Press Release 05.25.2005
Mayor's Cup
While the city of Richmond prepares to host cycling’s Captech Classic this Thursday, Richmond Ciclismo’s Jon Hanson headed north to win Sunday’s Mayor’s Annual Main Street Classic Criterium in Elkton, MD.
For Hanson, the win is a relief.
“It’s nice to finally get a win so I can relax a little bit,” Hanson said. Winning the event garners a pretty nice trophy too.
The course was a fast, .7 mile, four corner ride with a hill that racers hammered in the big ring.
“It was fast,” Hanson described. “There was a hill we had to go up 60 times. So, that made me miserable the whole race but I started feeling better near the end.”
He described the end as a gamble that paid off.
“I got swarmed a bit with two turns to go but as we came out of the last turn everybody went left and I jumped to the right,” Hanson said. “I had a clear shot to the line. It worked out really well.”
The Mayor’s Classic is an “away game” for Ciclismo although Virginia and Maryland riders frequently race each other. This Wilmington Velocity criterium is a Mid Atlantic Bicycle Racing Association (MABRA) event. So close to Delaware, the long car drive alone is motivation to keep a racer going said Ciclismo’s Nick Johnson
“I spent about 90% of the crit suffering at the back,” said Johnson. “I kept telling myself that I didn’t drive two hours just to pull out because it’s hard.”
On the final stretch, before the finish line, Johnson estimates the speeds between 35-40 mph.
With only a few laps remaining, no one wanted to or could commit a team member to pull the pack around.
“Jon was sitting pretty in the top 10,” Johnson said. “He held his position well on the final lap, as he hit the last turn.”
On the cool down lap, Johnson said he heard Hanson say he could finally tell his grandchildren that he actually won a race.
Photo Caption:
Richmond Ciclismo’s Tony Hall patiently cruises in second during last Sunday’s Mayor’s Annual Main Street Classic Criterium in Elkton, MD. (photo by Richmondciclismo.com)
For newly upgraded category 3 racer Tony Hall, of Ciclismo, second place in the combined cat 3 and 4 race is a nice start. Still, he said he’s beginning to be frustrated with his streak of second place finishes.
“I got into a break of probably 12 guys close to the final quarter of the race,” Hall said. In hindsight, he wondered, “I was in a good spot on the final laps, trying to stay a few guys back, but maybe I was too close to the front. Somehow I found myself on the front of the race in the final turn.”
Closer to home, the Virginia Cycling Association calendar slated Newport News’ Winning Edge criterium. That event didn’t count towards Best All-around Rider (BAR) points so it gave riders a chance to experiment or work on skills. Or just go really fast.
Go fast. That best describes third place Rob Suydam, of Virginia Beach Velo / East Coast Bicycles, second place Keck Baker, of Team CSK / Central Virginia Cycling Club and winner Cam Holland, of Snow Valley presented by Seal On.
“Within a few laps things had settled in and I attacked from the front,” said Suydam. “Normally, I wouldn’t do such a thing, but here the turns are so tight that if one can jump the group just before the turn, so close to the turn, that the group is discouraged from accelerating. The attacking rider may come out with a good lead and good momentum.”
The course is a single lane, half mile rectangle around the New Horizons Educational Technical Center. The race is sponsored by Team Hampton Roads.
“No one followed my attack, so I maintained a steady pace for a few laps knowing the entire group or just a few would eventually come,” said Glen Allen resident Suydam.
Instead of having primes during the race, the promoter decided to give an award for the most laps led. Suydam won that award with his huge effort.
On the tight course, the pack spun into single file trying to catch Suydam. It wasn’t long before dropped riders created an USCF official’s nightmare. Lapped riders were pulled out of the race. Eventually, Suydam, Baker, Holland, Rob Dinterman, of VBV/East Coast Bicycles, and Leigh Carter of Team CSK were the only riders left in cycling’s version of a “battle royale.”
“The race went super fast from the gun,” Baker said. “We were all taking pulls. There were some hard jumps which blew the field into a seven-man break. Then Rob jumped and Cam and I followed. The seven-man break turned into a three-man break half way through the race. We kept driving it so the others couldn’t get back on.”
That left Carter and Dinterman to fight among themselves. They too were lapped and the five prepared for the sprint. They were allowed to continue since the top four were awarded.
“Both Cam and Keck have better sprints than me, and frankly I wasn’t there to make a statement. So, with seven laps to go I went up front,” Suydam said. “Plus, I thought it would be interesting to see these two sprinters have at it on such a technical course.”
With Carter and Dinterman back in the pack, that changed Suydam’s strategy.
“My hopes then were to lead Rob out and so he could take the fourth and final money position,” Suydam said.
“On the last lap before the third turn, I jumped Cam off the right and went flying into the next curve almost running of the road,” Baker said. “Then Cam came around me before the last turn and after that I couldn’t pass him.”
Carter led Dinterman into the final sprint. Carter created enough of a gap to hang onto fourth place.
In the earlier B-race, James Schaffer of Conte’s Cycor, led a Richmond cyclists sweep of the event.
Chris Burns placed second, Dennis Rainear, of Team CSK, placed third, and Mark Connelly of Three Sport placed fourth. Connelly won the prize for the most laps led.
This article is presented by Richmondciclismo.com
