STEINBECK CRITERIUM - WIN!

Teamates: Kristina and Tracey
Other teams, TIBCO, Morgan Stanley, Webcor Alto Velo, Velo Bella, Metromint and others.
weather: foggy to clear, headwind on back stretch, tail wind sprint.

What to do, Golden state or Steinbeck crit. I decided to go where the money was! longer drive but i had to support a race with equal prize money for the chicks! i do love the Golden state course and it is a well supported race. so early rise for a 9:45 start. A seemingly boring 4 cornered course turned out to be very enjoyable. The race was very animated from the start, some of the days notables were stella, Amanda Eaken, Trish bell and Ryan H, it was fun to see these ladies attacking hard, maybe not always at a good time but never the less good to see ladies mixing it up. My plan today was to win or give a super strong leadout. I manage the team and it really does take a toll on your racing, i am already securing sponsorship for 2007 cross season and 2008 road, nevermind focusing on a race a few days from now. i decided halfway through last week to loose the manager's hat, at least for the rest of the week, and forget about divorce too. I love racing but i have to be honest i don't love my mediocre results, i do enjoy supporting my team mates in helping them reach their goals, that washes down the personal mediocre pill and makes me feel really good. I also had been suffering from 'did i forget how to win syndrome'. (thats probably way too much information) My poor team mates had to be subjected to my vocalized frustrations at myself with my top 6 finishes, now doesn't that sound awful, i know some would be happy with top 6 but it had been so long since a win, i knew this old dog still had a trick or two in her and i just felt good. I had decided to get back in to the gym this week in preparation for upcoming track races. i love working out with free weights, it brings snap back to my legs.......oops report to be finished later, going for a quick spin with rachel...........I'm back.

oh yes, the gym, some believe its not necessary to lift weights during race season but for track racing that seems to be the norm, whatever it is i like it and i crave it and my body really does respond. i did weights over the winter and it helped speed up my metabolism, i lost weight and also increased power. i stopped doing weights as soon as i started racing and slowly the weight crept back on. so last week was my first week back and i already feel better.

I felt great during the race, Kristina and i covered many short lived attacks, it was not a case of pick your battles as i just felt really good and was having fun accelerating as i was recovering quickly so i patrolled the front and felt i could cover anything, love days like that. I pretty much stayed top 5 the entire race, i even pulled for several laps, i got to set tempo and comfortably string out the field getting a great workout in. Kristina would come up and relieve me, probably concerned that i may use up too much, what she didn't know was that my caffeine Clif shots had kicked in and i felt great. I was happy to see tracey stay calm for the first part of the race, because what if i did burn all my caffeinated matches, we still had a loaded super sprinter in the arsenal. Tracey, then began covering attacks and was in a short lived break, after about 45 minutes of racing i asked Tracey how she felt, she said not great. i told her to find my wheel with a few laps to go as I knew Kristina would be there to lead me out. there were many primes to be had, i think the last prime was called and Queen bella sabine launched a tremendous effort into the head wind, she got a large gap and i was hoping she would get the prime but oh no a minty fresh was right on her wheel, sabine missed out, i wanted her to get it so badly for the superstar effort she had made. stella was riding really well, once she really figures out when and when not to use her strength she will be a force, same goes for Ryan and Amanda who also are very strong gals who launched a few too many random attacks, not to say sit in but be more mindful about their moves. TIBCO's Yuki and liza were also very active, covering moves.

Tracey moved forward to cover more attacks, One of the morgan stanley gals attacked with about 4 to go, this was great as the pursuit ensued with PROMAN sitting comfortably top 5 and the field was strung out. the bell lap rang and i was glued to Kristina's wheel, i told her i was there and she calmly accelerated, no flapping, just smooth calm barely noticeable acceleration. she slowly raised the pace right into the headwind, i was sitting pretty in 2nd, i was not sure where tracey was at that point, i told her to find my wheel i did not want to worry about where she was and loose focus on the finish. I was hoping Kristina would make it to turn 3 as i knew i could jump from the turn, get through turn 4 and have a tail wind for the sprint. We rounded turn 3 and i jumped hard, i felt great and just kept working my gears to the line, i guess i had quite a good gap, you can't tell from the head on shots. Tracey got pinched in the turn but accelerated past a few gals to get 4th and Kristina knew there was money on the line to 10th place so even after her major 1K effort she fought for 9th place! Illena Garcia-Parker came in 2nd, she is a tough lady who rides a smart race. Today was a great team effort, good communication through the race and generally good racing by all. i don't think anyone just sat in. I hope this race will be back next year, very well organized, great brewery, coffee shop and very happy friendly volunteers! thanks! We will be back ~ Nicola.

thanks to my teammates

P.S - I love winning!

Shelleys mens PRO 1/2 race report:

I decided to race with the men today to start preparing for some of the big races coming up. There were over 60 men in the field, including several Cal Giant riders, Wohlberg, Jamiel Danesh, Daniel Holloway, Dave McCook, and my man Rob. I was a little nervous lining up with them, but I saw a lot of familiar faces out there and just told myself to try and hang as long as I could. By the end of the day it was pretty windy on the course and my size in comparison to all the other riders was a big advantage. There was a pretty nasty cross wind on the back stretch that made things much harder than they already were. The race was 60 minutes long and the first 20 minutes was extremely fast. After 20 minutes, I didn't know if I could keep up. The field was splitting every other lap into groups of 30. I had missed the move on one occasion and thankfully was brought back to the leaders by a friendly rider who took me across the gap alone. 45 minutes into the race, I thought about dropping out again, but I figured that I had made it this far, I better finish the race. According to Rob, the race was really fast and never let up the entire time. I could see that it was strung out single-file up ahead, but my only concern was staying tucked in behind the wheel directly in front of me. This was definitely the fastest crit I've done, but there were times when it let up and I was able to recover. The field would slow and I would move up as far as I could until the next attack came. One thing I learned from racing with the men, was that I didn't have to cover any moves. Inevitably, if a move went up the road, someone would come from behind me and bridge the gap. All I had to do was wait for the right moment and slide in behind the riders as they passed. It was a constant battle of staying on a wheel and closing gaps. The final 5 laps were actually the slowest because there was a break up the road of 6 guys. It wasn't until the final 2 corners that it got really fast in the field. I received a lot of support from the spectators and race volunteers all along the course. The men in the field with me warned me about the final lap and told me to steer clear of the sprint, which I was happy to do. However, the next time I race with the men, I would like to try and ride closer to the front to get a feel for the sprint. It would depend on how the race had played out though, as I would definitely stay away from the front if it was ending with a field sprint. This was a great experience for me. The training was great and I learned a great deal about racing. Until the break is established, it is just one attack after the other on top of a very high paced race. The speed of the race actually made it easier for me and I felt safer. The constant high-intensity kept me focused and ready. It reminded me of every race I've ever done on the track. I'd do it again for sure. Shelley

CATS HILL CLASSIC - PODIUM!

Cat's Hill: 60 minute race Teammates: Helene, Kristin, Rachel, Tracey, Niki Cat's Hill Classic is truly a classic race. It is great for spectators, very challenging, and my hometown race. One of my goals for this season was to win Cat's Hill, so I had asked for the support of my teammates to help achieve my goal. Thanks to everyone who showed up and suffered through this race with me. I had really good support, but unfortunately I still have a lot to learn about bike racing and in the end the race was won by the smarter rider. The race started at 2:00 p.m. and it was a beautiful day. The field was much smaller than previous years with many of the great local riders away at an NRC stage race for the weekend. We knew exactly who we needed to worry about throughout the race and we did our best to control the race. Helene went on the attack early as planned and tried to scoop up some queen of the mountain points. However, Taitt was determined to defend her title from last year and she attacked before the climb several times to eventually win the QOM competition once again. The ValueAct Team rode a great race keeping it active and interesting. My teammates worked hard to cover any dangerous attacks. About half way through the race, Rachel went with a move that ended up being just her and 2 ValueAct riders. They played the game with her, attacking one after the other and making her chase. But Rachel's just too strong to get rid of. Eventually, the move came back to us and it was all together for the final 5 laps. I kept position at the front of the race with Rachel, Helene and kristin protecting me and keeping me where I needed to be. With 2 laps to go, Rachel began her leadout and kept it strung out until the bottom of the climb on the final lap. I had my competition in front of me so I attacked into the climb and drilled it over the top. I knew I had a gap and looked back to see only Karen behind me. I just kept my head down and rode as hard as I could to the line, hoping Karen would not come around me. This was my biggest mistake. Well, she did. Just before the turn she took me on the inside and I knew that was the decisive moment. I tried to get on her wheel, but the sprint is just too short in that race and it is truly a race to the final turn. Every race I learn something new. Karen taught me many things about bike racing today. I will take what I have learned and use this experience to grow as a cyclist. I can't thank my teammates enough for their support in this race. A huge thanks to Giana as well for her support. This was a great race and I'm already looking forward to next year.-Shelley

CATS HILL CLASSIC PICS - PODIUM!

DEVIL'S PUNCHBOWL ROAD RACE

Road Race: Devil’s Punchbowl; SoCal Cup; W Cat 1-3
Course: 50 miles, 3 loops on a hilly course, 7 miles up, 5 miles down, 2 miles rolling in a crosswind
Weather: HOT, 90-100 degrees, slightly windy
Field: 30
PROMAN/Paradigm gal: Kristina

After hearing many rumors about how brutal this race was, I thought: I had to try it. When I got there (there being somewhere outside of Pearblossom, near Edwards AFB, 50 miles east of Santa Clarita) I thought: why did I drive this far? It was hot; it was dry; it was lonely. Warming up my legs, as the course began on a climb, I heard from some girls say: “wow, PROMAN is here, those girls are so strong.” Kate and Abby must have left a great impression the week prior at Conquer the Canyons.

The start whistle blew at 10:30 and we began half-way up the 7 mile climb. I stayed near the front to get comfortable and keep my pace. We climbed through the feed zone and hit the steepest section of the climb (similar to the bottom of the Wente Road race climb, but slightly less steep). Southbay Wheelmen notched it, but we all stayed together and flew down the wide open decent. As we went through the rolling false-flats one non-climber attacked. We caught her on an uphill shortly thereafter.

The second lap was much faster. Again, Southbay Wheelman (with an impressive turnout of five riders) notched it again. I stayed near the front through the feed, waiting for someone to attack. The pace was high near the top of the climb I looked back and we were only eight. The race was on.

We (Jennifer from Southbay Wheelmen, two Helen’s/Trek riders, a Simple Green rider, a few Bicycle John’s Riders, and me) all agreed to work together. We rotated down the big decent and into the rollers. A few of the girls were taking pulls too hard resulting in chaos for a bit. I was hurting on the rollers, and one of the girls drilled it and got a gap with four, leaving four of us behind. The lead four worked well together. I worked with one girl and looked back to see the two Helen’s/trek riders a few seconds behind. I suggested we wait for them and all work together. We rotated nicely, but on the climbs, the two Helen’s/Trek riders dropped off the pace leaving the two of us to chase on the final lap. I didn’t have much left at this point. I was chasing in 95 degree weather in a dry dessert and quickly losing motivation. My coach Dotsie, cooling down from her race with the boys, screamed words of encouragement. Well, I sucked wheel for most of the last lap and did all I could to hang with this gal. The four riders finished maybe two minutes ahead of us and I came in for sixth. - Kristina

MADERA STAGE RACE - PODIUM

Madera Stage Race -Stage 1, crit:Set in the heart of Madera (ie the furnace of California), the crit was a flat, four corner course lending to a field sprint in the final lap. No one got away on the course, but Tracey was able to put the hurt on in the final sprint.

Stage 2, TT:Oh man, this was a hot one - 10 mile TT in the 100 degree heat that was incredibly flat. Unfortunately, the GC was pretty determined after this TT, but was a good experience. My time trial put me in 4th place with Kate right behind me in 5th. Tracey had a rough day - her bike flew off of her car before the TT and during the TT her aero bar broke forcing her to hold onto it the whole time. But she was a good sport about it all and we could laugh about it in the end.

Stage 3, Road race:Another flat, hot course to contend with, but a good finish for Proman. Because I was only sitting 7 seconds behind 2nd place, Kate was incredibly great helping me in the road race. On the last lap Kate brought up the pace over the only rollers on the course which allowed me to make a great finish in 2nd right behind another GC contender. Thanks to Kate and Tracey, I was able to walk away in a close 3rd place and Kate came right behind me in 4th. - ABBY

CONQUER THE CANYONS STAGE RACE - PODIUM

Conquer the Canyons -Stage 1, 4m prologue:The prologue was a 4 mile, mostly uphill, road that was set in the Santa Monica Mountains. It was absolutely a gorgeous day, and everything was run very smoothly. As all TT efforts are, it was a tough 4 miles but Kate and I were able to manage 2nd and 3rd respectively. Stage 2, Circuit race:Once the results were posted for the TT, Kate and I were able to figure a decent strategy for the circuit/crit. It was a flat, fast loop which the kept the pace interesting, especially in competition with all of those southern california crit riders. There were two time bonus sprints available, and although we both tried for one neither Kate or I were able to get in the right position to take the points. However, on the final lap I was able to pick a good wheel that would put me in 3rd for the final sprint with Kate right behind me in 5th. Stage 3, Road race:There was only one part of the 7 mile loop that could divide the field - a 1 mile climb on the far side of the course. The first time around the loop both Kate and I sat in the group in an effort to get a feel. On the second time around we were neutralized because of an accident at the bottom of the descent, so Kate and I had to be patient. On the third time up the climb Kate made a strong attack which definitely shook some of those sprinters. However, it was not enough to break up the field and we were once again together as we rounded the course again. Unfortunately, the marshalls decided to cut the race short - at the base of the "final" climb! So Kate and I had only one more chance to get away from the field. Kate attacked again, two of the girls in contention went with her, I followed and got on the front of the field and tried to keep the pace high. It ended in a field sprint coming into the final turn and Kate made a great finish in 5th and me right behind her in 6th. Overall, we had a great time down south. Kate finished 4th while I finished 3rd. - ABBY

NORBA NATIONAL SERIES - PRO SUPER D - WIN!

USA Cycling Weekly News Update: April 25 – May 1

The Firestone Santa Ynez Valley Classic presented by Platinum Performance was also the third stop on the USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Gravity Calendar. In Saturday’s Super D competition, Mike Phillips (Milwaukee, Wis./Alterra) narrowly defeated Bryan Fawley (Robinson, Texas/Kenda-X Fusion) and Carl Decker (Bend, Ore./Giant) to take the men’s victory while Rachel Lloyd (Fairfax, Calif./Proman), Marla Streb (Los Osos, Calif./Luna Chix) and Jamie Whitmore (Mount Aukum, Calif./Cannondale) took the top three spots for the women.

WENTE CRITERIUM - WIN!

We had a two fold plan today, to save Tracey and I for the sprint or to get Kristin and Emily off in a break, fortunately for the team and unfortunately for the sprinters, the later occured. i was in two minds how to write my report, a positive, upbeat, fluffy account of the race or the 4am should have, would have, could have version, i am choosing the later, i think there is more to learn - isn't there always?? We used radios, not because we needed them but because we needed to practice using them for upcoming NRC races.

First of all everyone was feeling very optomistic about getting a win today, we had better as we were the team with the most team mates and the field wasn't very deep. Not to discount the ladies that were there as there are some super strong individuals. it was a combined field of over 40 women, the cat 3s would get picked separately. We wanted to control the race from the start and we did. Lori on her 2007 debut, charged to the front and established a good pace, there were a few attacks by other teams which were very quickly shut down and countered by PROMAN. kristina attacked and stayed away for a couple of laps until the field reeled her in PROMAN immediately countered and strung out the field. PROMAN won every prime either a 1st place or 2nd place prime. Rachel, Kristin, Emily and Kristina were really active on the front while Tracey and I sat in. * A little side note on this - I hate sitting in! I thought for once i would truley just sit in, stay protected and surf wheels. In the past It may have looked like i have sat in but truth be told thats probably all i could manage! Sitting in is hard, it feels like you aren't in the race, it was great practice for me but i didn't enjoy it one bit, especially as i was feeling good and dying to sprint on my new carbon Orbea. My legs were aching to do something. When i saw the break go I was happy to see 2 PROMAN in it but at the same time, my lesson in sitting in is don't be too far back as you may miss a break, i was probably on about 10th wheel. I considered asking Rachel to get me up there while they were still at a manageable distance, but this risks bringing other riders, i opted not to but in retrospect i should have as this was a goal race for me and i should have settled for nothing less than the win, i should have dug as deep a i could to get there, with someones help or not. Rachel and i both have a snappy jump so it could have worked. Tracey tried once to bridge on the wheel of Julie but as soon as Julie saw Tracey she stopped working. The girls worked well together, Virginia from CRC is a smart rider and watched for a PROMAN break and got in it again along with another gal (sorry not sure who - Flanders team?) The 4 riders stayed off, on the final lap, Michael instructed Emily to attack from behind, Kristin should have gone with her but instead Virginia did, Emily made Virginia work and then sat behind her approaching the finish and popped out and easily outsprinted her for the win, Kristin followed for 3rd. Meanwhile back in the pack......... things were getting hot! Lori , Rachel and Kristina were setting up to lead out Tracey and I, we started a little early but we managed to all be near the front, oh dear, were tracey and I too near the front all of a sudden we were in the front well before the last turn, suddenly Rachel appeared, i jumped on her wheel and then hoped Tracey would be on mine, rachel got me to the turn, it was just what i needed, she began to fade, crap was so very far from the line, couldn't even see it at that point, I jumped any way and went hard, i quickly looked before i jumped and Tracey was not on my wheel, it was a metromint rider, i jumped slightly laterally to shake he off my wheel and just charged for the line into the most vicious headwind ever, everything felt slow motion, i just kept digging and even down shifted, i had got the field sprint, only just mind you as there were gals coming on the left who were on the protected side of the course. Tracey was behind me, Rachel, Kristina and lori rolled in top 15. Cheers to Michael for great direction and thanks to Tim for taking care of everyones mysteriously noisy deraileurs and taking pics, thanks to the PROMAN girls that allowed Tracey and i to sit in. thanks for reading! - Nicola

COPPEROPOLIS ROAD RACE - PODIUM!

Despite having to wake up at 4:30 on a Saturday to drive out to the race, it was a beautiful day for riding and I was greeted by some cheerful teammates when I arrived. My intentions going into this race were to ride as hard as I could in preparation for next weeks circuit race at Sea Otter. My tactical coach, Rob, instructed me to hit the hill hard every time and set a difficult tempo to try and dwindle the field down to the strongest riders. So, I went to the front the first time up the climb and did just that. I was surprised at how moderate the climb seemed this year, but I had forgotten how bumpy the climb was and how much of a factor that plays in making it more difficult to ride. The field stayed together on the up and over. Few girls were willing to get to the front so I found myself and my teammates there a lot. I decided to drop back to the middle of the field to see who else was in the race and set myself up for an attack. Just before the final climb before the descent into the start/finish, the field started to slow and chat with one another and everyone was grabbing something to eat. I decided this would be a great time to attack. I came from deep in the field and attacked hard into the climb and up to the top only to turn and find two teammates and two strong Touchstone riders with us. Perfect. We worked hard together to solidify the gap on the rest of the field. We stayed together up the climb in the second lap and just before the climb at the end, we were joined by one rider, Sara Ellis, who had bridged solo to our break. Pretty impressive as the conditions were extremely windy. So now we are heading into the final lap and there's 6 of us. Jill McClaughlin of Touchstone, who would eventually win the race, pushed a hard tempo through the feed zone and created a gap from the rest of us. I began chasing her and eventually caught back on with a few others behind me trying to hang on. After a few minutes, the breathing behind me stopped and I realized it was Jill and I alone. We decided to try and make the move work and so we worked together along the flats. At the bottom of the final climb of the day, Jill stood to attack me. I kept my tempo and stayed seated for the climb, ultimately letting the win slip away. I was happy with second and very happy to see Jill take the well-deserved win. That girl's been killing it this year and there's no other rider I'd rather be in a break with at the end of the day. Congratulations to Jill and all my teammates who raced a great race tactically. Emily was the perfect teammate to all of us today, ensuring my move with Jill wasn't threatened and helping Katy conserve energy for an attack before the final climb. She even had enough left to pick Maria Monica of Touchstone on the line for 4th. Great race girls! -Shelley

COPPEROPOLIS ROAD RACE - PODIUM!

i'm pretty sure i can beat maria up the climb today....

Photo: Jan Snyder http://picasaweb.google.com/cyclefreak7/Copperopollis2007

BMX CAMP day 3

the little Kids in the start gate

below Photo: Jesse Langland, camp coach

well, 3 days and 12 hours of track time later, i am simply knackered! While drastically modifying my regular workouts and getting great sleep, the 3 days of pushing myself to beat teens and pre teens has paid its toll. BMX riding requires lots of abdominal strength and upper body power and of course you are riding the entire time standing!!! No Copperopolis for me today, i wouldn't have done it anyway but now i have a great excuse.....
day 3 we dissected the course again, starting in the gate, which by the way, i am really comfortable with, i am still a bit tense but can sit clipped in and spin my pedals backwards and stand when cadence begins. My starts are still not exactly explosive but definitely more comfortable. i found the rhythm of the track today, it feels great when that happens. I was more comfortable getting air on day 3 (giving it some sky as they say) I also learned how to pump down the backside of the jump. i learned how to pump as well as pedal through the rhythm section, keep speed through the turn, stay low through the turn, protect the inside line approaching the turn.

i still don't have the speed for certain sections. its humbling and a little frustrating but i have to remind myself that i have only been doing this for a matter of hours, i am so competitive that i want to be good at this right away but i came to the realization that i just don't have the time for this i need to be focused on the other track racing as i am planning on masters Nationals. I will however continue to go to the North Bay BMX Track and maybe even participate in a few races but i feel i definitely got going on this one about 35 yrs late!

i would also like to get my team mates out there for a session, you can even ride mountain bikes in practice i believe you can race them in cruiser class too. I will miss all my new friends, their charming smiles, their words of encouragement and unbridled enthusiasm. A huge thanks to Jesse Langland who is rider for Psykopath BMX
http://www.psykopath.com/1.htm

http://bmxgallery.net/gallery/gallery.php?g2_view=core.ShowItem&g2_itemId=2011

http://www.sponsorhouse.com/EntityApps/EntityProfile.aspx?entityDisplayName=langland&mign=Default&fromdomain=community.supercross.com

Ron and Ronnie, father and son racers, trevor, the ladies that kept a continual supply of gogurt and carrots and everyone at North Bay BMX, what a very cool crowd of people.

BMX CAMP - day 1 & 2

Photo: jesse Langland. So i roll up to BMX camp, just as i thought lots of kids, i was actually very nervous! I had never ridden on a BMX track, never been in a start gate. The first thing we did was a warm up session, stretches, jumping jacks and push ups, i was giggling i was in the dirt doing push ups with 24 kids ages 5yrs - about 14yrs. Jesse langland the main instuctor is 17yrs and races pro for Psykopath.
Ok on the bikes, the first thing we did was starts, oh crap i had to quickly learn to balance on my bike in the start gate, first sitting, then standing, this wasn't easy but when i saw the 5yr olds doing it i had better learn quickly. it was pretty scarey, the gate dropped and i was faced with my very first table top into a burmed turn! i powered over the table top accidently getting air!

i couldn't use any of my power around the course as i didn't have the skills to back it up. i tried powering through another section and all i did was get massive air, well massive for me. Back to the gate i was shaking so hard in the start gate just trying to balance! a 5yr old boy told me it was ok to shake as he does everytime he starts a race, its nerves he said. he also reasurred me that i would be ok! next we broke the course into sections and practiced each section, carving turns, staying low on the burms, pumping rhythm sections etc. lots to learn! By the 2nd day i was comfortable in the gate, clipped in sitting and then standing at the start of the cadence. Now i have to work on my start form, its pretty weird feeling standing, balancing on the bike, facing down hill, waiting for the gate to drop with your back pretty straight and hips and pelvis pushed forward.

its a great scene at the North bay track, very family oriented and so supportive, this will improve anyones bike skills and give you some extra snap!

Chileno Valley TTT - WIN!

last year we were super models, this year - porn stars (yes, first pets name and mothers maiden name)

Whiskey sutton - niki

Suzie Kann - Lisa H

Snowfoot Snede - Cindy M

Pia collins - Kristin d

Sugar sintenella - lorraine J

Amberley dear - Kelly B

There were lots of sleek aero helmets, wheels and shoe covers, we decided to ride regular bikes with no aero anything. There was a guy with a post it note stuck on his helmet that said 'faster'. Although Kelly b confused us at the start by telling us about Kate Maher at the wind tunnel, they had determined that the most aero position for hair was down, we debated this for a minute and decided to leave it up. We started with 6 riders, Emily & her cell phone had fallen down a well earlier that day and helene decided to ride to the course but got delayed - there must have been a sale somewhere, she likes to shop. Not being a tt gal, i was not counting on being in the final 4. we started pretty fast and lost 2 gals in the first few miles, oh crap, that leaves 4 including me. This meant i had to stay with them (4th persons time counts) So Cindy, Lisa, Kristin and I rotated for the next 50 minutes, i sometimes missed pulls so i could recover. i was breathing so hard it was ridiculous, seemed like i had one lung or there was way less oxygen in the air than usual. they kept an eye on me and we made it to the finish line together! i was not planning on working that hard especially as i had 4 hrs at the BMX track the next day! The best prize presentation followed with champagne and brie and medals for the winners!

HANFORD CRITERIUM - WIN!

Hanford is my FAVORITE race of the year. Great technical course, perfect roads, local support, and lots of cash...what more could you ask for? This is the second year I have done this race and it greatly disappoints me that the field sizes are so small. I'd love to see more support for this race in the future.
My team-mate Kristina decided to join me. It was her first race of the year, and she was really excited. I love racing with team-mates, it makes every little accomplishment that much better. Well ...the race started and it was pretty mellow for the first few laps. Then the attacks started. An Arts racer, Trina Landry, got away for a few laps. We brought her back, then a Velo Bella launched and got away for a two laps before she got swallowed back in. Both the Arts racer and the Velo Bella later got away together after a prime. I didn't think a single racer could stay away, but two probably could. I jumped across to them and within a minute we had Elis from Metromint and two CVC racers join us. Unfortunately, Kristina didn't make it across. But did a great job keeping things slow within the field and picking up pack primes. I got the girls in the break organized and strategically made everyone take pulls to gain time on the pack (yeah, I admit I was a little bossy out there). The group worked well together and I was happy that we were going to make this stick. I had a better chance of outsprinting 5 girls then the entire field. I opened up the legs a little and managed to win two $100 primes in the process. It came down to the last lap and the pace picked up. The Arts racer stayed in the front and kept the pace high. On the second to last corner, the Velo Bella took the inside line and clipped her pedal. She bounced and I had to go really wide to get around her. I pulled back in for the last corner and sprinted to the line ahead of everyone...winning the race! Kristina managed to win the field sprint and took 7th!

Kudos to one of the CVC racers (Katrina - I think) who made the break with me. She did an awesome job taking pulls and managed to pull off a third place finish. I later found out that she is only 11 years old!! This girl has a great future ahead of her. - TRACEY

SANTA ROSA CORPORATE CRITERIUM - WIN! PRO 1/2/3

Field of about 25 women, Giana gave us simple instructions - get someone off in a solo break, Niki sit in for field sprint. We did just that. Too many times the bridesmaid, Emily was also looking for the illusive win. PROMAN patrolled the front of the race, Emily saw an opportunity and attacked, the rest of the team were perfectly positioned to help her hold her move. A few gals attempted to chase but nothing was very organized, Emily picked up a few primes while out there and helene picked up the field primes. Helene was then instructed to attack following a prime, she did and got away, she bridged up to Virginia CRC who made a really brave effort to bridge to Emily. She sat with her for a couple of laps and then attacked her and bridged up to Emily who was happy to see her after spending most of the race alone. Emily had been in tt mode for most of the race establishing a 30 - 40 second gap. Emily and Helene crossed the finishing line in comfortable fashion back in the pack things were hotting up. One lap to go Kristin got to the front and drilled it for an entire lap with me on her wheel. Those are long laps on that course, i feared she may fade too early, but no, she was hammering, no one could advance, I stayed on her wheel until the final turn then launched my attack and won the field sprint, awesome leadout - actually a perfect leadout.

SANTA ROSA CORPORATE CRITERIUM - WIN! 30+

Masters 30+ / 3/4 As this was an open 30+ category, we decided to do this race as a warm up for the 1/2 race. In a field of over 60 women PROMAN established a break on lap 2 Niki, Emily, kristin, Helene, claire from Norcal Velo and 1 cat 3 rider, Kelly B patrolled the front of the field, foiling any atempts to bridge. Helene quickly assesed the break. The break established a considerable gap early on, of course with 4 PROMAN riders doing all of the work. Claire valiantly stepped up and joined in the work load as did the cat 3 rider who later got a flat. With one to go Claire was still with us, Emily attacked so Claire would have to chase, she was caught, kristin countered and got a good gap, Emily went a second time and Claire chased again with no avail, Helene and I attacked Claire and rolled in. Sorry Claire! A fun race, good tactics, lots of primes and really great team time trial practice.

Women's racing is certainly healthy in our district, there were lots of newer gals out there, great to see!

BARIANI ROAD RACE _ WIN!

Bariani is a flat 4x10 mile road race with a small climb. I was pleasantly surprised by the turnout given that a big money NRC race (Quad Knopf) was happening on the same day. We had a field of 54 racers which included Touchstone, TIBCO, Klein (Jane), Morgan Stanley, Velo Bella and Metromint. Since I didn't have any team-mates join me for the race, my strategy was to sit in as much as possible...let the other teams that had stronger numbers chase things down...and if it stayed together, make sure my positioning was good going into the final sprint. The race began and Touchstone took over at the front and kept the speed at a good race pace. It continued to be fairly mellow on the first lap until we hit the climb. There was a KOM prize, so Jane and a few others attacked at the bottom of the hill. The pack broke up slightly, but quickly regrouped. My legs weren't feeling great, and I had lost a lot of places on the hill -- not what I was hoping for. The finish was about 1k after the hill, so I knew that I needed to crest it near the front to have a good position going into the final sprint. The next few laps were similar to the first. There were a lot of attacks, especially going into the hill, but none were strong enough to get away for more than a minute or so. The pack would pick up the pace and swallow them back in. The fourth and final climb was faster than the earlier climbs. I just couldn't find my legs and even though I wanted to be near the front, I lost a lot of positions. Coming over the top I was near the back...ugghh. As we made the right turn at the bottom of the hill, I noticed a slight mushroom at the front of the pack and knew it had slowed down slightly. I weaved my way through the racers and followed the right line so I would be sheltered from the wind. I started picking off racers one at a time. I made the final turn about 7th wheel and continued passing other girls. I finally got to 2nd position behind Kelly McDonald (Touchstone) and didn't have anyone else to draft behind. I had about 400 yards before the finish and decided to go for it. All I could think of was..."I WENT TOO EARLY AND SOMEONE IS GOING TO DRAFT AND COME AROUND ME". But I made it over the first riser out front and looked back before I hit the second one. I had at least 5 bike lengths on the other girls -- yay! I sprinted over the second riser and took the win. Two words ... PROMAN redemption! :) - TRACEY

MERCO Road Race - NRC

Merco Credit Union Classic RR: Back with a Vengeance

After some seriously bad luck in my first race of the season, I wasn’t about to sit this one out. Some fellow riders were calling me a stud, while others were calling me crazy, but the way I look at it, anyone who loves bike racing as much as I do would have been lining up again just like me.

I walked away from Saturday’s crash with your typical road rash and not so typical glued chin. I was so very lucky not to have broken any bones or damaged my bike at all. All in all I was happy with my race on Saturday. I felt comfortable riding with some of the best women in the country and I had great position going into the last two turns of the race. Unfortunately, you can’t control everything and I was caught directly behind a crash that no one could have anticipated.

Going into the road race, I was a little stiff and not quite sure how I would feel riding in the pack. So, I told myself to just take it easy, do what I can for the team and just see how I feel. The first lap was pretty mellow. I rode in the back to keep myself calm and get a feel for what the other teams were doing. When the second lap came around, I was feeling pretty good and wanted to crack it open a bit, get my heart rate up, and be at the front to really feel the other teams out. The attacks started coming and they didn’t really stop, but it seemed like no one really wanted anything to stick. Groups of 4 and 6 would get away with representation from all the teams, but the only one willing to work would be the girl who initiated that attack. I went with several of the moves, mostly just to stay out of the pack. There was a minor crash that happened right behind me half way through the second lap and a teammate was involved. We neutralized the race at the front and Kate was able to catch back on. I should mention how many times my teammates rode up next to me and asked me how I was feeling. It was nice to have them checking on me and I think we all looked out for each other really well in this race.

So now it’s the last lap, all together, and nothing’s getting away. It’s going to be a sprint. Fortunately, I had a real good idea of what the final part of the race would involve as far as terrain and other team tactics, thanks to some seasoned teammates and a genius Team Director. I stayed well near the front and followed wheels wherever they went. However, I found myself in second wheel with about 2k to go and knew I needed to be ready to move quickly. Christine Thornburn of Webcor lead it up the hill just before the finish line and I was one of about 5 girls right on her wheel. When she pulled off I found myself in the wind, leading it out but nothing else to do but take it to the line. I was thinking I’ll just hop on a wheel when it goes by, but it was only Brooke Miller that moved in front of me and far too fast for me to react. So there’s four of us across and Brooke out in front and one by one they pulled ahead of me. I got picked by two girls right on the line, which is a huge disappointment, but not surprising as I didn’t ride the sprint as smart as I should have. Although it sucks to go from 3rd to 5th right on the line, I’m very happy with my result and feel I did redeem myself from Saturday’s bad fortune. - Shelley

SNELLING ROAD RACE - PODIUM!

Team mates: Emily, katy, Abby, Tracey, Jens Voight?

Conditions: Cloudy, windy

During our team conference call for snelling, Giana asked us each what our performance goals were for the race. these are not to be confused with result goals! my result goal was to win, but given the amount of factors out of our control at any given race, it is much more productive to focus on a performance goal, which will then hopefully lead to that result goal. so when it came to my turn i stated that i wanted to get in a break and have it succeed to the end. i could practically hear the collective sigh from the phone lines. no break had ever succeeded at this flat, wide open road race. i think the closest thing in the past was a couple solo efforts achieved when a girl snuck away from the field. needless to say, i knew it was a long shot, but i had a firmly entrenched drive to change the dynamics of this race. (and of course to avoid a field sprint with a bunch of sprinters!) giana laid out a plan for the four of us to attempt this goal, with the knowledge that it was risky and a definate plan B in place.
taking a chance and being brave became, over the next 24 hours, just as important to me as the win. well, on race day i was either incredibly brave or incredibly stupid, because i attacked solo on the first lap! tracey had executed her role perfectly - stringing out the field along the rough road leading into the finish. she floated back to me, about 10th wheel, and asked if i was going to go. this had been part of the plan, but i couldn't see my right hand, katy. shit, could i go without her? should i go wothout her? turns out she was behind me, but the field was starting to bunch up making maneuvering through the gravel and potholes tricky. i silently mouthed a string of profanities and nodded to tracey to let me out on the right side. i jumped, redlined, and looked back. huge gap. apparently, everyone thought i was a little more stupid than brave, and i have to say i was wondering if they were right. jane "never let anything get away" despas was on the front of the field, my legs were already burning, and we were 11 miles in. i put my head down. i was going to make them fight for this catch.
after going through the finish, courtney (valueAct) and katie (tibco) bridged up, and i was thankful for the company. we did a lap together, with the field always close behind keeping us in check. by this point i was in my jens mode - just pulling as hard as was reasonable given the distance left and trying to keep a gap. basically, just this side of sanity! the other two started to slow as the field came scary-close on the back stretch. goddamn it i yelled, no, no, no, come on, dig! i looked back and saw a lone touchstone bridging. please let it be jill "the freight train" i prayed...i told the other 2 to dig deep, we had another set of legs coming to help. sure enough, it was jill, who immediately started taking monster pulls in our little group. courtney seemed reinspired and started to ride so strongly! our gap grew again and soon the field was out of sight. jill and i never really let up, however, knowing that we would be spit out the back upon contact with the field. we heard 55 seconds, then 2-3 minutes, then "waaaaay back" from the passing men's field. only because of this did we ease up into the final stretch. i knew my only chance was to go early - risk 4th in an attempt for 1st. well, i risked it and was picked off at the line by jill. i must say, she had worked hard and was inspirational in the break, so i was happy for her. courtney got 4th after having nowhere to go when the 3 of us drag raced to the line, so i was glad that i had gone early and not been boxed in!
this was an awesome race and it was great to see our team plan pay off. abby finished an impressive 12th, after working hard to shut down the field while we were away. both tracey and katy had flats due to the friendly locals putting tacks across the road, but before that they both were awesome! i certainly couldn't have done it without them!!! and it was also great to race with courtney and jill. they were both so strong and motivated! and of course a HUGE, HUGE thank you to giana's tactical prowess and support!!!
here's to taking risks, being brave, and turning yourself inside-out. Emily

VALLEY OF THE SUN - TT

Emily, Nicola and I headed down to Arizona for the Valley of the Sun Stage Race. Three days of racing in sunny 70 degree weather which included a TT, road race and finished with a crit. As this was my first race of the year, and I just recently starting adding intensity to my training, my goals were to increase my fitness and help my team-mates as much as possible. I'm sure I accomplished goal one, but learned that I need to spend some more time racing with my new team-mates to accomplish goal two.
The TT was a relatively flat 22k out and back course. While we definitely got our sunny weather, we also got a gusty wind with it. I swear I felt a headwind in both directions. While TTs aren't my favorite type of race (read: least favorite), I actually enjoyed this one. The out section seemed to last forever, but we had a very slight downhill on way back and as I got closer to the finish line I seemed to feel stronger and was able to dig deeper. While I didn't come close to the winning time, I was pleased with my middle of the results finish - Tracey

VALLEY OF THE SUN - CRITERIUM

Phoenix, AZ. Downtown criterium
Niki, Emily, Tracey
65 riders, Combined field of cat 1 / 2 and cat 3 women
Course was a figure eight clockwise course, flat, wide streets a little rough pavement.
Warm but a long, windy finishing straight.

I was determined to get a good start and stay close to the front for the entire race. I got a good fast start and was in 3rd position for the first turn. Lap 1 was a hot lap so things got aggressive right away. I was in a great position to sprint for the prime but knowing I wanted a good finish, I decided not to burn all my matches as I wasn’t certain what my legs had left in them after the previous days road race. There were many primes which made it difficult to settle into a rhythm. 15 minutes into the race, there was a crash near the front which resulted in me getting side swiped and crashing into a rider, which then resulted in the rider behind me, landing on top of me. I managed to get up pretty fast to realize my lovely carbon Zipp wheel was tacoed! I ran to the pit and got a wheel change and free lap, I wasn’t the only one. At the point of the crash, Emily made her way to the front to control the pace,as right after the crash, girls were viciously attacking, Emily kept the pace reasonable so we could comfortably reenter the race. I had hurt my arm and calf and hip but the adrenaline kept me fired up. I enjoyed the rest of the race, Emily sat comfortably out of trouble to protect her 9th place GC (she needed more than the time bonuses offered to move up, so we just wanted a safe finish for her) there were plenty of attacks which were all manageable. Tracey raced safely in the back for most of the race and with 5 to go she appeared, I was glad for the company, I sat on her wheel for a couple of laps but soon the Expresscopy and Lipton gals were advancing and I didn’t want to loose my position. I moved past Tracey hoping she would get on my wheel, but the pace had increased with Expresscopy, Lipton and Southbay Wheelman driving the pace she was unable to move up. Track racer Anna lang jumped before the final turn, I sensed that was the lead out I needed, but hesitated for a split second. I came around the final turn in about 7th far from ideal. Sprinted into the vicious headwind, for 6th place. I was happy I got back on the horse and finished the race and had a decent finish, the race reminded me of how not to race the final lap of a crit, I needed to be in at least 3rd place, not 7th or 8th through the final turn. Tracey came in a strong 9th. The weekend was a confidence builder, I am pleased with my level of fitness and can’t wait for the next race.

My performance goals for the weekend:
Finish about midway in the GC - achieved
Be active in the road race and assist Emily and finish well - achieved
Be active in the criterium stay in the top 10 throughout the race and finish well - achieved
Get a least 1 upgrade point - achieved

thanks for reading! - Niki

Got to love ZIPP for their crash warranty, new rim on the way

VALLEY OF THE SUN - ROAD RACE

Combined field of cat 1/2 and cat 3 approx 65 women

Conditions: hot, dry windy desert

This day turned out to be quite an adventure, to say the least. Niki and I abandoned our usual “let’s arrive 2-3 hours early” anal-retentiveness and arranged our time to get to the start about an hour early. Our legs were nice and warmed up from the TT, and all the details were taken care of at home (numbers pinned, bottles mixed, etc.) well, wouldn’t you know the one day we decide to take it relatively easy, we hit stopped traffic for 10 miles on the freeway. AAHHHGGG!!!! We started changing in the car, much to the pleasure of the truckers surrounding my little civic, and pulled into the race about 10 minutes before our start time!!! I was literally coming out of the port-a-potty to face the already assembled field of women on the start line, then running through them back to the car to grab my bike, which Tracey was graciously hooking my number on! One calming factor was the handful of other women pulling in late as well. Needless to say, there was no warm-up to be had. No problem, right? It’s a flat course and a large field. Plenty of sit-in time to be had. WRONG. WRONG. WRONG. This was to be a bloodbath. A battlefield. A race of attrition. For the first half of the race we were hit with the most brutal, dry, hot crosswind. And I mean brutal as in no where to hide, no chance to take your hands off the bars, pedaling as hard as you could and maybe hitting 12 mph! After that stretch, which we had to ride 4 times, the course turned and now we had a blissful tailwind. However, this was not enjoyed for long, as it led right into the climb, which wasn’t brutal, but given a tailwind, all the pure climbers floored it to the QOM, which was on lap 2, approaching the QOM, i had been gapped off along the windy stretch. a colavita rider and i leap-frogged our way back to the front group, which niki was in. (niki was determined to stay in the front group for the QOM as she knew it would be a fast ascent) she saw me coming and powerfully dragged me up to a top 10 position, which i could not have done on my own - i was fried from the wind!Then, after hanging on to the front pack to the top, we hit the long, mellow decent. Giana and I had planned a counter attack here, after the KOM, but with the tailwind and long, straight rode, it was almost impossible to get away solo or even in a small group. About 20 of us made that first selection, and then that group in turn split with the GC contenders flooring it up the road. I ended up with 6 women, and we worked well together for about a lap, when we split again, with 3 of us drilling it up the hill and shedding the weaker three. We stayed together for the last lap, picking up one more Expresscopy rider who had crashed and was braving the windy stretch alone.
Oh! Did I mention the miscommunication about neutral feed. Yeah, there was supposed to be some, but there wasn’t. It was so dry I went through my 3 bottles and actually ran out with ½ lap to go. If any of you are riding with Amanda Shaw from Expresscopy and she is thirsty, give her a drink for me…she saved me! Anyway, the four of us came into the finish together, with Amanda taking the “sprint” and me second. It was only then that she turned to me and said that her coach had let her know we were still in the top 10 due to several girls succumbing to the elements. Well, I’ll be! Hadn’t figured on that at all! Awesome news to hear after such a torture-fest!
As Shelley likes to constantly remind me, I am a big girl. Well, given the way the smaller girls were getting blown around like paper dolls, seems my size was a great advantage at this race, and hopefully others in the future. How ya like me now pee-wee?!? ;) * BTW there was a neutral feed at the end of the feed zone – good idea to re-check to see if available. - Emily

SURF CITY FINAL - WIN!

I found myself surprisingly nervous for what I had decided would be my last 'cross race of the 2006 season, Surf City Finals in Watsonville. After last weekend mechanicals, and snapping the rear derailleur cable on my race bike a couple of days before, I knew destiny was telling me to bring a spare bike to the race on Saturday. Sam and I made the wet drive down to Santa Cruz where he was to get a quick introduction into pitting for a muddy 'cross race. I rode one lap to pre-ride the course, and that was it for me. The course was so muddy, I didn't want to trash my bike more than necessary. Much to my dismay, the long hard run up was included and to me it looked like a course built for Shelly (there were two other run ups, and a loop around a flat muddy corral that was quicker to run.) So after a mediocre warm up on the roads surrounding the fairgrounds, we finally got lined up and started. Stella had opted to race on her single speed (so as to save her geared bike from getting ruined) so I got the hole shot from the gun and around the first u-turn. We then rode through a barn and onto the grass, somehow there was still actually grass on the course here and it was possible to ride up the little hill. We then dropped into the muddy slop fest of the rest of the course. A couple of turns, some little hills, around some barns where you could actually hug the barn and stay out of the pig pen like soup. Some more turns and up the first run up/mud slide. Back onto the bike for a delightfully hard packed fire road descent only to make a left turn onto the now peanut butter like course that wove through some more barns and towards the corral. So on the first lap, I still hadn't figured out that it was faster to run the whole corral. I rode half of it and saw over my shoulder that I was loosing some of the gap that I had put into Sarah during the first lap, so I jumped off the bike and ran the rest of it. Then rode towards the dreaded "watsonville run up" the beast of a run up that shamed me the last time we raced here. I somehow kept my gap against Sarah and held it to take the $100 hot lap. I proceeded to extend my gap each lap to take the win by around two minutes. (With the help of my wonderful pit boy who had to run back and forth to the hoses to get my bike washed each lap and who had never before pitted for a 'cross race.) With this win I sealed my victory of the Surf City series and had a great finish to a successful 'cross season. Thanks for the support! -Rachel

DISTRICT CHAMPIONSHIPS - WIN!

Saturday for my pre-race ride I decided to forfeit my usual cx ride routine and ride with Niki, Kristina (who had driven up from SLO for the team meeting that evening)Emily (who ditched us to ride with the boy's and her sexy Italian PRO) and Kelly B.for a mellow road ride (resevoir/Pt. Reyes.) I figured that I had ridden on the dirtenough the previous holiday week. Niki showed me that I have a ways to go if I ever want to become a sprinter (I always include a couple of sprints near the end of my rideto open up the legs the day before a race.) So as we were rolling back into town to have coffees and egg nog lattes at the Java Hut Niki casually said to me "Rachel, is your spare bike still running?" I replied that of course it was, I had just gotten it running a couple of days before heading up to Seattle and Portland, (where I made her spend the whole of both races stuck in the pits as my mechanic and then didn't even take a bike once!)She then gently suggested that I should bring the spare to the next day's race,That she "just had a feeling about it." I of course acquiesced immediately, ifthere is ever any kind of premonition in bike racing, you just "cover all your bases" especially since I now have a spare to bring! (I hadn't had a spare all season.) Later at the team meeting, I found out that Niki had been hiding from me the fact that this racewas also to be the District Championships. I figured that way why she wanted me to bring the spare, but then I also realized that now I HAD to win the race. I woke up thenext morning feeling surprisingly kind of nervous. Worked on my bikes that morning, snapped at my sweet boyfriend who was just trying to help (a sure sign that Iwas not only nervous, but also taking this racing a bit too seriously.) Niki came byto pick me up and we made our way to Coyote Point. As soon as I got on the course I realized that my legs actually felt pretty good! I liked the course (it was a very similar course to one that I had raced on, and won on, a couple of years ago.) We started fast and furious with Stella leading us up the hill, closing the door on me when I tried so squeeze past on a couple of turns. I made my move at the top on the pavement before the downhill and quickly opened up a 7 second gap on the downhill only to break my chain when I dropped onto the sandy stretch that turned into a beach run. I actually just thought that I dropped my chain, but it was stuck UNDERthe "third eye" device designed to prevent the chain from being dropped. After trying toget the chain un-stuck for enough time for Shelley and Stella to pass me, I decided to just run it into the pit where I HAD A SPARE BIKE!! I came running into the pitbellowing "I need a bike, bike, I need a bike" to a very frightened and shocked Niki, we had our first and only bike exchange, and I chased hard to pass Stella and catch Shelley. I caught Shelley pretty quickly and then passed her in the slow chicaney section to pullher on the flats, through the finish and into the up hill. I knew that I could putsome time into her on the downhill, so I was just waiting. I had a small gap at the bottom going into the sandy run which Shelly quickly took back and she took the lead. I decided to sit on her wheel for a bit and recover. I didn't have to wait long, because Shelley bobbled a little tricky section and then somehow wiped out. I rode past her as She was on the ground and put it down. I put a small gap on Shelley and then slowly extended it up the hill. I noticed on the downhill that she crashed on another turn and this let me put yet more time into her. I ran the sand as fast as I could and held my gap on the flats. Coming into the finish with a lap to go I heard that I had 25 seconds on Shelley. I knew that I could hold this gap, especially since there were manytimes where I was completely out of her sight. I cruised the last lap to come into the finish solo for the win! My first District Championship win! The few Districts that I had actually raced had been plagued by bad luck, broken Sycip frame when I finishedon Cameron Falconers bike (the kid is 6 foot 2) and on and on. Had Niki not insisted that I bring my spare, I would have had yet another sad story to add to the list. Thank youNicki for being such a great team manager AND pit girl!! - Rachel

US GRAN PRIX #6 STUMPTOWN CUP - PORTLAND OR

US GRAN PRIX #5 RAD CUP - LAKEWOOD WA

Rachel and twin sister, Monica post race

BAY AREA SUPER PRESTIGE SERIES

It was a hazy but warm (for November) day in Golden Gate Park, and Helene and I showed up to represent PROMAN/Paradigm for the 4th round of the Bay Area Super Prestige Series. My goal was to maintain my position in the overall series (6th) and hopefully get enough points to move up. Helene missed some races so she needed points just to get back into contention, although she had a cold and was wondering how she would feel. With the race overlapping with the UCI races in Portland and Washington, only a few girls were absent, most notably Rachel. This would mean Rachel would probably lose her overall lead in the series to Shelley or Stella of Rocklobster. The chatter around the venue was that it was going to be a Stella/Shelley show and they were negotiating among themselves who should get the win. The course itself was fast with lots of sections of open pavement and fireroad which, in my opinion, offered lots of sections to pass slower riders, contrary to several complaints heard in the men’s field. Of course, the women’s field is half the size of the men, but they don’t have to weave their way through B and C riders who started behind them. Like I said, the course was fast and hard packed, with one deep sandy section and some twisty turns in the trees that were a little slippery. The race also featured the run-up rooty section used in the UCI race last year, although this time I was able to ride it most of the time.

I had a great start and got behind Stella and Shelley. The fast course suited my, but I slipped on that rooty run up section and had to run it while they rode it. They got away and I never saw them again. I was redlined from starting so fast so I had to ease back a bit to stop the hurting. Therein lies my weakness. In doing so I got passed by a few girls, including Katherine Curi from Webcor. Darn it! I dropped my chain at one point and had to fumble around to get it back on for what seemed like an eternity, and that was when Helene passed me on lap 3. From then on I was on survival mode to maintain my position, although I was able to snag a few bucks from the beer can hecklers. Shelley took the win and Stella 2nd, and Helene took 6th and I got 7th. Next up is the final race in the series at Coyote Point, which is also the District Championships. See you there! - Kristin

TEAM SWIFT JUNIORS RIDE

After a late Saturday night in our Halloween costumes, I woke up Sunday wondering how good of mentors Niki and I were going to be to the Team Swift Juniors. Not to fear - these kids turned out to be awesome, and I have to say the ride, while not too much of a workout, was epic. Niki and I were to lead the faster group of older kids around Paradise loop. Niki set the pace while I floated around making sure everyone was still attached to our train - some of the "faster" kids were self-determined and as young as 9 years old! Our group quickly split, so I hung back with about 5 of the slower kids. The smallest of these, Andrew, was determined to catch the lead group. I didn't have the heart to tell him that there was no way on god's green earth he would, so I just rode behind him, listening to his frantic breathing and hoping he wouldn't go into cardiac arrest with his effort!
At one point I reminded the kids to drink, and I realized that Andrew wasn't able to ride and drink (despite trying his best). I told the others to go on, and told Andrew to pull over with me. i thought he would protest, but I think he was exhausted and did so willingly. He guzzled almost all his water! We spent the rest of the loop together, talking about racing (he just joined the team) and our 20 year age difference (well, I talked about that) :)
When we got to Camino Alto, the big climb of the day, I switched with Niki and drilled it up the hill with about 4-5 of the big Swift guns. They were breathing hard, and one said something about dying, but I swear, I could not shake these guys! They were strong, and more importantly, determined!
All the kids had great attitudes, respect for their elders (yes, that's us ladies) and infectious enthusiasm for cycling. Can't wait for the next ride!!! - EMILY

TRACK NATIONALS

Track Nationals: 50 lap qualifier, 80 lap Points Race Final Wow, what an experience... As an amateur cyclist in all disciplines, I was pretty intimidated and nervous about the level of competition I had agreed to enter into. The first feat was getting onto the track itself. It is nothing like anything I have ever seen or rode on. I think it is 47 degrees steep in the corners and much shorter distance than Hellyer. Even in the pole lane (the part closest to the bottom), you are riding almost horizontally and you feel like you have to ride fast to keep from sliding down. I was so impressed when I saw the legend herself, Sarah Hammer, in action. She deserves every title she has and it will be a long time before anyone threatens to dethrone her. She is truly amazing. Just read a little about her on cycling news and you'll see what I mean. O.k. so back to my races. There was no qualifying heats budgeted into the schedule when I first arrived at the track, but the turnout was about 30 women and the limit for these races is 24 so they forced 2 qualifying heats into the schedule on the morning of the points race final. Each heat had 14 girls and only 10 would qualify, so basically all you had to do was score and you were in. I was in a heat with Katy Compton (cyclo-cross national champion), Theresa Clif-Ryan (Crit Nationals Champion), and Sarah Uhl (Previous National Points Race Champion) to name a few. 50 laps meant 5 sprints and I didn't want to kill myself before the final, so my plan was to score points early and then just chill. First sprint I thought I was positioned well enough to score but the bell lap was so fast that I wasn't able to move up at all for the sprint. Now, I'm a bit nervous and worried that I won't be able to outsprint these girls. Next sprint with 2 to go, Theresa Clif-Ryan attacks and I go with her. We've got a small gap on the field going into the bell lap and she just turned the motor on and gave me a free ride to the line in second. So, now I've got 3 points and I'm probably safe to qualify, but Rob yells to me from the sideline "you need points." Now we're at 13 to go and there's 2 more sprints so I attack and get to the front. Everyone is on my wheel but the field is strung out behind me. So, I just ramped it up a little more for the bell lap and the only girl who tried to contest me in the sprint was Katy Compton and I was able to hold her off for 1st. Now I have 8 points which puts me in first place going into the last sprint. I was pretty much cooked after the last effort so I just hooked myself on the back of the field and tried to recover during the last 10 laps. Theresa Clif-Ryan and Katy Compton went 1,2 in the final sprint which put them into 1st and 2nd place overall and me in 3rd for the qualifying race. I was pumped and it gave me some good confidence going into the final. Points Race Final: 20 riders, 80 laps Now I get a chance to ride with Sarah Hammer, Becky Quinn, and all the other studs that weren't in my heat that morning. After the first sprint, Sarah Hammer takes off like a lightning bolt and laps the field in 3 laps. It was unbelievable. She is just so strong. Not only that, she won 4 of the 8 sprints giving her a total of 40 points in the end. I scored 3 points in the 3rd sprint of the race and got nipped at the line for another sprint and got 5th. With 17 laps to go, I took a chance and attacked out of turn 2. To my surprise, no one chased at first and I was able to get a half a lap on the field. Unfortunately though, with 13 laps to go, a Lipton rider attacked out of the field and they decided to chase her down. I was just praying that I would make it to the line before they caught me and at least get the points for the sprint, but the chase was on and I was swept up on the bell lap only to fall to the back of the pack again and try like hell not to get dropped. My legs were screaming, but I knew there were only 10 laps to go and I had earned enough points to put me in the top ten if I could just hold on. If I had lapped the field I would have come in 2nd place overall!! If I had scored points on that lap, I would have been in the top 5. It was worth a shot either way and I was complimented by Floyd Landis after the race. Yes, he made a guest appearance at the track and a few announcements at the start of our race. Even better than Floyd Landis though was the support I got from local fans and teammates who screamed like hell for me when I was out in front. Thank you all for being there and supporting me in my race. I will be back next year and I will be better prepared and hungry for that top 5. - Shelley

NCNCA TRACK DISTRICTS - team pursuit

TRACK DISTRICTS - PODIUMS GALORE!

Track District Championships were action packed fun! I think I saw both Niki and Shelley at their worst and best! One minute Shelley and I are dancing around like Terrell Owens with the game-winning touchdown. A short time later, Shelley was on the ground, on her back, gasping for air after her nail biting close 3K pursuit against Tait Saito.

I was impressed that Niki even made it down there after caring for her ill friend all last week, looking after his wife & children and getting almost no sleep. But there she was Saturday morning, focused and ready to face the competition. We had some exciting and stressful moments Saturday, and after a very long day and a deep gash in her hand Niki headed home. I thought for sure she would not be back Sunday. BUT, there she was again! Thank you Niki for persevering and being there for your teammates!!!

So for me, it was very special just to have teammates there with me. I’ll always enjoy the individual TT events, but the team stuff is awesome! I have been dying to compete in the Team Sprint (aka Olympic Sprint) since I started track racing four years ago. And the Team Pursuit when done correctly feels like magic!

First up: 500M TT
Since Niki was using my disk wheel for her 500M, we asked the officials to space us far enough apart so that “team mechanic” Kelly would have enough time to switch out our wheels, including a cog change. It turned out we had about 2 seconds to spare. They were calling my name and waiting for me on the backstretch. I finally ran over (w/o my bike) and stood on the start line to avoid a DNS. Kelly calmly finished his job, then ran over with my bike… 30 second countdown... now GO! The key factor in this race was that Niki and I had agreed that whoever had the best time between us would have the honor of doing the Elite Team Sprint with Shelley. Game face ON! Got a good start and pushed for 1.5 laps, then waited for results. Kelly had me clocked at my fasted 500M ever, but the official time was slightly slower than last year. I’ll take it.

Next up: Team Pursuit
Niki, Shelley, Kelly Bartholomew and me had exchanged emails all week about our strategy. I thought we had a pretty good plan, but also figured a back-up plan was prudent as things tend to fall apart in this event. To my amazement, we executed the original plan to perfection. I guess it would have been more perfect if we won, but I honestly didn’t mind taking 2nd because we had great form and with a little more practice (and aero bars for everyone) I’m confident we can win it next year. Kelly B agrees!

We sat around all afternoon only to find out that Team Sprints would be postponed until Sunday. I didn’t really mind because I thought the rest would be good for us.

First Race Sunday: Elite Team Sprint
We got a really nice warm up in the morning and I was joking with Shelley that I felt so fast I was gonna drop her on the first lap… AS-IF! We got a really good start and I put everything I had into that first lap and Speedy-Shelly drilled it on the 2nd lap. That girl is
Amazing!! We waited and watched our strongest competition (Mary Maroon and Cece Altamirano). Yikes… they looked super fast too! Kelly walked over later; looking disappointed and told us their time. But then he smiled and said our winning time. That’s when the Terrell Owens dance broke out!!! “Sick!” as Shelley says.

Second race Sunday: Masters Team Sprint
This was basically a duplicate of the race above, with Niki drilling the 2nd lap. I heard later that I could have jumped the start a bit sooner, but it was enough to get Niki the gold, which made me very happy!

Final race on Sunday: Masters 2K Pursuit
They usually pair riders up with others in their age group, but for some reason they put Niki and me against each other in this race. Cool… since we’re in different age groups it didn’t matter who won the heat. That’s good because I wasn’t sure how much I had left in my legs. My realistic goal for how I felt was under 3 minutes, which I missed by 100s of a second. Slower than past years, but good enough for one more gold. I’ll work on endurance for next year J

Proman women ROCK! I’m so proud and happy to be a part of this team!

Thanks for reading.
LoJ

CARRERA de SAN RAFAEL - WIN!

Of course I procrastinated working on my bike till the morning of the race and was changing tires and dialing in my shifting (by hanging my bike off of the clothesline in my backyard at 10:45 the morning of the race.) I then raced into San Rafael, registered and found Niki... in the back of an ambulance getting her arms shot full of benadryl for the bee sting she sustained on her TONGUE while warming up. What a bummer, I was looking forward to racing with her and an almost complete team (this was only possible, because I didn't end up racing much this summer, in fact my last crit was Cat's Hill crit, back in...May? This fact didn't boost my confidence in my ability to race well, but I suppose nobody will believe me when I say that anymore. I found myself surprisingly nervous before the start, and tried to ease the apprehension by reminding myself that I would be racing for the team and that It didn't matter how I did, nor was I expected to win.
Our team plan was to race aggressively, attack repeatedly and force McGuire to chase down everything. This turned out to be (apparently) their strategy as well. Helene attacked from the line and for the first 15 minutes it was basically attack after attack out of the (small) field countering every break that was brought back. Around 15 minutes in, a break of Helene, a Laura Charameda, and a third girl, Lisa Hunt got up the road and we blocked and sat up a bit. The gap was growing and the field seemed content to let it grow. At this time the announcers called out a field prime ($40) and me and Shelley were set up to go for it, she said "do you want to go for it?" I said sure and attacked into the two right hand slightly descending turns before the finishing straight. I instantly gapped the field (with Shelley blocking for me) and had a good little gap at the line to win the prime. I then just decided to bridge to the break, since I felt it would be silly to sit up and let the field catch me, it seemed like I was halfway between the field and the break anyways. I also thought maybe with two PROMAN in the break we might be able to stay away. But I soon realized the field wasn't having any of that. Well it took me three laps to bridge up and when I looked down at my clock and saw that we were only 20 minutes into the race, I realized I might have made a mistake. That was quite an effort to get up there and we ended up getting caught a couple of laps later anyways. So I sat in for a few laps, and then Kristin was up the road in a break of three who we let stay up the road for a while. It seemed like we slowed quite a bit, but it allowed me to recover, so I didn't mind. By now we were maybe 40 minutes in and I was hoping to see lap cards soon. Kristin's break got caught and Lori and Shelley started going on the attack, then with around 10 laps to go I got back into the action and it seemed like I was covering everything, more than once me and Shelley were chasing a McGuire girl and then she would sit up (block) and yell "go Rachel" so I would go and then get caught only to have someone counter and find myself chasing that one as well. Now I realize that it is not wise to chase from the front, even though I am not a seasoned roadie, I have had these tactics used against me in cyclocross races (a few years back Carmen D'alusio and Gina Hall would incessantly tag team me.) But I was racing for the team and I figured that Shelley or Helene would take the win in this race, so when Holly Borowski, McGuire/US Army attacked, I found I was the only PROMAN up there to respond and so I chased her. What I didn't know was that Shelley and Helene (the awesome and smart teammates that they are) effectively blocked the field so that we got a gap and I sat on McGuire's wheel for a lap till she motioned me to pull through (with 2 laps to go) I said to myself : "sure I'll pull through... right.... here.... through these two turns that I will.... rip through.... and... oh! what's that? ..... have I gapped you through the turns? ...... oh! ..... I guess I'll just...... drill it and now through the finish with bell lap... and up the last little hill legs burning.... ouch..... and windy back stretch... oh my golly gee!.... what's this...... no it can't be..... this is just too funny...... but it really looks like..... it's happening..... I am winning this crit! Oh, yeah put the arms in the air for the victory salute."
And that's pretty much how it happened! At least from my perspective, I had no intention of winning the race, I felt like I had rode way too hard to be able to have it for the finish. But with the awesome work of my teammates, it happened! My first criterium win! Shelley won the field sprint followed by Laura Charameda with Helene Drumm a close 4th, Kristin took 7th and Lori 15th. Any one of the PROMAN gals could have won the race that day and it just happened that I was at the right spot when the move went and my teammates knew what to do! Thanks everyone for being out there cheering and supporting us! Thanks to the PROMAN/Paradigm team for being such a great group of girls to ride with. And thanks to Niki, our team manager, for doing all the work of putting the team together and securing such supportive sponsors... and allowing me to occasionally race with you guys!
thanks for reading. -Rachel

MT TAM HILLCLIMB - RUNNING RACE

I have only been running 2 days per week this year, and as a result I don't feel quite like the runner I was last year at this time (preparing for the Quad Dipsea, well I guess I was only running 3 days a week, but it makes a difference.) So I had not been planning on running this race, until I met Sam. I met him at the finish of the Headlands 50K race (Aug. 26) I was there along with Niky, and a group of friends supporting Niky's husband Chris in his first 50K running race. Sam and I hit it off immediately and soon had a running date planned for the following Monday. We would pre-run the Mt. Tam Hill Climb course so that Sam would know the short cuts. We met up and ran/hiked the course and during that run Sam cajoled and heckled me into agreeing to run the race. He also decided that we would have our own personal "handicap" competition. I would have to beat him by 3 minutes for me to win, if he was only 2:30 behind me, he would have beat me. (inspired by the traditional "Dipsea" handicaps.) There was also a small wager behind the results, but we won't go into that here!
Last year I placed 11th, about 10 seconds behind the first place woman (who was 10th overall) Just doing the race for fun, I accidentally had ridden 5hrs the day before, and probably wasn't the most rested. So this year my new friend Sam wanted to get me off my bike so I would be rested for the race. We decided to go backpacking in Point Reyes for the 2 days prior, it's off the bike, yes, but it is time on the feet.... resting? Anyways, to the race: we rode from Sausalito to Mill Valley for the start (I am used to riding to my runs in Fairfax, and I figured I should keep it as similar as possible) registered, locked the bikes up, and stretched a bit. No warm up. On the start line at the Clock in the Square in Mill Valley George (the organizer) informed us that Rangers would be up on Temelpa and had taped off some of the short cuts to prevent runners from taking them, the fact that this race is completely un-sanctioned, and in fact totally "illegal" made it.... ironic, that they were allowing it to happen at all! None the less, this information was a bummer to me, since the steeper and harder the trail the better it is for me, and the worse it is for the true "runners." This race is pretty much the only running race where a cyclist has an advantage over a runner (in my opinion.) Once on the mountain, the course is basically a steep rocky rutty mad scramble, not a flat road where the runners can really open it up. I call it "charging" not running, and how I do it, not hiking. The course goes from down town Mill Valley straight up to the stairs that dump you out onto Summit road. You then run up Summit for a long and gradual uphill to the first cut that takes you to Temelpa trail. This road section is the hardest for me, I am being passed the whole way up by thin and svelte runners with beautiful seemingly effortless strides. Once we hit the dirt, however, the animal inside me comes alive. There is no beauty in the way I haul my body up the gash of a trail on the South East side of Tam called Temelpa (a trail I used to use for downhill training.) Anything goes, hands on the tops of the knees, hands on the ground clawing your way up, this second half of the race is more scrambling than running. I came off the pavement 4th woman, and within a few minutes on the dirt I caught up to the 3 women ahead of me. They were all together. I stayed behind them for a few minutes to recover, and when Judy Rabinowitz (last years winner) made her move to pass the second place girl I went with her, and then a couple hundred feet later surged past her and the first two girls. I don't think surge is the right word, more like thrash through the manzanita in a slightly wider section of the trail/rut. I look at my watch and see somewhere around 20 minutes in (I think) and I know that this is about halfway. I keep the intensity up and get around a couple of guys to get some distance between me and Judy and then try to recover. This is basically impossible, but I noticed that the girls weren't going that fast, and after last year where I just tried too hard, I know that easing off a bit and keeping within my limits is smarter than keeping the throttle on. Up at the Sitting Bull rock the first ranger is, with the wondrous short cut blocked off. I am heartbroken, as the trail is smoother and more gradual of a grade than the cut, and again, this is were the runners excel. I look back and can't see Judy and just focus on keeping the legs moving. The next cut is also blocked and more running is in order. Finally I see the rocky angle of a short cut that isn't blocked, and I notice the guy in front of me continue on the trail, I scramble up this section and nip him when I emerge onto the trail again, I now catch my first glimpse of Sam (he was pretty quick on the pavement) and I catch and pass him at a short cut that he missed. We go over the boulder and into the gully that is the steepest and hardest finishing stretch (still a ways to go though) and my legs are screaming for oxygen. There is no longer any pretense of "running" it is pure scrambling hands down on the rocks on every step. Sections of the trail are all one big rock. Successions of cuts with loose rocks trying not to slide down and don't push it TOO hard. I sneak glimpses back and see Judy, but she is not making any time on me. I know that she will not catch me now, and I back off a tiny bit to keep it safe. We pop out on Verna Dunshee and I put some time on Sam. Now for the last scramble up the gully to the big rocks on the top of the mountain and then onto the path to the finish line, slap the door to the lookout and stop the clock at 41:07 and take my finish line stick that says 7! Oh my gosh! I finished 7th, that's top 10 with the guys! And I was the first female! Sam finished only 20 seconds behind me, so with our (or his little side competition,) he technically placed ahead of me, and I owe him... Roy Rivers won the race, Chris Greene finished 4th, I was 7th, Sam was 8th, and we all ran down together with that great group of runners who call themselves the Temelpa Runners. Back to Rogers house for food and the awarding of the T-shirts. I get to wear #1 this year, and now they are all trying to get me to race the single Dipsea. It was a great weekend! Thanks for reading -Rachel

GIRO DI SAN FRANCISCO - WIN!

The Giro di San Francisco is definitely one of my favorite races. As the final race in the Cal Cup, it attracts all the best riders and it's location right downtown in the beautiful city of San Francisco brings an enthusiastic crowd. In fact, the best part of this race was the spectators. I was racing to defend my lead in the Premiere Series, so I had intentions of finishing in the top 5 at least and the support of several teammates. From the beginning of the race until the end, there were attacks from all the strong teams. Webcor-Platinum's Christine Thornburn initiated several attacks and managed to get into a break with representation from all of the strong teams. With about 9 laps to go, I realized the field was not trying to bring the break back and so I decided to bridge up to the break. Once across the gap I was now a part of a 6 person break and the field was not far behind and gaining on us, Palo Alto's Stacy Marple refused to be caught and so she attacked hard and the rest of us followed. Now we had opened up the gap again but no one else was willing to pull through, so I jumped and powered up the hill to keep the group motivated to stay away. I looked back and I had opened up a small gap from the rest of the break and I yelled to them to catch on. Through the start finish I still had a small gap and it wasn't until the bottom of the hill that I looked back again and saw the rest of the group behind me disorganized and looking at each other. That's when I knew I could win the race. I turned back around, powered up the hill, and immediately put my head down to time-trial the last 3 laps to the finish. I heard the announcer on the loud speaker saying that the field would not be able to catch the break and I knew I had at least 12 seconds on the break. The crowds inspired me on every corner to keep going. When I came through the start finish with 1 lap to go, the crowd cheered louder than ever and I knew I had won. It was truly an amazing feeling to win the Giro di San Francisco and to be looking forward to the teams last criterium of the season knowing we had won the NCNCA Premiere Series. - Shelley

CHALLENGE ROAD RACE

Challenge RR 66 hilly miles; 6000 ft of climbing; 10 starters; Cat 1,2; PROMAN rider Kristina Seley

I agree that this is the one of the best Velo Promo races ever. It was a disappointment to start with only 10 women. Although, I understand the long drive would detour lots of folks.

The course starts and ends at an elementary school tucked in the woody foothill town of Challenge (I had never heard of it before either). 

The course starts on cobbled pavement similar to Copperopolis. There is a steep one mile climb and then a three-mile, bumpy decent. It is safe and fast, but it made my hands and feet hurt from all the shaking over the potholes. We were required to remain neutral for those first four miles to check out the course and keep ourselves safe. This is followed by a long, steep climb on a smooth surface. After the climb, there is a smooth, fast descent with a sharp and very bumpy hairpin at the bottom. After about 10 miles, the race turns onto Marysville road, which is smooth and mostly downhill, again very fast. The group was still together at this point. Then the course turns rolling and steep. This is the hilliest part and where the feed zone was. Just after the feed zone, the group split up. I wasn’t able to hang with the climber girls and ended up chasing onto Lisa Hunt, (Olympic Club), Flavia’s (Palo Alto), and Holly (McGwire) wheels. Within a few miles we were back at the start of our second loop. We had a fun group ride the rest of the race, lost Holly to a tire change, and just kept moving to get the dam thing over. I wasn’t able to hang with the girls a few miles from the feed zone on the second lap near the very steep section. I had run out of water and was cussing Velo Bob for not having a feed zone closer to the middle of the race. Sorry Bob. Ended up 7th. I can’t wait to do the course next year; come on ladies!

Kristina