This past week Steel City Endurance Bicycle racing team, sponsors, and friends gathered at ProBikes in the Squirrel Hill of Pittsburgh, PA to celebreate our 4th year of racing. While putting together a short list of season highlights I realized (once again), what an incredible group of dedicated and talented cyclists we have, along with sponsors who have been with us since Day #1.

The team’s accomplishments are many, but here are the highlights, starting with the incredible Women’s Racing Squad, now in their 4th year of racing, and comprised of Cat 3 & 4 road & cyclocross racers.

Women’s Team

Kate Bennet #1 Cat 4 ABRA Crit Series
Stacie Truskowski #1 ABRA Cyclocross Series
Rachel Weaver #1 Womens ACA Criteerium Series
Patty George #1 Overall Tour of the Valley
Anne Marie Alderson – First Place Fort Classic (#6 ABRA Road), Dirty Dozen Overall Women’s Winner 2011

SCE Women’s Team – Team Champions, Cat 3/4 , Tour of the Valley Stage Race

It goes without saying that these accomplishments of individuals are all team accomplishments as well. The ladies have truly learned how to function as a bike racing team in order to support individual goals. Special thanks also to Barb Grabowski, now retired from racing, a Cat 2 racer who made the podium in every event (road, time trial, criterium) in last year’s Masters Nationals. Barb has provided excellent mentorship and guidance to the women’s team, and has organized our annual team training trip over the past several years.

Men’s Team

Mens Team Overall: B Series Winner, Allegheny Cycling Association
Doug Riegner B Series Winner ACA
Joe Lydic First Place Connelsville Criterium (ABRA #2)
Mike Quigley First Place Pro Bikes Criterium Championship (ABRA #5)

Again, I stress that these are all team accomplishements and season highlights. There were many, many more podium finishes and I’m certain I’ve missed some accomplishemnts of several of the team members.

Sponsor Highlights include the sponsors who have been with us every year since our inception, allowing us to supply the team with racing kits as well as supplement travel expenses and race entery fees.

4-Year Sponsors:
Pittsburgh Pro Bikes
Tuscano Insurance (Rob, Terry & Ginny Tuscano)
Padgett Business Services (Jim merante)
Square Cafe (Sherree Goldstein)
Feldstein Grinberg Stein & McKee (Jeff Balicki & Partners)
Allegro Hearth Bakery (Omar Higley)

Finally, for the first time, we awarded a”Sponsor of the Year” award. This year the award went to Tuscano Agency, located in Greensburg, PA, for their ongoing support and the largest dollar amount given to the team so far. We have been proud to wear our kits displaying their name so that everyone who has seen us race is familiar with the name. Please keep an eye out for a coming feature story on Tuscano Agency so you can become familiar with the company as well.

Thank you to our sponsors and team members for a fun season. We look forward to an exciting year in 2012!

Coach Suzanne

While our website activity has been quiet, Steel City racers certainly have not. After Labor Day, Stacie Truszkowski and Rachel Weaver have been competing successfully race after race – on the trails on on the cyclocross courses – throughout September and October. To be honest, the Fall has been the Stacie and Rachel show on our team, as they consistently have been racing back-to-back weekend races. We’re super proud of our teammates for taking the Steel City colors to Western Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and the DC area.

In the West, Stacie has been balancing her time between the ABRA cyclocross series and Month of Mud series. Meanwhile, Rachel has taken her cyclocross bike mainly East, putting in several strong showings among big women’s 3/4 fields.

Here are some highlights from their races:

September 17-18, 2011 - Stacie rocked out 4th place in her first sport MTB race at Brady’s Run, while Rach represented 2 days straight in huge fields at Charm City Cross, taking a top 20 spot on Sunday.

October 1-2 - Stacie wins back-to-back cyclocross races, with a Saturday win at ABRA Kickoff Cross Women’s Cat 4, then a 2nd W on a muddy Sunday in the first Month of Mud cyclocross race.

October 8-9 - Steel City was out in numbers today at MOM at North Park. Stacie took Congrats again took 3rd , and was joined in this race by Greg Flood, Dustin Wehler, and Patty George. Meanwhile Rachel Weaver tore it up our East, taking 6th at Hyattsville Cx!

October 16 - Stacie took another WIN at ABRA Morgantown Monster Cross.

October 22-23 - Big weekend for women’s cyclocross racing – Stacie again with the win at Bruceton Mills on Saturday, and Rachel finishing TOP 10 in a big, fast field at DCCx on Sunday! Stacie rocked out a super fast time at the MOM Super D mountain bike race on Sunday and taking 2nd place, missing 1st by less than one minute – 2nd day, 2nd podium.

Make sure you keep following our teammates on Facebook and here on our website. October and November are going to be a lot of fun as MOM winds down, and cross continues to heat up.

Hard to believe the season is over, but the end of the summer brought a nice finish for a successful season for the team at the Bud Harris track. Both the men’s and women’s teams achieved their goals at the ACA races, and had a blast in the process.

Steel City Endurance men put forth a strong team effort, racing as a team and helping put Doug Riegner in first in the series standings at the end of the season. EJ Hubstengerger, Joe Lydic, Mike Quigley, Gregg Flood, and Carl Flink all contributed to the team’s success as the men’s team also took first in the standings. Congratulations to the men for going out there week after week and winning the B race.

On the women’s side, Rachel Weaver and Kate Bennett continued to dominate the races, packing a 1-2 punch week after week at the oval. In addition, Rachel rode aggressively all summer and took 3rd in the overall MAR points. Stacie Truszowski, Coach, and P George also put in strong efforts as the team finished second to Team Citius in the overall standings.

Both the men’s and women’s teams enjoyed another fun season at the Oval. Many thanks to the ACA for continuing to provide these fun opportunities to race with friends all summer long.

Full results posted here.

24 Hour Champion Challenge

Seven Springs Ski Resort

Seven Springs, PA

September 3-4, 2011

Four years ago our team had it’s beginnings on the road. Coach Suzanne gathered a group of women, who for some reason or another, wanted to try bike racing. Few of us had ever raced our bikes, so this was completely new to us. As you can see from posts, the team grew into a group of women (and later men) with a passion for bike racing.

Looking to expand our bike experience, this past year, a group of women took their riding off road, and started mountain biking. Spearheaded by Stacie and Kate, and supported by Coach Suzanne and Pam (who have some mad skills and passion for the mountain bike) the women joined up with local area expert mountain bikers on Girls Rule Boys Drool rides, and started to get some skills – mad skills. Skills led to expansions of the bike repertoires, and fun in the woods led to thinking about competing in this new sport.

Stacie was the first to race in the mountains in a Month of Mud TT last Fall and then at Cranky Monkey this year with JR, and she was soon followed by Kate at 6HOP. On the men’s side, Dustin – a true ace on the mountain bike – rode his first 24h race at Seven Springs last year. With more SCE women riding and racing their mountain bikes, the pinnacle for 2011 would be the 24 hour Champion Challenge at Seven Springs (7S).

To prepare for the 24hour race, Kate and Stacie rode their bikes a TON this summer. At least twice per week on the mountain bike, riding in the heat of the summer on their road bikes, they honed their skills and confidence for the challenge that lay ahead. In fact, it was rare to see Stacie off the mountain bike – she took to it like a natural! Pam Milavec, who came to biking on a mountain bike, and had raced 7S in the past, was a natural anchor for the team. In their rides they picked up Greta Daniels, racer with DPS Penn, and one of the funnest people you’ll meet. It soon became obvious that this would be the foursome for the race, under the appropriate name, Team One Non Blonde. Joining the women at Seven Springs were Kate’s husband, Aaron, who rode with Dustin on a 4-man team. Greg Flood rounded out the competitors doing it solo.

Mountain bike racing carries with it a different vibe than road racing. Yes, it is strenuous (in some ways more than road racing), but when you’re at these events it feels like a celebration of the sport. Racers and spectators tent out in a tent city, where people relax, refuel, and recuperate in between laps. When you race and ride the trails you can’t help but think one of two things (at least as a newbie): 1. This is plain scary, or #2. This is plain fun. When you think #1 too much, you figure out a way through a tough section – even if it means running up a steep, muddy switchback, and then you’re back to thinking this is fun again.

The day before the race, our team forged an amazing camp with JR and Gina and the Dynamic Physical Therapy Team on the mountain. Tents, Christmas lights, fire pit. Water, water, ice, and more water. And food and beer. What more could one need? Fans – yeah, I was one of the many groupies, as Doug, Coach and I went up and camped overnight just to hang out and experience this cool event. Pam’s family was there, Rob Riddell. Our friend, Gray Patton rode her cross bike to 7S (Gray = tough) and hung out with the Trek team, cycling friends, and camped out with us. It was really a ton of fun.

On Saturday, the race began at high noon, with Greta elected to run the Le Mans start. It was HOT. When I say hot, I mean HOT HOT. In fact there was a rider down on the first lap due to heat stroke. Despite the heat, Greta rode steady and strong for the ~11-mile lap, and pulled an awesome lap time, just under 2:20 – incredible for someone who had ridden the mountain bike for less than 6 months! Next up was seasoned veteran, Pam, and now everyone was feeling the heat. Pam rode a blistering 1:40 lap time, and she was followed by Stacie with another blistering 1:41. On the men’s side, Aaron and Dustin were riding fast, and – like everyone – feeling the heat. Dustin came in carrying his rear deraileur hanger in 2 pieces in his hand, but Anya came to the rescue and restored his trusty steed to racing form. Greg had issues with cramping, so he tried to recover, refuel, and be smart. He set off on a dusk lap to see if his recovery helped. With this crazy heat, the teams looked forward (even though fatigued) to the cooler night laps. Kate, the anchor of Team One Non Blonde, set out on the women’s dusk lap and finished a 2:05 lap taking the race from daylight into the evening. Incredible – the women’s team was now safely 4 laps in in the first 8 hours of the race and into night riding.

Yes, night riding. This is a 24h race, afterall. At night, you hear crickets, tree frogs, and see the racers roll down the hillside between the trees with headlamps and handlebar lights. It is one of the coolest things in the sport. The night is filled with pulling a lap, eating and recapturing calories, and trying to sleep.

When morning broke, the teams were all now 2/3 through the race. Although the team was tired from the heat of Saturday and a long night of racing, there was this vibe of, well, coolness in the camp. You see, these folks were just getting it done, racing in one of the most physically challenging events in their racing careers. And cyclists are just, well, cool people. For Greta, this was her first mountain bike race ever – why not a 24h race? (Damn!) You look at these folks and you realize how tough they are. And a piece of me that morning, as a true fan of these peeps, really wished to be suffering alongside them.

As the day wound down, and the clock approached noon, Stacie and Dustin set out on a final lap. Stacie ended up bringing it home for the women, Aaron followed Dustin and pulled the graveyard lap for the men. The team was spent, they gave it everything they had, and definitely deserved the post-race beers, post-race DQ, and whatever the heck they wanted. Team One Non Blonde came in 2nd in the women’s 4-person division – mad props to the women! So proud of Dustin, Aaron and Greg for putting it all out there this beast of a race as well!

It’s exciting to see Team SCE moving in new directions – from road biking to cyclocross and now mountain biking. And I had a blast this past weekend just being a groupie for my team. As a fan watching from the outside looking in, I can say for sure that on Team SCE, no matter the event, no matter the terrain, it is all just tons of fun.

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 teammate Carl Flink has moved to Michigan, he still wears his Steel City colors and races – quite fast, actually – with black and gold running through his veins. Join us as we catch up with Carl and enjoy his Michigan race report.

August 28, 2011

It has been great to finally be able to train again, and I am feeling much better than earlier this year.  Of course, I have had to take advantage of racing within a reasonable driving distance.

Three weekends ago I went to Traverse City – a vacation town on Lake Michigan.  The State Road Race (RR) championships – Cherry Roubaix RR, was held on Sunday.  I had hurridly changed my address on the USA cycling web site so I would be eligable.  It was a scary finish as our field caught the 35+ field 300 yds from the finish, and at 100 yds to go to the final corner. No wrecks, but I ended up 8th and failed to nab the state championship.

There had a crit the day before  in downtown Traverse City – Cherry Roubaix crit – which was a 6 corner course that had a short section of rough cobbles. I managed to nab a podium spot as they went 5 deep for the on-stage glory shot. Frankie Andreu was there anouncing which was very cool. (No Suzanne, he didn’t recognize Carl “Starbrick master” Flink). Jason Zimmerman was there racing and vacationing with his family, and it was very nice to see a familiar face.
Last weekend was the US pro criterium championships in Grand Rapids.  It was a nice 6 corner course with a long finishing stretch that was all cobbles, some of which were pretty rough. I rode the 1-2-3 race (there was no cat 3 or 3-4). It was wicked fast – 28.5 avg.  I got caught behind a wreck and chased until I was pulled with 2 to go. I learned a very valuable lesson: Even if you don’t crash, put your foot down, and cruise back to the wheel pit for your free lap. I thought that was illegal, but multiple people have agreed that it’s kosher. Live and learn. I certainly could have hung in there, and was gunning to be one of the top cat 3s.

The next day was a cat 3 crit, this time in East Grand Rapids, a super rich neighborhood.  I led out the sprint and ended up 3rd with a couple big legged dudes passing me in the last 75 yds.

Sinead Miller was there in her first races since her last concussion and the resulting post concussion syndrome. She says she still doesn’t feel great, but isn’t willing to be patient any longer. She finished in the back of the pack on Saturday in a high class field (Laura Van Gilder won), and 3rd on Saturday in a much smaller field. Dan Greene was also there. Again, great to see Yinzers out here.

Today I picked up a Michigan win.  A 0.5mi course with 6 corners and a 100 yd finishing strech….it’s as if they asked me what I wanted and gave me all my demands except the uphill finish.  Cutting to the chase, I had probably 25 yds on the the second place guy and was able to comfortrably get in a two handed victory salute. It felt amazing. It has been a while since I have won anything other than an oval race and it was nice to celebrate (since we all know taking your hands off the bars at the oval is a mortal sin).

These crits have been held in really nice locations: “Downtown” areas (even when they have been in smaller neighborhoods) with lots of shops along the course, great crowd support, tons of volunteers, and great money. As proof of that, in the last 3 weeks I have picked up $410… The women’s Pro-1-2-3 race today payed 15 deep and only 10 women showed up.  They had >$1000 in prize money too!!

Hope all is well in the burgh.  Miss yinz!

Tour de Millersburg

August 13-14, 2011

Millersburg, PA

After having a blast racing the Tour of the Valley (ToTV) stage race, I decided to sign up for Tour de Millersburg (TdM) since I’d heard it was a fun, well-organized stage race that drew a large and competitive field.  There were 21 participants in the Cat 4 women’s field, the biggest field I’ve raced in.

The first event was the time trial.  The Cat 4 women were the first to start, and since the starting order was alphabetical, I was first, and found myself “chasing a ghost” like I did at ToTV.  I’m used to time-trialing from my triathlon experience, but even though drafting isn’t allowed, you can still focus on catching and passing those ahead of you.  With no one to chase, I relied on perceived effort and my power meter to let me know how hard I was riding.  The course was a 9.5 mile out-and-back, comprised mostly of false flats and shallow rollers.  Since I felt like I had a little too much left at the end of the time trial at ToTV , I focused on pushing harder early on.  I was a little disheartened when, at the turn-around, I realized that the girl who’d left 30 seconds behind me had caught up to me.  She passed me soon after the turn, but I kept her in my sights for the remainder of the race.  This left me unsure of how I would fare in the time trial, but when the results were posted, I was excited to see that I’d snagged a 5^th place podium spot – and $50!

After a quick lunch and a brief nap, it was time for the criterium race, an 0.8 mile rectangle through the narrow residential streets of Millersburg.  I had a chance to ride the course a few times as a warm-up and realized that the turns would be very, very tight.  The crit was a little frustrating because no one seemed to want to sit on the front and pull.  A racer I’d met earlier in the season who is from Erie, PA, and I sat on the front for most of the race and talked about trying to work together to get a break. We attempted several attacks, but never got away from the field.  We did 19 laps for a total of 15 miles, and with about 5 laps to go, I could feel my energy fading.  I dropped back in the field a little to try to conserve energy.  With about a lap and a half to go, I found myself behind a bad wheel going into an uphill turn.  The girl braked a lot going into the turn, and was not a strong climber, so we fell even further back behind the field.  At that point, I had nothing left to chase down the leaders and finished in 12^th place.

The course was really technical.  I’m not the most experienced crit racer, but this course had the narrowest roads and tightest turns I’ve seen. I watched the men’s 1/2/3 race, and they were pretty much riding single file the whole time!  They looked ridiculously fast and everytime they passed a big gust of wind followed them.

Sunday afternoon was the 36-mile road race.  Of all 3 races at TdM, I was looking forward to the road race the most.  The course was very different from the courses I’ve raced in Western PA, lacking significantly long climbs to break up the field.  The majority of the course wasn’t technical, although there was one section of the 18-mile loop that had a sharp turn going downhill and then a short power-climb uphill.  This would’ve been the ideal place to break up the field, but being that everyone had the same idea, no breaks were successful. More people took initiative to sit on the front than at the crit, and I once again tried to work with the Erie cyclist and an unattached cyclist from DC to get a break, but we were unsuccessful… this was a really strong field!  With the exception of 2 or 3 riders who got dropped, the field stayed together for the entire race.  The last mile or so is on a gradual downhill, and I knew I needed to move up early on to be in good position for the final sprint, but I waited too long.  I crossed the finish line in 7^th place.
I ended up in 8^th place GC (General Classification, or the overall position from all of the races), missing my goal of finishing on the GC podium (top 5).  I couldn’t be upset over this though, because this race was a completely new experience for me and was a great learning experience.  I learned that I need to limit my time sitting on the front in a crit, even when I’m frustrated with the slow pace.  I learned about positioning in road racing and how important it is to get into a good position early.  I learned what it is like to sit in a dense pack for 36 miles, constantly watching wheels and trying to anticipate a break.

One of the unique aspects of this race worth mentioning was that they offered an “Adopt-a-Racer” homestay program, where residents of Millersburg opened up their homes to cyclists to stay with them during the race.  The family I stayed with had 5 children between the ages of 6 months and 14 years, and were just awesome!  They really made me feel at home while I stayed there and came to cheer me on at the crit race and the road race finish.  Going into a race where I knew absolutely no one, it was so cool to have some familiar faces and voices in the crowds.

All around, TdM was a first-class event.  I would highly recommend it to others, and I am looking forward to racing it again in the future!

Coach Suzanne continues to expand opportunities for women to ride and race bikes. In addition to continuing to support the development of the Steel City Endurance women’s team, she has now started Velo Femme, a new bike club for women new to the sport. With new faces at the track and on the trails, we are also excited about more women’s teams hitting the Pittsburgh scene.

Check out the article in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review published on August 20, 2011.

Each year, our very own Rachel Weaver puts together a master calendar of all the regional races put on by each of the regional cyclocross series promoters. Organized sequentially, it’s really easy to use her master calendar to plan your cyclocross season.

Here’s a link to the Cyclocross Calendar that every Pittsburgh ‘crosser needs to know about:
Rachel’s Cyclocross Calendar

Pro Bikes Criterium Championships

July 30, 2011

Aliquippa, PA

So the end of JR’s inaugural ABRA crit series took place in our very own hometown. Steel City knows the Aliquippa Industrial Park like the backs of our hands, and we were excited to finish up the series here. These races were a couple of the most fun to ride and watch in a long time.

Going into the finals, Kate Bennett was in contention for winning the ABRA crit series, so my goal was to ride for her, stay at the front, attack and counter where needed, and see how we could turn out.

As we toed the line for the Women’s race with the Juniors, we saw a lot of new and old faces, as the women’s field filled out nicely despite the heat.

The race started and Stephanie Swan and I traded laps for awhile. Fine with me as I was trying to keep the race pace up, get a workout, and make sure Kate was tucked in. At a couple points there were moves made, and I looked at Kate to see if she’d grab my wheel for a leadout. She had good position though, and she was in good position and form to definitely take the field sprint among her category, so she signaled me to go after Stephanie. Towards the end of the race Shawn Geiger took off, Stephanie on his tail, then I took off after her. We came around the final corner and I made my move, sneaking by her out of her slipstream, ahead for a few seconds, until her massive speed caught up and passed me by a bike length at the finish. It was exciting, but man, she is a beast! Kate came through the finish at the lead of the Women’s 4 field, no problemo, sealing up the Cat 4 win and series victory! Stacie was right behind friend Greta Daniels, taking 3rd in the race and 3rd overall in the ABRA Crit Series. So exciting to see Team SCE on the podium and Kate in the championship jersey!

After the race, I went for a ride and came back to watch the men’s 3/4 race. EJ put the hammer down a few times, but this race would have Quigley’s name all over it. They raced in the absolute heat of the day, with ebbs and flows in the peloton speed as they did. In one of the most exciting finishes ever, we saw Mike wind up behind Keith, and the two of them go in the final sprint with amazing speed. It was such a close finish that video confirmation was required, but Mike took it. Confirmed and for sure. Quigs for the W!

For full ABRA Crit Series standings and results, check out this page: http://www.abraracing.com/Results/2011ACSstandings.html

Congratulations, team, on races well ridden!!!