CX Season Update

Head on over to the CX schedule page to check out the updated standings!

We had a great turn out in Tucson with 5 schools (ASU, NAU, UNM, Prescott, and UA) battling it out for points. One weekend left to race in Phoenix!

Lots of Updates

First, a big congrats to our mountain bike champions!
Div 1 teams:
1.) UA
2.) NAU
3.) UNM

Div 2:
1.) Prescott College

Div 1 Men:
1.) Kyle Trudeau
2.) David Carlson
3.) Bryan Little

Div 1 Women:
1.) Erica Clevenger
2.) Tizzy DeHorny and Amy Chandos

Div 2 Women:
1.) Ruby Zitzer

Look forward:
2016 CX calendar is updated
2016 Road Calendar has been posted! This one looks RAD!

Half way through MTB season!

We're at the half way mark of the 2015 MTB season and things are heating up! UNM has come thundering out of the gates and has a commanding lead the Div 1 team omnium, thanks to bringing a diverse number of riders. UA has continued their dominating run of the men's A with Kyle Trudeau undefeated so far. He has a nice lead in the DNA leader's jersey heading into Gallup this weekend.

We have two weekends left: Gallup, with just a XC, and regionals in Phoenix with XC, STXC, and relay- all double points. Regionals will be a deciding factor this year. Can UNM hold on to their lead? Or will NAU rally to defend their 4 year streak of winning the D1 title?

Previewing the 2015 Mountain Season

The 2015 season is right around the corner! The SW teams are gearing up for what will promise to be another close season of racing. While the SW might be small in size, the racing is close and exciting. Last year the University of Arizona made a strong run at the Division 1 team omnium but fell short by a few points behind perennial powerhouse Northern Arizona.

UA's Kyle Trudeau is on fire- winning the men's open single speed XC race at nationals in July. He'll be supported by 2 time Men's A omnium winner David Carlson as well as Ian Wilkey and Hunter Weiss. NAU will bring a few A riders- notably Kyle Gandy. But, we all know, the conference title isn't won by the A riders, it's won by the team with the most B and C riders. Historically, this has been NAU's strength so time will tell if it pays off.

However, ASU and UNM are seeing a growing interest in mountain biking. UNM, with Doug Torres and Tiziana DeHorney, rocked out the 5th place in the team relay at 'cross nationals. If UNM can bring a few B and C riders they might sneak off with the win.

On the Division 2 side, new varsity program Prescott College is looking to capture the team and individual omniums again. Word on the street is New Mexico State's team is making a comeback. Should they rally the troops, we could see a tight battle on the Div 2 side. 

The season starts off at Angel Fire with one of the most difficult XC courses of the season and the only DH race in the conference. Next, the racing moves the Flagstaff for one day of racing in conjunction with the conference's fall retreat. The racing moves back to New Mexico for two XC weekends- first in Las Cruces for the Horny Toad Hustle and then Gallup for the High Desert Screamer. Finally, the season comes to a close in Phoenix with a XC, STXC, and Team Relay.

Who will take home this year's DNA leader's jersey? Can NAU hold off a hard charging UA team for another mountain title or will UNM sneak in and steal the show? We'll find out in two weeks when the season starts!

Regionals Update

Albuquerque, NM- Adoption Exchange Classic

The SWCCC wrapped up the 2015 regular season with the Adoption Exchange Classic in Albuquerque, NM serving as the conference championship. Standings in the Division 1 omnium were close with UA leading ASU by a scant 15 points.

The weekend started off with the brutal Heartbreak Hill road course which features a short but steep climb and lots of open land with cross winds. The day’s events began with a moment of silence to honor conference leader David Greif’s sister, Erica, who tragically passed away earlier in the week driving to Redlands. The men’s A omnium was frozen going into the weekend, out of respect for David, as he was unable to attend the race weekend.

The men’s A raced with the P/1/2/3 field and completed 78 miles. The race came down to a small group sprint with Niklas Podhraski (UNM) with Constantin Schreiber (ASU) in second, and Joey Iuliano (UA) in third. The women’s A race was dominated by UA’s Shelby Hoglund, whose win gave her back the DNA leader’s jersey going into Sunday’s crit. The men’s C race featured a podium sweep by ASU.

Sunday featured a 20 km team time trial in the morning followed by a L-shaped crit in the afternoon. The UNM women’s A time blitzed the course and took home the win over UA, ASU finished a distant third. ASU struck back with wins in the Men’s A, Men’s B, and Men’s C events however. The crit, while flat, proved difficult as the winds picked up throughout the day. ASU’s Gabe Perez won the men’s C race with a long sprint over NAU’s Zach Morrison and Josh Kenner. UA’s Bilal Lulu put on a show of force in the men’s B crit by winning 3 of the 4 primes and the sprint finish. In the women’s B, new comer Cherry Niel (UA), lead the race from the start winning all the primes but was beat at the line by Noell Hules (NAU), Lauren Tininenko (UNM), and Alissa Albrecht (ASU). The women’s A race was the most exciting to watch of the day with Shelby Hoglund (UA) leading Sarah Muench (ASU) by just 10 points. Bit by bit, Sarah whittled the lead down and then tied Shelby by the 4^th prime. UA’s Sarah Posner tried to run interference in the later primes but the ASU duo, Riley and Sarah, proved too formidable. In the end, Sarah and Riley come in first and second with Sarah clinching the individual omnium. The men’s A race featured countless attacks however it came down to a group sprint with Constantin Schreiber (ASU) and Paul Stevenson (ASU) taking first and second. Niklas Podhraski (UNM) rounded out the podium.

After the points were calculated, ASU came out on top in the Division 1 omnium, ending UA’s multi-year winning streak. UNM finished a strong third, one of the best showings for the program in several years. The teams now have a few weeks of rest and time to plan for nationals in Asheville!

Rankings updated through Trifecta

Omniums have been updated through Trifecta!

Trifecta really shook up the standings. In the Women's A, Shelby Hoglund closed the gap to Sarah Muench to under 20 points. In the Men's A, David Greif reclaimed the DNA Cycling leaders jersey, while teammate Joey Iuliano slipped from 3rd, to 5th, and UNM's Niklas Podhraski moved up to 4th and is knocking on a podium placing. 

Two weekends of racing remain with the Duncan Road Race and conference championships in Albuquerque.

San Diego Weekend

Wow! What an amazing weekend! The SW showed up in force for the conference showdown with the WCCC in not-so-sunny San Diego.

And we showed those Cali kids how to race bikes! Our conference walked away with podiums in nearly every category, 1 and 2 in the men's A TTT, and a complete podium sweep in the men's A on Sunday. We came. We saw. We conquered. Hopefully team's saw what a big collegiate race weekend can look like and are motivated to recruit more riders for their team. If we can bring in 75-100 riders each weekend, we too can have big stand alone fields.

ASU Weekend

What a great weekend of racing at ASU and McDowell!

We had a record turnout for the collegiate fields at the ASU crit AND the crit was on campus! This is great to see as it provides outstanding exposure for the sport and teams. I hope to see the crit back on campus for years to come.

Check out this pic of the C's field, 31 riders!

Results and Standings from UA Weekend

The results and standings have been updated after our first road weekend! We had the largest turn out in years this past weekend! Over 30 men's C riders took the line!

Check out the schedule page to see how your team is doing. Congrats to David Carlson (UA) and Sarah Muench (ASU) for taking possession of the year's first leader's jerseys by DNA!

Spring Season 2015

Flyers and registration are up and ready to go for just about every weekend this spring! I'll have NMSU (Trifecta) and our show down with the WCCC updated when I get the info.

Let's have a great season and I'll see everyone in Tucson at the end of the month!