May 31, 2010 - Oakland, CA – Coming off strong performances at the Amgen Tour of California, Marc de Maar and Chris Baldwin will lead a six-rider UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team Presented by Maxxis squad into the Mt. Hood Cycling Classic, starting Tuesday with a prologue in Portland.
De Maar was a frequent protagonist as well as lieutenant to teammate Rory Sutherland during the Tour of California. He showed all week that he was approaching top form, nearly stealing the win on the race’s queen stage up to Big Bear Lake with an attack with 25 km to go. He spent most of the week in the top 10 overall, ultimately finishing 13th overall.
The Tour also provided Baldwin with the opportunity to continue building his form, and both riders will have their climbing legs tested by the hilly parcourse.
Following the opening four-mile prologue at the Portland International Raceway, the teams will take on the challenging Stage 1 Mt. Tabor Criterium in Portland, which this year is sponsored by UnitedHealthcare. The 1.5-mile course features over 150 feet of climbing per lap on Mt. Tabor. It’s definitely not a pure sprinter’s course.
The race continues Thursday with a foray into neighboring Washington for the Mt. Adams Road Race, offering up 106 miles and over 7,000 feet of climbing. However, the long downhill run to the finish should give UnitedHealthcare Presented by Maxxis sprinter Eric Barlevav a good shot at the stage win.
The race returns to Oregon on Friday for the notoriously hard Scenic Gorge Time Trial. At 18 miles, it also hands riders over 2,000 of climbing and potentially harsh head winds through the Gorge. Look for Baldwin and teammate Roman Kilun to excel on this difficult course.
Saturday’s Wy’East Road Race usually provides the final shake-up of the general classification contenders. Though it comes in at just 92 miles, the stage delivers a punch, with three categorized climbs, starting with a Category 1 climb up to the top of Highway 44 and finishing with a 35-mile, 4,500-foot grind up to the Mt. Hood Meadows Ski Resort. The final two of those miles ramp up at an average of 10%.
The race concludes with another challenging criterium on Sunday. The 90-minute Hood River crit provides several technical corners and an uphill finish over the course of one kilometer.
UnitedHealthcare Presented by Maxxis roster for Mt. Hood:
Chris Baldwin, USA
Eric Barlevav, USA
Marc de Maar, NED
Max Jenkins, USA
Roman Kilun, USA
Morgan Schmitt, USA
Photo: Jonathan Devich, Epic Images
