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New series addition is final stop on 2009 tour

Minneapolis – July 20, 2009 – The 2009 Women’s Prestige Cycling Series wraps up this week at the Cascade Cycling Classic in Bend, Oregon. Held right before the US National Championships in Bend, the Cascade Classic boasts one of the strongest women’s fields of the year.

The Team Competition has been a see-saw battle between Team TIBCO and Webcor Cycling all season, with TIBCO claiming the lead at the opener in Redlands Bicycle Classic in March, then losing it to Webcor at the Joe Martin Stage Race in May before reclaiming it at the Nature Valley Grand Prix in June. But TIBCO’s lead is razor thin, with only 769 point compared to 740 for Webcor, so the final standings will come down to the grand finale at Cascade.

In contrast, Team Type 1′s Alison Powers appears to have the individual classification all locked up, barring an unforeseen catastrophe. With 484 points, she seems to have an insurmountable lead over Team TIBCO’s Katherine Carroll (300 points) and Webcor’s Katherine Mattis (275 points), leaving Carroll and Mattis to battle for second place.

The Series’ Best Young Rider competition is still up for grabs, but it’s a family affair, with Webcor teammates at the top of the standings. Rebecca Much took the lead at Joe Martin but then lost ground to Alexis Rhodes at Nature Valley, where Rhodes won the Mankato Road Race. While Much and Rhodes are close (484 vs. 429 points), third place Julie Beveridge (Team TIBCO) is far enough back (308 points) as a result of missing the Joe Martin Stage Race that she doesn’t represent a threat to either of the Webcor riders.

The Series sprint classification is very much in play, coming out of the Nature Valley Grand Prix as a dead heat, with Alison Powers tied with Tina Pic (Colavita Sutter Homes). The tie was broken because Powers had the higher ranking at Nature Valley. But the favorite for the Series Sprint title may be Australian Criterium Champion Kristy Broun, who’ll be racing for Lip Smackers in Cascade. Although she trails Powers and Pic (165 vs. 209 points), she scored all of those points in just one event, the Nature Valley Grand Prix. Similar performances by these three riders could see Broun vault over Powers and Pic and into the Sprint jersey at the Series
finale.

About the Women’s Prestige Cycling Series

The 2009 Women’s Prestige Cycling Series began at the Redlands Bicycle Classic (March 26 – 29), followed by the Joe Martin Stage race (May 7 – 10)and then the Nature Valley Grand Prix (June 10 – 14). It will conclude at the Cascade Cycling Classic (July 21 – 26).

The Women’s Prestige Cycling Series began in 2004 with the goal of highlighting women’s racing by giving them a spotlight that they don’t have to share with the men. Organized by the Nature Valley Grand Prix, the Series grew out of meetings that began in Minnesota in 2003 at the first Women’s Cycling Summit Conference hosted by that event.

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Alison Powers adds a second jersey while TIBCO takes the team lead

Minneapolis – July 2, 2009 – Women’s Prestige Cycling Series leader Alison Powers (Team Type 1) added the Sprinter’s jersey to her collection, but her hold on that jersey is tenuous. Rebecca Much (Webcor Builders) is still in the Best Young Riders jersey. And TIBCO swapped places with Webcor Builders in the team competition.

Individual Standings – Alison Powers (Team Type 1) holds a commanding lead in the Series individual classification, finishing third at the Nature Valley Grand Prix behind Olympic Champion Kristin Armstrong (Cervelo Test) and Shelly Olds (Proman), neither of who are participating in the Series. Katherine Carroll (Team TIBCO) moved into second, ahead of Katheryn Mattis (Webcor Builders), but the gap to Powers is so large that it’s unlikely that Carroll will be able to claim the win at the final Series event, the Cascade Cycling Classic.

1 – 484 – Alison Powers (Team Type 1)
2 – 300 – Katharine Carroll (Team TIBCO)
3 – 275 – Katheryn Mattis (Webcor Builders Cycling Team)
4 – 191 – Joanne Kiesanowski (Team TIBCO)
5 – 162 – Kristin Sanders (Value Act Capital)

Best Young Rider – Rebecca Much (Webcor Builders) retains the lead over teammate Alexis Rhodes, but the gap narrowed from 121 points to 55. Rhodes had a standout performance at Nature Valley, winning the fifth stage and challenging Armstrong for the overall race lead before losing ground in the last stage, the brutal Stillwater Criterium. Much’s lead might be challenged if the two riders have similar results at Cascade.

1 – 484 – Rebecca Much (Webcor Builders Cycling Team)
2 – 429 – Alexis Rhodes (Webcor Builders Cycling Team)
3 – 308 – Julie Beveridge (Team TIBCO)
4 – 264 – Tiffany Cromwell (Colavita Sutter Home)
5 – 220 – Amanda Miller (Team Lip Smackers)

Sprinter – Alison Powers ended the Nature Valley Grand Prix tied on points with Tina Pic (Colavita Sutter Home), but the tie was broken since Powers had a higher placing at the most recent Series event. Powers would likely have had a clear lead since Pic’s team hadn’t attended the Joe Martin Stage Race, but that race has no sprint classification, so no points were awarded. But the favorite for the sprint classification has to be 2009 Australian Criterium Champion Kristy Broun (Riverstones CDA), if she participates at the Cascade Classic, since she was launched into third place on the strength of just this one event.

1 – 209 – Alison Powers (Team Type 1)
2 – 209 – Tina Pic (Colavita Sutter Home)
3 – 165 – Kirsty Broun (Riverstones CDA)
4 – 165 – Kori Seehafer (Team Type 1)
5 – 154 – Joanne Kiesanowski (Team TIBCO)

Team – In the Series Team competition, TIBCO took the lead while Webcor Builders fell to second place. But the margin is very narrow and Team Type 1 is within striking distance as well, so it’ll all come down to the Series finale at the Cascade Classic.

1 – 769 – Team TIBCO
2 – 740 – Webcor Builders Cycling Team
3 – 655 – Team Type 1
4 – 459 – ValueAct Capital Cycling Team
5 – 301 – Colavita Sutter Home p/b Cooking Light

The 2009 Women’s Prestige Cycling Series began at the Redlands Cycling Classic, followed by the Joe Martin Stage Race and now the Nature Valley Grand Prix. It will conclude at the Cascade Classic (July 22 – 26) in Bend, Ore.

About the Women’s Prestige Cycling Series
The Women’s Prestige Cycling Series began in 2004 with the goal of highlighting women’s racing by giving them a spotlight that they don’t have to share with the men. The Series grew out of meetings that began in Minnesota in 2003 at the first Women’s Cycling Summit Conference hosted at the Nature Valley Grand Prix.

Visit www.WomenCyclists.com for more information.

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