The Official Coffee of Team Mike's Bikes p/b Incase...

It's official...Team Mike's Bikes p/b Incase (TMB) is excited to announce that locally based Equator Coffee & Teas (http://www.equatorcoffees.com) is the team's newest sponsor. We've been looking for a coffee company that believed in what we are trying to accomplish and wanted to come on board and help make it happen. We are thrilled to have found Equator Coffee & Teas. Equator is a San Rafael based company co-founded in 1995 by Helen Russell and Brooke McDonnell. They have earned an outstanding reputation as purveyors and roasters who provide distinctive specialty coffees and rare teas at competitive prices, with unparallelled customer service. Their mission is to continue to be a growing customer-centric company, dedicated to quality, environmental sustainability and social responsibility. Their commitment is to procure distinctive coffees from growers who practice responsible land stewardship and bio friendly farming techniques. This commitment has won over renowned chefs like Thomas Keller (French Laundry, Bouchon Restaurants & Bakeries), Traci Des Jardins (Jardiniere), Elizabeth Faulker (Citizen Cake) and Pascal Rigo (Bay Bread).

"Cycling and coffee just go together. We've been looking for a coffee company to partner with since the beginning of the year," explained Dana Williams, one of the team's senior elite riders who also helps with team marketing. "The introduction to Equator was made by a current employee of Mike's Bikes who used to work for them. Matt Adams (President of Mike's Bikes) and I sat down with Helen, Brooke and their marketing team and shared the team's vision, core values and benefits team partners receive. They got it right away and jumped on board."

If you're wondering 'So how can I try some of Equator's exceptional coffee and tea and/or meet and ride with TMB riders?', then there's a perfect opportunity this weekend. Equator will be opening their very first coffee bar at Proof Lab Surf Shop in Mill Valley this Saturday (June 22nd). Everybody is invited to the Grand Opening weekend celebration.  Riders from TMB will be leading a ride around Paradise Drive departing the new coffee shop at 10AM.

Did we mention FREE coffee? Yep, Equator baristas will be serving up everything from freshly brewed coffee to cappuccinos all weekend long, plus herbal ice tea and hot chocolates for the kids. More details on the Grand Opening can be found here: Equator Coffees at Proof Lab.

We look forward to meeting new faces and supporters on Saturday.

Hydration Essentials

Team Mike’s Bikes is fortunate to use a great hydration product – Osmo.  Osmo Active Hydration brings together proven science and common sense – a sports drink’s primary function should be to hydrate. Osmo Pre-Load supplements even the best in-competition hydration plans to improve performance on the hottest days and in the toughest efforts. Just ask Peter Sagan. But this post isn’t about Osmo or the latest sports science on hydration. At the end of the day, one thing about hydration is universally accepted – if you lose your bottles during a race, what’s in them doesn’t really matter.

Enter the water bottle cage – the unsung hero of hydration.

What matters most about a water bottle cage? First and foremost, your bottle needs to stay in it. In three years of racing, when the roads have gotten rough – and we certainly have our share of those in Nor Cal – TMB bottles have stayed put. From Madera, to Copperopolis, to Challenge, when rough roads jettison bottles left and right, ours have stayed securely in our BikeSmart HydroCarbon 4 Carbon Fiber Bottle Cages.

And better still, these cages get the job done while weighing in under 20 grams. And with a sleek profile that sits flush to the bottle, you’ll add about as little drag as possible while carrying a standard bottle. The aerodynamic engineers that spend hundreds of hours on your frame will appreciate it. It’s hard to argue how you buy a better upgrade for your bike for just $44.

Holloway Returns to the Pro Peleton

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TMB p/b Incase wishes Daniel Holloway all the best in his well deserved return to the pro peloton. We couldn’t have asked for a better teammate this year, both on and off the bike. From the valuable advice on the road, great wins, to the bear meat for the Bolognese sauce at team camp – thank you. Read more about what’s next for Daniel in CyclingNews and on his blog.

Memorial Day Criterium

Memorial Day is a special day in many ways for many Americans.  I've been spending my Memorial days in previous years by racing my bike in Morgan Hill at an industrial park area. Others spend their day barbecuing or remembering all of our soldiers that fight for us today and for the past hundreds of years for our freedom and protection from the rest of the world. I want to give a quick shout out to any and all families and cyclists that has been in the military and on behalf of the entire nation of our great nation, we thank you for your service!!! Now back to the race. It's a fast course with lots of wind and it can be very hard if you aren't in position during the right time. The team's plan was to be aggressive and go for the primes and set up for a field sprint at the end to lead out Daniel and/or I. The race started out pretty fast as guys were flying off the front like no other but I knew it was a 70 minute race so I conserved and planned my attacks  accordingly. Daniel ended up getting a prime early in the race and then there were multiple breakaways that never really got any significant gap until about the halfway point where a Bear Development rider and Marc Pro rider were away and I knew we had to at least be represented so I attacked out of the field and jumped across. We worked together nicely for a few laps but I made sure I was conserving my energy, knowing that we would eventually get reeled in. We did a couple laps later and then Tyler Brandt from Get Crackin' attacked and got a significant gap. Then a Bear Development rider (Tobin Ortenblad) and David  Benkoski (Team Clif Bar) were able to bridge up to Brandt and got a large enough gap where I couldn't see them on the front straightaway. Travis, Marcus, Steve, and one of our masters riders went to the front and worked together to bring the gap down, unfortunately, they couldn't bring it entirely back so Daniel had to take a long hard pull with 4 to go. By now we could see them and guys were trying to chase them back and by 1 lap to go, they were right there and we caught them with 1/2 laps to go! Daniel had to make the final effort to close them down in the headwind section so we had to sit up because we wouldn't have been able to lead it out from there. Team Clif Bar came by us and Daniel got right on them and we waited until a swarm started to come up with about 400 meters to go and I told Daniel "UP!! NOW!" and he went and we were 1-2 around the last corner with Logan Loader right behind us (Cash Call Mortgage).  I took the wrong line around the last turn, going around on the outside thinking that I could carry my speed around it but it actually slowed me down as I just took the turn wider than what I need to do and Logan took the inside. He had the advantage on me at first  but I slowly caught up to him as the sprint ensued and with a bike throw I was able to win by about the thickness of the carbon on my Zipp 404's (3-4 inches!).

I want to thank all of our sponsors for their continual support for the team! We appreciate everything that you do for us and help us with to fulfill the teams' goals for the year and yours! Also, I want to thank the team for all of their hard efforts for me today to put me in the best possible position for the win and I'm happy to stand on the top step of the podium for them!  Thank you!!

--James LaBerge

Rosenthal Wins District Road Race Title

By Shawn Rosenthal You only have a few races throughout the year that truly justify putting down that fourth slice of pie or deny yourself that third helping of chocolate covered ice cream.  This would be one of those races.  Something to do with a climb that is the tallest in the bay area.  Oh, right.  They've got a flock of observatories at the peak.

This year it's cold and wet.  I think I heard some whining and complaining.  At that point I decided it was time for headphones to keep those thoughts muffled.  I still heard them.  Turns out those were my thoughts.  I may have started the race with a thermal jacket only to ditch it 2km into the race.  Worth it.

In years past, the pace up the climb has varied from "ok, this is manageable" to "my eyes are bleeding".  This year was far toward the later and then some.  We start heading up the hill and immediately the line of riders spreads out single file, detaching some within the first 10 minutes of the climb.  My team set up the race to allow me to conserve as much energy as possible.  While they were holding together the race, I was floating through the group, staying sheltered from wind and any accelerations.  On the final part of the climb, the pace picked up and I was 20 wheels back with the 2012 winner, Tyler Brandt.  He starts losing contact with the wheel in front of him.  I've ridden with this guy.  He's fast.  He gets KOMs on Santa Rosa ground.  This is where I knew I needed to get up to the front of the race immediately.  As I was moving up I saw gaps opening up as I passed by like one of those wooden bridges in cartoons where they would fall apart while running across.  I was in a small group that was making time up the road quick.  Not too much longer, Kirk Carlson (Predator Cycling) puts in a vicious attack that only a brave Sam Bassetti (Cal Giant) could follow.  I "decided" to stick behind with the horsepower of my teammate, Steve O'Mara, Adrien Costa (Slipstream-Craddock), Jack Maddux (Specialized Jr Racing),  Art Rand (Marc Pro Strava), and Justin Rossi (Marc Pro Strava).  With a blistering pace, we were only 20 seconds behind the duo up the road by the summit.

We start going down the hill and not wanting to lose my teammate, I hold back and let the others set the pace. Almost immediately, Costa takes off. I follow him and within two turns we are out of site and closing in on the two up the road. Seeing he's spinning out his 14t cassette, I give some help on the straights and we make our way up. Costa and Carlson do the pacing on the hills. Bassetti and I give what we can on the flats. We get note that 3 are 30 seconds behind. I was assuming this was 2 Marc Pro and my teammate. This was not too bad a situation.  The rider covering Rossi and Rand in the chase group was the fastest sprinter in the race, my teammate, Daniel Holloway, depressing the motivation of the chase that much more.  I knew my teammates put their trust in me and would be there for me in the field.  On the feedzone hill the chase group is closing down. Carlson and Costa push the pace. I sit on, doing what I can to survive. Bassetti loses pace after a heroic effort up the Hamilton slope. We work together and are surprisingly caught with about 12 miles to go by the Marc Pro duo, Rossi and Rand.

I continue pulling through; however, I am immediately gapped off when I roll behind the second Marc Pro rider. I had a feeling it would start getting really nasty if we got caught and it did. It's racing and they were making some good moves to go for the win. For the remaining miles it was a mix of Rossi pulling like a motor, someone attacking, cover, someone attacking, cover, Carlson pulling, someone attacking, etc.

Knives were digging into my legs with every acceleration. I kept reminding myself of those who have gotten me here today and let the knives dig a little deeper.

We finally make it down to the final 1.5km and I am caught on the front after leading the descent. I am first off relieved that we're so close and also straight up terrified to be in such a vulnerable position. Costa attacks with 1km to go. I halfway cover and pull off. Carlson takes over. I follow him. Rossi takes over. I follow him. Carlson starts sprinting with 500 to go and I am slow to get on his wheel. I attach with 300 to go, recover until 250m when I felt a lull and gave it a go. I have played this moment in my head for years. At the time, I kept wondering if this was a lucid dream.

I heard later that roman was putting in dig after dig to cover moves, eventually having to stop for a double flat.  I heard he stopped, content with the situation, and said calmly "Shawn is up in the breakaway, they'll stay away and, he'll win the race in a sprint."  Leadership like that makes the racing so much smoother and revive the confidence needed to win races.

Holloway Wins Berkeley Hills

By Daniel Holloway It had been some time since I last raced Berkeley Hills. I don’t recall much about my last experience, but I’m sure I didn't finish. Our team tactic was simple and one we have been using as of late. For now I will keep it a secret as it seems to be working. The race started at and nice early 7:30 AM and the weather was surprisingly warm. It was clear hydration was going to be key – the more Osmo we could get, the better.

Once we made the turn on to San Pablo Dam (SPD) road we started to launch our attacks, and then covering anything that went across. Nothing really got established on the first lap.

The second time down SPD Switters launched and got a solid gap with another rider. Third time around the race got aggressive again and Shawn and I found ourselves in a group of ten or so. As we get to the bottom of the climbs Shawn says he isn't feeling great, I asked for some food and he filled my pockets. Rather than destroying himself to stay in the break he went back to the field to tell the rest of the guys we needed to reset the break away.

A half lap later Roman and Steve made it up to the group, savior arrives. I had a quick chat with Roman about how we should ride, I was feeling really good and felt I could get the job done in the right circumstances. Roman and Steve rolled through with the rest of the breakaway while I sat at the back playing poker, only pulling through when I had to, not to disrupt the rhythm.

On the last lap and a half roughly 6 riders had come across from the field. In some ways not ideal, in some ways it was good for us. It meant more guys to use to hide and more guys to chase any attacks. But it was bad because a team gained more firepower and also there was more riders to attack and us possibly chase our moves.

The last time across SPD the attacks started to go. Roman and Steve followed everything or brought it all back together. Mooney attacked a small roller and got a gap, as we turned to the climbs the gap was going out and a rider from Strava bridged across. I had to play in patient as I only had one really big effort. Kirk and Costa set the pace up the first climb. As we reached the part where it flattens off, it was only four of us. Kirk, Rossi, Costa and myself.

Now was the time for me to go if I was going to make it across, an all out effort up the last bit of the first climb into the short down hill to recover and the up the small roller before the decent into the final climb. I made it to Mooney and the Strava rider right before the decent, as we hit the flat part before the last climb the Strava rider attacked. Mooney didn't want to work so I had to ride within myself hoping the gap didn't go out too much. As we made it up the climb I put in a couple surges to see if Mooney was bluffing or not. I could see the Strava rider start to struggle as the climb got a little bit steeper to the finish line. With 150meters to go I launched with what I had left in the tank and got the Win for TMB-INCASE clique.

Today, saving energy was crucial. And I was able to do so thanks to my teammates, Specialized Venge and Zipp Firecrest 404s. The sun was out right from the beginning, having the Zealous sunscreen was key too along with having OSMO nutrition to stay hydrated before during and after was crucial to the team’s performance.

Dana Point Grand Prix

This race has been a race that I've been wanting to do for a few years now and I was excited to race it this year and experience an NCC (National Criterium Calendar) race. On top of all of this excitement, the team was all looking to work for me to pull off a good result or possibly the win! With the excitement exceeding high, it was hard to stay calm and think about other things in life that could keep me away from thinking about it. I got to the race with Dana a couple hours before after flying in that morning, got registered, pinned up numbers, warmed up and before we knew it it was time to race!

The weather was a possible factor with it being about 65 degrees and mostly cloudy and rain drops looking to fall down anytime, but there was no rain drops the entirety of the race. The race started out fast which was expected so I let riders use all of their energy to attack and follow moves and by the time about 30 minutes into the race, I knew it was to come down to a field sprint with all of the team that were represented in the race (CashCall, MRI, Optum, and Smartstop). Eric was able to get a few primes throughout the race and about 60 minutes into the race (out of 90 minutes) through I told him to relax and save it for the end (lead out).

Fast forward to 5 laps to go and Daniel and I are locked onto Justin Williams's (MRI) wheel with Eric, Dana and Rainier nearby. I was working with Rainier throughout the race to help him move up in a pack of this caliber and I think he learned some valuable tips for the next race he enters :). Now it's the last lap and Dana was able to get to the front right before the last turn with Daniel and I on his wheel. Eric was a couple riders back but I didn't want to take the chance to wait for him and possibly be taken over by another team so we started our  final lead out. Dana took a beast pull for a half of a lap and then Daniel took over just before the 2nd to last turn. Between the 2nd to last and last corner I heard a crash really close to me. I look back and all I see is blue (Ken Hansen). Forget it, it's time to sprint for the finish. I come around the last turn behind Daniel as he starts his sprint to lead me out and I'm in perfect position but I made the mistake of starting my sprint slightly too early and then I had a slight mechanical in my sprint, that once I got it going again, it was too late and the top 3 guys were racing for the win. It was disappointing to have this happen on this level of racing and after I was in perfect position and that I didn't bring it home for the team but it's experiences like these that will help me learn more and get stronger. I ended up hanging on to finished 4th and Daniel finished 5th, Dana 6th, and Eric 8th!

Overall, we really gelled together as a team and successfully did what we wanted to do as a team and that's all that matters. We all learned certain things and we are all happy with how we rode. Personally, I wish a couple things didn't happen but it's part of bike racing and I'm determined for next time! A huge thank you to all of our  Sponsors to help us get to where we are and do as well as we did!! I'm looking forward to next year!

Here's a video too from the race: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=5U-o499o7h4

1-2 at Wente Criterium: Race Report

by Daniel Holloway

I have always like Wente, Its a longer circuit with wide roads. Its always fast and the racing just flows. A smaller field than normal was in attendance, but still had some strong riders. Travis, James and Myself were the representatives for Team Mikes Bikes p/b Incase. Having never seen a break stick it on this course our tactic was to follow moves that only included the few danger men and teams that had numbers. About 20 minutes in to the race we did a big team effort for a prime to get a feel for the final lead out, the group gave the guys going for the prime a large buffer (3 of us). Knowing there was going to be a counter attack, I kept my awareness up. Sure enough a few guys come by, unfortunately we spent a little to much effort for the prime and couldn't latch on. After a couple laps of everyone attacking the race was in 4 groups. 2-3 guys off the front, a group of 5-6 chasing, another group of 10 or so and then the rest of us. James made a great move to be the second group and then jumping them once they were tired to make it all the way to the front. I had to do it the harder way, I leap frogged from group to group over 3 laps to finally making it up to James and the 4 guys he was with. Once in the group we rolled along smoothly with everyone doing there fair share to make the break stick. 

With 7 laps to go on the back side a couple guys started looking at each other and the gap opened with my self and Jesse Miller Smith from MarcPro. We worked well together and a few laps later lapped the field. Straight to the front, we kept working hard. Two laps later James group laps the field also, Travis and James now start to ride tempo at the front of the field to get ready for the final sprint. Travis did an amazing job on the final lap leading from the start finish all the way to 300 meters to go!! He died a thousand deaths, but a lot of encouragement he kept going and going. Super impressive. After a hard race and the fast lead out, no one was able to come around James and I for us to place first and second.

Thank you to Clif Bar for the easy to digest race food for the last minute pre race fuel. On hot days it is no fun to taste race food a second time. Thank you Osmo for keeping us hydrated on a truly hot day! I had 3 bottles in one hour!! Thank you Zipp for making incredible wheels to make spending time in the wind that much easier!

A Hard Fought Battle - Wente Road Race Report

By Adam Switters

The Wente Vineyards road race is one of my all-time favorites. It’s a great course and one of the few that has a pure hilltop finish. I was a little unsure of my form at this race. I had been involved in a bad crash at Redlands and had taken two weeks off the bike with a bum hand, but I was excited to come help the team.

Team Mike’s Bikes p/b Incase started off the race with a flurry of attacks. We were hoping to be well represented in the early break. Midway through the first lap, Dana and I found ourselves in a fairly large break (~12 riders) that quickly gained time. Dana and I rolled through just enough to keep our breakmates happy, but I was honestly hoping another group would be able to roll up to us later in the race.

Fast forward 50 miles and the break has around a 5 minute lead and we’re not coming back. I had actually been feeling fairly strong on the bike, but around 40 miles in I started having serious stomach problems. At one point I though I was going to have to pull over to use the bathroom, but I soldiered on. The only problem was that it was preventing m from eating anything. (I had one set Clif bar for the entire 80mi race).

Coming into one to go, Keith Wong from Lombardi attacked and got a good gap. I started sitting on the break, but the rest of the riders rode cohesively and slowly started to bring down his gap. Despite my stomach problems, I was still feeling strong, so coming to the last 3mi before the climb, Dana put in a good amount of work to finally close the gap to Keith.

Into the final climb we went and I went with the first accelerations. Suddenly, I just ran out of energy. I think this was less to do with fitness and more to do with not having ate in the last 60miles. Regardless, Tyler Brandt seemed to be on a great day. He took it all the way from the bottom of the climb and rolled in for a commanding victory.

Although Dana and I rolled in for 10^th and 11^th place respectively, we rode the race how we wanted. Sometimes, you’re just up against better riders.

Mega Sale

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Pop into your local Mike's Bikes store for some great deals on much of the equipment used by Team Mike's Bikes p/b Incase.

20-40% off helmets, 20-50% off clothes and some fantastic deals on bikes.

Check out the sale catalog here - then head into your local store before the sale ends Sunday.

A Win at the Sea Otter Classic Circuit Race

by Daniel Holloway The Circuit race at Sea Otter is always difficult, you are either coasting or pedaling nearly full on. Team Mikes Bikes pb Incase plan for the race was to lay low and let the GC guys chase each other down only going into a move if it had GC riders in it and would make it to the line.

Roman and Shawn kept a look out in the early part of the race for any moves that we noted as dangerous. Eric and myself were to relax, sag climb the hill and save as much as we could for the end. Marcus may of had the hardest job of the day, he was there to shuffle around the group and get any of us four into the position we wanted to be in. It was going to be a tricky day with only a 5 man squad racing against strong 8 man teams.

The race starts off aggressive and doesn't really let up. Teams are attacking, but we stay calm and collected to not waste energy on moves that will be caught shortly after they go. Roman and Shawn did a great job representing the team in the first half of the race, actually the whole race.

They never missed a beat. After 5 laps or so a 6 man group was up the road with a 15-20 second gap. It contained two of the faster finishers in the race and a couple other strong men. One of the other larger teams missed the move which helped us as we choose not to follow that move. We kept our cool and let the others do most of the grunt work to keep the gap in check. Any time the field slowed Eric would reignite the fire and keep the peleton within distance.

Around 3 laps to go the break was absorbed back into the group. Now everyone on the team had to be switched on to not let any late race attacks go. Eric and Marcus did a great job of keeping the pace up so anyone who did attack didn't get too far and other teams could weld it back together. Somewhere in the last 3 laps Roman finds me and says "You are going to win this *expletive* race". I had to, the team worked so hard all day to make it happen. Needless to say, that got me amped up.

Going up the hill the last time as a group I was nervous, some strong guys were sitting in all day and were not looking for a field sprint. A last minute attack from a strong rider can take it to the line. Sure enough Zack Noonan let it rip up the right side and got a gap. I stayed close to Roman as he road a super smooth pace up the steep part of the climb. With my girth Its not to my advantage to go full gas up the steeper stuff. We get down off the cork screw of Laguna Seca and Zack has a sizable gap, it was going to be close. Going over the criterium hill I was out of position. I found a wheel moving up the inside around the long U-turn into the head wind. Shawn was still up front laying down the speed. Roman appeared at the perfect time to move me up to 4th wheel with 600meters to go. Going into the final right hand corner Shawn moved left and the next started his sprint way early perfect for me. As soon as I saw the window open on the right side I hit out as hard as I could. With 50meters to go I checked under my arms to see where the others were, with nothing but daylight I was able to raise my hands early and show off the Team Mikes Bikes p/b Incase jersey for a few extra meters before the line.

Thank you so much to all of my teammates for their incredibly hard work and sacrifice. Thank you to all of our team sponsors for the best products any racer wishes they had.

Read the Norcal Cylcing News report on Sea Otter here.

Red Kite Criterium Series #2 - Race Report

Arriving at the race about an hour and a half before start, I was glad to have been able to take all the time I needed to get myself ready. I was going to do both the Cat 2/3 and P/1/2 races today. I mixed a few bottles of ice water with some Organic Blackberry Osmo Active Hydration and loaded them onto my Tarmac SL4. I then proceeded by getting dressed in my Capo long sleeve skinsuit (despite the warm weather, I opted for aero) and applied some Personal Best Betwixt chamois cream. I sat around for a short while in the shade while watching another race finish, before spinning on the trainer.

The Cat 2/3 race was was really choppy. Team Specialized Racing Juniors had a handful of riders that had just raced down at Sea Otter,  and they used their numbers to dictate the proceedings of the race. Being the only one from TMB p/b Incase in the field, I decided to play this race a little more conservatively- trying to mark only moves that I saw as a serious threat. About half way through the race, Specialized had one rider in a 4-man breakaway which had about a ten second advantage on the field. The juniors were setting an easy to moderate tempo on the front of the group and were riding defensively to make sure that break stuck. I decided to bridge to that move, and did so successfully, but it was reeled back in about a lap later. For the rest of the race, I sat in.

With two laps to go, Specialized had all their riders on the front, with what looked like some sort of a lead out for Matt Valencia. I was on Matt's wheel going into the last lap, Specialized still setting the pace on the front. Everyone behind them was shouting to get them to go faster, since their junior gear restrictions had them limited to a modest 29 mph. They eventually got swarmed in the last half of the final lap. Team Bicycles Plus/Sierra Nevada had two guys attack up the gutter and on the outside of the final corner. I followed wheels from in the inside, which put me in about 5th position into the last corner.

I finished 3rd, behind the two Bicycles Plus riders. Pretty happy with this result, and with where I stand with my fitness. A big thank you to all of our sponsors who each played an important part in my achieving of this result!

The P/1/2 race was death. My allergies had been affecting my throat, nose and eyes throughout the 2/3 race, and it hadn't gotten any better before the P/1/2 race. I didn't do much, and watched a group of 9 get off the

front early. A handfull of riders lapped the field, those riders making all the action at the front of the lapped peloton with about 20 minutes remaining. Chuck set a gruesome tempo for 5 of the final 8 laps. The final lap was pretty dicey, my legs feeling pretty wrecked from the prior race. I rolled across the line in 24th.  

Sea Otter Classic Road Race Report

By Roman Kilun The Sea Otter Road race starts on the Laguna Seca Race Way before dropping into Ford Ord for 8 laps of the brutal circuit. On the last lap the course takes a different turn and climbs 4km to the finish back at the entrance to Laguna Seca. There are too main climbs on the course, one through the feed-zone and another which features the KOM.

The day started with very aggressive attacking by Cash Call and Jelly Belly who after two laps found them-selves in an anaerobic stalemate. While the two teams watched each other a move of two very strong riders went up the road only to be seen again in the closing kilometers. Shortly thereafter, Shawn and Eric joined a chase group that would spend the better half of the race in pursuit of the two leaders. Meanwhile in the field, Daniel and Marcus kept me protected and kept me in perfect position  going into the climbs.

Throughout the race the other teams took turns chasing and sucker punching each other with attacks. With about 3 laps to go I suffered a puncture and Marcus generously offered his wheel which allowed me to rejoin the bunch with little effort. As we approached the final climb, the early breakaway was in sight and all the climbers jockeyed for position at the front of the race. At this point Daniel took me straight to the front and rode a hard tempo for several minutes. The race started to blow up as the climb wore on and Kirk Carlsen made a strong attack on one of the steeper pitches. Only Alex Hagman could respond and the duo dangled in front of us by a few seconds. This forced the remaining CashCall riders to chase further shelling riders from the group.

As we hit the final 200 meters, the steepest of the climb, I was in the world of hurt and rode my own pace as the rest of my fellows sprinted for the minor placings. Ahead Alex prevailed over Kirk who would later go on to win the GC. I finished the stage in tenth at about 20 seconds back.

Sea Otter Classic TT Report

by Shawn Rosenthal There was no sitting on the couch racing Gran Turismo to prep me for this rollercourse of a time trial.  The course is a hair under 8 miles with hills reaching the 10% range and descents raising speeds to 50mph.

 Saturday's race left the legs a little heavy and being almost 5 minutes back in GC and knowing the circuit race is the following day, I was wondering why I'd try in the time trial.  Some part of me decided that I should give it a go.  I dragged around an extra bike all week, might as well give it a spin.

Studying for the GREs through the day, I was posting great scores on the quantitative section, getting every problem right.  The one equation I failed at was the time I'd need to leave at.  It takes time to get out the door?  It takes more than 5 minutes to drive 30 miles?  Nevertheless, the warmup was short.  Again, I wouldn't have gotten to my race on time had it not been for our Energizer bunny of a mechanic, Caesar.  

The first half, I rode up the hills hard & backed off the power any time the speed was over 32mph.  I coasted down a hill for 90 seconds, getting fully rested for the 2.5 minute climb.  I hit that as hard as I could.  I paid the price and in agony, fought my bike to finish the day.

Some went fast.  Others went really fast.

Kirk Carlson (Predator) and Justin Rossi (Marc Pro Strava) lit it up to finish 1st and 2nd respectively.

Roman finished 11th in 18:02, 37 seconds off the pace

I finished 14th, 42 seconds off the pace

Holloway finished 24th, 57 seconds off the pace

Sea Otter Classic Criterium Race Report

by Dana Williams The Sea Otter Classic Pro Criterium is on the Laguna Seca Race Track. It was a 60 minute race. The course is basically an elongated 'C' with two short power climbs and a 180 turn on each end. The first and shortest (75 meters) power climb is just after the start/finish line while the second (200 meters) is at the bottom of the 'C', just as you exit the 180 turn. The nature of the course definitely creates a challenging crit, favoring a powerful rider.

The teams with the strongest representation were Jelly Belly, Cash Call, CalGiant and Get Crackin'. Team Mike's Bikes p/b Incase weren't too far behind with six riders; Roman Kilun, Eric Riggs, Shawn Rosenthal, Marcus Smith, Daniel Holloway and myself (Dana Williams). It wasn't long after we started that attacks began. For the most part it was CashCall and CalGiant initiating most of them. We did our best to make sure we were in most moves, and for the most part we accomplished this.

At about half way through the race, four of us (Roman, Eric, Shawn and Daniel) found ourselves in a large leading group of around 30 riders. At one point, CashCall and CalGiant had two riders up the road and Shawn did an amazing job at the front for about 3/4 of a lap to literally bring them back. From this point on, and from what I recall, no other strong moves separated themselves. As we rolled over the finish line with one lap to go, it was evident that the race would come down to a bunch sprint. Unfortunately we weren't able to get a solid lead out going for our sprinter, Daniel, but ended up placing four in the top 15 (Daniel 5th, Shawn 8th, Dana 9th and Roman 15th).

Onto stage 2 tomorrow, the road race.

Santa Cruz Classi Criterium Race Report

by Nick Newcomb I was really stoked to be racing only 5 minutes away from home on a sunny day in Santa Cruz. At the race Team Mike's Bikes p/b Incase had myself (Nick), Travis Lyons, Rainier Schaefer, Dana Williams, and James Laberg (defending champion from 2012). Having five riders who were riding well, our plan was to be aggressive by making sure we were represented in all moves. If it came down to a pack sprint then we'd work to set it up for James. I was fired up right from the start and played an aggressive role; I found myself chasing down every attack I saw and spending a ton of time at the front. Luckily I was high on adrenaline from all of my friends on the sidelines and had been chugging OSMO all day!Travis, Rainier and Dana all did an awesome job pulling back attacks and keeping the group together.

About halfway through the race, Ben Jaques-Mayne (Jamis HB) took off with Tobin Ortinblad on his wheel at the one moment where we were all boxed in or recovering from chasing moves. They went up the right on the false flat after the short climb. Nobody went with them. Unfortunately we would never be able to real them back in.

After tons of pulling and following moves I was afraid that I would be blown by the end. Then Dana told me that I was going to start the lead out on the last lap so there were no time for excuses. As I was moving forward with 2 to go a Specialized kid and another guy (later found out it was Chris Phipps) put in a last minute 'Hail Mary; so it was game on! I was forced to start the lead out with 2 to go. Trading off with Rainier, we led Dana and James into the last corner where they went 1 and 2 in the sprint, earning some vital team points (being it was a Premiere series race) and cold hard cash. I wish we could have caught the break but awesome race regardless!

Redlands Stage Race: Sunset Road Race (stage 4)

by Roman Kilun Stage 4 of the Redlands Cycling Classic goes by a simple name: Sunset. In the ever changing world of US cycling, this race is a genuine classic and is universally feared and respected.  It is unique in the world of US cycling in that it is extremely hard but can be won by any type of rider from sprinter to climber. The course consists of a start on the Redlands crit course followed by a climb up to the Sunset Loop, 12 laps of the Loop, and a descent back to the crit course for 5 more laps. As usual the climb up to the circuit was fast and crazy. Everyone fights for position like it’s the end of a crit since the start of the Loop is super narrow and takes you to the base of the climb. Luckily I had Eric, Daniel and James keeping me in position all the way to the critical point.

Once on the circuit I knew the first three laps would be ballistic and they were; over half field was shelled. As if scripted, the race calmed way down for the middle laps into a steady but bearable torture.  Breakaways started and failed every lap for what seemed like half the race. Finally around the mid way point a group led by Jamis established a lead and the 5 hour boys settled into a tempo for a few laps. By tempo I mean Nate English smashed us every time up the hill.

With two laps to go Matt Cooke threw down a blistering attack which drew out the race leaders. I knew I could not follow the best climbers so I did what I could to limit the damage and ride in a good group with Tom Zirbel and Justin Rossi. We were able to rejoin the leaders just before the descent and the start of the final lap. At this point I was starting to get really excited about racing on the circuits but there was one brutal lap left. Once again Matt Cooke attacked on the climb and this time only Mancebo was able to match the pace. It seemed that Chad Haga (race leader) was faltering and chose to stay with his team who would try to limit the damage on the long descent into town.

Now, done with all of the climbing a group of roughly 35 sat glued to the Optum team as they chased in vain to catch Paco. At this point I was pretty surprised that the Jamis team did not lend a hand as they had numbers and the best sprinter in the group. Perhaps they thought they had enough time once we reached the crit laps. Once on the crit laps Jamis went all in for JJ Haedo and chased Macebo who was nursing a 20 second lead. Meanwhile I made a big push to the front and settled in behind Freddie Rodriguez. It was very difficult to maintain position as I was having to battle with teams like Elbowz and BMC who had numbers.

At the start of the final lap, Jamis ran out of guys and JJ Haedo was left solo on the front at which point he started sprinting!!! He sprinted for a full lap but did not catch Macebo, yet no one got around him so he finished 2nd. I held on to the wheels in front of me and passed a rider or two in the final corners to finish 8^th. While not a podium I am extremely proud of the result of our team that helped me achieve it.

For you geeks out there who care about data here are the basic stats:

Time: 4:00

Distance: 156km

Av Speed: 38.8km/h

Max Speed: 88.32km/h

Norm Power: 362watts

Energy: 3995

Elevation: 8,418 feet

Weight: 168lbs

Roman: Stage 1 - Individual Time Trial

Photo credits to Cyclingnews.com

Redlands Stage Race: Individual Time Trial

by Adam Switters This year, the Redlands Bicycle Classic decided to mix things up and moved their prologue from downtown Redlands up to Big Bear. The course changed from a mostly uphill battle of fitness to a flat and technical battle of altitude acclimation (The tt was at 6800 ft).

It would have been ideal to pre-ride the time trial in the days prior to the race, but no longer being professional athletes and holding down day jobs didn’t allow us to get down to the race till the afternoon before. Pre-riding the course would have been a huge advantage as it was surprisingly technical and rolling.

Team Mike's Bikes p/b Incase rider Daniel HollowayThe course was only 6.8 miles long with a headwind on the outbound leg. It was imperative to go out hard, but with the altitude, that might come back to bite you in the butt. I went out a little too hard in the first mile and from there it was survival. I tried to make up some ground on the technical turns, but fell apart a bit on the way back and came in 71^st out of the 190 or so starters. Roman Kilun had a great ride and finished 26^th for the team, giving us good position for the caravan the next day.

Newcomb in the News

nicknewcomb

TMB Rider Nick Newcomb is profiled in today's Marin Independent Journal

Nick Newcomb makes smooth transition to road racing with Mike's Bikes team - read it here.

Regalado Road Race: March 24, 2013

Team Mike's Bikes p/b Incase went into the race with six riders; four guys from our elite squad (Roman Kilun, Steve O’Mara, Rainier Schaefer and myself, Dana Williams) and two guys from our Masters squad (Jacob Berkman and John Barbicas). Our plan was to do our best to control the race. If there happened to be a break that we weren’t in, then we felt we had the numbers and strength to control it and bring it back when needed. This would determine whether we would lead somebody out at the finish or not.

Following a three mile neutral roll out (believe it or not, it was actually a gentle rollout, even without a neutral vehicle to control the speed), we got a few instructions from the officials and were off. It was my first time doing this course. From what I wast told, it was a fairly flat 17 mile loop with a mile-long gravel section and some rolling terrain towards the finish. That description was spot on. On side a side note, I can see how wind can play a major factor in this race, but we didn’t have to worry about that due to the 8:00 AM start.

As I recall, the rolling terrain as we finished up lap one is what caused the first split. In this break were seven riders; myself and teammate Roman, James Enright of Squadra, Chuck Hutcheson of Marc-Pro, a rider from Davis, Lombardi and Form Fitness. It wasn’t long until Chuck decided to put in a move and got up the road about 15 seconds. We decided we wouldn’t close the gap right away but instead keep Chuck within 25-30 seconds and see how things played out.

About a quarter of the way around the next lap, I look back and see two riders coming up on us. I see an arm wave, recognize the kit and realize it’s a teammate. I try to quietly mention this to Roman, but I can tell James Enright overheard me because he was soon on the front and accelerating. I gather he realized it wasn’t to his best interest to have three Team Mike’s Bikes p/b Incase riders in the break. Roman and I didn’t do any work, hoping our teammate would make it it up to us. A mile or two down the road, after bringing back Chuck by about 10 seconds, Rainier and a rider from Davis bridge up to us.

Chuck is reeled back in at the end of the gravel section on the second to last lap. With three teammates in the break, we decide to launch some attacks. The ‘Chulkster’ covers pretty well all of them.  On the final lap, a Davis rider rolls off the front just before the gravel section. Rainier goes to the front and keeps a good tempo to keep the gap around 5 seconds. Roman is second wheel, I’m behind him, Chuck is behind me and then Enright is behind Chuck. I’m not sure how the others were positioned. Rainier gets us to the top of a riser about 2.5 km out and drops back. Roman keeps a good tempo. Next thing I know Rainier comes by me and is back on the front (what a teammate!!). At about 1km to go, Rainier is done and Roman puts in a light acceleration to bridge up to the Davis rider, who now is only about 20 meters up the road. I let a gap open up, hopefully creating a little indecisiveness with the guys behind me. Do they stay on my wheel or try to bridge up to Roman. 250 m out and Chuck puts in a good dig, Enright’s on his wheel and I follow. Chuck slows and my momentum takes me back to the front. In retrospect, I wish I had done all I could to stay behind them.

Roman is now climbing up a riser, the first of two, between 200-125 meters from the finish line. As we crest it, I see Roman look back and see that he realizes he still has the gap. He starts to accelerate as he starts up the second and final riser, at about 75 meters from the line. I’m looking over my shoulder wondering when Chuck is going to jump. Roman is out of his saddle and digging. Chuck jumps, comes by me. I dig in and accelerate. We’re closing on Roman. 20 meters from the line and I see we’re going to pass Roman. Will I have enough to get by Chuck. We cross the line, unfortunately for me, Chuck is about a half wheel ahead. Roman is close behind in third followed by Enright.

It was a well fought battle and the ‘Chulkster’ wins this one. Riding off the front on his own for 40-45 miles, managing the countless attacks and then taking the win definitely solidifies Mr. Hutcheson is the guy to beat in NorCal (in my view).