Domestic Cyclocross Report and Power Ranking – Week #1

Posted on September 21, 2010 by

2010 Rad Racing CX - R. Trebon

Photo by Dave Roth, http://www.dmroth.com/cycling.html

After holding the first UCI race of the season a weekend ago, the United States host six UCI races this weekend with pairs of races in Maryland, Vermont and Washington. Needless to say, there’s a lot to cover.  Domestically speaking, here’s what we saw:


Washington


The biggest news—and surprise?—from this weekend’s opening two rounds of the North American Cyclocross Trophy (NACT) was the dominance—on both days—of Ryan Trebon. Now, I know what you’re saying, “Trebon didn’t win, in fact, he barely hit the podium on Sunday, coming-in two minutes down.” You might be right, but if you look at the way each race unfolded, Trebon has to be the cream of the domestic crop in hand to race.


Frenchman Francis Mourey donned his nation’s colors as he decimated a stacked international field in Washington. Saturday’s win came in spite of a stellar Trebon, who managed to bridge across to the Frenchmen early in the race. Trebon used Jonathan Page to help close a 20-second gap before riding away with Mourey on a path of destruction.  Mourey out-sprinted the Kona rider, and in the process set the tone for Sunday’s Rad Racing GP.


Indeed, Sunday’s story was much the same, except that it was an all-International affair as Christian Heule and Jonathan Page (yes, he’s American, but he races primarily in Europe) rounded-out the podium. Trebon was the top US-based rider in fourth. It is clear that Trebon is in great form a heading into CrossVegas—and if it weren’t for his massive last lap effort on Saturday, Trebon might have been in contention for Sunday’s win as well.


Maryland


The Mid-Atlantic Cross (MAC) series picked-up right where it left off after last weekend’s UCI debut with Rounds Two and Three of the series in Baltimore. The Charm City Cross stepped-up its game this year to include a pair of UCI races in the famed Druid Hill Park. Both days of racing featured a well-rounded field of regional riders, but lacked a bit of superstar power largly due to a pair of UCI races in Vermont.


Davide Frattini continued his traditional early season domination with a pair of impressive victories. Frattini didn’t race last weekend, but over the past few years has been known to dominate the first few weekends of racing. Hopefully he can continue this trend later into the season. Valentin Scherz and countryman Anthony Grand did their best, but could never reel in the Italian. All three get their first national test this Wednesday at CrossVegas.


2010 Vermont CX Podium

Photo by Laura Kozlowski, www.laurakozlowski.com


Vermont


It should come as no surprise that Tim Johnson was back on the top step of the podium both days in Vermont. The defending National Champion looked like he’s in super form heading into CrossVegas. Johnson didn’t only win—he dominated.  He’s a big favorite for Wednesday’s Vegas showdown.


Last year, the NECCS introduced us to Dan Timmerman. This year, Luca Damiani could be the dark horse New Englander to watch. Damiani managed to break free of a strong chase group containing Justin Lindine, Joachim Parbo and Jerome Townsend on Saturday and Sunday. All-in-all, the top-10 in Vermont could have easily been mistaken for a national event. Clearly, the NECCS is once again the top regional series in the land.


Power Rankings


A few notes about this year’s Power Rankings. Like last year, we will split the rankings between domestic and international riders.


As far as the riders go, any rider who spends more than half of his season in the US will be considered in the US rankings. On the other hand, if a rider spends more than half of his season in Europe, they’ll be considered in the International rankings. Therefore, riders like Jonathan Page and Francis Mourey will be in the International rankings, while Davide Frattini and Valentin Scherz will be ranked in the US.


I’m also going to make a few minor changes to the rankings themselves. Last year, the rankings were more of a week-to-week consideration. As a result, there were constant changes, especially if a rider missed a race or an entire weekend. This year, I’m striving for more of an overall ranking that takes into account a rider’s overall season performance. As a result, riders will not be penalized for not racing or for one bad result—unless it becomes a trend.  With so many races spread out across the country, it will take a few weeks for things to sort themselves out, but once we hit October, we’ll begin to have a clear idea of what’s what.


So without further delay, here’s this week’s US Power Ranking:


2010 Vermont CX - Tim Johnson

Photo by Laura Kozlowski, www.laurakozlowski.com


1. Tim Johnson (1) – If there was any doubt as to who should be #1 in the first ranking of the 2010-2011 season, it was clarified within the first three laps of Saturday’s race. The only person who looked more dominant this weekend was Francis Mourey—who’s obviously ineligible for this list. The true test for Johnson comes Wednesday in Vegas.


2. Ryan Trebon (2) – Honestly, I was blown away by Trebon’s performance this past weekend. Obviously Trebon had the advantage of a somewhat home crowd, but the fact that he hung with one of the top-10 riders in the world speaks volumes. Call it early in the season; call it hometown advantage; call it whatever you want—Trebon is a clear podium contender in Vegas.


3. Davide Frattini – Frattini always seems to race well in hot, dry conditions—the weather in Baltimore couldn ot have been more perfect. I think Frattini may be placed higher then I like, but back-to-back UCI wins has to count for something. I’m interested to see how he fares in Vegas.


4. Luca Damiani – As I said earlier, Damiani could be the revelation of this year’s domestic cross season. His pair of second-places in Vermont was impressive, not to mention that he finished behind an in-form national champion.


5. Valentin Scherz – Scherz is my pick to surprise everyone this season. He’s eased his way into the season with some challenging Mid-Atlantic races. Wednesday will be a really trying race for the young Swiss rider. A top-15 placing would be a solid result.


6. Justin Lindine – Lindine was another Vermont surprise. Like Damiani, he has some notoriety from the road. Lindine narrowly missed-out on second on Sunday, but showed some great skills and poise on his way to a pair of third-places. Only time will tell if he deserves a ranking this high.


7. Adam Craig (10) – Craig picked-up a fourth and a sixth behind some of the world’s best in Washington. Last year Craig didn’t really race until the last half of the season, but came on very strong by nationals in December. This year, he’s giving it a full season, coming-off a strong summer on his mountain bike. Perhaps Craig is on his way to some top ‘cross finishes as well.


8. Anthony Grand – There’s still very little known about Grand, but his pair of third-place finishes in Baltimore may finally earn “the other Swiss guy” some notoriety. Even though I think he’s here more in support of Scherz, Grand will be an interesting rider to watch.


9. Joachim Parbo – I honestly expected a bit of a stronger showing from Parbo last weekend. That said, you can’t fault the Dane for his performances. With time, I think Parbo will find his groove. He’ll be a true podium contender within the coming weeks.


10. Jeremy Powers (3), Todd Wells (4), and Jamey Driscoll (5) – These three riders are still among the top-10 in the country—at least until they prove otherwise. Powers just wrapped-up his road season while Wells and Driscoll are taking a bit of a rest before getting back into the thick things. I’ll leave all three on the list for now; I expect them to replace some of the men above them by the end of the month.


Looking Ahead


By now, most of you have realized that the first big US showdown occurs Wednesday at CrossVegas. It will be a truly international field and as a result, should produce some marquee results for Americans and Europeans alike. Following CrossVegas, the bulk of the field should head to Wisconsin for the first two rounds of the USGP (The Planet Bike Cup). East Coast riders will head to The NorEaster (New Hampshire) on Saturday and/or the Ellison Park Cross (New York) on Sunday. All the fields are set, stacked, and ready—it’s time to find-out who the real stars of the domestic cross scene will be this year.

Posted in Races | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Monday Musette – The Vuelta, Worlds, & Transfers

Posted on September 20, 2010 by


2010 Vuelta a Espana - Nibali on Stage 20

Fotoreporter Sirotti


Here’s this week’s Monday Musette:


1. In what was already a banner year for the grand tours, the Vuelta really outdid itself. The final 3 kilometers of Saturday’s stage up the Bola del Mondo might have been the most gut-wrenchingly dramatic twenty minutes of racing I’ve ever seen.


Credit Ezequiel Mosquera for taking it to Vincenzo Nibali when he has to, but credit Nibali for riding within himself to limit his losses.  You could almost see the moment when he realized that following Zeke would have meant a catastrophic explosion—it was better to the Spaniard ride away, while keeping the gap close.  Or so we thought.


It’s been a long time since I’ve jumped from my sofa, screaming and yelling at the TV, but when Nibali regained contact with Mosquera, I couldn’t contain my excitement anymore.


In the end, we had another grand tour won by less than a minute and a fantastic finish to 3 weeks of great racing.  More to come.


2. Speaking of great racing, is Philippe Gilbert too strong?  Like last year, Gilbert used this year’s Vuelta to put the finishing touches on his form for Worlds.  But after what happened to Damiano Cunego last year, one has to wonder if a) Gilbert has peaked too soon; and b) he’s put himself in a situation where he’ll be too heavily marked in the Melbourne road race to have a realistic shot at winning.


Regardless, I like how he rode the final week of the race.  He took a stage win Friday in Toledo followed by a day in the break Saturday.  Two days, two hard efforts.  Now he’ll taper, travel, and (hopefully) be ready for the win at Worlds.


3. One rider who won’t be ready for Worlds is Stijn Devolder.  Citing poor form, Devolder removed himself from his nation’s roster last week, much to the continued disappointment of is soon-to-be-former general manager Patrick Lefevere.  We get it Stijn, you don’t want to fly halfway around the World to spend the race working for Gilbert, but after the stink you raised last year, you should be happy to have been invited.


Is Devolder too much of a diva?


4. Staying in Belgium, HTC-Columbia’s Jan Bakelants finished 2 grand tours this year—as a rookie.  I’m sure there are others who have accomplished similar feats, but Bakelants is certainly one to watch for the future.  With two grand tours in his legs, look for the youngster to start next season even stronger—does a breakthrough win beckon next spring?


5. Back to Worlds: watch-out for Alexandre Kolobnev.  He enjoyed a quiet Vuelta and is proven Worlds performer.  I have to yet to finish my official preview, but rest assured he will be near the top of my list.


6. In transfer news, Garmin has let go of more riders for next season: Danny Pate, Steven Cozza, and Frederick Kessiakof.  It’s hardly a surprise—all three underwhelmed this season, and with the influx of talent from Cervélo there had to be some men on the outside looking in.  Pate’s already signed with HTC-Columbia, while the other two are looking for work.  Look for Cozza to return to the US—is there room for him with friend and former teammate Mike Freidman at Jelly Belly?


7. In other transfer news, Nick Nuyens has signed with Saxo Bank, an obvious attempt at replacing some of the Northern firepower the team has lost over the past several weeks with the departures of O’Grady, Breschel, and Cancellara.


8. As for Spartacus, he bought himself out of his Saxo Bank contract, and is free to look for work elsewhere.  Tomorrow he’ll decide if he’s riding Worlds—I expect the answer to be “no”—before settling the matter of his future employer.  BMC, Fly V, and Team Schleck have been rumored as destinations.  Where will he land?


9. And last but not least, when will Andy and Frank Schleck’s new project reveal itself?  I’m starting to get nervous—it’s a bad idea to start signing riders before you’ve secured your title sponsor.  We know Trek’s on board, but the big money has to be coming from somewhere, right?  I hope the men putting their faith in this project know something we don’t.


That’s it for today—share your comments below!





Posted in Musette | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

A Closer Look – Haussler and Wiggins

Posted on September 18, 2010 by


2010 Tour de Suisse - H. Haussler

Fotoreporter Sirotti


You can forgive the cycling news media for giving Heinrich Haussler the dubious honor of having what’s probably the highest ratio of headlines to race results this year. For Haussler, 2009 was a break-out year: stage wins at Volta ao Algarve and Paris-Nice set the stage for a strong spring. Second place finishes at Milan-San Remo and the Ronde, top-10’s in Paris-Roubaix and Het “Volk Is Easier To Pronounce” Nieuwsblad made it obvious that he’ll be a classics contender in years to come. He iced the cake by soloing for 50k from a break to an impressive win in the Tour de France’s 13th stage. He crossed the line in tears, burying his face in his hands.


Unfortunately, 2010 has proven to be a bust for Haussler. He rode an injured knee to 2nd at Het Nieuwsblad, but had to step back from racing in order to let his injury heal. Unfortunately, when he returned to racing at the Tour de Suisse in June, a crash with an erratically sprinting Mark Cavendish reactivated his injury.  It’s no surprise, then, that at September’s Tour of Britain – Haussler’s first race since his knee surgery this summer – he dropped out with fatigue after (perhaps ill-advisedly) being in a break for 100k of Stage 5. Acquiring racing form takes a few months of preparation and a few more months of hard racing to sharpen a rider’s edge.


What is surprising is the clicking of tongues by some in the cycling news media. “This will certainly lose him a few extra percents of motivation when fatigue sets in a race like the Tour of Britain,” reports VeloNation. Haussler is a professional, presumably familiar with the long process it takes to acquire race fitness. He ought not be discouraged.




2010 Tour de France - B. Wiggins

Fotoreporter Sirotti



Bradley Wiggins, on the other hand – another rider given star treatment in recent years – has reason to be disappointed with his season as well. After an impressive 2009 Tour de France season, he signed with Sky Professional Cycling in a widely publicized move from Garmin-Slipstream. Sky had reason to be confident in their investment – in 2009, Wiggins reportedly lost 6kg (almost 14lbs) shortly before the Tour de France. A strong time trialist (evidenced by a growing collection of Olympic medals), the lost weight helped him gamely cling near the front of the pack in the mountains, and he eked out a scrappy fourth place. For Wiggins, though, 2010 saw his GC aspirations implode at both the Giro and the Tour. Considering the price tag attached to him when Sky poached Wiggins from Garmin, it may be safe to call his season a wash.


Haussler’s poor performance should be expected considering his injuries and his extremely limited time on the bike this racing calendar. Wiggins’ poor performance, on the other hand, should be cause for concern for Sky’s ambitions to create the first British winner of the Tour de France within five years. They may be trying to cram a square peg into a round hole.


Posted in Races | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Weekend Preview – The Vuelta, Italy, Isbergues, and US Pro

Posted on September 17, 2010 by
2010 Vuelta a Espana - V. Nibali After Stage 19

Fotoreporter Sirotti

The 2010 Vuelta a Espana, wraps-up this weekend with its final two stages.  Tomorrow’s Stage 20 looks to be arguably one of the toughest of the race, and with much still up for grabs—including the race’s overall title—expect fireworks.


The battle for the Vuelta’s final red jersey has narrowed to two men following Wednesday’s Stage 17 time trial: Vicenzo Nibali and Ezequiel Mosquera.  Nibali used his superior skills against the clock to effectively eliminate Joaquin Rodriguez from contention, and stole another 12-seconds from Mosquera with an attentive finish in today’s stage in Toledo.  With 50-seconds in hand, Nibali—and his Liquigas team—will need to do all they can to tire Mosquera and his Xacobeo squad early, before leaving it all up to Nibali defend himself on the final climb up the Bola del Mondo.  Roman Kreuziger will be Nibali’s key ally here.  Rumored to be one of the strongest riders in the race currently, the Czech could play a vital roll in keeping Nibali—and his lead—intact.


Behind these two, HTC’s Peter Velits looks all but assured of the final spot on the podium—making him the first rider from HTC to finish in the top-3 of a grand tour.  Further back, six men sit within 34 seconds of fourth place— Rodriguez, Schleck, Tondo, Roche, Danielson, and Sastre.  This impending battle for GC spots could help Mosquera as he’ll likely have at least one or two men willing to go on the attack; luckily for Nibali, he only has one rider to mark.


Before the race, I picked Nibali to win, so I’m going to dance with the one I came with.  But you can never doubt an aggressive Spaniard on the second-to-last day of his home tour—Mosquera could pull it off with an aggressive ride up the Bola.


As for Sunday’s Madrid promenade, look for Cavendish to take his fourth stage win of the race—if he doesn’t give it to his talented lead-out man, Matthew Goss.


In other continental action, Italy hosts two events this weekend: Saturday’s GP Citta Modena – Memorial Viviana Monservisi and Sunday’s GP Industria & Commercio di Prato.  Both races feature the usual mix of Italian racers and teams, with few major names to report.  In the end, look for Liquigas’ Francesco Chicchi to take the win Saturday and Italian Champion Giovanni Visconti to score a repeat win for ISD-Neri.


In France, Sunday brings one of my favorite autumn races, the GP Isbergues.  As expected, the bulk of the race’s start list is populated with French riders and teams—of these, BBox’s Thomas Voeckler and Vacansoleil’s Romain Feillu appear to be in the best form.  But challenges will come from several others including Rabobank’s Paul Martens, Katusha’s Sergei Ivanov, and BMC’s Alessandro Ballan.


In the end, I see Bjorn Leukemans taking the win—he’s riding well, he’s performed well here in the past, and he could use a victory to justify the squabble he started with new teammate, Ricardo Ricco.  With Feillu, Mancato, and Ricco on the roster as well, Vacansoleil has several cards to play.


And let’s not forget the Tour of Britain.  HTC seems assured of the overall victory with Micheal Albasini; tomorrow’s criterium  could Andre Greipel another victory–and his last in an HTC jersey?


Last, but certainly not least, the US Pro Time Trial and Road Championships take place this weekend with just about everyone taking part (save a few men currently racing the Vuelta).  On Saturday, look for Kelly Benefit Strategies’ Scott Zwizanski to hold-off Radio Shack’s Levi Leipheimer and Taylor Phinney for the win.  That’s a tall order indeed, but I suspect Levi could be looking ahead to Sunday and Phinney’s a little tired from the recent Tour de l’Avenir.


In the road race, while upsets are always possible in events such as these, I expect Leipheimer, his teammate Chris Horner, and defending champ George Hincapie are the men to beat—with Hincapie a suspect choice following his crash at the Tour of Utah.  For an outsider, look no further than Andrew Talansky, the recent runner-up at the Tour de L’Avenir.  In the end, I think one of the Radio shack boys takes it—particularly if Leipheimer underwhelms in the ITT 24-hours prior.


That said, the biggest drama in Greenville just might take place off the bike, as several riders taking part are rumored to be on the list Joe Papp has supposedly given to USA Cycling of riders to which he sold drugs.  As information leaks, expect to see some interesting last-minute non-starters.


So there’s a quick rundown of this weekend’s events.  Who are your picks?


Share your comments below.


Posted in Races | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

International Cyclocross Report – Series and Races to Watch

Posted on September 16, 2010 by


2010 GP Eeklo - Z. Stybar

Van Wichelen Photo



As promised, here’s a run-down of this year’s major European cyclocross series and races.


The Superprestige

The oldest cyclocross series in the world enters its 29th season this year. Nearly a third of those seasons have been won by one man: Sven Nys. Nys’ bid for a 10th Superprestige title came up short last year after several bad results, and an unfortunate DNF; it was the first time he didn’t win the series title in six years. In his newest bid, he’ll have his hands full with last year’s winner, Zdenek Stybar, and runner-up, Niels Albert.


The series itself welcomes a new race this year, Middelkerke, which replaces the North Cross race in Vorselaar, the oldest race in Belgium. Gieten (Ned) will host the only non-Belgian round of the Superprestige series on November 28th. Another interesting note about this year’s series is that the bulk of the eight-race schedule occurs over three weeks in November. There’s no Superprestige round in the month of January, and only one in December, two days after Christman.


Among the Belgian and Czech favorites will be American Jonathan Page. The Superprestige series is unique in that you must have a contract to race. All the big names have been invited, with no surprising omissions. Belgium has 14 riders; the Netherlands and Czech Republic have 5; while Italy, Slovakia, Poland, Germany and the US each have 1 rider. All-in-all, it promises to be an exciting series, beginning right away with the October 10th kick-off in Ruddervoorde.


The GVA Trophy

The GVA (Gazet Van Antwerpen) Trophy has the distinction of holding the first and last big race of the 2010/2011 European cross season. Last year’s Trophy was won by Sven Nys, which marked his seventh overall title, and sixth consecutive. That said, he was only six points ahead Zdenk Stybar. Stybar took advantage of mid-race sprints and consistent results, but fell just short of the overall. This year, partially due to fast mid-race laps, the series will feature a ranking for the fastest lap. This could allow riders who aren’t in contention for the overall to go for the fastest lap title.


Traditionally, the GVA Trophy is spread-out evenly over the course of the season. However, this year, it’s stretched so far apart that there’s only one consecutive race week and just one round in October and January, thus enabling riders to essentially peak for every race. At a mere two days apart, the Loenhout and Baal races are the only exceptions.


The series is always exciting and is traditionally owned by Belgians. Stybar has gained some strong support from the Belgian crowed, but national hero Sven Nys should be the home favorite as he guns for his eighth title. The opening-round in Namen (October 3rd) will be our first true look at this years star-filled cross field. One of the biggest surprises could be Tom Meeusen. To say that Meeusen dominated the U23 field last season would be an understatement. He’ll step it up to play with the big boys this year, and is another top-notch Belgian threat.


The UCI World Cup

In some ways, the World Cup seems to have fallen behind the esteem and appeal of the Superprestige and GVA Trophy series over the past few years. However, Niels Albert’s mid-season implosion made it one of the most exciting series to watch. Albert dominated the first half of the World Cup series, only to watch it go down the drain as Zdenek Stybar bested him by 4-points—the smallest margin of victory ever. To put it in perspective, Sven Nys finished third overall—100 points behind Stybar.


This season, the World Cup continues its tradition of going to places other than Belgium to other cross hot-spots. The opening round will be in Aigle, Switzerland, home to the UCI, on October 17th. This also makes it the last of the three major European series to start. Plzen (Czech Republic) will then host Round 2 before the series takes a one-month break. Koksijde will host the first of three rounds in Belgium split only by the annual pilgrimage to Spain.


There’s no Roubaix World Cup this year, which will be a disappointment to many, and the traditional Nommay race will be replaced by a round in Pont-Château. Italy also misses out on a World Cup event this year. The series wrap-ups in Hoogerheid (Ned.) just before the final weekend in January hosts the World Championships in St. Wendel, Germany. The last time worlds were in St. Wendel (2005) Belgian Sven Nys took home top honors—just saying…


Other Races

In addition to these series, there are some individual races that stand-out on this year’s calendar. CrossVegas, which recently announced its intentions to be a warm weather US and European season finale (February 2012), has taken a decidedly European flavor this year with several men taking the trip west from abroad. As a result, it should be our first look at who’s hot in the US and who could be a podium contender in Europe.


In addition to a who’s-who of domestic racing (including US National Champ Tim Johnson and America’s Euro-based star, Jonathan Page), national champions of France (Francis Mourey), Italy (Marco Fontana), Denmark (Joacim Parbo), Hungary (Zoltan Tisza), as well as the elite (non-professional) national champions of Belgium (Geert Wellens) and Germany (Rene Birkenfeld) will all be taking the starting line. It should be an eye opener for all involved.


Other races to watch occur during the holidays. The weeks surrounding Christmas and New Year’s feature racing virtually every day and often take-on an American flavor as the best in the US venture to Europe following Nationals. Between December 19th and Janurary 2nd, there are 13 races in Europe. The standouts are the Kalmthout and Zolder rounds of the World Cup, the Diegem round of the Superprestige series and the GP Sven Nys round of the GVA Trophy. It promises to be the most competitive few weeks of the cross season.


As you can see, this year’s European season is shaping up to being one of the best ever. But since things don’t kick-off in Europe for another few weeks, next week’s column will be a bit of a surprise.


Come back soon—and share your comments below.

Posted in Races | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

This week in race history (Sept. 12-18)

Posted on September 15, 2010 by

Photo by Kent Williams @ www.procyclingphotos.com

10 years ago: At the Vuelta, Roberto Heras left his competitors in the dust on the dreaded Angliru (9/12/00), outpacing his nearest competitors on what some consider the hardest mountain in any grand tour.  He would go on to take the first of three Vuelta overall wins, his fourth being stripped following a positive test for EPO.

Following his retirement, he’s gone on to become Brompton World Champion – a title with just a little less prestige than Vuelta winner.

Posted in Musette | Tagged , , | Leave a comment