Shake up in PRT team standings after 6 days of crits

Shake up in PRT team standings after 6 days of crits

clippedinJune 13, 2018

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Criterium racing took center stage for USA Cycling’s Pro Road Tour in early June when sprinters grabbed attention and points to shake up the PRT standings for teams and individuals.
Riders took on three events across three states — the Glencoe Grand Prix in Glencoe, Illinois on June 2; the Saint Francis Tulsa Tough in Tulsa, Oklahoma on June 8-10; and the Armed Forces Cycling Classic p/b The Boeing Company in Arlington, Virginia on June 9-10.
Elevate-KHS Pro Cycling amassed 193 points in June to jump from third to the top of the PRT men’s team standings. The Texas-based UCI Continental team used seven podium finishes at the races in Oklahoma and Virginia this past weekend to jump over UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling and Holowesko-Citadel presented by Arapahoe Resources, who are now second and third, respectively.

Elevate-KHS swept the criterium omnium standings from the three days of racing at Saint Francis Tulsa Tough, with the overall Omnium title going to Jose Alfredo Rodriguez Victoria (Mexico). At the Armed Forces Cycling Classic, the split squad nailed a victory on the second of two days of racing by Cory Williams (Los Angeles).
“Last year, the Elevate-KHS team won 31 races and had multiple podium finishes at the Tours of Utah, Colorado, Gila and Taiwan. We set the bar high, and the riders and staff all exceeded our expectations. This year, through the end of May, we have raised the bar higher, and the team has responded by winning 33 races already and winning our first UCI race at Joe Martin this year,” said Paul Abrahams, team director for Elevate-KHS Pro Cycling. “The guys have really bonded together and the results speak to their commitment to each other. It is really exciting to watch them grow as a complete unit.”
Rodriguez finished second twice and added a 10th-place finish in Tulsa, which boosted him from 14th to sixth overall in the PRT men’s individual standings.
His teammates, Sam Bassetti (Santa Rosa, California) and Scott Law (Australia), also made big moves on the individual charts based on successes in Tulsa. Bassetti, who won the road race at the Winston-Salem Cycling Classic on Memorial Day, jumped four spots to third overall with a victory on the opening day in Tulsa and then a third-place finish on Saturday. Law secured the win on Sunday, after taking the bronze in the Friday contest. He moved from 23rd to 11th overall.
Other notables to make moves in the PRT men’s standings were Jarret Oldham (Chicago/First Internet Bank Cycling Team) and Daniel Holloway (Boulder, Colorado/Texas Roadhouse). With a victory in the 12th edition of the Glencoe Grand Prix, the Glencoe Educational Foundation Pro/1 race, Oldham vaulted 11 spots and moved into the Top 25 of the men’s individual standings. His domestic elite team moved into the top 10. Holloway won the second of three crits in Tulsa, jumping 27 spots and also landing in the top 25, now 23rd overall and one spot in front of Oldham.

UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling, with 898 total points, and Rally Cycling, with 670 total points, remained in command of the top two spots for the PRT women’s team standings.
Teams across the top 6 remained unchanged, but recent crit showings by Hagens Berman/Supermint, Team TIBCO – Silicon Valley Bank and ISCorp powered by Progress Software narrowed the margins between these squads, fourth to sixth place respectively, by less than 90 points. The Feed Hungry Kids Project team jumped 68 points in the past two weeks to move into seventh overall, with three riders in the top 5 at the Glencoe Grand Prix.
On the heels of criterium victories in Rochester, New York and Winston-Salem, North Carolina at the end of May, the ISCorp powered by Progress Software squad continued to tally podium finishes and wins in Tulsa.
Samantha Schneider (West Allis, Wisconsin) used a win on Friday, a bronze on Saturday and a seventh place on Sunday to earn the omnium title for the women. In the past two weeks, Schneider has earned 63 points and moved from 13th to ninth overall in the women’s individual standings. Her teammate, Josie Talbot (Australia), had two podium finishes and a fourth place in Tulsa to move from 21st to 14th in the overall standings.
Also moving into the top 20 for the first time this season was Skylar Schneider (West Allis, Wisc./Boels Dolmans Cycling Team), the younger sister of Samantha, who is 18th overall. She sprinted to her second win of the PRT season in Glencoe, taking the title at the American Center for Spine & Neurology Women’s Pro/1/2 race.
Hagens Berman/Supermint used a split squad to gain spots on the podium at both Tulsa and Arlington events. Peta Mullens (Australia) earned a bronze and a silver on bookend Tulsa races around a criterium victory on Saturday by Jen Luebke (Bend, Oregon). Luebke moved from 14th to 13th overall, and Mullens made her first appearance on the individual chart in 23rd position, tied with Kathryn Buss (Blacksburg, Virginia/Team TIBCO – Silicon Valley Bank).
At the Armed Forces Cycling Classic, the team had two top 10 finishes, including a third on Saturday by Harriet Owen (Great Britain), who moved from 35th to 27th overall.
Team TIBCO – Silicon Valley Bank dominated the Armed Forces Cycling Classic in Virginia with seven top 10s, led by back-to-back team victories from Alison Jackson (Canada) and Kendall Ryan (Ventura, California). Ryan was second behind Jackson on the first day in Arlington. In the overall standings, Ryan was 20th and Jackson was 21st.
The top 8 of the PRT women’s individual standings saw no movement, with Katie Hall (Saratoga, California/UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling) in first place over Sara Bergen (Canada/Rally Cycling) with a 221-point advantage.
The PRT calendar takes a mid-season break in June for athletes to prepare and compete at the USA Cycling Pro Road, ITT and Crit National Championships, held in Knoxville, Tennesse June 21-24.
Find full PRT Standings online – http://legacy.usacycling.org/series/2018-pro-road-t