January 9, 2004

Hamblen Posts First Win of 2004, Greensboro, North Carolina, Jan 4th

On a cloudy 75 degree Sunday afternoon Jon Hamblen attended the second race of the Winter Cup Series in Greensboro's Barber Park. After having moved to North Carolina from Massachusetts the previous day, Jon was a bit tired. Luckily, his girlfriend Alicia Genest did all of the heavy lifting during the move on Saturday so that he could save his legs for the race. The course was a fun mix of grass and trails with a few short paved sections and two sets of triple barriers. Being out of shape from a month long break, Jon took advantage of his skills running over the barriers and riding quickly on the tight singletrack to open a gap on the competition. Hamblen rode in for his first win of the season and immediately called Curt Davis on his cell phone, challenging him to win his first race as well.

Huseby Finishes 4th in UCI Cyclocross Race, Merrimack, NH, Dec 21

I made the short drive up to Merrimack battling the Xmas shoppers on the road. I stepped out of the car and whew it was cold - with plenty of snow on the ground. I walked down to register and saw that the majority of the course was snow covered. This would be all about bike handling today and who could finesse the bike through tricky conditions. The start was fast shooting into a 180 degree hairpin which caused a spill immediately and allowed a separation to be made. I got caught right behind it. I was able to make my way back up, but cautiously so not to slip out in one of the treacherous turns. My Michelin Mud 2 tires were the best choice for today and I was lucky to have them. I was able to move up although the leaders (first and second place) had established a gap on the rest of us. The race was for third and there was a group of 6 of us working for it. I continued to put on the pressure and was able to whittle the group down to three and finally made a move where I put 15 seconds into my pursuers. I did not want to crash as the race was into the last 15 minutes and knew it could cost me my place, so I eased my way through the increasingly icy corners. Troy Wells made his way back to me and now it was once again a duel. I chose to follow him through the last part of the course, made it up the two run-ups and was still right behind him, until I slipped on some loose snow on the final descent and that cost me 3rd place! I was still happy with 4th, gathering some sought after UCI points, my best result in a UCI race this year, and a 7th place in the overall for the New England Cyclocross Series.

You can read cyclingnews.com’s race report here, which mentions Johs. There are also a few great pictures:

Huseby in the snow
Battle for 3rd
Podium shot