Bishop and Sornson win stage 1 of Trans-Sylvania Epic

Jeremiah Bishop (Sho-Air/Cannondale) and Cheryl Sornson (Rare Diseases Cycling Team) kicked off the Trans-Sylvania Epic with a stage 1 time trial victory on Sunday afternoon in central Pennsylvania.

Men

Bishop set a blazing fast 1:03:13 time over the approximately 15-mile course, gaining about a minute and a half on his nearest rival Ben Sonntag (Stan's NoTubes Elite) and third place finisher Nick Waite (ProTested Gear).

"I'm fired up to come here and put my stamp on the race from the beginning," said Bishop to Cyclingnews. "You never know in a time trial how you're going, but it's a great win for Sho-Air/Cannondale after a dry spell. Whatever happens the rest of the week, I'm going for it."

"I'm going to try and ride smart this week. There are a lot of other talented riders here to push me, like former La Ruta de los Conquistadores winner Ben Sonntag," said Bishop. "He only gets better day to day. I'm going to take it day by day and try to sink my teeth into it."

Sonntag was content with finish. "It was good to start this off with a second place. This time trial gave us a good idea of what's coming up," he said to Cyclingnews. "It was a mix of dirt roads and rough singletrack. My first 10 minutes weren't too good, but once I opened up, I had a smooth run. Toward the end, I clipped a tree and it maybe cost me 20 seconds, but overall the results were not shocking. It's not surprising that Jeremiah put time on us. If this were LeTour, they would give him five stars and the rest of us maybe three stars."

"It's a long week and a lot can happen. Consistency is key here," said Sonntag.

Former road pro Waite joked to Cyclingnews, "I've been on the beet juice so my heart rate was a little lower than normal. I've been beet juice doping a lot. I tried to ride fast but stay safe. The trails were super twisty - I feel optimistic after today."

Another pre-race favorite, Justin Lindine (Redline/NBX), who won last year's race, finished 17th after flatting during the time trial. He finished over nine minutes behind Bishop.

Women

Sornson was elated with her win, having met her goal of winning a stage in this year's race.

"It was a long, gnarly, technical, epic time trial. I didn't know what to expect, and you never know what your fitness is like," said Sornson to Cyclingnews. "I definitely wanted to win a stage, and I'm excited. I'd like to keep the leader's jersey, but it's a long week, and the competition is super high this week."

"I pre-rode the course yesterday and it was muddy - it rained on me and the course was slow, and I thought, it was more like a proper stage than a time trial. But today, it was dry and running fast. The 30-second intervals were enough to help me catch people and stay motivated. I had lots of carrots to chase and push me. I knew I was doing well when I caught some of my competition."

Sornson finished her time trial in a time of 1:15:59, and she gained an advantage of more than a minute on her nearest competition, Mary McConneloug (Kenda/Stan's NoTubes).

"I know it's a long week, so I went into today pretty calm," said McConneloug to Cyclingnews. "I wasn't ready to turn it inside out. If you do that this early, you pay for it the rest of the week. Cheryl caught me 20 minutes into the race, but I didn't worry about it. I tried to maintain and ride strong and swift."

"Cheryl is an amazing rider and I'm excited for the week. I'm looking forward to making up some time out there somewhere this week."

Behind them, Sarah Kaufmann (NoTubes Women's Elite Team) was third. With third through fifth places separated by just 22 seconds, the women's race is shaping up to be a tight one.

"I had the benefit of starting last which is nice cause I got to chase everyone. I didn't have to worry about getting demoralized when people went by me," said Kaufmann to Cyclingnews. "It was nice to be around others, and I could use them to gage."

Under 25 men and women

Ellen Noble (Bear Development Team) and Payson McElveen (Richard's Rainwater) were the fastest female and male U25 riders on the day and became the best young rider leaders.

Noble said, "It was a hard race to do because you want to go all out to catch the person in front of you and to stay with the person who's passing you. It's a hard mental game not to overdo it. I'm loving the technical conditions - being from Maine, it's nice to have a technical race for once."

"I'll see what I can do for the rest of the week. The goal is to finish and if I can win the U25 overall, that would be great, but I don't want to blow myself up trying to do it."

McElveen was pleased with his time trial and said, "I didn't know what to expect, but I found a pretty good groove out there on the climbs. It worked out well."

"I'm happy to have the jersey, but I can tell it will be tight racing with Cole Oberman in second and three to five other guys with a shot. I'm going to have be on my game and be my best every day."

Stage 1 and General classification after stage 1 results

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Solo men
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Jeremiah Bishop (Sho-Air/Cannondale)1:03:13
2Benjamin Sonntag (Stan's No Tubes Elite Racing)0:01:31
3Nick Waite (Pro Tested Gear)0:01:45
4Spencer Paxson (Kona Bikes)0:01:47
5Kris Sneddon (Kona)0:02:46
6Tristan Uhl (787 Racing)0:02:58
7Thomas Turner (Team Jamis)0:03:19
8Cole Oberman (rarediseasecycling.org)0:03:48
9Chris Jackson (Castex Racing)0:05:01
10Aaron Snyder0:05:38
11Cory Rimmer0:05:47
12Drew Edsall (Pro's Closet / Stan's No Tubes)0:06:00
13Rob Spreng (Rare Disease Cycling)0:06:31
14Michael Broderick0:06:52
15matt acker (Redline)0:07:25
16daniel sturm0:07:26
17Justin Lindine (Redline / NBX)0:09:26
18Peter Glassford (Trek - Canada)0:09:35
19Madison Matthews (Toasted Head Racing)0:09:47
20Greg Jancaitis (Riverside Racing)0:10:42
21michael wissell (B2C2 / Boloco)0:11:09
22Matt Williams (mtbracing.com)0:14:03
23Carlos Rodriguez (Steel Pipes)0:15:05
24benjamin sawyer (Riverside Racing)0:15:27
25Barry Croker0:19:16
26Matthew Kesecker (cambo)0:22:28
27Gary Hoehne (Death Row Velo / Vasago)0:22:56
28Simon Tremblay (Espresso Sports)0:25:00
29Kevin VanWert0:30:37
30Jorge Riba0:32:25
31Colt McElwaine0:36:08
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Solo women
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Cheryl Sornson (RDC)1:15:59
2Mary McConneloug0:01:11
3Sarah Kaufmann (Stan's No-Tubes Womens Team)0:03:53
4Selene Yeager0:03:54
5Vicki Barclay0:04:15
6Kaarin Tae (Bike Monkey Cycling)0:04:20
7Ellen Noble (Bear Development Team)0:05:33
8Kaysee Armstrong (Kona/TBB Race)0:06:08
9Emily Shields (BMC Project Dirt)0:06:38
10Carolyn Popovic0:10:58
11Elizabeth Allen (Danielson Adventure sports)0:11:46
12Vanessa McCaffery (Stans No Tubes/Corning Racing)0:22:17
13Cynthia Fowler0:24:04
14Leslie Timm (Riverside Racing)0:24:21
15Rachel Brown (Bikeman.com)0:25:53
16Sue George0:29:00
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Singlespeed men
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Matthew Ferrari1:14:39
2John Merriam (Crosshairs Cycling)0:04:20
3Kurt Gensheimer (Ibis)0:04:49
4Rich Dillen (Faster Mustache)0:05:50
5Scott Smith (TVB Race/Tomato Head)0:09:42
6Chris Merriam0:10:55
7Eric McKeegan (Dirt Rag)0:13:51
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U25 men
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Payson McElveen1:06:53
2Cole Oberman (rarediseasecycling.org)0:00:08
3Chris Jackson (Castex Racing)0:01:21
4Cameron Dodge (Pure Energy Scott Elite Team)0:01:23
5Cory Rimmer0:02:07
6Michael Sampson (Adigga Racing)0:02:35
7Madison Matthews (Toasted Head Racing)0:06:07
8Levi Kurlander (Team Colt)0:07:21
9Cody Phillips (Felt Factory Enduro Team)0:13:03
10Miguel Torres0:30:18
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U25 women
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Ellen Noble (Bear Development Team)1:21:32
2Kaysee Armstrong (Kona/TBB Race)0:00:35
3Emily Shields (BMC Project Dirt)0:01:05
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Men 40+
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1David Thompson1:15:39
2Mike Hebe (Team Novo Nordisk)0:01:03
3Javier Lopez (Rock Mountain Bike Life)0:02:01
4Nathan Ruch (Pure Energy Scott Elite Team)0:02:05
5Steve Mee0:02:30
6Chris Cyr (Bikeman.com)0:02:37
7Todd Branham0:03:54
8Lawrence Plug (Java Blend)0:04:28
9nathan goates0:05:42
10Rolf Rimrott0:07:07
11Terry Lawhead0:08:04
12Nick Sampogna0:10:38
13Erik Eiseman0:12:20
14David Cook0:12:31
15marque allen0:15:59
16Ron Tanswell0:22:01
17Joseph White (Cambo)0:23:56
18Alan Avis0:24:49
19Mike Yarnall0:38:41
20Jon Timmons0:39:48
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Men 50+
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1alex hawkins1:16:50
2Jim Matthews (Toasted Head Racing)0:00:38
3Rick Landry (speedriver.com)0:02:21
4Adam Linstedt0:08:52
5Joe McCarthy0:13:02
6Joaquin Gil del Real0:15:45
7Russ Deveau (Bicycle Plus)0:18:28
8Robert Eiserman (Cambo Racing)0:24:03
9Michael Gilbeault0:24:28
10Steve Schenke0:30:24
11Kevin Maldonado0:31:55
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Men enduro
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResultHeader Cell - Column 3
1Aaron Snyder200pts
2Tristan Uhl160Row 1 - Cell 3
3Drew Edsall140Row 2 - Cell 3
4Thomas Turner125Row 3 - Cell 3
5Nick Shepherd110Row 4 - Cell 3
6Colt McElwaine95Row 5 - Cell 3
7Barry Croker90Row 6 - Cell 3
8Jorge Riba85Row 7 - Cell 3
9Gary Hoehne80Row 8 - Cell 3
10Mike Johnson75Row 9 - Cell 3
11Simon Tremblay20Row 10 - Cell 3
12Kevin VanWert20Row 11 - Cell 3
13Michael Broderick20Row 12 - Cell 3
14Kevin Maldonado20Row 13 - Cell 3
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Women enduro
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResultHeader Cell - Column 3
1Mary McConneloug200pts
2Cheryl Sornson160Row 1 - Cell 3
3Kaysee Armstrong140Row 2 - Cell 3
4Kaarin Tae125Row 3 - Cell 3
5Selene Yeager110Row 4 - Cell 3
6Carolyn Popovic95Row 5 - Cell 3
7Elizabeth Allen90Row 6 - Cell 3
8Emily Shields85Row 7 - Cell 3
9Cynthia Fowler80Row 8 - Cell 3
10Rachel Brown75Row 9 - Cell 3
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Everyone else enduro
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResultHeader Cell - Column 3
1Cody Phillips200pts
2Payson McElveen160Row 1 - Cell 3
3Michael Sampson140Row 2 - Cell 3
4David Cook125Row 3 - Cell 3
5Rick Landry110Row 4 - Cell 3
6Erik Eiseman95Row 5 - Cell 3
7Greg Jakubek90Row 6 - Cell 3
8Eric McKeegan85Row 7 - Cell 3
9Javier Lopez80Row 8 - Cell 3
10Joaquin Gil del Real75Row 9 - Cell 3
11Chris Merriam70Row 10 - Cell 3
12Adam Linstedt68Row 11 - Cell 3
13David Swift66Row 12 - Cell 3
14Rob Campbell64Row 13 - Cell 3
15Kenny Kocarek62Row 14 - Cell 3
16Daniel Gordon60Row 15 - Cell 3
17Sue George58Row 16 - Cell 3
18Mark Deaton56Row 17 - Cell 3
19Ron Tanswell54Row 18 - Cell 3
20Joseph White52Row 19 - Cell 3
21Andres Correa50Row 20 - Cell 3
22Miguel Torres49Row 21 - Cell 3
23Sandy Marshall48Row 22 - Cell 3
24Jose Torres47Row 23 - Cell 3
25Carlota Moncada46Row 24 - Cell 3
26Robert Souter45Row 25 - Cell 3
27Kathleen Riddell44Row 26 - Cell 3
28Rolf Rimrott43Row 27 - Cell 3
29Chris Kozanczyn42Row 28 - Cell 3
30Russ Deveau41Row 29 - Cell 3
31Peggy Ortiz20Row 30 - Cell 3
32Michael Gilbeault20Row 31 - Cell 3
33Fred Baker20Row 32 - Cell 3
34Juan Ernesto Champsaur20Row 33 - Cell 3
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King of the rocks
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Payson McElveen0:07:24
1Cody PhillipsRow 1 - Cell 2
2Michael Broderick0:00:13
3Cole Oberman0:00:16
4Greg Jancaitis0:00:19
5Michael Wissell0:00:51
6Javier Lopez0:00:58
7Chris Kozanczyn0:01:11
8Barry Croker0:01:16
9Rob Campbell0:01:33
10Greg Jakubek0:01:59
11Kenny Kocarek0:02:00
12Erik Eiseman0:02:03
13Chris Merriam0:02:06
14Miguel Torres0:02:08
15Joaquin Gil del Real0:02:10
16Mark Deaton0:02:21
17Kevin VanWert0:02:23
18Colt McElwaine0:02:29
19Ron Tanswell0:02:39
20David Cook0:02:42
21Jorge Riba0:02:57
22Joseph White0:03:14
23Adam Linstedt0:03:27
24Sue George0:03:33
25Daniel Gordon0:04:28
26Rolf Rimrott0:14:04
27Kevin Maldonado0:16:39
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Queen of the rocks
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Mary McConneloug0:08:15
2Cheryl Sornson0:00:04
3Kaarin Tae0:00:33
4Carolyn Popovic0:00:51
5Emily Shields0:00:57
6Elizabeth Allen0:01:14
7Kaysee Armstrong0:01:20
8David Swift0:02:05
9Rachel Brown0:02:26
10Sandy Marshall0:02:54
11Cynthia Fowler0:03:44
12Carlota Moncada0:06:16
13Kathleen Riddell0:10:54

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Sue George is an editor at Cyclingnews.  She coordinates all of the site's mountain bike race coverage and assists with the road, 'cross and track coverage.

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