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Moninger,
Longo Prevail at rain-soaked Rocky Mountain Omnium.
Albor, Bascio command Handcycle Races
June
1, 2005
by Ian L. Lawless
photos courtesy of Adaptive Adventures and 3 Cats Photo.
Scott
Moninger donned a set of dry clothes on Memorial Day following
the criterium finale at the Adaptive Adventures Rocky Mountain
Omnium (RMO). The Health Net rider joined Jeannie Longo (Vitall
/ Andros) as an overall winner of the three-day event run
in around Golden, CO, where 400 athletes with and without
disabilities competed in sun, rain, wind, and hail.
Time
Trial
Paralympic
silver medallist Alejandro Albor (Athens, 2004) The weekend
– which also doubles as the National Handcycle Championships
– started off promising with mild temperatures and sun
at the Evergreen Lake Time Trial on Saturday. TT specialist
Jeff Hartman (Pro Peloton) attacked the 9.5 mile course along
Bear Creek in the shadow of Mt. Evans to post a blazing 18:46,
21 seconds in front of Moninger. In the handcycle race, Paralympic
silver medallist Alejandro Albor (Athens, 2004) with Adaptive
Adventures, turned a few heads with a 24:30. Albor’s
time bested about one third of the able-bodied participants
in the event, TT specialist Jeff Hartman (Pro Peloton) educating
many bike racers about the dedication of our Paralympians.
Matt Updike (Team Invacare) and James Watson (WCsports.com)
won the HCB and HCA handcycle races respectively. Updike managed
to set a course record despite a nagging infection.
The
women’s competition at the 2004 RMO attracted big names
-- both past and present, with and without disabilities –
to lend a little credibility to the second-year Colorado event.
The legendary Longo – seemingly reviving her career –
claimed the day’s Omnium points for the women with a
time of 21:01 to best former world champion Mari Holden of
T-Mobile by 48 seconds. Holden’s counterpart in the handcycle
race, World Time Trial Champion Monica Bascio (Team Invacare),
who lives in Evergreen, bested her field on home turf. Finally,
yet another World Champion and [former] Evergreen local –
Allison Dunlap (Luna Women’s MTB Team) -- snuck in to
the Men’s 35+ field to put in some cross training for
her mountain bike season…..and a little pressure on some
of the guys.
Circuit
Race
Sunday’s
circuit race on Table Mountain in Golden saw large fields,
including tremendous racing in the Junior 10-14 and Junior
15-18 events, dominated by the prominent junior squads of
RMCEF and North Metro Cycling. As the day wore on, the clouds
opened up and the rain began to fall. By the time the women’s
race began late in the day, it was a full downpour. With Holden
missing the start, Longo wasn’t taking any chances and
ran away with the women’s race, finishing solo in a downpour
and riding straight to her van. Local favorite Mark Southard
(Excel Sports), took the sprint finish in the men’s race
with Moninger quietly sitting-in for third behind Max Clauson
(GS Ciao / Al’s Barber Shop).
The
course dried slightly for the handcycle races, where Matt
Updike managed to take his category despite completing the
final three laps with a flat. Bascio and Watson each tallied
another national title with relative ease. In the HCC main
event however, Albor wasn’t having such an easy time
of it. Team Invacare’s Krige Schabort was stuck to Albor’s
wheel like glue and appeared to have the advantage in the
corners – frequently controlling his bike on two wheels
without incident. The two dropped the entire field mid-way
through the race and it was down to a drag race. Schabort
made the right move in the final corner, but the gap wasn’t
enough and Albor came around to win his second national title
in as many days.
Criterium
The
RMO finale, set in beautiful downtown Golden Colorado on Memorial
DayThe RMO finale, set in beautiful downtown Golden on Memorial
Day was held in honor a group wounded U.S. Soldiers who were
recently injured in Iraq. The soldiers were brought to the
event by promoter Adaptive Adventures as special guests, there
to learn about rehabilitation through cycling. The event was
intended to be a day fun in the sun. Instead, the mercury
fell to 40 degrees, and only the first race of the day was
dry. Fortunately, the technical nature of the course kept
the speeds low and the crashes minimal as the wind and rain
toyed with the course.
The
weekend for the handcyclists looked to be almost over. Updike,
Bascio, and Watson appeared to have no competition whatsoever
and it appeared Albor would repeat his sweep as in 2004. After
a short lightning delay, the handcycle race was off and lap
one saw a six-man selection including Albor, Updike, Arsenau,
Schabort, and two more Invacare teammates: Chris Peterson
and [Iron Man Champion] Carlos Moleda. How could Albor possibly
win a race against five members of the opposing team ?
To
increase his chances, Albor cranked-up the cadence on the
straightaways and managed to drop all but Schabort and Arsenau
with 5 laps to go. The trio kept the pace high, but it was
Albor who was still out-gunned. The final 400 meters proved
to be one of the most exciting handcycle finishes in years,
with a three-up 35mph sprint. Spread across the entire finishing
stretch, it looked to be anybody’s race. Suddenly Arsenau
looked like he was out of it with 20 meters to go when a lapped
rider made things complicated. Schabort and Albor dodged right,
squeezing Arsenau who appeared to be out of room. As the crowd
tension rose in fear of a spectacular crash, Arsenau found
the inch of room he needed and catapulted himself around the
lapped rider. The timing was perfect as the slingshot effect
gave the young Invacare rider the final oomph he needed as
he won by an inch and gained his first-ever national title.
Invacare’s product manager Chris Peterson was ecstatic:
“That’s good for his head….he needs this and
it’s been a long time coming!”
Jeannie
Longo (Vitall / Andros) was the women's overall winner of
the three-day eventThe weather continued to play a role in
all of the day’s races, but none more than the women’s
event. With the FIAC criterium championship on the line (and
a cash bonus), T-Mobile’s Kori Seehafer launched an impressive
attack just two laps in to the race. Longo was forced to chase
while Holden watched her closely. With every passing lap,
the rain increased and the sky became somehow darker. Longo
knew the situation and was seen carefully studying the overall
points in the Tuff Shed / registration HQ before the race.
But the real story was Seehafer, who had no intention of being
caught – not even by Jeannie Longo. With three laps to
go, the T-Mobile rider began gobbling-up lapped riders and
it seemed there was no slowing her down. Suddenly, local police
roared-up to the stage and warned race officials that a “severe
storm cell” was on the way and to “take cover.”
As spectators scrambled, Seehafer hit one lap to go. Although
seemingly poised for an easy win, Seehafer faced a barrage
of wind, rain, and hail in the final 400 meters to arrive
at a deserted finish line, save announcer Nelson Vails who
managed to call the win while fighting the wind to hold the
judges canopy in place
Seth
Arsenau, Monica Bascio, and Matt Updike of Team InvacareThe
line at registration for the P/1/2 race grew smaller as the
rain pelted the women, but the men’s FIAC championship
race still went off as the course dried out…..slightly.
As the only member of Health Net in the race, Moninger didn’t
appear to be looking for the win, but kept himself safely
near the front all day long. Instead, it was Pro Peloton,
Sierra Nevada, and Excel Sports riders who controlled the
race and the field stayed together most of the day. In the
end it was Sierra Nevada’s Peter Lopinto with a smartly
played spring to win the day and the FIAC criterium title.
Moninger managed second place and sealed his overall win at
the RMO.
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