U.S.-only National championship race? yay/nay?
 

Does the fact that 70% were off the back within the first 2 laps change your opinion of whether foreign riders should be allowed?

Sucks.

Aussies are ripping it up Stateside in 2006.

Hope they reverse it next year.

i bet the Philly race is dead in a couple of years,and the SC race is mostly a domestic pro affair. I thinkits a lose lose. Hope I'm wrong.

An absolute travesty....incredible course that always forces a selection, fantastic crowds. I've been following the USPRO champs at Philly since 1989.

No. The forgein riders didn't make a difference. An American had won the old race outright quite a few times, including the first one when Eric Heiden won, and last year when Chris Wherry won. The difference that between European racing and US racing showed since this race was late in the season, and the Pro Tour riders had trained and raced more.

**********

Are you drunk?

I really can't think of any foreign domestic pros who could have hung with the ProTour guys on THIS course, to be perfectly honest. Hilton Clarke is absolutely badass, but I'm not sure if he's strong enough to roll with them like that. He hosed Christian Vande Velde in a sprint out of a four man turned two man break, and then won out of the bunch at Elk Grove, but that course was pan flat. Jaedo would have been crushed, same with Ivan Dominguez.

Maybe I'm wrong though? Is Hilton a good climber too? I would think if he was that good all-around he would have been picked up by a ProTour team by now.

Hilton is no climber. He's not suited to 150+ mile races of attrition.

"a few times", eh? Dude, the fact that you had to go back 21 freakin years and dig up Eric Heiden pretty much killed your entire point right there. Some of this year's riders weren't even born when he won.


I wish the domestic scene was big enough for Philly and an all-US nationals. I think Philly is an int'l one-day we can't afford to lose. IMO, unless the all-US nationals is at a time of year when 90% of the American Euros can and will ride it's a dead event.

Philly should probably be internationally recognized as the first American 'classic'. Too bad only a handful of eccentric North Americans even know what a classic is. Oh well.

If it's a National Championship, then screw the foreign riders.

IMO It should only be for US Nationals, or US Pro license holders.

Name one other nation that allows foreigners into their championship race. This is the way it should have always been. Although, we must keep Philly alive, because tradition builds sport and generates interest.

What are foreign riders doing in a national champtionship race?

This is my question exactly. If I am not mistaken the other national championships are also contested only by riders from that country...why do we need foreign riders to drag us around the course and why would we want to see them win at our national championship event while giving the win with an * to the first US placed rider?

When the first true US Championship race was organized, there less then 20 elite pro cyclists in the USA to contest it. So, the organizers invited European pros to race, but the US Champion would be the highest finishing American. Eric Heiden won the first race outright.

Before there was a race, the highest finishing American in the World Championship race was delcared the US Champion.

Exacto.