Philly Cycling Classic

As I rest up in advance of next month’s Tour de France (and likely catch a race or two before then!), I bring you a guest post from our North American sports correspondent, David (perhaps better known to readers as Hermano). Enjoy!

-Kathryn

Sunday, June 1 was the date for the 2nd Annual Parx Casino Philly Cycling Classic. The race is the highest rated one day race in the US and continues a long tradition of cycling in Philadelphia, dating back to 1985. Until 2005 the highest placed American in the old Philadelphia International Championship was crowned national champion, whether they actually won the race or not. Eric Heiden, Greg LeMond and a young Lance Armstrong are just some of the names who have competed in Philadelphia.

This year’s race followed virtually the same course that’s been used for the past 30 years although the start/finish line has been moved to the top of “The Wall,” a nearly 1 kilometer climb inManayunk that maxes out at 17% and has always been the centerpiece of bicycle racing in Philadelphia. The day included a women’s race, followed by a men’s race. One thing that has changed this year is that for the first time in any professional cycling event, both races offered the same purse.

First up was the women’s race featuring many of the top riders in the female peloton. Evie Stevens, who left her career as an investment banker 5 years ago to become a cyclist, was the defending champion.

Others in field included Stevens’ Specialized Lululemonteammate Carmen Small; Mara Abbott of United Healthcare Pro Cycling, a two-time winner of the Giro Donne; and national champions from Mexico, Belarus and Italy.

Perhaps no one had better form coming into the race than Alison Powers (United Healthcare), who last week became the American champion in the road race and time trial to go along with the criterium championship she won last July, making her the first woman to hold all three national titles at once.

I happened to spot Alison warming up and she couldn’t have been friendlier when she signed an autograph. And when I congratulated her on all her championships, she had a huge smile that made it clear the excitement hasn’t worn off.

The women’s race consisted of 5 laps of the 12 mile circuit, ending with an excruciating climb up the Wall each time. By the second lap Alison Powers had gone on the attack and opened up a lead that reached 1:10 on the peloton. If anyone could hold off the field by herself, it would be Alison.

While Powers looked strong throughout, it would always be a longshot for one rider to time trial to victory against such an impressive field. No one seemed more comfortable than Stevens, consistently riding near the front of the peloton with her teammates leading the chase.

Powers was caught on the fourth lap which set up an exciting finish. As riders began to appear at the top of the Wall, Stevens had opened up a small gap and rode to the finish to claim her second straight victory in Philadelphia.

First up on the podium was Krista Doebel-Hickok (Team Tibco-To The Top) who took the prize for best rider under 25.

Powers’ solo break didn’t last until the end, but she did earnenough points while in the lead in both the Queen of the Mountains and sprint competitions to claim the honors in both contests. There’s that smile!

How do you make that smile even brighter? Podium Boys!

The top 3 finishers were each presented with a trophy – a replica of the Liberty Bell – by Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter. Did Evie Stevens need that extra pair of sunglasses because it was such a beautiful day or because Powers kept smiling?

Final Women’s Podium:

1st – Evie Stevens (Specialized Lululemon)

2nd – representing Canada, Lex Albrecht (Twenty16)

3rd – Lauren Hall (Optum powered by Kelly Benefit Strategies)

The men’s race, beginning at high noon, had a lot to live up to. The field was equally impressive, led by newly crowned national champion, Eric Marcotte (SmartStop Pro Cycling). Dr. Marcotte (he’s a chiropractor when he’s not winning bike races) out-sprinted his teammate and fellow Philly competitor Travis McCabe and a field of riders from Garmin, BMC, Cannondale and other World Tour teams last Monday to become a most unlikely national champion. Today he debuted his stars-and-stripes jersey and was happy to sign an autograph.

Kiel Reijnen (United Healthcare Pro Cycling) celebrated his 28thbirthday by trying to defend his title from last year.

Optum powered by Kelly Benefit Strategies were led by Jesse Anthony and the King of the Mountains from the Amgen Tour of California, Will Routley.

What’s that you say? The guy next to them isn’t wearing the correct headgear for a cycling race? There must be a reason. It turns out that Robin Carpenter (Hincapie Sportswear Development Team), who grew up just blocks from the finish line, attended his graduation ceremony from Swarthmore College before the race.

The men rode 10 laps of the same course for a 120 mile race. It wasn’t until the third lap that the day’s break established itself. Carpenter had traded in his mortar board for a helmet and was part of the 7 man group that also featured former US time trial champion Tom Zirbel (Optum). The first name in discount warehouse vehicles, Team Budget Forklifts, was also represented (in bright yellow).

My wife and I found a spot about 100 meters before the finish partly to see the action on the steepest section of the Wall but mostly to be closer to the greatest volunteer I’ve ever seen. This guy had as much enthusiasm as anyone at the London Olympics. He shouted encouragement to literally every rider in both races – leaders, chasers, the peloton and anyone dropped by the pack. (He also showed some fabulous dance moves when “Shout” came on the sound system).

The challenging course meant that many riders wouldn’t see the finish. At one point with a couple of laps to go, I looked over and saw Stephen Hyde (Astellas Cycling Team) standing next to me.

We chatted for a few minutes and he confirmed that the Wall is as difficult as it looks. Surprisingly he said the descent was just as tough since the road was in such bad shape after a harsh winter so there was no chance to recover. He left in search of a free beer (not hard to find in the frat boy atmosphere up and down the Wall) and to chat up some ladies.

I turned around a few minutes later and saw Benjamin Chartrand(Silber Pro Cycling Team) sitting on a stoop behind me. He looked exhausted and in no mood to talk as he ate a quick lunch so I didn’t bother him. I did, however admire his “Dopers Suck” socks.

With a couple of laps to go the breakaway group was reeled in and the field was back together. As they raced up the Wall on lap 9 I was excited to see Canadian Bruno Langlois (5 Hour Energy powered by Kenda) moving up in the pack. I cheered as he powered his way to the front but couldn’t do anything but gasp as he went under the finish gantry and raised his arms in apparent victory. Sadly for Bruno, this was a 10 lap race.

We moved a little further down the Wall for the final ascent, guessing that the race-winning move would come with 200-300 meters to go. Kiel Reijnen dug hard to come to the front just ashe reached us. He never relinquished his lead and for the second race of the day, we had a repeat winner. Not a bad way to celebrate a birthday!

Final Men’s Podium

1st – Kiel Reijnen (United Healthcare Pro Cycling)

2nd – Jure Kocjan (SmartStop Pro Cycling)

3rd – Dion Smith (Hincapie Sportswear Development Team)

It was a great day of cycling. There was a party atmosphere inManayunk and the racing was of the highest quality. I can’t wait to come back next year! And a special thank you to the two national champions who signed autographs today, Alison Powers and Eric Marcotte!