Zabriskie repeats as professional time trial national champion
Greenville, S.C. (September 1, 2007)—David Zabriskie (Salt Lake City, Utah/Team CSC) successfully defended his professional time trial title on Saturday with a one-second victory over Danny Pate (Colorado Springs, Colo./Slipstream-Chipotle) at the 2007 USA Cycling Professional National Championships.Zabriskie averaged a speed of 45.644 k.p.h. over the 30-kilometer course to clock a winning time of 39 minutes, 34 seconds. His victory on Saturday marked the first time in 11 years in which a professional or elite male won two straight national time trial titles. Steve Hegg was the last athlete to record consecutive victories in the race against the clock in 1995 and ’96.
Tim Duggan (Boulder, Colo./Slipstream-Chipotle) surprised the 33-rider field with one of the best performances of his young career as the 24-year-old claimed the final spot on the podium. Duggan finished eight seconds off the pace of Zabriskie to place third.
Tom Zirbel (Boulder, Colo./Priority Health) and Bobby Julich (Glenwood Springs, Colo./Team CSC) rounded out the top five respectively. Zirbel finished just 15 seconds down while Julich crossed the line 49 seconds back.
The victory also represents Zabriskie’s third career national time trial title as a professional rider. He also captured the stars-and-stripes jersey in 2004 when elite and professional categories were contested together.
As the 31st-seeded rider in a 33-man field, Duggan was the third rider to leave the start gate. After he finished, his mark of 39:42 remained the time to beat until only seven competitors remained out on course. Pate was the first of two riders to eclipse Duggan’s time, clocking a 39:35. As the defending champion and last man to start, Zabriskie barely surpassed Pate after sprinting to the line in the final 100 meters.“I didn’t wear a radio again this year but at the turnaround when I saw (2006 silver medalist) Baldwin, I knew I was quite a bit ahead of him”, Zabriskie explained. “I didn’t know what his form was like, so I was going as hard as I can go. I lost a little aggression on the way back and coming into the finish I could hear the announcer say ‘he’s got to finish in two seconds or he’s going to lose’, so I started sprinting.”
In addition to a spot on the podium, Zabriskie, Pate and Duggan are also linked as alumni of USA Cycling’s European-based National Development Team program. Zabriskie graduated from the program in 1999 before he went on to begin his professional career in 2001 with the U.S. Postal Service team. Pate was a member of the national governing body’s squad in 2001 when he captured the U23 world time trial title in Portugal. Duggan also spent time as a member of the national team in 2004, competing in major international development races such as the Tour de l’Avenir in France.
Saturday’s time trial also marked the return to racing for Saul Raisin (Dalton, Ga./Credit Agricole), one of the U.S.’ top up-and-coming professional riders before a life-threatening crash in April of 2006 left him in a coma with severe head injuries. Sixteen months later, Raisin clipped in to contest his first official race. As the first rider out of the start gate, Raisin finished 4:33 off the pace of Zabriskie to finish 33rd and take a major step towards resuming his career.
“After my accident, my first goal, and the goal for my team and family and all my loved ones, was just to live a normal life again, and you know, I have that," Raisin explained afterwards. “And after that, my goal was to get back to racing. Today was my first race, and all the emotions I had…I can’t describe them. About halfway through the race it kind of hit me. It’s like ‘Oh my gosh, I’m racing.’ It was amazing. My next goal is in 2008 to start a full racing season.”The 2007 USA Cycling Professional Championships continue on Sunday as the road race will feature the United States’ top international and domestic pros.
2007 USA Cycling Professional Time Trial Championships
Greenville, S.C.
September 1, 2007
1. David Zabriskie (Salt Lake City, Utah) 39:34
2. Danny Pate (Colorado Springs, Colo.) +0:01
3. Tim Duggan (Boulder, Colo.) +0:08
4. Tom Zirbel (Boulder, Colo.) +0:15
5. Bobby Julich (Glenwood Springs, Colo.) +0:49
*Click here for complete results.
About USA Cycling
Recognized by the U.S. Olympic Committee and the Union Cycliste Internationale, USA Cycling promotes American cycling through its 60,000 members and 2,500 annual events. USA Cycling associations include the BMX Association (BMX), National Off-Road Bicycle Association (mountain bike), U.S. Cycling Federation (road/track), the National Collegiate Cycling Association and the U.S. Professional Racing Organization (professional men’s road). For more information, visit www.usacycling.org or contact USA Cycling Director of Communications, Andy Lee at 719-866-4867.
Recognized by the U.S. Olympic Committee and the Union Cycliste Internationale, USA Cycling promotes American cycling through its 60,000 members and 2,500 annual events. USA Cycling associations include the BMX Association (BMX), National Off-Road Bicycle Association (mountain bike), U.S. Cycling Federation (road/track), the National Collegiate Cycling Association and the U.S. Professional Racing Organization (professional men’s road). For more information, visit www.usacycling.org or contact USA Cycling Director of Communications, Andy Lee at 719-866-4867.
This Article Published September 1, 2007 For more information contact:
