Tag Archives: mountain bike

USA Cycling’s US CUP continues with Round 2 at Fontana City

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LIVE video stream coverage announced

For the second straight weekend, Southern California will host a selection of the world’s best cross country racers as the USA Cycling’s US CUP Series presented by Cannondale continues with Round 2 in Fontana City.

Round 1 winners Raphael Gagne (Rocky Mountain Bicycles) and Emily Batty (Trek Factory Racing) will look to defend their lead in the overall rankings, as the Fontana race will be a UCI HC category race, offering higher UCI points, series points and a richer prize purse than the first round in Bonelli Park.

“I’m really happy with how I went against such a strong international field in Bonelli and am proud to wear the leader’s jersey going into Fontana,” said Gagne. “I placed two spots better in Fontana than Bonelli last year, so I hope to be up front again. The long climb suits me, and the descent on the back side is real fun so it’s going to be another good weekend.”

Women’s revelation Larissa Connors (Ridebiker Alliance), 4th in Bonelli, was characteristically enthusiastic about heading into Fontana City. “I’m so excited to race again this weekend. Last week was an incredible rush, to race up front with the best girls in the world. I’m ready to go out there and give it another go. The response to my ride at Bonelli was just incredible. Now I just have to put my head down, do the work, turn the legs and try to get up there again!”

 

Free video coverage schedule announced

Ridebiker Alliance is proud to announce that video coverage of USA Cycling’s US CUP presented by Cannondale Round 2 will be aired live, with a one-hour condensed highlight reel featuring advertising and special offers from our sponsors to air beginning Wednesday afternoon. Both the live feed and highlight reel will be viewable at www.uscup.net, www.uscup.tv and also at a dedicated page under USA Cycling’s YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mor60tvPq9s.

 

The elite men’s contenders

Men’s leader and Round 1 winner Raphael Gagne stayed in Southern California to prepare for his defence in Fontana City. He will face a determined field of top talent trying to knock him out of the lead, including fellow Canadian Max Plaxton, who fought hard in Bonelli Park.

Cannondale Factory Racing is one team that showed itself at the front of the Bonelli Park race and will want to continue that trend at Fontana. Both Marco Aurelio Fontana and Manuel Fumic took their turns in the race lead, but it was young Anton Cooper who would finish on the podium (third) with a very consistent ride.

Continuing down the Bonelli results, the next three riders are aboard Trek Bicycles and all will be fighting to move up in the rankings on Saturday. James Reid from Trek RECM was a bit of a surprise to some, but will be out to prove he belongs at the front of the race in Fontana. Reid finished in the top twenty in Fontana in 2014 and his fourth at Bonelli on Saturday is reason to believe he on fine form. Sergio Mantecon was second in Bonelli and sixth in Fontana last year and currently lies in fifth while teammate Adam Morka lies in sixth place.

Scott 3 Rox Racing’s Canadian duo of Derek Zandstra and Geoff Kabush are next in the overall, while some big names such as Fumic, Todd Wells (Specialized Factory Racing), Russell Finsterwald (SRAM/TLD Race Team), Keegan Swenson and Stephen Ettinger (both Sho-Air / Cannondale) will look to improve upon their Bonelli Park results.

 

The elite women’s contenders

The Luna Pro Team led by Catharine Pendrel, Georgia Gould and Katerina Nash will be out to reclaim the top podium spot after they were unable to shake a determined and in-form Emily Batty at Bonelli Park. Larissa Connors is out to prove that Saturday’s fourth place was no fluke while top contenders Erin Huck (Scott 3 Rox), Evelyn Dong (Sho-Air / Cannondale), Maghalie Rochette (Luna Pro Team) and Rose Grant (Stans NoTubes Elite Women) will be determined to displace Batty, the Luna duo of Pendrel and Gould, Connors and Chloe Woodruff (Stans NoTubes/Niner) from their podium spots.

 

UCI Junior Races

New for the 2015 US CUP Series is that the Fontana City Round will also include a UCI Junior race category for both men and women. The Junior XCO race will be held at 8:30 Saturday morning, with valuable UCI points and payout on offer.

 

Saturday, March 21 Fontana City Race Schedule, all times Pacific Daylight Time / Local California Time

08h30 – 09h40 PDF: UCI Junior women and men cross country – staging and call-up

11h00 – 11h15 PDT: Elite women cross country – staging and call-up
11h15 – 13h15 PDT: Elite women cross country race
13h30 – 13h45 PDT: Elite men cross country – staging and call-up
13h45 – 15h45 PDT: Elite men cross country race
15h50 – 16h00 PDT: Elite women and men cross country podium ceremony

Kerry Werner Signs with Raliegh-Clement for the 2015 Mountain Bike Season

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Kerry Werner’s first race for the Raleigh Clement Professional Cycling Team will be the Pro XCT Bonelli event.

Kerry Werner’s first race for the Raleigh Clement Professional Cycling Team will be the Pro XCT Bonelli event.

Kent, Washington and Denver, Colorado – March 4, 2015 – Raleigh Clement Professional Cycling Team announces the addition of Kerry Werner to the squad. Werner is a key component of the fortified mountain biking program. A skilled rider and multiple national champion in cyclocross as well as mountain biking, the twenty-three year-old will also compete in cyclocross. The signing of Werner caps off a wave of recruitment for 2015 which triples the number of mountain bike racers on the team compared to 2014 while reinforcing the highly successful ‘cross program.

“Kerry first came to our attention as we considered riders who would fit our future team plans and specifically the expanding mountain bike racing program,” says team manager Donn Kellogg.

“It was also very important that we fill this last position on the team with a rider who has mountain biking and cyclocross skills and abilities. When we saw Kerry riding strongly at the front edge of ‘cross races and in pace with Jamey Driscoll and other leaders, we knew we had the rider who fit our plan to bring a few options to the line.”

As a member of the Lees-McRae College cycling team, in 2011 and 2013 Werner took the division one individual omnium wins at the collegiate mountain bike national championships. He also became the American U23 cross-country champion in 2013. On the international stage, Werner has represented the U.S. at world cup events and earned third and fourth places in the cross-country U23 category at the 2012 and 2013 Pan American Mountain Bike Continental Championships. From 2011 through 2014 he raced as a member of the BMC U23 Mountain Bike Development Team. He’s netted top five results on the USA Cycling Pro XCT circuit.

Cyclocross only came to Werner’s attention once he started collegiate cycling; his aptitude showed in short order. “I definitely like some muddy, slick ‘cross races,” Werner says. “And I like a challenging course; it kind of takes your mind off the pain in your legs.”

In just his second attempt he won a collegiate national ‘cross championship, a title he would capture three times. He touched down on the USA Cycling cyclocross circuit beginning in 2010; in 2012 he won day two at the North Carolina Grand Prix. During the 2014/15 season, racing for Optum Pro Cycling p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies, he secured four UCI wins which included a sweep of the North Carolina event weekend.

A natural and versatile athlete, Werner tried his hand at many sports while growing up in Birdsboro, Pennsylvania. Around age fifteen he discovered mountain biking. Consumed by mastering challenges on dirt trails, he dropped competitive soccer and cross-country running to focus on mountain biking while continuing basketball for winter fitness. Just two years after his first mountain bike race he made the junior world championship team. At Lees-McRae College he received a Bachelor of Science degree in biology with a concentration in nutrition.

Werner is looking forward to the benefits of racing mountain and ‘cross bikes on the same team. “I couldn’t be happier,” he said about becoming part of the Raleigh Clement Professional Cycling Team.

“The last couple of years I’ve had a full mountain bike program but I’ve never been able to transition with the same team from mountain biking to cyclocross. So it’s a big confidence booster to concentrate solely on mountain biking without worrying about finding a team for ‘cross. That easy transition will allow me to focus more on racing, which I can’t wait to do for this awesome team.”

During the recruitment process Werner displayed initiative in his contacts with Kellogg, a trait the team manager seeks out in riders. “When Kerry visited the team tent to introduce himself in person, eye to eye, that further proved his initiative and more or less sealed his opportunity to join the team,” says Kellogg.

Werner completes the set of talent assembled to enable the team to make a significant impression in mountain biking. He joins new recruits Fernando Riveros and U23 rider Lance Haidet, as well as Jamey Driscoll, to compete at USA Cycling Pro XCT and other races. Caroline Mani and U23 racer Laurel Rathbun will enter women’s events. The riders will pilot Raleigh Skarns on Clement FRJ tires.

With Riveros focused on mountain biking, in total the Raleigh Clement Professional Cycling Team supports six riders in 2015 for that discipline and five for cyclocross. In addition, the next Amy D. Racing rider will travel with the team for the ‘cross season.

About Raleigh Bicycles

Raleigh Bicycles offers a broad spectrum of bicycles including road, mountain, cyclocross, and commuter for all ages and abilities. Raleigh focuses on supporting the commuter, the family and local cycling, and partners with numerous non-profits around the U.S. each year to help grow the sport, including PeopleForBikes and the Amy D. Foundation. Based in Kent, Washington, Raleigh is a proud sponsor of the Raleigh Clement Professional Cycling Team.

About Clement Cycling

Clement offers tires for mountain bike, road, cyclocross and gravel road/adventure riding and racing. Re-launched by Donnelly Sports in 2010 and now located in Denver, Colorado, the Clement brand was founded in 1888 and the original commitment to innovation and passion for the perfect ride endures today. Raleigh Bicycles and Clement Cycling established their jointly-sponsored professional team in 2012. For more information visit www.clementcycling.com.