Submitted by Todd Gallaher

Race Results

Looks like everyone went home happy after a day of fun in the mud, endos and sprint finishes were the order of the day - soft landings and big belly laughs, followed by oohs and aahs. The racing was fun, the party was great, all in all one smooth event.

Messmann turned in a solid performance after a brilliant endo, then held on for the win. Wow that looked like it hurt. Never seen MM ride so fast, must have been the SCREAMING we were doing to urge him on. Seth’s surfing in to the line and resulting crash then foot race for 3rd was freaking funny. Ouch, hope the boys are Ok.

Craig taco-ed a wheel then kept going for the win in the single speed cat, good warm up for nationals (we are sending a team!). Matt C went all the way with a heavy-ass bike, give that man a beer. Thanks for all the cool swag prizes, Cateye and Raleigh really came through.

Molly and Lara cranked out a good one in the Cat 4 women, I am sure they are just warming up for the season.

Rob and Kris did a good ride, keeping the hope alive, hell just finishing the event seemed like a tough ride. The Copper back was steep.

Bernie stayed on for a finish, even though he must have been knackered from the previous day's mega course building party (good job with the tape).

I was really dog tired after getting to bed at 1 am the night before after setting the course, and running on foot the entire thing at least twice. Decided to start last and pass as many as I could just to stay out of trouble and not break any more bones, ended up 5th.

Really enjoyed the course, lots of turns and twists, loose dirt and some sand here and there, sore as hell from hitting the copper back six times, I think I may have built a monster. Next year some more open trails, and some road to make it UCI distance.

Anthony and the crew did a bang up job on the burgers and beers, seemed like the whole thing went really well. Jeff and the parking gang did a great job getting everyone parked and keeping the masses out of the grass, the Hayden family did a strong turn at the front heading up the registration.

We made enough to send the team (Craig and I) to nationals in Kansas this December, and that was the goal all along. Now we can all take pride in a job well done, and know that WE made a difference this year. Not every team puts on such a fun event. If anything I would say that it will be remembered more for the fun than the racing.

If I left anyone out I apologize. You all did a great job and will reap the rewards for the next 12 months, then we do it all over again!

Race Results

Submitted by Todd Gallaher

Killer course, lots of action, the weather was perfect and the competion was hot. There was a black bear spotted crossing the road in the feed zone, must have needed a hand up. The rural setting is a perfect place for a bike race, I did a tour of the course during Brett's race and man it is so good to get out of the city now and again.

Took the team van (Goldie) out with my sole masters teammate Brett. Too bad he was in the C cat, and raced at 11. I was in the A's and didn't start till 2pm (hot). Brett held his own, but the hills kicked his 6'4" butt and sent him into the pain cave once too often, finished it up tough, way to go Brett.

I had the voracious barking dogs they call the Masters A's to contend with and the pack was stacked with talent. Recent Elkhorn CC stage winner and Irish tough guy Mick Walsh was hot to trot, the boys from Garage had the pack stacked, mega masher and state crit champ Rob Campbell was there to rock it too! I was feeling the previous seven races I have done in the last eight days and was looking for a easy cruise to a sprint finish. This was not to be.

Lap one, Excel got things started with Matt Hill's patented off the line attack, which only works once per year and not this time, but that did not stop him from trying it four more times in a row, ahh silly man... Then the race hit the big climb for the first time, and the dogs came out to play, sprinting up the hill with all I had the group split in two. I was in the second half, and had to dig deep to join the front runners over the decent, they were working had to free themselves of the pack fodder. As it turned out it got rid of half the pack!

As we started the second lap (of 5 1/2, finish on top of the hill) someone hit the gas hard, don't know who but I was warmed up and feeling frisky so I took a monster pull and away we went in a group of 7 with one of every big team represented it was looking good. We had one min by the top of the hill by lap two it had grown to 2:15 by three it was 3:30 and by lap four it was 5:30, now we realy were cooking here, no lollygaging around pure hammer fest with a dash of team time trial thrown in, to say we were flying would have been modest.

Last lap and the racing for the win began with a big attack from BRI on the hill and it looked like the guy was riding with a rocket up his butt, but we had the power and pulled him back before the bottom of the course, just as he was brought back I launched an attack with everything I had knowing the odds against Rob Campbell in the uphill sprint were not so good, (he is 40lb lighter). If it were flat I would have waited. But giving it 110% in the big ring up and over the "old feed hill" I opened up a gap, and hammered it hard, all the way to Longbranch where the break was now just three guys chasing hard. Too bad, now I had to sprint Rob, Mick and BRI-guy... Damm them little climber guys.

Up the hill for the finish we were four together and BRI-guy attacked hard at the bottom, Mick lead the chase and I stuck to Rob's wheel, as we hit the top with 200 meters to go Rob jumped hard and I went with him but my damm shorts got caught on the nose of my saddle and I was dragging butt all the way to the line, just barely beat Mick with a bike throw to take second place and man o' man was I spent, breathing like a fish out of water and about ready to black out from pain, I was not meant to sprint up steep hills and at 180lb gravity is not my best friend, gasping for air I had to go back to the line just to verify my place as I was in such a daze I really did not know what place I was in.

So ends my personal super week of racing, 1st in Oly, 5th in DesMoines, 1st in Burien, 1st Alpenrose challenge 3000m individual pursuit, 2nd in Redmond and 2nd in Longbranch, dont forget the Burien Pro race and the 4000m Pro pursuit at Alpenrose...8 races in 8 days, baby...Yes!

Now we rest it up and hit CCC in full flight, take it to the top!

Official Race Site

Submitted by Todd Gallaher

Big pack, lots of favorites, this was real deal. In short, I rode in the pack and then attacked super hard with 12 min left, countering an attack that had been brought back by Garage racing (they had 6 riders in the race) and BRI (five riders) Excel (five riders).

I could tell they were all a little spent and the race was winding down quickly, you sometimes get a sense of when everyone has been hammering along for awhile and its tough just sitting in that a kamakazi attack might just work, well it went pretty good, I gained 10 seconds in the first lap, and as I came by in the lead they put up 5 to go and I knew it was throw down time or go home.

Putting everything I had into it was hurting me bad, and with two guys chasing clear of the pack a few seconds I made my first error, I eased up and waved them up and onto my wheel thinking that three was better than one, boy was I wrong, they couldnt realy help much, and I did most of the pulling, in retrospect "I should have" just put my head down and hammered it in.

Things were looking good with three laps to go, but my breakaway partners were not willing to put it all on the line, possibly due to my win yesterday, in any case Garage was pulling with everone of its members at the front, (blocking guys?) I gambled on the teamates of my breakaway parters to do some blocking, mistake number two.

I put the hammer down hard entering two laps to go and got a good gap, but it was hurting me bad and my breathing was labored in part from the broken rib from the Ballard crash, I could feel the win from yesterday creeping into my leggs, but the two breakaway partners were not making any headway, I had to push through the pain, I doubted myself, and at this very second of self doubt, I lost the race, it caused me to slow down slightly and even though I know I can produce the power to stay away, I let the self doubt stop me from giving an extraordinary effort.

The pack was bearing down on me as my breakaway partners caught me crossing the line with the bell ringing one to go, Ok, get it together, you are still at the front, give it a good sprint, Ok, grab a wheel and set up for the last two corners, Ok clear the corners and give it all you got! To bad the guys in front of me smack into each other and one pulls his foot out, I head for the curb, and around and drive hard for the line, we finish within inches of each other, and I throw my bike hard for the line, I am 5th and about to vomit, that sucked realy hard, man the pain is making me sick, ride it out, get in some air, Whew!!!

Just another day at the office...

Official Race Site

Submitted by Molly Foster

Yesterday at the Capitol Crit two of our AVA/Counterbalance teammates added a little bling bling and the senior state crit champ title to their palmares. Yet again our upstart team had strong showings in every category raced and showed spectators, officials and racers alike how talent, team spirit and some wackiness can produce results and a lot of fun.

I had been looking forward to racing this crit all week, but snapping my stem bolt off riding home the night before and the ensuing close encounter with asphalt had cramped my racing confidence. I was not too disappointed relegating myself to team cheerleader as it's something I take immense pleasure in.

The weather turned out to be perfect and the Capitol building was a gorgeous background setting for the racing that swirled around in front. The course itself was very technical. I think there were a total of eight corners including a roundabout to negotiate and some rough pavement on the backstrech. The finishing straight was uphill and when it finally flattened around the first corner the racers had to battle with a stiff headwind.

Brett, Craig, Case and myself arrived in time to meet up with Anthony and see the last 10-15 minutes of Todd G's masters race. Race officials weren't pulling lapped riders until the final two laps so it took us a minute to realize that Todd was in the leading breakaway of two. They had at least 30 seconds on the chasers and in the final sprint Todd surged ahead of his competitor to claim the victory. All of us on the sidelines were so absorbed that unfortunately no one pulled out a camera to capture the winning shot.

Matt Case represented in the cat 5 race. He looked strong and comfortable throughout the grueling 40 minutes. Early on in the race a well-timed breakaway of two was instigated by our favorite coverall-wearing racer Brian, Case's coworker from Raleigh. Matt and two other riders chased the leaders, but the gap at times was up to 50 seconds and they were left to battle for third place. As the bell rang for the final lap Case counterattacked and was leading the chasers into the first turn but eventually got caught by one of the racers and crossed the line with a very respectable fourth place.

Craig and Brett raced next in the cat 4's. Both hung easily in the pack while various unsuccessful attacks were reeled in by the fast-charging group. There were two bad crashes during this race. Craig narrowly avoided mishap in the first one and had cuts in his shin from someone's chainring to show for it. As the clock wound down and there were only a few laps to go Craig made his move from mid-back of the pack to the front very quickly. By the final lap he and another racer had carved a slight advantage over the chasing pack. In the end Craig was able to wind up his sprint for the win and Brett battled it in the bunch sprint for 13th place.

Next we got to cheer on the viking Jeff and monkey boy Seth in the cat 3's. Their field was huge at 62 racers and very fast. They 3's had the fastest average lap times of the day so far and riders were constantly getting popped off the back. I think Money was feeling pretty demolished from the previous night's birthday revelry and he eventually dropped out and hung out with us on the sideline. Seth made it out until the end, eventually winning a $50 prime and taking a solid finish in the pack.

I think our antics (last-minute cardboard frame numbers duct-taped on, monkey dances on the sideline and offers of a "recovery drink" to dropped riders) made an amusing impression or at least showed that a down-to-earth approach to racing can still garner results.

I'm looking forward to next year's event.

Official Race Site

Submitted by Dan O'Brien

Swim (1:23:52) - The wind had kicked up and the temperature had dropped a bit overnight the swim course was cold and choppy. Conditions were such that the race organizers gave everyone the option of only doing the Bike and Run (2200 people started the race). At 0700 the gun went off and we were in the water - I unfortunately - positioned myself too far back in the crowd and was basically stuck in a "Traffic Jam" for much of what I can affectionally call a "combat swim". Triathlon swimming can be rough - IM C dA tops the list of my all time aggressive swims. Future Tip: In order to have a good swim time at C dA you will have to position yourself right at the front and go like heck for the first 800 M to escape the crowds ... or bring brass knuckles.

T1 (00:07:20) - very slow and cold - I took extra time pulling on knee warmers, a dry tri-top, bike jersey, bike shorts, arm warmers and socks (I hate being cold). Normally, I just strip out of my wetsuit put on a helmet jump on the bike and go.

Bike (02:35:00 at 56) - I jumped on the bike (finally) and set off - I had targeted anything above 250 watts for the flats/descents and anything less than 310 in the climbs (unless I was over 27 MPH - but I don't want to give all my IM race secrets away Smile ). From a "power" standpoint things were going well (i.e. I was able to hold my numbers while maintaining a reasonable HR) - in fact I was looking at a PR bike split. However, after a few miles my left knee started to bother me ... after 50 miles with steadily increasing knee pain I had to make a decision to continue and risk further injury or pull the plug when I hit 56 miles while looking at a possible PR time (it was a two loop course). Reluctantly, I decided to stop at 56 and race another day. I have had this issue with my knee in the past - last time it was a 6 week recovery process. I have a more races planned this summer and am confident I made the correct decision cutting the race short - not happy - but confident. It turned out Robin had made a similar decision at 56 (she had tweaked her back in the swim).

T2 - N/A

Run - N/A - However, it looked like a fast course - the times were off the hook.

T3 - Robin & I enjoyed a few margaritas, chips, solid food and laughed about the events that had transpired during the day.

See you all at the start line.

Dan

Official Race Site

Submitted by Todd Gallaher

Elkhorn is the longest hardest race there is on the schedual so I had to do it just to say I did, and it almost did me in.

Located in the most senic of valleys, and at an altitude of 4500' Baker City is a gold boom town gone bust. The entire town is turned out to make us feel welcome, we were front page news every day in the local paper.

The high school is race headquarters and the soft green exspance of grass that serves as the football ball practice feild was home for the tent camping crowd, locker rooms open for showers and hanging out, spagetti dinner served by the varsity girls volleyball team (best evesdroped comment "Rubicon is here, they have hot accents") and to top it all off the road race stages start there so you dont have to move a muscle untill the neutral roll out starts.

Friday, 82 miles, droping into the Hells Canyon (102 in the sun and 2000' elevation, do the math) out and back 41 miles each way. I took off after the race winner from 2006 attacked at mile one, bridged the gap and three of us rode up the road to a five and a half min. lead, this was a fatal error, as I hit the half way point the heat hit me and I had to stop at the feed zone and pick up five water bottles and ride home alone 27 min down on the GC but I was not last, I regained my strength and in the last five miles passed five guys in my cat.

Saturday AM was time for redemtion in the 10 mile ITT, and I rode a 22:53 good for 8th place and if only (if only if only if only) I would have rode in the pack on fridays race intead of making a 40 mile breakaway I would have been in 8th on GC...Oh well hind site is 20/20.

Saturday PM was time to dominate, and show the climbers what a track rider can do, I took four out of eight priems and was third in the finish, a solo breakaway took the win, and the race leader piped me at the line by two inches after I went for a long headwind sprint from 400 meters out, it seemed that I lead him out perfectly.

Then came sundays 108 mile four mountain road race, finishing on a seven mile climb of 3500' gained. I had nothing to lose so when the race leader and four others took off in the first 100 meters of the race, I waited until they had a good gap and sprinted off in pursuit, as I chassed them down (remember they are riding as hard as they can to get away from the pack)and when I was about 500 meters from catching them and geting very tired as I had been chasing for about five miles a double semi truck came by at 45 mph and I sprinted with all I had to get the draft and bridge the gap, OUCH!!! Drafing semi trucks is totaly legal...in oregon.

The next 85 miles we built up about a 7 min. lead and were joined by five more chasers, as we hit the last climb we were nine strong, and of course they attacked and I was dropped, I made my way up the mountain in my own private pain cave, as the lights started to go out and the bonk came on my world came to a pinpoint, I stopped and lay down on the rocks, gained my breath and rested. A local race supporter stopped and offered me Oreo's and gatoraid, I gobbled it up, and after breifly riding the wrong direction (down hill) I turnd myself around and rode the last three miles at walking pace.

On this occasion I can say that this was the hardest race I have ever riden in my life, not so much as the stage's were difficult, more so the pace I had riden it. It was fun and rewarding, I have tested the waters of the unknown, and ridden for 140 miles off the front in breakaways in three days of racing, gathered $185 in cash preims and a good sunburn.

I will be back next year!

Official Race Site

Submitted by Molly Foster

On Sunday I decided to tackle my second-ever road race. My first experience competing on the road had been Mason Lake #1 back in March. Placing fourth to last in this race left me feeling a little demoralized and I wondered if maybe I just wasn't cut out to hang with the pack. While I was happy about finishing the race and not crashing, I lacked the confidence and enthusiasm to go out and try again.

With some more training miles under my belt, some positive nudging from teammates and mentors, some track racing and sunny weather, I felt ready to conquer my road racing anxieties. When Brett and I set out on Sunday morning I was feeling good. Peter had tuned up my bike the day before and my legs felt pretty fresh even after a rough week of messengering. Thanks in part to Brett's low-key manner and helpfulness before the race, I didn't feel overly nervous. I had already decided my goals were to: 1. Avoid getting dropped from the back 2. Get to the front of the pack before the climb 3. Keep the rubber side down and 4. Treat the race as a learning experience.

The Cat 4 women's race had a healthy field of 38 women. Chilling at the start line with the other ladies, I was already sweating buckets in the 85+ sunshine. Our race was a little delayed so we got a chance to chat with each other. A bunch of the ladies thought I was from out of town because they didn't recognize the AVA/Counterbalance kit. I heard two people mention this was their first race which made me feel a little better that I wasn't the only novice. The team representation, however, was a little daunting. Group Health had probably ten racers and Wines six, with Byrnes and Ti Cycles also having multiple riders.

When we set off on the rolling 30-mile course I was at the back of the pack because an official at the last minute decided to help me change the number placement on my jersey. In the first few miles I was able to get to the middle front where I thought it would be safe to be. Around mile 5 or so a nasty crash occurred on a sweeping, downhill left turn. I'm still not sure what happened but 4 or 5 racers in front of me ended up tumbling into the gravel and bushes on the side of the road. (Luckily, I believe road rash was the worst of injuries that anyone sustained) This splintered the pack with the racers who were ahead of the crash gaining a small lead. On the ensuing downhill section, me and a few others were able to bridge the gap. There were attacks here and there in the next section, but everyone was wary to spend too much energy before "The Wall." About halfway into the race, the slimmed down pack made a left turn and came upon the only real climb in the race. The expressions of surprise at the steepness of the road were pretty funny. To get an idea imagine riding up James St. between 5th and 6th. There was no centerline rule during the climb so I was able to get around the slower climbers fairly easily. I was feeling good about being one of the first over the top and was catching my breath when a few of the girls attacked. I missed the boat and wasn't able to grab a wheel in time so I found myself in the awkward solo position of watching the breakaway pedal away while being ahead of the rest of the pack. I soloed it for while when I should have hung back to find a group that would chase the break down. A group of four eventually caught up with me and I joined onto their rotating paceline. I had spent too much energy by myself in a fierce headwind that after a while I couldn't keep up with their brisk pace. Luckily there was a second chase group not far behind that I latched onto for the rest of the race. This group was a fun bunch that worked well with every person taking a long pull at the front. We didn't manage to catch up with the lead groups ahead of us but we didn't finish that far behind. Comically, coming into the last turn our group got misdirected by a volunteer who thought we had one lap more to go so we had to Lance Armstrong it across the grass and gravel to get back to the final 200 meters. It was a great feeling to go across the finish line with all the people cheering on the sidelines.

I ended up getting 17th out of 38, and while it's not a stellar result, it does feel like an accomplishment. A got a taste of the drama and pain and exhilaration of a road race and it was great.

And by the way Brett totally kicked ass in the Cat 4 men's field. A top five finish! That's amazing!

Submitted by Victor Van Epps

I keep thinking in the back of my mind that I want to do 24 hr racing and more ultra-endurance styled events. I have done several 150 mile rides, but I recently decided to test myself to see if I really did want to go longer. Sometimes you dream of doing epic things and they aren't quite what you bargained for. So Zach (new recruit) and myself scheduled a double century ride to PDX on May 11th.

As luck and busy lives would have it we were still putting our bikes together at 11:00 pm the night before departure. We were already suppose to be in bed by then. But we weren't. After a couple of hours of sleep 4:00 am came quickly. It was our goal to be on the road by 4:30 am, but we weren't. We finally managed to get out the door by 5:20 am...nearly a full hour later. We were riding with backpacks loaded with food, first aid for people and bikes, maps, agua, and of course ipods. I bravely chose not to bring rain gear because the weather forecast said sunny and 60s. I was soon regretting this decision as we rolled towards the interurban trail. Very dark clouds loomed over head and it was a fair bit cold. I was already having a hard time feeling my feet and trying to psyche myself up for a really long day.

The interurban normally is a fast way to get to the west valley highway, but morning commute killed us. We had to stop and wait for traffic over and over again. I was getting antsy. We finally got to Puyallup and then Spanaway by 9:40-ish and stopped to eat a bunch of food. I was glad to get out of that area and get in some nonstop.

We took 7 to 507 and hauled ass. At some points we were clipping along at 24/25 mph. Nice flat and rolling roads. I was finally warmed-up. We finished up our first century a bit after noon and I felt hopeful we were going to make good time for the next one. Then we got lost in Centralia. Centralia is not a pretty place. There are a lot of chains and signs that say cruising is illegal ....and strictly enforced. There is however a very strange and cool house that someone has changed into a piece of art. The whole yard is converted into this Alice in wonderland-ish maze of metal, Styrofoam, old bike parts and lots of plants. It's huge and hard to parlay without a picture, but it made getting lost mostly worthwhile. We lost a lot of time rerouting.

Major lesson in long rides like this: create your own crib sheets ahead of time. We used the ones for the STP but the routed us to all sorts of places we did not need to go. Get a handlebar bag for maps. It will save you time in little increments, which end up being lots of precious time in the long run.

We had lunch in Chehalis at a great bakery on the main drag that had Icelandic pastries. YUM. This bakery had it going on, and I don't think it was just the miles. It was oddly nice to be a novelty in a small town. Folks were friendly and had obviously seen our kind before. I had coffee for the first time in a long while and was ready to rip through some more miles.

The sun came out and it was everything I had hoped for. The country side was amazingly green from spring rains, my legs felt amazingly fresh for already having done 100 miles and the traffic was surprisingly low. We were able to see lots of farms with a variety of livestock, including some goats that were kicking the shit out of each other. All in all it was a bucolic dreamland and I was way high on the miles.

We were still pushing a high pace, riding in the twenties, and miles were going by. I felt certain at mile 140 we would make it-no problem. We did have to stop a lot to eat and some time I really need to figure out how to eat well on my bike. I am sure Todd knows some tricks. We could not really use our jerseys because of the backpacks. I can see why front loaders are/were a good idea. I started not eating enough as a result and knew this would come to no good end.

We arrived in Kelso around five. The Lewis and Clark bridge is sketchy at best. There is debris from logging trucks everywhere and you can not do anything but ride over it. There is a shit ton of bark, dead things and retread that pitch your wheels all over the place. There is also very fast moving traffic right next to you. The only bridge that beats this one is the Astoria bridge, but that is another story. I started getting shaky going over the bridge and I knew trouble would be quick to follow. I was on the edge of bonking. Bad news, but when we got to the other side of the bridge there was a deli with promises of "fresh" food. I ate like a madman...chicken fingers, JoJos, carrot cake, dried fruit, coffee. I could not get enough. I ate like 1500 calories probably more. I wanted more, but I knew we still had another 60 miles to ride.

This was the real part of the ride. Little nuances became discomforts, became real pain. I am specifically referring to sitting on a saddle for so long. There were no more comfortable spots. I was trying to push the pace, but had to pull back a bit. Little bugs started coming out as night was coming. They got into everything. I probably ate a couple of dozen. Where were the damn bats?? Dusk and night soon followed and we were thirty miles from PDX. We put on our headlamps and I put on my safety strobe that you can see from a mile away. We kept going, but it was hard to see and we had to slow way down. I wish I had a good lighting system. I probably said that to myself ten thousand times as my wheels riding at 120 psi hit rocks and bounced me around. Fatigue was setting in and it was more psychological than anything. I couldn't help but wonder who was driving with us drunk. Every hill I was praying to see city lights, but they didn't come for a long time.

We finally hit the welcome to Portland sign and yelped for joy. I couldn't believe we had finished something I had wanted to do for so long...how cool. I felt way better than I thought I would, but I was convinced it was adrenaline not my real condition. We navigated through the streets. It was warm and everything seemed much brighter and prettier than I remember things looking in a long while. We desperately looked for cold beer. None. Stores close at ten in PDX. How strange. We thought about going to a bar for a victory beer, but they still smoke in their bars and we opted out. Another lesson, have your victory flask ready. I was ready for a shower and bed anyhow.

The next day we felt pretty darn good and walked some ten miles all over PDX talking about what was next. We both had a hard time eating even though we were ravenous and figured that it was some sign of fatigue. We crammed down the food anyhow and drank plenty of fluids. We also discussed how to make it faster-much faster- and what's next. I can't wait for the next long distance challenge. You have to be able to ride 400 miles in a 24 hour period to qualify for the race across America...mmmmmaybe someday. For now it's back to Todd's speed regimen for CX season. Tonight it is hill sprints and I am ready! Cheers!

Submitted by Todd Gallaher

Today was a beautifully sunny, slightly windy with a few sprinkles just to cool you down from all the climbing. The competition was top notch and the course was in a word GNARLY.

Jeff M and I took a hard look at the backs of the front group as they pedaled off without us, dropped on the last of many hills, we both came in well down on the winners, experience was gained, and much pain was had, here is a rundown on my race.

A full field of Pro 1/2's lined up for the start, every northwest state and Canada was represented, the best so far this year. We rolled along at a steady clip, many attacks went and came back, I stayed near the front in an effort to avoid any crashes or splits in the pack.

As we passed the half way point a break of 6 went up the road with one rider from every big team in it. The blocking started and I decided it was time to chase, big mistake, I blew up and struggled up the first of the final four big climbs. As the caravan passed me I latched onto a pickup truck and got a free ride to the top of the hill, and then before the officials had a chance to see, I sprinted up through the line of cars and team vans and was back on, OUCH!

I tried to recover while the pack was in the midst of attacking and chasing through the tough climbing sections near the end of the race, and was repeatedly dropped with others and then chased back on again, after three repeats of this I was starting to cook, as we descended at 40-50 mph I hit a rock with my front wheel and blew my tire, instantly flatting, it was looking bad as I rode the rim and feathered the rear brake while heading for the ditch, fortunately I was able to stop safely.

Then I waited, and waited and waited, the cat 3 pack came by about 20 min. later and I got a new front wheel from there follow car. I figured I was probably dead last in my race by now, but decided to ride a pace line with some 3's that were dropped, and we started catching guys, soon we passed a couple of cat 1/2's and my mission was accomplished, I was not last! Sunburned and bonked out I crossed the finish line, that was one tough day of racing.

Submitted by Todd Gallaher

Good things happen when you put four teammates in a camper van and head down for a road race in the rain, we all kicked ass! Tough conditions and big hills were the flavor of the day, drenching rains soaked the racers, and buoyed our spirits, knowing that we had put in the time on rain slicked roads all winter was a comforting thought.

Rob and Ryan turned in their best performances to date and finished with the pack on a tough course in the pouring rain. Way to represent in the Cat 5 pack!

Kelsey and Seth duked it out in the 4"s during the sprint to the line, Seth ended up in the ditch during a wild sprint finish, Kelsey stayed on the road and took 6th for a few upgrade points. Nice work guys, tough break Seth, maybe you need to take up dirt jumping?

I went into the fourth round of the Washington Cup series with a 115 point lead and had to keep Matt (2nd in points) in sight no matter what, I had a hell of a time, flatting my rear tire on the second of four laps, and chasing back on after a very slow wheel change, into a head wind and pounding rain storm, then the attacks started, chase, chase, chase and back on again, then Matt put the hammer down on the last climb, no response left in my legs. Won the bunch sprint for 5th place, Matt finishes 4th and my lead is now 105 points with three races left.

Sunshine was booming and the rain shadow was in full effect on Sunday as Bernie, Nolan and I took on the second of three Sequim road races. I don’t think I have ever seen so many birds of prey in one day as I did Sunday, amazing numbers of birds, the wildlife preserve at Dungeness bay is very cool.

During the race I responded to many attacks, and at one point with two laps to go thought I could pull off a solo, so I went for it, I got about 45 seconds up and decided to pull over and wait for the pack as I realized the headwind was blowing harder than I was willing to pedal.

I lead out the sprint and was passed with 30 meters to go by big Bob Wade, this guy has thighs the size of my waist and a tan that says "I have been training in Arizona all winter". In the end I came out with a one point advantage over Bob, it looks like I could take the series win with a little luck and a lot of help from my teammates.

Submitted by Jeff Middlewood

So the Hayden clan graciously opened their doors to the misfits known as the AVA/CBB road crew. Thanks again it was much appreciated. It was a super cool cabin from the 1920's right on the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Getting the ferry commute out of the way the day before the race was definitely a bonus. We had a nice showing of 7 riders out for the 1st Tour de Dung and spread our results all the way from crashing out (no injuries thankfully) to a win. Apparently ya'll saw some nice rain in Seattle, while if I'm not mistaken we just dealt with wind but no precipitation.

Seth, Rob, Ryan, Nolan, and Bernie all rolled out with what looked to be a 50+ 4's and 5's field which lived up to its reputation of being really dicey. Rob got taken down 15 minutes into the race shearing his plastic fork. When I saw the fork I was blown he wasn't taken away by medics. Instead he was cheering everyone on. Ryan got stuck in no mans land and TT'd for a lap before giving up the ghost. Nolan flatted out. Bernie battled it out with the surviving group for quite a while before calling it. And that crazy BMX kid Seth was throwing down with the fours all the way to the line to finish with a great 8th place sprint finish.

Todd and I got to race together for the first time and I now know what he was complaining about all last season. In the masters he is a marked man. The guy turns his head to snot blast and half the field thinks it means he's gonna try some crazy move. What they didn't know is that he brought along his teammate who gets a kick out of soloing races. Todd sized up the field after warming up for a lap and decided it was time to attack. These guys were on his wheel like glue but didn't think twice about me. After several sharp attacks I decided to shut down logic and go out on my own. I crossed the line 32 miles later for 1st and Todd easily walked away with second for an AVA/CBB one two finish. I think Todd could've overtaken me at the end but showed some sympathy for my efforts which was much appreciated.

Keep the spirits up and the rubberside down!

The wheels spun with a good-natured fury at the AVA/CBB sponsored Expo Goldsprints.

Friend challenged friend, sister challenged sister, and AVA/CBB's own Craig Etheridge threw down the gauntlet to nine time Tour de France finisher Frankie Andreu! The two titans of the sport battled closely for most of the race before Etheridge edged out Andreu for the win. Thanks to Frankie for being such a great sport and showing support - you're welcome back anytime! And thanks to everyone who participated making it a successful day.

Check out José Sandoval's Flickr pics and try to spot yourself. See you at Monday Night Goldsprints.

Submitted by Todd Gallaher

Ronde O'hop, if you didnt know is a mile of chip seal pavement and a mile and a quarter of loose rock and mud. Only a stones throw from Mt Rainer it is a great place for a late winter storm. Pouring rain and gusting winds greeted us as we pulled up in the van, I thought it would be good to drive a lap first to see what we were up against, Oh my god...this cant be it we cried.

Seth takes his first race beating a field of cat 3's and 4's. He rode the final climb in the big chainring cuz his shifter was jammed and shelled the cat 3 guy he was riding with. Fifteen laps of pain for the 3/4 race and nice work softening up the course for the Pro's.

Bernie and Nolan rode in side by side (way to go) and new guy Brent (not sure of his name) rode solid.

When the Pro 1/2 race lined up the call went out from the promoter for masters, and only Martin Criminalie piped up, I was called out so I decided to ride as a master insead of a 2, good choice! Two more called out for the masters and now we had a race of four, good thing to because the Pro 1/2 guys were clenching their jaws in anticipation of what was to come.

Attacks as soon as we started and I had to follow, not realizing the pain that was about to take over my entire body as we hit the first lap dirt section. I set to following the wheels and after about 5 laps I popped like a cork, and off the back I went, funny thing was there were only 6 guys in front of me and they were all Pro 1/2 guys, as I look over my shoulder for a group to ride in...nothing! I waited and ate my gu, drank my carbo drink and tried to catch my breath.

After a full lap of soft pedaling finally here comes Martin and a cat 2 guy and I jump on. Here we go again, hammer, hammer, hammer some more, with five laps to go I jump hard to drop Martin, he gets back on then the next lap I jump again, this time cat 2 guy takes a hard pull and we are off sans Martin. We pass a bunch of Pro 1/2 guys who I thought were being lapped but it turns out we were catching the last of the breakaway that had not already lapped us (yes lapped us, how embarassing) Then a funny thing happened: the cat 2 guy has a mechanical and I am again all by myself in a 20 mph headwind, damm...two laps to go and I am solo and hurting like no tommorrow, I got to keep going, damm this hurts, if I flat now it is all over I think. No such luck.

I took 5th in the Pro 1/2 and first masters, which puts me in first in the Washington Cup...free entry to the next race (yes!) 20 times up this "road" or should I say double track, more of a cross race without barriers or run ups.

Note to self, RIDE CROSS BIKE NEXT YEAR! Broke my headset and took home about 10 lbs. of mud.

So AVA/CBB is on a roll, winning races, leading series, big high five to everyone!

See replies to this post in the forum.

Team Results

Submitted by José Sandoval

First race of 2007 is in the bag. Last season was a season of firsts. First time trial, first track race, first cyclo cross race, etc. This time I was on familiar ground for a change and it felt pretty good. I was back at the Jack Frost Time Trial put on be OBRA, just North of Vancouver,WA. It’s a flat 20km out and back full bore effort against only yourself and the clock.

The wind was brutal! The rain didn’t help much either but I was more worried about getting knocked over be the gusts that would hit you from time to time. The wind was making it almost impossible for me to stay in my "aero" position so I just hammered as hard as I could trying to convince myself not to quit and easy spin back to the finish.

See, I’d gotten registered on time and had plenty of warm time. But, while I was warming up listening to my Ipod, there was an announcement that the start was a little early. As a result I rolled up to the start about 2 mins. late ... ARGH!!!!!!!!!!!! It was right about then that I started to think that it would be nice to just get back in my warm car and go get some breakfast.

Well, I ended up going for it anyway and I actually could have beaten last year's time had it not been for the late start and wind (last year there was a beautiful race day, no wind and no rain).

So, the first race is in the bag and I’m already looking forward to the next one. Maybe next time I’ll pay more attention to the announcements.

Hasta

Team Results
Full Results

Submitted by José Sandoval

That’s it!!!

The 2006 Seattle cyclocross season is officially over. It’s mid-December practically and although I love cross and all things cross, I’m ready for a break.

The finale at Kelly Creek was as I’ve come to learn as pretty typical. Meaning, it was a full on power course. With all of its mud sections you needed to be able to push your bike thru the thick goop and then carry the momentum into the jarring grassy marsh like fields. The "small" run-up was actually one of the easier parts on the course for me, not even the descents gave me much respite because the sand was so loose that one bad move would mean a face full of cow dung. Full concentration was the rule of the day.

This race took its toll on all the categories, there were a lot of crashes and many mechanicals. Some people collapsed after their finish with painful back spasms and just all out fatigue. This was a double points race and since it was the final race of the series no-one was holding back anything.

Of course this is ‘cross and that means mixing fun with your agony. A few of the racers wore boas and hula skirts and one guy had on a sweet zebra uniform. Tiki torches lit the way up the run-up while hula girls ran up to racers offering beverages to the weary combatants. The pouring rain barely made an impression on anyone. A great way to end a great season!

It’s a bitter sweet moment because although there are some aspects of cross I won’t mind dropping, like the pre-dawn pre-race rituals, splinters in the shins from not clearing the barriers, sliding in ice, landing head first into a nasty mud puddle, and just plain freezing all of the time, there’s the cross community that over the last few months has gone from mere fellow competitors to becoming good friends. The people that make up the community, the racers, teammates, organizers, officials, announcers, and of course our families and friends (and pets) that came out in the worst weather to come cheer us on. This is what I’ll miss the most.

Great job to all of my team-mates!

Thanks to all of our supporters!

Submitted by José Sandoval

SNOW SNOW SNOW!!!!

Belly Cross is the third installment of the Cyclocrazed series. It was held near Bellingham at Lake Padden Park. I understand this is where the locals conduct their cross practice during the week so they were well schooled on what to expect. For those of us not from the area it was a question of needing to pre-ride the course in order to figure out what lines to take…this proved to be harder than we expected.

The whole park was covered in snow and had I known back in Seattle that it was snowing up North I probably would have opted out, but I purposely didn’t watch the morning news for a forecast, my gut feeling was right.

The course was not really that technical. It had a set of barriers and a couple small run-ups and small hills to maneuver down as well as a section in a softball field that felt we were riding on top of a large frozen kitty litter box. It had a lot of potential to be really fast, but because of the snow and mud it turned into a power course where the challenge was more to stay on the bike without falling.

The small mechanical details you can normally ignore during a race became magnified and frustrating. My pedals were worthless, I was able to click in on one side for about half a lap, the rest of the time I was just riding the tops and the whole time my feet kept sliding off violently. Ice was packed so hard into them that even trying to kick it off was fruitless, after the race I had to chisel out the ice with a screw driver.

Since we’d done several warm-up laps before the race, we had been out in the snow for awhile so mid way thru the race I was losing the feeling in my fingers and my feet were completely numb which doesn’t help when trying to do a running re-mount.

The course zig zaged in and out of asphalt sidewalks and b-ball courts so the sliding out was a big problem for me. Also, ice started to form on top of the mud made by our tracks so that added another element of surprise. I kept seeing riders go down HARD and landing head first in the snow-mud-slush soup... brrrrrrr!

At the end of the day, this was a great learning experience for me. I came out of this one feeling a little tougher than when I started and definitely more confident on what I think is rideable. They say that the SCC final at Kelly Creek might have snow again this year, I say bring it!

Submitted by José Sandoval

The course for the US Grand Prix race held at Ft. Steilacoom Park is a course which I am familiar with. My first cross race ever was at this very venue earlier this year and it was almost my last cross race too. I have been riding bikes since I can remember and have experienced all kinds of pain on them but never have I felt as awful as when I “raced” at Steilacoom. So it was with great happiness and relief that I was just a spectator at this event.

Of course everyone’s favorite spot to watch is the Knapp Time Run-up. With its party atmosphere complete with DJ pumping punk rock and reggae and awesome view of Mt. Rainier I was armed with camera in one hand and my trusty cowbell in the other I was ready to soak it all in. Even so, I couldn’t help but feel bad every time someone slogged past me with their tongue and snot hanging while inching up the run-up.

For those of you not in the know to what the Knapp Time Run-up (the “KT”) is, I’ll try to explain. The KT is a BRUTAL run-up 80 meters long, that’s almost the length of a football field only straight up. I swear that during my race experience, at some point I was grabbing onto roots and rocks using them to help me pull myself up the damn thing. Even Ryan Trebon (the series winner) after he had raced it in 2004 described it as “retardedly hard” and Ben Turner of TIAA CREF said that it made him feel like he was going to either “shit his pants or throw up” these are the pro’s saying this! With few barriers or other technical sections, the course demands fitness above leg speed or handling skills.

It was inspirational. Everyone that raced is my hero, especially my fellow AVA/CBB teammates who threw down! I’ll be back to race next year, hopefully that will be enough time to heal my pride and help the bad dreams go away.

Great job Kris, Victor, Sharon, Craig, Nolan and Bernie!

Submitted by José Sandoval

Sometimes you wake and you just know that things are not going to go your way. You try to suppress that feeling because, let’s be honest, most days I wake up feeling that way and things work out. But, sometimes there is an extra dose of doubt in the air and that’s what I sensed on Sunday morning. I knew it would be windy and rainy and that we’d have to get up super early and drive for a while to get to the race in Bellingham, that stuff didn’t bother me too much. No, it was something else like a sixth sense or mother’s intuition or survival instinct.

Okay, it’s not as bad as it sounds. The simple truth is that I flatted during my race. The field was small, the Mens "C" race had only 10 racers at the start, maybe because the flier said we’d be starting at 9AM but didn’t start until 9:45? I pre-rode the course 3 times, each time it was a little different and then it was different again after we started the race. The course was pretty fun, there were the usual barriers and run-up but also some cool different things like riding through a tunnel and a small version of stone hedge, the weather held out too, it was pretty balmy and dry. I was even in the top 5 spots for change and riding the race of my life...when...pffsssst. Unfortunately I didn’t bring my spare wheels and I flatted just after the start/finish line which meant I had to run the whole loop in order not get DNF’d, which I’m not sure I wasn’t because the results aren’t up yet.

Oh well, that’s the way it goes sometimes, I’ll probably still ignore that little nagging voice to stay in bed because you never know if that could be "THE DAY" and you may not get a second chance.

Submitted by José Sandoval

Well, Snohomish was by far the most challenging course for me so far and was also my favorite course of the series to date. It was held at a middle school in Snohomish (where do they find theses venues?) Chad Berg and crew did a great job on this one. Even the most experienced riders were challenged by the tricky off camber sections and tight corners. The mud came in all flavors, thick, sticky, and especially GREE-ZEE! Sometimes it felt you were riding in a vat of cookie dough (not that I've ever ridden in cookie dough, but it probably feels the same). The weather was just as rich, varying from sunny and cool to pouring rain and I think we even got some hail in there. I don’t think I’ve seen so many people crash as did today, the off cambers section…and there were many…were insane and I know by the time Craig raced there was nothing left but eroded hillsides, NASTY!

Great job to Craig, Kelsey, Kris, Victor, Zach, Lara, and Sharon, you guys rocked it!

Thanks to everyone who came out to cheer in the crappy weather. I know it would have been nicer to sleep in and drink coco by the fireplace so thanks again, we really appreciate your support.

Submitted by José Sandoval

Donida Farms was sweet! This IS a picture perfect horse farm just past the Muckleshoot casino and it couldn’t have been a nicer day for a race. Admittedly if it had been pouring rain like last week I might have done an “Ulrich” and said that my tummy was hurting or something. But that would not be the case.

The start was fast and compact on a dirt strip that led us right into the bumpy grass field where the horses play during normal hours. The one and only run up lay not far from the start so on that first lap everyone is hitting it at the same time causing a major traffic jam. This really disrupts your flow! At the top the hill continues a little bit then you hit an off camber turn that if you miss you go flying down the side of the hill you just ran up. One more little roll up and then you go flying down into the fields again right into a 90 degree turn and the climbing begins this time on the bike. Another wild descent into bumpy grass more turns and then the barriers. First, you jump a single barrier and then a triple a few yards a way. Finally, you hit the dirt gravel road again and roll into the horse track which is filled with really sticky sand and mud. A few more turns behind the horse track on the grass bring you back to the start/finish line …then you get to do it all over again, fun!

Great racing everyone and again thanks to Lara, Molly and Anthony and all of the supporters and noise makers!

Kris - 25th – 4’s
Rob - 43rd – 4’s
Victor - 42nd – 4’s
Zach - 51st – 4’s
Kelsey - 9th – Single Speed
Jose - 40th – Master 35+/ 4’s
Craig - 15th – 1 / 2’s
Sharon - 16 – Wmns 4’s
Jenny - 2nd – Wmns Single Speed