Here is a recap from Day One of Scarlet Fire Racing’s Tour de C-U race weekend:

• Official USA Cycling results and Road Results
• Sammy’s Elite Racing team’s race report (thanks to Kyle Selph this week!); and some new videos
• Send us your race reports, links or other info to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

​Men Cat 1/2/3 Masters 35+

1	John	Whipple
2	Andrew	Rizzo	Club Bicicletta
3	John	Schmitz	Team Indiebike
4	Robert	Brooks	Brooks Integrative Training

Men Cat 3

1	Matthew	Kelley	South Chicago Wheelmen
2	Konrad	Witt	ABD Cycling Team
3	Brian	Depasse	Scholars Inn Bakehouse Team Tortuga
4	Michael	Dutczak	South Chicago Wheelmen

Men Cat 3/4

1	Keith	Vogl	Quantum Mesa Cycles
2	David	Ross	ABD Cycling Team
3	Collin	Snyder	Kids Race Sports Development
4	Konrad	Witt	ABD Cycling Team

Men Cat 4/5

1	Paul	Halupka	Jus d’Orange
2	Neil	Fortner	Wild Card Cycling
3	Joel	Melby	University of Illinois at Urbana-Ch
4	Thomas	Ferguson	EMC2 / Elmhurst Masters

Men Pro/1/2

1	Richard	Stuart	Kentucky Flyers Cycling Inc
2	Michael	Heagney	Vision Quest LLC
3	Nicholas	Ramirez	Texas Roadhouse Cycling Team P/B Mo
4	Jeffrey	Schroetlin	Qdoba p/b Bushwhacker

Women 1/2/3/4

1	Jannette	Rho	Les Petites Victoires
2	Kelli	Richter	PSIMET Racing
3	Cady	Chintis	Les Petites Victoires
4	Leah	Sanda	PSIMET Racing

The 2013 Hillsboro Roubaix was another success!  Full results are posted, plus some photos,  The course was (as always) tough - a combination of early season form (or lack thereof), punchy-but-tough rollers, and a demanding finishing run-in that includes 2 climbs, screaming downhill and 500 meters of bricks.  Most races saw small breaks get away, with chase efforts muted by strong cross- and head winds on the backside of the course.

• The Women Cat 4 trio of Julie Higgins, Allison Hunt (Greenstreet) and Lauryn Humphrey took their podium.  
• The Cat 5 podium was Jeff Turner (Wild Card Cycling), Mark Nowack (Vision Quest), and John Polomchak (Region Racing)
• The Cat 3 race had Tom Driver (Burnham Racing) take first, Ed Kim (Big Tree Cycling) second, and Jason Lasley (Clarksville Schwinn) in third
• The 40+ podium was Ben Weaver (Zipp Factory), Rob Landes (Korte Hammer Down Racing), and Brian Bradley (Mercy-Kuat)
• The 50+ had Robert Brooks (Brooks Integrative Training) soloing for the win, with Robert Downs (Planet Bike), and Randal Warren taking 2nd and 3rd, respectively, from their 5 man chase group
• The Cat 4 winner by a nose was Nick Diedrich (Ultimate Pro Bikes), with the place and show to Isaiah Jay (Tenspeed Hero) and Alex Grant (Union Cycling), respectively
• The Women 1 / 2 / 3 was won by Hayley Giddens (ISCorp Cycling Team), joined on the podium by Briana Clark (Racing for Riley p/b Alderfer Bergen) and Kristen Meshberg (Spidermonkey Cycling)
• The Pro 1 / 2 fielded 75+ riders including strong teams from Dogfish Racing, Korte Hammer Down Racing, Quantum Mesa Cycles, Team Upland Brewing and Texas Roadhouse. There was a lot of attrition, and ultimately it was Think Finance’s  Colton Jarisch taking the top spot, getting away from a his break mates Alex Wieseler and Nicolai Brochner of Bissell-ABG-Giant, taking 2nd and 3rd respectfully. 

Here are a few other race reports to check out:

• Pro 1 / 2 - LAPT Cycling
• Women 1 / 2 / 3 - Kristen Meshberg
• Cat 4 - Chicago Cuttin’ Crew

Add your own race highlights, stories, photos, etc. in the Comments!

• » Terrible news from Wisconsin.
• »The road season officially retired this weekend with the conclusion of the Fall Fling. Chris Mosora (Verizon Wireless) held on to win the 1/2 overall while teammate Brian Harris won the 40+ in a tiebreaker over Dave Pollin (WDT-Allvoi). Racing in their field was Marek Serafin (PACT/Dish Network), who wrapped up the 3’s overall. In the 4’s, Joe Berenyi (Psimet) took a one-point lead into the final race and clinched it with a 4th place on the day. Also of note is 15-year-old Konrad Witt (ABD), who won two of the three 4’s races he entered, hopefully a preview of good results to come in 2011.  Full Saturday results. Full overall results.
• » Chicago riders raced well at this weekend’s track national championships in Carson, Calif. Medals went to Val Brostrom (Bouledogue Tout Noir), 2nd in the first-ever women’s madison championship, a day after she went down hard in the points race; Josh Ryan (Bouledogue Tout Noir) and Jonathan Fraley (WDT-Allvoi), 4th in the team sprint; and XXX Racing-AthletiCo’s squad of Liam Donghue, Dave Moyer, John Tomlinson and Randy Warren, 5th in the team pursuit. Other notable results include young Chazz Martin (IS Corps) and Al Urbanski (WDT-Allvoi), 9th and 10th in the scratch; Urbanski again with 8th in the omnium; Moyer with 7th in the individual pursuit; and finally Brostrom with 9th in the women’s scratch.
• » The Illinois Cycling Association meets Saturday in Lisle.
• » The Tribune profiles masters world champion Leigh Thompson (Vision Quest).
• » Two events for women this week: Tomorrow is a Q&A with Kristen Meshberg (Flatlandia), and Saturday is the Project 5 Kit Up ‘N’ Chat Chick Ride.
• » Registration for cyclocross national championships open Tuesday.
• » Jason Alvarado (Embrocation Cycling Journal) has arranged for “The Cyclocross Meeting” to be shown at The Music Box on Monday, Oct. 25, with pro Barry Wicks (Kona) in attendance. Seating will be very limited. Tickets are available online.
• » Wayne Simon (Verdigris) has been writing some fun, detailed cyclocross race reports on the Enzo’s Cycling Products blog, including an account of his win at a very competitive 45+ field at Madison’s Planet Bike Cup.
• » For everything else you need to know about cyclocross, consult this comic.

• » The Fall Fling opened under cool, blustery fall conditions this weekend, but Chris Mosora (Verizon Wireless) heated things up by making the break in the combined 1/2, 3 and 40+ crit on Saturday, finishing 2nd after the threesome nursed a 15-second gap for much of the race, then finishing 2nd in Sunday’s time trial. He takes the lead in the 1/2’s omnium, trailed closely by Ryan Freund (Verizon u25) and two Bicycle Heaven mates: Patrick Fasse and Rob Kelley. On the women’s side, Stacy Appelwick (Bouledogue Tout Noir) swept the weekend and has a two-point lead over Alexandra Navas (Northwestern). Racing continues with circuit races Saturday and Sunday. Full criterium results. Full time trial results. Full omnium standings.
• » VeloNews takes a look at Verizon u25.
• » Mainstream media cover this weekend’s cyclocross races in Madison.
• » Downstate cyclocross riders — or 4’s who got aced out of Sunday’s race in DeKalb — may be interested in the Ronde Von Jakob.

It was a homecoming weekend of sorts in Dixon, Ill., as former pro Bryce Mead, donning a Mead’s Bike Shop kit, and Chicago product Reid Mumford (Kelly Benefit Strategies) took part in the second year of the Ronald Reagan Criterium.

Mumford wasted little time before escaping the P/1/2/3 field alone. Spirited racing followed in attempts to form chase groups, but it wasn’t until Mumford lapped the field a little more than halfway through that a decisive split occurred. Mumford proceeded to tow seven riders around for the balance of the race, now officially a race for 2nd, claimed by Sherman Park revelation Ben Damhoff (Geargrinder).

Making his debut as a 3, Kaleb Koch (IS Corp) received an elite-quality leadout from teammate Peter Davis and handily won the 3/4’s sprint, especially impressive considering he was in junior gears for the downhill and tailwind-aided homestretch.

Also impressive was Joe Berenyi (Psimet) passing riders down the homestretch of the masters 4/5’s to take the first win of his career.  Brandon Diffenderfer (Spidermonkey Cycling) also had a good day, hitting the podium in both the 3/4’s and 4/5’s. And racing three times, Ryan O’Boyle (South Chicago Wheelmen) won the juniors race and placed 2nd in the 4/5’s. O’Boyle has had a fantastic season, and I expect we’ll see him thrive in the elite categories in 2011.

In the masters 1/2/3’s, Todd Metz (Apache) showed that his Winfield performance was no fluke, winning out of a four-up sprint, and in a final tuneup before masters national track championships, Stacy Appelwick (Bouledogue Tout Noir) picked up her latest win in the women’s open.

Full results.

Over the years, ABD’s elite riders have been counted on for a few things. Among them, tactical excellence and precision, especially when presented with the complication of riders going up a lap. For another, they reliably take the Winfield weekend very, very seriously.

Such was the case this weekend when the boys of the ABD-powered Verizon u25 got Mike Sherer across the finish line first on both days. At Saturday’s twilight criterium it came in a sprint, and in Sunday’s ABR national champiionship it came after Sherer and a fully recovered Ryan Freund lapped the field

— this barely a month after Freund broke his collarbone during Superweek —

with teammates Will Nowak and Hogan Sills cleaning up 3rd and 4th behind them.

A 1-2-3-4 at Winfield is not without precedent: ABD did it in 2006, and its top riders have won this race ever since, a nifty five-year run.

Coming a week after his win at Glencoe, this makes three in a row for Sherer, who says he now hangs up the road shoes for the year to focus on cross and fishing

—

and hopefully sorting through professional offers for 2011.

Another ABD sweep came compliments of Jessi Prinner, who won the elite women’s race both days.

Kyle Selph (Tower Racing) justified his recent upgrade by winning the 3’s race Sunday, slipping away late with Tim Speciale (Psimet) and overcoming him in a long drag race to the line.

Speciale had a good weekend, also hitting the podium in the 2/3’s Saturday after winner Todd Metz (Unattached) and Dave Stone (Verizon Wireless) got down the road. This is the first time I’ve seen Metz’s name in the results this year

—

a belated but outstanding way to open a season, I’d say.

The next day, Stone and Dave Polin (WDT/Allvoi) broke free of the combined 30+/40+ field to take the 40+ honors. Keith McMahon (Comma-Van Wagner) then earned the 30+ championship by finishing 2nd in the field sprint behind Marek Serafin (PACT/Dish Network), 4th overall.

Saturday results. Sunday results.

Saturday reports
Tim Speciale (Psimet; 2/3): “As quietly as I could I clicked two gears down. We made the turn, I stood up and hit it.”

Verizon u25 (1/2): “Diving into the technical downhill the team had their man Mike Sherer right where they wanted him.”

Sunday reports
Tim Speciale (Psimet; 3): “I sprinted … and sprinted … and sprinted … and sprinted.  I looked down and he was gaining on me. I sprinted some more, then some more.”

Mark Swartzendruber (Verizon Wireless; 30+, 1/2): “By the time I hit the finish line on Lap 1, I had 20 seconds and I’ll be damned if I wasn’t determined to spend the entire 40-mile race off the front solo.”

Verizon u25 (1/2): “It looked possible that the strong veterans could ride away with the race.”

Sunday photos
Von Buzard

More highlights from Saturday's hot day of racing at the Glencoe Grand Prix:

• » On a course friendly for breaks, the most impressive may have come in the 3's, where Chris Kinonen (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) and David Jaggi (Flatlandia) escaped around the first points sprint and spent the balance of the race in a two-man time trial. Despite a large, strong field behind them, no organized chase ever came together, and Kinonen was able to pick up the first win of his adult career.
• » It's often fun to throw some elite cyclocross riders into a 4's race and watch it explode. It's like the doodie-in-the-pool scene in "Caddyshack." On Saturday it was Half Acre Cycling's Ben Popper and Mike Hemme enjoying their biannual road race and lighting it up from the starting whistle. With their strong fitness and superior handling they shredded the field like so much cheese, reducing the 100-strong field to small packs within the first laps. Fewer than 30 hung on to the lead group. Midway through, Popper took a strong dig off the front, cracked, pulled off course to kiss his wife and then joined the next available chase group. In the end, however, it was junior track national champion Kaleb Koch (IS Corp), shown above, rocketing out of the corner to take the win by a large margin over John Villena (Rhythm Racing).
• » In a case of bad things happening to good people and great racers, Jannette Rho (Chicago Cuttin' Crew) took a hard spill near the end of the women's 3/4's race. The race was neutralized while medics tended to her, leading to a three-lap galllop to the end, won by Holly Matthews (University of Wisconsin). Heidi Sarna (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) was the top local finisher in 6th.
• » Aerocat's Andy Crater and former Olympian Diego Garavito were men among boys in the 30+. They led each other out for sprint points, and in the final laps Garavito was able to slip away from a still-sizable field. Only Bob Karlow (Verdigris) was able to go with, and the two nursed a slender lead to the finish line, crossed first by Garavito.
• » The usual suspects drilled it early in the 45+ to separate the wheat from the chaff. Only 16 out of more than 50 starters would avoid getting pulled, and those 16 were spread across four separate groups. In the lead group were Andy Kerr (Village Cyclesport), Mark Swartzendruber and Wayne Simon (Verdigris), the latter of whom came out of the final corner with a gap to take the win.
• » Richard Kisseloff (Dogfish) has handlebar video of the first few laps of the 30+ race and the last few laps of the 3's.

Full results.

Race reports Adam Austin (Dominon; 4): "I got into the second group after weaving my way through two crashes, some guy who dropped his power meter and slowed down in the pack to get it, several dropped water bottles and flat tires."

Stephen Butler (Wheelfast; 4): "The pace was furious until we hit each corner, at which point we had to slam on the brakes and then accelerate back up to speed."

Rob Curtis (Psimet; 4): "We traded pulls and generally looked like working men through the dregs of the race."

Ryan Fay (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "I yelled 'NO NO NO NO' before crashing into someone’s front yard."

Cathy Frampton (Project 5; W-3/4): "The finish of the race was a series of attacks with the strongest riders finding the right lines to position themselves before hitting the final corner."

Kim Gialdini (Flatlandia; W-3/4): "I knew what my plan was but I didn't have the mindset to kick it in."

Chris Kinonen (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3): "Getting the win was surreal, and honestly still probably hasn’t sunk in."

Kristen Meshberg (Flatlandia; W-P/1/2): "The screaming crowd, which consisted of tons of friends, was highly motivating, so I decided to make the effort to catch back on."

Jared Rogers (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4, 30+): "I took the descents like I was in Tron and scurried up the rise like I was Schleck."

Luke Seemann (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+, 1/2): "Attrition would be heavy here, so you had to mind the gaps."

Wayne Simon (Verdigris; 45+): "I wait for his chin to drop again so he sees I am still on the wheel, but as soon as his head goes up, Bamm, I attack about 100 meters from the last corner."

Wayne Simon (Verdigris; 30+): "'Sorry, Andy, it's racing' as I twist the throttle, telling him there is not enough green in that break."

Steve Tilford (Tradewind Energy; 1/2): "I like races like these because you can’t let you guard down or you miss the move."

Photos Jeff Chen Amy Dykema Gavin Gould Clark Maxwell Andrew Rizzo Greg Sailor Luke Seemann Ed White

Mike Sherer (Verizon u25) picked up his first win of an otherwise blockbuster year in a big way by winning Saturday's 1/2's at the Glencoe Grand Prix.

Sherer, shown above leading at 75 meters, jumped well ahead of the final corner and held off newly crowned masters road race national champion Andy Crater (Aerocat), who as he crossed the finish line took exception to the line Sherer took in the sprint. (Peace was soon made.) The two were part of a six-man break that had formed early in the 65-minute race and would build a lead of more than a minute. Other local riders to make the break were Rob Kelley (Bicycle Heaven) and Dave Moyer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo), who finished 4th and 5th, respectively. After a week of the annual chatter over whether international riders belonged in the U.S. national criterium championships, American men were locked out of the profession podium, with 1st, 2nd and 3rd going to Canadian David Veilleux (Kelly Benefit Strategies), Australian Bernie Sulzberger (Fly V Australia) and Italian Alessandro Bazzana (Fly V Australia). Daniel Holloway (Bissell) was the first American, finishing 4th, and took home the stars and stripes. Holloway previously won a national championship as an elite rider in 2007. They were all members of a 12-strong break that finally established itself a little more than halfway through the 100km race. It was an aggressive and chaotic race up to that point, chaos no doubt influenced by the prohibition on race radios, with multiple crashes on the course's tight turns, and groups were constantly forming and reabsorbing one another. The break hovered at 50 seconds with UnitedHealthcare and Kenda taking up the chase, but it wasn't until the final turns that the decimated field started gobbling up riders. By that point, Veilleux and Sulzberger had escaped together and Bazzana was in no-man's land, with the eight Americans in the break eyeballing one another closely. Some of the break got swallowed up, and Bissell ended up with three of the top five Americans: Shane Kline out of the break was 4th American and Kyle Wamsley from the field was 5th. Former champion Rahsaan Bahati (Bahati Foundation) was involved in one of the early mishaps -- captured nicely by Graham Fisk -- and officials initially ruled that he was a lap down on the field. That was later reversed, but nonetheless he was riding solo in the peloton with no teammates to contribute to the chase. For a moment it looked like he might have a shot if the field caught the remnants of the break, but that catch came about 30 seconds too late for him to be a factor. He would finish 14th overall, 8th American. A break of six escaped from the women's P/1/2 race in the final few laps. Vera Bradley Foundation had two riders in it, but veteran Theresa Cliff-Ryan (Colavita) outprinted the lot of them. In her return to the Chicago area, Devon Haskell (Tibco) finished 16th while Kristen Meshberg (Flatlandia) took the final money position in 20th. Despite the technical nature of the course, which contributed to huge attrition across all fields and several crashes (Ed White (Bouledogue Tout Noir) captured one from the 1/2's, and Nicole Goers caught Nick Frey (Jamis) going down), buzz was overwhelmingly favorable. The turns were tighter than Downers Grove and many found the kicker to be more challenging than Downers' climb, and there was virtually no spot on the course to expect a respite. The final stretch provided a better runway for sprinting, too, although in almost every race the first rider out of the corner was the first across the line, just as was always the case at Downers Grove. The Glencoe Grand Prix certainly raised its game to present the national championship, but after decades as a Chicago fixture, the USPRO National Championship will go to bid in 2011. Here's hoping that after saving the race this year Glencoe can be in the running. Chip times are online. Full wrap-up to come. In the meantime, follow updates at Podium Insight and the Glencoe Grand Prix blog.

This was championship weekend in Chicago, with Saturday's Grayslake Cycling Classic extra meaningful for anyone with an Illinois Cup standing on the line and ABR giving away state criterium championships in Wood Dale on Sunday. Some highlights:

• » IS Corp has rolled thick all year and owned the Wisconsin Cycling Association series -- in the WCA's team competition it earned three times as many points as 2nd place -- and it brought its playbook south to the P/1/2's race in Grayslake, getting Kyle Jacobson and Tristan Schouten up the road and onto the podium, where they were joined by Liam Donoghue (XXX Racing-AthletiCo). Dave Moyer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) and Bryan McVey (ReCycling) were head-to-head for the Illinois Cup championship, but both finished out of the points, so Moyer wins that crown.
• » It appears Jeannie Kuhajek (Team Mack) and Stacy Appelwick (Bouledogue Tout Noir) have a decent rivalry going. They finished 1-2 in both the women's 3/4's and the women's open, with Appelwick taking 3/4's, Kuhajek the open. (Illinois Cup honors, however, go to Jessi Prinner (ABD) in the open and Cathy Frampton (Project 5) in the 3/4's.) The next day Kuhajek would beat Appelwick again in Wood Dale after they broke away together in the women's open there.
• » Thanks to the work of Kuhajek and others, Team Mack gets to celebrate the Illinois Cup team competition, earning 775 points to the South Chicago Wheelmen's 734.
• » Burnham Racing called in reinforcements to defend Chris Curran's lead in the 3's, but after a late-race neutralization, David Reyes (Bloomington) finished 2nd to Victor Rentas (Team G Force) to take the title by one point.
• » Chris Mosora (Verizon Wireless) won the 40+ at Grayslake, less than 48 hours after winning the prestigious Roger Delanghe trophy on the Northbrook Velodrome.
• » Quentin Capista (Project 5) had a pretty good weekend. He won the 4's race to take the Illinois Cup by two points over Mike Rickey (Wild Card Cycling), who finished 4th. The next day, Capista won out of the break in Wood Dale to take ABR's state championshp. (He'll start racing as a 3 in Glencoe.)
• » Wayne Simon (Verdigris) was also two-for-two, winning the 50+ in both Grayslake and Wood Dale.
• » Scott Pearson (Start2Finish) won the P/1/2/3 at Wood Dale after lapping the field with Rob Kelley (Bicycle Heaven). Marek Serafin (PACT/Dish Network) was the first 3 to finish to take that jersey.
• » A day after a top 10 at the 40-44 masters national championships in Louisville, Mike Heagney (Vision Quest) doubled up in Wood Dale, winning the 30+ and 40+.

Full Grayslake results. Full Wood Dale results.

Grayslake reports Arron Hampton (Psimet; 4): "I wanted to drive us back to the pack, but the pack was flying and few were interested."

Dan Pollard (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4): "Coming into the finishing straight I was in 2nd place. I didn't look back."

Matt Riezman (Spidermonkey Cycling; 5): "For one time in the history Cat 5 bike racing, the pace sped up in the bell lap."

Jared Rogers (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4, 30+): "You’d be surprised just how much of a difference a cheer can make when your body is breaking down underneath you."

Scott Rosenfield (IS Corp; P/1/2): "Our plan was simple: Attack and win."

Mike Shea (Spidermonkey Cycling; 3): "The four-lap sprint didn’t go well for me. I didn’t have the mustard to move up."

Tim Speciale (Psimet; 3): "As soon as the whistle blew the field sprinted from the line into a long strung-out line of riders."

Andrew Zens (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4): "The pavement won today."

Naperville's Thomas Weil (ABD) successfully defended his 65-69 road race national championship Wednesday, earning a new set of stars and stripes in a sweltering Louisville, Ky.

In yesterday's time trial action, Leigh Thompson (Vision Quest) earned a bronze medal in the women's 50-54, and Marc Zionts (Alberto's) and Randy Warren (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) joined forces to earn silver in the 90+ tandem time trial. Road races and criteriums continue through the weekend. Full results.

This weekend brings two fun, low-key races to help you stay sharp ahead of what should be an intense day in Glencoe.

Saturday's criterium in Grayslake is the final race on the Illinois Cup calendar, so some people will be looking to protect or advance their individual and team rankings. It's a flat, non-technical course in the shape of a U. Sunday's criterium in Wood Dale will be ABR's state championships. I believe this will be on the south loop of the industrial park, an oval course with sweeping turns and a small kicker just ahead of the final corner. Looking ahead to next week's Glencoe Grand Prix, don't forget that there is a clinic for women next Friday, and note that there are just a few spots left in the bonus Cat 5 race.

Saturday Grayslake Cycling Classic USAC criterium Grayslake, Ill. Distance from Chicago: 1 hour Previous wrap-ups: 2007, 2008, 2009

Sunday Wood Dale Criterium ABR criterium Wood Dale, Ill. Distance from Chicago: 0.5 hours Previous wrap-ups: 2008, 2009

Other highlights from Sunday's racing in Elk Grove:

• » Nate Iden (Burnham Racing) likes to save his wins for the big races. The Cat 3 state champ got another scalp Sunday winning the 35+ 3/4's ahead of fellow sprint specialist Marek Serafin (PACT/Dish Network).
• » Elk Grove is not an easy course on which to break away, but with five laps to go in the 35+ 1/2's, Bryan Rheude (Comma-Van Wagner) and Dave Stone (Verizon Wireless) gave it a go. Chad Cagle (Park Place Dallas) made an impressive bridge and had enough in reserve to win the sprint by a large margin. Meanwhile, Keith McMahon (Comma-Van Wagner), riding well in a comeback season for him, sat caboose in a five-man chase group stuck in no-man's land. He came around in the homestretch to take 4th. (Just three hours later, Cagle would double down and get 5th in the 1/2's.)
• » Debbie Dust (Bouledogue Tout Noir) spent most of the first half of the women's P/1/2/3 race off the front, above, but was reeled in shortly after the half-race sprint. She ended up 8th in the sprint, with Jeannie Kuhajek (Team Mack) our top local finisher in 5th.
• » The 1/2's drew some of the strongest teams we'll see short of the pro ranks, including Panther, Aerocat and Texas Roadhouse. Indiana's Eric Young (Nuvo/Cultural Trail) got the jump on the leadout trains, however, to take the big win. Mike Sherer (Verizon u25) got another top 10 with 9th and junior Brandon Feehery (South Chicago Wheelmen) got one of his biggest elite results with 10th.
• » One final highlight of Elk Grove has been the comprehensive coverage and photography from Lyne Lamoureux at Podium Insight. Don't miss her interview with Karl Menzies (UnitedHealthcare), who has a refreshing perspective regarding how important purses are to racers.

Full results.

Saturday reports Kim Gialdini (Flatlandia; W-3/4): "I saw what this was coming down to: a sprint finish. Once again, I knew what I had to do"

Arron Hampton (Psimet; 4): "This course requires a fresh set of legs and clear mind."

Adam Herndon (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "I see one wheel behind me. I push harder. I start to see one rider coming on the right. I now sprint all out."

Kristen Meshberg (Flatlandia; W-P/1/2/3): "I got a gambler's prime at 1 to go, and it was a glorious feeling to be off the front so late in the game."

Scott Rosenfield (IS Corp; 1/2): "Granted, I’ve been racing for five years, but the basics are sometimes impossible to master."

Saturday photos Jeff Chen Podium Insight

Sunday reports Kim Gialdini (Flatlandia; W-P/1/2/3): "Lesson learned. I can't wait to try again."

Nate Iden (Burnham Racing; 35+ 3/4): "I had a free line and I thought it was ON."

Kristen Meshberg (Flatlandia; W-P/1/2/3): "I got boxed in and had no where to sprint."

Brian Parker (XXX Racing-AthetiCo; 35+ 3/4): "It was a blue-collar race for me. I showed up at the office, I punched the clock and went right to the front and did everything I could to stay there."

Sunday photos Jeff Chen Luke Seemann

Superweek star and Saturday's road race winner Jonathan Cantwell (Fly V Australia) won again Sunday, outkicking a heat-stricken field in the bunch sprint. The time bonus gave him the overall in America's highest paying series.

A dangerous six-man break including ABD product Reid Mumford (Kelly Benefit Strategies) and Jerem Vennell (Bissell), who came in 3rd in Friday's time trial, put together a huge lead and came within 40 seconds of lapping the field, but UnitedHealthcare and Fly V Australia, aided by a generous Chris Horner (Radio Shack), finally took big chunks out of the lead and caught the group with fewer than 10 laps to go. The effort ate at UnitedHealthcare's firepower, however, and overnight leader Karl Menzies (UnitedHealthcare) was left to fend for himself in the sprint. Consequently, he finished off the day's podium and out of the time bonuses. David Veilleux (Kelly Benefit Strategies) finished 2nd again and 2nd overall followed by Menzies in 3rd, Mike Friedman (Jelly Belly) in 4th and Horner Vennell in 5th. Full wrap-up to come.

I missed today's Tour of Elk Grove action, but Podium Insight has a great photo of the pro finish, won by Jonathan Cantwell (Fly V Australia).

This is a teachable moment: It appears that if David Veilleux (Kelly Benefit Strategies) had worried more about his throw and less about his post-up, he would have won the stage. With a 20-second time bonus instead of the 12 seconds for 2nd, the 2008 winner would have ended the day in a tie -- to the 100th of a second -- with Karl Menzies (UnitedHealthcare) in the general classification. Instead, Menzies sleeps in yellow. He'll start Sunday 5 seconds up on time trial winner Peter Latham (Bissell) and Mike Friedman (Jelly Belly). A handful of other riders, including Chris Horner (Radio Shack), sit within 10 seconds. This should make for an exciting criterium Sunday. Time bonuses will be crucial: 20, 12 and 8 seconds go to 1st, 2nd and 3rd place, respectively. In addition, there will be points sprints with 25, 20 and 10 laps to go. Points leaders will get 6-, 4- and 2-second bonuses. Don't be surprised if UnitedHealthcare lets a break get up the road to keep those seconds out of contenders' hands. In the amateur races, winners include Jeannie Kuhajek (Team Mack) in the women's 3/4's, Victor Rentas (Team G Force) in the 3's and Peter Kelley (Bicycle Heaven) in the 4's. Dave Keil (W2 Racing) rode back-to-back and won both 5's heats. (W2 managed to nail three of the top five in the first heat, with Tim Clark in 5th both times.) Mike Shereer (Verizon u25) was the top local finisher in the 1/2's with 6th.

Some final highlights from the last few days of Superweek:

• » The crash bug bit the P/1/2's Friday and Saturday. Ryan Freund (Verizon u25) got the worst of it in Kenosha, breaking his collarbone. Bryan McVey (ReCycling), who on Tuesday had continued his solid riding with a 7th at the Bucyrus Road Race in Milwaukee, broke his nose, and although he was able to return to race over the weekend, he drifted backward in the amateur overall, finishing 5th. Jonathan Cantwell (Fly V Australia), meanwhile, was a cinch for the pro overall, winning the final three races and a record six overall. Cantwell previously won the overall in 2008.
• » Kristen Meshberg (Flatlandia) raced the entire women's P/1/2/3 series, finishing 2nd overall. Her teammate Kim Gialdini won the women's 3/4's overall, finishing out of the top 10 just once over the series. Stacy Appelwick (Bouledogue Tout Noir) raced less but won a remarkable four times, ending up 4th overall, and Jannette Rho (Chicago Cuttin' Crew) sprinted to a win at Wednesday's Lakefront Road Race in Milwaukee.
• » Mike Seguin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) clawed back to finish 2nd overall in the 3's. He got some help early in the Lakefront Road Race when a sporting field stood up to let him regain contact after a flat. He late would crash while taking a dig off the front but would recover and then take 2nd in the sprint.
• » Rookie Brian Karlow (Verdigris) hit the podium a remarkable nine times in the masters 4/5's, four of them on the top step, finishing a comfortable 30 points ahead of the next challenger in the overall.
• » Young Trevor Rolette (South Chicago Wheelmen) was our top finisher in the 4/5's overall. Despite racing only five days, he earned enough points to place 3rd overall.
• » Brent Emery (Emerys.com) came on strong to take the 35+ 1/2/3 overall, bumping Ricardo Otero (WDT-Allvoi) to 2nd, with Mike Heagney (Vision Quest), who finished 3rd Saturday and 2nd Sunday, climbing to 3rd.
• » John Wilkie was busy shooting photos for Peloton Pix. I expect he'll be adding even more as he finds time to edit his haul.
• » Looking back at this year's edition of Superweek, I'm in agreement with this assessment from Mark Swartzendruber (Verizon Wireless). String 17 races together in 17 locations and there are bound to be hiccups, but organization seemed better this year. Fields, however, seemed smaller. (On the plus side, I think smaller turnouts warded off the chronic crashing that has plagued us in recent years.) I know many people cut back because of high entry fees, which were especially steep for day-of registrations. Here's hoping that the pendulum continues to swing to the good. All things considered, we're extremely lucky to have two big summer series available to us -- ask any out-of-town racer and they'll tell you so.

Full results.

More highlights from the past week of Superweek:

• » Feedback has been positive for the new Lake Geneva course, which opened for business Wednesday with an interesting profile and picturesque views. Greta Neimanas (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) put her time trial skills to use by soloing away from the women's P/1/2/3 field with 10 laps to go, and Ryan Freund (Verizon u25) got in another elite break, finishing 3rd in the P/1/2's after lapping the field twice with two others.
• » Tour of America's Dairyland sensation Jannette Rho (Chicago Cuttin' Crew) finally made her Superweek debut Friday and finished 3rd at in Brookfield, Wis. At Saturday's Schlitz Park course in Milwaukee, she joined Stacy Appelwick (Bouledogue Tour Noir), Mia Moore (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) and Canada's Nettie Neudorf (Portage Junkyard Dogs) in taking advantage of Brewer's hill and lapping the women's 3/4's field, with Appelwick taking the win and Rho rolling in 2nd. Kimberly Gialdini (Flatlandia), meanwhile, has ridden a very consistent series and has a solid lead in the overall with just three races left.
• » Ricardo Otero (WDT-Allvoi) clings to a one-point lead in the 35+ 1/2/3 overall, having finished out of the top 10 just once.
• » Although he has lost his grip on the overall, Mike Seguin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) earned his first win as a 3 at Brookfield. Victor Rentas (Team G Force) has a number of top 10's to his name and is the highest-placed local rider in the 3's with 3rd.
• » Rookie Brian Karlow (Verdigris) is having a dynamite Superweek and will no doubt be joining his brother Rob soon in the higher categories. After winning at Homewood, he's twice finished 2nd and twice 3rd and now enjoys a healthy lead in the 35+ 4/5's overall.
• » Young Trevor Rolette (South Chicago Wheelmen) is also nearly perfect in the 4/5's. He's won twice, in Richton Park and Willow Springs, on top of three other podiums. He starts the day 10 points out of 1st in the overall.

Full results.

Lake Geneva reports Greta Neimanas (XXX Racing-AthletoCo; W-P/1/2/3): "Nobody ever wants to sack up and take a pull because they’ll get tired, or it’s too hot, or they have a hangnail."

Verizon u25 (P/1/2): "Going into the finish, Mike Sherer kept Ryan is as good of a position as possible to help him fend for the win, but the pair was 'jammed up' on the back side in the final lap."

Debbie Dust (Bouledogue Tout Noir) went for sprint points 10 laps into Sunday night's 35-lap women's P/1/2/3 Evanston Grand Prix and kept on rolling, eventually lapping the field while maintaining a 50-second gap over a lone chaser to take her first Superweek win.

In the men's P/1/2 race, Fly V Austarlia's Jonathan Cantwell and Ben Kersten escaped from a large but dysfunctional break midway through and built a gigantic lead over a field that could never get a chase together once it neutralized the break. The two finished side-by-side with 2008 champion Cantwell, currently higher than Kersten in the overall, taking the victory. Coincidentally, Kersten and Cantwell also went 1-2 Saturday night at the Boise Twilight Crit, in that case with Kersten finishing first in a bunch sprint. Notable riders in Sunday's field included Karl Menzies (UnitedHealthcare) and Rahsaan Bahati (Bahati Foundation), both making their 2010 Superweek debut. Other local results include Tony Rienks (Beverly Bike-Vee Pak), who put in a long solo effort to win the 35+ 4/5's; Adam Lesniakowski (PACT/Dish Network), who took the bunch sprint in a 35+ 1/2/3 race that was halted and abbreviated because of a quick thunderstorm; and Justin Somerville (Bicycle Heaven) winning the 4/5's. In the 3's, Burnham Racing had Nick Ramirez off the front for the last several laps, but had to settle for 2nd and 3rd from Chris Curran and Nate Iden after Andrew Buntz (University of Iowa) launched a long attack to bring him back and take the win. The BK Stacker and the dicey Turn 4 tooks their share of victims but most races were relatively crash-free this year, at least compared to previous editions. Full results.

Reports Cathy Frampton (Project 5; W-3/4): "Then fluky things started happening."

Arron Hampton (Psimet; 35+ 4/5): "I pushed through it, arse on the tip of the saddle, funny pain face on full display and grabbed me some 5th place."

Photos Lisa McMahon Omar Patalinghug (4/5's video): 1, 2, 3 Cecile Redoble Luke Seemann Ed White

A few of the many highlights from the first Illinois leg of Superweek:

• » Bryan McVey (ReCycling) is having a breakout series in the P/1/2's, racing aggressively and making many of the breaks. After lapping the field and getting 2nd Monday in Richton Park and finishing 6th Tuesday in Willow Springs -- a race whose field sprint included a tangle of bikes -- he is the top amateur and is 7th overall, 22 points down from leader and 2008 Tour de France participant Aurélien Passeron (Garneau Club Chaussure).
• » Ryan Freund (Verizon u25) made the break Saturday in Geneva, lapping the field with two others, continuing on to the nominal chase group and even attempting to attack beyond that. It came down to a three-up sprint, where he finished 2nd to Passeron, above.
• » Kristen Meshberg (Flatlandia) has hit the top 10 in all four women's P/1/2/3 races, including a 2nd at Geneva. She held the leader's jersey after Monday's racing in Homewood, but she now sits in 3rd in both the overall and the sprints competition.
• » Stacy Appelwick (Bouledogue Tout Noir) is off to a great start in the women's 3/4's. After winning both Saturday and Sunday and finishing 2nd Tuesday, she sits in 2nd overall.
• » Nick Gierman (Burnham Racing) won in dramatic fashion in Geneva. With nine laps to go he countered a large move to go solo and made a large gap for himself. With less than two to go -- and after some lap-counter bungling -- two riders bridged to him, but as gassed as he was, he was able to launch an early attack and sprint to the win.
• » Geneva was where Drew Kushnick (Spidermonkey Cycling) picked up his first win in the 4/5's. I wonder how long he's been practicing his post-up. He'd follow that up with a 2nd at Willow Springs.
• » Mike Seguin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) is doing it both ways -- getting in the breaks and doing well in the sprints -- and has yet to finish outside the top 10. He leads the 3's overall.
• » Mark Winston (2CC) proved his uphill sprint at Spring Prairie was no fluke. After a suicide break was reeled in late in the Willow Springs 35+ 1/2/3's, he navigated the challenging stairsteps for the bunch-sprint win, followed by Dave Reed (EMC2) and Mike Heagney (Vision Quest).
• » Chris Mosora (Verizon Wireless), meanwhile, has been having his way with the 35+ 1/2/3 series, winning out of a two-man break in Geneva and winning again in Richton Park. After finishing 5th in Willow Springs, he has a tight lead over Adam Lesniakowski (PACT/Dish Network) and Ricardo Otero (WDT-Allvoi).
• » Ed Ekstrom (Tower Racing) leads the 35+ 4/5's overall and is 2nd in the 4/5's, just two points behind teammate Alex Nemeth.
• » I liked the modified Willow Springs course. I wish races could have been longer -- such are the tradeoffs with great locations sometimes -- but the shorter laps increased the impact of the climbs, relative to the longer course used for our state road race. Then again, the short course and concurrent races led to the occasional neutralization, which is often frustrating to both fields. The corners I was worried about were wide, fast and safe, and it made a big difference to have centerline fencing all along Archer. Considering the crazy amount of race prep that went into that course, it's fairly remarkable that the early races started only 20 minutes late -- and that delay was only thanks to a tree that had fallen on the course.
• » A second 4/5's race was added to accommodate demand at Willow Springs, but that won't be an option at Sunday's Evanston Grand Prix, which is always popular. Online registration closes Friday, but if you miss that, Superweek's Andy Garrison says to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) to guarantee a spot.

Full results.

Geneva reports Nick Gierman (Burnham Racing; 3): "As this rider slots in behind me, my mark was hit and off I went. Over the bricks and through the turn, dancing on the pedals like a ProTour sprinter does."

Arron Hampton (Psimet; 35+ 4/5): "We were racing for third, which I realized right after I lit up that last match."

Matt Riezman (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4/5): "Midway through the race, huge gaps started forming on the hill and getting caught behind them made my race tough."

Tati Cycles (35+ 1/2/3): "Nobody will pay any attention to your team until you've beaten Mark Swartzendruber, even if it is in a sprint."

Verizon u25 (P/1/2): "The final lap almost resembled a match sprint as they cautiously eye one another, waiting to open the sprint until the final 200 meters."

Andrew Zens (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4/5): ""

Geneva photos Luke Seemann Tati Cycles Nikki Cyp

Homewood reports Debbie Dust (Bouledogue Tout Noir; W-P/1/2/3): "Even more negative were the riders who literally tailgunned the entire race and then suddenly appeared in the front with two laps to go."

Evan Jahn (Rhythm Racing; 4/5): "He won! We won! For the first time it feels like a team victory and not just individual."

Matt Riezman (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4/5): "I ran out of something."

Chris Uberti (Team Panther; P/1/2): "Thanks to attrition I was able to sneak into a money spot."

Homewood photos Tati Cycles Nikki Cyp

Willow Springs reports Arron Hampton (Psimet; 4/5): "Braking at the front on a downhill back stretch seems odd."

Andrew Zens (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4/5): "Lots of squirrels in the field today, and to be honest I was one of them."

Series photos Peloton Pix

It's official: Kaleb Koch (IS Corps) is a national champion, winning the 15-16 time trial Saturday, his third win in as many days, to secure the omnium in Trexlertown, Pa.

His teammate Chazz Martin was not a stranger to the podium, but his destiny would not be the top step this year: He finished 2nd in Saturday's 17-18 scratch race and 2nd again in Sunday's team sprint, a total of four such finishes over the weekend. Meanwhile, John Tomlinson (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) finished out the weekend with a 2nd in the 17-18 flying time trial and a 4th in the Madison.

Kaleb Koch (IS Corps) won again at the junior national track championships in Trexlertown, Pa., Friday's 15-16 scratch race, giving Chicago two victories on the day after the points win from John Tomlinson (XXX Racing-AthletiCo).

Also on Friday, Chazz Martin (IS Corps) earned his second silver of these championships by placing 2nd in the 17-18 match sprint. This all came one day after Koch won the 15-16 match sprint competition. I should note that I may have gotten ahead of myself when I said it gave him the national championship. For age groups below 17-18, national championships are given only to the omnium winners. (This, my friends, is why I avoid covering the track.) However, after winning the first two events, Koch is well positioned for said omnium as racing continues through the weekend.

Bernie Sulzberger (Fly V Australia) opened Superweek with an impressive win in Beverly Friday evening.

Sulzberger was one of seven riders who went up a lap. With seven laps to go he escaped with Chad Burdzilauskas (Kenda). They built a large gap working together, but on the bell lap Sulzberger attacked at the top of the hill and entered the final downhill corner alone to cruise down the homestretch. It was a small field despite $3,000 in primes, and fewer than 30 finished. Bryan McVey (ReCycling), Tomasz Boba (WDT-Allvoi) and Frank Rowley (South Chicago Wheelmen) were the top locals, finishing 15th, 17th and 19th, respectively. Full results.

Project 5 put together a fun little neighborhood criterium on Saturday.

The flat, non-technical nature of the milelong course made breaking away difficult in some races, but Chris Mosora (Verizon Wireless) was one of three riders who had the magic to do so in both the 30+ and the P/1/2/3 race. Patryk Limanowicz (PACT-Dish Network) aced him out in the 30+, so Mosora took the sprint out of the equation by escaping the P/1/2/3 break in the final laps to take a deserved win. Because of a time crunch -- affected in part by a bell-lap crash in the 4's -- the 3's race was folded in with the P/1/2's. Quentin Capista (Project 5), a rising star in the USAC 4's, took advantage of ABR's "you call it" categorization and raced as a 3. He was the lone 3 to make the break and fought hard to hold on, thus winning his category and placing 7th overall. Alberto's brought its red army to bear on both women's races, leading to Nancy Heymann and Angela Rochester going 1-2 in the 3/4's, but in the open it was Debbie Dust (Bouledogue Tout Noir) sprinting to the win. Dust would later race with the 50+ men and put in a dangerous flier at the end, but Wayne Simon (Verdigris) turned on the jets on the final lap to reel her in and sprint to the win Elsewhere, quite a few heavy hitters showed up for the Marion Classic in Indiana, where Ryan Zook (Start 2 Finish) grabbed a top 10 in the P/1/2. Full Tour de Villas results. Full Marion Classic results.

Tour de Villas reports Nat Bricker (University of Florida; P/1/2/3): "A guy from Team Helen's was pulling everyone around and berating them for being little girls."

Debbie Dust (Bouledogue Tout Noir; W-open, 50+): "I wanted to be patient but just couldn't stand the parade-speed of the group so I attacked early."

Project 5 "My teammates and I have a new appreciation for the amount of work involved in coordinating a race."

Andrew Zens (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4, P/1/2/3): "I rolled in with the pack and a smile on my face."

Some final Chicago highlights from the Tour of America's Dairyland, which wrapped up Sunday in Waukesha:

• » Jannette Rho (Chicago Cuttin' Crew) was a rock star all week. Though she never took the top step, she was no stranger to the podium in the women's 3/4's, taking 3rd four times and 2nd twice. Wisconsin's Whitney Gaggioli (Amore & Vita) was too dominant to be challenged in the overall, winning eight of the 10 races, but Rho came home with 2nd overall, followed by Cathy Frampton (Project 5) in 3rd. These were large fields, too, including more than 40 at Thursday's challenging Greenbush Road Race.
• » Verizon u25 fought hard to defend the overall position of Mike Sherer after he donned the P/1/2 yellow jersey at the Road America Road Race, but despite several top 10 finishes he lost his podium on the final day, finishing 5th overall. Don't miss the great videos the team produced over the week.
• » Matt Samples (North Branch) won the 35+ 4/5's race Wednesday in Sheboygan.
• » Jared Craft (Psimet) raced all week in the 4/5's and came home with six top 10's, including a 3rd Saturday on Downer Avenue, finishing 10th overall.
• » Brian Conant (Comma-Van Wagner) had a consistent week in the 35+ 1/2/3's: 6th twice, 10th twice and 11th twice.

Full results.

Series reports Nat Bricker (University of Florida; P/1/2): "Beer feeds and high fives make even the worst of races suddenly not so bad."

Chicago Cuttin' Crew (W-3/4): "Pretty f’n killer, J Rho."

Matt Riezman (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4/5): "I went rolling off the course and hit a cement post that fortunately had padding around it."

Jared Rogers (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4/5): "The guns that were fired in this battle were no small ones and I think I held up pretty well."

Hogan Sills (Verizon u25): "He had to fight against pro teams for 11 days, and he managed to hold off some super-strong riders below him until the final stage."

Joe Tortorelli (Verizon Wireless; 3): "We had at least 3 minutes on the field at one point, and that's when i stopped working. Sure I'll take some flack for that but it's bike racing."

Waterloo reports Jerel Lynn Waide (Project 5; W-3/4): "This is perfect. Cathy can go and get away."

Greenbush reports Brian Morrissey (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 35+ 1/2/3): "I remained up against the yellow, which was my undoing amidst the final argy-bargy of the last two miles."

William Pankonin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3): "I just couldn’t ride around waiting for the end, and I could not end this race with fresh legs."

Nathan Phelps (Big Ring Flyers; 35+ 4/5): "In hindsight I wonder if I couldn’t have gone harder during the bulk of the race and in the final sprint."

Luke Seemann (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 35+ 1/2/3): "Better to have broken away and lost than to have never broken away at all."

Jerel Lynn Waide (Project 5; W-3/4): "A challenging race course that allowed me to use all of my gears. Wish I had a few more."

Andrew Zens (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4/5): "This was racing bliss. Sure it's great to win, but it's also great to race."

Fond du Lac reports Cathy Frampton (Project 5; W-3/4): "While the visit to the podium was sweet, the cow jersey remains the real elusive treat."

Brian Morrissey (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 35+ 1/2/3): "I was waiting for the jump, and when none came, I looked behind and saw a huge gap."

Downer Avenue reports Cathy Frampton (Project 5; W-3/4): "I not only had to stop pedaling, but also reverse the bike a bit so she didn’t hit my front wheel. Dang!"

Kim Gialdini (Flatlandia; W-3/4): "Never look back! Just go."

Waukesha reports Kim Gialdini (Flatlandia; W-3/4): "I was very close to bridging up. I was a little disappointed that I didn't yell out the women behind me to take a pull and help too."

You'd think that Chicago's Burnham Racing would mix up its strategy just to keep things interesting for spectators, but no: It won Sunday's Cat 3 state championship in hot and humid Peoria in much the same way it won in 2009 and 2008.

After lining up nine-deep, Burnham controlled the race before firing off solo fliers in the closings laps. As those efforts wore down the field, it kept its sprinters rested and in good position to pounce. This time it was Nate Iden's turn to capitalize, with teammate Chris Curran not far behind. Iden launched well ahead of Turn 7 to enter Turn 8 and the homestretch with a decisive gap, crossing the line with an enthusiastic -- if somewhat wobbly -- post-up. Iden wasn't the only one to make an early jump. Both women's races splintered into small groups, and the winners made their final moves with two corners yet to go: Cathy Frampton (Project 5) took the 3/4's and Heidi Sarna (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) barely fended off a surging Jeannie Kuhajek (Team Mack) in the open. Of course, the earliest jump came from Dave Moyer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) in the P/1/2's. He slipped away from his 10-man break with 25 minutes to go and came so close to lapping a field thick with teammates that officials pulled the field early. Moyer, shown being congratulated above, extended his gap enough to finish with no one else in the photo, followed by Andrew Lister (Dogfish) and Hogan Sills (Verizon u25). All eyes are on you once you've won a road race championship and been interviewed by the cycling media, but Kyle Selph (Tower Racing) was still able to score the Cat 4 double by outkicking Quentin Capista (Project 5) in a bunch sprint. It took three tries, but after figuring prominently in both the 50+ and the 30+, Tom Doughty (Amgen-UBS) finally earned a 2010 jersey in the 40+, winning a two-up sprint against Randy Warren (XXX Racing-AthletiCo). Can't say there were big surprises in the other two masters races: Verizon Wireless had only two riders in the 30+, but it played its cards perfectly and finished 1-3 behind Dave Stone and Chris Mosora, and Wayne Simon (Verdigris) won the four-up sprint to take the 50+. In the juniors, Brandon Feehery (South Chicago Wheelmen) defended his 15-18 championship. Samuel Bianchi (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) finished 2nd to Jacob Schilling (Team Mack) but was the top Illinois rider in the 10-14, and Gina Johnson (Smart Cycling) won the girls race. Full results.

Race reports Burnham Racing (3): "Delivering a race into the hands of our sprinters is a gamble and a thrill."

Shawn Delk (Project 5; 4): "I would have given him my only bottle if I needed to. The goal was for him today."

Colm Flannery (Proctor; 40+, 4): "To heck with the consequences, I'm going to have fun, leave it all out there and do my tiny bit to let people know that they've been in a race."

Cathy Frampton (Project 5; W-3/4): "On the backstretch of the last lap, wind in our face, the three of us eyed each other. You could feel how antsy we were getting."

Arron Hampton (Psimet; 4): "Following a strong rider with excellent handling skills is always nice."

Dave Moyer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; P/1/2): "25 minutes is a long time to stay off the front in a state championship race, and I suddenly noticed that it was 85 or 90 degrees out."

Peoria Journal Star: "Race officials said it was one of the most dominating victories in the race's history."

Scott Rosenfield (IS Corp; P/1/2): "When the move went in Peoria, I didn’t react. In fact, I don't know when or how it went."

Luke Seemann (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+, P/1/2): "The essence of bicycle racing had distilled itself into this break. As much as I wanted the race to be over, I didn’t want to let this moment go."

Photos Luke Seemann

Heidi Sarna (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) and Dave Moyer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) are your 2010 state criterium champions.

Nate Iden launched a long sprint from before the penultimate corner to win the 3's, the third Cat 3 criterium championship in a row for Burnham Racing, Cathy Frampton (Project 5) took the women's 3/4's and road race champ Kyle Selph (Tower Racing) won the 4's in a bunch sprint. Full results. Full wrap-up to come.

After winning the road race at the U.S. Paralympic National Championships on Tuesday, Greta Neimanas (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) went on to sweep the series, winning both the criterium and time trial.

Meanwhile, Joe Berenyi (Psimet) earned the silver medal in the Paralympic criterium, and defending national champion Jessi Prinner (ABD) earned a silver in this year's 17-18 time trial, improving her time but falling 18 seconds of 26-time national champion Coryn Rivera (Peanut Butter & Co.).

Some Chicago riders had a great day at the Road America Road Race today in Elkhart Lake, Wis.

Early returns include Brian Haas (Alberto's) winning the 35+ 1/2/3's and Heidi Sarna (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) placing 2nd in the women's 3/4. In the P/1/2/3, Mike Sherer (Verizon u25) made it into an 8-man break that stayed away for much of the race, placing 5th behind winner and former ABD rider Frankie Dierking (Team Wisconsin). With double points for the road race, however, that puts him into the yellow jersey -- the second Verizon u25 to take the overall lead in this series. Full results.

Race reports Patrick Haley (Velo Trocadero; 35+ 1/2/3): "It was pretty dicey from there on out: shouting, gesticulating, head shaking and swarming like Cat 4's on the last lap."

Cathy Frampton (W-3/4): "Heidi hit it. With that, the field that had been packed coming up the long rise spread out so those that still had some energy could go."

William Pankonin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3): "The strongest riders were sitting in and waiting until the very end."

Verizon u25 (P/1/2): "The remaining breakaway riders waited to duke it out on the long slog up the final climb."

Andrew Zens (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4/5): "With a strong Chicago crew in the house today, I took it upon my shoulders to be the workhorse."

A few highlights from Stages 2, 3 and 4 of the Tour of America's Dairyland:

• » ToAD showed women some love, and women have returned the favor, turning out in large numbers in both the P/1/2/3's and the 3/4's. Chicago women did very well at Saturday's big race in Grafton, with Stacy Appelwick (Bouledogue Tout Noir), Jannette Rho (Chicago Cuttin' Crew) and Cathy Frampton (Project 5) going 1-2-3 in the 3/4's. Later in the women's P/1/2/3's, Debbie Dust (Bouledogue Tout Noir) placed 3rd in the field sprint, 5th overall.
• » Rho hit the podium again Sunday in Appleton, finishing 3rd, with Downers Grove's Meghan Lapeta (Smart Cycling) in 5th.
• » The masters fields have also been big and very fast, but Bob Karlowe (Verdigris) is keeping up, placing 2nd at the Giro d'Grafton, and Brian Conant (Comma-Van Wagner) has two top 10's to his name.
• » Bryan Witry (Spidermonkey Cycling) delivers our final podium, sprinting to a 3rd in the 4/5's on Saturday.

Racing continues today with the first road race, on a closed-course motorway in Elkhart Lake, Wis. I'm curious whether the conclusion of the Nature Valley Grand Prix will send any more talent our way. Full Friday results. Full Saturday results. Full Sunday results.

Thiensville reports Nat Bricker (University of Florida; P/1/2): "I'm usually alright in the rain, but not today."

Verizon u25 (P/1/2): "Rain and a short lightning delay did little to slow down the second stage."

Andrew Zens (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4/5): "I thought I could make a jump to the inside and help spring Bryan but I botched the turn and the rest was history."

Giro d'Grafton reports Nat Bricker (University of Florida; P/1/2): " Lots of people yelling and screaming, sirens, noise, beer. Everything crit racing should have."

Shawn Delk (Project 5; 4/5): "Felt fine the first 35 minutes and then just started to crack."

Debbie Dust (Bouledogue Tout Noir; W-P/1/2/3): "There was a lot of horsepower in the field and a fifth place finish is a strong result."

Luke Holtan (Velo Trocadero; P/1/2): "As you came blaring outta turn two into the incline all you could hear was the vuvuzela."

Ginger Sides (Project 5; W-3/4): "It was so great to see our Chicago area ladies take the entire podium."

Bryan Witry (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4/5): "I saw my lane on the far left and went."

Appleton reports Andrew Zens (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4/5): "I continued my attempted to tailgun each lap"

A few highlights from the Cobb Park Criterium, which drew the usual suspects but also quite a few unknown Indiana riders on a perfect day for racing along the Kankakee River.

• » Verizon Wireless continues to be in a roll, getting wins from up and down its roster. Dave Stone (Verizon Wireless) started things by winning the 40+. Later, Steven Broglio (Verizon Wireless) spent the last 20 minutes of the P/1/2/3 race in a three-man break. After a seven-man chase caught with three to go, Broglio was able to take the win in the sprint.
• » Whenever Chicago's Burnham Racing brings its full force to bear on a race, you know there will be fireworks. In the 3's, Jason Knauff (Burnham Racing) was out of the saddle and attacking with the starting whistle. After the ensuing seven-man break was neutralized, he immediately attacked again. (You have to admire the panache of a rider who counterattacks his own move. It's what Jens would do.) This time he was covered by Mike Seguin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo), and before long Scott Knoepke (Psimet) bridged up. Thanks in part to effective blocking in the pack, the three of them, shown above, built a lead of more than a minute. Knauff, perhaps modeling his move on the XXX Racing-AthletiCo rider who won the 30+, opened hostilities with three to go and solo'd the rest of the way for the win.
• » I've heard tales of Fabio Orlandi (PYOC), but until Saturday I'd never had the pleasure of seeing him perform in person. Perform he did, riding away from the 50+ field in convincing fashion.
• » The six riders in the women's open race stuck together from start to finish, with Francine Haas (Alberto's) winning the sprint.
• » Bevan Brookfield (Unattached) of Evanston has been getting some solid results, and he finally hit the top step of the podium, winning the 30+ 4/5's after getting 2nd in the 5's. Quentin Capista (Project 5) was also a first-time winner, taking victory in the 4's.

Full results.

Race reports Bill Barnes (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 5): "This is the second most I’ve worked in a single race, and it was hard work."

Rob Curtis (Psimet; 30+ 4/5): "I felt fairly good and chalked it up to an easy crit."

Eric Goodwin (Burnham Racing; 3): "It may be June, but school is definitely in. "

Luke Seemann (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+, P/1/2/3): "Attack early, eh? Attack on a climb, eh?"

Photos Paymon Danesh Luke Seemann

The Verizon u25 team got the biggest win of its inaugural season tonight when Ryan Freund won the Shorewood Criterium to kick off the Tour of America's Dairyland.

Freund got in a small break with four to go. With the pack bearing he won a two-up sprint against defending champion Chad Hartley (Kenda), followed by Rahsaan Bahati (Bahati Foundation), who won the field sprint for 3rd. After earning the first overall jersey of ToAD, Freund used his Droid to Tweet that he now just needs to get permission to skip work in order to defend it Friday in Thiensville, Wis. Full results.

Race reports Nat Bricker (University of Florida; P/1/2): "It was definitely good just to get into the swing of things on day one and finish the race."

Patrick Haley (Velo Trocadero; P/1/2): "I went to what my bro calls 'The Dark Place, 'where you have dug as far as you are gonna dig and you gotta decide if you are a man or a boy, a storm trooper or an Ewok, a grizzly bear or a dude with a bell."

James Pradun (GDVC; P/1/2): "The yo-yo effect was terrible, having to accelerate from 10-35 mph between every turn and straight."

Verizon u25 (P/1/2): "'The whole time I was just thinking, "How am I going to beat Chad?” '"

Photos Peloton-Pix Verizon u25

Elsewhere this weekend:

• » The Verizon family had a fantastic weekend in St. Louis with the u25 squad proving it could hang with the big boys. At Sunday's Tour de Grove, Hogan Sills (Verizon u25) and Danny Robertson (Verizon u25) got a nice leadout from Dave Stone (Verizon Wireless) and went 1-2 after an 11-man break emerged from a large, deep 2/3's field. (Earlier, Stone had won the 40+.) The P/1 race, an entry in the National Racing Calendar, drew full Kelly Benefit Strategies and Jelly Belly teams, but Verizon u25 was unintimidated. It was active in the race, and Mike Sherer won the field sprint for 3rd, finishing ahead of noted sprinters Alex Candelario (Kelly Benefit Strategies) and Mike Friedman (Jelly Belly).
• » Wisconsin held its criterium championships over the weekend. The Illinois presence was light, with the top local result coming from Julio Jacobo (PYOC), 2nd in the 3's.
• » The inaugural Burlington Cycling Classic had a dismal turnout, no doubt hampered by the weather forecast. Peloton Star reports the masters, 3's and P/1/2's raced together. Just as he did the day before in Sherman Park, Ben Damhoff (Geargrinder) took the field to the woodshed under wet conditions, winning after getting off the front with teammate Ryan White.

Saturday results EcoFest Criterium Wisconsin state criterium championships

Sunday results Tour de Grove Wisconsin state criterium championships

Burlington Classic reports Kim Gialdini (Flatlandia; 3/4, W-open): "Last turn, came out wide and sprinted to the finish. Past two men. I was happy."

Tour de Grove reports Mike Sherer (Verizon u25; P/1): "I jumped around Ryan 20 feet out of the turn, dropped it into the 11 and didn’t chance a single look back."

Hogan Sills (Verizon u25; 2/3): "As we came out of the final turn, Dave swung wide and I opened the gas with 200 meters to go."

I'm not sure I've ever seen an amateur race quite like Saturday's P/1/2/3 race at Sherman Park in Chicago. I have my biases, sure, but I have a feeling the day will be forgotten only by those woolly mice who stayed home.

The race started under a light drizzle. What comes down must go up, and the upspray quickly covered faces in a layer of dirt and wood grime, a side affect of racing in the verdant and bucolic environs of a city park. After 20 minutes of animated racing, a decisive break of a dozen riders finally came together. It was typical for this race, and in typical fashion the field sat up and patiently waited to be lapped. Among the break was Ben Damhoff (Geargrinder), above, who has not done much USAC racing in the past few years. This spring, however, he was a terror on the collegiate circuit, including two top 10's at collegiate national championships. Damhoff attacked the break as it came close to lapping the field. After successfully lapping the field alone, and with the remains of the break less than 10 seconds back, he went straight to the front, draped his wrists over his bars and began laying down a breaktaking tempo. The pace was fast enough that the break lost time and soon turned on itself, in doing so losing all hope of joining Damhoff in going a lap up. Meanwhile, in his wake the field was stretched out like a string of dirty, slobbering mules. Damhoff's pace was relentless. To serve CBR readers better, your correspondent embedded himself in the pack, where he spent his time conducting interviews, including questions like, "Who is this guy?" And, "Will he ever give us a break?" And, "Have you ever seen anything like this?" The rain finally let up, but Damhoff never did. He continued to pull for the final 40 minutes of the race. It was like following a derny. One rider told me that even though he had a teammate in the break, he was tempted to go help Damhoff as a way of offering his compliments and admiration. Only six other members of the original break stayed off the front, with Tomasz Boba (WDT-Allvoi) taking 2nd. Another five got swallowed by the field on the final lap, followed by Henry Loud (ReCycling) winning the field sprint for 8th. Afterwards, riders had the blackened faces and bleary eyes of rescued coal miners as they congregated at the finish to debrief, deconstruct exactly what had just happened and congratulate Damhoff on his feat. Other highlights from the day:

• » I was happy to see a big turnout for the women's 3/4's race. It came down to a bunch sprint, and Cathy Frampton (Project 5) provided a well-timed leadout to help Ginger Sides (Project 5) get the win. Alberto's women's squad continues to put out good results, and two of its riders, Angie Rochester and Nancy Heymann, finished 2-3 to round out the podium.
• » After brief thunderstorm delayed the masters 4/5's race, the Cat 3's enjoyed the best conditions of the day, but it also drew one of the smallest fields. Newt Cole (Ritte Van Vlaanderen) sprinted to a much overdue win, a smile on his face from the final turn.
• » Cat 5's will no longer have to live in fear of John Kalnins (XXX Racing-AthletiCo). After winning both 5's races -- and at least one Saris bike rack prime along the way -- he has the 10 race starts he needs to upgrade.
• » Speaking of primes, Jeanne Kuhajek (Team Mack) picked up quite a few out of the five-woman selection in the women's open race, including a custom one-off skinsuit from Pactimo. On the final lap, however, it was Jeannette Rho (Chicago Cuttin' Crew) who took the final sprint for the win.
• » Both the 4's and 30+ 4/5's came to bunch sprints: Rich Lenski (Spin Doctor Cyclewerks) had a good gap coming around the final corner of the 30+ 4/5's to finally get the first win of his career, while in the 4's it was state road race champion Kyle Selph (Tower Racing) who won a drag race to the line.
• » It wasn't until the masters open races that we saw some breaks stick. In the 30+, Marc Zionts (Alberto's) won out of a two-man break that stayed off for much of the race, while in the 40+ Bryan Rheude (Comma-Van Wagner) made a gutsy but well-timed escape and stayed away solo for the final seven laps or so, finishing more than 30 seconds up on the field. Brian Easter (RRB Cycles) got away from the 50+ with two Team Mack riders and it looked like he might have been able to skip enough pulls to be fresh for the sprint, but Gary Doering and Don Lowe fended him off, going 1-2 respectively.
• » The South Chicago Wheelmen have been churning out good juniors results, and three of their boys swept the 15-18 podium, with Ryan O'Boyle, Brandon Feehery and Trevor Rolette going 1-2-3.

Finally, a quick non-cycling anecdote: As XXX Racing-AthletiCo set up the course early Saturday, the smell of smoke wafted over the park. Across the street, a carriage house had caught fire. Mike Seguin, a member of the Chicago Fire Department, sprinted to the scene, dialing 9-1-1 as he ran. After finding the first floor of the structure engulfed in flames, he ran up the stairs to the second floor and kicked in the door to check if anyone was inside. There was not; the building had in fact been vacant. On-duty firefighters arrived a few minutes later, and soon Seguin was back on the course, pushing around a gas-powered blower to free the tarmac of glass and debris. This is not the first time that Seguin and his CFD colleagues have mixed business with pleasure at our races. In addition, Seguin was not the only firefighter to have raced Saturday: He has been organizing a cycling team to compete at the National Firefighter Games, and some of them gave it a go in the 5's. Be sure to give them a welcome next time you see them on the start line. In our race reports we talk a lot about heroics and sacrifice, but these are the men and women who literally lay their lives on the line for others. Respect. Full results. (Further weekend wrap-up to come.)

Race reports Nat Bricker (University of Florida; P/1/2/3): "Cold and rain. My two favorite things!"

Kevin Butler (Wheel Fast; 30+ 4/5): "We don't have rain-outs. We suck it up, pull on our big-boy Spandex shorts and ride -- fast."

Lew Chin (Rhythm Racing; 4): "The wind-up starts with about 200 meters to go into Turn 4 and riders are jumping around each other and into holes that I thought only a unicycle would fit in."

Lew Chin (Rhythm Racing; 30+ 4/5): "I had left my glasses in my bag and as a result looked like a weeping Tammy Faye Baker by the end of the race."

Thomas Kabacinski (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+, 40+): "I worked to make sure I could hang in and make sure xXx was represented."

Jared Rogers (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4, 30+ 4/5): "With one to go I found myself on the inside and everything looked to be moving good."

Jannette Rho (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; W-open): "One to go! Let the games begin!"

Luke Seemann (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+, P/1/2/3): "You’ve been best friends with this person for the past 30 minutes ... but now you must betray them. That’s racin’."

Ginger Sides (Project 5; W-3/4): "As the end was approaching Cathy offered me her wheel and put it down."

Photos Julie Popper Luke Seemann Randy Warren

More highlights from this state championship weekend:

• » Zach Reed (Dogfish) was the only Illinois rider to make the break in the P/1/2 state championship, but Will Nowak (Verizon u25) put in a Herculean attempt to bridge, riding in no-man's land for the final 30 miles to finish 4th. Defending champion Seth Meyer was also able to pop free late, taking the bronze medal to round out the state podium.
• » In less than a year as a 3, Chris Curran (Burnham Racing) has won only twice, but he's made them count with both wins coming at our state road race championships. He was part of a group off the front for much of the final lap Saturday, but after it was caught was able to recover to win a fast bunch sprint. Going back to 2008, Burnham Racing has won three of the last five Cat 3 state championships on the road, the other two coming in the criterium. (Curran rode for Bloomington Cycle in 2009.)
• » Kyle Selph (Tower Racing) also picked up where he left off: He won two 5's races at last year's state road race championships, and this year he won out of a bunch sprint in the 4's.
• » Residency played a big factor in the masters races. In the 50+, six out-of-state riders went down the road, leading to a field sprint for 7th and the state championship, won by Wayne Simon (Verdigris). Because of a small 30+ field, the 30+ and 40+ raced together, with Justin Armstead (Team Mack) and Mark Swartzendruber (Verizon Wireless) finally breaking free to take the respective wins. (Because there were only two Illinois riders in the 30+ field, however, I believe only Swartzendruber gets to claim a state championship.)
• » All due respect to my friends at Half Acre Cycling, their podium shoes have not exactly been broken in yet when it comes to road racing. That changed in a big, big way Saturday when they put together an impressive train at the end of the 4/5's race in O'Fallon, finishing 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 5th behind Jamie Sanchez, Todd Simeone, Isaiah Jay and Patrick Kenny.
• » A not-small number of riders received centerline disqualifications, including the initial winner of the 4/5's race. Such DQ's will never be fair or complete. There will always be someone who strayed farther or advanced more or crossed with more nefarious intention. To a rider, the DQ'd just crossed for a second, and it was because they got bumped, or the rider ahead slowed, or there was a gust of wind. That's racin'. It's always a bummer to be the one to have an example made of, but examples must be made -- I would not have been shocked to have been one myself -- and I applaud the officials for the extra enforcement.
• » Cathy Frampton (Project 5) was first to finish the women's 3/4's race, but she, too, was DQ'd, but for passing the pace car, the result of a confusing overlap with the P/1/2 field. If there were a medal for sportsmanship, however, Frampton would earn it for appearing to have taken the disappointment in stride.
• » Ian Murray (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) had hoped to finish his 4's career with a state championship, but fell short, finishing 3rd on Saturday. He used that leg opener to his advantage, however, winning the 4's criterium in O'Fallon on Saturday.
• » New state champion Jessi Prinner (ABD, above) also doubled up, winning the women's open on Sunday as well.
• » Don Lowe (Team Mack) rolled a tire and took a tumble last weekend, so it's good to see he was able to come back for a 2nd in the 50+ at the O'Fallon criterium.
• » Let's say it's late in the race and you're about to bridge to a solo rider. You're cooked from the effort, and you have a split second to decide: Sit on his wheel, or keep on going? The temptation is to grab some quick rest, but almost always the right move is to get out of the saddle and punch it before he can react. That's what Tim Speciale (Psimet) did at the Wonder Lake 3's race, riding through a dangerous move on the last lap and barely holding off the field for the win.
• » Early candidate for rookie of the year Cady Chintis has joined Alberto's and is continuing her winning ways, winning the women's 4's race at Spring Prairie. Dave Keil (W2 Racing) is also off to a near-perfect start, with four podiums in four outings; he won the out-of-state 4/5's race out of a large field sprint. Mark Winston (2CC) was our other local winner, winning the 30+ out of a nine-man selection.

Saturday results O'Fallon Grand Prix road race

Sunday results O'Fallon Grand Prix criterium Spring Prairie Road Race Wonder Lake Lakeside Criterium

O'Fallon Grand Prix road race reports Chris Curran (Burnham Racing; 3): "All of a sudden I was alone and it occurred to me that I'm going to win. Pure adrenaline rush. I didn't want anyone to pass me so I pedaled harder."

Cathy Frampton (Project 5; W-3/4): "With the guys jamming up our race, I went by the pace car and said 'We gotta go!'"

Tamara Fraser (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; W-open): "I had tantalizing glimpses of the yellow kit of the racer ahead, and finally at 2500 meters from the finish, I caught her."

Ian Murray (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "John sat on the front for the last two miles, keeping me in perfect position coming into the final climb."

Will Nowak (Verizon u25; P/1/2): "I attacked and attacked but was continually get chased down by the dwindling field."

Rob Raguet-Schofield (Wild Card Cycling; 4): "This final stretch was closed to traffic and the road was five lanes wide. 40 relatively fresh riders now decided to sprint to the finish. It was pandemonium."

Jannette Rho (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; W-open): "Hills, twists, turns, wind, repeat."

Jamie Sanchez (Half Acre Cycling; 4/5): "It was so cool approaching the line. We had four guys in great position going for it."

Luke Seemann (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; P/1/2): "The peloton shrugged. '80 miles in the blazing sun? Ha!'"

Mark Swartzendruber (Verizon Wireless; 40+): "I did a Cancellara move, tapped my brake hood, activated the super secret motor thingy and while still seated, mysteriously accelerated as I shifted gears and pedaled harder."

Joe Tortorelli (Verizon Wireless; 3): "We get another and then there is a group of seven up the road and we are putting time into the field!"

O'Fallon Grand Prix criterium reports Cathy Frampton (Project 5; W-3/4, W-open): "The pace stayed high and attacks were associated with primes."

Ian Murray (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "I was out for blood in the crit on Sunday."

Will Nowak (Verizon u25; P/1/2): "This pattern continued for the remainder of the race. I attacked, people followed me, and then they sat up."

Mark Swartzendruber (Verizon Wireless; 40+): "Yadda, yadda, yadda, I beat him in the sprint and took second."

Joe Tortorelli (Verizon Wireless; 3): "I felt like Ballan and his attack at the world championships. I knew I had to go and just dropped down and gave it everything I had to go past them."

Spring Prairie reports Ronit Bezalel (Half Acre Cycling; W-4): "Once the iron cage lifted, I started biking faster, but I still was by myself."

Debbie Dust (Bouledogue Tout Noir; W-P/1/2/3): "There were times along the way where this 'race' was more like a freakin' goat rodeo."

Jen Groen (Half Acre Cycling; W-4): "We might not have come anywhere near placing, nor rode the prettiest bikes, but we both 'rode with heart' and added a chapter (or more) to our racing knowledge."

Luke Seemann (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+): "Hitting the corner in 3rd, I went full gas."

Spring Prairie photos John Wilke

Wonder Lake reports Shawn Delk (Project 5; 4, 30+ 4/5): "Just dug it as hard as I could to the line."

Arron Hampton (Psimet; 5, 30+ 4/5): "A combination of getting squeezed and popping in Turn 3 had me toasted."

Tony Rienks (Beverly Bike/Vee-Pak; 4, 30+ 4/5): "It was a slow-paced race with just a couple of accelerations."

Tim Speciale (Psimet; 3): "It wasn’t exactly my intention to drop him but there was no way I could slow down."

Jessi Prinner (ABD) and Edwardsville's Zach Reed (Dogfish) won the women's open and men's P/1/2 races at the O'Fallon Grand Prix on Saturday to become Illinois state road race champions.

Prinner won out of a six-woman sprint, while Reed, after spending much of the hot, 90-mile race in a four-, three- and finally two-man break, won a two-up sprint against Dave Henderson (Columbia Bike Club). Full wrap-up to come. Full results.

Some highlights from the holiday weekend's other races:

• » Out of the youngest of the old at the Wood Dale masters races, Erik Tomlinson (Unattached) never placed higher than 4th in the 30+, but he was consistent enough to win the overall, one point ahead of Tomasz Boba (WDT/Allvoi), who won both Sunday (above, outsprinting Chris Mosora (Verizon Wireless) and Frank Rowley (South Chicago Wheelmen)) and Monday.
• » The 50+ was just as close, with Monday's winner Tom Doughty (Amgen-UBS) finishing one point down on Wayne Simon (Verdigris), who won Saturday and Sunday.
• » Like Simon, Wisconsin's Geno Tolli (CZ Velo) won both Saturday and Sunday in the 40+, ending up four points up on Rob Karlow (Verdigris).
• » John Westergaurd (Unattached) and Edward Ekstrom (Tower Racing) both rode aggressively in the 40+ 4's. On Saturday I saw them repeatedly off the front, finally dangling off the front with Joe Berenyi (Psimet) and barely holding off the field to go 1-2-3. Westergaurd and Ekstrom traded 1st and 2nd place finishes the balance of the weekend, with Westergaurd taking the overall by a single point.
• » Small fields from the women, but Stacy Appelwick (Bouledogue Tout Noir) continued to perform, sweeping the women's 30+.
• » The inaugural Tour of Elkhart Lake had a regrettably small turnout. That's a shame for a rare stage race, but it's tough to go up against the big Iowa series. On the upside, nearly everyone went home with a top-10 finish. Jason Mindeman (Burnham Racing) was one of the few who came up from the Chicago area, and he nearly swept the 3's, winning the criterium and road race and placing 3rd in the time trial to clinch the overall.

Full Wood Dale results. Full Tour of Elkhart Lake results.

Wood Dale reports Debbie Dust (PACT/Dish Network; 50+, 40+): "I had about a tenth of a second to make a choice: Run him over or lean left and hope he sticks to the road."

Tour of Elkhart Lake reports Jason Mindeman (Burnham Racing; 3): "My teammate and I tried multiple times to set something up but the rest of the riders were just there to follow wheels."

Iowa once again attracted some of the best riders from the Midwest and beyond this Memorial Day weekend. Some of the local highlights:

• » Argentina. Ukraine. Trinidad & Tobago. Those are the countries whose national champions lined up for Friday's Burlington-Wapello-Burlington Road Race. Will Nowak (Verizon u25) made it into a break with two of them, and with the pack bearing down on this threesome, he initiated the sprint, only to be overcome and have to settle for 3rd. As is becoming the Verizon u25 modus operandi, teammate Mike Sherer finished strong in the field sprint, coming in 2nd for 5th overall.
• » In my preview of the weekend I neglected to note how dodgy the downhill finish can be at the Wapello-Burlington Road Race, especially in the lower categories. As usual, fast, violent crashes marred the end of this year's 5's race, but Owen Aronson (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) avoided the mayhem to finish 2nd. But here's your warning for next year: That downhill finish is dodgy as hell.
• » Just how does a Ukrainian national champion riding for an Italian team end up in rural Iowa, anyhow? As usual, Steve Tilford (Tradewind Energy/Trek Stores) has some interesting thoughts on the matter. In any case, on a day where the heat was just as oppressive as the famous cobbled climb of Snake Alley, Volodymyr Starchyk (Amore & Vita-Conad) overcame a rear start position Saturday and proceeded to ride away from a blockbuster field like it was the kiddie trike race. Only Paul Martin (Texas Roadhouse) was able to present a challenge, but a dropped chain derailed that. Out of a large group chasing, Sterling's Bryce Mead (Texas Roadhouse) managed 7th, Ryan Fruend (Verizon u25) 13th.
• » Fox River Grove proved to be the perfect tune-up for Snake Alley, helping Chicago assert itself on the famous cobbled climb, especially in the 4's, where 7 of the top 10 hailed from Chicago, including winner Ryan Fay, who overcame the leader on the final descent to take the win. Eric Christ (Bicycle Heaven) joined him on the podium in 3rd. XXX Racing-AthletiCo got two others in the top 10, and Rhythm Racing's Evan Jahn and John Villena finished 5th and 7th.
• » Avi Neurohr (Chicago Cuttin' Crew) deserves a brick for racing three times at Snake Alley: two masters races and the 4's.
• » I confess to giving juniors short shrift in these pages, partly owing to the size and competitiveness of their fields. Not so in Iowa, where the juniors ranks were large and impressive. Brandon Feehery muscled into the top 10 in all three crits, including a 2nd at Quad Cities. Strong finishes in the juniors races also came from IS Corp's Kaleb Koch and Chazz Martin, and Koch also found time to finish 3rd in the 4's at Quad Cities.
• » Kristen Meshberg (Flatlandia) has been banging on the door at Quad Cities, finishing 2nd in both 2008 and 2009. This time she broke through, winning out of a strong women's 1/2/3 field.
• » Dave Stone (Verizon Wireless) hit for the cycle in the 40+, placing 3rd, 1st and 2nd at Snake Alley, Melon City and Quad Cities, respectively.
• » Top Melon City results include Ryan Freund (Verizon u25), who finished 5th after making the break in the P/1/2's. Cady Chintis (Alberto's), Mia Moore (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) and KIm Gialdini took 2nd, 4th and 5h in the women's 4's. Julio Jacobo (PYOC) has been paddling his canoe well all year; riding without teammates, he finished 2nd in the 3's. And Dave Reed (EMC2) got 6th in a 30+ race that saw three pros take the podium spots.
• » In the notorious Cage Match of Quad Cities, Chicago riders went 1-2 in the 3's behind winner Ryan Zook (Comcast) and Henry Loud (ReCycling), and Ian Murray pulled off a 2nd in the 4's.

Full Burlingon Road Race results. Full Snake Alley results. Full Melon City results. Full Quad Cities results.

Burlington Road Race reports The Hawk Eye: "The Burlington Road Race exhibited an international flair Friday."

Lew Chin (Rhythm Racing; 3/4): "Everyone at the back wants to be up front. Recipe for disaster? Maybe."

John Meyers (Verizon u25; P/1/2): "I thought it was pretty funny just how chippy people were getting at the end of that race. We were bumping bars a solid 15 miles from the finish jockeying for position. It never stopped."

Matt Riezman (Spidermonkey Cycling; 5): "The last thing I saw was a carbon wheel near my head."

Joe Tortorelli (Verizon Wireless; 3/4): "With 30mph+ going up the roller we just couldn't shake the field. Bummer."

Verizon u25 (P/1/2): "In the field sprint the group was spread across the road as they barreled toward the finish."

Snake Alley reports Amore & Vita-Conad: "Sul traguardo in salita di Burlington lo scalatore di Amore & Vita – Conad non ha avuto rivali." (Translation.)

Ryan Fay (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "This is the finest race I think I’ll have the honor of competing in and to get the win here means the world to me."

Kim Gialdini (Flatlandia; W-4): "The snake was everything that everyone had told me."

The Hawk Eye: "With four laps left, Starchyk came down Jefferson Street on his own." "Miller was in control from the start, and no one had an answer for her charge."

Lew Chin (Rhythm Racing; 4): "My eyes were rolled fully back into my head and the pounding of my heart distorted the sounds my ears were trying to process."

Chris Kinonen (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+, 3): "It wasn’t the result, but rather the journey."

Kristen Meshberg (Flatlandia; W-P/1/2): "I got a great start and got the 'hole shot' hitting the hill first."

Avi Neurohr (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; 40+, 30+, 4): "'Wheelie!' they cried, and the crowd I obliged."

William Pankonin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "This race is Fox River Grove on crack."

Jannette Rho (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; W-P/1/2/3): "I’m lapped by the two leaders. Cool with me. One less lap to do!"

Matt Riezman (Spidermonkey Cycling; 5): "Big man no go up hill."

Steve Tilford (Tradewind Energy (P/1/2): "Everyone was overheated and had held up the white surrender flag."

Chris Uberti (Panther; P/1/2): "Stuck with the group till five to go, then blew sky high, partly because of some dumb riding on the Snake, but mostly because of the heat."

Verizon u25 (P/1/2): "Freund confessed he worked often on the flats to make sure that he was on the front and could 'sag' climb the Snake each lap."

Snake Alley photos Morpheus3230 USA Cycling (video) Verizon u25

Melon City reports Lew Chin (Rhythm Racing; 4, 30+): "Halfway through and feeling OK, the heat begins to take its toll and I start to wonder which cards to play."

Shawn Delk (Project 5; 4): "The unique (and fun!) part is the speed hump at the very bottom of the downhill that if you want to carry your speed into the climb you need to bunny hop."

Kim Gialdini (Flatlandia; W-4): "I believe I really could have won this race if I was better prepared mentally for that speed bump."

Podium Insight: "Following the usual early aggressions a powerful group rolled off the front after 12 laps."

Kristen Meshberg (Flatlandia; W-P/1/2): "I do not have good feelings towards this race and just did not have my head in the game today."

John Meyers (Verizon u25; P/1/2): "Despite someone running into me from behind I managed to a) avoid being sodomized, b) avoid eating poo, and c) not break anything on my bike."

Jannette Rho (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; W-3): "It was again HOT and riders were cracking all day."

Steve Tilford (Tradewind Energy/Trek Stores; P/1/2): "I’d rather be riding great and finish fourth than be riding bad and finish 2nd. First is a different deal."

Chris Uberti (Panther; P/1/2): "The heat wasn't too bad and I got into a sick breakaway with ALL the strong guys of the race."

Verizon u25 (P/1/2): "Breaks that stay away at Melon City need to have boatloads of power."

Melon City photos McKimm

Quad Cities reports Kim Gialdini (Flatlandia; W-4): "A rider in front of me skidded her wheel. Almost crashed. I lost my chance to go around and pass like I wanted to."

Kristen Meshberg (Flatlandia; W-P/1/2/3): "I went into that race ready for battle."

John Meyers (Verizon u25; P/1/2): "Not like I was going to be powering the poop out of that break anyways."

Jannette Rho (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; W-2/3): "We get going and riders go down like clockwork at Turn 7 for the first 5-6 laps."

Steve Tilford (Tradewind Energy/Trek Stores; P/1/2): "It was enough for me to grab a handfull of brake and I ended up scrubbing so much speed I ended up 6th. I lost 3 places in 75 meters. I was not going to win so it didn’t really matter."

Joe Tortorelli (Verizon Wireless; 3): "Tail-gunnin' the first eight laps. Jumping around people getting shelled."

It was a particularly hot weekend of racing.

The temperature was above normal, too, and Sunday's heat combined with an unplanned 180-degree turn to make the Urbana Grand Prix an attrition fest -- only 24 of the 54 P/1/2 starters finished -- but it also allowed for several exciting breaks, including a three-man break in the 3's that lapped the field, won by John Whipple (Tati Cycles) in a remarkably close photo finish. Other highlights from the weekend:

• » The P/1/2 races drew some of the strongest teams from Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, including Panther, Texas Roadhouse and Cleveland Clinic Sports Health. On Saturday, however, it was host Verizon u25 that put on the clinic at Saturday's Tour de Champaign. After a furiously fast first few laps, it got two riders into a five-man break. With five laps to go, Ryan Freund, above, was able to get clear, cheekily tapping on an imaginary wireless device as he crossed the line. Behind him, teammates Will Nowak and Mike Sherer won their respective sprints to take 2nd and 6th. Nowak saved enough gas to finish 2nd again on Sunday, with Sherer and Freund also landing in the top 10.
• » Patrick Fasse continues his hot streak in the 30+. He won Sunday's in Urbana after getting away with Steven Broglio (Verizon Wireless) from a surprisingly small field.
• » Another week, another impressive 3's race for IS Corp. After being off the front for much of the race, Scott Rosenfield (IS Corp) and Joe Tortorelli (Verizon Wireless) clung to a small gap to start the bell lap. Suddenly Chazz Martin (IS Corp) burst from the pack and came to Rosenfield's rescue. Together they stayed away with a comfortable margin, with Martin sitting up to allow Rosenfield a well-deserved win.
• » Kyle Selph (Tower Racing) burst on the scene last year, winning his first four 5's races, including twice at the state road race championships. He's picked up where he left off, winning Saturday out of the 4/5's bunch sprint.
• » A good weekend for Jason Rassi (Wild Card Cycling): He finished 2nd to Selph Saturday, then won the 4's on Sunday.
• » Julio Jacobo (PYOC) had a good weekend in Wisconsin. He won Saturday's 3's race in Hartland, then placed 6th Sunday in Sussex.
• » Also in Wisconsin, XXX Racing-AthletiCo won a 35+ 4/5's race for the third week in a row, this time thanks to Curtis Eldridge in Hartland. He also placed 4th in the 5's.

Saturday results Tour de Champaign Chiropractic Criterium

Sunday results Urbana Grand Prix Sussex Criterium

Champaign reports Adam Herndon (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4/5, 3/4): "I tried to stay at the front so as to stay out of the mess, but was still being unnecessarily bumped and cut into."

Joey Iuliano (ReCycling; P/1/2): "I remember seeing a pile in the exit of the corner, people braking, some screaming, me fish tailing, and then someone plowing into my rear wheel."

Will Nowak (Verizon u25; P/1/2): "The three remaining riders tried to organize a chase and I did my best to disrupt it."

Rob Raguet-Schofield (Wild Card Cycling; 3/4): "The brutal accelerations wreaked havoc on my tired legs."

Hogan Sills (Verizon u25; P/1/2): "I did manage to get one prime, but after that I was toast and finished towards the back."

Tim Speciale (Psimet; 3/4, 3): "Close, but no cigar."

Joe Tortorelli (Verizon Wireless; 3): "So, so, so close, although I had never been so far into the 'red' as I was in that break."

Champaign photos Liz Brunson Luke Seemann Verizon u25

Urbana reports Cathy Frampton (Project 5; W-3/4, W-open): "Holy crap. A 180-degree turn? Seriously?"

Adam Herndon (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "The last lap was the dumbest lap of racing I have done."

Will Nowak (Verizon u25; P/1/2): "The three remaining riders tried to organize a chase and I did my best to disrupt it."

Hogan Sills (Verizon u25; P/1/2): "In our pre-race meeting we likened this race to a flat Snake Alley in that the race would only be at the front with gobs coming off the back."

Mark Swartzendruber (Verizon Wireless; 40+): "Certainly in all fields, it was a tough-guy race."

Joe Tortorelli (Verizon Wireless; 3): "A hard, hard race."

John Whipple (Tati Cycles; 3): "There were eight laps left and it looked like the race was going to turn into an attack fest."

Urbana photos Liz Brunson Paymon Danesh Mark Novack Verizon u25

Various correspondents are starting to refer to this weekend as KAWOR: Kick-ass Weekend of Racing. Who am I to argue? It was pretty splendid indeed, and many racers showed good results on both days.

I can't possibly shower praise on all who deserve it, but here some of this busy weekend's highlights:

• » Where on earth did Andrew Bates (Olympia Orthopaedic) come from? That may be what Mike Sherer (Verizon u25) spent Saturday evening wondering. Bates of Evanston outkicked Sherer to take the sprint win from a giant P/1/2/3 field at Monsters of the Midway.
• » Verizon u25 would have its chance to celebrate in its new kits the next day at Fox River Grove: Teammates Sherer, Will Nowak and Ryan Freund were three of the final five-man selection in the P/1/2 race -- a selection created in part when Brian Dziewa (ABD) set off as a rabbit on the first lap, setting a blistering pace up the hill -- with Nowak getting free for the win and Sherer cleaning up behind him for 2nd.
• » Stacy Appelwick (Bouledogue Tout Noir) continues to show the great form she took to the Tour of the Gila. On Saturday she solo'd away midway through the women's 3/4's, then took 3rd in the women's open sprint. She repeated the feat at Fox River Grove, winning the 3/4's, then beating Kristen Meshberg (Flatlandia) in the two-up sprint for 2nd. (Jessi Prinner (ABD), fresh from her latest European tour, took 1st after being able to stick with the men's 50+ leaders racing concurrently.)
• » Patrick Fasse (Bicycle Heaven) took the lllinois Cup 30+ lead by winning at both Monsters and Fox River Grove. Ed Amstutz (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) nearly pulled off the masters double, too: At the base of the final climb of the Fox River Grove 40+ he blasted free of a four-man selection for the win, a day after finishing 2nd to Fasse in the 30+.
• » Monsters was good to ReCycling: On a course made for sprinters, Henry Loud won the 3's in emphatic fashion, and teammate Justin Lyons took the 4's in a close bunch sprint.
• » Ian Murray and William Pankonin of XXX Racing-AthletiCo got some great results in the lower categories over the weekend. Murray won the 4/5's at Monsters and stayed away from the mayhem in the 4's to grab 2nd. While he was enjoying the flattest course in the Midwest, Pankonin was having his way on the hilliest, Wisconsin's La Rue-Denzer-La Rue. After making a final group of 4 in the 35+ 4/5's, Pankonin rode away on the final climb to take his second victory in as many weeks. (He also won the 35+ 4/5's at last week's Muskego Criterium.) Fox River Grove brought Murray and Pankonin together in the 4's, where they overcame two escaped riders in the last turns to go 1-2.
• » The 3's race at Fox River Grove was larger than in years past, and despite individual efforts to get away it stayed together more than usual, too, yielding a rare group sprint, taken by David Reyes (Bloomington Cycle), above.
• » Dustin Morici (Bloomington Cycle) of St. Charles is not a rider we've heard much about but I suspect we're bound to hear more: He attacked on the final La Rue-Denzer-La Rue climb to get a clear 4/5's victory, then finished 3rd in the 4's at Fox River Grove.
• » There weren't many Chicago riders at Madison's Wheels on Willy, but we swept the 3's race with Chazz Martin (IS Corp), Joel Friedman (Bicycle Heaven) and Ryan Zook (Comcast) going 1-2-3 in the sprint. It yielded a very impressive post-up, as captured by John Wilke at Peloton-Pix. Note Martin's elegant, understated "modified crucifix" posture: confident and firm yet humble and relaxed. Obviously someone has been practicing. Equally impressive, however, is Friedman behind him, offering the first standing ovation I have ever seen in competitive cycling. Two class acts here.
• » Wilke reports that Martin crashed out of the P/1/2/3 race, but teammate James Bird finished in 13th, an impressive result given the size and composition of that field.
• » How long did it take for the Fox River Grove 5's field to detonate? Not long at all. Video compliments of Omar Patalinghug (Unattached).
• » Slowly but surely Fox River Grove approaches its potential for Alpe d'Huez-like spectator encampment and merriment. Tati Cycles did a fine job chalking the climb this year, and this video shows some tifosi practicing their cyclocross heckles. (Just three months to go, friends.)

Saturday results La Rue-Denzer-La Rue Monsters of the Midway

Sunday results Fox River Grove Wheels on Willy

Monsters of the Midway reports Stephen Butler (Wheelfast; 4): "I had to stand on the pedals and jam out of the corners every time we turned into the long straightaways."

Rob Curtis (Psimet; 4, 4/5): "There was a lot of groaning and bitching like usual."

Shawn Delk (Project 5; 4): "I had that sixth sense creeping in. You know it, that crash feeling. I had avoided all of them for some time now."

Mike Ebert (Verizon u25; P/1/2/3): "I could tell it was going to be tough."

Tamara Fraser (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; W-3/4, W-open): "I'm not ashamed of a pack finish in that race. It was the hardest flat race I've ever done."

Nick Gajewski (Rhythm Racing; 4/5): "Jittery riders, sketchy maneuvering, and the always fun yo-yoing out of the corners."

Arron Hampton (Psimet; 4/5, 5): "In a blink of any eye -- or is that a tap of a brake -- 20 riders could fly past."

Adam Herndon (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4, 4/5): "With everyone in the front turning to look back at the crash while going fast in to the turn, I kept my head forward and yelled at people to do the same."

Jason Knauff (Burnham Racing; 3): "Unsatisfied with a DNF I continued on a bit angry."

Kristen Meshberg (Flatlandia; W-open): "We had yet another fun, active race."

Ian Murray (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4, 4/5): "I was Cavendish, not Haussler; so I kept my head down and drove through the line."

Ella Neurohr (Unattached; 10-14): "'PLOOPY!'"

Peloton Star: "It would take a magic combination of riders to escape today."

Matt Riezman (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4/5): "Around 20 minutes in, my brain finally turned on."

Grayson Smith (Rhythm Racing; 4/5): "Lots of hooting and hollering through the competition."

Tim Speciale (Psimet; 3, P/1/2/3): "Someone's arm rammed into my right leg."

Monsters of the Midway photos Jeff Chen Katie Cook Peloton-Pix Mike Rich Tati Cycles Andrew Zens (video)

La Rue-Denzer-La Rue reports Brian Koeneman (Wheel & Sprocket; 35+ 1/2/3, P/1/2): "'Mind over matter.'"

William Pankonin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 35+ 4/5): "I looked back and saw a nice big gap."

Fox River Grove reports Ron Cook (Project 5; 3): "For the final four laps it became a game of how many riders can i pick off."

Ryan Fay (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "I was liking our odds for something special."

Kim Gialdini (Flatlandia; W-3/4, W-open): " I hit the climb. My legs were burning. Push, push push. Close that gap! Go Go Go."

Adam Herndon (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4, 4/5): "I went in knowing that I was going to be just surviving not winning."

Jason Knauff (Burnham Racing; 3): "It's too bad the strongest guy in the race missed the podium by one spot. I guess that's Cat 3 racing in the Midwest."

Kristen Meshberg (Flatlandia; W-open): "The amazingly strong Stacy Appelwick, in her second race of the day, caught me and I hung onto her wheel for dear life to the finish."

Ian Murray (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4, 4/5): "I had my eyes fixed on the two leaders."

Avi Neurohr (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; 40+): "I was racing against guys with hyperbaric chambers and national titles."

Will Nowak (Verizon u25; P/1/2): "I was pretty confident that Mike would have the race locked up if we all went to the line together, but why risk it?"

William Pankonin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "After the turn, we both jumped and sprinted in to the line."

Matt Riezman (Spidermonkey Cycling; 5): "I finished, I was not last, and it hurt the whole time."

Grayson Smith (Rhythm Racing; 5): "If I could do this race twice a month I’d be there every weekend."

Tim Speciale (Psimet; 3, P/1/2/3): "Hammer up the hill, go down, try again."

Fox River Grove photos Katie Cook Eric Goodwin Chris Kinonen Ian Murray Grayson Smith Verizon u25

Wheels on Willy reports Peloton Star

Highlights from a busy weekend of racing:

• » Verizon u25 had a cracking weekend as several of its riders get ready for this week's collegiate national championships in Madison. At the Fat & Tire Skinny Festival in Indiana, Will Nowak a close 2nd to Hillsboro-Roubaix winner Chris Uberti (Panther) in Saturday's road race. In the next day's criterium it was Mike Sherer's turn. He would get 2nd after being in a group that lapped the field early in the race. Also on Sunday, Verizon u25 animated the P/1/2 race at the Vernon Hills Grand Prix. After the field split and then came back together, Waylon Janowiak and Nowak were off the front in a group of six, with Janowiak taking the win.
• » Verizon's elder statesmen fared well at Vernon Hills, too: Mark Swartzendruber and Dave Stone made the break in the 40+, with Stone taking the win, and Steve Broglio finished 2nd to Paul Swinand (Comcast) after the two of them slipped away in the 30+.
• » Sunday was a good day for Patrick Fasse (Bicycle Heaven): He made that final break of the P/1/2's, finishing 2nd, and won the field sprint for 3rd in the 30+. Same for Ricardo Otero (WDT-Allvoi): He lost a close sprint to Stone in the 40+, then held on for 6th in the P/1/2's
• » A few riders tangled at the bell of the women's 3/4's race at Vernon Hills, but fortunately road rash appeared to be the worst of it. Gina Romero (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) went on to take the win. The women's open race was also a bloody affair, although more benign: Kristen Meshberg (Flatlandia) found herself with a mysterious bloody nose mid-race. It didn't stop her from going solo for the last several laps for a clean win, however.
• » I was counseling riders to be patient in the sprint at Vernon Hills, but long sprints won both the 3's and 4's races. Shows what I know about sprinting. Matt Haiduk (Bicycle Heaven) took the 4's (photo above) and Nate Iden (Burnham Racing) won the 3's, a repeat of 2009.
• » Omar Patalinghug (Unattached) takes us on a video tour of the final lap of the 5's race. Two of the Verizon u25 were geared up for video, too, but it hasn't left the editing studio yet.
• » Some good results from young ISCorp riders: Chazz Martin (ISCorp) got 2nd in the 3's at Vernon Hills, Northwestern University's Scott Rosenfield (ISCorp) won Saturday's 3's road race in Indiana. Meanwhile, young Trevor Rolette (South Chicago Wheelmen) placed 3rd in Sunday's 4/5 criterium in Indiana.
• » The two crosswind sections at Saturday's Circuit of Sauk near Baraboo, Wis., proved almost as formidable as the course's two big climbs, and the strong, gusty wind left at least one rider ruing his choice of deep-dish wheels. (He would spend the evening researching how to remove grass stains from helmets.) XXX Racing-AthletiCo didn't get a win but came close all day: Ian Murray and Liam Donoghue placed 4th in the 4/5's and 3's, respectively, and William Pankonin followed a top 10 in the 4/5's with a 3rd in the 30+ 4/5's, just behind Tom McNulty (Tower Racing). In the P/1/2, Dave Moyer won the sprint out of first chase group to take 3rd.
• » Sunday's Kenosha Business Park Criterium was lightly attended, but PACT/Dish Network made a good showing and dominated the results.

Full Saturday results Fat & Skinny Tire Fest Road Race Circuit of Sauk

Full Sunday results Kenosha Business Park Criterium Vernon Hills Grand Prix Fat & Skinny Tire Fest Criterium

Fat & Skinny Tire Fest Road Race reports Will Nowak (Verizon u25; P/1/2): "I never like to sit on a group, but we are racing for first place."

Mike Sherer (Verizon u25; P/1/2): "The race started off fast and aggressive."

Chris Uberti (Panther; P/1/2): "The race got out to a really fast start. And by fast I mean real fast, there was no joking around in this race."

Circuit of Sauk reports Tamara Fraser (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; W-P/1/2/3): "I spent the rest of that lap alone, battling the wind, catching and dropping a stray racer."

Ryan Freund (Verizon u25; P/1/2): "It appeared to turn into a game of let's watch Cole House from the BMC team attack and then chase him down and wait for him to attack again."

Kim Gialdini (Flatlandia; W-P/1/2/3): "Crosswind takes me away. Almost fell off my bike."

Brandon Meinke (Team Pegasus; 3): "Everyone was battling for protection from the wind, even if it meant riding in the dirt."

Ian Murray (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "I battled to maintain contact over the top and thought to myself, 'What is going on?!?'"

Kristen Meshberg (Flatlandia; W-P/1/2/3): "ISCorp did a beautiful attack. It was so impressive I took notes on 'how to attack at the end of a race.'"

William Pankonin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4/5, 30+ 4/5): "I only hoped that 'the man with the hammer' would stay away from me."

Kenosha reports Ron Cook (Project 5; 30+): "This race was basically a chance for Kevin and I to play tactics a bit and try to come out with a win from a four-man break."

Vernon Hills reports Shawn Delk (Project 5; 4): "Race went along uneventful for the most part, kind of sloppy, a lot of bumping and wheel rubbing."

Tamara Fraser (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; W-open): "I hate crashing, but it's part of the sport."

Brian Dziewa (ABD; P/1/2): "At one point my face was tingling from either lack of oxygen or lactic acid, not sure which."

Elvis Falbo (Beverly Bike/Vee-Pak; 4): "Now I know what two rams feel like when they butt heads and get stuck."

Waylon Janowiak (Verizon u25; P/1/2): "I was honestly scared with the amount of power he was putting out bridging the gap."

Kristen Meshberg (Flatlandia; W-open): "Blood was spewing everywhere and I couldn't get it to stop. It was very embarrassing but I really did not want to let it to ruin my race."

Matt Riezman (Spidermonkey Cycling; 5): "After three laps of accordion fun time, I started to feel the work in my lungs and legs."

Jared Rogers (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "At four to go the lights and sirens went off and it was time to leave the lounge."

Mike Shea (Spidermonkey Cycling; 30+): "I've been in that position 43 times and each time I've adjusted. Luck ran out yesterday."

Grayson Smith (Rhythm Racing; 5): "The cranks shifted beautifully and I stayed in the big ring the entire time."

Tim Speciale (Psimet; 3): "Black jerseys were constantly smacking the peloton in the face with attack after attack."

Mark Swartzendruber (Verizon Wireless; 40+, P/1/2): "Track racing is hard and fun and gallant and all that, but a criterium is not a damn points race."

Andrew Zens (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4): "I tried to ride around the pile but it happened too fast."

Vernon Hills photos Luke Seemann Matt Smith: 3, 40+ Tim Speciale WDT Ed White

Fat & Skinny Tire Fest Criterium reports Mike Sherer (Verizon u25; P/1/2): "Sunday was a wet and crazy crit."

Stacy Appelwick (Bouledogue Tout Noir) placed 3rd in the women's 3/4's at this weekend's prestigious Tour of the Gila in New Mexico.

Appelwick made the elite selection in both of the long, hilly road races and won Saturday's criterium. Her rivals made up time in the time trial, however, and Appelwick wound up 27 seconds down in the general classification, 4 minutes ahead of the next rider. A handful of other local riders made the trip, too, with the top result coming from Chris Mosora (Verizon Wireless), who placed 6th in the 40+ criterium and finished 25th in the GC. And some of you may remember Minnesota's Jonathan Toftoy (Synergy), who won a handful of races at the Gapers Block Crit Series. He won the 3's overall after winning the time trial and winning the Day 2 road race -- with a 9-minute gap over 2nd place. The next big national stage race is this weekends Joe Martin Stage Race in Arkansas, and I know of more than a dozen local riders making the long trip.

Some local highlights from the weekend's racing in Wisconsin and Iowa:

• » Karl Schult (Capital Bicycle Racing Club) is off to a great start this season. After the 3's field split in two at a damp and cold Whitnall Park in Hales Corner, Wis., (photo above) Schult and Brandon Meinke (Team Pegasus) maintained the slimmest of gaps for the last lap and a half; Schult took the win after a tough uphill sprint. The next day in Fitchburg, Wis., he finished 2nd in the 35+ 3/4's and 5th in the 35+ 1/2/3's. Previously he won the 3's at Joliet and came in 2nd at Hillsboro-Roubaix.
• » Having missed that separation at Whitnall Park, Ben LaForce (ReCycling) had to settle for winning the field sprint. The next day he made up for it by winning the 3's race in Fitchburg, the first victory in ReCycling debut season.
• » Glenview's Kaleb Koch (ISCorp) had a pretty good weekend, too. Saturday he won the 4/5's and got 3rd in the juniors 15-18. On Sunday he headed to Iowa City, Iowa, for the Old Capitol Criterium, where he was the top 13-14 junior and 4th junior overall in a race won by teammate James Bird of Kenilworth. He wasn't done yet, going on to place 3rd in the 4's.
• » That 4's race was won by Patryk Limanowicz (XXX Racing-AthletiCo), who also won Saturday's road race in Iowa. He's storming through the 4's: Those are the 9th and 10th races he has won since starting as a 5 just seven weeks ago.
• » Nice results from Flatlandia: Kim Gialdini won the bunch sprint in the women's 4's at Whitnall Park, and Kristen Meshberg placed 4th and 3rd in the women's P/1/2/3 in Iowa.
• » Bicycle Heaven swept Iowa's 5's races. Justin Somerville and Eric Christ came in 1st and 3rd on Saturday, then 3rd and 1st on Sunday.

Saturday results Whitnall Park Iowa City Road Race

Sunday results Fitchburg Old Capitol Criterium

Whinall Park reports Chicago Cuttin' Crew (4, W-P/1/2/3): "The candelabra caretaker decided the best way to stay out of trouble was to drag the field around."

Kim Gialdini (Flatlandia; W-4): "The others where tiring! Ding, ding, ding! Time to hit it."

Josh Hughes (Half Acre Cycling; 4): "I could feel the energy sapping out of me as we completed the last few laps."

Luke Seemann (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 35+ 1/2/3, P/1/2/3): "I haven’t ridden against such a prestigious kit since my days in the 5’s racing against U.S. Postal and Pink Floyd."

Andrew Zens (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4): "Last lap, time to HTFU."

Whinall Park photos John Wilke

Iowa City reports Kristen Meshberg (Flatlandia; P/1/2/3): "There were also some other really strong women in the field so there was some good competition even if we didn't have big numbers."

Steve Tilford (TradeWind Energy/Trek Stores; P/1/2): "Probably close to more jumps than I’ve done the whole season combined."

Maybe wider tires would have been a good idea after all?

Lower-category racers have clamored for longer, harder road races, and Saturday's Leland Kermesse delivered in spades. Dozens of riders fell victim to the serpentine hiss of a pinch flat. Those that didn't still had to stay upright through the soupy gravel and amidst the chaos of fallen riders, no different from the pro peloton trying to navigate the Koppenberg. "Take turns slow," Flatlandia's entertaining FAQ warned before the course. "Especially on the gravel. Nothing is slower than crashing." More than one rider found that out the hard way, including Jacques Launer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo), as captured here. He would be OK and finish in the top half of the 5's. Teammate William Pankonin managed to eat gravel twice and still finish 8th in the 4's. The award for persistence may go to Tony Rienks (Beverly Bike/Vee-Pak), who finished 21st despite a crash that took a big bite out of his arm. After the race he'd head to the hospital for six stitches in an injury that he described as "hamburger." And for anyone who survived those two challenges, there was still the matter of the wind, which defied early forecasts and like the mighty Kraken rose up to smite all comers. No surprise, then, than the P/1/2/3 race had more DNF's than F's. Indeed, every field was destined to blow up. Within a few miles of the P/1/2/3 race, Verizon u25 set explosives of its own when Ryan Freund and John Meyers went down the road -- and stayed down the road for more than 70 miles. "It was something special to see," says Ted Burger (Flatlandia), who was ensconced in the pace car. "On the tailwind section of gravel they were doing about 35 mph every lap." Freund and Meyers would build an impressive lead and finish 1-2, respectively, although the team report paints an amusing picture of the two of them tense on the rivet, like two newlyweds bickering on their honeymoon. Cyclocross experience paid off, although anyone who thrived in the gravel had to stay alert to stay on terms in the fast pavement and crosswinds. A balanced skill set was required. Eric Christ (Bicycle Heaven) and John Whipple (Team Tati) are no strangers to the dirt, nor to the podium: They won the 5's and 4's races, respectively, with Christ earning himself a free frame from Tati Cycles. Whipple, meanwhile, becomes the first rider in spring-classics history to win the Hillsboro-Leland double. He also tells me he has resubmitted his upgrade request. Look out, Fabian. The women's races detonated in similar fashion. Host Flatlandia picked up the win thanks to Kristen Meshberg, who won out of a three-woman sprint in the P/1/2/3's. Out of another large women's 4's field, rookie Cady Chintis (Unattached) won in what was her first road race. Full results.

Race reports Dan Andrews (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 5): "I was here to race and finish this bloody thing is what I did."

Stephen Butler (Wheelfast; 4): "The gravel seemed to last forever."

Tamara Fraser (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; W-4): "My endorphins were having a party in my brain and I was filled with sentimental appreciation for my breakmates."

Ryan Freund (Verizon u25; P/1/2/3): "John wanted to put everyone in the gutter from the gun, Steve thought we should wait a lap, and I really didn’t care."

Tyler George (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; P/1/2/3): "Last of those who finished. A fighter's position."

Arron Hampton (Psimet; 5): "I have never seen riders fall down so slowly. It was funny and it was not funny."

Chris Jensen (Half Acre Cycling; 4): "It was not only one of the hardest things I’ve ever done but one of the most awesome as well."

Dana Maglaris (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; W-4): "I gave it a huge effort to stay with the 1/2/3’s, who were attacking like crazy."

Kristen Meshberg (Flatlandia; W-P/1/2/3): "She took off on the first thick gravel section and I was terrified but forced myself to stay on her wheel."

Avi Neurohr (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; 4): "I soldiered on."

William Pankonin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "From the back, you could tell which riders were shelled. Broken legs swerved all over the road."

Brian Parker (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "You need to do this race next year, it is that good. Can I preregister now, for next year?"

Ben Popper (Half Acre Cycling; 4): " It was such a great feeling, floating down the road. When we turned back onto the pavement, there were only five of us."

Ted Ramos (Iron Cycles; 4): "The first two laps were so hard I thought I could blow up at any time."

Jannette Rho (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; W-P/1/2/3): "You had to be strong to survive the winds and skilled to make it through the gravel."

Tony Rienks (Beverly Bike/Vee-Pak; 4): "I jump back onto the bike, not wanting my day to be over so soon."

Joe Schubert (Super Ape; 4): "At least I beat my 5-minute."

Mark Swartzendruber (Verizon Wireless; 40+): " I lost all concentration of the task at hand, being to crush him into the aggregate on the dirt roads."

Verizon u25 (P/1/2/3): "Meyers also said they spent most of the race bickering as they were completely on the rivet."

Bryan Witry (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4): "Three hours in the saddle is a long time. I loved every second of it."

Photos John Firak Gavin Gould Rom Ramondong David Tzau

It's somewhat demoralizing to pop halfway through a race, doubly so to then read reports of how slow the first half of said race had been.

Such was my P/1/2 experience at Saturday's Hillsboro-Roubaix. After a fidgety first 45 miles, attacks started in earnest midway through the second lap. A small group was finally able to get free and put together a gap of four minutes, but a breakneck pace brought them back by the end, splitting the field in the process but still leading to one of the largest P/1/2 sprints in Hillsboro history. In that sprint Ohio's Team Panther had total control, putting together a leadout that not only made Chris Uberti's win look easy but bagged 3rd- and 4th-place finishes as well. Here's interesting video from Dave Henderson (Columbia Bike Club) that shows the last 8 minutes of that race. Kristen Meshberg (Flatlandia) was the top Chicago-area finisher in the women's P/1/2/3's, placing 4th in the field sprint and 8th overall. After the first seven women declined the invitation to the prestigious Nature Valley Grand Prix, however, the golden ticket fell to Meshberg, who happily accepted. Looks like about a dozen women 4's entered town together, but it was Stacy Appelwick (Bouledogue Tout Noir) who got over the masonry first, taking victory by a few seconds. Christina Peck (Chicago Cuttin' Crew) was the next Chicago finisher in 4th. Proctor Cycling had a good day. Brett Bohanan won the 5's, and then Dan Damotte was part of a threesome that got a gap over the bricks in the final approach of the 3's. He won the ensuing drag race against Karl Schult (CBRC) and Bryan Rheude (Comma-Van Wagner), the latter of whom was racing for the first time since a season-ending cyclocross injury. As I'd expected, the 4's field was in shambles by the end. I've heard tell of many heat-related cramps and a handful of crashes, including one mishap in the feed zone when, against my advice, someone tried to grab not one but two bottles and wound up up close and personal with the spectators. Two riders were able to stay away and finish almost two minutes up, with John Whipple (Team Tati) demonstrating the strongest engine. With a whoop he rolled in more than 20 seconds ahead of Tim Speciale (Psimet). To my recollection that is the biggest win in Tati's short history, and the brick for 2nd place isn't a shabby scalp for the new Psimet squad. The gentlemen of Verizon Wireless had their way with the 40+ race. A break of about a dozen had been whittled to just four down the homestretch, with Dave Stone (Verizon Wireless) and Mark Swartzendruber (Verizon Wireless) going 1-2. Behind them, their teammate Chris Mosora beat Randy Warren (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) for 5th. A minute and a half later, Downers Grove's Doug Braun (Tower Racing) narrowly won the field sprint for 7th. Team Mack also showed well, getting two of the top five in the 50+ and a 4th in the 40+. I've come across little criticism of the new course. The P/1/2 men finished on the heels of the W-P/1/2/3 women, but I know of no overlapped fields, so in that regard the extension and new schedule worked as intended. The narrow roads, however, once again proved problematic in nearly every race, especially with any right-to-left crosswind. Moto-refs are always nice to have, but enforcement remained spotty. A handful of riders were disqualified for violating the centerline, but many of those were unaware of it until after the finish, robbing the DQ's of their power of deterrence. There are two issues here: One is fundamental fairness. Any rider who tries to hew to the right is going to quickly himself at the back and eventually off the back. But far more important is the issue of safety. When we're splayed across the road and riding blindly over rollers, we court disaster should a vehicle approach from the other side of the climb. There's chatter of road closures in the future. I know it would require considerable expense, difficult logistics and tremendous help from an already accommodating Montgomery County, but for the sake of the race -- and for my own personal participation -- I hope it can somehow happen in 2011. Finally I should briefly note some strong local results in Sunday's crit racing in Wisconsin, where some large fields kicked off the WCA season. Matt Haiduk (Bicycle Heaven) won the 4's in a bunch sprint, and Vic Rentas of the new Team G Force placed 2nd in the 3's, followed by Julio Jacobo (PYOC) in 3rd. Full Hillsboro results. Timed results: P/1/2, 3, 4, 40+, 50+, W-4, 4, W-P/1/2/3 Full GDVC No. 1 results.

Hillsboro reports Bill Barnes (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 5): "I was still feeling good -- so good I started to think I might be able to attack if I found the right spot."

Rob Curtis (Psimet; 4): "It took forever to make my way back through the pack and then they hung out in front of me like a carrot for a while."

Dan Damotte (Proctor Cycling; 3): "It was pretty crazy. Can’t believe that it actually happened."

Natalie Evans (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; W-4): "I’ve never been so happy to see cobbles, knowing I was almost finished suffering."

Tamara Fraser (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; W-P/1/2/3): "This is a RACE. No one gets a free ride to the finish line."

Arron Hampton (Psimet; 5): "Shift, jump, check bottles, grab his wheel and I am bombing the descent."

Dave Henderson (Columbia Bike Club; P/1/2): "This race should either have a rolling enclosure or not be held at all."

Kristen Meshberg (Flatlandia; W-P/1/2/3): "I'm going to Nature Valley this year!!!"

Avi Neurohr (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; 4): "Disappointing results were softened by a five-hour bus ride with Stag beer, several thousand calories and being smushed on a couch with 13 stinky friends, trading stories."

William Pankonin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "I was now all over the front, trying to get some kind of chase organized to bring 'em back. Nothing doin'."

Peloton Star: "At the same time he was also swerving to miss the women who were finishing their race, as well as spectators jamming the road trying to get a good view of the action."

Jeff Perkins (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; 4): "Then we hit the hill before the cobbles and everything went to hell."

Rob Ragfield (Wild Card Cycling; 4): "I baked in the sun the whole second lap. I was out of water, thirsty, tired, miserable."

Jared Rogers (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "It was at the feed zone that I made my only mistake of the race, and it would prove to be a fatal one."

Jamie Sanchez (Half Acre Cycling; 5): "I don’t really know how to describe how it is riding on those bricks when you have almost absolutely nothing left."

Jonathan Schottler (Columbia Bike Club; P/1/2): "It seemed like everyone was day dreaming of a victory as they continuously slammed on their brakes and flew off into ditches."

Joe Schubert (Super Ape; 4): "I would take them all down the line even if it was for 50th or 60th place."

Darren Sherkat (Team Mack; 40+): "The 40+ race was quite a slugfest, and we were putting in some serious blows."

Hogan Sills (Verizon u25; P/1/2): "I had to work my tail off jumping around guys who left gaps, and with a strong pull helped bring back a good sized group of riders to the main field."

Joe Tortorelli (Verizon Wireless; 3): "So it came down to the last climbs into the city."

Team Tati (4, 5): "We're rebuilding Team Tati this year, one brick at a time."

Neil Thomas (Team Mack; 40+): "I found myself racing in the gutter, which on a windy course is the last place that you want to be."

Chris Uberti (Panther; P/1/2): "Finally going into the third lap the race suddenly turned on and went from a big, easy group ride to some really tough racing."

VeloNews: "On the eve of the Hell of the North, Christopher Uberti (Team Panther) and Rita Klofta (Pista Elite) took wins in the Hell of Illinois."

John Whipple (Team Tati; 4): "Fifteen miles of intense suffering with no electronic distractions. It was just me, the bike, the road and the wind."

Jeff Yielding (Revolution Cycles; 3): "I opted to race my cross bike. Why not: Bumpy roads, bricks and gravel. Seemed like a good idea."

Andrew Yeoman (Team Pegasus; 4): "People who were up front got organized quick immediately after the cobbles, right when I and everyone else needed a moment to compose ourselves."

Andrew Zens (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4): "How cruel of a sport cycling is."

Hillsboro photos John Bennett Verizon u25 John Wilke

Today was C.O.U.G.A.R., the South Chicago Wheelmen's training criterium at the Autobahn Country Club in Joliet. How'd it go for everyone?

Luke is away, so use the comments to link to your race reports, photos and results.

Today was the last of Kenosha Velosport's training criteriums in Pleasant Prairie, Wis. How'd it go for everyone?

Luke is away, so use the comments to link to your race reports, photos and results.

Today was the Spring Super Criterium in South Beloit, Ill., hosted by Burnham Racing.

Luke is away, so use the comments to link to your race reports, photos and results.

The Gapers Block Crit Series wrapped up tonight. How'd it go for everyone?

Luke is away, so use the comments to link to your race reports, photos and results.

The weather was dodgy on Saturday but improved enough by Sunday that racing was a go in Pleasant Prairie, Wis.

Chazz Martin (ISCorp) had the most noteworthy day. After winning his juniors race, he placed 4th in the 3's and then won the field sprint for 2nd in the 1/2's, ahead of Tomasz Boba (WDT-Allvoi). Tim Speciale (Psimet) won the 4's in a bunch sprint, the first victory for that new squad. Patrick Limanowicz (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) slipped away late in the 5's to win there, his second win in as many outings. (The 4's and 5's raced separately this week and will do so again at Sunday's finale.) Chicago did well in the masters races: Marek Serafin (PACT/Dish Network) continued to show his notorious Kenosha form by winning out of a break in the 40+ while Wayne Simon (Verdigris) and Richard Kreutzfeldt (PACT/Dish Network) took the 50+ and 55+, respectively. Elsewhere, Mike Sherer picked up the first podium for Verizon u25 by placing 3rd at the Brown County Road Race in Nashville, Ind. Jake Teitelbaum (Iron Cycles) placed 2nd in the 3's and Gina Romero (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) won the women's 4's race. Full Kenosha results. Full Brown County results.

Kenosha Velosport race reports Debbie Dust (PACT/Dish Network; 40+): "That was the race, right there. I watched as five other guys jumped up the left side and made it across, while I sat there boxed in and helplessly screwed."

Ed Hernandez (North Branch; 3): "My intent today was to smack the legs around with a meat tenderizer and reap the rewards later in the season."

Peloton Star: "Martin exploded with the power he developed racing at the Kenosha Velodrome to take the win."

Kenosha Velosport photos Katie Cook John Wilke

Brown County race reports Jake Teitelbaum (Iron Cycles; 3): "I get to the front and keep the pace up, hoping to shell anybody on the fence."

Pedals have turned in anger for the first time in 2010, although it's hard to get too angry at a small ABR race where your primary objective is to stay warm.

Conditions warmed up by the afternoon but wind was the biggest factor at Sunday's kick-off in Pleasant Prairie, Wis. A fierce headwind on the backstretch required concentration lest a gust turn a crossed wheel into a trip to the tarmac. I heard more than one lower-category rider blame the wind for their inability to break away, but it didn't stop Mark Swartzendruber (Verizon Wireless) from taking leave of both the 30+ and 40+ races. In the 40+, he lapped the field with Ricardo Otero (WDT-Allvoi) in tow and kept on going to win solo. In the ensuing 30+ he broke free again but couldn't shake John Acker (Wheel & Sprocket) and settled for 2nd. The 4's and 5's started separately but were a single group by the end of their race. Out of that scrum Bryan Witry (Spider Monkey Cycling) took 4th in the 4's and Patryk Limanowicz (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) was 1st among the 5's. Continuing an ABR tradition of "call your own category," Chris Padfield and some of his ReCycling mates lined up for the 3's. After some early attacks, Padfield escaped and cruised to a win (photo above). A tangle in the chase brought a handful of riders down, including ReCycling's Bryan McVey and Ben LaForce. Scott Knoepke (Psimet) caught the worst of it and left in an ambulance, but he's already back on the bike. Meanwhile, Mark Serafin (PACT/Dish Network) showed his usual stellar spring form by winning the field sprint for 2nd. I've lost count of how many Kenosha field sprints Serafin has won over the years, but I wouldn't be surprised if it's double digits. Padfield doubled up with the 1/2's race and finished 4th, having helped initiate the chase after two unattached Wisconsin riders slipped away from a small field. No Chicago women made the trip, aside from Debbie Dust (PACT/Dish Network), who threw down with the masters men, finishing 8th in the 40+ and 3rd in the 50+. Interesting to see Sam Schneider (Tibco) of West Allis, Wis., make an appearance in the women's race: She's one of three women with Midwestern roots to join that top pro team this year. Racing continues the next two Sundays, weather permitting. Full results.

Race reports Stephen Butler (Wheel Fast; 4): "The field never strings out, which is both a good and a bad thing."

Debbie Dust (PACT/Dish Network; 40+, 50+): "I decided to just roll off the front and was surprised to see that I had a gap."

Ed Hernandez (North Branch; 30+): "Within two laps, the attacks had begun and the hammerfest was underway."

Chris Padfield (ReCycling; 3, 1/2): "Extra Belgian-style training points for the wind."

Luke Seemann (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 1/2): "Having a teammate — especially incognito — could make or break the race."

Mark Swartzendruber (Verizon Wireless; 30+, 40+): "I cajoled the Spanish sprinter to take a pull or two, to which he indicated he could (would) not and suggested that he was more than happy with 2nd place so long as I did not attack him."

Andrew Zens (Spider Monkey Cycling; 3, 4): "All attacks had the same result: They died on the back stretch as they went straight into the 20 mph wind."

Photos Katie Cook John Wilke

Sunday Kenosha Velopsort Spring Training Series ABR Criterium Pleasant Prairie, Wis. Distance from Chicago: 1.5 hours 2009 wrap-ups: I, II

And so ends another road season.

I don't know where ABD's Ryan Freund and John Meyers went Saturday night to celebrate their boffo time trials, but they may want to avoid it in the future: Both called in sick with food poisoning Sunday, forfeiting their shot at the 1/2 overall and missing out on a fun, wind-blown circuit race in West Chicago. To kick of the 1/2/3's race, Northwestern's Will Nowak (Alderfer-Bergen) set off by himself in what seemed like a fool's errand. Solo breakaway in gale winds? Crazy! Several bridge attempts failed until once-and-future pro Chad Hartley (Geargrinder) bridged by himself. That sparked a few rounds of attacks and counterattacks until finally a group of six made it across. In the final two laps, Nowak, Hartley and Nathan Moorhouse (WDT-Allvoi) split off, with Hartley taking the sprint victory. Moorhouse earned enough points to move into 2nd overall ahead of teammate David Polin, but it was a sweep of the mass-start races for champ Hartley. In fact, we have to go back to mid-August to find an Illinois 1/2 race not won by Geargrinder. Ricardo Otero (WDT-Allvoi) had himself a profitable afternoon. After winning out of a seven-man break in the 40+, he immediately jumped into the 1/2/3's and again got himself in the break, taking a second win as the only rider in the break registered as a 3. Riding in the first chase group, juniors Scott Rosenfield (IS Corp) and James Bird (IS Corp) had a lock on the 3's overall, finishing 1-2 thanks to solid time trial efforts. Bird, it should be noted, placed 3rd among 3's in the time trial despite racing in sneakers and clips, having forgotten his cycling shoes, and missing his start time by 20 seconds. Meanwhile, Joel Friedman (Bicycle Heaven) flagrantly violated ABR Rule K against false-flagging by racing the time trial in a skinsuit for a club other than his own. Protests to have him relegated were denied. (That last bit is a joke.) I regret missing it, but Sunday's 4's race may have been the most interesting on the day with Tim Speciale (Bicycle Heaven) and John Whipple (Unattached) entering the day tied in the overall. Things couldn't have been any closer as Speciale and Whipple went a close 1-2 in the bunch sprint, thus finishing 1-2 overall. (Also included in the action was what may have been cycling's first cake prime, above, a nice nod to last week's contentious wrap-up. The prestigious prize was won by Mario Starr (Team Mack).) Tom Doughty (Amgen/Giant Masters) won the combined 50+/55+ circuit race to secure a series sweep in the 55+. John Fleckenstein (Team Mack) finished 3rd of the 50+ to fend off Fabio Orlandi (PYOC) and Mike Jones (PACT/Dish Network) in that overall. Gary Doering (Team Mack) finished 1st, with Bisi Tubic (Unattached) in 2nd, an impressive result for our favorite Phonak fan. Joe Berenyi (Endure It!) finished solidly both days to wrap-up the citizens overall after sweeping last weekend's races. I missed the citizens races, so until it was mentioned to me Saturday I was unaware that Berenyi has only one arm -- and does not ride with a prosthetic. In the women's races, Debbie Dust (PACT/Dish Network) and Stacy Applewick (Endure It!) each earned 39 out of a possible 40 points to win the women's open and women's 4's, respectively. Full circuit race results. Full omnium results.

Race reports Rob Curtis (Bicycle Heaven; 4): "All were in agreement it was the most fun crit we have ever raced."

Debbie Dust (PACT/Dish Network; W-open): "Because bike racing is far from being 'a perfect world,' things didn't quite turn out the way we would have liked."

Scott Rosenfield (IS Corp; 3): "The Fall Fling is maybe a brownie that was left over from last weekend's party and is now a bit stale and hard with some random powdered sugar sprinkled on top."

Mark Swartzendruber (Verizon Wireless; 40+): "The break included two of my longtime heroes, Tom Doughty and Fabio Orlandi. The break was a blast."

The first weekend of ABD's Fall Fling enjoyed the final gasp of summer, a gasp that turned into a brisk, gusty wheeze Sunday with enough wind to make a flat, narrow road race fun, hard and interesting.

In 1/2/3 action the players to watch have been Geargrinder's Chad Hartley and Ryan White and ABD's Ryan Freund and John Meyers. Everyone else, yours truly included, just hoped to cover one of their moves, hang on in the break and maybe get 3rd. In Saturday's criterium, the winning move was Hartley, Freund and David Polin (WDT-Allvoi), with Hartley, 2008's Superweek points champion, having no trouble with the sprint. On Sunday the final break was larger and didn't finally come together until after 40 hard, stop-and-go miles, but again it was Hartley taking it, this time ahead of Meyers. Meanwhile some 3's have raced well with the big boys, including Joel Friedman (Bicycle Heaven), who won Saturday's field sprint, and Andrew Otte (Purdue) and Ronald Reagan winner Scott Rosenfield (IS Corp), who survived Sunday's break. Now Friedman, Rosenfield, Andy Powell (Project 5) and James Bird (IS Corp) are in a four-way tie in the Cat 3 overall heading into this weekend's time trial and circuit race. There was a spot of drama in Saturday's 40+ race, where Rob Kelley (Bicycle Heaven) appeared to have won out of a three-man break (above). Officials ruled, however, that Kelley had not sprinted in a straight line, relegating him to third and giving the victory to Mark Swartzendruber (Verizon Wireless). Swartzendruber again made the break on Sunday and thanks to a 4th place finish, finishing behind winner Brian Harris (PYOC), now enjoys a four-point lead in the overall, a lead we should expect will be padded in Saturday's time trial. Tom Doughty (Amgen/Giant Masters) was the top 55+ both days and is doubling up and holding his own in the 40+. Mike Jones (PACT/Dish Network) broke away from Sunday's 50+ field and stayed out solo for more than 20 miles to take the win. He's now down a point in the overall to John Fleckenstein (Team Mack). Jeffrey Angstadt (South Chicago Wheelmen) is not a name I've seen much this summer but he leads the 4's ahead of Tim Speciale (Bicycle Heaven). Joe Berenyi (Endure It!) swept the weekend's citizens races and has the inside track there, while the women's races remain tight: Debbie Dust (PACT/Dish Network) and Jessi Prinner (ABD) are tied in the open, and just two points separates the top three contenders in the 4's. Full criterium results. Full road race results. Overall standings.

Criterium reports Stephen Butler (Wheelfast; 4): "Suddenly found myself at the tail end of the field. In my head I heard Fred Willard saying, 'Hey, wha' happened?'"

Joey Iuliano (Purdue; 1/2): "The same guys who were at the Illinois road race were here. That means the goal was the same: Follow them."

Adam Leibman (ABD; 3): "I sat in and did my best to go as fast as everyone around me, knowing full well that any time spent chasing or attempting breakaways might result in me going down in a blaze of glory."

Mark Swartzendruber (Verizon Wireless; 40+): "I coasted across the line with my hand up gesturing to the officials and said, 'Did you see that?'"

Criterium photos Surviving in America

Road race reports Debbie Dust (PACT/Dish Network; W-1/2/3): "'I'm not happy because I was not beaten. I got screwed."

Joey Iuliano (Purdue; 1/2): "The field soft pedaled the headwind, so any amount of effort generally got you a gap."

Adam Leibman (ABD; 3): "I couldn't help but wonder if the unusually slow and cordial finish was a show of camaraderie or simply a display of pure exhaustion."

Mark Swartzendruber (Verizon Wireless; 40+): "Brilliant. I’m in a move with the three fastest finishers in the race."

I don't know if it qualifies as an instant classic, but the Ronald Reagan Criterium in Dixon is definitely one to note on the calendar for next year. It's a fun and interesting course, a figure eight with wide, fast turns and three quick kickers out of Turns 1, 3 and 4. The finishing stretch is long and starts with a downhill out of the final corner, and the challenging terrain enabled breaks and made attrition high on Saturday.

Fields were regrettably small. Indeed, it's a little goofy to think about how far we're willing to drive to race in the snow in March, and yet many of us have hung up the cleats by the time the perfect weather of September rolls around. Nonetheless, organizers and locals were excited about returning next year and hope to see the race grow. Some impressive firepower showed up for what turned out to be a fascinating P/1/2/3 race, including Geargrinder's Rob White and Chad Hartley, plus local product Bryce Mead (Jelly Belly). The three of them went off the front on the second lap, eventually dropping all who'd gone with them. Chris Padfield (Team Get a Grip Cycles) was the last to be dropped; he survived in no-man's land long enough for White, Hartley and Mead to lap the field and set off the front a second time. They scooped him up, and then the two Geargrinders went on the attack yet again, dropping Mead and Padfield to lap the field a second time, at which point they went to the front and set a fierce tempo for the rest of the race in order to keep the peloton out of Mead's reach. They were successful and finished together, Hartley yielding the win to White. With Hartley headed to Kenda Pro Cycling next year, could this have been their last time racing together? If so, an impressive way to go out. Two local juniors from IS Corp pulled a fast one on the 3/4's. With seven to go, James Bird (IS Corp) attacked and created a dangerous gap. Tom Briney (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) bridged, but by three to go the entire pack had caught them. That allowed Scott Rosenfield (IS Corp) to counter, and he solo'd to the win, with Bird taking 4th. With 30 starters the 4/5's race was the day's largest field. Except for some attrition, the group stayed together for most of the race. Chris Koster (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) and Ron Good (Endure It!) exited the final corner with a small gap, and Koster led the entire sprint to take the victory. Full results.

Race reports Chris Padfield (Team Get a Grip Cycles; P/1/2/3): "OOooooooh, now it's really gonna be on. So much for an 'easy' race."

Matt Riezman (Spidermonkey Cycling; 5, 4/5): "I found the cornering much less scary than advertised and I didn't ride in the pack long enough to even have the chance to crash."

Jared Rogers (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+ 4/5, 4/5): "Heading into the stretch just before the climb I got a slight gap and that’s exactly where the field broke in two."

Luke Seemann (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+ 1/2/3, P/1/2/3): "Down the long straightaway, we engaged in cat-and-mouse. I tried to shake-and-brake but I could get behind him."

Photos Nikki Cyp Luke Seemann

After a foggy morning the cloud cover broke and yielded exquisite riding conditions Saturday at the state road race championships in Willow Springs. A narrow, congested road and defensive fields made breaking away difficult, and, alas, the final stairstep climb did not put sprinters at the disadvantage I was expecting, resulting in some exciting if chaotic finishes.

Nearby Lemont's most famous son, Christian Vande Velde (Garmin-Slipstream), dropped by in the morning. He could not be coaxed into racing -- even with a broken wrist, I suspect he could have picked up some coveted ICA Cup points -- but he did escort the juniors for a lap. They dropped him in the uphill sprint, won by Ryan O’Boyle in the 15-18 and Trevor Rolette in the 10-14, a sweep for the South Chicago Wheelmen. Some of the most animated racing came in the P/1/2's, which had a fair share of lolly-gagging but also a series of attacks on the second lap that eventually yielded a group of six, all of whom had teammates in the chase, helping pad their gap to more than a minute. After 40 cooperative miles, hostilities broke out on the final lap. With a few miles to go, Ryan Freund (ABD) attacked hard and created a dangerous 10-second gap. The remaining five caught him early in the climb, where further attacks ensued. On the final pitch, Rob White (Geargrinder) put in the final punch, breaking clear with an incredible jump, followed by Jeff Barnes (Iowa City Cycling) and Seth Meyer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo), the later of whom was the first Illinoisan and thus your new men's state champion. In the women's P/1/2/3's, a breakaway of four escaped from the starting line. Defending champion Kristen Meshberg (Team BH USA) flatted in the first few miles and took a wheel from her out-of-state teammate Anne Meyer, but she couldn't get back on terms with Debbie Dust (PACT/DIsh Network), who time-trialed into the distance and into the championship jersey. Gina Champion (Team Mack) lived up to her name and won the women's 4's race out of a lead pack of nine, and Pascale Petro (Project 5) wrapped up a successful year by winning the women's 35+. New squad Bloomington Cycling and Fitness made an impressive debut in the 3's, where Chris Curran and Nick Ramirez, both of whom had impressive Superweeks as 4's, found a good lane during the sprawling drag race and finished 1-2. Chicago's Nate Iden (Burnham Racing) rounded out the podium. I've remarked before how unusual it is to see a well-formed train in the lower categories. The Chicago Cuttin' Crew is the one of only two teams I've seen do it with precision and success (Tower Racing is the other), and this is definitely a course where a good leadout is key. The boys in blue did it again Saturday in the 4's, although when the caboose got derailed it was up to Jeff Perkins to seal the deal. Seal it he did, crossing the line just ahead of a hard-charging Chris Koster (XXX Racing-AthletiCo). (Perkins, shown above with Koster and James Cooper (Team MS Racing), noted beforehand that his road bike had gathered dust since last being raced in May.) The day's other breakaway came in the masters 1/2/3's, where Christian Zauner (Verdirgris) came out on top of the 40+. Finishing 4th to take the 30+ was Mike Heagney (Vision Quest). In the earlier masters race, Gary Doering (Team Mack) outsprinted a tough 50+ field while masters national champion Thomas Weil (ABD) took the 60+. The day's closest race was in the 30+ 4/5's, where video showed Jason Senffner (Bicycle Heaven) and Matt Samples (North Branch) crossing with an imperceptible margin. Officials gave the win to Senffner. Crashes afflicted the day's largest field, the 40+ 4/5's, but David Schrauth (2CC) stayed clear of the mayhem and crossed the line first. And how's this for consistency: Kyle Selph (Tower Racing) raced two of the three Cat 5 heats and won them both. The 23-year-old has exactly four races on his palmarès -- and four victories. Erik Wiebe (Team MS Racing) took the third heat, which Selph was unable to contest owing to USAC prohibitions against competing in two concurrent races. Full results.

Race reports Dave Bower (Half Acre Cycling; 4): "Avoid the dead opposum. Avoid the two crashes. Sprint hard. Cross finish line, body and bike intact. Have two Old Styles with the team."

Rob Curtis (Bicycle Heaven): "No one knows WTF is going on, and the finish line is quite a distance away."

Debbie Dust (PACT/Dish Network; W/P/1/2/3): "I busted my ass out there to take the win today."

Ryan Fay (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "By the time the last climb came those calves were too spent to be competitive."

Joey Iuliano (Purdue; P/1/2): "The race was, at least in my mind, what racing a masters race would be like: angry, yet no one wants to do anything for more than a few seconds."

Adam Leibman (ABD; 3): "Thoroughly and utterly destroyed, nearly as dead as the opossum I dodged each time up the hill."

Kristen Meshberg (Team BH USA; W-P/1/2/3): "It was a gorgeous day and fortunately Anne and I like riding our bikes, so at least we got in some nice hard riding."

Seth Meyer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; P/1/2): "Everyone wanted to save it for the last lap, so we just sort of crossed our fingers and hoped the situation didn’t get too precarious."

Brian Morrissey (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3): "I waited for fireworks to begin. And waited. And waited."

Ian Murray (Turin; 5): "I tried to gap people FTW. Unfortunately, I was not strong enough to make that happen, and thus faded and let mad people pass me."

Avi Neurohr (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; 30+ 4/5, 4): "It's not rocket science, but it's one thing to see it on TV, another to pull it off."

William Pankonin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+ 4/5): "Told a few racers that we should hit the gas. No one seemed interested."

Julie Popper (Half Acre Cycling; W-4): "I should have thought like a racer and tried to solo a little to make space for my bad climbing, but it was more fun to ride in the group."

Luke Seemann (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3): "I was too far back and got too bolloxed by the traffic—some of which was covering more distance left-to-right than forward progress—to unleash the final dig I’d been visualizing for the past month."

Mike Shea (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4): "With around 300 meters remaining, Drew came around, then the winner, then the top 10, then friggin' everyone else."

Zach Thomas (Half Acre Cycling; 4): "I got myself into a decent position behind the Cuttin' Crew train and started the hill trying to get through the traffic."

Photos Gavin Gould Luke Seemann

Seth Meyer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) finished 3rd in Saturday's P/1/2 road race in Willow Springs but was the first Illinoisan up the hill, giving him the 2009 state road race jersey.

Other state champions include Debbie Dust (PACT/Dish Network) in the women's P/1/2/3, Jeff Perkins (Chicago Cuttin' Crew) in the 4's and Gina Champion (Team Mack) in the women's 4's. Full wrap-up to come.

If there's a problem with Downers Grove, it's that you can see only so much of the course, and there isn't a single spot that isn't a candidate for drama and excitement, especially when rain is thrown into the mix. Each corner becomes a slippery crap shoot, and each straight can be a launchpad for the next attack. At best you can stand at Maple and Main and be on top of two of the eight corners, but even then you're blind to more than 50 percent of the action, including the treacherous Turns 7 and 8 and the grueling kicker of Summit Street.

Fortunately there are dozens of rider and spectator accounts, so part of the enjoyment is later piecing together all the fragments of what -- and who -- went down. I spent the final laps of Sunday's men's championship down in Turn 8, waiting for what I knew would be a crucial final turn. The amazing crash of Rahsaan Bahati (Rock Racing) would be the only one I would see firsthand, but on just about every lap riders would limp through with torn kits and bloodied bodies. One of those was Matt Rice (Jelly Belly), who got the worst of a large pileup in Turn 7 inside of 10 laps but who judging from this photo appeared set to jump back into the fray, as dozens of riders would do over the day, some more than once. Here's a shot of Ivan Dominguez (Rock Racing) going down; I've read it wasn't his only trip to the ground. Writing for VeloNews, Mark Zalewski speculates that Kelly Benefit Strategies may have been trying trying the "Saturn sit-up" on the penultimate trip through Turn 1, and this is what led to the lap-long split of four KBS and two Team OUCH. Jeff Chen of Chicago Personal Photographers captured the maneuver nicely. As heart-breaking as Bahati's fall was, one must also feel for Kelly Benefit Strategies, whose Alex Candelario and Jake Keough had to take evasive measures while sitting second and third wheels. Candelario had his nose in the wind for much of the frantic final few laps. Last year, of course, he led out of the corner only to have Bahati outsprint him, and he finished 4th in the similarly rain-soaked 2007 edition. (Judging from Bahati's Twitter, the teams won't be exchanging condolence cards this week.) All this attention to the men shouldn't discount the conclusion of the women's race, which was just as exciting. Team Tibco put the field on defense much of the race, but just like last year it boiled down to mano-a-mano between Brooke Miller (Team Tibco) and Tina Pic (Colavita). This time, however, the veteran Pic took the inside line and came out of Turn 8 with victory in her eyes and a giant smile on her face. This was Pic's sixth national championship -- and her last, per her retirement announcement. She goes out on top. Local amateurs Debbie Dust (PACT/Dish Network) and Devon Haskell (Team BH USA) both cracked the top 20, in 13th and 19th, respectively. The men's elite national championship got the worst of the weather with rain and wind sweeping across the course. Attrition and chaos were high, and the Mavic pit busy. In the final laps a five-man group formed, and in it were some local ties: Riding for ABD, Colorado's Zach Watson would finish 4th, and Northwestern product Michael Margarite (CRCA/Empire) finished 3rd, both missing out on the national championship to Justin England (Cal Giant), who attacked atop Summit Street to earn the second consecutive stars-and-stripes jersey for the California squad. First out of the corner, first to the line: That's how it worked for Adam Lesniakowski (PACT/Dish Network) in the 2's, above, who flew up Main Street to take one of the biggest wins of his career. In tight formation behind him were John Coyle (Wolverine Sports Club) in 3rd and recent Cat 2 upgrades Peter Strittmatter (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) and Keith McMahon (Van Wagner/Yojimbo's) in 4th and 6th. Lesniakowski also placed 5th in Saturday'd 35+ 1/2/3 race. The 3's races at Downers are stingy with breaks, but it's not uncommon for last-lap fliers to stick if a rider can catch the pack sleeping. After 45 minutes of racing, that was the card played by Joel Friedman (Bicycle Heaven) in only his third Cat 3 race. He attacked hard halfway up Lane Place and had just enough of a gap to hold off the sprint, led by Saturday's winner Brent Mahan (NashvilleCycling.com). Henry Loud (Team Pegasus) has twice crashed out of good bell-lap positions in big races this summer, but he kept it upright to come in 4th. Others weren't so skilled, with several riders sliding out into Turn 5. (One of Mahan's teammates captured the last lap on video.) Did I at one time suggest that another race could possibly be the best criterium the Midwest has to offer? I take it all back. Downers Grove is king. Full results. See also my Saturday report and my preliminary Sunday report.

Saturday reports Rahsaan Bahati (Rock Racing; P/1/2): "The attacks started very quickly as every team has guys who can't win the jersey on Sunday."

Newt Cole (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3/4): "I looked at Julian and said in my nicest voice, 'Dude, let me go,' and off I went."

Rob Curtis (Bicycle Heaven; 35+ 4/5): "This course is really meant for us short, fat power riders."

Kristina Meinig (Half Acre Cycling; W-3/4): "For the first time in a bike race ever, I thought I might throw up."

William Pankonin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 35+ 4/5, 3/4): "Someone counted me first wheel for four laps. That's a problem."

Bryan Witry (Spidermonkey Cycling; 3/4): "The pace started fast and the war of attrition began on lap one."

Eric Shivvers (Half Acre Cycling; 5): "It was such a blur, I don’t remember who passed me and who I beat. I just pedaled as hard as I could."

Steve Tilford (Tradewind Energy/Trek Stores; P/1/2): "I was surprised that I was still around. That wasn’t any of my doing. The race wasn’t going full tilt like prior years."

VeloNews: "The 50km was run on ever-darkening streets, making the later laps a challenge on the darker corners."

Sunday reports Newt Cole (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3): "It sounded good until the wheel in front of me lost control of his bike in Turn 7 and once again I have to grab brakes."

CyclingNews: "'I stayed out of the way because you can tell the guys who can and can't ride in the rain, and there's a lot of guys who can't.'"

John Dunne (ABD; 5): "When I was not on the ground, I felt pretty good."

Debbie Dust (PACT/Dish Network; W-P/1/2): "Things were sort of twitchy and tight early on but it got better as riders eased in and got more comfortable in the turns and the field shrunk due to attrition."

Brad Huff (Jelly Belly; P): "It was very controlled and very safe ... for the first 40 laps. Then all hell broke loose."

Derek Laan (Panther/RGF; 1): "The race was crazy with riders crashing everywhere."

Adam Leibman (ABD; 3): "Two Mavic reps jump out of my way, leaving a remarkably clear path through to the other side of the tent, where I finally come to a stop."

Adam Mills (Mercy; 1): "It's tough to maintain focus in the rain when you nearly are killed by a falling tree!"

Ian Murray (Northwestern; 5): "I could have pwnd those guys and gotten 3rd and I should have followed the early break or attacked at some point."

Alex Neckar (Northwestern; 5): "I never really found my legs and was generally too terrified by the constant cornering to venture forward in the pack."

Podium Insight: "With so many dangerous breaks, the Colavita/Sutter Home field was forced to chase, time and time again burning riders as they went."

Mike Sherer (Alderfer Bergen; 1): "I think that was the hardest rain I have ever riden in or let alone race in."

VeloNews: "Eventually the three Kelly riders were joined by the few others as more and more riders went down in every subsequent turn, whittling the field down to 30 riders."

Photos ABD Chicago Personal Photographers Nikki Cyp: Saturday, Sunday LaMariposaGallery Mark Novack Andrew Rizzo: Saturday, Sunday Luke Seemann: Saturday, Sunday

John Murphy (Team OUCH) is your new national criterium champion after a wet, storm-delayed race in Downers Grove that will go down as one of the most thrilling and heartbreaking in American cycling history.

The race started an hour late after a serious thunderstorm whipped through shortly after the big-wheel race. The pavement stayed wet for the duration and caused no shortage of mayhem, particularly in the final laps. Fewer than 30 riders remained with two to go, dominated as usual by a large Kelly Benefit Strategies train, followed by a well-organized Team OUCH. Defending champion Rahsaan Bahati (Rock Racing) was completely isolated, as was favorite Tony Cruz (BMC), who rode the entire race without teammates. With one to go, the race was reduced to two small groups. Kelly had four and Team OUCH had two in the lead group of six. A mish-mosh of teams composed the 10-strong chasing group a few seconds back. After the second group regained contact, Tasmanian Karl Menzies (Team OUCH) was putting together a leadout for Murphy when he wiped out into Turn 5, with Murphy barely dodging the wreckage. Bahati then surged out of Turn 7 and led into fateful Turn 8 with victory in his grasp. At the apex of the turn, however, his wheels went out from under him and he slid into the hay in a devastating conclusion to a hard-fought race. Sitting on Bahati's wheel, Alex Candelario (Kelly Benefit Strategies) was forced to clip out. That opened the door for Ben Kersten (Fly V Australia) and Murphy to fly up the 150-meter homestretch, both raising their arms in victory: Kersten for the win, Murphy for the stars-and-stripes jersey. (Murphy may have been able to win, but he celebrated prematurely while Kersten threw for the line.) Cruz, a national champion here in 1999, finished 3rd, 2nd American, and was visibly disappointed as he took his latest Downers Grove podium. Jake Keough (Kelly Benefit Strategies) and Soldier Field star Adam Myerson (Mountain Khakis) rounded out the podium in 4th and 5th. Bahati lay motionless for several worrisome moments but eventually remounted his bike and, bloodied and in tears, crossed the line to large applause. He would place 22nd. Full men's USPRO results. Full wrap-up to come. More photos here, and Peloton-Pix has a good photo race summary.

Local amateurs were aggressive in Saturday night's pro-am, with Chad Hartley (Geargrinder), Josh Carter (ABD) and Jeff Schroetlin (ABD) all getting involved in key moves. After a final selection of about 20 riders was made with about 10 laps to go, it was 2004 elite national champion Frank Pipp (Bissell), pictured above, who made the move of the night, attacking with Jeremy Powers (Jelly Belly) with two to go. Tour of Elk Grove champ Karl Menzies (Team OUCH) bridged across, but Pipp held on for the win.

National champion Rahsaan Bahati (Rock Racing) was busy at the front but called it a day early, saving himself for tomorrow's title defense. Team Tibco won its third consecutive Downers Grove women's race, thanks to Katharine Carroll, who dropped her companion in a late two-woman break to solo for the final few laps, finishing just seconds ahead of a chase led by Tina Pic (Colavita). A 3/4's field of more than 150 was crowded but surprisingly safe and smooth through the corners. WDT-Allvoi was positioned perfectly out of the final corner with Waylon Janowiak leading out Ricardo Otero, but they could have used a sweeper: Otero lost Janowiak's wheel after the corner and when he found it again, Brent Mahan (NashvilleCyclist.com) swung past both of them to take the win, with Otero and Janowiak settling for 2nd and 4th. The day's closest win may have belonged to Pascale Petro (Project 5 Racing), who led out of the corner and then timed a perfect throw to barely beat a hard-charging Aubree Dock (KCOI Boulevard) in the women's 3/4's. Another impressive win came from David Jaggi (Flatlandia), who sprinted around Ben-Jamin Widoff (Team PoweBar) in the 35+ 4/5, followed closely by Bob Bryant (Unattached). Full results.

After a ridiculously mild summer, the weather gods turned mighty cranky this weekend. The broiling began as soon as a light rain subsided in Grayslake on Saturday, and many a rider fizzled in the sizzle of Sunday's oppressive heat in Glencoe. The only brief relief came in the form of a quick thunderstorm that interrupted Sunday's P/1/2 race.

Some highlights:

• » With its sweeping turns, Grayslake isn't a technical course, but poor Sean Metz (Apache) had an unfortunate run-in with a mailbox in the P/1/2 race, this after lapping the field with three others. He scrambled to a replacement bike but lost the lap he'd gained. Meanwhile, fellow break mates Ryan Freund (ABD) and Scott Pearson (Comcast) set off the front a second time, with Freund sprinting and posting up for a nice win -- with one lap to go. Fortunately for Freund, he was still able to collect himself and sprint for the win a lap later, this time for keeps.
• » Bad luck also fell on XXX Racing-AthletiCo, which managed to get two riders in the break of the 3's race, only to have both flat in the final laps, and it was ICA Cup leader Justin Armstead (Team Mack) taking the win in the sprint.
• » Team BH USA very nearly swept both day's of women's P/1/2/3 podiums. Kristen Meshberg single-handedly lapped the field Saturday while teammate Devon Haskell, in her first race back from another stint racing in Europe, also went off the front to solo into 2nd place. After going up a lap, Meshberg set to work leading out Madeleine Puissant to a sprint for 3rd. The next day, in a race shortened to 20 minutes after pausing for lightning to pass, it was defending champion Haskell's turn to be off the front by herself (above). Meshberg then got to enjoy a free ride on the wheel of Jeannie Kuhajek (Team Mack), who valiantly pursued, only to have Meshberg come around in the homestretch for 2nd.
• » Burnham Racing made well-timed escapes in two races Sunday. In the 30+ 1/2/3 race, Jason Knauff and Andrew Rizzo (Comcast) slipped away a little more than midway through. They held a 20-second gap the rest of the way, with Knauff taking the win. An hour later, Julian Baumgartner did the same trick, but he lost his companion early and had to go solo for the last six laps. Meanwhile, teammate Nate Iden took the sprint for 2nd, a nice example of what can happen when you force the other teams to chase. And thanks to spending so much time off the front, Knauff and Baumgartner gobbled enough sprint points to win their respective sprint contests, contests that electrified the racing all day.
• » Team MS Racing also had a blockbuster day. It was active in all the lower-category races and showed its depth by sweeping the podium after a bunch sprint in the 30+ 4/5's behind Erik Wiebe, Dan Cooper and Sam Schaefer. Later, Schaefer created a four-man break late in the 4's race and won the sprint despite being outnumbered by two ABD riders.
• » Glencoe's P/1/2 race stayed together with New Zealand pros Josh England (Subway-Avanti) and Hayden Godfrey (Subway-Avanti) going 1-2 in the sprint. Brian Cornelius (Landis/Trek) reeled off the day's fastest circuit, a factoid for which we can thank chip timing, averaging 30.8 mph on the final lap to take 3rd. Mike Sherer (Alderfer Bergen) in 4th was the top local finisher.
• » Sherer had a successful Saturday, too, going 1-2 with teammate and Northwestern University student Will Nowak at the Warsaw Downtown Criterium in Indiana.

Full Glencoe a.m. results. Full Glencoe p.m. results.

Grayslake reports ABD Cycling (P/1/2): "Ryan Freund turned a potentially embarrassing situation into another win."

Kevin Butler (Wheelfast; 30+ 4/5): "This what separates us from our golfing and softball-playing adult-sports bretheren."

Liam Donoghue (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3): "I wanted to get in a break and have it be more than me, myself and I off the front."

Bryan McVey (Vision Quest; P/1/2): "There are a few things that I think accounted for my suckiness, but I'll spare you."

Madeleine Puissant (Team BH USA; W-open): "We decided to make it hot from the start and boy did we!"

Luke Seemann (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3): "We floated backward together, he daring me to surge forward and take a pull."

Mark Swartzendruber (Verizon Wireless; 30+ 1/2/3): "There should be some good video of my substantial arse posted somewhere."

Mike Shea (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4): "I knew as I was entering the turn that I was not going to make it."

Grayslake photos Andrew Rizzo

Glencoe reports Julian Baumgartner (Burnham Racing; 3): "Coming up to the line amidst a sprint for a two-man wine prime I found myself in perfect position."

Devon Haskell (Team BH USA; W-P/1/2): "It was a tough battle trying to stay away, but there were lots of people hanging out in the rain and providing encouragement."

Joey Iuliano (P/1/2; Purdue): "Somehow in the next few laps became stupid and forgot those oh-so-nice lines I was taking just a few minutes earlier."

Chris Koster (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "There were 300 meters to go and I think the others were not expecting to start the sprint that early."

Derek Laan (Panther/RGF; P/1/2): "Ryan, Greg and I planned to race aggressively and hope a break went with one of us in it."

Thomas Macneill-Zimmerman (Half Acre Cycling; 5): "I was defending my position and ready to sprint at any point."

Bryan McVey (Vision Quest; P/1/2): "I just focused on my position and not making any moves unless I felt good enough to make them."

Martin Michalowicz (Team MS Racing; 30+ 4/5, 4): "As I cleared the apex, I started to feel my front wheel skid. Now I knew I was in trouble."

Will Nowak (Alderfer Bergen; P/1/2): "A rainstorm rolled though right before our race, which conveniently cooled down what had previously been an unbearably hot day."

Joe Schubert (Half Acre Cycling; 4): "I was stuck in the accordion and found myself after the natural breaks after each corner."

Frank Shapiro (Alberto's; 5, 30+ 4/5): "In all my nervousness, I had forgotten to remove my saddle bag before the race. What a rube."

Mike Shea (Spidermonkey Cycling; 30+ 4/5, 4): "Tactics. Hmmm."

Stan Sterlinski (Half Acre Cycling; 4): "I felt crossing that line was a type of win itself at Glencoe, and I’ve got some great sunburn as my prize."

Mark Swartzendruber (Verizon Wireless; 30+ 1/2/3): " I attacked the field immediately after we caught them as I don’t generally like other people."

Glencoe photos Amy Dykema Carolyn Golz Luke Seemann Frank Shapiro Ed White

More Tour of Elk Grove highlights, in addition to Sunday's early report:

• » Each race featured primes bigger than most of the winner's purses we're accustomed to. This turned the races into two contests: The dash for cash, with riders going solo and hoping to stay off long enough to scoop up Benjamins, and then a twitchy, congested bunch sprint for the overall. Occasionally the prime hunters would nab a double payday with solo escapees staying away for good: Tim Yuska (Iron Cycles) survived a four-man break in Saturday's 4's race to stay off by himself, and then Alex Pavlov (Vision Quest) put in a brave ride to solo to victory in Sunday's 35+ 3/4 race.
• » Elk Grove has more than its share of crashes, most occurring at low speed in Turn 1, the U-turn where brake pads go to die. Indeed, several riders wiped out, jumped back in and still got good results. Brandon Diffenderfer (Unattached) crashed in the first 5's race but still won by such a margin that he was originally mistaken for a lapped rider. In Sunday's women's P/1/2/3, Jeannie Kuhajek took a spill in the U-turn but later sprinted to 4th, and in the pro criterium Ken Hanson (Team Type 1) bounced back from a crash to sprint to 2nd.
• » Saturday's 3's race both started and ended with crashes, and in between, wipeouts on the wet tarmac punctuated the entire race. Most were minor, but the sprint crash sent two XXX Racing-AthletiCo riders to the hospital; both checked out fine -- or as mentally fine as you can be to have dared a Cat 3 race in the rain.
• » Junior Waylon Janowiak (WDT-Allvoi) made a smart move in Saturday's 3's race, jumping from about 700 meters as a flier was caught and holding off the sprinters. Chicago Criterium winner Paul Wood (MOB Squad) was the first of those sprinters, followed by Team Pegasus heartthrob Henry Loud.
• » Wood also won the field sprint in Sunday's 35+ 3/4 race. (Before my Indiana readers e-mail me again, yes, I am aware that Wood was given a mandatory upgrade to the 2's. Officials have allowed him to ride out the 3's races he pre-registered for.) Other consistent sprinters: Nate Iden (Burnham Racing), Keith McMahon (Van Wagner/Yojimbo's) and Ricardo Otero (WDT-Allvoi) all hit the top 8 in both races.
• » Kristen Meshberg (Team BH USA) had a great weekend, sprinting to 4th in Saturday's women's P/1/2/3 and then improving that by one with a 3rd on Sunday. Pascale Petro (Project 5) has had a dynamite season, and she picked up her biggest win to date with Saturday's 3/4 race.
• » Light rain made for a slippy, slidey Saturday afternoon, but Sunday brought perfect racing weather: Warm and sunny with low humidity and a slight breeze.
• » In Saturday's pro road race, Phil Gaimon (Jelly Belly) got a gap of more than a minute all by himself, but wiped out in a wet corner. Chicago Personal Photographers was right there.
• » The criterium course changed slightly this year, taking a slight jog through the neighborhood and eliminating one of the U-turn, and riders approved of this revision. The other U-turn, however, remains unpopular for its frequent mishaps and repeated accelerations. The Tour of Elk Grove improves every year, and major sponsors Alexian Brothers and Gullo International have committed to three more years of the race -- might we hope for further course refinement in 2010?

Full results.

Saturday reports John Coyle (Wolverine Sports Club; 1/2): "The idea of moving up did not enter my oxygen starved brain until two to go."

CyclingNews: "[Team OUCH] set a pace fast enough to bring back the pair of escapees while saving enough energy to circle the final lap in an impressive lead-out for sprinter and new overall race leader Menzies."

Daily Herald: "Spectators spent the day taking in the races from a variety of vantage points all along the track."

Brian Hill (Team Get a Grip Cycles; 3): "Enter turn one at 8 mph and sprint out at 30 mph while riders hit the deck. Enter turn two at 8 mph and sprint out at 30mph. Enter turn three smoothly, move back around juniors and dumdums that crashed the line on the last three corners."

Brad Huff (Jelly Belly; P): "I can't remember any of the course but the smell of brake pads and the feel of burn in my legs as we sprinted out of every corner."

Kristen Meshberg (Team BH USA; W-P/1/2/3): "It started to rain on Saturday before our race and it was terrifying!"

Podium Insight: "'Everybody had so much energy, they probably had coffee in the afternoon for the first time in a while, so much energy and everybody is just trying to attack and get into breakaways.'"

Mike Shea (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4): "It was nice to have a good wheel in that finish because of all the jockeying and the length. I didn’t need to fight for one; I just needed to decide when to go."

Steve Tilford (Tradewind Energy; 1/2): "I tried to explain to the bike that it isn’t an easy life being under me. I’m not sure it understood, but it will eventually get it."

Chris Uberti (Panther/RGF; 1/2): "My particular excuse is that at the exact moment when the race winning three man breakaway was being established I got a flat tire."

Sunday reports ABD: "Carter told Schroetlin 'keep them within 100 yards and I can catch them.'"

John Coyle (Wolverine Sports Club; 35+ 1/2/3): "A sudden cold feeling rang through me with the bell as I sat 100 meters off the front of the peloton."

CyclingNews: "'The last lap was a total mess and I was lucky to have a couple of good teammates to help me get around the swarm.'"

Daily Herald: "'This race is here to stay for a long time to come.'"

Kristen Meshberg (Team BH USA; W-P/1/2/3): "People watching said it didn't look weird but I felt like I was completely out of control and my Power Tap showed a new max wattage."

Podium Insight: "'You’ve got the fastest guys in the country and all the best teams, it’s just a shame that you don’t get this every race. This is the best field assembled and it’s amazing.'"

Steve Tilford (Tradewind Energy; 1/2): "I jumped out of the U-turn and tried to bridge up. I only managed to launch Josh Carter (ABD) and Chad Cagle (Mercy) up to the move. I didn’t make it. I wasn’t that tired. Just was lazy or something."

Chris Uberti (Panther/RGF; 1/2): "My 'Sprinter Cocky' attitude ended about three seconds later when Will Nowak (Alderfer Bergen) piped me at the line."

VeloNews: "'The race was very, very fast and very crazy!'"

Kristen Wentworth (Kenda; W-P/1/2/3): "Only three of us racing, but we were able to really take control of the race and it ended up being a fantastic weekend for the team."

Kyle Wiberg (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 35+ 3/4): "This masters race was a wee bit slower, but much smoother. Things were looking good."

Photos Chicago Personal Photographers Steve Dennis Carolyn Golz John Rowland Luke Seemann

Superweek star Jonathan Cantwell (Fly V Australia) won a free-for-all sprint Sunday to take the criterium stage of the men's pro Tour of Elk Grove (photo above). Ken Hanson (Team Type 1) and Saturday's road race winner Sebastian Haedo (Colavita) finished 2nd and 3rd, while Chicago Criterium winner Brad Huff (Jelly Belly) came in 4th.

The Cuban Missile fired prematurely with 2007 winner Ivan Dominguez (Rock Racing) losing ground in the last 200 meters to finish 16th. Chris Horner (Astana) finished safely in 12th to move into 5th overall. (Officials scored a split in the finishing group, costing Zach Bell (BMC) and Ben Jacques-Mayne (Bissell) 5 seconds each and expensive spots in the overall.) Featuring domestique work from Floyd Landis, Team OUCH was the day's big winner, controlling the race well enough for Karl Menzies to maintain the overall and take home the $25,000 novelty check. Brent Brookwalter (BMC) scored enough sprint points in Sunday's criterium to earn 2 seconds toward the overall and sneak past time trial winner Tom Zirbel (Bissell) for 2nd overall. Sunday's $5,000 women's pro-am was a near-repeat of last week's Chicago Criterium, with Joelle Numainville (Kenda) beating veteran Laura Van Gilder (Mellow Mushroom) in a bunch sprint after Kenda scooped up big-money prme after prime. Locals went 3-4 behind them, thanks to Kristen Meshberg (Team BH USA) and Jeannie Kuhajek (Team Mack). In addition to top pros, the weekend drew some of the country's best amateur teams, and ABD came out on top. With 10 laps to go in Sunday's $12,000 1/2 race, an already heavily attrited peloton split in half. ABD's Josh Carter and state champion Jeff Schroetlin made the forward group of about 25. At one to go, Schroetlin animated a breakaway of four that was eventually caught, but he saved enough gas to help set up Carter to take the win. Carter came around Heath Blackgrove (Hotel San Jose) at 200 meters and outkicked Frank Travieso (Champion Porsche), this just 24 hours after Travieso and Schroetlin had gone 1-2 out of a five-man break in Saturday's elite race. Full wrap-up to come. Full results.

Jessi Prinner (ABD) placed 2nd Wednesday at the girls 17-18 national championship road race in Bend, Ore.

Prinner and two others went up the road early. In the final kilometers 24-time national champion Coryn Rivera (Proman Hit Squad) attacked and got clear, but Prinner was able to win the two-up sprint for 2nd. It's Prinner's fourth podium trip in five years, having placed 3rd in 2007 and 2005 and 2nd in 2006. She and Rivera are both Moscow-bound for the junior world championships in two weeks. Junior and elite national championships continue with time trials today and criteriums over the weekend. Update: Prinner on Friday won the girls 17-18 time trial national championship, blazing through the 24-km course in 40:43, a remarkable 55 seconds ahead of Rivera.

The 41st International Cycling Classic, better known as Superweek, is in the books. The phrase I heard most over the past two weeks was "better than last year," and indeed I believe it was. The races were closer to running on time, fewer had to be cut short and nothing turned into a fiasco. The best improvements were the additions of the Elgin and Lakefront road races. I will always miss the Tour of Alpine Valley, but these help make up for it.

Size and caliber of fields did seem to be down up and down the board, despite a good collection of international riders. Part of that could be because of 2008's problems, but I chalk most of it to the economy and the high costs of travel and registration. All that said, read this note if you earned any checks. Finally, if you didn't get enough of the ever mellifluous Eddie van Guyse, here are his daily audio recaps. Local highlights from the final four days of racing:

• » Team Get a Grip Cycles didn't contest many races, but it made the most of its entry fees. Ben LaForce won twice in the 3's, and Chris Padfield picked up a win Thursday, going solo for most of a rainy 3's race in Racine. I expect it won't be long before his victory post-up, shown above, makes its way into the pro peloton.
• » Christian Zauner (Verdigris) won the 40+ 1/2/3 in Kenosha on Friday and Robert Kron (Team Mack) was consistently near the top, but they finished 3rd and 2nd in the overall to Wisconsin's Chris Halverson (IS Corp), who has been having a tremendous summer. He swept the weekend races, and Brent Emery (Emerys.com/Team Life Cyclists) nipped Kron by one point.
• » Pascale Petro (Project 5) won the women's 3/4's race Racine but placing 5th the next three days -- Project 5, indeed -- wasn't enough to get the top spot in the overall, and she finished 2nd by four points. Champaign's Anona Whitley (Wild Card Cycling) finished in 4th.
• » Chicago-area riders took the final 4/5's races behind Ben-Jamin Widoff (Team Powerbar) in Racine, Joel Friedman (Bicycle Heaven) in Kenosha and Humboldt Park and Rob Karlow (Verdigris) in Whitefish Bay, his third of the series. Karl Schult (Guiness) picked up two more 2nd's, and in 5th he was our highest placement in the overall.
• » For more complete reports of the elite races, check out Lyne Lamoureux's excellent Podium Insight. And once again John Wilke did yeoman's work over at Peloton Pix, working harder than any of us to shoot most of the races and provide entertaining reports.

Full Racine results. Full Kenosha results. Full Humboldt Park/Downer Avenue results. Full Whitefish Bay results.

Racine reports Peter Beels (Leadout Racing; 3): "Throughout the rain many people got gapped and dropped in the corners and abandoned."

Hub Racing (W-P/1/2/3): "There's still work to do here to maintain these positions and possibly move up."

Chris Padfield (Team Get a Grip Cycles; 3): "I took a quick glance back and no one wanted to come along and suffer with me, but that's cool, less to worry about."

Racine photos John Rowland: P/1/2, W-P/1/2/3, 3 John Wilke

Kenosha reports Hub Racing (W-P/1/2/3): "Racers down in general classification want those last couple of stage wins, and there was no patience in the peleton."

Geoff Kuyler (Leadout Racing; 3): "I was worried about riders coming out of drafts but never saw anyone in my peripheral vision and took my second win of the week."

Podium Insight: "As usual the last lap were chaotic and according to Hayden Godfrey (Subway-Avanti), 'there were guys going all over the show as usual.'"

Steve Tilford (Tradewind Energy/Trek Stores; P/1/2): "Obviously, from the photo below, the race yesterday could have gone better."

Kenosha photos Extreme Photography John Rowland: P/1/2, W-P/1/2/3, 3, W-3/4 John Wilke

Humboldt Park reports Hub Racing (W-P/1/2/3): "Josie Giddens tried to make the bridge for hub racing, and almost had her until the rain started down."

Humboldt Park photos Nikki Cyp Extreme Photography John Wilke

Downer Avenue reports John Meyers (ABD; P/1/2): "Freaking Blue Angel jets buzzing us mid-race? Wow, that was sweet."

Podium Insight: "The Kelly Benefit squad controlled the front as the lap cards were flipped with primes still being announced until the final big daddy of them all, the crowd prime of almost $1,200 with one lap to go."

Downer Avenue photos Extreme Photography John Wilke

Whitefish Bay reports Hub Racing (W-P/1/2/3): "When she came off, everyone in the field went for the attack, and the result was an extreme acceleration. No attack was going if everyone went."

Julia LaFranchise (Team VRC; W-P/1/2/3): "Perhaps everyone was a little jittery because in the third corner of the VERY first lap, half the peloton went down."

Podium Insight: "The duo along with two other teammates earlier in the series defended the lead from day one, a new feat for Superweek."

Michael van Eerd (Team VRC; P/1/2): "Eric Bennett got taken out by crashing against a little kid. Both are fine though."

Whitefish Bay photos Extreme Photography John Wilke

Brad Huff (Jelly Belly) escaped on an unlikely flier and the 35+ 1/2/3 race yielded a four-man break, but otherwise it was a day for bunch sprints at Sunday's Chicago Criterium. Few break attempts got more than a few seconds, and the overall speeds were high as everyone gunned for big-money primes and hoped to come out on top of large, stacked fields.

• » This video from Tim Radcliff (Team EMC2) doesn't quite clarify what caused a crash before the final turn of what was the largest and strongest 3's race of the year -- and I'm officially against public finger-pointing. What is clear is that 300 meters was the perfect spot for Paul Wood (MOB Squad) to jump, and mayhem was to be expected as others swerved and jockeyed to catch his wheel. Shane Winn (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) came closest but couldn't close the gap on the homestretch, and for the second year a Hoosier interloper took this race. Winn and Ricardo Otero (WDT-Allvoi) rounded out the podium. (Don't miss Ed White's (Half Acre Cycling) dramatic photo of Ben LaForce (Team Get a Grip Cycles) unclipping over his handlebars.)
• » Bissell/ABG is 2-for-2 at the Chicago Criterium, and the 35+ 1/2/3 race may have been the most exciting on the day. Various small groups of aggressive riders were off the front the entire race, eventually leading to a winning foursome out of which Jason Swiatkowksi (Bissell/ABG) would win by a large margin, followed by Dave Stone (Verizon Wireless) and Scott Pearson (Comcast/Higher Gear). 2008 winner Derek Witte (Bissell/ABG) won the field sprint for 5th. (From that sprint, here's another great handelbar video from John Coyle (Wolverine Sports Club). He is a master at carving his way up through the pack on the final lap.)
• » In a post-race interview, veteran and former national champion Laura Van Gilder (Mellow Mushroom) singled out locals Kristen Meshberg (Team BH Racing) and Debbie Dust (PACT-Dish Network) for being aggressive in the women's P/1/2/3 race, but the out-of-towners took the podium in this one. Van Gilder led out of the final corner and almost held off Canadian Joelle Numainville (Kenda), who as shown above came from sixth position to win. Meshberg and Dust both finished in the top 10 -- White has a great shot of Meshberg watching Numainville pass in the sprint -- and former Chicagoan Jennifer Greenberg (Vanderkitten) took an apparently uncontested $400 gamblers prime.
• » Will Joel Friedman (Bicycle Heaven) ever upgrade to the 3's, or might he just skip ahead and join brother MIke Friedman (Garmin-Slipstream) in the pro ranks? After winning Superweek races Friday and Saturday, Friedman launched a long sprint to take Sunday's 4's race ahead of Greg Kick (Turin).
• » Tyler Avery (Team Pegasus) was aggressive in his Cat 5 heat, getting a threatening solo gap midway through. Upon the catch he was able to recover enough to handily take the bunch sprint for first. Herb Seitz and Bjorn Hammer, two of the six XXX Racing-AthletiCo riders who crowded the top 12, came in 2nd and 3rd. Mike Balco (Unattached) took the other Cat 5 heat.
• » Nebo Ridge and XXX Racing-AthletiCo were the biggest teams in one of the largest women's 4's fields we've seen this year, and it was no surprise that they were highly involved in the final sprint. It was a photo finish, with Julia Daher (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) beating Robin Bauer (Nebo Ridge) with the throw.
• » South Chicago Wheelmen had a good day, with Danny Solomon enjoying a nice post-up upon winning the 35+ 4/5 race, and Brandon Feehery placing 2nd behind 14-year-old Rudyard Peterson (Kalamazoo Bicycle Club) in the juniors race.

Full results.

Race reports Tyler Avery (Team Pegasus; 5): "I really wanted to throw my hands in the air over the finish line or mimic some signature move from a pro, but I felt that might be a little too cocky."

Vanessa Buccella (Spidermonkey Cycling; W-4): "I started moving to the front because I remember someone saying that you if you could make it into the front for the last hill you had a good chance of making the top five."

Stephen Butler (Wheelfast; 4): "I found myself at very tail end of the mass of 120+ riders that were already at the line. Super."

Rob Curtis (Bicycle Heaven; 4, 35+ 4/5): "Rode heads up and it paid off."

Debbie Dust (PACT-Dish Network; W-P/1/2/3): "I had to grab a lot of brake to avoid a potential wreck coming over from the left and lost some position because of it."

Colm Flannery (Proctor; 35+ 4/5): "With no real zip in my legs I quickly found myself at the back."

Ed Hernandez (North Branch; 3): "At one point, I wondered if a sniper was sitting on some rooftop overlooking Grant Park using us for target practice."

Brad Huff (Jelly Belly; P/1/2): "Mike Friedman (Garmin-Slipstream) was riding like a full team but he was just a one-man show, a one-man show with a rocket in his back pocket waiting to be lit."

Joey Iuliano (Purdue; P/1/2): "It was wicked fast and somewhat demoralizing to be near the back of a 180-man field and see the front taking a corner well before you're even ready to set up for it."

Chris Jensen (Half Acre Cycling; 5): "The only thing left was a good showing at the end."

Ben LaForce (Team Get a Grip Cycles; 3): "I was immediately behind him and rode over his bike and flipped over my handlebars at close to 30mph."

Bryan Merrill (Spidermonkey Cycling; 35+ 1/2/3): "We immediately slowed, bunched and I watched the massive surge blow by me on the left."

Kristen Meshberg (Team BH USA; W-P/1/2/3): "When we hit the final corner my instinct told me to go now! and I exploded first out of the corner."

John Meyers (ABD; P/1/2): "Chris Horner (Astana) probably was bored and scared out of his mind the whole race. It was easy, and slow."

Martin Michalowicz (MS Racing; 4): "I was spent, but I wasn’t unhappy."

Avi Neurohr (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; 4, 35+ 4/5): "I'm totally disenchanted with crits at this point in the summer, but it's hard not to love this one. Fast and wide, nowhere to hide."

Will Nowak (Alderfer Bergen; P/1/2): "I raced the front and got in a few breaks (one featuring Chris Horner (Astana)), although nothing lasted longer than a lap."

Podium Insight: "'Because of the money, no one wanted to go hard enough, everybody wanted to get into the breakaway but didn’t want to work.'"

Tony Rienks (Beverly Bike/Vee-Pak; 4, 35+ 4/5): "I had a good sprint at the end but got pinched by the guardrail jutting out on the east side of the course behind a slower sprinter."

Joe Schubert (Half Acre Cycling; 4): "I tried to be a ghost but still stayed aggressive."

Albert Segura (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "I’m skidding, skidding, and somehow keeping the bike upright with my back wheel locked up and my foot in the spokes."

Mike Shea (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4): "In the bell lap, I had good position, was ready to go, got on a good wheel on the backside and going up the overpass at Balbo riders shifted lines and I lost the wheel I was on."

Mike Sherer (Alderfer Bergen; P/1/2): "All that work just to get taken out on the last lap. Very Frustrating! I guess that's bike racing."

SRAM Road Diaries: "The final lap disrupted that train and the final sprint turned into a melee to get out of the final turn clean."

Steve Tilford (Tradewind Energy-Trek Stores; P/1/2): "The result wasn’t what was desired for the amount of pain I went through to get to the end. Bike racing."

VeloNews: "'Guys are jockeying for position, guys are being aggressive. I was like, 'Good lord, can everyone just calm down?'"

Kristen Wentworth (Kenda; W-P/1/2/3): "The speed was fairly high but as we approached the final two corners things got a little squirrelly."

Bryan Witry (Spidermonkey Cycling; 5): "As we slammed down the front stretch with one lap to go, everything seemed to fall into place."

Andrew Zens (Spidermonkey Cycling; 5): "When you sit at the front for the whole race it kind of sucks to finish mid-pack."

Photos Chicago Personal Photographers Nikki Cyp Steve Dennis Amy Dykema Carolyn Golz Goose Island Gavin Gould Aaron Greco Jason Knauff John Rowland: P/1/2, W-P/1/2/3 Luke Seemann Brad Trankina Ed White

Sprinter Brad Huff (Jelly Belly), shown above doing an impromptu jig during call-ups -- or was it a Chicago hold-up? -- attacked out of Turn 2 at Sunday's Chicago Criterium and held the flier all the way to the line to take victory in the P/1/2 race.

The seven men of Kelly Benefit Strategies, the largest team presence in the race, put together an impressive train from nine laps out, but the squad ran out of steam before it ran out of track, and it missed out on the podium, with Hilton Clarke (Fuji-Servetto) and Karl Menzies (Team OUCH) taking 2nd and 3rd. Huff said he had been hoping to help his former teammate Mike Friedman (Garmin-Slipstream) on the final lap, but the latter felt more than a kilometer from the finish was too early. Friedman was first to jump out of the final corner for the field sprint, but had to settle for 4th. Chris Horner (Astana) said the weather wasn't nearly hot enough to suit a climber like himself, unlike last year where the field wilted in the heat. There was never a serious break, and Horner finished safely midpack. Full wrap-up to come.

• » When Wednesday's morning races started 30 minutes late after a delay in road closing, the 40+ 1/2/3 field registered its displeasure by briefly standing still on the whistle, disgusting the Superweek staff, not to mention the 4/5's waiting to start behind them. The racing itself was more positive and dramatic: Wayne Simon (Verdigris) and Bryan Rheude (MS Racing) attacked after the second kicker and worked together to stay away over the last mile and a half. Simon dropped Rheude to take the win, but Rheude hung on for 2nd ahead of a charging sprint. With four days to go it's a tight race for the overall, currently led by Robert Kron (Team Mack).
• » Sean Piper (Depaul) has had a breakout Superweek, making well-timed moves to get away and then well-timed attacks to close the deal. He won out of a late two-man break at Monday's Whitnall Park Road Race and finished 2nd at Wednesday's Lakefront Road Race (long course). Ben LaForce (Team Get a Grip Cycles) is also making the most of his Superweek races, winning again Tuesday out of a 7-man break at the Whitnall Park Criterium.
• » World championship-bound Greta Neimanas (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) motored away in the last kilometer of the Whitnall Park Criterium to win the women's 3/4 race. The next day she held her own in the sprint, placing 4th. Pascale Petro also is enjoying a good week, placing in the top 10 in all three races and now sits in 2nd overall.
• » Lakewood's Karl Schult (Guiness) won the masters 4/5's race in Elgin and repeated the feat at the Whitnall Park Criterium, taking the 4/5's ahead of Ernie Ciccolini (Van Wagner/Yojimbo's) in 2nd.
• » Curtis Gunn (Fly V Australia), the rider who T-boned a children's bike at Richton Park and wound up in Cook County Hospital with a punctured lung and broken rib, was racing again Monday in Whitnall Park.
• » The P/1/2 field has gotten extra firepower this week with a bigger squad of Kelly Benefit Strategies riders (above, Alex Candelario gets nipped by Juan Van Heerden (Team MTN) at the Whitnall Park Road Race) and a few Team OUCH riders. Rock Racing has lit up the racing the past two years and registered eight spots for this year's series, but Superweek tells me the team left riders on the hook for their own transportation. Only Sergio Hernandez made the three-day drive to take part. Here is a letter national champion Rahsaan Bahati wrote to team owner Michael Ball on the matter.

Full Whitnall Park Road Race results. Full Whitnall Park Criterium/Cedarburg results. Full Lakefront Road Race (long course) results.

Whitnall Park Road Race reports Geoff Kuyper (Leadout Racing; 3): "No one thought they had a chance as it all happened at low speeds, but no one chased and the gap grew."

Lauren Liscinski (Team VRC; W-P/1/2/3): "I tried to keep the pace quick and on the last little hill before the finishing climb someone attacked left and it was all I could do to slot back in and not lose any more places."

Whitnall Park Road Race photos Nikki Cyp John Wilke

Whitnall Park Criterium reports Brian Batke (Carbon Racing; 40+ 1/2/3): "Eventually I got caught with about seven to go, then I just kept following the attacks."

Hub Racing (W-P/1/2/3): "Following the last sprint, attacks began to fly."

Geoff Kuyper (Leadout Racing; 3): "The last lap didn’t go as planned as no one in the field would work with us and I got stuck on the front for too long."

Greta Neimanas (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; W-3/4): "I moved up the outside before the last corner and like Jens Voigt (Saxo Bank) rolled off the front. I just put my head down and went into pursuit mode."

Cedarburg photos John Wilke

Lakefront (long) reports Chad Bishop (Harper's Cycling; 3): "All of the sudden I hear all of the guys in the field start hooting and hollering."

Mark Hotchkin (Leadout Racing; 3): "Going up the hill right after two laps to go, I got a gap on him, and decided to go alone."

Brad Huff (Jelly Belly; P/1/2): "This course is by far one of the best I have ridden in the Superweek series although I am completely shelled. I need sleepy and no more pedaly."

Journal Sentinel: "Jonathan Cantwell (Fly V Australia), who won the Superweek crown in 2008, has used his veteran wiles to guide Bernie Sulzberger throughout the series."

Team OUCH (P/1/2): "'The race had a strange dynamic. A big group would get off the front and come back, then another would go. It was hard to figure out which would be the one that stuck.'"

James Pradun (GDVC; 3): "I knew this was my last chance."

Lakefront (long) photos John Wilke

Rock Racing has yet to make an appearance, but pros Karl Menzies (OUCH) and Mike Friedman (Garmin-Slipstream) both made big impressions on Sunday's's Evanston Grand Prix despite riding without teammates.

Early in the P/1/2 race Menzies created a break with Ronnie Strange (Hotel San Jose ) and James Stemper (Geargrinder). The three ran a disciplined rotation, conceding to Stemper the maximum sprint points, but after 48 laps out front they were caught and quickly replaced by a six-man group that included Friedman. That group became five, then four and then with about five laps to go, just three, with Ryan Freund (ABD) losing the pace. Friedman put in one big dig to get away, but the other two matched him, and coming down Sherman Avenue it was South African Christoff Van Heerden (Team MTN) handily taking the sprint for his second win of Superweek. Meanwhile, Freund, who just a year ago was finishing 2nd in the 4's race here, put in a courageous effort to stay off in no-man's land, but a $200 gamblers prime nailed his coffin shut for good, and he limped in at the back of the pack. The BK Stacker continued to claim its share of flesh and treasure -- including some mayhem on the final lap of the 3's race -- but although I missed most of the day, I'm told that overall there was less carnage than previous editions, and unlike last year, the P/1/2 race never had to be neutralized to tend to injured riders. Having spent the past few days on vacation, my finger has been off the Superweek pulse. Nontheless, here are some highlights since the last wrap-up:

• » Riders are raving about Thursday's return to the Milwaukee lakefront, and I'm looking forward to Wednesday's long course there. Our top result comes from Ben La Force (Team Get a Grip Cycles), who bridged to an early break in the 3's and saved enough to sprint for the win.
• » Thursday's P/1/2 race in Shorewood, Wis., got to a late start because a small residential fire on the course. The race was shortened, meaning sprints for points every five laps, including one for a $1,664 crowd prime. "The announcers cranked up the sound system and really got the crowd rocking," reports ace photographer John Wilke. "That fed the racers and they were hammering. The Euros were going nuts, attacking everybody. It was just crazy."
• » Former local amateur Reid Mumford (Kelly Benefit Strategies) made an appearance at Friday's Tour of Holy HIll along with teammate and Superweek veteran Alex Candelario. Mumford made the final selection of four, but came in last in his group. (My kind of ride!) Meanwhile, Tim Yuska of the new Iron Cycles squad picked up 3rd in the 4/5's.
• » Brewers Hill on Saturday's Schlitz Park criterium course took a toll on most fields. Notable local survivors include Chris Padfield (Team Get a Grip Cycles) winning his chase group for 2nd in the 3's and state champion Liam Donoghue (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) winning the 4/5's.
• » Ben Jamin-Widoff (Team Powerbar) had a successful day in Evanston. First he came in 2nd to Rob Karlow (Verdigris) in the 4/5's, and then he hung on for 5th after his three-man break -- which happened to include 2009 phenom Joel Friedman (Bicycle Heaven), brother of the Garmin-Slipstream rider -- was reeled in on the last lap of the 4's race, won by Blue Island's hero Ernie Ciccolini (Van Wagner/Yojimbo's). WDT-Allvoi had a good day in the 3's, staying out of trouble and going 3-4 with Ricardo Otero and Waylon Janowiak, who have been a potent twosome lately. No local winners in the masters races, but Streamwood sprinter John Coyle (Wolverine Sports Club) grabbed 3rd in both the 30+ and 40+, and Paul Swinand (Comcast) finished 2nd in the 40+, his second 2nd of of the week after doing the same at Elgin. Evanston gave women 3/4's their first chance to race, and Pascale Petro (Project 5) was the top local, getting 4th.

Full Lakefront/Shorewood results. Full Tour of Holy HIll results. Full Schlitz Park results. Full Evanston results.

Lakefront (short) reports Ben La Force (Team Get a Grip Cycles; 3): "The peloton got close at one point and after that effort the gap started growing again up to almost two minutes."

Mike Shea (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4/5): "My diabetes has been great at every race. Today was the terrible exception."

Jake Teitelbaum (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4/5): "There are only a few people willing to do anything. Everybody else wants to hang out and get pulled along through most of the race."

Lakefront (short) photos John Wilke

Shorewood reports CyclingNews: "The primes and red jersey sprint points were hotly contested, and this kept the pace very high and strung out."

Hub Racing (W-P/1/2/3): "A tour can be fickle and to win it you have to make it through every day. Safely."

Julia LaFranchise (W-P/1/2/3): "I heard something behind me and the next thing I know I'm getting eaten alive by a very angry peloton that decided I'd spent enough time off the front. Bummer."

Adam Mills (Mercy; P/1/2): "Fun, fast and rough like a good Superweek race should be."

Dale Tye (Altarum Cycling; W-P/1/2/3): "My legs are smashed and I felt like I was pulling a truck and trailer unit behind me by the end of the race today."

Kristin Wentworth (Kenda; W-P/1/2/3): "I was impressed with the aggressive racing after hearing that in prior days things were a little negative and slow. Money will do that to a field of poor racers!"

Shorewood photos Greg Smith John Wilke Runaway Wind

Tour of Holy Hill reports CyclingNews: "According to MTN this move was done 'to entice racing in the main field, but no one responded.'"

Bryan McVey (Vision Quest; P/1/2): "They both beat me in the sprint but at least we didn't get sucked up by the field."

Brian Morrissey (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4/5): "I was really moving, and as I watched the gap close, I began to entertain glorious visions in my head as time slowed to a standstill."

Avi Neurohr (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; 4/5): "I don't want to get stuck in a packlet of droppees, so I bury it and go from 40th to 30th. Over the top, again, I'm waiting for the blitz, but it's pretty limp. Everyone's dead."

William Pankonin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4/5): "I had been racing really smart, but when we hit the last hill before the run into the finish, my legs fell off."

James Pradun (GDVC; 3): "Everyone decided to stop working, so on the last lap, I attacked twice."

Tour of Holy Hill photos John Wilke

Schlitz Park reports Julia LaFranchise (Team VRC; W-P/1/2/3): "When a rider went up the road in the first lap I powered up the climb and joined her. Turns out this was the winning break!"

Hub Racing (W-P/1/2/3): ""With groups spread all over the 1-mile course, it was hard for the racers to tell what they were sprinting for at the finish."

Chris Padfield (Team Get a Grip Cycles; 3): "It was a race for second at this point and i just kept my own pace until I caught the lone chaser, a tiny junior."

Kristin Wentworth (Kenda; W-P/1/2/3): "The wet roads are pretty nasty and trying to draft often results in a face full of gritty water."

Schlitz Park photos John Rowland: P/1/2, W-P/1/2/3, 3 Greg Smith John Wilke

Evanston reports John Coyle (Wolverine Sports Club; 30+ 1/2/3, 40+ 1/2/3): "Some days you just seem to know exactly what to do."

Hub Racing (W-P/1/2/3): "Josie Giddens responded to the capture with a counter of her own. From two laps out she flew for the line, head down, through 5,000 spectators fueling her on."

Geoff Kuyper (Leadout Racing; 3): "I flew into the last corner and jumped shortly afterward, about 300 meters from the line. Somehow no one was able to come around me and I was able to hang on for the win!"

Henry Loud (Team Pegasus; 3): "Had Peter not gone down, the sprint would have been stacked!"

Kristen Meshberg (Team BH USA; W-P/1/2/3): "It's always fun racing when you have a huge crowd and tons of people cheering for you."

Avi Neurohr (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; 4, 4/5): "Sure enough, the last lap through turn five, all hell."

Steve Ohlhaber (Dolce Vita; 4/5): "No one would pull through when you came off the front. Instead they would attack the chase group or surge up on both sides."

Joe Schubert (Half Acre Cycling; 4): "I corner like the devil and prefer the inside line."

Jeremiah Smith (Half Acre Cycling; 4/5): "s my group rounds the bend and heads into the finish line we have 5 laps to go, there seems to be some jostling for position and right behind me I hear a rider go down"

Evanston photos Carolyn Golz Luke Seemann Tim Speciale Ed White John Wilke

Superweek packs up today and heads north to Wisconsin for the balance of the series, save for Sunday's Evanston Grand Prix.

Some local highlights from the past three days of racing:

• » Between Ryan Freund's locomotive engine and Josh Carter's sprint, ABD has had a formidable 1-2 punch at its disposal, and they've been the top locals in the P/1/2 races. After several attacks lit up Tuesday's race in Arlington Heights, Freund made the winning break of five, coming in 3rd. Carter meanwhile picked up two more top 10's -- 9th at Richton Park on Monday, 6th in Bensenville on Wednesday -- and sits in 6th overall.
• » Tomasz Boba (WDT-Allvoi) has his own private podium, placing 1st, 2nd and 3rd on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively, in the 30+ 1/2/3. Teammate James Londono has also had a successful week, winning the 30+ 4/5 in both Richton Park and Arlington Heights and securing a good lead in the overall.
• » Hogan Sills (Verizon Wireless) immediately picked up where he left off in Champaign, winning the 3's race in Richton Park and placing 2nd in Arlington Heights. Sunday's winner Joe Bippus (South Chicago Wheelmen) has been consistently in the top 10 and now leads the overall.
• » Marshaling and course management has been satisfactory thus far, but a young girl on a bicycle rolled onto the Richton Park course during the P/1/2 course. Curtis Gunn (Fly V Australia) was buried in an attack and struck her bike in a violent collision, and the race was suspended while he was taken away in an ambulance. CyclingNews reports that he punctured a lung and broke ribs. The girl was unharmed.

Full Richton Park results. Full Arlington Heights results. Full Bensenville results.

Richton Park reports Eric Bennett (Team VRC; P/1/2): "With a very short lap, the pace was going to be high, and there was a strong chance that a breakaway could lap the field."

CyclingNews: "The bunching up of riders through some of the tight turns, coupled with sketchy riding made for some hair-raising experiences for a number of riders."

Stephen Butler (Wheelfast; 30+ 4/5): "Through squinted eyes and clenched teeth I eyeballed about 10 riders in front of me."

Hub Racing (W-P/1/2/3): "With six total up the road, Colavita was split apart for the first time this week and could only put one rider into the top five."

Julia LaFranchise (Team VRC; W-P/1/2/3): "There was a small gap on the field so I got to the front and did my best to make the break stick."

Dale Tye (Altarum Cycling; W-P/1/2/3): "Normally things come back together after a sprint as the sprinters recover from their efforts, but this time they had a reasonable gap and they kept on going!"

Chris Uberti (Panther/RGF; P/1/2): "If you're scared of bumping shoulders and chopping fields in a sprint, Superweek is not for you."

Andrew Zens (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4/5): "One guy yelled, 'You gotta hold your line, or you are gonna kill all of us,' and he couldn’t have been more dead on: This guy was gonna hurt one of us unless we dropped him off the back quick!"

Arlington Heights reports Stephen Butler (Wheelfast; 30+ 4/5): "We bunched-up riders at the back lost a lot of momentum in the turn and had to accelerate extra hard to maintain contact with the front riders."

Rob Curtis (Bicycle Heaven; 4/5, 30+ 4/5): "I'm tired. I suck. I'm too fat for this sport."

Debbie Dust (PACT/Dish Network; W-P/1/2/3): "Hammer up the bumpy gutter between turns 7 and 8, pick through the holes and sprint my guts out as soon as I saw daylight."

Adam Mills (Mercy; P/1/2): "Just being able to finish a Superweek race is an accomplishment."

Avi Neurohr (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; 4/5, 30+4/5): "I had a fantastic Italian beef sandwich and lemon ice from Johnnie's."

James Pradun (GDVC; 3): "I couldn't even sprint because everyone was blocking after bonking."

Mike Shea (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4/5): "I felt the effort but I actually felt good! But I didn’t go to the front. Why? Because I’m a dunce."

Dale Tye (Altarum Cycling; W-P/1/2/3): "There were many riders keen to breakaway so the race was very active."

Arlington Heights photos John Wilke

Bensenville reports Hub Racing (W-P/1/2/3): "The peloton took some of its hardest shots at Colavita today and for the first time, the leaders could't win the race, and the peloton made them work."

Chris Koster (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4/5): "We stretched it out and had the room to go into the tricky Turn 4 fast with a nice safe line."

Adam Mills (Mercy; P/1/2): "We started as all the races have started thus far. Too fast. Maybe I should warm up? Nah, what's the fun there?"

William Pankonin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+ 4/5): "Spin, breathe, spin, breathe, turn, hammer."

Tom Panton (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+ 4/5): "It’s a huge sense of accomplishment when you help a teammate do well."

Dale Tye (Altarum Cycling; W-P/1/2/3): "Everyone was just really tired and that made the whole race a bit of a non-event."

I'm hearing nothing but positive reports from those who headed south for the debut Tour de Champaign. The only hitch appears to have been a thunderstorm in Saturday's 4's race, above, which briefly suspended that race and made crosswalk paint slick and dicey.

Unlike most of our local crits, the P/1/2 fields were much larger than the lower-category races, and some ace teams and riders came out to play, including Panther/RGF, Amgen/Giant Masters and Texas Roadhouse. Jeff Schroetlin (ABD) had a good weekend, coming in 3rd in Saturday's P/1/2 and then winning Sunday. It would be hard to top the weekend of young Hogan Sills of host Verizon Wireless. He got in small breaks in both 3's races and won them both. (With a number of crashes in the 3's, off the front was no doubt the best place to be.) Host Wild Card Cycling also did well, sweeping Sunday's 4's podium and winning both women's 3/4's races. The weekend's never-say-die award, however, goes to Liam Donoghue (XXX Racing-AthletiCo), who crashed twice in Saturday's wet 4's race, then went off solo after the lightning intermission and won handily. The best result of all may be this from Mark Swartzendruber (Verizon Wireless): "This race is a definite GO for 2010." Full Saturday results. Full Sunday results.

Saturday race reports Newt Cole (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3): "Menacing pace and insane surges until the bell lap."

Liam Donoghue (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "I wait a couple laps, attack into the wind, and, blood dripping down both legs, stay off for the rest of the race. Bingo."

Joey Iuliano (Purdue; P/1/2): "Nothing special, but I didn't get dropped nor did I psych myself out, both good signs."

Ryan Knapp (Panther/RGF; P/1/2): "I had my back wheel locked up and was in full Tokyo drift to avoid the bike and bodies that were flying."

James Pradun (GDVC; 3): "After a bunch of people crashed in front of me and behind me, I decided to call it quits."

Chris Uberti (Panther/RGF; P/1/2): "My personal favorite: 'You two shouldn't have been going so slow in the sprint.'"

WICD: "'Crashes happen. Wins happen, too.'"

Saturday photos Liz Brunson Nikki Cyp Delay_ewm Nick Mann Pixel_nation Brad Trankina

Sunday race reports Newt Cole (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3): "The wheel in front of me pukes all over himself and sits up. I nearly rear end him. I have to sit and avoid, breaking my vibe. I re-engage turbos and in front of me and its like a trail of dead."

Joey Iuliano (Purdue; P/1/2): "The Jelly Belly guys were laying down some hard moves but everybody in the field had the same idea: 'Gee, these guys are pro. Probably should follow that.'"

James Pradun (GDVC; 3): "Caught behind two people who almost crashed out in the final sprint."

Chris Uberti (Panther/RGF; P/1/2): "After we got down to five seconds they started riding away again, so I jumped away from my breakaway companion to try to go it alone."

Sunday photos Liz Brunson Nikki Cyp Delay_ewm

The Superweek buzz is thus far cautiously optimistic. One can't yet set their watch by start times, but delays haven't been outrageous, and most riders I've talked to are happier with the way things are going this year.

The most positive change has been the addition of the Elgin Cycling Classic course. It was much more technical than the road races we're accustomed to, but it was a great stretch of residential road. The best part was that it was a closed-road course, which felt very pro, and the intersections were all well-marshaled. (I confess I flinched when I saw police cars at the intersections. I fully expected the klaxons to light up so we could be scolded for not riding single-file. Such is riding in the northwest suburbs.) Pavement was excellent except for the final three turns, which caused some trouble in some races, including a violent crash at the end of the 4/5's race. A hush fell as one rider walked through the crowd with what was once a bike but had become no more than a collection of parts, with tires peeled from crushed rims and chainring taco'd. Highlights from the weekend's racing:

• » After getting shut out of Friday's action, local riders fared better in the Blue Island P/1/2 race. Ryan Freund (ABD) was in a break long enough to pick up some sprint points, and then sprinter Josh Carter (ABD) won the race with a bike throw.
• » Nobody I've talked to can remember a 3's break lapping the field, but that's what happened Saturday when seven riders made it all the way around. XXX Racing-AthletiCo and WDT-Allvoi each had two riders in the break, but once the field was lapped, XXX Racing-AthletiCo was able to tap its other teammates for leadouts, leading to Peter Strittmatter winning the sprint and the race and Jacques Cartier to come in 3rd. WDT-Allvoi settled for 2nd and 4th from Ricardo Otero and Waylon Janowiak, the same pair that made the break a week before in Wood Dale.
• » Ernie Ciccolini (Van Wagner/Yojimbo's) has been campaigning for an upgrade all year. Surely he sealed the deal Saturday by winning both the 4/5's and the 30+ 4/5's. In the photo above he looks remarkably casual as the Cat 2 trackie sprints to win the latter.
• » La Grange Park's Matt Silvia (King Keyser) has an impressive dirt pedigree, but we've not seen much of him on the road. His Superweek has been notable, having placed 4th and 2nd in the 4/5's and 30+ 4/5's at Blue Island, and then 6th in Elgin.
• » Elgin's P/1/2 finish had an international flair, with only one American in the top 8. The rest hailed from South Africa, Australia, Holland and Taiwan. Saturday's winner Carter finished 9th and starts the week in 7th overall.
• » Colavita/Sutter Home is thus far having its way with the women's P/1/2/3 series. None of its three riders have finished outside the top five, and Nicky Wansgard sits atop the overall. Local rider Jeannie Kuhajek (Team Mack) is holding her own, picking up some sprint points at Blue Island and coming in 8th at Elgin.
• » Burnham Racing and XXX Racing-Athletico made up about a third of the 3's field Sunday, so once an acceptable five-man break came together as the 3's passed the women's peloton, it came together for good, building up a two-minute gap. It was Joe Bippus (South Chicago Wheelmen) who got the biggest benefit, however, launching an early sprint to drop what was left of the break, ahead of state criterium champion Jeff Wat (Burnham Racing) in 2nd.

In other Superweek news, Andy Garrison tells me he expects Rock Racing to show up Wednesday with eight riders, and he expects Mike Friedman (Garmin-Slipstream) soon too. Former national criterium champion Brad Huff (Jelly Belly) also is joining us this week after racing the Tour de Champaign. Garrison also reports that official Dave Fowkes has designed some barrier improvements at Evanston to reduce the annual crash-fests in Turns 4 and 5.

Full Blue Island results. Full Elgin results.

Blue Island reports Stephen Butler (Wheelfast; 30+ 4/5): "A rush of adrenaline took control over my tongue and I screamed, 'Gosh darn it, Endure It!'"

Jacques Cartier (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3): "Someone in our break jumped to the pack. That was when chaos took over."

CyclingNews: "Carter got in to prime position with the help of teammate Ryan Freund and launched his jump coming out of the final corner."

Elvis Falbo (Beverly Bike/Vee-Pak): "It was unintentional and totally not my style."

Hub Racing (W-P/1/2/3): "The Hub train came apart around the final turn as the hard charging colavita bunch came to the front."

Chris Kinonen (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+ 1/2/3): "What’s the number one rule in a break? Don’t get dropped from it. This is what I kept telling myself."

Tim Yuska (Iron Cycles; 4/5): "A South Chicago Wheelmen rider was on point and did an awesome job setting a good tempo. Usually there are people swarming to the front and then hitting the brakes, not wanting to do any work once they get there."

Andrew Zens (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4/5): "Boom, another crash in front of me in the last turn. I stayed up and then I attempted to sprint to the finish."

zMotion Racing (P/1/2): "On the last lap Juan and Hector were perfectly placed for the sprint when on the second to last corner were cut off and forced them to scramble back towards the front of the peloton"

Blue Island photos Kevin Curtis John Wilke

Elgin reports John Coyle (Wolverine Sports Club; 30+ 1/2/3): "It was a race that was pretty technically and strategically sound."

Daily Herald: "'I'm really a wuss, if you want to know the truth.'"

Jim Hamman (Tower Racing; 4/5): "I wanted to make certain to be first into the first dangerous turn first and set up Ed and Don for a sprint finish. It was perfectly scripted."

Hub Racing (W-P/1/2/3): "Can Colavita sprint like this for two weeks or can Hub push them into eventual submission?"

Dave Jagee (Flatlandia; 4/5): "I decided it was all or nothing. Work my way through the crash, put my head down and start to hammer."

Adam Mills (Mercy; P/1/2): "I cramped to the point of seeing striations in my quads, then decided to be a cheerleader for the remainder."

William Pankonin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+ 4/5): "I lost my nerve as the swarm came and when I saw racers taking big risks all around me, and I gave up precious positions until I found myself in the middle of the pack."

Francisco Torralba (Team Tati; 30+ 4/5): "I joined a small group of other laggards, which always makes the penitence easier. In those situations I like to fantasize that I am in a breakaway group, escaping from an imaginary pack barely two corners behind."

John Wolters (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4/5): "I could hear the tires of another rider to my right so I put my head down and sprinted it out for 4th place."

Tim Yuska (Iron Cycles; 4/5): "I had a bad feeling about that turn before the race, and now I know why. I ass- and elbow-skidded until running into the curb."

Elgin photos Mark Keller

With a fan's large Australian flag flapping over the finish line, two Aussies hit the podium Firday at Superweek's opener in Beverly.

Australian national criterium champion Bernie Sulzberger (Fly V Australia) won out of a 12-man break, followed by teammate and 2008 overall winner Jonathan Cantwell in 3rd. In 2nd was Chad Burdzilauskas (Kenda), shown above launching a bridge to an early move.

Attacks started on the first lap. Eventually a 13-man break formed and lapped the field less than halfway through the 62-mile criterium. After several primes and an intermediate sprint, a second break of 12 formed, including 10 from the original break, and it built about a minute on what was left of the field. Fly V Australia had three in this second break and used its numbers to its advantage. Of the approximately 80 riders who started, no more than 35 finished. I could be wrong, but although Wisconsin riders Rob White (Geargrinder), James Stemper (Geargrinder) and Andy Crater made both breaks, I didn't spot any Chicago riders among the finishers. Rock Racing was not present, but other elite teams included Garmin-Slipstream, which sent two Dutch riders, Ricardo Van der Velde and Hans Dekkers, the latter of whom earned the red points jersey. Full results. Update: Elgin's Douglas Street Bar and Grill will be hosting OpenSprints fixed-fork roller races Sunday. These races are fun, and could be a good way to spin the post-race pain out of your legs. The restraurant is at 231 Douglas Ave., close to the start/finish.

Race reports Adam Mills (Mercy; P/1/2): "Superweek is a place where time has a different meaning, where the only time that matters is the race start time and when Noodles or Chipotle close"

Photos Luke Seemann John Wilke

Some highlights from the weekend:

• » We picked up one last medal from masters national championships thanks to Debbie Dust (PACT/Dish Network), who placed 3rd in the women's 35-39 criterium Thursday at Churchill Downs in Lousiville, Ky.
• » Top results from Saturday's UWW Road Race include Alex Rams (Colavita) and Romeo Oros (Team MS Racing) going 2-3 in the 4/5's and David Jaggi (Flatlandia) 4th in the 30+ 4/5's. Jannette Rho (Bouledogue Tout Noir) earned her latest podium with a 3rd in the women's 4's.
• » There were bad pileups in the lower categories at Sunday's Wood Dale Criterium, ending at least one season, that of Mike Kelly (South Chicago Wheelmen).
• » WDT-Allvoi pushed two riders into the 3's break at Wood Dale and managed to get both across the line first, with Ricardo Otero in 1st and Waylon Janowiak in 2nd. Otero then placed 3rd in the 40+.
• » Some Spidermonkeys went to the Tour of Lawrence in Kansas and reeled off some great results. Andrew Zens won Saturday's 5's criterium, Jake Teitelbaum won Sunday's circuit race in the 4's, and Brian Witry placed 3rd in both day's 5's races.
• » Some great track news to report: John Tomlinson (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) earned his first stars-and-stripes jersey Saturday by winning the 17-18 scratch race at junior track national championships in Carson, Calif. He attacked with 10 laps to go and held his gap to the finish. Chazz Martin (IS Corp) was also out there and picked up a pair of medals: 2nd in the 15-16 scratch and 3rd in the sprint. And Val Brostrom (Bouledogue Tout Noir) spent the week at the Alpenrose Velodrome in Portland, Ore., and she and her partner won FIAC's national six-day championships.

Full UWW results. Full Wood Dale results.

UWW reports Tamara Fraser (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; W-P/1/2/3): "My legs simply didn't move fast enough. I couldn't make them."

Matt Nichols (Project 5; 4/5): "I had to do a little bushwhacking off-road on the right side to avoid the crash."

William Pankonin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4/5): "I was desperate for more gears coming down the little hump."

Ted Ramos (Get a Grip Off Road; 4/5): "We're riding over 35 mph and get to about 200 meters when everything falls apart horribly."

Francisco Torralba (Tati; 4/5): "The last half lap, for me, was an encounter with the Spanish Inquisition."

Kyle Wiberg (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3): "I collected a couple of cherry bombs. On my elbow and knee that is."

Wood Dale reports Ron Cook (Project 5; 3): "I almost just sat up and waited for the field but thankfully common sense took over and made the effort to stay with the break."

Debbie Dust (PACT/Dish Network; 50+): "You know the guys I'm talking about, the slackers, the ones who say, 'I'm not fat, I'm a sprinter.'"

Greg Nash (Project 5; 4): "A couple guys went and I kicked it and was riding fast, third or fourth wheel."

Andy Powell (Project 5; 3): "I started to let a gap go but still kept up the pace to prevent anyone from coming around too quickly. That did it. "

I've yet to come across much negative reaction to last week's Tour of America's Dairyland -- gripes have been limited to the low fee-to-payout ratio -- so I'm still surprised so few Chicago riders headed up. Now that it's an established event, I hope the series is even bigger and better in 2010.

We had a good showing at Saturday's criterium on the famed Downer Avenue course. Adam Leibman (ABD) has been riding well and won the 4/5's. Ricardo Otero (WDT-Allvoi) picked up his first 3's win, followed by James Bird (IS Corps) in 2nd and Joe Bippus (South Chicago Wheelmen) in 6th. Henry Loud (Team Pegasus) didn't climb the 3's podium over the weekend, but still found nice profit, picking up a $100 prime Saturday and $75 on Sunday in Waukesha. Devon Haskell (Team BH USA) spent the weekend locked in a tight battle for the overall, but Verducci Breakaway was aggressive in defending its jersey. In the series' final race Sunday, two Verducci riders broke free, including overall leader Jessie MacLean. Haskell finished the series in 2nd, eight points down, with Jessi Prinner (ABD) in 6th. Full results.

Downer Avenue reports John Coyle (Wolverine Sports Club; 35+ 1/2/3): "Too long a sprint with a slight incline -- not the best sort of finish for me."

James Pradun (GDVC; 3): "I spent the whole 50 minutes wishing I had pulled out the lap before."

Kristin Wentworth (Team Kenda; W-P/1/2/3): "A buddy of mine shouted out to me that I had won! I was shocked and didn't believe him."

Downer Avenue photos Extreme Photography John Wilke

Waukesha reports Team BH USA (W-P/1/2/3): "Hopefully the good word gets out about this series so that the numbers grow in years to come."

Chad Hartley (Geargrinder; P/1/2): "I have had a few requests as to how my leg is doing. Awesome."

James Pradun (GDVC; 3): "Three crashes happened and all were because of retarded reasons."

Kristin Wentworth (Team Kenda; W-P/1/2/3): "I was in good position and took an inside line on the last corner and charged toward the line."

Waukesha photos Extreme Photography

Some medals are coming home from yesterday's masters national time trial championships: Debbie Dust (PACT-Dish Network), silver in the women's 35-39; Wayne Simon (Verdigris), bronze in the 50-54; and Tom Doughty (Amgen/Giant), silver in the 55-59. Doughty also teamed with Jim Host (PACT-Dish Network) to win the 110+ tandem time trial.

Highlights from Sunday's state criterium championships:

• » Jeff Schroetlin (ABD) defended his P/1/2 title in similar fashion to his 2008 championship. This time, however, he was able to win outright, coming around Indiana's Erik Hamilton (NUVO Cultural Trail) on a windy afternoon in Peoria. The two had been off early on top of a move from Kyle Jacobson (IS Corps). In the photo above, the threesome hits Turn 5 as the peloton still makes its way down the homestretch. After dropping Jacobson, Hamilton and Schroetlin lapped the field, leading to some bell-lap confusion as riders saw the lap counter skip from three to one. Meanwhile, Scott Pearson (Comcast/Higher Gear) once again slipped away to finish in no-man's land for 3rd while Josh Carter (ABD) won the sprint in what was left of a splintered field.
• » Burnham Racing employed some of the same late-flier tactics that secured a win in 2008 to win again, this time behind Jeff Wat while teammate Nate Iden swept in for 2nd.
• » XXX Racing-AthletiCo was aggressive in the lower categories, leading to a sprint win from Mike Seguin in the 30+ 4/5's and a solo win from Liam Donoghue in the 4's. Seguin was able to put an exclamation point on the latter by winning the field sprint for 2nd.
• » Team Mack was a triple champion, getting jerseys from Michael Ozment in the 60+, Gary Doering in the 50+ and Gina Champion in the women's 4's. Robert Kron (Team Mack) came up short in the masters 1/2/3, losing to Michael Zellman (Verizon Wireless) in a two-man sprint that settled the 40+ crown. Behind them, Mike Heagney (Vision Quest) edged out Chris Mosora (Verizon Wirelesss) to take the field sprint and 30+ title.
• » In addition to Schroetlin, ABD earned titles from Konrad Witt in the 10-14, Dani Witt in the junior girls and Marilyn Powell in the women's 45+.
• » Host Proctor got titles from two of its women: Vanessa McKenzie in the women's 3's and Marsha Ray in the women's 55+.
• » Our sport's troubles with women's retention was highlighted by the complete absence of women to contest the P/1/2 championship. The Tour of America's Dairyland drew our top talent instead and was a reasonable alibi, but it's still discouraging.

Full results.

Reports Julian Baumgartner (Burnham Racing; 3): "Frustrations rose and language went south as riders on the rivet cursed others for not helping them win."

Liam Donoghue (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "You wanted to know what happens when you set a goal, bust your ass, and stick to your plan?"

Steve Driscoll (Team Mack; 30+ 1/2/3, 3): "Both fast and furious, as usual, although really windy."

Colm Flannery (Proctor; 30+ 4/5): "For shame, ladies!"

Chris Koster (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "I knew that I was not strong enough to hold it till the end, so I was just hoping that when I got reeled back in another xXx’er would take a turn."

Seth Meyer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; P/1/2): "Tactics became really simple at that point: Every man for himself, just ride like hell."

Brian Morrissey (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+ 4/5, 4): "The train of riders who went wide to the left were all caught with their bib shorts around their ankles as Mike motored from the corner to the line through 250 meters of open air."

Peoria Star: "'I let him do most of the pulling the last two laps, and I was pretty fresh.'"

Leah Sanda (Flatlandia; W-35+, W-4): "Despite being a small field it was a lively race with lots of attacks."

Mike Seguin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+ 4/5, 4): "As I accelerate up the small rise to get back to the pack of swarming sprinters, there is a calmness that settles over me."

Mike Shea (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4): "No one willing to do much work. A perfect time to separate from the field."

Tim Speciale (Bicycle Heaven; 5): "With my bike violently shaking back and forth, I heard nothing and saw only the bikes in front of me and the white strip on the road 100 meters away."

Mark Swartzendruber (Verizon Wireless; 30+ 1/2/3, P/1/2): "The race was very cut throat in nature. So it goes."

Jeff Wat (Burnham Racing; 3): "I tried to refrain from letting on how badly I wanted to win so as to lessen the pressure on myself."

John Wolters (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+ 4/5, 4): "Liam and Mike were talking about keeping it fast, and that they did."

Photos Nikki Cyp: 5, 3, P/1/2, 30+ 4/5, 30+ 1/2/3, 50+, W-P/1/2/3, W-4, W-35+ Liam Donoghue Mark Keller Seth Meyer (video) Matt Smith: 4, 3, P/1/2, W-4

The Chicago area picked up one national championship at this week's masters road races in Louisville, Ky., thanks to Naperville's Tom Weil (ABD), who in the 65-69 group was first up the final kilometer-long climb.

Defending champion Wayne Simon (Verdigris) found himself a marked man in the 50-54 field as it navigated a fast, twisting and hilly course. He had to settle for 3rd in the field sprint, 6th overall. Meanwhile, Aurora's Tom Doughty (Amgen/Giant) placed 3rd in the 55-59, joined on the podium by Bloomington's Stan Watkins (Vision Quest) in 5th. Other quality showings from Chicago include Tamara Fraser (XXX Racing-AthletiCo), 13th in the women's 40-44; Stathy Touloumis (Alberto's) and Jacques Cartier (XXX Racing-AthletiCo), 14th and 22nd in the 35-39; and Randy Warren (XXX Racing-AthletiCo), 16th in the 45-49. Masters national championships continue this week with time trials and criteriums.

Wisconsin turned on the heat this week with heat indices well above 100 at the Tour of America's Dairyland. The conditions may have taken more of a toll at Tuesday's Fond du Lac Road Race than the notorious climbs of the Blue Mounds course.

Keeping her cool, however, was Chicago's Devon Haskell (Team BH USA), who won out of small breaks at both Fond du Lac and at Friday's Greenbush Road Race. She's just a few points out of the top overall spot. Meanwhile, Jessi Prinner (ABD) sits in 5th, and Jeannie Zuhajek (Team Mack) has several top 10's to her name. Full results.

Fond du Lac Road Race reports Devon Haskell (Team BH USA; W-P/1/2/3): "I think we were all a little intimidated by the sizzling sun."

James Pradun (GDVC; 3): "Today was the second hardest day of my life."

Kristin Wentworth (Team Kenda; W-P/1/2/3): "The last two laps I felt like my head was in the clouds."

Fond du Lac Road Race photos Extreme Photography John Wilke

Fond du Lac Criterium reports James Pradun (GDVC; 3): "It doesn't help that I'm now battling some saddle sores."

Fond du Lac Criterium photos Extreme Photography

Sheboygan reports Avi Neurohr (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; 4/5, 30+ 4/5): "Some 'sconnie ladies were screaming 'Cuttin' Crew' and the announcer mangled my name 17 different ways."

James Pradun (GDVC; 3): "Coming into the final turn, miraculously no one crashed."

Sheboygan photos Extreme Photography John Wilke

Greenbush reports Seth Meyer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; P/1/2): "I promised myself to do nothing stupid or crazy aggressive."

James Pradun (GDVC; 3): "We slaughtered the field in the process."

Greenbush photos Extreme Photography John Wilke

Some highlights from this weekend's racing, including the memorable Fox River Grove climb (above):

• » Sometimes it's hard to be an impartial observer. I cannot help but lead with the performance of XXX Racing-AthletiCo, which swept nearly every men's elite category between the two Illinois Cup Races. At Cobb Park it was Tom Briney in the 4's, Curtis Eldridge in the 30+ 4/5 and Peter Strittmatter in the 3's. Briney and Eldridge won in bunch sprints, while Strittmatter won out of a late two-man break with Jason Knauff (Burnham Racing). At Fox River Grove, wins came from Briney again in the 4/5's, David Moyer in the 3's and Ed Amstutz in the P/1/2's.
• » Speaking of clean sweeps, New Zealand import Jeannie Kuhajek (Team Mack) won all four of her races this weekend, taking the women's open and masters races at both Cobb Park and Fox River Grove.
• » Three members of regional powerhouse Texas Roadhouse stopped by Cobb Park and put a veritable beatdown on the locals in the P/1/2 race, sweeping the podium behind Kevin Attkisson (2008 masters criterium national champion), John Grant and John Puffer.
• » Tomasz Boba (WDT-Allvoi) raced well. At Cobb Park he finished 5th in the P/1/2's (2nd, non-Texas Roadhouse division). At Fox River Grove he outsprinted Amstutz to win the masters 1/2/3, then traded positions for a 2nd in the P/1/2.
• » Post-up of the weekend goes to Doug Braun (Tower Racing), who with two to go in Fox River Grove's 30+ 4/5 made a three-man selection, then with one to go unleashed an unanswerable attack that let him zip up and cross the line in style. This is a repeat victory for Braun: He won here the masters 4/5 in 2008, too.
• » Kudos to promoter Robert DiSilvestro and Fox River Grove for patching the road at crest of the hill. The surface was smooth as butter, a significant imporovement over just a week earlier. This race gets bigger and better every year, and even many people who DNF'd have vowed to return in 2010.

Full Cobb Park results. Full Fox River Grove results.

Cobb Park reports Newt Cole (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3): "I slide up to Kyle’s wheel and tell him, 'I’m on, brother. Let's do this.'"

Jared Rogers (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4, 30+ 4/5): "From that point on I tell myself that I’m not giving up any more wheels."

Luke Seemann (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3): "It was early, but if a group was out of sight, anything could happen. Better do something about it."

Mike Shea (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4, 30+ 4/5): "In the final 20 meters, Davy Jones (Team Get a Grip Cycles) and I bumped shoulders and I badly threw the bike somewhere near the line. It was an exciting finish."

Cobb Park photos Carolyn Golz Mark Keller Video: Rob Ragfield

Fox River Grove reports Doug Braun (Tower Racing; 30+ 4/5): "Over the top and down the hill at 35 into the corners, I take a quick look behind and no one is in sight."

Newt Cole (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3): "For me, this is the race. I did my job and will not be denied two days in a row."

Seth Meyer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; P/1/2): "DFL > DNF > DNS."

Brian Morrissey (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4/5, 30+ 4/5): "Two shifts and out of my saddle, I passed out of mere tunnel vision and into Dr. Dave Bowman hallucination-worm hole territory. "

Dave Moyer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3): "I got a gap and motored down the final flatish portion of the descent."

Tom Panton (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+ 4/5): "I don’t think I ever suffered so much in only 20 minutes."

Rob Roop (North Branch; 4/5, 30+ 4/5): "In this race if you weren't going forward you were going backwards, and I didn't find anyone to work with."

Tim Speciale (Bicycle Heaven; 4/5): "He hammered it up the hill, the pack followed and I had no choice."

Michael Young (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4/5, 30+ 4/5): "Wow. That hill is making my legs burn. This is great."

Fox River Grove photos Nikki Cyp Carolyn Golz Mark Keller

I haven't seen any of the action firsthand, but perusing the results, it appears that in both size and caliber, the fields at the Tour of Dairyland are down half a notch from what we typically find at rival summer series Superweek. I'm surprised at how few Illinois riders are heading north, and outside of the elite races, there are hardly any national or international riders. That's too bad: All reports are that the races have been run very well, and turnout hasn't stopped the racing from being fast -- and at times downright furious.

• » Blue Mounds lived up to its billing as a ridiculously hard, hilly course with a long, steep final stretch. Of the 88 P/1/2's who started, only 26 finished. In 12th place, Will Nowak (Alderfer Bergen) was the top Chicago-area rider. Other fields saw similar attrition and detonation. Devon Haskell (Team BH USA) had a great day, making the break and getting 2nd in the women's P/1/2/3. A large group of 3's hit the final climb, and Jacques Cartier (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) outclimbed all but one to get 2nd. Jake Teitelbaum (Spidermonkey Cycling) also hit the podium, getting 3rd in the 4/5's.
• » WDT-Allvoi hasn't gotten a win yet but has done very well in the 3's. Waylon Janowiak placed 5th at Blue Mounds and got 2nd at the Giro d'Grafton. Then on Sunday, Ricardo Otero and Chris Gola went 2-3 in Manitowoc.
• » It was a good weekend for the juniors: Chazz Martin (IS Corps) won the 4/5's races at both Grafton and Manitowoc, and Jessi Prinner (ABD) finished 4th in Manitowoc.
• » Haskell wore the women's leader's jersey Sunday, but she got pipped in the field sprint to lose it for the time being. She ends the weekend tied in first overall, sandwiched between two Verducci/Breakaway riders. Prinner sits in 4th, while Janowiak holds 3rd in the 3's.
• » Veteran Steve Tilford (Tradewind Energy/Trek Stores) documents a contentious sprint and subsequent exchange of words between himself and Frank Pipp (Bissell) at Saturday's Giro d'Grafton. The two of them went 2-3 Sunday and are now a tight 1-2 at the top of the men's overall.

Monday is a rest day. Racing continues Tuesday with the Fond du Lac Road Race. Full results.

Blue Mounds race reports Jacques Cartier (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3): "I tried to ride within myself and give a couple more efforts but it was a no-go to win."

Tamara Fraser (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; W-P/1/2/3): "I gutted it out to the last climb, swallowed my last gel, and then tried to remember to make circles instead of squares."

Avi Neurohr (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; 4/5): "We hit the hill and hell begins in earnest."

Andy Powell (Project 5; 3): "For some reason, on that last climb of the lap, I had a horrible time turning over the pedals."

James Pradun (GDVC; 3): "Pinnacle was a huge attack that split the 21 guys in half again."

Jake Teitelbaum (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4/5): "The rest of the race is fear of being caught by the guy behind me and hope of catching the two guys in front of me."

Steve Tilford (Tradewind Energy/Trek Stores; P/1/2): "The remainder of the finishers came in one at a time. Pretty epic. Pretty much a death march."

Blue Mounds photos Extreme Photography John Wilke

Waterloo reports James Pradun (GDVC; 3): "Two riders came in flying on my left side with clearly not enough room, as the road quickly narrowed."

Waterloo photos Extreme Photography John Wilke

Giro d'Grafton reports Derek Laan (Panther/RGF; P/1/2): "It is definitely a tougher field up here than we would have faced at Tour of Ohio."

Chris Padfield (Team Get a Grip Cycles; 3): "About a half hour into the race I started to unravel due to the heat."

James Pradun (GDVC; 3): "I'm just being a pansy and not suffering."

Steve Tilford (Tradewind Energy/Trek Stores; P/1/2): "he was slamming me and everyone else into the far left curb. He was nearly T-boning me, trying to squeeze into a hole that wasn’t there."

Giro d'Grafton photos Extreme Photography John Wilke

Manitowoc reports Derek Laan (Panger/RGF; P/1/2): "We were all really stoked to finally produce a few top 10 results and score a little bit of money."

Steve Tilford (Tradewind Energy/Trek Stores; P/1/2): "Leaving the podium for the last time, I slipped on the aluminum steps and twisted my knee and scuffed up my shin. Bike racing is a dangerous sport."

Manitowoc photos John Wilke

Early reports from Wednesday's debut of the Soldier Field Cycling Series are very positive. Riders loved the high production values -- Pepsi Max podium gals! -- and say the course was better than what one would expect in a parking lot, although I'm told a narrow turn caused some problems for the crowded, sold-out 4/5's field.

Women's fields were tiny and the P/1/2/3's race wasn't enormous either, but I expect many people sat this one out to see how the first night played out. Here's hoping for larger fields come the next round on July 1, and 4/5's would be wise to pre-register to guarantee their spot. Full results.

Race reports Erik Didriksen (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4/5): "It was sketchy at times, but no more so than most 75-rider 4/5 criteriums."

Seth Meyer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; P/1/2/3): "Suddenly my man Jason Knauff (Burnham Racing) and I were reeling in this break that had been off the front for most of the hour."

Martin Michalowicz (MS Racing; 4/5): "With three laps to go, I grabbed Dan's wheel and started an MS train into the final lap."

Brian Morrissey (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4/5): "Out of saddle to the line, with what feels like a bag of cinderblocks on my back, I throw just before I get pipped out of the top three."

Spidermonkey Cycling (4/5): "I was able to gain position on the beck stretch but then lost it in the last two turns before the finish."

Photos Kevin Keeley Soldier Field Cycling

Once the rain stopped, Saturday turned out to be a nice day for racing.

In the morning's cold drizzle, however, the suck factor was high and flat tires rampant at Chicago's Sherman Park Criterium. Get a Grip Cycles provided neutral support and turned wheels around as fast as they came in. So fast, in fact, that one rider who flatted twice was surprised to receive his original wheel on his second trip to the pit. Despite the weather, racing was crash-free for the most part, save for a nasty pileup late in the 4's. I don't think the weather caused it, but poor visibility and bad traction certainly made it worse, with about a dozen riders sliding out. Casualties included one broken clavicle and one shattered frame. Bicycle Heaven lit up the early races, winning both the morning 5's and 4's races behind Tim Speciale and Joel Friedman, respectively, both winning bunch sprints by large margins. All day host XXX Racing-AthletiCo tried to use its large numbers to create breaks, but its three wins came from bunch sprints: Natalie Evans in the women's 4's, Michael Young in the second 5's race, and Peter Strittmatter in the 3's. At one point the team had four riders in a six-man selection in the masters 1/2/3's, but in the sprint it was Adam Lesniakowski (PACT-Dish Network) and Marc Zionts (Alberto's) repeating their 1-2 placing of 2008. In the women's open, Jessi Prinner (ABD) outsprinted Jeannie Kuhajek (Team Mack), the latter's second 2nd place on the day. A large field turned out for the P/1/2/3 race. Comcast/Higher Gear, XXX Racing-AthletiCo and others were active off the front for the first hour, but with 20 minutes to go, David Sachs (Vision Quest) and Greg Springborn (Proctor) quietly slipped away and held a 30-second lead to the finish, won by Sachs. Full results.

Race reports Rob Curtis (Bicycle Heaven; 4): "I couldn't see crap. At times you were riding by feel. You could sense where the other riders were and just tried to maintain your position with respect to them."

Elvis Falbo (Beverly Bike/Vee-Pak; 30+ 4/5): "I really dug deep, and when I passed the finish line I heard the announcer call my number and Beverly Bike. I was very pleased."

Steve Dennis (Unattached; 4): [Picture worth a thousand words.]

Tamara Fraser (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; W-35+): "For a moment I quailed, but I wanted to give it everything I had, Jens-style. I told myself to just HTFU and keep pushing."

Greg Heck (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "What happened next reconfirmed my thoughts on crits."

Chris Kinonen (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+ 1/2/3): "It seemed like every time I looked around, our group consisted of different people"

Seth Meyer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; P/1/2): "Maybe we shouldn’t have fired all of our bullets too soon, but we made a plan based on the previous years’ races, and we stuck to it."

Will Nowak (Alderfer Bergen; P/1/2): "I was feeling good and confident that we could take a lap, especially once our gap reached a minute."

Mike Shea (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4): "I kept spinning and jumped around him in the same gear and accelerated easily. I shifted once more for the long haul, then once more. I stood and tried to overtake the leader."

Photos Chicago Personal Photo Mark Keller

Some highlights from the rest of the weekend:

• » ABD defended its ABR national championship by winning Sunday's 1/2 criterium in Winfield, this time behind Saturday's winner Josh Carter, who previously held the title in 2007. He, Chris Uberti (Panther/RFG) and Mike Sherer (Alderfer Bergen) formed a break early and built more than a minute lead.
• » A small women's field came down to practically a match sprint between three riders, with Michigan's Christy Keely (Team Kenda) beating locals Debbie Dust (PACT/Dish Network) and Jessi Prinner (ABD).
• » Waylon Janowiak (WDT-Allvoi) and Hogan Sills (Verizon Wireless) both showed their Saturday podiums were no flukes, coming in 3rd and 4th in the 3's, but it was Indiana's Eric Young (Morris Trucking) taking the top step.
• » Chicago once again invaded and pillaged the Wisconsin state road race championships. Check out Vision Quest laying waste to the 30+ race, sweeping the podium behind Alex Pavlov, Robbie Ventura and Mike Heagney. We also got winners in Devon Haskell (Team BH USA), who outkicked an eight-woman 1/2/3 break; Wisconsin resident Caroline Haebig (WDT-Allvoi) in the women's 4's; and Luke Seemann (XXX Racing-AthletiCo), who escaped late in the 3's. The out-of-state 4/5's race came down to a bunch sprint, insofar as one can sprint on a 14 percent grade, and Jake Teitelbaum (Spidermonkey Cycling) conquered it with a huge gap.

Full Winfield results. Full Spring Prairie results.

Winfield reports Rob Curtis (Bicycle Heaven; 4): "If you aren't moving up then you're being passed. It's that simple. It becomes a self-feeding frenzy where the pace picks up as a result."

Debbie Dust (PACT/Dish Network; W-1/2/3): "My back wheel skipped me along to a very close first-loser finish. Boo. But that's racing and it just comes with the territory."

Ed Hernandez (North Branch Cycling; 3): "It was almost as if everyone had rockets strapped to their chainstays, but my rockets were installed backwards."

Brian Morrissey (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3, 4): "I’m gaining, gaining, gaining, and finally throw hard for what I swear to God is 3rd."

Chris Uberti (Panther/RGF; 1/2): "I just followed Mike Sherer's (Alderfer Bergen) attack to cover some stuff, and before I knew it Josh Carter (ABD), Mike and I were drilling it for an hour."

Winfield photos Andy Daley Brian Morrissey Jim Whitmer

Spring Prairie reports Danny Beissinger (Cycle Smithy; 3): "By the 6th lap, I began an unfortunate spiral into dehydration."

Team BH Racing (W-P/1/2/3): "We all started the last brutal slog up the climb. Devon was flying and was able to come around Kristen to take the WIN!"

Doug Braun (Tower Racing; Non-WI 4/5): "I drilled it as hard as I could all the way up. At the crest of the hill one guy passes me with a huge burst of speed and goes ahead. I look behind and the next guy is 20 yards back. I try to catch the guy but the tank is empty."

Tamara Fraser (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; W-35+): "I wanted to get on the front and drill it, but everyone was trying to get up front and I got blocked in."

Chris Padfield (Team Get a Grip Cycles; 3): "I thought of trying to take off as well, but didn't foresee myself lasting until the finish if there were more than two laps to go."

James Pradun (Great Dane Velo Club; 3): "Everyone in the field looked at each other like they had just heard a duck's quack echo or something because there were a mass of confusing stares over who the hell was going to chase."

Mike Shea (Spidermonkey Cycling; Non-WI 4/5): "It's ironic that suffering up such hills is so glorious in retrospect."

Adrian Silva (Half Acre Cycling; Non-WI 4/5): "With the desperate knowledge that if we didn’t close the gap our race would be over, I put my head down and got aero on the hoods."

Katy Steudel (Team Pegasus; W-4): "I was tenaciously climbing my way to the top, picking my way through the women that seemed to be almost standing still."

Jake Teitelbaum (Spidermonkey Cycling; Non-WI 4/5): "After a few quick spins, I had the diesel engine going and within five pedal strokes, I had passed all of the 10 or 12 people in front of me."

Zach Thomas (Half Acre Cycling; Non-WI 4/5): "The pack, where I really wanted to be, was going up the road faster than I could muster."

Kristen Wentworth (Team Kenda; W-P/1/2/3): "I shifted to the big ring over the top and tried to catch her wheel but she was too strong."

Spring Prairie photos Katy Steudel John Wilke

The threat of rain proved empty, and with temps in the low 50s it was perfect March weather Saturday for the Winfield Twilight.

This course demands patience. Let the suckers attack early, for it's usually the late attacks, after the hill has worn everyone down, that prove effective. This was the case in the 2/3's, where Ryan Freund was a quiet presence until going off the front with five to go. He held off Waylon Janowiak (WDT-Allvoi) and Hogan Sills (Verizon Wireless) for the convincing win. (He was not, however, able to lap your correspondent, who'd been doing some investigative reporting off the back, so he's still got that to work on.) An hour later Freund, who won here as a 5 in 2008, was in the 1/2 race and not only surviving but playing an active role, going on the attack and reeling in primes. Plenty of dangerous moves formed late that included enough of the the major teams -- ABD, Geargrinder, Vision Quest and Panther/RGF among them -- to seem viable, but nothing lasted much more than a lap. It came down to a sprint, with Josh Carter (ABD) winning three bikelengths ahead of Chris Uberti (Panther/RGF) and a depleted field. Carter has a knack for this course. He finished 2nd in 2007 and 2008 and won in 2006. PACT/Dish Network had a good day, or at least a good hour, as the women and men's 50+ raced concurrently. In the women's race, a selection of four formed early, out of which Debbie Dust (PACT/Dish Network) got the jump on Kristen Meshberg (Team BH USA) for the win (above). Meanwhile, Mike Jones (PACT/Dish Network) went solo early and cruised to victory. Earlier, Tim Speciale (Bicycle Heaven) won the 5's and junior Chazz Martin (ISCorps) continued his good showings in the senior ranks by showing good patience and then sprinting to the 4's win. Full results.

Race reports Rob Curtis (Bicycle Heaven; 4): "It was like everyone went the speed of a normal Chicago style crit but they put some sort of Wisconsin hill in there and we were too stupid to slow down on it like the cheeseheads do."

Debbie Dust (PACT/Dish Network; W-open): "I kept looking under my arm, just waiting for her wheel to come by, but in the end I was able to cross the line first."

Ben LaForce (Team Get a Grip Cycles; 2/3): "I think this course is what my body was built for: a crit, technical and with a repetitive annoying hill thrown in for good measure."

Brian Morrissey (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "I should’ve been going faster, not to mention taken a more aggressive and shallower turn. Right there my podium was gone. "

Joe Schubert (Half Acre Cycling; 4): "About two seconds after this pic was taken I puked up about 1 1/2 cups worth of mucus."

Luke Seemann (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 2/3): "It’s not a good sign when your 'attack' is complimented as a 'pull.'"

Chris Uberti (Panther/RGF; 1/2): "It was a great venue because people who were not cyclists cared about the race."

Photos Luke Seemann

Turnout was light this weekend, and I suspect several reasons. Relatively unknown races. Costs of travel and entry. Riders still pooped from Memorial Day. It's too bad, because I'm hearing nothing but praise for the O'Fallon Grand Prix and the new Wonder Lake Lakeside Criterium: good courses, good organization. I hope we get another chance at them in 2010.

Some highlights:

• » Few of us race as week-in, week-out as the boys at Burnham Racing. This weekend two of them finally picked up what I believe are their first road wins: Julian Baumgartner wore down a break and soloed to a 3's win in O'Fallon, and at Wonder Lake Jason Knauff took an early leave from the 3's and crossed the line well ahead of a chasing pack (above).
• » WDT-Allvoi had a productive weekend, too. Nathan Moorehouse and Tomasz Boba went 1-2 in the P/1/2 race a Wonder Lake, and James Londono won the 5's race. Meanwhile, Chris Gola was in Sussex, Wis., getting 2nd in the masters 3/4's at the Sussex Criterium. The previous day, Boba won the masters 1/2/3's and Caroline Haebig won the women's 4's at the Chiropractic Criterium in Brookfield, Wis., a course that featured a significant climb.
• » Other local results from downstate: Kyle Hilgendorf (Unattached) finished 2nd in the 5's, and William Pankonin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) made the 4's break to finish 5th.
• » And from Wisconsin: Chris Padfield sprinted to a 2nd place in the 3's Saturday. In Sussex, Dave Moyer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) grabbed 3rd in the 3's followed by Julio Jacobo (PYOC) in 4th, and Lagrange's Cathy Frampton (Unattached) won the women's 4's.

Saturday results Chiropractic Criterium O'Fallon Grand Prix

Sunday results Sussex Criterium Wonder Lake

O'Fallon Grand Prix reports Julian Baumgartner (Burnham Racing; 3): "I again called upon the magic mojo from my Zipp 404’s and bridged up to a still-solidifying break and went right to the front, put my head down and went to work."

Colm Flannery (Proctor; 4/5): "I got in a race with 35 sprinters and 1 diesel."

William Pankonin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "No mercy, and we didn’t look back until we passed the field that started before us."

Tony Rienks (Beverly Bike/Vee-Pak; 4): "Wave after wave of attacks were going on. Of course I caught all of them except for the one that stuck."

Chiropractic Criterium reports Danny Beissinger (Cycle Smithy; 3, P/1/2/3): "All of a sudden, I ain'ts got me no more matches."

Chris Padfield (Team Get a Grip Cycles; 3): "They started to peel to the right with the stereotypical 'No you do the work!' move, which I recognized as my perfect opportunity to jump."

Wonder Lake reports Danny Beissinger (Cycle Smithy; 3): "I knew that Burnham and South Chicago would try to put someone into the break. I didn't think it would happen on the second lap."

Julian Baumgartner (Burnham Racing; 3): "Maybe he just had to blow his nose and wanted some space."

Erik Didriksen (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "I pedaled HARD through turn one to distance myself from that lunacy."

Kristen Meshberg (Team BH USA; W-P/1/2/3, P/1/2): "A couple times there were some hard accelerations where I blew up and thought, 'OK, I'm dropped,' but then I would look up and see the field slowing and think, 'Oh $%*&, now I have to keep going.'"

Wonder Lake photos Matt Smith

Sussex photos John Wilke

Some highlights from this weekend's ABD masters criteriums in Wood Dale:

• » Verizon Wireless saved its best for last. In Monday's 40+ 1/2/3, Mark Swartzendruber soloed away, enabling teammate Dave Stone to sprint for 2nd out of the first of many chase groups. As a light rain started ahead of the 30+ race, Swartzendruber was quickly in street clothes, meaning Michael Zellman was on his own. No matter: A group of three formed about halfway through, and Zellman wound up a long sprint from the final corner to win.
• » Break specialist Scott Pearson (Comcast/Higher Gear) picked up the overall in the 30+. Although he missed Monday's break, his 2nd and 1st the previous days had pretty much secured the win by then.
• » David Hudson (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) raced six times over the weekend and never finished outside the top 10, winning the 30+ 5's overall and placing 5th in the overall for 40+ 5's. The top 40+ 4 was Bob Karlow (Verdigris), who won two of the three races.
• » There was minor scandal in that 40+ 4's field when it turned out that one of the top finishers was a few years shy of 40. Upon discovery, ABD struck his results and adjusted the tables accordingly.
• » The 50+ was as competitive as expected, with the usual suspects near the top. Masters national champion Wayne Simon (Verdigris) didn't get a win, but accrued enough omnium points to nip Tom Doughty (Amgen/Masters) in the overall. Teammate Christian Zauner picked up the 40+, giving Verdigris three overall victories.

Full Saturday results. Full Sunday results. Full Monday results. Full overall results.

Saturday race reports Andy Daley (Burnham Racing; 30+ 1/2/3): "It was simply attack, break gets off, break gets chased down, someone counters, another break gets away, break gets chased down, etc."

Debbie Dust (PACT/Dish Network; 50+): "Lots of them are very strong, smart racers -- some current and former national and state champions -- so it was definitely going to be hard. (Fine with me!)"

Ed Hernandez (North Branch; 30+ 1/2/3): "Forget EPO, I had me some DPO -- Druber Potential Optimization. I have come to play, fellas!"

Mark Swartzendruber (Verizon Wireless; 40+ 1/2/3, 30+ 1/2/3): "My faith has been fully restored in masters racing."

Monday race reports Debbie Dust (PACT/Dish Network; 50+): "My favorite quote of the day? Tom Doughty, making an observation as Fabio Orlandi attacks and opens a sizable gap, 'That's not good...'"

Tamara Fraser (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; W-40+): "She tried to exploit my my weakness in the corners, but these corners were so gentle, and the roads so wide, that I didn't have even a moment of panic."

I love reading the annual reports from Snake Alley rookies. An invariable theme is: "I've never experienced so much pain. Can't wait for next year!" Indeed, no less than Steve Tilford (Tradewind Energy/Trek Stores) called this year's edition an "epic rain criterium."

And combined with the Burlington Road Race, Sunday's Melon City Criterium and Monday's Quad Cities Criterium, it's an epic weekend. Some highlights from Chicago riders:

• » We're seeing some great racing this year from Jim Flora (South Chicago Wheelmen). In Friday's Burlington Road Race he placed 4th in the P/1/2 bunch sprint after a break was caught in the final miles.
• » Chicago laid waste to the Snake Alley 5's race, placing seven into the top 10: Andrew Haala (Team Beer'd) in 3rd (celebrating above); from Spidermonkey Cycling, Dan Pollard in 4th and Bryan Witry in 10th; and from XXX Racing-AthletiCo, Chris Koster in 5th, Ryan Fay in 6th, Michael Young in 8th 7th and Matt Dawley in 9th. (Koster and teammate John Wolters also placed 3-4 in Friday's Wapello-Burlington Road Race.)
• » Jacques Cartier (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) had elite company on the podium in the 30+, placing 3rd behind Snake Alley experts Cam Kirkpatrick (Rasmussen Bike Shop) and Dewey Dickey (Mercy/Specialized).
• » Rain made for slick bricks in the 3's and P/1/2's races. Chicago's top finisher in the 3's was Al Urbanski (Chicago Cuttin' Crew), who overcame a disadvantageous starting position to place 12th. In the $10,000 P/1/2's, Adam Bergman (Texas Roadhouse) closed the door early, leading to lots of early pulls, and I don't see any local names in the results until Ryan Freund (ABD) in 28th and Bryan McVey (Vision Quest) in 30th.
• » As usual, the Chicago Cuttin' Crew brought the party with it. Start around 4:45 and 6:15 in John Wilke's video if you've ever wondered what it's like for an entire hillside to chant "Avi! Avi!" like something out of "Rudy."
• » Melon City saw good results from Leah Sanda (Flatlandia) and Jannette Rho (Bouledogue Tout Noir), 3-4 in the women's 4's. In the 3's, Team Get a Grip Cycles' Aspen Gorry and David Reyes went 2-4. And Brandon Feehery (South Chicago Wheelmen) picked up 4th in what looks to have been a very competitive 15-18 field.
• » As expected, Kristen Meshberg and Devon Haskell are quickly making a name for Team BH USA. Haskell finished 3rd in in the women's P/1/2/3 at Snake Alley, behind two pros, and at Quad Cities Meshberg made the break and finished 2nd. (And this weekend they finally donned their new kits!)
• » Also finishing 2nd in a break at Quad Cities was Peter Strittmatter (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) in the 3's, who explains in this video interview that escaping was just his way to take the corners more safely. Juniors James Bird (ISCorps) and Wayon Janowiak did well in a wet field sprint to pick up 5th and 6th.
• » Winning races at Quad Cities were Chazz Martin (ISCorps), winning out of a late break in the 4's, and, thanks to a nice leadout from teammate Brian Morrissey, Mike Seguin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) in the masters 4/5's.
• » Chicago's 5's again did well at Quad Cities, including Koster, Fay and Wolters going 2-4-6 and Scott Knoepke (Elmhurst Masters) in 3rd.
• » With $5,000 on the P/1/2 line and a stacked field taking its 8 corners, Quad Cities earns its reputation as a cage match. Our top finisher was Sean Metz (Team Apache) in 13th.

Full Burlington Road Race and Snake Alley results. Full Melon City results. Full Quad Cities results.

Snake Alley race reports Team BH USA (W-P/1/2): "Several of us have a love-hate relationship with 'the snake' but we were all determined to finish it!"

Chad Bishop (Harper's Cycling & Fitness; 3): "Each time up the snake was a new challenge as riders were still dumping their bikes from time to time, mainly due to the loss of traction."

Carson Christen (HBA; 3): "With two laps to go, we were catching Sam and so I punched it up the Snake and caught him by the top."

Matt Dawley (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 5): "I think I climbed OK, but I can’t say the same for my descending and cornering."

Liam Donoghue (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "I really like shooting to the inside or sweeping to the outside and passing people when they hit their brakes, so that worked out in my favor."

Ryan Fay (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 5): "The race was pure hell. It was anguish. It was punishing. It was the most difficult thing I have ever physically done. Yet I can’t wait to do it again."

Carlos Flanders (Unattached; 4): "Nothing can prepare you for the shock to the system that is the opening two laps of this race."

Andrew Haala (Team Beer'd; 5): "Lap after lap I reach the top of Snake Alley out of fear, lungs on fire, legs refusing to move, overheating from the bright sun, trying to stay focused enough to catch the slips and jumps of my wheels on the descent."

The Hawkeye: "When the riders who came with him did not want to work, he dropped them going up Snake Alley."

Bryan McVey (Vision Quest; P/1/2): "I will look forward to doing this race again in dry conditions, or when I learn to have no fear in the descending in the rain, whichever comes first."

Seth Meyer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; P/1/2): "Gods were mean to us."

Mike Morell (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; 4): "As I rounded the bend I could hear the roar of my teammates as they realized I’d made my way to the front of the race."

Avi Neurohr (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; 4, 30+): "Best day of racing ever. Teams are good for a lot of things, but when they are inciting a near riot on your behalf... Well, you just don't get that anywhere."

Dan Pollard (Spidermonkey Cycling; 5): "By the fifth lap, I was standing on th epedals the whole way up, my legs experiencing an entirely new kind of burning."

Steve Tilford (Tradewind Energy/Trek Stores; P/1/2): "I started fast and was gone immediately. At the bottom of the descent I couldn’t see anyone behind me. "

Snake Alley photos Adam Herndon Iowa Pix Brian Morrissey John Wilke, plus video

Melon City reports Team BH USA (W-P/1/2): "HOT HOT HOT at Weed Park."

Ryan Fay (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 5): "I did my best to remember to ride smart and find a wheel whenever one was available."

Bryan McVey (Vision Quest; P/1/2): "The hill each lap took enough out of people to make it a tough race, but not enough to allow a break to stay away."

Seth Meyer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; P/1/2): "Started getting mini-dropped about thirty laps in, chasing back on on the back side, but got definitively unlatched and pulled over the next five laps."

Steve Tilford (Tradewind Energy/Trek STores; P/1/2): "The race seemed kind of destined to be a field sprint from the gun. Too many pretty fit guys."

Quad Cities reports Team BH USA (W-P/1/2): "Devon attacked with five to go and with Madeleine and Anne covering any attacks drove it home for 7th."

Matt Dawley (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 5): "Mike Seguin was apparently yelling at me from the sidelines to smarten up and ease up, but I think my oxygen-deprived brain heard ‘Go, go, go!’"

Elvis Falbo (Beverly Bike/Vee-Pak; 30+ 4/5): "With one lap to go attacks were everywhere. I made sure I kept close to all the action."

Ryan Fay (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 5): "Teamwork was the name of the game today."

Tom MacNeill-Zimmerman (Half Acre Cycling; 30+ 4/5): "My core and balance training kept me on the bike."

Bryan McVey (Vision Quest; P/1/2): "I kept reading how this race was being described as a cage match, and I didn't quite get it until I arrived at the course to see much of it enclosed by chicken-wire fencing."

Seth Meyer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; P/1/2): "I’m going to credit my gypsy skillet for breakfast for making this performance happen."

Brian Morrissey (XXX Racing-Athletico; 30+ 4/5, 4): "All the frustration and anger and bitterness came rushing out of me in two huge barbaric yawps that echoed off the river town’s brick downtown buildings."

Quad Cities Times: "Team Texas Roadhouse used overwhelming numbers and constant attacks to secure the victory."

Quad Cities photos Brian Morrissey Ken Urban

Chicago riders did extremely well at all the races this long weekend, from Wood Dale to the Quad Cities. It's going to take a bit to take it all in.

Our first wrap-up, however, comes from Duluth, Minn., where a handful of Chicagoans headed for the four-day Duluth Classic Stage Race. In the 3/4's, Chris Padfield (Team Get a Grip Cycles), pictured above, and Brian Hill (Team Get a Grip Off Road) got to a great start with a 1-2 finish in Friday's 16.2-mile time trial. Time bonuses over the next two days of road racing reduced Padfield's grip on 1st to a precious 1 second -- and Hill would lose 30 seconds to a centerline violation, falling to 5th -- but thanks to sacrifices from Hill and teammate Ben LaForce, Padfield made the lead stick through Monday's criterium to take the overall general classification. Meanwhile, junior Chris Wiatr (WDT-Allvoi) placed 8th in the 4/5's time trial, then, racing solo, picked up 5th and 2nd in the road races, moving up to 3rd overall. Full Duluth Classic results.

Race reports Ben LaForce (Team Get a Grip Cycles; 3/4): "I jumped on Brones’ wheel as he broke and followed him around for a lap. Immediately Brian then went to the front of the pack and gave it everything to close the gap."

Clipped pedals. Wind. Road debris. Squirrelly riders. Overcooked corners. Wrong turns. Panic.

All have been cited as reasons for crashes at Saturday's Monsters of the Midway, which was marred by numerous falls and multiple ambulance visits. And although I've always been a fan of Monsters' loose enforcement of categories, perhaps fields were also disrupted by riders racing a hair over their heads? Whatever the causes, it's a shame: Monsters is typically a safe course. What kind of carnage will we see once we throw in descents, technical turns and significant purses? (As I write this, I recall I wondered the same thing last spring.) Results are not posted yet -- I expect our ABR friends are preoccupied with Tuesday's tragedy in Kenosha -- so this will be an abbreviated wrap-up. What I glean from the reports, however, is that with a stiff tailwind on the homestretch, jumping early proved effective more times than not. Juniors, women and masters results.

Race reports Ed Amstutz (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+, 1/2/3): "I knew we wanted a long sprint with a heavy tailwind, so I called for Randy Warren to ramp it up earlier than normal."

Charles Biro (Team Get a Grip Cycles; 30+, 3): "I just couldn’t close the last 50 meters -- which, of course, was about how far from the front of the field I was when I launched my attack."

Danny Beissinger (IIT; 3, 1/2/3): "I settled for 15th, but at least I stayed up."

Kevin Butler (Wheel Fast Racing; 4): "The riders in front of me stacked it up and suddenly the rider directly in front went airborne. I had nowhere to go."

Rob Curtis (Bicycle Heaven; 4): "The field was OK but there were some weird moves."

Liam Donoghue (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "I launch back into the drops and grab his wheel, unsure if there’s a group chomping at my bits right behind. I will not be denied, kind sir."

Devon Haskell (Team BH Racing; W-P/1/2/3): "It was fun crossing the line 1-2 in our first race back together and in front of the great UofC crowd."

Ed Hernandez (North Branch; 3): "I'm no sprint specialist or breakaway-guru, but I do know a thing or two about leveling out the exertion highs and lows during the course of a crit."

Chris Kinonen (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+, 3): "Riders repeatedly and dramatically swerved in random directions, causing someone else to do the same, and thus a mini chain reaction of swerving and braking."

Sophia Lee (Tati Cycles; W-4, W-3/4): "I probably could have tucked behind someone for a while, but what I ended up doing was madly charge past them instead, screaming on the top of my lungs, kendo style."

Henry Loud (Team Pegasus; 3): "I clicked up again and again. Then I had no more gears to move up. I was in my 53x12 and spinning it as hard as I could."

Joe Schubert (Half Acre Cycling; 4): "I see two or three guys collide, bikes flopping every which way and that hollow ping of carbon rumbling toward me."

Mike Shea (Spidermonkey Cycling; 30+): "Once the break was established and the rhythm hadn't made my legs fall off, I even felt pretty good about competing with guys stronger than me."

Shane Winn (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 1/2/3): "With about four laps remaining I started playing the team card a little."

Photos: Carolyn Golz Gavin Gould Waylon Janowiak Matt Smith: 3, 1/2/3

I'm going to come out and say it: La Rue-Denzer-La Rue is the best road race in the Midwest.

Yes, better than Hillsboro-Roubaix. It's more challenging, more interesting and safer. Saturday's edition was better than ever, with an extension that added a series of killer stairstep climbs. Fields that did the 2.5-lap course endured more than 7,500 feet of climbing. Plus, any race that begins and ends at a tavern gets bonus points -- doubly so for a tavern with Spotted Cow on tap. I'm baffled, then, at the turnout. The P/1/2's may have attracted an ace field -- legends like Dewey Dickey (Mercy/Specialized) and Adam Bergman (Texas Roadhouse) among them -- but all other races were sorely underattended, with fewer than 30 in the 4's and barely 20 in the 3's. Yes, it's a long drive. Yes, Monsters is a very attractive alternative. And yes, I can almost understand the Cheeseheads who want to save their delicate legs for Sunday's popular Wheels on Willy. But come on: This is as good as it gets around here. Happily there were plenty of Chicagoans not intimidated by the tough climbing. Jannette Rho (Bouledogue Tout Noir) won the women's 4's, and in the masters 4/5's, Tower Racing teammates Doug Braun and Pat Dillon formed a lead group early and then used excellent teamwork to secure Braun the win. Brian Hill (Get a Grip Off Road Racing), fresh off a 3rd-place GC at the Joe Martin Stage Race, finished 2nd in the 4/5's, and XXX Racing-AthletiCo asserted a strong team presence in the 3's, missing out on the win but putting three into the top five. We had more excellent performances Sunday at Wheels on Willy, which took place around the Madison capitol. Rho hit the podium again with 3rd in the women's 4's, and Team BH USA put two on the steps, with Kristen Meshberg winning the women's P/1/2/3 and Devon Haskell taking 3rd in her first domestic race since her trip to France and Belgium. And Kyle Wiberg (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) had one for the ages by attacking early in the masters 3/4 and masters 4/5 races -- both fields more than 60 strong -- to take the double victory. And then we have poor Waylon Janowiak (WDT-Allvoi), who successfully created a two-man break in the 3's, then won a difficult sprint. Unfortunately, the 18-year-old had neglected to change to junior gearing, so officials relegated him after he failed rollout. It's an important reminder for juniors: Mind your gearing, even in the senior races, and don't forget to go to rollout. Full La Rue-Denzer-La Rue results. Full Wheels on Willy results. I'll wrap up Monsters of the Midway in a separate post.

La Rue-Denzer-La Rue reports Doug Braun (Tower Racing; 30+ 4/5): "The finish is after a very fast downhill, so I made sure I was on the right wheel well before we hit the sprint."

Seth Meyer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; P/1/2): "Going up that hill, I started to pass lots of great riders. I went by Paul Ellis (SPBRC) and I thought, 'Hey! An ex-pro! I must be riding well!'"

Luke Seemann (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3): "Time to go for broke. Again I wait for the climb to settle into a rhythm, then shift up a few cogs and spring forward."

La Rue-Denzer-La Rue photos John Wilke

Wheels on Willy reports Devon Haskell (Team BH Racing; W-P/1/2/3): "Kristen was on my wheel yelling 'Allez allez' with one lap left. I tried to keep the pace high and pulled hard to the final straight, where Kristen called on her 'go-go gadget sprinter legs.'"

Tom Theisen (ISCorps; 3, P/1/2/3): "It was a big field. Well, at the start anyway."

Kyle Wiberg (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+ 4/5, 30+ 3/4): "Took off between turn 1 and 2 and they didn’t catch me on my HED wheels this time either."

Wheels on Willy photos Patratacus Clint Thayer John Wilke

It was another soggy affair in Wisconsin for Saturday's Matt Wittig Memorial Bicycle Race in Muskego, but a few Chicagoans nonetheless headed up for some hilly crit action. Joel Friedman (Bicycle Heaven) continued good form with a 2nd in the 4/5's, and Waylon Janowiak (WDT-Allvoi) placed 3rd in the 3's.

Much farther away, Chicago repped well at the Joe Martin Stage Race in Fayetteville, Ark. In the 4's, Liam Donoghue (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) and Brian Hill (Get a Grip Off Road Racing) cracked off stellar times in a difficult uphill time trial, then broke away in Sunday's criterium to finish 2-3 in the crit and 2-3 in the general classification. The 3's saw three Chicagoans in the top 20 GC, including James Bird (ISCorp) in 17th, Peter Strittmatter (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) in 15th and your humble correspondent in 7th. The most impressive result was in the 1/2's, where Ryan Freund (ABD) never finished outside the top 10 over his four days of hard racing. In the end that was good for 11th in the GC. Full Muskego results.

Muskego race reports Rob Curtis (Bicycle Heaven; 30+ 4/5): "Everyone took the corner slow and then accelerated out of the corner then into the hill. It got old quick."

Seth Meyer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; P/1/2): "Attacked for scraps and got huge 20-second gap with three laps to go, but died and couldn’t hold it."

William Pankonin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+ 4/5, 30+ 3/4): "Our largest gap grew to 12 seconds, which looks promising when you can’t see them because of the hills and turns."

Muskego photos Waylon Janowiak John Wilke

I'm sorry to have missed out on Sunday's Vernon Hills Grand Prix. Looks like it was a good day of racing under excellent weather. I haven't seen all the results yet so there's not much commentary I can add, other than to congratulate Mike Heagney (Vision Quest) and Ben-Jamin Widoff (PowerBar) for winning the masters races, 1/2/3 and 4/5 respectively, with Widoff doubling up with a win in the 4's. Kudos also to Nate Iden (Burnham Racing) for winning the 3's race in a bunch sprint nicely captured in a series of photos starting here. Each frame makes it look like it'll be a different winner. And Carolyn Golz captured a nice shot of Joel Friedman (Bicycle Heaven) winning exuberantly off the front of the 5's.

There was action in Michigan, Indiana and Wisconsin, too. Notable local results include Kristen Meshberg (Team BH USA) winning the women's P/1/2/3 in Lacrosse, Wis., and a certain representative of the cycling media riding to a solo win in the Circuit of Sauk masters 3/4. Update: Some hot podium action at Indiana's Winona Fat & Skinny Tire Festival compliments of Will Nowak (Alderfer-Bergen), 2nd in the P/1/2 road race, and Aspen Gorry (Team Get a Grip Cycles), 3rd in the 3's road race. And Chicago swept the women's 4's races, with Jeannette Schrand (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) winning the road race and Alexandra Navas (Northwestern) winning the criterium.

Saturday results Circuit of Sauk Winona Lake Road Race

Sunday results Kenosha Criterium Vernon Hills Grand Prix Winona Lake Criterium

Circuit of Sauk race reports Ryan Fay (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4/5): "A most untimely failure of my front derailleur kept me from getting out of my big chain ring after the first climb."

Kristen Meshberg (Team BH USA; W-P/1/2/3): "I was holding out hope that someone would get popped from the break and we could race for 3rd or 4th, but it was not to be."

Seth Meyer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; P/1/2): "Pain, pain, pain!"

Brian Morrissey (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+ 3/4, 4/5): "I just hoped that the first time up the hill wasn't a fluke."

Luke Seemann (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+ 3/4, 3): "I leaped up the right. After a few strokes, I looked back. He was still in his saddle. Perfect."

Circuit of Sauk photos Luke Seemann John Wilke

Vernon Hills race reports Julian Baumgartner (Burnham Racing; 3): "Nate is all like, 'Word.'"

Val Brostrom (Bouledogue Tout Noir; W-P/1/2/3): "I caught on and we proceeded to hammer it, each taking short pulls."

Kevin Clark (Half Acre Cycling; 4): "The pack now seemed much smaller than the field did at the line."

Steve Driscoll (Team Mack; 30+ 1/2/3, 3): "Some guy gets excited in front of me and at 32+ mph comes straight into my front wheel. I hit the deck, taking the guy behind me with."

Ryan Fay (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 5): "The pace was pretty hot, but I stayed at near the front of the group."

Waylon Janowiak (WDT-Allvoi; 3): "Prom was the night before so I was up a lot later than I would have liked to be."

Joe Kallo (Team Tati, 5): "I looked over my shoulder and realized I had a pretty big gap on the field. When this sunk into my somewhat oxygen-deprived brain, I have to say it was a pretty awesome feeling."

Seth Meyer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; P/1/2): "I myself was quite happy just to be active and going for the breaks and bridge attempts."

John Meyers (ABD; P/1/2): "That’s how breakaways work: They hurt."

Brian Morrissey (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "Hmmmmm, what's this? Four black jerseys all in a line."

Mike Seguin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+ 4/5, 4): "With three laps to go it got interesting."

Joe Schubert (Half Acre Cycling; 4): "We pushed it 100 percent and never thought of quitting after being dropped."

Eric Shivvers (Half Acre Cycling; 5): "I was there to shake it up and let others know our team had some strong riders."

Vernon Hills photos Carolyn Golz Matt Smith

The crits of August can have their blue skies and dry roads. It's spring, and no spring campaign is complete without a few races held in what meteorologists refer to as "the suck."

Take Saturday's Leland Kermesse. Host Flatlandia promised Belgian-like conditions, but mostly that was in reference to a milelong stretch of gravel. Little did they know that mother nature would visit with Merckx-ian fury. Indeed, the much-ballyhooed gravel was the easiest stretch of the course. Road bikes had no trouble navigating the two smooth, packed-down lines left by years of cars and tractors. The limited line made it difficult to come around cracked riders, but not impossible. And riding straight into the headwind was almost a reprieve from the vicious crosswinds. Save for the absence of thousands of screaming fans, it was easy to pretend you were barreling through the Arenberg. The crosswinds. A steady 20 mph breeze from the south -- with gusts to 30 -- slammed riders into the gutter for the first 4 miles of the course. You had to lean at what felt like a 45-degree angle just to stay upright. Few fields made it through intact. In a combined 1/2 and 3 race, a suspiciously tan Mark Swartzendruber (Verizen Wireless) can be blamed for a tempo that reduced his race to 10 riders by the first turn north. He'd drill it again over the gravel, reducing the lead group again to just six riders. This group would stick for the balance of the race. In it were two 3's: Ben-Jamin Widoff (Team Powerbar) and Al Urbanski (Chicago Cuttin' Crew). If it were me in their shoes, I'd have sat in and enjoyed the ride, but Swartzendruber tells me they took more than their share of pulls. And then the sky darkened. The wind picked up, hail strafed the riders and furious bolts of lightning struck what felt like mere meters from the road. With just a few miles left, Widoff attacked. Urbanski followed. The remaining 1/2's gave them the ol' "Not our field" shrug and they were off. Urbanski created a gap on the now slick and muddy gravel stretch (shown above) and held it all the way to the line to take an impressive overall victory. Behind them, Swartzendruber again drilled it over the gravel, but he was unable to shake the others, and Jim Flora (South Chicago Wheelmen) sprinted for the 1/2 win. Earlier races had their share of wetness, too, and broke up in similar fashion. In the 30+/40+ open, Matt Smith (Burnham Racing) and Jeff Wat (Burnham Racing) thought they were on easy street after they successfully made the first selection and noticed that they were the only youngsters there, giving them an inside line on the 30+. Unbeknown to them, 56-year-old former Olympian Tom Doughty (Amgen/Giant Masters) had cheekily registered as a 30+. Doughty was able to break off with 40+ winner Dan Verner (PACT/Dish Network) to start the final lap to take the 30+ win. Other results of note: Roselle's Alex Bolivar (Venezuela) soloed away for the 4's win, having whittled the race down to just him and cyclocross specialist Ben Popper (Killjoy), who no doubt was right at home in the dirt. XXX Racing-AthletiCo took five of the top 10 spots in the 5's behind a win from Chris Koster Fay. XXX Racing-AthletiCo also constituted three of the four women's open riders, finishing 1-2-3 with Jeanette Schrand in 1st. The women's 4's field was not much larger, with Janette Rho (Bouledogue Tout Noir) taking the win. Feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. We're lucky to have a course like this so close to the city, and I hope it returns next year with even bigger fields. I do worry about the width of the roads: The fracturing of fields kept things safe, but it would be a different story if, say, a field of 80 were to stick together. Fortunately there was good visibility and little traffic, and none of the blind corners or rollers that we get at Hillsboro. In other action this weekend, a few locals traveled to Iowa City, Iowa, to race. In Saturday's road race, Chris Padfield (Team Get a Grip Cycles) picked up 8th in the 3's and Jessi Prinner (ABD) got 2nd in the women's open. Sunday saw Padfield's teammates Aspen Gorry and Ben LaForce go 2-4 in the 3's bunch sprint. In Wisconsin, Ricardo Otero (WDT-Allvoi) finally got that elusive win, picking up the 30+ 3/4 in Muskego. Mike Heagney (Vision Quest) placed 2nd in the 30+ 1/2/3. Brian Haas (Alberto's) got 5th in that race, and Francine Haas (Alberto's) placed 2nd in the women's open. Not too many Chicagoans made it to Sheboygan for its rain-soaked crit on Sunday, but you will not want to miss John Wilke's photos

Full Saturday results Muskego Spring Criterium Iowa City Road Race

Full Sunday results Fon du Lac & Oshkosh Cyclery Criterium Old Capitol Criterium

Leland Kermesse race reports Ted Burger (Flatlandia): "Now the goose bumps set in. The rain is pouring down, mud is everywhere, and Al is putting down the hammer. I scramble to find my camera to record this moment of beauty."

Kevin Butler (Wheel Fast Racing; 4): "It was the 2001 stage to Pla d'Adet all over again."

Carlos Flanders (Unattached; 4): "The exceptionally high winds and threatening conditions made life exceptionally hard, but there was some indefinable charm about the race."

Jeff Holland (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3): "I'd occasionally catch someone, or get caught, work together, but never was able to work for more than 3/4 of a lap with someone. I suffered in the wind mostly alone."

Joe Kallo (Team Tati; 5): "I jumped out of the line into the headwind and heard two people shout 'TATI left!' Ah, now that sounded nice."

Bob Murray (Beverly Bike/Vee-Pak; 5): "I was headed into the wind doing 13-14 just dying."

Ben Popper (Killjoy; 4): "I sped up into the corner, took it fast and stood up with the wind, hammer down."

Julie Popper (Half Acre Cycling; W-4): "I looked around me at the lightening striking the nearby fields and the rain driving in the blustery winds. Now this is a spring classic."

Luke Seemann (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3): "Lightning struck to the west. I crouched as aero as possible so I wouldn’t be the tallest rider out there. "

Ben Van Couvering (Team Pegasus; 4): "There was no way I was going to let my brain end my race when my body could still keep going."

Mike Shea (Spider Monkey Cycling; 4): "Because everyone wanted to be out of the wind, no one would create an echelon."

James Slauson (Bicycle Heaven, 1/2): "The 1,2,3 fields were combined for into a five-lap race. That was plenty, I promise you."

Al Urbanski (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; 3): "That shit was tailor made."

Leland Kermesse photos Ted Burger Amy Dykema Project 5 Racing

Fon fu Lac & Oshkosh Cyclery Criterium race reports William Pankonin (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4/5, 30+ 4/5): "A pool of over rim-high water flooded the back stretch of the course, and water streamed down Evergreen Park’s elevation and across the road."

Matt Stevenson (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 5, 4/5): "My legs were like frozen hams that refused to move."

I understand it was a good weekend of racing at the Greg Bednorski Memorial Criteriums in Madison, Wis., if you could avoid the rain and a few harrowing final-turn crashes.

RIcardo Otero (WDT-Allvoi) has uncannily picked up just where he left off last season by coming in 2nd in both the weekend's masters 3/4 races. Hillsboro winner Danny Robertson (Team Mack) continued his tear, winning the 3's Saturday in a bunch sprint. Molly Godlewski (Chicago Cuttin' Crew) won the women's 4's Sunday, her second win of the year. Meanwhile, teammate Mike Morell hit the top 10 both days in the 4's: 3rd on Saturday and 9th Sunday. Chicago's juniors represented well, with Chazz Martin (IS Corps) winning the 4's on Saturday and Brandon Feehery (South Chicago Wheelmen) coming in 5th in the 3's, this after Kaleb Koch (IS Corps) and Feehery went 1-2 in the 15-18. On Sunday, Adam Kosela (PACT-Dish Network) got 3rd in the 15-18 and 4th in the 3's. Full Saturday results. Full Sunday results.

Race reports Chicago Cuttin' Crew (W-4, 4): "Wits always help, but Molly also has the ability to back them skills with sheer strength."

Rob Curtis (Bicycle Heaven; 4, 30+ 4/5): "I made a joke about the race going into the toilet. No one laughed. No one got it."

Aspen Gorry (Team Get a Grip Cycles; 3): "Standing on the line in the freezing rain for the few minutes before the sent us off was enough to get soaked and chilled to the bone."

Martin Michalowicz (Team MS Racing; 5, 30+ 4/5): "I stood up sprinted away with not one person to follow me. Obviously, I didn't have a target on my jersey. Nobody seemed to care."

Some notes from another exciting edition of Hillsboro-Roubaix, which on Saturday saw record numbers tackle the rough roads and rougher bricks:

• » I never bother with spare wheels in road races. At our level, what maniac honestly thinks he can catch back on after changing a wheel? Meet two such maniacs: The first was Al Urbanski (Chicago Cuttin' Crew), who flatted out of the 3's break and, with 10 miles to go, chased solo into the headwind to regain contact. He still had enough gas to throw down some attacks and would hold on for an impressive fourth. Then in the P/1/2 race, three-time runner-up Brian Jensen (Tradewind Energy/Trek Stores) flatted in the final few miles and not only caught back on to the remaining break but came around to win by a healthy 7 seconds (above). Truly, two heroic performances.
• » Chicago native Rebecca Much (Webcor Builders) paid us a visit and walked away with a victory in the women's P/1/2/3 race, attacking on the final climb out of a five-woman break. Among her breakmates was junior Jessi Prinner (ABD). Meanwhile, Kristen Meshberg (Team BH USA) won the field sprint for 6th.
• » Young Danny Robertson (Team Mack) of Rolling Meadows is showing good form. After two top-10 finishes at the Spring Super Crit, he won out of the break in said 3's race, then won the 3/4's race Sunday in the Tilles Park Criterium in St. Louis.
• » The complexion of the 3's race changed when, with riders strewn from gutter to gutter, an official neutralized the pack just as a group of about 10 was coming together off the front. His scolding was brief and I'm not sure anyone came to a complete stop, but it was just enough to enable the break to get out of sight. The field would lose momentum three more times: Twice for cars in its path, and once for a confusing pass of some masters riders.
• » Something needs to give on the centerline. Enforcement is too spotty to be effective, and there are many stretches where it simply is not tenable to use less than half the road. Surely I'm a dreamer, but how impossible would it be to close traffic between Miles 2 and 11? It's those 9 miles that are the dodgiest. At the very least, would it be practical to close that stretch to oncoming traffic?
• » How big were these packs? Big. 121 started the P/1/2 race. (54 finished.) At 97, this was the biggest 3's field I'd ever been a part of. Here's video of the P/1/2 field on the first lap. (I understand some crashes followed not long after.) Here are the 3's starting their second lap.
• » Chicago riders went 2-3-4 in the 50+ race: Wayne Simon (Verdigris), Stuart Grinell (ISCorp) and Tom Doughty (Amgen/Giant Masters), respectively, all members of a five-man break that finished 3 minutes up on the chase group and an astounding 11 minutes up on the field. In the 40+, our top finishers were Michael Zellman (Verizon Wireless) in 1st and Brian Haas (Alberto's) in 3rd.
• » In the womens' 4's race, Chicago riders took home two bricks: Jeanette Schrand (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) in 2nd and Leah Sanda (Flatlandia) in 3rd, and Elgin's Josh Crane (ABD) took the juniors U15, with Samuel Bianchi (XXX Racing-AthletiCo) in 2nd.
• » In the run-up to April 4, more than one person said to me, "Just so long as we beat St. Louis." By my accounting, St. Louis riders won only one race: Kristin Moore (Big Shark) in the women's 4's. Mission accomplished!
• » Hooray for perfect weather!
• » And three cheers for for the chip timing, a pleasant and well-run surprise. Sprints still needed to be decided by the human observers and cameras, but it sure was nice to have the next 100 placings posted -- with acceptable accuracy -- within a few minutes, instead of waiting all afternoon as officials squinted at video in order to pick 47th from 48th place.

Photos John Bennett Bill Cahill Dennis Fickinger Rachel Pomberg Matt Smith

Race reports Jim Brady (Pony Shop; 40+): "I started just counting down the miles... one... at... a... time."

Doug Braun (Tower Racing; 40+): "I was in a really good position when my rear wheel exploded."

Erik Didriksen (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "As we hit the feed zone my arch nemesis Gravity started to tug at my seatpost."

Elvis Falbo (Beverly Bike/Vee-Pak; 4): "On my way up the final climb I saw one racer walking his bike up inch by inch with the bike between his legs."

Ryan Fay (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 5): "I kept my composure down the hill and over the brick. I got back on the other rider’s wheel at the final turn and with about 200M to go, I hit the gas as hard as I could."

Steve Driscoll (Team Mack; 3): "Screaming downhill on the bricks and rough pavement, the hardware in my legs could not take all of the jarring."

Tamara Fraser (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; W-P/1/2/3): "take the corner hot and sneak a look behind me--I still have a good gap!"

Waylon Janowiak (WDT-Allvoi; 3): "No excuses but I felt like hell that last lap."

Chris Kinonen (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3): "Why is half the field on the left side of the road?"

Rich Kisseloff (Dogfish; 3): "Ride, turn, accelerate, catch up, turn, accelerate, turn, hit afterburners, recover, turn, bridge gap, fight headwind, recover."

Ryan Knapp (Panther/RGF; P/1/2): "The rubber band was thoroughly stretched in the front, but we couldn't seem to get another group to break off and catch the six just up the road."

Ben LaForce (Team Get a Grip Cycles; 3): "The one time a year when the midwesterner gets to try their hand at a spring classic of their own."

John Meyers (ABD; P/1/2): "About 4-5 minutes passed before I got my wheel change, and I said screw it."

Brian Morrissey (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4): "First-race jitters kept me from going out on my own, like I'd told myself I would at least try."

Rebecca Much (Webcor Builders; W-P/1/2/3): "You never know how races are going to play out in a local fied, but this race was probably one of the most fun and aggressive races I’ve ever witnessed, which was delighting!"

Avi Neurohr (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; 4): "Uh, plenty of room up here if you want to show us how it's done."

Madeleine Puissant (Team BH USA; W-P/1/2/3): "I tried a few more attacks but Kenda and Mercy were quick to react."

Rob Ragfield-Schofield (Wild Card Cycling; 4): "Midway up I had to slow way down. I just got stuck behind the wrong people."

Joe Schubert (Half Acre Cycling; 4): "I'm riding all-out trying to make up lost ground and tuning out the unholy chatter of carbon on brick."

Luke Seemann (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3): "As we headed down the final 400 meters, my mind did a quick catalog of all the sprints I’d lost. This is an extensive catalog."

Mike Sherer (Alderfer Bergen; P/1/2): "I was cramping in places I didn't know I could even cramp."

Team Tati (4, W-4): "Undaunted, our long-limbed theologian shouldered his bike 'cross style and remounted only on the descent."

Steve Tilford (Tradewind Energy/Trek Stores; P/1/2): "I was riding up the hill and somehow a cone ended up in my front wheel and I instantly went over the bars."

Al Urbanski (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; 3): "I flatted right at the same part I attacked last year. Am I doomed to torture by the final 8 miles of merciless crosswinds every year?"

Kristen Wentworth (Team Kenda; W-P/1/2/3): "With a small hill approaching and the crosswinds blowing, I attacked hard and hammered up the hill."

Hillsboro enjoyed its best weather in years, and Chicago area riders came home with enough bricks to pave a small patio. Winners included Rebecca Much (Webcor Builders) in the women's open, Michael Zellman (Verizon Wireless) in the 40+ and Danny Robertson (Team Mack) in the 3's.

Full wrap-up to come. Thanks to chip timing, results are already posted: men's, women and juniors.

Saturday was a good day to be a base-layer salesman, and the Craft rep who set up shop at the Spring Super Criterium in South Beloit did brisk business. As cold as it was, the weather was 85 percent less apocalyptic than forecast, and most of the day passed without a drop of precipitation. The woolly mice who stayed home missed out on some fine racing indeed.

Two teams in particular had outstanding performances. Tower Racing started the day by riding aggressively in the first of two 4/5's races and getting Doug Braun off the front with a few other riders. Once that break was down to two, Patrick Dillon bridged a sizable gap to join him. They stayed off, with Braun outsprinting Andrew Otte (Purdue) for the win. In the field sprint, more Tower riders emerged from the pack like clowns from a clown car: 4th! 5th! 6th! 7th! 8th! 10th! Outside of a team time trial, have eight teammates ever finished in such close proximity? XXX Racing-AthletiCo also took advantage of its numbers. Mountain-bike specialists Kyle Wiberg and Mike Seguin outkicked the field for 1st and 2nd in the 30+ 4/5. In the day's second 4/5's race, Dave Moyer launched a mammoth leadout out of the corner for Tom Briney, then held on for a comfortable 2nd. (See John Wilke's photo of Briney's barbaric victory yawp. It's an early contender for photo of the year.) Moyer wasn't done: In the 3/4's race, he and Julian Baumgartner (Burnham Racing) bridged to a break that would ultimately be reduced to them and Otte. From my perspective it looked like Baumgartner had a superior jump, but Moyer dug it out to come around just before the line. (Marek Serafin (Cracovia-Poland) won the field sprint for 4th. Surprise!) The question now is, Who will win the World Bicycle Relief Team Challenge? Burnham Racing is no doubt at this very moment furiously crunching numbers. And then the sleet. Unpleasant wet stuff -- colder than rain, harder and more annoying than snow -- started to fall just as the P/1/2/3's took to their start. Chief official Dave Fowkes heard no complaints when he knocked 20 minutes off their time. Fifty-five minutes later, anyone hardy enough to finish would find the folds of their clothing frozen hard and icicles hanging from their bikes. It was like something out of the 1988 Giro. If ever there were a race that called for hot showers, this was it, and many would take advantage of the opportunity. As for the racing, I always like to see riders race above their category and succeed. In this race we saw it from Al Urbanski (Chicago Cuttin' Crew), clad in zebra-stripe leggings and the Crew's new Tron-inspired kit. He clearly was not intimidated by the 1's and 2's he was racing with, successfully atacking early in the race. Once he was joined by Andy Daley (Burnham Racing) and Chris Kelley (Team Get a Grip Cycles), it was lights out, especially as the cold chilled any motivation to chase. The three worked well together, staying together until the final sprint, shown above, which Daley, apparently not fatigued from a long, valiant but fruitless effort off the front of the earlier masters 1/2/3 race, took for the win. Eventually the splintered remnants of the field trickled in and sprinted for warm clothes. Other local wins: Leah Sanda (Flatlandia) and Jessi Prinner (ABD) both sprinted out of small groups to win the women's 4's and women's open, respectively. Kaleb Koch (ISCorp) soloed away from the juniors race, while Trevor Rolette (South Chicago Wheelmen) was tops among U15's. And Adam Herndon (Team Beer'd) capped a successful week by winning the 5's. Full results.

Photos Burnham Racing Peloton Pix Rachel Pomberg (With video.)

Race reports Chicago Cuttin' Crew (W-4, 30+ 4/5, 4/5, 3/4, P/1/2/3): "The bus was last seen heading to the aftermath of the Milwaukee Messenger Invitational."

Elvis Falbo (Beverly Bike/Vee-Pak; 30+ 4/5): " In a nutshell: Too much too soon!"

Tamara Fraser (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; W-open): "Time to start racing like Jens."

Adam Herndon (Team Beer'd; 5, 4/5): "I have never sprinted that hard in any race. As I am coming to the line I know I have over taken him and I raise a fist in victory."

Chris Kinonen (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+ 1/2/3): "I love the breakaway. I think it is one of the best parts of bike racing, and it was fun while it lasted, despite my ultimate undoing."

Bob Murray (Beverly Bike/Vee-Pak; 5): "It was a smart Idea at the time, but it didn’t work out."

Avi Neurohr (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; 4/5, 30+ 4/5, 4/5, 3/4): "I chase them hard, everyone lets me, but they stay away."

Pascale Petro (Project 5 Racing; W-open): "With Jessi in the break and Kenda, I knew from the start that it would stick and I felt my stomach almost turn over at the prospect."

Ted Ramos (Get a Grip Off Road; 30+ 4/5, 4/5): "That's it for me. You won't see me out there on the road for the rest of the summer."

Leah Sanda (Flatlandia; W-4, W-open): "I let her go a little then I jumped and put in a super hard 20-second effort that overtook her as she faded. Win!"

Mike Shea (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4/5, 3/4): "I stayed tucked in, just happy to be along for a nice and smooth ride with riders that are confident and competent using their bikes to accomplish a goal."

Zach Thomas (Half Acre Cycling; 3/4): "I was out there by myself, hurting myself and looking brave and foolish."

Kyle Wiberg (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 30+ 4/5, 3/4): "Ka Bam."

Michael Young (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4/5, 30+ 4/5, 5): "Three races on five hours of sleep after racing the night before proved to be a little much for my body, and I had nothing left for the sprint at the end of my last race."

Yes, it was cold. Yes, it got wet. But there was racing, and it was good. Full wrap-up to come.

Preliminary results here. Burnham Racing and the officials are in the crime lab with the video -- "Freeze! Enlarge!" -- to flesh out the remaining placements.

Any account of the best performances at this week's Kevin's Criterium Series in Calumet Park must begin with the host team, Half Acre Cycling. In a matter of weeks they threw this together, managing to conquer Chicago bureaucracy and fully staff a week's worth of races with officials and volunteers. They even had enough clout to turn on some street lights that reportedly hadn't cast a lumen in years. On top of all that, they kept it fun: On the night I went there was raucous cheering, post-race cake and, continuing a hallowed Belgian race tradition, robot costumes.

Best of all, I heard a lot of sentences start with, "When we do this next year ..." Other outstanding work:

• » Track star Ernie Ciccolini (Van Wagner/Yojimbo's) dipped his toes into the road and pulled off three of the five wins.
• » Jeanette Rho (Bouledogue tout noir) raced only three times but won twice and placed 2nd once.
• » Adam Herndon (Team Beer'd) hit the top 5 on four of the five nights, including two 2nd places.
• » Team Tati took Friday off but otherwise placed two riders in the top 10 each night.
• » Molly Godlewski (Chicago Cuttin' Crew) won the women's race Thursday, and her male teammates cracked the top 10 numerous times over the week.

Full results.

Photos Amy Dykema gospastic Ed White

Tuesday race reports Joe Kallo (UCVC; 4/5): "When you go off the front of your group and nobody follows, they don’t think you’re gonna make it."

Martin Michalowicz (Team MS Racing; 4/5): "At one point, while trying to position myself away from the wind, I cut another rider off and felt really bad about it. Hope my hand wave was suffient of an apology."

Avi Neurohr (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; 4/5): "The sweetest words I've ever heard: 'They made the break.' I sit up and coast in the field."

Vanessa Schilling (Spidermonkey Cycling; W-4): "Every time, one of the girls got pissed and tried to ride away from us. The rest of us would feel bad and ultimately chase after her to calm her down."

Joe Schubert (Half Acre Cycling; 4/5): "From the get go the wind just starts shredding everyone to pieces."

Team Tati (W-4, 4/5): "With 30 meters to go, they were neck and neck, but Sophia Lee had the momentum, slingshotting just right and taking the win by a couple of bike lengths."

Wednesday race reports Joe Kallo (UCVC; 4/5): "Field sprints are nuts."

Martin Michalowicz (Team MS Racing; 4/5): "Not knowing really how I was to react to this, I just followed him. Probably a bastard move but hey I'll chalk it up to ignorance."

Dave Moyer (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4/5): "I decided to sit in the pack and talk to the guys I thought would be good break-mates to try and orchestrate something."

Mike Shea (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4/5): "As we closed in on the final corner I was in perfect position just on the inside of Ernie Ciccolini, and we surged."

Team Tati (W-4, 4/5): "Bouledogues Val Brostrom and Josh Ryan were needling me about how they'd prepped Jannette Rho for today's one-two TATI punch and how no matter what type of silly tactics I'd in store, their girl was ready for it. So it was ON."

Thursday race reports Chicago Cuttin' Crew (W-4, 4/5): "No finish line camera, no primes, few prizes, just racing, and that’s a hell of a way to break in the season."

Joe Kallo (UCVC; 4/5): "Mental note: When you’re getting your push-start back post free lap, you probably don’t want to be in the same gearing you were at when you flatted."

Martin Michalowicz (Team MS Racing; 4/5): "With 8 laps to go, got a nasty right calf cramp. Lucky, everyone was slowing down for a couple laps to recover for the final sprint."

Avi Neurohr (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; 4/5): "If only I could race three nights a week all the time, I might get somewhere. Possibly keeled over."

Dan Pollard (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4/5): "As soon as we started the bell lap the pace picked up and the pack started to get strung out heading into the second-to-last corner."

Joe Schubert (Half Acre Cycling; 4/5): "I figured I didn't want to pull theses bastards and with absolutely no surprise to anyone I just launched off the front."

Bill Seliger (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 4/5): "The group did eventually ramp up to speed, likely from the multiple attacks that Matt and Sean were laying on at the front of the pack."

Friday race reports Dave Bowers (Half Acre Cycling; 4/5): "I settled into the groove, and my mind went blank."

Joe Kallo (UCVC; 4/5): "The field strung out and then splintered into several lead dudes who were causing the harm, two chase groups and people shelled off the back."

Martin Michalowicz (Team MS Racing; 4/5): "Hell of a week. I met and surpassed my goal."

Ted Ramos (Get a Grip Off Road; 4/5): "Damn, I got suckered again. These roadies are a crafty bunch."

Andy Daley (Burnham Racing) appears to have been Chicago's hero at the Kenosha crits on Sunday. (I should have predicted as much given the hurt he put on me and others during a training ride on Saturday.) His first feat was getting in a break of four in the 30+ race. Sensing the pack closing in, he attacked the break and soloed to victory, barely holding off ace sprinters like teammate Matt Smith and Ansgar Graw (PACT-Dish Network), who finished 2nd and 3rd. Later in the afternoon he again got in a break, this time lapping the field in the 1/2's with two of Wisconsin's better riders, and finished 2nd overall. (The field sprint is shown above.)

Chris Kelley (Team Get a Grip Cycles) also doubled up nicely, riding aggressively and winning the 3's out of a break, and then getting 4th in the 1/2's by staying away in a three-man chase group. Meanwhile in the 3's, Marek Serafin (Cracovia-Poland) won yet another field sprint. Although it was only for 7th, it was more evidence that he's back and on form. Verdigris also represented Chicago well in the combined 40+ and 50+ race, with Christian Zauner getting 2nd in a break for 2nd in the 40+, and Wayne Simon winning the field sprint for 4th and 2nd 50+. Other local results include Michael Vail winning the 4's, with James Londono (Unattached) the top Cat 5 in that race. Full results.

Race reports Ed Hernandez (North Branch; 3): "Get a Grip just schooled the field on how to control the race."

Kristen Meshberg (Team BH USA; 3): "I didn't really care about final placing but I was hoping to ride near the front and possibly get in a break. The race was dominated by Get a Grip."

Half Acre Cycling's Kevin's Crit Series got to a safe and successful start Monday night. Six women and 46 men raced, including seven walk-ups. I suspect Monday benefited from an opening-night boost, so moving forward there should be ample room for anyone who didn't pre-register.

It was a good night for new squads: Jannette Rho (Bouledogue tout noir) won the women's race, and Adam Herndon (Team Beer'd) placed 3rd in the men's. Track specialists had their way in the sprint, however, with Ernie Ciccolini (Van Wagner/Yojimbo's) coming around Jeff Perkins (Chicago Cuttin' Crew) for the win. Team Tati enjoyed a home-field advantage and wound up with Adam Kaye, Francisco Torralba and Jesse Williams and Liam Bradshaw in 4th, 5th and 6th. A last-minute change sent the race to the shorter southern loop of Calumet Park, and that's where the race will continue this week. Half Acre says you should enter at 95th and Ewing and park along Grilly Avenue. Weather is look dodgy this afternoon, but Half Acre says it will attempt to race rain or shine. Should that change, expect a post here as soon as a call is made. Full results.

Race reports Bouledogue tout noir (W-4): "As Janette dragged the lead group of three around the course, concern grew that she might be burning the candle wax at every end. But those thoughts were incorrect."

Avi Neurohr (Chicago Cuttin' Crew; 4/5): "Nnot a bad plan, considering we had no plan: Jeff was rested and ready for the sprint, and he lit it up."

Keil Seiz (Spidermonkey Cycling; 4/5): "The race started fast, and I had to go full steam from the whistle to keep up with what I knew was going to be a pretty quick split in the field."

Stan Sterlinski (Half Acre Cycling; 4/5): "It was an intense, fast race, but there was some banter going on about being just a training ride at one point."

Team Tati (W-4, 4/5): "Two hard laps dropped a few more riders, winnowing the field now to fewer than 20."

I regret that work will keep me from the Kenosha Velosport Criterium Series this year. Traditionally it's always a pleasant reunion and a good way to kick off the season.

Part of that tradition of late has been a strong showing from WDT-Allvoi and Sunday's opener was no exception. Rookie Monika Peszek won the women's 4/5, Alex Bolivar won the men's 4/5 and in the 30+ Tomasz Boba, shown above, outkicked formidable sprinters Andy Crater (Team Wheel & Sprocket) and Tim Henry (Project 5 Racing) to win out of an 11-man break. I understand WDT-Allvoi was also instrumental in chasing down a dangerous late break in the 3's, but this was won by Marek Serafin (Cracovia-Poland) and WDT-Allvoi had to settle for 2nd and 3rd from Ricardo Otero and Chicago Cycling Forums proprietor Waylon Janowiak. I'm happy to see Serafin return to racing: He's been sidelined with a back injury since July 2007. Until then he'd been an unbeatable sprinter, and although I'm sure it will come at my expense any time I race against him, it's great to see him pick up exactly where he left off. Other notable Chicago results include Dan Robertson (Team Mack) getting 3rd in the 1/2's and Dan Verner in the 40+ earning his first outdoor win under the colors of PACT-Dish Network. I've come across no complaints about the new course, and if it stays dry the weather should again be very raceable. The series continues Sunday and the 29th. Full results.

Race reports Craig Erbach (Project 5 Racing; 3, 1/2): "The attacks kept coming. That's one thing about the 1/2's: The accelerations are nuts."

Kevin Krakovsky (XXX Racing-AthletiCo; 3, 30+): "The goal is to boost fitness as much as possible. Results? Not important."

Photos WDT-Allvoi John Wilke