Sightline Construction/Voler/Easton/HRS/RockLobster
Visit the site often for race updates and photos.
Saturday, October 19, 2024
Surf City CX next weekend.
I know that it is tempting to stay away and sip latte's and chardonnay in the comfort of your pied a terre , but resist the urge to idle...... get up to the Crest Ranch and do some laps , maybe do some heckling and most importantly, do what you can to make the event one to remember. These times are ephemeral and we only live so long.......now is the time, not later as there might not be a later-at least for this event. It all comes down to what we put into it. If many of us stay home , the event will die. It's just up the hill 9.25 miles.......surely most of you can do that. Get yourself and your bike up to the Crest Ranch next weekend-you might not regret it......hey, only one way to find out.
Monday, October 14, 2024
Bariani CX , Zamora
Saturday, October 12, 2024
RIP, the Wolf- Dave Wyandt
A mythical racer on the team- really much more than just a bike racer- has passed. Dave Wyandt was only on the team for a few seasons and newer racers might not know his name but anyone who raced CX in the years from 1998-2010 would know his name. Dave started racing young and was a top junior MTB racer at 16. He went into cyclocross not long after and was on the legendary Clif Bar team in the early '2000's. He was good enough to podium at a UCI race and race pro on the road.
Starting a family meant that Dave had to give up his cycling career and work closer to home. It was around 2007 that I invited him into the team and immediately he changed the dynamic of the elite team adding his experience and wisdom. Other racers on the team really appreciated his low key take on CX and his sense of humor. He seemed to be the smartest person in the room without any arrogance. He mostly worked to help his team mates win, even in races where he was clearly the strongest.
Dave was usually holding court at team parties and led animated discussions about much more than racing. He had depth as a person and was an original thinker , seeing things that most others overlooked.
On our team socks there's always some sort of ironic saying and it changes every year. This year's saying is "It's never too late to be late " . A favorite from 2008 was "We're not happy until you're not happy" . Dave came up with one that summed up CX racing with just three words. The team was at the Sierra Point night race, an event that can draw 800 racers. The sad truth is that 95% of these racers have no chance at a win and little chance of getting anywhere near the podium. Several of us were at the course and as usual, music was blaring loudly and not the kind of music that Dave appreciated.A Journey song came on :" Don't stop believing" . Upon hearing this dave uttered :" Don't start believing " . The irony of this illustrated the futility of most people's racing experience while at the same time was a hilarious parody of the song. I had to put this gem from Dave on the team socks and the next order I did.
Dave will be missed by many, even those that didn't know him that well. He did not live long but seemed to have been on the CX scene forever. Even people older than Dave referred to him as the "Old Man". In the ultimate irony, he didn't live to be old and died way too young. Rest in peace Dave and shred the great beyond. I sure hope the music is better wherever you are now.......
Some like it hot, some not- Surf City UCSC
Early races started with the juniors. Noah Hekkert got 3rd in the 9-14 age group.
The women of the team showed up in record numbers and if it weren't for them, it would have been a pretty low turnout. The women's A podium was nearly a sweep for the team with Dani Moreshead winning , Mara Valcarcel 2nd, Hannah Solberg 3rd and our Pennsylvania team mate Clem Nixon in 5th.
In the womens single speed Maddie Ortenblad got the win with newcomer Keelen Senkier getting second in her first race. Chloe Ortiz got the win in womens tracklocross. In the womens masters 45+ Sarah Jordan got 2nd with Kathleen Bortolussi getting second in the womens 55+.
Friday, October 04, 2024
Big race weekend at UCSC- Surf City CX # 1 , Oct. 6th
Sunday will see the first CX race on the UCSC campus in nearly 30 years. The team and other locals are pitching in to put on an old school CX event of the most primitive style. There's going to be some really rough ground to negotiate on the course but since everyone has to ride on the same track it is an even playing field-if a rough one.
We will have out of town guests in the form of Max Judelson and Clementine Nixon- both of them CX nationals stars with Clem being the current women's 35-39 national champion. This might be the most complete gathering of the team this season so show up and be part of a historic day.
Thursday, September 26, 2024
First race of the season- Sacramento CX race #1 , Napa Skyline park.
We did not have a big group at this race but there were some good results. The standout would be Noah Hekkert winning the middle school boy's race-it was one of the larger fields of the day.
His father Carl got 5th in the men's 50+ A race.
I scored a rare podium in 3rd in the men's 60+ A race and Rick Ortenblad got 5th , even though he missed the start. He also did not have his timing chip on so he won't appear in the proper place in the results but trust me, he came in 5th.
Kailin Waterman rode to 12th in the men's A elite race , even with a bike change.
Next stop- UCSC -all you Santa Cruz team people should be there and help us put on this race....it will be historically significant as this is the 40th anniversary of the nationals being held there.
Sunday, December 10, 2023
Nationals day 5- the finale
Clementine Nixon rode to 11th place in the women's elite race- her best finish ever and well within the time limit to be on the lead lap.
Max and Andy had starting positions pretty far back in the field but rode strongly to keep on the lead lap. Max finished a career best 13th and Andy finished 27th. Dean Poshard had to start in the very back and at over 50 years old , the writing was on the wall that he would not make the cut but he did get credit for 40th and rode nearly half the race.
This concludes a week of truly great racing and some heroic rides by this small scrappy team. I am really happy I made the trip to witness all the events and also super happy to have this group of amazing athletes on the team. We will be back next year - maybe even stronger.
Saturday, December 09, 2023
Nationals day 4- juniors
Right after the 13-14 race there was a real downpour and the course changed dramatically. With the wetter conditions racers in the 15-16 group were pitting and having more mishaps out on the now slick course. In this field starting 58th was Reid McGlaughlin. He rode very strongly all the way up to 31st place. This was only a 30 minute race and Reid has been racing in A category races that are typically an hour so this short sprint of a race might not have played to his strong suite- still, he did really well.
A day to remember
On most of these nationals trips we arrive with not much in the way of expectations, only wanting to participate and represent our unique flavor of the sport and of course all the people who got us here- big shout out to Billy Rickard of Sightline Construction, Voler, Easton sports, Bell, Pasta, etc. , Chris King , HRS , all the volunteers at Surf City CX , Jim Gentes , so many really great people. I'll compile a complete list when this weekend is done.
There's still two more days of racing and six more of our team going out on the course. We have already racked up a very successful nationals but it isn't done yet.