From Tim Farnham:
The biggest race in Grand Rapids on Wednesday night's are out at the Grattan race track just east of town. It is a 2 mile somewhat hilly track that is normally used for race cars or prototype cars from the big 3.
The race started out as normal with a few attacks from the local strongmen. I like to do some early attacking as well since it gets me fired up and ready to drop the hammer later on ;-) Eventually Nathan Williams (BISSELL Elite) and I were in an 11 man break with about 30 seconds on the group. We were all rotating through pretty smoothly sans some shenanigans by a select few. Then at about 5 laps to go, Nathan thought it was a good idea to attack up the short kicker before the start/finish line. He and I went and the break got strung out, but nobody was willing to do the work needed to reel us back in. Every lap we added about 10 seconds to our lead. Nathan sucked up the prime points and I took the overall victory with him in tow.
GOOD WORK NATHAN!!
Friday, August 14, 2009
Thursday, August 13, 2009
BISSELL Company Ride
From Tim Farnham's Blog on August 11, 2009:
This trip has been a blast so far. My bro Tommy and I have been exploring the Grand Rapids night life (which is killer) and riding daily. Friday was the BISSELL company ride. Basically, all the BISSELL pros in town met at the BISSELL HQ for a meet and greet with the employees and all sponsors that felt like riding. We rode out of town and were greeted with a nice warm rain. It felt pretty good actually :-)
This trip has been a blast so far. My bro Tommy and I have been exploring the Grand Rapids night life (which is killer) and riding daily. Friday was the BISSELL company ride. Basically, all the BISSELL pros in town met at the BISSELL HQ for a meet and greet with the employees and all sponsors that felt like riding. We rode out of town and were greeted with a nice warm rain. It felt pretty good actually :-)
Friday, August 7, 2009
Frank Pipp 3rd at Giordana Crossroads Classic Fuze Salisbury
From Jonathan Coulter, Soigneur:
Newlywed Bissell Pro Cycling speedster Frank Pipp dug deep into his bag of tricks in an effort to outscheme a powerful Colavita armada at last nights mid-week Fuze Salisbury Criterium, part of the Giordana Crossroads Classic in North Carolina.
With full squads from Colavita, Mountain Khakis, DLP and Kenda in attendance, Pipp was ably supported by the previous nights 4th place finisher Cody O'Reilly, Peter Latham and Andy Jacques Maynes. With the race starting at 8:45pm on a technical, 8 corner downtown circuit, it was not long before the attacks started flying down main street. Pipp, making the most of his positioning at the head of the peleton, saw an opening only 15 minutes into the 60 minute slugfest and launched off the front. He was quickly tagged by Colavita speedster Sebastian Haedo and Mountain Khakis' Isaac Howe, and the trio began the arduous task of advancing their lead on the aggressive peleton.
After several laps of lung busting effort, vigilant marking by Pete Latham and Andy Jacques-Maynes saw the impetus taken out from the bunch, and the gap to Pipp and the other escapees extended out to 35 seconds.
With Pipps ability to win races from small breakaways, Colavita knew they had to send another rider up to the break to offset his cunning, and after rapidfire attempts by Luca Damiani, Alejandro Borrajo and Kyle Walmsley, it was Luis Amaran that escaped the peleton's clutches and began making headway on the break.
Over the final 15 laps Pipp was forced to do the lions share of the work as Amaran closed in. To the roar of the crowd Amaran made the juncture with only two corners remaining, flying past the breakaway. Outgunned against the two Colavitas, Pipp latched onto his wheel and coming out of the final turn was forced to begin the sprint. With 100 metres to go it looked like his power would save the day, but alas Haedo and Howe managed to rush by on the line. Andy Jacques-Maynes was 8th.
"It was great to be able to represent Bissell at this excellent series put on by Giordana," said Pipp.
Pipp and the Bissell riders will now rest up before this weekends NRC double header in Charlotte and Hanes Park.
- Jono
Newlywed Bissell Pro Cycling speedster Frank Pipp dug deep into his bag of tricks in an effort to outscheme a powerful Colavita armada at last nights mid-week Fuze Salisbury Criterium, part of the Giordana Crossroads Classic in North Carolina.
With full squads from Colavita, Mountain Khakis, DLP and Kenda in attendance, Pipp was ably supported by the previous nights 4th place finisher Cody O'Reilly, Peter Latham and Andy Jacques Maynes. With the race starting at 8:45pm on a technical, 8 corner downtown circuit, it was not long before the attacks started flying down main street. Pipp, making the most of his positioning at the head of the peleton, saw an opening only 15 minutes into the 60 minute slugfest and launched off the front. He was quickly tagged by Colavita speedster Sebastian Haedo and Mountain Khakis' Isaac Howe, and the trio began the arduous task of advancing their lead on the aggressive peleton.
After several laps of lung busting effort, vigilant marking by Pete Latham and Andy Jacques-Maynes saw the impetus taken out from the bunch, and the gap to Pipp and the other escapees extended out to 35 seconds.
With Pipps ability to win races from small breakaways, Colavita knew they had to send another rider up to the break to offset his cunning, and after rapidfire attempts by Luca Damiani, Alejandro Borrajo and Kyle Walmsley, it was Luis Amaran that escaped the peleton's clutches and began making headway on the break.
Over the final 15 laps Pipp was forced to do the lions share of the work as Amaran closed in. To the roar of the crowd Amaran made the juncture with only two corners remaining, flying past the breakaway. Outgunned against the two Colavitas, Pipp latched onto his wheel and coming out of the final turn was forced to begin the sprint. With 100 metres to go it looked like his power would save the day, but alas Haedo and Howe managed to rush by on the line. Andy Jacques-Maynes was 8th.
"It was great to be able to represent Bissell at this excellent series put on by Giordana," said Pipp.
Pipp and the Bissell riders will now rest up before this weekends NRC double header in Charlotte and Hanes Park.
- Jono
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
The Italian Job
Race Recap by Graham Howard
I'm back in GR now after being in Italy for the Pinarello Granfondo. I flew in to Pisa, Italy a little more than a week ago to adjust to all things Italian in hopes of having a good showing at the Pinarello Granfondo held on July 19th. From Pisa I met up with Joao and we drove to a small town in Tuscany where he has friends that were able to put us up for a few days before we headed to Treviso for the race. I've never been to Italy before and was pretty excited about the chance to see and experience it. Joao and I, along with another friend of Joao's, Thomas, who was also in Italy for the Pinarello Granfondo, spent three days in Tuscany, riding and eating before packing up our bikes and heading to Treviso. We met up with Andy Jacques-Maynes and Mark Bissell at the race hotel on Friday and went to preview the course. The course was 205k of lots of up and down. It contained large major roads, small cobbled streets and alleys through villages, tiny goat path climbs through mountain tunnels and little bike path descents on the edge of mountains. Everything about this event promised to be a new experience. Granfondo's, for the most part, are unknown to Americans, and rather difficult to explain. They are not races in the traditional sense that we have them here, nor are they organized group rides. They contain elements of both. They are mass start, single category races. This event had more than three thousand participants.
Treviso, along with being the location of the race is also the home of Pinarello. Being there a few days before the event gave us the chance to see the original and current Pinarello location along with the famous bicycle and jersey of Pinarello's founder, Giovanni Pinarello. Following finely hosted dinners by Pinarello on Friday and Saturday night, we woke up bright and early on Sunday for an eight a.m. start. We all lined up at the front of the race hoping to stay out of trouble, but unfortunately, a handful of the Italians threw back a few too many espressos that morning and there was a horrible wreck at the front of the field as excited, jittery Italians collided not 5k into the day. Joao and I managed to squirt clear, but both Andy and Mark went down hard. Mark got up, dusted himself off and soldiered on, but Andy was forced to abandon with mechanical problems. Joao and I stayed out of trouble and he was able to deliver me to the first major climb at the front with fresh legs. Thanks to our course recon, we knew that the courses major climbs all occurred within the first 100k, so our hope was to follow wheels and make it over those climbs with the front group, then look for opportunities on the flatter second half of the course. I managed the first part of the plan, making it over the major climbs with the front group, but my legs failed me on one of the courses lesser climbs. I was stuck in no man’s land for the remainder of the day until the final climb at 170k, where I was caught and overtaken by the second group. I descended and rode the last 15k alone, finishing in 51st. I was a little disappointed after having made it over the courses tougher climbs to be popped on one of the smaller ones, but still happy to have finished my first Granfondo in one piece. Sunday night Pinarello again treated us to a fine dinner and Monday morning we were off back to the states.
I enjoyed my first Granfondo immensely. I’d like to thank Pinarello for inviting and hosting us and also for sponsoring such a fine event. I hope to see more if Italy in the future and would like another crack at the Pinarello Granfondo in 2010.
I'm back in GR now after being in Italy for the Pinarello Granfondo. I flew in to Pisa, Italy a little more than a week ago to adjust to all things Italian in hopes of having a good showing at the Pinarello Granfondo held on July 19th. From Pisa I met up with Joao and we drove to a small town in Tuscany where he has friends that were able to put us up for a few days before we headed to Treviso for the race. I've never been to Italy before and was pretty excited about the chance to see and experience it. Joao and I, along with another friend of Joao's, Thomas, who was also in Italy for the Pinarello Granfondo, spent three days in Tuscany, riding and eating before packing up our bikes and heading to Treviso. We met up with Andy Jacques-Maynes and Mark Bissell at the race hotel on Friday and went to preview the course. The course was 205k of lots of up and down. It contained large major roads, small cobbled streets and alleys through villages, tiny goat path climbs through mountain tunnels and little bike path descents on the edge of mountains. Everything about this event promised to be a new experience. Granfondo's, for the most part, are unknown to Americans, and rather difficult to explain. They are not races in the traditional sense that we have them here, nor are they organized group rides. They contain elements of both. They are mass start, single category races. This event had more than three thousand participants.
Treviso, along with being the location of the race is also the home of Pinarello. Being there a few days before the event gave us the chance to see the original and current Pinarello location along with the famous bicycle and jersey of Pinarello's founder, Giovanni Pinarello. Following finely hosted dinners by Pinarello on Friday and Saturday night, we woke up bright and early on Sunday for an eight a.m. start. We all lined up at the front of the race hoping to stay out of trouble, but unfortunately, a handful of the Italians threw back a few too many espressos that morning and there was a horrible wreck at the front of the field as excited, jittery Italians collided not 5k into the day. Joao and I managed to squirt clear, but both Andy and Mark went down hard. Mark got up, dusted himself off and soldiered on, but Andy was forced to abandon with mechanical problems. Joao and I stayed out of trouble and he was able to deliver me to the first major climb at the front with fresh legs. Thanks to our course recon, we knew that the courses major climbs all occurred within the first 100k, so our hope was to follow wheels and make it over those climbs with the front group, then look for opportunities on the flatter second half of the course. I managed the first part of the plan, making it over the major climbs with the front group, but my legs failed me on one of the courses lesser climbs. I was stuck in no man’s land for the remainder of the day until the final climb at 170k, where I was caught and overtaken by the second group. I descended and rode the last 15k alone, finishing in 51st. I was a little disappointed after having made it over the courses tougher climbs to be popped on one of the smaller ones, but still happy to have finished my first Granfondo in one piece. Sunday night Pinarello again treated us to a fine dinner and Monday morning we were off back to the states.
I enjoyed my first Granfondo immensely. I’d like to thank Pinarello for inviting and hosting us and also for sponsoring such a fine event. I hope to see more if Italy in the future and would like another crack at the Pinarello Granfondo in 2010.
Pinarello Gran Fondo
Race Recap by Andy Jacques-Maynes
The Pinarello GF was a mix of disaster and redemption. We drove the course a day before to see the climbs, and they were mind-blowing: Switchbacks inside tunnels, 14% pitches, tiny narrow roads with rock overhangs, and long climbs up to ski areas: this course threw everything at you!
We were lucky to line up towards the front, because there were about 1700 angry Italians behind us chomping at the bit. Once we rolled out of town, everyone was jostling for position and you could smell the impending doom. Sure enough, two guys touched wheels at the front of the pack and the entire field hit the deck. I think the crash started from 6th wheel, right in front of team BISSELL! Graham went right, barely missing tumbling riders, Joao went left, also just squeezing through. Mark and I had nowhere to go but into the pile. Someone swerved into my front wheel and I was tossed to the ground at 35mph. I slid to a stop and was buried under three more riders. After untangling myself and my bike, I gave it a cursory check and started chasing. This was 5km into a 205km day, not a good way to start!
I got back to the front group after 15 minutes of solid hammering. My rear shifter was not functioning perfectly, and I could only use my 14 cog. I tried to get it working, with some small success, and I pulled up to Joao saying, "I'm back, ready to race." he took one look at me and said, "no you're not, your top tube is broken!" I guess another rider had fallen onto my bike and the frame was almost severed in the middle of the tube! Massive disappointment.
I pulled to the side and stopped, then waited for the entire field to fly by. 1700 riders takes quite a while to come through! I limped back to town and our hotel, cursing my luck. Upon entering the lobby, a collegue of Joao's was also coming in, he had breathing problems and turned around before the mountains started. It turns out he rides my size, so I took his bike and was back in the game!
I rolled from the hotel 2 hours after our start, determined to get some riding in. I intended to follow the course and try to catch the back of the field through the mountains. Because of creative (read: missing) course markings, I eventually got lost. I found the course again, but I was going the wrong way, backwards! This was fine, as I would be guaranteed to meet my team mates if I proceeded. Aside from lots of looks from riders (I don't know how to say "you're going the wrong way!" in Italian, but I'm sure that's what they were saying), I had an awesome ride. After 90km of being a salmon going upstream, I found Mark and Joao and rode with them to the finish.
Big props are due for the big man, Mark Bissell, for toughing out 200km with crash damage to his whole left side. Mark not only rode the whole distance, he rode STRONG all the way to the finish. Very, very impressive.
Race Notes:
The Pinarello GF was a mix of disaster and redemption. We drove the course a day before to see the climbs, and they were mind-blowing: Switchbacks inside tunnels, 14% pitches, tiny narrow roads with rock overhangs, and long climbs up to ski areas: this course threw everything at you!
We were lucky to line up towards the front, because there were about 1700 angry Italians behind us chomping at the bit. Once we rolled out of town, everyone was jostling for position and you could smell the impending doom. Sure enough, two guys touched wheels at the front of the pack and the entire field hit the deck. I think the crash started from 6th wheel, right in front of team BISSELL! Graham went right, barely missing tumbling riders, Joao went left, also just squeezing through. Mark and I had nowhere to go but into the pile. Someone swerved into my front wheel and I was tossed to the ground at 35mph. I slid to a stop and was buried under three more riders. After untangling myself and my bike, I gave it a cursory check and started chasing. This was 5km into a 205km day, not a good way to start!
I got back to the front group after 15 minutes of solid hammering. My rear shifter was not functioning perfectly, and I could only use my 14 cog. I tried to get it working, with some small success, and I pulled up to Joao saying, "I'm back, ready to race." he took one look at me and said, "no you're not, your top tube is broken!" I guess another rider had fallen onto my bike and the frame was almost severed in the middle of the tube! Massive disappointment.
I pulled to the side and stopped, then waited for the entire field to fly by. 1700 riders takes quite a while to come through! I limped back to town and our hotel, cursing my luck. Upon entering the lobby, a collegue of Joao's was also coming in, he had breathing problems and turned around before the mountains started. It turns out he rides my size, so I took his bike and was back in the game!
I rolled from the hotel 2 hours after our start, determined to get some riding in. I intended to follow the course and try to catch the back of the field through the mountains. Because of creative (read: missing) course markings, I eventually got lost. I found the course again, but I was going the wrong way, backwards! This was fine, as I would be guaranteed to meet my team mates if I proceeded. Aside from lots of looks from riders (I don't know how to say "you're going the wrong way!" in Italian, but I'm sure that's what they were saying), I had an awesome ride. After 90km of being a salmon going upstream, I found Mark and Joao and rode with them to the finish.
Big props are due for the big man, Mark Bissell, for toughing out 200km with crash damage to his whole left side. Mark not only rode the whole distance, he rode STRONG all the way to the finish. Very, very impressive.
Race Notes:
- I had to hike-a-bike through a vineyard to avoid a stern policeman who wouldn't let me up the course.
- I earned $100 from Joao by riding the last climb (the Montello) in the big ring.
- Mark won a field sprint out of about 100 guys, in part due to my 15km one-man leadout train.
- With my various twists, turns, and backtracking, I rode more than if I had done the whole course: I ended the day with 240km, or about 145 miles.
AJM
Monday, June 15, 2009
Tour de Mont Pleasant
Race Report by Graham Howard:
This past weekend I attended the tour de mont pleasant, in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan with the Bissell elite masters team. The race featured a Saturday criterium in downtown Mt. Pleasant as well as a Sunday road race through Isabella County. Saturday's race was fast and aggressive. The Kenda Pro cycling team along with the Panther / RGF cycling team and the Jet Fuel team came for the weekend of racing in Mt. Pleasant, so the Michigan field had the opportunity to sample racing with a little more horsepower. Despite a fairly aggressive criterium, the field stayed all together and came down to a field sprint. I miscounted the laps and went for the finish one lap too early, so I didn't place. Jason and Derek however managed to get into the sprint and both managed to place in the top ten.
Sunday's Road Race, at 105 miles, was a longer affair than is often encountered in Michigan. The Bissell team decided that we didn't want to do any more work than we had to for the first 70-80 miles. Other teams had different tactics, however, and a break of eight formed about 10 miles into the race after a hard cross wind section. I found my way into the group, along with Greg Christian and David Campbell (Panther / RGF), Ben Renkema and Jake Rytlewski (Kenda), Tom Burke (Lathrup / Giant), Mark Olson (Priority Health) and a rider from the Mad Anthony Brewery team. Jake, Greg and Tom immediately got to work. Mark Olson and I, having full teams sitting in the field, and no interest in flogging ourselves for 95 miles, sat on the back of the group. Undeterred by our disinterest, the other six pressed on with full strength. Slowly but surely the peloton disappeared behind us until they were no longer visible. Time gaps were hard to come across, but from what we were able to gather from feed zone hollering, we were roughly six minutes up on the peloton and more than likely would stay clear to the finish. The two Panther / RGF riders proved strongest and most aggressive as they began attacking the group, still 20 miles from the finish. I had fresh legs from sitting on all day and followed two or three efforts before one finally stuck with Greg and Mark. Greg and I rolled hard until the last kilometer when I dropped behind him and forced him to lead out the sprint. He put in a couple of good digs, but I managed to come around in the last 100m to take the win. The rest of the Bissell boys all came in strong at the front of the field kick a few minutes later.
This was a first year event, but a really spectacular one. The courses were terrific, the community support was wonderful and everything ran smoothly. Thanks to all those who helped put it on, I hope it happens again next year.
This past weekend I attended the tour de mont pleasant, in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan with the Bissell elite masters team. The race featured a Saturday criterium in downtown Mt. Pleasant as well as a Sunday road race through Isabella County. Saturday's race was fast and aggressive. The Kenda Pro cycling team along with the Panther / RGF cycling team and the Jet Fuel team came for the weekend of racing in Mt. Pleasant, so the Michigan field had the opportunity to sample racing with a little more horsepower. Despite a fairly aggressive criterium, the field stayed all together and came down to a field sprint. I miscounted the laps and went for the finish one lap too early, so I didn't place. Jason and Derek however managed to get into the sprint and both managed to place in the top ten.
Sunday's Road Race, at 105 miles, was a longer affair than is often encountered in Michigan. The Bissell team decided that we didn't want to do any more work than we had to for the first 70-80 miles. Other teams had different tactics, however, and a break of eight formed about 10 miles into the race after a hard cross wind section. I found my way into the group, along with Greg Christian and David Campbell (Panther / RGF), Ben Renkema and Jake Rytlewski (Kenda), Tom Burke (Lathrup / Giant), Mark Olson (Priority Health) and a rider from the Mad Anthony Brewery team. Jake, Greg and Tom immediately got to work. Mark Olson and I, having full teams sitting in the field, and no interest in flogging ourselves for 95 miles, sat on the back of the group. Undeterred by our disinterest, the other six pressed on with full strength. Slowly but surely the peloton disappeared behind us until they were no longer visible. Time gaps were hard to come across, but from what we were able to gather from feed zone hollering, we were roughly six minutes up on the peloton and more than likely would stay clear to the finish. The two Panther / RGF riders proved strongest and most aggressive as they began attacking the group, still 20 miles from the finish. I had fresh legs from sitting on all day and followed two or three efforts before one finally stuck with Greg and Mark. Greg and I rolled hard until the last kilometer when I dropped behind him and forced him to lead out the sprint. He put in a couple of good digs, but I managed to come around in the last 100m to take the win. The rest of the Bissell boys all came in strong at the front of the field kick a few minutes later.
This was a first year event, but a really spectacular one. The courses were terrific, the community support was wonderful and everything ran smoothly. Thanks to all those who helped put it on, I hope it happens again next year.
Friday, May 22, 2009
Another Good Day for the Pro Elite Combo
From Tim Farnham:
We just did the Grattan Speedway race Wednesday evening. Sheldon and I spent the whole time in breaks and attacking hard. Close to the end of the race, Sheldon, myself, and a Priority Health guy were in a break but when the PH guy decided not to roll through, Sheldon attacked. Myself and the PH guy were then reabsorbed into the back and Sheldon stayed away for the remainder of the race for the win. I did a suicide at 2 laps to go while the PH team chased. At about 1k to go, Birdman (GH) started out the lead out train but ended up catching me. Fortunately, Jason (Elite Bissell) won the sprint for second and we also got 3rd, 4th, 5th, and I got 7th.
So another good training day for me and good results for the Elite team.
Later, Timmo
Monday, May 11, 2009
Mayor's Bike Ride
From Graham Howard:
Last Wednesday I attended The Mayor's Bike Ride, a community event held at John Ball Park in down town Grand Rapids. This gathering built on the success of a Grand Rapids Bicycle Summit, an event aimed at making Grand Rapids more bicycle friendly, which was held a week earlier at the GVSU campus.
Local cycling supporters, enthusiasts, businesses, racers and families came by John Ball Park on Wednesday to support and to help showcase what is a very strong and enthusiastic cycling community in Grand Rapids. Grand Rapids Mayor George Heartwell attended the event as well and led two bicycle rides, a one mile kids ride around John Ball Park and a 5 mile ride through downtown Grand Rapids.
Roughly 150 people attended the event and probably about that many brought out their bikes and went on the ride around downtown. There were kids on training wheels, BMX racers, mountain bikers, fixed gears, tandems, bikes with dogs in crates strapped on the back and even a few guys perched up high on old fashioned bicycles. The event was a great way to get Grand Rapids bicycle lovers of all sorts in the same place at the same time and will hopefully lead to steps towards creating bicycle lanes on Grand Rapids streets, among other things, and a more bicycle friendly Grand Rapids.
Photos by Josh Duggan
Lots more here
Lots more here
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Dana Point Grand Prix
Recap by Eric Wohlberg:
Great location, course.
After watching pretty much every field crash in the last 2 corners and plus the fact that Rock had a full contingent, we weren't too keen to contribute to a field sprint.
From the gun, we were very active with Andy/Frank applying pressure to Rock. There were several small moves but nothing would get more than 10-15 secs as both Colavita and Rock were controlling for a field sprint.
With 10 laps to go, Kirk made a excellent surge, and a 5 man move went clear.
The gap opened quickly as Rock got organized behind it and started riding.
However, they were having trouble pulling it back and got some help from OUCH and Garmin (which is mystifying).
The field was back together at 2 to go, and Colavita had control with Cody sitting nicely at the back of their train.
On the final stretch, Rassan Bahati smoked the last two corners, the Colavita lead out train, and the field for the win.
Cody had a great finish for 5th overall.
Eric
Great location, course.
After watching pretty much every field crash in the last 2 corners and plus the fact that Rock had a full contingent, we weren't too keen to contribute to a field sprint.
From the gun, we were very active with Andy/Frank applying pressure to Rock. There were several small moves but nothing would get more than 10-15 secs as both Colavita and Rock were controlling for a field sprint.
With 10 laps to go, Kirk made a excellent surge, and a 5 man move went clear.
The gap opened quickly as Rock got organized behind it and started riding.
However, they were having trouble pulling it back and got some help from OUCH and Garmin (which is mystifying).
The field was back together at 2 to go, and Colavita had control with Cody sitting nicely at the back of their train.
On the final stretch, Rassan Bahati smoked the last two corners, the Colavita lead out train, and the field for the win.
Cody had a great finish for 5th overall.
Eric
West Coast Collegiate Cycling Conference Championships UC Davis
Report by Paul Mach:
Had some good racing this weekend at the collegiate conference championships in Davis. Here is the 411.
Saturday morning team time trial. My team has been winning without me by minutes all season so we weren't too worried. We won, I don't know by how much
Saturday afternoon road race. 4x20 miles with a 4 mile gravel section. UC Davis had 1of 2 guys off the front with 1 lap to go. 3 Davis guys bridged up to make it 4 of 5. We worked the other guy over and us 4 rolled across the line together. I got second.
Sunday's Crit, 60min, 6 corners in downtown Davis. Rode hard. Spent the second half in a break, attacked with 5 to go. Soloed to the win.
Ended up 2nd in the season long individual omnium even thought I only did 5 regular season races, that was unexpected. UC Davis won the team omnium.
Yeah, I know it's no NRC racing, but it sure does build the confidence before Gila.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Tour of the Battenkill – Day 2
Report by Frank Pipp:
Day 2 of Battenkill. The big one. Yesterday was the “warm up” and Zirbel did his part for the BISSELL team. The rest of us weren’t much help sitting in the bunch about 20 minutes back! Today we hoped to stack the odds a little more in our favor.
Race started out with plenty of attacking and eventually a little move went clear with 2 riders. No problem, not a chance a little duo was going to stay away on this course. This course being 2 laps of 100 km. Each lap containing about 4500 feet of elevation gain and 25 km of gravel roads. A total of 9000 feet of climbing and 50 km of gravel. Good times!
Back to the race... First lap after the 2 riders departed from the peloton the rest of us got to know the course a little better (we did one lap of it yesterday.) There was some splitting up but most everyone regrouped after the more difficult sections. Unfortunately on one of those rough sections, first Sheldon and then Zirb’s flatted. Sheldon got a wheel change and was able to get back on but Tom was left standing on the side of the road with wheel in hand. Apparently a spectator was kind enough to give him a tube so that he could ride back to the hotel. Hitting the showers early!
Second lap the pace heated up with one of the teams sending all of their riders to the front. Eventually they must have decided this course was too much for a chase because they started launching their riders off the front one by one. Eventually one did get clear and that was the end of the chase. The pace slowed way down and I began to wonder if we were now racing for 4th place. Others must have been asking that same question because soon enough the attacks started again and a group of 3 got away. And that was when the bunch decided enough was enough- the pace became steady as a chase began. We sent first Omer, then Sheldon, to take part. The boys did well and brought this group back and that’s when the real fireworks started.
30 km to race, and not an easy 30 km! Of the 8 dirt sections, 4 of them were left with plenty of climbing in each one. And at 170 km in, every time the road turned upwards or the tires slipped on the gravel you felt it! With Sheldon and Omer having done their work, Graham and I took turns covering attacks. The group rapidly trimmed down and soon there were only a handful of us in the front with dozens of others always trying to catch up from behind. With about 20 km left to race, we caught one of the original 2 that had gone away early in the race. Only 2 up the road now, both solo, one somewhat fresh and one that had been away all day. Back in the dwindling group the bombs never stopped. Everyone was taking their turn. Soon Graham was playing the catch up game. 2 gravel sections left and my legs were feeling every pedal stroke. Knowing the suffering everyone was going through I attempted a couple of digs, but nothing happening. Then it was my turn to be calling wait up! Coming from behind is never the way to race and after several efforts doing this the legs were no longer there. Before entering the last dirt section I could only watch as some of the favorites rode away from our group. One of those ended up catching the 2nd place rider on the road, but no one ever saw the one sole leader- out front all day, much of that solo. Impressive. I finished in a group of 15 or so, what was left of the “peloton.” Good for a mediocre 13th place on the day. Graham ended up 32nd. Omer and Sheldon finished the day together in a group further back. Not quite what the Bissell team was hoping for but I think this race turned out more difficult than most of us planned! Of the 160 starters there were 62 finishers. We are already looking forward to some redemption next year!
More photos here.
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Day 2 of Battenkill. The big one. Yesterday was the “warm up” and Zirbel did his part for the BISSELL team. The rest of us weren’t much help sitting in the bunch about 20 minutes back! Today we hoped to stack the odds a little more in our favor.
Race started out with plenty of attacking and eventually a little move went clear with 2 riders. No problem, not a chance a little duo was going to stay away on this course. This course being 2 laps of 100 km. Each lap containing about 4500 feet of elevation gain and 25 km of gravel roads. A total of 9000 feet of climbing and 50 km of gravel. Good times!
Back to the race... First lap after the 2 riders departed from the peloton the rest of us got to know the course a little better (we did one lap of it yesterday.) There was some splitting up but most everyone regrouped after the more difficult sections. Unfortunately on one of those rough sections, first Sheldon and then Zirb’s flatted. Sheldon got a wheel change and was able to get back on but Tom was left standing on the side of the road with wheel in hand. Apparently a spectator was kind enough to give him a tube so that he could ride back to the hotel. Hitting the showers early!
Second lap the pace heated up with one of the teams sending all of their riders to the front. Eventually they must have decided this course was too much for a chase because they started launching their riders off the front one by one. Eventually one did get clear and that was the end of the chase. The pace slowed way down and I began to wonder if we were now racing for 4th place. Others must have been asking that same question because soon enough the attacks started again and a group of 3 got away. And that was when the bunch decided enough was enough- the pace became steady as a chase began. We sent first Omer, then Sheldon, to take part. The boys did well and brought this group back and that’s when the real fireworks started.
30 km to race, and not an easy 30 km! Of the 8 dirt sections, 4 of them were left with plenty of climbing in each one. And at 170 km in, every time the road turned upwards or the tires slipped on the gravel you felt it! With Sheldon and Omer having done their work, Graham and I took turns covering attacks. The group rapidly trimmed down and soon there were only a handful of us in the front with dozens of others always trying to catch up from behind. With about 20 km left to race, we caught one of the original 2 that had gone away early in the race. Only 2 up the road now, both solo, one somewhat fresh and one that had been away all day. Back in the dwindling group the bombs never stopped. Everyone was taking their turn. Soon Graham was playing the catch up game. 2 gravel sections left and my legs were feeling every pedal stroke. Knowing the suffering everyone was going through I attempted a couple of digs, but nothing happening. Then it was my turn to be calling wait up! Coming from behind is never the way to race and after several efforts doing this the legs were no longer there. Before entering the last dirt section I could only watch as some of the favorites rode away from our group. One of those ended up catching the 2nd place rider on the road, but no one ever saw the one sole leader- out front all day, much of that solo. Impressive. I finished in a group of 15 or so, what was left of the “peloton.” Good for a mediocre 13th place on the day. Graham ended up 32nd. Omer and Sheldon finished the day together in a group further back. Not quite what the Bissell team was hoping for but I think this race turned out more difficult than most of us planned! Of the 160 starters there were 62 finishers. We are already looking forward to some redemption next year!
More photos here.
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Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Tour of the Battenkill
From Tom Zirbel:
A small contingent of racers were sent out to NY to race the Tour of Battenkill this past weekend. It was just Graham and the CO boys: Omer, Sheldon, Pipp, and myself. We're talking old school style here - no massages, cleaning and maintaining our own bikes, hauling ourselves around, etc. The kind of stuff that Glen and Eric did back in the day when they would carry extra inflated tubes around their shoulders and have to flip their wheel around if they wanted to use the other gear. Anyhow, racing unsupported is a good way to help us spoiled pros realize how good we've got it for the majority of races. Plus, we did have an arrangement with the Empire Cycling Team so they would hand us bottles in the feed zone - that was crucial for those long brutal courses. So being as Sun. was the premier event, the plan for Saturday's race was to be represented in all breaks, get a good look at the course (same as Sun.) and try to conserve energy if possible for the 200km throw down the next day. 2 out of 3 isn't bad, is it? Unexpectedly, the 2nd attack of the day stayed away to the finish and I was the lucky winner from the Bissell team to be represented in it. There were 13 of us at first and I was a little outnumbered with 5 different teams having more than one rider in the break, so I had a good excuse to just sit on for the first 40 min. or so. Then BMC started to get wise to the situation and sent Jon Garcia up the road solo. Though only halfway through the race, people were already starting to get tired so I started pulling through to keep his lead in check. The course started to take its toll on the riders little by little be it the long gravel sections, the steep climbs, or just flat tires and soon the break was whittled down to less than 10. With less than 20 miles to go, I took a long, slightly uphill gravel section to do some "visualization" where I pretended that I was Boonen turning the screws on the lead group at Roubaix. It was about a 3 min. effort and when I looked back everyone was still there and I had a "Well, I'm not quite a Boonen just yet" thought. But on the next riser, I attacked again and it was quickly down to 5 guys, so I'd like to think that my visualization did some damage. :) Beyer from BMC and I took turns attacking after that and it came down to Josh Dillon, Beyer and myself with 4k of flat to go. Unfortunately, Dillon flatted out so it was left to Beyer and me, and Beyer played the team card saying that his teammate (Garcia) was chasing so he couldn't pull through. Garcia was sitting on a group of 3 coming back to us fast so instead of trying the sprint in a group of 5, I took the initiative to make it a 2 man sprint and after pulling the last 1500m, Beyer came around me in the end to take the win. I was bummed not to take the victory, but I knew that I would have to come to the line solo if I wanted a sure win and Beyer showed his strength by not getting dropped during my attacks and fighting to the finish. A podium is always nice though and the quart of local chocolate milk that they gave each of us on the podium was so creamy and delicious that it helped wash away that bitter taste in my mouth from getting 2nd.
Tom
A small contingent of racers were sent out to NY to race the Tour of Battenkill this past weekend. It was just Graham and the CO boys: Omer, Sheldon, Pipp, and myself. We're talking old school style here - no massages, cleaning and maintaining our own bikes, hauling ourselves around, etc. The kind of stuff that Glen and Eric did back in the day when they would carry extra inflated tubes around their shoulders and have to flip their wheel around if they wanted to use the other gear. Anyhow, racing unsupported is a good way to help us spoiled pros realize how good we've got it for the majority of races. Plus, we did have an arrangement with the Empire Cycling Team so they would hand us bottles in the feed zone - that was crucial for those long brutal courses. So being as Sun. was the premier event, the plan for Saturday's race was to be represented in all breaks, get a good look at the course (same as Sun.) and try to conserve energy if possible for the 200km throw down the next day. 2 out of 3 isn't bad, is it? Unexpectedly, the 2nd attack of the day stayed away to the finish and I was the lucky winner from the Bissell team to be represented in it. There were 13 of us at first and I was a little outnumbered with 5 different teams having more than one rider in the break, so I had a good excuse to just sit on for the first 40 min. or so. Then BMC started to get wise to the situation and sent Jon Garcia up the road solo. Though only halfway through the race, people were already starting to get tired so I started pulling through to keep his lead in check. The course started to take its toll on the riders little by little be it the long gravel sections, the steep climbs, or just flat tires and soon the break was whittled down to less than 10. With less than 20 miles to go, I took a long, slightly uphill gravel section to do some "visualization" where I pretended that I was Boonen turning the screws on the lead group at Roubaix. It was about a 3 min. effort and when I looked back everyone was still there and I had a "Well, I'm not quite a Boonen just yet" thought. But on the next riser, I attacked again and it was quickly down to 5 guys, so I'd like to think that my visualization did some damage. :) Beyer from BMC and I took turns attacking after that and it came down to Josh Dillon, Beyer and myself with 4k of flat to go. Unfortunately, Dillon flatted out so it was left to Beyer and me, and Beyer played the team card saying that his teammate (Garcia) was chasing so he couldn't pull through. Garcia was sitting on a group of 3 coming back to us fast so instead of trying the sprint in a group of 5, I took the initiative to make it a 2 man sprint and after pulling the last 1500m, Beyer came around me in the end to take the win. I was bummed not to take the victory, but I knew that I would have to come to the line solo if I wanted a sure win and Beyer showed his strength by not getting dropped during my attacks and fighting to the finish. A podium is always nice though and the quart of local chocolate milk that they gave each of us on the podium was so creamy and delicious that it helped wash away that bitter taste in my mouth from getting 2nd.
Tom
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
BISSELL Team Dominates Copperopolis
From Ben Jacques-Maynes:
The BISSELL pro cycling team headed out to remote Milton CA for the Nor-Cal Classic Copperopolis Road Race. Sunny skies belied cool temps and breezy conditions making for perfect racing conditions for the five grueling laps and a total of 105 miles. Toeing the line for team BISSELL was Andy and Ben Jacques-Maynes, Tim Farnham, Pete Latham (in his return to the road after the track world championships) and a rare appearance by director Eric Wohlberg.
A group of three attacked from the gun, but experienced racers knew that this was not the course to spend too much energy too soon. We sat in for the first lap and part of the second, at which point it was time to start racing. I hit out after a previous attack and bridged up directly, and when no one else came after us we set about tracking down the original breakaway, now three minutes up the road. We combined with them and stayed away for another 60k, when defending champ Levi Leipheimer of Astana rode across on the main climb, taking three riders with him including AJM. Over the next half lap the race came slowly back together, and a disinterested peleton of 25 was together. It seemed most were content to wait for Levi to hit out on the final climb, so I attacked again and got a quick gap, this time with Scott Nydam of BMC. We extended our gap to 1:30 before Levi was curiously DQ'd for a centerline violation, at which point there was not enough firepower to close down the gap on such an arduous course. Scott and I worked evenly but the sting was out of our legs and so we waited for a sprint to the line. Scott lead out but I had enough to come around him for the win, tired but triumphant. To cap it off, Andy attacked his chase group to finish a clear third, putting two BISSELL riders on the podium at the "Hell of the Nor-Cal". Pete showed his fitness by finishing in the top 15, a great result considering the highest climb he's done recently was up a track banking, and Tim and Eric showed their never say die attitudes by fighting to the finish.
The BISSELL pro cycling team headed out to remote Milton CA for the Nor-Cal Classic Copperopolis Road Race. Sunny skies belied cool temps and breezy conditions making for perfect racing conditions for the five grueling laps and a total of 105 miles. Toeing the line for team BISSELL was Andy and Ben Jacques-Maynes, Tim Farnham, Pete Latham (in his return to the road after the track world championships) and a rare appearance by director Eric Wohlberg.
A group of three attacked from the gun, but experienced racers knew that this was not the course to spend too much energy too soon. We sat in for the first lap and part of the second, at which point it was time to start racing. I hit out after a previous attack and bridged up directly, and when no one else came after us we set about tracking down the original breakaway, now three minutes up the road. We combined with them and stayed away for another 60k, when defending champ Levi Leipheimer of Astana rode across on the main climb, taking three riders with him including AJM. Over the next half lap the race came slowly back together, and a disinterested peleton of 25 was together. It seemed most were content to wait for Levi to hit out on the final climb, so I attacked again and got a quick gap, this time with Scott Nydam of BMC. We extended our gap to 1:30 before Levi was curiously DQ'd for a centerline violation, at which point there was not enough firepower to close down the gap on such an arduous course. Scott and I worked evenly but the sting was out of our legs and so we waited for a sprint to the line. Scott lead out but I had enough to come around him for the win, tired but triumphant. To cap it off, Andy attacked his chase group to finish a clear third, putting two BISSELL riders on the podium at the "Hell of the Nor-Cal". Pete showed his fitness by finishing in the top 15, a great result considering the highest climb he's done recently was up a track banking, and Tim and Eric showed their never say die attitudes by fighting to the finish.
Monday, April 13, 2009
Copperopolis
From Ben Jacques-Maynes:
We rode well, I was in 2 breaks and ended up going to the line with nydam, came around for the win. Andy attacked the chase and came in solo for third. Tim and pete were in the group for top 15 or so, and eric got all our flat mojo out of the way by double flatting in the first 5 miles.
We rode well, I was in 2 breaks and ended up going to the line with nydam, came around for the win. Andy attacked the chase and came in solo for third. Tim and pete were in the group for top 15 or so, and eric got all our flat mojo out of the way by double flatting in the first 5 miles.
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Cherry Blossom Classic Final Report
From Paul Mach:
The rest of the Cherry Blossom Stage Race went pretty well for Team Bissell. There were three more stages with a double day on Saturday and a road race on Sunday.
Saturday's morning TT was an 8 mile out and back with a head wind and steady 2% climb on the way out. The first half was a suffer fest, but the way back was like a bobsled track, you kept going faster and faster. Jeremy finished 2nd, 8 seconds back and I was 7th, 50 seconds behind the winner.
The crit in the evening was a four corner rectangle with a tail wind on the home stretch. We started late and since it was getting dark they shortened it from 50 to just 28 minutes. We all raced really hard and attacked a bunch but the field was too fresh for anything to stay away. One lap to go came out of nowhere and we all just cruised in with the pack.
Sunday's road race was 3 times up a steady 7 mile climb for 84 miles total. The pre-race plan was simple; keep the GC placings and maybe go for the stage.
For the first two laps Jeremy and Omer rode tempo on the front. There was some arguing between them as Jeremy wanted to make sure he did just as much work as Omer, but other than that it went pretty smooth. I just sat 3rd wheel the whole time.
Omer, just coming back from his injury, was killing it on the climb. The first time, half way up, 5 miles into the race, people were already making bad choices. Some bumping, shouting and spokes into quick releases. The second time up Omer did the same thing. He'd look back to see people suffering and that just made him go harder.
With a lap to go the group was down to about 20 and they told us it was 3:30 to the break. It was clear the field was hurting since the group was so small. So the third time up the climb I attacked with the intent of catching the breakaway. A few of the GC contenders went with me, so I attacked again. I was going deeper into the pain cave as I went up the hill but finally caught all but one of the exploding break.
That guy still had 1:30 on me at the bottom of the decent so for the last 15 miles I chased and chased and chased. The gap got shorter and shorter. 30, 25, 20, 18, 15, 12 seconds. In the end I ran out of pavement and he won by 5 seconds. Almost. Jeremy was in the chase group and finished 4th.
It was a good weekend. Me and Jeremy Vennell went 1 and 2 in the GC with 1 stage win and 2 second places. That night we barbequed with our host family in Hood River. Can't wait to see them again when we head back for Mt. Hood Classic in June.
The rest of the Cherry Blossom Stage Race went pretty well for Team Bissell. There were three more stages with a double day on Saturday and a road race on Sunday.Saturday's morning TT was an 8 mile out and back with a head wind and steady 2% climb on the way out. The first half was a suffer fest, but the way back was like a bobsled track, you kept going faster and faster. Jeremy finished 2nd, 8 seconds back and I was 7th, 50 seconds behind the winner.
The crit in the evening was a four corner rectangle with a tail wind on the home stretch. We started late and since it was getting dark they shortened it from 50 to just 28 minutes. We all raced really hard and attacked a bunch but the field was too fresh for anything to stay away. One lap to go came out of nowhere and we all just cruised in with the pack.
Sunday's road race was 3 times up a steady 7 mile climb for 84 miles total. The pre-race plan was simple; keep the GC placings and maybe go for the stage.
For the first two laps Jeremy and Omer rode tempo on the front. There was some arguing between them as Jeremy wanted to make sure he did just as much work as Omer, but other than that it went pretty smooth. I just sat 3rd wheel the whole time.
Omer, just coming back from his injury, was killing it on the climb. The first time, half way up, 5 miles into the race, people were already making bad choices. Some bumping, shouting and spokes into quick releases. The second time up Omer did the same thing. He'd look back to see people suffering and that just made him go harder.
With a lap to go the group was down to about 20 and they told us it was 3:30 to the break. It was clear the field was hurting since the group was so small. So the third time up the climb I attacked with the intent of catching the breakaway. A few of the GC contenders went with me, so I attacked again. I was going deeper into the pain cave as I went up the hill but finally caught all but one of the exploding break.
That guy still had 1:30 on me at the bottom of the decent so for the last 15 miles I chased and chased and chased. The gap got shorter and shorter. 30, 25, 20, 18, 15, 12 seconds. In the end I ran out of pavement and he won by 5 seconds. Almost. Jeremy was in the chase group and finished 4th.
It was a good weekend. Me and Jeremy Vennell went 1 and 2 in the GC with 1 stage win and 2 second places. That night we barbequed with our host family in Hood River. Can't wait to see them again when we head back for Mt. Hood Classic in June.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Santa Cruz Classic Criterium
From Ben Jacques-Maynes:
Four team BISSELL riders participated in the Santa cruz classic criterium on historic beach hill this weekend. The action started quickly and Andy J-M was immediately in the move of the day, with super-sougneur Jono, myself (BJM) and Timmo covering moves from behind. The race dragged out over 2 hours with some serious attrition, and when the front group split in the last 5 laps Andy was caught behind. I jumped into action, bridging the 45 second gap to the front of the race with a few others and then immediately hit out in search of the lead quartet. I had them in sight but the finish came a lap or two too early, and so I finished a solo 5th position. Andy sprinted in the diminished chase group, finishing 9th, while Tim blasted to 11th out of the pack. Jono pulled the pin but backed up the team with info from the sidelines.
Four team BISSELL riders participated in the Santa cruz classic criterium on historic beach hill this weekend. The action started quickly and Andy J-M was immediately in the move of the day, with super-sougneur Jono, myself (BJM) and Timmo covering moves from behind. The race dragged out over 2 hours with some serious attrition, and when the front group split in the last 5 laps Andy was caught behind. I jumped into action, bridging the 45 second gap to the front of the race with a few others and then immediately hit out in search of the lead quartet. I had them in sight but the finish came a lap or two too early, and so I finished a solo 5th position. Andy sprinted in the diminished chase group, finishing 9th, while Tim blasted to 11th out of the pack. Jono pulled the pin but backed up the team with info from the sidelines.
Friday, April 3, 2009
BISSELL kicks off the three day Cherry Blossom Classic taking 1st and 2nd in the opening stage
From Paul Mach:
This weekend a few of us Bissell boys, me, Omer, Morgan and Jeremy, headed up to The Dallas for the Cherry Blossom Classic. It is Omer's first race back after his crash at the Tour of California and he wanted some company.
The first stage today was a road race, 4 loops for 75 miles, up and over a hill. Tomorrow has a TT in the morning and Crit in the evening. There is another road race on Sunday.
Even before the start Morgan had some drama. He caught a stick on the way to the start line and tore the derailleur hanger right off his Pinarello Prince. It was pretty sad but he was a good sport and ended up as our only guy in the feedzone.
I was expecting the race to roll out pretty mellow but the local teams were out in force and a break went away early. Jeremy made it into a chase group and Omer set me up for a bridge attempt on the climb. The two front groups came together over the top so we had 2 Bissell out of about 15.
We rolled well for the rest of the lap. The second time up the climb Jeremy and I worked the front and the group dwindled down to 7 guys. At this point we decided that I should try to get up the road since Jeremy is the only one with a TT bike and I could use the extra time.
Thus, I attacked the third time up the climb and my Easton EC90 Aero wheels rolled so well I stayed away for the whole last lap. It was a little early but plan B was for Jeremy to sit on and sprint so I think we had it pretty good. That is just what he did and finished second.
Official results haven't been posted yet but I think I'm a couple minutes up on Jeremy and maybe another minute up on third place. A pretty good way to start.
This weekend a few of us Bissell boys, me, Omer, Morgan and Jeremy, headed up to The Dallas for the Cherry Blossom Classic. It is Omer's first race back after his crash at the Tour of California and he wanted some company.
The first stage today was a road race, 4 loops for 75 miles, up and over a hill. Tomorrow has a TT in the morning and Crit in the evening. There is another road race on Sunday.
Even before the start Morgan had some drama. He caught a stick on the way to the start line and tore the derailleur hanger right off his Pinarello Prince. It was pretty sad but he was a good sport and ended up as our only guy in the feedzone.
I was expecting the race to roll out pretty mellow but the local teams were out in force and a break went away early. Jeremy made it into a chase group and Omer set me up for a bridge attempt on the climb. The two front groups came together over the top so we had 2 Bissell out of about 15.
We rolled well for the rest of the lap. The second time up the climb Jeremy and I worked the front and the group dwindled down to 7 guys. At this point we decided that I should try to get up the road since Jeremy is the only one with a TT bike and I could use the extra time.
Thus, I attacked the third time up the climb and my Easton EC90 Aero wheels rolled so well I stayed away for the whole last lap. It was a little early but plan B was for Jeremy to sit on and sprint so I think we had it pretty good. That is just what he did and finished second.
Official results haven't been posted yet but I think I'm a couple minutes up on Jeremy and maybe another minute up on third place. A pretty good way to start.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Andy Jacques-Maynes 3rd at Menlo Park GP
From Jonathan Coulter, Soigneur:
Bissell Pro Cycling's Andy Jacques-Maynes continued in fine form at the Tri-Flow Menlo Park GP with a 3rd place to Garmin Chipotle rider Daniel Holloway.
On a sunny Nor-Cal afternoon, Andy put on a show for the spectators as he continually attacked the 100 rider field in an effort to shake the Garmin sprinter and BMC's Jackson Stewart, who lined up as favourites for the event. With all of Nor-Cal's top teams represented at the GP, Andy used his savvy and pure speed to be in every breakaway attempt and win a mid race priem.
In the tumultuous finale, Andy stayed away from a multi rider pileup by hitting out early with a select group of sprinters, and holding his speed down the final straightaway to place a respectable 3rd.
- Jono
Bissell Pro Cycling's Andy Jacques-Maynes continued in fine form at the Tri-Flow Menlo Park GP with a 3rd place to Garmin Chipotle rider Daniel Holloway.
On a sunny Nor-Cal afternoon, Andy put on a show for the spectators as he continually attacked the 100 rider field in an effort to shake the Garmin sprinter and BMC's Jackson Stewart, who lined up as favourites for the event. With all of Nor-Cal's top teams represented at the GP, Andy used his savvy and pure speed to be in every breakaway attempt and win a mid race priem.
In the tumultuous finale, Andy stayed away from a multi rider pileup by hitting out early with a select group of sprinters, and holding his speed down the final straightaway to place a respectable 3rd.
- Jono
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Omer Kem on Sacramento Today
From Omer Kem:
The Tour of CA is the biggest race of the year for Bissell Pro Cycling. The amount of press and media time for our sponsors is almost overwhelming at times. I was lucky enough to be asked to do a television spot on Sacramento Today, the local morning show. This was a huge oppurtunity for the team to show itself to the people of Sacramento.
On Friday morning, the day before the race, I woke up early to get picked up by the TV station. On arrival I was taken back stage and introduced to everyone involved. For Bissell this was huge media exposure, so I brought along a jersey to wear during the TV segment. Once we got started I felt comfortable talking about the Bissell Corp and its commitment to healthy living. The hosts also had questions about racing and what it takes to be a professional rider. I made sure to explain how Bissell emphasized the importance of community involvement, an example being the visit to a cancer ward at the Sacramento Children's Hospital that I was doing later that afternoon. Of course we race our bikes too! My time on TV was fun and I think it was a great event for Bissell Pro Cycling.
Friday, February 27, 2009
Tour of California 2009
From Jeremy Vennell:
You only have to look at the start list of riders, with riders such as Levi Liepheimer, Fabian Cancellara and of course the legendary Lance Armstrong, to list a few, to realize that getting a start in the Tour of California is a big deal. The race is recognised as one of the biggest races in the world and is America’s equivalent to the Tour de France.
There are a lot of similarities between the two:
If the race wasn’t hard enough the weather decided to throw in an extra challenge. The first road stage started in freezing rain and it didn’t stop raining till the end of the 4th stage. And when I say rain I mean rain. My team mate even went as far as to wear a wetsuit under his clothes to stay warm.
The Prologue, a 4km blast around a circuit as an individual rider kicked the tour off. The excitement was high. With Lance Armstrong coming back from retirement after winning 7 Tour de France titles, the American crowds were massive. The mad crowd crammed along the course to watch us go as fast as we could for 4km. When Lance did finally have his turn to start, the crowd went into a frenzy of utter madness. This was to set a common trend for the rest of the 9 days.
The spectators were like they had all taken crazy pills. With costumes like the Borat swimsuit (worn by many but I remember one man that was so fat you could only see the very top of the G line, he was also fast!, making the torture of seeing his arse run in front of you last alot longer than you want), helmets with huge antlers, superhero costumes and many more original ideas. Nudity actually became mundane and some were even up for running with their babies and kids held stretched out in their arms in front of us, shaking them with excitement.
To make things harder for myself, I managed to scratch my eye after I got some piece of glass or sharp grit in it while riding the first stage in the muddy rain. This added to the discomfort and almost made it impossible to sleep for a few nights afterwards. Quite possible the most uncomfortable thing I have ever had. Lucky your eye can heal very fast. I was however luckier than two of my teammates who crashed heavily due to the bad weather; Andy Jacque-Maines crashing into a parked car, being taken away with concussion; and Omer Kem falling on a decent, slipping out on a plastic road reflector which are deadly when wet. He managed to fracture his pelvis but is making a good recovery. Our team sprinter Kirk O Bee was finding the mountains very tough and had to abandon on stage 2. Starting with 8 riders Team Bissell was down to 5 after 3 days in the tour. If we kept that up we wouldn’t have any left before we got to the last days.
Just when I thought I had it rough enough with my eye being cut up, I got a nasty virus that made me have chronic diarrhea. This had to happen also the morning of the Tour’s longest stage. 6 hrs in the saddle and every minute I was riding I was fighting with myself to stay in the race. I was absolutely wasted at the finish and I can easily say that this was one of the hardest days of my cycling carrier.
With the battle of survival in the first 5 days over I had the last three days of the tour to get amongst it. The Time Trial was a great way to start on stage 6. 26km long and with the national champion skin suit on my shoulders I was wanting to fly the flag for New Zealand proudly. I managed to get 17th which was awesome. My team mate Tom Zirbel was 7th and my other team mate Ben Jacques-Maynes was 11th. Bissell was the 5th team on the day. Which was huge for the team.
The last two days were the shortest stages of the tour but maybe the toughest due to the huge mountain passes we had to ride over. Stage 7 had such a hard start and never let up. An hour long climb was a little too much for team mate and New Zealander Peter Latham, who was told not to suffer anymore and to pull out of the race. On the decent there was a big crash which put two team mates Tom Zirbel and Frank Pipp on the road. Frank was able to get back to the bunch after spending some time in the follow cars. Tom however took a little longer to get on his bike and had to ride to the finish alone. Not such a great day for the Bissell team.
The last day and with only 4 of team Bissell starting and only 90 of the 136 rider field left in the race, the survivors were going to throw everything they had left into the last stage. The race organizers had also left the hardest to last it seemed. With the biggest climb of the tour half way through the stage and a total of 4 climbs throughout the 160km. The crowds lined the ascents screaming and yelling with barely enough room for us to ride through them. The insane ones tried to run beside us before they either got taken out by the lead motor bikes or ran out of steam. The hills kept coming and in the end there was only me and 30 other riders left. The rest of the field still battling behind or pulling out. The epic stage was a great way to finish the tour. Finishing 26th overall I was happy to get a sleep in the next morning.
You only have to look at the start list of riders, with riders such as Levi Liepheimer, Fabian Cancellara and of course the legendary Lance Armstrong, to list a few, to realize that getting a start in the Tour of California is a big deal. The race is recognised as one of the biggest races in the world and is America’s equivalent to the Tour de France.
There are a lot of similarities between the two:
- the huge crowds (2.6 million watched on the side of the road alone);
- the huge ascents with nick names such as the Alp de huez of California ( a huge 21 hair pin climb gaining 1500 vertical metres), which is very similar to its counter part in France
- and riders who are the best in the world without a doubt a start list that only gets seen in other races such as the tour de France
If the race wasn’t hard enough the weather decided to throw in an extra challenge. The first road stage started in freezing rain and it didn’t stop raining till the end of the 4th stage. And when I say rain I mean rain. My team mate even went as far as to wear a wetsuit under his clothes to stay warm.
The Prologue, a 4km blast around a circuit as an individual rider kicked the tour off. The excitement was high. With Lance Armstrong coming back from retirement after winning 7 Tour de France titles, the American crowds were massive. The mad crowd crammed along the course to watch us go as fast as we could for 4km. When Lance did finally have his turn to start, the crowd went into a frenzy of utter madness. This was to set a common trend for the rest of the 9 days.
The spectators were like they had all taken crazy pills. With costumes like the Borat swimsuit (worn by many but I remember one man that was so fat you could only see the very top of the G line, he was also fast!, making the torture of seeing his arse run in front of you last alot longer than you want), helmets with huge antlers, superhero costumes and many more original ideas. Nudity actually became mundane and some were even up for running with their babies and kids held stretched out in their arms in front of us, shaking them with excitement.
To make things harder for myself, I managed to scratch my eye after I got some piece of glass or sharp grit in it while riding the first stage in the muddy rain. This added to the discomfort and almost made it impossible to sleep for a few nights afterwards. Quite possible the most uncomfortable thing I have ever had. Lucky your eye can heal very fast. I was however luckier than two of my teammates who crashed heavily due to the bad weather; Andy Jacque-Maines crashing into a parked car, being taken away with concussion; and Omer Kem falling on a decent, slipping out on a plastic road reflector which are deadly when wet. He managed to fracture his pelvis but is making a good recovery. Our team sprinter Kirk O Bee was finding the mountains very tough and had to abandon on stage 2. Starting with 8 riders Team Bissell was down to 5 after 3 days in the tour. If we kept that up we wouldn’t have any left before we got to the last days.
Just when I thought I had it rough enough with my eye being cut up, I got a nasty virus that made me have chronic diarrhea. This had to happen also the morning of the Tour’s longest stage. 6 hrs in the saddle and every minute I was riding I was fighting with myself to stay in the race. I was absolutely wasted at the finish and I can easily say that this was one of the hardest days of my cycling carrier.
With the battle of survival in the first 5 days over I had the last three days of the tour to get amongst it. The Time Trial was a great way to start on stage 6. 26km long and with the national champion skin suit on my shoulders I was wanting to fly the flag for New Zealand proudly. I managed to get 17th which was awesome. My team mate Tom Zirbel was 7th and my other team mate Ben Jacques-Maynes was 11th. Bissell was the 5th team on the day. Which was huge for the team.
The last two days were the shortest stages of the tour but maybe the toughest due to the huge mountain passes we had to ride over. Stage 7 had such a hard start and never let up. An hour long climb was a little too much for team mate and New Zealander Peter Latham, who was told not to suffer anymore and to pull out of the race. On the decent there was a big crash which put two team mates Tom Zirbel and Frank Pipp on the road. Frank was able to get back to the bunch after spending some time in the follow cars. Tom however took a little longer to get on his bike and had to ride to the finish alone. Not such a great day for the Bissell team.
The last day and with only 4 of team Bissell starting and only 90 of the 136 rider field left in the race, the survivors were going to throw everything they had left into the last stage. The race organizers had also left the hardest to last it seemed. With the biggest climb of the tour half way through the stage and a total of 4 climbs throughout the 160km. The crowds lined the ascents screaming and yelling with barely enough room for us to ride through them. The insane ones tried to run beside us before they either got taken out by the lead motor bikes or ran out of steam. The hills kept coming and in the end there was only me and 30 other riders left. The rest of the field still battling behind or pulling out. The epic stage was a great way to finish the tour. Finishing 26th overall I was happy to get a sleep in the next morning.
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