Mitchell Criterium returns to Fort Mill this weekend

Rock Hill teen Richter expected to be competitive in Category 3 division

By Karl Lyles - klyles@heraldonline.com

Downtown Fort Mill will become a bicycle race course on Saturday, when the second annual Dylan Mitchell Criterium rolls into town.

The races are held in memory of Mitchell, the cyclist who was struck and killed by a car while riding Sept. 2, 2005.

Saturday's races will be divided into categories and age brackets. A Category 5 racer is a beginner; Category 1's are just plain fast.

Will Richter is quickly becoming one of the fast guys. He won the Cat 5 race last year as a 14 year-old competing in the 15-18 age bracket. He was the South Carolina state champion last year in the 10-14 age group. This year, he's the under-18 state champion.

Richter,15, lives and trains in Rock Hill and rides with the Carolina Cyclones team coached by Tega Cay resident Eric Peterson. Richter raced in the Carolina Cup this past weekend in Greensboro, N.C., winning the under-18 race.

“That was a great race for me,” Richter said. Saturday, he will look for another win in the Cat 3 division.

Richter began racing kids in his neighborhood on a mountain bike. When no one could beat him anymore, he asked if he could ride his father's old Triumph road bike.

“I told dad I wanted to race,” Richter said. Richard Richter helped his son get started, and the Carolina Cyclones have kept him busy ever since.

The Cyclones, which travel all over the East Coast, were formed by Peterson in 2005 to provide a way for young cyclists to learn the concepts of training and racing in USA Cycling events. Richter is thriving under Peterson's guidance and the structured training.

Richter wants to become a professional in a few years and perhaps go to Europe and race. Another alternative could have him riding for a college team.

“(Cycling) has helped me be more disciplined and improved my time management skills,” he said.

Saturday's race is another step.

Criteriums are the most popular form of bicycle racing in the United States. Often called “crits,” the races require a mix of good technical skills. The 1-kilometer Fort Mill course will be short and fast. Riders will need the ability to corner smoothly and ride safely with a large group of cyclists. Some courses can measure as much as 5 kilometers.

The Dylan Mitchell Criterium will allow spectators to watch from a single vantage point as a pack of riders zoom past about every 90 seconds. The races drew 150 riders for the first event last September, but organizers are hoping for 250 this year.

“We want to bring more quality-of-life events to Fort Mill,” Fort Mill Parks and Recreation Director Brown Simpson said. “We will have this race on the calendar every September. It is a great opportunity to see some great racing.”

The big race is the Pro 1 and 2, which starts at 4:30 p.m. Those riders might reach 40 mph.

“Those boys will really be going at it,” Simpson said.

The Dylan Mitchell Criterium races begin at 8 a.m. and continue throughout the day.

Mitchell was a lifelong Fort Mill resident. He was a rising senior at the University of South Carolina and a talented bicycle racer who raced for his college team. He rode for the John Deere Junior Development Team locally.

All proceeds from the races will go to the Fort Mill Care Center.

The course starts beside Elisha Park on Audrey Street. Roads in the area will be closed Saturday to make the streets safe for the racers. There will be no parking on those streets beginning at 6 a.m.