T H E R AC I NG PO S T for Cycling Enthusiasts
October 2013
Hotter’n Hell Hundred Weekend Reports
Junior Spotlight Mitchell Erickstad
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Road Races, C r i t s , T T ’s & Cyclocross October 5-6 Six Shooter CX 12 Bexar CX 13 Moravia Face Melter 19 TRP Winter Crit 26-27 Spooky CX
Austin, TX San Antonio, TX San Antonio, TX Fort Worth, TX Dallas, TX
November 2 Houston CX 3 Bayou Cycling Race 9-10 Georgetown CX 16 Colonel’s SHO Air 17 Cedar Hill CX 30 TRP Winter Crit
Houston, TX Houston, TX Austin, TX Fort Worth, TX Cedar Hill, TX Fort Worth, TX
December 7 Bikesport Challenge 8 Terra X 14-15 Tough CX 21 TRP Winter Crit 28-29 Garland CX
Houston, TX The Woodlands,TX Fredericksburg, TX Fort Worth, TX Garland, TX
October 3,10,17
Austin, TX
PURE Driveway Series Two
Tr a c k R a c e s October 4 ATRA Friday Night Omnium Series 4 Superdrome Fall Series 5 The Madison 11 Superdrome Fall Series 18 Superdrome Fall Series 25 Superdrome Fall Series November No Events Scheduled December No Events Scheduled
Katy, TX Frisco, TX Katy, TX Frisco, TX Frisco, TX Frisco, TX
Mountain Bike Races October 5-6 Turkey MTB Festival 5 Road Apple Rally 6 Tyler Grit and Glide 6 Springhill Classic 12-13 Baylor Mountain Blowout 13 Tyler Speedwaves 20 Elk’s Lodge 26-27 Lake Murraython Weekend November 2 6 Hour Dinosuar 3 McMurtry Madness 3 Sasquatch Stampede 16 Palo Duro Canyon MTB Marathon 16 Spillway Scramble 24 Attila Mountain Bike Classic December 1 Triple Threat Time Trials 21 Fat Chucks Revenge
Tulsa, OK Farmington, NM Tyler, TX Barling, AR Waco, TX Tyler, TX Ada, OK Ardmore, OK San Angelo, TX Stillwater, OK Boyce, LA Canyon, TX Norco, LA Hot Springs, AR San Antonio, TX Smithville, TX
Multi-Sport & Adventure Races October 6 Ironhead Women’s Tri Mansfield, TX 6 Meet Your Maker Off-Road Challenge Marble Falls, TX 6 Life Time Tri Dallas Rockwall, TX 12 Muddy Zombie College Station, TX 13 Burnet Tri Hard Challenge Burnet, TX 13 Cy-Fair Tri Cypress, TX 19 5K Foam Fest Austin, TX 20 Monster Denton Triathlon Denton, TX 20 Wiki Wiki Man Triathlon Wills Point, TX 26 Monster Kids Tri Keller, TX 26 Esprit de She Duathlon Grapevine, TX 26 Martindale Tri Martindale, TX 27 Monster Keller Triathlon Keller, TX November 2 WWIII.5 Winnie Wars V Winnie, TX 2 Hook ‘N Ladder Hustle Waller, TX 2 Boots on Ground Veterans Los Fresnos, TX 9 Hell Run Cedar Creek, TX 9 Rugged Maniac 5k Obstacle Race Ennis, TX 9 Great Amazing Race Dallas, TX 9 Best of the Best Triathlon Denton, TX 10 Bronda’s Duathlon Fort Worth, TX 16 MudChug Splendora, TX 16 Great Amazing Race Houston, TX 23 Mighty Mud Dash Houston, TX December 7 Run for Your Lives Cedar Creek, TX 8 Natural Bridge Caverns Duathlon San Antonio, TX 14 Rugged Maniac 5K Obstacle Race Conroe, TX 14 Highland Lakes Camp Polarbear Mud Run Spicewood,TX
To u r s & R o a d Rides *Bicycles Inc ARLINGTON Century of the Month Ride distances for everyone.... 12, 23, 42, 61, 81 & 102 miles. October 5 Wish 100 McKinney, TX 5 Wheels for Meals Fort Davis, TX 5 Pedal Palacios Palacios, TX 5 Bike for Kids’ Sake Abilene, TX 5 Pineywoods Purgatory Lufkin, TX 6 Spirit of Texas Ride Wimberly, TX 11-14 Texas Forts Tour San Angelo, TX 12 *Bicycles Inc. Century of the Month Arlington, TX 12 South Texas Outdoor Life Festival Mission, TX 12 Gainesville Depot Day Bike Rally Gainesville, TX 12 North Texas Bicycle Rally Fort Worth, TX 12-13 Bike MS:Balero Alamo Ride to the River SanAntonio,TX 12-13 Bike Around the Bay Baytown, TX 19 Kiwanis Crazy Kicker Mineral Wells, TX 19 The Heroes Ride Conroe, TX 19 Missions Tour de Goliad Goliad, TX 20 LIVESTRONG Challenge Austin, TX 26 Springtown Spin Springtown, TX 26 Pumpkin Prowl Waller County, TX 26 Autumn in Bonham Bonham, TX 26 Texas Mamma Jamma Ride Georgetown, TX November 2-3 Tour de Gruene New Braunfels, TX 2 Wallis Independence Ride Wallis, TX 2 Mineola Metric Century Mineola, TX 9 *Bicycles Inc. Century of the Month Arlington, TX 16 Fredericksburg Fall Foliage Frolic Fredericksburg, TX 16 Spirit Ride Polk, TX 23 Denton Turkey Roll Denton, TX December 7 *Bicycles Inc. Century of the Month Arlington, TX
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Contents Vol. 13, No. 10
October 2013
Features 4 6 8 10 14 16 22 26 27 30 35 38 38 39
History Ride HHH Winner’s Circle - Nate Sheetz Chappell Hill Cat 5 Road Race Photo Essay - Pro Cycling Challenge - Chris Kobos Los 100 Millas del Punta a Punta My Moon Product Review - Swiftwick Socks Back to California! Elite Track Nationals Three Dallas Riders Attempt the TNGA El Reto Del Quetzal Photo Essay: US Pro Cycling Challenge - Lisa Schwab Megan Baab Memorial Scholarship Intro to Cycling Why I Enjoy Cycling
Regulars 2 9 11 12 17 18 19 20 24 28 29 32 34 36 40
Plan Your Road Trip RBM Rally Report Tri-Talk The View From Back Here Coach Speak West Texas Wind Texas High School Cycling League Update Love Your Ride Mileage Junkie Cadence Cycling - Pedaling Circles Girlfriend Rider Think!Fiance Racing RBM What’s New At The Shop Junior Spotlight Gear Girl
On The Cover: Hotter’n Hell Hundred Rally Start - Just before the gun (HHH stories on pages 6 & 9) Photo by Richard Carter
History Ride! By Nolan Kuehn It’s a ride that smacks of history; beginning with the early morning darkness on the day of the ride. The snakelike procession of vehicles wend their way up the narrow LBJ Ranch roads for parking on the air strip, the necklace of headlights reaching through the foggy mists. Right out of Field of Dreams! Of course, there other reasons why the tag line of the LBJ 100 Bicycle Tour benefitting the friends of LBJ National Historical Park is “A Ride to Preserve History.� Probably the primary reason is that the ride is unique; it’s the only one that’s held on the air strip of a former President’s home. In its seventh edition coming up on March 29, 2014, it’s now arguably the premier springtime cycling event in the scenic Texas Hill Country. For more info on this ride, go to www.LBJ100BicycleTour.org. Certainly the presence of Luci Baines Johnson and her narrated tour by bicycle (included in registration) contributes to this aura of history. A veteran of all past LBJ 100’s, Luci opens by doing one the scenic routes over bucolic country lanes along with all the other riders. After a respite for lunch, she does her tour of the historic landmarks on the ranch at 2:30 PM. Accompanying riders listen to Presidential history from someone who lived it! As an added enticement to experience Presidential history, a ranger-led tour of the Texas White House is also included with registration. The ground floor of this historic residence was opened to the general public in December of 2011. President Johnson spent 25% of his time in office on his beloved ranch – seeking solace from the rigors of his office, certainly, but also conducting presidential business with his Cabinet members under the numerous spreading live oak trees along the banks of the Pedernales River. In fact, Johnson was the first President in history to function with a remote White House. As a side note – the former Secret Service Command Post is a restoration project on the ranch that is partially funded by the Friends. It’s fitting that a ride emanating from the ranch of our “Education President� should feature schools as part of the event. All riders will go past the Junction School on the ranch property – where LBJ went to kindergarten as four year-old in 1912; three restored, rural Gillespie County schools function as rest stops on the routes. The women riders particularly appreciate ‘em; they have real, functioning toilets - no porta-pots! As they traverse the narrow, winding roads of the LBJ Ranch, riders will also see descendants of President Johnson’s historic, prized Hereford cattle herd lazily grazing in adjacent pastures. And finally, as riders begin their routes, they will immediately encounter the Lockheed Jet Star aircraft on display as they wind past the Visitor Center. The small engine jet (that LBJ affectionately called “Air Force 1/2�) was used to quickly whisk the President out of Washington and onto this home soil. As our 36th President was fond of saying, “All the world is welcome here!� We hope you’ll feel the same – as you join us for the 7th Annual LBJ 100 Bicycle Tour of March 29, 2014, with the 2nd Annual Individual Time Trial occurring the next day, March 30.
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HHH Winner’s Circle: Nate Sheetz by TRP Staff
Photo by Dave McLaughlin TRP: Can you give us your name and team. NS: I’m Nate Sheetz;. I ride for Austinbikes/Revenant, Hotter’n’Hell TRP: Why did you go to the event? NS: Back in 2012, when I was racing in the 4s, I felt good about my longdistance abilities and really wanted to do Hotter’n’Hell – a 100 mile race in the 4s, where else can you get that? But I didn’t want it quite bad enough to drive up to Wichita Falls from Austin. So this year, after missing out on my whole Spring season recovering from more broken bones than I can count, I wasn’t going to make the same mistake. TRP: What had you heard about the event? NS: When it comes to HHH, people always warned me about two things: the heat and the wind. But checking the weather report on Friday before driving up with another buddy from Austin, it looked like an unseasonably calm and cool day was on tap: temps in the 80s and single-digit winds.
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TRP: How did you prepare? NS: Anybody who knows me (and they’ve probably heard it out of my mouth enough times to be sick of it) knows I’m no sprinter, so I had mixed feelings about the weather: I’d almost been counting on crosswinds to help break up the pack and pounding heat to enervate the competition. Still, I'd been feeling great on the bike the last few weeks and was itching to see what I could do with a hundred mile race. Honestly I rolled to the line without a solid plan beyond “get away and stay away… some time or other?” TRP: Who did you watch for? NS: Looking for wheels to mark, I recognized TC Porterfield (Park Place) and Tyler Stewart (Dallas Bike Works) in the bunch. They had rounded out the top 5 at the Coleman Chevrolet Stage Race a few weeks back along with me, Said Assali, and Scott Wilkinson (both with Shama and now blessedly ascended to Cat 2). Dan Ronan (also DBW) and my carpool buddy Jordan Oroshiba (Velossimo) were there as well - and I know are riding strong of late. TRP: What were the early miles like? NS: Jordan took off almost from the gun, pulling out about a minute in the early miles. I had to hand it to him for a gutsy move, though the pack seemed totally uninterested in chasing. Then one of those brief “why the hell not?” antsy accelerations brought us within about 50 meters of his wheel before sputtering out. Dan took the opportunity to bridge up, and as they worked together they started to pull out a bigger gap again. I followed another bridging move, turning around to find the bunch right on my tail, and the early move was finally reeled in.
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TRP: What led up to the successful break? NS: For the next ten miles or so, nobody seemed much interested in racing… except to immediately jump on any move that looked serious and shut it down. We were averaging maybe 18-20mph in the flat with mild winds, but no attack was getting anywhere. And perhaps feeling a bit suicidal, I did keep trying. Somewhere in there though, a couple guys slowly rolled off the front without drawing any attention, and with the rest of us were strolling along and such a collegial pace, they had WWW.THERACINGPOST.US
pulled out 2 minutes by about mile 30 of the race. Still feeling suicidal, I kept on attacking the field. Around mile 32 they finally (if surprisingly) let me go completely clear on my own. Go time! I put my head down and settled into a hard, but sustainable, pace for what seemed likely to be a very long bridging attempt. But unexpectedly, I saw the two men up the road within the next few miles, and only a half dozen miles after escaping the peloton I was on their wheels. TRP: What happened inside your break? NS: With 65 miles still to go and a whole lot of racers chasing together behind us, there was only one thing I could say to my new companions: “We’ve gotta go faster than this if we want to make it.” One of them, from Team Undiscovered, was all too happy to oblige and started killing it up all the little rollers. The other, from DNA, seemed a bit less up to the pace, taking short pulls into the headwind section until finally falling off the back on one of Undiscovered’s monster pulls around mile 50. Looking down I was consistently seeing 23-24mph into that headwind and starting to think “Not bad, this might not be total suicide after all.” Our moto saint [Mark Nelson] was giving us gaps of 3 minutes and holding to the pack when the two of us turned out of the headwind with 50 to go. The two of us were wellmatched and working hard together. By then I’d started to believe. For the next few dozen miles, what’s to tell? Two men alone in the wind, burying themselves to stay away from a whole lot more firepower behind them. We suffered steadily, but always kept up a good, cooperative rhythm. The feed zones came and went. I eventually ditched the 4 extra bottles I’d carried with me and picked up untold zillions of water handups. I sucked down a lot of gels. And if somebody’d told me I was going to have to work off the front for 70 miles I’d have brought even more. At one point the moto offical had said, “I don’t even know what to tell you. Four minutes? Five? They’re playing with themselves back there.” That was a real pick-me-up. And when he gave us a definitive gap near the last feed zone it was over five minutes. Belief in the break was finally shading into confidence. We were hurting, hurting, hurting, but the end was in sight. Even with a sizeable gap though, we maintained a silent truce. Who knows what could happen, I figured; let’s not start messing around until we’re really sure we’re gonna make it. TRP Where there any moments of real risk or questions of your survival? NS: Then with maybe 10 miles to go, a shock: the pack might be shading back toward 6 minutes behind, but a strong chase group of 5 riders was only 2 1/2 minutes back. Practically nipping at our heels! And as the gaps we were getting fell precipitously from there, down under 2 minutes in what seemed like no time flat. Glad we’d kept cooperating up until that point, we both dug a little deeper for some reserve that would allow us to hold onto our lead. [Ed – I was with this pack and they were going crazy and seemed to fly when they heard they were under 2 minutes] Finally, with about 2k to go and the chase still out of sight behind us, I started to think about maybe winning a bike race. I broke the truce and attacked up the beautiful, smooth shoulder… but I was utterly cooked after almost 70 miles off the front, and Undiscovered got right on my wheel. Suddenly I saw “100m” painted on the road, my lizard brain kicked in, and I opened my sprint. I was pulling away! But then, disaster: Raising my head for a moment I saw the 200 meter banner up the road. Having utterly spent what little I had left on my premature sprint, I could only watch helplessly as my erstwhile companion came around to win with a sizeable gap. Still, 2nd in a pretty serious road race represented probably my best day on the bike, and I was awfully proud of the two of us for spending so much time out there on our own. After a week and a half in the hospital and another two months in a neck brace into April this year, I certainly can’t say it’s a bad result. Finally catching my breath for the first time in hours and hours, I introduced myself to the hoss who’d been pulling with me all those miles. Wayne Strohman turned out to be one of the nicest guys I’ve ever met on the bike – a Wichita Falls resident, no less – and we had a great chat while waiting about 2 minutes for the 5-man chase to roll in (containing both TC and Tyler as I’d fully expected) and 6 all together for the rest of the field. Yep, not a bad day on the bike. TRP: Words of wisdom? NS: Turns out? that "100m" on the road was pointing the way for the 100 mile rec rally route. The moral of the story is: SCOUT THE FINISH LINE. TRP: Anybody you’d like to thank? Oh for sure: I'd like to acknowledge all the kind folks who visited me at Brackenridge in February or helped and encouraged me through my long recovery in the spring. There was an overwhelming amount of support from all over the Austin bike community, but I'd especially like to thank Sol Frost, Brad Houston, and the whole Austinbikes crew.
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Chappell Hill Cat 5 Road Race By Michael Kuehnel With a nagging knee injury, I went into this race with the mindset of just gaining more experience and hopefully finishing with the pack. I was feeling good the day of the race even though the heat was getting to me before the race even started. I had a couple of teammates in the race so I knew I would at least have some people to work with if the going got tough. That being said, I went into the start of this race super relaxed and stoked to the max, the best way to race in my opinion. The beginning was easy and I concentrated more on staying with the pack instead of staying up front. I drifted around in the peloton just enjoyed the ride. It was a beautiful day and a nice change of pace from my typical south Houston riding with all the views and hills! I was starting to feel it. About eight miles in on one of the small climbs, two riders came a little too close for comfort and went down right in front of me. I mashed the breaks and hoped not to plow into them. As soon as I came to a stop I, worried about getting hit myself, but the blow from behind never came. With the yard sale in front of me, I had to dismount and hike a bike in the grass to get around the mayhem and hop back in the saddle. I was worried about an attack, so I hammered hard to get back on to the front group. This little effort opened my legs up and I started to feel good. There were two separate attempts at breaks that I chased down and squashed. I really doubted they would stick, but I didn’t want to run the risk of them getting away especially since I was starting to feel a little confidence in my legs. I decided it was time to try and find some strong riders to from an alliance with and plan for a break towards the end of the race that would take home the crown. That’s when I met Chris. We both agreed to attack hard with about five miles left and make it last till the end. I was excited to have another stout rider on my side. As typical, nothing ever happens as planned. After the second pass though the feed station, I looked around and noticed that the front group fell into a break. I instantly revved up the pace and let everyone know that we needed to break and b r e a k now. With about 10 men and a 100 yard break, there was no way would the group catch us. Chris and I took the ringer, upping the pace and trying to put as much time on the main group as possible. It soon became evident that we were the only ones willing to work and I began trying to encourage the other to help as to assure us all a top 10 finish. Two riders answered the call and began taking pulls with us. “Lets go, we got a break!” is what I heard when Chris dropped the hammer. I looked back and saw eight guys hurting on the hill and knew this was it, time for the pain cave. With about eight miles left, I knew it was going to be a hard effort, but if I wanted something easy I would have bowed down miles ago. We began taking turns with hard pulls when another guy bridged the gap. I was thankful for the extra help, a podium finish was way better than I expected. Then the right turn came to reveal the uphill finish. The three of us were giving it all we had to hold the break. I think we were all surprised, excited and at the same time nervous for the sprint. At least I was. I yelled at myself to hold off until the last minute, because I always go too soon. With the third man in the front, Chris second, and me last I was feeling good about this sprint. When I finally couldn’t hold myself back any longer, I bailed to the right and at the same time Chris went to the left. I gave it all I had and nothing less. I could hear Chris in pain from cramping. I had just enough left in the tank to pull ahead for the win. I went into this race looking at it as a training ride and a way to gain more experience to use in the future. I feel as if I gained more than racing knowledge during my time at Chappell Hill. I learned a little something about myself and my life. In putting the effort on the front end of a big deadline or event and spending countless hours training, studying, and preparing, when its game, time you have to relax. You can’t fuss about the what-ifs. With putting all that preparation on the front end, when game day comes there is nothing to do but what comes naturally. 8
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RBM RallyReport
Hotter’n Hell 2013
The Mecca As a cyclist is Texas there is no greater feeling in the world, or state of Texas for that matter, that compares to the power and exhilaration of participating in the largest century ride in the nation. The 32nd annual event supported 12,000+ participants this year, and as is custom, the City of Wichita Falls handled the city-within-a-city with grace and charm. Events spanned the weekend, with mountain biking, super-fast crits, and foot races bookmarking the 100 mile ride on Saturday. Participants came by the thousands to camp, fill hotels, restaurants, and host homes. Somehow, there is always parking and relatively short lines for most venues. The MPEC center houses the largest cycling “consumer show” in the nation, while the nearby Ag Barn is the start for trail events. The Ride Highway 370 is absolutely straight, a long gradual incline, lined with townspeople encouraging riders forward with cheers, cowbells and signs. This first ten miles is where riders find their legs and get their adrenaline in check for the 90 miles to come. It takes some work as well, to maneuver between the newest of riders who are slower and less predictable, but by the time you make the left at Highway 368, you begin to settle in with riders with similar ability that you will likely see most of the rest of the way. As we make the turn towards Electra, Rest Stop 2 looks like a college theatrics department doing an outdoor open theatre presentation. Besides getting fueled up, water refills and the use of facilities, cyclists can pose with bloody demon-zombies, bike included. There are still hoards of wandering souls at the early rest stops so I press on towards Electra, anxious to make the 100-mile turn that commits me to the long route. Arriving in Electra, I am fascinated by the rustic-chic look of the town, a graveyard of sorts for old oil wells and washing machines, depending on the lot, interceded by quaint little stores and delightful ranch families who made the drive in to town just to cheer on a few thousand city folk. I always wonder what they think of this giant spectacle, but it is clear they find it entertaining. Out of Electra, we eventually make a right turn on Highway 240. The morning is still pleasant and the country roads are quieter, with the more serious riders focused on their new PR’s. The mind and body gets a break from dodging the novices, and in general, I feel fantastic for being almost half way through the ride. Here is where I push myself, hoping to gain back some time while enjoying an open road. Sag crews are visible every few minutes, tending to riders in need with a sense of urgency but also with enthusiasm. They fix what they can and get happy riders on their way. The day is progressing well. By rest stop 5, I have pushed myself for quite some time and I am ready
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By Lisa Tilley for the oasis that it is. Margaritaville is featured in every photo journal and video I have seen since the ride. It was a sprawling rest stop complete with sand, umbrellas, metal palm trees, pickle juice sno-cones, all the best fruits and snacks, and plenty of water and ice, Volunteers were enthusiastic, dressed the part in tropical party attire, happy to hold your bike or fill your water bottles, blaring music. It is later in the day and we felt the heat turn up on the route from Rest Stop 5 to Burkburnett. I smiled as we entered the city limits, remembering the enthusiasm of the townspeople the year before. They didn’t fail us, and were waiting on their shaded porches, ready to greet us and cheer us on. There are usually a few here with signs or chanting “You are almost there!” which is an all-out lie, meant in good fun of course. Everyone laughs, but there is a push inside your chest knowing there are miles and miles to go. I know I’ll be fine, but there’s always that fear of some unknown fate awaiting you. The uneasy feeling did not leave me right away as we headed out from Burkburnett. My heart dropped thinking I had missed the 100-mile turn somehow and had accidentally taken the opt-out. I recognized the long stretch of highway that heads toward Sheppard and I knew the 100 mile did not include a base visit. All sorts of thoughts wreaked havoc in my mind--until I saw the sign: “Congratulations! Hell’s Gate is still open!” Never would I have thought to be so happy to reach Hell’s Gate! Hell’s Gate is a turn under an overpass and actually provides an eerie feeling of transition. I have to admit there was quite bit of elation on my part, and seeing all of the people specifically here to cheer us forward, and the shade and the echoing of the cheers under the bridge gave me Goosebumps! A huge smile crossed my face as I waved a thank you and pedaled on. Headed out, and back into the sun on Highway 1177 towards Charlie, I hear other cyclists point out that this is the hottest and longest 40 miles of the ride. That’s got to be partly psychological, I think, because every last portion of a long ride feels that way. But they are right, and it is much quieter with significantly fewer cyclists on the route. We head through the cities of Charlie and Dean, until finally we are actually following the signs that direct us back to Wichita Falls. Entering the city, we are rewarded with a wonderful treat—we are on the overpass into the city from Highway 79. I think, “Is this hell or is it heaven?” We are high up on the ramp in downtown Wichita Falls and we get to take it down into center of town. I love this! I fly down the hill and all the fatigue leaves me. Euphoria fills me in reaching the town, pedaling through the protected main street, and receiving my completion medal. Absolutely every cyclist MUST experience in this exhileration! There is absolutely nothing like it! VOL.13, NO. 10 THE RACING POST
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Photo Essay ~ Pro Cycling Challenge By Chris Kobos The reason I covered the Pro Cycling Challenge is both my love of Photography and my new love of cycling, of course. This was my 3rd year covering the event, and what better way to photograph my favorite cyclists up close and personal, but do so in the lovely beautiful landscape that is the mountains in the state of Colorado! I felt very lucky to be at this great race, once again. I learned a few things from my fellow photographers this year as well. Not just taking photos , but trying to capture the emotion of their disappointments as well as their success.
Tejay van Garderen of BMC approaches the finish line in Vail, Colorado at Stage 5 of The Pro Cycling Challenge. van Garderen set a record in the TT and finished as the overall winner after finishing 2nd the first 2 years of the event.
Rory Sutherland ( in Blue) of Team Saxo Tinkoff hangs in the peloton followed closely by riders from Kelly Optum during Stage 7 of the Pro Cycling Challenge in Denver, Colorado. Sunday August 25th.
Janier Acevedo of Jamis-Hagens Berman edges Tejay van Garderen of BMC at Stage 4 of the 3rd Pro Cycling Challenge in Beaver Creek, Colorado August 22nd.
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By Steen Rose Tri Talk Head Coach - Athletes On Track srose@trainingbible.com October 2013 A Few Notes on the Off Season A few months back I did an article on myths like stretching, carboloading, pre-hydrating, and the like. This month I’d like to tackle another mythical topic, the off-season. So much is misunderstood about this important time of the year. First, what is it? Typically, endurance sports occur during warmer months from spring to fall. The off-season is that period between the last race of the fall and the first race of spring. (Although as more promoters enter the sport and seek to make money, there’s a lot of creep going on.) Now that we know what we’re talking about, let’s look at what it should, and shouldn’t, be: Myth: The off-season is a time to get fat and chill out. Reality: Hopefully I don’t really need to address this, right? Myth: The off-season is only for base miles. Reality: Considering that speed is much harder to come by than endurance for the majority of endurance athletes, this is quite obviously false. But let’s go a step further. By eliminating high intensity training from your regimen, you are taking a step backward over the winter. Why give away all that speed you worked so hard for over the course of a season? At least carry some of it with you into the spring. Besides, who wants to do base miles in the winter? There’s a reason ‘cross was invented! Myth: The off-season is for focusing on your limiters. Reality: Those that believe this need to take a step back from the
CompuTrainer, Trainer Road, Training Peaks, and WKO+, and focus more on the “off” part of the off season. Sure, you can do some work to stay fit (see above), but there’s a happy middle ground between getting fat and lazy, and being too focused. A big part of the off-season is rest and recuperation for your body and your mind. Trying to raise your FTP by 10% over the course of the winter is a good recipe for burnout. In addition to your body and mind, something else needs a rest over the winter – your family. Stressing about whether or not to have dessert and when you’re going to get your workout in for the day makes you a buzz kill at the holidays. Relax, and go with the flow. Don’t be the guy the Xtranormal videos make fun of. Myth: You should never race during the off-season. Reality: The local Turkey Trot and a couple half marathons or ‘cross races might be just the thing for you. However, these should either be really strategic and limited or purely for fun. When in doubt, avoid racing. After all, this is about taking some time off. Steen Rose is the owner and Head Coach of Athletes On Track and an Elite Coach for Training Bible Coaching. He has been competing in cycling and multisport events for 16 years with 14 state titles and 3 national medals to his credit. He has been coaching since 2003 and works with all ages and abilities of athletes locally, nationally, and abroad. He can be reached at coach@athletesontrack.com
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The View From Back Here Hiatus is defined in the Webster’s Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary in part as an interruption in time or continuity. A sabbatical is a break or change in normal routine. Such is the life of this old cyclist. As this is being read, The View From Back Here will have again returned to Ft. Davis, Texas and participated in Cyclefest. A whole closet full of long sleeve shirts and a myriad of memories and stories are the result of this epic ride in the Texas Alps. Last year at around this time, we were preparing for not only Cyclefest, but also to blow whistles at the Fort Davis versus Grandfalls football game. The opportunity to personally combine two passions in one weekend is indeed rare. Last year’s Cyclefest was marred by rain. The last time The View From Back Here rode in an organized tour in the rain, was just that, the last time. Not wishing to subject myself to the elements, the rare West Texas rain was enjoyed and we made the leisurely drive back to the house. Thus began the hiatus. For a combination of reasons, this self imposed hiatus was accidentally started. Due to a family member’s brush with cancer and her recovery, a personal health issue or two, horrible weather, busy work schedule and safety issues, the brief hiatus grew. In fact, that hiatus may have progressed or digressed into a sabbatical. Neither a hiatus nor sabbatical are bad. In fact, they are not the subject of this column. Instead, the price exacted is worth discussing. Now it is well established that The View From Back Here is not a world class athlete. In fact, The View From Back Here is not even a well known local athlete. Therefore, training and conditioning are not a critical part of my psyche. Cycling just got pushed aside for a few months. Not a particularly bad thing in the grand scheme of things; it just happened.
Welcome to Bike Friendly Central Texas Copperas Cove, Texas is located in the middle of miles of scenic, maintained paved roads in the foothills of the Texas Hill Country- with several routes ranging in distance from 10 miles up 100 miles.
Contact the Copperas Cove Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau at 254-547-7571 or www.copperascove.com For cycling maps, local accommodations and restaurants
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THE RACING POST
VOL.13, NO. 10
By Russell Livingston
We are all adults here. We can talk about things like this, even publicly. We as cyclists all have one; we cannot deny it. We also will admit that certain calluses start to build when we begin riding. Changes in apparel, seats and activity directly affect that callus. It’s not a bad thing, that’s just the way it is. The return to riding following the hiatus was not supposed to be anything spectacular. Due to a worrisome change in traffic patterns in the Permian Basin, our old tried and true routes are just getting too dangerous. This meant a change and the new route is much more residential with no 55 miles per hour traffic to contend with. The adult aged daughter, of Scab Maker fame, was willing to embark along with me. We left the house and began the journey back into the realm of real practicing cyclists. The preliminary worries about Old Reliable being able to roll, would the tires still hold air, or if my cycling shorts would still fit were concerns that were deeply seated in the back of my mind. No problems were encountered. Being a mechanical device, the recently tuned bike functioned flawlessly. Tires and tubes replaced last winter held air and due to the forgiving nature of Spandex, everything still fits. So we were off and running. Sort of. The wind in the face, the changing views, the conversation, the physical progress being made was back. Muscle memory was taking over and we were riding after the extended absences. Once we had made a number of miles, something occurred to me. Has this seat changed? Was it shorter, was it more narrow, had the limited padding in the seat evaporated? Had I mistakenly worn compression shorts and not cycling shorts? The sensation was unmistakable. My rear end hurt! Had this occurred on a ride around the block, there would have been no difficulties. Two left turns and we would be back to the house and sitting in the two dog chair. Not so lucky, we were at the most distant point away from home. No less than the final five miles of our inaugural ride were doomed to misery. We made it home. Personally, The View From Back Here had no desire to view the damage though. A few days later and the misery had abated and we were ready for a repeat performance. This time, with similar though less painful results, the ride was completed pretty much solo. We don’t need to share every aspect of our misery do we? Interruptions in our daily routines are inevitable. We, as human beings are subject to the rules around us. Sometimes, even the most important things in our life have to be put on hold, perhaps a hiatus or even a sabbatical. Sometimes those interruptions allow us to heal. Sometimes they allow us to diversify and prepare. Sometimes, they simply offer us the opportunity to just start over. Starting over is not at all that unpleasant. For one thing, this old fat boy has been rather unceremoniously reminded of what new riders go through. Without getting too graphic, we will strive to offer new riders a break simply to avoid the soreness and discomfort recently endured. The View From Back Here does not want to go on record as endorsing a self imposed extended exile from our passion. We all have done it though. We let life get in the way and occasionally we wake up and Old Reliable has a layer of dust and two flat tires. At that point, we have some choices to make. We can continue along the downward path or we can get back on and start again. Starting over, building calluses may not be as comfortable as we prefer. It is, however preferable to staying at home, on the couch and watching the 15th rerun of NCIS while everyone else is out there enjoying the great outdoors. As temperatures moderate for a season, let’s enjoy what is left and go for a ride. Everyone ride safe and have fun.
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Los 100 Millas del Punta a Punta By: Payson McElveen Over the past handful of months cycling has taken me all over the place. I’ve gotten to race on the west coast, east coast and everywhere in between, as well as Germany, Switzerland, and Italy. With the school year at Fort Lewis College rapidly approaching, I started to shift my focus to collegiate racing, where it’s 100% about fun. However, a couple of pretty incredible opportunities fell in my lap recently, and are yielding a pretty awesome finale to the “regular season.” In early August, teammate Sepp and I got an email from Marc at USA Cycling, asking if we’d like to do a two day mountain bike stage race in Puerto Rico. Unfortunately Sepp was unable to make it because of starting school at CU Boulder, but I called up Texas racing buddy Tristan, who was more than happy to take his place. We liked the idea of a Texas duo dream team. My travel day to Puerto Rico was surprisingly grueling: 22 hours, starting at 3:45 AM. After meeting up with Tristan and Jason (our USA Cycling coach for the weekend), we had a 2.5 hour drive still to the race venue. Around 2 AM we finally arrived. Tristan summed up our accommodations best: “More than enough… but it would be nice if we had a window.”
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The following day was spent recovering from the travel, and taking a quick hour-long spin to check out the beginning of the course. We went to bed early, excited for the following morning’s adventures. After a 5:30 AM wake-up, we rolled over to the start at 6:30ish, surprisingly in bright sunlight… we were not far from the equator, after all. Tristan and I started 17th, meaning we had 16 other duo teams somewhere up the course ahead of us, and 20-30 more behind us. I think we were both excited to get things underway, and started up the first paved climb at what felt like XC race pace. We caught all but one of the other teams in the first 25 minutes, but I was having some pretty significant stomach issues and we had to slow down a bit for me. About 1.5 hours in we hit the most insane climb I’ve ever ridden. It was “paved”, but had deep texturing presumably so it was drivable… I have no idea what kind of vehicle could make it up or down though… other than mountain bikes
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My Moon Zach Carlson It may seem jarring that our bodies are constantly digesting the world around us to refine our every move. We have enormous pressure to interpret the world around us correctly and adjust accordingly. Humans’ objectives seem to always be changing with the world around us. So, in a sense, our jobs as humans are never done because there are always new challenges and forevernew environments. Sometimes humans are set back or they take the wrong path and have start all over. This phenomenon necessitates that we evolve and learn how to cope with new challenges. Bike racing. There are all kinds of bike racing, but the central idea of bike racing is simple: going faster than everyone else no matter what kind of bike or surface the race is on. The essence of bike racing is who is the most prepared and who trained just the right way to maximize how fast one goes when the race truly matters. Bike racing. Learning from mistakes. In every bike race, there is one victor who rises above the rest and takes glory. He gets to sit up and salute his crowd as he crosses the line with the spoils in his back pocket. There are countless losers who may go back at the end of the day and learn something from the performance they put out that day. Every bike racer has lost a bike race at one point or another. Losing is essential to winning. Sometimes you learn you should have conserved more energy. Sometimes you learn you should have attacked when this guy attacked. Sometimes you learn that you should have been more careful. All these lessons must be learned. Learning from mistakes. Taking the wrong path. You are surrounded and can’t see the ground in front of you. Everyone swerves out away from the path you are now stuck on, and you smash into the pothole and your tire implodes underneath you. Your race is over. You are extremely tired. You just rode the climb all the way to the top and you are now descending on a narrow little trail. You can hardly see. The sweat is blinding you and your respiration rate won’t slow. You slip a little to the outside of the corner and head for a tree that you can’t avoid now. You smash into the tree. Your season is over. As you line up for a leadout behind your comrades, you hear an eerie noise. You realize it’s the crunching of bikes and people piling onto the pavement. A crash. You have to stop behind a crash and the race rides away. With only a couple kilometers to go there is no chance of rejoining the race. Your race is over. Sometimes you can’t control things. Sometimes you need to be at the front. Sometimes you need to be on the inside of a corner. Sometimes you need to be in the draft. When chaos strikes, you again become aware of all the precautions you could have taken. Taking the wrong path. Always a new challenge. Winning a race doesn’t mean your job is done. Winning races sets expectations to perform. There’s almost always a bigger race you could win. A racer’s job is never done in this sense. As you shake hands with the two lads in second and third, you step up onto the top of the podium and you know everyone’s eyes are on you. Your best friends. That guy starting a new team. The 16
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director of USA Cycling. They are watching. And now they have new, higher expectations for the person they know. You now have to keep winning. You have no choice. If you do not keep winning, your name will be popular for a couple weeks, and you may be a real celebrity for that time. But unless you want to take a seat next to the Baha Men and their one-hit wonder (‘Who Let the Dogs Out?’), you have to win again. Always a new challenge. New environment. When it rains, the course gets muddy. When there’s ice, it gets slippery. When the sun is shining, it gets hot. Bike racing has to cope with the weather. Sometimes even trees fall in the path. You barrel down the trail piled with rocks and roots. You tilt back and forth swerving through the terrain of the mountain. You fly into a corner and suddenly the ground below you is sliding underneath you and you are taking a bite of the mud that has formed below you because of the rain. Negotiating these environmental challenges is part of racing bikes. New environment. We are set back. A broken arm. A sickness. A low budget. You have been racing for four hours, but the pain is almost over. You suck for air through the dried lips. You grip you bars and get low trying to conserve as much energy as possible. You know the finish line is near and you dig a little deeper to hang on to the couple riders that have separated themselves from the rest of the group. Your legs ache from the extended effort you have been through today. You know that the finish line is close. The other riders start to play games. The winner of this race is in this group. You launch at a full sprint with 200 meters to go and a rider pulls up next to you at full speed and bumps you trying to get by. You suddenly crater into the pavement and slide for several seconds, ripping the skin off your back. As you sit up, you know that the whole day was a waste. A step backward in fact. You lay motionless on the pavement as the whole race rides by. Assuming no broken bones, you are off the bike for a week at least. Sometimes a season can be rough and you have to strain yourself just to get back to where you were before. This takes lots of perseverance, hard work, and determination. We are set back. Enormous pressure. When I line up for the biggest race of the season, I think about all the time I spent riding. I think about all the people that made sacrifices for me. I think about the path I took to get here today along with the people that made that path possible. Knowing that your pay next year may be dependent on this one race can cripple you. This constant pressure to perform can crack an athlete. Enormous pressure. My body is almost on autopilot when I am pivoting back and forth on two wheels. I have become so aware of every little detail that it’s almost like the person racing is a computer and not me. The awareness that embodies me while racing is somewhat unseen in any other part of the life I live. Every time I take to the start line of a race, I must be aware of all the hazards, challenges, and decisions that I will indefinitely face while racing bikes. Every time I take to the start of a bike race, I transform into a werewolf, because the bike is my moon. WWW.THERACINGPOST.US
Coach Speak The Head of USADA Came to town… By Steen Rose srose@trainingbible.com Head Coach - Athletes On Track Travis Tygart is the CEO of the United States Anti Doping Agency. He’s also an SMU alum, and was invited to speak at their lecture series on Ethics. Obviously it was geared to college students, with plenty of time spent on drawing the parallel between sports and "real life," and the Lance investigation was a large focus. I learned some things about that investigation that I'd not known before, and gained some insights. For example, one thing that had always bothered me was that for Levi, the confession was his 2nd offense, and he should have been booted out of the sport immediately. Although he did not mention Levi by name, he said that all 11 athletes cooperated with the investigation and that they worked together. To that end, he said that USADA has lobbied for "protections" for athletes that come forward, possibly even amnesty. A question from the audience asked about Pat McQuaid, and he said that the UCI president had promised last year a major change to institute something along those lines, and then failed to act. Tygart also said that a big part of the investigation was to protect the 2012 Olympic Team as a whole, and they were happy that athletes who were going to go, and probably medal, voluntarily removed themselves when asked/confronted. Also, when asked about the biggest surprise from that investigation, he said it was McQuaid's obstruction of their investigation. Some interesting tidbits, in no particular order - Lance made $281 million over the course of his career - Hincapie responded well to HGH, but HGH made Landis feel sluggish - Hamilton doped for 12 years, and it's apparently had negative effects on his health since retirement - Blood doping, re-injecting your own stored blood, is worth a 5-15% performance gain - Worldwide, sports are a $1 trillion dollar industry, but less that .005 percent is spent on testing, investigating, and enforcing. Asked about amateur sport, he said that their
focus is on athletes who compete internationally, and specifically mentioned not only their charter, but also the available funds and personnel. On the flip side, he mentioned a program called RaceClean that has been implemented with USA Cycling, and gave examples of working with a few clubs and teams. He said the USADA van would be showing up at local criteriums… Apparently TXBRA is one of the local associations participating in the RaceClean Program. Although an interview with Bonnie Walker was not available before press-time this month, many of you will have already noticed that USADA performed doping control at the University Oaks criterium in San Antonio… about as local as it gets! I came away with a favorable impression of Tygart, and, by extension, USADA. He struck me as a good guy doing a tough job, but a stickler for the rules, and a believer in the beauty, opportunity, and importance of sport. And, that's exactly who I think we want trying to enforce the rules. On the other hand, given their budget and their focus on elite athletes, I also came away thinking that we have a long way to go to clean up amateur cycling and triathlon. We need to support promoters like Uli of the New York Gran Fondo, and lean on the respective federations. I got the impression that much of the information he shared is publicly available on the USADA site, if anyone is interested or curious. Oh, and it sounds like Tygart is a bit of an athlete himself. He played basketball in high school, and won the state championship. He took an unplanned tour of the SMU locomotor performance lab, and regretted not having his running stuff with him, as he's wanted to do a V02 test. Steen Rose is the owner and Head Coach of Athletes On Track and an Elite Coach for Training Bible Coaching. He has been competing in cycling and multisport events for 16 years with 14 state titles and 3 national medals to his credit. He has been coaching since 2003 and works with all ages and abilities of athletes locally, nationally, and abroad. He can be reached at coach@athletesontrack.com
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W e s t T e x a s W i n d By Richard McLamore The family, well, most of it, took a vacation a few weeks ago. Some of y’all might think “whatever, dude, yer a professor. Aren’t you like on vacation ALL summer?” Uh, no. There’s this thing called “Summer School.” Which some of us who aren’t independently wealthy look at as . . . being better than roofing houses or doing landscaping or some other summer job frequented by teaching-types. The other folks who know me will be thinking “vacation? Richard? Vacations = ‘spend money’ and ‘don’t get to ride bike.’ They don’t happen.” That’s closer to the truth. Especially the “spend money” part. But the in-laws decided they wanted all of the grand-kids together (sort of around the 10-year-old’s birthday), so they paid up for all of us to stay in some swanky condo-resort in Branson, Missouri. And . . . they made it clear that there would be plenty of time for me to ride. So, for probably the first time since we went to Corpus to visit Team ALS headquarters, the McLamores loaded up the van and skedaddled up towards that place, where, as Lyle Lovett puts it, “those old folks up in Missouri,/ They don’t even know you’re there.” Which worried me a bit. In Southwest Fort Worth, Oakmont Boulevard dead-ends into Hulen Street, but the parking lot for Luby’s (you can probably already tell where I’m headed with this, right?) is directly across from the intersection. It didn’t take me long on my visits to the parents to learn that even if the turn signal was on, if the driver of the car ahead of, or alongside me at the intersection contained an elderly driver, chances were excellent that car was driving straight into that Luby’s parking lot. Especially if it were around 4:15 pm. Add the appeal of the Lawrence Welk theater complex, the Red Skelton tribute performance, the Amish shop (how does Amish merchandise get to Branson?), or, my favorite, the Dinner with Yakov Smirnov show [I’ll wait for the younger readers to google all of those), narrow streets, and steep hills to the Luby’s tractor-beam, and the thought of riding in Branson scared me a bit. But it wasn’t that bad. The only close call I had involved a steep descent into a traffic light in town, and a long line of traffic with some guy nervously driving an RV-trailer who honked me. As the light turned green I rolled up alongside a pickup to get a little momentum for the Jesterish steepness of the upcoming hill. The guy driving looked over, and in an unmistakably N’Awlins accent said, “Yew be safe out here now.” I looked over and said, “Thanks, I’m trying.” And as the line of vehicles, including the RV passed by I noticed they all had Louisiana plates and window shoe-polish announcing they were headed to Little League playoffs in Branson. So, it wasn’t just old people. But once you got out of town: wow. I mean, really, wow, what great riding. I spent some time before the trip considering: “hmm. Got a 23. Some of those strava segments look pretty freakin’ wicked steep.” Everybody volunteered that it looked like 25 or 27 territory for sure. And, “you might wanna compact too.” Well, I do have a 12-27 cassette, but I’d sized the chain I’d just installed on the Allez for the 23. Granted, the odds of me riding 53x27 or 24 were nil, but really I just didn’t want to mess with it. [And swapping for a compact would have involved spending money. And I’ve spent enough money this year that Gary and Jim are looking at the surveillance photos of convenience store holdups really carefully. Cuz they’re sure there’s something up.] Really, it was the sort of perverse mid-life crisis that usually sends doofuses like me to orthopedic surgeons. Here was the real deciding factor for not changing the gearing: “I rode up Mount Evans on a 42x24. I can manage 1- to 3-mile climbs in the Ozarks on a 39x23.” Yes, the riding up Mount Evans thing did last happen in 1987, and it was an absolutely miserable gut-wrenching slog, but this was an irrational midlife crisis moment. At this point, I’m supposed to volunteer the date of my appointment for an arthroscopic knee-procedure, but honestly, it wasn’t that bad. In fact, I only needed the 23 about 3 times. I might have been faster on smaller gears, but I wasn’t concerned about being ‘fast.’ I was concerned about staying upright, keeping the gear rolling, 18
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and having fun. And I had a blast—even when because of the fog and my refusal to double-check the route on the phone when I had a question—I wound up heading Northwest when I was sure I was going Southeast. I did, however, manage to avoid the Strava segment that promised .4 of a mile at 25%. But, again, I found some great roads, had a blast climbing longer, steeper, and steadier gradients than I have in years, and decided that (a). all things considered, I prefer climbs to head-wind sections; (b). golf is weird, especially on a course etched into a series of hillsides; (c). my in-laws are awesome; (d). vacation ‘activities’ are weird. See, two of the days the rest of the family and the kids did lakerelated stuff. (I might have seen the boat they were on one of the days, AND riding across the Table Rock Lake dam is supah-cool). That third day, though, while my wife and the grand-parents hit the thrift stores, the rest of us hit a go-kart compound. Which included a couple of those Bungee-cord pendulum why-on-earth-would-anyone-think-that-was-agood-idea things and several different types of go-kart tracks—one of which cork-screwed up 4 or so levels before descending back down and around for a loop. Of course, that was the one we all thought we wanted to do, so we sat around inside the game-arcade ticket counter, which, as Sean noted, managed to blare all of the noises from every game at the same volume plus some music over the loudspeaker. I had to leave just so I could hear. Somehow, we figured out that it was gonna take around $160 for everyone to get to do stuff. Now, Sean and I figured out pretty quickly that we weren’t the gokart track types: we did the cork-screw one—and I had to drive with Sean because he wasn’t tall enough. And both of us were terrified. At first I wanted to apologize for being so slow (if you can slowly bomb down a descent where it feels like you’re gonna roll the go-kart even though part of me knew that was impossible), but Sean said, no, that was plenty fast enough. The in-laws, though, were amazing. Still, when I started calculating the per-minute cost of that “fun,” my bike didn’t seem so expensive after all. And I realized: I don’t feel like I need to go on a “vacation,” because . . . I get to go on several every danged week every time I ride. Still, it would be nice to spend some more time exploring the Ozarks, or the Smokies, or the Catskills, or . . . kart track types: we did the cork-screw one—and I had to drive with Sean because he wasn’t tall enough. And both of us were terrified. At first I wanted to apologize for being so slow (if you can slowly bomb down a descent where it feels like you’re gonna roll the go-kart even though part of me knew that was impossible), but Sean said, no, that was plenty fast enough. The in-laws, though, were amazing. Still, when I started calculating the per-minute cost of that “fun,” my bike didn’t seem so expensive after all. And I realized: I don’t feel like I need to go on a “vacation,” because . . . I get to go on several every danged week every time I ride. Still, it would be nice to spend some more time exploring the Ozarks, or the Smokies, or the Catskills, or . . .
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Texas High School League MtB Series Update By Andrew Armstrong Middle School and High School Mountain Bike Racing is going strong this fall as the Texas High School Cycling League’s 4th Annual Scholastic Mountain Bike Race Series is in full swing. Already completed are the 1st and 2nd races of the 4 race series so be sure to come out to the remaining races on October 4th at Cedar Hill State Park near Dallas and on October 13th at Tyler State Park in Tyler, Texas. On Labor Day weekend at the season opener, the Camp Eagle Classic, 39 student athletes competed in either Boys or Girls Varsity & JV classes. In the boy’s Varsity Rob Sandusky of Frisco ISD won with a 4:00 minute gap to second place international student-athlete David Villareal from Formus in Monterrey, Mexico. Alex Ward of Austin ISD was then another four minutes behind finishing in third to round out the podium. In the Girls Varsity class only two riders were even able to finish. Fiona Dougherty of St. Ann’s H.S. took the win from Lucy Brown of Houston Memorial H.S. with a margin of more than 20-minutes. In the Girls JV class at Camp Eagle the team from Lopez Middle School was dominant with no less than two spots on the podium: 1st was Cammie Robbiano of Lopez M.S., 2nd was Kaselyn Ondrias of Tejeda H.S., and 3rd was Kelly McCabe of Lopez M.S.. The Boys JV class podium was: 1st Grant Spring of Canyon Ridge M.S., 2nd Justin Mosier of Heritage Academy, and 3rd Wes Figg of Waller H.S.. The second race of the series was September 15th at the Dave Boyd Huntsville Classic where more than 75 student athletes competed in the scholastic races. This time the time splits were much closer as all podium spots were decided by a margin of minutes and even mere seconds. The Boys Varsity once again saw Rob Sandusky of Frisco ISD on top of the podium joined this time by Ethan Storm of LBJ H.S. in 2nd and for the second race in a row Alex Ward of Austin ISD finished in 3rd. In the Girls Varsity Fiona Dougherty of St. Ann’s H.S. took the win again followed by Katelyn Pervis of Lake Travis H.S. in 2nd and Megan
Gautreaux of Huntsville H.S. in 3rd. In the Girls JV at Huntsville Catherine Canby of St. Stephens H.S. was 1st, Kaylee Tredway of Sachse H.S. was 2nd, and Kaselyn Ondrias of Tejeda H.S. was 3rd. The Boys JV podium saw Canyon Emmott in 1st, Jonathan Miller of Huntsville H.S. in 2nd, and Justin Mosier of Heritage Academy in 3rd. Boys Varsity Overall Standings Place 1st 2nd 3rd
Name Rob Sandusky Alex Ward Peter Drury
School Frisco ISD Austin ISD Flower Mound H.S.
At the mid-point of this year’s mountain bike season the overall standings are as presented below.
Girls Varsity Overall Standings Place Name School 1st
Fiona Dougherty St. Ann’s H.S.
2nd
Lucy Brown
Memorial H.S. Houston
3rd
Katelyn Pervis
Lake Travis H.S.
Boys JV Overall Standings Place Name 1st Justin Mosier 2nd Grant Spring
School Heritage Academy Canton Ridge M.S.
3rd
Arlington Martin H.S.
Zachary Loggins
Girls JV Standings Place Name 1st Kaselyn Ondrias 2nd 3rd
School Tejeda H.S.
Cammie Robbiano Lopez M.S. Catherine Canby St. Stephens H.S.
Current Overall Co-ed Team Standings Place Team Points 1st Lake Travis H.S. 189 2nd Sachse H.S. 177 3rd Huntsville H.S. 153
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Jubilee Subaru: Elite Women's Road Racing Team Coleman Chevrolet Stage Race: Fans and Cheesecake
By Kim Jennings Small town hospitality went a long way at the Coleman Chevrolet Stage Race— formerly known as the Edge City Stage Race. As cyclists, we invade small towns and country roads all over Texas on race weekends. Sometimes we are met with a friendly wave, and other times a defiant honk and black exhaust blasts as cars pass us on the road. Douglassville, TX is a pine tree ridden town just outside of Texarkana; but this small town had its arms wide open, inviting, and treated us with some good old fashioned Texas hospitality. Packet pick up was in a quaint little Italian restaurant in downtown Atlanta, TX. We picked up our numbers and sat down with some of our friends from Think!Finance and ate pasta and cheesecake to start off the weekend. Winning. We had a stacked women’s open field with Tibco’s newest European tour racer, Lauren Stephens, and all the major teams from Texas and Louisiana were represented. The first stage, a multiple lap road race, was active from the gun. The course itself was able to shape the race, along with a few digs and a Queen of the Mountain points sprint gave way to a break of 5 up the road. You always have to be on your toes and anticipate the next move! Needless to say we missed the break and worked hard to try to make up lost time—which is very hard when a few racers are only trying to out sprint you to the line. It’s best to read the race bible and know that this was a time based event, not a points based stage race, and it serves everyone well to work with your chase group. The time trial was next and we invaded Douglassville with our alien spaceship bike paraphernaLoving your Subaru is even easier now, because Jubilee Subaru is looking after you. Every new Subaru gets 2 years or 24,000 miles of complimentary maintenance. lia. The 5 mile course was into a slight head wind with rolling terrain. Ouch. That’s all there is to say about that. The overall standings did not change much, and we were hoping for a sporty road race for Sunday to make up for lost time. Due to recent road construction, we did the same course on Sunday, just back• 200-hp SUBARU BOXER® engine • Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive • Sport-tuned suspension • 33 mpg hwy wards, which honestly • Voice-activated GPS navigation system • 8.7 inches of ground clearance • High Intensity Discharge (HID) • Partial Zero Emissions Vehicle (PZEV) looked completely difheadlights ferent and was just as fun. One of the local 249 bike enthusiasts, Mr. Bill, gave the money for the Queen of the Mountain hot spot, and he even followed the peloton to watch the race. A true fan!! With some blocking Jubilee Subaru 4717 W. Waco Dr. strategy, we were able to get our teammate Sheri 2nd for the hot spot, just Waco, TX 76710 behind Lauren. 254-752-2886 www.jubileesubaru.com This was the same spot on the second lap that created the winning break. We had Sheri in the break and she was able to take 3rd, with Lauren winning the race and the overall title. I won the sprint in the chase group, and we came home with some fun race weekend stories. It’s not always
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about the results, but the memories we come away from a long race weekend. Probably my best memory was having dinner with all the ladies of the peloton that Saturday and chatting about all things bike and random topics as well. We may compete against each other on the road, but that doesn’t mean we can’t find common ground and share a nice meal together. I also have fond memories of a kind community who really supports cycling. Volunteers were abundant the entire weekend, handing out water bottles all around the course and we appreciated their time working in the heat to help our races. Shout out to Dee Bell and Michael at Coleman Chevrolet in Texarkana for giving extra support to the women race and hosting another fantastic event. See you next year Mr. Bill!!!
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VOL.13, NO. 10 THE RACING POST
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Product Review: Swiftwick Socks By TRP Staff You could just wear cotton tube-socks or crew-socks when you ride. And it would only take one, maybe two, Texas summer rides with sweat-soaked squishy feet sloshing around inside your shoes for you to think “there’s gotta be something better.” So, you might move on to a poly-pro wicking sock . . . designed for running or basketball or football. And that extra padding under your feet will feel ok. For a while. And then your foot will slide around on it, and you’ll begin to notice the strain on the top of your feet because those socks weren’t designed for an activity like cycling in which the foot strains against the upper of the shoe 80, 90, maybe 100 times a minute for a couple hours or so. And then there’s the matter of the cuffs. Since other sports lift so many of their fashion-cues from cycling (I ain’t kidding: why did basketball players start wearing the super-long baggy shorts? to cover up the ‘bike shorts’ they started wearing for support. You won’t find many “jocks” in a football locker room anymore, since most guys are wearing . . . bike shorts with pad inserts or with pads built-in under their game pants. And don’t get me started on Oakley MFrames on baseball players . . .). And the realization that the cuff on a sports sock could feature more than a stripe? Well, it might go back to dudes like Francis Hamre who started rockin’ argyle wool socks on group rides and races. The designers of actual sport-socks started noticing, with the result being that lots of people probably spend more time thinking about what’s on the cuff than about the performance features woven into the sock. And that’s ok. I like my day-glo mushroom socks. But, y’know what? I don’t actually wear them much for real riding because the foot of the sock doesn’t follow my foot well, which results in an uncomfortable sort of ‘squish and slide’ especially between my heel and the heel-cup of my shoes. And the cuff’s a little too thick, and after a couple of years it’s lost its compression. My first pairs of Swiftwick socks became my go-to socks this past winter—warm enough to ride without booties down to the high30s or low 40s. I’m not convinced about the whole “recovery” compression thing, but whether that works or not, they’re great coldweather socks and they are ridiculously comfortable. So, I was, as they say, favorably disposed towards the
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Swiftwick Sustain socks that showed up in the mail a few weeks ago. That disposition improved notably when I opened the package, quickly discarded the cardboard printed with all of the cool details about the recycled and wicking fabric they use, and ogled the socks. Ok, maybe I’m nuts; I probably spent way too much time watching my grand-mother knit and crochet when I was a kid or something, but I’ve long been fascinated by textiles. And the knitting in these socks is amazing. See what I mean? The channel-knitting, which provides some cushion for the instep without adding bulk, continues along the entire in-step down to the toes, where two distinct knitting patterns (and yarn, I think) produce a seamless toearea and a relieved area where your toes can flex without bunching the sock (and the logo’s nice too): I was amazed at how small the socks seemed when I got them, but sure enough, they stretched out and fit beautifully, even if I would like a little higher cuff. (Of course, the Sustain socks are available in a variety of colors and sizes, including custom production for your team or event). They wear well. The pictures, horrid iphone quality that they are, are of the socks after a few rides and trips from the washer to the clothesline. They ride great because they do what cycling socks are supposed to do: look good and well, not really feel great, because the best thing a sock can do is feel like it’s not there.
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Tour de Donut: More Junky, Less Mileage Photos By: Susan Farago
Susan Farago, Austin-based coach, writer, and mileage junky. www.susanfarago.com
This month’s column features a ride that’s more about eating “junky” food and less about long “mileage”. Welcome to the Tour de Donut! The inspiration for the Tour de Donut (TdD) came from Fred Huang of Austin, Texas. Fred hosts an informal group ride every Saturday but in 2009 he wanted to change things up. Says Huang, “The TdD inspiration came from combining two things I love to do: ride my bike and eat donuts.” Here’s how the TdD works. 15 minutes before the ride start, there is a review of TdD rules, the 25 mile route, and other logistics. Everyone starts at the same time, rides the same course, and must obey all traffic rules. There are three predetermined donut shop stops along the route: Krispy Kreme, Shipley’s Do-Nuts, and Dunkin Donuts. All riders are required to check in with the TdD Donut Mistress at each location. Riders can then decide how many already purchased donuts (if any) they want to eat. For every donut eaten, the rider gets their overall ride time reduced by 3-6 minutes depending on the donut (for example: jelly donuts are worth more time than cake or glazed donuts). The Donut Mistress records the number of donuts eaten and then the rider is free to head to the next donut stop. A rider’s time is stopped when they cross the finish line and they receive two finish times: their overall ride time and their “donut adjusted” ride time. After everyone finishes, the group heads out to brunch which usually consists of people eating salads or other non-sugary foods. Many participants treat TdD as a social ride but for some it’s all about winning. And winning is all about strategy. Some riders try to cover the 25 mile route as fast as possible and forgo eating any donuts, while others combine the speed of riding and donut consumption. But the donut time bonuses make it impossible for someone to strictly ride the course and finish first. Riders have come up with some pretty creative tactics over the years. Stacking 4-6 Krispy Kreme donuts on top of one another and then mashing them into a flat pile is a quick way to consume multiple donuts in a short period of time, making the stop strategically worthwhile. Other riders have tried to be sneaky about it and flick glaze off the donuts or “accidentally” squeeze the jelly filling out. This is not allowed. Riders must also swallow the entire donut before they leave the donut shop – no chewing and riding! Throwing up on the course leads to automatic disqualification. Luckily no one has been disqualified but there have been a few close calls thanks largely in part to the .7 mile steep grade uphill 3 miles from the last donut stop and just before the finish line.
the morning with friends and an even better excuse to eat as many donuts as I want.” The cost is free for riders to participate in the TdD but donations are taken to cover donut expenses. Any left over money is donated to the Livestrong Foundation for cancer research. Overall top finisher’s receive a donut-related award such as a Dunkin Donut travel mug or Krispy Kreme t-shirt. 2013 will be the 5th year so if you love riding your bike and eating donuts, come join the TdD for a morning of fun, strategy, and donuts! www.tourdedonutaustin.com.
Highlights of the TdD include: • In 2010 Adam Reardon achieved the highly coveted “negative donut adjusted time split”, consuming a record 20 donuts and finishing in an overall time of -0:00:07. • 2011 was the last year there was an official female finisher. The idea of consuming upwards of 2,000* calories in 90 minutes must not appeal to most women. *The current female record for most number of donuts eaten = 10 x 200 calories for each Krispy Kreme donut. • In 2012 the jelly donut was introduced as a way to take the most time, 6 minutes per donut eaten, off the rider’s overall time. Fred Huang ate a record 6 jelly donuts and earned “The Ma Award” named after Fred’s mother-in-law who loved jelly donuts and passed away earlier that year. • In 2012 Alvis Prince got so far off course he ended up calling Fred to abandon the ride and just bike home. Prince earned the “Lewis and Clark” award for being the rider most off course – estimated at 10 miles. Other riders have gotten lost but always made it to the finish line. Leary Walker, a regular Fred Ride cyclist, has attended the TdD since the beginning in 2009. Says Walker, “The TdD is a really fun event that I always look forward to at the end of October. It’s a great way to spend 24
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Back to California! Elite Track Nationals, Carson, CA By Stefan Rothe
After my first ever Omnium Track Nationals at Rock Hill, SC and the Elite Track Nats at the Velo Sports Center last year, I was looking forward to compete on the boards of the only indoor velodrome in the US - the 250m track in Carson, CA just a few miles South of Los Angeles.* Leading up to Track Nationals, I had about 4 weeks of solid training time. Not a whole lot but plenty enough to get oneself into shape and work on "track legs". Things are a bit trickier when you live in a town without a track, but you have to improvise, and just make the best out of it. That means: 1) specific rides/training on the road bike with power meter; 2) travel to Superdrome in Frisco for some moto-pacing on the track and specific workouts; 3) off-the-bike workouts to work on overall strength, agility, speed, flexibility etc.; and 3) competing in some crits like the Driveway here in Austin. And finally, ride my Cervelo T3 track bike on South Mopac and "simulate" a pursuit in almost the same gearing as I would race on the track a few weeks later. All that went into the build-up for Track Nationals and I can say I was prepared as best as I could have been. Day 1: Pursuit Quali, Omnium (Flying Lap, Points, Elimination) The goal was clear: be on the podium again. After last year's 3rd behind Bobby Lea and Liam Donoghue, I knew I wanted to be at least in the same spot if not a tad better. Bobby is riding in another league so I knew Silver was the only realistic chance. But Liam has been racing the track quite a bit and he's usually a few seconds faster. And he brought a front disc, too! I was joking with him he would need to be a lot faster now with no spokes! In qualification, I was seeded in last heat vs. Bobby, and, realistically, my goal was to not get caught. I almost made it until the last 250meters. I ended up with 4:41 and Bobby rode about 4:34. I was 3rd in qualification as Liam rode around 3:39 to make the final vs. Bobby. I had to ride the next morning vs. a guy from Arizona I had not raced against on the track. Before racing, I had my bike (with drop bars) checked and sure enough the Cervelo T3 came out 250grams too light (6.55kg, needed 6.8kg). Shoot. What to do? a) Swapped front wheel for the sturdier ROL 80C. Still not enough! b) Took extra chain link and stuffed it into my stem. c) Borrowed some (heavy) washers from neutral mechanic and put underneath bar tape. d) Took chainring bolts and put them into the bar end plugs. e) Taped one flat wrench under saddle. Okay, 6.81kg. Bingo! I was sweating more from "making weight" rather than exercising I thought! The evening Session consisted of 3 of the 6 Omnium events we were going to do over two days. The flying lap is my weak spot but I was still hoping I could get a decent run. But it wasn't meant to be and I ended up coming in 13th, 1/10th of a second slower than last year. Bummer! Next up was the Points Race and usually something I can do well in. With Bobby Lea and Jacob Duehring, we had a bit stiffer competition this year vs. last year's Omnium but I knew anything could happen in a 120 lap race. I got a few points early but was only sitting 5th or 6th halfway through. At one point, I joined a two man move (Hillier/Jacks) off the front that nobody really paid attention to. About 20 laps later, the three of us had lapped the field. I took some points on the way and ended up winning the points race ahead of Patrick Jacks and Bobby Lea. My Omnium felt like a roller coaster from here on. I guess I was a bit exhausted from the Points race because the Elimination race didn't go so well and I only came in 8th. Day 2: IP Final, more Omnium (Scratch, Kilo) 26
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Since there were three of us (Bobby, Liam, and I) who rode the IP Finals AND the Omnium, USA Cycling gave us a break and were going to count our IP final time as our IP Final time for Omnium IP event #4 time. Otherwise, we theoretically would have done another Pursuit just for the Omnium! Anyhow, like last year, I had to ride the "little" final against another rider to get my Bronze medal. Opponent was David Swanson from Arizona, who I had not raced before. Everything went well: Warm-up, bike-check, all good and I was chilling on deck with Mike Baranoski (Matt B.'s dad) who volunteered to time me for the pursuit events. There were three minutes to go when a USAC official came running towards me and says I can't have bar tape on my aerobars for my race. My bike went through bikecheck probably 3 times already and it's been hanging on the rack there for anyone to see and NOW you come and ask me to modify stuff? He handed us a knife and Mike and I scramble to remove some bar tape. Sure enough, I cut my finger w/ the officials’ sharp knife and was bleeding pretty good. We found some duck tape and I taped my fingers. I have my bronze-medal ride in 1minute and this goes on? Oh well, I still brought it home...but barely. I won my ride by 2 seconds thanks to some 17'ish splits and Mike's great pacing/split calling. It wasn't easy, but I was happy with third. That meant 3rd in the Omnium event # 4, too. In the evening session, I was hoping to make up a bit for my not so pretty Omnium position (7th or 8th?) but was realistic enough to know it was going to be hard, especially with a -anything-can-happen Scratch race and the Kilo, an event I don't really focus on. I ended up 7th in the Scratch race and came in 10th in the Kilo. That meant 6th overall. Nothing to write home about but I was happy I could win that Points race at least and my roller-coaster Omnium was officially over. Day 3: Team Pursuit With Liam Donoghue (2nd IP), Jacob Duehring (5th IP & 4th in Kilo in the Omnium), Mike Zagorski from Boulder, CO, and myself, we had a solid team for my first ever Team Pursuit Nationals. I've done team pursuits back in Junior Days in Germany on the tracks of Cottbus and Augsburg (200m, wooden indoor track) and some small stuff here in Texas, but this track was fast, we had a great team, and just needed to finish it off. Our quali went good, we executed our "Australian" plan and had Mike ride lap 2, 3, 4 all-out before we took over and rode mid 16's to finish in 4:30. Thanks again to Mike Baranoski again for calling our splits. The final ride vs. the Oregon/WA team needed to be faster in order to finish ahead. We knew that and so we went with the same plan as in qualification. Jacob and then Mike got us off to a good start. After that, it was a real race and I could tell we were pretty damn close. None of the two teams seemed to get tired or slowed down and there was maybe a second between us two teams. I knew Liam, Jake, and I could go a bit faster and so we went up a notch in the last 1000m and by the time the clock stopped we rode a 4:27 and almost 3sec faster than Team #2. Whew! Winning as a team makes it even more special and I was happy to get that over with and be done! Big thanks to the following sponsors/friends/people for their generous help & support: my wife for here moto-pacing skills, Joe Morgan for driving his scooter for uncountable laps in front of me at the Frisco Superdrome, Austin Tri-Cyclist, Team Tulsa Tough, ROL Wheels, MAX Training, Wheelbuilder.com, Sommerville Sports, and Acu-Tissue. WWW.THERACINGPOST.US
Three Dallas Riders Attempt the TNGA By Josh Daugherty The TNGA (Trans North GeorgiA) is a 350-mile mountain bike route through the mountains of North Georgia on trails, forest roads and paved roads featuring over 56,000 feet of climbing. It’s a selfsupported ride modeled after the Tour Divide Race, with no entry fee, no prizes, and no podium. Four years ago, the inaugural race was attempted by 18 riders with no cut-off deadline. This year, there would be 37 racers, but finishing time was limited to 5 days. On Saturday, August 24, Ray Porter, Jeremy Ordaz and I, all racing for Oak Cliff Bicycle Company (OCBC), were on a bridge over the Chattooga River, the eastern border of Georgia, headed west for Alabama. Ray Porter is an endurance rider with a resume of finishes and wins longer than your arm and two previous trips to the TNGA . His first attempt in 2011 ended when he was pulled from the course when the race was called off due to Tropical Storm Lee. In 2012, he finished with a time of 4 days and 4 hours. In 2012, Ray convinced Jeremy Ordaz to have a try. Jeremy felt a stomach illness coming in the days before the race but headed east with Ray in hopes of it passing. The sickness would persist and eventually force him to quit after 3 days of riding. When I signed up, I checked the box for “rookie.” I enjoy the local endurance race scene, but 2 trips to the Ouachita Challenge and several bikepacking trips with Ray and Jeremy would capture most of my resume. I was flat out intimidated. The night before the race, organizers shuttled us to the border with about 35 of the other racers, mostly from NC, SC, and GA . We stayed in open-air shelters called yurts. As it thundered and poured outside, we did our final race prep, unanimously deciding that the weather would likely improve and we could leave the bivy sacks behind. Sleeping bags? Nope, 2 lbs. too much! Plasticky, foil-like emergency blanket…perfect! By morning, the storm had broken, and we were fed and shuttled to the race start. At 8:15, we started west and within half a mile the course turned onto the first gravel climb. The climbing would seem to go on for about the next 350 miles. Somewhere around mile three I ejected a water bottle and had to stop and collect it, which was the last I saw of Ray. “Have a good race, Ray!” Jeremy had to make a tough decision to chase Ray or hang back for me, and when I caught him 15 minutes later I was beyond grateful. As a rookie, I was glad for the companionship. Around 11:30pm, we turned off course into Helen, where we found Woody’s Mountain Bikes, who had pledged to stay open all night with free food and support. Most riders had moved on, but after 107 miles and 20,000+ feet of climbing behind us, we decided to be conservative and rest. We feasted on eggs, bagels, sodas, and boiled peanuts before crashing for the night. Sunday morning, we left Helen and almost immediately began the climb up Hog Pen Gap, a 7 mile paved climb, followed by 3 more peaks. Day 1 had been a surprise success to me, and I almost couldn’t believe that day 2 was going so well. The tracking results showed that we were well behind in the race but neither of us had major issues and the mood was confident. That afternoon we headed up Stanley Gap, Brushy Head, and finally descended over Watson Gap around midnight. After a 95-mile day, we made another conservative decision to camp at the trailhead of the Pinhoti/South Fork Trail because there was an empty campground. It was high on the mountain and the temperature was somewhere in the 50’s. Reluctantly we headed for the bathrooms, Jeremy in
the Women’s, myself in the Men’s, because when you are sleeping in a public restroom, a little privacy is always nice. Monday morning we shoved off around 8am, and pulled into Mulberry Gap around 5 hours later. The crew there was quick with high calorie food and beverage – waffles, bacon, what had to be at least 8 scrambled eggs for each of us, chocolate milk, sweet tea, and sodas. Showers for ourselves and our bikes, recharging of lights and GPS devices, and other assorted small comforts had me ready to move on after 90 minutes. We had somewhere over 100 miles left. The city of Dalton was only 5 hours ahead, followed by the last stretch of singletrack and onward to the finish. Jeremy and I decided that we each had our own idea of how to attack this final stretch. I wanted to push all night; he knew he would ride better with some sleep somewhere in between. While Jeremy finished up, I headed out. In Dalton, I pulled into Bear Creek Bikes. BCB had also pledged to stay open all night with support until all the racers had passed. Derek, the race director, was working on my bike and telling me how much I would hate the next 65 miles. “No problem,” I said, “since I know it’s coming I won’t get frustrated.” I was wrong, Derek was right. I had just left when Jeremy pulled into BCB around 10:30pm where he slept a few hours on piled yoga mats. After sleeping, he would go on to finish this last section 2 hours faster than me and in good spirits. I would finish the race before him but completely depleted in mind and body. I rode steadily through the night until dawn when things started to get weird, including minor hallucinations and falling asleep on the bike. I recharged my motivation by calling my wife (rare cell service), and reading the supportive texts that folks at home had sent. At the border, there is just a gas station, a “Welcome to Alabama” sign, and no cell service. At 3:12pm, after 31 hours without sleep, I went inside the gas station and ate boiled peanuts, drank lemonade, and fell asleep at a table in the back. Ray had finished 11 hours before and was showered and rested when he arrived to pick me up. As we drove to find a motel he said “I’m glad that you and Jeremy split up at the end because you really don’t know what this race is all about until you face it alone.” A few hours later, the 3 of us shared stories and complained about our joints over dinner and adult beverages. We said that we should look for something else to do next year, but a week later we are planning next year’s trip to TNGA. Ray crushed his goal by finishing in 2 days 20 hours. Jeremy and I both finished in less than 4 days. Over a third of the field DNF’d, but not those boys from Texas!
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As a young girl I was known as toothpick and peanut; skinny as a rail. I was a crackerjack on a bike and in my teens played various ball sports. The summer before third grade my tonsils were removed. As my throat healed, my mother fed me anything I could eat. This was when my weight began to climb. At this age I had no awareness of eating habits, I ate what was served. Both genetics and environment contributed, as most of my family struggles with weight. This was an area of particular cruelty from schoolmates. As an adult athletics was substituted for career, I choose to live to work rather than work to live. I lost and gained repeatedly. Fad diets, calorie counting and even integrated exercise at times, yet weight remained an issue. It seemed I could never find the right combination of nutrition and fitness to keep me engaged. My weight eventually hit an all time high, that year I went to camp as a counselor. I wanted badly to participate, but could not. Frustration, embarrassment and anger over took me. By the end of camp I knew what I had to do. A year later I had lap band surgery. At some level I thought it was the “silver bullet” and I’d never struggle again. It did bring my weight to a manageable level. My sister and I partnered to walk. Eventually my feet broke down due to the enormity of my weight. I
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bought a box store bike to ride for health and the fun I remembered it to be as a child. It was no impact on my feet, boosts my energy, overall mood, and I love the sensation of flying. My disabled father needed family to care for him and that family would be me. Life became suspended; this was difficult for this woman who identified her rank in life from career. Moderation was my mantra; meanwhile I was eating junk in small portions and gosh darn if my bike didn’t break down. I tried repeatedly to repair it, but to no avail. The bike sat upside down in my garage for months. This time I joined a gym, but boredom set in quickly. All these factors led to a slight weight gain. After my father passed, I sought to rediscover my identity. Although I rarely feel lonely, it struck me that I wanted to date; to the internet I went. I began communicating with a gentleman who, out of a laundry list of interests in my post, honed in on the cycling. It was obvious he was an avid cyclist. I assured him I was a casual rider, telling him my broken bike woos. We agreed to meet at a cycling swap meet. He insisted I bring the wheel that was giving me problems. I felt a bit intimidated as I did not know what a cycling swap meet was or what to expect of him. I was fascinated with the gizmos and gadgets, and asked a bunch of questions that must have sounded moronic to him. The people we visited with were gracious, and the type of people I’d enjoy calling friend. He repaired the wheel that day and on his encouragement I went home to ride. The swap meet introduced me to an unfamiliar world. Cycling was a solitary sport to my knowledge. I had no idea there are groups that ride, race and tour together; let alone bike shops that specialize in sales, service and community. One evening while walking downtown McKinney I spotted a Cadence Cyclery sign. Shortly after, I lugged my box store bike into the shop. These guys could have totally snubbed me, but they were quite helpful. Eventually I bought a road bike from Cadence Cyclery, choosing them over several other shops. Since November 2012, I have become involved in the North East Texas Trails Collation; ridden in several rallies and with a half ironman, joined the Cadence Team, and am down an additional three sizes. I’ve gone distances that I used to say to people, “You must be crazy to ride that far.” Now I want go further, faster; yet smarter. Somehow I find freedom and weightlessness in cycling. It never gets boring and is always an adventure! There are plenty of roads and trails to explore. Although I do get on the scale for cycling reasons, I no longer relay it for my body image. Along with sensible eating and cycling I have finally found an enjoyable combination of nutrition and fitness that will engage me for years to come!
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Girlfriend Rider ~ My Worst Day: Racer Boy Crashes “Big crash. [Racer Boy] is in it. It’s kind of a mess. I’ll let you know when I have more details.” Racer Boy crashed. He crashed, and I wasn’t there. He crashed, and I couldn’t reach him. Feeling fit and confident, Racer Boy has been competing most weekends in the late summer heat. Work and other commitments have kept me from joining him and cheering him from the sidelines. I haven’t seen very much of him lately. One Sunday when I was at a ballgame with friends, I was only vaguely keeping track of what time his race would likely be finished, and I found myself caught up in the action in front of me as we cheered for our team. Reaching into my purse for my wallet, I spied my phone and checked to see if he left any messages. Instead, it was from one of our friends, the wife of a guy he races with.
should wait until I hear more to tell them, right? It’s Heather’s boyfriend who reminds us that sending and receiving texts is sometimes difficult to impossible in a stadium. My friends are nice enough to leave early. They overruled my half-hearted response that I don’t want them to miss the game. Good friends. By the time we reach the car, I hear a DING, and I read this: “He’s hurt, but he’s standing up. They’re taking care of other people first. I told him you know. He says don’t freak out. It’ll be okay. I’ll try to get his phone.” So it’s bad road rash. Or is it something other than his legs? I quickly make a checklist. It doesn’t sound like a head injury, but his arms or hands could be injured. If it was his back, he probably wouldn’t be up. Then I go back to road rash. Do you know how slow time moves when you know your love is injured but you don’t know the details? I finally thought to check if my friend’s husband was okay. He completely avoided the crash. It wasn’t until after I had been home a few minutes that the phone rang. Racer Boy.
“Big crash. [Racer Boy] is in it. It’s kind of a mess. I’ll let you know when I have more details.”
“Are you okay? Should I go to the hospital?” I know I didn’t sound as calm as I wanted to.
And there it was. The message I’ve been dreading since I first found myself in Racer Boy’s world. Racer Boy and I began dating at the end of a road season. I didn’t fully comprehend the speeds he could attain until the following spring. It wasn’t until I attended a few races that I saw that some courses had wicked down hills and harrowing turns. But in the few seasons I’ve been with him, Racer Boy has never crashed.
“Hey, baby. No, you don’t need to come. I’m probably going to come home tonight. A guy crashed right in front of me, and I couldn’t avoid it. My arm and my shoulder are pretty banged up. “
“It’s going to happen at some point,” he once told me. “It’s just the law of averages. I’ve crashed before, and I’m going to crash again. But I know how to fall.” I know that especially in crits, racers bump tires and hips. Even without intending to, people bump elbows in close quarters. The best riders can go down when riders crash directly in front of them and there is nowhere to go. I should be prepared. Despite all the races I’ve watched, I’ve never seen a crash where the riders cannot stand up and ride or walk away. When I see those words, goose bumps form on my arms and legs, and despite the heat permeating the stands, I feel chilly. Blinking hard, I look at when the text was sent. It’s been almost half an hour. I text, “Any update? Is he okay?” My friend Heather, sitting next to me, notices my expression and asks, “What’s wrong?” I don’t want to cry. It might be nothing, and I don’t want to be that girl who overreacts. So my tears stay in that place just behind my eyes as I tell her about the cryptic text I’ve received, adding, “I don’t know how bad it is. I don’t know if I need to leave.” And then I wait. I visualize the worst: head injury, bone breaking through the skin. I calm myself down by rationalizing that most cycling injuries are nothing more than road rash. While ugly and painful, road rash is not going to send you to the hospital. Every minute that ticks by is more excruciating than the last. Why don’t I hear anything? I have no idea what’s happening in front of me on the field. I don’t care. If he is hurt, where’s the nearest hospital, and how long will it take me to leave the stadium, get my car, and drive to him? Do his parents know? I
His teammate drove him directly to my house. Racer Boy went to the doctor the next day. His season is over. He’s going to need a little physical therapy. He will be fine to race next season. I think the pain I imagined was a little more than the pain he endured, but he was obviously in a lot of discomfort. The worst part for me was not knowing. I don’t expect him to race with his phone in his pocket. I do wonder, though, how much easier it would have been if I had been there. It will be a while before I have to worry about him even riding. I just hope it will be a long time before I have another message like that.
EL RETO DEL QUETZAL MARCH 7-10, 2013 By Pedro del Busto On January 1st, I was sitting at home planning out my racing calendar. I sent Billy a note about the Breck Epic since it was the one stage race I wanted to do. He agreed, but only if I came to Guatemala to do ‘El Reto del Quetzal’ with him. After spending about 5 minutes there checking outt he race’s website, it was a done deal. I couldn’t wait.
This was, in my opinion, going to be the hardest stage. It was 54 miles long with very steep climbs as well as a couple of long flat sections where I knew the wind was going to play a big role. The strategy for the day was to find company and not get lazy, keep moving and keep eating and drinking. The neutral start took us out of Antigua and as we lined up for the actual start in Pastores, the leaders in their jerseys moved up to the front of the group. That was the last I saw of them. They took off faster than I had the day before, and this stage was going to be 6 times longer. It was a bit humbling, to be honest.
Stage 1
The first climb was a very dusty fire road and some of the riders that took off with the leaders started falling back. I finally found my pace halfway up the climb and felt super comfortable. I made it through and into the single track downhill to a river bed. Soon, I came to a paved road where Joe was taking pictures, and he said I was in 5th or 6th overall. I expected to be closer to 20th, but 6th was so much nicer to hear.
The first stage was an 8-mile time trial of sorts. Held at a private farm a few miles from Antigua’s Central Park, it was sure to be an intense hot lap. The course profile was in line with what I had expected – straight up for a while, and then straight down for a while. Guatemalan mountain bikers avoid flats. Why would you ride flats when you have amazing climbs and descents? Edgar started us off at 9:00 am. Then Manuel and Billy followed 25 and 26 minutes behind. We each took off a minute behind the rider in front. I was feeling OK, but realized this was the first day of 4 and this was supposed to be the easy stage. With that in mind, I took off at a comfortable pace. A couple of switchbacks later on the gravel road, I realized my heart rate was up in the 180’s, just like it would be on a hot lap at Erwin Park (my local trail). I felt great, so I kept going. I started passing riders about 5 minutes into the climb. I felt great as I crossed the line and my effort would be good enough for a top 10. Turns out, it put me in 4th of the Men’s Solo Open category. Stage 1 Profile: http://connect.garmin.com/course/3057020#.UUDnnQkK2_Q.email Video of Stage 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKmeXd45tcY credit: iguana23 Stage 2
As I started descending into the river bed, I could hear a couple of riders ahead. I lost concentration for a second and that’s all it took. I went down hard. Endoed over the handlebars and landed on my head. My left shoulder hit hard, and I thought I heard my helmet crack. As I picked myself up and took inventory of the damage to my body, I heard someone ask if I was OK. It was Beat. He had gone down in the same spot and was almost done picking himself up. Luckily we were both OK. We rode together for a little bit, but on one of the descents I must have dropped him. I later found out he had flatted – this was the first of the ‘1 flat per stage’ deal Beat had going on. As we left the Check Point, I realized that the 10 miles would take longer to cover than I’m used to. The 2.5 mi climb was steep and endless. It was hot, there was smoke from a forest fire in the air, and the climb just never ended. We had done 45 miles at this point, and my legs were tired. I saw #40 up the road and knew he was sitting 5th in the GC behind me. I couldn’t let him go, so I rode my heart out to keep him within 2 minutes ahead of me. When we finally go to the final descent, he was about 6 minutes ahead, but I still managed to pass him on the alleys into Santa Catarina. I made it across the line in 5 hours and 37 minutes and under a minute behind the 3rd place for the day. I was happy with a 4th for the stage and the overall. That night, I found out that #40 had stopped to help a crash victim and called the ambulance. He was awarded a 5minute ‘fair play’ bonus. This put me in 5th and a couple minutes behind #40. I was more than OK with that, since he had helped another rider and probably spent more than 5 minutes with him. I’m surprised he didn’t get 15 minutes... he surely deserved it. Stage 2 Profile: http://connect.garmin.com/course/3057032#.UUDoQdrNkxM.email Video of Stage 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xa_yYngESRw credit: iguana23 Stage 3 Saturday was going to be at least as hard as Friday. There was about the same amount of climbing (8,000ft), but the climbs would take us to 10,300 ft above sea level. I walked more than I care to admit on the first climb. When I wasn’t walking, I was riding, wondering why my heart wasn’t working. I could only seem to go to 165-170 when pushing hard. I was tired and dehydrated from the day before.
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About an hour before the summit in Alaska, we had passed Beat. He had flatted again. He climbs like a machine, so it was natural that he would pass me again. He was about 8 or so minutes ahead of me when we reached the top. After a very nice and flowing downhill, I caught up to him and rode behind for a few minutes. I realized we were catching #40, so I asked for a pass. As Beat moved over, I shot down and within a few seconds was doing 40 mph down an open gravel road that led into a village. I caught #40 (Carlos Lizalde from Mexico) and passed him. I knew the next 4 miles would be flat, dusty and windy. Those of you who know me know that I cannot time trial (which the next 4 miles would be). Carlos and I took turns pulling after he caught me. It was either suffer together and put time on those behind us and take time from those ahead, or suffer individually and lose time. I beat him to the line after a sprint. No change to the GC, but I finished 4th again. Stage 3 Profile: http://connect.garmin.com/course/3057043#.UUDotoTV-L0.email Video of Stage 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXm6FV_Wa84 credit: reto del quetzal Stage 4 Again, no legs that morning. Heart rate was low. I was tired. It took a good hour to start feeling my legs again. I started the day hoping that this stage would favor me and I could regain some of the lost time. The guys ahead of me were climbers, I’m a downhiller. At the top of the climb, I think #40 had 10 minutes on me. I had let him get way too much time. I quickly realized that the descents on this stage weren’t going to help me one bit. Where the trail was technical, it was super technical. Walking was slightly slower than riding it. Where the trail was fast, it was extremely fast, and going any faster would’ve been impossible or irresponsible. So, it was a matter of staying calm, riding smooth and finishing wherever I finished. I was not going to catch #40 and my body was hurting. It was hot. We had ridden down almost 6,000 feet from the last summit. I dragged myself the last few miles over two hanging bridges that cross the ‘Samala’ river and up a last hike a bike section. I finally made it to the finish line in 5th for the stage and 5th in the GC. I was happy, satisfied, in huge pain, and really needing a beer. I was greeted by the organizers with a finisher’s medal - one that will hang next to other reminders of amazing adventures. Beat, Manuel and Edgar make it in shortly after I do. Billy was unable to start the fourth stage due to a stomach bug. He will return next year to finish it, and surely convince us all to do it again. Stage 4 Profile http://connect.garmin.com/course/3057053#.UUDpKAV_VLw.email Video of Stage 4: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oj1bc0-lv08 credit: iguana23 Back Home For more pictures, visit Joe’s Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/joedelbustophoto/sets/72157632975236512/
New to Racing or a Seasoned Veteran.. What Advice Would YOU Give?
Presented by
Think Finance Select Women’s Race Team Women’s Team Sponsors: Think Finance, Bicycles Plus, Trek, Bontrager, TDi Technologies, D&W Painting Only a few short weeks remain in our road racing season. Then it’s on to cyclocross racing. A few of you are still planning to compete in your first road race event. Race day or rally day can be overwhelming to someone new to this human powered, two-wheeled world. I left the question open and received some interesting answers. What advice would YOU give? Camilla Schmitz – Find a valuable mentor, dependable resources, and trustworthy mechanic. I was fortunate to have valuable mentors when I started riding and racing and owe so much to their contributions. They can teach you the necessary basics all the way through to the fine-tuned items that help you work toward the next level. Becky Angeles – Pack your bag and gather your gear the night before the race. In the morning you can focus on strategy, fueling and hydrating instead of scrambling to get everything together. You may be less likely to forget an important item, such as shoes, helmet, etc. :) (even the best planners forget something while in a hurry) Kelly Barrientes – This holds true in group rides, road races, and crits… Pick a good wheel. Find that person in the group that is a strong, steady, and reliable wheel. Attach yourself to a rider that doesn’t surge, that holds their line, and doesn’t throw their bike back when they stand up to climb. Avoid those with road rash or being sketchy. (look further ahead and not only at the most immediate rider) Shelby Lewis Sirianni Gacki – I was taught to, one: always take care of yourself and your bike needs first, and two: always bring an extra set of wheels. From food needs to bike gear to clothing; it will always ensure a little more ease on race day knowing that everything is in good order, minus the pre-race nerves of course. (another good one) Catherine Moore - Invest in a good pair of bib shorts. They are amazing. (on a related note, the saddle is important too.. VIPs)
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Andrea Thomas – Best advice to new racers #1: Always pay attention to the lap cards. Best advice to new racers #2: Consider your psi. Lower psi in a crit means more tire on the pavement or on a chip-seal road means a smoother ride. (sounds like hard knocks experience) Caryn Montague – If you are traveling to a race it is very inconvenient if you forget something. Create a bike race checklist so nothing is missed and to avoid total panic mode. I have a short list for local races and rides and a thorough travel list so when I am far from home I know I have everything I need. (a list! a gal after my own heart) Courtney Bach – We participate in a sport where everyone is an expert and willing to give free advice. From training to equipment to race tactics, there is no shortage of opinions. Like building a career, I think it's best to seek input from mentors that are truly interested in seeing you succeed. I received all kinds of tips and tricks before my first race and the single best piece of advice was simply: If you want to race your bike, you need to ride your bike. (yes!) Brandi Lafleur - We should all make sure that our cycling kits are clean and fresh. It is very difficult to race behind someone who does not smell very good. Washing regularly to kill bacteria is important. Let items dry out; do not place the wet clothing in a bag. Use hydrogen peroxide in the wash and if that does not help then use a fancy type of laundry detergent. (good tip for everyone) Great tips Ladies -- I’d like to know who Brandi’s been racing behind! We’ll leave you with a couple USAC resources: https://www.usacycling.org/race-day-checklist.htm & http://www.usacycling.org/getting-started.htm. Look for our updates at facebook.com/ThinkFinanceCyclingTeam. Camilla Schmitz Select Women’s Team Captain Think Finance Cycling Team
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PERFORMANCE DRIVEN cinelli-usa.com Handmade in Italy
What’s New At The Shop Trek Travel By Adam Spears As the summer of 2013 slowly winds, many people will be getting off the bike for some off season rest. At the same time, many of the same people may already be planning a 2014 calendar out. From races to training, from rallies to tours, and weekly group rides, there are all types of ways to fill one’s riding season out. There is another option to consider when planning the upcoming year, and that is to take a trip with Trek Travel. As the name indicates, Trek Travel is a part of the Trek Bikes brand. There are numerous options to look at for a Trek Travel Trip, and I was fortunate enough to take part in one last winter and would like to share some of the details with you here. The first of two questions you must answer when planning a Trek Travel trip is where would you like to go? The second question you must answer is who would you like to ride with or maybe how hard you would like to ride? These questions could actually be asked in the opposite order. Each traveler will have a unique take on the who and where. Starting with where, Trek Travel offers destinations all over the United States, as well as around the world. Some of the more common tours will be in Italy, France, or Spain to coordinate with spectating for the Giro, le Tour, the Vuelta, or other one-day classics around Europe. Of course, you don’t have to go during any of those races to enjoy one of the European trips. The beautiful scenery and just riding where the greats have been is exciting enough. There are now also
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trips available to the Asia Pacific as well as Latin America. Of course, if you want to keep it close to home, trips are available in every corner of the United States. How do you want to ride and who will be riding with you? This is an essential question to consider when planning a Trek Travel trip. The classic trip where each day you pick a route to ride at a pace of your choosing with complete SAG support is the most common. You can roll through Napa wine country on a road bike for 60 miles while your significant other takes a 5 mile cruise on a city bike and gets pampered at a local salon for putting up with all your yearlong cycling drama. Then off to eat at some of the fining dining around. Set up a family or a private trip if you have the time and resources. They even offer epic
mountain bike trips in places such as Moab, Utah or… get your team together and go do an intense week long training camp in some of the same places that the pro teams will be spending their Januarys. That is what I was somewhat able to do, to spend 5 days in Solvang, California, where many pro teams such Radio ShackTrek and Bontrager-Livestrong will put hours of base miles in. This was not the actual Trek Ride Camp, as you will find on the Trek Travel website. It was a dealer camp, so we still had to play bike shop for part of the day, but I got a good taste of what the Ride Camp would be like. Imagine walking out of the hotel lobby on a beautiful crisp morning to find dozens of brand new Trek bikes waiting to be ridden in the rolling hills of Central California. The excited hum and chatter of bike shop employees from all across the country setting up saddle height and other details on the bike. Cue sheets being handed out for the best routes in the area. Load up on some snacks and fluids, and 10 minutes later you are passing a vineyard that you are almost certain you have had their Chardonnay or Pinot Noir. Then another day riding to the base of the 10 mile climb up Mt. Figuroa and being spoiled enough to be allowed to dump all of your extra gear in the SAG van. Then after the grueling climb to the top, getting your arm warmers and vest back from the van for the descent. How great is it to not have to hump all that gear, water, and food up and down the climb? They do treat you like royalty on a Trek Travel trip. So do consider Trek Travel for your next vacation or team camp. My wife and I are planning one for the near future, and she only throws a leg over a top tube a few times a year, but they have so much to offer off the bike, I am certain she will be just fine while I am out riding. There is a trip out there for all levels of riders and all budgets. Feel free to reach out to me with any questions about Trek Travel, and I still have some discount vouchers available as well. My email is aspears@bikemart.com. Also be sure to check out www.trektravel.com for some amazing photography and the full schedule. Big thanks Jim H., Woody, and all the folks at Bike Mart who make cool work trips like this happen. Talk to you soon and see you on the road. WWW.THERACINGPOST.US
Photo Essay: USA PRO CYCLING CHALLENGE 2013 By Lisa Schwab Full disclosure: I am a Colorado Native. According to other Coloradoans, I am the worst kind: the kind that moved to Texas. That being said, THE #1 reason to visit Colorado as a Texas cyclist: The USA Pro Challenge, just finishing its third year. There has not been a professional cycling race in Colorado since the Coors Classic in the 80s and the Pro Challenge is proving to fill the void perfectly. “Bike racing was formed here in Colorado and to be given the opportunity to re-establish its roots in this state is one of the most rewarding things that can happen for us”, says Jim Birrell, Race Director for the USA Pro Challenge. The layout of the race makes the riders, finishes, sprints and KOMs completely accessible. You can have a front row seat to some of the most breathtaking cycling views in the U.S. Both 2011 and 2012 saw the race attract over a million spectators. This year, estimates are for more. There is no lack of Texans on the ground. From El Paso to Houston, San Antonio to Dallas, I met tons of Texas cyclists that drove or flew up to bask in the action of one of the largest cycling events in US history.
Jamis-Hagens Berman p/b Sutter Home said “That thing is incredible. I’m just impressed that anyone can ride up that pretty fast. It was steep and one heck of a course.” Um, we are too, Mr. KOM!
“The crowds here are incredible. Colorado is a cycling-crazy state. It was just incredible. The climbs this year have been more selective. The first year the race was won by 11 seconds, last year was won by almost a minute and a half. I think that’s because the climbs are so much bigger and the race itself was harder than ever.”
Even if someone did not care about cycling, they could spend a week observing the fans and be fully entertained. I have met the coolest people from Colorado and beyond, all unified by the love of cycling. After the peleton crawled over Independence Pass, our photog caravan was delayed for 45 minutes to allow the dance party to properly celebrate. What else does one do but join in the party? With camera in hand, of course.
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Junior Spotlight: Mitchell Erickstad By TRP Staff Photo by Lee McDaniel
Presented by:
TRP: Give us your full name and your nick-name. ME: Mitchell Erickstad, or Mitch
scared of riding. I’m actually thankful that I don’t remember much about it. At age 14 I started riding a lot more. I had never been good at any type of sport, but after a couple of years of riding, I noticed that I had built up a good bit of endurance. I would go out often for over an hour and a half and just ride as hard and as fast as I could. No thoughts of pace crossed my mind. I guess that I didn’t have any goals other than to see how far that I could go in whatever time that I was given to ride. I didn’t have a cycle computer on my bike, so I had no clue how fast or far I was going. I didn’t have any real goals, so I never felt bad about my performance. All that I wanted to do was go fast. As the years went by I went through several bicycles, including a couple of BMX bikes and several cheap mountain bikes. I unfortunately never encountered road bikes during all of that time.
TRP: Where do you live and how long have you lived there? ME: I have lived in Murphy, Texas my whole life. TRP: Do you have brothers and sisters – if so, who are they and what ages are they? Do they ride? ME: I have one younger brother, Marshall, and two younger sisters, Ellie and Caroline. They all ride. TRP: Does anyone in your family race – if so, who and for whom at what level? ME: My brother Marshall has raced once before, and will probably continue to do so in the future. He rides for Matrix Cycle Club. TRP: What team do you ride for and for how long? ME: I ride for the Matrix Cycle Club. I have been riding for them since I started racing in September of 2011. TRP: What were your last three events and your placing in those events? ME: Tuesday Night Crit C Race: 3rd Place, King of Rockwall Jr. Men 4/5: 2nd and
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Matrix Challenge Jr. Men 4/5: 1st TRP: When did you start riding? Can you tell the story? ME: I started riding really late, I believe at about 11 or 12. I guess that I was really
TRP: When did you start racing? Why? ME: I started racing in September of 2011 after my dad suggested it. The previous year I had seen little bit of the Tour de France, but the two didn’t connect in my mind. I had no idea what type of riders and bikes I would be up against. TRP: What kind of bike do you ride? Any interesting equipment on it?
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ME: I ride a Specialized Tarmac SL2 with a SRAM Red and Rival mix, and Zipp 101 wheels. This bike has served me very well. For mtn, I ride a full-suspension bike that I built myself. TRP: Have you tried other two-wheeled sports? ME: I’ve raced cyclo-cross and will soon try out racing at the velodrome. Someday I want to see what motocross is like. TRP: Do you participate in other sports? ME: I run a decent bit. TRP: Where do you go to school? ME: I’m home-schooled. TRP: What grade are you in and what’s your favorite subject? ME: 11th, and I’d have to say English/Writing. TRP: What do you think of school? ME: hmmm School… let me explain my thoughts this way: I like Eddy Merckx’s reaction to winning his first race: “I won! I won! I don’t have to go to school anymore!” TRP: What do you see as your future … what would you like to do after graduating from school? ME: I’ll pursue racing with the dream to go pro someday. I’ll also try to get a job at a bike shop so that I can be around the sport that I love. TRP: Do you have a job and, if so, where do you work? ME: I mow lawns and fix computers. Recently I’ve started doing bike restoration and I’m really enjoying it. TRP: How many days a week do you ride and how many hours do you put in? ME: As many as I can… school interferes a lot. When I ride I put in at least 90 minutes. TRP: Do you have a formal coach? ME: No, but Max Miley and Sam Montag from Matrix have taught me a lot, and they both know so much about the sport and have helped me make progress in racing. TRP: As a Junior Racer, what do you think could be done to increase the sport’s popularity among young people? ME: I think that the overall cost of the sport scares a lot of potential racers away. I think that seeing a $750 price tag on a bike that will only last you through your first season or two is really discouraging. I think that the sport’s reputation over the last decade probably doesn’t go over too well with a lot of parents either. TRP: Tell us about your first Race? ME: My first race was the 2011 Stars and Spokes Jr Race, I showed up with mountain bike, a BMX helmet, and sneakers. [Ed
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-I remember you there!!] I was happy because I didn’t take last place, I didn’t crash, and I didn’t get lapped. In retrospect, I’m glad that I even finished, even though finishing meant that I got secondto-last place. TRP: Tell us about your worst Race? ME: My worst race would have to be one of the crits at Fair Park last year. I was having a great race, and felt absolutely perfect, until I had a flat on the second-to-last lap. I always find it harder to take losses when I can’t even do anything about it. I’d rather suffer and get a bad placing than not finish and have to walk back to the car blaming something that was in the road the whole way. Over the last year, I’ve had a couple of races that I couldn’t finish due to a flat, and I think that those races have contributed to my near-obsession with having a clean race course. TRP: Tell us about your favorite Race? ME: My favorite race was the 2012 Cotton Patch Challenge Jr. Road Race. About half way through the race, I followed an attack that one of my teammates made, and we ended up as a breakaway of two. We managed to hold on to that lead to the end, and I took first. TRP: Favorite food? ME: Pasta TRP: Training food? ME: Again… Pasta TRP: Other than that? ME: I eat whatever is available. TRP: Campy, SRAM or Shimano? ME: SRAM TRP: Favorite pro bike racer? ME: Past: Eddy Merckx, his sheer amount of victories is amazing. Present: Mark Cavendish, his approach to racing leaves no room for excuses. TRP: Anybody you’d like to thank or mention? ME: Whew… this is going to be a long list. First, I’d like to thank the Lord, because I’ve had so many close calls that He’s brought me through, and just for the fact that I’m still alive. I’d like to thank my parents, for allowing me to race and supporting me. Also, Richardson Bike Mart, and Matrix for all of the support that they’ve given me. All of the help from everybody at RBM has been great, and I’d like to specifically thank Colton, Darrel, Jack, and Rich. I’m really thankful for all of the coaching that I’ve gotten from Max Miley, and Sam Montag. And last but definitely not least, I’d like to thank my grandmother for all of her encouragement and help. It means the world to me.
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Megan Baab Memorial Scholarship By Richard Carter Three female racers on the Midwestern State University cycling team were awarded Megan Baab Memorial Scholarships for the 2013-14 academic school year. The scholarship specifically helps women cyclists to attend tertiary education . The racers must be active in Texas USAC races and be “a shining example of Megan level sportwomanship. It’s about Character, not the Results,” said Racing Post editor and Candle in the Wind (the host foundation) director, Andrew Hollinger. Baab was a 19-year-old Metroplex cyclist who was killed when she was hit by a car in December 2011 near the end of her first semester at Lees-McRae. College in North Carolina In her honor a memorial fund was set up and the 2013-4 school year marks the second year of it’s operation. The MSU winners are Junior Ashley Weaver, Senior Angela Streadwick and Junior Claire Fischer. Weaver also won the award for the 2011-12 year and knew Baab. “I raced against Megan at my first track Nats in Indianapolis,” Weaver said. “I may have raced against her in other crits, but that’s the one I remember. She was really nice, always smiling, always happy. It meant a lot to win this scholarship,” Weaver said. A “Cat A” collegiate racer, Weaver’s major is exercise physiology, and the upcoming year is her fourth year to race. She will graduate in Fall 2014 and is not sure whether she will go on to graduate school at MSU or go to another physical therapy school. Weaver won the woman’s Cat A Conference championship in 2013, after winning the Cat B Conf champi-
onship the previous year. She ran cross-country and track before switching to cycling a year ago before she enrolled at MSU. “There was really no reason I started cycling,” Weaver said. “My dad knew one of the board members for the MSU cycling team, Marvin Traywick, and that’s just kind of how that happened.” Streadwick and Fisher walked on the MSU cycling team early in 2012. Both are collegiate C riders and former athletes who converted to cycling at MSU. A senior, Streadwick started cycling in February and plans on returning to MSU for graduate school in psychology at MSU and wants to continue to race and cat up. “I read about the scholarship from (MSU Coach) Charlie’s (Zamastil) e-mail to the riders, and I decided I wanted to fill out a scholarship application. “It was an honor to be selected. I feel so lucky, I tell my friends and they are surprised I get help with school, and you get to race every
Intro To Cycling What a glorious thing it is to ride your bike. I have a former boyfriend to thank for introducing me into the road cycling realm. Without that introduction, my hobbies would have stayed mundane. I never anticipated that riding my bike could become such an intense and satisfying hobby. Mark, my boyfriend 2 years ago, randomly purchased a 15 year old, steel road bike from Craigslist. He called me on a beautiful day and desired to go for a cruise. All I had bike-wise at the time was a ratchet Mountain Blaster mountain bike that I had 38
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ridden around my neighborhood through my adolescence. He wasn’t worried about that so we went and cruised along the Trinity River. At one point along the river, we walked our bikes down to the water’s edge and meandered onto the rocks that formed a bridge across the water. After enjoying the scenery, we decided to carry our bikes across the rocks and ride home on the other side of the river. Mark’s bike was super light compared to mine. We lugged our bikes successfully across those slimy rocks, and at that point, I decided I wanted a better bike.
weekend.” Fisher, a junior nursing major, said “I feel honored to get the opportunity to receive money to attend school and to race. “I didn’t know who Megan was until I enquired about the scholarship.” A junior nursing major, she will be able to race in nearly all of the conference events in 2014. Upon graduation, Fisher will likely work two years in her field. “I want to get a higher degree than an RN but I don’t know if I will go to med school or just get my PA degree. Fisher won the Cat C Conference race at MSU in 2013, but said her favorite result was winning second at the LSU road race. “I had just spent five days in the mountains of Arkansas training with the team and conquering huge hills. During the race, I could feel the fruits of my labor kick in on an incline close to the finish of the race and got second place.” Zamastil was very pleased that three of his female riders received the scholarship. “The Megan Baab scholarship is a great way to promote female cycling particularly in the collegiate system in Texas,” he said. “We have three riders, one of whom who is very advanced and getting the scholarship for the past couple years,” Zamastil said, “and two new women--who in addition to the Megan Baab award--are getting our new women’s developmental scholarship, which ties in with the idea not only of promoting female cycling in Texas but developing younger and inexperienced riders so they can reach the same level that Ashley has.”
By Claire Fisher Mark tried his best to convince me to buy a road bike but my stubbornness wouldn’t allow me to adapt to those intimidating ram’s horns handle bars. I bought a hybrid Fuji bike, which got me one step closer to a road , but was not fully committed yet. In the spring, we decided to bring our bikes onto the Trinity Rail Express train and go to Dallas for the day to ride around. We hopped on and off the train all day with our bikes and toured the big city. We hit the Dallas Aquarium and the Galleria and experienced such joy on our bikes. However, Mark was
twice as fast as me with his skinny tires. We would race down sprawling hills and he would beat me every time. He could also maneuver his bike with greater ease onto the train and fit his handle bars through the doors better than I could. That got me craving again for a new bike. In the summer, I watched as my boyfriend became immersed into the racing scene. He purchased an expensive Cannondale road bike and began to ride seriously, in preparation for the Hotter n Hell Hundred. I supported him at events and distinctly remember being at one of his crit races. An official asked me if I ever contemplated racing my bike and I nonchalantly replied “Oh, I don’t know…”. I attended the HHH with Mark and witnessed him finish the 100 miles. The amazing event inspired me to purchase a road bike. I searched the web constantly and finally stumbled upon the perfect bike in a bike shop in Fort Worth. That Bianchi called to me and we bonded for a wonderful year. I commuted to as many places as I possibly could on my bike and went on many rides with Mark and my sister. I brought it to Austin with me countless trips and painted the town red with my best friend on our bikes. Those are unforgettable memories. A year later I moved to Wichita Falls to attend the Wilson School of Nursing at MSU. I rode my bike to the public library one day and on my way back, I saw 3 MSU cycling team members riding up behind me. They probed me with questions about my experience with cycling and practically got me to join the team right then and there. I was extremely surprised and stoked to become part of such a recognized team. On February 16, 2013, I competed in my first road race, rather, my first race ever! I had no idea what I was doing but just knew to keep pedaling. I got 8th place out of about 13, which shocked me with great delight. From there on, I’ve been blessed with the greatest opportunities to travel, race and ride with the team. The experiences I’ve had thus far have morphed me into the kind of person I never suspected I’d become. I’ve learned interesting things inside the world of racing and strategies for riding that I couldn’t dream up. This whole experience has been almost dream-like, in the sense that I can’t believe it. I am so incredibly happy to say that I am a cyclist.
Why I Enjoy Cycling By Angela Streadwick II enjoy cycling because it gives me freedom. I love to be outdoors and I enjoy the view I get from the bike. I have a natural desire to compete and I get to fulfill that need to achieve in cycling at MSU. This team has provided me a way to be involved in a team sport and this means a lot to me. I grew up speed skating when I was a kid and learned a lot about winning and losing. I learned about hard work and the benefits of determination. I have a chance now to channel all I have learned into cycling. God has blessed me with a beautiful daughter who is 13, an education opportunity, and now scholarship funding, so that I can continue cycling. I am a single mother who works and goes to school, so cycling has given me an outlet to release all my stress. I love to put forth all my energy into something that makes me feel great. With all my responsibilities as a mother, I am blessed to have this opportunity to enjoy cycling, and be a part of the team at Midwestern State University. The team has been very supportive from the beginning and they have encouraged me along the way. It’s like having a second family and getting to be a kid while I’m on the bike. My love for cycling has grown over the last 7 months and I enjoy the hard work as well as the fun times with the team. Cycling for me is a way to forget about all of the stress in life and enjoy the beautiful world we live in. Thank you for blessing me with this opportunity to do what I enjoy! Sincerely, Angela Streadwick WWW.THERACINGPOST.US
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Mountain Bike Nationals: Mother Daughter Adventure Part II by Sarah Dougherty Elizabeth Stone said, “Making the decision to have a child is momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body.” Well in Fiona’s case it was to let my heart go riding around outside my body. Mountain biking has been a part of our family’s fabric for a very long time. From the moment she could competently handle her bike Fiona has wanted to be on the trails. From riding clipless pedals at the age of 5 to racing time trial mountain bike races with no junior age group and still winning she has shown focus and maturity beyond her years. It’s the stuff that makes a mother proud and feel already her lessening need of you, the true goal of parenting: obsolescence. When we realized that Fiona going to USAC Mountain Bike Nationals was an achievable goal, we began to plan to make it happen, generously funded by her Pop-pop with additional assistance from Bicycles Outback. The travel and hotel plans were actually secondary to our largest question of how do we train for this? Up till now we have just ridden bikes with racing thrown in for just a little extra motivation and fun. Although, Fiona has shown focus that I certainly don’t have. On multiple occasions when we have recapped races where we both raced I have mentioned how I wanted to stop and enjoy the scenery she has said “What scenery? All I could see was the trail.” This more than likely explains why she can absolutely destroy me now. As to the training question we wanted to keep in mind that she is only 14 and we want to build a lifetime cyclist. Thankfully our cycling community in Waco is full of world and national champion cyclists who are more than eager to share their vast wealth of experience, knowledge, and, even when needed, gear. Quicker than you would think, race day arrived. As team mechanic, head nutritionist, and of course mom, I had lists that I had checked and rechecked to make sure we were ready to roll. The hardest thing I had to do race morning was not let Fiona know how nervous I was. As usual, whatever nerves she had she kept well under control, smiling and waving to me as she rolled up to the line. I wasn’t nervous about her, I have all the confidence in the world in her abilities. Believe me, if you want to know where the line is, follow
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Fiona: she picks the best line every time. No, it was all the variables that I knew were actually not in my control: a mechanical, the weather, and the ability of the other girls. After the whistle blew for the start I have to admit, I cried. She raced a great race finishing 2nd close behind the first place finisher due to a missed feed, in really hot weather, on an extremely technical course, with the largest field of girls she had ever raced against. Well over half the starters DNF’d due to the heat and extremely technical nature of the course. We learned so much from this experience. I was more than thankful for our Texas racing friends who kept talking me down while I waited during those interminable minutes until she came through the finish. At one point the race announcer, possibly having seen my frenetic pacing, said “Let’s hear it for all the Junior moms out there, some of the only people who know exactly all it takes to get here.” Indeed let’s hear it for all the Junior parents who know what it takes to let their hearts ride around outside their bodies.
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(Continued from page 14) when Tristan told me he was feeling the same way, and we figured after of course! It had an average grade over 25% for about 10 minutes, and sections touched 40%; a Category 3 climb in less than 0.5 miles. Near the top I got a sudden, urgent message from my bowels that they needed to be emptied. I quickly spotted some big, soft leaves, and did the biz. It made all the difference, and from then on we were able to go race pace. It seemed as though we gradually made our way to the very top of the island, where in fact the palm trees and vines gave way to a few pine trees. It was pretty wild getting a peek into the lives of the locals, too. Most live in small shacks in very, very rural areas… and all have chickens and dogs. Many were also blasting music and sipping cervezas. Some would stare at us blankly like we were aliens, others would shout words of encouragement as we flashed by. At each of the 5 or 6 checkpoints, I got a chance to try out my limited Spanish, as we asked about the course ahead. Always it was a wry smile and” Muy duro. Muy, muy duro.” And it was. Many of the climbs and descents were either too steep or too loose to ride, so we ended up hiking for nearly an hour. The temperature rose with every passing mile, and we came to look forward to the numerous river crossings. For one section near the end, the course followed the river for quite a ways, and we had to hike, bikes on our backs, through knee-deep water. At one point Tristan just dove all the way in. I think it was smart of the promoters to tell us after the fact of the giant Puerto Rican boa constrictors. When it was all said and done, we ended up with a little under 40 miles in over three hours of moving time, over 6,000 feet of climbing, and a demoralizing 10.8 mph average speed. The race organizers treated us very well, and had set up a special deal for us at a local restaurant. We spent the afternoon catching up on calories and internet time, while we sipped agave juice and watched people go about their lives. When the alarm went off at 5:00 the morning of the second stage, I pretty much had to pry my eyelids open. My whole body felt tired and sore… the day before had been quite an effort. I was somewhat relieved
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a few minutes on the bike, the muscles would loosen up and we’d start feeling better. As the leading team on GC, we were last out of the start gate. There was quite a bit more pavement on the day’s route, and a generally “easier” course profile. I say “easier” because there was still well over 5,000 feet of climbing! I could feel within the first few minutes that I had good legs, and we settled into a fast 25 mph rotation on the opening flat road-section. After a couple of steep 5-6 minute ascents, the tarmac gave way to technical, slippery, and rocky power climbs. We were able to clean most of them, and quickly took time out of the competition. One in particular was under a canopy of thick fruit trees, which had dropped softball-sized gourd things all over the trail. It took baby-heads to a whole new level! One hour in and we were the leaders on the road, and averaging just under 20 mph… a bit of a difference to the previous day! But soon our luck would run out. There was some confusion on course markings, and long story short, Tristan and I ended up shooting off into somewhere we definitely shouldn’t have been. We ended up getting very lost for 10-15 minutes, but luckily glimpsed a jersey flash by in the distance and got back on course. The one bonus is we spotted a bunch of huge iguanas running full pelt… those things are fast! Apparently word had quickly spread that “the Americans were missing”, and once back on track, we found the spectators and volunteers cheering uproariously: “Only five minute! Only five minute! Now you go for make big comeback!” Thankfully both Tristan and I are fairly eventempered, and kept cool heads while lost. Now we found ourselves with an exciting challenge to overcome, and were both extra motivated. An exuberant crew on four-wheelers and crazy all-terrain dune buggies fell in behind us. They snapped pictures, cheered, and swilled Keystone Light from the coolers they had in tow. We managed to rejoin the leaders a bit before a feedzone/check-in area, and as we took off again, Tristan busted out a killer wheelie, much to the delight of the crowd. I seemed to have limitless energy, and as we neared the finish, found myself wishing we had 50 more miles to go. After crossing the line, excited kids came up, tugging and demanding we turn over our jerseys. I’m hoping we can find a way to send them a few. The awards ceremony was loud and full of energy. After receiving some very nice custom glass plaques, handsome cash payout, and a palate of Medalla beer (which we gave to thankful volunteers), we posed for way more pictures than I’m used to at races. The excitement and energy of the cycling culture in Puerto Rico is inspiring and infectious. I’d like to thank Waldo, Fernando, Jason, Rude, Brian, USA Cycling, the volunteers, and everyone else that made us feel welcome, and this unforgettable experience possible. I would love to go back! Next up I’m off to Guiyang, China for a World Cup test event. Although it’s hard to believe now, this next adventure sounds like it could be even more spectacular than the last. Check back in next month to read all about it!
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