San Dimas, Calif. – Team Type 1 will field a much different lineup for its third stage race of the season – and its first in the United States – when it takes the start line Friday at the San Dimas Stage Race.On Team Type 1’s roster for the three-day, three-stage race are Americans Chris Jones, Ian MacGregor, Shawn Milne and Phil Southerland, Australian Ben Brooks, Mexican Moises Aldape and Emile Abraham of Trinidad and Tobago.
Southerland is one of four riders with Type 1 diabetes on Team Type 1’s professional roster. Earlier this month, he competed in the Tour de Taiwan with Abraham, Jones and Milne – who finished second overall. Aldape, Brooks and MacGregor raced for Team Type 1 in its first action of the season, the Tour of Langkawi in Malaysia.
Team Type 1 Sport Director Ed Beamon said he is anxious to see the chemistry that develops among the seven who will race in San Dimas.
“This will be the first test for the new TT1 squad against the American teams, so we are excited to see how we stack up,” Beamon said.
Brooks and Jones raced at San Dimas last year, with Brooks finishing fifth overall and Jones placing 12th.
“I am hoping Chris Jones will have a good ride on the hilly time trial, and we expect to take an aggressive approach to the road and criterium,” Beamon said.
Racing begins with Friday’s Glendora Chevrolet Mountain Time Trial, a twisting climb that gains 1,375 feet in elevation over the 3.8-mile (6.1 km) distance. Saturday’s Stage 2 is the 84-mile (135 km) San Dimas Hospital Road Race that comprises 12 laps of a seven-mile loop on rolling terrain. The final stage Sunday is the Cannondale Incycle Old Town Classic, a six-corner, 90-minute criterium in the San Dimas city center.
Team Type 1 will be without the services of Matt Wilson and Dan Holt, both of whom are out with broken wrists. Wilson broke his wrist in a training accident last week while Holt crashed Saturday midway through the Webster-Roubaix Road Race in Webster, Fla. Despite his injury, Holt still managed to finish third.
“It is a big disappointment losing Dan,” Beamon said. “His injury is a little more serious than Matt’s and he will most likely lose a bit more time. We were really counting on Dan in the early season criteriums, so this is another unfortunate setback.”
For the second straight year, the San Dimas Stage Race is assured of crowning a new champion. Last year’s winner, Scott Moninger (BMC Pro Cycling Team) has retired. The 2006 champion, Heath Blackgrove (Toyota-United Pro Cycling), did not compete last year but is schedule to compete this year.
Weather forecasts for San Dimas call for nearly ideal conditions, with sunny skies and temperatures in the mid to upper 60s. This race is the final tune-up before the National Race Calendar schedule for men begins at the Redlands Classic, April 3-6.
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