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The damage was quite serious

Australia finished the top nation in this weekend's opening round of the UCI Track Cycling World Cup Classics in Sydney, propelled by its women riders. Australia's women won four gold medals and their consistent performances across the board lifted the team to 103 points to finish four points clear of defending series champion the Netherlands after 16 events over three days. Russia finished third with 90 points ahead of Germany (75), France (54) and Great Britain (50). The highlight of the round was the world record ride by Australian Anna Meares, whose time of 33.944 seconds for

At the final race of the Crank Brothers U.S. Gran Prix of Cyclocross series, held Sunday near Portland, Oregon, race organizers finally got the muddy conditions ’cross is known for. The series final, the Scion Stumptown Cup, held on the grounds of the Hillsboro Stadium, provided the wet, slippery conditions mechanics dread and photographers embrace. "If every day is a fair-weather day, these guys can’t go to Belgium and expect to be ready to race," said series director Bruce Fina. "To be honest with you, if I could race any single day of the series, I would race on this day, because of the

Johnson hoping to be first to the showers (and the laundry)

Hey, we're from Boulder, but not even we know what this is about

Johnson goes surfing, Stumptown style

The women's field contemplates a bout of mud-wrestling

Simms shows Compton her heels

Nash hits the run-up

Bessette legs it through the goo

Anna Meares, Australia's Olympic and Commonwealth Games track cycling champion, set a world record for the women's 500-meter time trial on Saturday. Meares clocked a time of 33.944 seconds to break her own world record by eight one-thousandths of a second in the final of the event at the UCI World Cup track meet in Sydney. The 23-year-old Queenslander set her last world record when she won gold at the Athens Olympic Games in 2004. Meares beat reigning world champion Natalia Tsylinskaya of Belarus in the final, and her achievement was all the more welcome after a back injury last

A retired medical doctor and friend of Floyd Landis is expanding his defense of the cyclist, arguing that a detailed analysis of documents shows the Tour de France champion did not have a positive drug test after all. Dr. Arnie Baker of San Diego, California, made the case in a slideshow presentation Friday evening at the Tucson Convention Center, headquarters of El Tour de Tucson, scheduled for Saturday. Landis did not attend, though he was in Tucson to be the official starter for the race. Afterward, he spoke with VeloNews editor Kip Mikler. Landis, who denies doping, is contesting

Discovery Channel team manager Johan Bruyneel on Saturday responded to the critics over his decision to sign Italian star Ivan Basso. Bruyneel's decision to sign the Giro d’Italia champion caused a ripple this week in the world of cycling, which is fighting for its credibility after a season marred by doping suspicion. The Belgian said he is more than happy to have signed Basso, who recently emerged unscathed despite having been one of many riders implicated in a Spanish doping investigation that erupted in May. "I don't see how anyone can stop me from hiring the best rider in the

On Friday Dr. Arnie Baker, a retired doctor, coach and longtime friend of former Phonak team leader Floyd Landis, presented to an audience in Tucson, Arizona, a slideshow arguing against the doping charges that could strip Landis of his 2006 Tour de France win. Friday’s presentation at the Tucson Convention Center, the starting point of Saturday’s El Tour de Tucson event, was an updated version of a previous slideshow that Baker unveiled in California last month. While Landis didn’t attend Friday’s presentation, he appeared in Tucson the next morning as the official starter of the Tour de

It takes a lot to keep Kona’s Ryan Trebon from winning a cyclo-cross race in the U.S in 2006. Thus far it’s happened twice this season: at the UCI-sanctioned Whitmore's Super Cross Cup in Southampton, New York, on October 1, when a week spent at Interbike and a hard-charging Tim Johnson got the better of him; and at the November 5 Boulder Cup, round four of the 2006 Crank Brothers U.S. Gran Prix of Cyclocross, when mechanical problems sent Trebon into the pits five times. The latest attempt to derail Trebon’s nearly spotless domestic ’cross campaign was a bad sushi roll eaten for dinner

Meares pipped her own world record in the final

Baker speaks at the Tucson Convention Center

The women's podium

The men hit the 'Knapp Time' run-up

Another view

Johnson pushing it

Compton and Bessette slugging it out

Simms hits the run-up

Summerhill leads the juniors

The national Crank Brothers U.S.Gran Prix of Cyclocross heads to the Pacific Northwest this weekend,and to no one’s surprise, rain and muddy conditions are expected. Whilethe forecast for Saturday’s RadCup Presented by Seasoned Skewers in Tacoma, Washington, is mostlycloudy with a high of 50 degrees, rain is expected at Sunday’s ScionStumptown Cup in Hillsboro near Portland, Oregon. With 11 inches ofrainwater in the past 16 days soaking up both courses, conditions are expectedto favor riders with a taste for mud. On a weekend that favors those with superior handling and running skills, riders

World champion Theo Bos of the Netherlands won the keirin, beating close rival and Olympic champion Ryan Bayley on the opening night of the UCI World Cup track cycling leg in Sydney on Friday. Bayley was awarded the silver medal despite fellow Australian rider Mark French crossing the line in second place behind Bos. French was relegated from second to sixth place after he was ruled to have caused interference two laps from the finish of the final, with former world champion Rene Wolff taking the bronze medal. Bos made his move two laps from home and proved to strong, holding off strong

Discovery Channel and Ivan Basso confirmed Friday that under the termsof their contract, the Italian rider has agreed to provide a DNA sampleif this is requested in a national judicial or disciplinary investigation.“There has never been a DNA issue,” Johan Bruyneel said. “Ivan agreedthrough his lawyer even before we signed to give a sample. He just wantedto make sure that the guarantees provided by the law would be respected.”Bruyneel said parts of the Code of Conduct hastily adopted by the teamsshould be reviewed.“We believe that even an athlete is innocent until proven guilty. AFrench

Did you ever experience one of those weekends in college when it seemedas though the party never stopped and you try to relive it again the followingweekend, but it just doesn’t seem to meet your heightened expectations? Well, I think most Colorado ‘cross racers are experiencing withdrawalsince the Crank Brothers U.S. Gran Prix of Cyclocross swept through town,sucked all our energy and excitement, then took it to the Pacific Northwestfor the next round of races. The reason I mention this is because the racerand spectator turn out for last weekend’s local races was dismal. It couldhave been

Did you ever experience one of those weekends in college when it seemedas though the party never stopped and you try to relive it again the followingweekend, but it just doesn’t seem to meet your heightened expectations? Well, I think most Colorado ‘cross racers are experiencing withdrawalsince the Crank Brothers U.S. Gran Prix of Cyclocross swept through town,sucked all our energy and excitement, then took it to the Pacific Northwestfor the next round of races. The reason I mention this is because the racerand spectator turn out for last weekend’s local races was dismal. It couldhave been

Did you ever experience one of those weekends in college when it seemedas though the party never stopped and you try to relive it again the followingweekend, but it just doesn’t seem to meet your heightened expectations? Well, I think most Colorado ‘cross racers are experiencing withdrawalsince the Crank Brothers U.S. Gran Prix of Cyclocross swept through town,sucked all our energy and excitement, then took it to the Pacific Northwestfor the next round of races. The reason I mention this is because the racerand spectator turn out for last weekend’s local races was dismal. It couldhave been

Six months into a Spanish investigation of doping in cycling, national federations and world bodies must defend a case that hasn't netted a single conviction. None of the 56 riders implicated in Operación Puerto has been charged and no convictions appear likely any time soon. The acting judge, Carmelo Jimenez, ruled that evidence collected against the cyclists could only be used in legal cases and not as sporting punishments. "At the moment, this whole operation is closed, on the part of the federation at least," Spanish cycling federation president Fulgencio Sanchez said Friday. "It

Oregonians Carl Decker and Barry Wicks know how to race in the mud.

The course in Tacoma features a brutally steep 80-meter run-up.

Compton won her first national title in Portland mud two years ago.

Cross crusade: Boulder crossers lobbying for access.

Transitions 2 'Cross the Pond deserves an Academy Award!

Cyclocross Ale: Why didn't I think of this?

Cross crusade: Boulder crossers lobbying for access.

Cyclocross Ale: Why didn't I think of this?

Cross crusade: Boulder crossers lobbying for access.

Transitions 2 'Cross the Pond deserves an Academy Award!

Cyclocross Ale: Why didn't I think of this?

Not since “Breaking Away” (1979) has there been a true bike-racing film to hit the big screen — unless we include the animated “Les Triplettes de Belleville” (2003). The long wait maybe worthwhile because Variety magazine announced Wednesday that MGM has bought worldwide distribution rights to the Graeme Obree biopic “The Flying Scotsman.” It will debut at U.S. theatres on December 29. The new movie is based on the autobiography of Obree, the eccentric Scottish amateur cyclist who astounded the cycling world in 1993 by breaking Francesco Moser’s world hour record. Obree cooperated fully in

Australia's Olympic champion Ryan Bayley and Dutch world champion Theo Bos will highlight the opening round of the four-leg UCI World Cup track cycling in the keirin and team sprint events in Sydney on Friday. The pair's sprint match-ups have been some of the closest fought in the track cycling with Bayley upstaging the then reigning world champion Bos at the 2004 Athens Olympics. Bos is the current world champion for the sprint and the keirin but missed a medal in the teams sprint at this year's world championships in Bordeaux when the Australians defeated the Netherlands in

The board of trustees of Marian College, a small Catholic liberal arts school in Indianapolis, Indiana, recently approved plans to construct a state-of-the-art cycling training center for the school’s collegiate cycling team. The school will house the facility in a renovated 1500-square-foot maintenance building on campus. “The caliber of the athlete and the competitiveness of the Marian College cycling team are incredible,” said Dean Peterson, the first-year head coach of the Marian Knights. “We are fortunate to have one of the world’s top competition tracks in the Major Taylor Velodrome

Australian athlete Paul Crake has been left paralyzed after an accident during a cycling race in New Zealand, and may never regain the use of his legs, according to reports released early Friday. Crake, whose multiple credits include an Australian road cycling medal, mountain running champion and Empire State Building stair-climbing champion, was seriously injured when he was blown off his bike during the Tour of Southland race last Saturday. He has since undergone surgery at a specialist spinal unit but has been unable to move his legs and doctors say the paralysis may be

Miller as Obree

Bayley and Bos faced off at the 2004 Olympics in Athens.

Tour de France winner Floyd Landis’s efforts to clear his name got a small boost Wednesday when officials at France’s national anti-doping laboratory admitted making an “insignificant” numbering error on a urine sample that later tested positive for testosterone. However the director of the IOC-accredited laboratory at Châtenay-Malabry said the "typing error" had no bearing on the finding of unusual testosterone/epitestosterone ratios in both A and B samples taken after Landis's epic victory in Stage 17 of the Tour. Since learning of the positive test Landis has consistently maintained

We'll do our own TourEditor,Hooray for Discovery for signing Basso (see "Bassofeels 'reborn' after signing with Discovery"). Tell all the otherEuropean teams they can sit on a pin. As for voluntary DNA testing, I saynever! Can you imagine all the different ways that can be screwedup?It's time for North America to develop it's own series of world classcycling events. I'm sure cyclists would rather race in a nation of lawsrather than one of hearsay and rumor.Keith WhelpleyLas Cruces, New MexicoJust say no... to DNA profilingEditor,While Basso is under suspicion for

As if life weren’t already tough enough for Interbike. First Eurobike announces plans to launch a new U.S. trade show in Portland, Oregon — and then the Pedal Queens beat the Germans to it with their own bike expo and demo in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The Pedal Queens, a lively group of women inclined toward pink feather boas, focus on "creating a supportive, non-threatening environment for women to learn about and ride both road and mountain bikes," according to treasurer Jennifer Steketee. They took this mission to a whole new level with their inaugural Bike-a-GoGo on November 11 at Santa Fe

Cane Creek trio sweeps Munson ParkThe Cane Creek trio of Rob Foshag, Jon Card and Jeff Weinart went 1-2-3 at the Jack’s Bicycle & Fitness Munson Park Cyclocross November 12 in Monroe, Michigan. Hometown favorite Foshag took the hole-shot, quickly followed by teammates Card and Weinert, and the Cane Creek trio began a team time trial, trading pulls as the remnants of the field fought for their wheels. A lap and a half later, the three were on their own. At the finish, their lead secure, Rob Foshag got the go-ahead to take the win in front of his family, friends and neighbors. Best of the

World Anti-Doping Agency president Dick Pound defended the French lab whose credibility is under scrutiny for its handling of Floyd Landis' samples during the Tour de France. Pound said Wednesday the case against the American cyclist should not be derailed by the theft of data from the lab by computer hackers and by a mistake in the labeling of his backup urine specimen. “For me, the real problem is the activities of several hackers who entered into the system without permission, possibly against the law,” Pound said in a conference call. “We have to wait for the result of the

Châtenay-Malabry lab director Jacques de Ceaurriz.

The Queens will see you now

The crowd wanders the expo area

Gettting ready to race . . . verrry, verrry slowwwwwlyyyy

The bike-building race, featuring Cinellis at the BTI tent

No Pedal Queens gathering would be complete without some sort of pink accessory. This one is a Trek

Rob Foshag (Cane Creek) leads the men’s field through the barriers

Editors of VeloNews Shed Light on the 2006 Tour de France with New Book Boulder, CO USA November 9, 2006 - VeloPress is pleased to announce the release of The 2006 Tour de France: Triumph and Turmoil for Floyd Landis. John Wilcockson and the editors of VeloNews magazine clearly explain the 2006 Tour from the sting operations that fractured the peloton just hours before the prologue, to Landis's stunning crack on stage 16 and miraculous recovery, to the controversial aftermath of the doping scandals. Fans of cycling's greatest race can finally arrive at an informed opinion of the 2006

An associate of Tour de France winner Floyd Landis, who tested positive on his way to victory in this year's race, was reported Tuesday to be under suspicion of hacking into the computer system at the French national doping testing laboratory (LNDD) of Chatenay-Malabry near Paris. Laboratory director Jacques de Ceaurriz confirmed to AFP that an investigation had begun after the discovery that their computer system had been accessed from outside. The affair is being handled by OCLCTIC, the main national investigating body in the fight against cybercrime incidents. "An inquiry is under

Press Release - VeloNews Sheds Light on the 2006 Tour de France with New Book

Riis wants to set a new standard for the rest of the peloton

Basso has a new ride

Landis - seen here at a press conference in August - has embarked on a campaign to clear his name.

Landis appeared on France 2 television this weekend

Our latest reader-submitted Photo Gallery is now up for your viewing pleasure. Of course, a new gallery also means the naming of the winner of ourmost recent contest. Take the time to wander through that gallery and see if you agree or disagree with our choice of winner. We found Steve Schmunk’s “Riding to Convict Lake near Mammoth Lakes” to nicely underscore the commitment many of us feel to the sport… even on a wet and cold morning. Nice work, Steve. Drop us a note at Rosters@InsideInc.com to work out the details and we’ll send you a copy of Graham Watson's "Landscapes of Cycling."

The Mailbag is a regular feature on VeloNews.com. If you have a comment, an opinion or observation regarding anything you have seen in cycling, in VeloNews magazine or on VeloNews.com, write to WebLetters@InsideInc.com. Please include your full name and home town. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.Discovery must insist that Basso provide DNAEditor:While I understand the objections and have my own reservations regarding mass collection of DNA samples, I do believe that there are situations wherein the individual's right to privacy are forfeited and requiring a DNA sample of an

Bruno-Roy, White win HPCXMaureen Bruno-Roy (Independent Fabrications) and Matt White (Fiordifrutta) won the HPCX Cyclocross on Sunday at Highland Park in Jamesburg, New Jersey. The race was round five of the 2006 Verge MAC powered by Hammer Nutrition. Conditions were slick and slow as warm temperatures lingered throughout most of the day, finally yielding as a steady rain swept in for the marquee event. In the women’s race, Bruno-Roy took control in the early going, increasing her lead and taking the win as course conditions deteriorated under a steady rain. MAC Series leader Deidre

Riding to Convict Lake near Mammoth Lakes

The break in the women's race

The men's podium

King crosses the line

Belgian Sven Nys (Rabobank) won Sunday’s UCI World Cup cyclo-cross in Pijnacker, the Netherlands. The Belgian national champion finished 30 seconds ahead of France’s Francis Mourey (Française des Jeux) to take the fifth round of the World Cup, with Netherlander Gerben de Knegt (Rabobank) crossing third a further 10 seconds in arrears. In the women’s race, Germany’s Hanka Kupfernagel rode to a decisive solo win some 41 seconds ahead of runner-up Daphny Van Den Brand of the Netherlands with Germany’s Birgit Hollmann third at 1:11 UCI Cyclo-cross World CupRound 5 — Pijnacker, the

When a mid-November cyclocross in Pennsylvania has a forecast calling for clear skies and 70-degree temperatures, it has the potential to be a special day. When that same event has a pre-registration list that includes riders from two continents, five UCI cyclo-cross winners, the winner of one of the richest criteriums in the world and a Pro Tour team leader — it’s pretty clear that the race is a cut above the ordinary. But when the announcers at Saturday’s Verge MAC powered by Hammer Nutrition Lower Allen Classic started the race day by paying homage to VeloNews editor at large Patrick

Former T-Mobile manager Olaf Ludwig rebuked the management of the Discovery Channel cycling team on Saturday for signing Ivan Basso, the Italian rider linked to Spain’s Operación Puerto doping scandal. The Giro d'Italia champion was one of nine riders — including 1997 Tour de France winner Jan Ullrich — excluded from this year's Tour de France after being implicated in the investigation. Doping charges against Basso were dismissed last month by the Italian Olympic Committee and Italian cycling federation. "Discovery regards dropping the legal proceedings as the same thing as being

Santiago Botero has been cleared of doping allegations by the Colombian cycling federation, allowing him to rejoin international competition after being sidelined since June. Botero's name surfaced in the Spanish doping investigation Operación Puerto, causing the Phonak team to leave the 2002 world time trial world champion off its Tour de France roster this summer. The Colombian federation said Saturday night that documents pertinent to Botero's case, provided by the UCI’s anti-doping commission, offered no evidence the cyclist had engaged in blood doping. The federation also said

Floyd Landis insisted Sunday he was drug-free when he won the Tour de France, and said that a French laboratory "made some mistakes" when its results showed he had elevated levels of testosterone. The American's positive doping test came less than a week after he won cycling's biggest race on July 23. Although the Châtenay-Malabry lab is accredited by the International Olympic Committee and the World Anti-Doping Agency, Landis believes it got his test results wrong. "Even the best people make mistakes," Landis said in an interview for French television. "I can't say that the

Nys en route to victory