Kern County Stage Race

by Erika

Bena TT:

In general I consistently suck at TTs. Madera with camelback over the skinsuit -- case in point. I usually have not set my clock, or have forgotten my HR monitor, or have a loose bolt on my tt bars, or i ride off the road into a ditch, or go all out and fry up in the first ten minutes. i have tried listening to my breathing but it's not the best gauge, I find, because usually it tells me to pull over and get off the bike. i like the idea of having someone up ahead of me by thirty seconds. i think that this rabbit might make me go faster. but the rabbit just gets smaller and smaller until a new rabbit appears ahead of me which in turn gets smaller and smaller. but i got me this new light bike this year and glitterboy slapped on some TT bars and tipped them so my back was flattish. and for some unknown reason i managed not to completely suck. i'll take it.


Walker Basin Circuit Race:

i wanted to puke on the drive over to the course. nothing too magnificent. just a few diced carrots, perhaps. it was going to be such a long day, with two stages, requiring much intensity and focus, two things i try avoiding whenever possible. i figured the firestone girls were going to be feisty and aggressive, try something and get away. "uh-uh," Sabine had said the night before, "they're not getting away, uh-uh"

She was so right. in fact it was quite the opposite. they were reacting to our moves all race long. While I sat on Sonia's wheel and did my best dingleberry interpretation, the Bellas attacked and attacked. Soni, followed by Laura, Linda. I never once was in the wind, unless Sonia cut some.

I was relieved of all responsibility, all pressure and free to focus on one thing only, preserving the 10 seconds between us and perhaps getting a few more in the sprints. Andrea from Left Coast (soon to be a Bella) would let me in to follow Sonia. Or move to the right of me to protect me from the wind. Linda would ride up next to me and remind me to move up.

I'm not great at seeing the big picture in races. At one point, Soni was up the road with Laura Perdew on her wheel. I was riding along, eyes focused on Sonia's ass, when i noticed Janet from MVV was to my left sort of stuck between the center line and me. I thought she wanted Sonia's wheel. "Let her out," Sabine said, and so I let a gap open and sure enough Janet attacked which allowed Sabine to get pulled up to the Soni and Laura. It was so perfect.

So every lap while the Bellas attacked and chased, I got pulled along and was set up fresh as a daisy (not ours) to do my bit.

On the last time up the hill, Sabine put in a massive attack and Sonia's ass slipped out of my vision just a bit. I saw an opening up the middle that seemed to be my only chance. Things got a little dicey at this point and I remember thinking, "wow, this is sort of like the last lap diciness." not realizing until I crossed the line that the race was over. I thought we had one more to go! (See above about the big picture). So a splendid team effort.


Breckenridge Hill Climb:

I loved this hill climb.

The temp was beautiful, and we were many miles from a dump. The plan was to stay with Sonia, stay at her pace and then when the time was right to have me or Sue get away. I could tell from Sonia's heavy breathing that she was having a hard climb. Still her teammates were setting a steady pace and I just sat in. I looked to my right and there was Triki and looked behind and there was Chechu. What a very nice sight.

All around was heavy breathing from the Firestone girls. I listened when Sue came alongside me and not a sound. Oooh, it was going to be a good day. A very good day. And when the road pitched up a bit, Sue smoothly came to the front. She was riding so effortlessly. I said, I'm here. And so she picked it up a little. And then a little more. It was so beautiful. It was like one of Linda's Tour videos (except for the icky Lance part).

Unfortunately when I looked back Chechu was gone. Only Janet (MVV) was left. Triki bumped it up a little more and POP she too was gone. I was so delighted. This was Sue's stage and we were going to drill it to the finish. But then she told me to ride on, get time. And that Sue can be VERY persuasive. So I went on. There was Bob blowing his clarinet. Lovely. And then there was the "1 to go" sign. One 'what?' to go I thought and soon discovered it was 1 hundred fucking miles to go -- or so it seemed.

I came in first, followed shortly by Triki! So much fun.

Woody Road Race:

Excellent riding by all. I had 3mins 45 seconds going into the stage over Sonia Ross in 2nd so I felt a little bit of the pressure was off. I just needed to get through it without any mishaps.

It was so good seeing Linda get over those climbs and be there to help slow the descents. Soni and Sabine did some great pacing up the climb, hard enough to get the Firestone girls to breathing deep but still keeping the group together. On the second lap before the dirt right turn, we were all chit-chatting and being nicey-nicey. I was looking forward to finishing, having one of Miss Mary's boiled eggs and maybe some totellini when WAM! Julie Kaplan blazed to the front. My first thought was no! don't make it hard! Then, WAM Sabine was gone with her.

All the Firestone girls were at the front and the nicey-nicey went out the window. I folded up my napkin and put my head down to make sure I wasn't dropped. Poor Janet had her work cut out for her and strung it out. I didn't know about her seeing Ryan and Tracie up ahead, but the pace slowed as Janet was surrounded by Firestone.

On the rollers to the finish I was happy to see Sue get a gap and keep it going. And Janet too. I watched Sonia put in a super hard effort to close the gap on Janet but it wasn't to be. (There's some Karma in Janet getting back those 11 seconds, I believe.) When I crossed the line I rolled down the hill to find out that Sabine had won the stage and Sue took second place (and moved to fourth overall). Aaah, a perfect ending.

2007 Gravity Girls

By Allie

You're a fashionable, hip-and-with-it Bella, so of course you want to know in for the 2007 gravity scene. Below you'll find the proper gear and accessories so that you too can fly past the boys in style. Say Ciao, Baby!!

Giro Remedy Helmets are awesome. The fit is very comfortable and they vent so well in hot conditions my goggles didn’t fog!

Zeal Goggles: These have been my absolute favorite long before Velo Bella for downhill and for snow skiing. They fit inside helmets perfectly, the lenses are resilient and if scratches do appear the lens replacement is easy and they just look cool!


Fox Racing Protective Gear: Velo Bella Pro Downhill Squad wears the following from Fox Racing:

Unabomber Glove: Even the men’s gloves fit a long, narrow hand with long fingers. It’s the only glove I haven’t poked nails through. The hard plastic pinky and ring knuckle protection is key.

Blitz Short: They’re comfortable and non-restrictive while the skin-saving fabric takes the brunt of “rock rash”

Launch Knee/Shin Guards: These are the very best knee/shin guards I have ever used! The behind-the-knee cris-cross strap keeps the guards perfectly in place! Crash after crash and even after pedaling hard for a good distance, guess what? The knee guard is still over your knee! They snap off in front for ease of removal. These are easily climbing to the top of “my favorite gear” list.

Launch Suit: Fox has done a service to the riders with their “Launch” gear line. The suit is comfortable and all of the padding stays over the respective body part that it is meant to protect. The back plate zips off for free-riding or less treacherous conditions.

Launch Short: These shorts are GREAT for many purposes. They have a chamois build in along with hip and tailbone padding. These shorts are perfect for free-riding trails either by themselves or as an under-short.

Shuttle Gear Bag: LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT! It fits All of the above gear (including helmet) with room to spare in the center compartment. The two side compartments fit clean clothes on one side and shoes and dirty clothes on the other. Both are vented. The top compartment is padded to accommodate goggles and glasses (we also found it doubles nicely as a cooler for b…uh…snacks.) The bag has a bottom frame and telescoping handle for rolling it around. There is also a changing pad that rolls out so as not to soil or put undue wear and tear on your precious Velo Bella socks.



Fluid Rain Jacket: We haven’t been able to test this yet, however it will come in handy for keeping our kits nice and clean during muddy qualifying and practice.

Stan’s no-tubes Wheels: Get them. Get them NOW! Everyone needs a custom set of wheels from Stans! I priced them out at retail for another bike and they were a few hundred dollars less than other popular wheel brands. I cannot believe how LIGHT and strong they are! (a friend held the box they came in and had to check to make sure a wheel was really in there) When you want to go, they’re ready to roar forward and stop at nothing. So far they’ve handled some good-sized hits and they’re still round! (The Stan’s hats are the bomb as well)

Easton Stems and Monkey Lite Handlebars: The bars are strong and I’m amazed at how the carbon is holding up to DH abuse. They’ve done a lot to lighten up my bike as well.

Crank Brothers Mallet Pedals: These clip in with ease, release when it counts and shed mud and dirt like no other pedal on the market. Huge platform in case you miss a clip or need foot freedom in hairy sections. They’re light and they just plain ol’ look cool!


Sidi Shoes: Another favorite. I love my Sidis! Strong, stiff, durable and I can literally walk around in these all day long. You’ll never see me with a pair of Pradas but I will spend the money on a pair of Sidi shoes!

Avid Code Brakes: These worked in really well. I found them to be tune-able to my liking of lever position. They are strong and powerful and I didn’t find them to pump up at all. They were consistent even after heating up. Come to think of it, there was no arm pump from the using the brakes at all! (and I used them plenty) WELL DONE AVID!

Kimber is racing on the Kona Stab Deluxe this year. I had a chance to pedal it around a bit and wow this thing wants to go forward. I wish I would have had one of these while trying to pedal my rig along Fontana’s “Wall of Pain”. The floating brake will ensure there is no “brake jack” and provides a consistent line of rear travel down the gnarliest of descents.



The 2007 Velo Bella Pro Downhill team is fortunate to promote some of the best equipment on the market. We're very excited and very thankful for the companies that make the gear to keep us rolling safely. I've given my opinion on the products below, I hope that it might be helpful information for anyone looking to purchase gear in the future.