NorCal Cycling News

world of suck … on video

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Blogging for SFGate.com next week

sigh …

Next week I’ll be adding some Norcal race coverage to the SFGate.com’s new bike blog. So, if you’ve got quotes or pictures you’d like included in articles, please shoot them over to me via the interwebs … pedalhome(at)hotmail.com.

Road, Dirt, and Track coverage will be tossed into the blog as we try to increase media exposure for our athletes, teams, sponsors and race organizers.

… so thanks for sending me info to include!

have a great weekend and apologies for the crappy vidpost.
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Races all around NorCal!

Many of the women of NorCal are out doing the epic, the glorious, the ridiculously difficult Kern County Stage Race.  Held down in Bakersfield, this fiendish race tests riders against punishing climbs, never ending time trials, and braincase melting hotwinds.  For women, there’s childbirth … and then there’s the Kern County Stage Race.

This will be the first year I’ll miss out on running support for the event … so, I’ll be relying on those stalwarts at the race to toss updates up north so fixes can be gotten.   Muchas gracias.

Other races going on this weekend are the Modesto, Winters, and the Scotts Valley criteriums.  That’s a lot of gawdamn criteriums on one day in May … but, hopefully each will have huge turnouts of regional riders and satisfied grins will be extended to both competitors and promoters, alike.  I’ll be heading up to Scotts Valley with Beth in just a few minutes and am very much looking forward to announcing for the women’s race, and maybe even slapping on a number myself for a bit of sprinting out of a wet paper bag.

Speaking of Sprinting … SGP ~ man-style!

The Sacramento Grand Prix has a full field of 160+ frothing, stomping, muscle-pumped men ready to bull-run around the state’s capital and show the nation just how much speed and disdain for safety dudes with shaved legs and spandex can throw at each other.

This event is a Pro-Am race … with professionals from a few California based squads ready, willing and able to mix it up with the best of the up-and-coming amateurs from the state.  Leading the favorites for winning this event has to be the founder and captain of the Bahati Foundation, Rahsaan Bahati.   A former US national criterium champion, Bahati, is one of the fastest finishers in the country and has been a proven winner in big-time events over the past few years.  If the race comes down to the anticipated field sprint, Bahati will be very difficult to beat.

But there will be teams bashing at the front of end of this 60-minute event from the drop of the flag … with many teams knowing that a breakaway, while unlikely, will better their chances for taking this most prestigious of wins. The largest teams and most renowned for having hardcase, teeth-gnashing breakaway artists would be the Yahoo! Cycling Team, California Giant Berry Team, Webcor/Alto Velo, and Williams Cycling Team powered by SCVelo.  The Yahoo! riders have proven themselves very adept at pushing off the front end of bike races in their first year of racing together … but, the SGP men’s field will be averaging well over 30 miles per hour for the 60 minute event ~ and to consider keeping a breakaway at higher speeds than that is a crotch numbing proposition, to say the least.

But there are other strong teams and characters to be on the look out for on Sunday.  The American Lung Association Team is chock full of young talent and experienced veterans and they will have a clear voice when it comes to how the narrative of this event will be told.  Team Specialized Racing has a quality grouping of junior and senior riders competing, with a phenomenal story of a father/son duo in the form of Dean and James Laberge.  Both Dean and his son have been district criterium champions and it will be a sweet scene to see these two lined up together for this top-notch race.

NorCal is a hotbed of both junior and masters-aged racers, and there will be a number of quality veterans out there mixing it up with the young thoroughbreds.  Big Bubba Melcher, a former football player turned svelt bike racer, has already predicted that he’ll grab a top placing in the SGP … and that’s not all bravado pushing out of the big Reno-rider’s lungs.  Nicholas Oliver was a recent district champion in the 30+ aged-criterium and will be a part of a strong Wells Fargo Team lacing up shoes for Sunday, as well.  Rocknasium’s Chad Demasi was a winner in the 35+ aged-criterium over the legend to be named later, Chad Gerlach - and both riders will be out and ready with strong squads for the SGP.

But again, this race will likely come down to a field sprint - and aside from Bahati, there are some well established fastmen ready to mix it up and dash it out to capture this gem of the 2010 season.  Sterling Magnell leads the rejuvinated McGuire Cycling team, joining fellow fastmen Randy Bramblett and 3-time US track champion, David McCook.  Williams Cycling has an incredibly quick sprinting Jeremiah Wiscovitch at their disposal, not to mention their hard hitting duo of basher brothers, Kyle and Brandon Gritters.  And very much worth watching for will be the Trek Livestrong U-23 rider, Justin Williams … a lightning quick accelerator who has won quite a few bunch sprints in the past couple years.

I’ll be out there racing it up with all of them for the Kinetic Cycles/Great Basin Imaging squad … and you can bet we’ll get our name called out on the front end of things, as well.
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Well ~ it’s off to Scotts Valley where Beth is going to win us some dinner cash!  Hope ya’ll have great fun out there racing, training, or watching the first stage of the Tour of California.  Heady times, indeed, for cycling in our state … be a part of it and hope to see you out there!
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Women’s Racing … stories and dropkicks

I’ll say it straight off the bat - I am not a fan of having multiple fields on criterium courses.  It’s unsafe, it impedes the quality of racing, and it causes scoring nightmares for the officials.  However, one could argue that racing multiple fields on a crit course is the only way to fit in all the categories of our diverse population at a race like Madera.

If that’s the case, then it is absolutely incumbent that the promoter have enough moto officials for the event, AND those moto officials be properly educated on how to avoid fields combining in the final few laps of a race.

The opening stage for women at Madera is a criterium where category 4s and 35+ race  at the same time, and then the p1/2s and 3s do the same a bit later.  In the 4s/35+ race … it was only with the slimmest margins of luck that the cat 4 field didn’t sprint into the back of the 35+ field on the final lap.  It was way, way too close.  Luckily, the 35s revved up the engine just enough to keep a safe separation.  In the p1/2 and 3 fields’ race … that luck ran out, the fields combined with 3 to go ~ the moto tried an unsafe separation in the final laps, and a crash ensued.

There was an easy solution to both instances … in both races, it was evident for the final 7 laps that the fields were getting too close to each other and there was a high potential for overtaking.  To stop this from happening the moto should have neutralized the packs that were behind for just a few moments, creating a gap between the fields that would ensure safety through to the finish, and yet also allow for each field to resume its quality of competition.  At Madera, the moto ref simply did not have the experience or understanding of racing to know to do this.

The moto was responsible for the crash that occurred once the p1/2 and cat 3 fields combined: firstly, because the fields merging could and SHOULD have been avoided; and secondly, because if fields merge in the final few minutes of a race - the safe thing to do is let them all finish together and let the cameras sort out the placings.  The moto, in this instance, inserted himself into the race to demand field separation and caused stress, distracted the riders, and ultimately increased significantly the chances of a crash occurring.

With the discontinuation of radios for teams, it becomes even more important for (we) officials to become better trained.  Officials need to know how caravan feeding will work for a race and communicate that to the riders/teams; they need to know how to best handle field neutralizations mid-race and especially near finishes; and officials need to know how to properly communicate road hazards and time gaps to riders.

It’s what we are paid to do - so either do it right, or don’t be out there.

/rant

The actual racing

Lauren Hecht won all the time bonuses for the p1/2 field - showing very strong powersprint conditioning.  She would take the win in the crit ahead of Mary Ellen Ash (Los Gatos) and Emily Kachorek (Wells Fargo) in a chaotic field sprint.

For the cat 3s, Beth Newell won the first time bonus with a well timed drive to the line, showing building form for her assault on the velodrome season later this year.  Jane Wolcott would be the winner of the crit, part of a quintet of category 3 riders who jumped into and through the p1/2 field with 3 laps to go.  (sigh)

With the time trials later in the day for the women, the racing was less aggressive than would be hoped for by spectators (at least this one), and no riders stood out in either tactics or determination.
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The time trail was won by Metromint’s Molly Van Houweling, 14 seconds ahead of Jane Despas (Yahooligirl).  But, as in the Valley of the Sun Stage Race earlier in the year … MVH would be moved down the leader’s board because of time bonuses won in field sprints.

Jane Despas rides solo, and yet she was able to control a field of 34 riders and 4 strong teams from any breakaways ~ ensuring she had opportunity to take the 20 second time bonus on hand for the winning the road race.  And Metromint Cycling, one of my favorite teams, was unable to force a combine of other teams to send anything off the front to steal away that time bonus … a tactical blunder of epic proportions.

With 4 riders in the top-12, Metromint had opportunity to create selections in the road race that would benefit their team by a) forcing Despas to chase and burning her matches for the sprint; and/or b) getting one of their riders in a position to take the overall.

But instead, it was a full-field coming to the line in a 72-mile road race … with Despas easily dispatching the others in her forte, a grinder uphill sprint.  Kudos to the tenacity and strength of Despas, but huge disappointment in the Metromint riders for not having the ability to protect their GC.

How to force a break

I’m someone who couldn’t sprint or time trial their way out of a paper bag … yet, I’ve been able to win a good number of crits, road races, and GCs in my day.  How? Through the art of the breakaway.

There is much that influences when, where, and how to attack in a bike race.  And there are a myriad of goals for attacking, as well … especially in a stage race run on time.  There are tactical breaks that go away (usually early) because teams find them beneficial, and there are physical breaks brought about by continued aggression.  For now, I’m just going to try and outline what i feel are the necessary components of creating a successful physical break.

Forcing a breakaway takes team cooperation, the ability to read a race, and the relentless but JUDICIOUS use of the attack.  Too many riders employ the kamikaze attack methodology … saving up their strength for one, massive explosion upon the race.  This is very often done at a moment in the race when the rider feels the strongest … and not when the race situation demands it.  The kamikaze rider is not reading the race, but instead looking for an opportunity to unleash their effort … to die.

Breakaways are rarely formed in one big explosion during a race … but instead, through a serious of orchestrated mini-bombs dropped on the field, over and over again, until finally the field relents, folds in, and must recoover from the bombardment by dropping pace as the break rides away.

Once attacking begins in a race, it is most often a relentless series of continuing attacks that will form a breakaway.  To achieve this, teammates must coordinate their attacks:  if one rider launches a move, it is incumbent upon the others to prepare to counter attack when/if that rider’s effort is caught.  If your team has 4 riders able to attack … that gives ample opportunity for each rider to force some rest into their legs and lungs while one of their teammates has initiated a move.

By trading attacks, you spread the workload over multiple riders … keeping energy expenditures down.  Get rid of the kamikaze mentality … instead, be a chess playing bombadeer.  Think moves ahead ~ consider who is chasing the breaks, what teams are also attacking, which riders seem committed to getting away and which are content to sit in.  When you attack, realize that you are likely going to have to make another acceleration off the front OR follow a competitors attack again soon. Remember, you don’t have to attack at 100%!  And moreover, you can save energy by ATTACKING WITH OTHERS!

Solo attacks are rarely beneficial to your team, as the speed of an individual is not going to outpace or strain a pack of riders.  If you find yourself off the front of a race solo - you must ask yourself if this is beneficial for your team, or just pride f*ing with you.  Remember, it is through judicious use of energy and attack that builds successful breakaways.  Don’t be a kamikaze unless the situation demands it … and it rarely does.

In other words, read the race and meter your efforts.  Breakaways occur because riders have the courage and resilience to keep attacking, again and again, until finally a move is forced away. It is only through trial and error that you will learn how to accomplish this.- you must attack.
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more later …

Merco Crit … the real show

True enough, i’ve had a few bucketloads of fun out on the Merco RR course over the years … but, it’s not the show, it’s not the high-stakes gamblefest and crowd pleasing hammerthrows offered by the downtown criterium.

This year’s edition of the Merco Downtown Grand Prix looks to have a more than middlin’ chance of precipitation dropping on the course throughout the day, which really only affects about 90% of the turns ~ so, everybody should be fine out there.  Historically, this is a race that starts out at speeds burning holes in chamois in both the men and women’s events.  On the one hand, riders like to push the throttle early to spread the field out and keep it safer through the early dives ‘tween the backside chicane. And on the other hand … there’s more than many riders jumping out to try and take the inevitable first lap prime for a few hundred bucks.

But this year, the weekend isn’t NRC … and the crit fields are p1/2 for the men, p1/2/3 for the women, instead of the usual p/1 and p1/2.  So, with that spread of ability included in this 2010 version … the initial speeds are likely to be even higher as the pro teams look to shed off as many hangers-on as possible in the opening few minutes.

The men’s race looks to be early glimpses at some of the big battles likely to be played out between sprinter teams in the NRC this year.  Major favorite will be the Bahati Foundation, as they have black lightning Rahsaan Bahati always rising to the occasion for a quick strike in front of big crowds.

But they also have underrated fastman and sneaky breakaway artist Hilton Clarke registered for the event … and this is a rider who has won some big gawdamn events in his career, so check him out.  United Healthcare has perennial hardman Rory Sutherland out to kick more shit Aussie-style, but they also have new acquisition Eric Barlevav … who has had a few speedy wins in the past, himself.  But, something tells me Barlevav might not have that top-end quite yet … as there’s always a lot of pressure to build endurance and ability to get over hills when joining on to a powerhouse pro squad.  We’ll see.

The Bissell boyz look like they have their Gila Stage Race team signed up … with none of their sprinters reg’d yet ~ which to me seems a bit of a limpdick manuever considering all the press they put out about their newfound fast-fiendery.  I mean, they go and sign up Wamsley, have Pipp in the holster, and cock the Holloway six-shooter at everything in sight … so, you’d think they’d at least send one of them to the Merco slugfest.  But, Holloway may be prepping for Track Worlds … so, give him a pass, I guess.  But still ~ I reckon at least one of the WamPipp boys should be there bumping shoulders in the early season joustings [instead of out in Singapore].

It will be interesting to see how the NorCal amateur stongmen fare against the tactics that might play out amongst the pros.  With Bahati always a threat, and both Bissell and United having breakaway monsters at the ready … there could be a chance to see CalGiant and the Yahoo!ligans putting a rider, or two in a large break that scores time on the field.  We’ll see … and most intriguing of all ~ NO RADIOS!!!

With the lack of radios in this criterium, we could see all kinds of mayhem out there.  It’s really going to be quite fascinating to see if the speeds will remain so high, so long after the start … that only the fittest and smartest of riders may eeek their way off the front, with no pack alive at the end to give chase.

As it frickin’ should be.
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Women of Merco … bare the teeth

The women’s race will likely be the fastest 5 laps of most of the pack’s lives.  With the PeanutButterChicks spreading a powerful squad on the course, HTC fielding a fab-5 including uber-stars Ina Tuetenberg, Emilia Fahlin & Kim Anderson, AND a select few strong’uns from the TIBCO shredding machine … the opening laps will be an immense burn-off of amateur women unable to withstand the speed, agility, and elements brought to bare.

That’s good training.  And any woman who can still be pedaling and have an ounce of fight left in her after those first 5-laps will have won one helluva battle.  Courage,  you cat 3s and regional 2s in the field. Courage and luck to you all ~ believe in yourself, keep it upright, and keep that throttle on until there’s nothing remaining in the tank.  Good on’ya.
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Again, with the removal of radios … racing has become much more exciting and I can’t wait to see how this criterium will play out.  With HTC having the powerhouse sprinting combination of Teutenberg and Fahlin, and a patented leadout phenom in the form of Anderson … I find it difficult to believe that any of the other teams will want the race to come down to a field sprint. However, it will also be incredibly difficult for that ‘perfect break’ to form where all squads are pleased and represented, wanting to work it to the line.

Fascinating.

TIBCO has their superstar, Brooke Miller, on the starting list … and there are many, many of us fans of the sport who would love to see Brooke, Ina T, and Shelley Evans burning tread to the line in a no holds barred field sprint.  That would be an epic final few hundred meters to see, indeed.

But, there are possibilities of breaks succeeding in this race … Katheryn Mattis of Webcor is registered and already evidencing strong endurance speed in this early 2010 season.  She and Kelly Benjamin have been known to put a field through the gauntlet in the past … and I see no reason these women won’t be out there swinging big again.  And VERY intriguing is the registration of the queen of the wind, Olivia Dillon, with the PeanutButterChicks.  Seeing Coryn Rivera and Kat Carroll able to join with Dillon on the attacks … there could be a very, very interesting series of marked bridging attempts by the HTC and TIBCO squads - with many eyes on the newly evolved Shelley Evans and what she’ll choose to do.

The question is, who will be put on the defensive?

True enough, it will be a bluffing game in those middle minutes of the race.  The opening speeds will be too high for anything to get away other than what is shat out the backside of the pack.  But once reality sets in, and the tactics begin to bring out teeth … SOMEbody is going to be left fighting for scraps.  This could be a day when TIBCO has to put one of their younger guns out in the warzone to fend for herself.  With badass Starnes coming back from NewZealand in some hopeful form … we could see her be the one out in move after move, covering everything but the kitchen sink with her sweat and agony, to make sure TIBCO is represented.  But the NewYork Brawler, MegGuarnier, may also be out there swinging haymakers … and either one of those women deserve a chance to come to the line in a small group finish for their squad.

But, this could also be the year we see Brooke Miller transform into the massive bridging machine that she has the potential to become.  For years, we’ve seen Ina Teutenberg display the cagey patience of a sniper, letting breakaways form again and again before she times the perfectly diabolical attack from the field, shooting across the gap and latching on to the winning move.   And this year, I think Brooke is going to be learning that she has that same instinct and ability, as well.

Can’t wait to see how it all shakes down.
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Tour of Qatar 2010

“It was a like a war zone and it was every man for himself.” - Steven Cozza, Stage 3 [CN]

Both the men & women’s versions of this year’s Tour of Qatar have claimed collarbones, pelvic girdles, and even a middle finger, or two. It’s a race that offers enough money, publicity, and UCI points that teams storm the thing like Lawrence of Arabia on crack.

But this deadpan flat race with demon hot crosswinds spews out a casualty list faster than camels spit at tourists … and there’s nothing to do about it but say ~ ’such is the way of the bike.’

“Boonen’s computer registered a maximum speed of 72.8km/h and he described the sprint as one of the fastest finishes of his career” [CN]

Sweet mother of pearl … that is well over 45mph for us ameri-pedalers.  45 frickin’ miles per hour on the flats, without too much tailwind other than the blow of fear-driven testosterone.  And there were boys falling in the final 500meters … that’s just sickening to think about.

Now ~ I’m not one to disparage other sports, or try and call-out one as being supremo to the others … and, there is absolutely no way i’d want to have some 300lb behemoth ram his helmet into my guts at full gallop.  Buuuut … neither do i believe that many out there will want to get in their car, pop it into 4th gear, set the cruise control at 40+, open up the car door and … fall out in their underwear.

But that’s what these riders risk … every day they race, every day they ride.

egads ~ what are we thinking?
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Amber Rais was an early casualty of Qatar this year, hitting a bot-dot pre-race much like Kurt Arvelson did on the men’s side.  Damn shame, as Rais has a huge following of fans and we all want to see her healthy and performing in her own brave, elegant way.

Kat Carroll also went down in one of the mad crosswind sections, much like Steven Cozza … both sustained injuries, but hopefully both will be back and racing their bikes like the banshee riders they both are.  These are two of the most courageous riders I’ve seen race their bikes in a long time.

… damn hard sport.  damn hard.

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Cody ‘der’ Kaiser … man for the future

Internet cycling awesomeness - PodiumInSight -put out a nifty article about Kaiser a couple weeks back, and it was pure pleasure to read about how a family can fall in love with cycling.

“Riding a bike was a lot more fun than playing a 6-hour round of golf, so with that said I am now in the bike business and not in the golf business, I don’t play golf anymore. We just ride a bunch, it was all because of Cody.” [PI]

That’s from Cody’s dad, Bruce Kaiser ~ talking about how he started up a shop just south of Sacto in the Elk Grove area, Kinetic Cycles.  I have been impressed with this family for a long time, as they have always promoted bike riding and racing in a healthy, community conscious way.  Their connections with Ride for a Reason are long and strong, and the way this group conducts themselves on and off the bike inspires good vibes in all who come in contact with them.

From Cross to Road?

Cody has an obvious talent and enjoyment of racing in the dirt.  But, whether he knows it or not ~ he also has all the makings of a phenomenal road stage racer.  Racing the dirt is a barbarian’s endeavor at heart … filled with insane aggression and risk that brings out the yowling beasts in all of us.

hellyeah.

But road racing is a thinking rider’s sport … and the best stage racers are those who can coldly calculate ~ only unleashing fury when it is called for, with discipline and absolute commitment.  And cyclocross is the perfect breeding ground for such riders, in my opinion.  As CalGiantBerries team director, Anthony Gallino remarked in the PI article,

“He’s so mellow, sometimes if he’s too mellow that hurts him, he needs a little chip on his shoulder, when he’s pissed off is when he rides the best.”

It’s that ‘mellow-ness’, his innate intelligence, and the freakish amount of sustainable power that this young man puts out that signals his high potential to be a road stage racer.  The stage racer needs patience, intelligence, ability … and an iron will to suffer.

This young man has it.

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Ban the Radios … Enforce Intelligence

VeloSnews grabbed USAC’s Sean Petty to yak about the recent ban on radio use in cycling.

“The UCI did a lengthy study, and got input from teams and riders around the world. Basically the question was, ‘have there been fewer accidents with the advent of the radio?’ The answer was, no.”

I’m a fan of the opinions of Michael Barry and believe he lays out a number of strong arguments why riders should be unplugged.  I highly recommend his words for reading … in all things cycling.

Safety is, or should be,  the first barometer checked for decisions in bike racing & promoting.  The argument that traffic hazards or dangerous conditions on the roads demands the use of radios is eloquently rebutted by Barry,

“Prior to radio use there was solidarity amongst the riders where they looked out for their common interests when their jobs or health were at risk. With a voice telling us what to do, we have lost our voice as we seem to constantly buckle when under pressure.”[VN]

I believe strongly that banning radios will not only increase the safety of riders, but also increase the enjoyment and … panache of racing.

When riders are free to ride - they are free to decide, learn, and succeed or fail as their talents and training dictate.

There is beauty in seeing the choices made by individuals in circumstances so unique and demanding, especially in a sport so essentially team-oriented.

I am glad to see the return of cycling to those who race it … not those who own it.

But as USAC’s Petty says … “we’ll see.”

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Sans February Tour d’ Cali … NorCal Spring a lil’ less lustrous

I have to admit ~ I miss seeing all the US pro teams storming the early season here in NorCal.  With the Tour of Cali moving to May in search of tanning beds and tubetops, and the NRC now vastly reduced in number of events and none of them in our region ~ the spring NorCal classics, which used to field dozens of men and women from Ameri-pro teams, have been reduced to locals-only slugfests.

I guess it’s not all bad … as it gives new teams a chance to gel and squash, and offers young riders opportunity to pick up some memorable results that might lead to things bigger and better in their hoped-for careers.  But one thing the NorCal has a bad reputation for is … not giving the rest of the nation much idea or evidence of the glory and characters that speckle and sprout from our home region events.

Our promoters don’t get publicized in Cyclingnews or Velonews very often … though we sometimes do have local newspapers covering the races as best their ballsport-oriented sports reporters are able.

But to get into CN or VN … you need to do the work of submitting - and it’s pretty damn draining just putting on an event, let alone slogging through all the publicity work afterwards.

It’s a shame - but, it is what it is.

And so, with Cherry Pie this weekend ~ we got to see the new Yahooligans running rampant over the NorCal 12-cent dreamers, something fierce. But we also got to see the continuing rise of one of the young barnstormers of our region … Chris Stastny.  The Staz is riding for the GiantStrawberries this year, and I say kudos for Gallino picking up another young talent to showcase to the nation.

CalGiant has been supporting men&women racers, events, and organizations of cycling in the US for over a decade.  And they have become THE premier men’s amateur cycling team contesting NRC and pro-am events.  Kudos to this program ~ and here’s hoping for another year of putting in the work.

It is appreciated by the fans and afficianados.
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Cherry Pie also gave us a good look at how the TIBCO train will be rocking this year. Alison Starnes and Meg Guarnier crushed a leadout like they were doing the Spectrum ride … and Brooke Miller gave it the coup de grace with an eye-popping sprint to smashingly nab another win in NorCal.

But forcing notice were the riding of U-23 talents Lauren Hecht and Lindsey Myers.  These two young beasts continue to make their way up in the ranks of development and will undoubtedly be pushing pedals in high profile events soon.

Right on.

But the season has just begun ~ and now we move on to the Fresno madness … Pine-notso-Flat, Dinuba, and maybe even the Cantua Creek cowpoocrossings.

Wish Horner were here again …

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Return of the Randoms …

There are so many stories to tell about cycling in our region - the NorCal.  And good on’ya for any and all interested in reading, spreading, or even writing about the folks and exploits that make it all happen.  Here’s a little lunchtime burp-up of thoughts from the fatter side of the saddle ~

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Shelley Evans (was Olds) … RidetheWorldCups.com

Shelley Evans is going to the World Championships for velodrome racing.

Let me just tap that into your noggins again - a homegrown talent from NorCal is going to the World Championships … and, she’s got one helluva good chance at winning her some medals while there.

Hellyeah.

These events are part fundraiser, mostly tune-ups for Shelley to get in the hellacious speeds and sufferings necessary for her to perform at her best against … the best.

These are always a good time, so if you’ve ever been interested in checking out velodrome racing - come on down to NorCal’s breeding grounds for champions.  Hellyer Velodrome produces big riders, and it’s your local track.

When: Sat Feb 20th, track opens @ 12:30, racing starts @ 2pm.
What: Points Races, Scratch Races, Keirin Races & since the UCI deemed the Madison un-worthy ~ it’s going to be the only worthy addition to the Olympics, the Miss-n-Out.

Prizes? $100 cash (3 deep) each event for the A’s.

Plus, a very special new event called “Drop Shelley”:

$100 to the rider who can drop Shelley over either a flying 1K, or flying 3K.  Full aero gear is allowed (Shelley will not use any). Only 1 attempt will be allowed per RTWC, so if you think you have what it takes, please RSVP rob at otbphoto dot com

Rules for “Drop Shelley”
- Flying Start
- Aero gear is allowed
- Distance is stated before the race (either 1K or 3K)
- “Dropped” is > 2 bike lengths @ the finish
- Shelley defends the $100 by not being dropped
- Shelley wins the $100 by coming around on the line (winning the race)

http://www.ridetheworldcups.com

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NorCal Men in Tights - the new teams, the old teams … the rumbling manherds

Yayhoo!s on bikes

There’s a new squad formed up in Norcal, but filled with a lot of familiar faces.  It’s a team organized around the interwebs business, Yahoo!, and the fellas will apparently be interfacing a bit with the organization’s own cycling enthusiasts. Not a bad idea - as any way we can get desk jockies on bikes is always a good thing, in my opinion.

The goals and roster of the team look to pit them square against the 800 lb gorilla of men’s cycling in NorCal - ‘dem CalGiantStrawberries.

“Based in Northern California, the team [Yahoo!] plans to race the majority of its season on the West Coast as well as a portion of the National Racing Calendar (NRC). Dependent upon its success in the US circuit in 2010, the team plans to move on to Continental Status in 2011.”

Well, good for them.

The team scalped a few quality riders from the NorCal ranks … and it will be interesting to see how they match up and race against the other boys.  Riders like Evan Huffman, Ryan Parnes, Phil Mooney, Vince Owens, Adam Switters and Tyler Dibble are all strong, proven riders of NorCal that deserve to get some time cracking at the NRC ranks - and I hope that the experienced riders like Copeland, Briggs & Bosch will do the work of putting them in the position to do so.

Should be good fireworks.

Of course, it does grate my nuggets a bit that Kevin Klein is managing the squad … sure, he’s always been skilled at scrounging up pretty things to pedal around on … but I’ve never been impressed with how he races his bike and consider him one of the legendary wheelsucks in NorCal.  Meh ~ hope he proves me wrong this year. I guess.

Still - there’s a handful of quality young talent getting a chance to be seen on the NRC stage … so, cheers to that.  Wheelsuck.

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Webcor/Alto Velo - still going, still in them ugly kits

The AV team has been a juggernaut of NorCal cycling forever … seeming to field half the entries in some events.  But in the past couple years, the P1/2 squad has really taken off and they may have some new recruits in 2010 that will make the squad even more exciting to watch.

The green boys are always willing to launch attacks and put themselves to the front of a bike race ~ but, they also have a maddening tendancy to miss winning breaks, and more times than acceptable ride with more balls than brains.

Let’s hope 2010 sees them going cogitative in their barbarism.

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Wells Fargo Racing - giving it gas

The Wells Fargo squad has put in a lot of effort to support and develop young up-and-comers in the NorCal peloton ~ and I see this group as having some intriguing shots at podiums when the inevitable infighting occurs within and amongst the bigger squads of the region.

The Fargo boys have one of the more inspiring stories in young Colin Samaan.  He is the rider who had a near-fatal car collision a few years back … and has worked hard to bring himself back to the cycling world.  He’s still only 20 years old, but as team captain Mark Deterline says,

“He is learning and maturing, but one of the things that makes him so compelling is that he is a good guy – likeable, confident yet humble, dedicated to team & teammates.”

The Fargos also have a good story in one of their new recruits, Phillip Snodgrass, who moved to Santa Rosa from Oklahoma solely to race in NorCal and in the hope of eventually turning pro.

That’s good stuff.

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Team Clif Bars - chew, don’t swallow

Another mainstay of NorCal cycling is the Clif road team … always a hodgepodge of Bay Area wacknuts who race their bikes around town mostly to be seen in their coolio kits.

I got no problem with that.

JD Bergmann is always good for a solid sprint finish and even broke the mold last year by throwing himself out solo in a number of crits around the region.  I know, cause I was screaming his name over the announcer’s mic at a slew of them.

But, they’ve also got young Joe Ianarelli winning an early season sprint finish for the squad at the Cal Aggie Crit … and that could be a good sign of things to come for the CLIF boys.

Still ~ they’ve got a long way to go to match the talent and depth of the honcho squads in NorCal … and it will be pretty damn interesting to see how this year’s racing shakes out.

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Williams Cycling - fielding a squad, too???

Yup … it had to happen sooner or later ~ but, Williams Cycling has branched out to putting up some advertising dollars into a platoon of young pedalers.  This is a damn good development, and I can’t wait to see how the boys will perform this year.

They’ve got hardman Andres Gil with them as mentor/example of how to suffer like a monkey … but, overall I just want to see these kids having fun and racing their butts off.

Good on ‘ya, Williams Cycling.  Thanks for supporting grassroots cycling … events & racers.

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More to see, more to read, more to talk shit about.

… see you ’round the races.