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Sunrise Sports Team Update

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Thursday, August 31, 2006 =>

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Down and UP in Downers Grove + Rocking in Rockford!!!

Sunday, August 20 - US Pro Nat’l Criterium Championships - Downers Grove, IL

Jeff Hamilton scores a podium placing at a national event!!!

The Big Daddy of American criterium racing is the US Pro Championships in Downers Grove, Illinois. This quaint suburb of Chicago has hosted some of the fastest and most aggressive racing over the past several years. As a warm up to the main event, the US Pro Criterium Championships, the promoters hold a series of races for Juniors and Category 2 Men, then National Championships for the Top Ranked Category 1 Men and USCF Category 1/2/3 Women. Since there is no “official” national criterium championship race for Category 2 Men, this event has become the default championships over the years.

A full field of 100 of the most testosterone (the legal kind) crazed bike racing maniacs took to the line of the Cat 2 challenge. Lining up for the Sunrise Sports team were Jeff Hamilton, Jason Rafeld, Jeremy Woolcock, John Rigdon and Mark Caswell. With rider’s eyeballs nearly popping out from the pent up aggression, the pack attacked the course like only Cat 2’s can. When the lap counter ticked down to one-to-go, the crowd of spectators turned to watch that last corner and who would emerge first. Well, pumping hard and out of the final corner, the cascading pack was lead home by two Michigan riders, Ben Renkema, the 2006 Michigan Criterium Champion, from the West Michigan Coast Riders in 1st and Jeff Hamilton, the 2005 Michigan Criterium Champions, from Sunrise Sports in 2nd. It was close but Ben had a great sprint and was nearly a bike length ahead of Jeff at the line. Still, an AWESOME 2nd place for Sunrise Sports and Jeff Hamilton.

Full results are HERE

Jeff Hamilton (in orange at center of picture) sprinting to 2nd place "WITH A BULLET!" at the Cat 2 Challenge, Downers Grove, IL

Saturday, August 26 – Priority Health Rockford Criterium, Rockford, MI

What can you say about Rockford? Ask any Michigan bike racer and they’ll tell you it’s the most painful and agonizing criterium in the state. Why? Very simple, Maple Street Hill. But really, it isn’t even much of a hill. It’s about a city block long and really only rises up 20-30 meters, maybe not even that much. However, the pack takes this hill at about 24mph-25mph EVERY lap. Laps pretty much take only 2 minutes as the back side of the course is a 35mph-40mph plunge.

Throw in the fact that the race itself is sponsored by Priority Health, the same West Michigan health care giant that sponsors the UCI Continental Pro Team, Priority Health Pro Cycling Team, and you can pretty easily figure out who will be on the start line. Yes, the WHOLE Priority Health Pro Cycling Team. Throw in the Priority Health amateurs (all Cat 1’s and Cat 2’s) and you’ve got about 1/3 the race all riding on the same team!!!

I really, really, really felt sorry for everyone in the Pro1/2 race. The race was almost scripted! Here’s how it went: Priority shows up with 1/3 of the field. Kirk O'Bee from the HealthNet Pro Cycling Team comes out because 15 members of his family are there to watch him race (he’s originally from nearby Ada, Michigan). Priority immediately starts to send riders off the front. O'Bee chases and rides around with 10 Priority guys on his wheel, until he quits the race and either 1) hurls his bike into someone’s front yard in disgust or 2) resigns himself to the pre-determined fate, drops out, and happily chats with his aunts, uncles and cousins. In 2005 it was script #1, this year it was script #2.

Of course, Brian Sheedy of the Priority Health Pro Cycling Team took the victory. 2nd & 3rd place you ask, the King Brothers, Robbie and Teddy, of the Priority Health Pro Cycling Team. How about 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th…..yep, Priority Health guys!

For the Sunrise Sports team, Cat1/2 team captain, Jeff Hamilton hung in to take 13th place. Out of the original 70+ racers who lined up, less than 30 actually finished the race. You wouldn't believe the number of racers getting popped off the back, starting with the very first lap. Some quality riders too, not just pack fill. The pace was BLISTERING fast!

The heart-breaker of the day goes to Sunrise Sports Junior team member Taylor Birmann who led nearly the whole way in the Cat 4 race, took EVERY prime and was in a 2 rider break on the last lap until his companion rolled a tire going through the chicane on the "FALL FROM THE WALL" section, taking Taylor down and out of the race. He most likely would have won. He was guaranteed 2nd place at least. Taylor suffered some road rash, but was okay and is now VERY ANGRY!!!

Watch for him to tear some legs off this weekend!!!

Results are posted HERE

Next up for the team is the HUGE Labor Day Weekend in SE Michigan/SW Ontario. Here’s the schedule: