[NCNCA] Pro Cycling Returns to San Francisco!

[Ryan Dawkins]

San Francisco Twilight Criterium to debut in September as the newest  
USA CRITS event
By Joan Thomas
jthomas at southforce.com

The 2008 USA CRITS Series is getting even bigger with the addition of  
the San Francisco Twilight Criterium on September 13.  Spearheaded by  
Ryan Dawkins, President of Project Sport and Andy Ball, CEO of Webcor  
Builders, the City by the Bay will once again become the backdrop for  
a top-notch competition featuring some of the best cyclists from the  
USA and around the world.
“Andy and I decided to team up to bring pro cycling back to San  
Francisco,” says Dawkins. “We want a high-action, high-energy event  
that blows everyone’s mind, and nothing compares to a 40 mph, night- 
time race,” he adds.
Dawkins’ McGuire Cycling Team is arguably one of the best elite teams  
in northern California, and he says the squad enjoys competing in the  
first event of the USA CRITS Series every year in Georgia.  “My team  
says there’s nothing like the Athens Twilight,” explains Dawkins.   
“The race and the atmosphere are so electric that I wanted to have  
something like Athens in San Francisco.”
Male and female pro cyclists will compete for a total of $15,000 in  
prize money on a four-block, four-corner, one-kilometer course whose  
start and finish line will be at Union Street—the so-called Rodeo  
Drive of San Francisco.  The picturesque Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz  
and the San Francisco Bay will be visible everywhere except at Turn 2,  
but the riders won’t be taking their eyes off the course to enjoy the  
sights. Dawkins says Union Street has just been re-paved, so it will  
be fast and racers can expect a 35-mph-plus corner at Turn 2. Knowing  
this, organizers are planning to place bales of hay at every bend,  
especially that one.
Webcor’s Andy Ball is a cycling enthusiast of the highest order. His  
company has a long history of sponsoring cycling events in San  
Francisco and currently sponsors a women’s professional squad teeming  
with champion riders who have made the Webcor Builders Women’s  
Professional Cycling Team one of the best teams in the world.
The San Francisco Twilight Criterium will be an invitation-only event  
with priority given to top USA CRITS Series contenders first, followed  
by local riders who may register online at www.sftwilight.com. “We’re  
going to showcase the top racers in a pro riders’ village,” says  
Dawkins. “There they will be able to park their cars, relax under  
tents and warm up, and fans will be able to walk around to talk to the  
cyclists and get their autographs.”
USA CRITS’ Managing Director Ravi Rajcoomar says Dawkins has worked  
really hard for a couple of years to get their event off the ground.  
“We’re very excited to add the San Francisco Twilight Criterium to our  
growing list of events. San Francisco is a cycling-friendly city, and  
competitors can expect great crowds at one of the best venues and race  
courses in the country.”  The San Francisco Twilight now becomes the  
last event before the USA CRITS Series finals at the Mandalay Bay  
Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas on September 25.  “I can’t imagine a  
better place for the last stop leading into the USA CRITS Finals in  
Vegas,” says Rajcoomar.
“September and October are part of San Francisco’s Indian summer,”  
says Dawkins, “And all around Union Street, there are shops and  
restaurants that draw 50,000 people on any given Saturday night,”  
Dawkins adds that with conservative estimates, event organizers expect  
about the same number of spectators will line the course to watch the  
race.
For more information on the San Francisco Twilight Criterium, visit www.sftwilight.com 
  or send email to info at sftwilight.com.

Iron Hill Twilight Criterium
West Chester, PA
Saturday
05-Jul-08

BC Cancer Foundation's Tour de Gastown
Vancouver, BC
Wednesday
16-Jul-08

Wells Fargo Twilight Criterium
Boise, ID
Saturday
19-Jul-08

Presbyterian Hospital Invitational Criterium
Charlotte, NC
Saturday
02-Aug-08

Chris Thater Memorial
Binghamton, NY
Sunday
24-Aug-08

San Francisco Twilight Criterium
San Francisco, CA
Saturday
13-Sep-08

USA CRITS Final
Las Vegas, NV
Thursday
25-Sep-08

About USA CRITS
USA CRITS National Criterium Series has been developed to feature a  
brand of cycling unique to the United States, the criterium.  
Criteriums are historically run on short laps through city streets.  
They offer spectators the opportunity to watch Olympians, world and  
national champions up-close as they ride at top speed. This has made  
the criterium format the most spectator-friendly form of cycling  
entertainment. Events on the USA CRITS series have the ideals that  
have made criterium racing an American legacy: Challenging courses  
that showcase arts and entertainment districts; a large and energized  
base of spectators; broad community support; and strong marketing  
opportunities for sponsors. For more information, visit  
www.usacrits.com.