First Union Invitational First Union Wilmington Classic First Union USPRO Championships Photography
United States of America
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First Union Invitational - 1.3Lancaster, USA, May 30, 20001999 results Results Preview Past
Winners Resurgent Saturn Team beats the best in LancasterBy Tim Maloney, cyclingnews.com correspondent In a hard fought battle on an unseasonably cool and windy afternoon in Lancaster, PA, the heart of Pennsylvania Dutch country, Trent Klasna took a narrow sprint win over his break companions as Team Saturn continued their mid-season comeback. The fast, rolling 12km course in Lancaster combines hilly country roads with fast urban kermesse racing over 13 total laps. From the gun, the action was hot, as the first lap saw a quartet of Chris Horner (Mercury), Chris Wherry (Saturn), Matt Gilmore (MemeoryCard) and Eddy Gragus (Jelly Belly) get away. They quickly gained almost a minute, then dropped behind under the impulsion of the USPS and Saeco chase. As the gap dropped, a counter attack of three riders (Fred Rodriguez-Mapei, Cesary Zamana-Mat, Jan Bratkowski-Mercury) bridged up and made it seven up front. Soon, other riders like World Champion Oscar Friere (Mapei-Quick Step), USPRO champ Marty Jemison (USPS) and Doug Ziewacz (7Up-Colorado Cyclist) bridged up,. However, the chase behind of USPS, MemoryCard and Saeco again doomed the break to failure. Although the break did gain a maximum lead of 1'10" at one point, at the halfway mark with 6 laps to go in the feed zone in Rock Ford Park, the group was all together again and it was a new bike race. After various unsuccesful attacks, Alessandro Guerra (Saeco-Valli & Valli) toook off on a brilliant solo move. Guerra went with 3 laps to go and moved out to a lead of 35", but no one was willing to go across to the flying Italian. Eventually strong work from Mapei, USPS and Mercury brought Guerra back, and on a countermove by Trent Klasna, the race winning break was formed. Klasna had been in front all afternoon and when he went, Memorycard strongman Michael Sandstød and Fred Rodriguez bridged up. This trio quickly put distance on the peloton and although their gap never exceeded 30", with a tough pursuit behind from USPS and Mercury, they lasted until the end, where the peloton almost caught them from behind in the last 100 meters. Klasna took a flyer for the win, while Sandstød just squeaked by Rodriguez for runner-up.
Results1 Trent Klasna (USA) Saturn Cycling Team 3.21.04 (43.78 km/h) 2 Michael Sandstod (Den) Memory Card-Jack & Jones 3 Fred Rodriguez (USA) Mapei-Quick Step 4 Jan Bratowski (Ger) Mercury Cycling Team 5 Salvatore Commesso (Ita) Saeco-Valli & Valli 6 Arvis Piziks (Lat) Memory Card-Jack & Jones 7 George Hincapie (USA) US Postal Service 8 Oscar Freire (Ita) Mapei Quick Step 9 Timoty Jones (Zim) Mobilvetta Design-Rossin 10 Eddy Gragus (USA) Jelly Belly 11 Nicolay Bo Larsen (Den) Memory Card-Jack & Jones 12 Harm Jansen (Ned) Saturn 13 Cezary Zamana (Pol) Mat-Ceresit CCC 14 Dario Andriotto (Ita) Alexia Alluminio 15 Vassili Davidenko (Rus) Navigators Cycling Team 16 John Lieswyn (USA) Team Shaklee 17 Frank Mccormack (USA) Saturn Cycling Team 18 Mark Walters (Can) Navigators Cycling Team 19 Ryan Guay (USA) 7Up-Colorado Cyclist 20 Andrew Randell (Can) Jet Fuel Coffee Cycling Team 21 Mark McCormack (USA) Saturn Cycling Team 22 Oscar Pineda (Dom) 7Up-Colorado Cyclist 23 Doug Ziewacz (USA) 7Up-Colorado Cyclist 24 Scottie Weiss (USA) Zaxby's Cycling 25 Kevin Hulsmans (Bel) Mapei-Quick Step 26 Sylvain Beauchamp (Can) Team Shaklee 27 Christophe Brandt (Bel) Saeco-Valli & Valli 28 Leif Hoste (Bel) Mapei-Quick Step 29 Mike Creed (USA) Saeco-Valli&Valli 30 Ronnie Schmeer (USA) Nutra Fig-Noni 31 Julian Dean (NZl) US Postal Service 32 Chris Wherry (USA) Saturn Cycling Team 33 Will Frischkorn (USA) Mercury Cycling Team 34 Antonio Cruz (USA) Saturn Cycling Team 35 Jamie Drew (Aus) Mercury Cycling Team 36 Scott Moninger (USA) Mercury Cycling Team 0.33 37 Steve Zampieri (Swi) Mercury Cycling Team 0.38 38 Jonathan Hamblen (USA) Navigators Cycling Team 2.18 39 Dirk Friel (USA) Jet Fuel Coffee 2.29 40 Marty Jemison (USA) US Postal Service 3.12 41 Frankie Andreu (USA) US Postal Service 42 Peter Wedge (Can) Team Shaklee 43 Chris Horner (USA) Mercury Cycling Team DNS Graeme Miller (NZl) Team Shaklee DNS Eric Wohlberg (Can) Team Shaklee DNS Glen Mitchell (NZl) Team Shaklee DNS David Mccook (USA) Team Shaklee DNS Jamie Carney (USA) Team Shaklee DNS Steve Sevener (USA) Zaxby's Cycling DNS Thomas Kalstrup (USA) Zaxby's Cycling DNS Jonathan Atkins (USA) Zaxby's Cycling DNS Micah Rice (USA) Zaxby's Cycling DNF Nicola Chseini (USA) Mapei Quick Step DNF Philippe Koehler (Fra) Mapei-Quick Step DNF Gianni Faresin (Ita) Mapei-Quick Step DNF Jakob Storm-Piil (Den) Memory Card-Jack&Jones DNF Bjarke Nielsen (Den) Memory Card-Jack & Jones DNF Jacob Rasmusssen (Den) Memory Card-Jac&Jones DNF Matthew Gilmore (Bel) Memory Card-Jack & Jones DNF Dylan Casey (USA) US Postal Service DNF Stefan Kjaeraard (Nor) US Postal Service DNF Levy Leipheimer (USA) US Postal Service DNF Kirk O'bee (USA) US Postal Service DNF Benoît Joachim (Lux) US Postal Service DNF Roy Knickman (USA) Mercury Cycling Team DNF Floyd Landis (USA) Mercury Cycling Team DNF Christopher Pic (USA) Mercury Cycling Team DNF Kirk Willet (USA) Mercury Cycling Team DNF Mike Barry (USA) Saturn Cycling Team DNF Bart Bowen (USA) Saturn Cycling Team DNF Robert Ventura (USA) Saturn Cycling Team DNF Seth Pelusi (USA) Saturn Cycling Team DNF Adham Sbeih (USA) Navigators Cycling Team DNF Brendon Vesty (NZl) Navigators Cycling Team DNF Paul Martin (USA) Navigators Cycling Team DNF Elliot Hubbard (GBr) Navigators Cycling Team DNF Burke Swindlehurst (USA) Navigators Cycling Team DNF Franky Van Haesebroucke (Bel) Navigators Cycling Team DNF Jesse Keefer (USA) Nutra Fig - Noni DNF Jason McCartney (USA) Nutra Fig - Noni DNF Donald Reeb (USA) Nutra Fig-Noni DNF Jamul Hahn (USA) Nutra Fig-Noni DNF John Foster (USA) Nutra Fig-Noni DNF Alex Gardner (USA) Nutra Fig-Noni DNF Ryan Allison (USA) Nutra Fig-Noni DNF Paul Collins (USA) 7Up-Colorado Cyclist DNF Steve Speaks (USA) 7Up-Colorado Cyclist DNF John Corbett (USA) 7Up-Colorado Cyclist DNF Anton Villatoro (USA) 7Up-Colorado Cyclist DNF Mike Ley (USA) 7Up-Colorado Cyclist DNF Juan Pineda (Dom) 7Up-Colorado Cyclist DNF Oscar Cavagnis (Ita) Alexia Alluminio DNF Eddi Serri (Ita) Alexia Alluminio DNF Marco Villa (Ita) Alexia Alluminio DNF Maurizio Semprini (Ita) Alexia Alluminio DNF Aldo Zennetti (USA) Alexia Alluminio DNF Torsten Nitsche (Ger) Saeco-Valli & Valli DNF Valentino China (Ita) Saeco-Valli & Valli DNF Danny Pate (USA) Saeco-Valli & Valli DNF Alessandro Guerra (Ita) Saeco-Valli & Valli DNF Piotr Chmielewski (Pol) Mróz DNF Dariusz Wojciechowski (Pol) Mróz DNF Arkadiusz Wojtas (Pol) Mróz DNF Chris Valenzuela (USA) Team Shaklee DNF Colby Pearce (USA) Team Shaklee DNF Jason Crookham (Can) Jet Fuel Coffee Cycling Team DNF Heath Cockburn (Can) Jet Fuel Coffee Cycling Team DNF Kevin Field (Can) Jet Fuel Coffee Cycling Team DNF Charly Gorman (Can) Jet Fuel Coffee Cycling Team DNF Giusseppe Giuliano (Can) Jet Fuel Coffee Cycling Team DNF Jonathan Hall (Aus) Festina-Lotus DNF Sean Kelly (Can) Jet Fuel Coffee Cycling Team DNF Piotr Przydzial (Pol) Mat-Ceresit CCC DNF Krzystof Szafranski (Pol) Mat-Ceresit CCC DNF Piotr Zaradny (Pol) Mat-Ceresit CCC DNF Marcin Gebka (Pol) Mat-Ceresit CCC DNF Slawomir Chrzanowski (Pol) Mat-Ceresit CCC DNF Steve Hegg (USA) Jelly Belly DNF Scott Cochran (USA) Jelly Belly DNF Norm Carter (USA) Jelly Belly DNF Adam Livingston (USA) Jelly Belly DNF Kirk Albers (USA) Jelly Belly DNF Mariano Friedick (USA) Jelly Belly DNF Matt Minard (USA) Jelly Belly DNF Josh Collingwood (Aus) Jelly Belly DNF Ryan Barnett (USA) Zaxby's Cycling DNF Thomas Kalstrup (USA) Zaxby's Cycling DNF Jonathan Atkins (USA) Zaxby's Cycling DNF Dirk Friel (USA) Jet Fuel Coffee DNF Russel Miller (USA) Zaxby's Cycling DNF Antoine Bodwin (USA) Yahweh Tokyo Joe DNF Jim Laporte (USA) Yahweh Tokyo Joe DNF Joby Siciliano (USA) Yahweh Tokyo Joe DNF Alex Nunez (USA) Yahweh Tokyo Joe DNF Travis Hutchinson (USA) Yahweh Tokyo Joe DNF Navaro Ayala (USA) Yahweh Tokyo Joe DNF John Bickmore (USA) Yahweh Tokyo Joe DNF Tim Erwin (USA) Yahweh Tokyo Joe DNF Troy Reynolds (USA) Yahweh Tokyo Joe Results courtesy of Domenica Lewis, First Union Cycling PreviewBy John Alsedek, cyclingnews.com correspondent Lancaster is a city of about 60,000 people, located 74 miles west of Philadelphia. Situated right in the middle of Pennsylvania's farm country, Lancaster is commonly - if incorrectly - referred to as 'Pennsylvania Dutch Country', owing to its centuries-old settlements of German Amish and Mennonites. The film 'Witness', starring Harrison Ford, was filmed in the area, and Amish horse-drawn buggies are a common sight on local roads. Cycling is fairly popular in the area: the local club, the Red Rose Rockets (so named because Lancaster is also known as 'the Red Rose City') has a junior developmental program that last year produced a national champion in Allie Warfel, who is now riding with the U.S. National Team. 2000 will be the ninth year that Lancaster has hosted the First Union Invitational. Race Day Forecast: mostly sunny with a 20% chance of late day showers; high temperature of 75 degrees F, with winds of 5-10 mph. What are the odds?....that the First Union Invitational will be decided by: A field sprint? Well, in nine years, there's barely ever been a group large enough to call a 'field' that's even finished, let alone contested the victory. This year doesn't look to be any different. The odds: 100:1 A large breakaway group (a half-dozen or more)? Possible, but not likely; the short, circuitous downtown course tends to favor smaller groups. The odds: 8:1 A trio in which two of the riders are teammates, but neither of whom end up winning? Not as long as you might think. It happened in both 1996 (when Chris Horner topped two U.S. Postal Service riders) and 1997 (when Chann McRae did the same to a Comptel duo). The odds: 4:1 A break of three or four? This is the best bet. Wile the winner may finish solo, he'll likely have been part of a small group right up until the final miles. The odds: even What's the word from the riders?John Lieswyn, Shaklee/Marin "This is the hardest of the lead-up races, and probably harder than Philly itself. The thing is that, if you flat (and kids have thrown tacks on the road in years past, ostensibly to watch the drama of a wheel change!), you WON'T get back to the pack. The caravan is too short and the average speed is too fast. This race has always been my focus because, at 90 miles and without $35,000 for the win, the Euros aren't 'charged' to win as much as at Philly. I have a real shot at this one. On our team, it will be Eric (Wohlberg), Sylvain (Beauchamp), Glen (Mitchell), and I going for it." Ronnie Schmeer, Nutra Fig/Noni "As opposed to all the road and stage racing we've been doing the past two months, the First Union events are more like Belgian kermesses: short circuits, short & steep hills, not too long (except for Philly), and really aggressive racing. Lancaster is the hardest course with all the corners and short, steep hills. It's probably the best for me if I have good legs." Anton Villatoro, 7 UP/Colorado Cyclist "This race is a tough man's course. The cream rises to the top quickly in this one as the riders enjoy a roller coaster, single-file style race. The race loses riders from the back until you are left with a lead group of forty or so, a group that will eventually split in two. From the first group, there will develop a breakaway of anywhere from three to eight riders. This course requires a lot of power and the ability to maintain position at the front, as to not be gapped off. I have finished strongly in this one before - sometimes just finishing Lancaster is a feat in itself! Besides Sunday's U.S. Pro Championship course in Philadelphia, this course suits me very well - it is my best chance to show the goods before Philly and go for the win!"
Past Winners1992 Roberto Pelliconi (Ita) 1993 Arvis Piziks (Lat) 1994 Andrea Peron (Ita) 1995 Fred Rodriguez (USA) 1996 Chris Horner (USA) 1997 Chan McCrae (USA) 1998 Frankie Andreu (USA) US Postal Service 147.5 kms in 3.23.17 1999 Jacob Piil (Den) Acceptcard 147.5 kms in 3.19.42
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