CycleTherapy Racing

Busy Sunday!

2011-07-31T13:44:00.000-07:00

It was nice seeing the riders and racers at the Milford House last night and it was also a great time to hang out with everyone from the shop!   Today we had the Milford Crit race, our regular Sunday road ride from Walled Lake and a impromptu group ride from Waterford to Milford to watch the races.    Thanks everyone from coming out for the rides and for stopping by the Cycletherapy tent at the race.    So, how did the race go for us?    Well we wanted to have more riders but, due to injuries and the race categories filling up quickly we only had one rider.

Mr. Mark P. was representing Cycletherapy - Specialized at the races with his Crux Cyclocross bike.   Early in the race Mark took the lead and held that lead until 21 minutes left then he settled into the pack of riders.   Coming up on one lap to go Mark bolted to the front and carried the pack until the final climb.   On that final climb he encounter some intense competition leaving him to finish about mid pack.

It was a great event! And nice to see all levels of riders out on the course.   We even saw some Mountain Bikes on the course in the CAT 5 group!     So congrats to all the racers, promoters and sponsors for a great race on a perfect sunny day!

Picture to come soon!    Next up, a little trek up north to Big M.

Wednesday Group Ride in Walled Lake

2011-07-28T07:18:00.000-07:00

We had our first Wednesday group ride from the Walled Lake Cycletherapy store!

As the time got close to 7:00 pm riders started showing up for the Mountain Bike group ride from the Walled Lake store to the Tree Farm course. We had about seven riders who dared to brave the rain.
As we started our ride, we got a few strange looks from people in passing cars but, little did they know that the rain felt kind of refreshing after the weeks of heat. After the short two mile paved section to the park we entered into the single track and that is where the fun started. We had the entire trail for our own use.

While riding in the trees the heavy rain was diminished by the tree canopy. We had a nice slow pace going and for the first time in months I actually was able to just look around and enjoy the forest. The rain could be heard hitting the leaves and there was a cool green glow from the rain reflecting the light off the leaves. The ground and the trees had a dark look which amplified the green color above even more. The ride, the scenery made the event perfect.

After 90 minutes of riding we ended up back at the shop soaked but, not cold or exhausted.

Thanks Jen for organizing the ride and not letting us back out.

Tree Farm Relay

2011-07-25T15:04:00.000-07:00

Every year, we look forward to this fun race. This year was no exception. We arrived early to setup the Cycletherapy-Specialized village and get ready for the race. Most of the early part of the day we had a chance of thunderstorms but nothing developed, leaving the course fast and dry!!

Our lead out rider in the four person relay was Mark P. who killed the lap times and quickly put us into 2nd or 3rd. At that time we did not know because the start was a little bit of a rush! Next was Dave Z, then Derek H and finally me. But things got a little out of order. We where told that our rider Derek had broken his collar bone. After we found out that he was OK I took off to make up the lap and our time. During that lap my heart rate was averaging 170 bpm, a tad higher than I would have liked. The lap felt great and I came into the finish, only to be stopped by Mark P before the finish line. It turned out the rider who broke his colar bone was NOT Derek but another friend (who is also OK now) and that my lap would not count! I was kinda disappointed because that time was my best ever! Eventually, we all finished our laps and ended the race in third, missing second by ten seconds. Not bad but, we will do better next time! Next on the list is Big M. Always a great race venue.

Newest Team Member

2011-07-22T15:41:00.000-07:00

Hello Everyone, I would like to welcome Tom Lining to the Cycletherapy-Specialized racing team. Tom was one of the original founders of the team and now he is back. We look forward to racing, riding and working with Tom at the various clinics through the year!

Welcome Tom!

Catching up

2011-07-18T06:41:00.000-07:00

Wow, has time gone buy fast!

Racing every weekend the team has had some really great moments.   Half way through the season three of our riders are in the top 5 in point standings and another two are in the top 10 of their group within USAC!

Lake Orion High School race series was a great time for many of us to race during the week.   Three of our riders took overall podium spots in that series!

But, during this time we have had a little curse on our team.   Several riders have wrecked, taking them out of the road bike series and the same thing on the mountain bike series.   Of the seven riders in the mountain bike group almost half have had wrecks that have forced them to stop riding for a few weeks.

With all the injuries it is nice to have a few weeks off before we start racing again!

6 Hours of Stony Creek

2011-05-15T14:33:00.000-07:00

By Jay Jones

My intentions for this race was to use it as a tune up for the Mohican 100 in Ohio in 2 weeks. I wanted to gauge my fitness and see what I had to work on. Pre-race bantering on the MMBA Board had me wondering about gear ratio, but I stuck to my original plan and went with a 34x18 on my Specialized Stumpy fully rigid 29er.

With the weather playing a huge role in this race, I also decided to stay with a Specialized S-Works Fast Trax LK up front and Specialized S-Works Renegade in the back, this prove to be a worthy set up as I had no issues except in the greasy spots, but then again, everyone did. So the extra wheelset with more knobbier tire was not needed.

As we lined up for the gun to go off, I spot Wayne Cook, a man who I have chased in just about every race around here. He's fast and he's good. I am unable to spot any other bikes with just one gear so I focus on him...for about 3 minutes because he takes off as soon as the gun goes off and I settle into a nice little group of 7 riders.

We wind our way through the roller coaster section of the race course and we have a pretty good clip going. Michigan Endurance Queen Danielle Musto is in this group along with 16 year old Kurt Voight. As we come to an intersection of single track going across two track, the lead portion of this group stays on the single track and I know enough to turn left onto the two track, so I shout out to them and keep speeding on and they all somehow turn around. A few minutes later, they catch up as they all have gears and I pick a nice little place in the pace line and let them pull me around.

We do this for about 2.5 laps, it's a blast and the pace is higher than I expected or planned, but this is a training ride and a fact finding mission, so I don't mind. This group finally splinters and I am working with Kurt and someone else. I'm happy with where I'm at and finally settle in.

Laps 3-5 I am alone and with a few people here and there, grab a wheel when I can on the flats and then make a move just before the single track so I am not held up. Just after starting the 5th lap, I come up on a few people that I'm not really suppose to catch or much less pass...but nonetheless, it's at a most opprotune time as it's at the beginning of a long flat section. One such rider is Chris Goddard and I grab his wheel and let him know it's me. He pulls me up to the famous Wayne Cook, the man I marked at the start line. I am quite amazed at this situation and us three end up working together for a little bit. Wayne and I end up dropping Chris and then we take turns pulling and take turns checking each others weeknesses and strong points out. He's fast on the flats and I can make time on him on the climbs. We both make a quick stop in the pits, mine is about 15 seconds long, enough time to grab a fresh bottle and some Enduralytes and I'm on my way.

As pull away I look behind me and no Wayne...until about three minutes later, he pulls up behind me and sits on my wheel. We have some fun together flying through the roller coaster section and he shouts out, "Jay, slow down, I don't want to race today, I wanna ride!" We both have a good laugh. But all he was doing was setting me up for a decisive move on the flat section...I sat up a little to stretch and he hit the gas and within 10 seconds he's 100 feet in front of me on a long steady climb. My legs cannot answer so I settle back into my pace and am content to watch him slowly ride away. I decide right then that I will continue to run my race and keep plugging along, I feel pretty good and only my left quad is cramping a little, nothing that a few more Enduralytes and some Hammer Sustained Energy doesn't cure.

As I arrive at my pit at the end of my 5th lap I'm all business and my friend Robin Scurr is waiting there with a fresh bottle (as he has been all day long). He knows exactly what to do and gives me some encouragement then sends me on my way. I am riding all alone on my 6th lap and have a nice pace going. I am surprised at my pace and still am feeling good. About half way thru the 6th lap I come around a corner just before a long climb and I see Wayne pushing his bike, as I ride past him he says, "the race is yours, good job!" So the competitor in me puts an explaination point on the climb to make sure he sees me and keep pedaling (which is hard to do, cause Wayne is a good guy). With him conceding I am rejuvenated, which is a great feeling so late in the race. I press on and continue to keep a decent pace up. I finish the 6th lap alone, stop to grab one more bottle and head out for my 7th and final lap. I ride all alone, pass a few people and have a good lap.

As I near the final huge climb, definitely the hardest climb in the race, I am determined to stay on the bike as I have made all the climbs all day long. I have about 5 revolutions per minute, but the bike is moving and I'm still on it. I push thru and come into the start/finish area and Brent Walk (race promoter) shouts out my name on the P.A. system. I am dirty, wet and tired, but I have a smile and I am very happy with today's "training ride".

I end up with 7 laps, 73.58 miles in 6:01 hours, avg speed 12.2 mph, max speed 29.3 mph, avg heart rate 149 bpm, max heart rate 169 bpm, climbed 6133 feet and burned 5870 calories!

I get 1st Place in Single Speed Solo and 2nd place overall in the Solo class...not to bad for a 51 year old asthmatic!

Go race!

L.O.H.S. Spring Race Series May 5

2011-05-06T19:31:00.000-07:00

By Jay Jones

This is the first of the Lake Orion High School Spring Race Series. It's a week night race series designed to have some fun and get a little racing in. I use them for high efforts back slash, hard days. Even though the race is short, it's a high effort for the entire race, very similiar to a cyclo-cross race.

With that said, I take a 1/2 lap to get a good warm up in as I know the race will be face paced from the gun with the likes of who showed up. A pace line forms quickly and I am about in 9th place as we dive right down a short hill and head for the single track. My teammate Dave Moore is right in front of me, he offers me his place in line just before we hit the sweet single ribbon of dirt thru the woods...I politely decline and we are on our way.

Shortly after I am regretting my decision as the first six guys slowly pull away. There is no place to pass and I am relegated to letting the lead pack go away. No worries, this is all for fun. As we hit the first open area I make my pass and I am all alone. I see one of the guys has fallen off the pace of the lead group and I slowly count the space between him and I and it's roughly 1 minute. I do some quick deductions and it will be hard for me to make up the time in this short of a race, but I try nonetheless.

As we weave in and out of the turns, berms and valleys I get the false sense I am closer to the one in front of me, but I don't let if fool me and keep pushing the pedals. My goal is try to catch him before the finish line with a few hard efforts, I am unable to bridge the gap. As I look behind me I am making some good time on the people I started the race with. Although I don't know this for sure, but the fact that I can't see them is a pretty good sign that I am. I keep the pace to the end, just to keep my intended 'hard work out' in tact.

I end up finishing in 49:44, 2nd place in the Advanced 40+ group. Bernie Wendel and I are the only cats on single speeds in the group and it's fun to mix it up with all the gears and suspension and what not!

The next race in this series is Wednesday, May 11, another good weekday night for a race...and some fun!

Go ride.

Cone Azalia

2011-05-01T17:21:00.000-07:00

Check-in from Keith:

Did the Cone Azalia race today. In my debut cat 4 race I came in 22/40.
Conditions were tough. In the first 0.5 mile stretch of dirt I saw about
20 water bottles that popped off bikes including one of my own. I decided
to get it because it was the only one I brought. There were quite a few
flats in the same section. I am very glad I switched to the Specialized
Roubaix tire this week for the race. All in all I loved the Roubaix for
this race.

I still plan I racing on Wednesday at Waterford. Hope to see everyone out there!

First MTB race of the series!

2011-04-29T04:36:00.000-07:00

The day started off with some very iffy weather but quickly turned into a perfect day to race! Our sponsors, Cycletherapy and Specialized put on a great display. The team got its first win of the season, compliments of Mark P. Our team will be busy this weekend with road races and mountain bike races on Sunday!

Thanks to Ten Mile Media for some awesome photos!!

Riding with my Cycletherapy Peeps

2011-04-10T16:58:00.000-07:00

by Jay Jones

With my busy schedule I do most of my training all by my little lonesome self. So when I ride with some friends it's always enjoyable. Then throw in a route I've never done before and its like a whole new adventure.

The plan was to ride the city of Holly from a top secret location in Waterford. We pounded a little pavement before hitting the dirt. I'm on my single speed cross bike and the two cats I'm riding with, Derek and Jay Atwater or on geared mountain bikes. So I'm pretty sure I'll have my work cut out for me. The warm up wasn't much of a warm up, we had a pretty good clip going...not the most ideal conditions for this old man, I need a little bit slower and longer warm up, but no worries...I have to able bodied cyclists to draft from! =:)

As we head out of the township of Waterford we find the solace of dirt and then some of the climbing starts. We head out Pontiac Lake road to Cuthbert then wind our way north to Rattelee Lake road and I-75. We turn west and hit some longer sustained climbs, after Derek doing most of the work to this point, we take turns pulling and seeing who can do the most damage on the climbs. It turns into a little contest and we have some fun.

Upon entering the little hamlet of Holly our conversation turns to food, yes, this is a food ride where our turn around destination is some place to grab some grub and then head back. When we pull up to the appointed eatery, we realize they are closed. After some quick thinking by Mr. Atwater, we point our bikes to the Bittersweet Cafe. So one block later we are relieved to find it open and the place was hopping. We are greeted with a Chamber of Commerce type person who is happy to see us and invites us to experience the downtown area. We enter the cafe with our bright orange kits on and grab a table. We are greeted by one of the owners and they too are very appreciative of our visit, and inivte us back and plants a seed for a group ride.

As we saddle up and head back after some good food we head out easy this time and get ready for some hills. My plan is to attack each hill and see what I have. Some hills I can get my rhythm with one gear, the ones with a steep pitch, not so much. Either way, I am working hard to test my limits and if I can drop my geared buddies, well, that's just icing on the proverbial cake.

We have a good hard ride on the way back, take turns pulling and we end up with a nice cool down on some pavement and one stupid driver who wanted to see how close he could get without hitting us...in the words of the great Bugs Bunnny, "What a maroon!"

Other than that, it was an awesome ride with 50.3 miles in 3:21 average speed 15.0 mph, max speed 30.1 mph, average heart rate 141 bpm, max heart rate 176 bpm, climbed a total of 1959 feet and burned 2618 calories!

Go ride!

Barry Roubaix Recap from David Moore

2011-03-30T06:03:00.000-07:00

For many the Barry Roubaix is not only the start of the season but the start of bike riding for the year. For me it’s just a continuation of something I never planned to stop. With the exception of the 1 week break from training after last fall's Iceman Cometh race for an appendectomy, the ride continues. The cold February rides around the Lake at Stony Creek and more than tolerating the stinging winds and surviving the icy back roads fully prepared me for the cooler temperatures. What I was not quite expecting was the fast pace that was set by the higher numbers of competitors racing with Cyclocross bikes. I chose my 2010 Specialized 29 Comp.
The bike has been a faithful friend all year and was ready to take whatever was thrown at her. As we lined up at the Barry Roubaix start I scoped out other bikes taking note of the gears others were about to take off in. I had already decided that my take off gear was best as I felt strong enough to stay ahead of the group at least until the first sharp turn onto the main road was past. We got the "Go!" and I was off. I was at the front of the pack and intentionally as I did not want to get tied up with another bike. Getting a another derailleur stuck in my front spokes would not have been pretty, its happened before.

After we made our way onto the main road, I was in the big ring and the first 10 or 15 cyclocross equipped racers went past me... I was ok with that since I knew the fastest guys would be passing me soon enough. I was even more surprised that at the first 1 mile I was still among the front as far as other mountain bikes were concerned. As we got to the sandy two track some of the Cyclocross bikes got a little squirrely, but it was smooth sailing with the S-Works FastTrak on the front wheel. The climbs in the two-track were a little too easy for me... I realized as others started to pass, that I needed to get up out of the saddle and give an extra push. Those Cyclocross bikes were great on the straight-aways, but on the sharp climbs they just got in the way. We got to the dirt roads and even more cyclocross bikes passed. I tried to draft a few of those 'cross bikes but they either slow down on the climbs, or they were too fast so most of the next 18 to 20 miles I just went it alone. I noticed that on the downhill sections of the dirt roads that I had more confidence than I had last summer, my bike really did have great traction. Even though I was able to make the turns with very little speed loss, I found that accelerating on the exit of the turns were no match for the skinny tire 'cross bikes, I would use this opportunity to take a few swigs of my electrolyte drink.

The climbs, they kept coming, I thought I was getting to the top of a climb only to be disappointed that I wasn't quite halfway up. I experienced no cramps in my legs, but my heart was maxed on one stand-up climb to catch a guy I swore I had passed just minutes earlier. On the fast sections I learned how to appreciate a few moments of drafting, but they were just moments. At the last 14 miles or so finally got my break as I was really really tired, a cyclocross guy let me draft him for a while, he was pretty consistent with his pace which allowed me to not only catch my breath, but for my heart rate to finally settle down... we talked for awhile, he asked how I felt, I said "dead", but I was lying I felt alive and well, but just spent. At some point I got out of my saddle and sprinted up a hill I thought the guy I was following was right behind me which would have been cool, but when I had the chance to look back he wasn’t there, but I found a whole string of bikers following me... probably taking advantage of the same thing I had minutes earlier, a break from the wind.

At the last 6 miles (on pavement) I saw my good buddy's wife ringing a cow bell, so I knew at that point I was close to being done that gave me a little more motivation (albeit no energy), to get up one more time to feel the last burning as we climbed yet another hill. I saw the entrance to the Yankee Springs Park, WOW! I was relieved. As I made the left turn into the park, I decided I just had to finish on a high note. I got up and peddled past a few more bikers, the last stretch to the finish line sure seemed longer coming in than it did going out, the last few yards finished up in the saddle, I was done for the day. I finished the 35 mile race in 2:04:56, with an average 16.8 mph. The results do not show me as the winner or even the top 10 but my ability to recover quickly after the race shows me as "WINNING". This is just the beginning, I have a plan and staying strong is essential and in this I am Specialized.

Barry Roubaix 2011

2011-03-28T19:08:00.000-07:00

By Jay Jones

Otay, I love this race, I love the course. It mimic's a lot of how I train, back roads on my single speed cross bike. And most of my early season miles is on the fixie...so this race is nothing new, my body is use to this type of race.

What I wasn't use to was the gear ratio that I selected. I've been running a 38x17 the past two months. Last year I had a 39 tooth chain ring along with some different cranks, so I assumed I used a 39x16. So I decided to switch from a 17 tooth to a 16 tooth and I thought I would be okay.

I was in Wave 3 with all the people over 40, single speeders and fixed geared racers. There were a ton of fast cats, so the roll out was fast and I could see the lead group pull away, which is no big deal so the panic button wasn't hit just yet. The pavement treated me well with my gear selection...I was rolling along, spinning at about 110 rpm's while working a little on the climbs. I was happy. Then we hit the dirt and a few climbs. In traffic, with a long line of cyclists in front of you, it's hard...no, impossible to ride the single speed style which is gain some momentum before the climb, so I was working real hard near the top of the climb. After a couple of these, I was unable to recover as I would have to keep pedaling down the other. With this said, I didn't even bother hitting the panic button, I threw the whole thing away. I knew my day was done and it was confirmed when people that I am always in front of starting passing me.

With each proceeding climb, I was digging deeper and spending more money than my account had. I decided not to worry about the race and my standing as I did have some big plans. I stilled raced when I could, but with this gear ratio, I lost way to much time on the climbs.

I ended up finishing in 2:26, a whopping 18 minnows slower than last year! I never cramped, just couldn't turn the cranks like I wanted too. I have a good baseline of where my fitness is at and let's just say...I'll be riding more real soon...just don't run me over on the pavement...

Go ride!

24 hour spin for the WCFY!

2011-03-22T17:51:00.001-07:00

Thank you all for the AWESOME effort you put forth to help make our 2011 24 Hour Spin a success! We had a great turnout for spinning with zero gaps and at least 2 riders spinning at all times. We had a record day of sales and will be giving a check for $2241.00 to the Waterford Coalition for Youth! I hope that you had a great time attending.

Sincerely, Ernie Dell

More Winter Training

2011-02-13T03:49:00.000-08:00

Finally, after weeks of indoor training we got outside for a nice 2.5 hour ride. Well, that statement make the ride sound simple but we started our ride in the afternoon so many of the back roads where turning into mud with a little ice here and there. The stiff breeze mad it difficult to decide on keep a lay on or shedding it. By the time we finished most of us where soaked from the mud and / or the sweat from being over dressed. It took almost as long to clean the bike as it did to ride it. But I guess that is winter riding!

Winter Training

2011-01-25T16:44:00.000-08:00

Wow, time is flying by and the team has been training 4 days a week. Yoga, Plyometrics, Spinning and a few 3 hour rides in the cold. The next few weeks will see an additional day of training and more time riding outside.

Now you can join us at the shop for indoor training rides Tuesday and Thursday. Also we do a 3 hour ride on Saturdays. If your interested contact us at the shop for details!

It's Time To Get Ready For Summer!

2011-01-10T11:31:00.000-08:00

If you want to get a little workout a few nights a week join Cycletherapy in Waterford for a SPIN!

Tuesdays and Thursdays around 7:45pm (start time 8pm)
Bring your trainer, bike, and gear (please bring mats if you are a sweater!)

Between 1 hour and 1.5 hour training rides.

Time for planning the 2011 season

2010-12-12T00:57:00.000-08:00

Here we are, again. Another great year of racing, riding and hanging out with friends. December is a month that allows us to plan and organize for the next season. In 2011 CycleTherapy Racing will be adding a full road race team to our already existing mountain bike team and cyclocross team. We have listed over 40 events that our 13 member team will be racing in. In addition to these races we will continue our local shop rides and trail rides.

We are proud to have secured Allard Mold Engineering, Specialized, SRAM and, of course CycleTherapy as sponsors for the 2011 and 2012 seasons.

Also new, is our racing uniform. A little brighter and much more bolder.

So that was a small update but there will be much more to come. So keep coming back for updates on rides, races and other events for next season.

Happy Holidays!

Linden Cross Races Last weekend.

2010-12-12T00:33:00.001-08:00

In the wee hours of Sunday morning the Cycletherapy racing team rolled out of bed and rolled on out to Linden State Park for Tailwinds 4th. race of the series. It was an amazing course. Starting with and hill climb right out of the gate, followed by a descending approach to a run-up, shooting us into an amazingly beautiful, tree covered technical section. What a race.. Fast lap times and stiff competition, battle ensued till the exhausted end, resulting in five podium finishes, including 2nd. place in the Elite mens category By Mark Parmelee, 1st. Place in the single speed category by Jay Jones, 3rd. place in Juniors 15-18 By Andrew Dever, and two 5th. place spots by Kyle Thatcher and Dave Zatec, in C 39 and under, and C 40+ Respectively. Great showing guys! Lets Keep up the Good Work.

24 Hours of Hanson Hills

2010-09-25T18:49:00.000-07:00

I was looking forward to this race as it would be my first 24 hour attempt. I didn't know what to expect and my fitness was okay, not exactly where I would have liked it to be, but like most things, life steps in and takes away a little training time. So with that said, I was packing and getting things ready as early as 4 days before race day. The box was on top of the Jeep and I was ready to roll Friday after work.

I arrived in Grayling around 7:30PM and checked into my motel. Once I got settled in I decided to go to Glen's Market and get some 24 hour race day food. What's funny is that I normally wouldn't guy these items, so it was funny when I arrived at the check out and the cashier rang up, two Red Bulls, an 8-pack of small Cokes, a box of strawberry Pop Tarts, a bag of Fun Size Pay Day candy bars and bag of Frito's! With light batteries charging and all the junk food to fuel any endurance athlete, I was ready to go.

The alarm rang at 7:00AM. I look outside and it's cloudy and looks chilly. I immediately look at the weather on my trusty Droid X and see a large weather cell with some heavy rain not to far away and heading straight for us. I decide to forgo everything and go to the Hanson Hills ski area and set up the pit, which includes a tent and awning and a few extra things to make my next 24 hours easy. Just as I finish, the rain starts coming down and it's a steady heavy rain, whew! After I check my new home, I go back to my room and check out and get a little breakfast and head back to H.H.

I get back just in time to suit up, check tire pressure and take a last minute pee and head to the start line with about 8 seconds to spare, the gun goes off and our 24 hours of racing begins. I settle into a nice pace with a 12 hour racer setting a nice even pace, not fast at all which is good, I would hate to go out to fast. I follow my pacesetter for the entire first lap and there's actually 4 of us content to ride together, which made it pretty nice.

At the end of each lap, I would roll into my pit which was about 40 feet from the course and grab a new water bottle with some nutrition in it and maybe pop a couple Endurolytes, get back on the bike and roll. After 4 hours I take a little break, snap a pic of my pit and bike (see above) and post it on Facebook, I knew some of my biking buddies would appreciate a time out during a race to post on Facebook and it gave them something to talk about while SITTING ON THEIR COUCH!!! =;)

I liked coming in after each lap which took around 1:05 and actually getting off the bike for about 15-20 seconds and getting what I needed and then immediately back on the bike. I didn't feel any of the 4 hour blues, I felt pretty good, so that was a good sign, but this pace was slower than my 12 hour pace so I didn't expect it to be there. Where it did come was about the 8 hour mark, so I decided to take a long break and get my lights ready. When the time came, I was ready to rock when the sun went down. I only managed two laps in the dark and I was ready to take a long break.

As I curled up in my sleeping bag with a plan of getting up around 3 or 4 at the very latest I was having a hard time going to sleep, with noisy neighbors and loud music for the 24 hour competitors. So I didn't sleep much and I believe I finally fell asleep around 12:30AM. I woke up once and it was quiet, stuck my head out of the sleeping bag and thought that the weatherman was right for once, it was definitely in the 30's. So without hesitation, I got back n the sleeping bag and fell back to sleep.

I finally woke up at 5:00AM and immediately changed into dry warm clothes, the temperture was 33 degrees and the sky was super clear and I seen a million stars on my walk to the "Standings Board" to see where I was at. I was not to surprised to see I was one lap down in the Single speed category. I did a quick math calculation and figured I had time to do 4 laps and if I felt super good, maybe 5, but that would be stretching it. So I set out at 5:00AM, it's 33 degrees, pitch black and very, very lonely. The 2nd big climb of the course I come upon a cyclist, he's a single speeder, and happy to say, he's pushing his bike where I am riding mine. It happens to be the first place guy and I tell myself that "I'm riding, he's pushing and there's 5 hours to go and plenty of time to get the lead back. I am rejuvenated early on and it helps me with the next two laps.

I watch the sunrise on the tail end of my second lap and the sky change colors, it turns out to be a beautiful morning and the lights on the bike are soon turned off. I come into my pit, mix two bottles in anticipation of two more quick laps. It's funny, I have come to two endurance races and late in the game have found some energy to keep forging on!

I'm on my fourth lap of the morning and thinking if I hurry, I can make it into the start/finish in time to do another and hopefully secure first place. As I near the end, I have forced to walk the long last climb. I make it to the top and remount the bike and start pedaling. I look at my watch and realize that no matter how fast I go, there's no way I can make it to the start/finish in the next 10 seconds, so I just finish safely and roll in. I can hear Brent annoucing my name and saying something to the affect that time has run out and I missed the cut off just incase I wanted to do another lap. I wasn't to disappointed and I was ready to accept any placing I got.

As I rolled past the start/finish I ask where my nemisis was and he was actually within ear shot and shouted out, "here I am." He was changed into regular clothes and looked pretty fresh, so I assume that he stopped a lot sooner than I. I soon find out I got first place, beating him by one lap.

I managed 2nd overall in the solo categories, not to shabby for a 50 year old asthmatic on a totally ridid single speed!!!

I did learn a few things though. 1. Have your light scenario all worked out well before the race. 2. Frito's and their salty goodness hit the spot. 3. I didn't need any realy solid food besides that. I survived on few gels and Hammer nutrition, namely Sustained Energy and Endurolytes.

Ride safe!

Jay

The 12 Hours of Ithaca

2010-07-20T15:29:00.000-07:00

If there ever was a close-to-perfect race, this was it.

I have to tell ya, this race was unworldly. At about the 4 hour mark I was thinking it was going to be a short day as my hands starting hurting. So I started taking small breaks (like 2 min.) off the bike when it was time to grab a new water bottle in my pit. With these short breaks it was enough to keep me going on the bike, but my lap times were falling. I was doing 24:30 minute laps for the first 6-7 laps but then slowed to 25:30 laps. But it didn't matter, I was still rolling and staying on the bike and that is what is most important. At one time I was tied for 1st overall, and when my friends (The Kreger family, Bryan and Jennifer) told me, I was rejuvenated, but my hands still hurt. This course has over 1200 turns, no kidding, which will explain why my hands hurt, I haven’t done this much turning since being lost in the new Meijer store layout.

At about the 5 hour mark is when the race just started to reach a plane I have only experienced maybe once or twice. I was riding the trail seamlessly. In other words, there were no favorites spots, or fast spots or slow spots or most unfavorite spots, it just turned into a long ribbon of single track where everything blended together, where it just flowed, no matter what I did, it just flowed without interruption. I didn't even stop at the pits except for a quick water bottle change every other lap and I just rode thinking I would blow up any minute, but I was enjoying the ride and kept going!

Up to this point I was not worried about where I was at in the race standings, but my friends would tell me every now and then. Then right at dark, I stopped to see the standings and much to my surprise I see a guy who I didn't think was racing and he was in front of me by two laps, I was a little disappointed, but I was still riding out of my mind, so I went to my pit and grabbed another bottle, some Endurolytes (an electrolyte replacement tablet), some energy gel and went back out with lights turned on! This lap turned out to be my slowest, but the transition from day to night is always requires some adjustment.

Just before 11:00 PM, my buddy Bryan was telling me that I was tied for first in the single speed class, but the guy was still in front of my by 7 minutes. So he gave me a little pep talk and told me to "get going!!!" I sped off and starting talking to myself (which my therapist tells me not too) and doing the math, I had to cut 3:30 out of his lead in each of the next two laps, which can be done, but again, I had to ride out of my mind even more so. So I was pedaling where I was coasting before, the light change was totally over and I was able to start "flowing" again and I was able to turn in lap times under 30:00, which isn't too bad after 11 hours of racing and 140 miles. I decided to do two more laps and I have one full bottle and a small handful of Endurolytes and I was ready to do two fast laps without stopping and hopefully gain all the ground I needed.

As I kept going, I was thinking I may catch up to him on the 2nd of these two laps, the trail is quiet and hardly anyone is on the trail at this time of the race. Every now and then you can see a headlight or taillight, but you don't know where they are as the trail twist and turns all over, so I relegated myself to 2nd place but in the back of my mind I was hoping that maybe the 1st place guy was ready to pull off and call it a day. At this time of the race you don't know exactly what's going on, so if you have enough gas left you should be planning on staying out as long as possible and be as fast as you safely can, so I come in to the start/finish area at 11:55 with my two planned laps done and I decide to do another lap for insurance. I shout out to the volunteers that I am going out for a last lap, that way they know I'm out there and still racing. (This race format allows you to start your last lap up to 11:59:59 if the race ends at 12:00 midnight) I felt surprisingly good and was ready just to go slow on this last lap, but I wanted to push it as hard as I could without wrapping myself around a tree or cramping and see if I could pull off another -30 lap time….soon, it would be all over.

I came in to the start/finish with a sense of relief as I knew I was done, but I was also very, very surprised at how well I felt. My buddy Bryan came up to me and told me that my competition had stopped riding around 11:00 (and between you and me, I think he lied to me earlier) =;) So, when he stopped, thats when I did my next 3 laps so I ended up beating him by that amount, which was very cool.

In the end, I was first in my class (Solo Single Speed) and 5th overall. I did 27 laps on a 5.6 mile course, so I ended up racing over 151 miles!

Ride and smile.

Hi everyone!

2010-07-02T08:35:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone!

Mark P. will be leading a group ride on Sunday, July 4th at 9:30 a.m. We will be gathering at 9:15 and rolling time will be at 9:30 a.m. All levels are welcome! The trail is beginner-friendly and it's a "no-drop" ride.

Let us know if you can make it so we know how many to expect.

We hope to see you at the Tree Farm!

If you have any questions, feel free to post up on facebook (link is in top left corner of page) or the forum.

MMBA link with directions :

http://mmba.org/index.php?option=com_tr ... =trail&cid[]=8

A Cup of Barry-Roubaix

2010-04-01T18:37:00.000-07:00

by Jay Atwater

Like that extra boost from the morning cup of coffee, Barry-Roubaix

has energized me, picked me up and placed me back into the bike
saddle. Race day was beautiful, maybe cool temps in the morning,
however as they say: "There is no bad weather, only bad clothing
choices". I dressed right for the weather, so the first battle was won
before the bike was off the rack. We lined up in our groups, I kissed
the wife and child goodbye, and the roll out began. There was the
expected "slinky effect" and then after a few miles we dumped off the
road into some sandy double track uphills. I managed to get through
the jam-packed melee with a single dab, while there were people
washing out all around and pile-ups everywhere. Through the first test
and finally back on some gravel I was trying to find my pace. It was
uphill, downhill, uphill, downhill... I don't remember a single flat
section. All-in-all the race was a blast, I won a 4-pack of Founder's
Double Trouble and got to spend the day racing, seeing friends and
enjoying being away with my family... outside! I asked my 7-year old
what was his favorite part of the race and he said "the part where you
won the beer". Anyway the unexpected result of this race is that it
has place me back at a point where I am excited for the riding season
ahead, eager for Spring and full of vigor. Since then I have put in a
couple roller workouts, a 10-mile ride for groceries with a bike
trailer and the wife pulling a trail-a-bike with my son, and my first
ride at Pontiac Lake of the season. Not a bad start after months of
gloomy indoor trainer rides.

Test-Specialized Romin Sl Saddle

2010-03-28T18:18:00.000-07:00

by Jay Jones

The latest bicycle component that I have purchased is the Specialized Romin SL saddle. While it is designed for the road, mainly Time Trialing or Triathlon, I thought it's design would lend itself well for the needs of my backroad rocket ship the Specialized Tri-cross single speed.

The Specialized Body Geometry components are designed for comfort which in the end will equal performance. The saddle is medically proven to assure blood flow to senstive areas, while I am not a doctor, one ride on this saddle proved to be one of the most comfortable saddles I have ever had the pleasure of throwing a leg over. The cutout in the middle of the saddle is not felt in the least bit, which is probably the intent of the design, no pressure points or areas, just pure comfort.

With the nose of the saddle almost inch longer than a regular saddle like the Toupe it gives you valuable real estate to slide fore and aft to gain valuable traction or get aero. The titanium rails keep the weight down and the tough Micromatrix cover is water resistant.

You may ask yourself what difference a saddle would make on a bike primarily used on the gravel and dirt roads of rural Michigan. With one gear, you are forced to a different riding style than normal. With a long sustained climb where you can stay in the saddle, I am usually sliding forward on the seat to throw more power down on the pedals. With the Romin SL, I am able to do this more effectively. I can get a more comfortable position, thus holding it longer or if its a longer race, I am able to do it more often and not get fatigued.

When it's all said and done, the comfort of this saddle and it's ability to provide me a more efficient ride far out weigh (no pun intended) any weight weenie saddle I have had previously. The Romin comes in two versions, the Romin SL with titanium rails and slightly higher price tag and a cromoly railed version and smaller price tag, but same great qualities!

Barry-Roubaix 2010 Jay Jones

2010-03-28T17:35:00.001-07:00

The first race of the season was a real test of mettle. With not knowing much about the course except for what my misleading buddy told me, =;) I was able to make the proper selection in gear choice and weaponry. With a 1.5 mile rollout and over 600 cyclists, the first part of the race was probably the most eventful. I could tell the "roadies" from the mountain bikers and I each have their own uniqueness, some good, some bad, some that shine and some that doesn't shine. If you can determine who you are with, you can use it to your advantage.

My second concern was with the fixie and how much time I would lose on the downhills. Being a fixed gear bike you HAVE TO PEDAL all the time, no coasting. So with that said, I would actually have to use the brakes to slow down on downhills so I could keep pedaling. Any group I was working with would be long gone. I was getting a little bummed out but soon realized that everyone in my class would be facing the same issue.

After the first part roll out we got to experience the most "technical" part of the course, it was very reminiscent of the certain sandy area's in a certain first weekend of November race near Traverse City complete with carnage and tailgating racers, which induces even more carnage. Once past this section, it was wide open racing with some good and challenging power racing. And when I say power racing, I mean climbs that are not sustained, pitch differently and just require some power to get up and over. I seen a fellow fixie racer on such a climb walking his trusty steed and I thought this would be a good time to pounce. He had other ideas as his gear was more condusive to higher speeds everywhere else. I stayed with him for a short time, but was unable to keep it up on the downhills.

With each successive climb and downhill, I would be losing time until my calves starting cramping and I was forced to do something about it, this would be the exact moment I would learn something about "fixie racing". I would unclip after a burst of energy and let gravity take over. It must have been a sight to see and one fellow racer commenting on my technique, little did he know I discovered it out of necessity, but it allowed me to go faster on the downhills, sometimes 4-5 mph faster!

With my new technique I am somewhat reenergized or maybe it was the fact my calves werent' cramping anymore. With part of the last course being all downhill, literally, race fans and volunteers just weren't saying that, it was all downhill and I could tell as geared folks were flying by at high rates of speed and a tandem passed me like I was standing still. But once it flattened out for the last 3 miles, I put head down and gave all I had left, spinning like a madman, drafting off some gear folks and then once we entered the park road, it was soooo much fun. Along side of me was Dave Massey the Specialized Rep and some other fast cat, we all took turns turning up the heat and it as a blast, with the last chacane thrown in complete potholes it made for an exciting finish.
I ended up finishing fourth in the Expert Fixie Class with a time of 2:08:13. I learned a few things about the bike, the race and will return with some different fitness in mind and a few tweaks of the gear...and the technique...the technique will be improved!

March 20th - 21st BE THERE!!

2010-03-08T06:22:00.000-08:00

March 20th and 21st will Cycletherapys 24 hour spin to help raise money for the Waterford Coalition for Youth. Tons of stuff to do and some sweet raffles to win! Click on the image below for a closer view.

The Sunday Sixty.

2010-02-22T05:14:00.000-08:00

Backroad training ride from Waterford to Fenton. Awesome training ride!!

LOHS Winter Race Results

2010-02-08T08:35:00.000-08:00

Well it was the first chance for the team and club to test out the legs after months of indoor and some outdoor training. Steve Kinley and LOHS did a great job at making the course fun and fast.

Cycletherapy took three first and one third place podium which means everyone who race the mountain bike portion of this event stood on the podium.

While the podium is a nice place it was shadowed by seeing all the new racers joining this great event which raises money for the LOHS after school programs.

You can see more at http://stevekinley.blogspot.com/

24 Hours of Spinning!!

2010-01-28T05:31:00.000-08:00

Click the image of the document to make it larger. Swing by March 20th and 21st for several events that will help rais money for the WCFY. If you would like more information on the Waterford Coalition for Youth go to http://www.wcfy.org. The shop will be open Saturday and Sunday for this event!!

New Club Jersey!

2010-01-12T06:31:00.000-08:00

Cycletherapy has a NEW club jersey!!

Happy Holiday!!

2009-12-15T07:40:00.000-08:00

Well December is here and it is almost time for the holidays! CycleTherapy Racing would like to wish everyone a safe and happy holiday!

Winter Training!

2009-11-28T14:16:00.000-08:00

Well there is still a few more CycleCross races left before we are done racing for the 2009 year. For some of us the winter training season has already started. Long rides on the back roads, indoor training at the shop (soon to be announced) and stairs. Of all the training the stairs seem to be the one thing during the winter that we all look forward to with a timid spirit. Doing the stair routine is hard, the duration of pain is short but the recovery takes a couple days.

If you want to start your winter training off with a bang come join us on the weekend at the Bloomer Park stairs in Rochester MI!

Wow

2009-10-23T14:48:00.001-07:00

Well there is still more racing left to the year but this has been a great year for Cycletherapy Racing and next year is shaping up to be more spectacular!

Thanks to Mike F. Ernie and Tony S. we have secured several new sponsors for the team while keeping a couple of our key sponsors from last year. You will see a new team dynamic next year consisting not only Mountain and Cyclocross racing but more organized Road racing. We have explored the idea of a road team and 2010 looks like it could happen!

But before that, we still have some serious Cyclocross races left and the grand daddy of all mountain bike races, ICEMAN Cometh! Look for orange and black Cycletherapy jersey in many of the categories!

Our primary sponsor Cycletherapy has received several 2010 Specialized bike including the 29er Epic Marathon. If your in the Waterford area stop in and take a look at the new 2010 models from Specialized!

Check out more information and photos on Facebook.
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/profile.php?id=1592656428&ref=ts
and
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/pages/Cycletherapy-Racing-Team/70875876925?ref=ts

2009-08-17T07:21:00.000-07:00

Stony Marathon

Ahhh… the Stony Marathon where endurance is the game and legends are made. Unfortunately, that did not hold true for our Cycletherapy mountain biking team. Half of our team members Did Not Finish (DNF); Expert riders had to do six laps or 62 miles. Mark Parmelee-DNF, Cheryl Hill -DNF, Derek Hill- DNF, and Brian Underwood age group 19-29 took 3rd place, missing second place by a second. The Sport class had to complete four laps or 42.3 miles. Kelly Bartlett, 24U took first place. Lisa Johnson 40+ took first place. Montana Johnson, 14U –DNF, Forrest Johnson 15 to 18yrs- DNF, David Moore 35-39 , 12th place and Dave Zatek 40-44, 9th place.
Our club riders Duane Underwood Beginner men 50+ DNF and Andrew Devers 11-14 took 4th place. Montana crashed hard in the Pines, coating himself with mud and whacking his head on a log as he hit face-first. It was a long, tough day, but Team CT will be back for more!

Catch up

2009-08-17T07:16:00.000-07:00

Ruby Campground; attitude is everything

The following two weeks after the Brighton XC race is the most difficult time for me to get any workouts or rides in. I rode twice the week before Ruby. Going into the race, my outlook was not good. I didn’t expect to perform well at all. The race got under way and my competitor Lillian was leading the pack down the straightaway. I caught her at the first hill and stayed with her through the technical terrain. Every straightaway she would gain distance on me. I finally caught up to her after the “Wall” on the return trip from our first lap. Again, she pulled away at the river crossing and through the straight away on the campground road. The race was turning out as I predicted. I caught her on the first hill as our chips recorded our times for the first lap. I love the technical sections and I was able to keep pace with her. This is when my attitude changed. I told myself, “Well if she is going to win, she is going to have to earn it.” As we hit the wide wooden bridge, I realized I had more of a push and had to veer left to avoid hitting her. My legs were feeling good. I started to break more to keep pace with her. Finally another rider wanted to get by and I took the opportunity to pass her. I knew she would catch me on the straight away and I really wanted her to earn the win. Eventually I could not see her through the trees. Now, my attitude starting to change again, I wanted to win. I rode the last lap with the mind set to win and it paid off.

Lumberjack 2009

2009-06-23T05:06:00.000-07:00

Here are a few images and highlights from Lumberjack 2009!

Mens Open
17th Place Mark Parmelee 8:21:48
100th Place Ed Barker 12:03:08

Single Speed
25th Place Mark Terrian 10:26:07

Ruby XC Race

2009-06-15T13:43:00.001-07:00

Ruby was great, the water crossing was high and we had to carry our bikes across but it was all fun. Team CT did well; Kelly Bartlett took first in 24 & Under, Dave Zatek 40-44 to a first, Forrest Johnson 15-18 yrs. took first, Lisa Flores-Johnson 40+ took first and Montana Johnson 14 & under took second after being off for two weeks because of a foot injury. Also racing were Parmalee, Underwood, David R. Moore and Derek Hill but I didn't see how they finished. Jen D. took a first, even though she went to the Dark side.

This weekend was a busy time for our team. Eight riders in the Tour de Cure and nine riders hitting the trail at Ruby while other riders assisted in the BOW clinic on Saturday.

Good job everyone!!

CT Racing and Tour de Cure

2009-06-15T08:06:00.000-07:00

Sunday was the Tour de Cure bike ride charity event that the CycleTherapy Racing team raised almost $2000.00 for. We had eight riders showing in attendance; Mike Fry, Ed Barker, James D'Amore, Jason Acker, Ray Frisbie, Sarah Frisbie, Jay Jones and Todd McInally. Our team rode a cumulative of 695 miles on various routes through SE Michigan. It was perfect day starting out with fog that lifted around 7:00AM. By the time we started riding the temps started to warm up and kept climbing to around 78 degrees for the day. Post ride festivities included a great meal from Caraba's, free 10 minute massages and live music. What a great way to close out a weekend.

Tour de Cure - American Diabetes Association

2009-05-22T11:55:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to say thank you everyone for helping our team become 2nd in raising funds for the American Diabetes Association. While our team has a few more days to raise more money we just wanted to say thank you to everyone who has donated money and time up until this point.

Check our page out at Brighton Tour de Cure

Pontiac Lake TT Photos

2009-05-15T18:31:00.000-07:00

Sports Clydesdale 3rd place Mark Ladwig

& 5th placeRon Ressler

Single Speed Champ Mark P.

Grandpa Ressler is so proud

3rd place young Devers, 2nd place Sarah Frisbie & 3rd place Jason Aker

Derek Hill & 2nd Place Lisa Johnson

Look at our sponsors

Deep thoughts Aker, Sarah Frisbie & Ed Barker

Divide & Conquer

2009-05-09T15:40:00.000-07:00

The Johnson’s had to divide duties to conquer the day. Forrest decided to participate in the Kalamazoo Soccer Tournament with his Clarkston Impact teammates and skip the Pontiac Lake TT. We drew straws (not exactly) and Norm decided to go with Forrest. He loaded his road bike in the Traverse and they departed. Montana also had soccer games, but somewhat closer to home. Two of his games were scheduled before and after the mountain bike race. It was decided that he would play in the 9:00 AM game, race Pontiac Lake TT sport category, and skip the 3 p.m. game in Port Huron.

Montana had a great 1st soccer game and the team won. Unfortunately, two teammates were injured which would leave them with ten players for the 11 v 11 soccer game at 3 p.m. Well they convinced Montana to go to game by saying he could play goalie knowing his energy level would be low after the race. Montana’s 1st game finished at 10:30 AM and Pontiac Lake Recreation was ten minutes away. We jumped into the Jeep and were off. We arrived at Pontiac Lake at 10:45 a.m. and Montana was fast asleep!

That was okay in my view because by the time I registered both of us for the sport category; I figure we would draw a noon start time. Registration was completed and both of us were to go off together at 11:59:00 a.m. By 11:30 a.m. I started to wake Montana. He said something inaudible. I tried again, and more gibbering. I finally said to Montana, “You don’t have to race; this is the first race of the season.” Still in his soccer uniform, leaning on the window with his eyes closed and not moving an inch, Montana responded “Okay I won’t race.”

Now I have twenty minutes to warm up before I start my first race of the season. As I lined up at the start, I suddenly felt alone and wished Forrest, Norm and Montana were racing. The feeling quickly passed as my Cycletherapy teammates cheered for me, and I was off.

The course felt good but I noticed something after the two mile marker or Heart-Attack Hill which was my average heart rate was at 170. Hmm, last year my AVG was 143. All week I had noticed it seemed to be rising as I rode the course. I didn’t dwell on it too long because I began to pass men and women, including women in the Sport Cat. 40+. As I approached the switchback I noticed one of my competitors; she noticed me and sped up. Something told me that I needed to catch her before she went down the switch back because she would not make it up the other side. The upside of the switchback does not leave room to pass. I didn’t catch her before she went down the switch back. I was feeling tense about now, but I had good speed coming down the switchback and I could feel the wind in my hair. Unfortunately my fears had come true as she was already half off her bike right before the first steep crest of rocks. I was angry with myself for not catching her so I used the extra adrenaline to jump off my bike and run, ran past her all the way up to the top. I can’t recall where in the path it was when I jumped off my bike. I have never practiced jumping off my bike at any rate of speed. At the seven mile marker my heart rate was 173. Fortunately it is mostly down hill for a time, and I could get my heart rate back to a more sustainable rate. I picked up more speed and passed some more people. I saw “Lake Muddy Water” at the last second and didn’t have time to react properly. I hit the water hard. Water and mud flew everywhere. Shocked, I stopped pedaling. Bad news as I lost speed immediately and was sinking deeper and deeper as I slowly drifted to the center of what I now decided to call “Lake Mud-Ville.” I switched gears and began to spin fast. I made it through the lake without having to get off my bike and I completed the race. As I crossed the finished line I surveyed the crowd, I didn’t see Montana. I went to the Jeep and there he was still asleep. I had to quickly wake him as his teammate was giving him a ride to Port Huron, and was on his way to pick him up!

Everything worked out for Montana, Forrest and I. I finished second in my category, Montana played goalie and they won the game. Forrest’s soccer team won the K-Zoo Tournament and had a photo printed in the Clarkston News. Unfortunately for Norm, he had no time at the tournament to sneak away for a bike ride. Maybe next time he’ll insist on racing while I go to the tournament.

Lake Orion Hign School GAP Race!

2009-05-08T06:41:00.000-07:00

Thank you Steve for putting togther a 3 mile trail filled with great technical sections!

This years LOHS GAP race number 1 had 4 of the 6 CT racers making the podium but this was not the best part of the event. The best part was the relaxed, yet competitive, race atmosphere. Making this event is perfect race for the first time racer. But it is also great training for the more experienced racer looking for some racing in during the week.

See everyone next Tuesday the 12th for a little more racing!

Pictures where taken by Cannondale Midwest Racing

Pontiac Lake TT

2009-04-30T13:10:00.000-07:00

I arrived at Pontiac lake at 8:30 a.m. thinking that I would help set up for the race. To my surprise there were plenty of volunteers already there and they seemed to have everything under control. So instead, I helped Ernie set up his tent and unload all of the demo bikes. After that, I got ready to warm up. I gave myself enough time to get back and check over my bike before I lined up.

I was the fourth rider to go out. All I was thinking about as I left the starting tent was that I hoped nothing would go wrong with the bike being a new build. I caught two of the riders in front of me shortly after 2 mile hill. I was riding hard, trying to get a glimpse of the rider in front. Then about three-quarters of the way through, I picked up a stick and it wedged in my big ring. At every revolution, the stick would come around and stab me in the leg. So, I had to stop at the top of the next hill and yank it out. Luckily there was no damage to the bike and I was off again. The second lap went a little smoother as some of the mud had started to dry up. I never did catch the rider in front, but I felt I had put in some good times. I managed to get 2nd place with a total time of 1:18:17 for the 2 laps. My first race of the day was over and it was time to rest up for the second race of the day on the single speed.

I took a very quick warm up before the beginning of the race and I could tell my legs were tired, but it was too late to back out now. When I was lined up at the start line, I went to take off and heard a loud pop and went nowhere. My chain had slipped and delayed my start. So, I tried to start again and this time took off after the rider I lined up with. I managed to get around right before we crossed the two tracks. Before we got to two mile hill, I heard something else rattling on my bike. I started looking down at my bike trying to diagnose the cause of the noise. I finally noticed the quick release on my front wheel had come undone. Quickly, I pulled off to the side of the trail, jumped off the bike and closed the quick release, then took off. By this time the rider I had started with had passed me. I spent the rest of the time chasing him. He would pull away from me on the climbs, but I seemed to make up time in some of the more technical sections. I didn’t really know if we were making good time, I just wanted to keep him in my sights. When we hit some traffic everyone was kind enough to let us pass very quickly. I had closed the gap coming up to the last hill and he went wide to the left. I was able to pass him by going straight up the middle. I made it to the two tracks first, but shortly after we hit grass he got around me. I didn’t think I was going to be able to stay with him but I dug deep and gave one last burst coming to the finish line. He beat me by about half a bike length. As the results came up, I questioned the fact that I took first since the rider I started with had beat me across the line. Come to find out that because of my chain slip at the start line, my timer didn’t start until a second after his. So being such a close finish gave me a faster time by .3 seconds, making my total time 40:37.

Overall, it was a good day for me. The only downfall was that now I had two bikes covered in mud that needed to be washed.

Pontiac TT – April 26, 2009

2009-04-28T05:30:00.000-07:00

The first races of the season always seem to have an interesting twist! This year did not disappoint. The severe storms blasting the trail Saturday all but completely undid all the hard work at the last trail day. BIG thanks to Robert for and his group of faithful volunteers for braving the weather to clean it all up in time for a GREAT day of racing.

Even after all the hard work helping to prepare the trail after the storms Mark Parmelee had a great start to his 2009 race season! Coming in a close second to Mike Anderson in the men’s elite category! He then jumped off the geared beast and fired out the winning lap time in the Men’s Single Speed Expert/Elite category!

The Orange on the podium didn’t stop there with Lisa Johnson’s off season training paying off in Sport Women 40+! Mark Ladwig and Ron Ressler returning after injury, they dominated the Sport Clydesdale category with a 3rd and 5th place finishing! Jason Acker exceeded his own expectations and taking 3rd place in sport men 19-29 (though we all knew he’d do well!) Sarah Frisbie also exceeded her expectations finishing 2nd in beginner women 30+! With time like that she will be racing sport in no time!

Congrats to all who came out and raced despite the real threat of more severe weather. Next up? BLOOMER XC MAY 17th!!!!

New team kit arrives!!

2009-04-19T16:19:00.000-07:00

Sunny and in the high 60's! You could not ask for a better day to ride. Well unless you also recieved your new team jersey! To the left is pictured half of our team at Pontiac Lake Rec Area just before our first team ride.

Trail conditions where perfect and seeing the long line of orange was picture perfect!! The ride was a great way to ride with fellow team members that we may only get a chance to see at the races.

Thanks to all of our sponsors that made this possible!

Promo video from iVisual!

2009-04-10T15:44:00.000-07:00

Infiterra’s March Madness 2009

2009-03-12T06:18:00.000-07:00

With the rain taking it’s time to get into the area, it gave us a false sense of security for the day. But by the 10:00AM start time, most participants were all gathered under the large pine trees staving off the shower for as long as possible. With the race promoters about ready to send us off and asking us all to come out from under the trees and make our way to the start line, we prepare to start our day’s adventure.

The March Madness is a 6 hour sprint race. Although racing for 6 hours on a chilly March day in the rain, doesn’t sound like it’s going to be a sprint kind of day.

Today’s race format is called a Rogaine style race. They spread out the Control Points (CP’s) over the entire Pontiac Lake Recreation Area, even the area west of Teggerdine road and you have the choice to cover the ground on foot or bike, or both. Today, I choose to stay on foot as the single track does not lend itself to efficient riding, and along with the placement of CP’s, this seems like a logical choice. I make my way to the first check point without any problems with its nice easy location. As I approach the 2nd point of my choosing, Cycletherapy team mate Tony Misovski has reached it seconds before me and we agree that two heads are better than one. So for the time being, we are two solo racers working together.

We manage to grab the next point fairly quickly and are on our way once again. Then we split up a little bit and go our separate ways but end up running in to each other two CP’s later. Once again we join forces and are off and running, literally.

The conditions for the day are something I have not witnessed before. You have your usual spring leaf cover and underneath lurks a slippery surface that is ready to thaw, but not quite yet. So any incline, decline, off camber, small hill, or steep hill was a challenge. You would slip and your footing was gone, making a labor intensive task even more so. But hey, this is adventure racing.

As Tony and I make our way to the next point we have to run the trail quite a ways without having to locate a CP, just find our way in unfamiliar territory. We get very near a point and we have two ways to get the CP, Tony chose one way, I chose the other and I do not see him for the rest of the day until near the finish.

I make my way somewhat quickly to the next set of points, and apparently to quickly as I make a tactical error and basically forget about two points that would be easily attainable. But I shall not cry over spilt milk and carry my plan of attack with minor changes. The next group of points will require a compass, but I don’t know this right away as I have not used it so far. So with the utmost confidence I enter the woods and make a rookie mistake by following the newly worn path created by the few dozen or so adventure racers who have gotten here before me. Pretty soon, the path is scattered and you are basically lost. You stop, regroup, use all the resources you have which is a topo map, a list of small clues, one for each CP and a little plastic thing with a magnetic needle. The most useful at this moment in time is the list of clues, it says, CP 5 in an open meadow on a hill. I locate an open meadow but cannot locate the blue, orange and white CP flag I so covet. So I regroup again, look around and continue in the open meadow in a direction I believe at the time is the wrong direction. But with pure dumb luck, I stumble upon it and I whip out the trusty ol’ compass and take a reading for the next CP. Much to my amazement, it works and I’m off to the next CP, then the next, but that one was simple as the land mark was easy to distinguish but hard to get to. In other words, swamp. Nothing gets me more worked up then ruining a perfectly good pair of shoes. But alas, the shoe trashing will wait for another day as most of the swamp is still frozen and getting to this CP becomes uneventful, until my map case cord gets caught on a tree and rips the sides right off. After a few explicative’s I surmise once again that there’s no use in crying over spilt milk. So I am forced to carry my map case for the rest of the race. Using more energy than I had planned on, but it could be worse, my maps could be falling out and then I would be very bummed.

The next section is the part of the PLRA that is most westward, so just getting there will take time on foot and as I see racers speeding by me in the opposite direction I am somewhat jealous and questioning my tactics for the race. But upon arriving at the next CP, you have to show two items from your Mandatory Gear List. This CP volunteer asks for a pocket knife with locking blade and a compass. Both of which I have and know their exact location within my pack. She inquires about my choice of not having a bike, I tell her of my reasoning and show her which CP’s I have already attained and with an “Oh wow!” she has sequestered any doubts I had of running the entire race.

With the early season venue, there are no leaves on trees or bushes, just wide open space. So your vision is much clearer and CP’s are more visible. With this high level of visibility you can run a “point and shoot” type of strategy. It’s more efficient but can come at a cost as you move faster and can make some mistakes by moving too fast.

With the next set of CP’s, they are few, but spread out in a fashion where a compass reading will be imperative. With these thoughts in mind, I set off. I knock down the first two with relative ease, giving me some confidence. I take a compass reading and start heading off. This point is far away though and can cause doubt within you as you will believe you are at the right point, but for some reason, the CP is not. So you stop, regroup, look at all your resources and search again. Double check your double check and still nothing. Time to count your losses and get out of Dodge. I decide it will cost me more time looking for a point then it will to start moving to the next point, one that I believe will be much easier to obtain and with the rain coming down harder, I pull up my hood and move on.

As the next succession of points are reeled off, I am building confidence, but my knees are not. Although I trained fairly well for this race, I lack the areas to mimic the hilly terrain of PLRA and it comes at a cost. But I can move, just not fast, so I keep plugging along. I get more CP’s without much problem save one and I am making a plan and checking my watch.

The most enjoyable CP is CP 31, which is at the end of a zip line. So after getting one of the hardest CP’s, two ridges over is the zip line, so you are somewhat rewarded for you hard effort with something fun! They harness you in, throw your helmet on and off you go…100 feet dangling in the air sliding down a rope. You come to a halt and you unhook yourself, grab the CP punch, punch your passport and decision making time comes! Major decision making time. And much to my surpise, my good ol’ friend Tony Misovski is coming down the zip line right after me.

We exchange ideas briefly and he says he is heading back to the finish and I tell him I am heading to get CP 32. Experience from a previous adventure race held here gives us both knowledge that CP32 lies in a briar filled area that will make grown men cry (don’t ask me how I know this). But I am confident with the 39 minutes we have left, I can snag this CP faster than “The Bachelor” grabbing fiancés and still make my way back to the finish line within the 4:00PM cutoff. After looking at the map, on the run, I determine there is three physical/geographical objects on the map that will help me locate it in a timely manner. Much to my surprise the briars were not bad and the CP was buried in a nice little round bowl IE; large depression shaped like a bowl. Again I grab the punch, make it do its thing it does, throw the passport in my pocket and am off and running in the direction I have chosen to grab a trail to head back to the start finish.
Another thing about adventure racing is map quality. Some maps may be older than 10 years, which means you could be looking at something that does not exist anymore. Which can lead to something that will take more time then you have anticipated, today, is one of those times.
I have found the trail without any problem. I am off running or at this point of the race, my best trot. I get to a point where the trail turns left at 90 degrees, this is not on the map, but I take the trail anyway. I keep going and much to my amazement it leads me to where I want to be, but a fence has stopped my progress cold. I am forced to turn around and make my way around the area. I know where I’m at, but with time expiring I will have to pick up the pace if I want to grab one more point. But with my re-route I am forced to just think about finishing in time.
I go as fast and efficiently as possible and near the finish area. I see Toni (very cute girlfriend) and she is motioning me to pick up the pace. As I near the finish tent they are announcing, “One minute left….one minute left” which means, well, you know what it means and I have one minute left and I have made it in time. I hand over my passport and make my way to my car for hot coffee and dry clothes.

After a slow change in the phone booth, I am a new man, a slow new man. My knees are in pain, but I know in two days it will be gone, so I don’t worry. We make our way back to the finish area in the pouring rain to see if I managed a miracle and finish in the top three. We find out I did not, so with that said we leave before all the sweet swag is given away, but on to some much needed food.

Later that night we find out that the results are posted. Much to my dismay I am listed as “Unranked” with a time of 4:16PM. But as I have said, I finished with one minute to spare. So I shoot off an email to Infiterra and they respond quickly saying I did indeed finish in the correct time and my placing will be corrected. Oh happy day!

I ended up finishing 6th Solo Male, 11th Overall and one CP in front of my friend and archenemy Tony Misovski. This was a good day overall, even with the rain. Another adventure race in the bag and more lessons learned. Survival was never meant to be this much fun!

Jay Jones

Pictures by Jeff McWilliams

2009 Kahtoola Michigan Mountain Run

2009-03-10T07:45:00.000-07:00

On beautiful, sunny February 8, 2009 at the Pine Knob Ski Area 68 people lined up in front of the lodge to test their mettle on the snow, ice and the ski hill itself. The temperature was around 24 degrees and no wind, perfect for a winter run!

You had a choice of a 4K or an 8K run, with the 8K doing two laps of the 4K course….math easy enough for me to understand. I chose the 8K as I always like to get my money’s worth and adhere to my personal mantra, go big or go home. The course had you go up about 100 yards of one ski run, then back down, do a loop around the snow making pond then go up another ski run about 200 yards then back down and THEN all the way up to the top on a run called the Quarter Mile. Then when you reach the top, you go along the backside of the ski hill and it’s all downhill and back to the start/finish line.

The start was pretty laid back with a just a few of us geeks with a forefinger on the start button of our heart rate monitors. It had a grass roots feel and everyone there was there to have some fun and shake out the cobwebs. I was using it as a training/see where my fitness is at/pre adventure race run. The pace was manageable at first but the snow tends to suck any power you have right out from under you and running up hill will take its toll on the calves.

With a course this tough, it wasn’t a matter of IF you were going to walk, it was a matter of when. I took my first walk break about ½ way up the Quarter Mile run at the steepest part of the trail in about 18 inches of snow. Being near the front, there was very little footing and you had to work hard to keep your momentum. After this section, it was on a steep groomed run and by this point your calves are begging you to stop, but you are not quite yet near the top and must dig deep to finish it off. Once your there, “it’s all downhill” with a nice finish stretch to plan any last minute moves.

Two laps later I am coming down the finish hill and I see one cat out in front that’s too far to catch and no one behind me. I am relegated to the current position I now hold which ends up being 8th place in the Male 8K with a time of 46:56:00.

I will definitely do this race again, it’s totally different than any other running race out there and a ton of fun!
Jay Jones

2009 Jersey!

2009-02-12T11:06:00.000-08:00

CycleTherapy will be sporting a new look at the races for 2009!

The best athlete doesn't always win.

2008-12-16T09:18:00.000-08:00

In Adventure Racing you can be a great runner and biker but you mess up one control point and you're out of the top 10. That is what happened to Jay and I at the December Chill. We ended up finishing in 19th place because we spent at least 15 minutes attacking a control point from the wrong direction. The difference between us and 10th place was only 5 lousy minutes in almost 6 hours of racing.

In some ways I was very happy with the race despite our finish. As far as fitness goes Jay and I were where we needed to be. Our canoeing continues to be an area where we could make up some time. Hopefully we will be able to get out and get some practice in the boat before the Spring Fury.

The day started off with me not rushing to get my pack and drop bags ready because I was fully packed by Thursday night. This resulted in a fairly stress free time leading up to the race start. It was rather pleasant. The first stage of this race consisted of a short trekking section in which we had to obtain 3 control points in any order. This is usually done to help separate the field so you don't have 200 people running off into the woods at the same time. We were able to get 2 of the points with no problems. The 3rd one took us a few minutes longer but it wasn't too bad. Jay and I both had running shoes on but quite a few of the people did the first section in their biking shoes because they wanted a faster transition to the bike after the trekking. Can you imagine running 2 or 3 miles in your biking shoes on totally frozen and icy roads? Once back at the Dodge Pavilion Jay and I headed to the cars to grab our bikes, shoes, and helmets. The first section of the biking had us catching the singletrack at the end of the blue loop. From there we headed onto the yellow loop and took that around to the trailhead parking lot. The trail was surprisingly ride-able if you stayed in the 1 foot wide swath down the center of the trail that was fairly packed down. Venture even 1 inch off that part and you get squirrelly and pulled even more off trail. We were able to pass quite a few people despite the trail condition. You had to be careful and they had to be willing to let you pass. There were 3 control points right on the trail that had to be obtained. From the trailhead we headed down the park road to the canoe staging area which was located on the Huron River just south of the Kent Lake Spillway. The road was really icy and slick. We saw one guy take a hard spill on the bike path so I'm assuming that was just as icy. Jay and I were both able to stay upright. At the canoe launch we had a gear bag waiting for us. The only thing I pulled from the bag were a pair of gloves and my PFD. I wore my biking shoes in the boat which actually wasn't too bad. Canoeing on the Huron River was a blast. Definitely better than canoeing in some huge lake like the April race. The river had a ton of downed trees which made navigating tricky but Jay, in the back of the boat, made it look easy.

Several people passed us on the river. A big reason we were a little slower was were using canoe paddles opposed to kayak paddles which are a lot more efficient. We ended up with a decent split time for the canoeing portion.After the canoeing portion there was a score-O style orienteering section. You are given a map with control points marked by little circles. You are also given a sheet that describes each point. For example it will say at the top of a hill, end of a swamp, or at a re-entrant. These points can be obtained in any order so you have to have a plan as far as how you can minimize your time and amount traveled.

The topography at Island Lake is not that interesting. In the center and south part of the park you have an old gravel pit that is open with some fairly steep hills. At one point the hill was so steep and slippery that Jay and I slid down the hills on our butts. The points in this area were fairly easy to obtain. The rest of the park is fairly flat so the Infiterra crew were limited on how complex they could make those sections. Those points ended up being just as easy to obtain. You really didn't need to take a bearing with your compass...just point and shoot.I say easy but we did mess up on one point. It was sitting on a hill in the middle of a big, thick swampy area. Jay insisted on going west on a two track then north following a contour line. When we get to the area we wanted to head north at the area was marked with No Trespassing signs. We ended up following a group of people through the swamp and into someone's backyard. At this point I finally had enough and told Jay that we are turning around.

On the east side of the swamp there was another small ridge line that went north into the swamp then disappeared. When we made it to this ridge line you could see a trail heading off in the direction of the swamp. After about 10 minutes of bushwhacking thru the swamp we found the hill and the CP. From that point it was onto a couple more points and the finish back at the pavilion.I'm counting this race as a success.

Now back to training and preparing for the March Madness. If we stay fit and don't make any rookie mistakes we should be okay. No guarantees though....this is Adventure Racing after all.

writen by: Tony M

WATERFORD CX STATE CHAMPIONSHIP

2008-12-10T14:32:00.000-08:00

It was bitterly cold and windy. To stay warm, I set up my trainer on the side of my truck to block the wind. I spun on the trainer until the course was open to pre-ride. After completing 2 laps, I went to the finish line where I stripped off everything but my skin suit and leg warmers.

I got off to a good start and was right on Vince Roberge's rear wheel. About three quarters of the way through the first lap at the bottom of the hill, he went flying over the bars which caused me to have to stop and run up the hill losing several spots. Halfway through the race, two more riders went down and I was able to gain one spot.

I was in the 6th spot trying to chase down 5th place. It took 2 laps, but I was able to get on his rear wheel. I got around him on the next straightaway. Then with 2 laps to go I bonked and was passed which put me back in 6th place. I managed to hold on to my 6th place position even with the two guys behind me chasing hard.

When I finished I realized how cold I really was. My fingers and toes were numb. I still wasn’t feeling that well until we went upstairs and had a couple of bowls of tomato soup and sat next to a heater. I wanted to finish a little better than I did for the last race of the year, but I will be back next year and plan to keep improving. Hope to see more people giving cyclocross a try next year!

Written by Mark P.

Iceman Images

2008-11-17T20:48:00.001-08:00

Images sent in by Ron R. Thanks!

Iceman at the Pro Level!

2008-11-17T20:25:00.000-08:00

I picked Derek and Ed up from the finish line and drove back to the start. When we arrived I saw some big names there getting ready to warm up. I was pretty nervous already because this would be my first Pro race and I would be riding a new bike I picked up the night before. You don’t have to tell me, I know riding new equipment for a race is breaking the 1st cardinal rule. I was offered the opportunity to race an ‘09 Specialized S-Works Epic and couldn’t resist. It was a beautiful bike. So, I rode around the parking lot a few times and then hit the trail for a couple of miles to see if there were any surprises I should know about right off the start. The toughest section I found was a sand pit just over a mile in. When I saw the 25-mile sign I decided it was time to head back. I got back to the truck where Derek was standing and took off some of the heavier clothing I had on for warming up. It was a couple minutes after that when we were called to the starting gate. We had 5 minutes until the start and my heart was racing already. I was standing in a pack of 56 riders. I heard the word “go” and we were off on a full out sprint for a sharp left hand turn. I managed to take the inside line and hold it. The first few miles were absolute chaos. My heart rate was pegged, guys were cutting others off to try and get a good position in line. I had someone=2 0try to get ahead of me, but he ended up taking his own front tire out on another rider’s rear wheel. This caused me to lock up the breaks, but I was able to get around in time on the left. As the race went on I found myself in a group of about 5 chasing the larger lead group, which at the time I had no idea there was a group of 3 off of the front of that group. I finally managed to join the main group and was doing my best to hang on to the rear tire of one of the Bell’s guys. I was unable to stay there though and a few miles after Williamsburg Road I was slowly falling off the back. I made a few hard efforts trying to get back on, but with no such luck. I felt like I was on my own personal time trial. I managed to catch two of the others that got spit out the back. I was riding with them until the last section of single track. I was trying to get to the single track first, but ended up second in line with no way around. We came to a short but steep downhill with a sharp left at the bottom. The rider in front crashed. He had slid just far enough off the trail for me to get around. I asked if he was all right but didn’t receive and answer. I saw him scrambling to get up when I rounded the next corner. Now I just had one guy I had to stay in front of so I was giving it everything I could when we entered the finish chute.

As I crossed the finish line I felt such relief that the rider behind me didn ’t catch me. After the race I had to take my new favorite bike back to the Specialized trailer to return it. That was the saddest moment of the day for me. After the awards and a bite to eat we decided to make an appearance at the Bell’s party. Which topped off the night with good beer and some dancing, well I think you could consider it dancing. We were very lucky that our teammate Biscuit agreed not to drink so he could drive us back to the room. Which we appreciated very much. It was a great weekend and I can’t wait until next year to try to improve my time. I ended up 26th with a time of 1:36, which beat my goal of a 1:40, but there’s always next year.

Images from Biz! aka Biscuit, aka Mark T.

Another Iceman in the books!

2008-11-12T06:49:00.000-08:00

What an exciting weekend. Our team had 16 riders racing the 27 mile event and two of our riders (Bryan and Montana) took podium spots! To make this weekend even more exciting one of our team members got engaged. I personally could not think of a better event / place to propose!

For myself, the race was interesting to say the least. At the start of the race we stood waiting. During that time I got so cold that my team members in the same wave where getting concerned. But, in a few minutes the gun went off and all 98 riders started. Not more than 1/4 mile into the race I was taken out by a combination of sand and a rider hitting my rear tire. This combination left me laying on the ground watching every rider pass. I picked up my bike and the handle bars where parallel to the front wheel. At this point I wanted to just DNF but I grabbed my multi tool and got the bars almost straight. By the time I finished I could see the next wave of Single Speed riders starting. So I jumped back on the bike and started again with somewhat straight bars. I started to get passed by the Single Speed group which worked out well because I was able to hang onto the rear their rear tire until we hit one sand pit and I was way too far forward and again went over the bars. This time I saw Jared from our team pass. I was so focused on trying to fix my handle bars I didn't even hear what he said. Finally back on the bike and along comes Mark "Biz". We rode together for a few then he was able to gain ground in the last few miles of the race. After a few more miles I finally hit the finish and in 50th passing 48 other riders in my group.

Now that the race was over and the season was done for me it was time for a little celebrating. We hung out in the VIP tent of Gary Fisher and watch the Pro race, while dining on some seriously good food! For the first time in three years our team actually had a rider in the pro class. Mark P. did an awesome job hanging with the Pros!

After dinner with the team and the awards ceremony it was time for the real party. The Bells Beer after party and it did not disappoint! Awesome band and beer. Thank you Bells Beer and the Bells MTB team!

So what is next? Several of our team members still have cross races and adventure races left to do. We also have alot of team business to complete, such as new team members, sponsorship and budgets.

Harvest Mountain Bike/ 5K Races for Charity

2008-10-26T10:29:00.000-07:00

The races at Lake Orion High School are always a fun competitive atmosphere. Our team showed up to the event ready to race and help promote the sport(s) for a good cause. The race day started out very cold and dark and the weather only got worse. On the last lap for the Advance and Sport group(s) the rain decided to make things a little more slick. By the end of the last lap it was a steady down poor. The rain did let up for the start of the Citizen group and by the time we left, well, the sun was out! Congrats to Joe from the Bells MTB team for taking first overall. And congrats to Bryan U. and Mark L. for taking first in their groups!

So many of the team members enjoy these races because they allow you to experiment. Some riders, like myself try new race categories ( I only got lapped by three out of nine Advance riders), bike setup, a new bottle mixture and for some, simply doing their first Mountain Bike race. Thanks to Steve M. and the Lake Orion High School for putting on this event!

Peak 2 Peak

2008-10-25T16:44:00.000-07:00

What a race! This is one of my favorite races after the USAC series is over. Most of the course is a fast flat nine miles of twistie single track and two track that take you right up to the one mile hill climb. For some of the CT team this was a place to gain positions and for others (me) it was a place of torture! In each of the three laps all I could do is find a comfortable gear and peddle then zone out. Close to the top of the hill you can shift into a larger gear and make up some of the time lost and then the best part of the entire race. The downhill run! The first lap down I remember hearing a someone on the side yelling "slow down". Slow down!? I raced ten miles to get to this point!

The next two laps where pretty much the same minus the person saying slow down. I was able to take 15th in my group while Tony S. took 10th and Bryan U. took 1st! Way to go Bryan. Next up is the Lake Orion Fall race, Cyclocross then Iceman and more Cyclocross!

Massive Fallout

2008-10-14T05:02:00.000-07:00

Saturday morning I headed over to Stoney Creek to meet up with some teammates for the Massive Fallout Ride. I found Ed, Mark L., and Derek and we chatted for a bit then made our way over to the trailhead for the mass start. We must've gotten there a couple minutes late because the big group had already taken off. Oops! No worries though. There were many riders still arriving and getting ready.
It was a gorgeous fall morning with cool crisp air, colorful leaves covering the trees and trails, and bikes everywhere. We all headed out towards the Pines. The trail was in great condition, dry and fast. After the Pines, we climbed up Mt. Sheldon where there were lots of riders talking and taking in the views (some of us were catching our breath!). Into the Roller Coaster... After a minute I lost sight of the guys but could hear voices and bikes bouncing across the trail throughout the woods. About halfway through, I caught a glimpse of another Cycletherapy jersey and got excited thinking I was catching up with the guys! I was working hard, but that motivated me to push harder. Soon, I realized they had slowed down a bit behind another group. Oh well, I got to feel fast for a minute :)
After the Roller Coaster, we left Stoney taking the dirt roads to Paint Creek Trail. The trail was full of people taking advantage of the great weather. It was cool to be surrounded by so many active people. We headed north and took a little break at Mark L.'s house to get some water and a little snack. Then, back on the road to Bald Mountain. That was my first time riding at Bald Mountain and I loved it. It was a fast, open trail with some steep bumpy downhills to keep you on your toes. I rode through with another group of friendly riders who pushed me to keep up when I started getting tired. My teammates patiently waited for me outside the trail and we sped off to Addison. I've riden Addison once before, but didn't remember it being as hilly as it felt now. Maybe I was just getting tired... I was working pretty hard to keep up all morning! Though it was tough, Addison was my favorite trail of the three. It seemed to have the most variety. Enough climbing to make you work and some fun downhills to make those climbs worth it. After the trail, legs burning but still smiling, I headed towards the pavilion where everyone was enjoying chili and hot dogs. From there we split up and I enjoyed the scenery on my leisurely ride back to Stoney. It was a well organized event and it seemed like everyone had a great time. We couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day.
This weekend, some of us will be racing Peak to Peak, Grubers and others will be racing cyclocross. Good luck to all!

Pain Haven

2008-09-28T14:49:00.000-07:00

Several members of the team decided to spontaneously take on the 30 mile Pain Haven race up by Midland Mi. I have to say the name of this event is perfect. The course had some sweet downhill runs followed by some nice steep climbs. The single track was intense. Most of the single track reminded me of a rough pump track with tight turns, bridges some wicked off camber downhill turns and much much more!! Our very own Mark P. placed second with a finish time of 2 hours and 2 minutes while Derek and I (Ed) finished. Congrats to Steve Kinley of Sobe / Cannondale for his finish and a big thank you to Jen D from our team for helping out during the race and to the promoters Jeff and Jen!

If you asked me right after the race, "would I do it again" I might have said no but looking back at it, I will definetly add this race to next years list!!

USAC Finals

2008-09-10T17:06:00.000-07:00

Wow! Another USAC series is over and congratulations to all the teams and individuals that took part in this awesome racing experience. Cycletherapy was able to have seven riders in the top three and everyone who raced the full series placed in the top five. During the final few races we where lucky enough to have Cheryl and Jennifer join our team and immediately started adding first place medals to the team! For some of us this is the start of Cross season and for others it is time to get ready for races like Peak 2 Peak, Iceman, Fall Harvest at Lake Orion and more.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

iVisual
Cycletherapy
National Financial Credit
Multi-Lakes Insulation Ent.
Ressler Design
DeCubber Custom Shop

Thank you Tailwind for putting on these events!

Pontiac Lake Rec. Photos

2008-08-26T10:16:00.000-07:00

Derek & Cheryl Hill----------Tony Sebastian

Biscuit & Gravy--------Mark Terrian & son Dylan

Montana & Forrest Johnson --------- Mark Ladwig & Ed Barker

Jen D. & Cheryl H.----------------Lisa Johnson

Ed Barker & Mike Bartlett-------------Bryan Underwood

Pontiac Lake XC

2008-08-25T14:04:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to everyone who came to race and help out with the race. With the rain the night before the race course was fast. CT Racing was able to grab 13 medals for the day! The heat was a little intense but overall it was another great day to race!

Below are the team results and hopefully we can update this post with some images from the race.

Mike B. 3rd Elite Men
Mark P. 4th Elite Men

Bryan U. 1st Expert Men 18-Under
Forbes D. 2nd Expert Men 18-Under

Derek H. 5th Expert Men 30-39

Mark T. 5th SS Sport / Beginner

Mark L. 2nd Sport Clydesdale
Ed B. 3rd Sport Clydesdale

Cheryl H. 1st Sport Women 25-39
Jennifer D. 2nd Sport Women 25-39

Lisa J. 1st Sport Women 40+

Forrest J. 1st Sport Men 14-Under
Montana J. 1st Sport Men 14-Under

Tony S. 6th Sport Men 19-29
Jeff M. 9th Sport Men 35-39

Norm J. 6th Sport Men 45-49

Team Results for the Time Trial Series

2008-08-25T09:17:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to all those that race the Time Trial series put on by Tailwind! Mark P. took first overall in the mens Elite category and fourth in the mens Expert/Elite Single Speed. Bryan U. also grabbed first in the mens 18-Under. Derek H. took second in the mens Expert 30-39 category. Great Job!!

Big M. Race

2008-08-05T12:32:00.000-07:00

Another great day to race! Some pictures from the Big M. race.

Stony Creek Time Trial

2008-07-30T08:28:00.000-07:00

Ahhh....racing, I vaguely remember what it feels like. So what do I do, I sign up for a time trial where the pain is very temporary, the Stony Creek Time Trail to be exact. It's part of the Tailwind TT Series.
Stony is a quandry of sorts, with a lot of fast two track that requires gears to go fast throw in some twisty singletrack that requires skillz and timing and then add some good size climbs that require power....all of which is hard to satisfy with a singlespeed. So you pick a gear and plan to suffer, but everyone suffers in a time trial, if they aren't, they're not going fast enough!
My start time is 12:16, I line up to some young buck (20 years younger to be exact) and Gordon counts down from 5 and we are off. I clip in promptly and and off down the slight hill and the young buck is right behind me, he immediately asks if I'm fast, I answer, "I use to be." So with that information he decides to pass me and I hop on his wheel and let him pull me all the way out on the grass against the wind. (I may be slow, but I'm not stupid). We reach the creek crossing and with the days prior pre-ride of the course I am able to go easy before the crossing and then close the gap he has made immediately afterward as I catch him thru the water. We lead out, pass one of the 30 second guys that were in front of us and keep the mini train rolling. We hit the big climb before the singletrack and I am still on his rear wheel like Biscuit all over the latest bike tire offering. We spin together for a little while longer, he asks a few questions like my name and how many races I have under my belt this year, then we catch the other 30 second guy. On a series of smaller climbs we catch and pass a few beginners giving positive reinforcement to each. For now I am content to ride at his pace as I am drafting the whole time. As we enter the Pines singletrack section I hit the gas and go around him as his paced slowed somewhat. I check the heartrate monitor and the HR is at 170, a little high, but managable. I don't know if this cat is fast in the singletrack or not and I'm not waiting to find out, hence my decision to pass. Come to find out, he's fully capable and stays with me the whole way to the point when we pass someone, I tell them two are coming around. We hit the two track and I am still pulling, I slow slightly and he does too, he does not want to pull, but then again, I wouldn't either. I am happy to do more work and lead in to the second singletrack section aptly named The Rollercoaster. I try a little to drop him, but his skillz are one of a seasoned rider so I throttle back a little and keep a good heart rate. It's all about me now and my survival.
We exit he Rollercoaster and he says, "I'll lead for a little while" which I graciously accept. He leads the entire two track section back and I draft as much as possible. A 30 second rider who started behind us catches us just before the first creek crossing on the way back. Again, with my day's prior pre-ride I know exactly what to do. As I dismount and do my cyclo-cross imitation I am promptly behind the young buck again with the 30 second guy behind me, but the young buck faulters and I am forced to stop my smooth transtion from runner with a bike to full on biker. I collect my thoughts, tell the 30 second guy he can go around as I know he is faster then I and they are off...alot more then I would have liked as my mojo was disrupted. But fear not, another creek crossing is coming up and I know for sure I will be able to catch them again! Without worry I am able to do just that and we are all out of the last creek crossing as a tight knit trio, the young buck first, fast 30 second guy second and me happily in third letting them do all the work. We pass a few beginners and turn on the the grassy return. But alas, my little world is about to fall apart as the young buck throws a few more shovels of coal on and starts to pull away. I am sure the fast 30 second guy will follow but he does not and I am at the road crossing unable to pass. As soon as we cross the road the young buck gives it all he has and pulls away. Once we past the bridge I hit the gas and go around him and try to catch the young buck but this effort is futile as he has also saved some for the last sprint and beats me by 3 seconds.
I am happy with my effort, I had a blast actually working with someone during the entire race, tactics can be fun and breaks up the mind-numbing-racing-by-yourself stuff. I finished in 9th place with a 53:21 and only 24 seconds divided 6th place from 9th place! Lots of fun!!!

thanks, Jay Jones

The Ruby Race

2008-07-22T14:02:00.000-07:00

Well like almost every race this year, we where greeted with another course soaked by the night rain. Ruby, unlike other courses becomes this greasy, muddy single track on one side of the river then, a sandy rooted track on the other side of the river. This is a perfect combination for our bikes chains, bottom brackets and more! The CycleTherapy shop is going to love us!

We had four riders out at Ruby and each one of us had at least one wreck or bike part that need to be replaced due to the conditions. Our elite rider Mark P. lost the bolt for his rear brake making a already difficult race become more challenging. But, with his skills he was able to claim 4th overall. Derek H. had a good ride but it to included challenges that you don't face on a normal DRY race day but, of the four of us that raced the most amazing story was our rider Forbes D.

There is a downhill section that follows a really tight switchback and on this steep downhill ( a place I wreck during the Sunday pre-ride) Mr. D. decided to do a little trail blazing. The result was a front wheel that resembled a taco. His bike was useless, he, on the other hand, was still in the race. He managed to get his bike across the river and take 1st place in his age group!

We would like to give special thanks to Forbes family for coming out to cheer for him and the team! It was a real boost! Also, thanks to Team Sandbag and Tailwind for another eventfull race!

Stony Creek Marathon

2008-07-02T04:54:00.000-07:00

When I woke up, the first thing I did was look out the window. Much to my dismay, I saw it had rained last night. My first thought was, every race this season has had a storm come through making the track muddy. Regardless of the conditions, this race was for double points and I had to do it.

When I arrived at Stony Creek the turnout of racers was impressive. Our team alone had seven riders.

The muddy conditions did improve after the race started, well not until the third lap. As my group took off I stayed back in third knowing that the first little climb would be crowded with riders. This little conservation of energy allowed me to pass the first and second place riders to grab first place about two miles into the race. The first lap went flawless. It was not until the short climb at the begining of the course of the second lap that I started getting "chain suck". By the second hill climb I had lost my shifting in the front. Luckily the guy who was in second place came by and applied some oil to the chain, enough to get back to the start.

When I got to our pit area I was lucky that some of the family members where there and helped clean all the mud out, spray down the chain and oil it. Within a few minutes I was off on the third lap!!

This lap went "ok" but I started to cramp in the back of my legs. Too much thought put into the mechanical issues and not enough thought put into drinking liquids slowed my pace down greatly. As I got back to the pit area all I could think about was holding on to second place. I made my bottle switch, did a quick spray of cleaner on the chain and I was off on the last lap.

In the roller coaster I was beginning to feel the lack of energy, a couple of my teammates passed me as I was standing to the side of the track trying to muster some energy, they offered to help but I was too far gone and only had 4 or 5 miles to the finish. Then everything feel apart!

About three miles from the finish I moved over to let some faster riders pass and wham.... flat tire! No problem, fix the tire and finish, right! I was using my CO2 to fill the tube and snap.... the valve froze on my spare tube and snapped off letting all the air out. Just about that time the third place rider passed me.

I had no choice but to hike in and try to finish the race and obtain some point. The end result of the marathon for me was a fourth place finish. But on a better note the team took several first place finishes! Congrats to Brian, Montana, Forest, Lisa, Derek, Mark, and Mark for finishing... Great job!
Some Pics!

Lumberjack 100

2008-06-17T15:14:00.000-07:00

Thursday night saw some of the worst storms on record for the Manistee area. In fact, as I watched the weather channel on the Friday before the race, they were saying 11 inches of rain had fallen over the course of the storm and Manistee declaring its town a disaster area! Luckily, the little town of Wellston had power so our accommodations for the weekend were still available.

Race day saw quite a crowd with many people nervously preparing their pit areas for the day’s racing. Looking around, it was apparent that the competition would be stiff. I prepared Cytomax, Perpetum and HammerGel to sustain me for the day, in addition to various other foods which I thought I might want as I coasted into the pits. At about 6:30 am all of us meet for the prerace, and headed up the Udell Rollways Rd. to start the race. An ominous foreshadowing of the trail conditions awaited us at the start; someone’s house along the road looked to be an island in a small lake of water!

The start was anticlimactic for me. I was at the back of the pack, as I had no intention of competing for hole shot on a race which could last as long as 12 hours. Months of training came down to this. Anyone reading this probably is familiar with the Big M race course, but the first climb is no joke. I enjoy passing people on the hills, but for this race I resisted the urge and trudged up the loose sandy hill with the rest of the racers. Unfortunately, I lost my restraint for the rest of my first lap. The trail conditions were excellent, and I was thoroughly enjoying having a full suspension bike with gears for the first time in 3 years. So I found myself blasting by large groups of racers who were smartly taking it easy and going slowly up the first lap’s hills, and elbowing my way on the down hills having a blast! There was one downhill at the end I past many flying down on the sides of the trail pedaling like a maniac pushing as much gear as my bike had! Felt like a million bucks flying through the shoot and stopping only to replace the bottles.

My subsequent laps were not as fun as the 1st lap. I had used too much of my energy goofing around for the first lap. In fact I was so tired I forgot one of my water bottles on the 3rd lap and had to nurse my supply till I reached the neutral aid station. Funny how anything edible and drinkable tastes as though it is the best food ever produced! For some reason, the 2nd lap was the hardest. It was frustrating to be riding so slow for me. I knew I was able to ride faster, but just couldn’t anymore.

While the trail was in awesome shape, there remained one exception, “THE SWAMP”. We’ve all done it, been so excited to ride after rain and had to pick our way around the foul smelling low areas of the trail where the collected refuse of the wild collects to ferment into a black goo. But imagine this area extended around on all sides! I rode through it all the first lap (cuz I was soooo excited to be passing people), but after emerging from this sump of goo, my bike with warned that in the future laps, it would not cooperate after being dunked in the muddy water. I abided my bikes wishes and carried it through this section for the remaining laps.

Other than “THE SWAMP” we could not have asked for better weather to race in! The weather was warm but not hot and a nice breeze was blowing throughout the day. Perhaps I will do this race again, but will change much in my training plan and race strategy. I was thrilled to have finished, which is all I really set out to do for the first 100 miler. As a racer though, I can’t help but wonder what I’m really capable of at an event like this. Not likely I’ll beat the course record of 6 and half hours! Perhaps a new goal to finish in fewer than 10 would be a more appropriate future goal for this race. In the meantime, I can take advantage of the extra endurance I’ve gained and use it in the local XC circuit!!! -T

Brighton XC race!!

2008-06-17T06:50:00.000-07:00

It was a Hot Sticky June afternoon the night before had brought heavy rains to the area so the condition were tough! The Singlespeed class would start at just after 1 pm, between the Elites and Sport riders we had 13 going out. Here we go Robert hits the whistle and we are off, we wrap around the grass down by the lake up a short climb and hit the singletrack the group spreads out and I settle back in around 3rd position (i think),we come to a wide section and I pass the 2nd place rider easily and now in the hunt for #1 position, I spot him a short distance ahead of me and pass him on a long climb.

We ride for some time and I can hear a rider coming up behind me and its the rider I had passed on the climb he catches me and I let him pass me (dang!) lap 2 comes around and no change but I do hear another rider coming slowly behind me so I kick it up a notch and lose him, near the end of lap 2 I have a couple of falls in the slippery corners but maintain my lead.

Here it is finally lap 3 have not seen a rider in awhile a sport geared rider passed me and I slowly bring him in, I draft him when I can and we work together to finish out the race. We pop out of the singletrack and hit the last short section of park road to the finish line, I take one last look back and no one in sight sweet!!! I finish in what I think is 2nd place but find out the rider that passed me was in the Expert ss class and end up with a 1st place finish. I am Hot sweaty but very happy to have my first real class win in my 4 years of racing. I guess some extra miles on the bike have helped me out this year..
Biz!

The Mohican 100 is Bitter Sweet

2008-06-03T15:32:00.000-07:00

Three members of the team traveled to Ohio to face 100 miles of the Mohican National Forest. As the team arrived the night shapped up like any other race. We registered, prepared the bikes and then went to sleep. This is where the race really began.

The night was humid, hot and our room held all that warmth. Then after a few hours of sleep some of us where woken up by the sound of thunder and heavy rain. Eventually we fell back to sleep only to be woke up by the shrill noise of our cell phone alarms. Already tired it was time to get ready to go to the start line.

As I pulled up to the start line I was tired and a little depleted from the humid night. I knew it was going to be a hard day when I was looking down the start line and all I could see was the mile long climb. After the announcements of last year’s winner and the primary sponsor Smith & Nephew the siren sounded and we where off, racing!

The mile long climb blew by and before I knew it we where into the single track. But not just any single track. Nope, last night’s rain made everything muddy and slippery. Rock, roots and grass all became points to negotiate. Within the first four miles of downhill trails I wreck twice but, that seemed to be the norm for the day.

For me, at aid station one my misery started to take a toll on my outlook of the race and by the time I hit the second aid station (36 miles in almost 6 hours! Six hours of hiking uphill and sliding downhill in the mud.) I was mentally out of the race. This was my first DNF (did not finish) in four years of racing not due to a mechanical problem.

As I made my way back to the lodge at the finish line I could only guess how the other members in the team where doing. I know they were in front but I was not sure where.

When I got back I waited for the Cycletherapy team to cross the line. After 10 hours our Elite racer crossed the finish line then a little over 12 hours our second rider crossed.

The conditions of the race course were the most difficult I have experienced. The hill climbs where double the elevation of anything we have in southeastern Michigan. Had the course been dry it would have been a blast to race. So, next year I will be back to get my revenge at Mohican.

Ed B.

Bloomer XC Race Spring 2008

2008-05-29T14:51:00.001-07:00

photo by Tom Lining

by The Biz (not Bisquick)
Well here it is the first race of the season for me, it came up quicker then expected. The temperature was in the low 60’s and the week prior to the race had been warm and for the most part dry so the course should be good. I decided on a small gear for the race do to the trail setup lots of technical short climbs and not a lot of long fast sections.We lined up for the start of the Race the SS class in front; I was competeting against 7 others in my class. My plan was to hang back and pick them off 1 by 1 on the climbs. Here we go! I fall to the back of the pack and watch the group, I am in 7th out of 8 right now, we come to the first downhill and the group packs up, I now wait for the climb to come, we round the bottom of the downhill and I see the first climb two of the group in front of me are struggling on the climb so at the top I easily pass them I am now in 5th spot.I keep up a good pace and notice a friend of mine in front of me and decide to ride up to him, He is racing in the exp/elite SS class so I now I don’t need to pass him we work well together and catch the 4th place rider, we stay behind him using his draft and pass him on the next climb but he stays with us, we put some distance on him and ride away.At this point I am trying to catch the lead pack but never come in contact with them. My friend says to me “don’t look now, but he’s back” sure enough; he was right so now we are all 3 in a line. I know from the past encounter that I can take him on the climbs, we stay together mid way thru the 2nd lap where the climbs start and that is where I lose him, I look back to see him “pushing” his bike up the climb Ba Bye!
The last lap! Finally my legs are screaming, my back is sore and I am ready to be done. The 2 of us keep on going switching who is leading, no one in sight so we can just ride out the race and not worry too much about the competition. We make a last big effort to catch the pack but never see them, at this point we are encountering slower traffic from the beginner Classes and decide to finish the race where we are, I came in 4th in Sport/Beg. SS and My friend ended up 3rd in Exp/elite SS…..Great racing with a Friend!!
The Biz

6 Hours of Addison Oaks 2008

2008-05-29T14:34:00.001-07:00

by The Biz

It was a cool dry morning, perfect day for a long race endurance race. The singlespeed class had 9 racers in it so I knew I had alot of work to do. We all started at 10:01 after the team riders went off, here we go a large group of riders taking the trail at once always gets alittle scary but everyone was patient and we had no problems.

The group started to spread out after about 2 or 3 miles so I was able to get into my race speed I was looking to turn between a 32 and 33 minute laps, i came thru lap 1 at 32:16 (perfect) felt great laps 2-5 were all in the 33 minute range.I stopped at the beginning of lap 6 to stretch my back out and take off my shoes (my feet were hurting bad) I stopped for about 5 minutes and hopped back on the bike finishing laps 6-8 in good times between 33-34 minutes still feeling pretty strong.

My pit crew told me I was in either 2nd or 3rd at this point and kind of knew who I was racing against a friend of mine from another team,so I tried to keep an eye on him he took off and after my short stop to stretch and grab a water bottle I did the same. I thought I could reel him in and was able to get close on lap 9 and even closer on the 10th and finally lap but he ended up beating me by under 2 minutes, I finished just after the 4 pm cutoff point so I was unable to go out for lap 11 and try to move into 2nd place.

Well not bad for my longest race/ride of the year 65 miles in 6 hours, my back,feet and behind are sore but overall I felt good. The 1st place racer had 11 laps and I know he is an exp/elite rider so I did pretty well. The trail was perfect, racers were very nice no problems passing or being passed just a great day of racing at my favorite trail, can’t wait until the fall XC race.

Biz!!!!