July 25/05 10:08 am - Tour de White Rock: Road Race and Final Omnium Results
Posted by Editoress on 07/25/05
Tour de White Rock - Road Race Whiterock BC, July 24th
Report by Kevin Woodley
Kirk O'Bee moved to the lower mainland for his young family. He's glad he stayed for the racing.
O'Bee, a Michigan native who has called North Vancouver home since 2002, won the 26th annual Tour de White Rock road race Sunday, capping off an impressive BC Superweek run that also included the Tour de Delta criterium and omnium (overall) titles.
After breaking away from the pack with seven laps left in the 134-kilometre race - one lap on the bigger 10.1-kilometre circuit and six more around the 3.8 kilometre track - O'Bee coasted through the finish line three hours, 32 minutes and 56.4 seconds after he started.
That was almost two minutes ahead of Costa Rican rider Pablo Araya, who sprinted past Christian Meier of the B.C.-based Symmetrics pro team at the finish line for second.
After focusing more on his spring performances the last two years, O'Bee, a former U.S. National Criterium Champion and Road Championship team member, was in top form for this year's BC Superweek. Riding for a powerful New Jersey-based Navigators Insurance team, the 28-year-old was eager to perform well for fans in his adopted hometown.
"This year I wanted to put on more of a show," said O'Bee, who became a permanent resident of Canada in October and also finished second in the Tour de Delta road race last weekend. "It's really nice to know people and be local, it just makes it more relaxing and more exciting. S( I really wanted to win this one and win as many of these as I could." In a race marred by two early crashes that sent three riders to nearby Peace Arch Hospital, O'Bee was content to sit back in the pack, even after a strong riding trio of Pan American Games gold medalist Eric Wohlberg (Symmetrics), Canadian cycling legend Gord Fraser (Health Net) and Brandon Crichton (ItalPasta) broke away five laps into the race.
The trio built up a two-minute lead before a chase led by three Costa Rican riders finally tracked down the three-man break with two laps left around the hilly long course. O'Bee, who'd been cruising back to that point, took off the next lap and never looked back.
"I was a little worried when Gord got away with Wohlberg, but there was only three of them and I knew it wouldn't last unless the rest of the field sat up," said O'Bee, who met his wife, Suzanne, in Victoria, where she was attending university. They moved to North Vancouver while she was pregnant with their son Samuel, now two-and-a-half years old. "Luckily the Broadmark team did some chasing and the Costa Rican team really put in a good chase and brought them back. I knew the race was on from there. I didn't think I would get away and stay away, that wasn't the plan. I just kind of kept rolling it." O'Bee also won King of the Mountain, which is given out to the rider who racks up the most points by finishing in the top three of each lap, and overtook Langley's Svein Tuft (Symmetrics) for top spot in the Canada Cup Road Race Series point standings.
"We really admire what he did," Araya, with some interpreting help from Costa Rican team manager Andreas Carmona, said of O'Bee's performance. BC Superweek was the Costa Rican team's only race outside Central America. Carmona, a local resident who helped fund their trip himself and hopes to bring back six riders next year, called it a highlight of their season, but that wasn't enough to chase O'Bee.
"We didn't even try," he said. "No one else in the back wanted to chase hard and we were trying to make podium so we took charge of the race in the front trying to bridge the gap." O'Bee's win came as no surprise to Andrew Pinfold, who was caught in the second of two crashes at the bottom of Marine Drive, where riders reach speeds of 80 kilometres an hour.
The first crash sent West Vancouver's Scott Slater of the Rocky Mountain-Adobe team and Cory Forest of Kelowna Cycle to hospital, while Burnaby's Damian Waugh, also from the Rocky Mountain-Adobe team, escaped with road rash. The second crash, one lap later, sent Ottawa's Richard Minichiello of the TREK-Red Truck Ale team to hospital, which cost him his first-place spot in the SISU B.C. CUP Championship series.
The second crash also claimed Pinfold, which was doubly bad for Symmetrics because he was leading the omnium (overall) after finishing second in Friday's hill lcimb and sixth in Saturday's criterium, and may have had the best chance of staying with O'Bee Sunday.
"I'm pretty sure Kirk O'Bee is going to win the race," Pinfold, covered in road rash and a torn jersey but otherwise okay, predicted before O'Bee broke away. "It's like the guy is on a motorbike right now. Unfortunately on our team I'm the only guy who can follow him." Fortunately for Symmetrics, Meier was able to stay out in front with the chase group until Araya caught him with a bike push at the finish line, dropping Meier to third.
"I was pretty upset because I'd really like to be second place, " said Meier, who seemed surprised when Araya snuck around him. "Ii would be good for the team, but I did all I could do and he's just obviously a better sprinter than myself." Tyler Farrar of Health Net edged out Dustin MacBurnie of Broadmark Capital in a sprint to finish fourth, but MacBurnie still claimed the Tour de White Rock Omnium (overall title). The women's race, which consisted of eight laps around the 10-kilometre route, was much closer at the end, with four riders breaking away late in the final lap before a pair of 17-year-old National Development Team members from Quebec won a sprint to the finish line.
Karol-Ann Canuel of Amos, Quebec, finished first, followed closely by teammate Joelle Numainville of Laval, Quebec, who edged out Anna Tratnyek, an 18-year-old Terry Precision team rider from Shakespeare, Ontario, in a photo finish.
It was a reverse-order finish from the recent Canadian National Junior time trial and road race Championships, where Numainville won and Canuel finished second. "I like the climbs so I liked the race," said Canuel with translation from Numainville. "I was surprised to finish second here," added Numainville, who was third in Gastown in Wednesday, but had lower expectations for hill-filled White Rock road race. "I was just trying to finish the race, not to be on the podium." New Zealand Development Team rider Brei Gudsell, who won Saturday's criterium in White Rock, finished fourth after starting the breakaway up the backside hills on the final lap. Tratnyek gave chase first, with Canual and Numainville catching up soon after as the three worked to bridge the gap to Gudsell before pulling away down the stretch.
Gudsell, whose team was flying back to New Zealand just a few hours after the race, still managed to claim the women's Omnium (overall title) for the Tour de White Rock.
"I was a bit surprised, I thought a break would go off earlier maybe, but it stayed together,' said Tratnyek, who was third in both espoir road race and time trials at the recent Canadian Nationals and was using the race to prepare for the Canada Summer Games in August. Numainville and Canual, who was also third in the White Rock hill climb Friday night, were also using the BC Superweek to train. But for them, it was preparation for the upcoming Junior World Championships in Austria in mid August.
Numainville, who won the Canadian junior time trial and road race recently, was 18th in time trials at last year's worlds. Canuel is looking forward to her first World Championships. "This was good preparation for the worlds," both agreed.
Pro/1/2 Men
1 Kirk OBee (USA) Navigators Insurance Cycling Team 3:32:56
2 Pablo Araya (Crc) Costa Rica at 1:55
3 Christian Meier (Can) Symmetrics Cycling s.t.
4 Tyler Farrar (USA) Health Net 2:15
5 Dustin MacBurnie (Can) Broadmark Capital
6 Philippe Abbott (Can) Team Alberta
7 Phil Zajicek (USA) Navigators Insurance Cycling Team
8 Dawson Sean (Can) TREK - Red Truck Ale
9 Derek McMaster (Can) Team Coastal
10 Andrew Fischer (USA) Broadmark Capital
11 Svein Tuft (Can) Symmetrics Cycling
12 Tom Peterson (USA) Broadmark Capital
13 Siro Camponogara (Ita) Navigators Insurance Cycling Team
14 Justin Davis (Aus) Wentings Cycle
15 Tim Sherstobitoff (Can) Kelowna Cycle
16 Luis Garcia (Crc) Costa Rica
17 Nick Friesen (Can) The Bike Shop
18 Chris Issac (Can) ItalPasta
19 Jamie Sparling (Can) Bicisport Calgary
20 Marsh Cooper (Can) Symmetrics Cycling
21 Jeff Sherstobitoff (Can) Symmetrics Cycling
22 Nieves Carasco (Crc) Costa Rica
23 Tommy Nankervis (Aus) Wentings Cycle all s.t.
24 Will Routley (Can) Symmetrics Cycling 2:30
25 Brad Issel (Can) TREK - Red Truck Ale s.t.
26 Andy Edwards (Aus) GS Ciao 3:12
27 Jacob Erker (Can) Symmetrics Cycling 3:15
28 Hilton Clarke (Aus) Navigators Insurance Cycling Team s.t.
29 Chuck Hill (USA) Amgen 3:20
30 Tom Evans (Can) Bike Barn 3:30
31 Eric Wohlberg (Can) Symmetrics Cycling 3:36
32 Min Van Velzen (Can) Symmetrics Cycling 4:10
33 Donald Buscombe (Can) Rocky Mountain Bicycles/Adobe s.t.
34 Zack Garland (Can) N/A 4:15
35 Brian Nelson (USA) Momentum sports/Inewmed 4:18
36 Jeff Hansen (Can) ItalPasta 4:29
37 Nat Faulkner (Can) ItalPasta 5:44
38 Brandon Crichton (Can) ItalPasta 5:56
39 Craig De gier (Can) Cyclesmith CC 7:37
dnf Gord Fraser (Can) Health Net
dnf Andrew Pinfold (Can) Symmetrics Cycling
dnf Roy Pickavance (Can) CenturyTel
dnf Scott Slater (Can) Rocky Mountain Bicycles/Adobe
dnf Maurice Worsfold (Can) Bayside Cycling Club
dnf Chris Worsfold (Can) Bayside Cycling Club
dnf Shane Savage (Can) Rocky Mountain Bicycles/Adobe
dnf Cameron McKnight (Can) Edmonton Road & Track Club
dnf Richard Minichiello (Can) TREK - Red Truck Ale
dnf Basse Clement (Can) Rocky Mountain Bicycles/Adobe
dnf Taylor Little (Can) Taylor Little
dnf Keith Stark (Can) Rocky Mountain - Business Objects
dnf Chris Brennan (USA) Team Rio Grande
dnf Mark Howard (Aus) Wentings Cycle
dnf Scott Brown (Aus) Wentings Cycle
dnf Zak Grabowski (USA) TIAA-CREF
dnf Zachary Taylor (USA) TIAA-CREF
dnf Michael Hunter (Can) Rocky Mountain - Business Objects
dnf Kevin Noiles (Can) Escape Velocity/DEVO
dnf Robert Campbell (USA) The Valley Athletic Club
dnf Owen Gue (USA) Broadmark Capital
dnf Pleasure Jackson (USA) Broadmark Capital
dnf Solomon Woras (USA) Broadmark Capital
dnf Richard Bowker (Nzl) ItalPasta
dnf Daniel Maggiacomo (Can) ItalPasta
dnf Peter Sanowar (Can) ItalPasta
dnf Joshua Smith (USA) CenturyTel/VRAD
dnf Tim Abercrombie (Can) Escape Velocity/DEVO
dnf Brad Slater (Can) Rocky Mountain Bicycles/Adobe
dnf Nicholas Jendzjowsky (Can) Pedalhead Roadworks/Sleemans
dnf Josh James (Can) TREK - Red Truck Ale
dnf Mark Grimmett (Can) Wenting's Cycles
dnf Matthew Hall (USA) CenturyTel/VRAD
dnf Brad Bingham (USA) CenturyTel/VRAD
dnf Murray Carter (Can) Ride With Rendall
dnf Sven Sturm (Ger) Organic Athlete Victoria
dnf Philip Burgess (Irl) La Bicicletta
dnf Axel Bergman (Can) Team Organic Victoria
dnf Damien Waugh (Can) Rocky Mountain Bicycles/Adobe
dnf Trevor Connor (Can) Chris Cookies/Swan Cycles
dnf Rob Britton (Can) Team Coastal
dnf Harley Borlee (Can) Velocity
dnf Ian Manning (Can) BikeSports - Pfaff Racing Team
dnf Matthew Walker (Can) Team Sask
dnf David Goosen (Can) Rocky Mountain Bicycles/Adobe
dnf Chris Reid (Can) Team Coastal
dnf Jeff Sparling (Can) Team Alberta
dnf Ezra Nichols (Can) Organic Ahtlete Victoria
dnf Garth White (Can) TREK - Red Truck Ale
dnf Jesse James Collins (Can) BiciSport
dnf Duncan Steele (Can) Escape Velocity/DEVO
dnf Matt Patterson (Can) BiciSport
dnf Jim Tsilemos (Can) Team Coastal
dnf Jason Fluckiger (Can) Bayside Cycling Club
dnf Shawn Bunnin (Can) Team Saskatchewan/Spoke n Sport
dnf Noah Young (USA) Broadmark Capital
dnf Eric Kameka (Can) Escape Velocity/DEVO
dnf Andrew McDirmid (USA) Starbucks Double Shot
dnf Felix Haspel (Can) Synergy Racing
dnf Jordan Guenette (Can) Rocky Mountain Bicycles/Adobe
dnf Sean Van Horn (USA) Broadmark Capital
dnf Ian Tubbs (USA) Broadmark Capital
dnf Chris White (Can) TREK - Red Truck Ale
dnf JP Dunlop (Can) adventurebound.ca
dnf Will Pratt (Can) The Bike Barn
dnf Cory Forrest (Can) Kelowna Cycle
dnf Dan MacDonald (Can) N/A
dnf Atkey Warren (USA) Wines of Washington
Women
1 Karol-Ann Canuel (Can) Canadian National Junior Women 2:37:44
2 Joelle Numainville (Can) Canadian National Junior Women at 0:01
3 Anna Tratnyek (Can) Terry Precision
4 Brei Gudsell (Nzl) BikeNZ both s.t.
5 Christina Briante (Can) Symmetrics Cycling 0:18
6 Jean Ann McKirdy (Can) Rocky Mountain Business Objects s.t.
7 Heather Lamson (Can) Wentings Cycle 0:19
8 Marni Hambleton (Can) Symmetrics Cycling
9 Mandy Poitras (Can) Symmetrics Cycling
10 Leah Guloien (Can) Sugoi/Giant both s.t.
11 Jo Ryder (Nzl) BikeNZ 0:20
12 Naomi Cooper (Can) Canadian National Junior Women
13 Alena Radomsky (Can) Team Coastal both s.t.
14 Lisa Sweeney (Can) Team Coastal 0:21
15 Jenny Trew (Can) Team Coastal 1:29
16 Mathilde Hupin Debeurme (Can) Sportif Bromont 2:10
17 Julie Hutsebaut (Can) Terry Precision 2:11
18 Sandra Walter (Can) AdventureBound.ca 2:12
19 Lee Darling (Can) Team Coastal 2:40
20 Angella Goran (Can) Team Adventure Bound 5:06
21 Amy Mosen (Nzl) BikeNZ 5:48
22 Helena Coney (Can) N/A 7:10
23 Anne Guzman (Can) Terry Precision 8:18
24 Pepper Harlton (Can) Team Alberta 10:16
dnf Sarah Uhl (USA) Quark Cycling Team
dnf Alison Testroete (Can) Team Alberta
dnf Dianna Kennedy (Can) Team Alberta
dnf Lauren Koedyk (Nzl) BikeNZ
dnf Kylie Case (Can) Team Manitoba
dnf Amanda Butler (Can) Team Coastal
dnf Kristin Campbell (Can) Pedalhead Roadwork's/Sleemans
dnf Emily Sandwith (Can) Adventure Bound
Pro/1/2 Men Omnium
1 Dustin MacBurnie (Can) Broadmark Capital
2 Derek McMaster (Can) Team Coastal
3 Tyler Farrar (USA) Health Net
4 Kirk OBee (USA) Navigators Insurance Cycling Team
5 Andrew Pinfold (Can) Symmetrics Cycling
6 Hilton Clarke (Aus) Navigators Insurance Cycling Team
7 Svein Tuft (Can) Symmetrics Cycling
8 Christian Meier (Can) Symmetrics Cycling
9 Andrew Fischer (USA) Broadmark Capital
10 Brandon Crichton (Can) ItalPasta
11 Philippe Abbott (Can) Team Alberta
12 Tom Peterson (USA) Broadmark Capital
13 Will Pratt (Can) The Bike Barn
14 Phil Zajicek (USA) Navigators Insurance Cycling Team
15 Tommy Nankervis (Aus) Wentings Cycle
16 David Goosen (Can) Rocky Mountain Bicycles / Adobe
17 Siro Camponogara (Ita) Navigators Insurance Cycling Team
18 Jacob Erker (Can) Symmetrics Cycling
19 Jeff Sherstobitoff (Can) Symmetrics Cycling
20 Nick Friesen (Can) The Bike Shop
21 Jamie Sparling (Can) Bicisport Calgary
22 Eric Wohlberg (Can) Symmetrics Cycling
23 Chuck Hill (USA) Amgen
24 Andy Edwards (Aus) GS Ciao
25 Zack Garland (Can) N/A
26 Craig De gier (Can) Cyclesmith CC
27 Jeff Hansen (Can) ItalPasta
28 Nat Faulkner (Can) ItalPasta
29 Min Van Velzen (Can) Symmetrics Cycling
30 Ian Manning (Can) BikeSports - Pfaff Racing Team
31 Pleasure Jackson (USA) Broadmark Capital
32 Justin Davis (Aus) Wentings Cycle
33 Rob Britton (Can) Team Coastal
34 Maurice Worsfold (Can) Bayside Cycling Club
35 Bradley Fairall (Can) Symmetrics Cycling
36 Andrew McDirmid (USA) Starbucks Double Shot
37 Cory Lange (Can) Symmetrics Cycling
38 Sean Van Horn (USA) Broadmark Capital
39 Eric Kameka (Can) Escape Velocity / DEVO
40 Chris Issac (Can) ItalPasta
41 Chris Worsfold (Can) Bayside Cycling Club
42 Brian Nelson (USA) Momentum sports/Inewmed
43 Daniel Maggiacomo (Can) ItalPasta
44 Ian Tubbs (USA) Broadmark Capital
45 Zak Grabowski (USA) TIAA-CREF
46 Tim Abercrombie (Can) Escape Velocity / DEVO
47 Peter Sanowar (Can) ItalPasta
48 Sven Sturm (Ger) Organic Athlete Victoria
49 Trevor Connor (Can) Chris Cookies/Swan Cycles
50 Murray Carter (Can) Ride With Rendall
51 Zachary Taylor (USA) TIAA-CREF
52 Robert Campbell (USA) The Valley Athletic Club
53 Gord Fraser (Can) Health Net
54 Marsh Cooper (Can) Symmetrics Cycling
55 Will Routley (Can) Symmetrics Cycling
56 Tim Sherstobitoff (Can) Kelowna Cycle
57 Dan MacDonald (Can)
58 Noah Young (USA) Broadmark Capital
59 Owen Gue (USA) Broadmark Capital
60 Felix Haspel (Can) Synergy Racing
61 Solomon Woras (USA) Broadmark Capital
62 JP Dunlop (Can) adventurebound.ca
63 Chris Reid (Can) Team Coastal
64 Ezra Nichols (Can) Organic Athlete Victoria
65 Mark Grimmett (Can) Wenting's Cycles
66 Axel Bergman (Can) Team Organic Victoria
67 Scott Brown (Aus) Wentings Cycle
68 Jeff Sparling (Can) Team Alberta
69 Brett Boniface (Can) OrganicAthlete Victoria
70 Mark Howard (Aus) Wentings Cycle
71 Ian Robertsonn (Can) Team KAOS
72 Jason Fluckiger (Can) Bayside Cycling Club
73 Harley Borlee (Can) Velocity
74 Richard Bowker (Nzl) ItalPasta
75 Nicholas Jendzjowsky (Can) Pedalhead Roadworks/Sleemans
76 Shawn Bunnin (Can) Team Saskatchewan / Spoke n Sport
Women Omnium
1 Brei Gudsell (Nzl) BikeNZ
2 Christina Briante (Can) Symmetrics Cycling
3 Joelle Numainville (Can) Canadian National Junior Women
4 Lisa Sweeney (Can) Team Coastal
5 Jenny Trew (Can) Team Coastal
6 Anna Tratnyek (Can) Terry Precision
7 Marni Hambleton (Can) Symmetrics Cycling
8 Emily Sandwith (Can) Adventure Bound
9 Sarah Uhl (USA) Quark Cycling Team
10 Jean Ann McKirdy (Can) Rocky Mountain Business Objects
11 Alena Radomsky (Can) Team Coastal
12 Heather Lamson (Can) Wentings Cycle
13 Mathilde Hupin Debeurme (Can) Sportif Bromont
14 Mandy Poitras (Can) Symmetrics Cycling
15 Alison Testroete (Can) Team Alberta
16 Naomi Cooper (Can) Canadian National Junior Women
17 Jo Ryder (Nzl) BikeNZ
18 Amy Mosen (Nzl) BikeNZ
19 Sandra Walter (Can) AdventureBound.ca
20 Julie Hutsebaut (Can) Terry Precision
21 Helena Coney (Can) N/A
22 Anne Guzman (Can) Terry Precision
23 Angella Goran (Can) Team Adventure Bound
24 Pepper Harlton (Can) Team Alberta
25 Amanda Butler (Can) Team Coastal
26 Kylie Case (Can) Team Manitoba
27 Dianna Kennedy (Can) Team Alberta
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