Rams Cycling continues to climb to the top of the Rocky Mountain Collegiate Cycling Conference with outstanding results at the University of New Mexico Lobo Classic and Metro State/Denver University Time Trial and Criterium.

High winds didn't hold back Julia Manley from a strong 2nd place finish in the UNM Time Trial, nor did it hinder the Women's A team time trial as they crushed the field by nearly 2 minutes. Patrick McGlynn took the bull by the horns on the men's side, pulling through with a strong 3rd place finish in his individual time trial, and leading CSU to an impressive 2nd place finish in the TTT. The CSU Rams also swept the TTT's in the Mens C and Women's B categories, winning both events by impressive margins.

Sunday brought chillier temperatures on UNM's fast four corner criterium course. The first Ram success of the day came early from Aaron Vaughn in the Men's C race as he soloed away from the pack to victory. Showing great depth, the Rams C's also picked up 2nd, 3rd, and 5th with John Peterson, Nathan Petter and John Welsh. Men's A racer Dan Lionberg picked up an impressive 2nd after helping to shatter the field early on. Women's A racers Megan Cassidy and Rachel Knott picked up every prime point available on the day, and Julia Manley dominated the final sprint to take the win thanks to a strong leadout from Tirrel Grovenstein.

"It's great for the confidence of the team to have such good early season results," said Rams Cycling president T.G. Taylor. "But, the team isn't even close to peaking. We're out to continue domination of the conference and then win the national championships on our home turf."

Metro State's time trial course was a 12k rolling affair with one steep climb. Erick Carlson rode to a strong 3rd in the Men's A race. Women's A racer Amanda Miller won the TT by a deciding margin, with teammates Grovenstein, Knott, Carol Hutton, Cassidy, and Manley taking 2nd, 4th, 5th, 6th, and 8th respectively.

DU's criterium promised to be an exciting one on a fast and furious 3-corner course with multiple technical round-abouts and sharp 120˚ left-handers. First time racer David Boerner was the first to podium for the Rams with a 3rd place in the Mens C race, with teammates John Welsh, Chris Ward, Jon Vivolo, Adam Wisseman, and Nico Enjalbert taking 4th though 8th.

A crash in the Mens B race brought down team leaders James Young and Dan Milano, but the rest of the team stepped up to the plate with Garrison Schulte and Dave Palazzo taking 1st and 2nd, with Matt Eberly sprinting strong for 4th.

The Women's A's showed once again why they are the force to be reckoned with in the RMCCC, putting Hutton and Miller off the front early on. The two women stayed away and came across the line together making 1st and 2nd look easy. Manley won the field sprint for 3rd making it a full sweep of the women's podium.

Dan "the Lion" Lionberg roared once again in the Mens A race making the deciding break along with Brad Cole and Dan Workman. The three worked together and led Lionberg to a strong 2nd place, putting Cole and Workman in the top 6 as well.

"I'm pretty impressed with how we've ridden and it makes me look forward to upcoming races. The team has jelled quite nicely for so early in the season," Rams Cycling Coach Ainslie MacEachran noted. "We're fortunate to have so many really high caliber racers on the team. T.G. has done a nice job through the fall and winter to get the riders to understand how to race as a team in all categories."

CSU Rams Cycling would like to thank its sponsors Peloton Cycles, Specialized, Gemini Training Systems, Dohn Construction, Verve, First Endurance, and the CSU Bookstore for their exceptional support. Next weekend the Rams will be traveling to Durango for a road race, team time trial, and criterium hosted by Fort Lewis College. Stay tuned to see what we'll light up next!