Amy Cameron takes 2nd in the 1/2s, with Erin Sorani 4th in the 3’s.
2016 Wente Road Race
Wente was my first day back racing with the team since Chico Stage Race, and what a day it was! It’s been a whirlwind of an early season for me – a crash at Chico combined with some stressors in my life leading to less-than-stellar legs for Snelling/Chico, followed by 2 weeks off the bike in late March for some Asia travel as part of my MBA program.
image: Katie Truong
The last few weeks, however, have brought about a return to some really gratifying, hard training as well as the hunger to compete! I had no idea what to expect coming into Wente, other than knowing my legs felt good and that my teammates had been kicking ass, winning races left and right (huge shout outs especially to Cam Piper and Cameron Bronstein on their Redlands / San Dimas performances).
Our strategy for the day was pretty minimal; we had a lot of guys going strong and knew we could cover / initiate moves when we wanted. Piper and I would be riding aggressive early on, with the hope of getting in a small move and making it stick. The first 30 minutes were host to a flurry of attacks from all the contenders – guys like Ortenblad, Jenkins, and Saltzman seemed especially eager to stretch their legs on the main climb on course, 4-5 minutes that started at 13% and leveled off slowly. However, near the end of the 2 main sets of climbs on the first lap, we still had a group of 15-20 in tact, with another 15 or so trailing close behind.
During a brief lull in the action, I came up the right side and attacked on the last gradual climb into the descent to the finish, getting a sizable gap right away. Immediately chasing, with a gap behind them, was the dynamic duo of Zeke Mostov (BMC Development) and Thom Salveseen (Cyclesport – Specialized p/b Muscle Milk), both of whom I knew were strong and liked riding in breaks. I was pumped for some company and a hard day ahead!
We worked flawlessly together almost right away, with Zeke taking some especially motivated pulls on the flats to keep our gap growing, and Thom – who went from cat 2 to 1 in the span of a couple months – taking some monster pulls and a pointer here and there til he was rotating like a seasoned breakaway rider. About a lap into the break, we were able to tell the gap was over a minute, but we didn’t get any info until halfway into lap 4, when we were told we had 2.5 minutes. At this point, it was far from a sure thing, but we still had motivation, and when I felt it faltering a bit in the other guys, I took some hard turns on the front to make sure we kept the speed up. It was only in the last half lap that we started to play a few games, with Zeke attacking on the same last climb that had initiated the move. I was quick to cover, and Thom dieseled up right behind us. The final descent was slower than usual, as we played a bit of cat and mouse instead of charging ahead like we had on previous laps.
image: Katie Truong
Thom led us into the final corner, at which point there are about 800 meters to go, 300+ of it up a moderate grade, with about 150m false-flat to the line. I was glued to Zeke’s wheel and waited for him to make a move. Just past halfway up the climb, I was thinking how much longer I’d wait before trying to beat him to the jump. Then he launched at about 200m. I stayed stuck to his wheel and thought I had it in the bag, with a solid sprint still left in my legs. However, with less than 100m to go, I started to come around him and realized I’d chosen the wrong side – headwinds and poor timing made it hard to accelerate up to his hip, but once I got there with a couple dozen meters left, I knew I just had to put in a few more big pedal strokes. One bike length to go and I surged by him, finishing with a hand up in celebration and just feet to spare… Phew, that was a close one!
I was pumped to see so many teammates piling into the top 10 behind me – first Roman and Cam Piper with Jason Saltzman in between them (4,5,6), then Aria winning the bunch kick for 7th and Craig recovering from a flat to finish 9th. Looking forward to working together to attack some of NorCal’s crown jewels in the coming months – Berkeley and Pescadero are high on the list.
Williams & Amatelli Finish 2nd & 4th in an Action Packed and Challenging Wente Vineyards Road Race
By Dana Williams
April 24, 2016
Teammates: Scott Cox, Rob Amatelli, Oliver Ryan, John Barbicus
Plan: Three teammates were given the task to mark early moves and make sure TMBEquator had representation in any dangerous early breaks. Dana and Rob were our protected riders. They were to be attentive, watch the riders we considered threats and be there at the end to achieve our goal.
Summary: Water bottles filled with Osmo, pockets stuffed with ProBar goodies, skin lubed with Zealios sun barrier and all the right spots lathered with Betwixt chamois cream, the squad rolled to the line on our Specialized 'steed of choice (split between Venge Vias and Tarmac) and were ready to do battle. The race was 58 miles, four laps of the 14.5 mile loop, with a total elevation gain of about 4600 feet.
The first time up the steepest and most challenging climb of the day, Carroll Rd, was at a solid pace but nothing blistering. About half way through the first lap, or to be exact, as we turned left onto Patterson Pass Rd. from Flynn Rd S, Jeremy Cottel accelerated off the front. Teammate Scott Cox was right there and followed Cottel, a smart move considering Cottle was one of the strongest riders in the field. This drew out five other riders, making a seven man break; Cottel (Specialized), Profumo (Lange Twins), Mai (Thirsty Bear), Boyton (Peets), Britt (Studio Velo) and Espinosa (Squadra). The break slowly drifted away from the peloton because all the strongest teams had representation.
On the second lap, the pace in the break quickened up Carroll Rd. causing Britt & Espinosa and lose contact and soon be absorbed by the peloton. Now with Squadra and Studio Velo both out of the break, I believed they would come to the front and take up the chase. But this didn't really happen. Instead, for the next two laps there was some inconsistent effort/acclerations being put in by riders from Squadra, Thirsty Bear and with a few with no team affiliation. This made me believe that Thirsty Bear wasn't confident with their rider in the break, while also confusing me that Squadra wasn't doing much considering their strongest rider, Todd Markelz, was in the peloton.
Fast forward to just before the base of the Carroll Rd climb on the last lap, the moto referee rode up to us and said the gap to the break was three minutes. At this point I thought to myself, as I'm sure everybody else did too, 'OK, we are racing now for 6th place. I hope my teammate in the break gets the W'.
We started up the Carroll Rd climb for the final time and Rob went to the front and 'stretches his legs' a bit. By the top of the climb I believe the group has thinned out, but I can't look back because my tongue is hanging out of my mouth and I was trying to keep my heart from doing the same. Phipps (Thirsty Bear), Metcalf (Peets) and Markelz decide to keep the foot on the gas and continue to drive the pace. As we approach the right turn onto Cross Rd from Patterson Pass Rd, I realize there are only five of us; the three just mentioned plus Rob and I. It then felt as though we decided to begin to attack each other, me thinking (and assuming others too) that we'd make the last half lap hard all for the glory of 6th place.
As we descend down Cross Rd and are about 200m from making the right turn onto Tesla Rd, Rob says to me 'Is that the break?' I scan down the road and see a few small groups, then I look closer and first notice Cottell is his Specialized kit. Next thing I now Rob is attacking off the front, with the others chasing him, trying to bridge up. We turn right onto Tesla Rd and are fast approaching the lead group, of which I'm sure they did not see us coming. My first thought, although now looking back may not have been the right one, was to attack and catch them off guard. TMBEquator now had three guys up here so we could play aggressive. I dig deep, my legs agree to a certain degree, then Ilook back and Phipps is bringing me back. As soon as he and the group catch me, Cox goes all in off the front. He's reeled back in just as we make the final turn onto Greenville. I'm recovering from my move and not ideally positioned back around 7-8th. I know I need to be closer to the front as the we approach the final 200m finish ramp. The pace winds up and we start climbing. Rob goes early and is off the front. The group is spread across the road. I am approaching Rob and forced to go by on his left, as another rider is passing him on his right. It's Markelz and we are going headed to head with the finish line fast approaching. My legs start shouting to me 'no, we can't turn circles anymore, just squares!' Markelz slowly moves past me and has enough to hit the line first. A well deserved win on his part considering how the race played out.
Strava file: https://www.strava.com/activities/555753251
Wente Vineyards RR (E4)
In the photo: Michael Kurnik
Wente Vineyards Road Race changed up a bit this year for the cat 4s, with the main climb being removed and the course being a longer version of ‘The Bump’ that a number of us had done earlier in the season. Regardless of our thoughts on this, it’s really nice turning up to start racing at 11ish rather than 8am...
Dave Allen Finished 3rd in a Stacked Red Kite Criterium
Date: April 17, 2016
Category: M123 35+
Teammates: Funke, Hobbs, Oli, Sloan (aka Maggie)
This was probably one of the biggest crit fields to date this year with I'm guessing 60+ riders, with 4-5 teams having more than 7 riders. Peets had 8!. The field was pretty deep too with Patrick Stanko, Dan Martin, James LaBerge, Jan Weissenberger, etc.
The Plan: Race aggressive, create a break and stack it.
Summary: There was tons of attacking right from the gun with all of the TMBEquator riders pulling their weight. The first 20 minutes or so was a blur, but I feel that we were well represented in everything.
Around this point a big move went off the front with a bunch of strong riders. Teammate Hobbs made it, along with Stanko, Jan & Scobie (both from Thirsty Bear), Boynton & O'Rourke(?) (both from Peet's), Dan Shore, and maybe 1-2 others.
I knew right away we were going to be in trouble with only one teammate in the break against Stanko and multiple riders from Peets and Thirsty Bear. The field seemed willing to accept this break and I knew O needed to get across. I'm not sure exactly what the gap was, but it seemed possible, if maybe a little on the "I might blow up before I get there" side. With the wind at our backs on the back stretch, I jumped really hard about 100m before turn 3, and immediately got a gap. I knew I needed to make the bridge before hitting the headwind after turn 4. Out of the saddle, head down the whole way, I was gaining but it was hurting. I hit turn 4 about 10m off the back and had to dig a little more to get on right around the start/finish. Darn, that hurt!
Now I just needed to hang out and rest a bit so as not to get dropped right away. But rest didn't come so easily. I quickly learned that the reason it was harder to bridge than I expected was because the break was busy chasing Stanko. Typical! Another few minutes of pain and Stanko was reabsorbed and we got down to the business of steady riding/rotating.
From what I remember, the first 10-15 min everyone worked pretty well with no shenanigans. Hobbs, Stanko, and 1-2 others were really driving it. My plan was just to take reasonable pulls while trying to stay fresh for the finish.
The last 10 laps were also kind of a blur. I remember telling Hobbs to ease back a little to save some for the end. There were a lot of attacks and the group split a couple times. I was feeling good and just following wheels. With 5-6 laps to go, the group stopped working well and it got a little dicey. There were lots of guys complaining but no one willing to put in much effort.
With 2-3 to go, the field was getting close and I asked Hobbs to start ramping it up. I'm pretty sure his effort ensured that the break would stay away (nice job Donkey!).
At this point I think everyone expected it to come down to a sprint. Oddly enough (though i should have expected it), Stanko instead attacked with 1 to go. Scobie was able to get his wheel (or close anyway) and I was on Scobie. I'm pretty sure no one else made it. Unfortunately, after about 200m Scobie blew dramatically and I gave everything I could to go around and get Stanko’s wheel, but it wasn’t enough. I was faced with blowing up trying to catch him or settling in trying to hang on for 2nd. By the beginning of the back stretch it was obvious that I wasn’t going to catch him so just got in TT mode.
Jan caught me just before turn 3 and attacked, but I had enough left to get on his wheel. He tried to get me to come around, but I wasn’t budging. We starting soft pedaling. I looked back and saw another rider coming up to us. It ended up being Boynton. I tried to time it just right to jump before he caught us and also get around Jan before the last turn, but Boynton got there first and I couldn’t quite come around him. I had to settle for 3rd.
Long Solo Break by Dana Williams at the 2016 Sea Otter Circuit Race 35+ M123
April 15, 2016
Teammates: Matt Adams, Scott Cox & Rob Amatelli
Plan: Strong representation in any breaks and win.
Summary:
One of the perks of racing on Team Mike's Bikes p/b Equator Coffee is we can request to use any one of the fleet of company Toyota vehicles. Luck was on my side and I was granted the use of a beautiful Toyota Tacoma for the day. The plan was for a 10am departure., getting me there about two hours before the 3pm start. My good friend Chris joined me and we were off. Needless to say, there were some accidents that slowed us down. So at 2pm, as we were about 10mins from the parking lots, Chris took over driving while I gotchanged in the passenger seat. So much for being early!
A quick pre-race spin and meeting with my teammates and we were ready to go. Those unfamiliar with the Sea Otter Circuit Race, it's takes place on the undulating and winding Laguna Seca Raceway. It's characterized by a 2min climb each lap; the first minute at 6-9% (today with a tail wind), then a quick90 degree left turn followed by the second minute that's even steeper (first 20 secs at 14-18% then levels to 8-10%). The wind now comes from the left. It then dives down a descent, of similar gradient, called the Corkscrew. This is followed by a 2km windy run to the start/finish, with one 20sec bump that rises 20 meters in elevation about a 1/3 of the way. Here's the course profile on Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/546457832
The whistle blew and 75 minutes of racing was ahead of us. We had a loose plan; if a break went then we wanted good representation in it. I knew I could hang in it so wanted to be part of it if the opportunity presented itself. I had thoughts leading into to the race of trying to cause a selection on the main climb of lap 3 or 6. I lead it up the climb the first time at a solid pace. Fast forward to the start of lap 4, we round turn one and start the climb and I'm sitting 7-8th wheel. There's a lull at the front so I just keep pressure on the pedals and push off the front. I look back and nobody responds. So I keep the pressure on the steep part of the climb and then over the top. I speed down the Corkscrew in a tuck and roll onto the flats. The gap is probably 10-15 secs. I remember looking at my Garmin not too long after this point and see we've been racing for about 23mins and think 'there's still a lot of race left to be out here on the front'. My thought is some riders will bridge up, hopefully with a teammate or two in tow. But I go back to what I feel I need to focus on, which is being aero on the flat windy section and keeping solid power on the climb.
A few laps go by and nobody has bridged yet and my lead is 30-35secs. Then a few laps later and I'm out of sight from the chase group. The only thing I can do is keep going. I try to maintain consistent power on the first part of the main climb with the tail wind, then shift down into an easier gear and spin up the steep section, trying to hold a wattage I know is right around the same the chasing group will be at.
Fast forward to half way on the last lap and It finally sinks in that I'm not going to be caught. I roll across the line about 50secs ahead of the group, plenty of time to sink it all in and share a little victory salute.
I couldn't have done this effort if it wasn't for these awesome teammates. They were marking bridge attempts, allowing my lead to extend each lap. Thanks guys. MBFY!
Red Kite Crit #4 (E2/3)
In the Photo: Sam Hill
The Red Kite series has been known to have simple and fast criterium courses. With 55 total ⅔ racers, it was going to live up to that reputation. As a team we had ten racers total (seven dev riders and three masters). If no breaks would stick, our gameplan was to win the field sprint with Robert Terra, or me...
Sea Otter RR (E4)
In the photo: Danny Yadron
Even for a bike race, the starting line at Sea Otter RR was full of very slight men.
Promoters fill the early NorCal race season with relatively flat races with relatively flat finishes. This means the slight men often lose out to the less slight sprinters. Not so at Sea Otter, where each lap contains a 3-minute and several shorter power climbs. The whole thing then finishes with a 2-mile climb up Barloy Canyon road. Hence all the skinny dudes ducking out on a Friday to play bikes in Monterey. "It ends with a climb!" one declared unprompted at the starting line. "I know!" I replied...
Tulock Lake RR (E4)
2016 Copperopolis Road Race
images: Alex Chiu
When the nickname for a race is the “Paris-Roubaix of Northern California,” you know you’re in for a treat. With a circuit that includes two climbs and some gnarly road surfaces, Copperopolis Road Race certainly felt as close to cobbles as a ‘paved’ road surface could get. I still have pleasant dreams of the short, freshly paved section of the main climb that was sandwiched by rough roads.
The team’s plan was relatively simple – mark the threats, some guys need to make the early break, and Chris or I needed to be there for lap three when the hopeful ‘winning move’ would be made. Funny how fast plans can change in racing! We had seven guys, the next biggest team had eight.
It was actually a bit cold at the start, and my decision to not warm up before the race wasn’t the best. The main climb on the first lap was no walk in the park, but got the legs ready to roll on the flats. A couple moves tried to go early, but were marked by Andy, Craig, Cameron, Roman, Chris, and Aria immediately. A small break of two TMB riders and two Herbalife riders went up the road once we hit the flats. Riders attempted to bridge, but their moves were happily marked by our riders. At one point, Chris HD and I began to bridge up to the front move, until we were joined by a rider from Lupus, then another from JL-Velo. Eventually, these riders put in some big turns with each other to bring us to the break – now three TMB riders, three Herbalife riders, and the two other riders. Our gap rolling in the main climb on the second lap was roughly a minute and thirty seconds. The field must have nuked it in chase, as we were caught by the top of the climb.
Roman and Chris both kept me on my toes as additional attacks started flying. Tim Rugg from Herbalife came up on the right side of the road as I heard Chris yelling from behind me. I grabbed Tim’s wheel as a gap formed. He looked at me and said something along the lines of “yeah… I’ll work with this.” If he was in, I was in – though the thought of nearly 60 miles out front was a little intimidating. We worked really well together as our gap grew to nearly six minutes at the max (that’s the one of two time gaps we were actually told…). In hearing this time gap, we were told there were some riders trying to bridge – and they always seemed to be between 40 seconds and two minutes. Not the best numbers, but we were determined to stay out front.
Tim and I chatted about life, the donkeys on the side of the road, and the political correctness of what to say to a rider we were passing from other fields. I’ll tell you, not seeing the donkeys on the fifth lap was a mental blow.
Going into the last lap, we started to see a group of four-ish riders attempting to bridge behind us once we hit the flat section of the course. After running out of food at the end of the third lap (lessons learned to not bank on the race moto letting the van up to the break), I was admittedly getting a little nervous of the shrinking gap. At the same time, I had done a decent job eating the Probars and OSMO electrolyte drink I had! I knew if we hit the last climb without taking it too easy, there was a good chance we were set for the finish. Full gas on the descent, I pulled around Tim on one of the last corners and realized I had made a mistake… he likely wasn’t going to come back around me going into the last 1.5km – and he didn’t. Coming into the base of the final finish hill with roughly 350m to go, I hit it really hard. Unfortunately, Tim was glued to my wheel. I sat up at the 200m to go sign hoping he would charge around me. Without any movement with about 150m to go, I decided that I had nothing else in the cards apart from just going for it – seeing Roman jumping up and down at the finish line was a little extra motivation in knowing I could cross the line first! My Specialized Venge ViAS was perfect for this finish situation, and I knew I had aerodynamics on my side. Being able to post up without the worry of 25mph gusts (Bariani) was a great feeling!
On to Redlands!
2016 Bariani Road Race
text: Cameron Piper
Bariani Road Race - 70 miles, 15-25mph winds and rain.
This was my first year racing Bariani Road Race, but have heard many things about this early season NorCal road race. The team's goals were relatively straight forward - we had a full squad of eight, so we had no reason not to be aggressive and see how the race could play out. Pre-race plans were set, hoping to let the first lap or two go by before making any real moves. One thing I have been learning when it comes to racing is that plans don't always work out exactly how we'd like them to!
Everyone in the race knew the weather was not looking great for the race - and that was apparent at the start. The race official even asked if the field would like to shorten the race by a lap, which thankfully was declined. We rolled from the parking lot, and the pace of the race immediately picked up as we turned south into the headwind. Even though the team knew that moves wouldn't be made till later in the race, everyone kept their head on a swivel and accelerated quickly with the move to get on the front and drive the pace for the first straight into a nasty crosswind. Shortly after, attacks were made, and the team had nearly the whole squad in a break with two other riders. Though it was caught, it again showed how the team was being attentive and aggressive.
Rolling into the rough sections of road on the lap, I mashed into what I had thought was a shallow puddle - which was actually a deep wheel crusher. Thankfully my Roval Tubulars held, preventing a blow out, but I realized roughly three miles later than my tire was going flat. Attacks were flying as the group hit the crosswind section of the course, but I asked around to my teammates to see how everyone was feeling (there was no neutral support). Chris selflessly decided that I would be better off in the race, so we quickly swapped front wheels. I chased back onto the second group up the road, just as the group was turning onto the finish straight. The team was launching attacks to bridge up to the front group, and I managed to grab onto a group with Craig and another rider. We caught the group after they turned onto the rough section of road.
Going into the final two laps of the race, it was four riders from the team and three other riders - Matt from Herbalife, Cole from Team Specialized Juniors, and Max from Astellas. The group was working well together, and we eventually had nearly four minutes over the next group. Rolling into the rough section of the last lap, Max attacked the group. I bridged up to him solo, and we worked well together leading into the final straight. With nearly a minute up on the group behind us, it was a matter of playing my cards right. There's something slightly demoralizing about heading into a sprint at roughly 18-19 mph because of the 25mph headwinds! In the end, I was able to jump hard around Max in the last 500 meters for my first P/1/2 win.
The team rode an awesome race - I'm extremely lucky to have the opportunity to ride guys that do whatever they can to help the team succeed. We're all lucky to have the support from our sponsors to be able to do so!
Team Tactics lead to Victory at the Classic Copperopolis RR
These are my thoughts from the Santa Cruz Classic Criterium
Photos by John Reynolds. All names are linked… if you want to see who they are.
“I hope it doesn’t start raining.”
“Okay, I’ll start on the back row and feel it out for the first few laps.”
“…oh! was that the whistle? Are we starting? oh… we started.”
“Oh look! there are all of my friends! Its super cool they all came out to watch… Wait, what if I crash or do something stupid. oh god… that’ll be embarrassing. I wish they wouldn’t have come.
“Time to move forward. annnnnnnnd shoot the gap…. inside line… hold your speed. alright boom! half way to the front!”
“Swiznooski looks really nervous.”
“Up the hill. The front of the race is slowing down a bit, lets pick up some more spots. Alright in to the top 10 wheels! That seemed easy.”
“Time to attack! GO! Pedal pedal pedal! what the fuck? Tobin and Owen just came over the top of me?! Alright… act like that wasn’t an attack.”
“Oh good, Roman marked that, we’re represented in the break. Nice job!Reese is going across too. Shit yea, the guys are on it today.”
“Alright 2 teammates are up the road, lets pull off the front and get ready to follow if someone else tries to bridge.”
“Shit. It’s raining.”
“No big deal, the break is getting reeled in. As soon as they get here… punch it again. Ready…. and GO! pedal pedal pedal! Holy shit! WHAT WAS THAT?! okay some body behind you crashed, keep going up the hill then see if you have a gap.”
“…well… alright, Only one rider with me, third wheel must have gone down and taken everyone with him. I hope everyone is alright. CHRIS! Fuckin’ concentrate! You’re in the break, lets pedal a few laps and see if the time goes out.”
“Oh hey! Patrick is starting a chant! ‘leeeeets go Riiiiiekert” yea… thats me! Go me! …Chris, you realize you’re talking to yourself, right?”
“OKAY this is good! The gap is going out! 45 seconds and growing? Maybe this could work. Do I like this break? can I win from this? we have 30min left to race… is this good for us? How do I win from here?”
“Jesus, that rain is coming down! I’m soaked.”
“Sam seems to be riding really strong, I wonder if he is accelerating up the hill to tire me out? Is he going to attack me? Is he stronger than me?” shit, i bet he feels fresh… I feel like crap. Damn it, he’s going to attack and ride away. That’ll be embarrassing in front of all my friends”
“Okay 15min left… why hasn’t he attacked? Maybe he doesn’t feel that great either?”
“Lap cards are up, 6 laps to go. Man, i haven’t heard a time gap in a while, i wonder if the group is catching us? Should I ride for a couple more laps or try to rest for the finally?”
“3 laps to go. Okay, when to I sit up, when to i try to get to his wheel? Is 2 to go, too early? Okay, he seems content to keep working, does he think he can out sprint me? maybe he’s been working on his sprint… shit, i bet he’s been working on his sprint.”
“1 to go… the crowd goes wild with the bell lap! okay, no more pulls. stay on the wheel. I think we’ve got plenty of time on the group, you can play games for a a few seconds… He’ll go on the hill. he’s a better climber than you.”
“3 corners left, get ready for it, he’s going to accelerate. pace is going up. he’s looking to the protected side. Is the wind strong enough to effect this? okay he’s really watching the protected side. 300m to race, 200m to race. 150m to race… GO! Head down pedal! you’re coming around, you got the jump! go go go! and across the line!”
“Shit… i didn’t post up. whatever… fist pump.”
Berkeley Crit (E4/5)
In the photo: Travis Mceuen
For the past few weeks I have been focusing on Collegiate racing since this is my last season. This weekend was UC Berkeley and they had a tough weekend planned. Saturday I spent three hours in the wind farm with 2.5 miles of gravel per lap. With only 15 in my field it was a long and tough race. I woke up Sunday not feeling so hot and actually did not want to race. I decided to go to the campus to cheer for my teammates who would be racing. Once I arrived I was immediately ridiculed for not racing...
Cox Rides Strong and Nabs 2nd Place at the Santa Cruz Classic Criterium
March 20, 2016
By Scott Cox
Teammates: Adams, Allen, Amatelli, Pizzica, Williams
Another year at the Santa Cruz Classic! This race is one of my favorites due to location and type of course it is with the technical aspects as well as attrition. It is hard to complain with our team’s results over the last 3 seasons (3 podiums), but the top step has eluded us and we have several riders that this course suits. We have had a bit of bad luck with crashes and flats. Not to mention, this is one of David Allen’s (Beardo) training areas and we were looking for some bragging rights. As luck would have it and maybe this was some foreshadowing, Beardo caught a bug and being the team player he is, decided that he would take a support role this year since he was not feeling 100%. We had a plan to make sure we were in any breakaways and if it came down to a bunch sprint then I would be the sprinter near the tail end of the best Masters leadout in the world - CrazyTrain - with National crit champ Dana Williams on my wheel to give me bit of a cushion.
We all met near the Santa Cruz boardwalk in our Capo Custom kits pinned and ready to go. A fleet of Specialized Venges were ready to roll with some fat Specialized Turbos to eat up the course. We lined up on the front and ready for business and the whistle blew. Adams, Amatelli and Pizzica went to work from the gun covering any moves and no one was getting away. Several moves got a gap and TMB had at least one and usually two guys representing us. I believe Rob Amatelli was in every one of them and if he was not off the front, then he was on the front keeping the pace high. Adams was everywhere as well as Pizzica. TMB was in it to win it. Dana was keeping an eye on Stanko (the STAND) and Beardo was keeping an eye on everything and was always in striking distance. The strength of my team allowed me to sit in the entire race and save energy.
I noted the lap cards come out with 9 to go and I was ready for a sprint. It was easy to stay up front and protected with my teammates around me and I felt relaxed. 2 to go and all was going to plan with the leadout doing their thing. It is a thing of beauty seeing the TMB kits all getting lined up when it is go time. Stanko (the Stand) was the guy I was keeping an eye on and ready for his early move if it happened. This turned out to be good because heading up the hill into the bell lap, Dana sprinted hard thinking this was the last lap. I was ready for an attack and jumped hard to get on Stanko’s wheel when he followed Dana. These were some serious fireworks and this effort took its toll on the field. Dana sat up realizing we still had another lap and I was ready for a swarm, but it never happened since everyone was now tired. I ended up in 4th wheel an was waiting for anyone to come around with Stanko in front of me 2nd wheel. I do not recall who was on the front and think it was Thirsty Bear. Not for long, because Matt Adams came out of nowhere to take the front through turn 3 and I was in great position. Stanko and I were still in positions 2 and 4 coming out of the final turn and Stanko hit it. He put in a great early sprint and I was chasing him. He had a couple of bike lengths and I was holding the distance as we crested the steepest part of the finish hill. It was still a long way to go and I throttled back a bit keeping the same distance and then put in a final effort. Stanko seemed to be doing the same thing and I was not losing ground, but not closing in either. About 20 meters from the line I saw a red and black Specialized kit coming up on my right. Oh, hell no! I upshifted and gritted my teeth to hold second.
Congratulations to Stanko and the STAND. That is the most I have seen Stanko sit in in a crit and it paid off at the end. Super fun race and very thankful for all of my teammates and the fun day we had racing and with beers and tacos. See you next year Santa Cruz and we will be on the top step!
Smart Tactics Claim Funke 2nd Place
Race Report Santa Cruz Classic Criterium
Masters 45+ 1/2/3
Teammate: Matthew "Magpie" Sloan @mosloan
Sunday 8AM text conversation with coach @danawilliams26(artistic license applied):
Me: Coach, I'm laying in bed here in SC, I coughed up a lung last night.
Coach: you still have another one, right?
Me: I guess so. did I mention I didn't sleep, either?
Coach: no problem, go race - as a reward I'll remove the ridiculously hard intervals from tomorrow's training plan...
Me: ok...thanks?
Plan: Maggie and I had planned earlier in the week to be active and try to get into breaks, as we know we are among the strongest riders in the 45+. Of course this all went to hell being sick and all, so Mags offered to go "active" and get into moves and I would sit in and "see what happens". On a good day, this is a good finish for me, so I believe this was the best plan.
Race: As you probably know, "sitting in" isn't as easy on this course as others, and about 15 min in I was thinking about quitting as my lungs were really hurting. Maggie was in all kinds of breaks and even instigated a couple. Peet's was reacting to his attacks, so clearly Mags has arrived on the scene as he is getting the respect he deserves. I kept moving up and doing the least amount work possible - in fact I think the only person that may have done as little was Laberge, who I didn't see until about 10 to go. Peet's seemed content to chase things down and didn't work too hard to force a break - Phipps and Theobold tried a few moves but nothing got very far. I saw Matthew at around 10 to go and told him I wasn't feeling it (I really wasn't, I swear) and I didn't feel like I had anything to offer him.
At around 5 to go Dean shows up and I decide to just mark him for the rest of the race. I had a "fun" time fending off Nadel and Salzman and a few others for his wheel, but I was pretty tenacious and somehow forgot about my illnes for a bit. At 2 to go Dean was still pretty far back, but I know he knows how to time it so I waited with him. On 1 to go we were STILL like 15-20 back and I was a little worried I'd screwed up. On the backstretch Peets started ramping up the pace and Mags was perfectly positioned behind them. Someone opened up a gap (Nadel, I think) a few spots ahead of Dean - about 5 or 6 guys were clear (including Mags). They were still clear by about 30M going through the last corner. Laberge jumps before the corner around a bunch of guys and I'm pretty much on him. As he starts hauling down riders from the front guys he hits it again and I can't really stay with him, so I just put my head down and try to keep him as close as possible. Approaching the finish he overtakes the last of his teammates, Chris Ott, and I see that I can catch him so I dig a little deeper and get him at the line. Really impressive sprint by Dean, first closing the gap then sprinting for the win. I think the only possible scenario I could have beaten him was if I had been on the front end of that gap with good legs (and lungs) and gotten a little head start on him...
Matthew did well to finish 5th and beat some strong-ass dudes while being pretty active during the race.
I believe it is a testament to my coach that I could still get 2nd yesterday - my fitness has been really good and FTP is (or was) higher than it's ever been. Thanks Coach! @achieveptc.com
Probably not the best post-race recovery, but I took the kids to the Boardwalk for 3 hours afterwards (because I promised, that's why) where it promptly started raining...
I'm home sick today. Just coughed up my 2nd lung...
Seaside Bay View CR #3 (E4)
Land Park Crit (E4)
In the photo: Jungho Kim
With a nearly 40-strong field including several heavy hitters in it and only Danny, Tony and Jungho at the Land Park Criterium, our options were limited. The stated goal was to set up Jungho up for a field sprint with the exact plan to be determined during the race after we could evaluate how the blustery wind would affect the proceedings...
2016 Chico Stage Race - Paskenta Road Race
images: Alex Chiu
It’s noon Saturday, and the team is circled around the Sienna with anxious anticipation and excitement for the Stage 2 Road Race. The day before had been a disappointment, with Colin getting taken down hard by a crashed rider in the sprint from near-perfect position for a strong finish, after the efforts of the rest of the team to get him there in the last lap. While he was pretty bruised up and nursing some road rash, he was kitted up in his fresh Capo stars’n’stripes skinsuit and ready to go, having been at the venue since the crack of dawn to support his girlfriend’s early morning race.
The mood was tense – we’d done well at Chico before, but this year was a bigger, stronger field than ever before, and we’d have our work cut out for us. The plan was to hope for the windiest conditions possible, using our numbers and our course knowledge to outsmart and outride the competition, hopefully stacking a break that would stick to the line from halfway into lap one or halfway into lap two.
The start of the race was mellow, with a few of the guys following early moves just to make sure we were represented. A small group (maybe 5?) got a threatening advantage with just a few miles to go to the gravel run-up, but H24/Marc Pro seemed to have no trouble chasing it down. In fact, that would become a theme of the day – on every section but the gravel, it seemed like H24 was content to sit on the front or chase, like it was training camp v2.
The gravel came, and Mike’s had all our riders in good position, although it was hard to tell exactly who was up front when the attacks started to fly about a mile before the gravel. The lead-in to the 4-mile gravel section is on the crappiest road imaginable, full of potholes, loose filling, and general cause for mayhem. I (Colin) managed to sneak up the right side on the slight downhill within site of the gravel, entering it in the first few wheels alongside Will Routely of Rally. Being a mountain biker, I thought I was pretty good at this gravel thing, but I found it hard to stick with the front few guys. It was like I was pushing as hard as I could, but only getting 80% of the power to my legs/wheels. I think it was the impact of the crash from the day before, but it felt like I was stuck in sand for the entire thing.
I dangled on the back of the lead group of ~30 guys, but made it through fine and was glad for a brief respite through the feed zone. I then made my way to the front once again, preparing for an onslaught of attacks into the flat, straight, cross-windy section that has been the defining factor on course the past two years. It looked like most of our team was there at the front, ready to make something happen. Unfortunately for our planned tactics, the wind never materialized into anything decisive, and the group (still 60-70 strong) rode pretty much together until the next lap, with only a bit of mayhem for the points sprint mid-race, where all but a few hopefuls seemed content to let Sean Bennett stay in Green.
The second time through the gravel was much like the first, but it whittled the front group down to maybe 40-45 guys. Again, I snuck up with only a couple hundred meters to spare, entering the gravel on the front and again trying to ride like the mountain biker I am. This time through hurt even worse. and I wasn’t even CLOSE to my average power of years past. In fact, this was possibly my lowest average (+normalized) power race ever… Why was I hurting so much?! But I persevered, exiting the gravel about 25 wheels back, and clawing my way onto the back of the group. This time, there was no respite in the feed zone, just a few solemn words of encouragement, ‘Come on, Daw’ from none other than Justin Rossi as we both tried to hang onto the raging attacks from the front of the pack. In the next few km’s, more attacks flew, and I thought the race would split apart then. However, everything got brought back, and once again, a surprising lack of attacks through the usually-decisive crosswind section meant that I could recuperate a bit and focus on how I was going to sprint for the win.
At one point, with maybe 40 minutes left to race, our teammate Adam Switters got off the front solo, and the group was content to sit up and let him get some space. In fact, he got almost a minute on us before a couple of teams decided to sit on the front and bring him back before the right turn into the final ~15km to keep him from being a threat. The last 10km were surprisingly non-decisive, and the last 3-4km saw Rally assume the front to lead out Huff. At this point, I had Cam, Reese, and Roman there riding me right up to the side of the Rally train, and with 1km to go we expected it to get hard. However, Rally never really picked up the pace, and we were left wondering who would go first.
The first onslaught of sprint hopefuls jumped before 500m to go, on the second-to-last rise, so I yelled at Roman to accelerate. He did, and the Optum train responded as well. The rest is a blur, but I remember some early fliers from behind us getting quite a gap, while the eventual podium finishers rode those wheels to perfection. I was left to open up my effort at the bottom of the last rise, at least 250m from the line and with 10-12 riders ahead of me. I cranked up the rise with jello legs, passed a few guys on the long false-flat drag to the line for an 8th place finish. I was OK with it, considering the 38mph crash the day before, but it was not the redemption I was looking for after last year’s close 2nd place finish. In hindsight, 6 of the 7 guys ahead of me were pros, and I should be pleased with such a finish, but coming off such a great year for the team in 2015, we’re all hungry for wins!
We ate a big dinner in downtown Chico, debriefing the race, sharing war stories from the gravel, and getting ready for a hard TT the next morning. We were all excited to see what Cam Piper, our new teammate and solid GC contender could do with his #aeroiseverything setup, and a few of us were looking to stay in contention for a strong overall finish.
