But first, a footnote from the 1970s. In 1979, although only 17 years old, Greg LeMond was permitted to ride the Tour of Somerville men’s 50-mile senior race as a junior. Remarkably, he almost won, finishing third. Later that summer, he competed in the World Junior Road Championships in nearby Princeton, where he won the gold.
The 1980s were a decade that brought sponsorship money, huge crowds, top-flight world talent, and the National Criterium Championship to town. As race promoter Pop Kugler boasted to anyone who would listen, “our Somerville race is now second only to the national championships.” Corporations like Lowenbrau beer, 7-11 stores, Raleigh bicycles, and Hoechst pharmaceuticals helped support bicycle racing. The biggest draw of competitors and energy-charged crowds was probably in 1980 and 1981. Five-time winter Olympic speed skating gold medal winner Eric Heiden had become an American sports legend overnight. He turned to bike racing and eventually joined the 7-11 team as a solid competitor. Estimated crowds of 30,000 lined up five deep around the 1.2-mile circuit to get a glimpse of Heiden and cheer him on to top-20 finishes. In 1984, without Heiden on the team,7-11’s Davis Phinney of Boulder, Colorado, won here and helped put the stamp on the team’s eventual success in the Tour de France. Probably one of the best stories to come out of the 1985 race was the Eaton siblings winning both the men’s and women’s pro categories. Both had raced Somerville prior with Sophie Eaton even winning the midget race (combined boys and girls race) in 1976. After clipping off the front in the last 200 meters Sophie Eaton, nabbed the women’s race. This added a bit of pressure on Matt to win the men’s race, but as Sophie revealed in an interview after her win, they had decided they would both try to win as a present to their parents. Matt managed to find himself in the right move in the closing laps and held on to the win from roughly 500 meters out.
Meanwhile, the Canadians continued their Somerville success with wins by Steve Bauer (1980, 1983) and Gary Tevisiol (1982). In the women’s race, Karen Strong of Ontario won three consecutive crowns (1979, 1980, 1981). American Sue Novara-Reber of Michigan matched that trifecta with three of her own in 1982, 1983, and 1984. Rounding out the decade, men’s race foreign winners included Italy’s Roberto Gaggioli in 1988 and New Zealander Graeme Miller in 1989.
