Blair Turner on the Podium

July 1, 2010 13:21 by Steve Baker

The Hincapie Development Team had a great trip to the Junior Road National Championships in Bend, OR.  The team rode well and gave it their best shot to win a stars and stripes jersey.  They came close, scoring some hardware and some great new memories.

The crew in Bend, OR.

The guys went into the event with some great fitness.  Mike Stone was coming off some fresh victories and hoping to continue the trend out west.  Blair Turner just about flew straight to Oregon from Europe, where he has been proving his metal in Belgian Kermesses.  Matt Lipscomb scored some great results leading up to the trip, so we knew he was going great.  Tyler Karnes was eager to show his fitness after a strong collegiate season of racing.  Aubrey Moore was seeking another podium after winning his state championships in May.  Justin Lowe was feeling good after recovering from a nagging knee problem.  Parker Kyzer was excited to show his stuff in his first National Championship competition.  They all raced hard and had fun in the process.

Matt looking huge before the unfortunate crash.

Blair leading the way in the Crit.

Crashes took some of the guys out of action, but we were close more often than not to that elusive podium appearance.  Thanks to some great team work and hard riding, Blair Turner scored a great 5th place finish in the 17-18 road race, after making the early move that stuck all the way to the finish.  That’s his first national championship podium, and he’ll be looking to improve on it next year.  We’re really proud of the guys for the way they raced and we look forward to the rest of the season.

 Blair Turner gets 5th in 17-18 Road Race!

Thanks to all of you for the great support you have given the team.  Thanks to coach Neil Browne for making the trip to Bend with the team.  Big thanks to Mike Moore, Greg Kyzer, Russell Lipscomb and all the other parents, friends and supporters that helped make everything happen.  We couldn’t do this without you.