6 Hours of Power

July 17th, 2011

Ellicotville, NY

Last fall Michelle Johnson and Eryn Hughes, two local MTB racers and enthusiasts, convinced a couple of the SCE ladies to put down their road bikes and try mountain biking. A couple of us took them up on their offer.   After many a frightfully, fun evening rides with the “Girls Rule, Boys Drool” crew.  A few of us (mainly Stacie Truszkowski) were ready to try some MTB racing. Stacie paired up with SCE Team –friend, JR Petsko, for 9 Hours of Cranky Monkey.  They had a blast.  After I heard all about it, I was determined to try a race myself.

I convinced Stacie to team up with me for the Female Duo portion of 6 Hours of Power.   The cou

rse is an 8 mile mountain bike loop with a long climb at the beginning, tons of single track in the middle, and a scary downhill finish.   Our goal was simple.  We were newbies at this sport; we just needed to finish the race!  It was decided that Stacie would start the first lap since I hate running and she was already familiar with the “Le Mans” start.

Stacie went out for her first lap and finished quite a bit earlier than either of us expected.  She met me at the transition area with a huge grin on her face!  Yep, I thought, this is going to be fun.  I grabbed my bike and

started pedaling up the long climb.  The local photographer was there.  I told him he better take my picturenow because I knew I wasn’t going to smiling later.  He laughed at me, took my picture and wished me luck.  I finally reached the top of the climb and turned on to the single track. I told myself, “Don’t blow up. This is your first year on a mountain bike and your first year racing. Don’t blow up.”   I blew up and promptly crashed into a tree.  I got up and rode at a more sedate pace for my first lap.  I was dreading the downhill finish but I made it through.  Stacie was there at the transition area waiting for me.   “How did it go,” she asked?

“Good.  I crashed,” I said.

Stacie took off for her second lap and I went to our tent to rehydrate, refuel, and get ready for my next lap.  I met Stacie at the transition area.  She had a huge grin on her face.  “How did it go,” I asked?

“Good. No issues,” she said.

I grabbed my bike and started pedaling up the climb.  No photographer this time.  Good.  I wasn’t smiling at this point but neither was I grimacing.  I finished the climb and headed into the single track portion of the loop.  I kept a slower pace but became more timid as the trail went on.  Instead of a tree I crashed into a sapling.  Crap!  I hope no one saw this.  I looked around me, no one was near.  Whew, I thought, that could of have been embarrassing.   Then I wished someone was nearby.  I couldn’t extricate myself from the sapling!  I swear it must have taken me ten minutes to get out of that tangled mess.  I got back on the bike and limped my way back to the transition area. It took some time.  I hurt.  I made it to the transition area with 20 minutes to spare before the clock stopped on the race.  Stacie would have to do on last lap. Stacie was there waiting for me.  “What happened,” she asked?

“I had a run in with a sapling and got stuck,” I said.

“Ooh,” giggled Stacie.  I had to admit, it was funny.

Stacie got on her bike and took off for the final lap.  I headed back to the tent, grabbed a Coke and changed my clothes.

Stacie and I actually managed to get first place in the Female over 30 Duo category.  We were the only Female Duo in the whole race but I’ll take the win.  Our trophy actually says “First Place Female Team Under 29” but I’ll take that as well.  It was a great event for a first race and I had a great partner who smiled the entire time.  I’ll be back next year.

While most of our race reports cover our own race efforts, it is important to know that Team SCE supports local racing off the bike as well. From organizing clinics to supporting and putting on races, our teammates show up on “off days” to just pitch in and help out. Read about Kate’s Tucker race report from this year, where she may have learned some tips for her awesome unofficial aid station at Hilly Billy.

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I completed the ABRA Tour of Tucker County two years ago.  I told the race promoter, JR Petsko, that I would never race it again but I would volunteer if he needed people to marshall the course.  JR took me up on that offer.

JR needed a wheelman, er wheelwoman, for the category 3/4 race.  I figured that my Subaru Forester could hold a couple wheels.  Racers being racers, many preferred to have their own wheels.  I envisioned carrying about ten wheels, however, I ended up fitting almost 30 wheels in my car!  I realized after the steep descent to the beginning line that I would have quite a day.  Even before the race started, a racer needed a wheel.  Once the race started, I tried to maintain a certain distance from the racers.  I just had to get close, though, when two horses ended up riding alongside the riders.  I managed to snap a couple of pictures of a rider reaching out to touch the horses.  The  horses probably rode alongside the guys for over a mile. It was an amazing sight to see.  Later on,  I ended up untangling two guys who crashed on the descent and helped another rider change a wheel.   I also picked up one of the guys who previously crashed because he was too injured to continue on.  I drop dropped him off with our coach and go-to race doctor, Suzanne.  I then followed the guys on the second lap and slowly made my way up the last and most difficult hill of the race. I picked up another rider who could not finish the climb.

I have to say that while I prefer to race the races, it feels good to help out occasionally.

With the road race season slowly coming to a close, a few of the SCErs decided to get a jump start on cyclocross season by attending Fulcrum Coaching & JBV Coaching Cyclocross Clinic on August 28th in Upper Marlboro, Maryland.  The cross clinic was hosted by Chris Mayhew of JBV Coaching and Dan Tille of Fulcrum Coaching,along with assistance from Jeremy Powers, a professional cyclist who races with Jelly Belly Pro Cycling Team (road) and Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com (cross).  Mayhew, Tille, and Powers put on the clinic last year but this was the first year that any members from SCE were able to make the trip to Maryland for an all-day crash course in cyclocross racing.  SCE teammates who attended were Greg Flood, Stacie Truzskowski, Rachel Weaver, and Kate Bennett.

For those new to the sport, cyclocross is a form of bike racing which consists of riders racing a certain number of short laps for anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour.  Sounds easy you say?  I haven’t described the rest.  The race course usually by picking up your bike and jumping over said obstacles) and remounting the bike. Cyclocross is also usually raced in the fall so you have to factor in mud, lots of mud!  It can be a dirty and cold sport but that only makes it fun!

On Friday, September 27, to kick off the clinic, the Bike Doctor in Waldorf, Maryland hosted Cross Talk Meet & Greet with Jeremy Powers. A very cool venue in which to discuss all aspects of cyclocross. A variety of issues and questions were addressed at the meet and greet.  It also got everyone pumped up for Saturday’s all-day clinic.

The day of the clinic turned out to be very hot, sunny, and extremely humid.  After a short talk and demonstration, attendees were broken up into three groups: expert, intermediate, and beginners.  Flood joined the expert group, Weaver went off to practice with the intermediate group while Stacie and I made our way to the beginners group.  I’m not sure what I was expecting but we jumped right into the lessons.  Lesson one, remounting the bike.  We spent a good hour learning how to remount the bike.  And everybody quickly realized how sore they were going to be by the end of the day.

Up next?  Dismounting off the bike.  Mind you, this is dismounting off the bike while it is still moving.  Cyclocross requires a fluid, continuous form during the race. Unless you crash, you are always moving. The beginners group was great because we were able to learn different handle positions while dismounting.  Stacie and I are both short so our instructors, Fatmarc Vanderbacon and Rusty Williford, taught us how to move our right hand from the handlebar to the down tube.   It was an invaluable piece of information because once we finished the dismount portion of the clinic, we quickly moved onto carrying and shouldering the bike over obstacles.  Stacie and I were able to make use of the lessons from earlier.  We carried and shouldered our bikes using the down tube.  In doing so, we had a higher clearance while running over the barriers. Finishing with that, we sat down to tasty Chipotle lunch and spent more time on a Q&A session.

The afternoon portion off the clinic was spent learning how to read and navigate a cross course.  Groups of two to three individuals took turns riding through the course while the instructors positioned themselves around the course offering advice such as how to take a 180 degree turn or when to pass another racer on the course. After that, we spent time on the all important Cyclo-Cross Start.  How you perform during the cross start is usually crucial to your overall performance during the race.  We learned about positioning at the start line, quickly clipping in, and finding the correct gear.  After a couple of those sprint starts, we were all itching to combine all the techniques learned at the clinic and test our skills on a couple of laps.  The laps were a great way to end an exceptionally well-run clinic.

A huge thank you to Dan Tille for housing Rachel, Stacie, and me. It was greatly appreciated. We also enjoyed the company. Another thank you to Chris Mayhew for letting us know about the clinic.

Photos by Ben Stephens

Okay, here is a recap on last night’s race. In attendance for team SCE
was Carol, Suzanne, Patty, Anne-Marie, and I. Others included Whitney,
Gray, Steph (Pitt), Laura, Christa, and Tammy.  I hope I’m not missing
anyone : )

It was a pretty fast pace last night, at least for portions of the
race.  Suzanne started the race of with a bang.  She pulled for the
first two laps.  Patty spent the majority of time attacking as well as
making Gray work for her MAR points.  I spent my time bridging gaps
and catching people in break aways.  Carol pulled in a what I think is
a personal best this year.  It was a fast race and she kept in the
pack the whole time.  I also think Anne-Marie pulled off personal best
as well.  She played it safe, allowing Patty and I to counter any
moves and breaks that occurred.  She kept on Whitney and Gray for the
last lap and edged by Gray for a 2nd place win! Incredibly awesome!

I have $15 dollars to give to Barb for our end of the year party fund!

On another note, last night’s race made me realize how much I depend
on my team mates during a race.  Someone is usually there to counter
any moves and to shake up the race when it gets slow.  Gray spent the
majority of her time picking up speed on the fourth lap to get MAR
points.  As is always the case, it slows after the S/F line and around
the first two turns.  If anyone is thinking of attacking, it should
definitely be in that area.  It was amazing how much Gray and Whitney
would slow down at that point.  I think it is ripe for a two-woman SCE
breakaway.

Again, give a high-five or, my personal favority, a fist-pump to Carol
and Anne-Marie for the personal bests!

Race Report, July 8th, Tuesday Night ACA Women’s Race

Tuesday was incredibly hot and humid. Besides the 5 SCE team members, Whitney (Penn Stare Hershey Cancer Institute), Krista, Michelle, Michael (Unattached), Drew, and Grey (ProGraphics) were also in attendance as well as one new lady.

At the beginning of the race, Whitney quickly picked up the pace and put the hammer down. After about five laps, the pace decreased and everyone settled in to finish 25 more laps.

Kate’s lungs did not care for the humidity and she dropped out of the race to locate her Albuterol. Rachel quickly won the first prime. Midway through the race, Krista attacked and managed to keep ahead for a couple of laps. With Rachel pulling, however, the rest of the group quickly brought her in.

The pace slowed considerably for the last 10 laps. On the last lap, with Rachel leading Lauren, the two came in second and fourth respectively. Lauren only needed to take off a few seconds earlier and she would have passed Grey to nab the third position.

Kudos to Rachel and Lauren for working together and sticking with the game plan despite my absence. Stacie is progressively kicking more and more ass. A BIG congratulations to Donna for entering and finishing her very first race!!! We hope to see more of her.

SCE attendees :

1. Rachel Teodori
2. Lauren Knezovich
3. Kate Bennett
4. Stacie Truszkowski
5. Donna Ruff