July 24, 2007



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Race reports

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Superweek wrap-up V

Photo by Luke Seemann

I have only a few things to add to my previous post about the weekend, but I've aggregated a slew of race reports. (You can tell it's been a great day of racing when everyone and their soigneur is blogging about it.)

  • » I'm told that Corie Berrigan (Team Kenda Tire) is doing OK following her crash Sunday in Evanston. No broken bones, and she expects to race next weekend's 24 Hours of Nine Mile mountain bike endurance race.

  • » Grant Potter (Herbalife) did about all he could to make ground in the 30+ 1/2/3 overall, but winning wasn't enough to get on the podium, which remained unchanged and gave victory to Libertyville's Michael Heagney (PYOC).

  • » Chris Clary (Turin) recommends that we henceforth refer to Turn 5 as the BK Stacker. Seems appropriate to me.

  • » Misgivings about Turn 5 aside, let us again congratulate organizers for a near flawless inaugural event. They really outdid themselves in introducing cycling to a new audience. Two great ideas that other organizers could emulate: a handsome flier that included a guide for watching races and a roster of pro riders, and a speed display on Sherman Avenue that emphasized how wicked fast some of these fields were going. Let's hope that the proposed skyscraper construction doesn't jeopardize the route next year.

Latest Superweek results.


Carl Zach race reports:
ABD Cycling (P/1/2): "Jeff Schroetlin maneuvered himself into the winning break of seven riders late in the race and then attacked with just two laps remaining to isolate himself and one other rider."


Becky Broeder (Hub Racing; W-P/1/2): "Today I had a severe case of CBF. It ... stands for Can’t Be F^$%ed. Guess I’m weird that way. Some say 'headcase.' I say 'sensitive.'"


Bryan McVey (Vision Quest; 3): "I was feeling pretty bad. I actually got sick two times during the race from all the drainage into my stomach from my runny nose."


Amanda Miller (Atlas; W-P/1/2/3): "The first half of the race was extremely fast. There were so many times I thought I was going to get dropped."


Scott Peterson (Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare; 3): "Yeah, it wasn't first, but being out in the break for a large part of the race is more fun that sitting in the pack wondering when someone's going to force you into a face plant with a pole."


Jason Snider (Silver Cycling; 30+ 1/2/3): "This break was going and we needed to do something. I jumped up to the front and put my head down for about a lap."


James Sweeney (ABRT; 30+): "Curtis Long (ABRT) and I are concentrated on trying to win the overall, so we are racing full tilt."


June Upshaw (X Plane Team Revolution; W-P/1/2/3): "My body actually gave out after the Carl Zach crit and I got sick that nite. Sore throat and a fever. Whew. But I still dreamed that nite that I was racing Evanston."


Carl Zach photos:
Nick Schweitzer


Evanston race reports:
Cyclingnews report: "An impressive show ... included a two-man break, a five-man chase that caught the break and a gutsy attack on the final lap that netted Adam Bergman (Colavita) the win."


Donovan Braud (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4/5): "Eight or nine riders in front of me went onto the low sidewalk and crashed out. Thankfully, I was able to SLOWWWWW down and go around the people picking themselves up. By the time I got around them ... I was trapped in no-man's land."


Becky Broeder (Hub Racing; W-P/1/2/3): "After eight days of racing, I’m raw enough to want to smash some asshole that calls me asshole. Besides, nothing is more asshole-ish than yelling ‘Asshole!’ in front of kids and other assholes."


Sydney Brown (X Plane Team Revolution; W-P/1/2/3): "When you're on a team, you need to be prepared for this and take your joy in how the team does and the satisfaction you get from doing your job well."


Ron Cook (ABD; 3): "We had covered 40 miles in just 1 hour and 27 minutes. That's an average speed of 27 mph. I think that is the fastest crit I've raced so far."


Debbie Dust (Team Kenda Tire; W-P/1/2/3): "With about two laps to go things were getting pretty strung out and crazy so I tried the best I could to hold decent position and stay out of crash danger."


Bryan McVey (Vision Quest; 3): "I was feeling good and was sitting pretty with five laps to go, then four, three, two, then all of the sudden riders from both sides of me moved up, and I got pushed right out the back. DAMNIT!"


Seth Meyer (Team Get a Grip Cycles; P/1/2): "I guess an 8-man breakaway won this race. Who knew? I thought we were all together."


Amanda Miller (Atlas; W-P/1/2/3): "The only thing that sucked about it was the manholes. There was also two sketchier corners."


Brian Morrissey (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4/5): "I wanted so badly to be in this race. To be at the front, feeling the pain, gritting my teeth, taking my pulls, feeling the satisfaction as I flicked my right elbow and the line came past."


Organic Athlete (P/1/2): "I was stoked to see Ben at the front of the peloton with three laps remaining."


Scott Peterson (Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare; 3): "I spent, once again, a fair bit of time on the front or instigating some action."


Frank Rowley (D'Arcy; P/1/20: "I must have hit a manhole lid just right, sliding to the barrier and just barely saving myself from some good road rash."


Matthew Smith (Big Shark; 4/5): "I came out of the Burger King Corner of Death and then the last corner either third or fourth wheel."


Jason Snider (Silver Cycling; 30+ 1/2/3): "If Aric Hareland (Silver Cycling) wasn't in the overall I would have skipped the race for sure."


Mark Swartzendruber (Delta Faucet; 40+ 1/2/3): "Riders forgot over and over again that Turn 4 was a right, not a left, and that Turn 5 was a diminishing radius turn that did not get wider as the race progressed. These memory lapses resulted in frequent trips to the wheel pit or to Northwestern Medical Center."


James Sweeney (ABRT; 30+ 1/2/3): "It was fast the whole time. After some shadow boxing among the favorites, as well as the guys high up overall, it came back together with about six laps remaining."


Scott Van Maldegiam (Spin Doctor Cyclewerks): "The SRAM support pit was so busy that some riders received two free laps in a row because they couldn't get to everyone in only one lap. It seemed every lap that someone was getting put back into the field."


Jeff Wat (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4/5): "We came out of the final turn uber fast and the sprint was on."


The Editor (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3): "If they wanted to see me Sunday's criterium in Evanson, they'd better be there in the first 20 minutes."


Evanston photos:
Trevor_Ash
Evanston Review/Pioneer Press
Kittenry
Met Cycling
Adam Sacasa
Sandy Weisz
Ed White
XXX Racing-AthletiCo
Zhefei


Comments

Thank you, Matthew Smith, for nicknaming Turn 5 the "Burger King Corner of Death". While it is very appropriate, it is hilarious.

Posted by: ScottV [TypeKey Profile Page] at July 24, 2007 11:56 AM


You're welcome! It was funny...on the podium, all three of us were BKCOD alumni. Before I left I saw a Turin/Northwestern rider catch the railing with his waist. It was ugly.

Posted by: Matthew Smith at July 24, 2007 01:41 PM


I'm not sure what the problem was in other category races, but in the 1,2 I never saw any problems on that corner. In fact, the only crash I am aware of was on turn 1 (another corner that seemed pretty easy). I actually did most of my moving up in the pack through turn 5 as well as on the preceeding and following straight aways.

Posted by: Faris at July 26, 2007 12:47 PM


Well, that's why the pros earn the big bucks. My guess is that the lower categories did a lot more braking heading into that turn, which always results in bunching up and mayhem. The P/1/2's stayed strung out and held their lines.

A lot of people have also complained that since the barriers had legs, they had to be set back from the curb. Riders keeping their eye on the barriers would have to take evasive maneuvers when they suddenly found themselves running up into the curb. A likely solution would be air barriers like those promoted by CycleSafe.

Posted by: Luke at July 26, 2007 01:40 PM


Yup, faster pace always makes for more room in the corners. Although I must admit I came into that 5th corner too hot on one of my 70 laps. Result? I rammed my front wheel into the rear axle of the guy in front of me, and endoed my rear wheel about a foot off the ground. I still don't understand why I didn't crash; I came through the apex of that corner on my front wheel only! Luckily when my rear came down the tire took a death grip on the pavement and I didn't slide out.

Posted by: andy at July 26, 2007 02:42 PM


In the first crash of the Cat 4/5 race, the crash started at or near the front. The biggest problem I could see is that riders tried to avoid the 2 drains and especially tried to avoid the recessed water main shutoff. I ran over the water main shutoff and had no problems. I didn't try to hit it, but I wasn't going to change my line to avoid it like I heard other riders did.

Posted by: ScottV [TypeKey Profile Page] at July 26, 2007 05:17 PM


Andy, your comment is too funny. I love a good crash avoidance story.

I didn't have any problems with turn 5 in the 3s race... I actually thought turn 4 was a bit more tricky at times.

Posted by: mokeefe at July 26, 2007 11:05 PM