All Content

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.Regarding Heras: Wait for the ‘B’ testEditor:Hey, guys, before you start poking Roberto Heras with sharp pointy sticks, maybe you ought to wait and see what the result of the "B" test is. I've worked in molecular-biology labs for over 30 years and there is no such thing as a test with

Prior to the start of this year's La Ruta de los Conquistadores, some wondered whether Thomas Frischknecht (Swisspower), despite being marathon world champion, would be able to overcome the home-ground advantage of the Costa Ricans. He answered that question decisively on the first stage. Frischknecht crushed the competition by nearly seven minutes, finishing ahead of local challengers Deiber Esquivel (IBP) and Marvin Campos (BP), with Jeremiah Bishop (Trek-VW) crossing fifth after overextending himself on the longest climb of the day and dropping from second place. The first stage of

While unsure of the specifics, most agree that the `06 Giro will be a tough race. Too tough?

Manzano not surprised

Cameron Chambers soaked up some mud in Boerne, Texas

A ghostly white Adam Craig won a free hosing down, not to mention the XC in Texas.

Jelly Belly’s Alex Candelario sported a sling after breaking his collar bone in Redlands.

Alison Dunlap showed she was virtually unbeatable in a paved sprint at Sea Otter.

The men in Orange: Kona’s Ryan Trebon, Barry Wicks and Peter Wedge

Thanks, Elke! Trent Lowe’s tan lines get a rubdown from team soigneur Elke Brutsaert.

Trek/VW’s Sue Haywood and Jeremiah Bishop workin the autograph table

Jill Kintner enjoyed a moment to herself before the 4X in Angle Fire, New Mexico.

Guess who! Mary McConneloug sneaks up on Sue Haywood at the Sea Otter classic.

A soggy night at the Athens Twilight Criterium

Oswaldo Olmos took school pride to the next level at collegiate road nationals.

Jared Graves shows some bling and keeps the tags on.

The NORBA XC crowd.

Now married, Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski and Heather Irmiger after both winning the XC in Brian Head, Utah.

You messin' with me? A focused Magen Long awaits the start of crit’ nationals.

Gravity dudes Jared Rando, David K and Andrew Neethling before racing the STXC in Utah.

Luna Chix teammates Alison Dunlap and Katerina Hanusova.

Adam Craig bustin’ out of his skinsuit.

Phone home: Cody Warren had to call someone after winning the Dual in Deer Valley, Utah.

Tears of joy? Several weeks after finishing third at the Angel Fire World Cup, Erwin Bakker was busted for EPO.

Nice shades: Yeti’s Ross Milan coaches high school wrestling. How cool is that?

After losing the USPRO crit nationals by a hair, all Dave McCook could do was ponder what could have been.

Brian Lopes shows Jared Graves how to take a victory slug of victory champagne.

Can Frischknecht compete on the Costa Ricans' turf Uh huh

Bishop still managed fifth despite the atomic bonk

Not your average mountain-bike race

Johan Bruyneel confirmed that George Hincapie will be “a protected rider” for Discovery Channel in the 2006 Tour de France as America’s top pro team moves into the post-Armstrong era. Hincapie’s dramatic stage victory in the Pyrénées in July has raised expectations that the classics strongman could morph’ into an overall Tour contender, an idea that Bruyneel has been cautiously nurturing since the conclusion of this year’s Tour. “George will be one of our protected riders for next year’s Tour de France. He is able to finish in the top-10 in the overall classification and he's a rider

Descente Named Official Cycling Apparel of Team CSCTeam CSC, ranked number one professional cycling team in the world,chooses Descente for its quality, brand strength, advanced product developmentand legacy.BOULDER, CO — November 9, 2005 — Descente Cycling Apparel, licensedand distributed exclusively by Axcent Sports in North America, Europe,Australia and elsewhere, has been named the official cycling apparel supplierto the Team CSC professional cycling team, based in Denmark and run byRiis Cycling.The team, comprised of 30 of the top cyclists in the world, includesIvan Basso, a top pick to

Hincapie will enjoy a new status at the `06 Tour

The immediate fate of four-time Vuelta a España champion Roberto Heras lies in the outcome of a counter-analysis scheduled for November 21. Heras faces a two-year racing ban and loss of his record fourth Vuelta crown if the follow-up urine test comes back positive for EPO. The Spanish rider continued to declare his innocence despite a test result from the penultimate stage of the Vuelta that revealed the presence of the banned blood booster. “I am completely sure that I am innocent and all I can do is wait until the second analysis to prove it,” Heras told Spanish television outside his

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.Where is the outrage?Editor,Is it just me or is Rabobank acting quite suspiciously regarding the Heras positive? Theo De Rooy states that winning that way "wouldn'tmean anything to us."Is there no anger that their man may have been cheated out of a title by a suspected doper? No joy

Heras says he's confident that he won't have to give up his fourth Vuelta title.

Solving the solvent questionDear Lennard,Thanks for the recent notes regarding carbon fiber and solvents/lubrication.I wonder if you could recommend a safe way to remove old tubular cementfrom carbon rims. If you have already addressed the issue, can you pointme in the right direction?ScottDear Scott,This is one of those questions that warrants an answer straight fromthe horse's mouth. I sent off your question to a few carbon rim manufacturersand got these responses back.LennardAnswer from HedAcetone, a stiff plastic bristle brush, and a lot of time arewhat you use to get the cement off a

Roberto Heras is denying allegations he took the banned blood booster EPO and expressed his confidence that a follow-up test will prove his innocence. On Monday, his Liberty Seguros team suspended the four-time Vuelta a España champion after traces of EPO were found in a urine sample taken after the penultimate stage of this year’s Vuelta. “It was a surprise to me when they told me,” Heras said on Spanish radio. “It was a shock, but we are convinced that it’s been a laboratory error. There can’t be any other reason. My lawyers are already working on the issue.” The UCI notified the team

Heras as he prepared to ride into Madrid this year

Menchov (L) isn't thrilled with the prospect of winning the Vuelta this way

Thomas Voeckler – the plucky Frenchman who soared into the yellow jersey in the 2004 Tour de France – couldn’t quite repeat the drama this year. By his own admission, the 26-year-old’s season fell far short of the expectations he had for himself. “I am disappointed with my season, but I knew it would be difficult to repeat the success of a year ago,” Voeckler told Ciclismag. “I would have liked to have had better results, but I couldn’t pull it off, though there were races when I was in the hunt.” The Bouygues Telecom rider enjoyed a breakout season in 2004, winning a stage in the Route du

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.Hey, business is businessVeloNews,There is an article in the Saturday, November 5th edition of the San Francisco Chronicle explaining how Health Net, the nation's largest HMO (and professional cycling team sponsor), is about to let a four-year-old child die (see "Family fights an HMO

The Southern California Cyclocross Cup reached its halfway point in grand fashion on Sunday as nearly 100 riders took to the European-style course of Hart Park in Bakersfield, California. The course, designed by race director Sam Ames, featured pavement, grass and one short, steep run-up. Two high concrete curbs were a crowd favorite - a few riders were able to bunny hop them, but most stuck to the traditional dismount. In the women’s A race series promoter Dorothy Wong (Kelly) took the win from rival Carolyn Popovic followed by Amy Bowen in third. "It was a tough race but such a good

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. Austin Seroogy’s shot of two cyclo-cross racers remounting after clearing the sandy run-up at Boulder Reservoir was one of those rare perfectly timed photos that catches the essence of a sporting event. Congratulations Austin! Contact us and you win a copy of Graham Watson's "Landscapes of Cycling."Go ahead and take a look at our latest gallery,decide what you like and let us know what you think by dropping a noteto

Roberto Heras – winner of an unprecedented fourth Vuelta a España crown this September – has been released by his Liberty Seguros team after tests indicated that he had used EPO prior to stage 20 of this year’s Vuelta. The UCI notified the team on October 27 that Heras, 31, had tested positivefor the banned blood booster EPO in samples given after the Vuelta’s penultimatestage, an individual time trial from Guadalajara to Alcalá de Henares, in which Heras finished second, just two seconds slower than winner Ruben Plaza(Comunidad Valenciana). “Roberto Heras was released from the team

Not quite 2004, but Voeckler has no regrets

Wong loved the course

Noble shows 'em the way

VeloNews Photo Contest: Last week's winner and a new gallery

Heras tested positive after his strong performance in the stage 20 TT

Tom Boonen (Quick Step-Innergetic) wasted no time winning his first race in the rainbow, winning Saturday’s Amstel Curaçao Race in the Caribbean. Of course, the criterium on the Dutch Antilles is hardly in the same league as Paris-Roubaix or Tour of Flanders, but a win is a win, even when it doesn’t really count. The 25-year-old Belgian was decked out in a full-body white team jersey with the rainbow stripes he earned in Madrid in late September in full display. Boonen finished ahead of Giro d’Italia champion Paolo Savoldelli (Discovery Channel) while Dutch rider Peter Weening (Rabobank)

A day after its national cyclo-cross championships, Canada’s first-ever UCI sanctioned C2 cyclo-cross event took place in Aurora, Ontario, just south of the Saturday’s championship site. While the majority of the field consisted of riders who had ridden the day before, there were a number of Americans, including one significant addition to the men's field: Lyne Bessette's husband and teammate Tim Johnson (Cyclocrossworld.com - Louis Garneau). The pair showed why they are considered among the top riders on the continent this season by riding away from their respective fields to

Boonen may retire at 30

Bessette remains the undisputed Queen of `Cross in North America

Johnson took off early and stayed off the front

Greg Reain gives chase

Amgen Inc. and USA Cycling are rebutting critics who say the drug manufacturer’s three-year sponsorship of the Tour of California sends a mixed message to athletes. Amgen pioneered the making of EPO, arguably cycling's most famously abused substance, to help cancer and kidney patients recover more quickly. Both the UCI and USA Cycling, which is sanctioning the California race, ban use of the synthetic hormone. "Many people think the EPO drug was invented to be used in doping," Amgen spokeswoman Mary Klem said on Friday. "We are opposed to the inappropriate use of Amgen’s EPO

American Colby Pearce took the silver in the 30km points race on Saturday during day two of the UCI track World Cup in Moscow. The TIAA-CREF rider, from Boulder, Colorado, scored 27 points to secure the runner-up spot behind Argentina’s Sebastian Cancio, with 32 points. Petr Lazar of the Czech Republic was third with 24. In other action, Australia easily won the team pursuit; Stefan Nimke of Germany won the sprint; Natalia Tsylinskaya of Belarus took the 500-meter time trial; and China’s Lee Meifang con the individual pursuit. UCI World CupMoscow, RussiaNovember 5MenTeam pursuit1.

The 2000 racers that flock to Northern Michigan's 27-mile Iceman Cometh Challenge each year never know what kind of weather to expect. Seven of the past 14 years, the Iceman has been held in cold and snowy conditions. However, in recent years, racers have enjoyed unseasonably balmy weather. This year's weather continued that trend, with a mid-day temperature in the mid-50s, leaving race promoter Steve Brown to suggest that perhaps the race should be renamed the "Niceman." And the weather wasn't the only thing heating up at the Iceman. The pro men's class had some of the

Two former champions regained their titles at the Canadian national cyclo-cross championships Saturday at the Hardwood Hills Mountain Bike Centre, 90 minutes north of Toronto. Lyne Bessette (Cyclocrossworld.com-Louis Garneau) won the women's title, after an absence of two years, and Peter Wedge (Kona-Les Gets) took his seventh Canadian title after his streak was snapped at six last year. The streak continuesBessette remains unbeaten in North America this season, with the nationals being her ninth consecutive win, and making her a strong contender for the world championships in Holland

Whoa! Yes, friends — after watching the first few riders shoot down Malibu’s twisting Tuna Canyon during Saturday’s Red Bull Road Rage time trial, all this reporter could offer up was a dumbfounded, Keanu Reeves-like expression. Whoa-HUH! My declaration of disbelief grew louder as riders dialed in their lines and technique around the 40-something sharp turns dotting the two-mile, 2000-foot drop. The average times during the preliminary round of the time trial were in the five-minute range. But by the second round, riders posted times nearly 20 seconds faster, approaching rocket-like

Saturday's VeloBriefs: Amgen, USA Cycling defend sponsorship deal; NORBA schedule announced; Colavita-Sutter Home signs Wams

Nine and counting: No one has figured out a way to beat Bessette yet this year

Simms regained the lead... for a bit

Wedge resumed his winning ways

Lopes tearing it up (or down)

The winners

Meyer's stack-up was the day's worst

Carter debuts the latest in denim-skinsuit technology

Decker had it all - a fairing and a water bottle filled with pennies taped to his down tube

Craig rides in on his own

Who steals my purse steals trash; 'tis something, nothing'Twas mine, 'tis his, and has been slave to thousands;But he that filches from me my good nameRobs me of that which not enriches himAnd makes me poor indeed.—William Shakespeare, Othello The predictably Shakespearean sound and fury has erupted over the announcement that biotech giant Amgen Inc., maker of a certain synthetic hormone all too familiar to cycling fans, has signed on as title sponsor of the 2006 Tour of California. Jeez, it must be true — irony is dead. Not even EPO could save it. The World Anti-Doping Agency

It might not come as a real big surprise that Michael Rasmussen was less than thrilled at the presentation of the 2006 Tour de France. The rail-thin Dane likes mountains, not time trials and - save for a wicked trio in the final week in the Alps - the 93rd Tour will be more about the race of truth than scampering up steep roads. “It’s a different Tour,” Rasmussen told VeloNews. “It favors the time-trial specialists and there are only three mountain-top finishes.” Rasmussen, 30, electrified the Tour last year, going on the attack early to secure the King of the Mountains jersey and win a

What are those pedals?It seems that lastweek’s column sparked a bit of interest in the pedals we hadmounted on the Zero G crankset. Well, those are M2 Racer’s ORB pedals andthe pair weighs in at just 99 grams. Fabricated from 6/4 titanium, theORBs feature 15 degrees of self-centering float. Their $228 price is wellwithin the ballpark for high-end titanium spindled pedals. The ORB is among a host of ultra-light M2 Racer products. Thecompany’s range includes a 43-gram saddle, a 69-gram seat post and a 6-grambottle cage. To highlight what a complete package of M2 Racer componentscan do, the

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.Amgen Tour: Truth is stranger than fictionEditor:My first glance at the news of Amgen sponsoring the Tour of California caused me a moment of confusion; it smacked of a classic VeloNews April Fool's headline. Then my imagination got the best of me; can you picture the AMGEN PR tent

A few months ago I wrote a column focused on Red Bull’s one-of-a-kind downhill road race, the Red Bull Road Rage, to be run on Saturday in sunny Malibu, California. For those not up to speed on the Rage, it’s a downhill road race. First comes a time trial; fastest man takes the prize. Next is a four-up competition similar to mountain biking’s mountain-cross. Four athletes shoot out of the gates at once and make their way down the treacherous descent; the first two advance to the next round while the second two retire for drinks at the bar. Our good friends at Red Bull invited top-level road

No, it's not an early April Fool's Day gag

Tech Shorts: That mystery pedal; surprising the GQ crowd

Tech Shorts: That mystery pedal; surprising the GQ crowd