Twenty-five laps for $12,000 is a pretty sweet gig if you can get it.
Eric Young did precisely that Wednesday, netting the first-price finish in the men’s portion of the Gastown Grand Prix in downtown Vancouver in front of an estimated crowd of 30,000 attendees.
A native of Geneva, Illinois, Young finished the race in a time of 1:01:21.85. He placed 16th last year after a pair of top 10 finishes in 2013 and 2014 on the 1.2-kilometre circuit.
Second place went to Young’s Rally Cycling teammate Brad Huff, while Australian competitor Michael Rice claimed third.
"The team did an amazing job being super patient,” Young said in a news release. “Incycle was being super aggressive, just totally controlling the front with the Australian guys, and they did a good job of that. So we just had to be really patient, not blow any matches getting frustrated.”
Florenz Knauer’s fourth-place finish was the best among Canadian competitors, while Brendan Armstrong’s 27th-place ranking was tops among Vancouver-based cyclists.
Meanwhile, Tina Pic added to her already sizeable trophy case with her win on the women’s side.
The Bountiful, Utah resident rode to victory in a time of 0:59:32.10, besting a field of 40 riders in the 42- kilometre race.
Pic is a former four-time USA Cycling National Racing Calendar Points champion with six U.S. National Criterium titles to her credit over a professional cycling career that spans two decades.
That she’s 50-years-old didn’t hinder her in the least on Wednesday.
"A race like this just makes it all worth it, it's just so fun to come out here and have such big crowds, it's great," she said.
Australian riders Kimberley Wells and Kendelle Hodges rode to second and third-place finishes respectively, while Vancouver’s Sara Bergen placed fourth, the highest among all Canadian participants.
Wednesday’s race was part of a week-long series of cycling events spread throughout Metro Vancouver called B.C. Superweek.
Races continue tonight (Thursday, July 14) with the Giro di Burnaby, followed by the PoCo Grand Prix on July 15 and the Tour de White Rock on July 16 and 17. For more info, see www.bcsuperweek.ca.
jkurucz@vancourier.com
