Kris Sneddon (Kona) was all smiles at the starting line(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Jeremiah Bishop (Topeak-Ergon-Canyon) was a late entry to the event(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Alex Grant (Ridebiker Alliance) staging for the race(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Todd Wells (Specialized) made it to the first left hand turn first after the start(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Fernando Paez (Raleigh Clement) was able to avoid a fallen rider on lap two(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Brady Kappius (Clif Bar) followed by Mitch Hoke (Pros Closet)(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Brian Smith (Griggs Ortho-Stans NoTubes) took a turn on the front at the(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Brady Kappius (Cliff Bar) riding alongside Todd Wells on his 28th birthday(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
A large chase group formed on lap four(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Fernando Paez (Raleigh Clement) checks to see the damage done by Chris Baddick’s (Boulder Cycle Sport) attack(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Jeremiah Bishop (Topeak-Ergon-Canyon) broke away with Fernando Paez with five laps to go(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Jeremiah Bishop (Topeak-Ergon-Canyon) cornering hard(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Alex Grant (Ridebiker Alliance) leading a large chase group with Ben Sonntag following(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Josiah Middaug (ENVE- Felt) cornering with Kris Sneddon close behind(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Robinson Barkley (Orange Peel) riding towards the end of the large chase group with Todd Wells following him(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Jeremiah Bishop (Topeak-Ergon-Canyon) dropping Fernando Paez and setting himself up to ride solo for several laps(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Fernando Paez (Raleigh Clement) turned himself inside out to stay away from the peloton after Bishop left him.(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Chasers riding with two laps to go(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Todd Wells (Specialized) made a major effort for a mid-race prime(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Kris Sneddon (Kona) making a major effort with three laps to go(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Jeremiah Bishop (Topeak-Ergon-Canyon) taking the solo victory on Main Street of Grand Junction(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
A Giant rider comes through the start-finish on lap three(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Veteran racer Jay Henry (Tokyo Joes) chasing the lead group on lap two(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Mark Currie (Boulder Cycle Sport) hammering out of the saddle on lap three(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Jeremiah Bishop (Topeak-Ergon-Canyon) riding solo with two laps to go(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Jamey Driscoll (Raleigh Clement) riding to a top twenty finish(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Kris Sneddon (Kona) accelerating out of a corner with two laps to go(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Former USA Road Champion Meredith Miller (Noosa Pro Team) was a late entry tonight(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Children lined up for a Klunker race just before the pros took to the streets(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
USA Cyclocross Champion Katie Compton (Trek Factory Team) was the woman to beat tonight(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Rose Grant (Stans NoTubes) has been having a good racing season(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Amy Beisel (Liv SRAM) took the hole-shot tonight(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Rose Grant (Stans NoTubes) leading the field on lap two(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Rose Grant (Stans NoTubes) attempting to split the field(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Rose Grant (Stans NoTubes) pulls the leaders down Main Street(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Amanda Miller (Boulder Cycle Sport), fresh off road nationals, leading on the back side of the course(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Katerina Nash (Luna Pro Team) is one of the few women in the field who has ever beaten Compton(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Katie Compton (Trek Factory Team) following Nash through the turns mid-race(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
The Grand Junction course had plenty of 90-degree turns(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Katie Compton (Trek Factory Team) did not wait long to assert her authority(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Rose Grant (Stans NoTubes) and Katerina Nash attempting to stay with Compton(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Katie Compton (Trek Factory Team) rolling to the finish ahead of Meredith Miller and Amanda Miller(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Katie Compton (Trek Factory Team) wins the Grand Junction Off-Road with a major last lap effort(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Meredith Miller (Noosa Pro Team) claims second place(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Women who race cyclocross together (L to R) Amanda Miller, Katerina Nash, and Meredith Miller(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
The festivities on Main Street included a Klunker race in costumes(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
A rider on a high wheel Penny Farthing rides on Main Street prior to the women’s race(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
The costumes on Main Street were quite spectacular(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
The Pro Women line up on Main Street for their start(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Riders including Rose Grant and Meredith Miller chase Amy Beisel (Liv SRAM) on lap two(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Riders make a sharp turn on lap three(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Katie Compton (Trek Factory Team) leading Rose Grant through a turn(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Rose Grant (Stans NoTubes) riding to a podium finish on Main Street(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Meredith Miller (Noosa Pro Team) attempting to bring the race to a sprint finish(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Evelyn Dong (Sho-Air Cannondale) riding to a top ten finish(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Endurance specialist Jenny Smith (Stans NoTubes) riding to a 12th place finish(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
Katerina Nash (Luna Pro Team) doing everything in her power to stay with Compton(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
(Image credit: Dave McElwaine)
A festival atmosphere prevailed in downtown Grand Junction as the pros warmed up for their evening Fat Boy Criterium. All day, bands had been warming up the large crowd of spectators, as they enjoyed the bike industry and arts fair on Main Street. There was also a “Klunker’ race where participants in costumes rode a couple laps of the course. Grand Junction has been quite wet in recent weeks, but tonight the weather was a perfect 70 degrees for the racers.
Jeremiah Bishop (Topeak Ergon Canyon) shocked the peloton by riding nearly five laps off the front to take the win. Mitch Hoke (Pros Closet) had been gapped by Bishop, but had enough in the tank to secure second place. Ernie Watenpaugh (Jack Daniels) finished third. Brian Alders (TrainingPeaks) finished fourth, and Ben Sonntag (Cliff Bar) rounded out the podium in fifth place.
The Grand Junction course was flat, totally on pavement, and included quite a few turns. Todd Wells (Specialized) got the inside line to the first turn after the start, but it quickly became apparent that this race would be contested by at least ten riders. Brian Smith (Griggs Orthopedics) and Chris Baddick (Boulder Cycle Sport) took turns at the front, but Fernando Paez (Raleigh Clement) and Jeremiah Bishop following their wheels closely.
Several primes had an effect on the final outcome. Jeremiah Bishop explained, “I was thinking that I had one match to spend so I better spend it wisely. There was a nice set-up. It worked perfectly. Wells hit it really hard, and then Sonntag hit it hard to close for a prime. When they were kind of coming back to us and I knew it was a perfect opportunity”.
Bishop continued, “Paez went with me and he pulled through. We had another guy with us briefly. Then after about a lap and a half, Paez couldn’t pedal through the corners. I wanted to work together but I also wanted to drive it. We had to hold a good 380-400 (watts) anytime we were pedaling. I started to get a little bit of a gap on him and I thought this is actually perfect. If I leave him and they see him coming back, they will think they are catching us (both).”
Behind Bishop and Paez, the chase group contained virtually all other racers. Wells, Hoke, and others took turns driving the chase but the leaders were able to get out of sight due to the many turns on the course. During the final laps, Paez was absorbed into the chase group and fell to tenth place. At the end, there was a bunch sprint for second place, which Hoke won by just a few feet.
Pro Women
While the size of the women’s field was much smaller than the men’s field, the quality of the racers was impressive. USA Cyclocross Champion Katie Compton (Trek Factory Racing) won in a dash to the line. Former Road National Champion Meredith Miller (Noosa Pro Team) took second place closely behind Compton. Amanda Miller, the current Fat Bike National Champion, won a couple primes and was good enough for third place. Amy Beisel (Liv-SRAM) finished fourth, while Rose Grant secured the final spot on the podium in fifth place.
Amy Beisel took the hole-shot and led for over a lap. Rose Grant then asserted herself and drove the train with Katerina Nash (Luna Pro Team) and Amanda Miller following closely. Compton appeared comfortable riding a few places back while others expended energy on the front.
As a result of competing for primes, Amanda Miller led the race for a couple laps. But, when Compton went to the front in the final laps, the racing got really serious. Nash, Grant, Biesel, and both Millers focused on not letting Compton get away.
The final corner on the course was only about 100 feet from the finish line. On the final lap Compton got through that turn first and could not really be challenged in a sprint to the line. Meredith Miller did her best but came up about ten feet short.
Miller, who had probably competed in hundreds of road criteriums, was racing her first ever Fat Tire Criterium. Having claimed to Cyclingnews before the race that she was nowhere near peak form, she explained her second place result, “I just know how to ride a crit. I know how to follow wheels. There was one point where there was a bit of a gap (ahead) and a few riders got across….that was the only point when I though I might be losing contact. “
Miller also explained the dynamics for the final half-lap; “Amanda Miller had actually jumped a couple times for primes, in the same place each time. I knew that was where I wanted to jump, but I was just out of gears. Katie said after the race that she had one more gear (at that point), and that’s exactly what she needed to get the jump on us.”
The Pros will race again on Sunday in the main event, The 40 Grand, where $30,000 in prize money is on the line. Stay tuned to Cyclingnews.com for all the action.
Results
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Men
#
Rider Name (Country) Team
1
Jeremiah Bishop (Topeak, Ergon, Canyon Bicycles)
2
Mitch Hoke (The Pros Closet, Kenda, Stans Notubes)
