Cry Baby Hill Tops Tulsa Tough Weekend

Tulsa Tough, a weekend full of competitive cycling, comes to an end Sunday. More than 2,000 racers took over downtown trying to win more than $80,000 in prize money.

The crowning event is Day 3 of the race on Tulsa's Cry Baby Hill.

The River Parks Criterium road race is the last of a very long weekend of professional and amateur cycling. The organizers here can't believe that it was 10 years ago that they brought competitive road biking to Tulsa.

"If there's any time that you should be proud to be from Tulsa, Oklahoma, it's today and it's been this whole weekend," said Malcolm McCollam, event director.

Friday night in the Blue Dome District kicked off a weekend full of competitive cycling drawing riders from all over the world. The races heated up Saturday in the Brady Arts District with herds of riders weaving through the crowds.

Everyone looks forward to Sunday, and Tulsa's Cry Baby Hill. That's where cyclists barrel through crowds at the top of Tulsa's Historic Riverview Neighborhood. It's a focus of the event for racers and fans alike.

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"Clear the course! Clear the course; mind the gap! Clear the course!" said Edward Lebowski, referee.

Tulsa's "Cry Baby Hill" where cyclists barrel through crowds at the top of Tulsa's Historic Riverview Neighborhood, has become the focal point of the event for racers and fans alike.

Tulsa Tough's reputation is recruiting more professional cycling teams to compete.

"Any big cyclist should know about Tulsa Tough, it's one of the premiere events in the country," said Craig Stokan, a pro with the Schwinn Team.

"Tulsa is the race to beat, they've got the crowds, big purses and great courses-wide open, smooth roads," said professional cyclist Brice Brookshire.

Race director Malcolm McCollam is proud of what his team built over the past decade.

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"It's just fantastic what we have done here," Race Director Malcolm McCollam said. 

"It just shows people, a small group of committed people - which is what we started with here with Saint Francis Tulsa Tough - put that together with the energy and the grassroots community that we have here you can do anything if you put your mind to it."

A lot of the professional teams I spoke with hope to make Tulsa Tough a permanent destination for future races.