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OUCH's Cam Evans back to defend title at San Dimas

Published: Mar. 19, 2009
San Dimas Stage Race: the womens peloton on stage 2 in 2008.
San Dimas Stage Race: the womens peloton on stage 2 in 2008.
Photo: Kurt Jambretz

The domestic stage-racing calendar opens up this weekend with the three-day San Dimas Stage Race.

The race begins Friday with a 3.7-mile climbing prologue, followed Saturday by a hilly road race run on a 7.15-mile circuit. The race concludes Sunday with the Old Town Grand Prix, raced on a 1.2-mile circuit in downtown San Dimas.

Rising Canadian star Cameron Evans of OUCH-Maxxis returns to San Dimas Friday as the defending champion.

Riding for Symmetrics, Evans won the 2008 race in dramatic fashion, escaping off the front during the closing stage 3 criterium. Evans started the stage 37 seconds down on general classification behind Rock Racing’s race leader Oscar Sevilla, but initiated a three-man breakaway that opened a one-minute gap, forcing Rock into a desperate chase during the final kilometers of the 90-minute race.

Rock’s efforts came up one second short, however, and Evans emerged with enough mid-race and finish line time bonuses to climb from 11th place to first overall. It was the closest finish in the nine-year history of the former National Racing Calendar event.

The rising Canadian star begins the race as a better-known quantity this year, and comes into San Dimas following a stellar performance at the Vuelta Mexico that included winning stage 6 of that race.

San Dimas Stage Race: Evans and Luis Romero Amaran in the winning break on stage 3 last year.
San Dimas Stage Race: Evans and Luis Romero Amaran in the winning break on stage 3 last year.
Photo: Kurt Jambretz

OUCH will not arrive with its biggest name, Floyd Landis. However San Dimas also marks the return of 2007 and 2008 NRC champion Rory Sutherland. The team will be led on the road by captain Tim Johnson.

Rock Racing returns with Caleb Manion, Justin Williams, Segio Hernandez, Rahsaan Bahati, Iggy Silva, Mike Creed, Cesar Grajales and Chris Baldwin. Last year’s runner-up Sevilla was not listed on the starting roster.

Another team looking for success in San Dimas is Team BMC. Though the team was unable to send a squad to San Dimas in 2008, BMC won the overall in 2007 with Scott Moninger.

“I really like San Dimas and think it is a great three-day race," BMC general manager Gavin Chilcott said. “Schedule conflicts made it impossible for us to be there last year, but we are very happy to be using it as a nice springboard into Redlands."

Though the race starts with a tough uphill time trial, Chilcott said it is not necessarily a pure climber's event.

“To win the overall, you have to climb well enough to do well in the time trial, but the other two stages are certainly not easy and you have to remain tactically astute,” Chilcott said, adding that he would look to Jeff Louder, as well as Chad Beyer and Brent Bookwalter, to provide the team with several cards to play. “We are anxious to go back and try again for the GC.”

Other pro men’s teams include Fly V Australia-Successful Living, led by Aussie Ben Day; Colavita Sutter Home-Cooking Light, led by 2008 criterium winner Luis Amaran; Bissell, led by climbing specialist Burke Swindlehurst; Jelly Belly, led by all-rounder Nick Reistad; Team Mountain Khakis, led by crit specialist Daniel Ramsey; and Team Type 1, led by sprinter Matt Wilson.

Amateur teams attending include Felt-Holowesko Partners-Garmin, led by Peter Stetina, and California Giant-Specialized, led by Adam Switters.

One women’s team looking to dominate is Columbia-Highroad, which brings a world-class squad, including star sprinters Ina Yoko Teutenberg and Emilia Fahlin, climber Mara Abbott, and all-rounders Kim Anderson and Alex Wrubleski.

Hoping to stop Columbia is the ValueAct Capital team, led by Leah Goldstein, who was fourth overall at San Dimas last year. Nicole Evans, Robin Farina, Martina Patella and Emily Zell join Goldstein.

“This is a great tune-up for Redlands,” said Goldstein. “It's a great way to kick off the season."

Email Neal Rogers

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