US Pro Road National Championships - Year 2 Race Preview
The Rio Grande Elite cycling team is excited to go back to US Professional Road National Championships in Knoxville, TN this week! This will be the 2nd year in a row that we will be showing our Rio Red on the biggest stage in the US. Our Fort Collins, CO based team will be toeing the start line against riders who will be racing the Tour De France in a weeks' time. Read along below to see who we have competing in what events, and insights into each!
Thursday, June 23rd: US Pro Time Trial National Championships
Roster: Tyrel Fuchs (start time 11:17am Mtn Time), Ethan Moyer (start time 12:59am)
How to follow along: Live results/split times can be followed on OneToGo Results via the live page here.
This course is 21.7 miles in length, starting at 8:30am. Riders race out and back on the Melton Hill Reservoir before climbing through a local neighborhood and flying back down to the reservoir for the finish. Last year, Tyrel finished 3rd at U23 Time Trial National Championships, and just inside the top 25 in the pro race. He'll be looking to improve on his placings there. Ethan will be seeing this course for the first time, and will be counting on his steady cadence and love of climbing to see how he can master the course.
Friday, June 24th: US Pro Criterium National Championships
Roster: Tyrel Fuchs, Tayne Andrade, Ethan Moyer, Peter Behm, James Hilyer
How to follow along: Live results/split times can be followed here. This race will also be livestreamed on www.flobikes.com! There is a monthly fee for this service.
This is an 80 minute criterium race in downtown Fayetteville that starts at 5:40pm. This course sees the riders descend down by the Tennessee River before a steady uphill and three 90-degree corners to the finish! Last year Rio animated the race off of the front with our breakaway specialists Tayne Andrade and Chaz Hogenauer, with our top place rider being James Hilyer sprinting for 15th place. We'll be looking towards a similar strategy of looking for the proper escape groups to join in while holding our sprinters in reserve for the finish!
Sunday, June 26th: US Pro Road Race National Championships
Roster: Tyrel Fuchs, Tayne Andrade, Ethan Moyer, Peter Behm, James Hilyer
How to follow along: Live results/split times can be followed here. This race will also be livestreamed on www.flobikes.com! There is a monthly fee for this service.
This race is on a 6.7 mile circuit, where riders race a total of 17 laps for 115.6 total miles! Riders start off in downtown Knoxville, cross the tennessee river south out of town, tackle a 600 ft climb before circling back on highway roads back towards downtown. Last year, Tayne ended up third over the first climb of the day, and rolled into the breakaway! Look for this to be a long race of attrition as the hot, humid Tennessee air and short steep climbs takes its toll on the riders. The racing begins at 11:15am Mountain Time!