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NAHBS: Form and function
Among all the builders and the wide selections of material, color, construction and size at the North American Handmade Bicycle Show, one common theme that I’ve noticed is a distinct respect for all-purpose, utilitarian bikes. Perhaps it’s a reaction to fuel prices during the summer, or simply an expression of the small builders’ ethic, but at least 70 percent of the builders on display are showing some variant of an urban town bike, a cargo bike or an all-purpose touring road bike.
Magallanes wins Mexican tour opener
Juan Pablo Magallanes of Mexico’s national squad won the opening stage of the Vuelta Mexico-TelMex, outsprinting his fellow breakaway companion, Francesco Rivera (Amica Chips Knauf). The two left the field early in the day, building up to a lead of 4:15 before being reeled back over the final lap of a nine-kilometer circuit in Lunes del Cerro, in the province of Oaxaca.
Pauriol tops Rebellin in GP Lugano
In Switzerland, French rider Rémi Pauriol (Cofidis) took his second win on the season ahead of veteran Davide Rebellin (Diquigiovanni) after the pair peeled away in the 178km GP Lugano. The 26-year-old Frenchman won the GP d’Ouverture Marseillaise to open the French calendar on Feb. 1 and takes a victory a month later on the opening weekend of the Swiss calendar. Last year, Rebellin finished second in the GP Lugano to Rinaldo Nocentini, but took revenge on his Italian rival by beating him for the overall at Paris-Nice two weeks later.
Henderson wins in Spain
Greg Henderson scored a sprint victory in Sunday’s Clásica Almería in the Spanish one-day race controlled perfectly by the Columbia-Highroad team. Henderson out-kicked Graeme Brown (Rabobank) for his first win on the season while Stefano Garzelli (Acqua e Sapone) came through third out of a reduced, 35-strong front group.
Tom Boonen wins 2009 Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne
Quick Step's Tom Boonen claimed his first big spring classics win of the season at the Kuurne-Bruxelles-Kuurne semi-classic on Sunday. A former world champion, Boonen finished ahead of Columbia-High Road's sprinter Bernhard Eisel of Austria and Britain's Jeremy Hunt (Cervélo TestTeam ), who was third in a bunch sprint for the line. At Sunday's race, held over 194km, the 194-strong field stopped to pay tribute to Belgian racer Frederiek Nolf, 21, who died in his sleep at the Tour of Qatar on February 5.
NAHBS: New materials, traditional craftsmanship
One striking juxtaposition (among several) that I’ve noticed at the North American Handmade Bicycle Show this year is the use of cutting-edge modern materials and design mixed with old world craftsmanship and utilitarianism. Hand built carbon fiber bikes are dressed in fenders and racks. A hand welded single-speed town bike is built with an integrated seat mast and carbon fiber fork. No matter what the blend of exotic materials, wheels and components, the most common saddle on bikes in the show is a classic leather Brooks.
Kelly Benefit Strategies: Making their own way
The sun is just breaking through an overcast sky on Wednesday morning in San Antonio as the Kelly Benefit/ Strategies pro team prepares for another long day on the bike. While many of the KBS racers escaped sub-freezing temperatures to spend two weeks training in the Texas Hill Country, few expected the day’s estimated high of 85-degrees. “Sunscreen, don’t forget the sunscreen,” the team’s soigneur implores.
Leipheimer sidelined with fracture
The Astana Cycling team announced Saturday that Levi Leipheimer suffered an undisplaced fracture of the sacrum in a crash during the third stage of the Amgen Tour of California. As a result of the diagnosis, Leipheimer will not compete in next month’s edition of Paris-Nice (March 6-15) and will delay his return to cycling until March 23, when he competes in the five-day Vuelta a Castilla y León.
Petacchi scores stage win, Bennati claims Sardegna
It was hard to believe that Alessandro Petacchi hadn’t won a stage all week during the return after a 12-year absence of the Giro di Sardegna in Italy. Was the Italian sprinter losing his touch? A day after losing his chain in the final sprint, Petacchi got his victory in the fifth and final stage to quiet the critics. The veteran Italian was able to beat back compatriot Daniele Bennati (Liquigas) to take the face-saving win. Bennati, meanwhile, winner of yesterday’s stage, sprinted to second and claimed the overall title.
Hushovd wins Het Nieuwsblad
Norwegian Thor Hushovd (Cervélo TestTeam) lived up to his promise to focus more on the classics this season by taking an important victory in Saturday’s Omloop Het Nieuwsblad that officially opened the Belgian racing calendar. Formerly known as Het Volk, the semi-classic delivered a nail-biter to kick start the classics season as Hushovd steered clear of two late crashes to steer to victory ahead of Kevin Ista (Agritubel) with Juan Antonio Flecha (Rabobank) coming through third.