Press Release
Bigger, better Sunny King Criterium on the way
By Joe Medley,
Star Sports Writer
April 15, 2007
More men's pro teams, a stronger women's field chasing points, course changes and beefed-up sponsorship dot preparations for next month's Sunny King Criterium and Cheaha Challenge bike races.
In less than a month, downtown Anniston will once again turn into a race track for cyclists. The Sunny King Criterium is set for May 5th and promises to bring a more men's teams and a stronger women's field. Photo: Kevin Qualls/The Anniston Star
Criterium races are set for May 5 in downtown Anniston, with the 102-mile Challenge race to start at the Piedmont Civic Center at 7:30 a.m. the next day.
The Criterium races anchor the May 5 Noble Street Festival, which will feature the Red Diamond Restaurant Tour and McWane KidZone.
The area's annual cycling bonanza received a major boost last year when Gov. Bob Riley included it among the state's top 10 tourism events.
Also last year, USA Cycling added the Anniston-based criterium races to the sanctioning body's National Racing Calendar, and the event was included in the newly formed USA Crits Series.
The Crits series expanded this year from six to eight races, with events in Decatur and Beaufort, S.C. The series, which awards points and attracts pro teams, also included a women's division this year.
With points at stake, organizers for the Sunny King Criterium say they hope to see a boom in the women's pro race.
"We'll probably get a lot more women's teams," said Mike Poe, a financial consultant for AG Edwards and principal organizer for the cycling weekend's activities. "The women's field should be a lot bigger and more exciting."
Women's teams committed include Aaron's Corporate Furnishings Professional Cycling Team, Cheerwine Professional Cycling Team, Colavita/Sutter Home Women's Cycling Team presented by Cooking Light, HealthCoach/TravelGirl Cycling Team, Targetraining Cycling Team and Team Advil-Chapstick.
The field for the men's pro race is expected to expand from the contraction of racers per team. A new rule trims from eight to six the number of racers allowed per team, which will open field space for more teams.
Poe said he expects more teams from the West and Southwest to enter.
"We have added some really strong teams that aren't necessarily nationally known, but they're really strong teams, especially out of California," Poe said. "Limiting to six-person teams, it just made it open up more to allow some of these other not-as-well-sponsored teams - they don't have a lot of the cash, but they have really high-quality racers - to become involved."
The field is expected to include Health Net, presented by Maxxis, one of two tier-two teams in the United States.
Cycling's tiers start with teams such as Discovery Channel and CSC, which will race in the Tour de France. The second tier includes two U.S.-based teams, Health Net and Navigators Insurance Cycling Team.
Navigators is a regular at the Anniston event, and Health Net is expected to send a team this year.
"Health Net is coming this year. I've been told they're sending a team," Poe said. "We should have two tier-two-level teams and then the tier-three-level teams," including regulars at the Anniston event such as Colavita/Sutter Home Men's Cycling Team presented by Cooking Light and Kodakgallery.com/Sierra Nevada Pro Cycling.
One question mark is Toyota United, the third-tier team that dominated last year's men's pro race here. The team committed early to events in New York City and New Mexico, where it's expected to send the bulk of its top racers.
"If Toyota United is here, it will be one or two guys as opposed to a full team," Poe said. " ... It's probably my biggest disappointment, if they don't come.
"They have, there's a huge event in New York City on May 5 that they committed some of their guys to, mainly for media exposure that they'll get up there. Then there's another big race in New Mexico during our weekend that they've committed some guys to, and so we're going to be really at the mercy of how healthy their three or four other guys are that are available to race on May 5."
Gone from Toyota United is two-time-defending Sunny King Criterium champion Juan Jose Haedo, who joined European-based CSC and will race in the Tour de France.