Thanks Erwin
This past weekend started off the East Coast UCI cyclo-cross blitz- probably the most work of the entire year, but easily the most fun. Long days are made much easier when you're smiling and having a good time.
Saturday and Sunday were the Whitmores Landscaping Super Cross Cup out at the very tip of Long Island. Myles Romanow puts on one hell of a show, and this years races topped everything he's done so far. Myles stepped up to the plate this year to put up equal prize money for the men and women- a huge feat considering it's a UCI C1 race. That means over $6k in prize money- and some big name riders showed up to chase those dollars.
With cycling being so strong in the Northeast it's not uncommon to have big name riders show up- it seems as though every week there is at least one national champion jersey on the line. But it's something special when this jersey shows up:
We've worked lots of events with lots of big name riders show up- but this was the first reigning world champ to toe the line. Erwin Vervecken flew all the way from Belgium to race. And true to the cyclo-cross credo- there was smiling and fun all around. It would be easy to be smug and aloof when you're wearing that jersey- especially when it's the 3rd one you've won. But that's not Erwin. He stopped for every photo op, answered every question, and even when he broke his bike on Sunday he just shrugged it off and smiled. If it wasn't for the brilliant white kit with the rainbow stripes he could have been just another guy riding around. Of course some of those other guys and girls riding around were pretty good too- Both US elite champions were there, both Canadian champions, the German mens champ, and a whole host of others. But everyone had one thing in common- smiles all around. It was a big race for sure, but it was fun, and everyone knew it.
Leading up to the Whitmores race there was a bunch of whinging on the blogs about its location- that it was too far to go to, that you had to take a ferry to get there, yada yada yada. That it wasn't part of this series or that series.. and on and on ad nauseum. Well for those who didn't go- you missed a great weekend, great racing, and a great champion.
So Thanks Myles, and Bedankt Erwin.
Saturday and Sunday were the Whitmores Landscaping Super Cross Cup out at the very tip of Long Island. Myles Romanow puts on one hell of a show, and this years races topped everything he's done so far. Myles stepped up to the plate this year to put up equal prize money for the men and women- a huge feat considering it's a UCI C1 race. That means over $6k in prize money- and some big name riders showed up to chase those dollars.
With cycling being so strong in the Northeast it's not uncommon to have big name riders show up- it seems as though every week there is at least one national champion jersey on the line. But it's something special when this jersey shows up:
We've worked lots of events with lots of big name riders show up- but this was the first reigning world champ to toe the line. Erwin Vervecken flew all the way from Belgium to race. And true to the cyclo-cross credo- there was smiling and fun all around. It would be easy to be smug and aloof when you're wearing that jersey- especially when it's the 3rd one you've won. But that's not Erwin. He stopped for every photo op, answered every question, and even when he broke his bike on Sunday he just shrugged it off and smiled. If it wasn't for the brilliant white kit with the rainbow stripes he could have been just another guy riding around. Of course some of those other guys and girls riding around were pretty good too- Both US elite champions were there, both Canadian champions, the German mens champ, and a whole host of others. But everyone had one thing in common- smiles all around. It was a big race for sure, but it was fun, and everyone knew it.
Leading up to the Whitmores race there was a bunch of whinging on the blogs about its location- that it was too far to go to, that you had to take a ferry to get there, yada yada yada. That it wasn't part of this series or that series.. and on and on ad nauseum. Well for those who didn't go- you missed a great weekend, great racing, and a great champion.
So Thanks Myles, and Bedankt Erwin.
posted by JD at
11:49 AM
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