Bike World News

Rory Sutherland of the OUCH Pro Cycling Team Presented by Maxxis has been honored as 2009 Domestic Male Roadie of the Year in the upcoming issue of VeloNews. Sutherland, who finished third in the NRC individual standings after winning that competition in 2007 and 2008, beat out NRC winner Tom Zirbell (Bissell) and sprinter Sebastian Haedo (Colavita-Sutter Home), second in the NRC.

If awarding him the title, VeloNews said of Sutherland: “(He) possesses much of both of (Zirbell’s and Haedo’s) strengths. The OUCH-Maxxis captain can time trial better than almost every rider in North America, he can climb and he can sprint. Most importantly, he can win stage races, as he did at Joe Martin and Nature Valley, winning the latter on the final day’s tough Stillwater Criterium by catching Zirbel with a surprise attack on the last lap.”

Sutherland also possesses slightly more intangible strengths as well. His strong leadership skills helped contribute to results all season, and whenever the team needed a good result, he was often the rider to step up and deliver.

The VeloNews award caps off another strong season for the organization, which saw 2009 mark its seventh year of racing. This season saw the team collect 16 wins, including the National Criterium Championship, and 61 total podiums.

Those results added to an impressive seven-year total that has seen the team reach the top step of the podium 402 times, with a total of 827 podium appearances. In that time, the team’s riders also collected 12 national championships and one world championship, while four riders made Olympic appearances.

And the team will be highly motivated to add to those totals in 2010.

(Article courtesy of Team OUCH)

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