TEAM NEWS

Empire Impresses at Fitchburg

(July 2008, Fitchburg,MA) The Empire squad had a spectacular showing at the 2008 Fitchburg Longsjo Classic. The 2.3 ranked NRC stage race started out with a 10 kilometer individual Time trial.  While the field was deep with the country's top pro teams as well as some of the country's top elite time trial specialists, Empire's Jon Chodroff snuck in a stinger earlier on in the day with a time of 16:02 clocking an average speed of 37.422 km/h on the mostly rolling uphill course.  While his time was guaranteed to put him and his team high up in the standings, most of the top riders had yet to go. As the day rolled along other riders put in solid rides but Chodroff's time stood as the time to beat for the rest of the day and he took his very first NRC win! Matt Johnson also put in a stellar effort to put him in 11th overall only 33 seconds back which set him up for a great weekend of racing.

The next three stages were a great test for the young squad and they proved their worth in the pro peloton each day with teamwork and solid results moving Johnson up to 6th overall in the GC.  Matt was able to finish in a select group in 10th pace on the top of M. Wachusett stage, 7th in Sunday's circuit race, and 12th in the criterium after the team went in several promising breaks during the final stage to take up New England race week points and cash primes.

DS Mike Sherry commented, "This was another great breakthrough weekend for the team.  We're certainly more visible than ever and are a much bigger factor in the country's top level races. While we are still a young elite amateur program, it's great to know that we can show up to a race like this and, while still being an underdog, pull out great results and always be in the mix for the win."

Another NRC Podium

(Providence, RI, June 28, 2008) Matt “the Natural” Johnson shows that being aggressive can pay off. Matt took 3rd at Cox Charities (NRC) crit on Saturday with another inspiring ride.  While he let his legs warm up the first few laps, Matt joined the first big break with about 28 laps to go in the race. The break  of 12 rolled well together but a jumpy field started to reel it back in and riders started bridge attempts.  Chris Jones of Type 1 started to close in and was joined by a fast charging Ivan Stevic (Toyota) and Lisbon Quintero (Foundation).  “I saw those guys closing in and decided I was going to recover and then hit it hard the second they got on. The break wasn’t riding hard enough together and another Toyota rider wasn’t a good idea so I went for it,” said Johnson of the set up for the winning break.  He did just that at 19 laps to go and his attack drew out Kyle Wamsely (Colavita) and Garrett Peltonen (Bissell Pro Cycling).  The three went hard for the remainder of the race.  In the final lap Peltonen attacked, putting Johnson in difficulty but he clawed back to the pair and made a hard dig to surprise them before the sprint.  Wamsley reacted and took the win while Peltonen caught Johnson on the line.  The roaring crowd became a quick fan of Matt and his never-give-up style.

Tour of New Jersey Victory

(New Jersey, June 22, 2008)   Mike Margarite and Empire Cycling pulled off a nail biter at the Giro D’ New Jersey.  After three stages of racing, Mike clinched the Overall Classification by a 4 second margin over Guido Palma of (Rite Aid Pro Cycling).  The opening stage saw Empire’s Jon Chodroff ride a brilliant ITT which put him in the lead by over 30 seconds.   The race got tricky in stage two with time bonuses and breakaway combinations to constantly calculate. The team was content with Chodroff in the leader’s jersey but played subtle GC tactics and tried to get both Brownell,  who was 5th place and only 40 seconds off the lead and Margarite who was in 12th overall, into a break to take some pressure off of the team and to force other teams to react.  The plan worked and after a few breakaway attempts Margarite found himself in a break of 3 riders. They were able to shake one off on a climb and it was between Margarite and Palma for the stage.  Palma won the two up sprint but Mike took over the GC.

Stage 3 was the race that proved to be the most exciting.  With Margarite and Palma only 11 seconds apart at the start and intermediate time bonuses up for grabs, Empire needed to see a break roll with the right combination of non GC riders.  From the gun Rite Aid took control to set up Palma for a sprint where he took 2nd,  trimming the lead down to 4 seconds.  Immediately after the sprint a counter move went with 3 CCB riders as well as Lisbon Quintero (CRCA/Foundation) who was the only GC threat 40 seconds back from Margarite.  Rite Aid needed to bring it back and Empire needed the move to go-- but no so far as to hand the GC to Quintero.   Both teams rode on the front, Empire trying to keep the gap around 30 seconds and not under 15 and Rite aid trying to bring it back under 15 in order for Palma to have a shot at bridging.  Ultimately the break held with a 17 second gap securing the title for Margarite.

“That was one of the most stressful races, but it was really amazing how these guys rode to defend the lead. We also have Zmolik to thank for directing perfect tactics,” remarked Margarite.  Daniel Zmolik helped direct the race while nursing a broken foot after a crash at the Tour of Somerville.  “That was harder than racing today,” said Zmolik.  Look for Margarite, Zmolik and the full squad at Cox Charities and then Fitchburg for some top level racing the next few weeks.

Philly Week

(Philadelphia, PA, June 6-8, 2008) Empire showed off some time trial skills over the weekend.  John Minturn kicked off the festivities on Friday night by winning the Manayunk Hill Climb, an annual time trial up the Manayunk wall in Philly which the Philly International (former USPro championship race) races up each year. The wall is a brutal effort that pitches up to 17%. 

On Saturday the 7th, Jon Chodroff took an impressive TT win at the Commerce Bank  TT, beating Mike Miller of Alliance Environmental by over 30 seconds.  Jon has recovered quickly from his April crash and is showing great form for the upcoming TT and road stages of the Tour of New Jersey and Fitchburg.

Finally on Sunday, the team's youngest rider, Alex Bremer, took a strong second place to Westwood's TT guru Will O'Donnell who proved to be super fast yet again. Alex was the fastest amongst the NYC contenders and is also on a steady build to Fitchburg.

Deeny Second to Pipp on Mount Magazine

(Mount Magazine State Park, AR,  May  17,2008)  Sheldon Deeny makes a strong showing at the end of the Tour of Arkansas's 3rd stage on the way up to the summit of Mount magazine, Arkansas's highest point.   A break with Health Net's Karl Menzies, Alex Welch (Mercy Cycling) and Buck Miller  (Team Race Pro) slipped away early.  With Team Type 1 defending the Glen Chadwick GC lead, the field was happy to the let pair go as Type 1 monitored the gap until the final assault up the relentless mountain.

"I didn't feel great all day and resigned to working for Minturn and Johnson but when we got on the climb I turned out to be hanging on fine" said Deeny of the long stage leading in to the finale.  I know Chadwick is fast but the final group also had Pipp (Health Net) so I waited for him. I should have stayed glued to his wheel but when he jumped the gap opened up quickly and I was then sprinting for second."

"This is a great result for the team and Deeny," added DS Mike Sherry.  “It confirms how well rounded Deeny is as a rider and I was really pleased to see how the whole squad was positioned at the crucial points of the race.  They all worked super hard for each other and quickly adjusted roles when the dynamics changed.  There was no clear leader for this stage and they adapted remarkably.  Minturn missed the final split but also rode a superb tactic role when needed at the top of the climb.  This is a really good day for us considering it's riders like Chadwick, Pipp, Menzies, Walters, Adalpe etc.,  that we're contesting a big stage with.”

Matt Johnson wins Bear Mountain

(Harriman,  NY,  May  11, 2008) The CRCA's annual spring classic drew a strong field in the 2008 edition with 110 starters and several Canadian professional teams.  Matt Johnson took a hard earned win after bringing to the break with one lap to go with Rite Aid's Jonathan Erdelyi.  The break was ridden down to 5 riders in the end and Johnson was able to take the sprint for the win!

Empire Races in Arkansas

Margarite Finishes 2nd at Jiminy Peak

Good Showing for Deeny in the Tour of Gila

Minturn Takes His Place on the Podium in the Tour of Ephrata

(Ephrata, PA,  April 27, 2008) John Minturn rides onto the podium of the Tour of Ephrata on Sunday after three super strong stage results. The Empire boys went out to Ephrata for some more PA style, windy, hilly road racing alongside full squads from Rite Aid,  Batley-Harley Davidson, Alliance Environmental,  and GPOA- Cannondale, among others.

The stage one road race went hard from the gun and Empire ended with Loehner and Minturn in the decisive break of the day. The two riders both put in strong rides for 4th and 7th places respectively and provided the team with good GC options going into the TT and criterium held on the next day. 

Minturn would end the TT in 3rd, moving him up to 2nd on the GC.  Stage two also saw an impressive TT effort by Daniel Zmolik, who just returned to racing after a speedy recovery from a broken leg.  Zmolik ended the TT in 5th place, moving him up after a solid 11th place road race finish.

Going into the final stage the team raced hard for a breakaway to win the GC.  A break with Minturn, Miles Watson (Rite Aid), Ramon Benitez (unknown) ,  and Ryan DeWald (Batley- Harley Davidson) went with 10 laps to go.  With Rite Aid leading the bunch for their GC rider, Bobby Lea, the break stopped working so Minturn attacked hard one last time from the failing.  While he was swallowed up in the bunch sprint ,he was able to hold onto 4th place putting him in 3rd overall behind stage winner Bobby Lea (Rite Aid) and Russ Langey (Batley-Harley Davidson). 

"You could see how excited the riders are to be racing out here which makes the races pretty lively and hard. The early moves in the road race were covered like crazy so it was hard to break it up. I was really pleased with the team effort too.  The guys really carried me this weekend and were spot on when work needed to be done,"  Minturn commented after the race.

Margarite Shows His Form in the Tour of Battenkill

(Salem NY, April 19, 2008) Mike Margarite solos to victory at the Tour of Battenkill on Saturday after a well timed late race attack. It wasn't an easy task since Mike missed the early breakaway that he used as his ultimate launch pad the in the 82-mile slugfest.  Empire picked up the pace on a long rolling climb at mile 45 and launched Margarite into no man’s land. It took the better part of an hour for him to bridge the 2 minute gap to the lead group and the suffering paid off big.

As the break pushed on, Margarite found that he still had the best legs of the group and drove hard on one of the more selective dirt road sectors and never saw the competition again. Even more impressive, he had some bad luck with a puncture within the last 10 kilometers, got a wheel change and still had a 49 second lead over the chasing bunch. That lead gave him a chance to take it all in and enjoy a huge win. 

"I felt really good on the dirt road sections.  There were a few times where I thought the field was bringing me back but I was able to open big gaps every time we hit dirt," said Margarite of the successful bridge. "Once I got up to the break I applied the same tactics, which worked out perfectly. I've been feeling stronger than ever the past few weeks."

 Minturn Comes in 3rd at PNC Challenge

(Holmdel, NJ, April 13th, 2008) Seven Empire riders lined up for the PNC Bank Arts Challenge on Sunday under sunny but windy conditions. The race was a 90 minute criterium format on a 1.3 loop on the PNC Arts center grounds. With a big purse, the race drew a strong field of well represented teams. The race was fast and furious from the gun with teams trying to establish an early selection. While the efforts were hard, the race stayed together for the first 40 minutes, as no one would let the elastic snap.

At the sign of the first lull Empire youngster Jon Chodroff, fresh off of Redlands and San Dimas, went with the first decisive move with a Rite Aid rider.  The next important bridge move was marked by Minturn who made it up to the break with a small group. While the final selection played out, Minturn was able to battle it out for third and Chodroff finished at the back of the break after suffering a long way in the initial two man move. Matt Johnson, who covered and created moves early in the race, won the bunch sprint for 8th place overall putting three Empire riders in the top ten.

Minturn said after the race, “I felt pretty good and it was nice to have the team so active early to create and cover moves so I could stay pretty fresh. I usually get a little jumpy in these kinds of races and spent too much trying to get in the early break. It was all well timed."

Look for the squad to be riding strong at next week's "Hell of the North", Tour of Battenkill. The roster will be Eric Brownell, Jon Chodroff, Sheldon Deeny, Matt Johnson, John Loehner, Mike Mathis, John Minturn,  and Daniel Zmolik.

Brownell Takes 2nd at Pinecone Road Race

(Hammonton, NJ, April 6, 2008) Empire filled the podium this weekend after Eric Brownell took 2nd at the annual Pinecone Road Race, part of the Garden State Cup series. Eric made the early break again and was joined by breakaway partner in crime John Minturn. As the 100k race progressed, the wind picked up on the exposed course and the rain came down sideways. Conditions and 40 degree temperatures made it a difficult race. The break swelled at one point to include four empire riders as Sherry came across and one lap later Margarite bridged in a big solo effort. Tactically, the race was dominated by Empire and Rite Aid playing the numbers game. Each team had four riders in the 15 man escape. With a lot of racing left, both teams had to whittle down the break and establish a new lead group. Minturn put in about 15k's of solo riding off the front of the break to keep things interesting but unfortunately no riders could get across to him. Eventually, Brownell launched in a move that included a Rite Aid rider and Time pro team local Jackie Simes. The move opened the gap quickly and ultimately became the winning selection.

"It was a little like last week, although having Simes in the group changed the dynamic-- Miles and I were still mostly marking each other,” said Brownell. "Simes got a little jumpy in the last two kilometers but we got up to him and then Miles attacked me right away. I was closer this time but he was stronger at that moment so I could only hold onto second."

"It was pretty epic weather and an interesting, calculated race," said Sherry. "Most of the race was about Empire and Rite Aid keeping tabs on each other. I think it could have gone either way. We had some bad luck with three riders flatting out, including Minturn in the second group-- less than a minute from the three leaders. It could have changed had they joined up and played the numbers game again. For me it was great to have a front row seat and get to race with the guys up the road though. I don't think too many directors get to see their riders pounce while riding in the break together. I'm more impressed each week."

Bremer Victorious in Central Park

(New York, NY, April 5, 2008) Alex Bremer solos to victory in Central Park after attacking the winning breakaway 7K from the finish. The large break included teammate Karl Rahn and team captain John Loehner. Rahn rounded out the podium in 3rd place winning the sprint and Loehner had an untimely puncture with 10k to go that placed him back in the main field.

"Bremer's result is not a surprise to me based on how he has been racing with the team and he already tallied a few wins in collegiate races this season," said Director Sportif Mike Sherry. "He's in great form physically after a relatively flawless off-season and his attacking style of racing fits perfectly into our system. He'll be a rider to watch over the season since he's still very fresh and gaining experience with each week of racing."

Chodroff Builds Time Trial Results in San Dimas

(San Dimas, CA, March 29th 2008) Empire youngster Jonathan Chodroff continues to build his time trial results with a very well placed 18th overall in the San Dimas uphill prologue besting seasoned pros like Tyler Hamilton and Chris Wherry.  Chodroff finished 37 seconds off of the winning time posted by Rock Racing’s Oscar Sevilla, a rider best known for his climbing abilities in races like the Tour de France where he finished 7th overall behind Armstrong and won the young rider’s jersey in 2007 while racing for Kelme. “I’m learning with each of these races how to shave off a few seconds here and a few seconds there,” said Chodroff of his preparations. “It’s great to race against guys at this level and to see how they race the course so you can learn where to conserve and where to go hard. I went out a little harder than I should have on the flatter section and didn’t have as much as I would have liked for when the climb got hard.  I’ll take what I’ve learned from this and apply it to the Redlands prologue on Thursday.”

Eric Brownell Takes 2nd at Kirkwood Road Race

(Kirkwood, PA, March 29, 2008) Empire Cycling kicks off the mid-Atlantic calendar with Eric Brownell taking 2nd at the Kirkwood Road race.  “It was pretty windy out there and we were racing hard from the start, so it was good to make the early move,” said Brownell.  A break of eight riders formed about three laps into the race.  Empire and Rite Aid Pro cycling both had a good tactical situation on their hands with two and three riders in the move, respectively.   (Empire teammate and PA local, John Minturn made the move as well.)   Both teams shut down the chase leaving the race to be battled out by their riders in the break. 

As the race progressed and the chase from the peloton was ineffective, the breakaway slowly got whittled down to a group of five riders.  In the finale the attacks came fast and furious from the Rite Aid riders who were still well represented. “I was out-numbered but knew I had to get up to the leader so I covered the attacks. I made it up to the winner but he had more legs than I did and kept attacking once I got up so I just had to hold a small gap, going full gas to the finish.  Another Rite Aid rider made it up to me just before the finish but I was still able to take second after forcing him to do some work,” said Brownell of the final selections.  Another group formed just behind the lead group where Mike Margarite was also able to pull out an 8th place finish rounding out a solid team showing.  Team captain John Loehner said, “The guys raced really well as a unit today and we were always represented from start to finish.  It’s still early in the year and we certainly have some work to do but are racing really well as a team already.  It’s really nice to see a new group of guys click so quickly”.

“We have a grouping of more regional races coming up to really tweak our system of racing before the big events,” Director Sportif Mike Sherry commented after the race. “It’s great to see the team improve and learn in leaps and bounds from week to week and I’m really pleased to see the level of sacrifice the riders are willing to make. In a race like this where we have 8 guys starting we have 8 offensive weapons, 8 potential winners, and the horsepower to control a race if we need to. I’m really looking forward to the season ahead and working with such a great group of riders.”

Deeny Takes Stage Win and the Overall Title in Tucson

(Tucson, AZ, March 17, 2008) As the Grant's Tomb Criterium opened the season in New York, Empire Cycling Team riders in Tucson raced a local omnium.

On Saturday Jon Chodroff, Sheldon Deeny, and Mike Mathis raced the U of A campus criterium. Also starting the race were Olympic and pro mountain biker Todd Wells and HealthNet pro rider Matt Cooke. The field was strung out from the start, with Cooke and Wells dictating the speed. It didn't take long for four riders to get a small gap on the field, among them Mathis and Wells. Deeny bridged up solo soon after and the five worked smoothly to ensure that the break stayed away. With the field nipping at their heels in the closing two laps, Mathis dropped off the pace from his brutal effort as Deeny attempted to set up for the 4 man sprint. After the last corner, two local riders ended up fighting for the victory, with Deeny coming in third. After catching his breath, Mathis said "I pretty much blacked out at one point." The 22 year old rider confirmed he is certainly willing to suffer.

The next day Mathis and Deeny started the road race held in Tumacacori, 60 miles south of Tucson. A "stairstep" hill on the backside of the five mile circuit was sure to split the field over the course of twelve laps. Windy, cool, and wet conditions atypical of Arizona spring greeted the riders at the start line. After lap 3, six riders accelerated on the climb and never saw the field again. In this break were Deeny and Wells, as well as Cooke and three local riders including the previous days criterium winner. These six riders worked hard and opened up a large gap on what was left of the field. With three laps to go, Cooke accelerated on the 12% gradient of the climb and only Deeny and Wells were able to follow. In the closing two laps, the trio stayed together until about 2 km to go. First Cooke, then Wells tried their hand at an attack on the rolling finish, but in the end Deeny had the legs to mark both riders and finish them off in the slightly uphill sprint. With the win Deeny took the overall omnium and capped of a successfull weekend of racing. "This was a great road race to prepare for San Dimas" commented Deeny. "With the tough climb in there and the distance, I feel ready for the big racing coming up. As a sprinter I was surprised to be able to stick with Matt and Todd on the climb, both professionals and good climbers to boot!"

Up next for the Tucson winter dwellers is the San Dimas stage race, a three day event in the Los Angeles area. A start list including all the top domestic pro squads will ensure a very difficult race. After this the three will head back to the east coast to join the rest of the Empire squad for the start of the team's official spring campaign.

2008 Season Kick Off!  Valley of the Sun Stage Race

(Tempe, AZ, February 19, 2008)  Empire Cycling kicked off the 2008 season at Valley of the Sun with a promising showing.  The lean squad of four new riders-- Eric Brownell, Jon Chodroff, Sheldon Deeny, and Mike Mathis-- worked well together and netted a final GC spot for Chodroff after his solid ride to 4th place in the opening individual Time Trial.

“I’m really pleased to see the guys are already riding well together since they’ve all come from such different places,” says DS Mike Sherry.  “It’s important for me and the sponsors to see the team take control when things aren’t necessarily going in our favor and simply get the job done,” said Sherry regarding the missed breakaway in the stage 2 road race.  As a relatively calm race progressed, a group of 14 rolled away with most teams represented.  One team that missed the move was Jittery Joe’s who had race leader Ben Kneller.  Empire put an additional 3 riders in the rotation to ensure the catch, which brought the race back for a bunch sprint and protected Chodroff’s GC spot. Deeny, after working on the front, endured to take 10th on the day. “I was surprised to still have some legs especially this early in the season since I’m used to coming into form slowly,” commented Deeny.  “I ultimately didn’t get the best position, so I was boxed in, but was happy to be in the mix so early on in the year.”

With his 4th place TT and the work of his team, Chodroff was able to maintain his 4th place standing overall in the General Classification.  Chodroff is relatively new to racing and at the young age of 23 already has excellent time trial skills. Such a big engine shows promise as a consistent GC threat in all types of stage races.

Empire Cycling Signs Former U23 National Team Rider Sheldon Deeny

(New York, January 2, 2008) Empire Cycling enthusiastically welcomes Sheldon Deeny back to the US domestic racing circuit for the first time since 2005. Deeny has spent most of the past two seasons cutting his teeth on the cobbles of Belgium and mountains of Spain and France racing under Noel Dejonckheere, the US Team’s Director Sportif in Europe.  While Sheldon did make a few appearances in America last year, his US racing was limited to the Tours of California, Georgia, & Missouri.  As a well rounded rider, he’s aiming for big results in Empire’s target NRC races. “The signing is yet another boost to the already well rounded 2008 squad” says DS Mike Sherry.

Empire Announces 2008 Squad

(New York, December 9, 2007) Empire Cycling is pleased to announce their 2008 team members.  The coming season looks promising with a revamped, more dynamic roster, including former national champions and long time elite racers.  "With the core squad from 2007 returning and the new additions to the team, we have far more depth and more complimentary skill sets,” notes director sportif Michael Sherry.