PORTLAND, Ore. -- Some of the top riders in the world are in town for the Alpenrose Velodrome Challenge this weekend.
“It should be a highlight for our spectators and an exciting race,” said Charlie Warner, the race promoter. “They might be distracted by the Tour de France now, which is kind of like a big chess match, where as this is more like an exciting video game. You know, you get action and different kinds of action every five or six minutes.”
One of the riders leading the way is 30-year-old Canadian Travis Smith. He is the number one sprinter in the world and has an eye on the 2012 Olympic Games.
“What I’m doing here is all the speed events.” says Smith. “We hit speeds up to anywhere close to 50 miles per hour. One of the events is a flying 200 meters which is basically a seeding. It’s like a flying lap."
Smith especially likes the head-to-head competition: "Anything where you’re paired up against one other guy," said Smith.
He's excited to ride outside in the sun at Alpenrose, since most velodromes are now indoors.
"When you ride a track like here, it’s outdoors and that’s different than what we’re used to, because everything nowadays is indoors. You have no elements to deal with,” said Smith.
Alpenrose Velodrome was built more than 40 years ago and this event is now in its 11th year.
The Velodrome Challenge will feature more than 100 elite men, women and Masters.
The racing starts on Friday at 6pm and runs about two and a half hours. The weekend hours begin at 10am on Saturday and 4pm Sunday afternoon.
All races are free to the public .
