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RESULTS
OBRA Hillclimb TT
Sunday, Aug. 15

Senior Men
1. Davis Shepherd (Hutch’s/Landshark) 25:13.00
2. Seth Patla (River City Bicycles) 27:20.00
3. Jake Hansen (Word-RCB) 27:38.00
Senior Women
1. Jenny Slawta (Landshark) 30:55.00
2. Anna Christiansen (Ironclad performance Wear) 31:42.00 *Cat 3 winner
3. Kerry Martin (Sunnyside Sports) 33:28.00 *Masters Women 40-44 winner
Complete OBRA Resdults for this race are HERE.

Course Records

Unofficial best course time:
Doug Smith (Wheaties Schwinn), 23:24

Best OBRA Recorded course times:
Men: Billy Truelove and Alex Newport-Berra, 25:11 (tied)
Women: Jenny Slawta, 29:22

Temperatures soared past 100 Sunday at Alpenrose Velodrome for the Heartbreaker track race.

Dan Harm lapped the field and won the points race.

PORTLAND — Temperatures in the 100s baked the concrete bowl in southwest Portland Sunday during the Gentle Lovers’ Alpenrose Heartbreaker track race.

Steven Beardlsey and Camille Hook took home the handmade whale trophies for the overall battles. Beardsley parlayed second-place finishes in the kierin, points race and madison to notch 15 points. Dan Harm, winner of the points race and madison, was second with 14 after getting aced out of the keirin points. Zac Kovalcik, winner of the madison with Harm, was third overall. Hook and Nissy Cobb tied with 10 points in the Senior Women’s overall. Women’s kierin winner Jen Featheringhill was third with seven points.

Check the PHOTO GALLERY for this race.

OVERALL RESULTS
Alpenrose Heartbreaker
Sunday, August 5

Senior Men
1. Beardsley, Steven (Gentle Lovers) 15.0
2. Harm, Daniel 14.0
3. Kovalcik, Zachary (BRIHOP Cycling) 12.0
4. Mansker, Kevin (River City Bicycles) 7..0
5. Blackwelder, Mark (Gentle Lovers) 5.0
Senior Women
1. Hook, Camille (BRIHOP Cycling) 10.0
2. Cobb, Nissy (Veloforma) 10.0
3. Featheringill, Jen (Bike Central) 7.0
4. VanValkenburg, Heather (Rubicon-ORBEA) 4.0
5. Shepard, Amy (BRIHOP Cycling) 4.0

Complete OBRA results are HERE.

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Leia Tyrrell (CAPA Cycling) continued her criterium winning streak Saturday in Longview, Wash., with a victory at the Longview Grand Prix women

LONGVIEW, Wash. — CAPA Cycling’s Leia Tyrrell and Rubicon-Orbea’s Ben Chaddock took the wins Saturday at the inaugural Longview Grand Prix presented by Highland Cycling. The clockwise oval half-mile course circled a nicely wooded park smack dab in the civic center roundabout sandwiched between the library, city hall and the stately Monticello Hotel.

Ben Chaddock takes the win in Longview Saturday afternoon after finishing second in Portland the night before.

The day after the full team dominated the Portland Twilight Criterium with Roman van Uden leading a one-two-three-four finish, remnants of the quickly scattering Rubicon-Orbea team fielded three riders and snagged first and third, with Chaddock crossing the line ahead of Hutch’s Corey Domiunguez and Van Uden cleaning up the last podium spot. Rubicon’s Quinn Keogh, fourth at Portland despite a late-race crash, was active early with the day’s longest breakaway but suffered a mechanical in the last few laps and couldn’t regain the pack.

Chaddock, a Canadian track specialist and recent Whitman College graduate, finished second at the Portland race and was in position to set up van Uden entering the final lap in Longview, but this time things played out in his favor. Van Uden had been off the front with another rider when the field pulled them back with less than 10 to go. About that same time Keogh got chopped in a corner but saved himself from a fall. The excess torque on is front wheel caused a mechanical failure, and despite a quick change he was never able to regain the bunch.

“Coming over the line there was a bit of a panic,” Chaddock said. “So I figured the safest place to be was to go to the front of the field and drill it. Then with a lap and half to go, the (Bikesale.com) guys — I’d never seen them the whole race — came up two abreast through the line, and I was like whoa, ‘where did you come from?’ Obviously they’re fresh, and they’re not allowed to be in front of me.”

The Monticello Hotel was the backdrop on the far side of the course.

Chaddock immediately regained control at the front and checked behind to see if Van Uden was on his wheel going into the first sweeping corner of the last lap. Chaddock saw Van Uden on his wheel and got the nod to power it up.

“I didn’t know if Roman wanted to win or not,” he said. “Out of the corner I went wide and wasn’t able to get back in, so on the back straight I wasn’t in a position to provide my draft for Roman, so he stuck it tight and gave me the good to go. I just gave it full everything I had into turn three, probably an eight-second effort, which is perfect for me. I didn’t look back after that. It was a good win.”

TYRRELL SPRINTS TO ANOTHER WIN

In the women’s Cat 1/2/3 race, a three-rider breakaway with Tyrrell, Karey Swan (Therapeutic Associates/GENR8) and Lisa Reeve (Veloforma) escaped the field in the opening laps and quickly set to adding on time to their gap. Taking equal; turns on the front, the smooth trio lapped the field just over halfway through the race and wasted little time pushing off the front to give it another go, falling just short by the end.

Tyrrell used the finishing kick that earned a silver in the Collgiate National Criterium Championships to jump away from her break companions and hold on for the win. Reeve finished second, just holding off Swan. Bridgetown Velo’s Jenn Levo won the field sprint for fourth.

IRON MAN

United Finance rider Steven Holland was the iron man of the especially warm day, racing three times. Holland won the Masters 50+ race, finished third in the Masters 35+ 1/2/3 event, and was just out of the money in the Pro/1/2/3 race with a seventh-place finish.

Check out the PHOTO GALLERY for this race

RESULTS (partial)
Longview Grand Prix
Saturday, Aug. 14

Pro/1/2/3 Men
1. Ben Chaddock (Rubicon-Orbea)
2. Cory Dominguez (Hutch’s)
3. Roman van Uden (Rubicon-Orbea)
4. Todd Gallaher (IJM.org)
5. Scott Laliberte (Cannondale)
Cat 1/2/3 Women
1. Liea Tyrrell (CAPA Cycling)
2. Lisa Reeve (Veloforma)
3. Karey Swan (Therapeutic Associates/GENR8)
4. Jenn Levo (Bridgetown Velo)
5. Pam Massey (Bikesale.com)
Read more…

Rubicon-Orbea controlled the front of the Portland Twilight Criterium for the final 10 laps and took the top four spots. Fifteen-year-old Logan Owen of Washington's Hagens Berman team finished fifth.

PORTLAND — Rubicon-Orbea’s internationally flavored cast of riders left town with a loud bang Friday night, taking the top four spots at the 9th Annual Portland Twilight Criterium presented by Subaru in this city’s North Park Blocks. New Zealand’s Roman van Uden led the parade of teammates Ben Chaddock (Canada), Mike Northey (New Zealand U23 Criterium Champion) and Quinn Keogh (United States) across the line for the team’s last race together before riders head their separate ways.

Beer gardens, a handmade bike show and food vendors added to the festival atmosphere Friday night.

In a revelation of the race, 15-year-old Logan Owen of Washington’s Hagens Berman team was the only rider who managed to fight his way into Rubicon’s battle-hardened lead out train that took over in the last 10 laps of the 60-minute event. Owen muscled his way past Rubicon’s veteran ace Aaron Tuckerman (New Zealand) for fifth.

Tuckerman guarded the back of his team’s lead out train well, slamming the door shut hard enough in some corners to delay the podium presentation for several minutes as OBRA officials sorted out protests over alleged behavior in the closing laps. After deliberation, the race commissar let the results stand.

Temperatures in the mid 90s and high humidity tested racers along the technical six-corner, L-shaped course on fair-to-rough pavement over highly crowned roads. Pro mountain bikers Ryan Trebon (Kona) and Jason Sager (Jamis) showed up to add some horsepower to the field, and two-time Olympian Bob Mionske also toed the start line. Crowds lined the course several layers deep in hot spots, with a handmade bike show to warm them up, beer gardens to keep them cool and food vendors to make them happy.

Van Uden led things off with an attack that brought on a chase by Trebon — in training for the upcoming cyclocross season — that immediately stretched the field to its breaking point. Tour de Nez stage winner Graham Howard (HPChiro/Scott’s Cycles of Salem) went next but was soon joined by several Rubicon riders before the bunch pulled them back. Constant escape attempts and the ensuing chases combined with crashes and fatigue to whittle the field by as much as a third.

Racing was up close and personal.

And when the race closed in on its final laps, Rubicon-Orbea left little doubt which team was in charge. The yellow-and-black-kitted team (with the exception of Northey’s white NZ national champion’s jersey) gathered at the front, with 6’5” track star Jason Allen at the point driving the pace to ward off late attacks, an effort that seemed to stifle the field.

“Jason did an awesome effort with 10 laps to go,” Van Uden said. “He just stuck it out on the front, which meant we could sit there and be in a good position for the sprint.”

In fact, Allen’s final effort closed down the race so effectively the team’s plan to expend themselves leading out Northey proved unnecessary.

“Jason did such a long pull that I was still really fresh coming into a half lap to go,” Van Uden said. “I hit it on the back straight with the intent of leading out for them to come around, but the course is so short from there that I was able to stick it to the end. And Mike (Northey) was getting dive-bombed by everyone from behind, so it made it tough for him.”

Gentle Lovers rider Steven Beardsley, who appeared to be having words with Tuckerman as the pair crossed the line, had hoped to celebrate his birthday with a hometown win at Portland’s biggest one-day road race, but he said Rubicon’s aggressive riding at the finish made it impossible. Beardsley accused Rubicon riders of chopping his wheel in corners and trying to force him out of their lead out organization, preventing him and others from attacking or moving forward. In the end, he settled for a 12th-place finish and didn’t get his birthday win.

Van Uden credited his teammates with putting him into position to post his last win in the U.S. with the Rubicon organization of David and Norrene Godfrey.

“Tonight was just a huge team effort,” he said. “We all worked so well together.  Everyone was just attacking and following moves. And so it was just a great team race. I can’t thank them enough.”

CAT 3 RACE

Ironclad's Jeff Harwood won the bunch sprint to close out the 40-minute Cat 3 race that started the evening.

In the 40-minute Cat 3 race, Ironclad Performance Wear’s Jeff Harwood dug deep to take a crowded bunch sprint victory in front of recently crowned OBRA road race champion Kyle Brown (Team Bike Tires Direct) and Beaverton Bicycle Club junior Joe Prettyman.

Check out the PHOTO GALLERY.

UNOFFICIAL RESULTS
Portland Twilight Criterium Presented by Subaru
Friday, Aug. 13

Pro/1/2
1. Roman van Uden (Rubicon-Orbea)
2. Ben Chaddock (Rubicon-Orbea)
3. Mike Northey (Rubicon-Orbea)
4. Quinn Keogh (Rubicon-Orbea)
5. Logan Owen (Hagens Berman)
Cat 3
1. Jeff Harwood (Ironclad Performance Wear)
2. Kyle Brown (Bike Tires Direct)
3. Joe Prettyman (Beaverton Bicycle Club)
4. Greg Milarda (Team Waste Management)
5. Scott Jones (Portland Velo)

Complete OBRA results are HERE.
Read more…

Last year's Portland Twilight Criterium winner Adrian Hegyvary (Hagens Berman) is flanked by Steven Beardsley (Gentle Lovers) and Evan Elken (Land Rover-Orbea).

PORTLAND — The criterium season hits full speed this weekend when Portland’s premiere one-day road racing event rips into the heart of downtown tonight with the Twilight Criterium presented by Subaru.

The fast, six-corner course in downtown Portland features some rough pavement and off-camber crowns in the corners.

Now in its ninth year on the Oregon calendar, the Twilight Criterium has proven to be a showcase for up-and-coming talent. Past winners include current European ProTour sprinting sensation Tyler Farrar, who took the top prize in 2005. Current USA National Criterium Champion John Murphy won the race in 2007, and last year’s winner, Adrian Hegyvary, is riding with top U.S. team United Healthcare this season. This year’s racing will feature the talented kiwi/yank contingent from Portland’s Rubicon-Orbea team, one of the nation’s top elite amateur teams. The yellow-clad squad packs a double punch in former Tour of the Gila criterium winner Roman van Uden and Mike Northey, New Zealand’s 2009 U23 National Criterium Champion.

Giving Rubicon a run for the money will be U.S. cyclocross star Ryan Trebon, a Bend resident who is using the crit as training for the upcoming ‘cross season. Local speedster Steven Beardsley (Gentle Lovers) will no doubt be challenging for the hometown win, along with a host of usual suspects from the local and regional racing scenes.

The riders will compete on a course that surrounds the North Park Blocks, creating an island oasis of 360-degree viewing, music, food and beverages. Each lap is one-half mile long and should take the racers just over one minute to complete. The North Park Blocks will be packed with vendors, exhibitors and a food cart arena. Widmer Brewing is hosting a beer garden, and spectators will find cycling apparel, hand-made bike crafts and more along vendors row. Race guides will be available at the Information Booth and all vendor booths.

The racing starts at 6:30 p.m. with a 40-minute event for all Cat 3 racers of any age or gender (Cat 2 women can also race this event). The hour-long Pro/1/2 race starts at 7:30. The course is highly technical so fields are limited to 80 riders.

Check out the PHOTO GALLERY from last year’s race.

http://www.portlandtwilight.com/twilight-criterium-spectators.html

SCHEDULE:

*   4:00 pm — Streets are closed except Everett St. Activities open: Widmer Beer Garden, Handbuilt Bike Show, Food Carts
*   6:00 pm — Everett St. closes
*   6:15 pm — Racers’ warm-up
*   6:30 pm — Cat 3 race (all ages + genders, cat 2 women allowed) – 40 minutes
*   7:15 pm — Racers’ warm-up
*   7:30 pm — Pro/1/2 – 60 minutes

Past Winners: 2009 Adrian Hegyvary (Hagens Berman); 2008 Stephan Kincaid (Rite Aid); 2007 John Murphy (Health Net/Maxxis); 2006 Garrett Peltonen (Health Net/Maxxis); 2005 Tyler Farrar (Health Net); 2004 Adam Curry (Team Revolution); 2003 Todd Littlehales (Sierra Nevada); 2002 Todd Littlehales (Navigators)
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PORTLAND — Mike Northey continued the Rubicon-Orbea sweep of local races with a win Tuesday night at PIR. Northey battled Gentle Lovers’ sprinter Steven Beardsley throughout the evening and ended up tied with his rival on points, but Northey got the nod to the top step of the podium by taking out the final sprint. Both riders finished the evening with 22 points, with Rubicon-Orbea’s Andy Williams nailing down third with 10 points.

Ironclad Performance Wear’s Daniel Penner took the win in the Cat 3/4 race ahead of Team Oregon’s Stephan Niquet and Liberty Cycles’ Stephen Fitzgerald. Unattached rider Jesse Trigg won the Cat 4/5 race in front of Joshua Cady and Carl Dreyer.

RESULTS
PIR Tuesday Nighter
August 10
Pro/1/2/3
1. Mike Northey (Rubicon-ORBEA Benefiting the Lance Armstrong Foundation) 22
2. Steven Beardsley (Gentle Lovers) 22
3. Andy Williams (Rubicon-ORBEA Benefiting the Lance Armstrong Foundation) 10 *Not on registration
4. Eddie French (Guinness Cycling Team) 8
5. John Leonard (Rapha Racing) 7
Cat 3/4
1. Daniel Penner (Ironclad Performance Wear) 18
2. Stephan Niquet (Team Oregon) 15
3. Stephen Fitzgerald (Liberty Cycle) 15
4. Robert Carver (Ironclad Performance Wear) 12
5. Colton Swearingen (Mountain View Cycles) 11
Cat 4/5
1. Jesse Trigg (Unattached) 15
2. Joshua Cady (Unattached) 13
3. Carl Dreyer (Unattached) 10
4. Dustin Harder (Harder Cycling) 10
5. Ian Mastenbrook (Unattached) 8

Complete OBRA results are HERE.

Lisa Reeve (Veloforma) took the Senior Women's win Monday night at PIR.

PORTLAND — Cyclepath’s Christian Tresser and Veloforma’s Lisa Reeve took home the wins Monday Night at PIR in the Masters 1/2/3 and Senior Women’s races. Tresser notched 17 points to win the Masters race in front of Paul Zagacki (bicycleattorney.com) and John Mitchem. Reeve battled Karey Miles (Therapeutic Associates Cycling/GENR8) throughout the night in the women’s race and took the win with 20 points. Miles notched 13 for second, and Nicole Marcoe (Strava) was third with 12.

Check out the complete PHOTO GALLERY.

RESULTS
Monday Night PIR
August 9
Masters 1/2/3
1. Tresser, Christian (Cyclepath Racing) 17
2. Zagacki, Paul (bicycleattorney.com) 15
3. Mitchem, John (Guinness Cycling Team) 12
4. Schwaeber, Steve (Veloce Racing) 9
5. Quirk, Daniel (Veloce Racing) 7
Senior Women
1. Reeve Lisa (Veloforma) 20
2. Miles, Karey (Therapeutic Associates Cycling/GENR8) 13
3. Marcoe, Nicole (Strava) 12
4. Levo, Jenn (Bridgetown Velo) 10
5. Brubaker, Tina (Veloforma) 8

Complete OBRA results are HERE.
Read more…

Testicular cancer survivor Quinn Keogh's unique victory salute at the OBRA Road Race Championships Saturday in Trout Lake.

TROUT LAKE, Wash. — Rubicon-Orbea’s Quinn Keogh crossed the line for his first-ever OBRA Road Race Championship in the Senior Men’s event Saturday and used the opportunity to remind spectators that he is a cancer survivor. In the Senior Women’s race, CAPA Cycling’s Leia Tyrrell followed up last weekend’s Vancouver Courthouse Criterium win with another fast finishing kick to take her first OBRA road race title.

The Senior Men

Keogh finished with teammates Mike Northey and Roman van Uden nearly four minutes ahead of Team Oregon’s Chris Swan, who soloed in for fourth ahead of Idaho’s Gabe Vaelo (SDBC), John Browning (Echelon Gran Fondo/ZteaM) and a disintegrated field. Hot, humid conditions combined with strong winds and a difficult course to turn the championship races into battles of attrition, with 40 percent of the starters abandoning before the finish and many popping off on the short-but-sweet climb just five miles into the course. The men’s Cat 3 race was hit especially hard, with exactly half of the 36 starters dropping out.

Keogh escaped the field about 12 miles into the 92-mile race and was quickly joined by Browning and Swan on the back side of the course. Northey and van Uden then bridged to the leaders amid local auto traffic on the difficult 10-mile rolling climb back to the start/finish for the beginning of the second lap.

“They came from nowhere,” Keogh said of his teammates joining the lead trio. “I just heard them come on and say, ‘Hey’.”
The group grew to seven as they started up the first climb of the second lap after Taylor Kneuven (Adageo Energy) and Vaelo also bridged to the leaders. The chase behind from the decimated field was soon whittled down to about 10 riders as the leaders rolled well together over the mostly flat backside of the course that led to the long, fast descent. Kneuven popped off the lead pace when he suffered a broken spoke, but the group’s advantage grew to more than two minutes as they made the tight right-hand corner to head north back to the finish. Without really attacking, the Rubicon trio then shed Vaelo, Browning and eventually Swan on the difficult headwind ascent back to Trout Lake.

“All the people who dropped were cramping,” said Keogh, who admitted he had been fighting leg cramps as well for most of the final miles. “It didn’t seem that hot, but with the strong crosswinds today people were working harder than they normally would. I was cramping every couple of minutes. I’d have to stand and hope that it wouldn’t totally seize.”

Once the three teammates shed their rivals, they set their sights on putting Keogh on the top step of the podium for his first OBRA championship. Keogh crossed the line just ahead of Nortthey and van Uden, taking the moment for a symbolic victory salute.
“I’m very proud of them,” he said of his teammates. “They really gave it to me, so I’m thankful for that.”

TYRRELL ADDS STATE TITLE TO SUCCESSFUL SEASON

Anona Whitley charged up the first climb in the women's race and initiated the selection for the final lead group.

The Senior Women’s race proved another opportunity for CAPA Cycling’s Leia Tyrrell to use her fast finishing kick and add another notch on her season. The young rider, who competed for Oregon State U. collegiately, took the bronze at collegiate criterium nationals and was invited to participate on a composite team for the NRC Nature Valley Grand Prix. Saturday she won a bunch sprint after a difficult 46-mile race that selected its lead group just a few miles into the race.

The women tackled one lap of the large Trout Lake/Glenwood loop for their 46-mile event. Just like the men’s race, the power climb just five miles into the clockwise course quickly separated the contenders from the day’s sufferers. Ironclad performance Wear’s Anona Whitley, who won the separately scored Cat 3 race, led the group up the climb with Tyrrell and Sorella Forte’s Jen Akeroyd in hot pursuit. The three opportunists tried to pull away but a group of about 12 riders quickly joined them and formed the lead group that would ride into the finish. After swooping down the long descent and turning back north into the headwind and rolling climb, the jockeying for position started to in full force.

“There was a lot of shifting around because no one wanted to be up front,” Tyrrell said. “I knew Brenna (Lopez-Otero) was really strong so I wanted to be near her, and I just waited. I knew I need to wait and be pretty close to the finish.”

With Veloforma, Akeroyd, River City’s Amy Campbell and others sharing the pace at the front of the group in the closing kilometers, Tyrrell hung close Lopez-Otero’s wheel and waited to pounce.

“Close to the line Brenna jumped out, and I knew to get on her wheel because she’s really strong,” Tyrrell said. “Then I just came around her.”

Campbell crossed the line next for second, followed by Lopez-Otero, Veloforma’s Tina Brubaker and Akeroyd rounding out the top five.

Check the PHOTO GALLERY for this race.

RESULTS
OBRA Road race Championships
Saturday, Aug. 7

Senior Men (92 miles)
1. Quinn Keogh (Rubicon-Orbea) 3:53:06
2. Mike Northey (Rubicon-Orbea) 3:53:06
3. Roman Van Uden (Rubicon-Orbea) 3:53:06
4. Chris Swan (Team Oregon/Laurelwood Brewery) +02:52
5. Gabe Vaelo (SDBC ACL/No Coer D’Alene) +03:06
Senior Women (46 miles)
1. Leia Tyrrell (CAPA Cycling) 2:13:09
2. Amy Campbell (River City Bicycles) 0:00
3. Brenna Lopez-Otero (Bend Memorial Clinic Total Care) 0:00
4. Tina Brubaker (Veloforma) +:01
5. Jen Akeroyd (Sorella Forte) +:01
… … … … … … … … … … … … … Read more…

This weekend's OBRA Road Race Championships will start and finish at the same place as the Mt. Adams course used for stage 2 of the 2010 Mt. Hood Cycling Classic. But this new "Glenwood" circuit heads south rather than going north onto the remote forest service roads of the Ginford Pinchot National Forest.

TROUT LAKE, Wash. — This weekend’s upcoming OBRA Road Race Championships in Trout Lake, Wash., north of Hood River will turn a new page for Oregon racing. The Original schedule called for a rehearsal race at the beginning of August, with the championships running at the end of the month. Now the rehearsal race has been scrubbed in favor of a championship Saturday and Sunday that will take place Aug. 7 and 8. Skill- and experience-graded categories will race Saturday, with age-graded categories following up on Sunday.

Race Director Chad Sperry said he hopes participants will embrace the festival spirit and spend some time in Hood River, taking advantage of the area’s plethora of rides, hikes and other outdoor activities. Many racers may also choose to race both days, an option that wasn’t as practical under the old system.

“We’ve done away with the rehearsal and we’re turning it into one festival weekend,” Sperry said of the revised schedule. “And we really think that’s going to be a premiere course. It’s very neutral and doesn’t favor any one particular demographic or rider.”

The route itself should look partially familiar to riders who took part in the 2010 Mt. Hood Cycling Classic. The Stage 2 Mt. Adams Road Race also started at the trout Lake school. But while the Mt. Hood stage headed north into the Gifford Pinchot National Forest, the OBRA championships route heads south to BZ corner before turning back north toward Trout Lake via Glenwood. The course consists of two loops: a large 46.5-mile circuit with two climbs, and a smaller 12-mile inner circuit that is mostly flat. The two loops allow race organizers to control distances for different categories. The Pro/1/2 men will race two large circuits for 93 miles. Other categories will race a combination of the longer and shorter loops, while the juniors’ race will take place exclusively on the mostly flat shorter loop.

A herd of elk feeds not far from the road about halfway through the course.

The rolling-to-flat Trout Lake/Glenwood course has two notable climbs, one long grinder that gains 1,500 feet of elevation and one shorter popper with 500 feet of elevation gain. With plenty of flat-to-downhill roads between the climbs and the finish, riders who get away early will really have to work if they want to try and stay away to the end.

The counterclockwise course starts under the shadow of Mt. Adams at the Trout Lake school (about 21 miles north White Salmon) and heads south on wide pavement with an almost unnoticeable downhill grade. The peloton turns left at a local geographical feature called BZ Corner and quickly starts ascending the longest of the two climbs. Never really steep, the five-mile grinder eventually flattens into a valley as it passes through farmlands and timber stands. This is where the elk herds, bald eagles and wild turkeys that live here will have a good view of the action. Then the climbing resumes on the other side of the valley with a steeper pitch.

Breakaway Promotions’ Venue Director Bill Warburton said the climb is only a mile long, but it will hurt.

“Any break that goes here better be well motivated,” he said, “because the course drops, rolls and flattens as it proceeds through tall ponderosas and tree cover for many miles. This will be some awesome racing in here.”

Now heading toward the tiny burg of Glenwood, the valley opens up to provide breathtaking views of Mt. Adams. A left turn at Glenwood leads the course back into the foothills and a series of progressively larger rollers that build to a fast, twisting descent into the Trout Lake valley’s flats and the mile-long, straight-as-an-arrow run to the start/finish back at the school.

“My overall impression is this is a fairly neutral course in terms of climbs and flats,” Warburton said. “The climbs will contribute to selections, but so could the flats, especially if there’s much wind. The course could almost favor those who prefer to attack on the flats rather than the climbs. We’ll see. Either way, it’s a fantastic course.”

The Trout Lake area truly is spectacular, offering breathtaking scenery, sparsely traveled roads and abundant wildlife. And Sperry said the humans who inhabit the area are happy to host the race as well.

“The Community of Trout Lake is incredibly excited to have the races up there,” Sperry said. “It’s a beautiful location, and we’re really planning a fun-filled weekend for people who are coming up to participate in that.”

Check the SCHEDULE, MAP & PHOTO GALLERY.
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PORTLAND –OBRA and Echelon Gran Fondo announced an officially sanctioned 21-mile hill climb portion of the Sept. 26 Echelon Gran Fondo with Team Radio Shack’s Chris Horner. OBRA will sanction the timed challenge for all riders who enter the 100-mile portion of the route.

With approximately 1,200 cyclists, The Echelon Gran Fondo will begin its ceremonial mass start in the town of Hood River at Sept. 26. All riders will proceed toward The Dalles, following the Historic Columbia River highway while riding alongside Horner. At mile marker 15, the 30-mile participants will turn back toward Hood River. At mile marker 30, the 60-mile participants will also turn for Hood River while the 100-mile riders will continue to the town of Dufur for the start of the hill climb. From Dufur to the KOM is approximately 21 miles straight up Mt. Hood, averaging about 6 percent grade and finishing just before Highway 35. There will be a TDF-like hilltop finish with some great food. After some hilltop festivities, riders will make the 35-mile downhill trek to Hood River for the festival and awards with the 30- and 60-mile riders.

START TIMES
8:30 AM: Mass Start times–All riders start together in Hood River, Oregon
9:45 AM: (approximately) 30 mile riders split and turn back to Hood River along the historic highway
10:15 AM: (approximately) 60 mile riders split and make turn towards Hood River
11:00 AM (approximately) All 100 mile riders arrive town of Dufur, Oregon

Hill climb start times: Town of Dufur
11:30 AM: Category’s 1-3 men**
11:40 AM: Category’s 3-5 men**
11:50 AM: Women’s–all categories**

*Since the event is chip timed, your time will still count no matter when you start the hill climb. You may leave before or after the sanctioned hill climb start time but it is recommended that you try to make the sanctioned start times.

Entry fees
$25 registration fee
$125 minimum fundraising (or donation)
$150 total (covers full gran fondo, food, after party and sanctioned hill climb)
additional fundraising over $125 is optional but encouraged

OBRA Points
OBRA upgrade points will be awarded according to actual finish times.

Awards/Prizes will be based by time less any time bonuses (time deduction).
Echelon will be awarding time bonuses (time deductions) for all riders for based on additional fundraising efforts:

Standard entry: $125 to $199 raised (no time bonus)

White jersey time bonus: $300 fundraiser level (5 minute time bonus)

Blue jersey jersey time bonus: $500 fundraiser level
(7.5 minute time bonus)

Green jersey jersey time bonus: $1000 fundraiser level
(10 minute time bonus)

Polka jersey jersey time bonus: $2,500 fundraiser level
(15 minute time bonus)

Yellow jersey jersey time bonus: $5,000 fundraiser level
(22.5 minute time bonus)