Ritchey Stands by Two; O'Bee Employed

Ritchey Design Signs Contract to Continue Sponsorship of Health Net and Symmetrics Professional Bicycle Road Racing Teams

From Chip Smith (SOAR Communications):

SAN CARLOS, Calif. - Dec. 20, 2007 - Ritchey Design Inc. today announced the re-signing of separate sponsorship deals with the Health Net Presented by Maxxis and the Symmetrics Fuelled by FarmPure top-tier North American-based bicycle road racing teams.

The 2008 racing season will be Ritchey Design's fifth year sponsoring the Health Net Presented by Maxxis team and its third year sponsoring the Symmetrics Fuelled by FarmPure team with high-end carbon fiber and aerospace grade alloy cockpit components, such as handlebars, stems and seat posts.

"Health Net and Symmetrics are two of the toughest competitive teams on the professional road racing circuit," said Steve Parke, general manager and vice president of marketing for Ritchey Design. "We believe bike racing is the best place to prove our component designs. By signing with these two superb racing teams, we continue to move forward in producing the most innovative, top-quality products on the market."

Health Net Presented by Maxxis
"To run a consistently successful racing program we have to use equipment that can take the beating of 140 days of racing and 16,000 miles of training," said Thierry Attias, president & director of sponsorship for Health Net Presented by Maxxis. "Ritchey products can do that. Its products are cutting edge and super reliable. Any other partnership would be a compromise."

Ritchey will supply the Health Net Presented by Maxxis with its World Championship Series (WCS) Carbon one-bolt seatpost, Alloy Ergo handlebars, Carbon 4-AXIS stems and Pro Oversized 30-degree stems and alloy adjustable stems for time trial bikes.

Health Net is one of the most dominating domestic teams. The team has been home to multiple national champions, Olympians, world championship team members and one world champion. They have earned four consecutive USA Cycling National Racing Calendar (NRC) team titles and averaged 35 NRC one-day, stage and overall stage race victories, as well as averaging 66 NRC podium appearances per season since 2004. Overall, the team has averaged 72 victories per season in NRC, UCI and non-NRC races during the last four years.

Symmetrics Fuelled By FarmPure
"Signing with Ritchey Design for another season of sponsorship is a huge win for Symmetrics Pro Cycling," said Kevin Cunningham, Symmetrics Fuelled by FarmPure's team director. "Ritchey road parts are proven in some of the toughest professional races worldwide, and their philosophy of lightweight but reliable top quality materials will help to ensure success for Symmetrics Cycling."

Symmetrics will be using Ritchey's World Championship Series (WCS) Carbon one-bolt seatposts, Alloy Ergo handlebars, 4-AXIS alloy stems, as well as the new UD Carbon fork (sub 300-grams) and Streem saddles.

Canada-based with an all Canadian roster of racers, the Symmetrics team has an almost family like atmosphere, rare for an elite level road team. Team President Mark Cunningham and his brother Kevin have worked hard to retain top riders who are courted by bigger-budgeted U.S. teams.

In 2007, the team's three-time Canadian national champion, Svein Tuft, won the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) America Tour, which is a season-long competition between teams from North and South America and is one of the world's premiere events for professional cyclists. At the conclusion of the tour, Symmetrics was ranked 3rd out of 19 teams with 977 points (the second place team scored only 473).

As a result of Symmetrics Cycling's 2008 season, Canada earned three berths at the World Championship Road Race, as opposed to the single one it had last year, as well as three guaranteed spots for Canadian racers in the Beijing Olympics road race.

For more information about Ritchey Design, please visit www.ritcheylogic.com, for information about the Health Net Pro Cycling Team, visit www.teamhealthnet.com, and for information about the Symmetrics Pro Cycling Team, visit www.symmetricscycling.com.

O'Bee Finds a Job
In separate, but perhaps equally significant, news for Health Net Presented by Maxxis, Kirk O'Bee has re-signed for the 2008 season.

After a season in which the Michigan native [and now Vancouver resident] saw a return to form [winning two stages and placing third overall at the Nature Valley Grand Prix, winning a stage at the Cascade Classic, and capping it all off with a second career USPro Criterium Championship in August] O'Bee languished in the wind with nary an offer.

Some had speculated that offers were few and far between because of his past [being suspended for one-year due to an elevated testosterone to epitestosterone ratio in 2002]. When his current team didn't immediately chime in, it looked to be the end of his road career and an indictment by the whole of the American cycling community that the doping culture was no longer welcome; as there has been a similar sentiment [and expungement of riders, current and past] working its way through the disgraced European peloton.

Despite the lack of a contract, O'Bee maintained his spirits and even refocused his goals. He began to train for an opportunity to represent the country in Beijing as a member of the Olympic Track Cycling Team. Although he will be a long shot in his disciplines, he can now rest easy in the knowledge that Health Net seems to have found [or rather re-found] their man.

Photo: Casey B. Gibson