not a course you could fake it on. After all the hype, Floyd was MIA on MKA.
An early break at the Dana Point Grand Prix in the Pro 1/2 race.
photo © SoCalCycling.com
Floyd Landis to Announce with MKA at the Dana Point Grand Prix
5/25/07 - Now that the hearing is over, are you going through Floyd withdrawals? If so, come on down to the Dana Point Grand Prix where Floyd is scheduled to tag team with MKA on the microphone. 12K Dreamers be warned! more >
MKA and Floyd will be announcing the Dana Point GP.
photo © SoCalCycling.com
Cannondale Recall on Lefty Speed Carbon SL & Lefty Speed DLR 2 Forks
5/25/07 - Cannondale has voluntarily issued a Safety Recall Notice with the Consumer Product Safety Commission. The products affected include any 2007 and some 2008 mountain bikes equipped with either Lefty Speed Carbon SL or Lefty Speed DLR 2 forks. If your bike is equipped with one of these forks, stop riding the bike immediately and take it to your Cannondale dealer for required service. more >
Now That the Landis Hearing is Over, What Do You Think?
Landis Hearing Ends in Volleys of Recrimination
5/24/07 - The legal marathon between Tour de France winner Floyd Landis and the sports agency accusing him of doping to win the 2006 endurance race finally reached the deliberation stage Wednesday, with no yellow jersey in sight to indicate who leads. Day 9 of public hearings was dominated by closing arguments and final mud-slinging. Lawyers for the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) labeled the American cyclist an unscrupulous cheater. Landis' defense team called positive drug tests the product of an incompetent French laboratory trying to cover up its errors. more at LA Times >
Eventual winner Dan Vinson (Team 5 Star Fish), right, and second placed
Chris McDonald (Karl Strauss/SDBC) went on to lap the field at Ontario.
photo © Dan Munson
Landis Cross Examined, Expert Blasts Lab for Shoddy Practices
5/23/07 - Part science, part circus, the Floyd Landis hearing gyrated through more tawdry testimony Tuesday, with questions about testosterone, telephone calls and neckties filling the Tour de France champion's stay on the witness stand. Attorneys used Landis' cross-examination to portray him as someone who hangs with the wrong crowd and would do anything to win his case, including trying to intimidate and humiliate Greg LeMond, whose revelations of sexual abuse and potential witness tampering turned this hearing into a melodrama. more at SI >
Just for Fun...
Defense Expert Concerned over Doping Evidence, Geoghegan to Rehab
5/21/07 - While Floyd Landis' former manager prepared to enter rehab Monday, a friendly witness for Landis testified he had grave concerns about the evidence being used to prove the Tour de France champion's positive doping test. "I'm terribly sorry, but if someone's life depends on it, his career depends on it, you don't go on assumptions," said Wolfram Meier-Augenstein, an expert in the kind of testing that produced Landis' positive results for synthetic testosterone. more >
SoCalCycling.com's Team Director, Frank Sarate, tries to bring back
the break in the Pro 1-3 race at the Ontario Crit.
photo © Dan Munson
The Foaming Rant: Foul play
By Patrick O’Grady VeloNews editor at large - This is a must read
5/19/07 - Remember the scene in "Breaking Away" when the evil Team Cinzano rider stuffs a pump into goofy Italophile Dave Stoller's spokes and shows him what big-time bike racing is really all about? That's what happened Thursday in the Floyd Landis arbitration hearing. Ah, for the good old days, when people just upshifted their rivals on hills or stuck pumps into their spokes. Unless I miss my guess, a whole bunch of bright-eyed contributors to the Floyd Fairness Fund suddenly found themselves sprawled in a muddy ditch alongside this race to the bottom, stunned by the revelation that the 2006 Tour de France winner's business manager phoned up three-time champ Greg LeMond - the night before he was to testify at Landis's arbitration hearing - to make a sinister, if oblique reference to a past incidence of sexual abuse that until Thursday had not been made public. If I'd kicked in so much as a wooden nickel to Landis's war chest, I'd want it back. With interest. Disinfected. more >
Jonathan Cantwell (La Grange) begins his victory celebration, as Rigo Meza
(Coates Cyclery/Arce Bros) sprints in for second and Simon Nung (Sixtufit) third.
photo © SoCalCycling.com
Ride of Silence, Pasadena/Rose Bowl - By Dorothy Wong
5/18/07 - Last night at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena 117 riders met to ride three slow-paced laps in silence in tribute to our fallen So Cal cyclists who lost their lives or have been injured while cycling on public roadways. Three laps in memory ... it could have easily been one of us and I for one, was hoping this ride would help bring awareness to an all too common problem. When we arrived at the check-in tent, hosted by PAA, we were given colored ribbons to wear as armbands. BLACK in memory of our fallen riders and RED if you were injured as a result of an accident with an automobile. Sadly, many of us were wearing red. more >, video >
Eduardo Meza (Coates Cyclery/Arce Bros) leads the
Junior Men 15/16 up the hill at the West LA College Grand Prix.
photo © Dorothy Wong
Greg LeMond Gives Explosive Testimony in Landis Trial
5/17/07 - Here's a quick recap of LeMond's testimony:
- Landis called LeMond after he first tested positive in response to some comments LeMond made.
- LeMond told Landis to come clean if he did anything and it could help save the sport.
- LeMond shared a secret with Landis that he was sexually abused as a child and that the secret would have destroyed him had he not told a few people, and suggested that if in fact Landis cheated the secret would destroy him later in life.
- According to LeMond, Landis said "What good would it do?" and he would destroy a lot of his friends.
- Last evening, LeMond got a phone call on his cell phone while it was on speaker phone (wife Kathy overheard) pretending to be the uncle that abused him and stating he would be at the trial. LeMond's cell phone recorded the phone number and he called it back and got a voice mail for a guy named Will (which turns out is a friend and manager of Landis). Now LeMond is going to press charges.
Williams Wheels System 50 Carbon/Alloy Review - By Rob Kamppila
5/17/07 - I recently purchased a new pair of Wheel System 50 Carbon/Alloy wheels from WilliamsCycling.com, which are new to their increasing line up of awesome wheels. Right out of the box they look well crafted with laminated decals on the face of the rim that won’t come off like I have had on other brands of wheels. Also the carbon itself is hard and not soft which adds to the stiffness of the rim strength of the wheels. Some other wheels use carbon fairings that are soft and prone to cracks or puncture the fairing if mishandled. When I first took them out for a ride, I was impressed right away. more >
Landis Opening Statement Presented
5/15/07 - The arbitration hearing in Malibu for Floyd Landis is underway.
- Download Landis' 34 Page Opening Statement >
- Watch the Proceedings via Live Streaming Video >
- Talk about it in the SoCalCycling.com Forum >
Road Race Championships Split Between Bakersfield and Sisquoc
5/15/07 - "Many of you have heard by now that the Vandenberg AFB did not issue a permit to stage the traditional SCNCA road race championships for 2007. As a result, the elite and master's championships will be split between the Golden Empire Classic in Bakersfield on June 10th and the Sisquoc Road Race on August 4th. Bakersfield will host all of the elite fields and the 30+, 35+, and 45+ master fields. Sisquoc will host the 55+, 60+, 65+, and 70+ fields as well as the women's 35+, 45+, and 55+ fields. Sisquoc will also host the junior championships. It had become increasingly difficult to secure a permit from Vandenberg since 9/11. Many thanks to Sisquoc and Bakersfield for stepping in at the last minute." - From Eric Smith, SCNCA President
Carlos Mayoral Halla (La Grange), Pat Caro (Schroeder Iron) and Mike Tettleton
(SoCalCycling.com) climb the "short hill" that caused some casualties at Valencia.
photo © SoCalCycling.com
Landis vs. Anti-Doping Program Hearing at Pepperdine Starts Monday
5/13/07 - Cyclist Floyd Landis could not have mounted a more feeble opening defense against charges he doped to win the 2006 Tour de France. Sitting before news conference microphones last summer, he stammered out one excuse after another trying to explain elevated testosterone readings on lab tests that suddenly jeopardized his greatest professional triumph: He had been drinking alcohol the night before the test, he said; he was taking medication for hyperthyroidism, he added; he'd been given a legal cortisone shot to treat a degenerative hip condition, he went on. One by one the seemingly desperate excuses eroded his credibility until it seemed it might never recover. Then, the momentum changed. In a move reminiscent of his come-from-behind, late-stage surge to win the 2006 cycling endurance race, Landis and his defense team launched the most aggressive, expensive and public challenge ever mounted against the anti-doping establishment. More at LA Times >
Giro di San Marino - Race Report By Amber Neben
5/12/07 - I finally found some Dutch weather, but I had to come to Italy to get it! I flew from Eindhoven to Pisa yesterday (Thursday) and then spent 4.5 hrs driving with the USA national team mechanic from Pisa to San Marino. It has been raining and a bit cool. This is exactly what I would expect in Holland. But when I left Holland, the sun was shining, and it was around 20 C! The Giro di San Marino starts today. I am racing this 3 day, UCI 2.1 Italian stage race with the US National team, while my Flexpoint team is racing in the Czech Republic at the Grazia Tour. This race gives me a chance to race with my US team, (I can only race with the national team when my UCI team is not present), and it is a shorter race (vs Grazia) to use as preparation for the Tour de l’Aude. The race consists of a short prologue, followed by two road stages on Saturday and Sunday. I will write and post a recap, when I get back to Holland. more >
Amber Neben (right) finished 3rd overall in the Giro di San Marino, standing along
side winner Marianne Vos (Ned) and Edita Pucinskaite (Ltu) on the final podium.
Landis: They Wanted Me To Squeal On Lance
5/11/07 - Floyd Landis claims the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency's lead attorney approached his lawyer offering "the shortest suspension they'd ever given an athlete" if Landis provided information that implicated Lance Armstrong for doping. Landis said he made the Armstrong allegations public Thursday not because he planned to use it as evidence when testimony begins Monday in his arbitration hearing, but to show the lengths USADA will go to in prosecuting athletes. more >
2007 Women's Cycling Challenge Celebrates One Year Anniversary
5/11/07 - The 2007 Women's Cycling Challenge Presented by Protech Skincare kicked off its summer season and one year anniversary last weekend in downtown San Diego with the Barrio Logan Grand Prix. This classic event hosted by Team Karl Strauss/SDBC, was also the 2007 SCNCA Elite Criterium Championships. With the skyline of downtown San Diego in the background, champions were crowned throughout the day including our Women's Cycling Challenge Cat 3 and Cat 4 ladies who brought an exciting end to the day’s racing. Team Paramount Racing showed up in force. Their Cat 3 team worked to get Kelli Jones away and she lapped the Cat 3 women's field solo! Kelli was the only rider to lap a field in this year's event. In the Women's Cat 4 race, 13-year old, Angelica Frayre (Pura Galleta-Mexico) won an exciting sprint finish. Dr. Tricia Fynewiner (Coates Cyclery/Arce Bros) is the Cat 4 women's Elite Criterium Champion as only CA state residents qualify for this title. more >
District Road Champs Scheduled for Bakersfield June 10th
5/10/07 - The SCNCA district road race championships for various categories will be held in conjunction with the Golden Empire Road Race in Bakersfield, CA Sunday June 10th. Due to the canceling of the Vandenberg venue, Bakersfield will host the event. Details and the race flyer will be available ASAP and online resgistration will be done via active.com. Check out www.kernwheelmen.org for more details as they become available.
Congratulations to the State Crit Champs at the Barrio Logan GP
5/9/07 - Cat 1-2 Brandon Gritters (Team 5 Star Fish), Cat 3 Aaron Wimberley (First Team Staffing Group Cycling Team), Cat 4 Erik Eilers, Masters 30 + Karl Bordine (Team 5 Star Fish), Women 1-2 Anna Lang (Karl Strauss/SDBC), Women 3 Kelli Jones (Paramount Racing), Women 4 Angelica Frayre (Pura Galleta)
Womens Cat 3 Podium (Left) 1st Kelli Jones (Paramount), 2nd Alicia Boland
(Paramount), 3rd Hattie Wetherington (DeWalt) & Womens Cat 4 Podium (Right)
1st Angelica Frayre (Pura Galleta), 2nd Tricia Fynewever (Coates Cyclery
/Arce Bros), 3rd Shelley Imhoff (Velo Allegro). photo © Dorothy Wong
$10,000 Cash Purse Set for West L.A. College Grand Prix for Cycling
5/8/07 - A $10,000 cash purse — the largest in the race’s history — marks this year’s West L.A. College Grand Prix for cycling, presented by 1031Market.Com and hosted by Velo Club La Grange, and set for Sunday, May 20, over a 1.3-mile circuit around the college’s campus grounds. The grand prix promises to be not only the largest and richest cycling event in the club’s 38-year history, but the biggest and richest cycling event ever raced in West Los Angeles, and is expected to attract more than 400 amateur and professional bicycle racers from across the Western United States. Over 1,000 race fans and cycling enthusiasts are anticipated to attend the racing challenge and day-long cycling exposition showcasing the latest in cycling technology and nutritional products. Admission and parking are free. more >
Ivan Basso Admits his Involvement in Operación Puerto
5/7/07 - It looks like Basso is Birillo, afterall. Basso has confessed to the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) of his involvement in the affair. Sadly, I am not surprised by his confession and only wish the athletes involved would have the huevos to admit any wrong doing on their part immediately and take the penalty, instead of deny, deny, deny. Hopefully, Basso's admission will get other cheaters to step up and the cleansing process can begin.
Geoff Kabush (Maxxis) leads the start of the Pro Men's Cross Country in Fontana.
SoCalCycling.com Welcomes Amber Neben's Race Diaries
5/5/07 - We are excited to invite our readers to read Amber's account of what it is like to race in Europe with her UCI Dutch-based Team Flexpoint. Amber has also offered to answer questions through her web site. If you don't know Amber, she is a two time Overall Winner in the prestigious Tour de l’Aude Feminin and two time Overall Winner at the Redlands Classic and resides in Irvine, CA when she is not racing in Europe. I first raced with Amber in 2000 at the Pomona Valley Stage Race (now SDSR) and got to see first hand that she was on her way to becoming a world class climber, when she passed me in the uphill GMR Time Trial and she seemed to just float effortlessly up the climb. We hope you enjoy her reports!
Fleche Wallone World Cup - by Amber Neben
5/5/07 - On Wednesday, we raced the Fleche Wallone world cup. Our race took place in the same area as the men. And just like the men, we finished on the famous Muur du Huy... The WALL of Huy. My race was actually quite eventful. Typically, the goal is to make the first 103km as easy as possible, so that when you come into the final km, the legs, the body, and the head are ready for one maximum effort. Sometimes, though, you must overcome some distractions along the way. Today was one of those days for me. About 64km into the race, the shrinking peloton was together over the top of a climb. The group was shifting into ‘piano’ mode, so I had pulled a bottle to take a drink. As I was placing the bottle back in the cage, there was some shuffling in front of me and my front wheel caught the edge (5cm?) of the road. I was almost able to pull the bike back up, but with only my left arm, it wasn’t possible. Down I went. more >
Amber on the Muur at Fleche Wallone.
Baldwin Moves Into Second Overall at Gila - Toyota-United Report
5/4/07 - Toyota-United’s Chris Baldwin climbed into second place overall at the Tour of the Gila Thursday with a third-place finish on Stage’s 2 Silver City to Mongollon Road Race. Baldwin is now one minute and 59 seconds behind overall leader Nathan O’Neil (Health Net presented by Maxxis), who finished second in Thursday’s 94.1-mile (152.3 km) road race that finished with a challenging climb. Hernan Munoz (P&S Halco Hermosillo) won the stage, finishing 10 seconds ahead of O’Neil and 35 seconds ahead of Baldwin. With four riders finishing in the top 12 on Thursday, the Toyota-United Pro Cycling Team moved into the overall lead on the team classification. Justin England finished sixth (53 seconds behind), Burke Swindlehurst was ninth (1:16 behind) and Stefano Barberi was 12th (1:49 behind). In the overall standings, Swindlehurst is eighth (3:45 behind), England is 10th (3:56 behind) and Barberi is 11th (4:03 behind). more >
Nathan O'Neil (Health Net), Chris Baldwin (Toyota-United), Hernan Munoz
(P&S-Halcones) and Anthony Colby (Colavita/ Sutter Home) lead up the climb at Gila.
photo © Mitchell Clinton / www.clintonphoto.com
Tour of the Gila Kicks Off with Time Trial - Toyota-United Report
5/3/07 - Led by Chris Baldwin’s third-place finish in Wednesday’s Dan Potts Memorial Tyrone Time Trial, five Toyota-United Pro Cycling Team riders placed in the top 25 on the opening stage of the 21st annual Ben D. Altamirano Tour of the Gila. Baldwin finished one minute and 29 seconds behind Nathan O’Neil (Health Net presented by Maxxis), who won the 16.15-mile (26 km) race against the clock in 33 minutes and 13 seconds. Ben Jacques-Maynes (Priority Health Cycling Team) finished second, 1:15 behind O’Neil. Baldwin is the race’s defending champion. The revelation of the opening day of the five-day, five-stage, 339.1-mile (545.7 km) race was Toyota-United’s Stefano Barberi. Starting his second National Race Calendar stage race of the season, the 5-foot-9 Brazilian finished 10th, 2:14 behind. “It’s good to see him come out and have a good ride like that,” Toyota-United Team Director Kirk Willett said. Willett said the cancellation of the Tour of Utah – originally scheduled for a late June start – has bolstered the quality of competition in the 121-rider field. more >
Nathan O'Niel (Health Net pb Maxxis) and Rachel Heal (Webcor) won the
Tyrone TT at Tour of the Gila. photos © Mitchell Clinton / www.clintonphoto.com
National Mountain Bike Series Comes to Fontana this Weekend
5/2/07 - The NMBS continues it's Southern California leg with action filled events held May 3-6 in Southridge Park, Fontana (or Fontucky, as I like to affectionately call it). If your not racing, come check out the adrenalin fueled Kenda Short Track or Fox Racing Shox 4X. In addition, my old friend Alison Dunlap will be hosting a Mountain Bike Clinic where you can get some great tips from a World Champ. Event Program >
The women's field rounds a corner at the Chuck Pontius Crit. photo © Thomas Barron
Eddy Merckx Interview
5/1/07 - Enjoy this interesting 1990 interview with the legendary Eddy Merckx, complete with lots of old race footage. view >
