NorCal Cycling News – Cycling and Racing in Northern California

from the PROMAN PRESSES:

The first National Championship Omnium was held at ADT Velodrome, Carson CA with ProMan’s Cari Higgins coming out on top. Higgins finished an impressive first in three of the five events, a second and a fourth place. Higgins recent success at Pan American Championships, with 4 medals, is an indication that the Boulder resident is on the rise.

“This was the most important race for me this week because I feel like on the world level this is where I’m most competitive,” explained Higgins. “I really wanted to show what I can do in this event and the dominance of our entire ProMan squad.”

Higgins’ teammates Christen King took fifth place overall  (second place points race and 3rd place 2k pursuit), and Hanan Alves- Hyde rode a very solid first elite omnium in support of the team.

ProMan Racing held the inaugural Women’s International Style Omnium at Hellyer Velodrome, San Jose CA earlier this year. The Omnium consists of five gruelling events held in succession ~ 200m TT, Scratch Race, 2K TT, Points Race, and a final 500m TT.  Riders score the same number of points as their finishing position in each race.  For example, five first places would give an overall score of five points, five second place an overall of 10 points, etc.  Lowest points total wins. The Omnium is now a World Championship event and is being considered for the 2012 London Olympics.

Cari will be joined today by 2008 National Scratch race champ Shelley Olds, Christen King, Coryn Rivera, Hanan Alves-Hyde & Lorraine Jarvis. The squad will be racing 500m, team pursuit and scratch race.

Nicola Cranmer – General Manager
PROMAN Professional Cycling Team
PROMAN Racing UCI
www.promanracing.com

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{WATCH LIVE US NATZ COVERAGE: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/la-velodrome}

NEWELL NAILS TOP-10, PALAEZ SPRINTS, & HOLLOWAY CRUSHES

I’ve got a soft spot for the NorCal radness known as Newell … she was in that elite group of riders hovering strong, but just on the bubble of all those NRC legs firing grenades at each other in that Omnium yesterday.

The Women’s Points race was phenomenal.  The overall speed was great, the tactics were tense and exciting, and the sprints were powerful surges of adreneline.  Gawd, i love track racing.

Maybe it’s Lance’s being all about the bike and bidness of the bike, maybe it’s Obama hopefulness changeOrama-ing us to two wheels, or maybe it’s just that people are starting to remember how fricking cool bike riding is … but, There are some big, big names coming into their own in American cycling these days ~ for the men and the women, on the road and on the track (not to mention the absolute renaissance occuring in US Cyclocross these days … we WILL have a US World Champ on the dirt within the next 5 years ~ count on it).

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Holloway was a thundering man-beast in that Points Race last night.  Then he backed it up with a lightning strike of 1:07+ Kilo to end the long, long night of racing.  What a stamp of authority by young demon.  But, it was Cody O’Reily being the overall winner in the Men’s Omnium … well done, well done.

Palaez struck with venom on the opening 200M TT … clocking just a bit over 11seconds for the win.  BrainPeterson cracked a huge Kilo to end the night, as well ~ knocking sub 1:10, i think.  Amazing dedication, that.

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But again ~ for me, the story is Newell and her continuing rise.  She has stepped up to the challenge and now has both feet on the verge of jumping into the very elite of elite ranks.  What’s so inspiring, and satisfying ~ is that this is a woman who works full-time to better public health; she’s an activist, a writer, an organizer, a rabblerouser, and an absolute icon of NorCal coolness.

Amazing days, indeed.

~m