1990s
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1990 Winning Results
John Rezell, former cycling columnist at The Orange County Register and editor of VeloNews magazine covered the Redlands Classic from 1990-2000. Read his account of this year’s event in Chapter 5: Hanging On of his online Memoris “A More Simple Time: How Cycling Saved My Soul.” The purse dropped to $20,000, but that didn’t keep defending champion Scott Moninger from showing up to defend his yellow jersey. Coors Light was back, too, not to mention 7-Eleven’s Davis Phinney. But a strong team from the Soviet Union would sweep them all. Dmitri Zhadanov was top man, while teammate Evgeniy Berzin raced behind his mate by 15 seconds in a memorable display of power and poise on a bicycle. The Russian National team was deemed “Team Locomotiv” for the duel around Redlands.
Top Finishers:
1. Dmitri Zhadanov, Russian National
2. Evgeniy Berzin, Russian National, 0:15
3. Scott Moninger, Crest, 1:59
Stage Winners:
– Prologue – Michael Zanoli, Coors Light
– Stage 1 (71.4-mile road race) – Evgeny Berzin, Russian National
– Stage 2 (1-hour criterium) – Stephen Swart, Coors Light
– Stage 3 (97.4-mile road race) – Dmitri Zhadanov, Russian National
– Stage 4 (44-mile criterium) – Davis Phinney, 7-Eleven
Team Champion: Russian National
1991 Winning Results
Randy Whicker (Trek-Cytomax) gave a small lesson to local cycling fans. He proved that it wasn’t necessary to win a stage in order to capture the yellow jersey. Whicker, a member of “Team Redlands” – officially Redlands Trek-Cytomax – didn’t win a stage, but he copped the yellow jersey. Berzin, the 1990 runner-up, was in the field. So were the beginnings of a dynasty-laden U.S.-based team, Chevolet-L.A. Sheriff. In the end, Whicker prevailed over Subaru-Montgomery’s Jim Copeland. The key to the week may have been a center-line violation (crossing over the double yellow line on a semi-closed course) that cost Copeland 30 seconds. He lost by 25 seconds.
Top Finishers:
1. Randy Whicker, Redlands Trek-Cytomax
2. Jim Copeland, Subaru-Montgomery, 0:25
3. Vladeslav Bobrik, Soviet Locosphinx, 3:13
Stage Winners:
– Prologue (3.3 miles) – Evgeny Berzin, Soviet Locosphinx
– Stage 1 (30-mile criterium) – Kurt Stockton, Chevrolet-L.A. Sheriff
– Stage 2 (66.5-mile road race) – Jim Copeland, Subaru-Montgomery
– Stage 3 (56.4-mile circuit race) – Vladeslav Bobrik, Soviet Locosphinx
– Stage 4 (1-hour criterum) – Eric Rekkas (Form Velo One)
– Stage 5 (92-mile road race) – Kent Bostick, Shaklee
– Stage 6 (48-mile criterium) – Krzysstof Wiatr, Subaru-Montgomer
Team Champion: Redlands Trek-Cytomax
1992 Winning Results
Scott Fortner, a career domestique who was used to protecting his teammates, became the hunted in this final Memorial Day weekend showcase. By the following year, the RedlandsBicycle Classic would move its main event to March, among other significant changes. Fortner, racing for a new team, Saturn, found himself in the lead and being forced to defend. It wasn’t a great field of cyclists due to the Memorial Day weekend timing. Most teams were racing elsewhere, including the top teams that were overseas. The Saturn cyclist didn’t win a single stage, but wound up with enough time bonuses (top three finishes) and was easily the strongest rider throughout the week.
Top Finishers:
1. Scott Fortner, Team Saturn
2. Thurlow Rogers, Pasadena AA, 0:49
3. Eric Cech, W. K. Gamble Law Firm, 2:05
Stage Winners:
– Prologue – Karl Maxon, Sachs-Quick Release B.C.
– Stage 1 (30-mile criterium) – Greg McNeil, W. K. Gamble Law Firm
– Stage 2 (77.2-mile road race) – Rogers
– Stage 3 (62-mile circuit race) – McNeil
– Stage 4 (1-hour criterium) – Rogers
– Stage 5 (105.2-mile road race) – McNeil
– Stage 6 (48-mile criterium) – Craig Schommer, Rock-It Cargo
Team Champion: Saturn
1993 Winning Results
MEN: All of a sudden, Chevrolet-L.A. Sheriff had the “team.” It was comprised of a number of top-flight cyclists, including the all-time stage-winning champion, Steve Hegg. Former winner Scott Moninger, among others, was part of this squad. In the end, Great Britain’s Malcolm Elliott, a much-decorated star from overseas, was the strongest rider in the field. The Redlands Classic, which was now scheduled to not be in conflict with bigger races back east, had lured a strong collection of cyclists to the field – Elliott, Moninger and Ron Kiefel, among a number of top threats. Elliott seemed to have better forces at his disposal, eventually knocking off Subaru-Montgomery’s Bart Bowen by six seconds. Kiefel, racing for Coors Light, was also in the hunt.
Top Finishers:
1. Malcolm Elliott, Chevrolet-L.A. Sheriff
2. Bart Bowen, Subaru-Montgomery, 0:06
3. Ron Kiefel, Coors Light, 0:13
Stage Winners:
– Prologue (12-mile time trial) – Steve Hegg, Chevrolet-L.A. Sheriff
– Stage 1 (87-mile road race) – Miguel Arroyo, Subaru-Montgomery
– Stage 2 (62-mile circuit race) – Malcolm Elliott, Chevrolet-L.A. Sheriff
– Stage 3 (1-hour criterium) – Declan Lonergan, TCBY
– Stage 4 (110-mile road race) – Ron Kiefel, Coors Light
Team Champion: Chevrolet-L.A. Sheriff
WOMEN: You couldn’t find anyone to challenge Kahlua. Linda Brenneman had the corner run on the Redlands Bicycle Classic. Unless, of course, it was Chevrolet, TGI Friday’s, Shaklee or Bodywise cyclists. Sally Zack was in the field. So were Rebecca Twigg and Eve Stephenson. These were U.S. Olympians from the previous year’s Games in Barcelona. The purse was worth $4,000 total. This was no easy field, either. Inga Thompson, Julie Young, along with eventual greats Petra Rossner (East Germany) and Clara Hughes (Canada), were on the race roster.
Top Finishers:
1. Linda Brenneman, Team Kahlua
Stage Winners:
– Stage 1 (31-mile circuit race) – Brenneman
– Stage 2 (1-hour criterium) – Brenneman
Team champion – Kahlua
1994 Winning Results
MEN: Malcolm Elliott was back in the saddle, ready to repeat. This time his biggest rival was his own teammate, Jeff Pierce, the one-time 7-Eleven star. Sharing the stage with Coors Light, the Chevrolet-L.A. Sheriff team starred throughout the week.
Top Finishers:
1. Elliott Smith, Chevrolet-L.A. Sheriff
2. Jeff Pierce, Chevrolet-L.A. Sheriff, 1:09
3. Ron Kiefel, Coors Light, 1:21
Stage Winners:
– Prologue (9.9-mile time trial) – Elliott
– Stage 1 (100-mile road race) – Pierce
– Stage 2 (62-mile circuit race) – Steve Hegg, Chevrolet-L.A. Sheriff
– Stage 3 (60-mile criterium) – Roberto Gaggioli
– Stage 4 (75-mile road race) – Ron Kiefel, Coors Light
Team Champion: Chevrolet-L.A. Sheriff
WOMEN: Jeanne Golay made her second trip to Redlands by finishing first. Now the Classic sported a full-fledged women’s event, with almost the same number of stages as the men’s field. In a field full of mountain bike competitors, Linda Brenneman was expecting a child. Still in the field, she was unable to unseat Golay, the Saturn rider who beat Team Dirt’s Alison Sydor by nearly a minute.
Top Finishers:
1. Jeanne Golay, Saturn
2. Alison Sydor, Team Dirt, 0:57
3. Linda Jackson, Bodywise, 1:37
Stage Winners:
– Prologue (9.9-mile time trial) – Eve Stephenson, U.S. Cycling
– Stage 1 (48-mile road race) – Jackson
– Stage 2 (31-mile circuit race) – Sydor
– Stage 3 (1-hour criterium) – Laura Charameda, Timex
Team Champion: Team Dirt
1995 Winning Results
MEN: Veteran Scott Moninger, no stranger to close finishes, outlasted another strong field, including the sensational Elliott, who placed third in overall general classification. But a new, strong cyclist had gained entry to this race. Fred Rodriguez, racing for the U.S. National team in a preview to an eventual European career, nearly knocked off the veteran Moninger. And Elliott, seeking a third straight Redlands triumph, was within 10 seconds of winning again.
Top Finishers:
1. Scott Moninger, Chevrolet-L.A. Sheriff
2. Fred Rodriguez, U.S. National team, 0:08
3. Malcolm Elliott, Chevrolet-L.A. Sheriff, 0:10
Stage Winner:
– Prologue (2.1-mile time trial) – Mike Engleman, Shaklee.
– Stage 1 (60-mile circuit race) – Mike McCarthy, Saturn.
– Stage 2 (97-mile road race) – Moninger.
– Stage 3 (62-mile circuit race) – Cancelled, rain.
– Stage 4 (90-minute criterium) – Elliott.
– Stage 5 (75-mile road race) – Ron Kiefel, G.S. Boulder.
Team Champion: Chevrolet-L.A. Sheriff
WOMEN: Some of women’s racing’s top cyclists were present to duel with Linda Brenneman, now racing for Cycle Veloce. Batting Saturn, Shaklee, Van Wood and Timex Cannondale, Brenneman won by virtue of not having won a stage.
Top Finishers:
1. Linda Brenneman, Cycle Veloce
2. Sue Palmer, Van Wood Racing Team, 0:15
3. Mari Paulson, Shaklee, 0:30
Stage Winners:
– Prologue (2.1-mile time trial) – Palmer
– Stage 1 (38.4-mile circuit race) – Laura Charameda, Timex-Cannondale
– Stage 2 (38-mile road race) – Jeanne Golay, Saturn
– Stage 3 (1-hour criterium) – Karen Livingston, Saturn
Team Champion: Van Wood Racing Team
1996 Winning Results
MEN: Malcolm Elliott was still a fixture in Redlands, but a new face showed up to race, a guy named Chris Horner. Meanwhile, a trend started taking place with a newly formed team called U.S. Postal Service. Tomas Brozyna, part of the famous Eddy B. Borywicz Boys, started that trend. Over the next four years, the Postals put a different face on the victory podium by wearing yellow. This time it was the non-English speaking Brozyna, a Polish cylist who outlasted Horner by 13 seconds. Elliott, still racing for the Chevrolet-L.A. Sheriff squad, was a close third.
Top Finishers:
1. Tomasz Brozyna, U.S. Postal
2. Chris Horner, Nutra Fig, 0:13
3. Malcolm Elliott, Chevrolet-L.A. Sheriff, 0:23
Stage Winners:
– Prologue (3-mile time trial) – Steve Hegg, Chevrolet-L.A. Sheriff
– Stage 1 (97-mile road race) – Horner
– Stage 2 (60-mile circuit race) – Trent Klasna, Chevrolet-L.A. Sheriff
– Stage 3 (90-minute criterium) – Scott Fortner, Saturn
– Stage 4 (75-mile road race) – Hegg
Team Champion: U.S. Postal Service
WOMEN: Alison Dunlap, who had missed virtually the entire season in 1995, came up with a strong performance to beat Tammy Jacques in a wide-open Redlands Classic. The Van Wood racer, dealing with the hired guns from Saturn – the eventual team champion, beat Jacques by a mere 13 seconds in the final outcome. Her victory in a race to Oak Glen was the key.
Top Finishers:
1. Alison Dunlap, Van Wood
2. Tammy Jacques, HealthSouth-Mrs. T’s, 0:12
3. Jeanne Golay, Saturn, 0:37
Stage Winners:
– Prologue (3-mile time trial) – Sue Palmer, Van Wood
– Stage 1 (60-mile road race) – Dunlap
– Stage 2 (31-mile circuit race) – Alison Sydor, Timex-Cannondale
– Stage 3 (1-hour criterium) – Linda Brenneman, Chevrolet / Klein
Team Champion: Saturn
1997 Winning Results
MEN: Dariusz Baranowski became the second U.S. Postal rider to win at Redlands. His closest pursuer was none other than Brozyna, the previous year’s champion. Scott Moninger, whose place on the victory podium was becoming a regular event, took third. Baranowski propelled himself to victory by winning the 106-mile road race to Oak Glen, the main event that usually converts to an overall yellow jersey. Some changes in the Classic: in order to promote the downtown area, a prologue-style street sprint was held on State Street. Racing amid businesses, a few spectators caught a glimpse of some top cyclists in an all-out sprint. There was a more traditional time trial, this one held out on old Route 66 – an event that winner Jonathan Vaughters used to take the yellow jersey for a while. It was an all-star lineup of cyclists at Redlands, including a changing of the leader for three straight days.
Top Finishers:
1. Dariusz Baranowski, U.S. Postal Service
2. Tomasz Brozyna, U.S. Postal Service, 0:42
3. Scott Moninger, Navigators, 1:54
Stage Winners:
– Prologue – Todd Littlehales, Navigators
– Stage 1 (44-mile circuit race) – Eddy Gragus, U.S. Postal Service
– Stage 2 (13-mile time trial) – Jonathan Vaughters, Comptel-Cyclist
– Stage 3 (106-mile road race) – Dariusz Baranowski, U.S. Postal Service
– Stage 4 (90-minute criterium) – Mike McCarthey, Saturn
– Stage 5 (92-mile road race) – Fred Rodriguez, Saturn
Team Champion: U.S. Postal Service
WOMEN: Saeco-Timex was so loaded and powerful that it won the team portion of this year’s Classic by a whopping 7:26. It’s no wonder that teammates Susy Pryde and Linda Jackson finished 1-2, with third-place Alison Dunlap a healthy 2:48. Pryde, Jackson and Kendra Wenzel each won stages for Saeco-Timex.
Top Finishers:
1. Susy Pryde, Saeco-Timex
2. Linda Jackson, Saeco-Timex, 1:40
3. Alison Dunlap, HealthSouth-Team Dirt, 2:48
Stage Winners:
– Prologue – Jackie Martin, Shaklee
– Stage 1 (31-mile circuit race) – Pam Schuster, Klein
– Stage 2 (13-mile time trials) – Jackson
– Stage 3 (76-mile road race) – Pryde
– Stage 4 (1-hour criterium) – DeDe Demet, Saturn
– Stage 5 (42-mile road race) – Kendra Wenzel, Saeco-Timex
Team Champion: Saeco-Timex
1998 Winning Results
MEN: Jon Vaughters, heard from in 1997 off his time trial victory, had moved to the U.S. Postal Service. This time, the support was unwavering. Challenged a bit by the Australian “kid,” 20-year-old Cadel Evans, Vaughters had more than enough strength to win. The event opened with a local champion, 20-year-old Johnny Bairos, winning in downtown Redlands. Bairos got his start in the Redlands Bicycle Classic’s public race event. In years to come, Bairos would get a shot at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games. The race also took a turn in Fontana. Trying to take advantage of the newly-built California Speedway (home of bothm NASCAR and CART races), the venue provided ample room for cyclists and spectators. As for the overall Classic, newly-formed Team Mercury came along to threaten the existence of U.S. Postal Service and Saturn with some strong cycling performers. In the end, Saturn knocked off the Postals for the team title.
Top Finishers:
1. Jonathan Vaughters, U.S. Postal Service
2. Cadel Evans, Volvo-Cannondale, 0:20
3. Chris Wherry, Shaklee, 1:03
Stage Winners:
– Prologue – Johnny Bairos, Sunshine Germany
– Stage 1 (44-mile circuit race) – Gord Fraser, Mercury
– Stage 2 (10-mile time trial) – Jonathan Vaughters, U.S. Postal
– Stage 3 (106-mile road race) – Vaughters
– Stage 4 (90-minute criterium) – Fraser
– Stage 5 (92-mile road race) – Trent Klasna, Navigators
Team Champion: Saturn
WOMEN: Clara Hughes, in sole possession of the lead, had a tire problem on the one-hour criterium. She was penalized for a mechanical failure, ultimately finishing 37 seconds behind eventual winner Mari Holden of the U.S. National team. Hughes, who won a 10-mile time trial in Fontana, finished up by winning the 42-mile Sunset road race. Holden, meanwhile, didn’t win a stage. But in the overall classic role of race riding, she stayed close enough to the leaders to grasp control of the Redlands event. She won at Redlands, then embarked on an international career that kept her off local roads for a few years.
Top Finishers:
1. Mari Holden, U.S. National
2. Pam Schuster, Saeco-Timex, 0:22
3. Alison Dunlap, Health-South Mrs. T’s 0:34
Stage Winners:
– Prologue – Nicole Reinhart, Shaklee
– Stage 1 (31-mile circuit race) – Karen Kurreck, Saeco-Timex
– Stage 2 (10-mile time trial) – Clara Hughes, Saturn
– Stage 3 (76-mile road race) – Julie Young, Fanani
– Stage 4 (1-hour criterium) – Kurreck
– Stage 5 (42-mile road race) – Hughes
Team Champion: Saturn
1999 Winning Results
MEN: Christian Vande Velde made it four in a row for the U.S. Postal Service. Led to the finish by the previous year’s winner (Vaughters) Vande Velde paid his dues to reach the top step of the victory’s podium. Saturn and Mercury were close behind. This was the second and final year of racing at the California Speedway, a NASCAR track in Fontana.
Top Finishers:
1. Christian Vande Velde, U.S. Postal Service
2. Frank McCormack, Saturn, 0:39
3. Scott Moninger, Mercury, 0:56
Stage Winners:
– Prologue – Marcus Aledia, Team DeFeet
– Stage 1 (44-mile circuit race) – David Clinger, Mercury
– Stage 2 (10-mile time trial) – Roland Green, Team GT
– Stage 3 (25.2-mile circuit race) – Gord Fraser, Mercury
– Stage 4 (106-mile road race) – Jonathan Vaughters, U.S. Postal Service
– Stage 5 (90-minute criterium) – Fraser
– Stage 6 (92-mile road race) – Frank McCormack, Saturn
Team Champion: Saturn
WOMEN: Alison Dunlap, always standing on a podium somewhere, it seems, kept slamming away at the top U.S. team in the field – Saturn. Resting atop Saturn’s team was all-around cyclist Lyne Bessette, who was spending her first season on the top North American team. It was one former champion against another looking to win at Redlands for the first time. Bessette had some stars working with her, namely teammates Nicole Reinhart, Clara Hughes and DeDe Demet. Dunlap was stalwart, but she was 30 seconds behind after the final stage. Dunlap put the pressure on by winning the 70-mile chase up the mountain to Oak Glen. Bessette kept the leader’s jersey, protecting it the entire week without winning a stage.
Top Finishers:
1. Lyne Bessette, Saturn
2. Alison Dunlap, Team GT, 0:30
3. Cybil DiGuistini, Elita, 1:02
Stage Winners:
– Prolog – Nicole Freedman, Clif Bar
– Stage 1 (31-mile circuit race) – Dara Rogers, Team Helen’s
– Stage 2 (10-mile time trial) – DeDe Demet, Saturn
– Stage 3 (25-mile criterium) – Nicole Reinhart, Saturn
– Stage 4 (76-mile road race) – Dunlap
– Stage 5 (1-hour criterium) – Suzanne Sonye, Team Helen’s
– Stage 6 (42-mile road race) – Carmen Richardson, Volvo-Cannondale
Team Champion: Saturn