NorCal Cycling News – Cycling and Racing in Northern California

Hey there NorCal, it’s Hernandito. After all of the recent angst regarding the loss of our friend Chris Hipp, I think it’s time for us to distract ourselves with the usual bike-racing idiocy. Let’s begin with a brief foray into European cycling.

Jens Voigt has recently become my favorite bike racer (sorry Mike Hernandez, you’re number two now). I’ve always appreciated his approach to bike racing, which entails simply pedaling as hard as possible all the time (not unlike Mike’s philosophy). However, I now appreciate him for his wit. Speaking about the Tour’s experimental ban of radios, Jens produced this completely logical gem:

There are three ways to my heart: liking beer, being fast, and being sarcastic. It appears that Jens Voigt has all three in spades (he is German, after all, so the beer is a given).

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The San Rafael Twilight Criterium, held last Saturday night, is a great race. Complain about the steep price of admission and flashy website if you want, but I’m just not listening. This race is held in a fabulous location, in the heart of downtown San Rafael, on a fine mid-summer evening. Every category has a healthy contingent of spectators lining the course, and no one has to get up early for their race. The whole event hearkens back to my childhood, when my friends and I would awaken at noon, play video games all day, only to emerge from the house just in time to cause trouble at the downtown farmers’ market, as the sun was setting and the day’s heat waned. Perhaps the appeal of twilight criterium racing is just that; it feels slightly mischeivous, even dangerous.

The danger is mostly illusory, of course. While criterium racing is inherently dangerous, there is nothing particularly frightening about racing the San Rafael Twilight Criterium, with its ample spotlights and clean, unobstructed pavement. Still, a friend of mine is convinced that the bottom corner (turn 4) of this year’s course is the fastest corner in all of crit racing, and I cannot think of another race, save for Nevada City, that comes close. I applaud ProjectSport for putting on this fantastic event, and I will continue to attend each and every year.

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As far as the women’s race is concnerned, speeding youngster Coryn Rivera took full advantage of the fact that the preeminent Proman sprinter is making a name for herself in Europe. Rivera played this race perfectly, waiting until the final meters to show her competitors what it feels like to be humiliated by a 16-year-old girl:

Photo by Ken Conley

That is fierce. Rivera won Manhattan Beach a few weeks ago, and she certainly affirmed her talent on Saturday night. A well-earned victory by Coryn, who made more money in 1 hour than I made throughout all of high school.

I’d like to call attention, however, to one of our local standouts, Vanessa Drigo. As I was browsing photographs from the women’s criterium, I happened upon this capture of a rather untimely tumble:

Photo by Ken Conley

Vanessa, in the center of the frame, got back on her bike with a handful of laps to go and finished in a remarkable 5th place. As I watched the finish in person, I had no idea that she had crashed–I only recall being impressed by her fast finish. Congratulations to her on a top result in one of the more prestigious NorCal criteriums.

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The Pro men’s event, which took place as darkness fell on San Rafael, produced a very dynamic and photogenic race:

Photo by Ken Conley

Like vampires rising from their caskets at dusk, numerous professionals emerged from the shadows to vie for a share of the generous purse. Ben Jaques-Maynes (Bissell), Daniel Holloway (Garmin), Bernard Van Ulden (Jelly Belly), Ken Hanson (Team Type 1), Dan Ramsay (Mountain Khaki’s), Chad Gerlach (Amore & Vita), and Rahsaan Bahati (Rock Racing) highlighted the event.

In spite of numerous attacks by the usual tireless breakaway fiends, the race finished with a massive bunch sprint to the line. Ken Hanson, who was third in this event two years ago, emerged victorious in spite of a last-ditch kamakazi effort by Bahati. Local breakaway artist Bob Newman (Pacific State Bank), who apparently missed the memo that this was a field sprint, finished 9th. Well done Bob.

Image from CycleTo.

Sometime after the race, Bahati twittered the following:

Either Rahsaan is making that story up, or that’s a wise little girl.

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OK. I should probably get some sleep. Fear not, I intend to discuss the Sunday bonanza that was the Lodi Criterium, but I’m lacking the time and motivation to do so right now.