NRC

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USA Cycling's move to merge NRC and NCC calendars is a good one, but now the organization needs to develop a clear vision for the future.

After four years of split calendars, USAC will go back to one single calendar for professional road races, but it will be criterium-heavy.

NRC schedule shrinks to seven races, while the NCC adds three new dates for 2015

USA Cycling announced its 2014 road calendars on Thursday

The men's series wraps up at the Thompson Bucks County Classic in Doylestown, Pa. over the weekend

Austrian Tibco rider takes command in National Racing Calendar; Colorado race to host ride, running race

The U.S. domestic calendars lose five events, implement new points systems

Series-leading Spaniard opens second round of the NRC with a stage win

USA Cycling announced two of the three national road calendars this week and they are full of changes. The new National Criterium Calendar spins off from the National Racing Calendar and includes more than a month of southeast crits in the spring.

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Change is afoot again in the National Racing Calendar. USA Cycling announced the latest in a number of changes planned for the U.S. calendar this week with the creation of the National Criterium Calendar.

The West Coast and Midwest are criterium central this weekend in the U.S., but the women’s elite national championship in Georgia take top billing.

When Tour of the Battenkill promoter Dieter Drake and USA Cycling staff traded barbs over rider invites in January, Mike Poe and the Sunny King Criterium were caught in the crossfire.

Francisco Mancebo (Realcyclist.com) and Amber Neben (HTC-Highroad) sit atop the season’s first National Racing Calendar standings after their overall wins at the Redlands Bicycle Classic. Realcyclist.com and HTC also lead the team classifications for men and women, respectively.

The 27th Redlands Bicycle Classic opens Thursday in Southern California with a 3.1-mile uphill prologue. Redlands pulls back the curtain on the 2011 National Racing Calendar and runs through Sunday’s stage 3 Sunset Road Race.

USA Cycling will announce Monday a new team designation, “Domestic Elite,” which national events director Micah Rice hoped would bring improved organization to elite teams in the men’s and women’s pelotons. The new category is effective immediately and will affect National Racing Calendar points standings and criteriums on the circuit.

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The Tour of Battenkill joins the NRC for 2011 and former winner Evelyn Stevens predicts an epic battle

UPDATED: Big changes are in store for the National Racing Calendar next year. Philly's Liberty Classic gets added to the list.

Next year's U.S. pro crit championships will be open only to Americans and will be held in Grand Rapids, Michigan. But what about the rough roads?

• 1. Luis Amaran, Jamis Sutter Home/colavita, with 1139 points
• 2. Jonathan Cantwell, Fly V Australia, with 855 points
• 3. Rory Sutherland, Unitedhealthcare P/b Maxxis, with 805 points
• 4. David Veilleux, Kelly Benefits Strategies, with 743 points
• 5. Ben Jacques-maynes, Bissell Pro Cycling, with 632 points

• 1. Luis Amaran, Jamis Sutter Home/Colavita, at 1139 points
• 2. Rory Sutherland, UnitedHealthcare-Maxxis, with 805 points
• 3. David Veilleux, Kelly Benefit Strategies, with 743 points
• 4. Jonathan Cantwell, Fly V Australia, with 735 points
• 5. Ben Jacques-Maynes, Bissell Pro Cycling, with 632 points

Luis Amaran (Jamis-Sutter Home) had enough lead to coast across the finish line of the 2010 National Racing Calendar individual standings.

V Australia's Jonathan Cantwell notches another crit win, this time at the NRC-closing Chris Thater in New York. His win helped V Australia lock up the 2010 NRC team rankings win.

USA Crits series action continues Sunday with the men's event.

The Chris Thater Memorial closes out the National Racing Calendar, while the Hotter 'n Hell and the Winters Road Race keep Texas and California racers busy.

USA Cycling plans to change the calendar to reduce travel, tweak the points system and figure out how UCI Pro Continental teams can participate in national-level races.

With just two events left for men and women, Fly V Australia and Jamis-Sutter Home are in a tight battle on the men's side, and Colavita-Baci and Tibco-To the Top are neck-and-neck at the top of the women's rankings.

• 1. Luis Amaran, Jamis-Sutter Home, 1139 points
• 2. Rory Sutherland, UnitedHealthcare P/b Maxxis, 805 points
• 3. David Veilleux, Kelly Benefit Strategies, 743 points
• 4. Jonathan Cantwell, Fly V Australia, 735 points
• 5. Ben Jacques-Maynes, Bissell Pro Cycling, 632 points

• 1. Luis Amaran, Jamis Sutter Home/Colavita , 1073 points
• 2. Rory Sutherland, UnitedHealthcare P/b Maxxis , 805 points
• 3. David Veilleux, Kelly Benefit Strategies , 743 points
• 4. Ben Jacques-Maynes, Bissell Pro Cycling , 632 points
• 5. Jonathan Cantwell, Fly V Australia , 615 points

The NRC continues as the Tour of Elk Grove takes place Friday through Sunday northwest of Chicago.

• 1. Luis Amaran, Jamis Sutter Home/Colavita, 996 points
• 2. Rory Sutherland, UnitedHealthcare P/b Maxxis, 805 points
• 3. Scott Zwizanski, Kelly Benefits Strategies, 579 points
• 4. Ben Day, Fly V Australia, 573 points
• 5. Ben Jacques-maynes, Bissell Pro Cycling, 566 points

Cath Cheatley and Luis Amaran continue to lead the NRC individual standings.

The NRC takes to the mountains of central Oregon this week and VeloNews will be there.

Bissell's Patrick Bevin takes his first NRC win as Tibco's Jo Kiesanowski outguns series leader Cath Cheatley.

The New England classic NRC race has a new stage order that is sure to shake up the GC.

• 1. Luis Amaran Jamis Sutter Home/Colavita 923 points
• 2. Rory Sutherland Unitedhealthcare P/b Maxxis 565 points
• 3. Scott Zwizanski Kelly Benefits Strategies 515 points
• 4. Ben Jacques-Maynes Bissell Pro Cycling 490 points
• 5. Ben Day Fly V Australia 428 points

• 1. Luis Amaran Jamis Sutter Home/colavita 597 points
• 2. Ben Day Fly V Australia 428 points
• 3. Ben Jacques-Maynes Bissell Pro Cycling 365 points
• 4. Levi Leipheimer Team Mellow Johnny's 265 points
• 5. Alejandro Borrajo Jamis Sutter Home/colavita 251 points

Ben Kersten (Fly V Australia) and Theresa Cliff-Ryan (Colavita-Baci) stamped their names on one of America’s oldest cycling races Monday, taking wins at the Tour of Somerville in New Jersey. The National Racing Calendar criteriums closed out a full weekend of cycling events in Somerville and were the final tune-up ahead of next weekend’s UCI races in Philadelphia.

Luis Amaran (Jamis-Sutter Home) and Alison Powers (Vera Bradley Foundation) have taken over the top of the National Racing Calendar standings following strong performance by both at the SRAM Tour of the Gila and Joe Martin Stage Race.

• 1. Benjamin Day (AUS/Fly Australia) - 298 points
• 2. Ben Jacques-Maynes (Watsonville, Calif./Bissell Pro Cycling) - 185 points
• 3. Will Routley (CAN/Jelly Belly p/b Kenda)- 162 points
• 4. Kiel Reijnen (Boulder, Colo./Jelly Belly p/b Kenda) - 136 points
• 5. Luis Amaran (CUB/Jamis-Sutter Home p/b Colavita) 131 points

This week, the U.S. racing scene is about three things: dirt, criterium prize money and an amateur spot at Nature Valley.

USA Cycling’s National Racing Calendar (NRC) kicked off last weekend with the Redlands Bicycle Classic in California.

The National Racing Calendar will roll into Anniston, Alabama and onto web-enabled devices during the Sunny King Criterium on April 17th.

Defending NRC team champion opens title defense at Redlands.

Whatever its name, the team variously known as HealthNet, HealthNet-Maxxis or OUCH-Maxxis has dominated the National Racing Calendar for the last six years.

The Chris Thater Memorial race is an event weekend that host a 5K run and pro, elite and novice crit races. The race will be held in Binghamton, NY, and will serve as the USA CRITS Women's final event in 2010.

The 50-mile twilight crit in downtown Charlotte, North Carolina, paid out $13,000 to 2009 winner David Veilleux. The dog-bone shaped course is 1.3 miles long with two long straight-aways that makes the Presbyterian crit a great spectators event.

After season-long success at Team Type 1, NRC Champion Alison Powers moves to ValueAct Capital.

The Tour of Utah evolved from a local stage race into a national event in 2004. The race didn't happen in 2007, but came back strong in 2008 and 2009.

The Tour of Elk Grove features the NRC's biggest pay-out at $155,000.

The Chicago Criterium is the 22nd race on USA Cycling's NRC.

The six-day stage race in Oregon features stunning scenery and all-out racing.

Formerly known as the Marion Classic, the Two Bridges Criterium is the 18th race of the 2010 NRC.

Fitchburg celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2009, and is back on its traditional calendar spot over the Fourth of July weekend for the 2010 NRC.

Manhattan Beach is a longstanding classic criterium on the NRC. Rahsaan Bahati has won the last three editions.

Nature Valley is the highest ranked stage race on the National Racing Calendar.

Offering both men's and women's professional events, the Tour de Grove enters its fifth year in 2010.

The Arlington road race is the 13th round of the National Racing Calendar.

Held on the streets of Philadelphia, the Liberty Classic is the most prestigious women's race in the country.

With the NRC's second-biggest prize list at nearly $115,000, Tulsa Tough is a three-day omnium of criteriums.

The Tour of Somerville is the ninth stop on the 2010 NRC. Its history dates back to 1940.

A newcomer to USAC's National Racing Calendar, the Basking Ridge Twilight Grand Prix is a UCI 1.5 event.

The Kelly Cup is the seventh stop on the 2010 USA Cycling NRC circuit. The Sunday race is Maryland falls the day after the Wilmington Grand Prix in Delaware.

The Wilmington Grand Prix is a criterium in downtown Wilmington, Delaware.

Entering its 33rd year on the calendar in 2010, the Joe Martin Stage Race is an institution in southern stage racing.

The SRAM Tour of the Gila in southern New Mexico is a stage race for the climbers, with approximately 25,000 vertical feet in climbing in the mix over the course of the five-day race.

The third stop on the 2010 NRC, Sunny King Criterium is in Anniston, Alabama.

Dana Point is one of the younger events on the 2010 NRC calendar, but offers great racing and a great prize list in downtown Dana Point.

The Redlands Classic began in 1985, and has since become the premier season opener for American road racing.

The 2010 National Racing Calendar is pared down a bit from what was announced for the 2009 season — but, since several 2009 events were canceled — the 2010 NRC has about as many events as this year's. Next year the NRC will include 27 events in 22 states, comprising 15 criteriums, eight multi-day stage races, two one-day road races, one circuit race and one omnium. While there is no series prize list, the combined prize lists from the individual events totals $981,000. Events must offer a certain level of prize list and meet other requirements to be part of the calendar.

• 1. Tom Zirbel Bissell Pro Cycling Team 1127 points
• 2. Sebastion Haedo Colavita Olive Oil/sutter Home Pro 1120 points
• 3. Rory Sutherland Ouch P/b Maxxis 952 points
• 4. Karl Menzies Ouch P/b Maxxis 660 points
• 5. Alejandro Borrajo Colavita Olive Oil/sutter Home Pro 565 points