Revolution 4 Race Report

It was a big night and the stands were 90% full.  Over 4,000 people in attendance.

Like any good track race the night was full of entertainment starting with Santa and his Elves.  There were three elves riding a pace line to start the night.  Because of the time I have spent with the local clubs in town, I knew two of the elves.  I showed a picture of one of them in a previous post... with the crazy cool skin suit and the smallest track bike you have ever seen.

There was also shooting fire things on the back straight like you would see at a concert.  There was famous old footie players (like our John Elway types) racing each other.  There was Robbie McEwen and Baden Cooke as madison partners.  The entertainment factor was high.

Here is a shot of the stands at the beginning of the night.  What you don't see is an additional 400+ people in the infield with dinner tables, food, and drinks.

Race Report-

There were 4 women's races- scratch, points, keirin, and sprints.  I had originally entered all 4 until I saw the start lists and the schedule.  It was back to back races and none of the other competitors were during both endurance and sprint, naturally.  So, I opted out of the points race but still really wanted to do the scratch.

The scratch was first.  The field was strong- Belinda Goss, Rochelle Gilmore, Megan Dunn, Tiffany Cromwell, Tess Downing, etc.  I was real smart about positioning and not getting caught chasing the one big attack.  With 2 laps to go I was 2nd wheel.  Going into the last lap I started to make my move at the same time Dunn was making her move.  She comes down on my front wheel and I hesitate... it was that or crash.  I lost momentum right then.  Bike throw for 2nd and I lost.  So, I ended 3rd.  Not bad for my first international/big endurance event.

The sprints were IMMEDIATELY after the scratch with only a junior kilo event in between.  It was a 3 up sprint and only 1 made it to the finals.  Kaarle McCulloch beat me.  I was 2nd but that didn't matter much... sprints were now over for me.  Bummer.  I was smart about positioning and making the right move but my legs didn't have the jump they needed to beat this world class sprinter.

The keirin was the last event for me.  7 of us- no rounds, just finals.  I take the motor and have the confidence and game plan I need.  Motor pulls off and I take the speed up watching over my shoulder.  Here they come, I am getting ready... CRASH!  5 out of 7 riders go down.  I guess I was lucky to be in the front.  Race called off.  We restart after the men's keirin with 6 riders.  I take the motor again and have the same plan.  I controlled the front and ramped the speed.  With one lap to go Kaarle (Australian) and Fatehah (Malaysian) are making their move.  I see it coming and try to hold them on my hip.  They come around and I take 3rd.

So, two 3rd place finishes and I can end the night with a smile.  I learned a ton and had some fun!

I hope to have some action shots from Cycling News soon.

Here I am with Clint, the race promoter and my host house.

More racing this weekend- Victorian State Champs.  Later!

Cari

"Don't call it a velodrome. They don't like that." This is what my friend Nathan tells me as we are driving our 1.5-2 hours from Melbourne to Bendigo. "It's their track- not velodrome."

Now you see why.

Bendigo is a crazy cycling city a couple hours north of Melbourne. Every Thursday night (and some weekends) they put on a big track race. The racing is big, the announcer is fun, the stands are full, and the track is flat.

Racing a flat track was a first for me. I thought because I race crits that I would be just fine.I thought I could just steer my way through the turns. Well, I found out in the first race that that last corner at speed isn't easy.

The night is full of kids racing (all ages and all categories), athletics (runners doing handicap races on the infield), and senior races (all categories.) So, it is a long night but I got four races out of the deal.

I raced with the B's and the first race was a shorter scratch. I was determined not to let this turn into a fast pace line and a sprint at the end. So, I attacked with about 7 to go and got away with 1 other guy. We stayed away but were caught by the chase group eventually. It ended up being a sprint finish between myself and 1 other guy. I was on his wheel coming into turn 4 thinking I had this one locked up because I would jump around him in the finishing straight. Wrong... the flat track got me and I couldn't keep in down in the last turn. I almost starting laughing because as soon as it happened I knew that's what everyone meant when they said the flat tracks were way "different." 2nd place.

The next race was a women's only handicap called the Crystal Classic. I have only done a couple other handicaps before so I wasn't positive about my strategy. It was "only" 1k so my strategy was to win! Of course, they started me on the scratch line. But, I managed it and won. Here is a picture in the final turn of the Crystal Classic.

The third race was a 3k handicap with qualifying heats and all categories were included. In my heat I started on scratch. (For all those who don't understand what this means- a handicap race basically gives some people a head start. The people who start on scratch are the ones in the back or the ones with no head start. That is a basic way of explaining it.) I couldn't believe they started me here in this field but I only needed to get top 12 to qualify for the finals. I played it smart tactically and qualified. In the finals they started me at 250m and scratch was at 310m. There was only 5 guys behind me. UGH. I played it as smart as possible without blowing up my legs too early but only ended up 7th or 8th or something. I was pretty happy with this result considering. Also, this race really got me ready tactically for Tasmanian Carnivals where there will be a TON of handicap races... the Australian race. It is a very tactical race and I started to understand them during this last race.

The last race was a B only scratch race... a longer one. I finished 3rd but was DQ'd. There was a crash in the last lap and I was DQ'd. Two guys went down but everyone was ok. It wasn't a serious crash. That is all I have to report on that race. :)

Bendigo was a interesting little track world and I wish I had more time to get back there. Thanks so much for Nathan driving me there and back... and he didn't even race! What a trooper! I have said it before but still believe it- track racers are absolutely the most supportive group of athletes. People just love this sport and will go out of their way to make sure others experience it and love it the same way.

I have a lot more to report so check back soon!

Cari

CYCLETO INTERVIEW

SHELLEY OLDS INTERVIEW

SHELLEY OLDS - NATIONAL TITLE REPORT

It was the worst of times, it was the best of times.....

As I sit and reflect back on the happenings of one week ago, I still can't believe it all. After waking up on the morning of my 28th birthday and finding that my brand new racing bike was stolen from my car just two days before the National Championships, I felt totally lost and violated. Last Tuesday was a day that I hope never repeats itself.

As an elite athlete, you put everything you've got into your preparation for big events. The Track National Championships was my goal race this year and a race that I had my eyes set on since the season began. All of my training and racing up to this point was geared towards making me the strongest and smartest racer I could be come October 1st. And I was feeling good. I finally felt like I had done everything right up until this point. I hadn't peaked yet, I hadn't over-trained, and I was confident that I had done my homework.

All of that changed in a matter of minutes when I discovered the morning before Nationals that my race bike and gear had been stolen from my car. I was devastated, lost, and extremely angry. I went through the day, which seemed like a week, trying to keep my head above water. I had people from all over the map calling me, wishing me luck, offering to let me use their equipment, and even offering to go to the local flea markets in search of my bike. The response was amazing. People were so generous and helpful, sacrificing their time and their equipment, so that I could still chase my dream and win a National Championship.

Late that same evening, we got a call from the police. They had recovered my bike, but not my bag. I was overwhelmed and ecstatic. The next morning we were off to L.A.with my BMC Track Machine on the roof rack of my car. The emotional roller-coaster of that one day, was more than I could imagine, but I was finally able to let go of it all and focus on my races. I had my bike back.

Everyone at the track, fellow riders, coaches, and spectators, had heard about the incident with my bike. They offered their condolences about the robbery, but all said how glad they were to see my bike was recovered. My first race was later that evening, the Team Pursuit. This is an event with three riders from the same team who race against the clock together for a distance of 3 kilometers. The team with the fastest time is declared the winner. My team finished 2nd, just 1.4 seconds off the winning time. We just missed the National Championship. This was just the motivation I needed to compete in my next race, the Scratch Race.

The Scratch Race is a 40-lap race (10 km) and the winner at the end is the person who crosses the line first. It is similar to a criterium in road racing, but it is much shorter in distance. After two qualifying heats, the field was limited to 16 riders. After racing aggressively in my heat, I decided to take a different approach to my race tactics in the final. I chose to play a more conservative role in the first 20 laps of the race and sort of feel out the rest of the riders. I watched many of my competitors fight it out on the front of the race, covering attacks, initiating attacks, and closing gaps. All the while, I sat on the back and waited for my moment. I felt great in the race, only doing work when I needed to and conserving energy wherever possible. I also had my teammate, Megan, at the front of the pack who was controlling any dangerous moves for me.

With about 10 laps to go, I started making my way up to the front of the race and holding position within the top 6 riders. With 5 to go a strong pursuit rider attacked and got a gap just off the front end of the pack. One rider was in front of me and began the chase to bring her back. But she moved up right away and I was left to close the gap. I did not hesitate. I closed the gap as quickly as possible to ensure that others behind me had to work. When I caught the rider's wheel in front of me she pulled for 1/2 lap more and then swung up track. Now I am on the front with 2.5 laps to go in the race and the field behind me is strung out. I did not hesitate. I hit the pedals full gas. It was now or never. When I went through the start/finish with 1 to go, I had only one rider on my wheel but she was glued on there and I thought for sure she would be able to come around me in the last turn. I didn't care, I had to go for it anyways. I buried myself for the line and even though my legs were burning and my form was diminishing, I pulled and grabbed and fought with everything I had to make my final bid for the line. As she tried to come over the top between turn 3 and 4, I gave a little tiny hook and threw her off just enough to disrupt her progress. As the drag race began in the straight away, I could hear the voice inside my head saying, "You will NOT lose this race." And I knew I was NOT going to lose. I threw my bike across the line and pulled off the biggest victory of my cycling career. I was a National Champion!

I would soak in the glory of that victory for the next 30 minutes. The smiles on my face were uncontrollable, the happy dance was in full-effect, and I was calling everyone I knew. I wanted to share this moment with as many people as possible.

It went from the worst of times, to the absolute best of times in a matter of three days. I will never forget this experience. What I learned from this experience is that there are some pretty amazing, generous, and caring people out there. I couldn't have made it through that day and stayed focused on my goals without their support. I share this championship with so many people that have become like family to me over the last few years. I realize how fortunate I am to be surrounded by this community and my heart goes out to everyone who reached out to me last week. I can't thank you all enough.

Thanks for reading ~ Shelley

The Stone Clinic Weekend

Having worked with elite and professional athletes over the past twelve years, I can say that in my experience there is something refreshing and different about working with women. Having grown up with an active single mom and two very athletic sisters, I’ve had no choice but to take female athletes very seriously since my youth. Unfortunately, aside from the world of triathlon and precious few other sports, women rarely get the attention men do, or the credit they deserve.


That’s why I’m here, happy to help the PROMAN Women’s Professional Cycling Team get their message out. I’ve had the chance to work with them as a sponsor, cheer them on at races, and my girlfriend recently upgraded and now has the opportunity to race against them from time to time. It’s a great program in which hard-working athletes selflessly ride for one another for the best squad result by executing sound team strategy. They are easy to respect and appreciate when you watch them joyfully celebrate successes, and graciously field questions and compliments after podium finishes.

One of the reasons PROMAN has come so far in such a short time is their level of professionalism and cohesion as a squad; both are due to mutual respect and emphasis on the team serving as an unconditional support structure. Naturally, it revolves around a love of the sport and fondness for one another, which explains how they can work so hard, sacrifice so much, yet enjoy what they’re doing and strive for success with such determination.

Shelley and Nicola recently attended a two-day conference focusing on how to be successful as a woman given the inherent challenges in the world of sport and beyond. Shelley sent me some of her notes afterward, and subsequently we decided together that it would be nice to share them with you. As always, it’s nice to have the other gender validating your words or actions, and even serving to keep you in check. In fact, the "StoneFit" Pro Women Athlete's Career Conference that Shelley and Nicola attended was organized by Kevin R. Stone, MD.
In my experience with successful women in all fields, including athletics, they ring true. We hope they are a source of encouragement or inspiration for all readers and friends of PROMAN.


Notes from the weekend:

Women are often more inclusive, welcoming, non-hating, supportive, and determined to have fun when they enter the world of sports.
I learned so much in this two-day conference, my head has been spinning with ideas and I could hardly sleep last night. What an incredible opportunity this was for Niki and me to absorb such a wealth of information. This will only help us grow and reach our goals for this team to be the best that it can be and have a profound impact on the lives of so many female athletes.
Here are a couple of concluding thoughts, things that really hit home for me after attending this conference.

1. Live your life as a body of work.
2. Be inspired everyday to be creative and cultivate opportunities in your life.
3. No one thing or moment can define you as an athlete, what makes you who you are is your ability to live your life passionately.
4. Work hard at your own marketability. Have charisma, passion, and determination and don't be afraid to let it show.
5. Understand the value of impressions. Present yourself in the most compelling way possible. Separate yourself from the pack.
6. Tell your story: what else do you do besides ride/race/podium? People want to relate to you. Engage them.
7. Do your research, dig for it and figure out what you are worth.
8. Put your heart and soul into everything you do and understand how fortunate you are to be doing what you love for a living.
9. Don't take "No" for an answer. Put yourself out there constantly, because you never know...
10. Own your own brand: Be authentic and sustainable, competitive, confident, and be consistent with your brand.
11. What do sponsors look for? Personality, Reliability, Values, Reputation, Flexibility, Passion and Enthusiasm.
12. Be Humble and Confident. Share random acts of kindness. Be professional, courteous, fun, and easy to be around.
13. Exceed the expectations of others: lend a hand, offer to help, engage clients and customers.
and finally...
14. Wake up every day knowing that you have NOT yet arrived. There is always more for you to give, more for you to achieve, more for you to create.


We were so fortunate to spend these two days in the presence of real heroes and champions of their respective sports, all of whom were women. Each person who spoke shared a little piece of their lives with us, and I have no doubt that their generosity will lead us to achieve great things in our lives. I look forward to taking the tools from this conference with me and passing them on to the many people in my life who inspire me everyday to be the best that I can possibly be.
- Thanks for reading, Shelley & Nicola

Mark Deterline - 2thefront

SAN FRANCISCO TWILIGHT - WIN!

San Francisco Twilight Crit (USA Crit Series)

Teammates: Rachel, Megan, Melodie, Virginia, Hanan

The last big race of the season turned out to be a huge success for our PROMAN Racing Team. With most of the top teams in America represented, it was sure to be a fast and animated race. PROMAN started it off with some serious hole shot action from cyclo-cross phenom, Rachel Lloyd. Lloyd quickly opened a gap on the rest of the field as soon as the whistle blew and the race was immediately under our control. The field was forced to chase, which kept the race fast and strung out in the streets behind us. With Rachel off the front, the rest of us maintained position at the front, waiting for the counter. When Rachel was reeled back in, Megan launched a vicious attack that was so perfectly timed, no one else could react. She opened another impressive gap and again PROMAN was in control.

This instigated a more serious chase from the Aaron's, Webcor, and Cheerwine squads who wanted a piece of the action. When Megan was caught, Kat Carroll tried to get away and I was on her wheel immediately. We didn't get far from the field this first time, but I could tell Kat was looking for a break and I was not going to let her go anywhere without me. A few more attacks came and went. Eventually, we had established a small break away just off the front of the main field. The break had Rachel and I, Karla Kinglsey of Easton, Kat Carroll, Laura Van Gilder, Christine Thornburn, and Chrissy Ruiter of ValueAct. It was a great break. We started working together and driving the break hard to get away from the field. In the process, Rachel dropped back to the field, which ultimately benefited us because with two of us in the break, many of the teams back in the field (despite representation in the break), may have felt obligated to chase. Karla Kingsley was dropped from the group as well, after a couple of accelerations by Kat to get away from the break.

Kat was clearly looking for a solo break. After her first attempt, the break dwindled down to 5 and she waited for the perfect moment to hit us again. When she did, there was no reaction from the break to chase. She opened up a gap that took her out of sight in less than a lap. Pretty impressive. The rest of us in the break looked at each other for a while before Christine Thornburn decided she was going to bring back Kat. It was in my best interest to bring her back as well, so I started working with Christine, sharing pulls with her up the hardest parts of the course. I had to be careful though, because the two other riders in our break were incredibly strong as well and clearly sitting on, waiting for the right moment to attack Christine and I. Working together for about 3-4 laps, proved to bring down the gap to Kat and we could see her again in the distance. As we closed in on her on the climb, Christine hit it full throttle, giving Kat absolutely no chance of reintegrating with the break.

Now there's about 8 laps to go and Aaron's no longer has a rider up the road, so the chase is on. Meredith Miller got to the front and single-handedly brought us back with 4 laps to go. I was questioning my ability to win at this point, having been in the break all day and expecting a swarm and counter from the field. However, luck was on my side as Christine "powerhouse" Thornburn stayed right at the front and drilled it for 3 more laps. This kept me in perfect position with the field strung out behind us and no chance of a swarm and late attack by the field. With one to go coming through the start finish, Webcor's Karen Brem's attacked with their sprinter Gina Grain on her wheel. They led through turn 1 and 2 and then the reaction came from Aaron's leadout for Erica Allar. I was stuck on the Aaron's train and took the ride until halfway up the climb when Laura Van Gilder launched her final attack and bid for the line right to my left. I caught her wheel and buried myself to stay on it as she took me out of the final turn and into the closing 200m. With the headwind worst on the finish straightaway, I knew I should wait as long as I could and let her take me as far as possible. With maybe 100m to go I left her wheel and came around her for the win.

Megan finished up in the top 10 in 9th place overall, with Melodie not far behind in 14th. What a day for PROMAN all around. From the start to the finish, everyone did their part to bring home the win. Huge thanks to Lorraine, Tracey, Julia, Kristina, Eric, and Dario and Abby for being there to cheer us on and take care of us on and off the bike. I especially want to thank my man Rob and our manager Niki for doing an impeccable job on the radios. They kept me so focused the entire race and I don't think I could have done it without them. Thanks to my teammates for racing their butts off and controlling the race to allow me to ride for the win.

Thanks for Reading ~ Shelley

AMERICAN VELODROME CHALLENGE

What a fun race as my first race of the year! The team rode well, controlling the race from beginning to end. The plan was to keep the field together and set up Shelley for each sprint. We looked at the race as an opportunity to execute team work. This was Megan's first 'real' track race, there was some early lap bumping which pushed Megan onto the apron, she handled herself perfectly. protecting the sprinter was her job today and she did it well. She and I raced the front setting a keen tempo to keep the field strung out up to the first sprint. Hanan and Kelly watched for any attack attempts. Shelley scooped up maximum 20 points. This was Hanan's first AVC race and she had no problem maneuvering through the 20 strong field. I am definitely inspired to get back on the bike and get in shape!

Mass start track racing is the perfect arena to hone in the team work skills, while track 'purists' frown upon it and its not allowed in World Cup competition, its a great chance to encourage new track riders to participate. Riders like Megan and Hanan who are both great road racers and will be both
capable of winning track races, have an opportunity to race for a team mate - bridge to a break or ride a break, or perhaps attack the field, its building blocks to racing for themselves and a huge confidence booster. It also is important in building synergy within the team which becomes very important out on the road. ~ Niki

LORRAINE JARVIS - MASTERS NATIONAL TRACK CHAMPION!

Times change, people change and our goals change. Ten years ago, I was single and hanging out on some volleyball court (sand/grass/hard court) hitting, setting and most importantly for my relatively short height, playing solid defense. The goal was to have fun with my friends, stay in shape and WIN!



I guess the goal is pretty much the same. Just a different sport.



Fast forward to 2003. I’m married, running and cycling (mostly mountain biking) for fitness and fun. And trying to get a little more focused on my career after years of traveling and being a volleyball bum. My first visit to the track was to practice team pursuit with a few women who were looking for a 4th to complete their roster. I probably would have passed on this opportunity, except that my husband, who raced on the track all though college convinced me to try it. The biggest obstacle was actually driving to San Jose, but once I got there, it took about 5 minutes and I was hooked. While training with those women for the State Championship, my husband suggested that I also race the individual pursuit. Then he said “… well since you’ll be here, you might as well race the 500m sprint.” That’s where I tried to put my foot down. I considered myself a hill climbing endurance rider, not a sprinter!!!



It took me a while, but I finally figured out that I am a short distance sprinter. And with Kelly’s meticulous, scientific method of training, I gradually got faster and faster in the 500m.



Today Kelly’s coaching, as well as my new Seigler bike, my Super fast Cane Creek wheels, Clif for fuel and all other things aero (Rudy Project helmet, Voler skinsuit and shoe covers) I had a personal best 500m time of 40.07, and won the National Championship.



Next year I’m going after the World Championship title. I’m going to Worlds this year, but this is only a practice leading up to next year so no pressure!



Thanks Team!

ELITE ROAD NATIONALS

I had just a three hour drive to Nationals, I couldn't NOT go. I drove
down to the O.C. on Thursday night to meet Megan and settle in. On the
other hand, Mel and Virginia started the weekend off a little stickier,
driving 8 hours from the Bay in a car that would spontaneously overheat.
So they got in their pre-race warm up by enjoying the heater in 90
degree LA traffic. We all met up at Kate Mill's place in Irvine,
within riding distance to the race! Thank you Kate.

We woke up at 5 AM on Saturday morning to eat, biked to Dotsie's, and
rode over to the course for a 7 AM line up. The course was a 20 mile
loop with two 4% to 6% climbs. It was a typical O.C. neighborhood, 4
lanes wide, no trees, and it was hot. Starting at 7am was worth it. I
was expecting some wicked attacking, so my goal was to follow wheels and
get in something. The race started slow, with a few attacks. I saw
Virgina sneak into something, but it was quickly swallowed. The South
Bay Wheelmen girls launched a few solo attacks, and Molly from Metromint
made some great efforts, but with a field of 95 and everyone antsy to
win, everything was reeled back. Ozzi from Cal Giant Strawberry gave us
all some excellent ice cold feeds, and even made a friend in the feed
zone (a skinny PROMAN rider who had troubles handing off water bottles
without breaking an arm.)

With one to go on the last climb Mara and Dotsie and a few girls let it
all out there. It was the hardest part of whole race. A dozen girls
got away, and PROMAN was just behind in a large chase group. A lot of
riders had saved themselves for the finish, and it was on! The chase
and everyone shattered on the climb to the finish. Megan was our top
finisher in 29th place, 30 seconds behind the finishers.

~Kristina

CARRERA DE SAN RAFAEL - WIN!

San Rafael Criterium
Teammates: Helene, Kristin, Hanan, Shelley

Life's been pretty chaotic lately with the new house, sick kitties, a totaled car still in Seattle and lots of work to do. I showed up late to the race with just enough time to get a 20 minute warm-up and my number pinned. I caught a glimpse of my teammates before the race, but didn't have much time to strategize with them about race tactics and a game plan. Hanan mentioned that she had ridden earlier in the day and offered to help the team in any way she could. I told her my intention was to race hard and aggressively. I didn't see Helene and Kristin until we took the start line, but I knew they would have the same ideas as me and that we would all play off each other as we always do and try and control the race.

It was a hometown race for the Drumm sisters and Helene is a local hero as a firefighter in the area, so the obvious game plan was to do whatever we can to ensure that Helene wins the race. Because I didn't get a solid warm-up, I wanted to set the pace and ride hard from the gun to open my legs and lungs up a bit and nullify any early attacks. Instead of pulling the field around though, I decided to attack and found myself off the front for a few laps. After I got caught, the counter-attack came immediately from Vanderkitten, followed by another attack from Velo Bella. Both riders came back and I felt good again so I launched another attack through the start/finish. This time I had some strong riders, Sarah Bamberger of Cheerwine and Hannah Banks of ValueAct, come with me and we were able to open up a big gap. However, this break was doomed by the ValueAct rider who didn't seem interested in working with Sarah and I and we were eventually reabsorbed by the field again.

This was a perfect set up for the team to launch a very effective attack, which came from Kristin immediately after the catch. It was perfectly timed and she had 5 girls go with her. The only problem was, Sarah was able to cover this move too. This was not an ideal breakaway situation for us, with only 1 out of 6 girls up the road, including Sarah Bamberger who was the most dangerous rider in the field. I waited to see the reaction within the field. There were a few moves here and there and a small effort to chase, but it was clearly not going to be enough. So, I decided to go across the gap by myself.

After bridging halfway across the gap, a rider from the break began falling back to me. That rider was Karla Kingsley of Easton/Specialized. She is a solid rider who I have raced many times with on the track. She is a great competitor with tons of potential and I was happy to see her coming back to me. When we made contact with each other, the fight in her came out and we worked together to close the rest of the gap. Little did I know, Helene had also made a jump out of the field and was coming up behind us. Man, was I happy to see her. So, now we are three strong and the gap to the 5 riders ahead of us is quickly closing. Kristin had started to sit on the break at this point, once she realized that she had teammates bridging up to her, so that helped us get there much faster. It's different racing without radios. The spectators and crowds were incredibly loud, which was so cool, but it made it hard to hear what our teammates and friends were yelling from the sidelines.

Just before making the catch to the group ahead of us, I dropped back to Helene and asked her how she felt about attacking as soon as we made contact. She said, "wow, that's aggressive," but I knew she would and could do it if she wanted to. I worked to bring us up to the group and immediately Helene attacked. But, Sarah is a smart rider and she had already dropped to the back of her group to prepare for the counter-attack that would come from our team and she was on Helene right away.

Now the break of 8 is all back together and we have a comfortable lead on the field, so we started feeling each other out to set up for the final sprint. With about 7 laps to go there was a prime and Helene went for it. She got it easily. I rode up to Kristin and asked her to help me drive the break to set up Helene for the win. She did exactly that. Then I rode to the back and told Helene to ignore any late primes and save all of her energy for a solo attack with 2 or 3 to go for the win. She said o.k. but asked me to go for the primes if there were any. I assured her I would, except there were no late primes to go for. Kristin and I kept the pace high and tried some attacks just to make people suffer a little before the final sprint and keep Helene in a nice position to attack with 2 to go.

Like clockwork, Helene sensed the perfect moment and attacked just before the bell lap and opened up a gap that held through the start finish and up the hill on turn 1. On the climb, Sarah Bamberger attacked in an effort to chase and catch Helene and I was on her wheel. Once she saw she had me in tow, I sensed that she backed off a bit, but held speed through the last two corners and onto the final straight. Helene was clear but I opened up a sprint to make sure we would finish 1st and 2nd. Sarah finished just behind us in 3rd. The picture of the three of us crossing the line is funny. We all have our arms raised. It's pretty cool. Sarah was awesome to race with. She's so smart and strong and it was fun battling with her the whole race.

Props to my teammates for a solid race and tactically perfect execution despite having no pre-race plan or radios. Hanan remained in the chasing field to ensure that we would have one more card to play if it all came back together. We raced like a team and that's what it's all about. We were happy to get the win at San Rafael. It was a great course, very well-organized, and the fans were amazing. Thanks Ryan Dawkins at project sport and the City of San Rafael and all the volunteers.

Thanks for reading - Shelley

ALBANY CRITERIUM - PODIUM

I last did this race in 2001 - where does the time fly? Anyway, it was just myself and Hanan on an overcast, slightly chilly summer afternoon. I have not raced a local crit since April and I feel like I entered a time warp – I barely recognize the faces of the racers around me, although it is nice to see a new crop of women moving up through the ranks. However, with the abundance of skills and racing clinics available, how come these women are so sketchy? The course was a typical four corner crit and not very technical. Yet there were several crashes, including one involving several girls as they locked handlebars as the start gun went off. What gives??? I think every woman rider should be required to take a skills clinic before upgrading to a cat 3, otherwise the racing becomes unnecessarily unsafe.

Of the faces I did recognize, I picked Flavia Oliviera (racing for Jocelyn’s) and Olivia Dillon to watch and keep an eye on the Easton sprinters. After a few ill fated attacks that I tried to cover and a couple break away attempts, Flavia took off after a Code 3 Racing rider, who was chasing Olivia out on a solo effort (I think she is the Irish national TT champ). Their gap looked like it would hold, so I took off after them and tried to bridge, bringing a Metromint (Amanda) with me. The field didn’t react, so our break of 5 riders stayed away for the remainder of the race. With the exception of the Code 3 rider, we all worked together nicely. I was third wheel coming through the final corner, behind Olivia and Amanda. This should have been an ideal spot, but my sprint lacks jump since this is my first race back since Nature Valley after taking a nice break from the bike. Olivia had just dragged us around for two laps, so she was easy to overtake, but Flavia (who was on my wheel) easily came around me and I couldn’t pass Amanda, who held on for the win. Flavia took 2^nd, me in 3^rd. Hanan got caught in one of the crashes and smartly surfed the pack for the remainder of the race.

~ Kristin

A 6-day in Italy

A 6-day in Italy.
U.S. National Team: Shelley Olds & Christen King

Italy was everything I imagined it would be. Beautiful. I set off on a Saturday morning and arrived in Italy Sunday mid-afternoon. After we built our bikes up and settled into our apartments in Lucca, we headed out for a spin to wake up the legs. I met a couple of the ladies from the road team who reside in Lucca for much of the year and they welcomed us and led us on a perfect ride through the country to the infamous, Leaning Tower of Pisa. The scenery was unbelievable. Little villas in the hills with vineyards and fields of sunflowers all around. Everything was so flush and green. It was picturesque. I just rode and tried to take it all in and realize how lucky I was to be there.

The road team departed the next day for a race in the Czech Republic and Christen and I had the whole place to ourselves. We figured out rides to do by looking at a map of the area. But, not knowing that there would be a roundabout at every intersection, it proved difficult to leave town and find our route. Eventually, we met a nice man on a bike who spoke English and we were able to find the road to the coast. The riding was perfect. There was an even mix between flats and hills and we explored all of our options during the 4 days we spent in Lucca.

We left Lucca on the 9th and drove up to Fiorenzula, where we would be racing track for the next 3 days. The event was a big deal for the men. It was a 6-day with 2 Madisons and a total of 6 races a night for each team of men. There was some good competition and the organizers did a great job of putting on a show. Our races started Thursday night and ended Saturday night with a Points Race Finale to determine the overall omnium winner.

The track was a 400m outdoor with steep corners and very shallow straightaways. The entire track, turns and straights, was much longer than anything I had ever raced on before. I knew it would take some getting used to. The first race of the night was a 20-lap scratch race. The field contained Ukraine, Spain, Czech Republic, and Italian riders, with several of the women who will represent their countries in the Points Race and Pursuit in Beijing.


I was a little disappointed after the first race because I expected it to be faster with more attacks, but the field was content to ride passively around the track. I thought maybe everyone was just feeling each other out and the later races would be different. I was wrong. The next races were the Elimination races, otherwise known as the Miss n Out. After riding this race several times recently at my local track with big groups of men, I was sort of dreading the race because I know how fast and tricky it can be. It turned out that forcing myself through those previous races actually paid off and I had learned a few things about the race. I managed to hang on and ride smart down to 3 riders left, but just didn't have the legs in the final elimination. I also made a tactical error against a very smart rider from the Czech and realized quickly that I would have to outsmart and outride these girls if I wanted to win.

And so the racing went on. Christen and I raced hard and aggressively, trying to ensure that the races would be exciting and active. We learned a ton from each other and raced well together. After every race we would cool down together and reflect back on the race, pointing out mistakes and things we did well. We also became close friends with the Spanish rider who we called, "Lady." In fact, all of the riders in our field were extremely friendly. It was a much different atmosphere than the intensity of the World Cups.

In the end, I finished 4th in the GC and Christen was 6th. We are definitely better riders because of the experience and for sure make a great team. I was lucky to have been paired with such a professional and self-sufficient rider who has a ton of integrity and class and has as much passion for the sport as I do. This experience has given us a huge gain of confidence in our riding abilities and allowed us to understand the sport of track cycling much better. It is unfortunate, but you just can not find the same level of competition in the women's fields in the U.S. and there just isn't enough racing. This opportunity to race internationally before the start of the World Cup season is going to benefit us as riders so much. I only hope that we can continue to provide this stimulus of racing for ourselves and other U.S. track riders, because I believe it is so important.

I would like to thank USA Cycling, especially Jim Miller and Clay Worthington, for making this happen for us and I hope that they will call on us again in the near future for more international racing opportunities. It was an absolute honor to represent the U.S. in Italy. I would love nothing more than to race again with Christen King, but this time in a Madison as part of another 6-day event. I think we could have a lot of success in the event. It is incredibly fun and we compliment each other very well as riders. What better way to showcase such a cool American event than to have two competitive U.S. women recognized internationally?

LAFAYETTE CRITERIUM - PODIUM

Lafayette Criterium – a lesson in what would we do without technology?

Nicola's desperate plea for race reports, a lazy Sunday afternoon, and a tactically exceptional race for the team inspired me to write up a race report….here ya go:

Virginia and I rolled from Cole Coffee in Oakland just in time to see an unusual finish to the men's Pro1/2 race in downtown Lafayette. A break had gone off and nearly lapped the field, but without a camera's decisive eye the officials decided to neutralize the break in an effort to prevent a confusing finish. Well someone forgot to tell the break that they could start racing again, and the main field caught them by surprise as they were chatting along…. Not sure how it all worked out, but I heard the break split the winning $$ to save some heartache.

Proman was 4 strong in the womens field with Virginia, Hanan, Kate, and myself. Despite the fact that many of us have not raced together I feel we all did a great job and made the race fast and fun. Virginia out did herself in attacks, chases and leading the pack in the first several laps. About 20 minutes into the race Mary Ellen Ash (LGBRC/Easton) went for a prime and I countered and was surprised to see a gap forming. I was alone for a while until I found an Easton rider on my wheel. I tried to get Kim to help, but realized she wasn't feeling the legs to take a pull I let her sit on and continued to do so through 2 primes until it was 5 laps to go and the field got antsy. Once caught, I was relieved to have Kate get in front of me and take the wind for a lap. A few more attacks came through but with one to go we were all together and I was hoping Hanan, who had done an excellent job of sitting in, would be able to pull off her snappy, track inspired sprint for the finish. Virginia came through the final flat stretch with Hanan on her wheel. The uphill drag seemed to go forever, but women kept falling off. Hanan pulled off a 2^nd place only to be ousted at the line by Mary Ellen. I counted four ladies in front of me as I crossed the line and was content with 5^th. The officials called off the top 10 and my name was not on it. I rolled up and mentioned that I was pretty sure I was 5^th and they said hold on…. Oh, that's right, we have you in 8^th… Confused and somewhat disappointed in the lack of officiating, I opted not to protest. Seems they had a hard enough day as it is.

Thanks for reading,

Mel

PROMAN INTERNATIONAL STYLE OMNIUM - PODIUM!

I was really excited about racing the first ever International Style Omnium in the US! In this one-day event, riders do a combination of 3 time trials and 2 mass start races for a total of 5 races. The winner of each event gets 1 point, 2^nd place gets 2 points and so on. The racer with the lowest points at the end of the day wins. Our elite women’s field was about 15, although some quit after a few events so only 10 women finished all 5 events. I dug myself a bit of a hole in the first race of the day, the 200m. I was hoping for a PR (under 13.6), but ended up with a 13.7 for 4^th place. Beth was in 1^st place with a wicked fast time of 13.08, Shelby was 2^nd and Annabell at 13.6 was 3^rd. Niki was 5^th.

Next up was a 10 lap Scratch race. Our strategy was for Niki to jump two laps into it and try for a break. We dropped a few, but the women to watch were still with us. So we sat in and covered other attacks. I tried to keep Beth boxed in, but she eased up enough to get behind me - and around me in the final lap… sneaky. Between Beth and Niki helping me into the final sprint, I took 3^rd, but still 4^th in overall points. Next up was the 2k individual pursuit. No aerobars allowed, so about 2 laps into it I positioned my hands on the top center part of my bars and tried to get as aero as possible. The times for this race between me, Shelby and Beth were apparently super close and I ended up in 3^rd, but also 3^rd overall as Annabell’s pursuit time moved her to 4^th. Next was the dreaded 30 lap points race. However, due to time constraints, it was changed to 20 laps (4 sprints). Niki once again helped me out in the sprints. I couldn’t come around as many times as I need to, so I ended up 4^th and Niki was 2^nd. I was spent after the points race, but really looking forward to the 500m… back in my comfort zone of “shorter” races. While Kelly B. and Warren were figuring out the points we got 20–25 minutes to rest before the 500m. Good thing, because that gave me enough time to snag the last Stella beer from Donna’s cooler and hide it for later! I needed to win the 500m to move up from 3^rd place overall to 2^nd.

I told Niki I would “do my best” and she came back with a quick… “I want better than your best!!!” Ok, OK! So here we go…. my start was not great, I prefer a count down instead of the whistle out of nowhere, but that’s how they did it. I felt pretty good and hoped my time of 41.1 was good enough. Certainly not my best time for the 500m, but again no aerobars and it was the end of a long day. I’m not sure of the official results in the 500m, other that Beth go 1^st place, and I think my time was 2^nd. Thank you Niki for the lead-outs, Kelly B for your cheering and support, and a big thanks to Donna - aka VC (Very Classy) for bringing all the food, and that much needed cold Stella at the end of a super fun day! Lo-J

SKYLINE MOUNTAIN BIKE RACE - WIN!

On Sunday I raced in the Skyline Mtb. race put on by the Eagle cycling club. It was up at Skyline park in Napa where the '97, '98, and '99 World Cup races took place. Much of the course was the same as the World cup courses, but then there were these treacherous hike a bike sections that were definitely not on the World cup courses. This race also had the distinction of being a preview of the 2008 Single Speed World Championship course, AND at this race there were going to be 6 "golden tickets" up for grabs for the 08SSWC. My plan was to find a single speed to race on and earn one of those golden tickets. But somewhere in the circuitry of the cell phone world, the message that Julia had left me with the instructions on where to find the bike and how to get it, was lost. So I raced my sweet custom Santa Cruz hardtail and won the Pro women's race.

We did three laps on a very demanding course. Steep climbs, technical descents, hike a bike sections, this course has it all. We started out with a 10 minute fire road climb that ended in a very steep rocky climb to split up the competition, and then jumped (uphill still) into the single track. The singletrack looped up to the high point of the course and crossed over just above where we jumped in (so that you could see your competition that was just 5 minutes behind you.) After a little bit more climbing the course finally hit the first fast section of rolling descending down to a creek crossing. Then we climbed and traversed along a little pond and up to the white rock slab hike a bike section. Once we (the racers) re-mounted we encountered some fast fun twisty singletrack with a few surprise really rocky sections. The next part of the course I distinctly remember, was exactly the same as it was in '99 (the last time I raced here.) The "white stair step climbs." Steep white sandy dirt switch back climbing up to rocky ledge descending. All ride able, but you had to focus! After all the climbing was done we were treated to a series of sharp dusty switch backs and then fast trails (all big ring) to the last power climbs to the finish line. Only to be sent back out on the course for two more laps.

Jason Moeschler won the Pro Men's race with a time of 2:02, Cameron Falconer won the Single Speed race with a time of 2:08, I won the Pro Women's race with a time of 2:21, Kathleen Hannon was the first female single speeder, this 15 year old junior, Riley Howard (that I just finished ahead of at the Tamarancho race) beat me by 5 minutes, I think. The "golden ticket's" were awarded to the first and second male single speeders, and the first female single speeder. Then for the remaining three tickets, they had a ro-sham-bo contest. All the single speeders who raced and finished, faced off to a single elimination ro-sham-bo. It all happened quickly, but my man Sam won himself a golden ticket! I was so proud, all that ro-sham-bo practice that we have been doing finally paid off. Basically whenever we have to decide something, we don't flip a coin, NO, we ro-sham-bo! And I tell you, it is not luck. It is skill! Out smarting your competitor, that's how you win a ro-sham-bo game!

Anyways it was a great race up in Napa, the smoke had dissipated, the course was awesome, and the players were all good sports! What's next? The Downieville Classic, July 11-13

See you there!

-Rachel

CATS HILL CLASSIC - PODIUM

Message View
Re: cats hill
From: shelley olds
To: Nicola Cranmer
Date: Mon, 5 May 2008 2:53 pm
Cat's Hill Classic
Teammates: Kate and Megan

This year's Cat's Hill Classic was not as hotly contested as it has been in years passed. Noticeably absent from the women's 1/2 field was the Webcor duo of Karen Brems and Christine Thorburn, who have won this race more times than I can count on both hands. Also, there was no QOM competition this year, which was something I did not find out until after the race. That was a big disappointment because there should always be a King and Queen of the mountain competition in this race. There always has been, so I am not sure why it changed this year.

Megan and I rode the course the night before the race so that she could see the climb once before she raced it. The course is in really bad shape as far as the pavement goes. There are cracks in the road all over the course, especially on the descent and in the last corner. The only smooth part of the course was the 23% climb.

Moments before the race started, my teammates and I got together and talked about strategy. The plan was to make the race as hard as possible by being very aggressive with an early attack and several counter attacks throughout the race. The race was supposed to last an hour, but for some unknown reason, it was cut short by about 15 minutes, which changed the way the race played out as well. Kate and Megan started the race just as we planned with Kate going for the early move and Megan ready to counter. There was an early prime for $100 and I could not resist. I went for it and crossed the line first with ease.

For some strange reason, despite feeling less than stellar, I thought it would be fun to go for 2 more primes throughout the course of the race, as well as the non-existent QOM competition. Someone told me after the race that I would have won it if they had one. Sweet. Good job Shelley.

So, I scooped up $200 in primes and 4 canisters of my favorite recovery clif product and then all of a sudden it was 4 to go and I had just gone for a prime. So, I decided to chill out a bit, stay with the pack that had since dwindled down to about 10 riders, and rest up for the final lap. When the bell rang, it was a group of about 5 of us and I was sitting on the back of the group. I let the attacks happen in front of me and followed wheels until the downhill where I was thinking the whole time, "O.k. time to go." But for some ridiculous reason, I did not. Instead I waited until just before the corner and after Amanda Eaken had already made her move, to jump. When I did, I knew immediately that I had waited too long. I raced her to the line but it was too late.

It was a huge disappointment, as this is a hometown race for me and I believe I should have won the race. But, it was a mistake that I won't make again. I was a bit over-confident and should have trusted my instincts to go in the final lap. Lesson learned. This will just be fuel for the fire.

Thanks for reading - Shelley

MARTINEZ BAYFRONT CRITERIUM

The Shell Bay Front Crit had a very large prize list for the women and with many of the local heavy hitters away at Redlands, I thought it would be a perfect race to bring home a little bacon. My teammate Kristin had the same idea, so off we went to the cute town of Martinez to get in a good quick workout and hopefully get paid in the process. Our plan was simple - chill for the first half, and then create a break (hopefully with both of us in it) during the second half. In the meantime, go for all the primes that had money.

After a few laps, I started to get antsy already, and so did Kristin - and we started launching attacks to test the legs of the field. A few other women were pretty active as well, which served to pick up the pace a little. Kristin set me up perfectly for one $25 prime and then I decided to make a break for it.

I was off the front on my own for a little while, and they rang the bell for a prime. Another girl bridged so it was 2 - but she sat on my wheel as we headed into the prime. I picked up the pace a bit at the line, to make sure she didn't come around me, and got another $25 prime. After that, she decided to work with me, so she and i traded pulls for a while.

Gradually, we were reabsorbed by the field. As we were caught another attack was launched with Kirstin in it. That was reabsorbed as well. A lap or 2 later, I was at the front, probably just went for the third prime, and suddenly, me and 4 other women had a gap on the field - not intentional, but hey, might as well take advantage of it.

For the remainder of the race, we stayed off the front - some working well together, some not. But, my legs were feeling great and I was happy to get in a good hard effort at the front. Going into the final sprint, I had my eye on one girl who I know has a great jump, and seemed to be feeling good. At about 200 meters to go i jumped - i got nipped at the line for by different girl I would not have suspected. When I described it to my non-cycling friends, they declared that i had been "hustled!" I love the term. In retrospect, my legs were feeling so good I should have attacked our little break - rather than let anyone sit in. But, in the end, it was a fun race, a beautiful day, and great prize money - so I was
happy :)

Thanks for reading!
Virginia

SEA OTTER NRC PODIUM - Images By Rob Evans

Rachel's first race on her BMC Streetfire

Hey ladies,

I want to tell everyone on the team how awesome it was racing with you all this weekend. For those of you that weren't there, let me give you a little run down:

The team for the weekend was 7 strong, with the 5 towers and the two shrimps in attendance. Going into the race, I was a little nervous and unsure about my fitness and how I would feel in this kind of a race. The circuit race at Sea Otter is pretty tough. It's about a 2-mile race course, wide-open and usually very windy with a significant climb and a fast descent on every lap. We did 22 laps on Saturday...

I knew going into the race that it was going to be a race of attrition. I also knew that I had 6 very strong teammates to race with and I was confident that we would be able to control the race. I spent the entire first half of the race conserving energy, watching other teams go for the sprint and QOM points, and spinning as lightly as I could up the climbs. PROMAN was patrolling the front and Rachel was the first to go with an early move that had Tina Pic, Brooke Miller, and Stacy Marple. The move was probably designed to set up a counter move and so Rachel covered it perfectly. Back in the field, Helene was moving towards the front to prepare for the counter. As soon as the move was brought back, Helene attacked off the front and quickly established a big gap on the rest of the field. She stayed off and increased her lead even more.

Rachel in an early break



Then all of a sudden there was a group of 8 riders off the front of the peloton with members from Tibco, Cheerwine, and Colavita in chase of Helene. PROMAN immediately responded and moved our entire squad to the front of the race. There was a moment of indecisiveness when we all tried to figure out if we should bring the move back as a whole, or have one of us go across the gap to join the break. Helene had been on her own for at least 4 laps battling the wind and the course itself. It was in our best interest to send someone else up the road.

Everyone did their part to close the gap just enough for me to jump across on the climb and catch the break on the descent. As soon as I made contact, the team shut down the field and the break was gone. Helene was still off the front and we were gaining on her slowly. Eventually, Helene dropped back to the break and we were comfortably riding the winning break with everyone back in the field resting in for a possible field sprint if the break ended up getting caught.
















The break was strong and sort of steady in the beginning with Cheerwine doing most of the work. They had 3 riders out of 10 in the break and one of them was Laura Van Gilder. Helene did her share of the work in the break, even after being off the front for days, and both Tibco and Colavita used a rider to set the pace. In an effort to drop the strongest sprinter in our break, Colavita's Tiffany Cromwell, put in a huge effort on the climb and shattered the break into pieces. The first three chasers were Stacy Marple, Rachel Heal and Dotsie Bausch (who was just covering the move in case they caught her teammate Cromwell). I was not far behind with Catherine Cheatley and the rest of the break was gone, including Van Gilder, Buchanan, and Helene. Now there was a break of 5 with two Cheerwine, one Colavita, one Tibco, and myself.

I did a little work early on to bring the Colavita rider back, but our chase was highly unorganized. Colavita was there to doom the break and allow her teammate to stay off, so that left 4 of us to work. I took my turn trading pulls with the two Cheerwine girls early on until it was obvious that the move was gone and there was no real commitment from anyone in our break to bring her back. That was when I started racing smart, conserving energy, and constantly trying to position myself to cover a move should it come from the Cheerwine duo. Luckily, it never did and I was able to stick with the group of 5 until the end.

Kristin on her BMC Streetfire

With one lap to go, Stacy Marple put in a strong effort on the climb and the break split again, but we reunited at the top of the climb just before the descent. I rolled through and hit the corkscrew first, opening a little gap from the group on the descent. I was reabsorbed on the small riser before the last left hand turn and the attack immediately came from Tibco's Rachel Heal. Marple covered and they opened a small gap on the rest of us. I moved across the gap and caught the two leaders going into the sweeping turn. The group cam back together again before the last right hand turn and we were creeping towards the finish line. Everyone was waiting for the other one to attack and I was patiently waiting for the right moment to jump. I was positioned in the back and waited until about 150m before the finish to jump.

In the field behind me was Virginia, patiently awaiting her moment to unleash her sprint for the finish. Helene and her break had been reabsorbed by the field in the last lap so the field was racing for 7th. Virginia, Kristina, Rachel, and Helene were all nicely positioned in the top 10 coming into the final straightaway and finished the day for PROMAN with 5 in the top 21 riders. The entire team finished the race, which is something to really be proud of as well.

Rachel prefers the rough line!

I am really proud of the team. We were a force in the Sea Otter Circuit Race this year and held our own against the best teams in the country. Everyone did their part, we communicated well, and we made decisions on the fly and as a whole that ultimately paid off big time. It was truly a pleasure joining you all for my real first race of the season. You have really established yourselves in the women's national racing scene and I am honored to be a part of it.

Can't wait to race again.

Shelley

MADERA STAGE RACE - PODIUM! (road race)

It sure was a hot one when Virginia, Kate and I awoke for the final stage of Madera on Sunday. Having last year's race in our memories, we were hoping for a bit more action for the road race. We figured that if Cheerwine or Touchstone weren't active in the beginning, that we would pick up the tempo and launch some attacks to keep the pace high. Anything could have happened in Sunday's race, but we figured that after last year's field sprint we would work for the another one and have Virginia ready at the end.

The first lap was relatively calm, but the tempo was good as we got a feel for the course and the girls in the field. Kate jumped and made an early attack, but Touchstone's Pat was hot on her heels and the field soon shut it down. The second lap proved a little more lively, and Virginia launched one of the first attacks on the back section with rough pavement. It was a great place to try and get away, and Virginia made a good enough jump to get a gap with only Touchstone's Olivia. They were able to work together quite well to stay out on front for a bit. However, the field had been following wheels and shutting things down quickly, but I knew that I had to make a counterattack once the group caught Virginia and Olivia. Fortunately, we were still on the rough pavement when I made my move and when I looked back, it was only Kelly McDonald and I trying to keep a gap. The group let us go, and we paced through the rollers of the finish line, but when I looked back I knew it was inevitable that we would be swallowed up. Kelly kept it up and drilled it through the rollers and was out by herself for almost a full lap.

Webcor's Christine stayed out on the front for the majority of the time trying to keep the tempo up. Kate, Virginia and I did a lot of work at the front as well, keeping the field together and the pace high. Cheerwine attempted to get away a couple of times, and Robin managed to get out front for a bit by herself, but we soon paced it all back together. By the end of the third lap it seemed almost inevitable that it would come down to a field sprint, so I knew that I needed to keep the group together no matter what.

The last attack was by Metromint's Jane on the backside of the course on the broken pavement. She launched a good attack when everyone else seemed to be fatigued by the heat, and only a Cheerwine made it with her. They got a gap, and I knew that we needed to shut it down immediately. I went to the front and with the help of Kelly McDonald and Kate we sat at the front trying to pull the break back to the field. By the time the rollers came, I was cooked and it was time for Virigina to keep in the right position for the sprint. She did a fantastic job and managed a second place victory after Jane. We were all pleased with the outcome, and we all felt good that we certainly had been one of the active teams out in the field. Congratulations, Virginia - another job well done! ~ Abby

COSTA ETRUSKA, ITALY DAY 2

Driving to the race, we drove up one of the race course's "short hills", it wasn't so short, but according to Jim it was more of my type of climbing. I am learning what kind of courses suit me, I like to think it's just a matter of pedaling your bike, but I am growing as a cyclist, and that includes learning the different types of courses, climbs, races, racers, etc.

Anyway, I had a false sense of ease today after speaking with Jim who said the course was "easier" than Day 1 of Estrusca. I beg to differ. It was just as hard, I just learned from my mistakes yesterday, and I am learning what it takes to race over here. The other girls said it was a tough race too, so that gives me a sense of improvement in my racing. I have learned that it doesn't matter whether its a World Cup or a UCI – they are both full throttle.

The whole race is a big blur. I don't really know what climbs happened when or anything else about the course. My radio didn't work either, so I had only the vaguest of ideas of what was ahead – and you know how your brain becomes the size of a peanut when you are racing hard. Its always good not to be too dependent on the radio, so I wasn't completely freaking out about it. I actually didn't have time to think about it.

At one point I got sick of the group and decided to do a little off-roading. Actually, a crash happened right in front of me, and I saw a girl take a right into what appeared to be a street, but it was actually just a dirt parking lot. It was "exciting". I kept riding, pedaling hard, hoping that the 6 inch curb/divider would drop down so I could joing the pack again. Nothing. I kept searching, scanning ahead - nothing looked promising. Utoh! I hope I don't turn off onto another street. I thought for sure it would merge. It didn't. Some of the girls got off their bikes and hopped the curb, I kept riding (this was about 50o+meters) and eventually I saw that there was an entry to the lot way off to the right (the group was on the left), so I veered off, and eventually found my way to the peloton, right as the last girls were passing by. If I had missed the pack by just a couple more seconds it might have been a different story. The other girls who hopped off their bikes I don't think were as lucky - the dismounts and remounts took too long.

I couldn't believe when I looked down at my computer and saw "50km". I thought "That must be wrong! We must be close to finishing!" As I said: it was a hard, fast race. There was one climb that brought us up to another one of those mountain top towns, then we descended single file through a twisty decent, and we came around a corner into another little climb – shoot! I was waaaayyyy to far back. I got gapped off, but I fought hard; I fought through the cars, with a little help from a few girls (but I wasn't going to trust them to do the work, because we know where that got me yesterday) and I got back to the group. I made it back on, "settled" into the group, and then we went up another climb, broke things up, I ended up climbing hard, falling off the back a bit, but catching back on after the descent (really hard to catch these women once you fall off!) Then I made it up the final climb to the finish. I finished! Baby steps, I guess. I still made mistakes and of course there is so much to learn.

~ Megan

COSTA ETRUSKA, ITALY DAY 2

What can be held responsible for a bonk? what is it exactly that leads to this dreaded, all too familiar feeling for cyclists? it only has to happen to you once for you to know that you never want it to happen again. but it will. a missed feed? a strong wind? competitors that can’t take a decent line? maybe one too few glasses of water the night before? one too few gu’s?

I could point my finger at any of said factors that led to my bonk on sunday, but if there is one thing i hate, it is the cyclist that makes excuses. in the end, the bottom line is that i couldn’t do what i needed to do. just didn’t have the legs that day. it is a fine line to walk between allowing yourself bad days, and being too easy on yourself. in only two european races so far, i think i have managed that walk pretty well. i am frustrated, of course. beyond frustrated really. but with the help of some very inspiring women who have been in this position before, the pity party has been avoided. and in the end, the bottom line is simply this: I LOVE THIS RACING. this is racing at it’s finest, hardest, most bleeding-out-the-eyeballs-sufferfest, exciting, pure, BEST.

as jim said last night in our team meeting, recapping the weekend: over here, everything you do in a race, you end up paying for it. everything is a withdrawal from the bank, and if you make too many withdrawals without enough funds…..you pay. if you open up a gap, you pay. if you go into the wind, you pay. it is truly unbelievable. the efficiency with which you have to race is mindblowing, because there ARE NO easy minutes. no chance to recover. the girls i am racing with on the US team know this all too well, and are so impressive in their neat, clean, efficient moves. me, not so much…not yet, anyway. for the most part in the US, you can suffer in the wind for a bit, because most likely you will get to recover a bit before the next hard effort. not so over here, at least not that i’ve seen. ~ Emily

Don’t get me wrong, i am no expert. and there are certainly races in the US that absolutely split me open. these are statements in general, and of course not true in all cases, over here or over there. but it is a crazy thing to see 100 women strung out up an entire climb. not splitting up, not bunched together, but strung out, everyone pushing as hard as they can. it is awesome to see, but i think i’d rather have a different vantage point than from the caboose.

On to france, and hopefully some better results!

COSTA ETRUSKA, ITALY

Good news comes from this end, as i can now say i have raced in europe. didn't go as well as i'd hoped, of course, but not for a complete lack of fitness and guts. i loved it! really, truly enjoyed every moment. the whole experience before the race, with such good support, the sign-in and team photos, the chaos of languages....the helicoptor!!! i can only imagine the world cups.

i can only imagine the world cups. i was suprisingly not nervous. probably because the team let me off the hook a lot, given that it was my first experience. so i approached it as a chance to learn, and anything great that came of that was an added bonus. we started on THE tiniest street, through an itty-bitty town, and straight into a windy descent. not my forte, but i actually did just fine! the whole first half i moved around, stuck out my elbows, ignored the yelling (unless needed) and had a great time! very different from the US, but super fun! at the bottom of the first climb i had decent position, but then alison powers flatted and had a broken radio. i was right there so i radioed the car for her, and waited to get her back.

lesson #1: no need to stay back with a potential future olympian! :P she made it back after the climb, i rode in the cars, and managed to hook up with a smaller group by the top. jim was great and coached me up, but there was only so much he could do. i descended the loooong descent with 3 others, only two of us willing to work. i was still feeling great, and i think they were not.

lesson #2: if there is a loooong descent on which to recover, GO HARDER on the climb to get back on! i think i was holding back to conserve - bad move. at any rate, as i'm sure you remember, they pull you over here faster than you can spit, so even though we could see the next group way up ahead....YANK! we were pulled.


lesson #3: don't think you can chase back on. don't get dropped to begin with. all in all, again, I LOVED IT! i wish i could have finished it, but tomorrow we go back for more and i have some learning under my belt this time! i am also glad that i was able to do some small job for the team before the end - makes it so much more worth it! armstrong won, fabiana lupieri 2nd, noemi cantale 3rd....not sure i got those spellings right....oh! and judith was 5th i think. :)

~ EMILY

MEGAN'S REPORT
The Costa Estrusca weekend consisted of two tough races. Although the races weren't particularly, they definitely make up for length in the form of incredibly high intensity. I learned a lot this weekend, and racing with these ladies will definitely make me stronger.
The first day did not go so well for me. Although the climbs were "only" 3 to 6km, they were tough. I could have sworn that the 6km climb was more like 15km. The first climb we were going 35km/hr when it "flattened out", relentless I tell you. At the fake top of the climb we went through one of the many mountain towns with insanely narrow streets, which resulted in the field stringing out single file for a brief decent until the road kicked back up into a mini climb.


I stayed with the main group until this last little kicker, at which point the girls in front of me died, and then I put in a good push to try to get around them but I saw two women look over their shoulder as I was coming up on them and they purposefully pinched me out. Seriously now - why? Anyway, so I had to hit the brakes, I got stuck with these girls and not with the main group. Anyway we eventually caught back on. Then the second climb came and some of the big teams throttled it into the base of the climb; it was strung out single file into the climb. It was a relatively steep climb, and I barely came "unattached" from the single file train after about 3km, at which point the girls in front of me were also dropped, so I thought "well I will just stay with these chics and they will bring me back to the group". I stayed with them because we still had about 3km+ to the top of the climb, but it wasn't as steep. The caravan cars started to pass and I questioned whether I should go with the cars and push it or stick with the group and work with them - I wasn't climbing as hard as I would have liked but I thought it would be alright because I wouldn't blow and we could all work together to get back. I was wrong.



I should have tried to go through the cars and ditch the group because they were not motivated to get back up and stay in the race. One cyclist started yelling at the others not to work (I think thats what she was yelling, because she went up to the girls that were working and then the girls immediately stopped pushing the pace). Well the officials let us descend the entire mountain and at the very bottom they told us "Fermi! Tre minuti! Fermi!" The field had 3 minutes on us and we were being pulled. Argh! I didn't finish! I didn't help the team. Our group finished the last 20km of the course easily, and I took the last climb "piano" because I had another whole day of racing the following day. More mistakes, but mistakes I won't make again.


Later I heard that after the descent the field finally took it easy, so it was a double bummer that I hadn't made it over the top with the main group. The course was tough, the weather was beautiful, and I got to take a few glimpses of the Mediterranean before start time. Although disappointed in not finishing Day 1 of Costa Estrusca, I am grateful that I had the opportunity to race at this level and I am learning a great deal. ~ MEG

TROFEO ALFREDO BINDA - Comune di Cittiglio - CDM

There were 2 loops. The first had a 5-6km climb, which we did twice. Then after that we did 3 smaller loops with a 4km climb (I was supposed to do that one 3 times).
At points the road would narrow down to 2-3 abreast on cobbles - to say the least, if you weren't in good position you came to a complete stop. I came to a complete stop several times.

Into the first climb the road narrowed down through a corner. There was a small 'crash' and some women stepped through Chrissy's wheel, braking her spoke.
Coming into the first climb I had decent position, but I put in a huge effort to try to get to the front, but I ended up blowing myself up. I was dropped on the first climb, but I was the 2nd chase group, and I worked with 3 members of another team (until they attacked me and I thought "Why the heck am I working? Let them do the work") to get to the 1st chase group. Once I was in the 1st chase group I lead down a fairly technical descent because I didn't want to get stuck behind everyone else. Then I sat in because Jim told me to let them bring me back to the group. I did so.
As I passed the team car Jim told me to go "straight to the front" - I tried but I was unsuccessful.

I was forewarned by the ladies that there is a lot of braking with HUGE accelerations after. So it was good that I was warned about it and not sketched out about it. The women are good bike handlers so it was fine.
Ok. So on the second climb I held on longer. Then I was in the group behind the main peloton.

Once I got into the grove in this group, I took a look around at who I was with: Ina Teutenberg, Rochelle Gilmore, Tina Pic.
We did 1.5 laps of the smaller loop (with the 4k climb, and I held in there, was at the front, and it was "steady"). We were pulled with 1.5 laps left.
Bummer.

I think we were 2-3 minutes back at that point, and I guess with World Cups they are pretty strict about pulling people. I think we were the last people to get pulled.
So my goal of finishing didn't happen, and I wasn't able to help the team with feeds.
I am excited for the next races. I hope to be more active and more of an asset to the team. The women are strong over here.

Megan

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