GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., – The BISSELL Pro Cycling Team announces the signing of its first 10 riders for the 2010 season, including seven returning riders and three additions to the roster. BISSELL Homecare, Inc. will remain the team owner and title sponsor, as part of the company’s commitment to healthy living inside and outside of the home, and its support of competitive cycling throughout the world. Team manager Glen Mitchell and team director Eric Wohlberg will also continue in their roles for 2010. The team’s lineup of riders, sponsors and other supporters will help it achieve its 2010 goal to return as the commanding team in the United States. In 2009, BISSELL Pro Cycling captured the overall team classification wins at top U.S. races, the Tour of Gila, Joe Martin Stage Race, Mt. Hood and the Nature Valley Grand Prix.

Ben Jacques-Maynes leads the team after another strong year, in which he demonstrated his ability to compete against the world’s best through his outstanding results at the Tour of California, Nevada City and Tour of Missouri. Co-leader Frank Pipp will support Jacques-Maynes with his wealth of experience and ability to captain the riders — a major part of the team’s success in 2009. New Zealand time trial champion, Jeremy Vennell and all-around powerhouse, Andy Jacques-Maynes, will also return and provide depth to the roster.

New to the 2010 team is criterium strongman, Kyle Wamsley. Wamsley’s 2009 results include two top-five stage wins at the Tour of Missouri, as well as a stage win and the overall points jersey at the Redlands Classic. In 2008, Wamsley won the overall at the Fitchberg Classic and took the NRC victory at the Cox Charities Cycling Classic. Current New Zealand criterium champion Pete Latham will add to BISSELL’s threat in the sprint.

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Zirbel wins Meijer Grand Cycling Classic

Grand Rapids, MI - Tom Zirbel didn’t disappoint his Bissell sponsors hometown fans of Grand Rapids, MI, as he wins his first race after becoming the number one ranked rider on USA Cycling’s National Racing Calendar (NRC). Zirbel attacked his breakaway companion, former teammate Jake Rytiewski of Kenda Tire, with 1½ laps to go to claim the victory on the Meijer Grand Cycling Classic’s historic red bricks.

Zirbel and Rytiewski got away from the field about half-way into the 60 lap race. A few teams tried to cover the break, including Subway-Avanti and Priority Health West, but Kenda and Bissell kept those moves in check, liking their chances with the Zirbel/Rytiewski pair up the road. The two kept a pretty steady 17 second gap, and then with a lap and a half to go, Zirbel made his move.

“Jake’s a fantastic sprinter,” Ziebel said of Rytiewski.” I was not comfortable going to the line with him in a two-man sprint, so I knew I had to try to get away from him. ”

Zirbel opened up his gap on the finishing straight of the final lap, and had a comfortable lead 1km later at the line. Rytiewski left nothing in the tank, doing the lions share of the work in the break. He was rewarded with the Bissell Most Aggressive Rider Award (a Bissell SpotBot Pet).

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GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., – BISSELL Pro Cycling has removed Kirk O’Bee from the team today, immediately after learning that the rider has violated its no-tolerance policy agreed to under his contract. The rider’s actions are an isolated incident that occurred independently and without the knowledge of both team management and his teammates. BISSELL and each of its team sponsors are committed to fair competition, and support efforts for an end to performance-enhancing drugs in the sport of cycling through the enforcement of a strict zero-tolerance policy.

“I deeply regret that a mistake I made as an individual will reflect poorly on the entire sport,” said O’Bee in a statement acknowledging his contract violation. “I’d especially like to apologize to my teammates and to my sponsors, and hope that my actions will not damage their good names.”

O’Bee’s termination from BISSELL will not affect the team’s race schedule for the remainder of the year or any other day-to-day team operations.

Separately from BISSELL, the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) and World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) are working with O’Bee to resolve his violation, and the team can make no further comments on this private matter.

ABOUT BISSELL
BISSELL Homecare, Inc. is based in Grand Rapids, Michigan and is a 133-year-old floor care innovator and international marketer of home cleaning products, including sweepers, vacuums, deep cleaning machines and cleaning formulas sold at retail locations worldwide. The company, in its fourth generation of family leadership, is the seventh oldest privately held manufacturing company in the United States.

Nevada City Bicycle Classic 2009 Photo Gallery by Ken Conley

Photo by Ken Conley

Photo by Ken Conley

Photo by Ken Conley

We caught up with busy BenO, as he’s better known, last month at the Tour of California and threw some quickfire questions at him. Check it out!

Also, if you missed the full on interview with Ben by Lyne Lamoureux, you can still read it on our Tour of California coverage blog, here.

The 2009 Amgen Tour of California started today with a Prologue in Sacramento today and RoadBikeReview was there to bring you daily coverage! As we will throughout the 8 day stage race.

Tour of California Prologue roundup:

Pre-Race:

Time trial, finishing speed and aggressivity for the Bissell team at Tour of California by Lyne Lamoureux
Lyne met up with the Bissell team at their pre-season training camp to talk about the upcoming season and the Tour of California, “We’re definitely going to go all guns blazing in the prologue and then it will probably take one or two stages to shake out who’s doing what and then who’s aiming for what with every team but then after that, we definitely will be targeting a few stages. Obviously trying to save Ben and Tom a little bit for the time trial,” Read more here…

Team Bike: Astana Trek Madone 6.9
Ben Coates took time out of his busy day during Astana’s pre-season camp in Santa Rosa to show us Chris Horner’s Trek Madone 6.9. Watch the video here…

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GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., – The BISSELL Pro Cycling Team has finalized its eight-member roster for the 2009 Amgen Tour of California. Team leaders Ben Jacques-Maynes and Tom Zirbel will equally play critical roles in the success of this high-profile race.

Ben Jacques-Maynes returns to this tour with a history of strong results. He placed 16th overall during last year’s Tour of California, and for two consecutive years has placed in the top ten for the time trial.

Zirbel will also battle in the time trial. In 2008, he placed 2nd at the USPRO and 8th at the Stage 5 Tour of California time trials, and also boasts a 1st place victory Tour of Utah 2008 Time Trial. Zirbel is also well-known for his memorable breakaway in last year’s final stage of the Tour of California.

After six years of racing on separate teams, Andy Jacques-Maynes joins his brother Ben in California for his first race back in the pro ranks, following a successful 2008 season. He ranked 2nd in the road race and 3rd in the time trial at Elite U.S. Nationals last year. The BISSELL Tour of California roster will also include New Zealanders, Jeremy Vennell and Peter Latham. Vennell adds to the team’s time trialing strength as the 2009 New Zealand Time Trial Champion. Latham, new to the team for 2009, was a member of the New Zealand Olympic and World’s Track Championship teams.

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GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., – The BISSELL Pro Cycling Team is pleased to announce the signing of Frank Pipp, an addition to the team’s 2009 roster, now 16 riders strong. Pipp was selected for the additional speed he will bring to the team.

“Frank is a proven performer and will be a great asset for BISSELL,” says team manager Glen Mitchell. “He definitely brings another dimension for the team to utilize. In the final kilometers of races, he will be a key rider, whether setting up another team member or utilizing his own fast sprint.”

Pipp, a native of Iron Mountain, Mich., rejoins the Michigan-based team where he started his professional career in 2005. At that time, the team was known as Advantage Benefits-Endeavor.

For more on Pipp and the rest of the BISSELL Pro Cycling Team Roster, visit www.Bissellprocycling.com.

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., – The Kellogg Company, the world’s leading producer of cereal and a leading producer of convenience foods, joins the BISSELL Pro Cycling Team as a key sponsor for the 2009 season. Kellogg’s commitment to nutrition and physical fitness is well aligned with the team and the sport of cycling. Alongside Kellogg, the team continues to be supported by longtime key sponsor, Advantage Benefits Group.

“For five years, we have been proud sponsors of West Michigan’s most successful pro sports team, a team that emphasizes hard work and healthy living,” says Robert Hughes of Advantage Benefits. BISSELL Pro Cycling also welcomes EmploymentGroup, Emerald Spa, and Wynalda Litho to the 2009 Team.

BISSELL is proud to be continuing on Pinarello’s top carbon frame, the “Prince.” All bikes will be professionally fitted with the new Campagnolo Record 11 speed, Easton’s EC and EA range of wheels, Vredestein tires, Speedplay Zero pedals, MOst products (handlebars, stems, cages, posts, saddles and tape), and Blackburn computers.

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GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., – The BISSELL Pro Cycling Team announces that BISSELL Inc. will continue as the title sponsor of one of the country’s top continental cycling teams for 2009. Mark Bissell, Chairman and CEO of BISSELL Inc., builds on his six-year history with cycling by assuming ownership of the team, which will come under the direction and management of Glen Mitchell.

“The team has had a fantastic year and has surpassed the goals that we had in the beginning of the year,” says Mitchell. “I am very excited about becoming more involved with the team, and I look forward to the challenges ahead in building this team to the next level. We have a solid platform of riders from this year and have recruited some talented athletes to strengthen the squad at our targeted races for ’09.” Joining Mitchell on the management team is Eric Wohlberg, who, after 16 years as one of the strongest riders in North America, will assume the new role as Sport Director.

Time trial powerhouses Ben Jacques-Maynes and Tom Zirbel will be returning to next year’s team, and will play key roles as team leaders. Jacques-Maynes was ranked 3rd in this year’s NRC standings, while Zirbel completed his season with an impressive second place finish at the USPRO Time Trial.

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