News & Press Releases

About the Sonance Specialized Cycling Team

The Specialized/Sonance Masters Racing Team is one of the Nations’ premier bicycle racing organizations that focuses on the Masters racing division.  The Team is comprised of elite level racers with a combined 140+ years of racing with more than 1,000 victories. Team members boast multiple National Champions on the road, time-trial, track and mountain bike disciplines. 

About Sonance

Headquartered in San Clemente, California, Sonance was founded in 1984 by Scott Struthers and Geoff Spencer who introduced the world’s first in-wall loudspeaker system to the consumer electronics market. With distribution in 45 countries around the world, Sonance remains at the forefront of technology by offering innovative solutions that harmoniously blend sound with designs favored by leading custom integrators, architects, interior design professionals and design conscious clients throughout the world.

For further information visit www.sonance.com or contact the company at 212 Avenida Fabricante, San Clemente, CA 92672, Telephone: 800-582-0771.

About Specialized Bicycle Components

Specialized Bicycle Components of Morgan Hill, California, founded in 1974, is a leader in bicycle design and manufacturing. Check out their web site www.specialized.com  for your nearest dealer

Sonance/Specialized Rider Repeats at Nationals
Seven Springs, PA—July 5-11, 2007, — The Sonance/Specialized Masters Cycling Team took home 6 top 5 places at the Road Nationals including 3 National Championship titles. The Time Trial, Road Race and Criterium championships were all held in Seven Springs, Pennsylvania.  Thurlow Rogers won the 45-49 age class National Title in the Time Trial and Road Race repeating as National Champion. His time of 30:28.42 for the 30km Time Trial was over 25 seconds ahead of the 2^nd place time. Steve Strickler won the 70+ Men’s Tandem Time Trial championship teaming up with another rider on a tandem bike. The criteria for this class were that both riders age had to add up to over 70. Malcolm Hill came in 2^nd in the 50-54 age class Road Race narrowly missing his chance to repeat as National Champion. The same thing happened to Steve in the 45-49 Criterium race as he lost out in a very close sprint for the National Title. Malcolm also placed 4^th in the 50-54 age class Criterium.  Many of the Sonance/Specialized riders will travel to Austria for the World Championships. Thurlow is the defending world champion in the Time Trial and hopes to repeat there as he did at the National Championships.

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Sonance/Specialized Rider Jay Wolkoff wins State Title
Dominguez Hills, CA—24 June 2007— Jay Wolkoff of the Sonance/Specialized Masters Cycling Team capped off a very successful season by winning the SCNCA State Criterium Championships. The race held on the familiar Dominguez Hills Criterium course was Jay’s 7^th win of the season in Southern California Races. Jay received great team support to win the title. Teammates Henry Schnepf and Steve Strickler finished 3^rd and 4^th respectively. Jay’s next race will be the National Championships which are held near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in July. Since Jay grew up in the surrounding Pittsburgh area he will be doing his best to have a great homecoming.

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Sonance/Specialized Rider Thurlow Rogers wins Road Title
Bakersfield, CA—10 June 2007— Thurlow Rogers of the Sonance/Specialized Masters Cycling Team rode away from the field at the SCNCA (Southern California/Nevada Cycling Associations) Road Race Title for 45+ riders.  Helped initially by his teammates Malcolm Hill and Steve Strickler, Thurlow decided to take things into his own hand and won the race easily. Malcolm Hill finished 3^rd and Steve Strickler finished 5^th overall. Thurlow has won countless State and National titles and hopes to repeat as World Champion in the coming months. In the near term , the Sonnance/Specialized team will travel to Pennsylvania to defend the many titles they won there last year.

Sonance/Specialized Rider Breaks Course Record
Lake Los Angeles, CA—19 May 2007— Thurlow Rogers of the Sonance/Specialized Masters CyclingTeam successfully defended his Pro 1,2 State Time Trial title and broke his own course record logging an impressive 46:19 for the 23.5 mile course. The time, which calculates to over 30 mph, shows that Thurlow is still one of the best Time Trialist in the Nation no matter which age group. This is the discipline that he won the World Championships last year in and the Masters Nationals and World Championships are on his agenda in the coming months. Steve Strickler placed 3rd and Malcolm Hill placed 4th in their respective age group classes. Both rode their best times for this course coming close to breaking the 50 minute barrier. He and several of his Sonance/Specialized teammates will be traveling to the State of Pennsylvania in July to defend their National Championship titles.

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Sonance/Specialized Continues Winning Ways
Orange County, CA—12 May 2007— The Sonance/Specialized Masters Cycling Team continues it’s winning ways after a very successful 2006 season. The Southern California Based team led by Ex-Pro Thurlow Rogers has racked up an impressive list of wins to start off the 2007 Season. Thurlow has concentrated mainly on the Pro 1,2 category for his early season racing and leads the California Bicycle Racing Organizations Best All around Rider (BAR) in both the Pro 1,2 and the 30+ 1,2,3 Categories. Steve Strickler has won 4 races so far this season including the Roger Millikan Criterium and Garret Lemire Memorial Criterium. Both of these races attract the best riders in the area in the early season and Steve utilized his good early season form to win. He is currently second in the 45+ SoCal Cup Series.  Other Team members that have won races this season include Dan Vogt (3 wins), Jay Wolkoff (3 wins), Michael Johnson (2 wins), Malcolm Hill, Fred Hoblit, Ed Kurzenski and Tim Black.The team now prepares for the championship time of the year with the Masters State Time Trial, Road Race and Criterium races all happening in the next month. Many of the riders will return to the State of Pennsylvania in July to defend their National Championships. Sonance/Specialized took home 6 National Titles last season.

Rogers wins World TT championship
St. Johann, Austria—August 23, 2006— Thurlow Rogers of the Sonance/Specialized Cycling team won the UCI World Masters Time Trial Championships held today in St. Johann, Austria competing in the 45-49 age category. Thurlow won the Road Race World Championships last year but placed only 4th in the time trial. He came into this years race well prepared following his wins at the USCF National Championships in both the Time Trial and Road Race and finishing 2nd to teammate Steve Strickler in the National Criterium championship. Thurlow’s winning time was 25 minutes and 25 seconds over the 20km course. Thurlow competed Sunday in a World Cup race, placing 4th in the younger 40-44 age category in preparation for the time trial held on Wednesday. The World Road Championship for his age category will be held this coming Saturday and he and Steve Strickler will both be competing.

Steve Strickler wins CA State Road Race

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Vogt of Sonance/Specialized leads Omnium Series

Carson, CA—June 3, 2006—Dan Vogt of the Sonance/Specialized Cycling Team won the Pro 1,2 June Coffee Omnium held at the Los Angeles Velodrome in the ADT Event Center in Carson, California by winning 3 of the 4 races that make up the Omnium. The Track Omnium consisted of an Elimination Race, Scratch Race, Points Race and Tempo Race with the most consistent finisher winning the event. Dan won each of the races except for the Scratch race where he placed 2^nd. Dan leads the LA Velodrome series after 5 events holding a commanding lead in the series.

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Jay Wolkoff wins Barry Wolfe Grand Prix Race

Woodland Hills, CA—May 28, 2006—Sonance/Specialized rider, Jay Wolkoff won the 45+ category at the Barry Wolfe Memorial Race on Sunday to celebrate the Memorial Day weekend. The Sonance/Specialized riders dominated the other places with Thurlow Rogers (2^nd), Keith Ketterer (3^rd), Steve Strickler (6^th) and Malcolm Hill (10^th).   Thurlow also placed 5^th place in the 35+ category and Malcolm and Keith placed 2^nd and 12^th respectively in the 50+ race. The Sonance/Specialized riders continue to dominate the 45+ category this season. Steve Strickler maintains his lead in the SoCal Cycling Cup and Sonance/Specialized riders hold 6 of 10 spots in the overall 45+ category.  With these results they easily outdistance the next master’s team by doubling the points.

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Sonance/Specialized Rider Ed Kurzenski wins State Title

Hawaii, HI—May 21, 2006—Sonance/Specialized rider, Ed Kurzenski won the Hawaii state TT championship in the 50+ age category with a time of 1:03:29 for the 41km course. The race was held on the Big Island of Hawaii on Sunday May 21 on a portion of the Iron Man world championship course under brutal conditions. Prevailing winds in the area were reportedly blowing across the course at a 70 degree angle with a velocity around 20-25 mph with gusts reaching over 35. Of the 60 plus riders starting only two broke one hour. Ed’s time was the 4th fastest of the day for all categories.

Ed, with this win, continues to lead the Hawaii Cycling Cup with a perfect score of 50 points after 4 events

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Sonance/Specialized Riders take home State TT Titles

Lake Los Angeles, CA—May 13& 20, 2006—Sonance/Specialized riders, Thurlow Rogers, Keith Ketterer and Tim Black won State Time Trial Championships in their respective categories on the flat and fast Lake Los Angeles Time Trial Course. The Time Trial is a race against the clock where each participant competes individually and the person with the quickest time wins the race. No drafting or help from other riders is permitted. It is known in cycling terms as the “Race of Truth”.

Thurlow won the Pro 1,2 category in a time of 47:51 for 23.5 miles. This was slightly slower this year after setting the course record of 47:14 last year when winds were more favorable. Keith won in a time of 48:48 which was a personal record on this course for him easily outdistancing his next competitor in the 50-54 age class.  He had the 6^th fastest time of the day independent of category! Tim finished first in the 45-49 age class squeaking out a one second victory of the next competitor.

Matt Ford, owner of Rock ‘N Road Cyclery and sponsor for Sonance/Specialized won the Category 3 class in a time of 50:58 easily outdistancing his nearest competitor by over 1 minute.

The following Saturday Sonance/Specialized won the Team Time Trial over the same course. The team of Steve Strickler, Malcolm Hill, Keith Ketterer and Thurlow Rogers won easily in a time of 46:20. They raced in the combined age group (180+) and had the second fastest time going slower only to the open category racers!

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Sonance/Specialized Riders win at Ontario Race

Ontario, CA—May 14, 2006—Sonance/Specialized riders, Keith Ketterer and Steve Strickler won the 45+ and 40+ age category Criterium races as part of the Ontario Point Series held on Sunday in Ontario. In addition to the individual wins the Sonance/Specialized team dominated the overall field results with Dan Vogt and Jay Wolkoff taking 2^nd and 4^th respectively in the 40+ race and Jay, Steve , and Malcolm Hill taking 2^nd, 4^th and 7^th respectively in the 45+.  After 3 events Dan leads the points series for 40+ with Steve in 4^th and Jay in 6^th. In the 45+ category Jay leads with Keith and Thurlow Rogers in 2^nd and 3^rd. The series has 2 more races to go ending at the end of August with the winners taking home medals and cash prizes. Awards will also be given to the top 3 teams based on overall points scored in all categories.

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The “O” Show Conquers the Canyon and Competition

Westlake Village, CA—April 22-23, 2006— Sonance/Specialized rider, Johnny O’Mara won the first Annual Conquer the Canyons Westlake Village Stage Race in the 45+ Masters category. The event took place in near Westlake Village and the challenging Santa Monica Mountains. O’Mara aka “The O Show” is a two-time national Master NORBA champion but is more famous for his Supercross and Motorcross exploits in the 1980s winning National Championships for AMA Supercross in 1983 and 1984. He was inducted into the Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2000. O’Mara has shown his versatility in all types of racing and the Conquer the Canyons Stage Race proved again his extra-ordinary capabilities. Consistent results over the three events gave him the win over teammate Malcolm Hill (also an ex Motorcycle racer) by 34 seconds. Steve Strickler and Keith Ketterer placed 3^rd and 4^th to round out the sweep for Sonance/Specialized. Thurlow Rogers, who won the opening time trial, played an important team support role for O’Mara in the Road Race.

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Mueller and Rogers win LA County Classic     Download

Dominguez Hills, CA—April 14-16, 2006— Specialized/Sonance riders Michael Mueller and Thurlow Rogers won their respective classes in the Los Angeles County Classic held over the Easter Weekend  at different venues in the greater Los Angeles area. This event put on by the California Bicycle Racing organization was an Omnium event where riders earn points in the three events. Mueller won the 50+ category by placing 4^th in the Time Trial , 1^st in the Road Race and 7^th in the Criterium earning enough points to take home the win. Other Sonance/Specialized riders Eugene Poyorena and Fred Hoblit took 5^th and 9^th respectively in support of Mueller’s win.

Thurlow Rogers raced in the 40+ 1,2,3 race and battled Greg Leibert of Big Orange Racing for the win by one point! Rogers won the Time Trial and the Road Race and came in second to Leibert in the Criterium. Dan Vogt rode in support of Rogers and placed 8^th.

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Sonance/Specialized dominates Vuelta     Download

Santa Clarita, CA—April 8-9, 2006—Sonance/Specialized riders dominated the 45+ category at the Vuelta a Valencia Stage Race held in and around the Santa Clarita area. The race consisted of 3 races with points awarded to the top placers. Keith Ketterer led a sweep of the top spots in the Time Trial with Steve Strickler, Tim Black and Malcolm Hill taking the next places. On the same day the riders lined up for the 2^nd Stage Criterium race. Black took the top place with the team riding support. Ketterer and Hill broke away from the main field to take 3^rd and 4^th place and Steve Strickler continued his dominance of the sprinters by taking the field sprint for 5^th place. The final stage held the next day saw Ketterer take 2^nd place, Steve Strickler 3^rd and Tim Black 5^th. The overall win based off placing and bonus points was taken by Black followed closely by Ketterer. Strickler tied for 4^th place and Jay Wolkoff finished 10^th overall.

Thurlow Rogers raced in the Pro 1,2 race and won the Time Trial race to continue the Sonance/Specialized dominance in that event. He placed high in the other events placing 4^th overall for the entire event in a field that contained one of the strongest teams in the nation, Toyota-United.

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Thurlow Rogers wins Redlands Classic Criterium     Download

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Honolulu, HI —March 5, 2006—The Sonance/Specialized Masters Team rider Ed Kurzenski won the Castle to Hanauma Time Trial this past weekend to take a commanding lead in the Hawaii Cup Series. Ed placed first in the 50+ age category covering the 12 mile course in a time of 30:24. Ed averaged over 24 mile per hour for the course that ran along Kalanianaole Highway. The course went from Kalanianaole through Waimanalo, past Makapuu and Sandy Beach and finished at the crest of Hanauma Bay Park entrance. 

With this win Ed remains on top of the general classification in the Hawaii Cycling Cup Series after two events with a perfect score of 20. The Series is made up of 10 races consisting of Time Trials, Road Races and Stage Races. Among the events that make up the Series are the Hawaii State Time Trial and Criterium Races. Ed was last years winner of the State Criterium championship which will be held in August of this year.

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Vogt of Sonance/Specialized wins Omnium     Download

Carson, CA—March 4, 2006—Dan Vogt of Sonance/Specialized won the Pro 1,2 Silvestri Omnium held at the Los Angeles Velodrome in the ADT Event Center in Carson, California by winning 2 of the 3 races that make up the Omnium. A Track Omnium is a series of races held on the track usually consisting of an Elimination Race, Scratch Race and Points Race with the most consistent finisher winning the event. Dan won the 1st round Elimination Race by dwindling down the field and then attacking with just three riders left. Track racing is very much a team sport and riders with teams benefit from having a teammate to strategize with. In the Elimination race Dan was outnumbered two to one but caught his competitors off guard by attacking before the finish to win the first event.  In the Scratch Race, Vogt was heavily marked by the other teams since he was leading the Omnium. He managed to out sprint the field to win the second event of the omnium.  In the third and final event, the Points Race, Vogt missed the first break but formed a chase group and caught the lead group.  After catching the lead group, Vogt attacked solo and won the last two sprints scoring second in the event and clenching the overall omnium win.

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Kurzenski Qualifies for Senior Olympics     Download

Makaha Beach, Oahu—February 26, 2006—Ed Kurzenski, representing the Sonance/Specialized Masters Cycling Team , won the Makaha Beach Time Trial in the 50+ age category in a time of 25:39 for the 20Km time trial course. Ed, braving the wind and rain and the stiff competition, won the event which qualified him for the National Senior Olympics. He will represent the state of Hawaii at this event.

The Makaha Beach Time Trial is the first of a series known as the Hawaii Cycling Cup and winning this event places Ed at the top of the results. The time trial events bring together many different sports disciplines including cycling and triathlons. There we over 180 participants overall which elevates the prestige of winning this time trial event. The Cycling Cup series will include Road Races, Criteriums and Time Trials with the overall winner winning a cash prize!

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Teamwork pays off at Ontario Criterium     Download

Ontario, CA—February 28, 2006—The Sonance/Specialized Masters Racing Team racing at the 8^th Annual “Dare to Race” Criterium used strong team tactics to bring home top places in all the Masters’ categories. Apparently they took the name of the race “Dare to Race” to heart!

Keith Ketterer coming off some strong efforts in stage races over the last two months showed that he still has some speed to go along with the strength needed for stage races by finishing first in the 50+ masters category. The race boiled down to three strong teams vying for the top spot. Keith was able to follow a rider from UC Cyclery in a break away attempt. A rider from ACME joined the two. Sonance teammates along with the other teams represented in the break away covered any other attempts at catching the group. In the end, Keith was able to solo away for the win.

Thurlow Rogers soloed away from the field to win the 45+ category race. Taking advantage of the other teams working to bring Thurlow back, last years 45+ State Criterium champion, Jay Wolkoff, sprinted away from the field to take 2^nd place.

In the 40+ category evidently someone informed the field of racers that Sonance/Specialized was here to race. Early in the race some of the other teams put together some strong efforts to get away. The Sonance/Specialized team consisting of Dan Vogt, Thurlow Rogers, Jay Wolkoff, Malcolm Hill and Eugene Poyorena covered many of the attacks and eventually got into what appeared to be winning moves. In racing sometimes a break away has to have the right chemistry to stay away from the main field. This is usually the result of all the people in the break away doing their equal part to make the effort succeed. None of the break away attempts had the right chemistry and each were brought back after some amount of time. That type of strategy plays into the hands of the teams that have strong sprinters. Fortunately for the Sonance/Specialized team they have an answer to this type of situation. Dan Vogt, who won the National Masters team pursuit race on the track in 2005, jumped clear with about 500 meters to go.  He went up the right side of the road and held off the late charging field by 20-30 feet to win the race.

Michael Johnson, back after a year off from racing, joined the team’s success by placing 2^nd in the 30+ race. Michael is a former Pro (Net Zero) and still competes in the Pro 1,2 category much of the time. He has been placing consistently in those races and finished strong at the end in this one. Consistent with the Sonance/Specialized teamwork approach to successful cycling, Dan Vogt and Thurlow Rogers worked with Michael to get a winning break going. In the end, Thurlow provided Michael with a strong lead out and Michael came close to winning in a very competitive category!

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Poyorena wins CBR Anger Management Race     Download

Dominguez Hills - February 20, 2006  The Sonance/Specialized masters racing team added several new riders to their roster for the 2006 cycling season. Eugene Poyorena spent last year chasing his current teammates down at many of the Southern California masters races last year. This year he was added to solidify what is arguably the strongest 50+ masters racing team in the nation and promptly won his fist race in the new Sonance/Specialized racing colors this past Sunday.

While part of the 50+ team was in Phoenix riding the Valley of the Sun Stage Race the other half was in Dominguez Hills for one of the many CBR criteriums held at this venue during the year. After the end of the race, many of the racers probably should have been in Anger Management class! Eugene was helped in the race by perennial strongmen Henry Schnepf and Fred Hoblit. Fred is also a new addition to the team!

The race started out in fairly nice weather but in the middle of the race the rains came. Unfortunately for the competitors the rain couldn’t cool off the threesome. One after the other the three launched attacks on the field with each attack softening up the competitors until Eugene completed the day and the class by jumping ahead with 3 laps to go and holding a commanding lead to the finish. Henry finished second in the field sprint (3^rd place) and Fred was 7^th to dominate the field.

The CBR sponsors a Best All-around Racer (BAR) competition and Fred with his consistent top finishes is leading the series. Henry is in 3^rd place and Eugene in 7^th place in the overall series.

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Ketterer takes 2^nd at Valley of the Sun     Download

Phoenix, AZ - February 20, 2006  Keith Ketterer of Camarillo, California racing for the Sonance/Specialized Masters Racing team placed 2^nd in the Prestigious Valley of the Sun Stage Race 45+ category held in Phoenix, AZ this past weekend. Keith along with teammate Mike Mueller of El Cajon, California battled strong teams from Arizona to take home 2^nd place overall in the three day stage race. In the first event, KK, as his teammates fondly call him, easily outpaced the competition in the Individual time trial taking the 22km race against the clock in a fast time of 31:46:00. This gave KK a time advantage over 2^nd place Corky Kurtz of Team RPM (a local Scottsdale team) of 27 seconds.

Mike Mueller finished in a respectable time of 34:52 but his work was just starting. In the next day’s 42 mile Road Race, Mike would provide valuable support by chasing any break away attempts by other riders and teams in order to preserve KK’s time advantage. At the end of the race time bonuses are awarded for 1^st, 2^nd and third place in the Road Race. It was Mike’s job to keep KK close and then hopefully lead him to the finish line to capture some of the bonuses. Keith’s major competitor in second place had 5 teammates tasked with helping him win so Mike had his work cut out for him. At the end KK was able to bring home 2^nd place overall after the three events finishing behind the strong team of Team RPM and Corky Kurtz. This is a testament to his strong determination and a gutsy performance by Mike providing the support.

At the end of last year KK started concentrating on improving his Time trialing which resulted in a 5^th place at the World Championships in Austria last August. He has taken this new found discipline and parlayed it into becoming one of the Nations top master’s stage racers. Both Mike and KK will be major players in the seasons other Stage Races and in the State, National and World Championships to be held this summer.

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Sonance/Specialized top Masters at Valentines Day Criterium   Download

Brea, California - February 12, 2006  The Sonance/Specialized racing team dominated the Roger Millikan Memorial Races held in Brea this past weekend, winning three of the four events they participated in.

Starting the winning streak in the 50+ Masters race was Malcolm Hill, a former National Motorcycle Road Race Champion who broke away and rode to a solo victory after using his teammate’s early aggressive riding to soften the field. Sonance’s Henry Schnepf took 4^th place.

Thurlow Rogers captured impressive back to back wins in the 45+ and 40+ Masters races.  Thurlow Rogers, current Masters World Road Race Champion, used his time trial skills to break away early in both events. Thurlow is well known for his huge break away efforts and is probably the most consistent racer in Southern California. He still competes in the highest cycling category, pulling off an impressive 4^th place in the Pro 1,2 category at the Boulevard Road Race held in Campo, California the preceding weekend, racing against professionals half his age. 

In both the 45+ and 40+ races, the team supported Thurlow by covering any attempts by riders to ride from the main field up to Thurlow and his breakaway companion. Steve Strickler, winner of the prestigious SoCal Cup as most consistent racer in the 45+ category in 2005, and top 5 finisher at the 2005 World Cup race in Austria managed 5^th in the 45+ race and 7^th in the 40+ races. Other top placers for the Sonance/Specialized team included Dan Vogt (9^th in the 40+ race) and Malcolm Hill (12^th in the 45+ race). Both Steve and Dan competed again and finished in the top 10 of the 35+ race as well. Michael Johnson was the top finisher for Sonance/Specialized in the 35+ finishing in 6^th place.

The Sonance/Specialized team will be competing in races almost every weekend from now until September. The team plans on racing the State, National and World Championships and if the early results are any indication the team should do well.

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Kurzenski wins Hawaii State Master Criterium     Download

Honolulu, Hi – May 19, 2005  Ed Kurzenski of Honolulu, Hi. won the 45+ Master State Criterium championship held in leeward Oahu in May of 2005. The race was run over a flat windy one mile course on the former Barber’s Point military reserve. The field was large and there where many animators to the action including long time Hawaiian racer Ray Brust, multiple Dick Evans Road Race winner Garret Ito, and another new transplant to Hawaii veteran DC Velo racer Tony Lang also was in the mix. Ed was able to win a race punctuated with many breakaway attempts in a field sprint. Ed, a member of the Sonance/Specialized masters racing team, is on a 2-3 year work assignment in Hawaii and hails from Southern California. aHa

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Industry News

Contact Information

Mark Hoffenberg
Sonance/Specialized Racing
25741 Atlantic Ocean Dr
Lake Forest, CA 92630-8863

Office:	949.206.0606
Fax:	949.206.0602
Cell:	949.370.7600
Web:	http://www.VisionVelo.com/
Email:	Mark@avisions.com