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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.

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.

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.

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

Dear Explainer,
Is there an instance in which a rider returning from a two-year ban has been caught doping again?

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.

Throughout his career as promoter of the Whitmore’s Landscaping Super Cross Cup in the Hamptons, Myles Romanow has been battling rumors about his race.  “People hear about the celebrities and their mansions in the Hamptons and automatically assume that a hotel room costs, like, five thousand dollars a night.  But Hip Hop moguls and television stars aren’t the only people who live here.  We still have cops and school bus drivers, house cleaners and guys who pump gas, just like the town you live in.  They live in whole communities with normal-priced restaurants and hotels.  If you nee

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to ride in a professional peloton? Well, now is your chance to ride with some of your favorite pros as part of the Cycling Sherpa program at California BikeFest. Cycling Sherpa are past and current professional cyclists who are ‘for hire’ for the rides in Ventura, California on Saturday, December 6, 2008 starting at the Crowne Plaza, Ventura Beach.

Team Type 1 will be bolstered in 2009 by the return of stage racing specialists Matt Wilson and Ian MacGregor, as announced by Sport Director Ed Beamon Monday.   Wilson, 31, rebounded from breaking his right wrist in March to score stage wins at the Tour de Beauce and the Bend Memorial Clinic Cascade Cycling Classic. The 2004 Australian national road champion also earned King of the Mountains titles at the Tour of Ireland and the Jayco Herald Sun Tour in Australia.  

Capitalizing on a very successful 2008 season, the ValueAct Capital Women’s Cycling Team has added even more depth and top talent to its roster for the 2009 season.  The team, who had wins at Tour of the Gila and podiums at Mt. Hood, Elite Nationals and the CSC Invitational, will be contesting a full NRC calendar in 2009.  

Recreational Equipment, Inc. (REI) has launched www.rei.com/bikeyourdrive, an online resource created to inspire more people to cycle by exposing myths and breaking down common barriers associated with using a bicycle as an alternate means of transportation. The site offers helpful "how-to” video demonstrations, a calculator to show environmental, caloric and financial "savings,” and recommended cycling gear essentials. Online expert advice and other tools assist riders of all skill levels in understanding proper safety procedures, bike maintenance and the rules of the road.

In the seven years since the TransRockies began, it has quickly become a great aspiration for many mountain bikers. We’re proud that it is on so many riders’ to-do lists and we’re stoked every time we hear someone tell us “next year I’ll do TransRockies”. And we hear that a lot!

Kenda Pro Cycling p/b Spinergy is pleased to welcome new sponsors for 2009 to its family of long-term supporters. As Inferno Racing LLC’s new program enters its freshman year as a UCI Continental team, they are excited to forge new relationships with: AlphaQ, Cane Creek, Feather Brakes, Fluid, Hincapie Sports Wear, Look, Qoleum, Showers Pass, Travelers Insurance, and TruTrainer.

Land Rover has entered the cycling market with a new sponsorship role for Land Rover-ORBEA, the young cycling development team based out of Portland, Ore. Looking to step into a first year U.S. continental squad for 2009, Land Rover-ORBEA now has the title sponsorship it needs to push them to the next level.

The Chicago Cyclocross Cup is pleased to announce the addition of a collegiate race for both men and women. The race is scheduled for Sunday, November 16 in Lansing, Illinois. The Lan Oak Park Race #8 allows collegiate riders to earn points toward the Midwest Collegiate Cycling Conference (MWCCC) Cyclocross Series. This is the first time the series has incorporated a collegiate race as part of the race offerings.

Coming off impressive performances at the Boulder Cup in Boulder, Colorado, earlier this month, Kona-FSA Factory Team CX rider Ryan Trebon and Velo-Bella Kona rider Amy Dombroski hold first place in the elite men's and women's categories in the North American Cyclocross Trophy Series (NACT). The two riders will look to maintain their top rankings at the final race of the series which takes place on Nov. 22-23 in Southampton, New York.

Don’t think it’s too soon to plan ahead for the first favorite ride of the season on Colorado’s Front Range. As usual, ground zero begins at the Douglas County Fairgrounds in Castle Rock, Colo., for the    8-mile family course, 32, 50, 65, 100-mile road rides, and a 25-mile off-road course during the 22nd Annual Elephant Rock Cycling Festival Sunday, June 7, 2009. For adventurers new and seasoned, the clock starts June 5, 2009 at 6:30 p.m. for the 24-hour race at the Greenland Open Space Park south of Castle Rock in Douglas County.  

Amanda Carey, Kenda Titus Hayes, dominated the women's field at the Iceman race this past weekend in Traverse City, MI. Racing in near perfect conditions, she covered the 27 miles from Kalkaska to Traverse City in 1:45:45, more than two minutes ahead of Susan Stevens and Heather Irmiger. This was Amanda's biggest win in her first year of pro racing capping a great first season which included top 10 results on the NMBS circuit and wins at several regional events. "Every time I felt myself falling back, I said nail it, it's almost over," Carey said after the race.

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