Wednesday, August 11, 1999 - Sunday, August 15, 1999 -- Charleston
Tour of West Virginia
Story & photos by Julie Bertsch

Martinsburg: [Coverage] [Pics] [Results]
Wheeling: [Coverage] [Pic Set 1] [Pic Set 2] [Results]
Huntington: [Coverage] [Pic Set 1] [Pic Set 2] [Pic Set 3] [Results]
Charleston: [Coverage] [Pic Set 1] [Pic Set 2] [Pic Set 3] [Results]

Pulling ahead of the pack in the Cat. 3-4 Race

The 4 day long, 4 city series of the Tour of West Virginia, now in it's second year, came to a close on Sunday, August 15th. Regional race organizer, Team Columbus based out of Ohio, and each of the participating cities created the statewide event, and have kept it running for the past two years. The last race of the series was in the capitol city of Charleston, and it was not without it's share of head-to-head road bike racing excitement. The race series took 300 riders, both professional and amateur, through four WV cities, racing for over $20,000 in prize money. The Charleston race started on Capitol Street, by The Capitol Market. The Criterium Race was a 1 mile long course closed to the traffic, small and fast, with one fairly steep uphill stretch.

Using the draft technique in the last few laps of the Pro 1-3 Race

The Pro's had to race 40 miles, making this the longest race in the tour's series. The pack hung tight through the course's sharp turns, and no one knew who was going to give in first. If one rider gets just a few feet ahead of the rest, this means he's doing all of the work. The other riders can then hop on his tail, and steal his strength, in a sense. The bikers kept it tight until lap 7, when all of the professional team's sprinters started to make their move and get themselves in a position for a win. $3,000 in prize money was up for grabs, and the overall winner's spot for the whole series.

Trent Klasna, of Team Navigators pedaled hard as Chris Fischer of Team Merlin was nipping at his tread. Finally making his move and turning on the heat was Greg Walker of Team Ikon from San Diego. Walker passed up everyone to take 1st Place Overall in the Charleston Race. Klasna finished 2nd, and Fischer received 3rd place. "The race was very similar to last year," said Walker, "there was a lot of speed." Check out the Overall Series Winners right here.

Greg Walker cools off the crowd after an exciting finish

The Cat. 3-4 Race was 25 miles long, offering $1,000 in prizes. Team Go-Mart WV rode strong, staying to the front and pacing themselves. There was a lot of competition, and many breakaways to the front, and drifting back into the pack. Joseph Whitlock of Team Columbus Schwinn, managed to pull ahead and stay ahead for the Overall win. Kevin Chapman of Team Cellular One, and Matt Mega of Team Go-Mart took 2nd & 3rd in the Cat. 3-4 Race.

In the Citizens Cat. 5, Jason Means took 1st, Edward Ambrecht took 2nd, and Thomas Hanley received the 3rd place prize.