Shoreline Shredder- first CX race of the season in the Bay Area

After a one week delay, the Shorline Shredder kicked off the BASP series with a hilly course with the backdrop of the San Fransisco bay- very dramatic and I challenge any other CX venue in the country to have as amazing a view behind the podium. Speaking of podiums, here's a special one- Maddie Ortenblad standing next to Katerina Nash for the women's A race- they were the only two but Maddie did a great job and wound up passing and beating many of the men on the course while chasing the former world champion Nash.

Isaac Estrada and Jose Marin went 1&2 on the tracklocross podium but had to leave before the awards so here's the shot- maybe next time they will be in the photo !

Enzo Berghout was in the lead in the men's A race but had a serious bonk that saw him having to leave the race early after leading it early on. Nate Barton who has not raced much in a couple of seasons did an excellent 4th place and rode strong for the hour. 

We had two racers in the single speed A race . Kyle Taylor looked strong in the early part of the race but a number of chain derailments delayed him to finish 8th. Brendan Lehman did not have the race of his life finishing 5th but he did animate the crowd by jumping the solitary barrier every lap at the top of the steepest climb.

Isaac Estrada schooled many a geared rider on his fixed gear brakeless rig , proving that he's one of the best tracklocross riders in California .

Patrick Lewis battled in the single speed B race to 6th/

In the open B men's race Kai Yee was in the action early on and finished with an excellent 7th in the large group with newcomer Decker Krogh coming in 10th and Finn Cunningham finishing 24th after some mechanicals.

Kathleen Borolussi got 2nd in the women's 55 + race , getting the early hole shot and riding strong. Allison Peck rode to 3rd in the women's B race with Scottie Junker riding to 4th in the women's C race. 

William Barton was our sole men's C racer and he finished 27th in the large pack.

I the Masters men A races we had Eric Brown getting the win in the 35+ with Gene Selcov following in 4th. In the old me 60+  I managed 5th although I'm not sure how, followed by Rick Ortenblad in 6th .

All in all, we had a large presence at the event and judging by the fields, CX is looking a little better than last year- there's hope that this sport might be coming back from the lull of the last 5-6 years. Let's hope !

 

Enzo is the national road champ !!

Yes- in the junior 15-16 age group you are looking at the winner , pictured here with his parents at last year's CX nationals. Before he gets scooped up by a pro-devo program it looks like Enzo will be going to Arkansas with the rest of the team for serious racing and questionable dining. I have a bit of work to do on his behalf to get him ready for the fall campaign but it's obvious that Enzo is more than ready to get to the next level.
 

Larry Bullard , team racer and sponsor.

 Back in 2004 we started the Rock Lobster team. Jeff Traugott and I were the split sponsors and for the first year we kept the team rolling in a very modest way. In 2005 the Spokesman bicycles sent a couple my way who were interested in getting cyclocross bikes. They were Larry and Karen Bullard. Very nice folks and enthusiastic about the local CX race scene they were keen to get the team issue frames and start riding in the dirt. 

Once the bikes were done, Larry came by to pick up his bike. He did a short test ride and Simon and I watched him quickly roll by and said to each other : "Hey, maybe we should ask him to be on the team "Larry looked at us as if we had just handed him the keys to the city- needless to say , he said yes. He raced and eventually made it onto the podium for the overall in the local CCCX series-something I had failed to do for about 5 seasons. We, and he were very stoked.

The next year , Larry asked what it took to be the title sponsor of the team. I told him the various levels of sponsorship and what it would mean in terms of logo placement on the team kits. Immediately he wrote a check and we were team HRS (Human resource solutions - Karen's business ) for the next four seasons. The 2006 kits were the notorious argyle with Karen's puzzle piece logo mixed in. It was a big year for the team with trips to the USGP races in Portland and Tacoma and the nationals in Providence. Team HRS was getting national exposure and Larry and Karen were the ones helping to make it possible.

Larry was always upbeat, positive and wickedly funny without trying to be- he would just make an observation that would be a hilarious truth that most of us might have overlooked. Larry and Karen came to the team parties and got to know the rag-tag CX crew and they accepted us with all of our various eccentricities. They were never trying to steer the team or change anything we were doing- they were unconditionally supportive and really helped launch us to another level. 

Larry passed away last weekend , a victim of cancer. He had only just retired from his career at AMD the previous December. He was just starting out on retirement with a dream house that he and Karen built in Scottsdale, AZ. Larry was dedicated, worked hard-was a positive influence on everyone he came into contact with from my experience. He, and Karen's enthusiasm and support for the team in its early years was elemental in getting the team national exposure and helped create the reputation that it has to this day- a group of racers who value having fun while racing and showing people that as difficult as CX can be, the community does not take itself too seriously. 

Larry is gone too soon and he will be missed but his and Karen's role in building this team will never be forgotten . Rest in peace , my friend.