Road

Think back to what you were riding off-road a decade ago; you’ll probably chuckle. Maybe you had a 130mm stem, a 48-tooth big ring, or a Flite saddle — all of which were probably anodized purple — and none of which have any business being on a mountain bike. If you were at the cutting edge of suspension technology for cross-country racing you were riding an elastomer sprung fork with a cartridge damper. It’s a good bet it was a RockShox Judy. Back in 1997, I was riding for John Kemp’s RockShox DEVO team. I was a junior expert racer at the time. I had a Judy SL with 63mm of travel, and I was

Bobby Julich wants another crack at an Olympic medal and has penned a deal to continue with Team CSC through the 2008 season. The veteran all-rounder signed a one-year contract extension with the Danish team, his home since the 2004 season. “I signed after the Tour of Germany for one more year,” Julich told VeloNews in an e-mail. “After missing the Tour de France, I found my morale and really enjoyed helping the team. I am extremely proud to be on the best team in the world for the third year in a row.” Despite missing the 2007 Tour this year after a nasty stomach bug zapped him, Julich

The Spanish cycling federation on Monday cleared Spanish cyclist Iban Mayo, who tested positive for doping during the 2007 Tour de France, after a second test proved negative, his lawyer and the federation said. The federation informed Mayo "that the B sample had come out negative and for this reason it had ended" its inquiry, Mayo's lawyer, Jose Rodriguez, told AFP. The cycling federation confirmed the news and said there had been a mistake with the first sample. Mayo, a specialist climber, tested positive for blood-booster EPO during the Tour on July 24 and could have been suspended

Matthew Wilson was at a loss for words when, after seven of the most challenging days in his sporting life, it was finally announced he was the winner of the 2007 Jayco Herald Sun Tour. "I don't know what to say... It's the best feeling... I've only had a few victories in my career, and they're all special for different reasons, but this one goes down as probably the best," said the Unibet pro, overjoyed with his victory but also relieved a turbulent week was finally over. From the first stage to the last, won by Astana's Aaron Kemps from a three-man breakaway that

With just one stage to go, Matthew Wilson of Unibet.com is poised to take the biggest victory of his career in the Jayco Herald Sun Tour, riding what may well have been a race-saving, race-winning time trial Saturday in Melbourne. Though the margin is small: a superlative performance against the clock saw Steve Morabito the fastest rider around the short but testing 8.6 kilometer course, his time of 11:32 moving the Astana all-rounder within three seconds of Wilson by the day's end. Right now, however, the yellow jersey appears to have all the confidence in the world in what has been a

It’s mid-October and while the Tour of Lombardy is this weekend, the domestic racing season is over. It’s the time of year when battle-weary riders rest their tired legs, reconnect with family and friends, quit shaving their legs and maybe even put on a few pounds. It’s a time that’s supposed to be relaxing, a short counter-balance to a long and stressful race season that now runs from February’s Amgen Tour of California through September’s USA Crits finals in Las Vegas. Health Net-Maxxis rider Kirk O’Bee has been spending time with his 5-year-old son Samuel, riding him to kindergarten and

While two-time defending world champion Paolo Bettini (Quick Step-Innergetic) is heavily favored to score his third consecutive Tour of Lombardy victory on Saturday, the venerable 242km fall classic is not the only title in play. The 2007 ProTour series is also up for grabs because the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) this week handed longtime ProTour leader Danilo Di Luca (Liquigas) a three-month suspension for his implication in the 2004 Oil for Drugs scandal, which caused the UCI to drop him from the standings. These developments put the consistent Cadel Evans (Predictor-Lotto) into the

It appears to be a case of expect the unexpected at the Jayco Herald Sun Tour. Friday in Wangaratta, a town a stone's throw away from Glenrowan, home of great Australian outlaw Ned Kelly, early race leader Matt Wilson and his Unibet.com team piled on the pressure on a short transitional stage through the north-eastern Victorian countryside. By the day's end and with two stages remaining, the 30-year-old found himself back at the top of the leader-board. The finale was equally exciting, with a breakaway group of three fighting out the finish. Two DFL-Cyclingnews riders, Cameron

Giro d’Italia champion Danilo Di Luca, banned this week for three months for alleged links to controversial Italian doctor Carlo Santuccione, has been disqualified from the ProTour series. The UCI made the ruling late Thursday in a decision that will push Cadel Evans into the overall series lead going into the ProTour finale at the Giro di Lombardia on Saturday in Italy. Di Luca, 31, was slapped with a three-month ban Tuesday by the Italian Olympic Committee for alleged contact with Santuccione, the controversial doctor at the center of the “Oil for Drugs” doping investigation dating back

The UCI continues its hard line against dopers with plans to roll out a “biological passport” for all ProTour riders in 2008 that will provide a snapshot of blood indicators. All riders will undergo a battery of urine and blood tests to determine naturally occurring levels of hemotacrit, hemoglobin and other biological indicators that can be used as a reference for each rider. “What is means is that the rider becomes his own reference point,” UCI anti-doping coordinator Anne Gripper told Eurosport. “We look for variations in a rider’s individual profile to determine whether there may be

The 2007 Jayco Herald Sun Tour is looking every bit the nail-biter it was last year. At the close of play Thursday, the top five riders on general classification are separated by half a minute. Matthew Wilson of Unibet may have lost his golden tunic his race is far from over, with just eight seconds between him and new race leader, Joost Van Leijen of the Dutch national team. However, on the 116.5 kilometer fourth stage to Falls Creek, Astana's Steve Morabito was the man of the moment. Into a block headwind and 10km from the line, the 24-year-old boldly attacked a lead group that was

Wednesday in Beechworth, Astana's Aaron Kemps timed an uphill dash for cash to perfection, overcoming a technical, bumpy ride to the finish and taking advantage of a late recapture to assert his authority as the in-form sprinter of the Jayco Herald Sun Tour. For those vying for overall honors four days from now, the 139.5-kilometer third stage ended without incident, as race leader Matthew Wilson of Unibet.com maintained his 17-second advantage over teammate Baden Cooke, with SouthAustralia.com-AIS young gun Simon Clarke a further five seconds back. Whether Wilson, diagnosed with

There are countless ways to end a season. The most direct is wrapping up the last big race of the year followed by a huge night out. The opposite end of the spectrum is filled with the crazies that decide they’d like to keep it rolling with track or cyclocross and never really end it at all. Ouch. Six of us on Slipstream this year decided to go for the moderation method and head south of the border for the 2nd Vuelta Chihuahua, starting in Ciudad Juarez and finishing in Chihuahua city, seven days later. While a couple of the boys kept it rolling pretty well after Missouri, a few of us took

Osteoporosis prevention and treatment has long focused mainly on women. It is true that men build larger and stronger bones early in life and are less likely to develop this disease, which is characterized by less dense, brittle bone mass more susceptible to fracture. Yet according to the National Osteoporosis Foundation, two million men currently have osteoporosis and another 12 million with low bone mass are at risk. Clearly a focus on prevention is also important for men, and osteoporosis is likely underdiagnosed in this gender and certainly not as extensively studied. There are many steps

Jason McCartney isn’t done with Europe yet. The 34-year-old Iowan has penned a two-year deal with Team CSC that will keep him on cycling’s biggest stages through the 2009 season. The contract news comes after a successful fall campaign that saw McCartney win a stage at the Vuelta a España in a dramatic attacking victory that finally put his name in the headlines after working diligently in the background for others. The victory came just in time as Discovery Channel was folding at the end of this season and riders were scrambling to find jobs. McCartney was linked to a move to the new-look

Despite riding for different teams, Tasmanian brothers Wesley and Bernard Sulzberger wanted to make sure one of them ended up the winner in Mansfield on Tuesday. Working alone in the escape, each stood a 1-in-8 chance of success, but as a family unit, they became the odds-on favorites to win the second stage of the Jayco Herald Sun Tour. Aussie Matthew Wilson (Unibet.com), benefiting from a decisive escape in Monday’s stage, maintained his grip on the overall lead, despite finishing more than three minutes down on Tuesday’s stage winners. Blood is thicker than...After more than 60

There was so much to see at Interbike that I wanted to take some time to features some of the show's more unique items that might not have made it into the wealth of coverage of the show here on Velonews.com or in print in VeloNews magazine.

Giro d’Italia winner Danilo Di Luca was hit with a three-month racing ban Tuesday that will force him out of this weekend’s ProTour showdown at the Giro di Lombardia. Di Luca received the suspension for alleged links to controversial Italian doctor Carlo Santuccione, who is the center of an ongoing investigation dubbed “Oils for Drugs,” which dates back to 2003. Police believe that Santuccione is the ringleader of an alleged doping ring involving cyclists and other athletes. Di Luca was heard in telephone taps conversing with Santuccione, but has denied all wrong-doing. Di Luca was hounded

Spain's Oscar Pereiro (Caisse d’Epargne) received the yellow jersey from the 2006 Tour de France at a ceremony in Madrid, officially replacing U.S. rider Floyd Landis, who has been stripped of his title for doping. "This is an emotional moment, a day that I will never forget," said Pereiro after Tour director Christian Prudhomme awarded him the jersey. "Finally! It has been long, too long, you are a late winner but a real winner," said Prudhomme. "You have the right to your place among the winners of the Tour, it was on the road that you won.” Pereiro finished 57 seconds behind Landis

An impressive show of strength brought Matthew Wilson (Unibet.com) opening-day honors and the race lead to boot in the Jayco Herald Sun Tour. As the seven-day stage race began for real Monday in Bendigo, the 2004 Australian road champion launched a bid for victory with 5km remaining. "Coming into town, Baden [Cooke] was telling me he wasn't feeling really good and that I should go for it myself,” Wilson said. “It was so windy so that guys were getting blown off the road; there was a lot of confusion and I just sort of slipped away there... and then, well, I guess the gods were shining

[nid:41019]Lyne Bessette (Cyclocrossworld.com) again outpaced her competition during day two of the Gloucester Grand Prix of Cyclocross on Sunday, while Jesse Anthony (Jamis) came back to claim a win that eluded him the day before. The second round in the 2007 Verge New England Championship Cyclocross Series saw racers battling windier conditions and fatigue left over from Saturday's fierce pace. Fueled by a frustrating opening day, Anthony bore down on the elite men's field with enough pressure to shuck all but a stunningly strong Chris Jones (Nerac).

A delighted Aaron Kemps (Astana) proved the strongest of a nine-man breakaway during the opening day of the Jayco Herald Sun Tour in Bendigo, breaking clear two laps from the finish to claim a popular solo victory over Tom Southam (Drapac-Porsche) and Craig McCartney (Savings & Loans). For the 24-year-old Queenslander, the Jayco Herald Sun Classic was a long-awaited first-season win, whose year has been dogged by ill fortune, courtesy of ex-team-mates Alexander Vinokourov and Andrey Kashechkin, busted for autologous blood doping at the Tour de France. "The last half of the year for me has

Italian sprint ace Alessandro Petacchi (Milram) won the 101st edition of the Paris-Tours classic on Sunday. Led out by his German teammate Eric Zabel, Petacchi edged compatriot Francesco Chicchi in the sprint to claim the victory in the 256km fall classic. It was his second classic victory, after Milan-San Remo in 2005. Former three-time world champion Oscar Freire (Rabobank) was third. The penultimate ProTour race of the season saw several breakaway attempts, the last of which, involving Philippe Gilbert (Française des Jeux), Karsten Kroon (CSC) and Filippo Pozzato (Liquigas), took off

When the smoke exits from the start gun this Sunday in Bendigo, a bustling rural town about an hour’s drive north of Melbourne, Australia, it will signal the start of the 56th edition of Australia’s oldest stage race, the Jayco Herald Sun Tour. Like the Tour de France, ‘the Sun Tour’ as it is colloquially known, was conceived by a newspaper outlet in an attempt to capture the attention of the parochial Victorian sporting public and in turn boost newspaper sales. This News Corporation-Rupert Murdoch-owned metropolitan daily, the Herald Sun holds the title of being the highest circulation

After a two-year hiatus, the Gran Prix of Gloucester rejoined the Verge New England Championship Cyclocross Series Saturday with Round 1 of a doubleheader race weekend, with victories by Cylcocrossworld.com’s Jeremy Powers and Lyne Bessette. Fending off attack after attack by a quartet containing Jesse Anthony (Jamis), Germany's Multe Urban (Focus) and Chris Jones (NERAC), it was Powers who outsprinted them all in the final kilometer of the men’s race to win his second Gloucester 'cross.

The Kazakh Cycling Federation formally announced Friday that former Discovery manager Johan Bruyneel will take over the helm of the troubled Astana team starting with the 2008 season. Kazakh officials have vowed to continue an estimated $15 million per year sponsorship, despite doping positives involving star riders Alexander Vinokourov and Andrey Kashechkin, and have hired Bruyneel to usher in a new management team. “As we recall this year some of team’s riders were linked to using performance enhancing drugs. In spite of these issues the KCF firmly decided to move forward, having

Roberto Heras - the disgraced Spanish climber who saw his 2005 Vuelta a España victory stripped after he tested positive for EPO – vows to return to the professional peloton. His two-year ban ends October 27 and the 33-year-old insists he will be with a top team next season and wants to be in a host of major races on the international calendar. Heras says he’s considered offers from Spanish and foreign teams. “I am planning to return and there are several teams interested in me,” Heras told the Spanish daily El Mundo. “I never lost the rhythm of training and I never lost the idea that I

The Larry H. Miller Tourof Utah will return in 2008, race organizers announced Thursday. Therace’s chairman, Greg Miller of the Larry H. Miller Group, has appointedveteran Utah bike racer, coach and cycling advocate Terry McGinnis as therace’s Executive Director. Zion’s Bank returns as presenting sponsor. Datesfor the event will be August 13-17. After a successful third year of the event in 2006, won by Health Net-Maxxisrider Scott Moninger, the 2007 Tour of Utah was scheduled from June 30to July 7 but was cancelled due to lack of sponsorship. And while McGinnissaid the race wouldn’t be

Something very strange is in the Rocky Mountain air. No, it’s not the smellof cheap beer and hot dogs still wafting out of Coors Field. It’s the sweetsmell of victory. Yes, I know, it’s hard to believe, but I have won three cyclocross racesthis season. That’s one more win than I have earned in the entirety ofmy 13-year cyclocross career. I’m not going to sugar coat it, these weresmall, local races with out very deep fields, but hey, a win is a win isa win, right? Don’t get me wrong, these races didn’t come too easy, but a true testarrives this weekend as I make my way East for the Ohio

T-Mobile phenom’ Mark Cavendish confirmed his arrival to the big leagues over the weekend by reaching his pre-season target of 11 victories on the year. The 22-year-old Brit surged to victory in Saturday’s stage at the Circuit Franco-Belge to put an exclamation point on what’s been a dazzling rookie season. “I’ve reached my target and I’m about delighted about that,” Cavendish said on T-Mobile’s web page. “We miscalculated things a bit in the sprint yesterday and that cost me, but things ran so smoothly today.” Cavendish opened the year with an eye-catching second at the Etoile des

George Hincapie is hoping a switch to T-Mobile will bring him closer to winning an elusive Classics victory. After racing from 1997-2007 at U.S. Postal Service/Discovery Channel, the 34-year-old had a feeling that a change would do him some good. Hincapie said new teammates and a innovative philosophy under the leadership of Bob Stapleton will help keep him motivated as he enters a two-year deal with the German team looking to increase its North American profile. A few years ago, a switch to rival T-Mobile would have been seen as a major controversy, but times change and Hincapie’s

Caisse d’Epargne’s Oscar Pereiro will receive his yellow jersey as the retrospective winner of the 2006 Tour de France next Monday in Madrid, organizers announced Tuesday. The 2006 runner-up has been moved up to first position after American Floyd Landis was stripped of the title for doping. Pereiro finished the 2006 edition 57 seconds behind Landis, but the American tested positive for testosterone following his 17th stage win at Morzine, three days before the finish in Paris. Landis is the first winner in the history of the Tour to be stripped of the title for doping. The top three

Jon Baker is living the dream. That is, if you consider spending fourmonths chasing some of the world’s fastest cyclocross racers around mud-and manure-filled European fields in sub-zero temperatures. The dream? Luckily he looks at it that way. Up until about a month ago the 33-year-old Baker was leading an averageAmerican life, happily married to Cyndi with two kids, Leah, 9, and Axel,1. He was a software engineer for BEA Systems, and he balanced his passionfor cycling with his family life and a full-time career, as most of usdo. He was a weekend warrior, albeit a darn good one. Baker

How tough is Stuart O’Grady? Just look at the wrist bands he brought to the Tour de France this summer and you’ll find out. The Paris-Roubaix champion is set to race this weekend for the first time since suffering a horrible crash in stage 8 to Tignes in the Tour de France. O’Grady fell on the treacherous descent off the Roseland and fractured eight ribs, three vertebrae, a shoulder and collarbone and punctured his lung. The Aussie spent nearly a week in the hospital and wasn’t able to start training again until September. O’Grady will race in the Jayco Herald Sun Tour from October 14-21

Barry Wicks (Kona-YourKey.com) took advantage of world champion Erwin Vervecken’s derailleur failure with half a lap to go to take the win at the second day of the Whitmore’s Landscaping Super Cross Cup on Sunday at Southampton, New York. Wicks, who lost to Vervecken (Fidea) by a wheel in the previous day’s sprint finish, was never out of contention on the much more technical course featured on the second day at the Southampton Youth Services Center.

Katie Compton (Spike Shooter) and world champion Erwin Vervecken (Fidea Assurance) took two very different paths to winning their respective races at the Whitmore’s Landscaping Super Cross Cup on Saturday in Southampton, New York. Vervecken did battle with three reigning national champions — American Ryan Trebon (Kona-YourKey), Canadian Greg Reain (RWR-Colnago-Time) and German Malte Urban (Heinz von Heiden) — and it proved to be a fight to the finish for the jet-lagged rainbow jersey.

The 2007 USA Cycling Elite Track National Championships concluded on Saturday as the final five national titles were awarded in one individual and four team events. Just six weeks before making its debut on the UCI World Cup program in Sydney, the women's 3km team pursuit was introduced to the national championships. The trio of two-time world champion Sarah Hammer (Ouch Pro Cycling), Thursday's individual pursuit national champion Dotsie Bausch (Colavita-Sutter Home-Cooking Light) and this year's sprint and keirin national champion, Jennie Reed (Momentum), rode to a victory in

The bicycle Italy's Paolo Bettini rode to his second consecutive title at the world road race championships last Sunday has been stolen, the Ansa news agency reported on Saturday. Thieves stole a total of 21 bicycles belonging to the Quick Step team and the van in which they were being stored overnight ahead of Saturday's Memorial Cimurri race between Parma and Bologna. The bicycles are estimated to be worth 150,000 euros ($212,000). The team was able to assemble a collection of reserve bikes for Bettini and the team to use in the 183km race. The 33-year-old was crowned world

Eight more national champions were crowned Friday on day three of the 2007 USA Cycling Elite Track National Championships as elite and U23 categories of the men's and women's sprint and points race were contested. After qualifying second behind Adam Duvendeck (Momentum) in the 200-meter time trial on Thursday, Michael Blatchford (Cody Racing) captured both the elite and U23 national titles in the men's sprint. Blatchford dispatched silver medalist Ben Barczewski (T-Town Express) in two straight rides in the finals to claim the national title while Duvendeck took two straight

T-Mobile general manager Bob Stapleton is taking a “wait and see” attitude toward the ongoing power struggle between the UCI and the organizers of the three grand tours. Last week, the UCI announced a restructured 2008 ProTour calendar that excludes the Tour de France, Giro d’Italia, Vuelta a España and major one-day classics associated with the big three race organizers. Stapleton said the news of a watered-down ProTour calendar caught teams by surprise, but added this likely won’t be the last row in the ongoing battle over the controversial ProTour. “I think this is round one of what’s

He’s certainly off to a good start. World junior time trial champion, Taylor Phinney captured the national elite men's individual pursuit title on Thursday evening, competing in his first-ever event on the track. The 17-year-old Phinney (TIAA-CREF) earned the number-two seed in Thursday morning's qualifying session at USA Cycling’s Elite Track National Championships in Carson, California, with a time of 4:35.550 Phinney’s time set up a head-to-head match against top-seed Brad Huff, who had earlier set a mark of 4:34.976. In the gold medal, Phinney rode to an early advantage in

Oscar Pereiro finally feels comfortable enough to put on the yellow jersey from the disputed 2006 Tour de France. The Spanish rider donned the maillot jaune for a photo shoot with the Spanish daily AS and said it rightfully belongs to him following last month’s ruling against Floyd Landis. “A lot of time has passed but I feel good. And I’m not afraid to put it on,” Pereiro said. “Since I received a fax from the UCI (on Sept. 21) informing the news about the 2006 Tour, I know that putting on the yellow jersey again isn’t a provocation. I have nothing to hide.” In the eyes of the UCI,

Three cyclocross races in one week! Sure, temperatures for all events hovered around 80 degrees and even though only one race featured beer chugging, bike junkies throwing money at the racers, it still felt a little bit like Christmas time in Belgium. The first race of the last week was Cross Vegas, the soon-to-be annual kick off to the U.S. cyclocross season. This spectacular nighttime event took place last Wednesday following day three of the yearly super bike nerd convention known as Interbike. If you’ve never been to Interbike, all I can say is standing on concrete floors underneath

Dear Monique, Thanks for a great article titled “Feed Your Head.” I have one question though concerning the following statement:Research on caffeine consumption during exercise indicates the 1.5 mg/kg of body weight improves performance.Is that per hour or what time frame? I weigh 87 kg, so is that 130 mg/hr?Thanks,MPCharlotte, NCHi MP,Thanks for your question. While many cyclists and other endurance athletes may consume a moderate caffeine dose about one hour before exercise, consuming some caffeine during exercise, especially in the later part of a long training ride or race is not

As reported yesterday on VeloNews.com, Tour de France winner Alberto Contador will ride next year with Astana under the leadership of Johan Bruyneel. The Spanish daily MARCA reported Wednesday that Contador will sign a two-year contract worth 1.5 million euros per season and bring Benjamín Noval and Sergio Paulinho with him. Other riders linked to Bruyneel’s move to Astana include Janez Brajkovic, Levi Leipheimer and Tomas Vaitkus. Leipheimer looks likely to join Bruyneel as the Belgian director is poised to take over the troubled Astana team as general manager as part of a three-year

Thanks 'Vegas — for kicking my butt. I almost made it. After six days in the Sin city I was as close as I could have come to making it out unscathed. I spent two days in Bootleg Canyon, Nevada, where the trails are known for their brutality. Crashing there is like riding a razor blade covered Slip-and-Slide into a wading pool of glass. It’s a good place to practice the 80-percent rule — riding at only 80-percent of your ability to ensure that you’re not the guy — you know, that guy who crashes at an event where you have no reason putting it all on the line. Plenty of the attendees

As is usually the case with web reports from Interbike, we managed only to scratch the surface of all of the latest and greatest we saw at the show this year. Here are a few more items for you save your pennies for in the coming year. Be sure to take look at VeloNews issue 20 when it becomes available later this month, too. We’ll have a lot in there as well.

Johan Bruyneel is poised to take over the reins at the troubled Astana team and will bring heavy hitters Levi Leipheimer and Alberto Contador with him for the 2008 season. Sources close to Bruyneel told VeloNews that the Belgian director is finalizing negotiations with the Kazakh government and will assume control of the ProTour team. A formal announcement is expected in the coming weeks. Bruyneel could not be reached for comment Tuesday. Last month, the Belgian sport director confirmed reports that Kazakh officials approached him to take over the squad in the wake of devastating doping

Erik Zabel looks set to return to T-Mobile next season after announcing on Monday that he will finish his contract with Milram when the season concludes at the end of the month. The 37-year-old was with Telekom, T-Mobile's previous name, from 1993 to 2005, but has spent the last two seasons at Milram. And it has been a difficult year for Zabel, a six-time winner of the Tour de France's green jersey, who admitted last May to taking the banned blood-booster erythropoietin (EPO) during the 1996 Tour. In Munich on Monday, Zabel said he will finish with Milram a year earlier than

Paolo Bettini shot back at critics and rivals alike in an electrifying five-up sprint victory on Sunday, defending his world championship. The 33-year-old Tuscan gestured as if he were firing a machine gun as he crossed the line in Stuttgart after rocketing past the brawny shoulders of Alexandr Kolobnev, relegating the Russian to second and local rider Stefan Schumacher (Germany) to third. “Everyone’s been shooting at me all week, so I decided to try myself,” said Bettini, who became only the fifth rider in world’s history to successfully defend the rainbow jersey. “It wasn’t directed at

It's all over in Stuttgart, save the stein-hoisting, and our man Casey Gibson was there to chronicle the final day of the 2007 UCI world road championships.

What had been a tumultuous week for the Italian national team took a sweeping turn for the better Saturday as 20-year-old Marta Bastianelli held off pre-race favorites to win the elite women’s world road championship in Stuttgart, Germany. Italy’s “squadra azzura” has been under fire in recent days as defending men’s champion Paolo Bettini refused to sign the UCI’s voluntary “commitment to a new cycling” pledge, and ProTour leader Danilo Di Luca was taken off the Italian team while facing a suspension for working with doctor Carlo Santuccione. But the Italians, whose national federation

After five days of riding, racing, selling and showing bikes, Interbike concluded Friday in Las Vegas. Watch for the full report in the next issue of VeloNews, but in the meantime, here are a few samples of what we saw on the showroom floor. Leaving Las Vegas - PartILeaving Las Vegas - PartIII

After five days of riding, racing, selling and showing bikes, Interbike concluded Friday in Las Vegas. Watch for the full report in the next issue of VeloNews, but in the meantime, here are a few samples of what we saw on the showroom floor.Leaving Las Vegas - PartILeaving Las Vegas - PartII

Scores of attacks in the final laps in the chaotic men’s U23 world championships failed to break the elastic to the sprinters and 22-year-old Peter Velits of Slovakia confidently snagged the rainbow jersey in a crash-marred bunch sprint. The pace wasn’t hard enough over the hilly, 19.1km circuit for several late-race breakaway attempts to stick. The Norwegians did most of the heavy lifting to reel in the remnants of a 12-man group in the final lap, but their work was all for naught. Pre-race favorite Edvald Boasson Hagen of Norway tumbled in a finish line crash behind French and Swiss

Alejandro Valverde starts Sunday’s world championship as an outside favorite to win the rainbow jersey. With three-time defending champion Oscar Freire back and a favorite to win a record fourth title if the race comes down to a sprint, Valverde will play the joker on a strong Spanish squad. Of course, it hasn’t been an easy lead up to the world’s for ’Balaverde’. It took a CAS ruling Wednesday to assure his start Sunday after the UCI wanted to ban Valverde over alleged links to Operación Puerto. Valverde admits the pre-race controversy proved to be distracting, but he vows to get revenge

Defending world champion Paolo Bettini said Saturday that he intends to sue German television station ZDF for accusing him of providing former teammate Patrik Sinkewitz with doping products. ZDF reported that it based its report on statements from Sinkewitz, but the German cyclist later denied mentioning the name of Bettini. Bettini was given the all clear to defend his crown in Sunday's elite men's title at the cycling world championships, despite a bid by organisers to bar him from the competition. Bettini had slammed what he termed "a campaign of denigration of which the town

After five days of riding, racing, selling and showing bikes, Interbike concluded Friday in Las Vegas. Watch for the full report in the next issue of VeloNews, but in the meantime, here are a few samples of what we saw on the showroom floor.Leaving Las Vegas - PartIILeaving Las Vegas - PartIII

Cuban sprinter Ivan Dominguez (Toyota-United) caught and passed a surging Martin Gilbert (Kelly Benefit Strategies) on the last of 55 laps to win the inaugural Vegas World Criterium championships on Thursday. The race, held in the parking lot of the Mandalay Bay hotel/casino in Las Vegas, marked the final event of the 2007 USA Crits series. “I only had one bullet to fire today and I waited until the end,” said Dominguez, who admitted his legs lacked their normal kick after the Tour of Missouri. Dominguez won two stages and the point’s jersey in that race. The Las Vegas race marked the

A German court has cleared Italy's Paolo Bettini to defend his title in Sunday's elite men's title at the cycling world championships in Stuttgart. The reigning champion's participation was in doubt after German cyclist Patrik Sinkewitz claimed Bettini had supplied him with doping products. The organizers insisted that Bettini sign the full UCI anti-doping agreement which makes it compulsory for every rider to provide a blood sample before Sunday's race. Bettini says demanding a sample is a breach of his human rights and has also refused to sign any agreement because of

What a year Cadel Evans has had. His second place at the Tour de France made history as he became the first Australian to stand on the podium of cycling’s marquee race and he’s consistently been with the best from February all the way in to this weekend’s world championships, where he’ll line up as an outsider for gold on the Australian team in Stuttgart. But as good as Evans’ season has been, it could have been even better – a lot better. The Predictor-Lotto rider’s consistency was borderline great. Just consider the following: Evans missed winning the Tour by 23 seconds and fell short

Although the clouds overhead were heavy and gray in Stuttgart Friday, there was a hint of optimism surrounding the three U.S. national teams that hasn’t been felt at a world championships in recent years. Perhaps that is because in addition to perhaps the best women’s team USA Cycling has ever sent, for the first time since 2003 Discovery Channel rider George Hincapie is spearheading the men’s elite team heading into Sunday’s road race. Hincapie’s 2007 season took saw him take an unceremonious and unplanned break after fracturing his wrist at the Amgen Tour of California, but he has

George Hincapie sat in a U.S. national team jersey Friday afternoon for lunch in Stuttgart with another dozen pros, but only two compatriots shared the meal. Joining him at the table were Brits, an Italian, a German sport director and one team manager with a Cheshire cat’s grin in the form of Bob Stapleton. Hincapie won’t officially don a T-Mobile jersey until later this season, but the 34-year-old American was the marquee name among 10 new riders unveiled for the German team for the 2008 season. For Hincapie, the move marks a clear departure from his past as he’s set to ride on only his

During Wednesday evening’s CrossVegas event Kona’s Ryan Trebon won on a brand new pair of wheels from FSA, providing a good excuse to look at a few new deeper section carbon rims that debuted at this year’s show. Besides FSA, both Easton and Reynolds have new or refined wheels for 2008. Titanium has also been a prominent product at this year’s show, could it be that some, more traditionally minded riders are suffering from too much carbon fiber in their diet? We wouldn’t go quite that far yet as it seems most of the industry is still gaga over string and glue construction for all types of

A hall brimming with almost 20,000 people eager and optimistic about bikesis a rarified atmosphere for a bike enthusiast to hang out in. and allof those people buying bikes makes it possible for a number of bike-relatedphilanthropic organizations to thrive as well.Interbike began with a talk by six organizations doing work in third-worldcountries to make a difference with bikes. Left to right, F.K. Day of www.WorldBicycleRelief.org,Steve Madden of BikeTown from www.bicycling.com,Hans Rey of www.Wheels4Life.org,Bradley Schroeder of www.CaliforniaBike.org,Ben Capron of www.TrueOverdrive.com,and

Giro d’Italia winner Danilo Di Luca announced late Thursday he was pulling out of the cycling world championships. Di Luca's withdrawal from Sunday's elite men's road race came after calls that he be handed a four month suspension for his connection with a drugs scandal by Italy's Olympic Committee (CONI). "It's a scandal, the procurer has done everything so that I don't compete at the championships," said the Italian. Di Luca's withdrawal out came after a dramatic day at the world championships in which world road champion Paolo Bettini was reported to have

Fabian Cancellara might have been satisfied with his 2007 season after wearing the yellow jersey for the better part of a week and winning two stages at the Tour de France, but the chance to defend his rainbow jersey in the elite men’s world time trial race proved too alluring. Laszlo Bodrogi of Hungary claimed silver at 52 seconds off the pace with Dutch rider Stef Clement taking bronze at 57 seconds slower on the rolling 44.9km course in the hills around Stuttgart,. But this show was all about Cancellara. The big Swiss time machine caught his one-minute man, Vladimir Gusev of Russia, at

It was a soggy day in Stuttgart as the elite men set off in pursuit of the world time-trial title. But a little rain couldn't keep Fabian Cancellara off the top step of the podium for the second consecutive year. Nor could it prevent Casey Gibson from chronicling the day's action.

Cycling’s international racing calendar was turned upside down Thursday after the UCI announced that the three grand tours and select one-day classics are no longer part of the ProTour cycling calendar. In a sweeping restructuring of the European racing calendar, the UCI vows to forge ahead with its controversial ProTour concept that will open with the Tour Down Under in 2008 and potentially include national tours in China and Russia in 2009. “This is about being realistic and pragmatic,” McQuaid said. “It’s not a position that the UCI has created. (The grand tours) could have come aboard

A perfect weather day yesterday ended with a road ride back to the stripwith three friends from SRAM, and today started for me with a ride backout to the Outdoor Demo at Boulder City’s Bootleg Canyon. After 5-10 minutesof standing around, I took off with maybe 100 other riders for the annualTourof Lake Mead, formerly known as The Hangover Ride. Still cool, verywindy and hilly, this 24-mile out-and-back offers some great views andcan offer a punishing pace at the front. I may have gotten a great warmup to riding mountain bikes at the pre-Interbikedemo, but before I got to ride my first bike

Ryan Trebon (Kona-Les Gets) and Lyne Bessette (Cyclocrossworld.com) won the inaugural Excel Sports CrossVegas Wednesday in Las Vegas. [nid:40750]A thousands-strong crowd journeyed to the Desert Breeze Soccer Complex to watch the first major cyclo-cross race to be held in conjunction with the Interbike trade show, running this week at the Sands Expo & Convention Center. CrossVegas was the brainchild of Coloradan Chris Grealish, a longtime 'cross promoter who organized the 2006 Boulder Cup, the fifth round of the U.S. Gran Prix of Cyclocross Series.

Nearly 19,000 people packed into the Sands Expo & Convention Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, for the opening day of the indoor portion of the 2007 Interbike trade show on Wednesday. Aisles were packed and booths were abuzz on the show’s opening day. And besides the goings-on inside, two races were organized alongside the show. The first was the Boulder-Denver Courier Events-produced Excel Sports CrossVegas, held Wednesday night. Kona-YourKey.com’s Ryan Trebon won the well-attended event — and in the process took some revenge on Christian Heule (Stevens), who won Star Crossed and the Rad Racing

Olympic and world cycling champion Paolo Bettini supplied sacked German cyclist Patrik Sinkewitz with doping products, according to television reports in Germany on Wednesday. Sinkewitz, 26, was dismissed by T-Mobile during this year's Tour de France when abnormal levels of testosterone were found in his blood during a pre-race drugs test. The German later admitted he had used 'Testogel' patches to help aid recovery. But according to reports on German channel ZDF, Sinkewitz is quoted in a document as naming the reigning world and Olympic champion and retired Italian Davide

Without the official numbers (those will be tallied by Wednesday), it can’t be claimed with any certainty that day two of the 2007 Interbike Dirt Demo in Bootleg Canyon, Nevada broke any records, but if the lines were an indication — it did. Those not lucky enough to make it onto the first round of shuttles to the demo area went on to spend more than two hours trying to get to Bootleg. In past editions of the show it has rarely taken more than 50 minutes. “They have five buses,” said Elaine, one of the senior citizens who was working for the Las Vegas chamber of commerce by making sure

Cyclo-crossers across the world, take note. A pair of past and present world champion ’cross racers, under-23 world cross champ Lars Boom and three-time world elite women’s champ Hanka Kupfernagel, each won world time trial titles in Stuttgart, Germany, Wednesday. And both credited the muddy discipline for their success. Taking it a step further, Boom said he would focus on cyclo-cross for at least two more years. Winning a world under-23 time-trial championship might be something all developing riders dream of, but Boom, a Rabobank continental professional development team rider has

A North Carolina sports management firm has announced preliminary plans to organize a 27-stage transcontinental “Tour of America,” with an $11 million prize list.In a release issued Wednesday, Aqu, Inc. promised to reveal further details – including dates – at a press conference scheduled for Thursday at the Interbike trade show in Las Vegas.In its release, the company said it expects the race will be “the largest spectator event in the history of U.S. sports, covering approximately 4000 miles from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean.”Distances2007 Tour de France - 3553.9kmLongest stage:

The 62nd Vuelta a España wasn’t without its controversies. Carlos Sastre accused race leader Denis Menchov of forming alliances. Universal criticism rained down on a long, boring 52km time trial in Zaragoza. Riders complained that the top-heavy course, with its most important stages packed into the opening 10 days, left for a dull and unexciting second half. But one thing was largely missing from this year’s Spanish tour – doping scandals. The Vuelta has been wracked by its fair share of doping controversies the past few years, including the disastrous EPO positive of 2005 winner Roberto

Demo Days are here again as part of the 2007 Interbike trade show in Las Vegas, Nevada. The show starts the way it should, with people riding bikes in Bootleg Canyon, Nevada, a well-maintained mountain bike trail system roughly 20 miles outside of the Las Vegas city limits. The area offers riders multiple cross-country trails, a dirt jumping area, BMX track, road course and downhill mountain bike course. The clear skies and comfortable 75-degree temperature made a perfect day for the event. For 2008 the Outdoor Demo's booth expo area moved to a more developed area with more pavement and

The weather was perfect, the venue is great and getting better, and the attendance was abundant for the first day of the Outdoor Demo at Boulder City’s Bootleg Canyon. The sunny, yet unseasonably cool 75-degree weather meant perfect conditions. Not hot, not cold, sunny, only occasional strong wind – those are nice conditions to ride a bike in. The display booth area is a lot bigger now, with much of it even paved, making road riding a more viable option for bike testing than in the past. Whereas in past years I have rarely taken a road test ride, given that the mountain bike riding is