Professional and top amateur males race in a previous Oak Ridge Velo Classic. (Photo submitted by Lou Rabinowitz)
A bicycle racing event this weekend includes races in Oak Ridge and Anderson County, and proceeds benefit the Free Medical Clinic of Oak Ridge.
The Fifth Annual Oak Ridge Velo Classic includes Tennessee State Road Races on Saturday on a challenging course that traverses scenic sections of rural Anderson County, time trial races on Saturday evening on Bear Creek Road, and criterium races at Horizon Center on Sunday, a press release said.
The Free Medical Clinic is a nonprofit, mostly volunteer organization that offers free medical services to those who do not have insurance and cannot afford to pay for medical services. In less than three years, the clinic has served more than 2,500 patients, the release said.
The Oak Ridge Velo Classic has attracted hundreds of competitors from Tennessee and the Southeast, and from across the country, the release said. Competitors have traveled from as far away as California to take part.
Top regional competitors expected to compete in this year’s event include former Olympian Kent Bostick, National Masters competitor Dirk Pohlmann, and Oak Ridge resident Jon Crowson, “who has won some big races this season.”
Friends of the Great Smoky Mountains Elite Cycling (captained by John Hart, overall champion in the inaugural Oak Ridge Velo Classic) and Team Belladium, a women’s team from Nashville, are just two of the many elite teams that will be trying to capture championships this weekend, the release said.
The event is sanctioned by both the Tennessee Bicycle Racing Association and USA Cycling.
For a race schedule and course maps, contact Lou Rabinowitz at loubikes@gmail.com.
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