NCC: Kline rising after Dana Point win; Allar stretching her lead

  
  


Shane Kline won a very close finish at the Dana Point Grand Prix of Cycling on Sunday. (Photo by Lynn Kelly Lehner)
Shane Kline won a very close finish at the Dana Point Grand Prix of Cycling on Sunday. (Photo by Lynn Kelly Lehner)
The USA Cycling National Criterium Calendar (NCC) enjoyed its first multi-event weekend of the season. Riders competed at the Dana Point Grand Prix of Cycling in California on Sunday as well as USA CRITS Speed Week "B" in Georgia and South Carolina from May 3-5.

The top three names in the NCC men's standings are unchanged after the two-event weekend. Hilton Clarke (AUS/UnitedHealthcare) holds a slim, 26-point lead on Carlos Alzate Escobar (COL/UnitedHealthcare), who won the Speed Week "B" omnium. Shane Kline (Bally, Pa./Team SmartStop p/b Mountain Khakis), who won the men's race at the Dana Point Grand Prix, remains in third with 338 points. Kline is 256 points behind Clarke and 104 points ahead of the new fourth-place riders Frank Travieso (Athens, Ga./Team SmartStop p/b Mountain Khakis) and Karl Menzies (AUS/UnitedHealthcare), who are tied with 234 points apiece.

Erica Allar's (Tucson, Ariz./CARE4CYCLING p/b Solomon Corp) lead atop the NCC women's standings has increased to 226 points over Laura van Gilder (Cresco, Pa./Mellow Mushroom Pizza Bakers) after winning the Speed Week "B" omnium. After placing second in the omnium, Theresa Cliff-Ryan (Cedar Springs, Mich./Fearless Femme p/b Pure Energy) has jumped from fifth place in last week's standings into third place, only 53 points behind van Gilder and 59 points clear of Jennifer Purcell (Austin, Texas/Colavita-Fine Cooking), who remains in fourth place. Christina Gokey-Smith (Denton, Texas/Rouse-Oogie Racing) moved into fifth place, 13 points behind Purcell.

Erica Allar won the omnium at Speed Week "B" in the southeast. (Photo by Meg Rocks, USA CRITS)
Erica Allar won the omnium at Speed Week "B" in the southeast. (Photo by Meg Rocks, USA CRITS)
Due in part to Kline's win in California, Team SmartStop p/b Mountain Khakis has chiseled 65 points off its deficit to UnitedHealthcare in the NCC men's team standings. The margin between the top two teams in the standings is now 682 points. Jamis-Hagens Berman p/b Sutter Home remains in third place with 226 points, 54 points ahead of Champion System p/b Stan's NoTubes. Sharecare Cycling p/b WheelandSprocket.com sits in fifth place with 156 points, 16 points out of fourth place.

CARE4CYCLING p/b Solomon increased its lead in the NCC women's team standings to 177 points over Colavita-Fine Cooking. Exergy TWENTY16 is also surging and now is only 68 points out of second place while holding a slim, 14-point edge on fourth-place Team Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies. Team TIBCO-To the Top moved into fifth place with 219 points.

Check out a huge photo gallery from the Dana Point Grand Prix.

Full results from the Dana Point Grand Prix.

Full results from Speed Week "B".





 

 

USA Cycling NCC Standings:

Men's Standings
1. Hilton Clarke (AUS/UnitedHealthcare) — 594
2. Carlos Alzate Escobar (COL/UnitedHealthcare) — 568
3. Shane Kline (Bally, Pa./Team SmartStop p/b Mountain Khakis) — 338
4. Frank Travieso (Athens, Ga./Team SmartStop p/b Mountain Khakis) — 234
4. Karl Menzies (AUS/UnitedHealthcare) — 234

Women's Standings
1. Erica Allar (Tucson, Ariz./CARE4CYCLING powered by Solomon Corp) — 544
2. Laura Van Gilder (Cresco, Pa./Mellow Mushroom Pizza Bakers) — 318
3. Theresa Cliff-Ryan (Cedar Springs, Mich./Fearless Femme p/b Pure Energy) — 265
4. Jennifer Purcell (Austin, Texas/Colavita-Fine Cooking) — 206
5. Christina Gokey-Smith (Denton, Texas/Rouse-Oogie Racing) — 193

Men's Team Standings
1. UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling — 1,615
2. Team SmartStop-Mountain Khakis — 933
3. Jamis Hagens Berman — 226
4. Champion System p/b Stan's NoTubes — 172
5. Sharecare Cycling p/b WheelandSprocket.com — 156

Women's Team Standings
1. CARE4CYCLING powered by Solomon — 628
2. Colavita/Fine Cooking — 451
3. Exergy TWENTY16 — 339
4. Team Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies — 298
5. Team TIBCO/ To the Top — 219
 

For complete standings, visit the NCC's official webpage at usacycling.org/ncc.

Next weekend, the NCC competitors will be in St. Louis to compete in the Tour de Grove on May 11. If you can't make it out to the race in person, check out the live stream.

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This Article Updated May 13, 2013 @ 03:28 PM For more information contact: