Cascade Cycling Classic tears through town

Local residents were treated to an ever-so-brief look at the elite men and women riders of the 27th annual Cascade Cycling Classic as the tour finished its second stage with an 81-mile road course that ended atop the McKenzie Pass on Thursday, July 13.

The Classic was sponsored this year by Bend Memorial Clinic and is part of the National Cycle Racing Calendar. The race attracts some of the finest American cyclists as well as competitors from around the world.

Thursday’s race began in Bend, passed through Tumalo, Redmond and Terrebone before turning back toward Sisters, entering town on Camp Polk Road. Fans waited at the intersection of Camp Polk and Barclay Drive, the crossing of Highway 20 near Sisters High School on the McKenzie Highway, for a chance to watch the blur of riders whiz past.

In the men’s race, a tight pack of a dozen led the way into town followed by most of the main group, called a peloton, comprised of 60 riders. Eventual stage winner Tom Zirbel broke away in the final mile, crossing the line in two hours 58 minutes and 39 seconds.

About 40 minutes after the men passed through, the women riders made their appearance in town. A group of four, including Kristen La Sasso, that had broken away from the peloton in the early miles of the race, blazed through the industrial park first, nearly five minutes ahead of the rest of the pack.

La Sasso, a strong hill climber, pulled away from the other three riders to claim the victory in 3:53:51. La Sasso, of Belvedere, California, went on to win the overall title in the five-day event that included road races, a time trial and a circuit race in downtown Bend.

The men competed in six stages and the women five. Chris Wherry, of Durango, Colorado, won the men’s title in the closest finish of the event’s history, which came down to a tie-breaker.