• » Stacy Appelwick (Bouledogue Tout Noir) is a new national champion in only her second season of racing: She won today’s women’s 35-39 pursuit at the masters track national championships in Frisco, Texas.

• » 2 Bici Bicycle Shop has a photo of Laurent Fignon racing in Chicago.

• » Our city was represented well at last week’s Canadian-American Police Fire Games in Ohio, with medals going to Ronie Lopez (Beverly Bike/Vee-Pak), Jim Price (Iron Cycles), Tony Rienks (Beverly Bike/Vee-Pak) and Mike Seguin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo).

• » Enjoy some of the race reports, photos and videos from Sunday’s inaugural Cyclocross Relay Race in Jackson Park. With a capacity 50 teams in the co-ed race, I believe this may have been the most women to ever line up for a bike race in Illinois. The Chicago Cuttin’ Crew was already in mid-season form, winning two races and providing endless LOLz from the heckling couch.

• » Registration is open for the Chicago Cyclocross Cup. The 4A’s at Jackson Park are already more than half full, the women’s 4’s a quarter full, and I would not be surprised if many of the 4A’s and 4B’s races reach capacity weeks ahead of each race.

• » Team Pegasus is hosting a free cyclocross clinic for women in Humboldt Park on Monday. Next Saturday, Half Acre Cycling holds its own cyclocross clinic for women.

• » Verizon u25 gets some press in the Sun-Times.

• » The Huntington Bicycle Challenge is a two-day, 140-mile race in Indiana.

It was a homecoming weekend of sorts in Dixon, Ill., as former pro Bryce Mead, donning a Mead’s Bike Shop kit, and Chicago product Reid Mumford (Kelly Benefit Strategies) took part in the second year of the Ronald Reagan Criterium.

Mumford wasted little time before escaping the P/1/2/3 field alone. Spirited racing followed in attempts to form chase groups, but it wasn’t until Mumford lapped the field a little more than halfway through that a decisive split occurred. Mumford proceeded to tow seven riders around for the balance of the race, now officially a race for 2nd, claimed by Sherman Park revelation Ben Damhoff (Geargrinder).

Making his debut as a 3, Kaleb Koch (IS Corp) received an elite-quality leadout from teammate Peter Davis and handily won the 3/4’s sprint, especially impressive considering he was in junior gears for the downhill and tailwind-aided homestretch.

Also impressive was Joe Berenyi (Psimet) passing riders down the homestretch of the masters 4/5’s to take the first win of his career.  Brandon Diffenderfer (Spidermonkey Cycling) also had a good day, hitting the podium in both the 3/4’s and 4/5’s. And racing three times, Ryan O’Boyle (South Chicago Wheelmen) won the juniors race and placed 2nd in the 4/5’s. O’Boyle has had a fantastic season, and I expect we’ll see him thrive in the elite categories in 2011.

In the masters 1/2/3’s, Todd Metz (Apache) showed that his Winfield performance was no fluke, winning out of a four-up sprint, and in a final tuneup before masters national track championships, Stacy Appelwick (Bouledogue Tout Noir) picked up her latest win in the women’s open.

Full results.

Over the years, ABD’s elite riders have been counted on for a few things. Among them, tactical excellence and precision, especially when presented with the complication of riders going up a lap. For another, they reliably take the Winfield weekend very, very seriously.

Such was the case this weekend when the boys of the ABD-powered Verizon u25 got Mike Sherer across the finish line first on both days. At Saturday’s twilight criterium it came in a sprint, and in Sunday’s ABR national champiionship it came after Sherer and a fully recovered Ryan Freund lapped the field -- this barely a month after Freund broke his collarbone during Superweek -- with teammates Will Nowak and Hogan Sills cleaning up 3rd and 4th behind them.

A 1-2-3-4 at Winfield is not without precedent: ABD did it in 2006, and its top riders have won this race ever since, a nifty five-year run.

Coming a week after his win at Glencoe, this makes three in a row for Sherer, who says he now hangs up the road shoes for the year to focus on cross and fishing -- and hopefully sorting through professional offers for 2011.

Another ABD sweep came compliments of Jessi Prinner, who won the elite women’s race both days.

Kyle Selph (Tower Racing) justified his recent upgrade by winning the 3’s race Sunday, slipping away late with Tim Speciale (Psimet) and overcoming him in a long drag race to the line.

Speciale had a good weekend, also hitting the podium in the 2/3’s Saturday after winner Todd Metz (Unattached) and Dave Stone (Verizon Wireless) got down the road. This is the first time I’ve seen Metz’s name in the results this year -- a belated but outstanding way to open a season, I’d say.

The next day, Stone and Dave Polin (WDT/Allvoi) broke free of the combined 30+/40+ field to take the 40+ honors. Keith McMahon (Comma-Van Wagner) then earned the 30+ championship by finishing 2nd in the field sprint behind Marek Serafin (PACT/Dish Network), 4th overall.

Saturday results. Sunday results.

Saturday reports
Tim Speciale (Psimet; 2/3): “As quietly as I could I clicked two gears down. We made the turn, I stood up and hit it.”

Verizon u25 (1/2): “Diving into the technical downhill the team had their man Mike Sherer right where they wanted him.”

Sunday reports
Tim Speciale (Psimet; 3): “I sprinted … and sprinted … and sprinted … and sprinted.  I looked down and he was gaining on me. I sprinted some more, then some more.”

Mark Swartzendruber (Verizon Wireless; 30+, 1/2): “By the time I hit the finish line on Lap 1, I had 20 seconds and I’ll be damned if I wasn’t determined to spend the entire 40-mile race off the front solo.”

Verizon u25 (1/2): “It looked possible that the strong veterans could ride away with the race.”

Sunday photos
Von Buzard

• » Leigh Thompson (Vision Quest) won today’s women’s 50-54 time trial at the masters world championships in Tyrol, Austria.

• » It boggles my mind every year: Certain races in March and April will sell out, but now it’s the nicest weather of the year and registration is light for this weekend. People suddenly have better things to do than racing their bicycles?

• » Maybe everybody will be saving their energy and tuning their cowbells for Sunday’s Cyclocross Relay Race in Jackson Park.

• » Paul Swinand (Start2Finish) and the Northbrook Bicycle Club are hosting cyclocross training sessions for juniors starting Friday, Sept. 10, at 6 p.m.

• » Registration is open for the state time trial championships in Harvard on Saturday, Sept. 4. (World champion Thompson has already signed up. Perhaps her rainbow stripes will make their debut.)

• » Some nice video from the Glencoe Grand Prix. Did you race? Check your e-mail for an invitation to complete a survey to help the race improve.

• » Tomorrow is a big night for women with the Elaine Nekritz Trophy Race in Northbrook.

• » New Belgium’s Urban Assault Ride hits Chicago on Sunday, Sept. 12.

We’re running out of opportunities to score USAC upgrade points, and this weekend brings the season’s final two races within a few hours of the city.

Saturday is the Ronald Reagan Criterium in Dixon, Ill. Turnout was light last year and registration looks slow again, but this is a fun race with good hosts. Plus, overlapping categories give you a chance to race up a level and test out whatever category you hope to be in 2011. Note that the course is slightly different. By my recollection this cuts out one of the fun kickers, but there will be the same long, downhill finish stretch.

Also on Saturday is a downstate road race on a mostly flat, 4.5-mile park loop.

Saturday
Ronald Reagan Criterium
USAC criterium
Dixon, Ill.
Distance from Chicago: 2 hours
Previous wrap-up: 2009

Lincoln Trail State Park Road Race
USAC road race
Marshall, Ill.
Distance from Chicago: 3.5 hours

One more hot night in the city.

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I loves me some crits with hills.

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Definitely one of the highlights of the summer. Three cheers for the new course.

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Tuesday! Not Wednesday! Tuesday!

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Big win with national spotlight for Verizon u25.

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