Atomic News & Events

Jul 11, 11:55 AM

Atomic Racing Club Members drop Eddy Merckx at race

Penticton, July 10, 2011 – Atomic members Neil Winkelmann and Andrew Wilson drew swords over the weekend against the likes of Svein Tuft, Trevor Linden, Axel Merckx and cycling legend Eddy Merckx.

Battling hard on a demanding 160KM course around the south Okanagan, Winkelmann and Wilson came in under 5 hours for a strong finish. Atomic Member Geza Baranyi also had a strong showing, behind the Winkelmann/Wilson juggernaut.

The race started off under sunny skies in Penticton, and made a turn through Summerland before speeding south for a long loop down past the lakes to Oliver and back up, finishing 162KM later in Penticton. Canadian road and TT champion Svein Tuft attacked at the front and took an impressive solo trip around the circuit, finishing at 3:57:03. Former Vancouver Canuck Trevor Linden finished a very impressive 4:18:56.

Ex-pro and former Belgian National Champion and Olympic medal winner Axel Merckx finished at 4:12:22.

But the real drama on the course happened around KM 50 when the Winkelmann-Wilson duo passed cycling great Eddy Merckx in a ball of dust.

“He was going pretty hard sure…I mean, he’s a 5 time Tour champ and has won pretty much everything there is to win”, explained Atomic president Andrew Wilson in a post-race interview. “It’s not that easy to get the Cannibal in your sites, reel him in and then blow him away, but to be honest that’s pretty much what we did”.

Race officials declined to comment, but an anonymous source confirmed Eddy was crushed at the obvious defeat, explaining that he’d trained “hard” for the inaugural event and wanted to impress the crowds on hand.

“I heard someone high up say that he had worked with some pretty famous coaches and had regained much of his past form in a bid to dominate the race”, said Winkelmann when reached later by telephone. “It was pretty hard alright…Wilson and I had to dig deep into our suitcases of courage to pass him, but we did. Hell, that’s what Atomic’s all about, isn’t it”.

Mr. Merckx couldn’t be reached for comment.

Event organizers said the race was a success and they are looking forward to increased participation in next year’s ride. It is unclear whether Eddy will return to ride.