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KONA KING OF VERGE IN NEW JERSEY
October 16, 2005, Bridgeton, NJ, USA; Kona riders dominated Sunday�s second
race of the $30,000 Verge Mid Atlantic Cyclocross Series with wins in both UCI
Elite races, and a convincing podium sweep in the UCI Elite Men�s event in
Bridgeton, New Jersey. The three-century-old river port town is the county seat
and boasts a city park almost as large as the town itself. Within the park,
residents can find a riverside beach, an amphitheater and even a small zoo.
Unfortunately for the eastern regulars of the Verge Mid Atlantic Cyclocross
Series, the zoo wasn�t part of the course -- because a cage would have been the
only thing that could have stopped the onslaught of Kona riders Georgia Gould,
Ryan Trebon, Barry Wicks and Kona East Coast/CCA�s Tyler Johnson. However, both
the amphitheater and the beach were included as obstacles, and they would play
pivotal roles in the day�s action
As the sun came up over the farms that surround the town, 50 miles southeast
of Philadelphia, it was clear that there would be no repeat of last weekend�s
mudfest in Pennsylvania. The day dawned clear and breezy. The �Chamber of
Commerce weather� was further enhanced by the warm temperature that would
eventually approach 70 degrees (F). The rain of the previous week had actually
served to make the sandy soil and hard-pack trails harder and faster than
previous years, with many racers commenting that the 80 meter long Beach Run
�seemed shorter� than last year.
The Pro Double-Header started with the Women�s event. Led by West Virginia�s
two-time series champion Betsy Schauer of FORT/GPOA!, the women lined-up for the
first of six UCI-sanctioned in this year�s series. As the field came down the
hill and into the spectator area for the first time, it was clear that the rider
to beat was Kona�s Georgia Gould. The Idaho native, whose racing season this
year will extend from March to December this year, quickly established a lead
ahead of Schauer and last week�s second-place rider, Melanie Swartz of Squadra
Coppi/IM Saab. For most of the first lap, it looked like Schauer and Swartz
might make a race of it, but those thoughts were erased on the first trip up the
dreaded �Amphitheater of Pain�. Running up the unevenly-spaced foot-and-a-half
high steps as though they were the steps in front of the local Post Office,
Gould raced away, never to be headed. Her eventual margin of victory was one
minute and 29 seconds. Behind Gould, the race f or second turned out to be a
tactical fight between Swartz, who led the battle for much of the race, and
Schauer, who didn�t seem as confident on the dry sandy soil as she did in last
week�s mud. Schauer may have been lying low on the high-speed course, however.
With just over a lap to go, she attacked on the steps of the amphitheater to
retake second place, eventually finishing with nine seconds in hand over the
ever-present Swartz.
On the line for the Men�s event, and it appeared that FORT/GPOA! had an
advantage with no fewer than five riders -- including defending Elite Champion
Ryan Leech and defending U23 Champion Greg Wittwer. Lining up beside them
though, was the Kona triple-threat: Ryan Trebon, Barry Wicks and Tyler Johnson.
Trebon had plenty to prove in this, his unexpected first east coast race since
breaking his arm. The debut was unexpected, since the Kona duo were in Maine to
race the UCI leg of the New England series, but thanks to the airlines, their
bikes were not. Since most shops don�t have four spare 62cm, 17 pound Kona
�Jake-the-Snakes� available for visiting pros from Oregon, Trebon and Wicks had
to wait until Sunday. Once the race started, they let it be known that they had
had enough of waiting, and they certainly weren�t going to be waiting for their
competition.
Tyler Johnson, of Connecticut and wearing the black jersey of Kona East/CCA,
took the holeshot on the uphill start, but from then on it was all bright orange
of Kona�s big boys out in front. Trebon and Wicks rode together, stretching
their lead and bounding up the steps of the amphitheater like gazelles. The two
leaders stayed just inches apart until Wicks bobbled while entering the beach
run, followed by an awkward dismount. Just like that, the race was over. Trebon
eventually won by nearly a minute-and-a-half. Afterwards, Wicks described the
race succinctly, �Fast and fun�, he said. Ryan Trebon�s post-race comments said
more than he intended about the effort he had to make for his dominating
performance. �When�s it get dark around here?� he said, �Let�s go out for a road
ride for an hour -- or two.�
Race Notes:
Barry Wicks was actually riding almost the entire beach run in practice --
staying on his bike for the plunge to the river and the right-angle turn, both
in deep sand, plus an additional 60 meters of deep sand following that.
Lisa Most of Team Wissahickon, the sponsors of next Sundays Verge Mid
Atlantic Cyclocross series event, was the highest-placed 35+ rider in the
Women�s Elite Field.
By far the most entertaining race of the day was the Masters, with eight
riders swapping positions continuously, eventually culminating in a six rider
sprint through the sand pit, up the amphitheater and up the paved finishing
straight. Bohemia, New York rider Bob Campos of Huc Jessies was the overall
winner. Randall Root of Team Snow Valley/Sibex was the highest placed 45+ rider.
Fred Wittwer of the Charlottesville Race Club was the best 55+ rider, beating
more than 2/3 of the entire Masters field in the process.
After dominating win last week that had some wondering if he shouldn�t be
racing in the Elite class, Steve Cummings was unable to repeat at the fast New
Jersey Circuit. Christopher Case, racing for the University of Texas out of
Chevy Chase, Maryland took a 38 second victory in the Men�s B class. Cummings
was able to hold off fast closing local rider Paolo Zenoni (Westwood Velo) for
second.
The $30,000 Verge Mid Atlantic Cyclocross Series returns next weekend for an
International Double Header weekend with a UCI C1-ranked race at Granouge estate
in Wilmington Delaware on Saturday, October 22, followed by a UCI C2-ranked race
at Ludwig�s Corner Horse Show in Glenmore Pennsylvania the following
day.
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