14-15 Jul Kalamazoo Weekend

Hot and dry in the Midwest this summer. This Australian
sculpture by Orest Keywan says it all.

After a week precariously perched on the edge of good health, the sweltering temperatures of the Morton Community Cycling Classic tipped the scales a touch too far in the wrong direction. So, I spent most of the following week doing battle with a bug that thought quite differently than I about how I should be spending my time. Subsequently, I did some hardcore horizontal planks for several consecutive days. And despite taking time off the bike to rest up and recover, I was careful to add some core workouts into my schedule. I can confirm that violent coughing attacks truly are effective ab exercise—although I now admit that perhaps I approached these sessions with a bit too much enthusiasm, coming away with a strained trapezius muscle after one particularly challenging “workout.”  

As the cloud in my head began to clear, the coughing subsided and my overworked abs recovered, Lami and I decided to head east to Southwest Michigan in search on some cooler temps. We spent the weekend racing in Kalamazoo, not far from Lami’s hometown of Holland, MI. En route, we encountered long unseen and much needed rains, promising a reprieve from the heat.

Saturday morning, we ventured out to the Western Michigan University campus for the 7^th Annual Miller Energy Criterium put on by the Kalamazoo Bicycle Club. So far, every race I’ve done in Southwest Michigan has had exciting courses, fabulous organization, impressive sponsorship, great prize money and excellent racing. The Miller Energy Crit was no exception. A decent-sized women’s field with several teams present ensured an exciting race. I took the opportunity to test my health, and my fitness, by doing some prime hunting, and making good progress clearing out my congested sinuses in the process. I was very happy to find my energy levels returning and finished pleased with the race having collected several primes and a second place finish, and, more importantly, feeling heaps better and on my way back to healthy.



Road race podium

Sunday we tackled the 2^nd Annual Maple Hill Race for Wishes road race in Lawton, MI, just west of K-zoo. The race was held on a 13-mile circuit with lovely quiet roads and a sprinkling of rolling hills. The women’s race took in 4 laps of the circuit and offered a perfect opportunity to further clear out my system and get in a good hard road ride. One exciting aspect of the race was the charity it supports. The Make-A-Wish Foundation of Michigan grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy. As part of the award for winning the race I received a wonderful plaque featuring a drawing done by one of the Make-A-Wish children. Any Midwest riders looking for an excellent road race to add into their plans for next summer, this is definitely a great one to put on your race calendar. Big thanks to K-zoo Bicycle Club and Midwest Charity Racing for an excellent weekend.

Race for Wishes winner's plaque:
'My wish came true, I hope yours does too.'

7 Jul Morton Criterium

Two races and two wins—that was the tally for me on Saturday at the Morton Community Bank Cycling Classic in Morton Illinois. The race is big event for Lami’s team, Mack Racing. Clearly the excellent Team Mack dinner on Friday night, put on by Steve and Gina Driscoll, was perfect race preparation.

The day started miserably hot and never varied all day. Mid-morning, temps were already approaching 105 (40 C). Attracted by the opportunity to race with my favorite Macker John Fleckenstein, I decided to double up and do two races back-to-back. I started with the Masters 50+ (women are allowed to race in categories up to 20 years older), lining up alongside Mack riders John, Frank Brummer and head Macker Gary Doering. Did I mention that it was hot?

Approaching the finish line with lots of breathing room.

My plan was to have a conservative race, sit in and get my legs going before the women’s race, immediately to follow. The race started amiably with the guys setting a comfortable clip around the oblong 4-corner course. Soon Scarlet Fire rider Mark Sills put in an attack that saw no response from the field. He disappeared out of site over several laps, but it was far too hot to survive solo for the remaining 30 min of the race—without considerable suffering that is. Mack riders kept the break in check, and before long he was absorbed back into the field. As the pace slowed and the field accordianed upon itself, I braced for the counter attack. When no one went, I couldn’t restrain myself and exploded out of the bunch. A good 10-20 seconds later I came to my senses and slowed my pace to await the peloton. As I was gathered up by the group, Gary came alongside me and said, ‘prime lap.’ I took off again, this time with a bit more conviction, determined to grab the prime. Mission accomplished, I once again settled back into the group. As we entered into the last few laps of the race, John came to the front to drive the pace. I knew that John wasn’t feeling well so, to take some pressure off, I attacked with 2 to go to force someone else to do the work on the front. When I still had a good gap with 1 to go, I dug deep, knowing that I would need to put in a big effort to stay away. Gary Dyer (Michelob Ultra – Big Shark Racing) led the charge behind me for second with Macker Gary third.

Early in the women's race with a very large ice sock
on my back.

Having put in WAY more effort than I had anticipated, I finished the race a bit on the warm side. I had about 10 min to change my number, grab some new water bottles and stuff my pockets full of ice in attempt to cool off for the next race, the Women’s Open. Most of the race I really just tried to cool down and recollect myself. Did I mention it was hot? Absolutely ridiculously hot. I attempted a couple of attacks, but found that I had used up my legs for the day so was resigned to just sit in for the sprint. Somehow I took the win, but I have to give credit to my PSIMET wheels since my legs didn’t seem to have anything left to contribute.

Thanks to Proctor Cycling Club for all their awesome efforts to put on an excellent and well run race and the many wonderful officials and volunteers who endured the miserable heat to make the event possible. Thanks also to Steve Driscoll for his gargantuan efforts to make the race possible, and to Steve and his wife Gina for a fabulous pre-race dinner. Paul Schilling, Jane Ore and Brian Grant all did a great job helping me between races. And of course, huge thanks to my sponsors Rob Curtis at PSIMET Wheels and Wayne Simon at ENZO’s Buttonhole. Chicagoland is fortunate to be home to these two outstanding entrepreneurs making waves in the cycling world.

21 Jun-1 Jul ToAD

Green Jersey podium at Tour of America's Dariyland.

Eleven straight days of racing spanning ten cities sprinkled throughout southeast Wisconsin—that was the 2012 edition of the Tour of America’s Dairyland. The series comprised two road races and nine criteriums in an omnium format, with the last four days of racing part of the National Criterium Calendar, guaranteeing fresh legs and top riders joining in on the series in the later days.

One of many mammoth cheese wheel awarded at ToAD.

Presented by Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board, the series boasted on day 11 having given away over 13,000 cartons of chocolate milk and more than $135,000 in cash and primes, numerous mammoth wheels of cheese and tens of thousands of coffee beans.

Call up in Stage 2 for my aggressive
riding in Stage 1 at Shorewood.

The series is among the best in the country, drawing America’s top women’s teams and most talented criterium riders. I knew going in that 11 days was going to be a big challenge for my body given my lack of solid base training—and the oppressive heat added to the challenge. The last 5 days of the series we were drown in suffocating humidity with temps topping 95 (35 C).  Ugh.

Damage to my front wheel after crashing in Stage 2.

I started the series with a bit of bad luck, crashing in Stage 2 with only 2 laps to go in the race. I came away uninjured, but impact with the curb destroyed my front wheel and gave me last place on the day. Determined, I fought back with some decent results over the next few days to put me in the Oarsman Top Amateur Rider Green Jersey. I faded in the latter stages though, as my body decided it had had enough and started to rebel with a notable degree of enthusiasm.  

Scotti Wilborne (Mellow Mushroom) and me with our new
wheelsets from Mercury Wheels

The last race of the series was the most exciting for me, with Scotti Whilborne (Mellow Mushroom), in close contention for the Green Jersey, escaping early in the race in a 6-rider break. My efforts to join the break were unsuccessful and by the end only 3 riders remained clear as the grueling heat took its toll. All stakes on the finish, and in the points count on the line I finished well enough to hold on to the jersey with Scotti finishing only 3 points behind in second and Katie Spittlehouse (Nova ISCorp) third. The biggest surprise for me and Scotti was Mercury Cycling's awesome sponsorship of a set of their top carbon wheels to the top two Cat 2 finishers. Wow!

Overall Podium: Emily Collins (Vanderkitten), Laura Van Gilder
(Mellow Mushroom) and Nicole Whitburn (VeloClub LeGrange).

Amazing riding by Mellow Mushroom/Rose Bandit Racing saw a Mellow Mushroom rider on the podium every day of the series with eventual overall leader Laura Van Gilder standing on the top step in 8 of the 11 races. Amazing. Super talented Kiwi rider Emily Collins (Vanderkitten Focus) rode with impressive consistency to finish second overall while Aussie Nicole Whitburn (VeloClub LeGrange) took third.

Thanks to the Midwest Cycling Series for a gargantuan effort in putting on an incredible series and the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board for keeping us supplied with chocolate milk, and especially Don Becker of Becker Law for his generous sponsorship of the women’s series and Oarsman Capitol for making possible the Cat 2 Jersey. Huge thank yous also to my awesome sponsors Rob Curtis at PSIMET Wheels and Wayne Simon at ENZO’s Buttonhole, Brain Grant and Paul Schilling at Mack Racing for keeping both me and my bike functioning, and to John Fleckenstein for being an amazing host and incredible friend and to whom I am indebted for my green jersey win.