CYCLING: Inaugural Race Will Hit the Streets of Watsonville This Weekend

Armed with a rich landscape that offers a little bit of everything, the Watsonville area has attracted cyclists towards its borders for years.

On Saturday, the city will turn the courting process off and instead become a gracious host to over 200 pro and amateur cyclists as the inaugural hits the streets of downtown Watsonville.

Beginning on the corner of Union and Alexander streets, the L-shaped course is an eighth of a mile long and will allow spectators to see the riders zoom by every 90 seconds.

Mark Davis, an organizer of the 2-year-old Scotts Valley Grand Prix, turned his attention towards guiding another fresh-faced race into the Santa Cruz County cycling calendar.

“The California Giant Berry Farms VP of Sales also runs the Giant Berry cycling team,” Davis said. “He’s been approached in the past about setting something up, but didn’t decide to go for it until this year. It’s a perfect sized course. Riders come by quickly. It’s going to be very exciting.”

Sponsored by the Berry Farms in conjunction with the annual Strawberry Festival, is free to spectators and will feature a Pro Women’s race at 3:30 p.m., a Kids Ride at 4:40 and the Pro Men’s race at 5:20 Saturday.

All kids are required to wear a helmet and sign a waiver form before getting to ride the course in between the two pro races.

“It’s a built-in audience having the race accompany the ,” Davis said. “The one right turn on the course is pretty hairy. Riders that can’t hold their line will have to slow down or things could get interesting. It will be a lot of fun to watch.”

Once news officially broke about the new race coming to town, one of the happiest Watsonville residents was professional cyclist Ben Jacques-Maynes.

Jacques Maynes, along with his brother Andy Jacques-Maynes, ride professionally for the No. 1 ranked cycling team in the United States, the Bissell Pro Cycling Team.

“I moved into the Santa Cruz area to go to school at UC Santa Cruz,” Ben Jacques-Maynes said. “A lot of my rides ended up with me heading into South County. It’s a lot easier to get in a long ride down here (Watsonville). The area really fits what I need, especially for my training.”

Still on the mend, Jacques-Maynes isn’t completely back to 100 percent, but the local rider will be back on his bike next weekend.

Unfortunately for the hometown pro, the Bissell schedule takes his team to Chicago for the first weekend in August to take part in the Tour of Elk Grove, a key mid-season race for Jacques-Maynes and the top-ranked Bissell team.

“I was super excited when I heard the news about the race,” Jacques-Maynes said. “I’d really like to represent my hometown, but the Tour of Elk Grove isn’t a race I can miss. I’ll be in the Chicago-area that weekend, but my heart will definitely be in Watsonville.”

Jacques-Maynes said his legs are back in form, but his shoulder still isn’t quite where it needs to be yet. He plans on having surgery to alleviate some of the lingering discomfort in the winter.

His Bissell team commitments take him all across the country during the year, but he always enjoys to head back home and take in the unique landscape of his hometown.

“The diversity of the roads is one of the reasons cyclists like the area so much,” Jacques-Maynes said. “One minute you could be riding on a one lane mountain road and the next you’ll be riding through a wide lane that goes through a farm field. It’s a working class community and they really know there stuff about cycling.”

Saturday’s race’s are expected to attract around 200 cyclists to the city. Davis is hoping to see 50-75 kids participate in the afternoon kids ride. The event is also still looking for volunteered to help work the course on race day. For more information, check out the Strawberry Crown Criterium Facebook page or email events@syzygysportsgroup.com.