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Sizes: Medium and Large Price: $89.99 Web site: www.lezyne.com Lezyne’s Carbon Road Drive is in a class of its own when it comes to road hand pumps. Coming in two sizes, the medium weighs in at a slim 88 grams, and the large at 104 grams. Machined out of aluminum and topped off with a solid lay-up carbon handle, it is light yet durable. They advertise that the carbon mounting bracket is noise and vibration free. As a special feature, it is compatible with Lezyne water bottle cages.

A new brand will appear on the Team Liquigas technical clothing for the seasons 2009 and 2010. To repropose the green and blue uniforms, the team presided by Paolo Dal Lago choosed Nalini, leader firm in the cycling clothing production.

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The most dominant feature on Stage 2 of La Ruta de los Conquistadores is the 25km paved climb from San Ignacio Acosta to Copalchi, which accounts for roughly one-third of the 76km trip from west to east San Jose. In La Ruta’s trusty race guide, the climb’s profile appears a gradual three-peaked slog up 3000 vertical feet.

Cervélo TestTeam is pleased to announce that Castelli has become a sponsor of the team. “Castelli is very excited to become a partner of the Cervélo TestTeam and will provide technical race clothing to the men's and women's race teams,” said Steve Smith, Director of Marketing, Castelli.

On Saturday, November 22nd and Sunday, November 23rd, 2008 the North Carolina Grand Prix will be hosted at Jackson Park in Hendersonville, NC. This is will be the 4th year of the successful UCI sanctioned cyclo-cross races held in Henderson County, NC. A fabulous course that twists and turns, allows racers to gain top notch speeds, and tests their strength riding up “The Wall” has been planned. Some of the countries’ top cyclo-cross racers will be competing for a purse of over $7,100.00.

2009 will bring a unique super elite cycling team to the US scene: an all American-driven primarily U-25 super elite team. This team will be lead and managed by Paul Martin, the current reigning 2008 Master 35-39 National Road Race Champion and 2007 Elite & Master National Road Race Champion as the General Manager and Sports Director. He is a former winner of the Elite U.S. National Road Race championship in 1997, podium finisher in both the Elite Road Race Nationals, and Elite Criterium Nationals in 2002.

Ukrainian cyclist Yaroslav Popovych has signed a two-year contract with the Astana team, which boasts seven-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong on its books. The 28-year-old Popovych joined up once more with team boss Johan Bruyneel whom he rode for when at the Discovery Channel team from 2005 to 2007.

FOX Racing will produce two commemorative suspension components — a special 40 RC2 fork and DHX RC4 shock — based on development that netted championship titles in men’s and women’s downhill worlds in 2009. Only 200 of each will be produced for consumers.

The maker of Stan's NoTubes wheels and tires is suing Specialized over alleged patent infringement involving Specialized's Roval wheels. The New York-based company sued Specialized in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York on Sept. 15. The suit involves the company's U.S. Patent No. 7,334,846, issued to Stanley Koziatek in February, concerning the design of tubeless rims.

The Agency for Cycling Ethics has shut down, leaving the Garmin-Chipotle, BMC and Columbia teams hustling to line up a new independent doping testing provider for their riders. ACE co-founder Paul Strauss said the California-based business concluded all its contracts last week and shut down. "Our position at this point is that we closed this year due to our financial model and we will have no further comment," he said. Garmin-Chipotle team manager Jonathan Vaughters told VeloNews the team will continue independent testing with a different provider.

It was unfortunate for Matti Breschel that his most important result so far in his young but promising career came on the same day that two Italians finished alongside him on the worlds podium in Varese, Italy. Only one journalist asked the blonde-haired Dane a question during post-race press conference dominated by over-excited Italian journalists lobbing soft balls to winner Alessandro Ballan and silver medalist Damiano Cunego.

Colors: Red, Black, Blue Sizes: Small, Medium, Large Price: $64.95 Web site: www.barmitts.com Are you a cold-weather rider? Then Bar Mitts may be of interest to you. Modeled after hang gliding mitts, Bar Mitts encase your hoods, brakes, and handlebars, creating warm neoprene pockets for your hands. This weather shield for your hands allow you to wear a thinner glove, which leads to better bike handling.

The BC Bike Race has finalized its plans to host two Singlespeed Categories in the upcoming 2009 Event (June 28-July 4th). Leader’s jerseys will be awarded in the Men’s Open and Women’s Open categories*. The BC Bike Race is a seven day epic mountain bike stage race from Victoria to Whistler on the west coast of Canada. The route passes through lush rain forests, over the Coastal mountain range and spends the majority of its time on singletrack built by mountain bikers for mountain bikers.

What’s the best way to quantify pain? This question popped into my head countless times during today’s opening stage of La Ruta de los Conquistadores, a hellacious 68.7-mile slog from Jaco Beach to the outskirts of San Jose. During the journey I carried my bike up ridiculously steep, muddy slopes, climbed 14,500 feet of elevation gain (much of it in the granny gear) and suffered like a rented mule. I crossed the line cross-eyed and drooling just under eight hours in 42nd place, about two hours behind stage winner Frederico “Lico” Ramirez.

Ivan Basso of the Liquigas Team, has just returned from the land of the rising sun where he took part in the Japan Cup gaining an excellent third place (behind Damiano Cunego and Giovanni Visconti) after an extraordinary and entertaining performance. Upon his return from Japan, Ivan visited the Sidi Sport headquarters of Maser in the Italian province of Treviso.

Ukranian Valeriy Kobzarenko, who was one of Team Type 1’s most dependable riders in 2008, will return to the squad in 2009. At the same time, the second-year team announced the signing of promising young Slovenian sprinter Aldo Ino Ilesic.   The two join eight other riders already announced for Team Type 1, a team striving to instill hope and inspiration for people around the world affected by diabetes. Co-founders Phil Southerland and Joe Eldridge are two of four riders on the men’s professional roster who have Type 1 diabetes.  

Kansas State Cyclocross Championships Leavenworth, KS - November 11, 2008 - The Cow Town Cycling Team is proud to present the 2008 Kansas State Cyclocross Championships. This years De Stad Cross Cup doubles has the the state championships on the historic campus of University of Saint Mary. A championship course has been designed using much of the natural 240 acres that the campus offers. "This is by far the sweetest course in the mid-west with sections of cobbles, natural run-ups, challenging sand, beautiful tree lined hillside and the

Price: TBA Web site: www.zerotractionfilm.com ZERO traction is a film about the 2007 cold and muddy USA Cycling’s Cyclocross National Championships in Kansas City. Shot entirely in high definition, the film captures the grimy details of ‘cross. The film is scheduled to premiere in Lawrence, Kansas on November 19th. DVDs will soon be available at www.zerotractionfilm.com.

Former Tour de France champion Jan Ullrich won nearly a half-million dollars in back pay from his one-season run at Team Coast in 2003 after a German court ruled in his favor Wednesday.   The 1997 Tour winner was back at the center of attention Wednesday with a court appearance in a long-running dispute between the now-tainted German star and the defunct Coast team, whose manager, Günther Dahms, refused to pay part of Ullrich’s salary because he said the rider was doping.  

Editor’s note:Tom LeCarner, VeloNews’ copy editor, is a 41-year-old longtime cyclist and former racer who has been struggling with tendonitis this year. Specialized has offered to help Tom overcome his injuries with its Body Geometry equipment and treatment by Andy Pruitt of the Boulder Center for Sports Medicine. Tom will report on if and how he progresses in a regular column on VeloNews.com. His first piece here gives some background of the causes of his injuries.

They say the best way to perfect a skill is to go to where that skill is practiced perfectly. For cyclocross, Belgium is that place. Cycling fanaticism in Belgium is difficult to explain. There is really no correlation to it in the United States. Football is the easiest association, in the scale of the fan base and the spectacle, but the true Belgian cyclocross fan is more deeply rooted to the athlete than the true football fan.

Bobbles, bubbles and beer — there was all that and more last weekend during the Single Speed Cyclocross World Championships in Portland, Oregon. Canadian Drew MacKenzie won the men’s crown, beating the likes of Ryan Trebon, Nat Ross, Steve Fassbinder and Adam Craig. Sue Butler took top honors in the women's race, winning a come-from-behind battle.

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Popular Science has awarded Shimano's new Dura-Ace 7970 Di2 electric group a "Grand Award Winner" in the Recreation category of the magazine's “Best of What’s New 2008.” The group, available in January net year, was one of 100 technological innovations included in the December issue of the magazine, but swept the Recreation category to take the top prize as one of ten Grand Award Winners.

Team Cyclocrossworld.com-Cannondale doubled up this past weekend during the UCI 1 Toronto International Cyclocross in Toronto, Canada, putting Jeremy Powers atop the podium on Saturday with Tim Johnson taking the win on Sunday. Canadians had plenty to cheer about, too, as Ottawa’s Natasha Elliott (Stevens-EMD Sorono) scored two consecutive victories on the muddy Centennial Park course.

A buzz of nervous anticipation hangs thick in the air at Jaco Beach today, as the 400 or so participants in Costa Rica’s 2008 La Ruta de los Conquistadores are picking up race packets, packing bags and preparing for tomorrow’s opening stage. The first of four days packs a serious punch — 68.7 miles and roughly 14,500 feet of elevation gain from Jaco to Ciudad Colon. The day also includes a plethora of super steep ascents, muddy hike-a-bike sections, river crossings and plenty of pain.