Fryett and Colombi have grounds for celebration, taking sprint victories on MyWhoosh's Columbia Coffee Trail course in Echelon Racing League Race 4.
Date: January 4, 2025
Course and Format: A 27.8km scratch race with only 98m of elevation on MyWhoosh’s Columbia Coffee Trail course, a flat route with a series of bridges and a slight sting in the tail.
Echelon Racing League Men's Elite Race 4
The digital riders rolled onto the Columbia Coffee Trail for race 4 of the Echelon Racing League 2024/25, a deceptively smooth course with only 98 meters of elevation over 27.8 kilometers. Like a perfectly poured espresso shot, the course delivered a sharp kick in all the right places, with punchy inclines at key moments and a “sting in the tail” climb before the finish.
A star-studded field of 27 riders lined up, including USA National Champion Brian Duffy, Czech National Champion Daniel Turek, Canadian Champion Thomas Thrall, and former World Champion Bjoern Andreassen. Also present were 2024 World Championship finalists Zach Nehr, Neal Fryett, and two-time ERL winner Hayden Pucker, each eager to claim a victory.
“I haven’t raced much on MyWhoosh outside of the UCI qualifiers and the 2024 UCI Cycling Esports World Championship event in Abu Dhabi,” said the USA’s Fryett, “so taking part in ERL has been a great way to familiarize with the engine’s draft dynamics, among other things, before the USA Cycling Esports National Championships in February.”
The race heated up from the start, with Pucker perking up and throwing down an 8 w/kg attack within the first kilometer. Like a barista’s first pour, it was a bold move signaling the field to “Wake up and smell the coffee.” The elite field answered, keeping him in check.
Undeterred, Pucker brewed up another effort at 3 kilometers, repeatedly testing the group. The pattern was clear: attack, regroup, and attack again. Each surge was roasted to perfection, intensifying the tempo and dropping a few riders along the way, but the group largely held firm as if to say, “Bean there, done that,” with 20 riders still together a quarter into the race.
At the 8-kilometer mark, Turek ground out his first attack, forcing Pucker to chase and counter. This time, the pressure was enough to crack the cohesion, and a strong front group of five riders emerged: Pucker, Andreassen, Panizza (ITA), Thrall, and Fryett, with Turek unable to recover from the effort and remain attached.
Behind them, the chase group—featuring Duffy, Nehr, Turek, Marr (USA), and Bird (CAN)—kept the leaders in sight. A third group, the remnants of the field, slowly faded out of contention. By 20 kilometers, the front group held a 20-second advantage when Turek made a “Better latte’ than never” solo effort to bridge across, creating a six-rider lead pack and sweetening the tactical complexity with three NeXT pb Enshored teammates now in the mix.
With the final 7 kilometers on the horizon, NeXT began to leverage its tactical advantage. Andreassen launched a strong attack on the false flat at 22 kilometers, forcing Pucker, Panizza, and Fryett to do the chasing while Thrall and Turek saved their legs. Once reeled in, Turek counterattacked, catching Pucker on the back foot and creating a gap.
As the NeXT teammates kept the pressure high, Pucker kept grinding and closed the gap with just 1,000 meters remaining. The six riders entered the final flat stretch together, setting up a sprint finish as tensions bubbled over.
“There are some very strong riders in this series, such as Pucker, Thrall, and Turek, so my strategy for today was basic: follow their moves, conserve where possible, and hope for a sprint finish. Fortunately, it worked out well this week!”
In the closing meters, Fryett and Thrall sprung from the group, making it a two-up sprint, with Fryett unleashing a massive effort to edge out Thrall by half a wheel. Andreassen rounded off the podium, followed by Panizza in fourth and Pucker in fifth.
You can find the full results for the Men’s Elite Race on mywhooshinfo.com here.
The Echelon Racing League Overal Standings for Men’s Elite, B, and C are on mywhooshinfo.com here.
Echelon Racing League Women's Elite Race 4
The Columbia Coffee Trail welcomed a mixed field of elite women and Category B riders for Race 4 of the Echelon Racing League 2024/25, creating a dynamic scenario where every attack and counter brewed potential chaos.
The high-profile lineup featured 2024 UCI Cycling Esports World Championship finalists Ellexi Snover (USA), Tiffany Penner (CAN), and Lisa Hermansson (SWE), alongside Elyse Gallegos (USA), Selene Colombi (ITA), Nicole Meyer (USA), Liz Van Houweling (USA), and Melissa Aitken (USA).
“With such a flat fast course and so many strong ladies with massive sprinting numbers above mine, I knew my execution would need to perfect if I wanted a shot at placing well,” said the USA’s Aitken.
Gallegos hit out with rocket fuel and surged off the line with a strong and sustained effort. Her aggressive move immediately put the group on edge, gaining a 3-second gap. Penner quickly responded, closing the gap and pushing over the top to keep the pace piping hot
The early fireworks caused the first selection, and by 5 kilometers, a nine-rider lead group formed. The leaders included Canada’s Julia Lehmann—the lone B-category racer—alongside Van Houweling, Gallegos, Penner, Snover, Hermansson, Aitken, Colombi, and Meyer.
“I settled in early and tried never to be the lead cyclist attempting to pull the group together when an attack happened,” explains Aitken, “And luckily, that happened often, which I was hoping would take some of the power out of the sprinter’s legs.
Listen to Project Echelon’s Eric Hill as he explores his early adoption of cycling esports as a distinct discipline, and hear about his plans for the 2024/25 Echelon Racing League season during Virtual Velo Podcast Episode 59!
Meyer turned up the heat at 7 kilometers with a sharp attack that caught Snover and Colombi off guard. Colombi managed to grind her way back by 10 kilometers, but Snover found herself chasing hard to rejoin. Her determination paid off, and she reconnected with the front group by the 15-kilometer mark just as the riders entered the rolling bridge section.
The repeated efforts proved too much for Lehmann, who fell off the pace. However, the Canadian B-racer held her own, maintaining a comfortable lead over the second-place B competitor to win the category.
As the race entered the final 10 kilometers, Penner, Gallegos, and Colombi began trading attacks, testing the limits of their rivals. Drained from her earlier chase, Snover finally fell off the group, leaving seven riders to battle for victory.
Colombi repeatedly attacked the group, trying to shed the powerful sprinters Hermansson and Van Houweling before the finish. Despite her relentless efforts, the group’s big engines closed every move, refusing to let her escape.
With 500 meters to go, Aitken made her move, surging off the front, she explains, “When the last rise came with a little more than a kilometer to go, Colombi went hard and early at the bottom of the hill, and I knew this was my shot. I bridge over to her and put in whatever sprint I had left (about 8 w/kg at this point) to launch off her.”
Colombi, quick to respond, countered with a decisive kick, passing Aitken in the final meters to take the win in dramatic fashion.
“I couldn’t gap Colombi and credit her for pulling ahead with about 100m to go. Overall, I’m super happy with the results as this is my best finish in Echelon to date.”
Van Houweling powered across the line to secure the podium’s final step, followed closely by Gallegos and Hermansson.
This race was a finely balanced blend of strategy, endurance, and explosive efforts. Colombi’s relentless attacks and well-timed finish proved that, sometimes, bold moves brew the sweetest victories.
You can find the full results for the Women’s Elite Race on mywhooshinfo.com here.
The Echelon Racing League Overal Standings for Women’s Elite, B, and C are on mywhooshinfo.com here.
Echelon Racing League Community C Results
In the Echelon Community Women Cat C race, Laura Toconas from Colombia secured first place with a time of 45:58.510. Italy’s Valentina Disegna finished second, just 1.493 seconds behind, followed by compatriot Palma Mongelli in third, 2.284 seconds off the lead. Andrea Smith from USA claimed fourth, with KJ Phillips-Coalition, also from USA, rounding out the top five.
The Women’s Community Cat C results are on mywhooshinfo.com here.
In the Echelon Community Men Cat C race, Nicolás Trujillo from Colombia claimed victory with a time of 44:14.327. Guillaume Laforest from Canada finished a close second, just 0.356 seconds behind, followed by Colombia’s Jhon Jairo Calderon in third, 0.540 seconds off the lead. Rodolphe Bertrand of Canada took fourth, and Beau Theriot from USA rounded out the top five.
The Men’s Community Cat C results are on mywhooshinfo.com here.
Echelon Racing League Community B Results
In the Echelon Community Cat B Women’s race, Julia Lehmann from Canada took first place, followed by Josee Rossignol, also from Canada, in second. Stefanie Sydlik from USA claimed third, with Kristen Hohl, also from USA, finishing fourth. Lynda McCue and Tammy Nishimura, both from Canada, secured fifth and sixth places, respectively.
The Women’s Community Cat B results are on mywhooshinfo.com here.
In the Echelon Community Men Cat B race, Jose Montero Oviedo from Colombia secured first place with a time of 39:34.53. Dave Garguilo from USA finished a close second, just 0.391 seconds behind. Joe Meyer, also from USA, claimed third, followed by Austin Urch in fourth and Scott Cunningham in fifth, both representing USA.
The Men’s Community Cat B results are on mywhooshinfo.com here.
Semi-retired after more than 20 years as the owner and director of a private Orthopedic Physical Therapy practice, Chris now enjoys the freedom to dedicate himself to his passions—virtual cycling and writing.
Driven to give back to the sport that has enriched his life with countless experiences and relationships, he founded a non-profit organization, TheDIRTDadFund. In the summer of 2022, he rode 3,900 miles from San Francisco to his “Gain Cave” on Long Island, New York, raising support for his charity.
His passion for cycling shines through in his writing, which has been featured in prominent publications like Cycling Weekly, Cycling News, road.cc, Zwift Insider, Endurance.biz, and Bicycling. In 2024, he was on-site in Abu Dhabi, covering the first live, in-person UCI Cycling Esports World Championship.
His contributions to cycling esports have not gone unnoticed, with his work cited in multiple research papers exploring this evolving discipline. He sits alongside esteemed esports scientists as a member of the Virtual Sports Research Network and contributes to groundbreaking research exploring the new frontier of virtual physical sport. Chris co-hosts The Virtual Velo Podcast, too.
