Vitaminwater-Trek Cycling Team announced

Burnham Racing, a new not-for-profit developmental cycling program based out of Chicago, has announced the Vitaminwater-Trek Cycling Team, a collection of 16 elite-level amateur athletes. The vitaminwater-Trek Cycling Team will focus primarily on road competition, guiding its athletes through the ranks of the United States Cycling Federation (USCF).

In tandem with its athletic aspirations, the Vitaminwater-Trek program will also create a foundation of community involvement. The team has already established partnerships with World Bicycle Relief, an organization that uses bicycles to foster recovery and growth in poverty-stricken countries, and Chicago's Friends of the Parks, an advocacy group that helps protect the city's parks and preserves.

In 2006 and 2007, the former Team Clif Bar Midwest squad recorded 37 podium finishes and 113 top-ten results. Nine athletes from that program will continue their cycling careers under the Vitaminwater-Trek flag, including USCF Category 2 competitors Brian Boyle, Matthew Welch and Andrew Daley. Welch will also serve as vitaminwater-Trek's Director of Sport, coordinating day to day operations during the season.

"I look at our roster and the potential is extraordinary," said rider and managing director Eric Goodwin. "Despite this being an inaugural season, we certainly can't be considered new kids on the block. With Hickman, Loney, Smith and Fischer, we're adding over 60 years of combined racing experience. That type of veteran presence will be such a bonus as we strive to achieve great things."

Vitaminwater-Trek Cycling Team for 2008: Brian Boyle, Matthew Welch, Andrew Daley, Julian Baumgartner, Eric Davis, Joel Feinberg, Eric Goodwin, Jason Knauff, Jason Mindeman, Corey Hickman, Jeffrey Wat, Nicholas Gierman, Andreas Fischer, Timothy Hermanas, Matthew Smith and Patrick Loney.