Santa Cruz's Wicks Claims First-Ever National Title
EDITOR NOTE: Agate is at the bottom of this file. An image of Barry Wicks was emailed in an earlier transmission. If you need the image, please call 707-334-9822. Contact: Diana Rose 707-334-9822 Santa Cruz's Wicks Captures First-Ever Short Track National Championship SONOMA, Calif. (IMMEDIATE RELEASE) - Santa Cruz's Barry Wicks picked the perfect stage to record the first professional Short Track victory of his career. Wicks used a last-lap attack on Sunday to take the lead and he sprinted to a convincing victory for his first-ever Short Track National Championship at the 2006 USA Cycling National Mountain Bike Championships, brought to you by X-Fusion, at Infineon Raceway. Wicks (Kona/Clarks/LesGets), 24, had never posted a pro Short Track victory prior to this weekend as he specialized in Cyclocross at Oregon State, where he won a national title. That all changed on Sunday when he took the victory in 28 minutes, 29.27 seconds in nine laps over the one-mile course that featured uphill and downhill racing over various types of terrain. He crossed the finish line more than five seconds ahead of Jeremiah Bishop (Trek Volkswagen) at 28:34.93, with Wicks' teammate, Ryan Trebon, taking third (28:36.8). "I knew it was now or never on that last lap so I gave it everything I had," said Wicks, who placed second in Friday's Cross Country National Championship race. "Once I took the lead I looked back and I knew I had it. I'm totally speechless right now. This is unbelievable." Susan Haywood (Trek Volkswagen) completed the double on the women's side, winning her second national championship of the weekend. The resident of Harrisonburg, Virg., won the SuperD title on Saturday and followed that with a convincing victory in Sunday's Short Track finale (29:37.69). By winning two national championships over the weekend, she also received a $1,000 bonus from Infineon Raceway. "I hadn't won a Short Track race all year," Haywood said. "My plan coming into the weekend was to win Cross Country, but that didn't happen, so I went to plan B. I guess it worked out." Dara Marino Marks (Titus/Kenda) was second at 29:44.53, with Kelli Emmett (Ford Cycling) third at 29:48.36. Local favorite Mary McConneloug (Subaru-Gary Fisher), a resident of Fairfax, was fifth. In other national championships on Sunday, Tara Llanes (Giant Bicycles) won the Downhill (2:01.74) for women, while Duncan Riffle was first on the men's side at 1:54.02. It was Riffle's second national championship in Downhill. Sunday marked a close to four days of national championship mountain biking in the Sonoma Valley as Infineon Raceway hosted the most prestigious mountain bike race weekend in the country - the championships were originally planned for Mammoth Mountain but had to be relocated after a record amount of snowfall this winter. The championships were part of the Infineon Cougar Mountain Classic as more than 2,500 competitors participated during the four-day event. USA Cycling National Mountain Bike Championships SONOMA, Calif. - Final results Sunday from Infineon Raceway for the professional men's and women's categories at the 2006 USA Cycling National Mountain Bike Championships, brought to you by X-Fusion. Team and hometown in parenthesis: Short Track National Championship Short Track - Top 15 Nine laps/ One-mile course Pro Men 1. Barry Wicks (Kona/LesGets, Santa Cruz) 2. Jeremiah Bishop (Trek/VW, Harrisonburg, VA) 3. Ryan Trebon (Kona/LesGets, Ventura) 4. Ross Schnell (Trek VW, Glenwood Spring, CO) 5. Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski (Subaru-Gary Fisher, Boulder, CO) 6. Carl Decker (Broadmark, Bend, OR) 7. Alan Obye (SRAM, Colorado Springs, CO) 8. Adam Craig (Giant, Bend, OR) 9. Erik Tonkin (Kona, Portland, OR) 10. Jason Sager (Hotel San, Park City, UT) 11. Todd Wells (GT Bicycle, Durango, CO) 12. Cody Peterson (3D Racing, Hailey, ID) 13. Eric Ransom (Tamarack, Durango, CO) 14. Dana Weber (JAX Bicycles, Laguna Beach) 15. Michael Broderick (Seven Cycles, Chilmark, MA) Short Track National Championship Short Track - Top 15 Eight laps/ One-mile course Pro Women 1. Susan Haywood (Trek/VW, Harrisonburg, VA) 2. Dara Marks Marino (Titus/Kenda, Flagstaff, AZ) 3. Kelli Emmett (Ford Cycling, Colorado Springs, CO) 4. Shonny Vanlandingham (Luna Women, Durango, CO) 5. Mary McConneloug (Seven Cycles, Chilmark, MA) 6. Willow Koerber (Subaru/Gary Fisher, Whistler, BC) 7. Georgia Gould (Luna Women, Ketchum, ID) 8. Kathy Sherwin (Ford Cycling, Herbert City, UT) 9. Melissa Thomas (Tokyo Joe's, Boulder, CO) 10. Sara Bresnick-Zocchi (Ford Cycling, Somerville, MA) 11. Jamie Whitmore (Felt Racing, Mt. Aukum, CA) 12. Zephanie Blasi (Kenda, Reno, NV) 13. Heather Irmiger (Subaru-Gary Fisher, Boulder, CO) 14. Nina Baum (Bear Naked, Albuquerque, NM) 15. Jennifer Wilson (Titus Grassroots, El Paso, TX) Downhill National Championship Downhill - Top 15 Pro Men 1. Duncan Riffle (Honda/Iron, Santa Barbara) 2. Ryan Finney (WTB/Fox, San Mateo) 3. Rich Houseman (Yeti/Fox, Temecula) 4. Cole Bangert (Morewood Bicycles, Twin Lakes, CO) 5. Christopher Herndon (Cane Creek, Etowah, NC) 6. Justin Havukainen (Monster, Lake Elsinore) 7. Aaron Peters (Mongoose, Santa Cruz) 8. Henry O'Donnell (WTB/Santa Cruz, Downieville) 9. Lars Sternberg (Fluidride, Vashon, WA) 10. Evan Turpen (Iron Horse, Aptos) 11. Cody Warren (C-Dub Racing, Alpine) 12. Luke Strobel (Downhill Z, Renton, WA) 13. Dan Krenicki (Predator, Truckee) 14. Ian Odom (KHS, Big Bear City) 15. Keith Mott (KHS, Flagstaff, AZ) Downhill National Championship Downhill - Top 15 Pro Women 1. Tara Llanes (Giant, Los Alamitos) 2. Melissa Buhl (KHS Bicycles, Chandler, AZ) 3. Marla Streb (Luna Chix, Los Osos) 4. Lisa Myklak (Morewood Bicycles, Boulder, CO) 5. April Lawyer (Maxxis, Bend, OR) 6. Amelia Colasurdo (Bear Naked, Seattle, WA) 7. Sara Johnson (Wheelsport, Spokane, WA) 8. Michelle Camp (Kona/MCFAT, Portland, OR) 9. Leana Gerrard (Bear Naked, Lake Tapps, WA) 10. Jackie Harmony (Brodie, Tucson, AZ) 11. Tenille Smith (Mountain View) 12. Kote Driscoll (Chumba, San Luis Obispo) 13. Michelle Rivera (TNT, La Puente) 14. Carol Gibbs (Ellsworth, Dacula, GA) Mountain Cross National Championship Final Results - Top 15 Pro Men 1. Eric Carter (Mongoose Bicycles, Temecula) 2. Brian Lopes (GT Bicycles, San Clemente) 3. Rich Houseman (Yeti/FOX Racing, Oceanside) 4. Cody Warren (C-Dub Racing, Alpine) 5. Lars Sternberg (Eluidride, Bellingham, WA) 6. Kyle Adams (ODI-Southridge, Hesperia) 7. Ryan Condrashoff (Planet X Michelin, Pleasant Hill) 8. Ryan Finney (WTB/FOX/Santa Cruz, San Mateo) 9. Curtis Beavers (WTB/Santa Cruz Bicycles, San Jose) 10. Sanjay Shanbhag (Irvine) 11. Josh Toland (FOX/Yeti, Santa Cruz) 12. TJ Sharp (Yet/Fox Racing, Boulder, CO) 13. Cole Bangert (Fox Shox/Yeti, Twin Lakes, CO) 14. Mike Haderer (Fox Shox/Yeti, Concord) 15. Ian Odom (KHS, Big Bear City) Mountain Cross National Championship Final Results - Top 6 Pro Women 1. Jill Kintner (GT Bicycles, Seattle, WA) 2. Leana Gerrard (Bear Naked/Cannondale, Lake Tapps, WA) 3. Melissa Buhl (KHS Bicycles, Chandler, AZ) 4. Tara Llanes (Giant Bicycles, Los Alamitos) 5. Amelia Colasurdo (Bear Naked/Cannondale, Seattle, WA) 6. Jacqueline Harmony (Team Cactus Bikes, Tucson, AZ) --------------------------- John Cardinale VP of Media/Community Relations Infineon Raceway Highways 37 &121, Sonoma, CA 95476 wk: 707-933-3907 cell: 707-334-9805