July 3, 2009 (Louisville, Ky.) – The USA Cycling Masters Road National Championships continued with the women’s 70+ and men’s 50-75+ criterium contests on Friday. Ten more Stars-and-Stripes jerseys were earned on the half-mile sprinter-friendly course. The final day of racing will go off at 10:00 a.m. on July 4 at Churchill Downs and will feature the 30-49 men’s criterium races.
The 60-70+ women raced for 19 miles on the four-turn criterium course to start things off on the penultimate day of racing at masters nationals. After 39 laps it all came down to a field sprint with Kay Tsui (Fairfax, Va./hpc-list), Melinda Berge (Park City, Utah) and Patricia Baker (Laguna Hills, Calif./Lightning Velo) winning national titles.
Like the women, the 70+ men all started together to tackle 44 laps on the half mile course. In the 80+ category Link Lindquist (Foothill Ranch, Calif./Sho-air), an ultra runner who took up bike racing only two years ago, added another national title to his resume. After taking about 40 years off, former Olympian Thomas O’Rourke (W. Bloomfield, Mich.) recently returned to the sport and grabbed another Stars-and-Stripes in the 75-79 category.
“This race was perfect for me,” explained O’Rourke. “As long as they didn’t gap on me in the flats I could catch them. As long as I could be with the leaders at the finish I can sprint.”
Kenneth Rosskopf (Decatur, Ga./FFCC Masters-Toyota Forklift) won the overall sprint to the line in that the morning’s second race to earn the 60-64 national title.
In the 65-69 race Michael Williams (Metairie, La.) brought home his first national title, winning the kick to the line with a time of 57:14.3. Philip Stanley (Allentown, Pa./Morgan Stanley-marketedge) edged David Burnett (Norwich, Conn./Mystic Velo-mcra) by only a tenth of a second to take the silver.
It was all Kenny Fuller (Corono Del Mar, Calif./Simple Green-Cycles Veloce) in the 60-64 men’s contest. Mid-way through the 44-lap affair, the former masters world champ and now 38 time national champion took off and never looked back, lapping most of the field twice. The only two men able to finish on the same lap as Fuller were Ken Louder (Salt Lake City, Utah/FFKR-SBO-Tour of Utah) and Butch Holt (Matthew, N.C./Carolina Bicycles) who grabbed the silver and bronze.
The 55-59 men’s contest began as the most animated of the day as George Heagerty (San Antonio, Texas/Geri Atrix) and Gordon Paulson (Cottage Grove, Wisc./Planet Bike) made an early break. Although they were brought back the race remained aggressive but no one was really able to escape. With around 300 meters it was Paulson once again leading out the sprint, but he was narrowly out sprinted by Bill Gilboe (Oakland, Mich./Prestige Cycling Club) who grabbed the Stars-and-Stripes.
Despite the fast pace and aggressive racing, the men’s 50-54 criterium came down to another field sprint to the line. In a photo finish Terry Duran (Birmingham, Ala./Tri star Bbc), Gerald Finken (Moorhead, Minn./Great Plains Cycling Club) and Aubrey Gordon (Reading, Pa./Liberty Cycle) went one-two-three to wrap up the day’s racing.
The final day of racing will go off at 10:00 a.m. tomorrow at Churchill Downs and will feature the 30-49 men’s criterium races.
Click here for a full schedule and here for complete information on the event.
For full results, click here and to view photos from the event, click here.
Check out video from the event on our You Tube page, here.
USA Cycling Masters Road National Championships
Louisville, Kentucky
June 28-July 4, 2009
Day Six
50-54 Men’s Criterium
1. Terry Duran (Birmingham, Ala./Tri star Bbc) 57:15.6
2. Gerald Finken (Moorhead, Minn./Great Plains Cycling Club) 57:15.8
3. Aubrey Gordon (Reading, Pa./Liberty Cycle) 57:16.3
4. Joseph Manacchio (Philadelphia, Pa./Mlc Bikyle) 57:16.5
5. Henry Schnepf (Newport Beach, Calif./Sho-air-Sonace) 57:16.5
55-59 Men’s Criterium
1. Bill Gilboe (Oakland, Mich./Prestige Cycling Club) 59:49.5
2. Gordon Paulson (Cottage Grove, Wisc./Planet Bike) 59:49.7
3. Lonnie Kennedy (Floissant, Mo./Mesa Cycles Team) 1:00:17.6
4. Andrew Buck (Dresher, Pa./Bike Line-LWA) 1:00:17.8
5. Stan Watkins (Bloomington, Ill./Vision Quest Coaching) 1:00:18.0
60-64 Men’s Criterium
1. Kenny Fuller (Corona Del Mar, Calif./Simple Green-Cycles Veloce) 53:21.0
2. Ken Louder (Salt Lake City, Utah/FFKR-SBO-Tour of Utah) 53:27.3
3. Butch Holt (Matthew, N.C./Carolina Bicycles) 53:27.8
4. David Stevens (Vilas, N.C./Veloproject.com) 53:29.2
5. Thomas Lobdell (Indianapolis, Ind./Scarletfire-Verizon Wireless) 53:29.5
65-69 Men’s Criterium
1. Michael Williams (Metairie, La.) 57:14.3
2. Philip Stanley (Allentown, Pa./Morgan Stanley-marketedge) 57:17.0
3. David Burnett (Norwich, Conn./Mystic Velo-mcra) 57:17.1
4. Richard Martin (Attleboro, Mass./Masters Velo) 57:17.1
5. Gary DeVoss (San Deigo, Calif./San Diego Cyclo-vets) 57:20.3
70-74 Men’s Criterium
1. Kenneth Rosskopf (Decatur, Ga./FFCC Masters-Toyota Forklift) 1:18:43.0
2. William Meyers (Oak Creek, Colo./Schwab Cycles) 1:18:44.1
3. Robert Paganini (Los Angeles, Calif./Pasadena Athletic Assoc.) 1:18:44.7
4. Robert Burns (Marengo, Ill./Team Mack) 1:18:52.4
5. Joe Douglas (Lawrence, Kan./Free State Racing) 1:18:54.0
75-79 Men’s Criterium
1. Thomas O’Rourke (W. Bloomfield, Mich.) 1:18:43.1
2. Frederic Schmid (Waco, Texas) 1:18:43.3
3. Pete Murphy (Glastonbury, Conn.) 1:18:44.5
4. Antoon Huyghe (Detroit, Mich./Cadieux Bc-Team O2) 1:18:45.4
5. David Ellefson (Banner Elk, N.C./Veloproject.com) 1:19:24.7
80+ Men’s Criterium
1. Link Lindquist (Foothill Ranch, Calif./Sho-air) 1:20:05.0
60-64 Women’s Criterium
1. Kay Tsui (Fairfax, Va./hpc-list) 57:55.6
2. Patricia Roberts (Winston Salem, N.C./Pain Pathways-pvs) 57:56.0
3. Jo Johnson (Wilmington, Del./Deep Blue) 57:57.1
4. June Froh (Mystic, Conn./Mystic Velo) 57:57.1
5. Alison Gase (Jenison, Mich./Rapid Wheelmen) 59:36.4
65-69 Women’s Criterium
1. Melinda Berge (Park City, Utah) 57:48.7
2. Julie Lockhart (Dunstable, Mass./NEBC-Cycleloft-Devonshire) 1:01:21.1
3. Nancy Beck (Hanover Park, Ill./Midwest Masters) 1:08:57.1
70+ Women’s Criterium
1. Patricia Baker (Laguna Hills, Calif./Lightning Velo) 58:21.8
About USA Cycling
Recognized by the United States Olympic Committee and the Union Cycliste Internationale, USA Cycling is the official governing body for all disciplines of competitive cycling in the United States, including road, track, mountain bike, BMX, and cyclo-cross. As a membership-based organization, USA Cycling consists of 64,000+ licensees including 1,500 coaches, 4,000 student-athletes, 2,200 officials, 1,800 clubs and teams, 350 professional cyclists, 200 certified mechanics, and 34 local associations. The national governing body sanctions 2,500 competitive and non-competitive events throughout the U.S. each year and is responsible for the identification, development, and support of American cyclists through various initiatives and programs. Additionally, USA Cycling conducts national championship events for all categories of amateur and professional cycling. To learn more about USA Cycling, visit www.usacycling.org.
