Fort Lewis Cycling's cyclocross team is heading to Hartford, Connecticut this week for the USA Cycling Championships of Cyclocross.
The Skyhawks have been competing in the championship event as a team since 2005 and have brought home numerous individual titles and podiums since. The focus for the Skyhawks, however, is on the team omnium title, which they have won two times.
The nearly weeklong event has daily races for all age groups, from amateurs to professionals, and showcases collegiate racing Thursday and Friday with varsity and club races.
“First and foremost, this event is a celebration of the amazing cyclocross bicycle and that special feeling we get when wheels set in motion,” said FLC Cycling coach Chad Cheeney. “Then you throw in a big crowd, hopefully some wintertime adverse conditions, a sweet course and the team setting, always a good time!”
FLC races in the varsity division, and the women will first race at 7:50 a.m. Thursday. The men will follow at 1:50 p.m.
Points are tabulated in each race with the top three finishers scoring points for each team.
Friday concludes the collegiate offerings with the team relay at 12:10 p.m. Four riders from each team, two males and two females, will each complete one lap of the course, making it a four lap race. After this third event, the team omnium title will be awarded.
The Skyhawks will then stick around and race some more in the professional and singlespeed races Saturday and Sunday. The majority of the team, as well as team staffers, will compete in them.
FLC’s cyclocross team includes Sabrina Hayes, Ruth Holcomb, Natalie Quinn, Michaela Thompson and Madelyn Roberson on the women’s squad. The men’s team includes Cobe Freeburn, Guy Lesham, Carson Beard, Adrian Magun, Jake Olander, Garrett Payer and George Piepgras. The team’s staff includes director Ian Burnet, mechanic Carson Jones-Wilkins, soigner Ava Hachman, drivers Kobi Gyetvan and Keiran Eagen and coach Cheeney.
The team has used the local Four Corners Cyclocross Series for its race training since 2003. The series has a rich history of producing cyclocross champions, most notably Todd Wells, Troy Wells, Teal Stetson-Lee, the late Ben Sonntag, Matt Shriver and Christopher Blevins.
