Pinkham and Hill Win Antelope Island Classic

By Ryan Barrett — Chase Pinkham (Bissell Pro Cycling) and Megan Hill (Revolution Café Rio) took wins in the Antelope Island Classic on April 30. Despite waking to several inches of new snow, conditions improved dramatically by the time the elite racers took the start with dry, if cold, conditions prevailing.

The 63 mile men’s race was animated early by Sam Krieg (Ski Utah-MarketStar). Known for his ability to time trial, his move had the rest of the field on high alert and after a concerted chase from nearly every other team in the race, he was brought back in the fold. Several other attackers tried and failed to get a gap, as the field thinned from the back on the island loop section of the course. It was again Krieg who attacked and opened a gap on the field with two laps left on the island.

Sensing the danger, Pinkham forced a split over the feedzone hill at the beginning of the final out-and-back section of the course. Four riders were able to stick with Pinkham- junior Colin Joyce (Hot Tubes Development Cycling Team), Dave Harward (Canyon Bicycles) and last years’ winner Erik Harrington (RMCC/Cyclesmith). Realizing that he had no teammates in the chase group, Krieg continued to push on alone before ultimately being caught inside the final 10k.

Coming into the final climb, the lead group shattered with Pinkham and Joyce opening a gap on the remaining riders. The two played a bit of cat and mouse, with Pinkham jumping first and taking the sprint in front of the impressive display from the sixteen year old Joyce, who was racing in his first Pro 1-2 event! Dave Harward led home the rest of the group to complete the podium.

The Women’s Pro 1-3 covered 43 miles. Despite aggressive racing, the field stayed largely intact longer than that of the men. Ultimately, some spirits were broken by the severity of the course and the insistent attacks.

Two women had a gap on the finishing climb- with Hill (Revolution Café Rio) taking the sprint in front of Kathryn Carr (Vanderkitten). Kaytie Scott (Simply Mac) racing followed shortly after to snag the final spot on the podium.