Page and Elliott Win Day 1 of Gloucester

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 4, 2009
CONTACT:
Alan Atwood
Operations Director, Verge New England Championship Cyclo-Cross Series
(802) 238-0196
alan_atwood@hotmail.com

Jonathan Page (Planet Bicycles) and Natasha Elliott (Garneau Club Chaussure Ogilvy) took home victories in a sloppy day 1 of the Great Brewers Grand Prix of Gloucester. 

37 women started in the all day rain and wind that made racing conditions very difficult.  But one rider that was at home in the muddy and slick conditions was Andrea Carey (Kenda/Trainwitheric.com), who took the early lead over Elliott, Sue Butler (Monavie-Cannondale.com), Lyne Bessette (October Factory Racing), and Maureen Bruno-Roy (MM Racing p/b Seven Cycles).  By lap 2, Carey was starting to extend her lead, and Bessette and Elliott decided it was time to put the hammer down and chase, seeing that the race would only be 3 laps; dropping Butler and Bruno-Roy in the process.  At one lap to go, the pressure was building on Carey, and her early start appeared to be too fast and she was falling back towards the two chasers.  Once she was caught, Elliott put in one last effort to distance herself from a battling Carey and Bessette, and rode home alone for the win to increase her overall series lead.  A game Carey wouldn’t give up and hung on for 2nd, while a happy Bessette was all smiles with her 3rd place finish.

On the men’s side, the local crowd was geared up to cheer on Middletown native Tim Johnson (Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com), and he started well with teammate Jamey Driscoll and Page.  But Page was in his element in the mud that he’s used to racing in Europe, and started to pull away from the Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld pair on the first lap of 6.  By lap 2, it was evident that Page was on great form and was not to be caught.  It was also apparent that Johnson, who last won in Gloucester in the snow and ice, was still being bothered by his shoulder injury he suffered out west and eventually let Driscoll go try to chase after Page. 

At 2 to go, Page was gone and Driscoll had a good gap on the rest of the contenders.  The battle of the race was for 3rd, as a 3-way battle was brewing between Johnson, Andy Jacques-Maynes (Bissel Pro Cycling), and a charging Christopher Jones (Champion Systems Racing).  Jones appeared to be the fastest rider on course after Page, and eventually broke away from Johnson and Jacques-Maynes after a 2 lap battle to wrap up the podium.  Dan Timmerman (Richard Sachs/RGM Watches/Radix) struggled to a 20th place finish, but it was enough to hold on to his lead in the overall series. 

The Masters 35+ race saw the return of the Corner Cycles duo of Jonny Bold and Kevin Hines to the head of the race, as the conditions did not favor series leader Roger Aspholm (Westwood Velo).  Bold stormed out in front early and never looked back, with his teammate Hines also soloing in 2nd.  The last spot on the podium was close, but former elite national champion Mark McCormack (Team Fuji) got the best of Rob Hult (Fitchburg Cycling Club) and Aspholm to take 3rd.  Aspholm’s 5th was just enough to hang on to the series lead, but by a perilous 5 points over both Bold and Hines.

The Juniors 15-18 race was dominated by Ontario native Evan McNeely (EMD Sorono/Specialized), who won his 3rd race in a row in the series.  The only rider who came close to McNeely was the mid-Atlantic phenom Jeffrey Bahnson (Thule/Van Dessel), who was the filling of an EMD Oreo sandwich with Karl Hoppner finishing 3rd on the day.  McNeely now has a comfortable lead in the series as he has taken maximum points in the 3 races conducted so far.

The Verge New England Championship Cyclo-Cross Series will be contested over 7 weekends in 2009, starting with the New England Cross-toberfest of Cycling:  3 straights weekends of UCI calendar racing to be held in Williston VT, Gloucester MA, and Providence RI.  After a weekend of much needed rest, the series will continue with stops in New Gloucester ME on Oct 24, Northampton MA on Nov 7, Sterling MA on Nov 28, and the series finale in Warwick RI on Dec 5.  This year series is generously supported by Verge Sport, makers of fine cycling clothing and products since 1993; by Cycle-Smart, purveyors of personalized cycling coaching and solutions for riders across the country; by BikeReg.com, the official online registration service of the NECCS; by Paul Weiss Photo/Video, the official photographer of the NECCS, by October Handmade Bicycles, and by Ryders Eyewear.  You can visit these sponsors and get more information on the series by going to the web at http://www.cycle-smart.com/neccs.

2009 Verge New England Championship Cyclo-Cross Schedule:

• Green Mountain Cyclo-Cross Weekend – September 26th and 27th – Williston, Vermont
• Great Brewers Grand Prix of Gloucester – October 3rd and 4th – Gloucester, Massachusetts
• Providence Cyclo-Cross Festival – October 10th and 11th – Providence, Rhode Island
• Downeast Cyclo-Cross – October 24th and 25th – New Gloucester, Maine
• The Cycle-Smart International – November 7th and 8th – Northampton, Massachusetts
• Bay State Cyclo-Cross – November 28th and 29th – Sterling, Massachusetts
• NBX Grand Prix – December 5th and 6th – Warwick, Rhode Island