Stars & Stripes

Ten days weeks ago the USPRO National Road and Time Trial Championships were held in Greenville, SC. Both of the prior year’s champions, George Hincapie and David Zabriskie, respectively, were there to defend their jerseys.

On Saturday, September 1st, David Zabriskie did just that covering the redesigned 32.4km course in 39.34. He was aptly challenged by Danny Pate and Timothy Duggan, teammates on Slipstream/Chipotle [the noveau American flavor given the dismantling of US Postal/Discovery Channel Pro Cycling].

Men's Podium (Photo: Kurt Jambretz/actionimages.cc)

But the more engaging story during the race of truth, wasn’t about who could cover the distance the fastest, but was in who participated, Saul Raisin (Credit Agricole) and Tyler Hamilton (Tinkoff Credit Systems). The latter, the reigning Olympic champion in the discipline, was relegated to a cycling spectator for more than 2 years, serving a doping suspension and being excluded by virtue of suspicion of that same doping offense.

Given that prolonged time away from elite competition, the expectations for Hamilton (Photo: Kurt Jambretz) should have been extremely low. However, no one told Hamilton as he rode to a more than respectable sixth place in a non-descript Cervelo kit [he being forbidden to ride in Tinkoff colors given his estrangement from the team].

For Raisin (Photo: Jonathan Devich/epicimages.us), his participation was not only a second chance at a sport he loves, but also a second chance at life. In 2006, Raisin slipped into a coma following a crash. His prognosis looked bleak, but like some athletes, he has bounced back with amazing vigor.

Earlier in the Spring, he was already participating in training rides in and around some of the major American cycling events, and there he was again, in Greenville, actually competing. He may have finished in 33rd, but this is one of those times where it says more about actually having participated than to have won.

On Sunday the 2nd, it was all Discovery Channel once again. Except it was Levi Leipheimer who took home the Stars & Stripes, rather than Hincapie. The Greenville native rode admirably to a second place, but was more upset at the lack of organization in the peloton as Leipheimer soloed to victory.

(Photo: Kurt Jambretz/www.actionimages.cc)

For those critical of Hincapie’s career, it was more of the same. In the biggest races, George has rarely attacked or gone out and made the race, instead depending on his chances to develop over the kilometers. During the times he has shown his cards, he’s been the victim of bad luck [flatting at Roubaix in 2002, breaking his steering column at the same in 2006] or been overtaken by more ambitious teammates [by Hoste at Flanders in 2006]. Unfortunately for the the 33 year old, in those instances he probably should have been using more of the piss and vinegar rather than the guile of an aging veteran.

With his move to T-Mobile in 2008, lets all hope that America's good cycling soldier develops that killer attitude before the cobbled races take another toll.