The 2006 Verge Mid Atlantic Cyclo-cross Series announced its 2006 campaign this week. Verge MAC, the East’s largest cyclocross series, will once again span some of the world’s largest media markets, including New York, Philadelphia and Washington, DC, including a new venue in New Hope, Pennsylvania, where races will be held on two consecutive days on a private estate. The series also returns to the “Amphitheater of Pain” in Bridgeton, NJ -- where last year the sports pages of the Press of Atlantic City gave the race top billing over NASCAR and Michelle Kwan’s attempt at another National Figure Skating Championship at the nearby Atlantic City Conventions Center.
The series also introduces a new category; the “Elite Masters” class, one of 14 amateur and professional individual championships (and one team championship) on the line for this year’s campaign. According to Verge MAC Series Director Mike Hebe, “With the inception of the new Elite Masters class, Verge MAC is recognizing the depth of talent that toes the line for our races. At any race last year, there were nine different riders in the Masters field who had won at least one event in the greater Mid-Atlantic region in the previous year. With that high level of talent, we wanted to recognize and highlight what is a very deep and fast field and hopefully the addition of a deeper prize list for the fastest 35+ racers will meet that end.”
