Riders Greet New York Fans and Give A Taste of the Food That Fuels Them

Join the Argyle Armada in a full-on burrito tasting at Chipotle in New York City (directions below) this Friday, June 6 from 10:00-11:00 am. Chipotle will unveil a limited edition burrito created for the athletes, which consumers will be able to purchase July 5 through July 27 (during the Tour de France).

The event will also serve as the only New York send-off for the riders going to the Tour de France in July. Team Slipstream-Chipotle is America’s top professional cycling team dedicated to promoting ethical sporting and creating the next generation of American cycling champions.

Meet Team Slipstream-Chipotle Riders:
• Magnus Backstedt: 2004 Paris-Roubaix winner, largest Tour de France rider ever.
• Martijn Maaskant: 4th, 2008 Paris-Roubaix and Spring Classics revelation.
• Mike Friedman: 2008 Olympic long team member.
• Steve Cozza: the mustached warrior.
• Other members of Team Slipstream-Chipotle

Let’s give the riders a huge New York send off! Come to Chipotle, 1221 Avenue of the Americas (48th Street between Avenue of the Americas and Seventh Avenue).

Iron Horse Classic Report from Andrew Barker

Last weekend in Durango I finally had a breakthrough race in the P-1-2 field. I have been racing 2’s all season so far, but I was finally able to show the fast field of riders what I was capable of at the Iron Horse Classic. Unfortunately, the famous and epic road race stage was canceled due to the 40 degree and rainy weather…in Durango. The race goes over two 10,000 ft passes and it would have been miserable at the summits. Later that day, the weather cleared and I got out for a nice preview ride of Monday’s time trial course. The scenery was excellent and I got another day of rest to better prepare for the crit and time trial.

Saturday morning, I got out for a nice ride again to prepare for that evening’s crit. I felt good that morning, but was not expecting what was to come. At 5:30, I lined up with some of the best riders in the nation: Chris Wherry, Todd Wells and Burke Swindlehurst. I was just hoping to make an attack or two and see what I could do. The race started fast as usual, and I just sat in and watched the “important wheels.”

Early on, I followed an attack by Troy Wells, and when he ran out of gas I countered. This separated me from the field and just a little bit later I was joined by Todd Wells. I was very happy he came up to join me, but when he went to the front, it was about all I could do to stay on his wheel. I hung with Todd for about 5 laps, but soon I just had to fade back to the peloton. Once I rejoined the group I sat on the back and tried to recover as much as possible. With around ten minutes to go in the race, I felt decent enough to attack.

This time when I went the field did not respond immediately. However, another lap or so later, Burke Swindlehurst bridged up to me. I just hung on to him as we started to bring back Chris Wherry and Todd. In the final lap, Burke and I were joined by a few others. Coming into the sprint and knowing that I was not the best sprinter, I knew I had to give it everything to just hold my spot. I put on the gas, but I was nipped by two riders at the line to finish 6th.

Although it wasn’t a win, the race was still a great success for me. I found out that I can hold my own in a field with that much talent. After the race, I was getting a bunch of congrats from random Durango-ites thanks to excellent announcing by Dave Towle! Plus I got a little mention in the local newspaper!

Monday morning was the time trial course that I had ridden twice already prior to the race. I was feeling good and focused. With a one-way time trial and a good tail wind, the 14-mile race flew by. I passed my minute man and Troy Wells, my 30 sec man, so I knew I was doing well. I ended up finishing 7th and that put me in 6th for the overall in the omnium. That weekend was what I had been hoping for since the beginning of the season. Knowing I have the potential to do well, hopefully I will be able to produce some even better results later this season!

Thanks for reading.

As the first leg of the Commerce Bank Triple Crown, the Lehigh Valley Classic provided all kinds of race excitement for the large and enthusiastic crowds. Slipstream/Chipotle H3O animated the race by either jumping in the different breakaways of the day or chasing down any argyle-less breaks. Mike Friedman, Jason Donald, Martijn Maaskant (above) were all involved in different breaks. The race, however, came down to a mass sprint with Tyler Farrar finishing 8th.

Slipstream Results
1. Yuri Metlushenko 3:05′35″

8. Tyler Farrar
88. Jason Donald
91. Michael Friedman
92. Will Frishkorn
96. Martijn Maaskant
97. Blake Caldwell
102. Steven Cozza
114. Magnus Backstedt

Jumping from the gun, Swedish national road champion Magnus Backstedt (above) kicked off a high-powered breakaway that eventually lapped the pack. Maggy was quickly joined by eventual race winner Italian Luca Damiani who admitted to struggling a bit to hold onto the former Paris-Roubaix winner. The two mismatched escapees were eventually joined by 11 other riders to form the break that lapped the field.

Maggy’s efforts for the day were rewarded when he was named the Most Aggressive rider (podium pic right). Said Maggy in a CyclingNews.com report:

“It’s hard racing but it is completely different than what I am used to,” he said. “It’s either in the mountains slugging away for seven hours or doing a two hour criterium full tilt - it’s just so different.

“I have a big engine on me and my body feels good but I don’t have the snap out of the corners,” he added. “I knew if I were going to be able to do anything today I would have to get out early and stay away in a break.”

It’s so nice to be back on the road with my teammate. We hung out in DC while getting ready to race the CSC race yesterday. The other day, we went for a ride with the mayor of DC, along with his police escort. It was really nice because afterwards we were able to tour of all the monuments, including the White House, by bike.

It is good to be back racing in the USA. The biggest difference between European and US races is the size of the hotel rooms. You could fit four french hotel rooms in our room here in DC. Blake and I both have king size beds and a huge bathroom. Quite ridiculous, but nice. Also, since it’s hot and humid here, they AC the heck out of the inside of buildings. You have to carry a jacket with you so when you walk into a building you don’t freeze. That’s totally crazy.

Well our team is strong here so let’s see what we can put together this week!

Cheers, Cozza

P.S. Last week at home in California was rough. I had to bring my dog Teddy in to be put down. She battled her cancer for a couple months.

We are done.

I am happy to be finished with the world’s hardest and longest “training camp”. We are all very pleased to be finished and to be partially intact. Today went well for the team. Danny completely blew his cover as pack fodder by finishing 6th. It confirms what we all knew before: that he can haul ass. But I guess most ex-world champions can.

So we are in Milan. Still in the bubble, oblivious to what happened over the last 3.5 weeks outside of the Giro. Ready for a stiff drink and some rest. We depart tomorrow for St. Moritz where the treats will be abundant and the oxygen will be lacking. But we’ll also be doing a whole lot of nothing.

Dave and I are keen to take up skeet shooting. Stay low and wear orange if you happen to be passing through Switzerland. Looking forward to shooting something after these last few weeks.

P.S. Dave is till too tired to write.

Slipstream/Chipotle H3O is on a week-long tour of the east coast that kicks off Sunday, June 1 with the CSC Invitational in Arlington, VA and wraps up June 8 with the Philadelphia International Championship in Philadelphia, PA. The squad of one-day masters - Maggy, Martijn, Meatball, Frischkorn, Farrar, Donald, Caldwell and Cozza - is looking forward to putting some of their hard-earned spring classics experience to the test for the home town crowds.

The fun kicks off the CSC Invitational, a 100 km race that takes place on a 1 km circuit. Then the Argyle Armada sets sail for Philadelphia for the Commerce Bank Triple Crown of Cycling. The first of the three Philly races, the Lehigh Valley Classic, is on Tuesday, June 3. This 136 km race takes place over 12 laps through Allentown and Salisbury townships. On Thursday, June 5, the second day of the Commerce Bank Triple Crown takes place in Reading, PA. This 120.7 km circuit includes 11 challenging laps and Mt. Penn at 215 meters.

The final event is the Philadelphia International Championship on Sunday, June 8. In its 24th year, the “Philly Race” is the longest running single-day road race in the US. The 250 km course climbs the legendary Manayunk Wall ten times before the three finishing laps and the finish on Benjamin Franklin Parkway. In his American debut, young Martijn Maaskant hopes to add this race to his palmares.

Danny Summerhill finished a solid 7th in today’s Paris-Roubaix Espoirs that saw an exciting 8-man sprint finale on the Roubaix velodrome. Called the “Petite Reine” or little queen, the 180.5 km race started in Peronne and include 23 sections (36.5 km) of pavé.

Paris-Roubaix Espoirs Results
1. VERMELTFOORT Coen 4:21:21
2. BRAMBILLA Giorgio mt
3. BEURET Laurent mt
4. JOSEPH Stijn mt
5. AVERY Clinton mt
6. BROUZES Peter mt
7. SUMMERHILL Daniel mt