Grand Prix de Rio Grande - NE

Colorado, USA, July 20-22, 2001

Wherry and Bockel triumph as stage racing returns to Colorado

By John Alsadek

After a year's absence, national-class stage racing has returned to Colorado, as the Grand Prix de Rio Grande gave cycling fans in the Rocky Mountain State three days of first-rate competition. Sponsored by Jose Cuervo and the Rio Grande restaurant chain, as well as Saturn of Fort Collins, Cannondale, and Briko, the event featured a $10,000 prize list, as well as two extremely tough courses that left competitors quite literally breathless.

Following Friday evening's winner-take-all street sprints in downtown Denver, the stage race began in earnest with the Mike Horgan Hill Climb the next morning. With the backbreaking climbs of Sugarloaf and El Dora included in the 23-mile mass start event, it didn't take long for selections to be made. In the men's race, the trio of Chris Wherry, Scott Moninger (both Mercury-Viatel), and Danny Pate (Prime Alliance) found themselves nearly 90 seconds up on a four-man chase going into the final few miles. The Mercury duo then took turns attacking Pate; Pate countered the first few moves, but Wherry was finally able to get clear, finishing 25 seconds up on Moninger, who outsprinted Pate for third. Navigators' Brendon Vesty took fourth at 1:15, while Michael Barry (Saturn), led in three other chasers for fifth.

The women's hillclimb followed a similar pattern, as Collegiate National Champion Sarah Konrad (Boise Cascade Office Products) found herself out front and outnumbered by the Gatorade Energy Bar pair of Karen Bockel and Dede Demet-Barry. As the final climb began, the two Gatorade riders began attacking Konrad, till Bockel- who only did her first bicycle race of any kind this past spring- made an attack that stuck, ultimately finishing 1:21 ahead of Demet-Barry and 4:26 ahead of Konrad. Rebecca McClintock (Gatorade Energy Bar) was the best of the rest, taking fourth at 7:50, just ahead of Paragon's Kristy Kopasz.

If Saturday's hillclimb took a toll, then Sunday's road race in the Fort Collins area was even worse, as the grueling 13.5-mile circuit combined with scorching temperatures to make it a death march for some. The men's 81-mile event blew apart early, as a quartet of riders quickly gained an unassailable 11-minute gap over the scattered chasers. However, the four became two.....and then one, as 7 UP/Colorado Cyclist's Clark Sheehan was forced to withdraw, leaving Dane Soren Peterson (Saturn) to solo in for the victory over a decimated field. Hometown hero Jonathan Heidemann (Rio Grande/Monsoon Racing) took second, just ahead of Peterson's Saturn mate Tim Johnson, while Wherry and Barry round out the top five. The women's road race was basically a carryover of the hillclimb, with Bockel, Demet-Barry, and Konrad quickly shedding themselves of the rest. However, Konrad managed to turn the tables this time: taking advantage of Bockel's inexperience and Demet-Barry's lack of race mileage (the Grand Prix de Rio Grande was just her second event since announcing her retirement from world-class cycling last fall), Konrad beat them to the punch and attacked, eventually soloing in ahead of the two Gatorade Energy Bar riders, while McClintock led in the remnants of the field for fourth, just ahead of Kopasz.

Overall, Wherry and Bockel held on to win the overall titles at the Grand Prix de Rio Grande, which is already looking ahead to next year, despite a lighter-than-expected turnout for some of the other categories. "We were a little disappointed with the number of riders in the other races," says race director Matthew Smith. "However, we intend for the Grand Prix de Rio Grande to be even bigger and better in 2002 - new format and new stages!" And if that happens, stage racing in Colorado may be back to stay.

Results

Men Pro/1/2 Final overall classification
 
1 Chris Wherry (Mercury-Viatel)                      33 pts
2 Danny Pate (Prime Alliance)                        22 
3 Soren Petersen (Saturn)                            21 
4 Michael Barry (Saturn)                             20 
5 Scott Moninger (Mercury-Viatel)                    19 
6 Jonathan Heidemann (Rio Grande-Monsoon Racing)     19 
7 Brendon Vesty (Navigators)                         18 
8 Tim Johnson (Saturn)                               17 
9 Michael Creed (Prime Alliance)                      8 
10 Andrew Bajadali (unattached)                       5 
 
Women Pro/1/2 Final overall classification
 
1 Karen Bockel (Gatorade Energy Bar)                 38 pts
2 Sarah Konrad (Boise Cascade Office Products)       35 
3 Dede Demet-Barry (Gatorade Energy Bar)             33 
4 Rebecca McClintock (Gatorade Energy Bar)           26 
5 Christy Kopasz (Paragon)                           20 
6 Gail Longenecker (Boise Cascade Office Products)   10 
7 Kirsten Fisher (Gatorade Energy Bar)                9 
8 Brenda Black (unattached)                           7 
9 Martha Meyer (Procter & Gamble)                     4 
10 Renee Eastman (Veritas)                            3