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Sunday, January 7, 2001 -- Richmond, VA
Virginia Cyclo-Cross Series #4
Story and photos by Dana Harshberger

[Details] [Coverage] [Overall Results] [Pic Set 1] [Pic Set 2] [Pic Set 3] [Pic Set 4]

Race Pic
Temperatures warm up in Richmond
Old Man Winter must have forgotten to get up on Sunday, as temperatures were unseasonably warm for the fourth and final race in the Virginia Cyclo-Cross series. Racers once again, found themselves at the historic and beautiful Chimborazo Park in downtown Richmond.
The course was almost the same at the last time, but included the addition of a short, steep run-up, (or ride up, for some of the strong!) Many riders commented on how they really liked the addition. Word has it that race promoters Chip Atkins and Gary Morgan said that more than likely, it would be a permanent addition!

Race Pic
CX Downhill Action
Starting at 10am was the "C" race. For 30 minutes the Juniors and Citizens battled it out. In the Junior Category, it was Greg Wittwer (son of 40+ Fred) for first. Parker Bird and James Wakeman valiantly chased him. For the Citizens, Eric Marshall came out ahead of Kevin Crouch and Peter Sugar. Looking at the series winners, Eric Marshal and Greg Wittwer got top honors.
At 11am, was the 45-minute "B" race. Pedaling strong in women's action was Jessie Peil (W&M), who was just coming off a 2-week bike hiatus. Noting her breakfast of smoked salmon; Miss Piel overcame some minor chain problems to use her usual strategy of staying up with the men to propel her over the line. Next in line were Heidi W and Alma Wert. In addition to today's win, Jessie also captured the series title.

Race Pic
Banking through the turn
Men's 40+ saw some strong shows as well with Fred Wittwer (Extreme Sports) doing his usual stuff. Going off the gun strong, Fred started to feel the hurt and decided to keep a steady pace. Mr. Wittwer found that his strong climbing skills helped him gain time on his competitors. In series action, it was Mr. Fred Wittwer taking the overall.
Gary Huffman gave Jim Carlson and Bill Helwig a run for their money in the Men's 50+ scene. For the series, Jim Carlson went home with the trophy. In the Men's B category Simon Green (Ashby Street Bicycles) was passing out the hurt to Brian Wakeman and James Connell. Charming Mr. Green noted that his 'breakfast of champions' consisted of pasta and eggs. He did admit that it is difficult to stomach early in the day, but that it helps with energy later on. (Special note to Sim on's mom: thanks for the ginger, I think it did help my cold!) Also of note was Delaney Vance who did battle with the course on a single speed he threw together the night before! George Shultz took the series.

Someone buy this guy a jersey?
Proof that CX is non-discriminating
On to the A men! Beginning at 1pm, the starting line was daunting! Glancing around at the competition, one saw a beautiful floral print dress at the line. Yes, folks, it was feisty Ryan McKinney, who wore said floral frock throughout the race. Can we say cyclo-cross-dressing? An exciting race was under way with the perpetual strong houses Bill McCarrick, Jeremiah Bishop and aforementioned Mr/Ms McKinney leading the way. Misfortune fell to McCarrick when about halfway through the 2nd lap, he took a hit to his tire. He finished out the lap and switched to his mountain bike at the pit area. About this time as well, John Worthington unintentionally missed a turn off, and shortened his lap. Race promoters were on top of things and held him at the finish line for an amount of time that they felt would have been the time needed to complete the part of the course Worthington missed. Continuing on, Worthington kept riding strong and fast. At the end of the race, the promoters had a race meeting with the top 5, and in a wonderful show of sportsmanship of the racers (Worthington offered to DQ himself) and fairness of the promoters; an acceptable solution was worked out for all. In the end, Jeremiah Bishop (K2/NuSunn), Brian Ralston (Sobe-Headshock), and Ryan McKinney (W&M) took top honors. Mr. Bishop also captured the series win as well.

Many thanks should go out to not only Chip Atkins and Gary Morgan the promoters, but also Rick Bevels, who played groovy tunes for the spectators, called an excellent play-by-play, and also managed to run a trivia game, with prizes! Thanks also to all those who came out to ride and also to cheer on the riders! See you next year.