Two Legends Will Lead Toyota-United In 2008
0 Comments Published by Unknown on Monday, September 24, 2007 at 3:50 PM.
Newport Beach, Calif. — Two of the most successful individuals in the history of American bicycle racing will lead the Toyota-United Pro Cycling Team in 2008.
Veteran pro cycling team director Len Pettyjohn will be joined by 17-year pro Scott Moninger to work as Toyota-United’s new director and assistant director, respectively.
Pettyjohn, 66, has worked with some of the most successful U.S. cyclists (Greg LeMond, Davis Phinney, Alexi Grewal and Moninger) while directing a number of domestic teams, including the dominant Coors Light squad of the early 1990s.
Moninger, 41, has 275 victories to his credit and was the winningest active U.S. racer until announcing his retirement last week.
Toyota-United Owner Sean P. Tucker said the pair’s hiring came after an intensive, worldwide search.
“These two gentlemen have a 21-year history together,” Tucker said. “No one is more qualified to lead a team than Len while Scott knows the races and the racers having just capped off a spectacular career of his own.”
Pettyjohn has been living in Boulder, Colo., and working in race promotion since retiring from active team directing in 1994. He has managed the CyberBike Indoor Race Program since 2001 and put on the challenging, one-day Saturn Cycling Classic from 2001 to 2003. His experience as a director includes the Coors Light team (1989-94), Crest team (1988-90), the Lowrey’s women’s team (1987-89), the Lowenbrau team (1985-87), the American Savings/Dia-Compe team (1982-84) and the Panasonic team (1980-81).
“I’ve considered a number of team offers over the past decade, but nothing remotely of the caliber that Toyota-United had to offer,” Pettyjohn said. “For Scott and me to join such a high-level organization, with a world-class sponsor and a stellar group of riders that are a force in ProTour caliber races, is just exceptional.”
Moninger is a four-time winner of the Cascade Cycling Classic and the Nevada City Classic, a two-time winner of the Tour of the Gila, the Redlands Bicycle Classic, and the International Tour De ‘Toona. He was twice the individual champion of the National Race Calendar series, in 1992 and 2005. He raced for six different professional teams during his pro career: Coors Light (1991-94), Chevrolet-Los Angeles Sheriff (1995-96), Navigators Insurance (1997-98), Mercury (1999-2002), Health Net presented by Maxxis (2004-06) and BMC (2007). Born in Atlanta, Ga., he grew up in Wichita, Kan., and now lives in Boulder.
“I am confident that Scott and Len will ambitiously take us to the next level in our quest to continue to be the leading domestic team in pro cycling,” Tucker said. “Both have competed and managed athletes at the sport’s highest levels. I can’t wait to see what they can accomplish with the talent we have on our roster for 2008.”
Megan Gillam, engagement marketing manager for the team’s title sponsor, Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc., echoed Tucker’s enthusiasm for the new hires.
“We are thrilled to welcome Len and Scott to the Toyota-United family,” Gillam said. “Their collective experience and passion for the sport of cycling will be a powerful catalyst in driving this incredible team to an even higher level of success.”
Toyota-United’s 2008 roster will include three powerful new riders – Ben Day and brothers Hilton Clarke and Jonny Clarke.
“In Ben Day, we have a proven stage racer and elite time trialist,” Pettyjohn said. “Hilton Clarke has demonstrated he is one of the fastest sprinters in North America and Jonny is a versatile young rider with a great deal of potential.”
Toyota-United returns the core of its roster that scored 37 victories and 105 podium finishes in 2007. The squad was the only domestic pro cycling team to win races in all three “grand tour” bicycle races in the United States: the Amgen Tour of California, the Tour de Georgia and the Tour of Missouri. In 2008, Americans Chris Wherry (2005 USPRO road champion) and Chris Baldwin (2003 and 2005 national time trial champion) will join Cuban sprint sensation Ivan Dominguez (14 wins) and B World Road Race Champion Ivan Stevic of Serbia, along with veteran Australian strongman and lead-out specialist Henk Vogels.
“The key goals for Scott and me were to add some additional strength and speed to an existing group of champions,” Pettyjohn said. “With Ben, Hilton, and Jonny on board, we are pretty comfortable that Toyota-United will bring some serious horsepower to the peloton next season.”
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