Riders cresting Canadice Hill Road early in the race.
This weekend, Aug. 8-10, was a big weekend for road racing in Rochester. 2008 being the fifth year of the Twilight Criterium promoter Scott Page and crew decided to make the big step from a one day to a three day event. By all accounts (from what I could see) it was a huge success for cycling and the entire Finger Lakes region.
I didn’t make it up to the crit on Saturday, but Sunday my wife and I decided to take advantage of a beautiful day and trek out to chase the race. We watched the riders roll out in Honeoye, greeted them high above in Canadice, cheered them on at the KOM in Nunda, watched them scream through Mt. Morris, and cruise north of Avon. We were in awe of the talent on the road and were proud to see everyday people line the roads to see what this bike race thing was all about. There were fans all along the 101 mile route – in village downtowns, lining the big climbs, watching from closed intersections, and sitting out on their front lawns ranging from neighborhoods to the most remote areas of the region.
The New York State Troopers got behind this event 100-percent. Eavesdropping on a conversation between a trooper guarding an intersection and a fan, the trooper mentioned they had over 50 officers assigned to the event and that their Lieutenant made a trip to the Tour of California to learn how to cover a pro bike race. All the troopers seemed excited about working the race and more than one talked about this being the first of many omnium road races to come. I thought it was cool to see the police flying a plane over the race, serving as both a radio repeater and overhead spotter.
Sunday was a great day to be a fan of professional cycling and I was proud to see all the people come out to support the event throughout the region. Chatting with one of the race officials I learned that Saturday’s crit drew approximately 50,000 spectators. That’s great news for western NY and pro cycling.
Here’s a few photos from event including a couple of nice shots of eventual race winner Antonio Cruz.
August 18, 2008 at 3:27 am |
Nice pictures of the Rochester Omnium road race–I enjoyed looking at each one. I had planned all year to shoot all three events, but family obligations allowed me to only photograph the amateur criterium races. You can see my photos of the races at my 2008 Rochester Omnium Flickr Page.