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Menzies closes out NRC season for Health Net with Parker win

Published: Sep. 17, 2006
The last start line of the year. Parker marks the end of the 2006 NRC season.
The last start line of the year. Parker marks the end of the 2006 NRC season.

Despite rolling in with a three-man roster at the September 15-17 Parker Mainstreet Omnium, the Health Net team showed why it’s been the top domestic dog for three years running at the final National Race Calendar event of the season.

Scott Moninger and Karl Menzies went 1-2 in the road race after both placing well in the time trial, then Menzies won the concluding criterium Sunday to take the overall title with Moninger in the second podium spot.

Priority Health time-trial specialist Tom Zirbel won the opening 7-mile time trial in conditions so windy many riders rode the final downhill stretch on the cowhorns. Zirbel hung on for fourth in the omnium after a fifth-place finish in the road race and a ninth in the criterium.

Newly crowned national criterium champ Brad Huff was one of a few riders to hit the deck in the criterium.
Newly crowned national criterium champ Brad Huff was one of a few riders to hit the deck in the criterium.

TIAA-CREF’s Mike Friedman secured third place overall after placing second in the criterium and third in a brutal road race where only 15 riders finished.In the women’s race, former national ski team member Alison Powers proved unstoppable. Riding for the local Rio Grande/Sports Garage team, Powers handily won the time trial and then leapt clear from a 4-woman break in the final corners to take the road race win, too. A fifth-place finish in the crit secured her omnium title. Second overall went to track star Sarah Uhl (Serotta), who won the criterium, and Beth Fisk (Vitamin Cottage) sewed up third.

The Last Show
In its first year as a NRC race, Parker closed out the national season that began way back in February with the Tour of California. With many riders petering out of steam — and perhaps teams’ 2006 budgets sputtering as well — the three-stage points-based omnium did not draw a full pro field. However, there were still plenty of big names in the time-trial cue Friday in the Denver suburb of Parker.

Besides Health Net, the nation’s two other big teams were represented by different sized squads: Toyota-United had Chris Wherry, Ivan Stevic, Stefano Barberi, Chris Stockburger, Sean Sullivan and Jose Manuel Garcia; Navigators Insurance’s sole representative was Phil Zajicek.

Similarly, Andy Bajadali, sixth at the national road race earlier this month, was a one-man band for Jelly Belly. Dan Schmatz and Scott Zwizanski flew the Kodakgallery.com-Sierra Nevada flag. TIAA-CREF had 9 riders in the mix, and the team made its presence known start to finish with aggressive racing. Regional amateur teams like Vitamin Cottage and Einstein’s rounded out the mix.

Sarah Uhl, out in Colorado for three weeks in preparation for the national track championships, showed good fo
Sarah Uhl, out in Colorado for three weeks in preparation for the national track championships, showed good fo

But team size mattered not a whit in the windy opening individual time trial, where 6-foot-4 Zirbel fired a shot across the bows of Health Net and Toyota-United with a dominating ride. Having won prologue time trials this year at the Valley of the Sun, Tour of Shenandoah and the Tour de Nez, Zirbel put 10 seconds on Menzies and 14 second on Wherry. Unfortunately for Zirbel, actual time splits were moot in the points-based omnium.

The next day, team bets were back on. TIAA-CREF attacked madly almost from the gun until a move stuck early in the 105-mile road race. Just a few miles into the first 21-mile laps, Friedman and Menzies were clear. With winds gusting up to 40mph, newly crowned national criterium champion Brad Huff and Bajadali hit the front and guttered the peloton mercilessly. Within a lap, the majority of the field was out of contention.

At day’s end, only 15 riders would finish. The remainder were given pro-rated times as the chief ref pulled them with a lap to go, citing traffic concerns as the time gaps were huge.

In the final lap, the dozen riders who had made the final selection began attacking and counterattacking. When the smoke cleared, Moninger was up the road, with Menzies sitting on Friedman to take second. Behind, riders trickled in one-by-one, all obviously spent from the long day in the wind.

Blue Streak: TIAA-CREF had 9 riders in the race — every last one of whom lined it up for the last dozen or so
Blue Streak: TIAA-CREF had 9 riders in the race — every last one of whom lined it up for the last dozen or so

“It was a hard race, it really was,” Moninger said. “It was so windy. You’re in the draft on the wheel and you’re still just fighting and fighting. It takes a lot of concentration, burns a lot of matches just to not get blown over.”Coming into the criterium, Moninger led Menzies, Zirbel, Friedman and Will Frischkorn (TIAA-CREF) in the overall.

During the 90-minute criterium, the usual breaks were established and swept back in. Parker race director Rick Garrick threw in two $500 primes and one $1000 prime to spice things up in addition to numerous $100 sprints. Vitamin Cottage rider Chuck Coyle, off the front in a promising break, celebrated his birthday by scooping up one of the $500 primes (the prize for actually winning the criterium was just $41 more than that). With 10 laps to go TIAA-CREF had all 9 riders on the front, a situation Frischkorn took advantage of when the $1000 prime was announced with five to go.

Frischkorn leapt from his team’s train to net a pricey prime with 5 laps to go.
Frischkorn leapt from his team’s train to net a pricey prime with 5 laps to go.

But despite the best laid plans — and best shaped lead out — TIAA-CREF got caught out by Health Net’s Menzies, who jumped around Friedman for the win.“That was a dodgy bunch sprint, there were guys everywhere,” said Menzies, who was actively defending Moninger’s position in addition to advancing his own. “Once we saw that Scott was safe then I just hit out wide, then caught a gust of wind or something down the home straight and held on. There were some good sprinters there, but it was a position thing.”

This was the second NRC stage-race win for Menzies, who heads back to Australia in the coming days. “It was a good way to finish up the U.S. season,” Menzies said.

Indeed, for the team that dominated the NRC team standings but had not won a NRC event since Menzies took the Nature Valley Grand Prix in June, it was a good finish to the year.

Be sure to check the latest issue of VeloNews for the full report.

Parker Mainstreet OmniumMen' Overall
1. Karl Menzies (Aus), Health Net-Maxxis
2. Scott Moninger, Health Net-Maxxis
3. Mike Friedman, TIAA-CREF
4. Tom Zirbel, Priority Health
5. Will Frischkorn, TIAA-CREF
6. Andy Bajadali, Jelly Belly
7. Scott Nydam, Rio Grande/Sports Garage
8. Chris Wherry, Toyota-United
9. Barkley Robinson, Rio Grande/Sports Garage
10. Jonathan Baker, Vitamin Cottage

Priority Health’s Tom Zirbel
Priority Health’s Tom Zirbel

Time Trial
1. Tom Zirbel, Priority Health 7 miles in 14:59.29,
2. Karl Menzies, Health Net-Maxxis, 15:09.40, at, 10.11
3. Chris Wherry, Toyota-United 15:13.45, at, 14.16
4. Scott Moninger, Health Net-Maxxis 15:22.24, at, 22.95
5. Scott Nydam, Rio Grande/Sports Garage, 15:24.44, at, 25.15
6. Will Frischkorn, TIAA-CREF, 15:30.80, at, 31.51
7. Mike Friedman, TIAA-CREF, 15:31.29, at, 32.00
8. Jonathan Baker, Vitamin Cottage, 15:31.68, at, 32.39
9. Chuck Coyle, Vitamin Cottage, 15:33.50, at, 34.21
10. Brad Huff, TIAA-CREF, 15:33.62, at, 34.33

Road Race
1. Scott Moninger, Health Net-Maxxis 105 miles in 4:13:58,
2. Karl Menzies, Health Net-Maxxis, 4:14:25, at, 27
3. Mike Friedman, TIAA-CREF, s.t.
4. Will Frischkorn, TIAA-CREF, 4:14:35, at, 37
5. Tom Zirbel, Priority Health 4:15:08, at, 1:10
6. Barkely Robinson, Rio Grande/Sports Garage, 4:15:19, at, 1:21
7. Andy Bajadali, Jelly Belly 4:16:23, at, 2:25
8. Phil Zajicek, Navigators, s.t.
9. Scott Nydam, Rio Grande/Sports Garage, s.t.
10. Peter Stetina, TIAA-CREF, 4:16:26, at, 2:28Criterium
1. Karl Menzies (Aus), Health Net-Maxxis
2. Mike Friedman, TIAA-CREF
3. Dan Schmatz, Kodakgallery.com/Sierra Nevada
4. Scott Moninger, Health Net-Maxxis
5. Chris Wherry, Toyota-United
6. Sean Sullivan, Toyota-United
7. Randy Reichardt, Bang Salon/HART,
8. Brent Hanlin, Bang Salon/HART
9. Tom Zirbel, Priority Health
10. Colby Pearce, TIAA/CREF,


Women’s Overall
1. Alison Powers, Rio Grande/Sports Garage
2. Sarah Uhl, Serotta/Home Depot
3. Beth Fisk, Vitamin Cottage
4. Dotsie Bausch, Colavita Cooking Light
5. Maatje Benassi, Excel Sports,
6. Catherine Powers, Aaron's
7. Chellie Terry, Fitzgerald's Bicycle,
8. Liza Rachetto, TEAm Lipton,
9. Heather Albert, America's Dairyland,
10. Brooke Ourada, TamarackTime Trial
1. Alison Powers, Rio Grande/Sports Garage, 7 miles in 16:52.12,
2. Megan Hottman, CPT-Colnago, 17:48.45, at, 56.33
3. Beth Fisk, Vitamin Cottage 17:51.41, at, 59.29
4. Heather Albert, America's Dairyland, 17:56.80, at, 1:04.68
5. Brooke Ourada, Tamarack, 17:58.61, at, 1:06.49
6. Chellie Terry, Fitzgerald's Bicycle, 17:59.26, at, 1:07.14
7. Susannah Gordon, DR Horton/SEAR, 18:03.06, at, 1:10.94
8. Dotsie Bausch, Colavita Cooking Lig, 18:04.41, at, 1:12.29
9. Maatje Benassi, Excel Sports, 18:06.14, at, 1:14.02
10. Jennifer Gersbach, CPT-Colnago, 18:06.57, at, 1:14.45Road Race
1. Alison Powers, Rio Grande/Sports Garage, 63 miles in 2:54:07,
2. Dotsie Bausch, Colavita Cooking Light, 2:54:13, at, 6
3. Sharon Allpress, Vitamin Cottage
4. Brooek Ourada, all s.t.
5. Sarah Uhl, Serotta/Home Depot, 2:54:48, at, 41
6. Liza Rachetto, TEAm Lipton
7. Beth Fisk, Vitamin Cottage
8. Maatje Benassi, Excel Sports
9. Catherine Powers, Aaron’s
10. Heather Albert, America’s Dairyland, all s.t.Criterium
1. Sarah Uhl, Serotta/Home Depot
2. Lara Kroepsch, TEAm Lipton
3. Sarah Caravella, TEAm Lipton
4. Nicky Wangsgard, CPT-Colnago,
5. Alison Powers, Rio Grande/Sports Garage
6. Maatje Benassi, Excel Sports
7. Catherine Powers, Aaron's
8. Miranda Duff, CPT-Colnago
9. Chellie Terry, Fitzgerald's Bicycle
10. Beth Fisk, Vitamin Cottage
 

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