Roundup 6 November 2009
Lampre Video, Gérard Vroomen Engineer of the Year, Battenkill Ride, Damiano Cunego Fan Day, NICA & IMBA Forge Alliance, Stars come out for 7th Revolution, WADA Launches New Play True Magazine and more...

 Lampre/NGC - 2009 Highlights Video
An invitation from the blue and fucsia team to relive with us the best moments of the 2009 season in a movie published on their website www.lampre-ngc.com

The 20 minute length film follows the the most beautiful actions and important victories of the Lampre riders. of our athletes; unlike other videos this is a 20 minute of race highlights starting with the first stage of the Giro di Sardegna  with Lampre's Mirco Lorenzetto and Enrico Gasparotto taking the two top steps of the podium. From there through the Giro d'Italia, the tour de France, Vuelta and beyond.

The highligts reel has a rocking sound track that adds to the pleasure of the video. The video can be downloaded or watched on the Lampre site with the action covering plenty of action of the major international races on the calendar!  Sit back and enjoy the show!

Cervélo's Gérard Vroomen - Engineer of the Year
Cervélo SA is pleased to announce that Gérard Vroomen, co-founder of Cervélo has been named the 2009 Engineer of the Year by The Royal Institute of Engineers (KIVI NIRIA) in the Netherlands.

KIVI NIRIA President Jan Dekker presented the award to Vroomen Tuesday night at a festive event in the Museon in The Hague. In his presentation he said that Vroomen had distinguished himself through a combination of personality, entrepreneurship and innovation. The jury cited his ability 'to combine technical ingenuity with good business instincts and an above average dose of perseverance and guts.'

In addition to the award, Vroomen was also given a cheque for 20,000 Euro by the Van der Poel Charity Fund, to be used for a project of his choice that demonstrates how technology can contribute to a better world. The award itself is an original sculpture by well-known Dutch artist Annemarie Petri.

Gerard Vroomen, co-founder of Cervélo receives the 2009 Engineer of the Year award from John Dekker, President of The Royal Institute of Engineers (KIVI NIRIA) in the Netherlands. The award was presented Tuesday night at a festive event in the Museon in The Hague. Photo courtesy of Cervélo

"I am honored to be recognized with this award," said Gerard Vroomen, "and I share it with everybody at Vroomen.White.Design and of course especially Phil White. Since we started Cervélo in 1995 we have always made engineering the focus of our work, internally as well as when speaking with our customers. It is clear that without our engineering background, neither our products nor our company would have achieved the level of success it has."

KIVI NIRIA instituted the annual Engineer of the Year award in 1993 as a way to convey the value KIVI NIRIA engineers provide to society. It also highlights the varied and attractive career prospects that the discipline offers, thus encouraging young students to choose engineering studies.

Vroomen was one of three nominees for this years' award and succeeds the 2008 winner Saskia Rijtema. During the upcoming year he will act as the ambassador for KIVI NIRIA continuing to spread the message he has already effectively done with Cervélo - enjoy engineering.

About Cervélo - Phil White and Gérard Vroomen founded Cervélo in 1995 when their design for a new time trial bicycle, built at the request of a professional cyclist, failed to garner interest from traditional cycle manufacturers. Today, Cervélo is the largest time-trial bike manufacturer in the world. It is recognized internationally as one of the most innovative and fastest growing bike manufacturers the sport has seen in years. This has culminated in Cervélo being the #1 brand readers of VeloNews, CycleSport, Inside Triathlon and Slowtwitch (all publications for serious cyclists and triathletes) intend to purchase in 2009. Cervélo currently produces eleven different models for the global market. For further information visit: www.cervelo.com.

About Vroomen.White.Design - Vroomen.White.Design comprises a team of engineers with varied backgrounds and expertise. As the exclusive designers for Cervélo bicycles, this engineering firm is devoted to exceptional product design, with an emphasis on composite design and aerodynamics. Vroomen.White.Design has received numerous awards and citations, both within the cycling community (Bike of the Year, New Product of the Year, Editor's Choice), and within the larger product design community (Best Design Strategy, Citation for Innovation in Design).

 Cycle-Smart International Cyclocross
Pre Race Pick-Up Party Friday Night
The organizers of the Cycle-Smart International hoped to spice up this year’s edition and take advantage of so many racers heading out to Northampton the night before the race. To this end, they created the Cycle-Smart International Pick-Up Party. Hosted by Cycle-Smart and New England Bicycle Consulting and presented by Ramadon’s Package Store, the Pick-Up Party will be an opportunity for racers to meet one another without the specter of competition hanging over their heads.

The party will be held tonight, Friday, November 6th from six until nine pm at the headquarters of Cycle-Smart Coaching and New England Bicycle Consulting in the Eastworks Building at 116 Pleasant Street in Easthampton, Massachusetts. The location is only a few miles from downtown Northampton’s restaurants and nightlife for those racing later on Saturday, and hotels for those with early races.

Event organizers Alec Donahue and Adam Myerson have kept under wraps many of the big names that will be in attendance. In the past day, they have showed their cards a bit, saying that there will be people from the top steps of both Elite Men’s and Women’s podiums, racers from across many borders, several people who have first-hand European racing experience and possibly an Olympian or two.

The practical purpose of tonight’s event is that race numbers for the weekend will be available for pick-up, saving time at registration on both days. Also at the event will be the technical guide for this weekend’s racing.

Practicality, though, is merely a front for having a good time and local package store, Ramadon’s, of Three Rivers is helping to support that as well as to bring attention to the cause of Chris Ramadon, elite transplant athlete. Ramadon had been a member of the Northampton Cycling Club’s development squad, and successful collegiate racer prior to a battle with kidney failure that left him on dialysis. Three years ago, Ramadon received a successful kidney transplant, freeing him from the five years he had spent on dialysis.

Now, Chris has returned to cycling and represented Team USA at the World Transplant Games, finishing 4th and 7th in the road race and time trial, respectively. He will be competing at the national level next summer in Madison, Wisconsin to qualify for a return trip to the World Transplant Games in 2011 in Sweden. The Ramadon family’s Package Store has generously lent its support to the Cycle-Smart International Pick-Up Party in hopes of raising awareness of the importance of organ donation. More information can be found here: http://christopherramadoneta.com/home  and http://www.kidney.org/

Tour of Battenkill Fall Ride
Cambridge, New York
Organizers of the 2010 Tour of the Battenkill bicycle race are pleased to announce the Tour of the Battenkill Fall Ride on Saturday, November 7th in Cambridge, NY. This non-competitive bicycling ride will travel over the entire 62 mile Tour of the Battenkill course where more than 1500 professional and amateur racers competed in April, 2009, and where an expected 2000 racers will compete in April of 2010. Tens of thousands of spectators lined the course in 2009. Tagged "America's Queen of the Classics', the race is the largest road cycling race in the USA. The course features 25% un-paved roads, covered bridges, scenic countryside, and direct passes through the small villages in Upstate New York's Washington County. All riders participating in the Fall Ride will be supported with rest stops, mechanical support, and follow vehicles. See www.tourofthebattenkill.com for details.

The men's peloton, with eventual winner Scott Nydam of Team BMC leading the way, roars through the Eagleville covered bridge near Cambridge, NY, during the inaugural men's pro race at the Tour of the Battenkill Valley on Sunday, April 19, 2009. Nydam eventually won the race on the 124 mile, partially unpaved course after a long breakaway. Photo copyright Dave Kraus

The Tour of the Battenkill has achieved international acclaim; attracting riders from throughout North America, the 2010 professional race has achieved a spot on the international calendar and is likely to attract some of the best cycling teams and riders in the world on April 18, 2010. Professional teams from Europe and Australia have already expressed strong interest in racing at next year's event. The 2009 event's presenting sponsor was GlobalFoundries - the computer chip manufacturing company who's new facility is currently under construction in nearby Malta, NY.

The 2010 Tour of the Battenkill will occur over 2 weekends in April, 2010: the Pro/Am on Saturday, April 10, and the Professional Invitational on Sunday, April 18. In addition, a non-competitive ride to benefit a national charity is soon to be announced for Saturday, April 17 - the day before the professional race. Food and sports & fitness expos are planned for both weekends in April.

For more information regarding either the Fall Ride or the Tour of the Battenkill, please contact info@tourofthebattenkill.com  518-275-6185 or the website at www.tourofthebattenkill.com

Damiano Cunego Fan Club Day
An open invitation from the Damiano Cunego Fan Club to join them at he 6th edition of the national festival for the fans of  Damiano Cunego. Sunday November 8 the most faithful supporters of 'Piccolo Principe' (the Little Prince) will meet at At the Ristorante Fiore situated in the picturesque scenery of Peschiera del Garda to celebrate the best moments of the 2009 season.

Doing the honors will obviously Cunego, who can count on company of the faithful squire Marco Marzano, sports director of the Lampre-NGC Brent Copeland, blue fuchsia mechanic Enrico Pengo and masseuse Umberto Inselvini. It is hoped 'that the affection and warmth of the fans can push a Damiano 2010 season full of success. .

Drapac Porsche
Tour of Okinawa Squad
Drapac Porsche has flown to Japan to compete in the Tour of Okinawa. The tour is comprised of a circuit race and a 200km road race which is classified as the longest one day race in Japan.

Joe Lewis and Tom Palmer will compete in the tour recovering from their respective injuries incurred whilst competing in the Jayco Herald Sun Tour last month. They will be joined by Dean Windsor, Daniel Braunsteins and Robbie Williams.

The team was invited to return to Japan following the results achieved in 2008 which saw Stuart Shaw finish 2nd in the criterium and 7th position in the road race.

What is CrowdRiders?
Crowdriders is an initiative to start a professional cycling team with an international crowd of 40.000 cycling enthusiasts. By paying an annual fee CrowdRiders’ members become owners and managers of this professional cycling team having a vote in all the major decisions affecting the cycling team. A team that will participate in some of the biggest and most famous races all over the world!

Among other things CrowdRiders will have a vote in which riders to attract, which races to ride, riders selection, who should be the sports director of the team and what should be the team’s (internal) anti-doping policy. Even the team’s jersey design will be democratically elected.

This approach will make it a truly crowd managed cycling team. YOUR professional cycling team!!
http://www.crowdriders.com 

7th Revolution - Manchester Track
Team Sky riders to battle with a cast of Cycling All Stars at  Revolution opener
The Revolution Series will get off to a flying start on 14th November with a host of Team Sky stars set to appear on the track together for the first time.  Geraint Thomas, Steve Cummings, Ian Stannard and Peter Kennaugh will all be in action in Manchester for the first event, which will have a strong road rider presence. However, the new Championship format means the Sky riders will be far from teammates this winter, as they go head to head racing for their own Revolution teams.

The riders will battle it out in several Championship races, including a 15k Points race and a 1km Madison time trial, a Revolution favourite. The race programme will also include a number of feature races, such as a motor-paced Scratch race and an Italian pursuit, designed to keep excitement levels high. Geraint Thomas, in blistering form after a record-breaking Pursuit performance at the World Cup this weekend, will be among the favourites to help gain maximum points for his team, the Rollers.

“I’m really excited about this season’s Revolution, especially with the new team format,” commented Thomas. “I’m feeling great after the weekend and can’t wait to take on the other Sky boys on the track. The competition is going to be fierce! I just hope I can keep up my good form for Chris [Newton] and make the Rollers the team to beat.”

Another Sky recruit expected to make waves at Revolution this year is Pete Kennaugh, who was Future Stars champion in Series 3. Last year, this up-and-coming track star caused real problems for his senior counterparts with some excellent performances that belied his nineteen years. He put in a storming performance in the Points race when he lapped the field, and Kennaugh is hoping he can cause a few upsets again this winter.

"I can't wait to get back on the track for Revolution,” says Kennaugh. “I've really enjoyed it in the past and its going to be great racing against the other teams this year. I think there'll be a lot of rivalry throughout the Series. I'm also really happy to have Jamie Staff as a captain, as he has so much experience to offer the team."

With more top names set to be added to the Revolution line-up over the coming days, it looks set to be the most exciting Series yet. Full details of the teams including the provisional line ups are now on www.cyclingrevolution.com along with information on the championship format. The Revolution championship gets underway on Saturday 14th November with the remaining events scheduled for 5th December, 16th January and 27th February.

Revolution Teams

The Cycling Revolution - The UK’s premier track cycling event - attracting over 15,000 dedicated fans every season and now entering its seventh year, Revolution™ has entered the vernacular of the British cycling fraternity. Revolution™ was created in 2003 by Face Partnership and the Manchester Velodrome to provide a new style of cycling event in the UK, a style that would increase spectator appeal and change the way people think about the sport.

A family night out designed, since its conception, to deliver first class racing and entertainment, from the world’s best cyclists with a strong presence from the UK’s many World, Olympic and Commonwealth Champions including Bradley Wiggins, Chris Hoy, Victoria Pendleton and Mark Cavendish. Each event includes feature races ranging from revenge matches to pro celebrity events. The racing is fast and the atmosphere is electrifying with non-stop action, music and other attractions providing a night at the races for cycling and non-cycling fans alike. Revolution™ provides the perfect competitive arena for the development of future talent. The only event of its type in this country to offer ‘Future Stars’ the opportunity to race against their senior counterparts.

Over the last six seasons Revolution™ has played host to many of the world’s top road pros such as Gilberto Simoni, Yaroslav Popovych, David Millar, Brad McGee and Stuart O’Grady. It has welcomed back to action past cycling heroes including Franco Ballerini, Rolf Sorensen, Andrea Tafi and Graeme Obree and featured top sports celebrities such as Martin Johnson, Iwan Thomas, Daly Thompson and Matthew Pinsent.

The 2009 season will see the launch of a striking new format that incorporates all of the excitement of Revolution™ into a competitive league. For the first time, eight teams will battle it out in endurance and sprint races to gain points towards the Revolution Championship title. With a bright future and a groundbreaking past, Revolution™ has truly lived up to its name, and created a new era for the sport. This revolution has begun.
Website – www.cyclingrevolution.com

WADA Launches New eFormat of Play True Magazine
Special 10th Anniversary Issue
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has published a "Special 10th Anniversary" issue of its flagship magazine, Play True. On this occasion, WADA has also launched a new format for the magazine. In addition to the paper and PDF formats, a new Web version is now available on the Agency's Web site. This ePlay True includes, in particular, extra content including video clips.

The "Special 10th Anniversary" issue highlights a number of WADA's most significant accomplishments, including the evolution of the global fight against doping in sport since the Agency's inception in 1999, through testimonials from athletes and other key actors in WADA's history. The special issue also presents an overview of some ideas and future directions for the fight against doping in sport, which have emerged from recent strategic forums.

Along with regular features such editorials from WADA's President John Fahey and Director General David Howman, this issue of Play True contains interviews with WADA's founding President Richard Pound and the President of the International Olympic Committee, Jacques Rogge.
WADA was officially created on November 10, 1999.
Discover e-version of Play True at www.wada-ama.org/playtrue

NICA, IMBA Forge New Alliance for High School Cycling
Berkeley, Caliornia The National Interscholastic Cycling Association (NICA) http://www.nationalmtb.org/ and the International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA) http://www.imba.com/ have recently signed a partnership agreement which states that IMBA and NICA will work together to cross-promote their efforts and engage the broad cycling community.

NICA executive director Matt Fritzinger said, "We are very pleased to formalize our partnership with IMBA -- the continued growth of high school mountain biking depends on trail access." He added, "Riding bikes is a freedom all youth should enjoy, and parents greatly support their kids riding on trails away from the dangers of traffic. IMBA does an incredible job of working with communities to build and maintain sustainable trail systems that work for all trail users."

"The success of the Northern and Southern California High School Mountain Bike Leagues has been truly remarkable," said IMBA executive director Mike Van Abel. "When I learned about the plan to replicate those successes on a national scale under the NICA banner, I hoped IMBA's club network might become a useful resource," he added, also noting that the partnership would help expand IMBA's demographic diversity and compliment existing youth programs such as National Take a Kid Mountain Biking Day. http://www.imba.com/news/news_releases/09_09/09_30_TKMBD.html

The IMBA/NICA partnership agreement points to several areas where the organizations plan to support each other:
• Seek opportunities for board and staff members to interact, discuss, and develop mutually beneficial opportunities.
• Take advantage of cross-promotional opportunities in print and electronic media and at relevant public events.
• Recognize the IMBA/NICA partnership as we communicate with our respective constituents, corporate supporters and media.
• Work in concert to promote responsible riding practices, sustainable trails and healthy competition for young riders.
• Prepare and update an annual workplan detailing specific activities for collaboration.

About NICA and IMBA - The National Interscholastic Cycling Association (NICA) is the National Governing Body for grades 9-12 interscholastic mountain biking. NICA was established 2009 with the support of founding national sponsor, Specialized Bicycle Components, as well as the generous support of the founding sponsor of the SoCal League, Easton Sports Development Foundation II. The aim of NICA is to foster the development of high quality competitive cross-country mountain biking programming for High School aged athletes. NICA provides leadership, governance and program support to promote the development of interscholastic Mountain Biking Leagues throughout the United States.

The International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA) is a non-profit educational association whose mission is to create, enhance and preserve great trail experiences for mountain bikers worldwide. Since 1988, IMBA has been bringing out the best in mountain biking by encouraging low-impact riding, volunteer trailwork participation, and cooperation among different trail user groups, grassroots advocacy and innovative trail management solutions.

 Physician Found Guilty of Causing Crash in Los Angeles
A physician accused of deliberately injuring two cyclists by slamming on his car's brakes on a narrow Brentwood road was convicted Monday of mayhem, assault with a deadly weapon and other serious criminal charges.

Dr. Christopher Thompson, 60, slumped forward and held his face in his hands after the verdicts were announced in a courtroom packed mostly with supporters and cyclists. Deputy Dist. Atty. Mary Stone, who prosecuted the case, asked for Thompson to be jailed immediately, calling him a flight risk and a safety threat to cyclists.

"There's not a cyclist in Los Angeles who would feel comfortable with this defendant out on the road after this verdict," Stone told the court.

Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Scott T. Millington ordered that Thompson be taken into custody. Thompson, wearing a dark blue suit, grimaced and shook his head as a bailiff cuffed his hands behind his back.

The veteran emergency room doctor, who spent more than two decades working at Beverly Hospital in Montebello, was also convicted of battery with serious injury and reckless driving causing injury. He faces up to 10 years in prison when he is sentenced Dec. 3. Read the LA Times Article.

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