February Snowbirds in AZ and Argentina
TaG Cycling Victory at Valley of the Sun Stage Race
Valley of the Sun Phoenix AZ Feb 14-16
Roster M-Carson Mattern,Campbell Parrish,Jayden McMullen,Albert Taylor,Manu Moore, W- Mairen Lawson,Alex Fangeat,Vanessa Montrichard,Teagan Gawne,
TaG had a strong opening with a 4th& 6th in the individual Time Trial. Carson Mattern in 4th and Campbell Parrish in 6th. On the womens side we had Mairen Lawson with a strong 5th place.
The team were charging in the Criterium and moved Carson up in overall classification. Jayden McMullen,fresh out of junior, showed he has a good bunch finish with a top 10.
Carson followed this up with a win in the road race making it a win overall. Valley of the Sun Champion. He is only the 3rd Canadian ever to win this race in 34 years. Our Director Gord Fraser is one of the other 2 back in 2000.
16 year old Alex Fangeat was a revelation. Battling the World Tour teams in finishes. Alex rode consistently in the top 10. She has a bright future ahead. A 5th place finish was her best in the road race. Mairen Lawson comes from E Sports background and the real racing was new. She rode purely on strength but made huge gains in racing skill over the weekend. Mairen finished 5th in the overall classification and was 1st place u23 rider.
Vuelta Cyclista Mendoza ,Argentina Feb 15 -23
Roster M-Nathan Priner,Ethan Powell,Reid Kinniburgh,Aidan Sebel,Sasha Renaud Tremblay
9 stages in hot and often high conditions. There were a lot of driving transfers and big days of racing. The team showed incredible tenacity and shared well in the work and top finishes.
The end results were podiums from 3 of the 5 riders, 6 times in the top 5 by Nathan,Reid,& Ethan and 4th overall in the u23 category by Sasha.
Reid had a 2nd place in a stage finish and Ethan a 3rd. Both Ethan and Nathan had a 5th place from long breakaway rides in stages.
Nathan Pruner ,racing the first time since having a horrific crash last June. He was in a wheelchair last summer and rode to 3rd place on the Queen Stage rising from 2000 meters to 3800 m at the finish with 9km of gravel to the finish. What a comeback ride.!
Sasha rode consistently every day to be 4th in u23 rider category
Tucson Bicycle Classic Tucson AZ Feb 21-23
Roster M Carson Mattern,Campbell Parrish,Jayden McMullen,Albert Taylor,Manu Moore, Samael Fluery Nadeau
W- Mairen Lawson,Alex Fangeat,Vanessa Montrichard,Teagan Gawne, Rachel Canning
Starting well in the ITT. Carson and Campbell again secured top 10 finishes in the Time Trial. Albert Taylor another just out of junior, also posted a very strong race against the clock.
Jayden McMullen again showed he can be a contender in mass sprint finishes. Jayden rode to 5th place in the criterium.
Campbell Parrish rode to a podium finish in the 1st road race. The final road race decided the GC and Carson narrowly missed the win again..losing by 2 secs for 2nd overall in the Pro mens field.. Carson was top u23 again.