Michigan Racing Re-Cap

Last weekend, 3 of 4 Sammy’s riders (Dustin, Sean, and yours truly) headed to Kalamazoo MI early Saturday  morning for a Criterium held on the campus of Western Michigan University followed by a road race Sunday morning in the nearby city of Lawton MI.

I raced in these events last year as a CAT3 and good results aside I really enjoyed getting away and mixing it up with riders I didn’t know and who especially didn’t know me.

The Criterium course is rather large but straight forward, the start finish is just after a road fly over and thus is partly downhill and immediately leads you into a chicane. The first right turn of the course was a bit rough as you had to sweep way left and cut right hard in order to keep your speed and hit the raised driveway curb transition as straight on as possible.  This road transition facilitated a nasty crash at the front of the group late in the race but for the most part was navigated safely. The back stretch of the course was largely exposed to cross/ head winds sweeping off the nearby highway and caused consolidation of the group most laps. The course finished with a wide right turn again with another driveway transition (much smoother than turn #1) and quick uphill pull over the road flyover and down into the start finish.        

To the race…

At the line it was obvious that three teams had serious numbers, Priority Health, Bissell, and one other team in green kits that supposedly had a former national elite Criterium champ on it. The race starts unusually fast for an elite event but none the less as I get reacquainted with the corners I am relatively pleased with my positioning thru the first 10 laps. 35 min down and the bunch is surprisingly still together, after the leaders chased down three more escapees I noticed a slight slowdown in the pace and an opportunity to attack in hopes I could stay away long enough to collect on the midway cash prime.

From 6^th wheel I jumped out and nailed it for 15-20 seconds before I looked back to see plenty of daylight behind me. Ok great! I knew my team mates would do their best to block and I would have to settle into a sustainable pace if I was going to last more than 2 laps. After 3 times around I noticed a single rider off the front coming across to me, good for our odds of staying away but bad for the cash prime coming up in 2 laps.

After the chaser made my wheel I asked him if he wanted the cash or if he wanted to say away? He said “both” yes, it was a stupid question I know but at the time I was optimistic of our chances for the win and if we crushed each other for the prime we could kiss our break goodbye. So we agreed to split the cash and keep our pace consistent. Looking back I should have known that two nonmembers of the power house teams on a flat open course stood no chance of staying away for 45 min and I should have kept my mouth shut and destroyed the guy in the sprint, another lesson learned.

Not more than half a lap after grabbing the prime the two of us were reeled back and Dustin joined a good looking break of about 6 riders, after recovering from my effort I moved back to the front and did my best to slow things down. With a few laps left it was obvious that Priority Health was organizing a serious chase/lead out train that was pulling the break back very quickly.

With half a lap left I was sitting 20^th or so (way too far back) when we caught Dustin and the break. 

Sean managed to position himself much higher in the lead out and sprinted to 6^th place behind some seriously organized riders.

All said and done Sean and I finished in the $ and along with my prime we covered our travel expenses and dinner out at the Kalamazoo Beer Exchange, good times. 

Big shout out to Meg for letting Dusting and I crash your place!

Sunday…

After couch surfing in Kalamazoo for the night we had a short drive over the Lawton MI for the start of our p1/2 race. Our race was 30 or so riders and without surprise Bissell and Priority Health showed up in numbers.

The course was a 13 mile rolling course with 3 kicker hills of note, the P1/2 was scheduled for 6 laps 78 miles total.

The race started with a quick acceleration from the front followed by some halfhearted attacks from solo riders. This is the part of the race that I need to be more heads up, I am learning more and more how flipping important it is to see the composition of the attack before it can really establish its self because if you get left out of the move and the two strong teams have representation in the break consider yourself hosed.

A few miles into lap two 3 riders got off the font and out of sight pretty quickly. On the back side of the course I was pretty frustrated for being left out of the move and looking for a good time to attack. 

Dustin must have read my mind because he strung the field out nice and thin with yours truly in 5^th wheel. The second he started to slow I was down shifting and on the hunt. For the second time in two days I was off the front with no shadow, actually unfortunate because I could have really used another rider to rotate with in search for the 3 man break.  

I don’t know how hard the group was chasing or not but I gathered about 30-40 seconds on the group headed thru the start finish and while keeping my head down I heard the official give me the time gap to the leaders, 3 min! I didn’t give up but I certainly lost a lot of motivation to kill myself in chase since making up a 3 min gap solo on three CAT1’s was not likely in my current state of fitness.  My best bet was to wait up and see if any solo riders had started to chase me down and I could join them or just wait for the whole group and try again later.

After soft pedaling for a while and taking in some calories I was swept up by the group and back in the fold. Almost immediately a group of 6 attacked hard including Dustin that stuck, I was glad Sammy’s finally had representation in a select group. 40 miles into the race I thought my job was done and started to relax a bit in the group alongside Sean.

The chase group with Dustin was well up the road and I wasn’t too worried about the group organizing enough to bring it back. I was sitting second wheel behind a Bissell rider when he accelerated hard up one of the hills. I sat on his wheel without too much trouble and before I knew it we had a gap on the group and he was flicking me thru. At this point I was thinking that I might as well get a good workout and if anything Dustin could use a good lead out should the two of us successfully bridge to the break.

The Bissell rider and I worked together seamlessly for two laps and brought the chase group back into view, I estimated the gap about 30 seconds. It was about this time I noticed a Bissell rider heading backwards pretty fast. Unfortunately, this was the Bissell rider in the original 3 man break causing his team mates in the chase to pull hard in hopes to bring back the Priority Health rider in the now 2 man lead break. In retrospect this was our last chance to make it to the chase group and in short order the Bissell riders in the chase pulled the group out of sight within minutes.

My chase partner and I headed into our last lap knowing we would never catch the chase or the break but certainly didn’t want to be caught by the group. We rotated evenly for the rest of the lap keeping an eye on our six to make sure we remained alone. At best we would cross the finish line in the top 10 so I didn’t think we would beat each other up for the sprint too far out. Turning into the home straight I was willingly in the front and keeping a decent pace and the moment I saw him purposely drop my wheel just a tiny bit I laid into the pedals and took to the finish line first.

The two man break had stayed away with Dustin holding his own in the chase group sprint, the Bissell rider and I came in 12 and 13^th 2 min behind the chase and 3min in front of the group so not a great result but a valuable workout and learning experience.

After the short drive I was back home in time for a late lunch!

Morton Race Re-Cap and IL Cup Results

This Saturday we had the whole team together to defend and hopefully improve our 1^st 4^th and 5^th place positions in the last IL Cup Series race hosted by Proctor Cycling in Morton IL.

Early Saturday morning Sean, Dustin and I loaded up our new team van (compliments of our title sponsor Sammy’s Bike Shop in St. Charles) and headed south toward Morton,  after stopping along the way to pick up our  4^th teammate Chris we arrived at the course 90min before the start.

Going into this race I felt a bit on the ropes of the IL Cup points race, my fitness has been on a slow decline since the beginning of the season thanks to injuries and work travel. Fortunately my travel has calmed down and my ribs have healed enough for me to make a late season push for competitive form.

Headed into the last race of the series I was 11 points ahead of 2^nd place rider (Bicycle Heaven) and 12 points ahead of 3^rd (Enzo’s) followed by two team mates in 4^th and 5^th.

I fully understand that the IL Cup is not as hotly contested as say the IL Championships and there are plenty of CAT1’s and Pros in Illinois who could mop the floor with me should they have chosen to show up to each race. However, the series rewards consistency in a set schedule of events and Sammy’s road team decided at the beginning of the year that winning the IL Cup would be a good starting point for our new P1/2 team. Thus the team has made it a concerted effort to show up and do our best at these events.    

Aside from the top IL Cup riders and teams who showed up for the race I was surprised to see some very strong national CAT1 talent registered. This meant that I couldn’t afford to let my two marks get up the road with these riders knowing that the field would seriously struggle to pull them back.

I have never started a race with a defensive mind set and frankly after the fact I didn’t like it. I don’t like the idea of entering races to consolidate losses I want to enter races to win. Perhaps this is a taste of what stage racing is like and the need to keeping long term goals prioritized over singe race results.

On to the race…

42 riders rolled out at a moderate pace, I immediately trying to get my barring and find my two marks. Within two laps both of my marks are heading off the front in a decent size group and I am not with them, FAIL! Fortunately Dustin also noticed this and came to the front and pulled the group back.

This was the last I saw of the 2^nd place BH rider who ended up finishing well back in the pack and out of the cup points.

Now my target was clear, I had to make sure that the Enzo’s rider stayed in my sights. This is the part of a defensive race strategy that I HATE b/c I acted like a leach. Every move Enzo’s made I was right there with him never allowing for more than a couple bike lengths to open up. In the mean time I was happy to see a couple of my team mates go up the road which made my job two fold, protect my points advantage and block the group from pulling the break back.

The only rider left in the peloton that had the legs to bridge up to the lead group was my new best friend, who was royally pissed about his Sammy’s shadow.

20 min later…

It was around mid-race that I lost the ability to think straight and I became a single minded idiot. I would like to blame the incredible heat for my temporary retardedness but it was most likely my rookie understanding of higher level racing strategy that did me in.

Had I realized that the break with my team mate was safely up the road it would have been in my best interest if even for a short while to work with my mark and form a chase group separating ourselves from the peloton and increasing our chances of a good result and payout. Instead I refused to work and did nothing but sit on wheels as if the break was still in sight. The whole point was to stay connected to my mark and that doesn’t necessarily mean we had to stay in the peloton.

With 15 laps to go I didn’t even realize that in chasing Enzo’s down for the billionth time we had formed a small chase group of 2 other seemingly strong riders, and without knowing it I was sabotaging this group from gaining much time on the peloton. Again, I was in my own little world and after being yelled at by these three and physically pushed around a bit I was getting seriously pissed off and even less likely to cooperate and or think straight.

As there always is two sides of a story, had I been in their position I’m sure I would have been fuming mad but at the end of the day its bike racing and as long as your opponent isn’t posing a physical danger to you his strategy like it or not is his choice. On a side note, I wasn’t hiding my strategy or playing coy I straight up said what I was doing and didn’t back down.   

Back to the race…

With 10 laps to go our small 4 man chase group was brought back into a 6-7 man group that was off the front of the peloton, I think… the heat at this point was quickly reducing my level of consciousness.

I moved to the back of the group and prayed that Enzo’s was as tired as I was and luckily he stayed in the group as we rounded the last corner for the sprint, I was hoping to put up a fight for the sprint but frankly my legs had long sense gone and I pedaled in crossing the finish in 12^th place.

30 min after the race it was made official that I had done the work necessary to win the IL Cup and 

Dustin had fared well enough in the break to jump into 3^rd place! Effectively sandwiching Enzo’s in 2^nd place.

Even though I am disappointed with how I raced in this last cup race the strategy did still work and most importantly we won as a TEAM regardless of who we pissed off along the way.  

The season isn’t over but in our first year we have indeed achieved our humble but personally important goal of winning the cup and we can move onto bigger and better things next season.    

                     

Race Report Catch Up

Well since I am pretty behind on race reports let me get you caught up quickly and concisely.

Tour De Champaign

This P1/2 race by the looks of the start sheet would qualify as a regional level race, which means the region’s top domestic pro/amateur teams show up to duke it out as the local and amateur teams try to work in and steal away some placing’s. Flat 4 corner course that was FAST, averaging 27MPH. I made a hard effort to bridge into a break that looked strong but it didn’t stick more than a few laps. After the failed break attempt I decided to stay in the pack and continue working on staying relaxed and efficient in the pack especially in the corners. In the end I was 20th of 50 and enjoyed every minute of it.

Urbana Criterium

Of the two races this weekend I knew this one would be the more challenging for me. Held in downtown Urbana this crit course was a fast and technical 8 corner playground of pain. Being this was an IL Cup Race and I am still leading the P1/2 series I was called to the line first (slightly embarrassing, considering the talent stacked up behind me). After the shot I settled in mid pack for the first 30 so minutes again trying to get as comfortable as possible in the turns. With about 45min to go I moved my way up to the front of the group in hopes to bridge up to a couple strong men off the front. With Dustin laying down a really hot lap for me I seriously did my best to get off the front but without much effort the blocking teams on the front brought me back into the fold. Now being totally spent from my pathetic bridge attempt I was starting to feel the course and not in a good way. With about 25 min to go I was doing everything I could to hold wheels when I jumped my chain clear off my big ring thru some rough pavement. If I hadn’t been so oxygen deprived I would have thought to walk back to the pit and get my free lap but instead I lost my edge mentally and pulled out of the race.

Big thanks to Mark Swartzendruber for promoting and putting on a great weekend of racing.

Monsters of the Midway

This will be my 3^rd year competing at MOM, and let me just say that this course should play to my strengths however, historically this race loves to spite me in new and creative way each year. For example, consistently bad weather, multiple tubie flats and stupid crashes. I truly don’t know what it is about this course its a pretty straight forward 4 corner and two long straight track. Why riders leave their self-control and good judgment on the side lines is beyond me. Unfortunately, this year would be no exception to my bad luck. Once again in the rain this IL Cup race gets going at a decent clip and we ride away the first half of the race mostly together. With 9 or so laps left two are off the front both with team mates who know how to block at the front of the group so I go off the front only taking a xXx wheel sucker with me. 2 laps and a match book later I am within 20 yards of the two but looking back and seeing the group chasing hard I decided to pull the plug and rest up for the now very likely bunch sprint. All together now on the bell lap Enzo’s squad was organizing at the front to lead out their sprinter. 

Coming out of turn 2 I managed to glue myself to the Enzo’s train and I remained determined to defend my position into the finishing straight. About half way down the back side I noticed a slow in the pace, and for any of you that have participated in a lead out you know that a slow in pace is a kiss of death. Before the pace could quicken or I could think of what to do our lead out got over taken on the inside and in the process of this acceleration an un-named rider freaked out and came careening over into the Enzo’s rider just in front of me. Despite his best effort the Enzo’s rider and un-named idiot hit the deck hard. Seeing this happen in the blink of an eye I was able to scrub some speed before smashing into the mess of bodies and bikes. I went over the handlebars and did very well to avoid any road rash, however, once the dust had settled I quickly noticed the wicked pain in my chest and the immediate shortness of breath. 

Not all was lost with a podium appearance from Sean who avoided the crash and kicked hard to a great sprint. Being that I was leaving for Asia in less than 24 hours my loving wife convinced me to get checked out at the hospital. After assuring Corie that I had just bruised some ribs and that everything was fine the nurse delivered the results of the CT scan… fractured 10^th rib. Besides justifying the pain and recovery time nothing much can be done for a broken rib. Fortunately, I was cleared to fly and with pain killers in hand headed to Singapore.

Thanks to all who prayed against the suspected internal bleeding and for the speedy recovery.

Lake Bluff Twilight Crit.

Using my highly advanced cyclist brain I decided to apply for entry into the Pro/Cat1 Lake Bluff Criterium in order to ease myself back into racing post injury and travel. Fortunately, only a hand full of the top point’s leaders in the National Pro Criterium series showed up and brought along 90 of their pro/cat1 friends. After being granted entry to this death wish I did the dumbest thing possible, I showed up…

After soaking in the fun of staging with some of the best domestic pro’s in the country at a race with huge crowds and exhilarating energy it was time to put my big boy pants on and hang tight. This would be 90 min of a vertical learning curve. During my warm up I had noticed some strange skipping going on in my drive train but didn’t think too much of it once the Sram guys took a look and cleared it. Immediately the race started and I knew I was in for it, the gear issue I was having during my warm up was multiplied by ten during the race, every time I accelerated with any force my chain was skipping over my cassette and getting me nowhere. 

After three laps of just holding onto the back of the pack I rolled out to the pit to have the Sram mechanic take another look, (since this issue was my own dumb fault I did not get a free lap). Once the Sram tech started asking me about the chain/cassette age it struck me I committed a carnal bike sin. After the MOM crash our team mechanic (John) was nice enough to replace my chain and worn cassette. However, for this race I had grabbed my tubie wheels that had an old cassette on it and the combination of a worn cassette and new chain is that it will skip. Stupidly I didn’t ask for another wheel in the pit so I would have a chance at finishing the race; instead I let them push me back into a gun fight wielding chop sticks. Needless to say this would be my third DNF in a row. 

For the record I HATE DNF’s!

Glencoe GP (State Crit Championship)

After the rookie mistake the night before I was determined to finish this race no matter what. Having landed on the podium last year (notice whenever someone says “I made the podium” 90% of the time it means they took third? Just an observation) I was optimistic I could hold tight and if things played well I could have a chance at a high finish. I tried to get as good of a starting position as possible knowing that staying at the sharp end of this race was going to be key especially with my current lack of race fitness and 90+ man field. I managed to pick the one guy in the field that temporarily forgot how to clip in and immediately I was at the back of the large field. Dang! Not how I wanted to start. Three laps in the inevitable crashes started on this very tight and technical course. I managed to navigate around a few quickly gaining some position in the pack. 

Two laps later a big crash right in front of me brought me to a dead stop both feet down and now chasing hard to get back on. I traded pulls with one other rider for two laps before we made contact back with the pack. Finally able to recover from the chase with 10 laps left I am following a wheel hot into the only left hand turn on the course and I swear this guy got sniped. All by himself in the apex of the corner he loses it and goes down right in front of me, I touch the brakes and down I go. 

Quickly taking stock I was ok, just some road rash on the left leg and a bum rear wheel. I was actually proud of myself, I stopped and rationally though thru my next move. I calmly walked back to the secondary pit and asked for rear wheel and bike check knowing that I would be placed back in mostly the position I was in before the shooting.

While the mechanic was sorting out my bike I was thinking to myself that in the last 24 hours I have spent more time in the neutral support tent that in my first 3 years of racing, hmmm… Holding tight to my goal of finishing, I was pushed back out into the race with 8ish laps left (really nice to have a good shuv by the way, it helps you get up to speed and back into the mix of a quickly moving pack). I had recovered a couple matches by sitting out two laps but I knew my legs would not be happy with the quick start stop. 3 laps left I knew it was now or never so I took advantage of a slight slow up and moved to the front of the pack only to get snapped back after a hard acceleration by the leaders. 
I simply didn’t have the legs to get myself into contention and stay there. I finished 30^th out of 100+ starters and honestly was pleased with my effort and state of mind but all too aware of my lacking race fitness.

Cobb Park Race Report

For one reason or the other I haven't had the opportunity of racing this fun and well organized race in Kankakee IL, hosted by the South Chicago Wheelmen.

The forecast wasn't looking pretty on the drive down but dry or wet I felt ready to race and didn't give it much thought after that.    

The Cobb park course is pretty straight forward, two tight corners and a sweeping right hand turn headed into the finish. The wet conditions did cause some hesitation around the first two corners and a serious avoidance of the manhole covers in the last turn (not a good line anyway).

The race started with a nice mix of familiar riders, not a big field but at least 3 teams had more than two riders so odds of a break staying away with the proper representation were good.

The first lap of the race was pretty slow followed by a number of predictable solo fliers off the front that were quickly brought back into the fold. I watched a couple of these fliers and thought to myself "well that was dumb" and no less than 2 min later I felt inspired and did the same stupid thing! Why would I take a flier off the front when the group is doing 30+ and has the whole road to chase me down? Dumb, dumb, dumb.

Side note: what’s the difference between a flier and an attack? (in my opinion) a flier is a half ass attempt to get off the front solo that both the rider and group know has a snowballs chance in hell of surviving.  On the other hand an "attack" is a sold out, gut wrenching effort that makes the field think twice about whether or not they are ever going to see you again. One of these techniques I have mastered, can you guess?          

Back to the race...

I have been fortunate to make the break in my last 2 races so I knew getting off the front was only going to happen with the right group of riders.

Finally, around 30 min into the race Dustin got on the front of the group and gassed the pace for half a lap or so just enough to string out the group on the narrow back side of the course (perfect). I was getting ready to make my best attempt at an "attack" since Dustin perfectly strung out the field and did it where the whole group couldn’t see the move. However, an Enzo's rider beat me too it (even more perfect) and attacked from a couple wheels in front of me. 

Since the Enzo's boys have a lot of firepower in the ranks attacking with one will keep the others off the chase for hopefully long enough to establish a break. Three of us (Enzo’s and Bike Heaven) got a small gap off the front mostly thanks to the lack of immediate chase since I didn’t think were really pushing hard enough to get a good gap.

 Two laps later it was down to a Bike Heaven (BH) rider and I. Here I was again, in a break that was barely off the front and holding a dangerously small time gap on the field.

Two options are now on the table, work work work and stay off the front with the help of my teammates blocking or play the game that the BH rider started immediately of sucking my wheel. Is it that flipping obvious that I am willing to kill myself to stay off the front instead of playing cat and mouse and getting caught? b/c the BH rider was acting as if I had “sucker” written across my forehead.

After getting my brunt requests for equal work stonewalled by BH I took stock of my legs and felt confident that I could do the work to stay away and still get a result.

With a few laps left a 6 man chase bridged the gap and got into the mix, however not a one of them was willing or able to put in the effort needed to keep the now 6-7 rider break away from the charging group. To give credit where credit is due, a couple of them did rotate thru even if they should have been sitting in for a possible sprint. So I was back on the front and pulling the group around as our gap was continuing to shorten.

Going into the last lap I was plotting my strategy knowing that it was very likely the group would catch us before the last turn. With that in mind I was planning to jump the field early and leave the break to be swallowed up by the group. Then a rider from the break beat me to it on the long back straight (this is good), I jumped on his wheel and let him lead out the group into the final corner all the while expecting one of the rested wheel suckers to jump the gun and go any second. After we cleared the last corner I knew it was time to gear down and hammer, I saw two riders go on the left and one go on the right. Once I dialed in my sprint gear I stood up and quickly over took the two riders on the left but the rider on my right was gaining ground.

By the time I realized the sprinter on the right was Mr. BH who I had just drug around for the past 30 min it was too late. I know I worked hard and it took some of the snap out of my sprint but the combination of poor gear and line selection I was over taken.

This is not something that has ever happened to me in a sprint; it’s exactly errors like these that separate winners from losers and seasoned racers from dumb kids. The more I race at this level the more I realize that the little things matter, the margin for error grows ever smaller.

To Mr. BH, it was nice to meet you after the race and I thank you for teaching me a valuable lesson in the only way that leaves a lasting impression… kicking my a$$.  

  

         

xXx Crit - Lincoln Park

After marinating in frustration most of Saturday (due to a puncture early in the Leland RR) I was relieved to have another opportunity to redeem my weekend since I tend to have the “only as good as your last showing” mentality. 

The Lincoln Park Criterium is new to the calendar this year after pulling the plug on the historical Sherman Park course due to worsening road conditions. I had no doubt that xXx Racing would host another great event and that this new course would be well thought out and executed.

After arriving on Sunday and walking the course I was confident it would play to my strengths and with fresh legs I stood a good chance of redemption. Certainly two major factors would play a role in today’s race, the wind, and a well-placed (if that’s possible) 180 degree turn on the back side.

After call ups for the IL-Cup Series (of which I was 3rd and now hopefully 1st) the race was off and running. Immediately two riders went off the front, and not having much patience for such behavior I shot off the front in lap two as we headed into the hard head wind. I spent two laps in no man’s land and was then joined by 4-5 other riders all looking pretty strong and ready to pull back the leaders. Our chase group was holding a 20 second lead on the peloton and steadily closing the gap to the leaders.

Couple more laps and our chase brought back the leaders to create a 7-8 man break with a 30+ second lead. Approaching midway in the 75min race a friendly voice came from nowhere with instructions to “sit in” (meaning to stop working and rest). Dustin Morici (teammate and strong man) had executed a text book bridge to the break. Now Sammy’s bike had the upper hand in the break. After catching his breath Dusting got on the front of the group and buried himself to insure the break was not going to be caught. All the while I got the royal treatment sitting on the back of the pack soft pedaling. It didn’t take long for the break to realize that I had stopped working completely and that they were outnumbered.

As obvious as our team tactic was to the break, frankly there was nothing they could do about it. With 10 laps left the announcers called out a $40 cash prime and Dustin decided it was going in his pocket. He attacked on the back side heading into the 180 and established a 10-15 gap very quickly. I was expecting Dustin to recede back into the group but he had jumped so well and obviously had the legs so he kept the gas on and was now soloing away from the break. 

Two other riders noticed that he was still putting in the effort and jumped off the front of the group, I was hoping the group would respond and I could stay on easy street but they didn’t and got away as well headed up to Dustin. This left 3 up the road and 5 with me chasing. I realized now it was my responsibility to make sure no one else got up to Dustin so I sat on the front of the group and put in the most pathetic pulls imaginable until the group got irritated and began to chase.  One at a time members of my chase group would try and attack solo and I would pull them back into the fold one after the other.

Eventually with 3 laps left a rider got away from me and up the road but with little chance of catching Dustin and the two others in the remaining time. Heading into the bell lap it was clear my chase group was roasted and I managed to sit back and ride wheels until 250 meters left and sprinted unchallenged for 5th place.

Up the road, Dustin and his break had put in such an effort that they lapped the peloton and ended up sprinting for the finish with the peloton. Not sure exactly what happened besides confusion but Dustin ended up 3rd and very pleased with his effort.

Moral of the story, unselfish teams make for good results, FACT.

Next up… Cobb Park.        

Sammy’s Road Team Introductions and Race Re-Cap

I could hardly fire off the first race report of the year without first introducing my new team and the sponsors behind it.

Fresh for 2012 Sammy’s Bike Shop in St. Charles, IL has decided to branch out from its successful triathlon heritage and assemble a road team that will develop into a Cat 1-5 program. Thus Sammy’s Cycle Club was created as a non-for profit organization that will help support and develop all ages in the sport of competitive road cycling. Sammy’s bike shop its self is a hard to miss blue (literally) cornerstone of down town St. Charles and if for some reason you miss the building first go-round you can’t miss the boisterous personality that is Sammy (owner) as soon as you walk thru the door.

I have known Sammy for close to a year now and it doesn’t take long to see that Sammy is not just running a business he is fostering a community of people who love cycling and he does it by opening his shop to whomever walks in and it doesn’t matter if your just hanging out or picking out a new top end bike everyone’s family at Sammy’s.

Starting a new road team in Chicago is not an easy task, especially when your plan is to start at the top of regional armature racing and work your way down. Last June with the help of part time employee and CAT2 racer Dustin Morici the shop started to develop relationships with area CAT 2 and 3 riders who were looking to join a small but focused P1/2 squad.

After the dust settled Sammy’s Bike Shop signed on 4 riders to start the 2012 road season. The team is composed of Sean Metz a CAT1 racer whose years of experience at the top and aggressive style will prove deadly in the sprint. Dustin Morici a CAT2 all-around rider who shows huge promise in multi day series and any race that points up. Chris Curran CAT2 a down right strong man will simply beat the crap out of you for as long as you can hold his wheel, the team will be looking to him for loads of work and race winning sprints. Lastly, yours truly is pulling up the rear with intentions of supporting the team in breaks and sprint lead outs.   

Sammy has put together a solid foundation for which we hope to grow in both riders and results during the 2012 season.

Opening day…

For the past two years Blackhawk Farms Spring Super Critirium hosted by Burnham and Spider Monkey Racing has been my season opener. Black Hawk Farms is a car and motorcycle road course in northwestern Illinois that offers a smooth and safe venue for bike racing.

I started racing this course in 2010 as a CAT4 and again as a CAT3 in 2011, both years taking the top spot on the podium. For a third year in a row I would be racing this course in a new category and among professional and CAT 1 riders who have been doing this a long time!

I know it’s been two weeks since the race but after reading some other re-caps I’m questioning my race recall but in not honestly suprised.

Three Sammy’s riders lined up to start the P1/2/3 race in a surprisingly large field of 70. Due to the course and time of year this race caters well to breaks so the game plan was to get me into the break and go from there. After getting the competitive scoop from Sean on whom to watch I marked my men and stayed as close to the front of the race as possible.

15 min into the 60 min race it was obvious that everyone was super optimistic about their fitness and would cover anything trying to get up the road. I sat back in the pack for just a few min to get some calming words from a team mate and then made my way back up front. I saw a few riders trying to get up the road with a  gap of 8-10 seconds this group included Dustin and two other riders I was supposed to be marking, whoops. The gap started to hold steady and when I felt the timing was right I jumped on the pedals and bridged across, right as I was coming up on the group and working into the rotation Dustin and two other riders slipped back in the main group leaving 7-8 riders with a very small gap. My two marked men were taking good notice of the gap and making sure their work was not being wasted. 

Two laps’ later 6 riders were left in the break with no more than 30 seconds advantage. My endurance felt great but I knew if it came to a group sprint my legs would fold so working in this break was a good idea.  

I noticed the pace starting to slow as a result of numerous soft pull and couldn’t stand the idea of being caught this late in the race. So heading into the back corner I took a short flier off the front hoping that the two other riders with good legs would follow and keep the pace fast enough for us to stay away. This kind of worked… We dispatched two riders from the six when I was really hoping to send off 3 or 4 oh well, pipe dreams I guess.

I could tell the gap was hovering dangerously thin and every pull was taking more and more out of my sprint. I was mostly concerned about Chad (long time pro) who’s presence and composure on the bike is truly inspiring and Ryan (Enzo’s CAT1) who in hind sight was doing a great job holding his cards close to the chest.

Heading into the last corner the 4^th rider in the break lead the charge with me in toe where I was hoping to get enough of a lead out to stay up front but as soon as we rounded the corner he was done and before I knew it Chad and Ryan where digging hard toward the finish. This finishing straight is super long and after falling behind off the bat I kept pushing hard and managed to pull back a number of bike lengths but fell short by what felt like inches behind Ryan who took 2^nd.

Over all I am very pleased to have taken 3^rd in my first CAT2 race and doing it right behind some serious talent.

I don’t regret the work I did in the break regardless of what it took out of my legs, especially after seeing the video and how close the group came to catching us. I would like to think that was Chad and Ryan’s master plan all along… who knows.

Shout out to my team (Sean and Dustin), who did a great job blocking and then kicking it into gear and taking 5^th and 9^th out of the field.

I hope this is a sign of good things to come for the 2012 season!