L39ION of Los Angeles sweeps podium at Salt Lake Criterium

Tyler Williams won his fourth race of the season and led the way for a trio of L39ION of Los Angeles riders to dominate the podium for the Salt Lake Criterium on Saturday. It was the third stop for USA CRITS, held in downtown Salt Lake City, Utah, and Tyler Williams' first victory in the series.

Trailing Tyler Williams with arms in the air were Cory Williams in second and brother Justin in third. All six riders on the L39ION squad were among the 61 riders to finish the fast one-kilometre course in the lower slopes of the Wasatch Mountains under sunny skies and sweltering heat.

“We didn’t expect to go 1-2-3, but it was pretty special,” Tyler Williams said, noting that the team recently added Lance Haidet and Hunter Grove to the roster. Sam Boardman completed the roster for the weekend in Utah.

“To go 1-2-3 especially yesterday, we had two guys that we hadn’t been racing with in the crits, who just stepped in and did an amazing job, slotting in to big jobs that we asked them to do. Lance and Hunter did an awesome job finding their place and being calm and doing exactly what we needed them to do.”

Teams in the mix with L39ION of Los Angeles throught out the one-hour race included Best Buddies Racing, Aevolo, Butcherbox Cycling and Automatic Racing.

“I don’t know how much elevation effected us, as much as the heat probably, but we were able to keep it pretty controlled in the front, so we didn’t have to over-exert ourselves and go into the red at any point. So we rode it really smart. It was a really well-executed race," Tyler Williams added.

Through the first two events of USA CRITS leaderboard, L39ION of Los Angeles riders had a stronghold on the top three position as Justin Williams was the overall leader followed by brother Cory, then Tyler Williams. Thomas Gibbons (Automatic Racing) was fourth and Connor Sallee (ButcherBox Cycling) was fifth.

In the women’s pro race, Harriet Owen (InstaFund Racing) won the bunch sprint from a group of 13 riders for the Salt Lake Criterium win. Christina Gokey-Smith (Colavita/HelloFresh Womens Pro) was second and Mia Kilburg (DNA Pro Cycling Team) was third. After the first two events of the season, Skylar Schneider (L39ION of Los Angeles) was atop the leaderboard for women. Owen and Gokey-Smith were fifth and sixth, respectively, overall.

The second annual Salt Lake Criterium returned after a year’s hiatus because of the coronavirus pandemic on Saturday. A second day of racing has been added for the weekend, with downtown Holladay hosting events for pros and amateurs on Sunday. The two-day event is part of USA CRITS, with nine races across the US building to the finals in Winston-Salem, NC on September 24.