Fitchburg, MA - John Murphy closed out the July 4th weekend with a bang, taking the final stage of the Fitchburg Longsjo Classic Sunday.

"I guess I have some pretty good sprinting legs going right now," Murphy said following the Worker's Credit Union Downtown Criterium.

Murphy followed a stellar lead-out by super domestique Tim Johnson into the final corner 300 meters from the finish, and jumped hard to open up a gap, which he was able to hold to the line.

"During the first part of the race we were just trying to cover moves," Murphy said. "Toward the end of the race, (Matt) Crane and Tim took me to the front, and Tim did a tremendous leadout to get me to the last corner first," Murphy said. "From there, I just tired to hold on. It was a long sprint." The win continues what is becoming a break-out season for the 23-year-old from Athens, GA.

Notes

The four-man squad, which also included Matt Cooke, was attentive and active during the race, with Johnson also setting up Murphy to win one of the sizable crowd primes.

Cooke showed good form ahead of his trip to the Cascade Classic this week by finishing 7th overall at Fitchburg. Cooke will be a key player in helping team leaders Phil Zajicek and Rory Sutherland at Cascade.

Health Net - Maxxis family adds new member

Kirk O'Bee had a very big reason to celebrate on July 4, though he may have been a bit tired by the time the evening rolled around. O'Bee welcomed his second child, a healthy seven-pound girl, into the world at 12:36 a.m. on the 4th. As yet, no name for his new daughter.