Steel City Endurance Racing

Pam at Murrysville

Murrysville Cyclocross

Murrysville Community Park, Murrysville, PA

October 24, 2009

More and more Steel City riders are joining the ranks of cyclocross racers. It began with Rachel and Coach Suzanne, then Bulldog Truszkowski, and now Pam Milavec! The team was so excited when Pam spontaneously showed up at the Murrysville cross race, took her mountain bike out of the car, and hit the starting line! Way to go, Pam!

Read her race report.

Pam Milavec’s Race Report from the Murrysville Cyclocross

The Murrysville Classic was my first cyclocross race and, since I don’t own a cross bike, I decided to give it a try on my mountain bike.  I didn’t have high expectations, having the only mtb in the class, and full suspension at that! There were 10 of us at the starting line for the open women’s class. The race went better than I expected.  I was surprised to find myself in the middle of the pack at the end of the road section, as we started into the grass.  The course was very muddy and very fun – quick ups and downs, lots of sharp turns, and only a few obstacles (lucky for me since I never actually learned how to do the mounts/dismounts!).  SCE teammates Rachel, Stacie and I found ourselves riding closely together and frequently passing each other.  The mtb handled well on the muddy course and I was able to stay with them throughout the race.  I enjoyed racing with them and appreciated the cheers from teammates on the sidelines!  Rachel and I had a very tight race going on the final lap, and came out of the grass together for the final road sprint to the finish.  That wasn’t good for me as Rachel is a very good sprinter, and being on the fat tires made it especially tough. She took off and I couldn’t stay with her, finishing a few seconds behind her.  But, it was a fun finish and a very enjoyable time overall!  Coach Suzanne also raced and it was great to race with her for the first time! The atmosphere overall was very festive and it was a great way to spend a fall afternoon.  I’m looking forward to more time spent sliding around muddy courses as cow bells ring and the rowdy crowd cheers, once I buy that cross bike and learn those mounts/dismounts!

UPDATE: Pam now owns a cyclocross bike. Rock on. Love it.

Team SCE Results from Murrysville Cyclocross

Men Masters 2/3/4 (35+, 45+, 55+)

17     Doug         Reigner       Steel City Endurance

Men 3/4

9      Darin        Shriver       Steel City Endurance                  43:00:00
11     Ben          Stephens      Steel City Endurance                  43:11:00
17     John         Heffner       Steel City Endurance                  45:34:00
23     Carl         Flink         Steel City Endurance                  47:31:00

Men 4/U19

12     Aaron        Bennett       Steel City Endurance                  38:25:38

Women Open

5      Rachel       Teodori       Steel City Endurance                  45:18:00
6      Pam          Milavec       Steel City Endurance                  45:20:00
7      Stacie       Truszkowski   Steel City Endurance                  46:31:16
       Suzanne      Atkinson      Steel City Endurance