Minneapolis uptown crit

Written by Holly Breck Minneapolis uptown crit, where shall I began. This course compared to the first crit course was a lot safer, more flowing, lined up well cornered course. Yet all the racers where still just as excited and ready to go as ever from the day before the stage got cancelled do to a tornado watch and incredible crazy storm. Do to the pretty good crash on day one stage two my bike was thrashed. Rear wheel was toast (though come to find out now, after running my front wheel the whole time, it has a quarter size hole in it so both are toast.) my derailer hanger broken and my bars and hoods all twisted and mangled. Jake and I went to bike shops found some parts and from the help of the shimano support people where able to get my bike back on track just 30 minutes before start time. Man did we feel like chickens running around with our heads chopped off or at least I know I did. Sitting on the start line my heart was pounding, arms where shaking, legs where twitching and it was all that I could do to not yawn on the start line. As they called people up and said the national anthum, I said my prayers one last time and they fired the gun and we where off. It started off pretty fast and aggressive. Most part everyone was riding alright but you could tell people where getting excited. We were 9 laps in and had just finished a sprint lap. I was sitting near the front, thinking it would be safer to be towards the front more. As we came hauling through the start/finish line all of a sudden I see people slidding and bikes flying. Im skidding trying to dodge bikes and people. All of a sudden two bikes just come flopping right down in front of me. All I can think of at this point is not again!!! My front wheel just stops. I got over the bars but when I came down it was soft. I ended up landing on someone. Λ (oops) I heard “get off of me!!” and a push as I was trying to get up. The person I landed on was ok, which I was definitely happy for, I was ok and so was my bike. It took out close to 20-25 riders this crash and some got wind knocked out of them, heads banged up and definite road rash. The race was neutralized until the road way was clear. Once again I sat just behind the starting line shaking like a leaf, took a deep breath and was off once again. We were suppose to have a neutral lap to make sure the road was clear but as soon as we crossed the start/ finish line it was full gas. This time around I say my teammate jenny and knew she’d be a nice SAFE wheel to be with. I was with her for a while but she did this crazy ninja move through the field and I lost her in the pack. Then I found Melina and was with her then found Amber for a while, but with the laps counting down the attacks and moves were getting faster and faster. No matter how hard I tried I kept going backwards. Now with about 3 laps to go I found myself on the back of the pack. No one else behind me I tried so hard to stay with the group. I say the two laps to go sign and the group was getting smaller and my gap in front of me to the back of the pack was getting bigger and bigger. I just kept pedaling as I heard the screams from people “come on catch them, there right there!!!” so I pushed through but never caught back on. Lost some time but glad I wasn’t in any other crashes after that. My teammates are incredible. All finishing with the pack and making it through to the next day. Many sketchy moves where made, one major and multiple minor crashes throughout the race where done and I was just glad to be leaving on my bike and not on a stretcher. It was a successful day.

Stillwater Criterium (the final stage of NVGP)

Written by Julie Cutts The last crit seemed to be the hardest physically and mentally for our team. This could be expected at stage 6 of a tour, especially for our team, with so little experience at such grand events. For myself, I had a hard time pulling myself together to even get on the bike. I was worried about more crashes, as there had been so many during this race. There were two downhill corners that already had the ambulance busy due to the previous men's recreational race, and since 3 of our girls had already been fighting the pain of previous crashes, I think our safety was on all of our minds. I felt as I had let the team down as it seemed the whole week I was just trying to not get dropped in each stage, and stay safe. I felt I was not a real asset to the team, as I know I could be, if my thoughts weren't so out of control. Physically I wasn't even sure I could climb the hill each lap without falling over from lack of momentum, I was really tired from the previous stage, so I doubted everything. Fortunately, this is where the amazing team support comes in. Here I was, uninjured but tired, being encouraged by women who had serious injuries and still continued to race. They not only focused on themselves, but also on me as a teammate. For this I am grateful as it taught me what it was to be a good teammate. From the start I was dropped, as I thought would happen, and in my mind I was just thinking about completing as much of the race as I could to not get time cut and to get a finish time for G.C. I couldn't even think about trying to help the other girls because I was so consumed by self doubt. This is embarrassing to admit, but I do so, because it is real and true. I was sooooo proud of the other girls. They overcame so much at each race, and to pull themselves together and get out there and really compete, my heart and soul was with them each time they did a lap. I was pulled with the minimum laps required, so I cheered away. Amber, Melina, Jenny and Holly were so strong. They all raced so hard and smart, especially at this stage. This race was amazing to watch. There was a break halfway through the race that had a 45 second lead. Right before the big hill, she dropped her chain in front of the mechanic tent and after much trying by the mechanics to fix her bike, she was given a loaner and soon after she took off, she was swallowed by the pack, it must have been heart breaking for her. Soon after she was caught, there was another solo break that ended up sticking the whole race. Following the break were small packs of racers trying their hardest to catch the break and hang on to the pack. I saw Jenny and Amber working together for awhile. I saw Melina fighting her pain as she knew she had to climb the hill yet again. And Holly, she was fighting tooth and nail too. I tried to yell as loud as I could to support them, they were all winners. With tears in my eyes, I wanted to still be there, I wanted to be good enough to help, I wanted to be with them. As each lap was completed, one more of our girls were pulled. The officials did say that they would pull riders aggressively, and they did. I am not sure how many of the racers were actually allowed to race the whole circuit, but it seemed like 75% of the field were pulled before the finish. And at the end of it all, we came together as a team, with so many different experiences, both on and off the race courses. Some experiences funny, some serious. All held together by a bond called a team. Thanks to SC Velo - Empower Coaching for letting me be a part of that team!

Race Report: Menomonie Road Race (Stage 5, NVGP) 6/16/2012

Written by Amber Gaffney The morning started out gloomy in Minneapolis and grew progressively more ominous as we drove in the van toward Wisconsin. By the time we took our positions on the start line of the Menomonie Road Race course in the town of Menomonie, the rain had started. The announcer, in all of his wittiness, made jokes about not being able to feel the rain as it started to pound down upon us. At this point, every woman on that start line wanted the race to start to not prolong our time on the course. I very quickly moved to the back of the field as the circuit started- I wanted to make sure that my brakes were good and wet before I actually needed them. I gave everyone a great deal of room and I am glad that I did, because a rider went down on my right on the second turn of the course- her bike merely slid from beneath her on the slick road. We eventually finished the neutral start and began to meander our way through the rolling hills and lush fields of Wisconsin. The rain soon stopped and the sun shone through, not able to dry us in the thick and muggy air. When the roads started to dry, the pace picked up a bit and I worked to stay in mid pack, keeping both Melina and Jenny in my sight who both worked hard to keep me safe and with the field. After the first QOH, I realized that a position in the mid-back of the field was ridiculous and I forced myself to move up. I always slid to the back on descents and worked to chase a bit, but I found myself near the front on every climb and when a few flyers went up the road, I took my turn taking a few pulls (although Optum, working to keep Small in the yellow jersey, really controlled the field). The second QOH was steep! As I passed women starting to weave, I looked over and saw Jenny climbing up the hill- not sure what happened in South America in the last few months, but Jenny found some climbing legs! On every descent, I slipped to the back of the field that was becoming ever smaller with each QOH (which happened to be the few times on the course where I felt comfortable and moved to the front!). Jenny and I stayed close to one another, a few times working together to catch back on when I started to slip off of the back after a descent. The second QOH was the last time I saw Melina and I hadn’t seen Holly in a very long time (before I lost track of Melina, she informed me that Holly had flatted and I later learned that Holly spent nearly 70 miles chasing the field). Julie worked to come to the front a few times and when she did, I stayed on her wheel. I lost track of Julie somewhere before the last QOH, but Jenny and I were still together- Jenny expertly sitting in the field and conserving energy, me moving up to the front on climbs and moving to the back on descents. When we entered the circuit, I have to admit that I was surprised- I expected the race to feel longer. It was only now that the top riders decided to kick the remaining of the field into higher speeds. Sadly, I felt uncomfortable on the circuit, thinking that it could still be wet; and (not wisely), I sat on the back of the group. Another rider who could not hold on soon gapped me out and when I tried to get around her to chase, the group was gone! I found myself alone, chasing. I have to admit, I like this feeling. I know that it is awful, but I like hard work on my own and not having to worry about jostling in a crowd. I soon caught a Rouse rider and I jumped in front of her, letting her know that I wanted to work with her. We each took hard pulls and soon caught others who had fallen off of the main pack. Some of these riders stayed with us, holding our wheels as we pulled them and some fell off. Eventually, I saw Jenny up ahead and I jumped on her wheel. Our group became slightly larger as we finished the circuit. When the finish came into sight, a few riders from our group dug in and sprinted while I stayed in the saddle, accepting my finish which was a little over a minute behind the leader. Moral of the story: “Amber, grow up, be a real woman and race your bike even if you are uncomfortable with the road conditions”. It doesn’t pay to ride in a state of nervousness- you just finish slower than you should finish. Jenny and I finished the race; Julie was a little behind us, and Melina and Holly were pulled just before the circuit. No crashes for our team, but I do think that we could have benefitted from me taking a chance and daring to actually race my bike in the final laps. I’ll also note, that our fantastic support was in the feed zone, expertly handing out bottles to the team (I of course, had no idea that I was in the feed zone and didn’t need a feed even when Melina offered to grab me one)- thanks Jacob!

Race Report for Stage 2 Nature Valley Grand Prix

Written by Melina Bernecker With the legs nice and warmed up from the mornings Time Trial (Stage 1) the criterium took place in downtown St Paul. Surrounded by beautiful old buildings the 1 mile loop zig zag’ed its way around the old market square. The 28 lap race consisted of 5 corners and relatively narrow streets getting a good starting position was vital, as we warmed up on the course the girls began staging at least 45 minutes before the race start time. Finally we were called to stage and the formalities began with the top 5 riders being called up as well as several national criterium champions. As we pulled up to the start line we received our instructions and stood quietly to the national anthem. The nervous energy was building as all 95 competitors waited for the gun. As we raced towards the first corner the pace was fast from the get go, jostling for position the girls dived into corners to make up places and rode very aggressively making for a dangerous race. A few of the girls tried attacking and riding off the front but nothing seemed to really stick until Loren Rowney (Lululemon) managed to get a 7 second break in the last 12 or so laps of the race and managed to stay away for a few laps before the Optimum girls reeled her back in. As the pace increased in the straights and then would dramatically drop in the corners the last 6 or so laps of the race were crazy with riders taking unnecessary and dangerous risks by chopping wheels changing lines mid corner and generally just pushing and shoving, Having just 4 laps to go Melina Bernecker who was riding up the front with Jenny Rios (our designated sprinter) dropped back slightly to find Amber Gaffney (currently placed 9th on GC) to bring her to the front for the finish. Coming out of turn 1 a young TIBCO girls squeezed Melina to the fence and tangles handlebars causing a big crash, Amber who was now on Melina’s wheel and Holly Breck behind Amber also came crashing down. The total pile up included about 10 girls of whom most were ok and got back up to chase the pack. Amber got straight back up and started to chase also on the officials instructions, Holly was hurt having landed on her head also had a broken rear derailler and wheel, Melina was also hurt having landed on her tail bone with lots of load rash and both were unable to race the remaining three laps. Julie Cutts was a few places behind the crash and managed to avoid coming down but lost time to the front group due to the delay. Theresa Cliff Ryan (Exergy 21) won the sprint to the finish with Leah Kirchmann and Carman Small (Optimum) hot on her heels. Jenny Rios finished in 19th place with Melina Bernecker, Holly Breck and Amber Gaffney all receiving pro rated times to finish in the pack 7 seconds behind the winner in 50, 51 & 54th place and Julie Cutts in 65th place (51 seconds back). Following the race Amber Gaffney was treated for a joint separation in her right shoulder (having chased the group and finished the race!!! Holly Breck had a mild concussion and Melina Bernecker a severely bruised tail bone. We dragged our sorry and sore bodies to the nearest restaurant that would take us to wallow in pizza and pasta… as Frederich Nietzsche once said “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” so we will go on to battle stage 3.

Race Report for Stage 1 Nature Valley Grand Prix

Written by Jenny Rios Arriving at the Saint Paul River Front Time Trial we were all very nervous. The big pro teams had set up their tents in the team parking area and were sitting on their trainers pedaling furiously. Out team manager Jacob Crummy had registered us the previous day and was helping each of us get ready to warm up (as none of us had trainers) along the river front. We were give the opportunity to warm up on the TT course for a little while before the start which was helpful in familiarization however out little team had ridden it the day before to make sure we knew the route. The TT consisted of a 7.7 mile (12.4km) slightly undulating out and back course along Mississippi River Blvd. in Saint Paul. With a start time of 8.30am for the TT our first team member was Julie Cutts, being a good time trialist, Julie hit the course hard with a time of 18.49.7 placing her in 29th position on GC. Amber Gaffney was next and also an exceptional time trialist she smashed the course to finish 10th on GC in a time of 18.00.9. following Amber was Melina Bernecker(56th),then Jenny Rios (50th) and finally Holly Breck (65th). All the SC Velo - Empower Coaching girls put in a solid effort finishing well under 20 minutes in a field of 95 women including some of Americas best female cyclist. The TT was won by Carmen Small (Optum) in a time of 17.30.4 second was Jackie Crowell (EXERGY 21) and third was Amber Neben (Specialized-Lululemon). Amber Gaffney placed 10th and 2nd in the Cat 2 Amateur Lead Jersey Competition. Heading home to rest up for stage 2 that evening we all felt reasonably happy with our efforts and were looking forward to the criterium and getting Amber the Cat 2 yellow Jersey.

Southern California road championship

Race Report: SCNCA District Championship Road Race (W1-3) June 3, 2012 After what seemed to be an eternity of waiting, we were allowed to line up for the SCNCA Championship road race. Ruth finished the 45+ race with an amazing win, we had a quick pre-race meeting, staged and waited, and then finally we were off (us SC Velo/Empower women wearing our new kits from Champion Systems and looking pretty spiffy). This course is similar to Vlees Huis, minus ten miles and one climb (I did try to talk the officials into a third lap to give us more miles, but I think that I was in the minority with this desire in the Bakersfield heat). The pace started off very slowly- I felt as if the other teams and solo riders looked to us to make a move, and our moves eventually started. Holly launched our first attack and had soon created a sizeable gap on the field. I noticed that the other riders at the front at first felt confident that it was one of our sprinters off the front in a road race, but Holly used this to her advantage and increased her gap on descents. Eventually, the field, lead by Helens and La Grange and a strong solo rider got nervous and picked up the pace. Lisa and I sat comfortably second and third wheels, doing little work and listening to the others breathing hard in their effort to catch Holly as we traversed the rollers of the first lap. As the field slowly crept up on Holly, I wondered if I should make the next move, but I’m learning patience and I watched as PC positioned herself for the next attack after the turn around. As PC began to launch herself to counter Holly’s long effort, a Cynergy rider did the same, and together the two created a nice gap very quickly. Once again, the field seemed confident in their ability to reel in a sprinter, until the motorbike ref informed us that the gap was one minute. Nearing the end of the first lap, the field picked it up, with Helens, La Grange, and the solo rider working hard. Lisa calmly reminded me to sit in, and I did. We entered the feed zone, and as I successfully grabbed a water bottle from Jacob (many thanks to Jacob and Tammy for the cold water!), Helens and the solo rider picked it up right before the start/finish turn around. I did not know this at the time, but we lost Lisa due to mechanical around this point. Holly and I tried to stay near the front and out of the disorderly paceline’s way as the field started working hard on the flats to catch PC and the Cynergy rider. They rotated through the flats and rollers and Holly and I tried to keep good position. On the few descents, the field was a little sketchy- lots of breaking. A few times, on the rollers, I thought that we might catch PC and Cynergy, but not yet. We made the left hand turn, descended, and then started climbing. Finally, the field had PC and Cynergy within grasp. I slyly (yes, I can by sly occasionally), shifted up to the big ring and positioned myself third wheel. Just before we caught PC and Cynergy with about 15 miles to go, I attacked hard. As I passed PC, I noticed that she looked both exhausted and pleased (pleased to finally be off the front, perhaps- but probably more pleased to see her effort wasn’t in vain!) Nearing the top of this climb, I looked behind me and realized I was alone. Now, if you know me, you will not believe this, but I actually descended quickly by myself. I used every climb as a chance to increase my gap. At the turn around I punched it and when I passed the field, Ruth yelled “GO!” and I did my best to oblige. I watched my numbers and climbed at a pace that was just above my comfort level. The motorbike referee told me that my gap was 44 seconds. Not good enough, so I worked harder. I punched the climbs and worked even harder on the descents, always telling myself that the field was just behind me (I couldn't see them but I felt their presence). I knew that if I were caught we would be off the podium. My team had worked too hard to create this opportunity and they were now exhausted. I owed all of their hard work a hard effort to keep my gap. As I descended I passed Cat 3 men and yelled to them (see, I can descend- I even passed people!) When I hit the flats I practiced my time trialing and made sure to keep my pace strong but not too strong as to avoid blowing up. My mouth was dry and I alternated water with GU brew (lime- my favorite!) and pushed my pace, not looking back. The motorbike official informed me that my gap was 1:05, comfortable, but with six miles to go I also knew that I could not slack. I continued my time trailing practice and eventually I saw the last climb in the distance. I knew that I had clinched the win when I hit the feed zone and Tammy told me I was in the clear. I switched down to the small ring and had a little break. I crossed the line alone but I was there due to the hard efforts of the team. Ruth’s strategizing on the course, Lisa’s calmness and command of the field, and Holly and PC’s attacks gave us the win. A nice and warm day in Bakersfield!