First team ride of 2013, the re-con.

Yeah, if you weren't here........you weren't. The bluff road is in good shape and seven of us went at a reasonable pace to check out the training track-at least the coastal part. Fridays at the shop at 5:15 PM has officially started. There will be options for folks. # 1 will be the usual build up to flat out ride. # 2 will be the geezer special, led by me-this will be for the folks like myself who might not be able to keep up with group # 1 when it really gets going. Let's get ready.......everyone else has coaches, power meters, strava and all that satanic stuff. We have the bluffs, bacon and Hennessy. We'll see which method proves to be most successful.

Pro Gold visits the Lobster shop

It's Sea Otter time here in Nor-Cal and one of our team sponsors came by the shop-Bruce Dickman of Pro-Gold bike lubes , washes and polishes visited and brought by the latest products . Bruce provided the team with stuff that really helped us make it through three trips to sub-freezing race venues....the bikes kept running and we got three medals at the nationals and numerous high placings at the big races. Thanks, Bruce ! We will represent as best as we can in 2013.

Nationals report, Verona Wi. 2013

 Dining at our host house on the first night, preparing for the cold days with hearty pasta and a couple bottles of wine. Our hosts J.P. and Michelle Ericsson have treated us like family for the last two trips-our home away from home. Other teams should be so lucky to have such gracious hosts and such a great home base complete with a fully equipped heated shop !

 The next morning we were witness to the cold that we didn't experience last year.

 Ellen just after her 5th place in the women's single speed race. Our first event and our first medal.

 Scott rode hard to finish in 9th place, not as good as last year but he would show some good speed in the coming days.

 Our first team podium with Ellen in 5th in the single speed race, carrying on the team tradition of killing it with one gear.Ellen narrowly missed getting another medal in the Women's 30-34 race finishing 6th.

In the evenings the team was trying to kill it at the bowling lanes with varying results........

Aaron Bradford getting second in the Men's single speed race, on the podium for the second year in a row.

 Nothing but pain on this course, especially for the old guys like myself. I could only muster a 35th place.

Pit duty would be pretty tough as the days got colder and everything on the bikes froze and would cease working. Lucky for us, J.P. knew the secrets to getting the bikes rolling again in short order. Also, our bike wash and lube sponsor Pro-gold provided us with all we needed to restore the bikes every evening back at the home workshop. The 'Extreme lube' kept the chains clean, even when the rest of the bike was covered in frozen mud.

Here's J.P. on the start of his race. He would go from the back to 39th place......pretty good ride in the harsh conditions.

Alex salutes after one of his three events. It was so icy and slippery that finishing without getting seriously hurt was heroic.

 The third podium was captured by Katie Jay Melina, 3rd in the Women's 35-39 group. Katie's ride was exceptional as the conditions at the time were perhaps the worse in the whole five days of the event.

 Scott riding to 11th in his first Master's event , the 30-34 age group. He would ride to 31st in the elite race, his personal best finish at the nationals.

 After the last race we stacked all the bikes up near the Red Cross tent, the site of a nice warm fire-the best place to be in the sub-freezing temperatures.

 Destroyed rear derailleurs were common on the last day. Cables, shifters and derailleur pulleys would freeze in less than half a lap.

On the last night the team got out and made for downtown Madison and the after party.....of course not until the bikes were in the boxes and ready to ship home.

The long flight home was mostly slept through. This arduous race week took a toll but the results are pretty amazing: Five elite riders entered, three podiums and total of five top-10's. I would say that is an excellent result.

This was only possible with the generosity of all our sponsors, out hosts the Ericssons , and of course the quality and talent of our riders.

CCCX final Ft. Ord

 The first rider on the team to strike a win was Matt Garcia, 3rd on the day but the series winner in the mens B race. Looks like an upgrade is in order.

 Michelle Perez seen here leading the womens 45+ race securing here series lead.

 Last woman standing in our elite division was Katie Jay Melina getting 2nd on the day and the same in the series-a personal best.

 Michelle on the 45 + podium.

 Natasha Perry cemented her series win with a 3rd on the day in the womens 35+ race.

 Janel Lodge couldn't be stopped by a crash or an automobile accident-she raced and made the podium in 3rd overall for the series.

 The womens elite podium with Katie Jay in second.

 Dodgeball in full flight. He would score a top ten in the series overall.

 Scott Chapin-4th on the day but seires winner in the elite mens division for a second year.

 The resilient Andrew Juiliano showing some speed again finishing 7th on the day and 4th in the series in his first CX season.

 Alex Work also making the podium with 9th on the day and 5th in the series

 Sean Coffey mad an appearance in the single speed A division and raced from the back to 3rd place .

The men's elite series podium with team riders getting 3 of 5 positions......a great end to a CCCX series. Also in the mens 45B race Benoit Dubuisson got 4th on the day and 3rd overall in the series and I managed to sneak onto the podium with 5th overall. Zac Stanley won his second CCCX in a row in the mens 35 B race. Other placings will be on the CCCX site. Congratulations to all of our team who participated in what I regard as the best run race series in the area.

Nor-Cal district final

This is the last big local CX event and the team did some serious damage-this inspite of a number of injured and sick riders not able to compete. Here's Natasha Perry on her way to 5th place in the womes 35 + race.

Mary Ellen Ash racing in the womens elite race wound up in 7th place

Once Aaron Bradford got a gap in the mens elite race he kept it until the finish. All that on a single speed!

Andrew Juiliano rode to 12th in the mens elite race from a third row start.

Scott Chapin had a race long battle for 5th in the mens elite race which he won and got a spot on the podium and a district medal.

Here's Ellen Sherrill collecting the win for the womens single speed race. Katie Jay Melina would finish 2nd in the same race and 4th in the womens elite race .

Here is Aaron coming across the line winning his Nor-Cal/Nevada district championship for the first time

The team captured 2/3 of the womens single speed district championship and likeley would have swept it without the injuries .

Here's the mens elite podium with Aaron and Scott, a familiar sight this season. Another winner was Zac Stanley in the 35 B mens race, his first CCCX victory of the season in a deep field. Mark Howland and Tim Watson would ride to 6th and 12th in the 45 A mens race. Alex Work opted to race the 35A mens race and finished 5th with Dean Poshard coming in at 17th. In the 45 B race, Benoit Dubuisson finished 8th with Michael Schaller coming in at 15th.

Everyone really was a winner in our tent as Tim Watson proved beyond a doubt that the best BBQ at the race  was his. The team got a really impressive food spread together for this race, one of the best ever. It was a good thing as this race was extremely painful and the good food served to east the post race pain.

Surf City Cyclocross final 2012

 The depth of this team is amazing.....only half the team was able to be at this final event in the surf City series but our riders managed to get onto the podium in nearly every event that we had riders competing in. First on the podium with a great race(4th) and solid series (2nd) was Benoit Dubuisson in the 45 B group.Michael Schaller wound up in 8th for the series in the same group.In the 55 + group I was able to sneak onto the podium for 4th in  the overall series......a miracle indeed.

 

Sarah Kerlin had a good ride inspite of a recent bout of flu. She had a podium on both the day and the series.

 Matt Garcia was always near the front all season in the open B category and got an overall points podium.

 Scott Chapin (8th)and Aaron Bradford (5th)raced hard on the day and were both on the overall points podium.

Alex Work (18th)got the hole shot on the first lap showing that he is one of the best starters in the Nor-Cal field.Sean Coffey rode to 10th in the single speed A category showing some speed late in the race.Dean Poshard rode to 26th in the mens A field after not being able to race most of the season.Andrew Giuliano wound up DNF when a chunk of dirt destroyed his rear derailleur on the far end of the course.

USGP Bend 2012

 Bicycle racing is done a number of ways with varying results. The current school of thought is to get certain equipment to monitor one's power output and relay this info weekly to a coach. Other things like motorpacing, road work and weight training are commonly used to enhance race day performance. Team riders wind up in lock-step with programs that provide a framework for success. The only thing is that the pinnacle of this type of racing , the pro peloton is now the subject of a huge embarrassing scandal-as is the governing body of the professional sport, the U.C.I. 

 There was a time when I thought that our team should emulate the pro teams in their methodology regarding training and conduct. After this weekend I have fully woken up to the fact that this team does not need to be altered in any way. The pure essence of the sport is captured by the riders on this team-they race as they ride, for challenge and enjoyment-and to represent fully the people who allow them to do so.

Our elite riders did not win any events this weekend....at least not according to the statistics. The thing that these riders did was to capture the attention of the spectators and photographers in a way that even the winners could not do-our riders rode the race with the kind of self expression and flair that cannot be overstated. Wherever I walked on the course people would come up to me and say how impressed they were with our riders and what a great contribution the team made to the flavor of the event. Aaron Bradford, Scott Chapin and Alex Work might have more fans than any other three riders at the U.S.G.P. . Bicycle Bluebook/HRS/Rock Lobster might have been the most talked about team that weekend. All of this without the lock-step dicipline and coaching of other teams. For those of yo who want to know the numbers, here they are:
Saturday, mens elite race: Aaron Bradford 42nd, Alex Work 49th, Scott Chapin 52nd.
               womens elite race : Katie Jay Melina 27th, Ellen Sherrill DNF ( crashed out )
               mens 35 + race : Brian Staby 28th   mens 55 + race Paul Sadoff  11th.
Sunday mens elite race  : Aaron Bradford 36th, Alex Work 48th, Scott Chapin 51st.
               womens elite race Katie Jay Melina 29th, Ellen Sherrill DNS  ( injury from sunday)
               mens 35 + race : Brian Staby  31st , mens 55+ Paul Sadoff 10th.

It would be worth it for all reading this to go find photos of the races. I was unable to take photos while I was working in the pits but I did get a glimpse of what everyone was talking about.......the success of this weekend cannot be told by numbers.All in all, it was a huge success and the team represented to the utmost.