Photo ©: Marco Quezada
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Eric Barlevav, a young rider from the Time Pro Cycling team, took the third installment of the 2008 USA CRITS Series at the 35th annual Skyscraper Harlem Cycling Classic in New York City on Sunday, June 15th. In a dramatic finish, Barlevav threw his bike at the line to edge out Rock Racing's Rahsaan Bahati. Barlevav, however, had chosen not to ride with cycling gloves and, in the hot, humid conditions, wound up losing control of his machine as he crossed the line, flying off his bike, Superman-like, onto the pavement.
Under partly sunny skies, and temperatures in the mid-eighties, over 100 of the nation's fastest criterium specialists set out for a 55-lap spin around Mount Morris/Marcus Garvey Park in upper Manhattan. The course was a flat, four-corner .8-mile effort that proved to be ideal for the high-speeds associated with the Series. It was however those same high speeds that prevented a breakaway from being established during the race.
The field included Rock Racing’s three-time U.S. national champion Freddie Rodriguez and former Lance Armstrong teammate Tyler Hamilton. Also appearing were 2007 USA Crits Series winner Frank Travieso, and fellow countryman Ivan 'The Cuban Missile' Dominguez.
Several riders from smaller, regional teams periodically made bids for a getaway, but all such attempts were shut down by the Rock Racing and Toshiba-Santo squads, who kept a close watch on the front of the field. With less than 20 laps to go, Ivan Dominguez did managed the leap to the front of the race, but soon found that he could not achieve the escape velocity necessary for a solo flight to victory.
Any doubts that the riders were in New York City were instantly dispelled when a yellow taxicab accidentally found its way onto the course. Luckily the field spotted the vehicle in time and no crashes occurred as a result.
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The race then fell under the control of the Rock Racing team who established a lead-out train for their sprinter Rahsaan Bahati. Bahati, eager to capture his second USA Crits victory of the year after winning the 2008 Athens Twilight Criterium, knew that expectations for himself and his team were high, particularly since Rock Racing had become the event’s presenting sponsor.
With less than 10 laps to go, Rock Racing relentlessly held the sharp end of the field, closely watched by Toshiba-Santo rider Mark Hekman, Dominguez, and Colavita-Sutter Home’s Alejandro Borrajo as well as Time riders Jon Hamblen and Adam Myerson. With the laps ticking away, Rock Racing managed to keep control while the rest of the field forcibly jostled one another for positions behind them. "Freddie came out of the last corner first, but I lost his wheel." Bahati said afterwards. "I got bumped pretty hard, and almost went down with Dominguez. People were taking a lot of risks out there."
Waiting to strike was Barlevav, who was tucked in closely behind Adam Myerson with 300 meters to go. Barlevav came around Myerson full-tilt, and just managed to pip Bahati at the line before his dramatic fall. “I felt that I could have the win, so I threw my bike as hard as I could," Barlevav said, "My hands were just too slippery.” Almost unbelievably, there were no crashes as a result of Barlevav's spill and the young Californian was soon back on his bike and taking a victory lap alongside his teammates.
Bahati’s second place on the day was enough to secure the same position in the series overall, just behind Team Inferno's Jeff Hopkins. Third place is in possession of Yosvany Falcon (Toshiba-Santo). Toshiba-Santo also sits atop the overall team classification for the series, while the Laps Led top slot is currently in the hands of Colavita-Sutter Home’s rider Kyle Wamsley.
In the women's race Jamie Nicholson-Leener of the CRCA won from a break over Lisa Jellett of Verducci/ Breakaway Racing, while in the men's category four race, Shusaku Shiroyama of Kissena also took the victory from a two-man escape ahead of Jaime Garcia of Merrill Lynch. In the other races, Thomas Wood of Philadelphia Ciclismo won the men's category three ahead James Joseph of WS United, while Eric Merrill of the Clinton Cycling Club took the win in the master's race ahead of Gavin Robertson of Foundation and Tony Taylor of Target Training.
World Championship Sports Network (WCSN) broadcast the Harlem Skyscraper Classic live, and cycling enthusiasts can view the race, on demand, at www.wcsn.com.
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Men Pro/1/2 - 110 Starters - 40 Miles 1 Eric Barlevav (Time Pro Cycling) 1.22.02 2 Rashaan Bahati (Rock Racing) 3 Jake Keough (CRCA/Sakonnet Technologies U25) 4 Fred Rodriquez (Rock Racing) 5 Demis Aleman (Argentina Telefonicos) 6 Esteban Jukich (Richmond Pro Cycling) 7 Alejandro Borrajo (Colativa/Sutter Home Pro Cycling) 8 Justin Williams (Rock Racing) 9 Lisbon Quintero (CRCA/Foundation) 10 Alejandro Guzman (CRCA/Foundation) 11 Ivan Dominguez (Toyota- United Pro Cycling Team) 12 Adam Myerson (Time Pro Cycling) 13 Yosvany Falcon (TOSHIBA-Santo presented by Herbalife) 14 Anthony Taylor (TARGETTRAINING) 15 Jermaine Burroughs (We Stand United/Sheepshed Cycles) 16 Jason Snow (Team Metra/Wendy's/Victor Homes) 17 Cheyne Hoag (CRCA/Sakonnet Technologies U25) 18 Jeff Hopkins (Team Inferno Pro Cycling) 19 Ryan Mele (Richmond Pro Cycling) 20 Seth Hansley (Locos Cycling Team) 21 Mark Hekman (TOSHIBA-Santo presented by Herbalife) 22 Vladimir Esteves (Champion Systems Racing) 23 John Durso (Liberty Cycles) 24 Wilson Vasquez (G.S. Mengoni) 25 Oniel Samuels (Locos Cycling Team) 26 Tucker Brown (Colativa/Sutter Home Pro Cycling) 27 Craig Dotson (Richmond Pro Cycling) 28 Ryan Baumann (CRCA/Sakonnet Technologies U25) 29 Juan Carlos Almonte (G.S. Mengoni) 30 Ryan Nye (Prefered Care Elite Cycling) 31 Frank Travesio (TOSHIBA-Santo presented by Herbalife) 32 Matthew Hansley (Locos Cycling Team) 33 Eugene Boronow (G.S. Mengoni) 34 Nick Bennette (Metlife Pro-Am Cycling presented by unlose.it) 35 Michael McGinley (Somerville Sports) 36 Gustavo Borcard (Argentina Telefonicos) 37 Matt Inconiglios (Stage 1 Cycling) 38 Gerardo Castro (Richmond Pro Cycling) 39 Marcel Groothuismink (ZWIEP Mountainbike Team the Netherlands) 40 Bryan Borgia (CRCA/Jonathan Adler) 41 Mark Light (Liberty Cycles) 42 Euri Madera (G.S. Mengoni) 43 Igor Misicki (CRCA/Foundation) 44 Sterling Magnell (Rock Racing) 45 Raymond Newton (CRCA/Foundation) 46 Joshua Alexander (CRCA/Foundation) 47 Andy Baker (Time Pro Cycling) 48 Graham Garber (Metlife Pro-Am Cycling presented by unlose.it) 49 Nick Keough (CRCA/Sakonnet Technologies U25) 50 Haldane Morris (Rock Racing) 51 Ken Harris (CRCA/Jonathan Adler) 52 J.P. Partland (Kissena Cycling Club) 53 Jose Manual Garcia (Toyota- United Pro Cycling Team) 54 Tyler Hamilton (Rock Racing) 55 Jared Nieters (Haymarket Bicycles) 0.14 56 Chris Hayes (Haymarket Bicycles) 0.16 57 Phil Riggio (CRCA/Jonathan Adler) 58 Paul Ziminski (Team Metra/Wendy's/Victor Homes) 0.22 59 Jonathan Hamblen (Time Pro Cycling) 0.24 60 Robert Lyons (GS Gotham/Toga) 61 Dave Fuentes (Battley Harley Davidson/Capital Hill Bikes) 62 Dave Sommerville (Somerville Sports) 0.55 63 Rufus Pichler (Kissena Cycling Club) 64 Salvatore R Scotto DiVetta (Somerville Sports) 65 Rashad Guerra (Kissena Cycling Club) 66 Leandro Botasso (Argentina Telefonicos) 1.20 67 Sergio Hermandez (Rock Racing) DNF Jim Baldesare (Team Inferno Pro Cycling) DNF Jeremiah Wiscovitch (Rock Racing) DNF Michael Stoop (Time Pro Cycling) DNF Jackie Simes (Time Pro Cycling) DNF Rodney Santiago (Colativa/Sutter Home Pro Cycling) DNF Marcos Santucho (Argentina Telefonicos) DNF Gaston Aguero (Argentina Telefonicos) DNF Eric Brownell (CRCA/Empire Cycling) DNF John Loehner (CRCA/Empire Cycling) DNF Karl Rahn (CRCA/Empire Cycling) DNF Matthew Johnson (CRCA/Empire Cycling) DNF David Wiswell (CRCA/Empire Cycling) DNF Glenroy Griffith (CRCA/Foundation) DNF Gavin Robertson (CRCA/Foundation) DNF Tom Benciviengo (Somerville Sports) DNF Tom Dolan (Somerville Sports) DNF Ron Fantano (Somerville Sports) DNF Rob Wing (Somerville Sports) DNF Adam Alexander (CRCA/Sakonnet Technologies U25) DNF Nick Friesen (G.S. Mengoni) DNF Roselvert Marte (G.S. Mengoni) DNF Ray Diaz (GS Gotham/Toga) DNF Chris Long (GS Gotham/Toga) DNF Edwin Morel (GS Gotham/Toga) DNF Horace Burroughs (We Stand United/Sheepshed Cycles) DNF Paul Burroughs (We Stand United/Sheepshed Cycles) DNF Anthony Lowe (We Stand United/Sheepshed Cycles) DNF Brian Cooblall (We Stand United/Sheepshed Cycles) DNF Luis Aquino (Champion Systems Racing) DNF Franklin Burgos (Champion Systems Racing) DNF Somraj Seepersaud (Champion Systems Racing) DNF Jorma Mueller (Champion Systems Racing) DNF Chris Romero (CRCA/AXIS) DNF John Tomlinson (Deno's Wonder Wheels) DNF Abdul Kabia (TARGETTRAINING) DNF Bradley Tisdahl (Connecticut Coast Cycling) DNF Chris Loudon (CRCA/Sid's-Cannondale) DNF Peter Salon (Felt/VMG U23 National Team) DNF Isaac Howe (Revolution Cycles U-23 Development Team) DNF Ben Coleman (BikeReg.com) DNF Todd Scheske (Prefered Care Elite Cycling) DNF Guido Palma (Rite Aid p/b Shelbell & Shelbell Pro Cycling Team) DNF Joao Correia (Bissel Pro Cycling Team) Women Open - 27 Starters - 12 Miles 1 Jamie Nicholson-Leener (Century Road Club Association) 28.37 2 Lisa Jellett (Verducci/Breakaway Racing) 0.03 3 Jacqueline Paull (Watchung Wheelmen) 0.14 4 Mary Costelloe (South Mountain Cycles) 5 Stacey Jensen (Kissena Cycling Club) 6 Netana Hotimsky (Human Zoom Cycling) 7 Ellen Moses (CRCA/Comedy Central-Sid's Bikes) 8 Nina Santiago (Watchung Wheelmen) 9 Maria Quiroga (CRCA/Radical Media) 10 Christine Wehlburg (National Capital Velo Club/Inova Health) 11 Lenore Imhof (Colavita Racing) 12 Virginia Solomon (Metromint Cycling on Marin Bikes) 13 Gabriella Allong (Unattached) 14 Elizabeth Renaud (Century Road Club Association) 0.25 15 Kristy Swope (EPS/CSS) 1.09 16 Bonnie Fletcher (CRCA/Comedy Central-Sid's Bikes) 1.44 17 Corinne Karmiel (Unattached) 18 Anne Racioppi (EPS/CSS) 1.49 19 Leah Oppenheimer (Colavita Racing) DNF Kafi Dublin DNF Caroline Gaynor (Unattached) DNF Camie Kornely (CRCA/Innovation Bike) DNF Katherine Lambden (CRCA/Team Fenixs) DNF Jacqueline Orlando (Century Road Club Association) DNF Mary-Lynne Williams (CRCA/Avenue A | Razorfish Cycling) DNF Cesarina Ballenilla (Fenix) DNF Michelle Lee (Kissena Cycling Club) Men 3 - 81 Starters - 20 Miles 1 Thomas Wood (Philadelphia Ciclismo) 40.35 2 James Joseph (We Stand United (W.S.) 3 Karl Roesler (CRCA/Affinity Cycles) 4 Stalin Quitero Cuello (Mauricio Baez) 5 Douglas McKeon (Cyclonauts Racers Inc.) 6 Eutimio Quintero (CRCA/Sanchez-Metro) 7 Christian Eager (QuadCycles) 8 Vinicius Tavares (Century Road Club Association) 9 Michael Norton (Cyclonauts Racers Inc.) 10 Jacob Mueller (Guys Racing) 11 Genaro Cespedes (Innovation Bike) 12 Eric Silva (QuadCycles) 13 Steve Hylton (CRCA/Foundation) 14 Dmitri Wilkins (CRCA/Merrill Lynch-Hincapie Sportswear) 15 R Scott Snyder (Kraft Genie Cycling.Inc.) 16 Eric Robertson (Kissena Cycling Club) 17 Kevin Yarde (Cyclonauts Racers Inc.) 18 Michael Prokopec (Century Road Club Association) 19 Francisco Liuzzi (CRCA/Jonathan Adler Racing) 20 Walter Risse (Main Line Cycling Club-Bikyle) 21 Johann Burrowes (We Stand United (W.S.) 22 Ramphy Comome Zorrilla (San Pedro) 23 Marcus Dahllof (CRCA/Merrill Lynch-Hincapie Sportswear) 24 Peter Muto (Gotham Cyclists) 25 Daniel Lim (CRCA/DieHard-Think Racing) 26 Eric Merrill (Clinton Cycling Club) 27 Kenneth Thomas (Wachovia / AG Edwards Cycling) 28 Frank Negri (Colavita Racing) 29 Hammean Walker (Unione Sportiva Italiana) 30 Gary Bell (CRCA/Sid's-Cannondale) 31 Willie Payton (We Stand United (W.S.) 32 Stephen Chiselko (Liberty Cycle) 33 Christopher Pile (Century Road Club Association) 34 Andrew Cummings (Wachovia / AG Edwards Cycling) 35 Ian Stanley (Unattached) 36 Don Catlin (Team Mossman Tokeneke Racing) 37 Kevin Brubaker (CRCA/Affinity Cycles) 38 Frank Leija (CRCA/DieHard-Think Racing) 39 Rider #378 (st) 40 Gregory Olsen (CRCA/Jonathan Adler Racing) 41 Christopher Pagoda (Philadelphia Ciclismo) 42 Antony Slokar (CRCA/Jonathan Adler Racing) 43 Cam Mancuso (ACT) 44 Skender Sakajani (Strictly Bicycles Cycling) 45 Marc Adam (Champion System Racing) 46 JanWillem Klinken (CRCA/Sid's-Cannondale) 47 warren holzman (Guys Racing) 48 Kirk Catnott (Champion System Racing) 49 Chas Berckmann (CRCA/Merrill Lynch-Hincapie Sportswear) 50 Gerard O' Shea (Clinton Cycling Club) 51 Andrew LaCorte (Sommerville Sports World Team) 52 Gregory LaFiura (Century Road Club Association) 53 Robert Brown (CRCA/Major Taylor Iron Riders) 54 Jon Orcutt (CRCA/Merrill Lynch-Hincapie Sportswear) 55 William Lopez (Brooklyn Velo Force) 56 Ted Neu (CRCA/Sid's-Cannondale) 57 Filip Capala (Capala Brothers Polska) 58 Jason Taitt (Unattached) 59 Benjamin Willis (Wachovia / AG Edwards Cycling) 60 Tadeusz Marszalek (Sommerville Sports World Team) 61 Christopher Chaput (CRCA/Affinity Cycles) 62 George Gyarmathy (GBSC/Carl Hart Bicycles) 63 Anthony Maisto (Wonder Wheel) 64 Daniel Schmalz (CRCA/Merrill Lynch-Hincapie Sportswear) 0.18 65 Nathaniel Eng (CRCA/Avenue A | Razorfish Cycling) 66 Christopher Shaw (CRCA/Avenue A | Razorfish Cycling) 67 Robert Mecea (Brooklyn Velo Force) 68 Craig Abrams (Century Road Club Association) 69 Paul Coluccio (East End/Kreb Cycle) 0.29 70 Akira Sato (Connecticut Coast Cycling) 0.33 71 Kyle Peppo (CRCA/Jonathan Adler Racing) 0.44 72 Shawn Kane (North Carolina State University - Raleigh) 1.06 73 Christopher Price (Century Road Club Association) 1.24 DNF Edward Burlem (Wonder Wheel) DNF Johann Burrowes (We Stand United (W.S.) DNF Kevan Griffin (CRCA/Affinity Cycles) DNF Deverell Smith (Century Road Club Association) DNF Kyle Smith (Unattached) DNF Luke Stiles (Unattached) DNF Anthony Conger (CRCA/Sid's-Cannondale) DNF Jason Gallacher (CRCA/Affinity Cycles) Men 4 - 56 Starters - 12 Miles 1 Shusaku Shiroyama (Kissena Cycling Club) 25.35 2 Jaime Garcia (CRCA/Merrill Lynch-Hincapie Sportswear) 3 Alessandro Matteucci (Brooklyn Velo Force) 0.09 4 Brian Breach (Unattached) 5 Zak Abdullah (CRCA/NYVelocity) 6 Abraham Soler (CRCA/OrganicAthlete) 7 Alex Boiko (CRCA/NYVelocity) 8 Matthew Diczok (CRCA/Setanta) 9 David Lee (Unattached) 10 Adam Duncan (CRCA/Avenue A | Razorfish Cycling) 11 Guillermo Weinmann (Kissena Cycling Club) 12 Kansas Waugh (CRCA/Jonathan Adler Racing) 13 James Mernin (CRCA/OrganicAthlete) 14 Matthew Rivera (Century Road Club Association) 15 Christian Forsyth (CRCA/Setanta) 16 Junior Proverbs (Unattached) 17 Eric Schou (CBRC) 18 Bogdan Blai (www.spincityteam.net) 0.46 19 James Hines (Century Road Club Association) 20 Edward Zimmermann (CRCA/DieHard-Think Racing) 21 Akin Dorsett (Peddalers Paradise Cycling Team) 1.06 22 Keith Levesque (CRCA/) 1.33 23 Meng Li (Unattached) 24 Carlos Martinez (Unattached) 25 Jonathan Marymor (Century Road Club Association) 26 Jorge Ferrer (Unattached) 27 Samuel Martinez (We Stand United (W.S.) DNF Corey Williams (Columbia University-NYC) DNF Lyle Baron (Unione Sportiva Italiana) DNF Miguelangel Blanco (Unattached) DNF Christopher Bonner (Century Road Club Association) DNF Will Coghlin DNF David Correia (We Stand United (W.S.) DNF Brad Foster (Century Road Club Association) DNF Raul Galliano (Trade Manage Racing) DNF Jason Gay (Century Road Club Association) DNF Clifford Green (Peddalers Paradise Cycling Team) DNF Desmond Griffith (Unattached) DNF Dexter Hypolite (Peddalers Paradise Cycling Team) DNF Christophe Jammet (CRCA/NYVelocity) DNF Patrick Littlefield (CRCA/Avenue A | Razorfish Cycling) DNF Robert Lombardi (Brooklyn Velo Force) DNF Steven Marks (CRCA/NYVelocity) DNF Bill Moss (Century Road Club Association) DNF Carl Nelson (Unattached) DNF Jonathan O'Brien (Brooklyn Velo Force) DNF Michael O'Neill (Unattached) DNF Stephen Paige (Peddalers Paradise Cycling Team) DNF Dan Reiners (CRCA/NYVelocity) DNF Brian Roberts (Boston University) DNF Adam Rosenthal (CRCA/OrganicAthlete) DNF Chris Samuels (Unattached) DNF Darius Shekari (CRCA/Sid's-Cannondale) DNF Francisco Soriano (Unattached) DNF Curtis Springer (Peddalers Paradise Cycling Team) DNF Douglas von Bushberger (CRCA/OrganicAthlete) Master Men 30+ - 70 Starters - 12 Miles 1 Eric Merrill (Clinton Cycling Club) 24.38 2 Gavin Robertson (CRCA/Foundation) 3 Anthony Taylor (TARGETRAINING) 4 Hammean Walker (Unione Sportiva Italiana) 5 Gerard O' Shea (Clinton Cycling Club) 6 Jan Micko (Bialostok Chiropractic) 7 David Sean Jordan (Century Road Club Association) 8 Abdul Kabia (TARGETRAINING) 9 David Gitt (Century Road Club Association) 10 Frank Arroyo (Unattached) 11 Johann Burrowes (We Stand United (W.S.) 12 Raymond Newton (CRCA/Foundation) 13 Frank Leija (CRCA/DieHard-Think Racing) 14 Glenroy Griffith (CRCA/Foundation) 15 Steven Tinston (Westwood Velo) 16 Deverell Smith (Century Road Club Association) 17 Anthony Conger (CRCA/Sid's-Cannondale) 18 Murat Altinbasak (Millwork One) 19 Jonathan Sebat (Unattached) 20 Ivan Reynaldo Beltran (Team Simple Green) 21 Charles Spell (CRCA/NYVelocity) 22 Matthew Snow (Unattached) 23 Walter Quesada (Westwood Cycle/Trade Manage Capital) 24 Christopher Griffin (Century Road Club Association) 25 Andrew Riss (East End/Kreb Cycle) 26 Dexter Hypolite (Peddalers Paradise Cycling Team) 27 Eben Weiss (GS Gotham/Toga Bikes) 28 Mihael Ginghina (Century Road Club Association) 29 Matthew Diczok (CRCA/Setanta) 30 Edward Zimmermann (CRCA/DieHard-Think Racing) 31 Jorg Polster (Unattached) 32 Christopher Pile (Century Road Club Association) 33 Raul Galliano (Trade Manage Racing) 34 Jamie Hubbard (Century Road Club Association) 0.24 35 Walter Risse (Main Line Cycling Club-Bikyle) 0.32 36 Piers North (CRCA/DieHard-Think Racing) 0.38 37 Noel Johnson (El Puente) 1.03 DNF Luis Terracciano (GBSC/Carl Hart Bicycles) DNF George Suter (CRCA/DieHard-Think Racing) DNF Curtis Springer (Peddalers Paradise Cycling Team) DNF Timothy Spence (CRCA/Global Locate) DNF Ricardo Sanchez (Kissena Cycling Club) DNF Carl Roberts (Century Road Club Association) DNF John Raheb (Unattached) DNF Junior Proverbs (Unattached) DNF Jonathan Podwil (Brooklyn Velo Force) DNF Anthony O'Malley (CRCA/DieHard-Think Racing) DNF Igor Misicki (CRCA/Foundation) DNF Samuel Martinez (We Stand United (W.S.) DNF Gregory LaFiura (Century Road Club Association) DNF Erin Korff (Century Road Club Association) DNF Michael Karr (Unattached) DNF Thomas Kabacinski (Bennetts Bicycles) DNF Lisa Jellett (Verducci/Breakaway Racing) DNF Stephen Jamison (CRCA/Sid's-Cannondale) DNF Dexter Hypolite (Peddalers Paradise Cycling Team) DNF K Lane Herrick (Champion Systems Racing) DNF Kenneth Harris (CRCA/Jonathan Adler Racing) DNF Mikael Hanson (Cadence Cycling Club) DNF Christian Forsyth (CRCA/Setanta) DNF Adam Duncan (CRCA/Avenue A | Razorfish Cycling) DNF Matthew Diczok (CRCA/Setanta) DNF Scott Demel (Brooklyn Velo Force) DNF Paul DeBartolo (GS Gotham) DNF William Crowley (CRCA/DieHard-Think Racing) DNF Juan P Castro (CRCA/Third Nature) DNF Mete Basakinci (CRCA/Innovation Bike) DNF Jimmy Andrello (Century Road Club Association)