At last count, 113 cyclists from the US are converging on Greenville, South Carolina, on Saturday and Sunday to compete in the USA Cycling Pro championships.
I could list the roster here, but suffice to say it's every current pro cyclist in the US that I've ever heard of (and many I haven't) except Levi Leipheimer and Bobby Julich Jason McCartney, who are on assignment in Spain and Germany for their respective teams, Astana and CSC.
That's a big sacrifice for Leipheimer, because he's the defending road race champion in the US. The defending time trial champ, David Zabriskie, will be riding in that event on Sunday.
With Leipheimer out of the picture, the most well-known competitors on the road become George Hincapie and Christian Vande Velde.
Road
Not only did Hincapie win in 2006, but he lives and trains in Greenville when he's not in Europe. He's knows the terrain — like Paris Mountain — like few other cyclists. The 110-mile race goes over Paris four times.
The one drawback for Hincapie is that only one other cycist — Craig Lewis, also of Greenville — will be present from Team Columbia.
Vande Velde, who finished 5th in this year's Tour de France, will be on hand with 13 other teammates from the Garmin-Chipotle cycling team. Hmmm. Route experience goes to Hincapie; team support goes to Vande Velde.
Time trial
Vande Velde is also slated to ride the time trial on Saturday, but teammate Zabriskie has recovered from a back injury suffered during the Giro d'Italia and will try to defend his title.
The US Pro championship rosters are listed at CyclingNews, which is covering the event this year.
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