Cyclefest - NE

Florida, USA, October 1-3, 2004

Main Page Results Next Stage

Stage 1 - October 1: J-Town Kick-off Crit

Carney kicks off with a win

By Raphael Clemente

Despite the misfortune of being hit by two hurricanes in three weeks, Cyclefest went on as planned in West Palm Beach, Florida. Some of the country's top riders were on hand to compete for their share of $30,000 in three days of blazing-fast criterium racing.

Friday night's J-Town Kickoff in West Palm Beach's CityPlace saw the Category three men start in the rain, which caused havoc during the early parts of the race. Through the chaos a breakaway emerged and quickly built a lead on the shattered field. With the chase group closing fast, 16 year-old Winston David racing for the Orlando Road Club burst out of the last turn with an unchallengeable lead, easily beating fellow escapees Seth Hansley and Tim Molyneaux.

Next up was the main event of the night, the Pro 1-2 men. With a stellar field and plenty of money to be had, both the riders and spectators knew the action was about to heat up. Headlining the start list were current US Pro crit champion Jonas Carney, and teammates Alex Candelario and Mariano Friedick (Jelly Belly); Ivan "The Cuban Missile Crisis" Dominguez, Gus Artacho, and Juan Haedo (Colavita); last year's overall winner Harm Jansen (riding as a hired gun for Cyclefest sponsor attorney Bill Bone), Brice Jones and Dan Schmatz (HealthNet), and David McCook (McGuire), along with a very strong contingent of talented local riders from JC Investors, Aerospace Engineering, and Cycle Science.

With the roads still somewhat damp, but no rain falling, the race was underway. From the gun the 120+ rider field was strung out halfway around the tight course. There were several short-lived breakaway attempts, but nothing stuck until late in the race when a small group escaped led by local powerhouse Ivan Franco, of JC Investors. It came down to a huge combined effort from Jelly Belly and Colavita in the final few laps to reel in the hard-charging break and set up a wild field sprint. Carney exploded off the front of the field in the final lap and held on through the last corner to beat Ivan Dominguez and Frank Travieso (Cycle Warehouse) to the line.

Results

1 Jonas Carney (Jelly Belly)                                   
2 Ivan Dominguez (Colavita)                                    
3 Frank Travieso (Cycliss Warehouse)                           
4 Dave McCook (McQuires Pro Cycling)                           
5 Derek Wilkerson (Hilenbrand Racing)                          
6 Harm Jensen (Bill Bone Bicyclery)                            
7 Emile Abraham (Monex)                                        
8 Franky Van Haesbroucke (Unattached)                          
9 Radisa Cubric (OLP Racing)                                   
10 Victor Ayala (LaGrange)                                     
11 Brad Huff (Mercy Cycling Team)                              
12 Ivan Franco (JC Investors Racing Team)                      
13 Christopher Frederick (Aerospace Engineering Group)         
14 Oscar Pendea (Stelvio Cycling)                              
15 Greg Wolf (Colavita)                                        
16 Cesar Grajales (Jittery Joes)                               
17 Mike Zingaro (Cycle Science)                                
18 David Wenger (Sharper Image)                                
19 Chad Cagle (Mercy Cycling Team)                             
20 David Guttenplan (Locos/Dixons)                             
21 Jay Moglia (NCVC Spokes)                                    
22 Scott Weiss (Subway)                                        
23 Luis Zayas (Top Pro)                                        
24 Daniel Holt (Locos/Dixons)                                  
25 Frank Breure (Unattached)                                   
26 Leonel Ramirez (Cycliss Warehouse)                          
27 Evan Elken (Jittery Joes)                                   
28 Raul Bello (B&J Bikes)                                      
29 Jeffrey Orr (Aerospace Engineering Group)                   
30 Leandro Contreras (Lake Worth Bicycles)                     
31 Gabriel Mendez (Top Pro)