BAD NEWS for all

Michigan Tour de Leelanau canceled, other Michigan races imperiled by sponsor pullout.

By Steve Frothingham
Posted Jan. 30, 2009

"Current economic realities" have caused Michigan-based health insurance company Priority Health to pull its sponsorship of three major midwestern races, and at least one of the events has cancelled its 2009 edition.

The Tour de Leelanau race director Steven Brown informed the Union Cyclist Internationale (UCI) on Friday that it was canceling the UCI category 1.2 event, which had been scheduled for May 24.

“This development certainly is disappointing but not completely unexpected," Brown said in a letter to the UCI. "All of our planning was on track until everything fell apart in October and the last quarter of the year. It is like losing a good friend,” he said.

Beside Leelanau, Priority Health sponsored September's Priority Health Grand Classic, in Grand Rapids, and Priority Health Ann Arbor Classic. The insurance company announced last fall that it was ending sponsorship of all three events, which were all on USA Cycling's National Racing Calendar.

"Unfortunately, current economic realities simply prohibit our continued investment in these races,” Priority Health’s Amy Miller said in a statement at the time.

It was not clear Friday whether the September events would continue with different sponsors.

The news comes on the same week that the inaugural Oregon Pro Cycling Classic was postponed

NOT a scener

cross BITD

WIZ and the Evil dude, circa 05

BITD

Michigan State Fair
Scantily clad women posing on platform in front of tent to stir up business for “peep show” on the crowded midway of the Michigan State Fair

Francis Miller 1950.

the good the bad and the ugly

Miscene randomly asked fellow sceners the best and worst of 08 and we got some interesting answers, those that didnt get to throw there 2 cents in, feel free to do so.

THE GOOD:

Best race that I raced: Rockford Crit. Always one of only a handful of races in Michigan that you can throw tactics aside for the day and forces you to just ride hard. A finish on the lead lap is a good result here.

Best new or old race: Cone-Azalia. No one wants to show up and race it, but everyone wants to win it...a Michigan spring Classic still going strong!

Best race I didn't get to race: Priority Health Cycling Classic GR. I hear nothing but great things about how challenging the course is to how well the race was run. One my calendar for sure in 2009 along with Superior Bike fest. Let's just hope it doesn't get canceled with the economic downturn

Best training race: Waterford Thursday night worldsI have to be honest I didn't believe in the "if you build it, they will come" theory. But they came week after week and it was the best racing for $10 you'll ever spend. Always new faces week in, week out...and fast.

Best road trip: Ohio UCI triple header. Hanging out with the Michigan cyclocross crew (Selle, Saari, Wissink, Cameron, Baroli, Steel) all weekend and laughing our asses off...Mr. T even made a appearance there.

Best website / Blog: The Michigan Scene. always controversial and miss understood but constantly read. Keep up the good work and stay real...

The Michiganscene for keep keepin on.

EYE OF GATTO

Foshag winning the state cross title, and wissink the USGP

Ore to Shore,Iceman and any Tailwind event, Lumberjack ($125 is alot for this low key event

Drinking beers from the sideline of the Rock City Crit while I watched other people suffer and remembering the suffering I underwent the weekend before.

waterford hills thursday night worlds & THE WIZ wins USGP overall

Bells beer

Foshag's State Champ X win

the Labor Day weekend.

Mike Wissink dominating the USGP Master's X Series

Tom Burke winning the overall Road Series

"Young Guns" like Christian, Renkema, Little Tony just to name a few, that elevated their games and appear to be on the way to cycling success. Let's hope that they, and many others, continue to evolve as a result of our racing.

Watching michiganders like John Doyle throwing it down and dancing with the big guns at ice man, Blogging taken to the next level and being blessed with a full racing schedule year after year thanks to Rick Plite, Brent Walk and Robert Linden. Who am I forgetting?

That Evil Dude From Flash Gordon wins the Elite State Championship in 'cross

not one but two misceners going one two on erie street, take that canada

the Priority HEalth Classics weekend

.

Kyle & Corey Stange ~Best siblings! (mtb, cx)Sue Shaw ~

Best mother of 4! (cx, mtb)

Chris Shaw ~Youngest (cx)

Brian Mitchell ~Best cyclecross spirit ("TWT Proud Sponsor?")

Brian Mitchell ~Worst team kit ("TWT Proud Sponsor?")

Matt Willing ~Best newbie (cx)

Brian Hancock ~Determined (cx)

Tour de Leenalau- All the pageantry, the beautiful roads, full road closure, beautiful weather, big/fast field. Just an awesome race. Beer

IronCross- 62 miles on my cross bike in the Pennsylvania Mountains in the sunshine during the peak of the fall colors, making it over the KOM climb, and midway through the race, in the top 15. Roadtripping with buddies. Beer.

Foshag and Card 1/2 at the state X race

Scott Kroske's bootie

Four Westsiders won a National Championship at the 24hr. National Mountain Bike race up in Wausau, Wisconsin on August, 3rd. 2008! Dan Jansen, Neil Sharphorn, Nate Versluis, John Meyers.

Dec 31's 11:59 and 59 sec pm 2008

THE BAD

Tour de Leenalau- Getting shelled half way through the race. Shhhellllleeeddd

Allen parks potholes can you say costly?

TOKV traffic

THE CX sandbagger extraordinaire

IronCross-62 miles on my cross bike in the Pennsylvania “oh my f-en god, is there a flat section in this race” mountains. Making it over the KOM climb, and midway through the race, in the top 15, and then making a wrong turn and having three flats (one more flat then I had tubes or cartridges) and finishing in the 70’s somewhere.

Tour of Kensington Valley. I say this every year, someone is going to die out there one day. Groups passing other groups, yellow line infractions all over the place. The road surface is bumpier then a cross race along with that parking lot turn around. And this year we had to contend with a traffic jam of kayaks driving around the course during the race. When is the insanity going to end?

Yankee Springs TT --charge as much as any local promoter for this TT and give out plastic coffee mugs for prizes-- and call it a "Charity Race". Hoard all they money to maintain state owned land (Taxpayer land) with profits of more than $10,000 how many meclouds and shovels to you need? Again it is MTB not a paved path...Sorry for the rant but the MMBA race series just absolutely blows

The State Road Championship falling victim to mother nature again.

Gas prices.

low payouts for the costly entry's

birmingham tuesday night training ride & a rain shortened cedar creek

Racial Profiling. You would think that it would stop by now. Very sad

Finding all the 2007 quicksters that pulled the plug to pursue real professional careers...shameful

Photogate

the rain at cedar creek

JPEG GATE

the ASSHOLES

THE UGLY

the month of July

The blog banter on the image stealing

Scott Kroske's bootie

flintstone friday P3

flintstone friday P2

flintstone friday P1

I'm coming home bitch.

scener at large

The dude on the left is former Hellraizer and always a scener brian matter, he's goin to cross worlds. dunno know about the guy on the right. we hear he is someone big

TMS

08 p3 wolverine style

ROOTS

SEARCH AND DESTROY

Ron Asheton

48-09

SEAGAL

SEGAL

although not a scener, The power of his zen and ability to attach himself to lovely young starlets is astounding.

at play

We all love these guys right? but we must admit, they look kinda dorky, The things ya gotta do for your sponsors....also note: DANNYK
He just doesnt look right in that Lathrup kit..

08 p2

season overview P1

Brought to you by bikeboy, nevermind mind the emo , but for a LIL squirt its choice

happy New year