July 24/03 9:02 am - Alberta Provincial ITT Series, Nas Track race #4

Posted by Editoress on 07/24/03
 

Alberta Provincial ITT Series Race #2 Bentley AB
Courtesy Bruce Copeland

Results

55 riders competed over a 38 km reasonably flat course rather than the usual 40 km climbing fest course found in the foothills of Central Alberta, just west of the town of Bentley. A 25-30 km/hr tailwind on the way out made sure the return trip was, at best, difficult, and at worse, tortureous. Most riders agreed this fully made up for the lack of hills on the course.

The Bentley event was Race #2 in the Provincial ITT Series. The next event is the Darwell ITT just west of Edmonton. Details are located on the ABA website: www.albertabicycle.ab.ca


Nas Track race #4 Rochester Hills, Michigan

Champoux, Hughes win points battle, Race 4 victory

Extreme and aggressive racing by Andre Champoux and Jon Hughes of Team Green was almost daunted by the calculated moves of Mark and Ron St. John of Team Red and the speed and endurance of Team Blue's Rob Good and Ray Dybowski. But almost wasn't good enough and Team Green won the race as the Nas-Track Madison Racing League Friday Night series continued July 18th at the Velodrome at Bloomer Park in Rochester Hills, Michigan.

Team Green's spectacular performance in the evening's two Madisons that put them in the winner's circle even though they never led in points until the final tally. Before that, they battled past the evening's early leader Madison Pursuit winners Team Blue and were most of the time behind Team Red. But points don't tell the whole story and the victory was as much a result of Team Green's perseverance as it was its place at the finish line.

Champoux began wearing down the field with a spectacular attack off the front in the 1 mile sprint that earned Team Green first place points, putting them in third overall. Then, in the first Madison, Hughes went to work and won. In the second Madison the Green teammates were relentless. Team Red tried to counter and in fact, had perfect timing in their exchange for the intermediate sprint. "I was set up to win," said Mark St. John, who dropped in with 11/2 to go as Champoux was completing his rotation. But instead of wearing down, Champoux was apparently inspired by St. John's move onto his wheel and he turned on the afterburners and held off everyone.

As the end of the race neared, Teams Green and Red were tied, the race was far from over and Hughes and Champoux poured it on, making one attack after another. Team Red defended itself, chasing down every move and making a few attacks of its own. Team Blue, with enough points to win if it placed right in the finish, jumped into the mix. The clock wound down and the racers wound up with an attack first by Blue, then Red, then Green. With three to go, Champoux threw in Hughes and Hughes let it go, riding the race of the night and bringing 100s of spectators to their feet as the intensity on the track spilled into the crowd. By a wheel, Hughes beat Mark St. John at the line and in the points for the evening's overall victory.

NAS-TRACK racing continues Friday, July 28th . League Championships are set for Friday August 1 and NAS-TRACK brings back a six day from August 19-24. For more information and up to the minute reports, visit www.nas-track.com or call 248-961-3705.

Nas-Track Race 4
Final Results

1st TEAM GREEN 55
Andre Champoux, Ypsilanti, MI
Jon Hughes, Rochester Hills, MI

2nd TEAM RED 53
Ron St. John, Hawaii
Mark St. John, St. Clair Shores, MI

3rd TEAM BLUE 46
Rob Good, Toronto, Canada
Ray Dybowski, Waterford, MI

4th TEAM NEON 39
Randy Aardema, Detroit, MI
Cullen Watkins, Royal Oak, MI

5th TEAM PINK 29
Pio Apostoli, Toledo, OH
Mark Freed, Mt. Pleasant, MI

OVERALL STANDINGS (As of 7/18)
Total of Race 1, 2 ,3 & 4

1st Mark. St. John, St. Clair Shores 199 (65+39+42+43)
2nd Jon Hughes, Rochester Hills 187 (34+55+43+55))
3rd Andre Champoux, Ypsilanti 186 (45+43+43+55)
4th Rob Good, Toronto 179 (32+39+62+46)
5th Dave Koesel, Livonia 172 (65+45+62)
6th Pio Apostoli, Toledo 156 (32+45+50+29)
7th Rippin Ronnie Sink, Rochester 147 (46+55+46)
8th Ray Dybowski, Waterford 141(16+46+23+46)
9th Randy Aardema, Detroit 102(17+46+39))
10th Ron St. John, Hawaii 95(42+53)
11th Rob Akers, Garden City 79 (45+34)
12th Mark Freed, Mt. Pleasant 52(23+29
13th Steve Mlujeak, Rochester Hills 50
14th Terry Palmer, Shelby Twp. 43
15th Cullen Watkins, Royal Oak 39
16th Wayne Cook, Mt. Clemens 21
17th Dave Boynton, Royal Oak 21
18th Paul Jaqua, Savannah, GA 17