ECHO — The 2010 Oregon XC Series is getting rave reviews for its opening Echo Red to Red race in north central Oregon near Hermiston.

More than 300 riders made their way to this historic burg for the downtown start.

The course was super fun and bumpy, according to Oregon XC Series Director Mike Ripley, and it made the race a great way to kick off the series for all who attended. Riders from Washington and Idaho once again mixed it up with Oregon’s Best as the competition in all fields was fierce.

Endurance specialist Evan Plews of Salem continued his early season hot streak with a win in the Men’s Pro race. Portland’s Sue Butler finished in front of a strong women’s field before traveling to Hagg Lake and racing with the Masters 1/2/3 men in Banana Belt #2.

The Oregon XC Series continues April 11 with the Horning’s Hideout near North Plains.

UNOFFICIAL RESULTS
Echo Red to Red
Saturday, March 6

Pro Men
1. Evan Plews (EvanPlews.com)
2. Ben Thompson (Sunnyside Trek)
3. Nathan Bannerman (Allegro Cycling)
4. James Williams (Trek Mtn Co-op/Sunnyside)
5. Jonathan Myers (Team S&M)

Pro Women
1. Sue Butler
2. Lizzy English (Northstar Taho)
3. Tina Brubaker (Veloforma)
4. Heidi Faller (webcyclery.com)
5. Lorien Lightfield (Wild Rockies Racing)

Check Oregon Velo for photos.

Complete results are HERE (pdf).

By Pat Malach
PORTLAND – What kind of recipe calls for a grass field covered with niche bicycles, a Black Sabbath cover band, a heart-pounding drum corps, a geodesic Thunderdome, a pair of fire dancers, a bus full of strippers, a brewery’s worth of beer and a lone bagpiper?

I don’t know either, but those elements and more blended beautifully Sunday at PIR when the world’s craziest bicycle race bid farewell to the city where it was born.

The SSCXWC unleashed itself on Portland’s cyclocross scene for one last time following a full day of Cross Crusade racing. Canada’s Drew MacKenzie won the men’s race for the second year in a row, while Seattle’s Kari Studley rode away with the women’s top prize at an event described by the keenly insightful eyes of PDXCROSS as the “Singlespeed Crazy Cross World Slapstickships.”

Seattle won the battle to host next year’s party, beating out San Francisco after two days of debates, riding and mud wrestling.

But the big winner, as usual, was Portland’s cycling scene as the event drew a sizable crowd of race fans and onlookers just curious to find out if the buzz about the race is true. It is!

With daylight running short, the 250 participants launched themselves for better or worse into a le Mans style start with a 50 meter run to the bikes, then a 180 turnaround to ride back through the slow, grass course, all the while dodging confused spectators who didn’t realize the racers were going to return in that direction. Mixed in with the costumed racers, Barry Wicks dressed in proper prep school attire while Bend’s Ryan Trebon flew his Kona-FSA stars and stripes jersey of the national cyclocross champion next to a rider dressed like a member of the ’80s band Devo.

Then things got confusing and weird. (more…)

FILE PHOTO: Chris Sheppard wins the Cascade Chainbreaker in Bend last May.

HILLSBORO — For the second day in a row Bend racers found success at the top of Bald Peak south of Hillsboro.

Chris Sheppard, winner Canada’s B.C. Bike Race and The Intermontane Challenge earlier this summer, took the Pro Men’s race at Sufferin’ on the Summit the day after fellow Bend resident Ryan Trebon won the Pain on the Peak cyclocross race covering much of the same course.

Sheppard (Santa Cruz/Jamis) covered seven laps of the course in 1:29:55, finishing more than five minutes ahead of second placed Sean Babcock, who also suffered on the summit during the previous day’s cyclocross race.

Vanilla Bicycles’ Shannon Skerritt finished third, covering seven laps in 1:40:00. Evan Plews, who finished fifth at the previous day’s cross race, finished three minutes later for fourth. team S&M’s Jon Myers was fifth at 1:32:13.

RESULTS
Sufferin’ on the Summit
Hillsboro, Oregon
Sept. 13, 2009

Pro Men
1. Sheppard, Chris (Santa Cruz/Jamis) 7 1:29:55
2. Babcock, Sean (Team S&M) 7 1:35:12
3. Skerritt, Shannon (Vanilla) 7 1:40:00
4. Plews, Evan (Capitol Subaru) 7 1:43:02
5. Myers, Jon (Team S&M) 1:32:13
Singlespeed
1. Rosenfeld, Jake 6 1:35:41
2. Visser, Chris 5 1:36:50
3. Grabowski, Donovan (Half Fast Velo) 4 1:23:13

Complete OBRA results are HERE.