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McLane Pacific Road Race By Jim Williams
March 6,
2005
Merced, CA- Tina Maylo-Pic must not have read the latest customs
declarations for entering the US. She wrapped up her early
season warm-up with another podium finish down under by taking the bunch sprint for third in the Wellington World Cup. The
bouquet of flowers she received along with the earlier ones for winning stages in the Geelong Tour and Trust House Tour will
have to be left down under as US customs will not allow her
to enter the country with them in hand. While Tina prepares for her trip back
to North America her Quark teammates took to the foothills of Merced for a
72 mile road race. The first road race of the season is always a bit nervous as riders once again adjust to racing in a peloton
and today was no different. Numerous fender benders occurred as some riders reintroduced themselves to the pavement. In the
end the race came down to a filed sprint and all eyes turned to Ina-Yoko Teutenberg to see if she could make it two for two.
The T-Mobile rider showed she is the current women to beat by taking the win, over Sarah Uhl of Quark and Michelle Beltran
of Colavita. “I’ve been in the Northeast concentrating on school doing homework and training at the same time
in the evenings, thanks to CylOps, I was really unsure how I’d do this weekend so to finish just behind Ina is fantastic,”
said Uhl after her 2nd place finish. The next race for the team will be the Central Valley Classic where teammates
Tina Maylo-Pic and Helen Kelly be joining the team after racing the early season world cups.
Senior Women
1/2
1. Ina-Yoko Teutenberg (Ger) (T-Mobile)
2. Sarah Uhl (USA) (Quark Cycling
Team)
3. Michelle Belltran (USA) (Colavita/Cooking
Light)
McLane Pacific Criterium
by Jim Williams
"VanGilder on the podium"
March
5, 2005
Merced, CA- The Quark Cycling team assembled in Northern California to start the 2005 NRC season with a 32 mile criterium; The McLane
Pacific Downtown Grand Prix. On hand to contest the opening event on the American Calendar were teams from Webcor Builders,
Victory Brewing, T-Mobile, and Subway, along with Quark Team members, Annette Beutler (SUI), Audrey Lemieux (CAN), Candice
Blickem (USA), Grace Fleury (USA) and former overall NRC champion Laura Van Gilder (USA). From the gun it was apparent that
the cold, rain and snow of the past winter had not kept the women that comprise the North American peloton from training,
as the racing was fast and very aggressive. Both the T- Mobile squad and the Victory Brewing Team launched repeated attacks
in order to get a break away but nothing was able to stay away for more then a lap or two. With five laps to go both the Quark
and the T-Mobile team took over the front for their respective sprinters as it became apparent that the race would come down
to a drag race amongst the top sprinters. Quark’s Laura VanGilder led through the final turn before the finish and punched
it hard but T-Mobile’s Ina-Yoko Teutenberg was able to come by her to take the first NRC win of the season. Victory Brewing’s super sprinter Gina Grain took third. The ladies take on the 2nd half of the McLane Bicycle Classic; the
72 mile long Foothills Road Race on Sunday.
Senior Women
1/2
1. Ina-Yoko Teutenberg
(T-Mobile)
2. Laura
VanGilder (Quark Cycling Team)
3. Gina Grain (Victory
Brewing)
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