If awarding him the title, VeloNews said of Sutherland: “(He) possesses much of both of (Zirbell’s and Haedo’s) strengths. The OUCH-Maxxis captain can time trial better than almost every rider in North America, he can climb and he can sprint. Most importantly, he can win stage races, as he did at Joe Martin and Nature Valley, winning the latter on the final day’s tough Stillwater Criterium by catching Zirbel with a surprise attack on the last lap.”

Sutherland also possesses slightly more intangible strengths as well. His strong leadership skills helped contribute to results all season, and whenever the team needed a good result, he was often the rider to step up and deliver.

The VeloNews award caps off another strong season for the organization, which saw 2009 mark its seventh year of racing. This season saw the team collect 16 wins, including the National Criterium Championship, and 61 total podiums.

Those results added to an impressive seven-year total that has seen the team reach the top step of the podium 402 times, with a total of 827 podium appearances. In that time, the team’s riders also collected 12 national championships and one world championship, while four riders made Olympic appearances.

And the team will be highly motivated to add to those totals in 2010.

Photo: Jonathan Devich / epicimages.us

Landis returned from a well-documented serious hip injury and subsequent hip resurfacing procedure to assist MSG’s professional cycling team in winning the Nature Valley Grand Prix, The Tour of Elk Grove and the Joe Martin Stage Races during the 2009 racing season. For the 2010 season, Landis expressed to MSG that he desires to ride the longer, tougher stage races offered in Europe and internationally that better suit his strengths. Accordingly, given that MSG will be focusing its 2010 racing season primarily in the United States, MSG and Landis mutually agreed that it would be best for both parties to part ways at this time and allow Landis to seek a position with a team that could better accommodate his desires.

“I wish to thank all of the sponsors for their support this year. I would also like to thank everyone at Momentum Sports Group,” Landis said. “While I’m excited to pursue other opportunities, I will miss all of my teammates and everyone on staff.”

“That is actually something I though about this year as I was heading into nationals,” he said. “Certainly my perspective has changed now that I’ve experienced the highest level of competition track cycling has to offer. But, it still feels good to be a national champion again. It’s nice to know that after a year away from the track, I’m still one of the best American track riders.”

After devoting much of his cycling career to the boards, following his trip to Beijing in 2008, Lea opted to focus on the road side of the discipline for 2009, something he hadn’t devoted as much effort to in the past.

“The road season absolutely helped my track racing,” Lea noted. “It helped me build a fitness base that just isn’t possible to do on the track. Certainly my top end has suffered a little this year, but that’s easy to bring back. But the foundation that a year of repeatedly being sent to the front in road races and criteriums has proved invaluable on the track.”

Lea also put that fitness to use to take bronze medals in the Madison, as well as the team pursuit, which he rode with OUCH Presented by Maxxis teammate Roman Kilun on a four-man composite team.

Kilun also showed some power on the track by qualifying for the finals of the 4000m individual pursuit. Unfortunately, he had the tall task of battling one of the great young talents in American cycling, Taylor Phinney (Trek-Livestrong), with Phinney taking gold while Kilun earned the silver.

Lea was set to contend for the title in the points race - the event he contested in the Olympics last year - with the help of Kilun, as well as OUCH Medical Center director Brent Kay. But a flat on lap two took him out of contention.

“Roman and Brent sacrificed any chance they had for a decent finish to help me win the points race,’ he said. “Up until I flatted, they were riding hard, covering moves, and taking care of me really well.”

Lea will be taking a break as the off-season approaches, before returning to the road for the 2010 season. He also plans on heading back to the track for nationals in 2010.

Austin, Texas resident Pat McCarty will make the drive to Dallas for the race, where he’ll be joined by another stage racer, Floyd Landis. And while much of the crowd’s and media’s attention will be on stage-race specialist Landis, the field’s attention will be squarely on the rider in the stars and stripes kit of U.S. National Champion, John Murphy, as well as the big man from Tasmania, Karl Menzies.

“It’s great to be able to support a big race in my home state,” said McCarty. “I’m friends with the race organizers, and the race is growing in popularity with each edition. I know having our team here, especially with a rider of Floyd’s stature, will only help the race to continue growing.

“But Karl and Murph are the guys for this race,” he continued. “Both of them are going well coming out of Missouri, and hopefully we can come out of the race with a good result.”

OUCH Presented by Maxxis for the Texas Tough:

Floyd Landis, USA
Pat McCarty, USA
Karl Menzies, TAS
John Murphy, USA

Pinfold was put into perfect position by teammate Karl Menzies inside the final kilometer, and they both benefited from an attack by Tim Johnson with 3 km to go which kept the pace high.

Once Johnson was caught, Mick Rogers (Columbia-HTC) also had a go. “It was hard racing,” Pinfold noted.

Coming into the final kilometer, Cervelo Test Team took over the front to bring back Rogers and set up 2009 Tour de France Green Jersey winner Thor Hushovd for the sprint.

But with 500 meters to go, “Menzies came over the top of the Cervelo train and dropped me off on Thor’s wheel,” Pinfold said. “I was able to come around Thor. Then it was a drag race with Gilbert to the line. He started his sprint a bit earlier than I did. It came down to a bike throw.

“We were close a few times this week,” Pinfold said. “Today was a bit bittersweet. It would’ve been great to get the win for the team, but it was still good to get the result at the end.”

Pinfold’s trip to the podium wrapped up a solid week of racing by OUCH Presented by Maxxis. The team put U.S. Criterium Champion John Murphy in the top 10 of a couple stages, and Brad White got to the podium on Stage 4 by virtue of earning Most Aggressive Rider for the stage. And Rory Sutherland parlayed a strong 10th place in the Stage 5 individual time trial to finish the Tour in 10th overall.

“The guys raced well all week,” said team director Sportif Mike Tamayo. “Sometimes those efforts don’t always show up on the results sheet. But we were active in every stage, Murphy was sprinting well and Karl and Pinner did a great job of finishing things off today on a high note.”

Photo: Jonathan Devich/epicimages.us

The team will be led by Pat McCarty, who comes into the race following strong showings at the Tour of Utah and the US Pro Road Race to close out August. He’ll be joined by local resident Bobby Lea, who will be the team’s go-to rider for the Stage 3 criterium. Roman Kilun and Jonthan Chodroff will both provide major horsepower for today’s time trial, as well as weapons for Saturday’s 101-mile road race.

Chodroff comes into the race after taking 5th overall at the Green Mountain Stage Race last week, despite contesting that race without teammates. The 2008 elite time trial national champion earned his high finish on the strength of a 2nd place finish in the GMSR’s opening time trial.

The four-man team will contend with a strong international field, with a number of teams making the trip over from Europe to contest the UCI-ranked race.

The OUCH Pro Cycling Team Presented by Maxxis for the Univest Grand Prix:
Jonathan Chodroff, USA
Roman Kilun, USA
Bobby Lea, USA
Pat McCarty, USA

“We were going pretty hard when they finally let us go,” White said. The four riders, including Bernard Van Ulden (Jelly Belly), Michael Creed (Team Type 1) and Jeff Louder (BMC), quickly opened a gap that at it’s largest reach around three minutes. From there, White said they worked well together, but also took advantage of time gap reports to measure their efforts.

“When the peloton would start to bring the gap down, we’d start going harder again to get it out,” White said. “All of us were working well together and we really didn’t have to kill ourselves until the last 40 km.”

With overall classification contender Louder in the break with them, White said, “we had a feeling the break wouldn’t stick until the end. And then when we heard that Cervelo, Saxo, Garmin and Liquigas were all putting guys on the front to chase us, we knew the move was coming back.”

Even so, after Creed was dropped, White and his remaining break-mates buried themselves to make it has hard as possible to make the catch, partly in the hope that when they reached the more technical finishing circuits in state capitol of Jefferson City, they might have a bit better chance of staying away. However, the horsepower at the head of the peloton, coupled with the more than 100 km effort in the heat and humidity out front took its toll, and the break was caught with 15 km to go.

After a steady barrage of attacks, the stage came down to a power sprint up the Capitol Wall, with Saxo Bank’s J.J. Haedo taking the win and the leader’s jersey from Cervelo’s Thor Hushovd.

“It was a hard effort, but it was really good to be out there giving it a go, and it was nice to come away from the effort with the Most Aggressive jersey,” White said. “It also gave Chris (Baldwin) and Rory (Sutherland) a good chill day, so they should be good for the time trial tomorrow.”

That individual time trial in Sedalia Friday will cover roughly 31 km, and is likely to determine the top of the general classification.
Notes

White’s Most Aggressive jersey for Stage 4 of the Tour of Missouri - his last race of the season - bookended the season for him. He also earned the Most Courageous Rider jersey in his first race of the season, for his efforts in the break during Stage 3 of the Amgen Tour of California.

Photo: Jonathan Devich/epicimages.us

“We had a lot of rollers and a tailwind on the run in to the finish, so it was pretty hard and fast coming in,” Murphy said. “Instead of trying to keep all our guys together to try a full lead-out and go head to head with the Columbia and Cervelo trains, Pinner and I decided to key off the other teams and freelance the sprint a bit. We got a bit separated in the last 10 km, but the tactic seemed to work a bit better.”

Coming into the final kilometer, Murphy was fighting for position, and with 300 meters to go, he was able to move himself on to what just about everyone would consider the wheel to be on: that of the race leader and winner of the first two stages, Mark Cavendish (Columbia-HTC).

“I was definitely betting on him,” Murphy said. “I was just going to follow him and try to come off his wheel when he accelerated, but he never really opened up his sprint. I think he got a bit boxed in and never got the chance, so that’s where I ended up. On his wheel.”

Cavendish finished 5th, and Pinfold 9th after finding Murphy’s wheel in the last 200 meters.

“I took a chance on following the fastest guy in the world,” Murphy said. “I’ll try it again tomorrow if it comes down to a sprint. And maybe I can get on the podium or even get around him for the win. But that’s the challenge for everyone in the world right now with Cavendish.

Thursday’s 109-mile stage from St. John to the state capitol of Jefferson City is another hilly affair, though not quite as rolling as today’s stage. While the stage’s profile would suggest another sprint finish, the steep, 300-meter climb to the finish line adjacent to the state capitol building may favor a rider more in the mold of Rory Sutherland.

Photo: Jonathan Devich/epicimages.us

This past July, federal authorities broke up the largest dog-fighting ring in U.S. history. The Humane Society of Missouri took in over 400 dogs rescued from the ring. Knowing he was going to be in Missouri for the Tour this week, Devich, who provides photography to OUCH Presented by Maxxis, set up a fundraising initiative called MODogs, through which he is raffling off cycling memorabilia related to this week’s Tour of Missouri. He is also donating proceeds from any prints he sells from shooting the Tour of Missouri. All money raised will go to the HSMO Animal Cruelty Fund.

Landis has contributed a signed OUCH Presented by Maxxis jersey to the raffle, while Johnson is contributing a signed jersey from his upcoming cyclocross season with Cyclocrossworld. A number of other riders and teams racing in the Tour of Missouri have also contributed signed jerseys. The Tour of Missouri race organization is also contributing a signed yellow leader’s jersey.

“As a dog owner, the decision to help out Jonathan was a really easy one,” Johnson said. “And the Tour of Missouri is a great venue to help raise awareness for what Jonathan is doing to benefit the Humane Society of Missouri.”

Raffle tickets are $5 each and can be purchased through Devich’s website, www.epicimages.us.

With 1 km to go on the technical finishing course in Cape Girardeau, Murphy took advantage of a late hill to put in an attack aimed a upsetting the order at the front of the Columbia-HTC and Cervelo Test Team controlled peloton.

But with race leader Mark Cavendish hungry for another crack at a stage win, Columbia didn’t let Murphy get too far.

“The two or three best sprinters in the world are here for this race,” said team directeur sportif Mike Tamayo. “Columbia-HTC showed during the Tour de France that they’re pretty well drilled when it comes to sprints, and they’re demonstrating it again in Missouri.”

Bradley White was active once again, figuring into a late break that also fell victim to the charge of Columbia-HTC and Cervelo, riding for Tour de France green jersey winner Thor Hushovd.

“We’re going to stay attentive again on Wednesday and keeping looking for the move that will stick,” Tamayo said. “We’ve been aggressive the first two days, but just haven’t gotten in the right move yet We’ll keep after it tomorrow.”

The race continues Wednesday with a 114-mile trip from Farmington to Rolla, with a stage profile that resembles an EKG, with almost constant, leg-sapping rollers the entire route.

Photo: Jonathan Devich/epicimages.us