JULY 1, 2010 RACE SUMMARIES
Full Race Results
A beautiful summer evening for bike racing. A stiff south wind made the home stretch challenging to riders.
Women 10 racers
Several new riders joined the women’s field tonight making a full field. The women started out with a reverse win and out. After 3 preliminary laps, Megan Lennon (behind bars/LGR) rode off the front drawing Caitlin van Kooten (Teter) and Alissa Maglaty (Earlybird). Lennon stayed out to take 5th place in the 1st sprint. Van Kooten stayed out to take the 2nd sprint for 4th place but Maglaty was spent. Lis Wilson attacked to take the 3rd sprint for 3rd place. The next sprint was hotly contested when Terra James (behind bars/LGR) rode around Melissa Dahlman (Bianchi/GP) followed by Bianca Bergman (Texas Roadhouse). James stayed out to take the sprint for 2nd place in the race. Dahlman and Bergman then rode for the race win. With Dahlman on her wheel, Bergman jumped and got a quick 5 meter lap which Dahlman was unable to close; win to Bergman – nada for Dahlman.
The second women’s race was a 3-lap handicap. Two heats were conducted to pare the field to 6 riders for the final. Linsey Hamilton (Synergy) and James started strong from the finish line and 10 meter handicap, respectively. At the front, Megan Lennon (behind bars/LGR) eased up from a 60 meter handicap and, with 2 laps to go, the six racers were all together, including Dahlman and Maglati. Dahlman led at the bell but Hamilton rode around her followed by James and Bergman. The sprint to the line was furious and James executed a perfect bike-throw to inch out Hamilton at the line with Bergman following closely. Lennon brought in the rest.
The women closed out their program with a 30-lap scratch race. Attacks started with 25 laps to go; Dahlman, Bergman, and James the most active. Nothing stuck until Dahlman took the race in hand with 10 laps to go. She slowly stretched her lead to 55 meters at the end, cheered on by the crowd. Bergman, James and Lennon brought in the rest.
Cat 1/2 14 racers
The Cat 1/2 field was joined this week by three sprinters from the Trinidad and Tobago national cycling team. They are training at the NSC Velodrome before competing in Central American and Caribbean Games this Summer.
The Cat 1/2 field started the evening’s race schedule with a 15-lap scratch race. The race went off at a moderate pace until, with 10 laps to go, Adam Bergman (Texas Roadhouse) and Joe Lewis (unattached) rode off the front but were joined by three others then another four for a nine-up sprint. At the bell, James Tainter (Silver Cycling) and Dan Schueller (Gopher Wheelmen) attacked. Pat Lemieux (Texas Roadhouse) was able to come around Tainter but Schueller held him off at the line for the win.
Six riders advanced from heats to contest the Salsa King of the Sprint Keirin Final. Bergman drew the pole position. With 2½ laps to go Bergman took off from the front, a tactic his teammate Lemieux used to get to the final. In the final, however, the other riders paid attention and kept Bergman in range. With a lap to go his effort was spent. AT this point the three Caribbean visitors took the race in hand. They sprinted past Bergman and duked it out for the top three places. Chris Ferris joined them but lagged by half a wheel width at the line for 4th place in the race. The winners: Njisine Phillip then Adam Alexander then Haseem Melom, all of the Trinidad-Tobago national team.
The last race of the evening was a 60-lap Penn Cycle Points Race for the Cat 1/2 riders. The race was dominated by Texas Roadhouse teammates Bergman and Lemieux taking 2/3 of the sprint points on offer. Dan Casper (Grandstay) tried to get away early, got a gap as big as 100 meters and took the first sprint, but it was all Bergman and Lemieux after that. Bergman attacked out of a lead group of 4 and took the 2nd sprint by 70 meters. Bergman’s gap grew to 200 meters by the 3rd sprint. Lemieux attacked out of the field to collect 2nd place points in that sprint and kept it hot. Bergman held up, waiting for Lemieux. With 28 laps to go the teammates had an 80 meter gap on the field who were not inclined to chase. Bergman and Lemieux lapped the field with 25 laps to go. Lemieux then attacked the field at the bell for the 4th sprint and took 1st place points. Bergman joined him and the duo was off again. At the sprint with 10 laps to go the pair had a 100 meter gap. Casper, Tainter, and Lewis took off to try to bridge but Bergman and Lemieux stayed out through the final sprint, lapping everyone but the chasing trio. Bergman took 1st in the race with 21 sprint points to Lemieux’ 18 points. Everyone else was down a lap. Casper took 3rd by a point over Lewis.
Cat 3 19 racers
For the second week in a row, a large Cat 3 field competed. Their first race, a 10-lap scratch race, started fast with Zack Mohr (unattached) and Sean Vig (Speedfix) providing the imeptus. The race stayed fast with no attacks achieving any significant gaps. With 2 laps to go, new Cat 3s Nate Brennaman (Birchwood) and Rich Bergstrom took off. Brennaman maintained a 10 meter gap to take the win. Conrade Thomas (Lakeside Velo) and Mike Smith (Gopher Wheelmen) rode around Bergstrom to take 2nd and 3rd, respectively.
A long Miss and Out was the second Cat 3 race. The pace was fast, shedding many riders off the back early. Thomas was outmaneuvered and eliminated for 6th place. Vig, Brennaman, and then Smith were shed off the back, unable to keep up with the blistering pace set by Dan Frederick (American Anti-aging) and Derek Virta (Gopher Wheelmen). In the final match sprint, Frederick jumped and got a 10 meter gap which Virta was unable to close. Win to Frederick.
Shortly after the 34 lap Miss and Out, the Cat 3 riders contested a 50-lap scratch race. This race went out at a pace as fast as the earlier race. With 33 laps to go, Smith, Virta, and Dan Jacobson (Gopher Wheelmen) attacked but only Smith had the legs to keep it up. He got as much as a 130 meter gap but, with 27 laps to go, he also ran out of gas. Elena Dorr (Verve) and Mark Stewart (unattached) then found themselves off the front with a gap. Charlie Anderson (Bianchi/GP) bridged and the trio got a lead of as much as 110 meters. Jacobson bridged followed by Virta. The chase slowly reeled this group of 5 back and, with 11 laps to go, they were reabsorbed into the field. With three laps to go, Mike Hall (behind bars/LGR) and Frederick attacked. With 2 to go Frederick attacked Hall who couldn’t respond. At the bell Frederick had a 70 meter lead. Steve Redelsperger (Bianchi/GP) led the field but Thomas, Smith and Virta rode around to take 2nd, 3rd, and 4th.
Cat 4/5 17 racers
New riders swelled the Cat 4/5 field and contributed to enthusiastic racing. The first race was a 10-lap scratch race which went off at a brisk pace. Jeff Bushendorf (Wannabe Racing) tried his luck early, Aaron Koehler (Flat City) marking him, but the pair were quickly reeled in. At the bell, the group crossed the line 4-wide, presaging a furious finish won by Brian Duncan (Bianchi/GP), followed closely by Mark Leppke (behind bars/LGR), John McGary (unattached), and Jeff Anderson (Loon State).
The Cat 4/5 field contested another long Miss and Out. The inexperienced riders learned that the easier, shorter, inside line was the sure route to early elimination. Koehler played the devil in these early eliminations. The pace then picked up and riders were dropped off the back, unable to overcome the high pace. Kohler was eliminated inside, unable to advance, for 5th place. Eric Ware (Tonka) was shelled off the back for 4th place. Anderson was pipped at the line for 3rd place. Leppke and Duncan then match sprinted for the win. Leppke rode around Duncan at the bell, but, in the back stretch, Duncan came over Leppke and stayed ahead to the line for the win.
40-Lap Scratch Race
Keohler took off at the gun in the 40-lap scratch race. He extended his lead on the field to 90 meters over the next 10 laps. Bushendorf chased and joined him with 28 laps to go but the effort was spent by then and the field was together with 26 laps to go. Some yo-yoing occurred over the next 24 laps but no one got away. Things started speeding up for the final sprint with 5 laps to go. With 2 to go, Kevin Lennon (Tonka) and Leppke were at the front trying to get away, but, at the bell, Duncan attacked with Leppke and Ware following. Duncan stayed out for the win, Leppke 2nd. Anderson was able to nose out Ware for 3rd place with a well-timed bike throw at the line.