Velo Bella-Kona Race

Going to Disneyland!

2008-06-17T10:02:00.000-07:00

By Raja Lahti
San Diego, Cali

I had a change of careers in April and pretty much everything else has had to sit on the back burner until I get settled.

In May I did Wildflower Olympic and had fun. Training this year has been hampered by one thing or another, illness, work, injury, you name it. The gods are holding me back! I didn't expect much out of Wildflower, and still came away bummed with my race. The good news, my swim was the best yet and I really was delighted with it. The bike & run, well, not so much. I ended up 9th out of about 200 or so that finished. The exciting part was the finish..

Then came Encinitas Sprint. I was 3rd with what I consider a crappy bike portion of the race. It wasn't bad, but I know I should be doing better. The run was ok.. and the swim.. well, I'm not so hot for surf entry so I survived.

This past weekend was probably one of the most fun races I've ever done. It was the Danskin Disneyland Triathlon. That's right, Kingdom of the Mouse, or in this case, California Adventure. The swim was in the lagoon in CA Adventure, the bike was a 2 loop course around the entire part and the run was a windy route through the park. With over 1300 competitors (all women), this was a big race.

Why did I enter? Well, when else can you take a dip in Disneyland without them giving you a life ban?!??

On check-in before the race I heard one woman say, "the water is disgusting! It's a lagoon! There were ducks right there pooping." Uhhh.. this is Disneyland where everything is sterile, that taste is actually chlorine and that brown water is dye so you don't see the tracks for the boat. If only she knew what nasty water really tastes like... As you walked in the water, it was warm, you know, kinda like bath water. No wetsuits needed so I wore a tri-swim suit for the first time. Couldn't wear my Bella kit as it's a 2 piece. Instead a put a Bella tattoo on my arm and wore my signature hair flair. The swim was a ton of fun, but a bit of a faux-Ironman. With about 16 waves (me in wave 9)starting every 3 minutes, it was A LOT of swimming over or around people in previous waves. Next time I think I'll actually race Elite instead of Age Group so I can get in the first wave and not have to crawl between quite so many ladies. But where else can you stroke, stroke, breathe, look at the ferris wheel, stroke, stroke, breath, look rollercoaster, stroke, stroke, breath, look Mickey...

The bike was fun, and my bike created quite a bit of attention (aka The Hornet) as there were a number of first-timers racing. I really enjoyed being able to answer questions, even got to give a fix-a-flat demo. Newby: "What are these?" Me: "These are tire levers, you really should know what they are and how to use them..."

Back to the race... so the bike was ok, still feeling a bit lacking in strength and it showed as I was unable to loose the cute chick in red on the cervelo with the disk. I should have been able to smoke her, but instead she latched on and let me take her for a ride. We leap frogged around for a bit between swim, T1, the bike & T2, but then she spanked me on the run. At least she was nice & cute!

By the time I got off the bike I was still coughing up the drink mix I managed to inhale. Note to self: don't inhale your drink!!! The run started and I had the glugs. You know that sloshy feeling from drinking then trying to run?! After the first mile I felt better and began to relax. Unfortunately the run was almost over by that point so I just ran my way past the popcorn and cotton candy, past the store where you can flatten a penny, past the churros, around the fountain, through the western-shoot-out store front and to the finish. With one great leap for Velo Bella, I was done!

I finished 2nd in my age group behind that nice cute chick on the Cervelo, and 6th overall. Not too bad.. but I know I can do better next year.....

We had a number of Bellas attend, I'll update this blog with a list, but CONGRATS to all, this was a fantastic race and HIGHLY recommended as a destination race.

More Bikes and Brews!

2008-06-13T10:11:00.000-07:00

By Erika Krumpleman
Hayden, Idaho

The Northwest "Indie Series" took me to the quaint, beautiful, (although somewhat cheezy) Bavarian town of Leavenworth, Washington. I was a bit nervous about how my body would work after crashing in the previous Wednesday night race and turning my right side into one large hematoma. With almost 5,000 feet of climbing, my legs would need to be there!

After the 4 hour drive to the race course, I had a good warm-up and was ready to go when I hear that the start was delayed by 30 minutes because one of the sport racers had crashed and needed to be carried off the course on a stretcher. So—do I keep warming up, or stand around and talk? Hmm—stand around and talk wins. After 30 minutes and halfheartedly warming up a 2^nd time, I hear the start has been delayed another 30 minutes because the racer is badly injured. After climbing 1600 feet each lap, the descent was fast and buff with an occasional hump (water bar) added in that sends many a rider on his or her head. By now I’m starting to think conservative descending might be in order. . Also—my mental focus is pretty much gone. We finally line up to start, I dash into the bushes for one last pee, and then we are off. I took off hard and led up the climb. One woman passed me at the top of the climb, but I quickly passed her on the downhill and did not see another woman from the open class for the rest of the race—pretty uneventful! I kept expecting Kristy Berg, a former pro downhiller to catch me on the descent, but surprisingly she never did.

Luckily my bruised and swollen right leg still worked! The best part about it was the pay out--$250.00!! This may sound pathetic, but I’ve never won that much before! In most races, the men’s payout is about 5 times the women’s, but in this race it was almost equal—yay for progress! It might actually pay for a few tanks of gas….

Thanks to Stan's for making an incredibly light and strong set of purple nippled wheels! Less weight on the bike equals faster climbing!

It was also great to see teammate Kari Studley out there. She rode very strong considering the lack of fuel!

Thanks for reading!

Bella and Fella

2008-06-10T14:21:00.000-07:00

By Soni Andreini Poulsen
NorCali

Ok, time trial race reports aren't all that interesting. And I already messed up my first attempt and it got swallowed up in cyberspace. So I'll keep this short and sweet. Jeff and I rode this on our tandem, of course!

The short:

19.2 miles, flat

it wasn't too hot (80--which is like a cold spell for Davis in June)

it wasn't too windy

pre-riding the course last week really helped (we didn't miss any turns or crash like some people did)

i like having somebody steer for me--i never saw or felt a single bump in the road

but since i couldn't see anything but Jeff's butt (which is a nice sight, ordinarily), i missed the camelbak bite valve on the side of the road--if i'd seen that, i'da known that lilly was on the course ahead of me....

the sweet:

we won!!

and beat a few boys in the process....

Bikes and Brews

2008-06-09T14:08:00.000-07:00

By Kari Studley
Bothell, Washington

Highlights of the race:

- Getting to ride my bike in the sun! it’s been POURING rain the last 10 days in Seattle. Yuck.

- Amazing views. I had to refrain from singing “The Hills Are Alive” from the Sound of Music as I enjoyed the panorama of mountains view.

- The sweet smell of Lupin and you ride through trails blanketed by the beautiful purple fragrant flower on either side.

- Sunshine! Sunshine! Sunshine!

- I won my first cowbell trophy! I’m a sucker for racing for t-shirts & cowbells, guess it’s a cross thing.

- Fun race atmosphere. Beer garden & bands and community turnout = fun!

- Perfect Kari-course (4 miles of Kari-grade climbing up, 4 mile single track downhill. Repeat 3 times.) I had a GREAT second lap!

- Erika Krumpelman WON her race in the open women category. Whoo hoo Erika!

The not-so-highlights:

- I won by default as the only other racer in my expert 19-34 age division had to leave emergently as her father crashed severely (rumored initially unconscious) and had to be carried out by stretcher by mountain rescue in his race prior to ours. I was very distracted the first lap thinking about her and her dad and hoping the very best for the whole family. (Please help me in sending good healing & well-being Bella vibes to them). So it was me in my <34 category against the 6 women expert 35+ category racers.

- Because the my race kept getting delayed by half hour increments (my race at noon became 12:30 to 1:00 and my race actually started at 1:15) for the rescue effort I kept having just enough time to not do anything productive for my race. I just want to clarify that his life/well-being is SOOO much more important than my silly race and I have no problem with being delayed (or canceled) for such reasons, but I’ve never had a situational delay like that or that long before my race. So I didn’t eat/fuel up enough to make up for that hour since I kept thinking I’d be racing in 20-30 minutes and didn’t want to suffer that consequence of indigestion.

- Hence my perfectly timed out food & warm up prep lasted me to what would have been a perfectly timed race finish according to the original plan. Or the end of lap two (of 3) for the revised plan. I had just solidified first out of all the expert women when just after the feedzone my hamstrings cramped really really badly to an almost paralyzing point (also a new experience while racing). And then just as I was able to get back into a normal cadence I completely food bonked (with 3 miles left of the climb and 7 miles total for the race). It’s really not pretty when I food bonk and I’ve never been that hungry before on the bike, much less, racing.

- So I tried to at least enjoy the scenery and not think about eating the plants and watch the lead 35+ expert woman pass me and take first overall for the expert women field (a matter of personal pride since I beat her by 8 minutes the last time we raced. But, kudos to her, as this was her hometown course and she definitely ate time into me on the downhill part).

24 hours later I still am hungry (I don’t think I ate enough the day before either, so I’ve learned my lesson). But very glad I at least got to go spend a day riding my bike in the sun, lupin flowers and spectacular views. We’re back to rain and clouds in Seattle. And a big plug for my Zeal Mistro sunglasses: not only are they the PERFECT tint for sunny & shady trails (a balance I’ve never been able to find before with previous sunglasses), they fit perfectly around my helmet, AND (most importantly!) I didn’t get a sun-headache that a Seattle-ite like me is often prone to when I go suddenly from no sun to tons of sun in a day.

Photo stolen from the collection of Sabine Dukes, because it looked pretty.

Fire and Ice

2008-05-29T10:29:00.000-07:00

By Kimber Gabryszak
Park City, Utah

So there's no way I can come up with as colorful a writeup as that, Allie! But warning - mine will be wordy, sorry! It was just an amazing weekend and I'm full of things I want to share!

**************************************

Yep, Angel Fire DH was BRUTAL, and the women's field was whittled from 21 to 18 by the time we qualified. The first third of the course consisted of seemingly endless boulders, and adding in the rain on day one and the ice/snow/craziness on day two, seemed nearly impossible. But by race day most of us were cleaning them, and let's just say I feel that my riding has improved exponentially as a result of throwing myself down the course over and over. And it was actually fun! Once the snow melted, that is. A super good time, and can't wait until this time next year.

**************************************

I found myself really wishing for a camera on Saturday, in the early morning snow and ice. Addie had fallen in the slippery icyness of the upper rock garden, and was standing in the snow picking up her bike when I rolled up behind her. Wearing a bright red jersey and standing alone, she stood out brilliantly against the snow, and the collage of rocks, trees, and snow was just incredibly surreal...

************

The other surreal moment was cleaning the imfamous road-gap / step-down that ended my season so early last year. Run I, I rode past it and thought "no way! That is WAY smaller than I remember it!" Run II, I rode past and thought "I'm hitting that this weekend" and felt cold in the pit of my belly. Day II, Addie and Allie pep talked me (thanks!), then I watched Addie hit it, watched Allie hit it, and then held my breath and went for it...and hit my brakes in a panic just before takeoff but somehow landed it. Funny, but that almost crashing made day III's attempt even scarier...

Day III, I spent 20 minutes chatting (stalling) with the EMT stationed at the road step down, a hilarious older gentleman who told me "Kimber, you've got a choice to make here." Which I thought would be choose a) be safe or b) take a risk, like most EMTs might say. Nope, not Vladimir! "Kimber," he said, "you can choose, to hit this today, or you can choose, to die old and in bed."

WOW! He went on with such philosophies as "injuries keep you young - they keep you appreciating your life, keep your immune system working and healthy." Really? The EMT is TELLing me to hit this thing?

I hiked back to my bike. Stood it up. Straddled it. Watched a dozen more riders clean the drop with ease. Closed my eyes and envisioned the turn of the approach, envisioned the 2 or 3 pedal strokes to get my speed up, envisioned removing my fingers from the brake levers entirely. Opened my eyes and saw Vladimir looking at me. Fiddled some more with my bike. Watched more riders. Finally, when I saw the fabulous Melissa Buhl ride by so effortlessly, I knew it was time to quit stalling.

Deep breath, foot on pedal, other foot on pedal, coast into the turn, bank, pedal pedal pedal, pull fingers back, sudden weightlessness, then the amazingly soft rumble of the dirt back under the tires, so smooth! YES! The demon is dead.

**************************************

Like Allie said, Sunday was when things started getting crazy. The weekend of riding on such rough ground started to take a toll on our bikes, and little malfunctions started to emerge. Well, some malfunctions and some, um, breakage due to impacts with rocks. A hole poked in one frame, a deep gouge in another, scratched fork stanchions, bashed derailleur that lost some screws, chainguide shiftage and failure, etc.

(Plus, my bike hadn't been ridden before this weekend. I had the wrong size bottom bracket, and had to wait for a replacement before I could finish assembling the bike. The BB got here 4 days before the race, so I had no choice, but I'm sure some of the malfunctions were just the bugs working themselves out.)

In practice before qualifying, my chain had come loose from the chainguide, and it seemed that the guide itself was misaligned and derailling the chain off itself. I spent an hour after practice at the Chili Pepper shop jamming cassette spacers into the chainguide wheel (not made for each other, so that was interesting) to correct the problem. It wasn't enough, and just after the top rock garden the chain came off and hung around my pedal, and without tools it was in a position that I couldn't stop and fix. I took the go-round on the road gap since I feared not being able to pedal into it, but finished the qualifier in one piece. No worries - the actual race is a day away.

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On a side note, it was rather funny when Allie and I went to the Chili Pepper. There we were, wearing our Bella jerseys, with rhinestones decking out my bike and both with glitter/makeup on, asking for tools instead of for help. Yippee! I think they liked it. ;)

**************************************

Monday morning, I tightened the chainguide, then realized that my derailleur was missing the high limit screw, allowing the chain to jump off at that end of the system. I didn't have time to fix it since practice was only an hour long, so I went up for a run and kept the chain in a lower gear, which seemed to work. And then had 2 flat tires on the descent. Are you kidding me???

2 hours and $75 later (parts, not labor, tee hee), and with a modified limit screw repairing my derailleur, onto the lift we go; it's finally time to race. One more trip down this course.

I finally have a successful S-turn, clean the first few rock gardens and feel elated, pass the rider ahead of me (who had a bad crash slow her down, sigh), then promptly feel my pedals lurch to a stop. No!!! The limit screw is out, and the chain has slipped off the cassette and is wedged in place. But the wheels keep rolling...

One pedal up and one down, I keep coasting and pumping. Clearing a steep rock feature, a couple guys watching cheer, then trail off as I say "Thank you!" to them and promptly STOP and pull over to mess with my bike. I know the next section is nearly impossible to clear without pedalling, though the 20+ seconds it takes to put the chain back into a somewhat functional position feels like an eternity. Is it worth it?

Yes. It's worth it. I pedal through the remaining sections, and crowning moment is when I pedal into the drop without hesitating and clean it! Hurrah! I cross the finish line, and somehow still have a time a bit faster than my qualifying time, so I'm ok. My goal was to have a sub-9 minute time (sub-8 would have been better, but...), and with just the time wasted unjamming my chain I would have met the goal.

Still, I think that Angel Fire just really likes me, so it keeps giving me reasons to go back. This year it was to overcome the road drop, next year it's to have a malfunctionless run. Silly Angel Fire, I don't need a reason to come back!

**************************************

Lessons learned:

* pack a disposable camera for those must-have photos
* do whatever I can to make sure that the first weekend on the bike isn't a race!
* speed is your friend - both in the rock gardens and the road gap, it was easier and safer to go faster
* um, TMI...3 separate incidents of, ah, 3 of us, um, well, mmhm, you see, er, injuring sensitive areas makes us wonder if we can get sponsored by someone who makes female cups...but the lesson learned is just to bring those no matter what!
* EMTs named Vladimir are wise

**************************************

And the final comment is that 5 girls in a condo / at a race together = good times, good racing, good support, good conversation, good conglomeration of repair/healing knowledge, good karma, good vibes, good food, good encouragement, just overall good stuff! This weekend was one of the best biking weekends I've ever had, thanks ladies! You rock!

Chasing Down the Beast

2008-05-20T15:27:00.000-07:00

By Erika Donald
Berkeley, California

Kern County Womens' Stage Race

"Insanity has company, they are called teammates and they all show up to race Kern.

Lilly is so right.

i love my insane teammates. our 35+ group just keeps getting better and better. we will be back again next year. did i just write that? the other teams will see us and know they have their work cut out for themselves. if they were smart they would copy our style. they'd start getting sillier and insaner and funner and winninger -- like us.

we slayed the kern beast...no, i don't like that metaphor. bellas don't kill animals. what do bellas do? we tame the beast. we make the beast purr and roll over and then we put pretty shiny flair around its furry neck and say, can i get you a beer?

but it takes a team to soften up the beast and we each played our part.

we all let the beast roar and howl at the TT -- whatever beast. do your bad beasty thing. we'll see you in a bit.

lilly faced down the beast at Walker Basin. she attacked and attacked. chased after time bonuses which would help her and take away from the other teams. the pack was closing in after lilly and i moved over to andrea to suggest she might get ready for a counter attack.

"Andrea," I began..."
"Yup," she said. and off she went.

oh we are so good.

and there was linda with the water bottle to cool riders down. getting up to the front on the hill sprint to help me get back on. shutting it down when we realized we weren't all there. and then in the last lap linda, sabine, and Andrea moved up the side as we approached the 1K mark. the field strung out and we had it.

the hill climb was key. last year we didn't know the course so we rode at the other teams' pace. but this year we knew we had to go from the gun if we were going to make the time we were down from the TT.

and so sue and I went. we looked back and the beast was chasing. we rotated taking pulls. and soon the beast was nowhere in sight. silly beast you have to be fast to catch us.

and you're so gonna look cute in flair.

on to Woody. we had a 34 second gap between first and 2nd. and a 1.43 (?) gap to third. our main objective was to hold the 34 seconds and secondarily to move Sue into second. the course this year suited us very well. since it started on the rollers followed by the steep downhill and then more flattish rollers. we kept watch on the Protech TT'ers and any moves by the Kalyra gals who had nothing to lose by going out and trying to get away on the descent and rollers -- which they tried! But no luck. And having the teammies there calmed me immensely because i always fear that section as i'm no tt'er and if the other teams worked together they might just possibly get away taking Janet with them and our 34 second lead.

Purrrr...pretty, pretty beast, pretty baby.

Linda and Andrea patrolled the descent and then on the rollers Sabine and linda set pace in the wind going up the hills. Linda worked so hard. resting and recovering. And sabine gave 110 % coming back for more and more...and more. Sue and I sat in. We knew our part was coming. I kept seeing Maryanne and Janet whispering and it made me edgy. But then I would see Sue with her game face on and I felt better and I just had to remember how we'd drilled it on the hill climb. And i couldn't help but notice that Janet was in a big, big gear and i wondered if she would be fresh for that steep finish.

and then linda and Andrea hit the rollers. Sue and I had discussed that we might go at this point and I really should have been ready for it, but when it happened it threw me into shock. I thought perhaps Linda and Andrea were going to be given a little freedom to fly, but Janet was going with everything. EVERYTHING. I waited for the initial acceleration to ease. but it kept going. Linda was like the energizer bunny. I wanted to shout "I'm getting dropped!" but of course I knew tactically this was like shoving raw meat under the beast.

so I did the only thing I could. "LINDA!" i shouted in that special loving married couple voice.

but then Andrea was going strong and Sue was jamming and Janet was covering EVERYTHING. aw jeeze.

And then we looked behind and Maryanne and the professor...i mean Sonia were coming up. Sue attacked. Janet covered. I attacked, Janet covered. So finally it was the five of us hitting the final hill. I marked Janet until the end though I was never certain if she was going to jump me create a gap and get the bonus finish points -- and possibly the overall GC.

But it was not to be. we had the beast feeding out of our hands. it rolled on its back. Lilly removed its beast's mask and we slung bella flair around its neck.

we will be back.

Tennessee Bellas Get Dirty!

2008-05-19T07:48:00.000-07:00

The mountain bike chicks of Velo Bella-KONA Tennessee are several events into the season and gaining major momentum!

The season-opening Chickasaw Trace Classic was March 30. The already muddy course received several inches of rain right before the race, turning the entire course into a mud-covered 9-mile loop about the consistency of peanut butter. The sloppy mess didn’t deter our Bellas from starting the course and bringing home results, with many finishing the race despite spills, cuts, and (for one) stitches.

Chickasaw Trace Classic Results:
Amber Favorite: 3rd Beginner
Angela Brown: 10th Sport
Jennifer Morehead: 6th Expert

Next on the TBRA calendar was a weekend of racing in Kentucky. The White Lightning TT and XC races landed on April 19 and 20. Keeping in consistency with what seems to be a theme of this years’ races, it flooded rain the night before Saturday’s time trial. The Bellas used their mud expertise gained at Chickasaw to steer their way to wins!

White Lightning TT and XC Results:
Jennifer Morehead: 2nd TT Expert Women, 3rd XC Pro/Expert Women
(pic of Jen above, crossing the street on the race course. Photo courtesy Kim Lilley)
Angela Brown: 1st TT Sport Women 30-39, 1st XC Sport Women 30-39
(pic of Angela on the TT course in the Vanderkitten jersey, Photo courtesy Dustin Greer)

We’re looking for sponsors for our co-sponsored race with the Jackson Spokes on June 8 at Mousetail Landing in Linden, TN. If you’d like to be a sponsor, contact Angela at angela@companyzero.com. More details coming soon to mousetailchallenge.com!

Track Cats

2008-05-16T07:58:00.000-07:00

By Jamie France
Clemson, South Carolina

Ladies with team logos featuring cats took 3 of the top 5 places on Saturday, 10 May at the Dick Lane Velodrome! Is it a coincidence? I think not! I think it's because cats rule the track! Meow!

1. Leigh Valletti -- Vanderkitten

2. Olga weeks -- Velo Bella

3. Lesli Meadows

4. Robin Pace

5. Jamie France -- Velo Bella

There were five races and a field of 13 women. First we had Scratch Heats to qualify for a Handicap race later in the evening with the men. Olga was one of the four who qualified. That was followed by a 15-lap Snowball in which Olga got 3rd. Next was a 30-lap points race which didn't go so well... in lap 5, a wreck took out 3 women. Luckily Olga and I were in front of the crash, so didn't get tangled up in it. (It was a pretty bad wreck -- an ambulance had to come for one woman who had a broken collarbone.) Instead of restarting the 30-lap, they had us do an Unknown Distance. Olga took 2nd and Jamie took 3rd in that. Last open women's race was the Miss-n-Out; Olga again took 2nd and Jamie took 4th. In the Handicap, Olga picked up another 2nd.

Track Karma

2008-05-09T09:24:00.000-07:00

By Sabine
Corraleeetoes, California

I feel like its been forever since I blogged.

I mean really blogged. Not just dumping a picture and splashing a few words up to accompany it.

Its like my brain can only do either pictures or words, but not both.

But today I feel like blogging because I actually raced last night. I mean really raced. Where I tried and everything. And I haven't done that in a while.

Us women folk got our own race last night (well a couple of guys and an awesome junior did join us too). I like when we get our own race. Not that I don't like racing with the men and all, but damn if they don't chase any little attack.

And I like to attack.

When I first started racing again this season (after zilcho training and nothing but easy rides for the past 5 months), I had about 3 minutes of fitness. One attack would spend me for the night.

Last night I was able to launch about 7-8 attacks and didn't get spent until about the 7th one. Yay!

Erika and Linda were there again and I love racing with them. In the first race, Erika and I traded attacks. Erika ended up in the one that stuck. So with three up the road, there were only points for one in our chase group. Since I was not pulling, I decided not to sprint for them. Instead, I wanted to try and bridge up without pulling the pack.

I tried to get away a few times, but Ileana and a woman visiting from Ttown kept me on a short leash. Then I noticed that Erika's break caught up to the pack (who were behind us). And I remember the quirky rules of points racing. Of all the things I have done at the track lately, remembering this in the midst of the frenzy of a race is one of the things I'm most proud of!

Now, our chase group was the lead pack and full points were on the line. So I went for them, but goddamn that Ileana has some top end acceleration and I got nipped. But I also noticed how tired she was after the effort.

Then somehow Erika's group became the lead group again, except they were now four since a lapped rider joined them. That meant no points for us. (Is your mind whirring yet?) But my chase mates did not know that, so they sprinted and I rode their wheels. Then I did a most evil thing and attacked after they sprinted.

I tried like crazy to catch up to Erika's group, but it just did not happen. I did stay away for the remainder of the race, but it didn't earn me any points so I have no idea why I tried except that it felt kinda good.

Between races, Erika said "let's do some team tactics this time"

Uh...I thought that was what we were doing. But she said she wanted to do something different. What she really wanted was to not be in the lead break. And I got to find out why in the second race. That shit is hard.

On the second lap of the next race, I took a little pull up front. I was just pulling along all innocent like, when I looked behind me and saw I had a gap. I was confused, but decided to just take it and I took off.

After a lap, I looked back and I had an even bigger gap. Well cool, and well, crap. Cool because thats racing and crap because thats hard. Larry and Holloway's mom were telling me to keep going for it because bell lap was coming up. And, I had never ever won any bell lap in a points race yet. So I went for it and got my first 5 points. Yay for me.

Then Larry told me to keep going. So I did. Which was pretty much a silly thing as that put my laps alone out there at about 13 if you count the race prior.

Fortunately, Ali and Beth bridged up to me at some point. And I remember seeing Erika and Ileana there but I have no idea what happened to them. Maybe they were a mirage.

Unfortunately Ali and Beth had carpool bonding going on. The next few laps were spent getting worked over by the both of them. It was too much fun. Beth was doing tactical shit. I was so tired, but I had to laugh. And I was sort of flattered to because if you have to do tactical shit to me, then that means I am part of the race.

Kind of like how I liked it when the guys at hockey would check me.

So, Beth held me up while Ali attacked for a sprint lap. And then the two of us sprinted for the 2nd place points. I was totally wiped out before the sprint, but in all the times we have raced together, I have never been in a position to actually sprint against Beth, so I just had to go for it.

I think she was just teasing me though, because she did the most evil thing you can do in a points race, and attacked me after that sprint. Karma, on the track, is very quick.

Her and Ali rode off and lapped the field. Which of course made me leader on the road. I, thought that maybe the last sprint would be a brownie prime and I figured it was worth the 15 points to win some brownies. So I rode it in and scooped up my second ever points race lap win. But alas, no brownies!

Crap, I'm late for Wednesday night track....gotta run...

Mostly Downhill: Wine Country Century

2008-05-06T09:10:00.000-07:00

By Allie Burch
Novato, Cali

Awake at 5am on a Saturday. Ugh. This in itself is why I’m not a roadie. Today was the Wine Country Century and for some odd reason I was awake. To make myself feel better about being vertical and dressed at this ungodly hour, I start in on the chocolate, and I munched right on through the jeers of my “friends”: “you have a problem, it’s not even 6am and you’re eating chocolate!”

Mike, Abby, Jeni, Kyle and myself, truckin’ on up to Santa Rosa to prance around in skin-tight spandex at 7am on a 40 degree morning. Really, what the hell? But there we were. All of us, well, nearly all of us. Jeni and Kyle were still trying to find a parking spot when Abby, Mike and I rolled out. I hung out and waited for the Brooks-a-pokes as Abby and Mike pressed onward. We ended up being about eight minutes behind them, and at a pretty relaxed pace, the three of us figured we could easily work together to catch up. Thus begins our adventure.

All of us in a paceline are rotating nicely. There are two other fellas who are determined to “win” or “thin out the crowd” (yes, in a 2500 person tour), Kyle “throw the f’ing hammer down” Brookes, Jeni “Kyle, why have you stolen my road bike and expect me to keep up with you on a CX bike” Brookes and Allie “I can’t find my way out of a paper bag with a map” Burch. We are flying. As mile 13 of our “warmup” goes by, we still haven’t seen Abby or Mike, but since we’re still passing groups like they’re standing still we press on thinking that they’re just up the way…that is until we no longer see any more groups.

We climb. The five of us continue climbing alone and after about ten minutes of climbing alone the collective genius of the group determines that we have indeed gone off course. (ok, so I was probably taking a pull at that time) Kyle pulls out his gps, and we find a shortcut that takes us back to the group. We climb again and see Mike and Abby waiting at the first stop wondering just where in the hell we were.

We all continued on riding together. We rolled on through canyons, valleys and vineyards. The views were amazing and although there were a couple of steep short climbs, the majority of the course was downhill!

We were nearly to a rest stop when Pete rode up in his “Giant Strawberry Parfait” kit (I was really hungry by this time so this is what I saw) and we started yakking about the Velo Bella characters. We talked about some of the blogs, sung “My Milkshake brings all the boys in the yard…” and just had a good ol’ time for a bit. He mentioned how he saw the write-up of the Velo Bella downhillers on Michael’s website. “Yeah!” I said, “This is the 2^nd year of an actual DH squad!” He eyeballed me kinda sideways like “pardon me for bringing this to your attention, “Ms. Downhiller”, but you’re fully clad in spandex. Do you notice something wrong with this picture?”

We continued chatting about Velo Bella and mutual friends and acquaintances. I was really only trying to make conversation when I said, “yeah, from what I understand Sabine and Michael are hitting the track quite a bit. I hear he’s quite good.” To which he replied and chuckled, “Michael? Hrmp! He’s soft!” Now, I’m no geologist, but I’d say them thar’s fightin’ words. Hey, I just report the news, I don’t make it up!

The course rolled on through the undulating terrain of the Russian River wine country. I would recommend this route for anyone for riding or just for wine tasting. The vineyards and wineries aren’t as commercialized and “grand” as it’s Napa Valley counterparts, but Mike and I have found that the quaintness of the wineries and quality of the wine exceeds that of the quantity some of the more touristy places of the valley pump out.

We rode as far north as Lake Sonoma, where we had lunch and then turned south to begin our ride back to the start/finish. The eastern side of 101 through Geyeserville is a bit more exposed, but still beautiful, even after logging 85 miles.

At mile 86, though I started having the “weird fantasy” phenomenon. I could think of nothing else than getting the hell out of my chamois and slipping into my Kamala skirt. It’s a dress, it’s a skirt, it’s smarter than your average bear…and you don’t have to wear a bra! Anyway, it was kinda weird, but it kept me going.

We ended up finishing and were thankful for the BBQ spread they had set up for the riders. And yes, I did get to wear my skirt/dress.

If anyone were thinking about doing their first century in Northern California, I would highly recommend this event. It’s well organized, friendly, attentive and mostly downhill.

Belonging

2008-05-01T19:56:00.000-07:00

By Shannon Edson
Fort Collins, Colorado

MSC Race #1, Fruita, Colorado

After the TT the day before, I was a little bummed out. I hadn't finished as well as I would have liked, and my descending was tentative. But, Sunday was a new day, and I had to focus on the task at hand - the XC. I had a good warm-up, and my legs felt surprisingly good. It made such a difference having teammates around. I rode around with Jen for a bit, and then it was time to head to the line. The pro field was pretty big for an MSC race, and all the fast girls were out to play.

I had pre-ridden the course the weekend before, and this helped my confidence. It was a great course! It snaked around the Western Rim Trail on the border between Colorado and Utah. The views were breathtaking, and the singletrack was very fast.

As I stood on the line, I envisioned the course and myself riding with perfect control. The race official went over the race reminders, and before I knew it, I was racing again. I had a good start; I am determined to make this a strength. After about five minutes, I had spiked my HR, and I just needed to settle in. I rode steady and about fifteen minutes in, we came to big drop.

When I pre-rode the course, it didn't look like the race would go this way, so I hadn't practiced it. I saw a girl ahead of me bomb down it, so I leaned back and rolled through. I made it to the Western Rim Trail and surprised myself with the my technical skills. I definitely had more control than the day before.

When I hit the turn, I saw a girl who had consistently finished ahead of me last season as an expert. I dug in and caught her. This boosted my confidence, and I set my sights up the sandy road. On the last push before the finish, I could see two more women. I gave all that I had and caught one before the finish. I ended up thirteen seconds away from the one further up the road.

I was pleased. At camp, Alex said, "A good goal to have as a first year pro is just to feel like you belong in the field." I felt that way today, and I hope to only build from here.

Never Too Much Otter!

2008-04-24T18:05:00.000-07:00

By Kimber Gabryszak
Park City, Utah

So I've spent the last few weeks alternating between excitement for the Sea Otter downhill and apprehension...as many of you know, I had a rough season last year. Beating myself up about earlier poor finishes, then took out my shoulder in a crash at Angel Fire. Later in the summer, I eased back onto the bike, but was scared, wimpy, riding my brakes, too tentative.

Now, after a lot of PT and a winter of recovery, would I still be scared?

First day on the practice course, I took a slow run to get a feel for it. Second run, let it ride a little faster, and it felt awesome. Third run, let it go all out.....and almost rattled myself off a section of brake bumps since I was on my medium bike. OOPS!

For the 4th run, I borrowed Connie's bigger downhill bike, and let it rip! It was so beautiful! Flowly and smooth, I felt in the zone and in the groove, relaxed and absorbing the course. Yay! I could have ridden all day, but by then practice was over. My face got a workout from smiling too.

No practice on Saturday, which was a good thing, since Connie and I had decided to race in the beginner/sport singlespeed XC race Friday, and I don't know about her but my legs were HATING me! We hung out at the tent, visited with the other Bellas, made new friends, walked around Sea Otter, and had a grand time. THANKS to everyone for the friendliness and hospitality, especially Sabine!

Sunday morning, practice. My (Connie's) bike was all decked out in glittery pipe cleaners and rhinestones and ribbons, and we were just loving the course. In fact, I had to force myself to stop practicing to keep from being too tired for the uphill pedally sections. Yes, uphill on a downhill course, but I couldn't complain since it's one of the most fun courses I've been on otherwise!

Finally, time for the race. I'm sitting in the gate, feeling stunned that it's already Sea Otter, it's already the bike season, it's already time to race, it's going to be all over in 3 minutes, then...

Beep, beep, beep, BEEP! I pedal into the first corner, and Success #1: no braking through the corner, yay! Into the doubles section, and while I don't clear them, I have Success #2: smoothly suck up the bumps and get the right crossover into the bermy switchbacks. Success #3: no braking through the switchbacks! Success #4: no hesitation on the teensy-weensy rock I've been hesitating on!

Then I hit Failure #1: the first pedally climb. My legs are SO TIRED! I try to stand in the pedals but just crawl up the hill. 2-3 seconds lost there, so sad! Failure #2: I hesitate at the top of the steep rutted sand section, but once I'm in it I let it go fast. Still lost some time. Failure #3: same as #1, almost no pedalling up the second hill. Sigh, more time lost.

Then, Success #4: no brakes through the bottom of the course, with the exception of into a sharper corner or two, but nowhere near the amount I usually do, so I'm overcoming my fear, yay!

My finish was a 3:02, which put me into 29th place, and which was 9 seconds off the girls I'd like to finish with. Since my only real issue was lack of pedalling, and I did well on the rest of the course, overall I'm pretty stoked! She's back!

AND, overall the successes outweigh the failures, and the failures are just lessons to learn from. I know, I know, the SS XC probably wasn't the smartest idea for leg soreness, but it's Sea Otter and supposed to be a good time, and the XC race was one of the most fun and crazy things I've ever done!

And that's all she wrote!

Gravity Bella!

2008-04-23T19:37:00.001-07:00

Allie Burch, Sea Otter Pro Downhillin'

Grand Belladom!

2008-04-22T14:15:00.000-07:00

By Shannon Gibson, Pro Bella
Out Playin' in the Dirt Somewheres

Shannon, Laura, and Sabine show lotsa smilin’ teeth

Since becoming a Bella, I rank Sea Otter as one of the most fun race trips all year. NorCal is grand Belladom, and resident within are many leaders of the queensland.

Founder Sabine with our new purplicious nippled Stan’s wheels

I feel privileged to follow in the footsteps of women like Sabine and Laura who wanted their own feminine cycling kit to rock while going fast riding a bike and, oh yes, having fun! Apparently, I’m told, the spousal/significant other men who belong to or have belonged to the queens have their own team- VOS, as well.

Pro Team Manager Alex

Well, Brava to Giant’s Kelli Emmett for riding off the front all day. Gutsy move considering the length of the race and the wind. But I did a season of marathons a couple years back, and Kelli always could just motor along really fast for really long!!

Now for my excuses... not yet on form with a post cross late start to base, 3 too many jobs, I couldn’t hang with the surge over the back side. Got stuck behind lotsa traffic and had to be patient until traffic thinned out. Good news is I didn’t run outta gas and I can feel the form coming. Every race weekend gets better.

Even the number plates sparkle

And kudos to Leah, who is coming into her own with two wins this weekend. She’s definitely a youngun on the way up to the top!

Otter Pop

2008-04-21T17:28:00.000-07:00

By Janet Lafleur
Mountain View, Cali

Since last year I finished the Beginner Cross-country race in the bottom half, I registered for the same race category again. My only goal was that nebulous "do better this year" which meant finishing in the top half.

My race strategy was simple: (1) find a good wheel at the start so I could get onto the dirt in good position (2) pass as many of the slower ones from the earlier groups on the first fire road to avoid the "conga line" on the singetrack (3) be more assertive in passing people on the singletrack. That was about it. I really didn't think too far ahead.

It seems to happen every race. At some point before the race starts I wonder why I ever registered and quietly hope something will cancel it. Starting that morning and continuing through the whole drive down and into the registration process I was a little disgusted with myself. Just why am I doing this? Finally, after meeting up with Cindy Shambaugh and Michelle Perez I started to feel better about racing. Thank God for Velo Bella teammates!

After we got our bikes and gear in order, we rode to get our friend Harper so we could warm up together. Sea Otter was Harper's first race ever. When we pulled in to her campsite fully kitted out in Velo Bella style Harper's husband Matt blurted: "Wow, you guys look intimidating". I guess we were light on the flair for this race. Harper was looking great for her first race--calm, collected and ready to go.

During the warm-up on the track we ran into more friends: Bella Elizabeth Rein, Lesley (Code 3) and Holly (LGBRC). Then we lined up for the start. Even though Holly told me she wasn't really feeling strong after racing Madera and wouldn't be going out hard I pulled up next to her on the front row just in case. Didn't want to miss out on the opportunity for a good wheel.

Then the buzzer and as expected a couple of women shot off, giving me some good choices for wheels--really important since there was a stiff headwind. I sat in behind one woman and kept an eye on another pair just off to the right. They were a bit ahead but on a less optimal line so I held tight. After the hairpin turn the second group got closer so I whispered to the woman in front of me: "Grab her wheel" which she did.

So the first handful or so of the field pacelined along until it broke apart at the bottom of the corkscrew. That final little pitch is where I passed my lead-out woman and where Holly and a Team Hamana racer passed me getting off the track.
Strategy item #1 complete.

Once off the track, we were funneled through a hole in the fence. Holly slides out and the Team Hamana woman pops off her bike too. I'm just far enough back that I have a chance to get around, but there was no room. We all scramble to get back on the bikes and head down the fireroad toward the infamous Misleading Signs Area #1.

We're going pretty fast and I must have seen Holly looking confused about which way cause she said I yelled out "Go left". On the hill and the rollers that followed Holly and Team Hamana gained ground on me, but I still managed to keep them in sight. This is where we passed a lot of racers from earlier categories. Strategy item #2 complete.

Before long we're on the Trail 50 downhill singletrack. It's not nearly as bad a conga line as last year, but Holly and Team Hamana were slowed down enough for me to catch them. Then it's uphill on Trail 50 where they pull away from me again but once again not too far. Of course there's a bit of a conga line here too and I catch them near the top. But overall I did much better getting around people. Strategy item #3 complete.

On the fire road leading to the beach there were plenty of opportunities to pass. Unfortunately, I couldn't pass the cute 12 year old before the beach. She got to the top of it and stopped dead in her tracks at what she saw. I almost got around both her and the woman who got stopped behind her, but couldn't. So I ran around her down the first ten feet or so and mounted my bike. Having tried and failed four times before, I really didn't have a goal of getting down the beach without stopping. But somehow I cleaned it, passing Holly on the way down. Unexpected achievement #1!

Then it's the grunt up Trail 82. Not far from the bottom I recognize Lesley's voice (probably letting someone know she's passing). As she passes, she asks me "Did you go off course?" I said: "No, you're just fast". I didn't know what she was talking about.

It's so steep on Trail 82 that people are popping off everywhere. So it's dodge where you can, hop off quick and run around where you have to all the way to the top. Nice downhill, left on pavement, right on fireroad to the feed zone. Eat a Clif shot, drink a bit too. Then start grinding up Skyline toward Misleading Signs Area #2.

As I approached the turnoff for Trail 44 it was like deja vu from our pre-ride last week where we lost the faster climbers in our group. I see the turnoff to the left and I see riders climbing Skyline past it. I know that's a mistake and I'm wondering what happened. Then I get close enough to read the signs. A red one with a left arrow that says "XC race" with "20 miles" handwritten on it and a yellow straight arrow that says "10 mile off-road tour". I'm perplexed. I know the course--I did it last year and even pre-rode it using maps and directions from the web site this year. But the signs implied that 20 miles was left and 10 miles was straight.

I knew that going straight shortens the course by a mile or so and that the race officials would never be able to reconcile the mistakes. So I knew the results for many racers would be wrong. But I decided to not let that bother me and turned left. Even if the placings are screwed up, at least then I can compare my time vs. last year. At the bottom of 44 there was a big "Beginner women and clydesdales turn right" sign so I knew that I was on the true course.

Then its up up up the mind-numbing fireroad into the wind. Almost as soon as the climb begins, we are joined by the teeming masses of men completing their long loop. Normally this would be annoying, but in the wind it was a bit of a blessing. More people to block the wind. I chugged along, just focusing on keeping the pedals turning. A woman in a red & white kit passes me toward the end of the climb but I pass her on the somewhat technical descent in a relatively tight space. Strategy item #3 again.

A final steep turn to get back on the race track has everyone dismount, run up and remount. A total cyclocross moment. Then it's a biggest gear descent on the pavement to the finish.

At the finish I see Lesley there and Harper too. Then in comes Cindy, who started 2 min back and almost caught me and then Holly and Michelle. Then we go to the results and find people with 39 minute times already posted. Huh? Obviously some big mistakes cause we know the winners finished last year in about 1:20. The 40-44 group only shows the first couple of finishers including some 39 min times. None of us are listed.

So we head for the protest booth, wait with many others to talk to the guy. It takes them a while, but they finally figure out that the 39 minute people were off course. Duh. But there was no way to figure out who cut the course at Misleading Signs #2.

By now it's getting really cold. Cindy and Lesley leave for warmer places while Michelle, Holly and I wait. Eventually they award some of the categories. Lesley is declared winner of 45+! But they tell us they won't award the 40-44 until morning so we leave.

The next morning I head for the results area where I get the big surprise. I placed 2nd, Holly 3rd and Michelle 4th in a field of 16. Sweet! I got on the phone and relayed the good news. Michelle comes down and we finally get our award around noon.

So I went home pleased. Not only did I follow my strategy to race smarter, I improved my time by 5 minutes in worse conditions (much windier) than last year. I also cleaned the beach for the first time. The 2nd place medal was an unexpected bonus. It's pretty too, much prettier than the Sea Otter hydration pack I got in the schwag bad.

If you've read this far, thank you for taking the time. I'm a talker.

See you out there on the trails. Or even the race course next year where I'll be racing Sport.

In the News...

2008-04-07T15:24:00.000-07:00

Bellas at play in Santa Cruz — Read all about it!

Treasure Hunt

2008-04-06T10:41:00.000-07:00

By Monica Tory
Kalamazoo, Michigan

Ever heard of an alleycat? It's a cross between a scavenger hunt on bikes and an adventure race, and it's just a whole lot of fun!

As part of a team, I "raced" the recent Hopcat-sponsored Alleycat, and can't recommend it highly enough! Sure, we didn't place so well (40th of 45), but then again I know we had more fun than everyone else out there! When you don't know the town, you can't expect to win an event like this ... especially when you're the only team whose courier bags are loaded with chocolate eggs to hand out along the way......Mmmm. Dove chocolate eggs. Hershey's dark chocolate eggs. Chocolate dipped chocolate eggs...

Whoops! A little off topic....what was I saying? Oh yeah...when you don't know your way around town and are carrying pounds of chocolate, you don't need to worry about winning & can just enjoy the experience! And what an experience it was.

Zooming around town with 70 or so other cyclists, working out clues to find out where to go next and what interesting "tasks" would come up next....all in between the "getting out of church hour" and the start of St. Patrick's day celebrations! Good thing I had the trusty handlebar mounted beer cozy that I picked up from Bicycle Discovery in San Diego - it came in very handy! Ever had to chug a beer while eating Peeps ? It was surprisingly yummy. How about sprinting through convenience stores, gas stations, etc., speed-shopping for canned cat food? Surely there must have been a grocery store SOMEWHERE out there. Really ... why do the gas stations carry dog food only? There were many interesting tasks, a few locations that you had to be at within a certain time-window, and some really creatively cryptic clues to get you everywhere else. It all added up to one great ride, and a lot of interesting stories told to new friends at the post-ride celebrations held at Hopcat and Founder's afterwards. Can't wait to organize an Alleycat of our own in the coming months!

CLICK for results.

p.s. I don't know what Sheila Moon had in mind when she designed the shoulder pocket on her hoodies, but it is the perfect place for a camera!

Will Race For Ice Cream

2008-04-01T15:33:00.000-07:00

By Tracie Nelson
SLO, Cali

Today was the Hanford Criterium.

Here's a race that's doing everything right: sweet course, awesome prizelist, cornball announcer, great sponsorship, and even bleachers at the S/F for the mobs of adoring fans to sit on and cheer. But the race is still pretty small, not well-known, and psssst.... don't tell them I said so, but maybe because it's in HANFORD.

(Hanford: A town of old trucks, farmers, pedestrians who walk wherever they feel like, and run-down shanty-shacks. Jesus is Lord of Hanford.)

So to honor this underrated crit, I pulled out all the stops: I busted out the skinsuit; donned the new helmet and sunglasses (which make me look like J-Lo, except with a smaller booty and less tan); I even slathered on the tingly leg cream (I didn't put it on my feet this time - I learned that lesson the hard way at Pine Flat). Then we all went out and raced like mad(wo)men and had a jolly good time.

We had a random passer-by snap this shot with Linda's cherished iPhone. I like how it makes me look 8 feet tall. Either that or everyone else is a midget (a possibility, as Erika insists she stopped growing at age 7).

After the race, we knocked up the local ice cream joint - which isn't just any lame old Coldstone or Baskin Robbins (which will do in a pinch), but a real-live old fashioned we-make-our-ice-cream-HERE-and-serve-out-scoops-the-size-of-yo-mama kind of place.

I got a chocolate milkshake that was roughly the size of Texas. It was good.

Wind and Milkshakes

2008-03-21T13:32:00.000-07:00

By Marian Jamison

Reno, Nevada

See how stoked I am to ride in 30 mph winds?

So! After leaving Reno at 6am, chaining up my poor little truck, and driving through the snow to meet up with my dad in Grass Valley, I managed to arrive at Land Park in Sacramento with plenty of time to warm up and register and talk to the ladies.

There were, um, four Bellas in the 1,2,3s. Katie, Soni, Ryan and myself. We were all pretty active and rode well and put in attacks. I attacked at one point and opened up a few feet of real estate between myself and the pack, but immediately cracked (ouch) and was caught. We chatted prior to the race about setting up Ryan for the finish. As we were going into the last lap I found myself next to Soni totally blocked out from attacking or doing anything worthwhile. I managed to reposition myself into the top ten-ish as we approached the last turn, but realized upon looking around that there was no one around me to lead out. And . . . I let myself get bullied in the last turn and lost about 10 places, then lost a few more in the sprint. But I was happy to see Ryan sprinting ahead of me.

It was fun, though, and I was proud to see all the Bellas riding so strong and aggressively. Plus, it was gorgeous down there. It's hard to be unhappy on a day like that.

I thought I had a really good idea of where the Zamora road race was, having raced the course two years ago as a collegiate race, but I was wrong, and failed to print out directions. As it turned out though, I didn't want to warm up in the damn wind anyway, so getting there on time would have been just silly. I feel that it was better driving around on farming roads telling my dad, "Oh, it's out this way, I'm sure. See, this is right where the climb is . . . oh, wait . . . hmm . . . maybe we should have turned right back there . . ." But, we found it. Whew!

There were four of us again - myself, Katie, Soni, and Sarah. Did I mention it was windy? Oh, I didn't? Well, it was windy!!!

I was feeling pretty good, but picked the wrong wheel heading up the KOM climb, which is more of a hill than a mountain. So . . . a little gap opened up between the girl in front of me and the pack, and then I was flailing around in the wind with an ever growing gap between myself and where I wanted to be. There was a small group behind me, so I slowed up a little bit so they could catch on, and then started hammering. It ended up being just me and one other girl, who I told, "We can catch them!" even though I didn't think that was very likely. But, lo and behold, we did. And on the head-wind stretch no less! But when we came to the KOM hill again, I was off the back. Again. Hmm.

This time there was clearly no catching back on. I TT'd it for about half a lap, then caught up to two girls who'd also gotten dropped, then we broke apart on the KOM hill again. Damn. Almost a whole lap in the wind by myself before I was caught by a group of 4 who were hammering to stay away from a larger group behind them. So, we hammered to the finish and I ended up 2nd in the sprint, which was more of a long fast wind-out before the line. Sarah was with the lead group, and I think Katie and Soni were with the larger group behind me.

It was a hard day! And anyone racing out there is tough tough tough. I'm super proud of my teammates.

On a side note, at Snelling, which was my last race, I think the biggest problem (other than my legs, my lungs, my back, and the supposed "cold" that I claim to have had) was just getting bummed out by riding in the wind and not being able to stick with the lead group. Today I was determined to stay positive and happy and not get crabby, and it worked! I was even happy when I was TTing into the head wind trying to keep my speed above 12 mph. Haha. Really though, it made all the difference.

And then I drank a milk shake. Mmmm . . . milk shake . . .

Startline... Anyone? Anyone?

2008-03-18T15:16:00.000-07:00

By Allie Burch
Novato, California

We are here. The race start is *way* over there -->

This was valuable information given to the three of us after an hour of hiking straight up the wrong single-track (with downhill bikes) on the wrong peak of a completely unmarked downhill course on the practice day before the race. Although the descent to the real start was pretty sweet, our little adventure had kinda done me in.

This was my first foray to the Keyesville Classic event.

The adventure started at 4:45 am on Friday with a 5 and a half hour drive to Keyesville. As the flat farmscape of I-5 droned on, it gave way to the flat farmscape of 46 then 99 into Bakersfield. A quick turn East on 174 was a welcomed change as it dropped out of the valley then climbed and twisted it’s way through the mountain pass along the Kern River up to Lake Isabella where the canyon opened up to an outdoor lover’s playground!

Once I arrived, I geared up and started pushing up the Snake pit course with Jackie and Dain. Fast, chundery sections to rocky singletrack, switchback to a rocky funnel…ok, these look fun, but where the hell does this thing start?!

We kept going and followed a singletrack straight up the most logical looking peak for a downhill course. Half an hour of hiking through soft sand later, we decided that there is no way this can be a start since there is no place to stage riders. Besides, we were the only one’s up there! We rode down and found the real start, which sent the rider down a fire road with a few rollers and a long flat section. Fine if you’re on a small travel bike, but on a 37 lb downhill sled?? Kill me now.

One of my goals for this race was to really look over lines and get somewhat creative. There was a group of rocks that looked like they could be ridden over as long as the rider threaded through the two boulders on either side. Jackie and I stopped to session this section and see just how possible this line was. I backed up and started my approach to the rock line, but slammed on my brakes before committing to riding it. By this time there were three other guys looking at the line as well. I dragged my bike up as was about to abandon the idea just as I heard Jackie say, “actually, I’d kinda like to see how that line is done.” I think she was talking to the guys, but what the hell. I backed up again and rared up to go…I’da made it too… but I got object fixation on the big flat rock wall right in front of me and smacked into it all “George of the Jungle” style. Of course after this the guys cleared it without a problem. I, on the other hand found an alternate line that I liked better anyway.

Saturday was the downhill race, a combined best time on the two courses. The first course, Dutch Flat, was best ridden on a hard tail. There were three rises that made a rider slugging a rolling couch want to puke, but all of a sudden the course got really fast. There were three of us in the pro class, two on downhill rigs, and one on a hard tail. Needless to say, Tiffany, who was on the hard tail enjoyed a few seconds advantage over us on the downhill bikes after the first run.

Time was more than made up, however on the second run where, even though the course had uphills and flats, the technical sections were easily floated over on 8” of suspension.

When the dust had settled and the results were in, Jackie and I had the fastest combined female times…exactly. We were in a dead tie for first. She was exactly one second faster than I on one of the courses, I was exactly one second faster on the other.

The final results had placed Jackie in first and me in second, the tie-breaker being the fastest down the second course. We clambored up on the podium and proclaimed our victory right as the snow started flying!! An isolated snowstorm came blowing through to cap off the awards.

Once the course was marked, and the race promoters set up and organized a bit, the event went really well and was a very fun event. I even met fellow Velo Bella roadie (and now MTB extraordinaire) Tracy Nelson at the downhill! (I can’t wait to read her writeup on this event!)

The Badass Club

2008-03-18T15:10:00.000-07:00

By Tracie Nelson
San Luis Obispo, Cali

I've been working on a short list of things that will automatically classify a person as a "badass":

1. Person has blood stains on their bike
2. Person has raced in the snow
3. Person has done a DH race on a hardtail

Hello, Badass Club! Okay, so what if I did do #3 really, REALLY horribly, and maybe the course really wasn't THAT challenging as far as downhills go, but the fact that I competed in something that involved hurling yourself down a rocky ledge and am not currently sporting a BODY CAST - well, I'm pretty proud.

Keysville was bitchin'.

Here's a quick summary:

1. Short track is the bomb. My teeth were bleeding and I had snot coming out of my eyes but it was all worth it when I started lapping old fat guys.

2. I've never been so cold in my life! My sleeping bag became my new best friend and we snuggled the day away. I devised a plan to cut arm and leg holes in Cuddly the Sleeping Bag and wear him in my XC race. I also considered carrying him up to the top of the DH course to keep me warm while I waited for my start. (As an added bonus I could strap Cuddly to my back for the way down as body armor.)

3. Pint glasses are better prizes than t-shirts.

4. I'm so sore I can hardly walk.

5. Next time I camp out at a race I will solicit a camping swan-yer (how the heck do you spell that word?) to cook hot meals, provide body massages, and service my bike. Applications are currently being accepted. Vollunteer basis only, must provide own tent and transportation.

6. I kicked ass. Knobbies are my mojo.

Bella Aggression: Dash for Cash

2008-03-17T10:33:00.000-07:00

By Rachel Mickelson
California

I’m was so excited about participating in the first bike race of the year that I spent the better part of the morning on the potty…Uggggggg, nervousness attacks me in evil ways.

Fitness level is good, slept good, ate well the night before, instant oatmeal 3 hours prior to race start..had all my duckies in a row, or so I thought. My last bike race had been last summer and I only participated in about 4 of them…never really got my “mojo” back or whatever you want to call it. Today, I was ready to hit it hard!

BOY, according to my husband, I really made those girls hurt…. One problem, I KILLED myself at the beginning of the race. I broke all of the rules in Bicycle Racing 101! This race was a 30 minute race with a sprint lap after the first four laps. I WENT HARD for the first FIVE laps and Faded, faded…I could have won $10 for each lap that I won. I got second in like five of them. At the finish, I was WAY back. Click here to read HOW FAR back (…….16th, dang it!).

I WILL REDEEM MYSELF!

On a positive note, I got an excellent interval workout. My kids saw me out there racing like their Daddy. Treated myself to Starbuck’s after the race.

See more great photos of all the race action here.

Photos courtesy of Steve Weixel, Santa Barbara, California. Used with permission. Thanks Steve!

Tip Top Sprint

2008-03-10T16:54:00.000-07:00

By Jamie France
Clemson, South Carolina

Sunday, 9 March, was our old faithful course of 35 miles at Donaldson Center. The field of women was smaller than usual -- only 30 of us, all Categories raced together. The cold was excruciating. I heard on the weather that it was 28 degrees with wind chill. It felt every bit of the 28 degrees. Everyone dressed for the cold, but still -- we were miserable for the first two laps. It took us 14 miles to warm-up to where I could feel my fingertips. My brain was frozen for those two laps as well. Luckily, everyone was in the same boat -- cold muscles, cold face, runny noses.

I really started to feel good in lap 3. I was feeling like I really wanted to stretch my legs, but I stayed imbedded in the pack. I followed a few attacks, but the pack always got us reeled back in. The bigger teams were really controlling things, and I had no teammates. (I had started the race with a brand-new-Bella, Kim Turpin, who I knew was super-strong, but she broke a cable in lap 1 so she was out.)

Before I knew it, we were approaching the 200m-to-the-finish mark, and the sprint began. I finally got a chance to open up and go for it. It was crowded and I had to hold back until I found a gap, powered through, and passed a bunch of gals with only 10m to go. It felt great!

I ended up 11th out of all 30 women, my best finish ever -- but wait! Here's the best part: I was 1st among Cat 4 women, my prevoius best being 5th. And since they scored the Cat 4 women separately from the 1/2/3's, I've got that warm & fuzzy feeling of a job well done when I see the results posted with "1. Jamie France - VeloBella - Clemson, SC" at the very tippity top of the list!

Oh La La!

Fat Tire Fling

2008-03-03T13:18:00.000-08:00

By Tracie Nelson
San Luis Obispo, Cali

I won!!!

But not in Merced.

Nope. No Merco for me this year. I've filled my central valley quota for a while, thank you very much. Instead, Ryan and I headed up to Fort Ordy-oh-Lordy to fill our poison oak and dust quotas at CCCX. Aaaalllll-right. (Who wants a body massage?)

So we packed up the knobbies and technu and chocolate chip cookies (the three essential ingredients to a pleasant mountain biking experience) and headed up north for a day in the dirt. The CCCX races remind me a little bit of collegiate racing because they're so low-key and the feild sizes are kinda dinky and everyone is friendly and chatty and really dorky. I like it.

I raced the Sport division again, since it was only my second race, and was suprised to see that this one girl who has been winning every race under the sun was also still racing Sport. She beat me last time and is definately fast enough to be holding her own in the Expert class, but Whatever. I'm new to this; what do I know?

So a quickie blow-by-blow (the not interesting part): Winner Girl sprinted off like a bat out of hell from the line and I sat on her wheel on the pavement. I looked behind me to see if everyone else was sitting on my wheel and they were nowhere to be found. (Game on.) I jumped around her to get on the dirt first; dropped her on the first lap; she caught me on the second lap and rode away; I caught her on the third lap and rode away from her to win the race. (Yay.)

Ryan won her race too. ROADIES UNITE!

Now for the interesting parts:

1. Since I beat a sandbagger, does that make me a sandbagger? One of her friends asked me if I planned to upgrade to expert "next year". As in, 11 months from now? As fun as it was to have a good hard race (that girl gave me a serious run for my money) and to have won (it's nice to win something other than a scrabble game from time to time), I don't really think it's fair of us to keep beating up on girls who are new to the bike. I'll race up next time.

2. FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, get out of your chamois when you're done with your bike! Not that I was timing them, but there were some peeps (who shall remain anonymous) hanging around in their spandex for a good TWO AND A HALF HOURS after their races were over (sitting around in the feed zone in your bike shorts does NOT count as training time!!!) I'd hate to know what's growing in their shorts.

3. I saw a guy in baggies and shoe covers. I laughed out loud and then told him that I liked his fashion statement. Creativity deserves recognition.

4. I had fun. CCCX is not a FUPA.

Road Season: It's ON!

2008-02-25T13:27:00.000-08:00

By Soni Andreini Poulsen
At a bike race somewhere in California

Somehow, I got my best start of the last 2 years and was in the front into the first turn. Happily, Tracie took the pole from me and I rode her wheel for the first lap. It was so great to have her right in front of me. I just followed her line and it gave me much confidence that I could corner on this course. Really, this is the first crit I've done where I wasn't nervous about every corner and losing ground on most of them.

Then Tracie started attacking and attacking and attacking. I countered once, but I was pretty dang pooped from the rest of the weekend and could only do so much. Laps 22 down to 10 seemed to last forever, and I kept thinking they were forgetting to turn the lap cards. I just wanted to try to stay in to do something at the end.

So then Tracie attacked and Ry and I kinda patrolled and controlled as best we could when we could. The last 10 laps (of this 34 lap, one hour race) went a little slower so I knew I could stay in at that point and so got myself in position with 3 to go. Then at 2 to go Tracie went again hard! I almost got dropped and seriously questioned my ability to do my last lap attack that Ryan and I had planned.

But I went anyway, just a bit before the start/finish line and just kept it down. After turn 3, I really felt my power dropping and thought I might pull off. I didn't think I was much help anymore, but Ryan yelled "keep going!" And so I did.

OUCH!

I was ready to die/quit again after turn 4, but then Jeff yelled at me to keep digging, and that kept me going for one more turn

OUCH!

I finally had to pull off after turn 5 because I barely made the turn. I couldn't see straight!

Ry had positioned herself perfectly. When I pulled off, there was one gal between us and she was then in the wind and had to go too early, with Ry on her wheel...

And that was all she wrote. Ry made it look easy!

I don't think the field knew what hit them. We missed all the primes, but we all got t-shirts. Most importantly, we all had a blast and put on a good show for the crowd!

Click for more super-fab photos. All photos courtesy of Steve Weixel, Santa Barbara, Cali. Used with permission. Mille Grazie!

Cyclocross World Championships

2008-01-31T16:33:00.001-08:00

By Amy Dombroski
Durango, Colorado

Ready to roll......in racing form - so serious.

It was slick and slippery.
Hard to go hard because the focus was on keeping up-right.

The fans were crazy on the steep run-up.

The race was amazing, and so was my post-race meal.

And then we watched the men's race with all the super-fans.

Jonathan Page on the stairs.

Tim Johnson after the stairs.

It was real and surreal.

Thanks to everyone for your incredible support!
This wouldn't have been possible without you!

Editor's note: Below is a brief video from the Worlds race. I believe I saw Amy on her Bellalicious Kona fly by. Ooh la la!

Hoogerheide World Cup

2008-01-24T14:34:00.000-08:00

Bella Sighting!

Editor's note: If you are not an afficionado of techno, you might want to be muting the sound. Or, crank it up and dance around your living room. We'll never tell!

Peak Season

2008-01-14T09:33:00.000-08:00

By Beth Welliver
Pacific Grove, California

Another Peak Season race today. On our Saturday mountain bike ride yesterday, a few of the regular 'crossers were chatting...we weren't excited to do this race. Perhaps because the 'cross season is winding down, or because the last race on this course was so bloody bumpy. Alas, I had sold my soul to the Peak Season gods at the first race and signed up for all of them, so I was forced to throw my second thoughts about racing today out the window and suck it up.

Did I mention that we climbed 3000+ feet yesterday on our Saturday mountain bike ride? Not all of that climbing was in the saddle either...a chunk of it feet on the ground beside my bike. Heave ho...

An accidently long warm-up got me to the start with seconds to spare to find that I was just one of 3 chicas racing B's today. Automatically on the podium. Schweeeett! But also a good chance of getting last. Hmm...well, just go as long as the legs will go and see what happens.

Off the start I grab a wheel and follow behind. A good power section leading into some tight turns and then a run-up. Up the run-up, still need to learn how to get back on my bike, pedal, pedal, bump, bump, squish, squish through some mud, crap, I'm in first place. Pedal, pedal, splash (I tend to find all the mud apparently), pedal, get off, run-up (gotta get rid of this studder step remount), look back...what this? I have a lead? Schweeet!

For three and a half laps I was winning the B's. Nevermind that there were only three of us. Then I got caught, and passed, and then a rogue raspberry bush caught me and wrapped its mean little thorns around my leg on the poison oak infested run-up. Somehow I caught back up to first place right before the last lap, but she was too strong and I got dropped like a half-hearted New Year's resolution in the second week of January. But I still got second place, so woo-hoo!

If only I could learn how to get back on my bike faster. That's what I'll work on for next year. I can get off fast, run with it fast, but getting back on, not so much.

A small schmattering of racey photos from Mr. Bella Paparazzo can be found here.

Bella Italia!

2007-12-20T09:20:00.000-08:00

Amy Dombroski nominated for US Worlds Team!

USA Cycling has announced the first round of nominations to the U.S. national team for the 2008 UCI Cyclocross World Championships in Treviso, Italy, January 26-27. Sixteen athletes were nominated to the squad in the elite women's, U23 men's and junior men's categories based on their competitive performance over the course of the last year.

...

Discretionary nominations to the elite women's team went to Rachel Lloyd (Proman-Paradigm), Kerry Barnholt (Tokyo Joe's-Van Dessel), Sue Butler (River City Bicycles) and Amy Dombroski (Velo Bella-Kona). See Velonews for the full story.

Update: Velo Bella-Kona is raising money to help send Amy to Worlds and you can help! Visit the Velo Bella-Kona forum for more information.

Crazy in Kansas

2007-12-20T09:15:00.000-08:00

By Kari Studley
Bothell, Washington

It was hard to believe how fast the season flew by and that it was finally time for nationals. I have been the joke of my friends and family for the last month with my ambitions to go race my bike in circles…in Kansas…in the middle of December. My mom took it a step further in telling me the night before I traveled east, “ I thought it was funny until this week, but now I think you’re crazy!” (especially in light of the ice storm Kansas City experienced earlier that week – my game plan: bring a lot of knitting to be prepared for any flight delays). Always good to have parental support in such endeavors. I also remained undeterred in my national quest when my host family asked, “why Kansas in December?” You know it’s a good sign when even locals think you’re crazy….

Our flight to Kansas was unremarkable other than I woke up that morning with a faucet for a nose and congested sinuses – not fun, especially on a plane. We even managed to navigate correctly to our host family and discovered in unpacking the bikes that my seat clamp bolt had gone MIA in flight (I really did tighten it, but lesson learned in the importance of taping bolts as well). The time change suited me well because even though it was 6:30 in Seattle, I could still justify going to bed since it was now 8:30 in Kansas.

My head cold remained persistent through the weekend, but fortunately, I felt good on the bike. I had THE BEST start EVER for me. Going into the first slippery turn, I was right where I wanted to be and even stayed upright as everyone else went down around me. Since there was no space to ride around them effectively, I was forced to dismount and run up the slight hill. At the top, I remounted and pushed down the pedal only to have the other side smack me in the back of the calf with no resistance and no momentum gained – my chain had dropped! Always a first for everything, but what an unfortunate time & place – especially in this race. I really think I would have placed 20-30 had it happened anywhere else other than the first half lap, but that’s the way it goes. So back to working up from almost dead last…

This was my first (and only) experience of riding/racing on FROZEN mud. It wasn’t quite as bad as I anticipated, but certainly the most challenging technical riding I’ve done (I quickly figured out the concept of “tripoding” I overhead before the start of the race, now it made sense). I actually felt quite good once I got racing – I think I’m like Shannon Holden in that I do better the more adverse the conditions. I only took out one course barrier stick (with a spectacular summersault to accompany it) on lap two and slid down the last mud hill on the last lap (had to run back up the hill to get my bike!). With my season of mechanicals and crashes, it really could have been much worse, so I’m pleased with my 40th place. I know I can achieve better, but with all things considered with a dropped chain and head cold, that’s the way it goes. If anything, it has me super motivated to get next season started. My season of “experience” is completed and now I’m ready to RACE in 2008 & I can’t wait!!!!!

Thanks again to all our sponsors – especially Donn with Challenge Tires (who went out of his way to ship me a new tire just in time for this race and graciously helped us in the pits – that’s sponsorship!). I really have appreciated everything our combined sponsorship has helped me achieve this season. I also want to thank our gracious host family who had never heard of cross before our stay but are now hooked. Plus it’s great to see someone get as excited as I do in having their OWN cowbell. And HUGE thanks to Alex for all his coordination for this and throughout the season and our great crew of mechanics. I really appreciate it and look forward to crossin’ in 08 with everyone.

Podium Finish for Junior Bella!

2007-12-20T09:00:00.000-08:00

Alicia Styer finished 3rd place in the Junior Women 10-12. Her race started at 9:00 am on Friday morning. It was about 21 degrees with the wind it felt alot colder than that. The ground was frozen and very rutty. Some sections were still muddy with just a layer of ice that made the course very different from the previous days pre-ride. Alicia said she felt like she was mountain biking on parts of the course.

They removed the barriers the second lap. Alicia was the first one to ride right through that section. She had the help of alot of people cheering for her. She was battling it out with Julia that was from Farm Team Cycling for most of the race. Finally they were on their final lap. Once Alicia got on the road after gaining ground on the stairs she hammered it to the finish line.

We are very proud on her!

Snow Day

2007-12-11T15:08:00.000-08:00

By Natasha Cowie
Boulder Colorado

Yesterday was the Colorado State Cross Championships in Lyons. It was essentially forty-five minutes of utter stupidity, plus warmup time, although it totally wasn't warmup. It was more like, hey, I'm already dumb enough to be out here in fourteen degrees racing my bike, why don't I ride around for another hour first in order to bring my core body temperature down about fifty degrees and make sure that I feel like I've been sitting in liquid nitrogen. And then I'll claw my way across the frozen tundra to the start line and stand there for another five minutes so that hypothermia can fully set in before the announcer yells go and everybody immediately runs into each other.

Jen and Amy demonstrate race preparation.

The pictures tell everything. Thanks to Chellie and Jim (Tim) and Beth for taking them and for being great great cheerers and cow bell ringers. I would tag your blogs here as a token of my gratitude, except that as I mentioned last post, I do not know how to tag other people's blogs in my own, and this probably makes me an inferior life form. I mean, Amy probably thinks it does, but then she's always damaging my self-esteem anyway, and trying to steal my wheels and stuff. sniff. You're so mean Amy.

So, this is what I wore.

It took approximately 52 minutes and two mugs of ovaltine (the classic chocolate malt flavour, in the orange container) to put all this on, and by the time I was finished dressing, I had to pee. It was a long morning.

It takes work to look like a seductive doofus.

And then we raced through the playground from hell frozen over.

A Gaggle o' Bellas

So snowy.

Then the race was over, and Amy won some badass socks and a silver medal. Jen tried to steal the entire stack of gold medals, which is as good as winning them if you can get away with it. Everybody hallucinated the whole way home. And the best part! After the race we had snacktime!

Thanks again to everybody who cheered and took pictures. and way to represent Bellas. we had Shannon G, Mo, Amy, Jen, and me. The flair was taking over the field.

Hey, it totally wasn't cold enough. Time to head to Kansas City for the nationals afterparty.

Oh, I think there's a race there too.

Anna Wins!

2007-12-09T14:42:00.000-08:00

Read all about it!

Many Much Epicness

2007-12-06T17:33:00.000-08:00

By Amy Dombrowski
Boulder, Colorado

USGP, Races 5-6, Portland Oregon

Anna! You bet your kielbasa she's Polish.

Whateva I'm bad, I do what I wanna.

1/3 of the pit crew that saved the weekend and let the show go on.

Before the first epic day...trying to stay warm and avoid the rain.

Another third of the most excellent pit crew.

And Sara, the crazy Velo Bella downhiller who put Jen, Anna, and I up for the weekend! Who is psyched in the background?

Anna works on her game face.

Muddy much Shannon?

Epic and cluster were the words of the weekend. Geez, it wouldn't stop raining. There was a brief 30 second period when we spotted the sun, but it vanished before the words could escape from our frosty shivering lips. Saturday was fun, but I'm not sure I can say the same about Sunday quite yet, as I can still remember the compulsive trembling shivers for 45 minutes post-race. I crossed the line cross-eyed with chills, bolted for the van, dropped my mud-soaked bike, stripped naked as quickly as possible, attempted to wipe the layer of mud off, and put every single layer of dry clothing on, while sitting in the van with the heat cranked to the max. But no, the shivers would not cease. Shaking, teeth chattering, out of our minds, we sat for 45 minutes, drinking hot chocolate until finally, slowly we mustered some sort of control over our shocked bodies. Before, during, and after was a cluster, but my-oh-my, was it epic.

I had my first bike change. Though messy and a cluster, it happened with Donn's (Challenge Tires) help. It's something I need to work on. I was stubborn and didn't take a bike change on Saturday, when it was really needed, so by the end, my bike had about 20lbs of excess mud on it! Sunday wasn't so bad because there was water falling from the sky and spraying up at you as the course had basically been drowned.

Our tents blew away on Saturday night, so yet again, Ben Turner and the Clif Bar Development Team let us take over their trainers, tents, and compost for warming up.

Takin' it for the Team

2007-11-27T14:45:00.001-08:00

Seattle Cross Series, Race 8

By Kari Studley
Bothell, Washington

I seriously feel like the Bad News Bella...

I really am an upbeat and optimistic person. But I've been put to the test, especially my perserverance, this cross season. It just keeps helping me become a better racer, which will hopefully come in handy someday....

After last week's heartbreaking chain snap at the Washington State Championship, I was ready to start chasing Kristi Berg. I know I can hold my own consistently in the top 3. The cold foggy morning burned off into a cold sunny afternoon and it was a wonderful treat to feel the sun.

The course was nice and tacky as the dew had tamed the sandpit sections and I could really grip the fun windy twisty singletrack trail corners on the Challenge tubulars - love it! The course was TOUGH, too. There were TWO steep wall-like loose sand run ups and a couple of sand pits. There was no real chance to rest as I was always winding up, down and around on the trails when I wasn't dismounting for barriers. I felt it was good nationals prep. It's the hardest I've raced yet!

The race was going great. I had a decent start and had 3rd place secured with second in sight after the second lap. On the last lap to go, I was trying to reel her for a sprint finish. The corner before the pits (1/3 into the last lap), I rolled the tubular off the rim. See what I mean by Bad News Bella? I hope I'm taking all the bad luck for the team.

As I begged for a neutral bike or a spare wheel, the pit guy said the pit was closed on the last lap, further adding to my breaking and desperate heart. So back to running the rest of the race with the bike. At least I'm getting good at this. I was VERY thankful on how light the Kona is and ergonomically designed with the flat spot perfectly for one's shoulder - that has been a blessing. So I got last place again.

But the good news is that I'm not sore like last week from the running and as we speak, the tires are being professionally glued (I hope with superglue - never again will we try to glue up our own tires). Watch out Portland, third time will be the charm in my attempts to race....

Beautiful Day

2007-11-14T16:50:00.001-08:00

By Melody Chase
Plymouth, New Hampshire

17th Annual West Hill Shop Cyclocross Race
Putney Vermont

A beautiful Vermont Fall day was the perfect backdrop for the annual cross race put on by The West Hill Shop in Putney, VT. This venue is Vermont cross racing at its finest!

The course started right off on cross country ski trails with a fast barrier section then put us into the woods following mountain bike paths. My mountain bike skills came back; to put me in the top three right off the start. Coming out of the woods you had three steep birch tree run-ups that prepped your legs for the BMX course around the corner. Pumping the rollers you could get up speed for a fast decent to the “corn field velo-drome” dodging the dried corn stalks added to the challenge!

My zippy new Easton wheals and challenger tires responded great on the manure packed course and technical woods sections. Once you made it out of the corn field you hit pavement to finish on a very steep run-up that had a trough so deep that the little people had to take a less direct rout to the top.

Lap one and two I was leading out of the technical sections until I bobbled on a remount and was passed. Another rider bridged up to me, working together we tried to catch the leader. Final run-up I managed to hook my tire on a tree that spun my bike around hitting me in the head….now I have a nice shiner to show for my efforts.

I ended up finishing third, with a decent gap on the rest of the field. Awards where given in style huddled around a wood stove sipping hot apple cider. Good day!

Bella Party in Boulder!

2007-11-12T08:23:00.000-08:00

By Amy Dombroski
Boulder, Colorado

It was an epic weekend of racing in Boulder, with two UCI races put on by DBC Events - Saturday at the Boulder Reservoir and Sunday at Fairview High school. The Velo Bella crew represented! Barb flew in from CA, and our Boulder team was in full force with Tash, Jen, and Monique. I think both days we had four of us in the top 15...not too shabby!

My legs didn't feel too great on Saturday. I had a good first lap, but couldn't hold onto the pace. It was my maiden voyage on the bling Easton wheels, and my first time riding tubulars. It was definitely different, and will take some time to get used to. I kept thinking I was rolling off the rim on the corners because the sidewalls are so supple, I guess?

Sunday was much better, my legs are coming back. I did have a rough start, which concerned me a bit, and a few bobbles on the first lap. Taking a corner a little too hot, I crashed and my bike landed on my head and I went through some of the fencing. You can see in the above picture that my left shifter is fairly broken. Luckily I have a single front chain ring, so I don't need it to shift, but the brake doesn't work (is that a bad thing?) After getting an ugly first lap out of the way, I was cruising. Barb and I got to work together a bit, which doesn't happen too often in cross. It was so great to race in Boulder and have friends cheering my name, instead of the girl's names in front of and behind me.

It was a very fun weekend. Thanks to Missy, Brother Dan, and Challenge Tires for your help in the pit!

Barbarella and me:

Klunkster Tasha:
Tiara Tilley:
THE Barb:
Mo Hein:

Editor's Note: Cyclingnews caught Barb and Jen in action, too!

Mad Skillz at Ham Lake

2007-11-07T18:15:00.000-08:00

By Maria Stewart
Minneapolis, Minnesota

I continued my trend of stellar athletic performance 36 hours after crossing the Atlantic Ocean, this weekend- maybe you heard, last Sunday I won the 5k Gastroenterology Fun Run in Paris, France. The Ham Lake race on Saturday turned out to be the best race of my season so far with a 2nd place finish. It really helped that the women received a delayed start so the men could get themselves sorted out. The race started fast with Linda Sone leading the pack. Linda Cooper got a stick stuck in her derailleur briefly, and we never saw her again. Linda S, Margot, Amber from B-wood and I were together going through the mud pit when Margot endo-ed. She was lucky she didn't get hurt. Amber crashed behind Margot and dropped her chain, and I slammed on the brakes so I didn't run into either of them.

Linda S was long gone, but the three of us were still pretty close. Margot and I took off after the crash, and Amber was a little behind. Margot and I traded leading for a few laps until Amber caught on. I was getting tired, so I dropped back behind Amber until she started letting Margot get away. I definitely had a moment during the race when I thought, "Is there something wrong? Are you going too hard? You haven't been this close to Margot all year!" I pulled back up to Margot and on the last lap, I took the lead going into the woods. I had no idea what I had left, so I figured I'd better go for it. The last 2/3 of the lap was bumpy and sandy with some tricky corners. My superb handling skillz really paid off and I was able to drop both Amber and Margot to take 2nd place.

I was really thrilled because I just installed my new SRAM groupo on Saturday morning and didn't have any mechanicals during the race (except learning the new "double-tap" shifter set up). My pink brake hoods must have been key.

Grumpy's race on Sunday was payback for my awesome race on Saturday. Not only was the course really slow and muddy (probably from the soccer field irrigation system), but after 2 laps, I lost all of my good kharma and my body went on strike. Some of the bad kharma moments included skipping my pedal on a piece of plywood and nearly sending my bike sideways, and single tapping my "double tap" shifters when I need to get into an easier gear (single tap = harder gear), and tripping over a barrier. I made it my mission just to finish the race in one piece, and thats what I did. Not a race to be proud of, but I think all of my bad kharma is out of my system.

I'm not sure if I'll make it to Milaca next Sunday, but you can expect to see me at the State CX race on Nov 17!

Clicky for Results.

Sand Trap

2007-11-01T13:34:00.000-07:00

By Tasha
Boulder, Colorado

Here's a race report that it took me a couple of days to put together in my head, because it needed to be totally, like, profound and stuff. I'm all about profanity. Profoundness. Right. Anyway...

Race #3 in the Boulder Cross Series was last Sunday (after a really SWEET Saturday of Veloswap insanity) at the Boulder Reservoir. So, people told me the course was sandy. I was like, oh whatever, there'll be some sandy sections. Easy!

NO. There was SAND.

$(%*@*#! SAND.

So I'm all like pre-riding and stuff, and I'm like, sweet straightaway, nice barriers (over a big plastic weird pier) and there are skydivers parachuting into the field next to the course, and I'm watching them and running into things. And then it's like, BEACH. SAND. AaaghghghghghhH!!!

It was cool. Finished my warmup and lined up. Started talking to my friend Chellie about halloween costumes. Whoops, the official just blew the whistle. What? Was that for us? Oh gee, looks like it's time to race.

Against all odds I made a nice start and got into the front group just fine. It was a happy sunny ridiculously warm day, temps in the seventies, no wind. I'd just gotten into a nice pace and we gapped the chase group, when on the second lap, I carried too much speed into a turn and slid out. I sort of sat there for a minute while the chase group flew past and a nice mechanic sort of guy picked up my bike and ensured that I was coherent. Then I remembered what I was doing (oh yeah, racing. right?) and hopped back on the bike. I could tell immediately that my butt had lost some skin, and also my knee, but LUCKILY no damage sustained to my sweet Kona or Louis Garneau skinsuit. Pride comes before and after a fall in bike racing.

So, I started chasing, and also trying to brush all the dirt off my butt so everyone could see the nice design on the skinsuit. That was pretty much the rest of the race, except I also nearly fell into the lake no less than three times. The course went right along this super deep wet sand at the edge of the water. By the time I'd worked my way back up through the chase group I was sort of really tired and my butt was sore. So I was entirely content with tenth place.

Really, a delightful day, particularly the sand run-up with its perplexing characteristic of seeming to pull you slower the harder you tried to run fast. Sort of like quicksand, except with spectators and bicycles.

Happy trails and cross courses,
Klunk

Trick or Treat!

2007-10-31T12:57:00.000-07:00

Velo Bella Surf City Psycho-Cross
By Natasha Perry
Santa Cruz, California

Boo! Words don't really do this race justice - it's a lot more fun to just look at pictures. Really. You get to see cyclocross racers who might want to be cyclocross-dressers, or maybe a cowboy, french maid, sumo wrestler, hot short wearer, tigger... Just do me and yourself a favor and check out Sabine's blog.

But now you are wondering about berries, beer, and Queen Ann. It can all be explained. I found a new job that I loved, which was doing the sponsorship stuff for the race. The sponsors were incredible!!! (see full list at end of report) As we live in the berry basket of the world, Cal Giant generously offered up FRESH strawberries that they picked just for the race. I thought maybe a few little boxes of berries, so I roll up to a huge warehouse in my little Honda and a forklift comes out with a PALLET of Sberries! They were sooo delicious.

And any decent CX race would not be complete without beer...so we got the best beer possible from New Belgium Brewing. I love this company! Not only do they make incredible beer, but they have a job description called the "Beer Diva". OMG - I have to admit to being jealous. But we did make'em race hard for that beer!

Queen Ann. You thought that I sort of forgot about the actual racing. Nopie-nope. An incredible course had been put together, complete with a soul-sucking run-up. But when you have Queen Ann on your side - the ghosts and goblins screaming in your head to stop crawl back to the woods and hide for fear of what she might do. Not to mention the scary cadre of Halloween characters yelling their encouragement! The women's A line up was star studded and I clung to them for the first lap and half, but my eyes crossed, my stomach heaved, and the Queen and I settled in and came in 8th. The best part was seeing really, really strong turn-outs for the Women's B and C groups. Woohoo!!! (If you haven't met Queen Ann, she's the Bella's groovy Kona cross bike.)

Last but not least, our complete list of sponsors: The Spokesman Bicycles, Vanderkitten, De La Paz Coffee, Bicycle Trip, New Belgium Brewing, Sheila Moon, Gizdich Ranch, Clif Bar, DeFeet, Black Diamond, Cloud Nine, Timbuk2, California Giant, Fox Racing

Clicky for full results and oodles of Photos!

Happy Halloween!

Desert Double

2007-10-30T20:25:00.000-07:00

Death Valley Double Century
By Katie Norton
Sacramento, California

But you, by the grace of an ordeal in the night
which stripped you of all that was not intrinsic,
you discovered a mysterious creature born of yourself.
Great was this creature, and never shall you forget him.

—Antoine de Saint-Exupery, "Wind, Sand, and Stars"

Double #13, 197 miles, 9000' of Climbing, 13 hours and 20 minutes

1st Solo Woman Finisher! Woo-hoo!

Moon Units Excited to Start at Furnace Creek: Mile 0

The First Half: Mile 96
It was a very mild day in one of the hottest places on the planet. A lot of people started with arm warmers and it only reached the mid 70s. The overcast sky hid the famous stars of Death Valley that I have yet to see. I was feeling super until the D-train drilled it and left a whole pace-line crossed eyed and shattered in lawn chairs at the Nevada border. Luckily, I have a knack for recovering. We needed someone to set the pace.

Lunch was at Scotty's Castle (Party Pad in the Middle O' Nowhere): Mile 120
We passed a really fluffy coyote on the climb up to lunch. He wasn't concerned about us at all. I had to tip-toe (you can do that on a bike, right?) around a tarantula in the road. I felt a lot better after a turkey sandwich.

Onto Ubehebe Crater (OOO-BEH-HEEE-BEE-- Say it! It's FUN)! Mile 130
It was a quick out and back with bad roads and a little climbing. You feel like you're in a parallel universe. It looks like you are going downhill but you are going 8 miles per hour generating 250 watts. Trippy. It can really mess with your mind. I think our minds aren't built to process the scale of a landscape like this. I felt like a little ant at the beach.

Down the Hill to Stove Pipe Wells: Mile 170
Finally some downhill after all the climbing. Thanks to Adventure Corps, the water bottles were always full and we had a nice little group. I was starting to get a little tired of the concentration required for drafting though.

Hell's Gate: Mile 184
It was about dark when we hit the last climb of the day. 6.5 miles with a couple thousand feet of climbing. So dark and so quiet. I felt like I was going to have a seizure when a ride came up behind us with a flashing front light. I let him pass to get away from it. They should ban those things. It was peaceful after that. Nice pavement and not as freakin' scary as it sounds.

Finish Line: Mile 197
There was a big group cheering our arrival including a group of women who had ridden the century who wanted to talk to me. They asked me why I do these things. My answer was that it teaches you a lot about yourself and I'm a little nuts.

It was a long but beautiful trip home up Hwy. 395

I got to stop at one of my favorite places, The Whoa Nelly Deli at the mouth of Tioga Pass

Just One of Those Days

2007-10-14T19:56:00.000-07:00

Central California Cyclocross, Race 3
By Beth Welliver
Pacific Grove, California

Today was CCCX #3. The third local ‘cross race of the season; the third ‘cross race of my very short ‘cross career. Having won the first two races, I was excited at the possibility of winning another race. Of course, I hadn’t been on my mountain bike for a week and a half, but I did have a few road rides, so fitness should be okay...let’s go win us another race.

Perhaps I should have taken notice when, during my warm-up lap, I did a quick pull-over to the side of the trail to let some racers pass and a pesky little scrub oak lurking under the long grass jabbed into my leg hard enough to knock my foot out of the pedal. In hind-sight, this was a sign of the things to come.

The course was fast and relatively flat - no huge climbs (good for me) and no long descents (not good for me and my 30-lb mtn bike). At the starting line I noticed a few new faces in the C crowd...new, very fast-looking faces with very nice, very fast-looking ‘cross bikes. Perhaps another sign...

Whistle blows and we’re off. Up the little climb at the start, and I’m right at the front...until one of the very fast new faces rolls by and cuts in before the start of the single track - good move, I have a race on my hands...we get to the first set of barriers, and that’s when amateur day really got started. I was so excited/nervous/freaked out to be actually racing with someone that I totally botched the jump over the first barrier and slammed my bike into it. And with that, the race was over because very fast new face girl #1 was off.

But, I think to myself, there’s still another very fast-looking new girl behind you, so get on it. So the next 3 laps was a panicked ride complete with more bike-slamming barriers, horrible remounts, dragging (literally) my 30-lb mountain bike up a run-up, stupidly attacking on pavement even though I had knobby tires, and a near-fall on an off-camber turn.

The crowning moment of amateur day was on the 3rd lap - my final time up this relatively short, but slightly steep and very sandy hill that I had ridden every time in warm-up and the first 2 laps. Apparently I spaced out during the approach to this time and didn’t shift. So half-way up I got stuck and had to hop off...no big deal, I can run pretty fast.

I get to the top, a guy on the side says “nice grimace!” (lovely, b/c I know what that face looks like), and try to hop back on my bike...but for the 500th time during the race, my feet and my pedals were repelling each other like water and oil...and then the swearing started. Well, it was just one word in a very loud voice, and as I finally got back on my bike and pedaled away, I see the 12-year-old kid along the side of the course...oops. Oh well.

I managed to hang on for the final lap and hold onto second place. It turns out that very fast new girl #1 is an expert mountain biker and a speedy road racer, too, so I didn’t feel so bad about losing to her. Wish I could have kept it a little closer for a bit, but it was one of those days. Still holding on to first place in the series, so no damage done.

More photos, courtesy of Terry.

Full Results

190 Women at Bella Women's Tour!

2007-09-29T16:19:00.000-07:00

by Jackie Yamanaka

Mother Nature smiled on the Montana Bella's for our 2nd Annual Women's Tour. Rain threatened. The higher elevations had snow! We were asked constantly what about the weather? I said, "We're riding. Rain or shine. Women are tough."

Are they ever. In the end, some 190 women came with their bikes - road, mountain, comfort, tandem, 'cross - and rode either 15-, 22-, or 40-miles! I'm humbled and proud that so many women - all ages, sizes, and abilities - are brought together by a bicycle.

We learned our lessons from last year when we were overwhelmed with 164 riders. I expected maybe we'd have 50. I'm glad I was wrong. This year we had pre-event packet pick-up at a local bike shop, had road guards out at the worst intersections, and staggered our start times so more could be there for the kid's ride and the post-event door prize drawing.

We also invited a local group to come and sell bike helmets for a bargin. Montana VB also bought some helmets for kids and others. We're already giving them away.

I'm so proud of our growing number of Bella Fellas. They helped pump up tires, fix flats, hand out food and beverages, direct traffic, and shout encouragement to their wives, daughters, sisters, co-workers, and fellow (did I really write that?) human beings and cyclists. Of course it didn't hurt that I kept the "boys" happy with hamburgers and beers.

The best compliment had to be when one woman came up to the registration tables after riding and said, "We think you need to host this ride more than once a year." Uh.... unfortunately right now there's a small core of women who make this event happen. We can only hope that as word spreads like our infamous wildfires - The Montana Bellas are in da House! - we'll get more volunteers - Jackie Yamanaka.

Anna Takes Two Second Place finishes in Michigan!

2007-09-24T07:38:00.000-07:00

By Anna Milkowski,

The course today was very similar to yesterday's (the ground is so dry they have to use drills to put in the stakes), same and different tricky off-cambers and tons of turns, but the grass was a bit more worn. I ran only 30psi today in the tubulars (35 yesterday) and it helped me to be much smoother in the corners. Got the hole shot again, led Kerry the whole first lap. But a friend noted what I think is the moral of the story: "You have more tools than the hammer." And said I should have eased up halfway through that first lap once I had forced the selection, made her do some work, because there was a drafting effect on this course.

I wanted to lead since I didn't think I was good enough in the corners, but I was better today and maybe if I had not gassed myself I could have jumped ahead to lead those corners I wasn't good at or closed a small gap coming out. But instead I led that entire first lap, went pretty hard even though I did ease up and rest a bit, but made myself vulnerable to Kerry's attack coming through the start finish on the paved stretch. She put 23 seconds into me in that second lap, and the gap at the end was 37 (five lap race).

Pack racing and tactics are new to me in cross because so often I ride alone (we all do in the women's fields), but I think it's important to improve in this area. But I was psyched to ride better today than yesterday. Teammate Maria did a great ride for 10th. Promoter Jeff Notz put on a fantastic race weekend and I recommend it highly. I can help you crack in on the logistical front next year. For now, on to Vegas!

Anna

VB-K Elite Cross Racer Maria Stewart (MN) Reports in on Her First Race with the "Big Girls"

2007-09-23T21:07:00.001-07:00

By Maria Stewart
2007 Elite Velo Bella Cross Team

Today was my first CX race with the "big girls," the UCI DoubleCross
race near Detriot, MI. I haven't been THIS nervous for a bike race
for several years. This morning, I was sure that I was going to throw
up, pass out, or both. Luckily neither of them happened!

My race didn't start until 1:45, but I headed out to the course around
10 so I could have plenty of time to get ready and watch the B and C
class races. I cheered on Monica, a Michigan Bella in the Women's C
race. The venue was a horse/livestock show grounds (think 4H). The
race course was the most exciting CX course I had ever ridden. It had
everything you could put in a race course: off-camber turns, tight
corners, fast open sections, grass, gravel, dirt, pavement, riding
through a horse barn (no horses in it!), and tons of spectators.

The race started pretty fast, but I was able to hang on to the back of
the pack. Some of my competitors were top cyclists in the US- many
had UCI points. The laps were pretty long compared to courses at
home, so we ended up racing 5 laps for the 40 minute race. My barrier
training really paid off today. For those of you who don't know, I
spend several afternoons each week at Como Park jumping my CX
barriers. Each lap, I crossed the double barriers really smoothly.
My race strategy was to hang with the pack as long as possible and
then just race hard. That's just what I did! I even passed someone!

I finished the race 11th out of 14, which isn't much to brag about
except that its my first CX race of the season and my first UCI race
ever. My race was Cat 1/2 Women, so I definitely placed within my Cat
2 ability. My VB-K teammate Anna Milkowski (New Haven, CT) finished
2nd. I was impressed, even though she thought she could have raced
smoother.

This race definitely sparked the racing fire under my butt! It was
really inspiring to race with women who are among the top in the
country. It was even more inspiring to know that I didn't get
completely shelled (even though the winner was posting lap times that
were a minute faster than mine!). The CX world had better watch out
for Maria Stewart in the next couple years!

The Men's Elite race was awesome too. Probably 50 racers started, and
it was amazing to watch them snake through the course. Jonathan Page,
who placed 2nd at Worlds last year, took the win, but not without a fight.

Tomorrow is another race at the same venue, but a different course.
More about that race tomorrow. Now, I'm looking forward to a great
night of sleep!

Maria

The Legend of the Pink Slipper

2007-09-13T15:13:00.000-07:00

By LiLynn Graves
Ithaca, New York

The little town of Ithaca, NY has some of the strongest riders and most humble and supportive of all. I am lucky to have joined these amazing athletes the past few years and participated in the town races held every Tuesday evening after work starting right after the spring forward time change, and lasting right up until the lack of daylight forces us to hold the infamous "pink slipper race."

The true meaning of the name means the summer road races have come to a close, but the legend of the "pink slipper" is so much more meaningful that these folks actually train for this event. There is no set date, there is no purse, there are no actual prizes, but the sincere commitment to the legend is taken so seriously that the casual gathering in the parking lot after the race to ask who won is burned in each riders memory for that entire year until the next "pink slipper."

The actual slipper does exist. It was a strappy pink sandle found on a ride along the side of the road about ten years ago and picked up by a rider which he placed on his handlebars not knowing the future of such an item. From there the legend began and a few years later a beat up old brown berkinstock was added for the B group of riders. They felt they needed a shoe to shoot for also. Now the races have at least 60 folks per race so we have A, B, and a C group.

Last night a most appropriate, run over silver ballarina shoe, found next to a dumpster up on campus was donated to the C group. So the race was a great success and with the weather looking like tornados threatening the race, I was the only chick. Feeling a little nervous about the weather and if I had a chance at winning such an important event, I put on every piece of velo bella war fare I could find. Sleeveless jersey, sleeved jersey over, arm warmers, team shorts, team socks, team vest, pink helmet, pink wheels, pink handlebar tape, pink fluff, team gloves, and I smoked the boys in the C's. I got my name on the silver slipper!

Splatter Painting

2007-09-11T20:43:00.000-07:00

By Angela Brown
Columbia, Tennessee

I raced on Sunday (my first Sport class mtb race), which turned out to be the muddiest race I've completed thus far. The Lock 4 Challenge II was held at Lock 4 Park in Gallatin, TN, on Sunday, September 9. Rain was falling when I left the house, but I had missed the first race in this series because of a twisted ankle, and I wasn't about to miss the second because of Mother Nature.

I arrived to a steady rain. Rumor has it that the place turns into a mudpit when wet. This was only my fourth time on the trail. All three of my previous rides had been in the drought conditions. Sketchy, dry dirt is a challenge in and of itself, so really I don't care either way. Different conditions, different challenges. I proceeded to the sign up table and listed my new racing category: Sport. Already I felt better!

Right during our warm-up and line up time of 9am, the sky opened up and soaked us all in a steady downpour. At least it was a warm rain. Water dripped off my helmet, soaked my socks, and fogged my glasses to the point of no use. When I made fists with my gloves, it was like wringing out a damp dishrag.

With four Sport women lined up to go, the Sport class guys took off ahead of us and chopped up the trail into a soupy mud. I took the first section of the trail through mud that was thick enough, in some areas, to lose a shoe in if you were hiking it.

It continued to rain through part of my first lap, making some sections of the trail very, very interesting. There are parts that will send you down a hill and into the lake if you're not careful. I attacked those cyclocross-style, dismounting and carrying my bike through, then getting back on. My only scratches of the day were from doing this, so I'm not convinced this was a good idea.

Then, I felt myself going down and slowed enough to land softly into some shrubs...face first. My face was covered in leaves. I hope it made some kind of pretty pattern. The turtles came out to play and I dodged at least three on the trail.

The second lap, the water had either receded some, or drained, because things went much better and faster. In my last three miles, the expert guys started catching me (their race started later) so I knew I had to get this thing over with. I stood up to crank it out for the uphill finish.

For my first Sport race, I took 2nd place on the 17.5 mile total course in 2:07. And I slept like a baby Sunday night!

I went for a dip in the lake at Lock 4 afterwards with some friends....fully clothed to wash the mud off of everything. I even had mud in my teeth, and slung it in my eye at one point. You haven lived until you've attempted an eyewash while moving on a bike, lemme tell ya.....

Thanks for reading!

'tis the Season

2007-09-06T12:06:00.000-07:00

By Shannon Holden
Spokane, Washington

Can you believe it's cross season already?

I am so excited. This past weekend my husband, son, and I drove to Portland, Oregon to spend the weekend with my brother-in-law and his family. He is an amazing free rider, so it is always a blast to ride with him. We went on some pretty spectacular rides.

We had made plans to drive to Seattle Monday morning to race in the Labor Day cross. I was pretty excited, because I haven't raced since June. I was actually really nervous driving in, my stomach up in the air. When we got there I got signed up and took out to pre-ride. It was a fun course, really sandy. It had a 3 good run ups and 1 set of barriers. I got a couple of laps in and it was time to get to the start line.

When I got there I noticed there were some pretty fast girls there, Bridgette Stoick, Kelly Jones, Kristi Berg to name some. It was going to be brutal. I took out hard with the front pack. It felt good, I love the run ups. I come from a running background so I can usually do some damage.

We came around to the barriers and when I went to get back on my bike I hit a rut and bounced my chain out. It seemed like foreve and couldn't get it back on. While bent over I saw 2 girls fly by through my legs. So I was sitting in 7th at this point. Furious I took off on my bike and started hammering. I passed one right away. The other is pretty strong so it took me about 1/2 lap to catch her and I passed her on the run up.

So back to hammering. It is so windy at South Sea Tac I never could see anyone in front of me. So I had no Idea where I was. I came around a corner the 4th lap and there was 4th place right in front of me. I got so excited that when we got to the barriers I set my bike down in the same rut and bounced my chain off again and off went 4th place. I pushed hard the last 1/4 lap but just didn't have it.

It was fun. I finished 5th which I was pretty happy with. Plus I got to race cross in September which doesn't happen on the other side of the state.

Full results

"It's Good being a Bella"

2007-08-23T19:12:00.000-07:00

By Heidi Kanayan
Mammoth Lakes, California

The smell of fall is in the air and it is still quite brisk at 9 am. I arrived to a small group of riders and officials huddled together. I go over to only find out that they are contemplating canceling the DH race for that day. No! I think they can't. I need to do this race the get the DH Nevada state champ title. After much discussion they decide to hold the race for the seven of us that came to compete. I only had time for one practice run before the race. I still wish I could have gotten another. The course was fun with a mix of very tight single track through tight trees, a step up, a few small rock gardens, and a few small drops. During my practice up I lost my chain guide and my chain and had no spare. Luckily I had a spare chain but later I will come to find that it was of no use to put it on.

It was a 12pm start and we were all gathered around in anticipation at the start. The officials start lining us up. Among the seven of us there were about 3 or 4 pros, 2 sport riders including me, and one beginner on a single speed hard tail. I was the only girl. I was up and the official was counting me off for my start. Off I went down the course. In no time I was having problems. Not riding problems but ....my chain fell off and I had to coast the rest of the course. The top of the course would have been much easier is I could have peddled for it was fairly flat and slightly up hill. The rock gardens were a challenge since I could not keep my speed up by pedaling to get over them easily. The approach to the step up was also affected but I made it down with some new coasting skills. I was able to grab the Nevada State womens sport 19-29 title but now I had to focus on the XC race the next day.

I arrived to an even cooler morning for the start of the XC race. That day competitor numbers were not a problem. I did not get a chance to pre ride the course the day before so I was going into the race blind. I wasn't too worried because we were to do 3 laps of the same course. I decided to go all out form the start of the race and see how long I could last. It was a good tactic for that day because I managed to stay ahead of a lot of people that could have possibly held me up on the descent. On the first lap I caught one of the three girls that were ahead of me. We went back and forth for the rest of that lap and for half of the second lap. This always makes things interesting when you have someone to fight for position with. But by the time I got to the descent on the second lap I put a solid enough gap between us that I didn't see her again until the finish. So I finished up the race as the third fastest girl overall and missed getting the 19-29 expert Nevada State title by a slight over sight of the requirements for attaining an overall in the State series. That requirment was having to do at least two races in the series. I will keep that is mind for next year.

Oh and everyone loved my jersey and hair bling. Its good being a Bella.

Pro MTB Team member Alex Fabbro destroys the Masters Field in France!

2007-08-23T18:56:00.000-07:00

Alex Fabbro took the bronze medal at the Masters’ XC World Championships this past weekend. Alex is part of our Pro MTB team and focuses on endurance events as much as XC. She spent the last 5 weeks traveling and racing non-stop doing 24 hour races (she and a VB teammate won 24 hours of Killington), US Nationals and NMBS races preparing for Worlds. She literally left Snowmass immediately after the Super D event and DROVE to LAX where she boarded a flight for France.

Now, Alex is taking on the TransAlps race! Can you say energizer bunny? Oh, and she’s 43…

Coffee Crit

2007-08-17T10:02:00.000-07:00

By Monica Tory
Kalamazoo, Michigan

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU
to Jason / De La Paz and Kevin / Schering
for the great prizes and publicity for Velo Bella!

Tara Tasma, Team Giant, Women's 1/2/3 race winner
.... and winner of many bella primes!

A few weeks ago, with the 2nd annual BTR Park Criterium fast approaching, I found myself busy with two tasks. First of all, campaigning for some other cat 4 women to race with me! The organizers told me that due to the points series rules, they would NOT be able to combine fields, even if I was the only cat 4 women's entrant. I don't want to be a bad sport, but ... the thought of paying to spend 45 minutes riding around my local business park by myself was not a good one. Don't get me wrong -- I LOVE to time trial. But I'm entering crits to get more group-racing experience and .... well, 45 minutes, by myself, in circles, sounded downright awful! Second, and most importantly, I wanted to do something extra to sweeten the primes for the women's races, and (hopefully) encourage more women in our area to come out and try this very beginner-friendly race. I didn't have to look very far to come up with Bella-riffic primes! One of our super Velo Bella - Kona sponsors, Jason Benford / De La Paz Coffee, generously offered to donate a shipment of ultra-fresh, unbelievably scrumptious Bella Blend to the cause. Schering-Plough & Coppertone, a sponsor of our local triathlon club, also stepped up and donated some very nice schwag bags (filled with "all sorts of stuff you can use" -- spray on Coppertone sunscreen, water bottles, towels, Dr. Scholl's products, and more), which were distributed on behalf of Velo Bella - Kona and Schering-Plough.

While my first task one didn't start out so well (by race morning, I was still the only cat 4 woman entered, and I found myself walking around the race course asking female spectators if they'd like to come out and race in the afternoon!!!!), by the end of the day I had two girls to race with -- one (Mariann Barnes) that I recruited from the sidelines, and another (Jenny) who braved construction traffic, had to change in the car on her way down from Traverse City, and ... thankfully ... the race organizer's held the race start for 5 minutes so she could sprint over to the start line.

The weather was great -- gorgeous, sunny, and in the high 80s, with a slight headwind on parts of the course. Turns out the officials DID combine the 1/2/3 and 4 women's fields, so I didn't need to worry about recruiting fellow racers after all! While waiting for the start, I was super-surprised to see that I had a fan club! Ten or so friends from our bike and triathlon club had come to watch me race...which stepped up the ante for me! (It's also good for the race....they loved watching and can't wait to try it next year. yay!) Bella Dianna Rose had also made as 2 hour drive just to watch! I am really spoiled and lucky to have such great support out there and every day!

A Bellalicious Prime from De La Paz Coffee

It was exhilirating to stay with the 1/2/3 ladies, even if it was just for the first 2 laps. The course was wonderful....big swoopy curves, smooth pavement, a small hill/overpass, a nice section that was with the wind, and plenty of enthusiastic spectators. After being neatly dropped by the 1/2/3 ladies (and Jenny) in their 3rd or 4th acceleration, Mariann and I worked together for the rest of the race, trying different strategies to see if we could bridge back up to the main group. Our strategies didn't work, but we had a great time experimenting, trying to lose one another, and getting to know each other too. Without trying, we split the primes pretty evenly (1 De La Paz Bella Blend for each of us, the Schering-Plough Coppertone schwag to Mariann), and by the last few laps it was obvious that Mariann was going to win any sprint that I left to the last minute! I tried to time my final attack well & it worked ... I was still several bike lengths ahead by the time I crossed the finish line....

Monica Tory, cat 4 women, 2nd of 3

Fellow Kalamazoo Bicycle Club member Zolton Cohen has posted a fantastic gallery of race photos (click here).

Fit to be Tri'd

2007-08-15T15:59:00.000-07:00

By Raja Lahti
San Diego, California

Let's first define "FIT": An athlete who is more than just a good or well prepared athlete. Being freakishly good. Having the ability to crush your competition into little bits. Being a Worlds athlete.

Or you can just say "Folsom International Triathlon"

Yeah. Pure Worlds here. I think the winners at nearly every age group were headed to World Championships at the end of the month..used this cute little race as a springboard for Worlds... and so the day went... very, very, quickly.

But before I get into the race and the more than spectacular selection of age group athletes that appeared.. let's talk travel.

You know, that travel with the "extra" luggage. The luggage that makes your fellow air-travelers rubber neck and ask you if you've got "your mother-in-law" in there (seriously, someone did ask me that!).. Yes, the bike coffin.

This thing is so big it makes the lady with 9 suitcases on her way to a 4 day vacation in the Bahamas seem like a light packer.

And then there's the wheel you're carrying on with you for fear that the baggage gorillas will damage My Precious. My wheel bag is not very subtle. It's black with big white lettering "HED CYCLING". And yet, every trip to the airport people ask me.. "Now what is that?" It's a wheel. "Did you just get back from the Tour day France". Uh... no.... (have they noticed that there are no women in the race?? Or perhaps they think I'm a representative Podium Girl... uh, ok!)

And then there's the 4 rolls of duck tape, another roll of TSA "Inspected" tape, 6 "Fragile-Handle with Care" stickers and the multiple remaining fragments of old luggage tags that clearly define this over sized black case as mine. No two cases could possibly be alike. Just head to Oversize Luggage and see when my pet box is birthed from the extra-large baggage curtains. "That one can't possibly be mine... there's not enough duct tape."

So I located my patch-work-oversize-case, grab the little pull cord and walk myself over to the rental car counter. Just like a little pet, it follow me with surprising willingness. "Yes, I rented an gas guzzling, over sized SUV, for that," and then point to the big black thing on wheels. You know, the rental car companies must just cringe when they see "that". I recommend the Ford Escape.... it's small enough, yet all the seats fold down and give you more than plenty of room for your beast-box. It'll even fit in the back standing up! To boot, you can fit your bike, wheels and all fully assembled in the back when you head off to the race.

I spent the weekend with a friend of ours that we don't get to see that often. Fellow cyclists, she and he husband are crazy tandem mountain bikers. Yup, move out of their way.. their brake fluid is boiling..... We had a fantastic girls weekend doing nothing but talking about subjects boys really don't want to talk about, seeing movies that boys won't see.. and admiring the soothing affects of Beljium Budder.

Ok, back to the race. Outside of Nationals, this was the most talented group of Age Group athletes I've ever raced with. I don't say raced "against" because that's a whole different ball park... The course was fun, a chilly lake swim, rolling hills with some decent climbs on the bike and an undulating run down the twisty lake bike path.

Let's start with our own Ashley Erickson. She races for a local sponsor, Fluid, but she's a Bella. Really freakin' good bella at that. I wish I could swim & run like that... she crushed her age group with a 2:17 race, placed 5th overall and is off to worlds next week. Go Ashley!

I had the race of my year. I PR'd, had a decent swim (for me...), a super bike (fastest in my crazy age group and even faster than the women's Elite bike splits too), and my best run yet. I finished in 2:24 and was delighted (Swim:27:44, Bike 1:08:58, Run 45:06). After my mechanical issues at Nationals, all I wanted was a good race. And I got it. That race would have sent me to Worlds too if I had done that at Nationals. It felt good to know I was playing with the best, and doing fine. While I did expect that time to podium, I didn't and was 4th. The caliber of racers was incredible.

I did the math and was excited... This is my third year owning a bike and racing. From my first Olympic race to now, it's taken me 2 years to widdle down a measly 12 minutes. The first year I improved by 4 minutes. This year I sliced off an additional 8 minutes... so next year... hopefully I can do a sub 2:20.. now that would be nice. :-)

Now my husband and I are off to Italy for our 3 week honeymoon. I can't wait... it's been a long, hard year so far and the thought of renting bikes in Italy and sporting the Bella gear in the Land of the Gods is all I can think about these days. Well, that of course would be second to my dreams of Gelato consumption...... um.. yum!

Happy Riding!
Raja

Click here for the full results: http://www.japroductions.com/fit/index.html

A Pleasant Win

2007-08-15T15:19:00.000-07:00

Pleasant Valley Road Race, Maryland
By Mel Westminster

I did the Pleasant Valley RR in Maryland on Saturday. It was a first time event, they had a great turnout, good marshalling, neutral feeds, friendly and helpful promoters and volunteers, a few locals waving and cheering along the route, a decent course...all around, the event was actually pleasant, aside from the brain simmering heat. Note to self - don't wear a black helmet on a 95+ degree day. That may have contributed to the awful headache I got on the 2nd of 4 x 10mile laps which made me wonder if I was having an aneurysm or something (yes I'm a slight hypochondriac).

What's the first you thing you do when you arrive at a race, and before you register? Well, on the fourth trip to the port-o-potties and all of a sudden feeling REALLY sick to my stomach I started worrying that I must have a stomach virus or maybe food poisoning. "I shouldn't race. I feel sick." After a brief rational moment I realized it must be nerves and not some mysterious illness. I reassure myself (with my internal coach kicking in) "Just get out of the friggin' jon, to the start line, and then the upset stomach feeling will magically go away once the gun goes off". And sure enough it did.

We had a decent field of 43 women or so. It was an open women's race, but they were scoring the cat 3s separately for the series. I started near the front of the group but once we started going I suddenly was at the back of the pack. Damn. I'm a little sketched out by the size of the pack since I hadn't ridden in a group larger than 8 or so all year. And so as it goes with riding at the back, I got yo-yo'd all over the place and my quick brake grabs, overlapping of wheels made me think I was the freakshow at the back who didn't know how to ride in a pack. "Watch out for her," I chuckled about myself in frustration of my own lack of experience.

The group stayed together for the first lap until the only real hill, the one through the feedzone. At the end of the first lap those unsuspecting riders silly enough to reach for a bottle on a 90+ degree day, got dropped. The group split and in the end only those 10-15 or so that hung on during the split would finish. I and 2 others were caught off-guard but with a lot of hard work and battles with self doubt, we were able to close that gap after 15mins of all out TTT to catch back on because the group's pace had slowed up finally, thank god!

Once back in the pack, I took a few mins to enjoy the leisure pace of the group before questioning what the point of the "race" was. As I watched the race "unfold" the image came to my mind that the pack was like a sleepy lioness. She would let a little mouse go out for a little bit, while she would doze in the hot sun with half-open eye. When she felt the mouse was just about out of reach, she would stretch out her big paw and pull the mouse back in. This game continued on a few times and even I played it. In the end the frustrated little mice wanted to get away but knew they couldn't.

We get near the finish (which is at the top of the feedzone hill) and the pack all of a sudden is awake. I'm not sure what happened other than I was on the wheel I had marked as a likely winner and when she pulled off, there were only two others just a little ahead that had come around on the side. I tried to catch them but went too late. And so I rolled across the line 3rd overall, first in the cat 3s. Pretty cool.

Doing well in this race gave me confidence, finally, in myself, my training, and my little yellow adviser.

Podium Time: Sisquoc Road Race

2007-08-09T09:00:00.000-07:00

By Ashley Erickson
San Luis Obispo, California

One of the exciting differences between bike racing and triathlons is that bike races tend to start later in the day than triathlons; I happily slept in until 7:30 am on Saturday instead of my usual 5 am triathlon wake-up time. I woke-up excited to race and a little bit nervous. Sisqouc was only my second road race ever, and all of the women’s categories were racing together.

Ryan, Tyler and I carpooled down to the race. While Ryan and I registered for the race Tyler kindly took our bikes off the car and set them up on our trainers - thanks Tyler. Ryan and I warmed up together, chatted with people we knew, and I tried to stay calm.

At the race start I instantly remembered that mass bike starts make me rather uncomfortable. “Just breathe,” I told myself. The race began and I tried to focus on being safe in the group; bike racing is far more mentally strenuous than time-trialing in a triathlon. At some point during the first lap of the four-lap race the group split in two. Ryan and I were in the front group.

For the next two laps we sprinted up the few little hills on the course, rode a decent pace on a few flat spots, and cruised along at about 13 miles per hour along the back part of the course. I struggled to make myself relax and sit in the group when the pace slowed, but my patience ended up paying off. Sometime during the second or third lap a couple of women attacked off the front and I went with them. Attacking hurt and we were immediately caught, but it was fun.

The pace notably increased on the final lap. My goal was to stay near the front of the group. I am not a sprinter, so was hoping that the group would split up more before the finish so that I would have a better chance of finishing well. With the increased pace the group splintered.

Less than a mile from the finish I heard a horrible sound and watched as a rider in front of me hit the pavement, bounced up, and slammed back down. I’m not sure exactly what happened, but I guess she crossed wheels with someone in front of her and crashed. Ryan and I saw her in her car after the race and she appeared at least semi-okay.

I quickly tried to turn my attention from the crash to the finish. I sprinted into the finish with about nine Cat 1,2,3 women, and one other Cat 4. I finished 2^nd among the Cat 4 women and 7^th or 8^th overall.

I enjoyed the race and was very happy with my finish. Thanks Ryan and Tyler for driving me to the race, taking a podium picture, and giving me nutrition and racing tips.

Accidental Triathlete

2007-08-02T18:56:00.001-07:00

Great Lakes Triathlon Championship

By Monica Tory
Kalamazoo, Michigan

What absolutely PERFECT weather for this year's Great Lakes Triathlon & Duathlon Championship in Middleville, Michigan! It was downright chilly during warmup, even with winter tights on, but that meant it would only be 65-70 by the time we hit the run course!

Something tells me I'm going to get a reputation for "racing by accident". I already have one for buying bikes "by accident," so why not racing too? Even though it's a favorite, I wasn't planning to do this race, because I missed the "no late fee" signup deadline and learned what type of hourly rate plumbers earn all in the same week.

Fate intervened, however, when my neighbor mentioned that he had signed up for the race, but forgotten his brother-in-law was getting married the same morning as the race. Oops! I wasn't so sure about racing as a 40 year old man ?!?!?!? But the race director kindly transferred the entry and I was all set.

It was my 3rd year doing this race and I'll definitely be back again. I LOVE the "in between" distances (0.5 mile swim, 18 mile bike, 4.5 mile run), and the race organization is superb. I have to confess that I have a soft spot for the many cash prizes and primes that go not only to race winners but also randomly to participants (sometimes "middle of the pack", sometimes draw prizes, sometimes "closest to a certain time" etc.)! Oh....and did I mention? WOMEN SWIM FIRST. Yeah! No weaving around the men's field!

My plan was simple:

swim=warm up
100% TIME TRIAL EFFORT on the bike
finish the run without walking.

But I was too simple to follow the plan.

The swim wave started and I quickly realized I was a few body lengths ahead of everyone else. That wasn't part of the plan. Well, I wanted to drop back and take it easy so that I could work hard on the bike, but I just couldn't bring myself to intentionally give up my lead! I let my competitive spirit win and kicked it up a bit, coming out of the water first. Out on the bike, I had a specific pace goal in mind, but it wasn't very realistic. The course was hillier than I remembered, and there was a surprise headwind on the way back. I was both surprised and happy that I wasn't passed by any women on the bike! That changed quickly on the run. My friend, overall race winner, and superstar Megan James passed me well before the mile 1 marker, and a whole gang of gals were hot on her heels. I stuck to my plan of running my own comfy race, staying aerobic, and NOT WALKING.

And it all worked out, just not as planned!

I set out to have a super-fast bike, and it didn't happen, but it was a fun ride anyway. It was awesome to see so many (54) trikats (our local team) out on the course cheering for one another.
I won a very nice prime for clocking the fastest women's swim of the day. MANY THANKS to my friend Cricket (pictured here, chasing Pavel Brutt at TdG)! Before the race, Cricket and Megan were talking and they somehow convinced one another that the swim was "too short" to wear a wetsuit...and I had mine on
I had a phenomenal-for-me run, running a pace for 4.5 miles that I've never run for ONE mile. That made my day.

I finished second in the Womens' 30-34 race. Click here for more results

And a few photos:
Surfacing from the swim, my best gila monster impression
Exiting the water
On bike, concentrating on staying upright in the fresh & gravelly "chip 'n' seal" road coating
On the run.

Pro MTB Team Spices up Mt Snow

2007-07-30T08:28:00.000-07:00

By Boa Boy

Dawn broke over the North Carolina hills to reveal a gorgous valley below our rented house. Shannon Gibson, Barb Howe, Jennifer Tilley, Natascha Cowie and Erika Krumpelman journeyed to Banner Elk, NC contesting the sixth round of the NMBS this past weekend. Morgan Styer and his family joined to support the team and do a little racing over their own.

The XC race began under threatening skies but relented long enough for the girls to complete three laps with an average time of about 42 minutes per lap. Shannon had to withdraw after taking a flying leap off her bike during a tricky decent. Fortunately, her ballet skills came into full use and while ending up spread across a large boulder, walked away from the race with minor injuries to race the following day.

Barb Howe continues to improve her fitness and competitiveness on the circuit with a season high 23rd placing in XC and a strong showing at the Short Track on Sunday.

After finishing 3rd in the U23 Nationals race, Natascha "Clunk" Cowie suffered a bit during the XC race, but recovered well enough to post a fantastic first national-level pro Short Track race on Sunday. Natascha is one to watch for the future. In the meantime, anyone know of any jobs in the Boulder, CO area?

Jen Tilley returned to racing after a long month of illness and no training to post a respectable 33rd placing in XC. Jen has begun transitioning to cross and looks forward to a strong season this year after sitting out last year with a severe collar bone injury.

Erika Krumpelman exemplifies all that a Bella can be. This was her first year as a pro and at the experienced age of, well, older than most of her competitors, Erika battled through adversity and injury to complete a successful season. While her results were never to her liking, Erika is one tough competitor and an excellent role model for all of us reading this blog. Battered, bruised, scarred and perhaps even broken, Erika never quit, never gave in to the second thoughts or the doubts so common amongst bike racers and perservered to finish her season this past weekend with a solid showing in the XC. Barely able to move Sunday morning after a close encounter with a tree on Thursday during practice, Erika cheered her teammates on from the side lines and I am proud she elevated her status to pro. Thanks Erika and CONGRATULATIONS on a fine season.

The final round of the NMBS is in two weeks in Snowmass, CO and I invite ALL VBs in attendance to use our tents as their own and enjoy yourselves while preparing for the races.

Till then

Have fun,

Alex

Stephanie White is Junior Women XC Champ!

2007-07-26T13:48:00.000-07:00

By Stephanie White

This past Friday I participated in the Jr. Mountain Bike National Championships at Mt. Snow Vermont, specifically in the Cross Country event. The cross country course at Mt. Snow is a classic New England loop, with a lot of climbing, a .5 mile long mud bog, and a rocky, rooty, terrifying descent.

Essentially, the course climbs to the top of Mt. Snow, a climb broken up by the mud bog and a few technical sections, and then descends to the finish. My race was only 2 laps long, but in the muddy conditions of the day each lap took over 50 minutes. I knew from the beginning that winning this race would qualify me for the World Championships in Ft. Williams, Scotland. Talk about motivation!

I got a good start and followed a DEVO rider named Essence Barton up the first climb. We got a gap on the rest of the field and held it until the end. The climb on the first lap was tense, as we both knew it was between the two of us now. I felt strong and Essence gave no sign of feeling tired.

When we got to the descent I made sure to go in front because Essence, being a downhiller, could easily get a gap here. It turned out not to matter, however, because Essence quickly passed me and had a 35 second gap by the end of the descent. I spent the next 1/3 of a lap chasing her down and caught her, but knew I had to drop her on the climb if I wanted to win.

I opened up a gap on the climb and started the descent with about 20 seconds on her, but Essence caught me halfway through the descent. After that things got scary. There was no way I was going to let Essence beat me on the descent, not when I was the stronger rider and the better climber. I hung with her, pushing myself to go far faster than I wanted to, but miraculously did not crash. 2/3 of the way down the descent there was a short climb, where I hammered and opened up another gap on Essence.

I managed to maintain this gap down the rest of the hill and along the flat to the finish. I was nearly crying as I crossed the finish line and greeted my friends and family as the new Jr. Cross Country National Champion! I leave for Scotland, and the World Championships, on September 1st!

A special thanks to my parents, my sister Libby, my "cycling aunt" Kelly, and my boyfriend Jeff, who were all there to help me and have been so supportive of my cycling. Also thanks to Alex Burgess, Melanie, and Judd, who were cheering in the feed zone, and Morgan and Tim, who were in the pit ready to help with a mechanical problem. I am fortunate to have the support of all of these people and of all the Bellas out there. Thanks!

Alicia Wins MTB Nationals Junior 8-10!!

2007-07-26T13:43:00.000-07:00

One of our younger Velo Bellas, Alicia Styer became the 2007 US National Junior 8-10 year old XC Champion last Sunday morning. Nervous yet steely eyed prior to the race, Alicia rolled to the start line intent on smashing the competition, or atleast making it to the top of the first climb without passing out.

As you can see, she not only didn't pass out, she had a smile on her face! Ah, to be younger again...

After tagging along with Catherine Maier (Rad Racing and in an older age category) Alicia was heard to grumble "no gifts" under her breath, and launched a vicious (albeit short) attack on her companions struggling up the never ending technical climb.

For thos who don't know, Rad Racing is a kindred spirit in the cycling community focused on providing juniors an excellent start in the cycling world. Rad Racing is based out of the Northwest and supported by Kona among others.

Fellow junior Catherine Maier who races for Rad RAcing in an older category.

The race ended in fine fashion with a strong sprint to the finish a full minute or so ahead of the competition. Alicia's parents report they have to pull her off the trainer in the winter time and is always pushing her father to make the bike ever that much lighter... Unfortunately, her brother wasn't terribly impressed by his older sister's accomplishment...

Velo Bella - Kona Pro MTB Wins US National Championship...

2007-07-23T06:24:00.000-07:00

Velo Bella Crushes the Field at the US National Naked Crit Championships!

Mt Snow, VT
July 21, 2007

Four members of the 2007 VB-K Pro MTB team contested the 2007 National Naked Crit Championship Saturday night taking home Stars and Stripes and a wad of cash.

Amidst giant crowds of interested onlookers of ALL ages, a mixed field of male and female athletes representing Cross Country, Down Hill and Trials disciplines bore all to achieve glory. After a few warm-up laps and the occassional "feed," your Bella sisters toyed with the field before dropping the Tilley Hammer and launching Barb Howe to victory.

The first team to arrive and survey the scene, our athletes casually rode in circles staying warm and checking things out before deciding whether or not the contest was worthy. Fortunately, after a stop in the tech zone where Head Bella Wrench Boy Tim Brennan gathered clothes and distributed small cap-fulls of warming liquid, our racers took to the course joining an ever increasing number of male and female contestants riding all manner of two-wheeled machines.

While their male competitors launched off the front in the first few laps vainly attempting to display their, well, prowess; our ladies grabbed wheels and tucked-in to conserve their energy before setting-up the Pink, Purple and Blue train for sprinting star and Queen of the Galaxy, Barbarella. Our train firmly in place, Natasha "Clunk" Cowie cranked things up leaving the boys bewildered and out of the breath.

Spent and covered in sweat, Clunk pulled off letting Shannon Gibson take over. Powerful thrusting legs further distanced our ladies from the trailing boys, but alas one final attempt to preserve dignity from a young Down Hilling male brought things a bit closer before Tilley The Hammer thundered forward.

With the bit between her teeth and an eye on the cash, Tilley launched an aggressive assault ultimately sacrificing her body for the team colliding with the offending down hiller at the start of the bell lap.

Seeing her chance and filled with rage over The Hammer's fall, Barbarella took over the reigns and whipped forward displaying the power only a two time World Cross Team member can. With a final race ending explosive sprint, Barbarella shot across the line arms thrust to the sky with victory and a wad of cash in her hands.

Will You Marry Me?

2007-07-16T10:24:00.001-07:00

Georgia State Championship Series
Race 7, Ellijay

By Natasha Cowie
Dahlonega, Georgia

So, it was supposed to be a rest weekend, but at 9:30 last Saturday night I was like, sure whatever, it's the closest race I'm going to do all year (45 minutes from home) and it's a cool course. Why not. Also, I was chasing points in the Georgia State Championship series. My points lead was large enough that I was almost assured of winning without the race, but not quite. BUT I was totally going to race conservatively, just cruise, go easy, whatever. Finish for the points.

Right. That was the plan, but there's nothing conservative about me. I mean, I have a nose piercing and a subscription to Mother Jones magazine. Anyway, so I got to the race course early on a cloudy morning. Beautiful course, lots of climbing, winding around ridges that border Carters Lake in north Georgia. Warmed up. Sort of. Needed more coffee. No problem, though, I had my Magic Canadian Hot Short Shorts on. (I am seriously into the Louis Garneau team kit. The short shorts are very fun. And they are making me favourably adjust my tan lines upwards.)

On the start line. OH my god there are some fast people. Well that's okay, I told myself, just try to hit the singletrack second or third wheel, hang out, see what happens. We started with a parade lap thing: half a mile of climbing on a paved road, then the last 2/3 of the course before going through the start/finish to start the first full lap. Predictably, Jamie took off in front, and I sat third wheel for a while to see how my legs were working. Hm. They were happy, I was happy, so I passed Paula and moved into second. That kind of surprised me. So I was like okay, might as well try to chase Jamie, at least it'll give me something to do for the next hour or so.

I notched up the pace, nearly got run over by some large singlespeed dudes, and then rode by myself for a while, observing the oak-hickory hardwood forest and thinking about how much I wanted to eat the blackberries hanging from bushes surrounding the trail. And then...I found Jamie. Hey girl, she chirps. How are you doing? Well, pretty good, I said. Do you know what lap we're on? No. Um...are we on our last lap? I don't know, girl, she says. Do you think anyone can tell us? I ask. (At this point we were in the middle of a huge section of forest without anyone or anything nearby.) Yeah, maybe someone at the finish line, Jamie says. Well, Jamie, I say, I guess I'd better pass you then. Been nice riding with you.

Thus began my two laps of freaking out. I passed Jamie, decided that probably that parade lap counted as a full lap and sure, I was probably about to finish, cruised across the line shouting at people "Is this the pro finish?" Everybody either a. stared at me like I was a driveling idiot or b. cheered me on, saying "Go faster! Go faster!" Crap. I had just run out of water. Like "going faster" was totally going to happen for the next eight miles and 1000 feet of climbing. So I started lap 3.5.

Somehow I finished. I lapped a bunch of sport guys on the last lap, and as I was climbing a hill so steep I couldn't really see straight, some dude proposed to me. I told him I'd better finish the race before I made a decision on that one.

A nice clean win by about 2 minutes, and many comments on my pretty Kona as I rode around after the race. I also got a lovely pink massage stick for turning the fastest female lap.

Happy trails everyone. (And happy roads too.)

Editor's note: Clicky here for more on Tasha's adventures.

Papillion Twilight Criterium

2007-07-16T09:21:00.001-07:00

by Reagan

Papillion Twilight Criterium
July 14, 2007
Papillion, Nebraska
Reagan Osborne
Iowa Bella

More Photos Here

First off, it's pronounced "PUH - PIL - YUN", not "PAH - PI - YON" like most of the world pronounces the French word for butterfly. Weird, I know, but we are in Nebraska. Too much corn in our diets? You decide.

Pre-Race
Got to the venue about 2 hours beforehand. My husband's Cat 5 race started at 4pm, mine started at 4:50pm. It was HOT HOT HOT. About 94+ degrees and the typical midwest humidity. The only thing that made the trainer warmup bearable was the breeze coming from the north. Oh yes, that will come back to bite me, won't it?

Standing in line at the registration tent, we heard someone say, "Hey, there's a Velo Bella here!" Turns out, he's a Webcor rider (Ben) from California who is staying with family in Nebraska right now. Nice to be noticed. I feel like a rock star!

The warm up laps went well. Half the course was uphill, with the back side being a fast descent into a fast corner and finally a tight corner. I took the first warm up laps slow to gauge the lines I needed to make the turns. The last turn was the diciest. You had to swing wide over a soft seam in the road, then back to the curb to make it without whanging the telephone pole. The leader from the masters race had already tested the hay bale in front of the pole. Definitely do-able.

Race-Time!
This was a 40 minute Women's Open race. Separate awards for the different Cats, but we all raced together. The start was uphill and I was in a bad gear. Duh! Didn't think to check that!

The women quickly split into several groups. Then those groups splintered even more by the 3rd and 4th laps. The fast group of women seemed to hang out and work together. I soon realized, that the Cat 4 gals I was racing with weren't going for that.

I was able to hold my own on the descent taking the corners tight and fast. I wanted to lose as little momentum as possible going into the hill. I lapped a few gals, got lapped a few times. I was just waiting to get pulled, about 10 minutes in I was in pain and wishing to get pulled. However, there weren't that many women, so they let us all finish.

I got in my groove about 20 minutes in. My husband said I got "that stubborn look" on my face again. That meant that, barring catastrophic body or bike failure, I was finishing this race. I would gain a ton of ground on the downhill, but lose it on the uphill.

Results
2nd Place in Cat 4! Okay there were only 4 of us, but I was pretty jazzed. Plus I won the unofficial award for "Best Bar Tape"

When I came in my husband was talking about how impressed one of the Corner Marshalls was with my cornering and handling. Tight, fast, perfect lines. Sweet!

On the way back to the car, a different corner marshall (from the dicey corner), stopped me and complimented me on my cornering.

I feel my first crit went well. I realize I have a long way to go, but it was an encouraging start.

BTW: Catherine Walberg (2006 National Masters Cross Champion) was the winner of the Pro women class. Even after testing out the hay bale on the first lap, she went on to win - just like the Masters race. Maybe that's the secret, the hay bale bounces you up hill faster?!

Carrera de San Rafael

2007-07-08T21:27:00.000-07:00

Coyote Creek Race in the morningby Monica

Saturday night 6:35pm start time
W 1/2/3
Downtown crit, $1500 purse for women

This was the second race of the day for Stella, Sarah, Natasha & I having done Coyote Creek in the AM. I arrived at the starting line a bit nervous as the crowd was huge and I was staring at some pretty impressive, much younger riders.
At first I was feeling a bit intimidated on the line than I thought "what the ____? what other sport can someone like me, at 47 yrs old, be on the starting line with chicks racing as pros?" just have fun. Then the, very loud gun went off.

The first third of the race I sat on the back, timid and not riding with confidence at all. I decided I needed to get my ass up there as I was in danger of being the victim of an accident. I moved up and I was swallowed up and in the back again. Then I decided, dammit, get your ass up there so I moved up to the front third about half way thru the hour long crit

Soon a chick went off the front a Jazz (Y) Apple rider and everyone was pretty content in letting her dangle out there for a bit. Then Rachel Lloyd of Proman jumped, she was on the outside with a decent jump and I knew that was the move to go on so I went. I managed to get myself up to her and we worked together for a few laps to pull that other chick in. It was really exciting hearing the cheers of the crowd and many people all over the course crying out my name. Rachel, Jazz Apple & I were out there with a decent gap. At one point I heard the bell for a prime but the crowd was so loud I wasn't sure what was happening. As we came around to the finish line I heard something about who was going to win this $200 prime. Jazz Apple was sitting on the front with me second wheel, so I went for it and got it. Yeah!

Not too long after that Martina Patella of Value Act bridged up to us, so now our little break had 4. It wasn't organized, there was some trading of pulls but nothing with a concentrated effort. I really wanted to not over work as Proman and Value Act had the numbers in the field yet, I also didn't want our little foursome to get caught. Everything was going great and I thought we might make it until i looked at the lap count and it said 9 ...shit, that was way more laps than I wanted. Yikes! I decided then there was no way they were gonna lose me. I gotta say here, thank you to all of you in the crowd cheering my on, it was really sweet and so HELPFUL!

We got caught by the field with 2 laps to go. As we got caught a Tibco rider, Stacy Marple (not sure ...all those girls look the same to me) jumped, I latched on to her wheel. She immediatedly sat up. The entire field swarmed, I settlled in mid pack. We came around for the last lap and on the hill there was a crash, unfortunately, I had to go around it and then it was too late. I came in at the end of the finishing field. I believe Sarah got up there for some of the purse money....nice going girlie!

It was a great race. Nice to hear Michael on the microphone and some good publicity for VB Kona.

Once again, thank you everyone for all your yelling, cheers of encouragment...it really does make a difference!

Big Bear - Jen and Teshia win!

2007-07-05T12:43:00.000-07:00

by Jen

Gah, that was a hard day of racing. Altitudinous suffering. There's something particularly nasty about racing at altitude in the heat of summer. The kind people at Team Big Bear gave the expert-pro race an extra lap around the top of the mountain. Nothing like spending an hour or so at 8000 feet. Yum. Funny thing, the 40+ womens' expert race did not do the extra special lap, much to the dismay of one of the riders. I'm thinking, hey, wanna trade? I'll do your nice short race and you can do my silly long one. It'll work out great. No?

It was a lovely day in the neighborhood, though. Something about pine trees and vertiginous views raises my morale even when the pedals aren't turning so easily. Blue skies, a peak of the lake, and mountains folded upon mountains folded upon mountains. I think I remember why I like this sport.

I was not liking the sport quite so much when I cramped like crazy on the first climb. Too little warmup, too much speed way too soon. I'm not of the fast start persuasion. Start slow, finish fast. True confessions? I really wanted to turn around, take my toys, and go home. But that seemed like a really lame thing to do. So I kept pedaling. What's a little cramping among friends anyway?

There was a cute loopy, swishy downhill single track that was over far too quickly. Courses at Big Bear come in an almost infinite variety. This one was heavy on fire road with rolling climbs and lots of pedaling. I especially liked the sandy corners. Surprise! I prefer the uppy-downy courses: up the mountain, down the mountain, up the mountain down the mountain. But with only two races on the calender this summer? I'll take whatever they throw. It's their party, they can make me cry if they want to.

The nuetral feed guy who threw cold water on me and the other nuetral feed guy who handed me a fresh bottle are my new best friends. Tastiest water I ever had. And necessary on that dread second lap around the top of the mountain. Are you sure you don't want to trade races? Here, take my number. You know you want to.

So after a lifetime riding around in circles on top of the mountain, we at last came to upper Fall Line and Lower Fall Line. Upper Fall Line is a total tease. Yay, we finally get to go downhill. Not so fast, says Upper Fall Line. Suddenly you're grannying your way up this sandy bit of climbing, dodging the tree on the left and the rock on the right. More up than down. Say what? I don't wanna pedal anymore. Make iiiitttt stttoooppppp. Does this race even have a descent?

Then, the Fall Line Mess. It's steep, with lots of loose rocks, and dusty sand. But oddly, not especially hard to ride, if you don't stop to think too hard about it. With no oxygen to spare for the brain, I didn't stop to think. Thump, thwack, kachunk, kachunk, thwap, oops, thwap, woohoo!

Voila, the finish line.

The End.

Marathon Woman: Stony Creek Marathon

2007-07-05T11:30:00.000-07:00

By Dana Nevedal
Detroit, Michigan

The weather was just perfect- mid 70's and mostly sunny. The trail was bone dry, loose and gravelly in many places.

I was disappointed to see that there were ony 2 of us registered in my class as the race was about to start. I guess that word had spread of the misery that was last year's 100 degree scorcher. The attrition rate had been huge. All in all, the women's turnout was pretty low.

All the sport women started together in an open area that led up to wide single track and then a long-ish gravel 2 track climb. I am way faster in the 2 track than the singletrack and I knew that I needed to get up that 2 track first in order to enter the single track ahead of the group. At the start I stood and powered ahead of the group all the way to the climb, then settled in for a steady push. A FFG from the 40+ age group caught me on the climb but I didn't care because she was not in my class. I hit the single track well ahead of my competition and with several bodies in between as buffer.

For the next 3 laps I hammered on the 2 track (6 miles) and recovered in the single track (4miles). I never saw another female rider that whole time!! I was passing lots of people on the 2 track and getting passed on the single track. I felt awesome, like my pacing was good and I could go all day. Avg speed 10.7mph.

Twenty-six miles into the race I hit this log on top of an off camber climb in the rollercoaster without enough speed and bogged down... then tumbled down the hill. I was now upside down pinned under my bike and clipped in. My knees hurt. I whimpered and a nice man from the clyde class stopped and hiked down the hill to help me. he carried my bike up as I wobbled on my shaky weird feeling knees. My friend Lynda Racy from the 40+ class passed through and offered some encouragement. I pushed my bike up the rest of the climb and thanked the nice man. I rode off cautiously with a pain in my left knee. The other girl in my class was not far back and I was trying to hold her off.

When I finished the 3rd lap I stopped to switch camelbacks with the help of my Velo Fella support guy Todd. He handed me a gel and helped me get a fresh camelback on. The old one got stuck to my pigtail braid and I just tore it out out of frustration. As I took off trying to get out of there before the other girl in my class passed me Todd yelled for me to get the flag out of my derailleur! I looked down and not only was a pink plastic flag stuck in there but the wire stake was all wrapped around the jockey wheels. If he had not pointed that out it could have been a disaster. I yanked it out and took off but my knee was aching and did not like anything but spinning. I started to worry- had I torn something? If I pushed too big a gear would my knee give out?

I was riding more conservatively now. I was afraid of what was wrong with my knee and afraid of falling again. I knew I was going to walk that log in the rollercoaster this time... and when I got there the sign outfitters girl I was racing was right behind me. We had been chatting for a bit. She was on my tail but not trying to pass. I followed the lead of the bella who did the 24 hours of adrenaline and did not tell her I was walking that log. I just stopped and got off at the last minute and she had to too! We walked the climb together and I kept her behind me as long as I could after we got back on the bikes but when the trail widened she took the pass. With 5 miles left in a 42 mile race I lost my lead. I never saw her again. my legs were fresh, but my knee ached and I had lost that drive to win. I just wanted to finish and get off the bike without messing up my leg anymore, and that is what I did.

I finished at 3:59 something- 16minutes and 30 seconds faster than my last year's time. I also got to stand on a box and get a silver medal which was sort of bittersweet since there were only 2 of us. But my time was commensurate with a podium spot in the women's sport classes from both this and last year so I felt good about that.

Full results available here

NY Bella Linda Tersegno wins 2 BRONZE medals at National Senior Games, Louisville, KY

2007-07-03T07:39:00.000-07:00

by Kate

New York Regional Bellas Home Page

Linda's report of the National Senior Games, Louisville, KY June 23-28, 2007:
I had no idea what to expect in Louisville and feel like I did really well!! I finished 8th out of 23 riders in the 5K TT, 4th through 7th places were close, I was out from the winner by about 35 seconds though. The 10 K time trial I moved up one spot to 7th place. Both earned ribbons anyway. Very nice courses in a closed park.

The road race was really a circuit race course. Very winding, up/downhill (scary!) 2.4 miles loop on a pretty park road. I had never raced this type of course so I stayed near the front due to 4 bad crashes we witnessed in Mike's race. I really had doubts about doing the 40K event at all. But it was fun really! I placed third with a photo sprint finish. The same happened in the 20K road race on the same course, but not with such a close finish. We had lapped riders from another age group and they were at the finish line area with 3 of us and it was too crowded.

It must have been the jersey that helped!!

Final results for Linda:
Bronze in the 20K RR
Bronze in the 40K RR
8th in the 5K Time Trial
7th in the 10K Time Trial
Congrats, Linda!!

USAT Nats - Take 1

2007-07-02T21:20:00.000-07:00

by Raja

I'm back...

...and I think I could sleep for week...

While I would love to report back that I came home as the W30-34 nationalchamp.... you all would know I would be hallucinating and perhaps in some serious sleep deprivation. I didn't go to Nats to win. 'Cause of course, I'm already a winner. If I happened to qualify for Worlds, that would have been amazing, and very very scary. But I didn't. And I'm really ok with that! Let me explain...

Dave leaned over and looked at me with a little twinkle in his eyes, "Did you ever imagine that when you did that first Mission Bay triathlon on your, mountain bike that you would be here two and a half years later?"

Actually no. It hadn't even occurred to me.

My road in triathlon to date has been short and fun. I've now had 1 year of coached training, so you won't hear me complaining about my perceived "lack" of performance at Nationals this year. I managed to miraculously slice 4 minutes of my swim time. I couldn't have been happier.

The bike didn't go as I'd hoped, but that was my own fault. A newbie error. I was hell bent on using the disk. Was it a head game? Having the disk gave me confidence? Setting up in transition prior to the start I had noticed the disk loosing tire pressure. Down from 130 PSI to 80 in about 10 minutes. No holes, tire looked good, I pumped it up again to give it another test. Pumped to 150 PSI. (Which takes a feat of strength for me since that's far more than I weigh!). In the rush to get everyone out to close transition, I felt the tire, maybe a little lower, but not nearly as bad as before, tightened all the valves and left. If I got out of the water and the pressure was significantly lower, I'd just change my wheel prior to leaving transition. If it felt pretty solid, the leak wasn't that bad.

In a nut shell, I think I shot myself when I didn't change the wheel. I'm usually very solid on the bike. Steady. Aggressive. Fast. This time the bike felt squirrelly on the downhills and squishy on the uphills. With about 1500' of climbing and almost continuous turns, my legs were toasted and my time was slower than it should have been. I asked someone on course if my bad wheel looked low, "no, well yes, but not flat" was the response I got. That's about how it felt. It definitely wasn't so low I couldn't ride. But I found I was riding very conservatively on the downhills & corners. No risks. Within the first 2 miles of the ride I passed the first crash victim. Even Nats isn't immune to crashes.

When I racked my bike and hit the first of 7 hills on the run, I knew my chances of qualifying for Worlds was done. I got kind of excited...

You see, Dave & I got married in May. Since then I have been training like a mad woman. Honeymoon? That would have to wait until after training. If I qualified for Worlds, that's an entire summer of training and the first week of our honeymoon spend racing in Europe. As exciting as that may have been.. I haven't really been in the sport long enough to know what I'm really doing. So now that Worlds wasn't going to be an option... all I can think about is how great Italy is going to be in the fall... and we can take the road bikes and ride where ever we want in Italy...

So while I was suffering like a beast on the run, it occurred I had a lot to be happy about. Breaking my back/pelvis 8 years ago had made me a stronger person. Who knows if I'd even be racing triathlon or cycling if it hadn't had been for that accident. I really was just excited to be doing something extraordinary.

Some things I learned:
1. Jim was right.
2. Starbucks coffee is better than their danishes.
3. Starbucks sandwiches are better than their coffee.
4. It doesn't pay to be stubborn.
5. Got a lot of training left to do!
6. Bellas ROCK! Ashley Erickson did GREAT! placing 10th in her age group.
Nikki Shue also did great in her crazy age group!

Happy Racing!

Leesville Gap Road Race

2007-07-01T07:36:00.000-07:00

by Monica

W 1/2/3 Sunny, 85-90 degrees

This was my first race after almost a month off. Life just got in the way-a new job, crazy schedule, family stuff, car accident ....you know, all that stuff life throws at you. I didn't know the course at all, never having raced it before but I heard many stories about the crappy roads, gravel sections, nasty climb and flat, windy section that goes on forever. Great!! I managed to crawl out of bed after a lousy night's sleep anyway, at the crazy hour of 4:40 AM.

The field was small, (15 I think) but there was some power on the line, Jane Despas, Molly Van Houleing (sp), Pat Ross, Jen Joynt, and Ashley Zimmerman among them. I was mentally prepared to suffer.

The pace started out mellow enough, even stopping for a pee break after 35 min or so. Soon we crossed over Hwy 20 and hit the rough road section with the rollers. I stayed within the front three here so I could kind of pick my line through the pot holes. We were moving at a decent pace thru all this. As we got closer & closer to the start of the main climb I moved to the front and tried to set the pace. I ended up cresting the top of the climb 3rd with Jen Joynt & Pat Ross off the front. Behind me with a little bit of a gap were Zimmerman, Despas and then Van H., int that order and all spread out a bit.

The decent is definitely rough but turned out to be much better than I feared. Zimmerman and I teamed up, we could see Joynt & Ross ahead of us. We knew it was going to be in our best interest to have Despas catch us, which she & Van H. both did as the terrain flattened out. Molly had no reason to work since Jen Joynt is her teammate and was up ahead. Jane & I began trading pulls, with Zimmerman coming in every now & then. Soon each of us started playing this game so our efficiency wasn't great. Plus, Molly was doing what she could to disrupt our chase. What was frustrating was that Joynt & Ross were dangling about 500-750m in front of us.

To keep this report from being too damn long, I cut to the chase - we caught them (Ross & Joynt) at the feed zone hill but then they actually got away again, not much but gapped us off a tiny bit. We hit the next, shorter climb and Molly & Jane picked up the pace. They gapped me a little and I dropped Zimmerman. The decent from there was a blast! Wicked fast, open and really fun. When I hit the bottom Van H and Despas were just one good effort away from me. I saw that Despas was driving the pace so I knew I had my work cut out for me.

I told myself, "don't blow your wad here, you can reel them in slowly..don't panic, stay within yourself." Soon I caught them and soon after that we caught Joynt & Ross. Now we were in the windy, long flat section of the course. No one really wanted to work. There was a little bit of an effort to get organized but it wasn't working. After about 7 miles of this Ashley Zimmerman caught us. So now we were six again.

I had a headache (hydration related?) and no idea how much further we had. I had no computer, nothing to go but time. Jen Joynt attacked, I waited for someone else to make a move as I knew she couldn't stay away. We regrouped quickly. Then Van H. attacked, once again short lived, we regrouped. At this point in time, I took an assessment. I felt really good. I felt like the people to beat were Despas and Van H. but Zimmerman is a good sprinter so don't discount her. I'd worked a fair amount in this race so I sat on the back and saved energy.

After a bit Van H. attacked and Despas jumped, I didn't react right away as I wanted someone esle to. BIG MISTAKE! (Remember, I just said they were the two to watch...hello brain? ) After a slight hesitation I went with Pat Ross helping me in the chase but then we hit the final stretch of gravel (which was long) and got stuck behind a group of men. By this time it was too late, the two of them were gone.

We hit the 1km sign and everyone slowed down, no one wanted to lead. You could see the finish line ahead and the road was as flat as a pancake. I figured Zimmerman was the sprinter of the bunch so I got myself behind her. At the 200m sign we were barely moving, just crawling along. Jen Joynt jumped, Zimmerman on her wheel with me in tow. We came across the line, neck & neck, all three of us throwing our bikes. Jen had 3rd as she was just ahead of Ashley & I but I thought I nudged out Zimmerman. Evidently not, as they gave me 5th place. Pat Ross finished 6th. Up ahead Despas out sprinted Van H to the line for the win.

I thought the course was much more fun than I expected. It wasn't as hot today as some years which helped. Other Bellas racing today were Andi Mackie who won her age group, Julie Porter - don't know how her day went and also Mo (Meredith) racing in the 4's. I didn't see her afterwards either so not sure how her race went. I missed Marian- she must've had something come up as I know she was planning to come.

Thanks for reading. I hope Fremont went well for everyone

A week of racing in Winthrop

2007-06-27T12:37:00.000-07:00

by Erika

School’s Out for Summer!!!

While my teammates were pre-riding in Park City, I was closing up my classroom as students left on the last day of school. This is a bittersweet day—but, admittedly, mostly sweet! Taking days off during the last week of school is a big no no, so I was not able to join everyone for the NORBA in Park City, but there were races the next two weekends in Winthrop, Washington. This is a beatiful town in the Methow Valley nestled in the North Cascades and the trails there are buff, fast, and super fun, so my husband and I arranged to stay the week!

The first weekend was a stage race. This was my new Kona Lisa Supreme’s maiden race, and I was soooo excited to race it! There were 22 women in the 1/2/3s and some really fast gals from the Seattle/Portland area.

The TT was a hilly 10 miles. I don’t think my bike was adjusted quite right because I could not find a comfortable and powerful position in the aero bars. I finished 9th—not that great, but I’ll take it! Time trials are so painful!

The crit was in downtown Twisp—population 1,000. Rough roads—four left hand turns—headwind on the backside. After racing in the Walla Walla crit and DNFing, I was really nervous about doing another crit. After a few laps, I made it into a break of five—Suz Weldon and Lise Grace from Wines of Washington, Leah Stralka from Byrnes Invent, Allison Beall from Ti Cycles, and me. I knew these ladies were fast and I would have to work hard to hang on. The cool part was hearing my husband’s whole team cheering for me each lap and the racer who must have been pulled from the crit yelling, "Go Vello Bella!" The two Wines of Washington ladies took turns attacking off the front while the rest of us covered their attacks. With two laps to go, Suz Weldon took off and got a gap we could not bridge. On the last lap, I was telling myself that 5th place with these ladies is pretty darn good and I would be happy with that, so I sat at the back of the line. On the backside, one our friends was standing on a corner yelling at me to get to the front before the next turn. So—without thinking—I just did it. I sprinted to the front of the line, took the inside around the turn, hammered up the hill without shifting, made the last turn, and sprinted for home. I kept expecting someone to pass me before the finish, but no one did!!!! I have never felt so proud of a second place finish. Here is the sprint:

The road race on Sunday was 71 miles, and I was so keyed up after the crit, I did not sleep too well. Leg cramps during the night didn’t help much, either. I woke up on Sunday feeling like I had been hit by a truck. The race went pretty well until my bottle got dropped in the feed zone—bummer. After that, I just held on the best I could and tried to avoid cramping on every hill. I finished 8th in the road race for a 5th place in the GC.

I woke up Monday morning with very sore legs and a knee that didn’t want to bend, so we had a couple days of easy riding to try to recover for the mountain bike race coming up on Saturday. As much as I love my new road bike, I could not wait to put it away and spend quality time with my mountain bike. Again—the riding here is phenomenal!!

We got in some great rides and rested plenty before the the Methow Cycle & Sport Mountain Challenge—an Indie Series race put on by Mark Peterson at Kona. I think there were six women in the pro/open class and it was a fast start! Kristy Berg and I went out hard and left behind the rest of the field. Kristy is a great technical rider and she got away from me in the steeper sections of the course. I came in second without any crashes or mechanicals which is always a bonus! Here is a pic of our "podium". (Awards were a little late, so the other ladies must have gone home.) The braver podium finishers stood on the picnic table. Knowing me, I would have fallen off...

Mark from Kona even gave a plug for Vanderkitten while I was up there!

Thanks for reading!

My Podium Shot

2007-06-24T07:19:00.001-07:00

by Denise

So, I decided to make the 2.5 hour drive to do this criterium in Stockton and had a kick-ass time.....I got 2nd place. The course was great, it was nice'n warm, and there were plenty of Port o'Johns, which is a plus in my race book. An EMC gal and I agreed to work together on the last 2 laps, so we could place--which we did.

I quickly realized that if you race in the front of the group, the announcers will call out your name on most every lap, which makes you feel like a rock star. Since, I had no other teammates in this race, I was able to move about pretty easily, with no other worries, except keeping myself safe and riding smart.

Here's a recap of how dang famous, for 40-minutes, I really was:

"Denise Ramirez of Velo Bella is out of the saddle chasing down
Webcor."

"Velo Bella is charging around this corner."

"Velo Bella was nipped at the line for this preem."

Photo Courtesy of Steven Woo
"Here comes EMC and Velo Bella for the sprint finish! Velo Bella is
coming along side and is she going to get it?! EMC takes the win, with
Velo Bella second, and Team X taking the third spot!"

So with that, EMC gal and I gladly scooped up our prize envelope and we looked around for the podium. What?! No podium photo?! If I bust my female balls, for any race and I place, I want to relish in the limelight a bit longer and have my picture taken, like the rock star I am!

I decide to take my own picture with my prize envelope. Cheesy I know, but this is my race and my blog, so here you have it--taken in my backyard. I pulled out my 4-hour old, wrinkly, sweaty jersey from my backpack and put the dang thing on, just for this podium shot.

I just opened my prize envelope and not only was it chock full of $$, it contained a hand-made card and lots of glitter'n stuff. Someone took their time to make this and I think it's lovely.....it makes up for the lack of an official podium shot.

NMBS Deer Valley XC Report #2

2007-06-21T13:00:00.000-07:00

by Noel

Wow! I finally raced my mountain bike again and I was immediately reminded of how painful mountain bike racing is…all out, right from the gun!

Some of you may know that I had a rough season last year due to a knee injury. I had knee surgery in October and have worked hard to get the knee back in racing shape again. Until this weekend I’ve just been riding road and hitting a few road races like Gila, Tri Peaks, and the Iron Horse. After putting myself in a serious hole of exhaustion from work, school, training, travel, and racing leading up to the Iron Horse, I took a full SEVEN days completely off the bike and then decided it was finally time to start mountain bike riding again. So, I did two MTB rides over the last couple weeks, decided the knee was ready, and headed to Deer Valley for my first mountain bike race since the Brian Head NMBS race last summer.

It was wonderful to finally hook up with the team – to catch up with the girls from last year, to meet the girls new to the team this year, and to see Tim, the mechanic extraordinaire, again. I drove to Utah Friday and pre-rode the course that afternoon. Everything felt good and I was excited to race the next morning. However, I was also a little anxious to see how I would actually race since Friday’s pre-ride was only my 4th mountain bike ride since last September…yikes!

Well, it turns out that I did remember how to race my mountain bike and it was pretty darn fun, in that super sick sort of painful way. Out of almost sixty starters, I was called to the line 3rd to last since this was my first race of the year. I couldn’t even spot a couple of my fellow Bellas from the waaaaaaay back of the field. The race immediately sent us up about a ½ mile fire road climb before hitting the singletrack, so I knew I needed to start strong and just hoped there would not be the usual back-of-the-field start line crash. The NMBS folks played their typical small collection of really bad tunes, shot the gun, and sent us off to ZZ Top’s “She’s got legs….and she knows how to use ‘em” – lovely. A couple of girls barely stayed upright, but amazingly there was no start-line crash and we were off. At the top of the climb a ½ mile later, I had managed to move up about 35 spots and was sitting in the low twenties – sweet! I was just bummed the climb wasn’t longer so I could have kept moving up.

Then the course sends you on almost seven solid miles of tight singletrack: super fast, tight, fun stuff, and also lots of switchback climbing singletrack. It really is an absolute blast, but once you do hit that singletrack, it’s pretty difficult to make a lot of passing progress from that point forward. So, I went back and forth with a few girls but maintained my position for the first lap. At the end of the first lap, I grabbed my gel flask, put it in my mouth to open it and get some nourishment, and I broke the top completely off in my mouth! This was not good since gel is the only thing I can eat in a MTB race and was, therefore, the only thing I brought with me! So, I ventured on to finish two more laps in the heat with no food – not the best situation to be in. I hit the second lap and climbed well again, passing a handful of riders. I maintained good position again throughout the second lap, but was definitely feeling the heat and lack of food. All I could think about was that Coke feed waiting for me at the start of the 3rd lap. Let me tell you, that ice cold Coke was the most heavenly thing I could have possibly had at that moment. And I drank the entire bottle up the climb that 3rd lap, which again left me with nothing to eat or drink for the remaining seven miles. Well, plain and simple, I just ran out of steam on the final lap and completely faded; my performance over the last 1/3 of the lap was downright sad. I lost about five or six spots and ended up in 27th. I must have looked pretty pathetic at the finish because a guy passing out giant cold Gatorades handed me one, then took it back, and said “here, let me open that for you”. I didn’t mind.

What a day. Mountain bike racing is tough. My legs hurt and I coughed up dust for a solid 24 hours afterwards. It was fun, though.

Huge congrats to the other VB-K racers! We managed to get a top ten finish in every single discipline in the Pro field over the weekend…booyah!

~ Thanks to Kimber for arranging all of our host housing!
~ Thanks to the Robinsons for hosting Kristin and I and for all the puppy love from Duncan!
~ Thanks to the Canfields for the fantastic post-race BBQ and for all the skeleton stories…you skeleton racers are crazy!
~ Thanks to Tim for taking such good care of SO MANY of us!
~ Thanks to the awesome VB-K downhill girls who cheered us on and then kicked butt in their own races!

NMBS Deer Valley XC Report #1

2007-06-21T12:59:00.000-07:00

by Shannon

Have you ever had one of those weeks where everything was falling apart and you weren't sure you should even hop on the plane to go race for fear it may not make it? This was my week prior to Deer Valley. A couple of weeks ago I re-injured my knee which was just mentally hard for me to take and I couldn't put in the training I needed. I knew I would race anyways because I had already purchased plane tickets and registered. So then last friday night Noah woke up in the middle of the night with the stomach flew. Kris came down with it Saturday and me Sunday.

So by Tuesday night I had lost 10 lbs. Lucky for me I recovered fairly fast, Kris was unlucky and was still fighting it Thursday when we left. Thursday morning (the day we were to leave) I woke up with a head cold and a hamstring that was as solid as concrete. I was really feeling that the forces that be were not with me, I was a train wreck. We got on the plane anyways and made it to Salt Lake. I chose to not race the Super D to conserve my energy. I must say my attitude wasn't the greatest. I was excited to be around all the Bellas because they all have such a great presence/attitude and I was hoping it would be infectious (since I seem to catch everything). Our tires finally came from Schwalbe so I had Tim put on the Racing Ralphs and then pre rode with Jen and Kristin which was fun and the new tires were awsome and my bike felt great.

We got done pre-riding and Jen gave me some words of encouragement , she said I had nothing to worry about for the race on Saturday (thanks Jen). It really made me feel better because at that point I wasn't sure why I was entered in a Pro XC race with the year I have had. So Saturday morning I woke up and decided I was going to make the best of it. I took off for my pre race warm up and oddly enough I felt awsome. Not really sure how but I felt great. I got to the start line. I was going to try someting new and try and start more conservatively. I was towards the end of the pack by the halfway point. I think someone said 45th. I didn't really care because I wasn't last and the course is so much fun. So I just kept on riding and passing people.

In the second and third lap I probably should have been more aggresive at passing people becuase I kept getting stuck behind girls on the singletrack. So the entire race I just kept moving up. My knee was great ( I had a shot of Kenalog on Wednesday) and my attitude was the best it has been in years. The third lap I realized I was doing alright and really wanted to beat last years time. About 1/2 way through the lap I was getting ready to pass 2 more girls and a bee decided to take residence in my jersey and kept stinging me.

I finally had to stop to find it and get it out, I lost the girls unfortunatley. So I worked hard and pushed to the finish for 35th place and 9 minutes faster that last year. My best placing at an NMBS race ever. So....not too shabby. My confidence restored and attitude renewed. So I guess I learned that attitude really is everything. I know from here my season will be better and hopefully I will see that top 25 placing I have been training hard for.

Happy Trails

Hy-Vee Triathlon

2007-06-18T13:25:00.001-07:00

by Reagan

Hy-Vee Age Group Triathlon
ITU World Cup
http://www.hy-veetriathlon.com
Des Moines, IA
June 17, 2007

PRE-RACE
This was the first year that Des Moines has hosted an event of this size, so I came expecting the worst. After doing the Denver Danskin a couple of years ago, I have become pretty aware of how organized a large event has to be. And if it isn't, how bad it can be (ie. Denver Danskin).

I was pleasantly surprised by how cute downtown Des Moines is. The Gray's Lake area where the swim and transition area were is a beautiful, shaded lake. The transition was nicely organized with assigned places. We had to check in our bikes the night before. I didn't really like the idea of my baby spending the night outside without me, but I sucked it up and dropped it off.

4 am. The wake up call in the hotel rings. I haven't raced in a couple of seasons, so I forgot how early 4 am is.

4:30 am - TRAFFIC! As usual, a big long line to get into the parking. I had timed the drive the day before and added time for traffic, but I didn't add enough. I had to ditch the car and walk in. I was lucky enough to have a driver that could park the car.

5:30 am - Arrive at the transition. Rush to put everything in place, get my timing chip, and get in the water before the swim warmup closed.

RACE TIME!!

SWIM
After racing exclusively in Colorado, I had a hard time believing that the water temp was really 80 degrees! My plan was to take it easy. I really needed to stay at about 85% effort for the swim and bike to complete the run. I tend to get over anxious with the mass start and start out too fast.

The start, as usual, was all hands and feet. But everyone settled into place by the first bouy. I was able to sight good lines without interrupting my stroke for most of the swim. I stayed within my planned perceived effort and felt fresh coming out of the swim. For once I was thinking the whole way "This feels great!"

Did I mention how fabulous it is to come out of the water onto carpet and not have to run through sand? Sweeeeet!

BIKE

Trans 1 went smooth. I only wish I could run better in bike cleats. I still haven't worked out the "cleats already attached to the pedals" thing yet.

The bike course was pretty fast and relatively flat. Only one major hill. Very little wind (especially for Iowa). The first 3 miles were pretty congested with racers. That pesky no draft rule is difficult to follow when you're packed in like sardines.

Top Ten Insights on the Bike
10. Zipp Disc wheels sound sweet as they are *passing* you.
9. I stayed in my planned perceived effort and still had a good mph average.
8. My front wheel is just slightly out of true.
7. Passing men feels good and makes them mad.
6. There is a really cool looking vintage clothing store in downtown Des Moines.
5. This is not the Tour, so why is there a guy in the devil suit?
4. This is awesome! I love racing!!
3. That fun downhill on the way out? Oh yeah, not so fun on the way back.
2. Ladies crossing the street in front of racers think that if they bury their heads and don't look at you, you aren't there. Luckily there was room to swerve.
1. I love racing!

RUN

Ick! My least favorite part. I just wanted to get through it. Since most of it is a blur, I will keep it short. Very few hills (except the big on at the finish line), mostly cloudy skies, well stocked aid stations. All I can say is that I ran the whole thing (only the 2nd 10K I've ever run). Near the end, my goals kept getting shorter. "Just make it to the turn in a mile, just make it to the next block, just make it to the stop sign, just put one foot in front of the other"

CONCLUSIONS:

Des Moines put on a great show, even for the age groupers! I'll definitely do this one again if it comes back.

VB Tri Kit rocks! I LOVE POCKETS!! Even if they slow down the swim a bit.

I ended with a PR by 30 minutes! sweeeeetttt. . .

I have more pics on my blog at http://www.twobarnfarm.com

Women's 4 Pesky Road Race Report

2007-06-13T12:02:00.000-07:00

by Tracey

I promised myself that I would make time to write a race report for this one.....so here it is!

Woke up 4:20 a.m. Saturday morning-I am thinking to myself; "Why am I doing this? Oh ya, because it's fun! All I can think about is my experience last year with "Pesky"-my second race ever & nothing but suffering and the occasional "wow" this is beautiful! Get in the car at 5:00 a.m. and roll into Pescadero around 8:00. Throw on my clothes, jump on my bike and ride over to the registration. I immediately run into Angela & give her my extra bottle for the feedzone. I head for the bathroom and see another Bella-we introduce ourselves & she (Sarah) so kindly pins my number on while we wait in line. I get in about a 15 minute warm-up and we are off.

We cruise through town and then the race begins. A good friend of mine who races for CRC got the first prime-Cool! We all stay together up the first climb on Haskins. We hit the second hill and NorCal Tawnya is leading the pack. I see Mara (triathlete who won Berkeley Hills) start making her way up to the front-I go with her. We get on the front and as we reach the top we turn around and the rest of the field is a ways back. As we start the downhill a couple other gals catch up and encourage us to try to get a gap.

As we reach Highway 84 we are one big group again. As we are hammering into the wind on Highway 84 I am anticipating the Haskin's Hill climb-is it going to hurt as bad as last year. Right before we make the turn up to the feedzone the Specialized gal attacks-no one seems worried, we'll catch her on Haskin's. I see Angela and grab my bottle. Shortly after the feedzone, we make another right turn and start the Haskin's climb. I find Mara again and tell myself; "stay on her wheel". As we reach the top we finally caught the Specialized rider and I looked around and was thrilled to be the 3rd or 4th rider over the top. I see a couple of other riders behind me. Several other gals ended up catching up with us on the downhill and we ended up with a group of 9 riders for the rest of the race.

As we approached the "prime" a couple of gals duked it out and sprinted for the line with the Team Ritchey gal taking it. We all stay together over the Stage Road climbs and when we reach Highway 84 we decide to do a rotating paceline and take hard, short pulls. We all worked really well together, with a couple of the gals taking longer monstrous pulls-I had to dig deep to stick with them.

As we approached the turn up to the feedzone we saw a fairly large group of riders in front of us-turned out it was the women's 3 chase group. We passed them right before the feedzone. We started up Haskin's for the last time. My legs were feeling really heavy-a couple of the 3's passed me and I was not able to stick on Mara's wheel. I told myself; It's almost over, don't give up! I ended up finishing in 7th place and I was happy! What a great race-such beautiful scenery! I met some really great gals-many of whom I had not raced with this season-turns out many of the girls in our little group are cyclocrossers/mountain bikers(even an ex-pro mountain biker doing her first road race) or triathletes.

Thank you so much to Angela for cheering for me and feeding me and thanks to Sarah for the number pinning-great to meet you! GO BELLAS!

I am now looking forward to spending some time in Yosemite camping with the kiddos.

Danskin & Redondo Bella Style!

2007-06-13T06:36:00.000-07:00

by Raja

I'll take that Oh La La with a side of Kona!

Swim till you're weazing

Ride till it burns

Run till you wanna puke

Don't forget to wipe the boogies before the photo op...

I think the phrases "You Go Girl!" and "Girl Power" took on a whole new meaning at the Danskin Women's Triathlon. If you've ever heard Sally Edwards speak - to too would be clamoring away powered and ready to race. I actually wanted to swim by the time she was done giving us the "You're Fabulous" cheer. Amazing...

Not that I did very well in the swim... but I know how to ride a bike.. and kinda know how to run up hills...kinda sorta...I just fake it really well ;o)

I won my age group at the Danskin Women's Triathlon in Los Angeles and was 4th overall out of nearly 700 women. I'm good with that.

Is it ok to be completely and totally surprised when you've just done well??

REDONDO BEACH TRIATHLON - What a cute little tri-thingy!

It's a swimmer's race, so I just wanted to get the swim practice. It was actually one of the nicest ocean/ beach start swims I've been to. The water was crisp & refreshing.. and clean! The waves were coming, but at least after last year's Los Angeles Tri experience.. it was manageable.

The bike is a speed bump. 6 miles. Better hurry. Especially if you're a sucky swimmer like I am.

The run is 2 miles, winding in and around the Redondo Beach Pier. Basically it's a test of getting up to speed after every corner. It was fun though... (at least until you had to run past the greezy fish stand....blaaahhhhh ...)

I ended up winning my age group and placing 3rd or 4th overall. Neily Mathias, my coach's wife, won hers too! (Except she's a wicked swimmer) I'm pretty sure Neily won the entire race. Last time I checked, she was 2nd.. but I'm pretty sure the girl who "won" missed a bike lap... otherwise her bike split beat most of the men .... and that girl can ride. I'm suspicious.. . oh well.... I hope she had didn't miss a lap and kicked everyone's a$$ on the bike.....

Both races were a ton of fun.. and I recommend them to both seasoned triathletes and newbies!

Now.. on to Nationals at the end of the month.... gulp....

24 Hours of Adrenaline Report

2007-06-12T06:36:00.000-07:00

by Dablondeus

Blog Report Link

Don't tell the Hamana Hos......but Tits of Steel just wanted to race the 24 Hours of Adrenaline for fun. However, that's not the way it went...

Friday evening: set up camp and socialize with our camp mates the Velo Nerds,Google Earthlings, Team MBOSC, and our pal DJ in a phenomenal social area set up with comfy camp chairs, stoves, a keg, and a heater donated to the group by our sexy volunteer, Geo. I decided that this weekend was going to be fun, and began to enjoy my first Google sponsored pint in my commemorative glass. Our gracious sponsors Jeni and Kyle soon showed up and began to wow the crowd with BR Lights. A fun social evening. A great start.

7:00 am: crawl out of a warm tent for two monster cups of Santa Cruz Coffee Roasting Company's Fair Trade Organic Sumatra Dark Roast and two slices of Nicole's campfire toast with organic peanut butter and raw honey. It was cool to see Eve out there supporting us and Mark, since she had to drop off the team for motherly purposes.

10:00 am: We saw Caroline off to her running start, then I sat in the shade to hydrate and enjoy my final moments of rest.

2:30 pm: first lap. While I was waiting for Becky to come in, volunteer extraordinaire Geo gave me an awesome back rub (that's Nic in the photo), including pulling my shoulders out of their cyclist's slouch position with his giant man hands of steel. It was a rough and rutty dust fest out there until Hurl Hill. I regretted the high tire pressure I was running until I got to the climbs.

My hardtail scooted up the fire roads and shot me up the giant fire road whoopties in my big ring. What sucked on the ruts made those long climbs easy. A fair trade in a course with about 2000 feet of climbing. I resolved that during lap two I would power through the rough sections with a little more resolve to reduce my lap time.

Between laps one and two, I was informed that we were in second place, the Hamana Hos were first. The excitement grew and the pressure was on.

8:00 pm: My best lap. We were in second place, and the Hamana Ho sharing my lap was waiting in the transition area with me. Her teammate came in shortly before Becky; Kyle told me I'd catch the Ho on the grind, and dammit if I didn't. I passed her, then she hopped on my wheel. I swerved over and slowed, then hopped on hers. She tolerated it for the remainder of the climb. Once we hit more technical stuff, she showed a bit of apprehension, so I passed her closely on a single track. She called, “Be careful!” after I scraped by, then followed me to the bridge. I hopped off the bike, ran up the stairs and she asked me if I was going to ride down the stairs on the other side. I just kept running, then ran down the middle of the flight, my bike blocking her way. At the bottom I knew the lap was mine, because I am strongest on the flats, and that's where I took off. I finished in front of her. She found me at the transition area, and gave me a big hug for making the lap fun. Then she offered to teach me to ride stairs in the morning after the race, because she said I was a good rider and shouldn't be afraid. Jeni was standing there with a knowing smile as I thanked the competition for her offer. How could I tell her I didn't ride them because I knew it's what she wanted? I think this was the first time in my life where I felt competitive enough and strong enough to use some strategy out there. It was a new feeling for me, and I liked it.

10:30 pm: Old habits are hard to break. One and a half pints from the keg, not so bad, right? I wanted to wind down from the coffee, GU shots, and Gatorade all surging through my system. I headed to the tent, and caught very little sleep between random fits of anxiety.

1:30 am: Feeling oddly like an old shoe, I dressed in my warm cycling clothes. The best thing I can say about this lap is that BR Lights rock. The white light illuminated everything I needed to see out there, which was good, because I was delirious. I had no legs and no brain. I was caught on the grind by the tiny Ho that could. I resented her big time as I hopped on her wheel. She was making me work way harder than I wanted to. Eventually I dropped back, promising myself I would catch her soon enough. Suddenly I was alone; I saw night lights parallel to me, but maybe 500 feet up. Realizing that I was no longer on the course, I sighed and threw my bike over my shoulder to hike back up to it. I finished three minutes behind the Tiny Motorized Ho. We had been eight minutes ahead. Never have I been so bummed to have dropped off of a wheel.

7:00 am. Caroline woke me to tell me we were ten minutes ahead again, and I didn't have to do my last lap if I would let Sophie take it. In my mind I heard, “You are the weakest link. Good-bye.” I was happy to sip coffee as I warmed the bench and cheered on Nicole and Sophie as they left for the last two laps.

10:45 am: We beat the Hos by one lap. The day was sunny, and the beer relatively cool. Dance contests filled the void until the awards ceremony. We patiently awaited our podium call as we basked in the wonder of our win. The announcer called out “First place, Tits of Steel” and we jumped up to receive the glory. It was exciting to throw on the yellow jerseys, receive the first place medals, and get cheered on by the crowd. It was really cool to hold the BR Lights banner during all of the photos, and to stay on the stage for photos of just our team.

This weekend will definitely go down as one of the most awesome in my book. Geoff, Jeni and Kyle were tireless in taking care of us for the entire race. I mean, these people gave us cocoa, rubbed our shoulders, mounted our lights and cheered us on every minute of the race. DJ had gotten me a tent at the last minute, and Mark & Eve lent me their cozy sleeping bag. My teammates were so mellow, beautiful, and wonderful to race with. We took first place and made our light sponsor proud. I met more cool people with whom I hope to ride again. It was a big 24 hour love fest.

Will Tits of Steel race next year, or just go down as a one hit wonder? Who can say, but I can't help wondering, what would have happened if we had actually trained for this?

CHDH - Part Deux

2007-06-11T19:23:00.000-07:00

by Allie

Scene of the crime: Carnegie SVRA - Livermore, CA
Course: Dry, hard, dusty...faaast
Stan's Tubeless setup: Tasty!!

The second Corral Hollow Downhill race was Sunday, and again, RideSFO did an outstanding job of course building, venue, awards, prizes, shuttle, "maul and haul" (medics), and everything else that made this race series such a blast.

The course had changed since the last one. The g-out line had changed, the ground was a bit more loose, a double was placed very close to a pretty wild off-camber turn which made it nearly impossible for me to get enough speed to clear, but since the wind was pretty stiff it was good to stay on the ground for most of the course.

The practice and race runs were clean, but come to find out right after the pro gals finished, there was one time missing. We were given the option of rochambeau-ing for placing or taking another run. We decided to ride. Again, clean descents for all...except one, which is a real bummer since we all took the gamble on another run. I actually had a 100% clean weekend, which was key for a 1st place finish. I might not have been fastest down the course every run, but since the run was clean it gave me the fastest time. Sometimes slower is faster and I guess that's racing.

I have to tout the Stan's wheel set again. They're light and they were easy to get rolling immediately. Sturdy, light and stiff. I had some trouble with a non-cooperating DH tire and had to throw a tube in - I was pleasantly surprised to learn that since the valve stem unscrews there is no need to take the entire rim strip out! Easy, easy easy!!!

I wore the Fox Launch Suit and Launch knee/shin guard combo, which were very comfortable, even in the heat, but thankfully I didn't have to put any of my protective equipment through any "testing" trials this time!

Again, the guys at RideSFO really make everyone feel welcome, especially the gals. Phil has really worked hard to accommodate the women's field and has done a great job. Although the women's field was much smaller than last time I was super stoked to see another Bella, Ivy out there on Saturday rocking the course!

Please gals, come out and race this next one!!!

A handy little Q&A:

Q: I've never raced DH, would like to try, but am afraid of getting in someone's way. Are the guys all agro and will they yell at me or run me over if I'm picking my way down the course?

A: Everyone here is really cool and helpful. In the very unlikely event that something like this would happen one of the guys would probably go kick the offender in the tender parts for you. Another added bonus: You get to see Waylon Smith in a skin suit.

Q: Do I need a full DH sled to race this?

A: Although it would help soak up all of the bumpies a freeride bike will work just fine.

Q: Do I need full DH protective gear?

A: A full face helmet, knee/shin and elbow guards are strongly encouraged.

Q: Does anyone have extra gear they would be willing to lend me so I can try this event the next time?

A: YES! pm me - I have an extra set of full gear that I'd love to lend out for this.

Dash for Cash and EMC Criterium

2007-06-11T19:21:00.001-07:00

by Flandria

Dash for Cash Crit, Cat 4, Field Size 20

Bella Team Mate: Mo

The course has four corners, wide lanes and long stretches. The weather was freezingly cold and as the fog rolled in, the wind picked up pretty much in every category race. Tail wind, cross winds and head wind all mixed up. It was hard to determine the wind direction in the last stretch before the last corner to the finish. The finish was more than 250m sprint stretch.

Last year, it was a dash for cash every lap, this year we had 5 premes of $30. I preferred last years race format because it made the race a lot more interesting. It was less wind last year but then we get to sprint every lap.

The race started out calm and remained pretty reasonably calm due to the strong crosswind. There were a couple of attacks but it was for the premes. It was going to be too hard to get a way with a couple of people because of the wind.

The teams to look out for were Protech and Form Fitness. They have strong riders and with just me and Mo - we decided to see how the game plays out. The wind was a big variable more than anything. Everytime there was an attack, the pack brought it back or they all sat up. After every preme, there was no threat of a break away. Metromint took 2 of the 5 premes. They had two in the team and both lead out each other to win the premes.

The last two laps as usual started picking up and I positioned myself where I wanted to be. As soon as everyone hit that last corner, everyone sprinted and I was able to get on a Protech wheel. Form Fitness and Pegasus got first and second. I sprinted past Protech for third. Sweet.

EMC Crit, Cat 3/4, Field Size 40

Bella Team Mates: Tracey, Soni and Kim

The weather was better today. It was sunny when I woke and drive up to Pleasanton was pleasant. The wind subsided and was calmer. The course has four corners but a lot smoother and curved turns. The road was re-paved, it was pretty smooth surface.

Right at the start, the masters 4/5 race had a bad crash right on their sprint finish. I heard a pain scream and run out to see who it was. My hunny was racing in that race and my heart dropped. It was an EMC racer...not good. The officials made us lap around the course a couple of times then we waited until the ambulance tended to the EMC racer.

The start was F-A-S-T. We had a lot of Cat 3 women in the race because they didn't have a Cat 1-2-3 womens race. The teams that had the numbers were Metromint, Pegasus, Dolce Vita, Alto Velo, Protech.

Tracey, Soni, Kim including myself were all trying to go for a good position. It was a challenge! The pack was big. It was a repeated mushrooming and stringing out. It was fast all the way to the end. Teams were tagging each other pushing a fast pace. It was insane! We had some sketchiness on the corners as everyone was in battle for positioning. Tough crowd...

There were several attacks and a couple of pseudo-breaks I saw but it didn't stick as the organization wasn't there.

With 5 more laps to go, the speed increased. We were strung out, then the speed came down at 4 more laps to go. At lap 3, the pace started picking up and this time, more positioning taking place and there's only several spots up there! I was about 25 spots or more behind the leader. At 2 more laps to go, a Dolce Vita racer drilled the peloton pushing our limits! Insanely powerful and strong up in the front! I was still in the same position trying to sort myself out and just hanging on the demonic speed...ouch! Everyone had their cozy positions...oy.

I finished a reasonable 9th overall. I saw Stacey come in on my left and she finished 10th. Since Cat 3/4 were picked separately, we found out from the results that there were several 3's in front of us except that strong Aimee Baker from Protech (She had Shawn Bausman leading her out again! Shawn won overall and behind her was Aimee - dang.)... Myself and Stacey finished 2nd and 3rd on the podium. Yay Bellas!

Maillot Jaune...if only briefly...at Tour of Kensington Valley

2007-06-11T19:17:00.000-07:00

by Monica

What a fantastic weekend, spent playing "Tour de France" at the 2007 Tour of Kensington Valley (Brighton, Michigan). My Bella Fella and I both took the plunge this weekend, trying out this newly converted stage race (was an established road race until this year) as our first "real" road race. ("Real"? ... something other than a time trial.) For beginners, this was an omnium (points) style race. Many thanks to Bella Dianna Rose & Priority Health’s Kathy Kirk for answering my many many (MANY) naïve questions & offering lots of advice last week! Here’s the scoop:

Stage 1: TT / Prologue (May 19). 1st/5

For such a super-short race, the 2.7 mile closed course in Kensington Metropark caused a lot of pre-race angst ! Last week, message boards were filling up with discussions about “the huge hill” on the TT course & debates about TT bike vs. road bike were flying through cyberspace. Race organizer Joe Lekovish even posted a video series of the course to help people decide “which bike to use”.

As it turns out, “the hill” was greatly exaggerated. It was very short and gentle & I was extremely happy that I chose my TT bike. A 1.5ish mile descent with a slight rise and swoopy curve at the end, turnaround a cone in a wide road, then climb back up to the start line. It was over and done in 6.5 minutes, which was fast enough for a cat 4 win & and put me in the yellow jersey for the next stage !J

Stage 2: Criterium (May 19). 4th/6

Bella cheerleaders!!! Yay! Dianna & her little guy Matthew came out to watch and visit (& maybe to make sure I was following all of the great tips and advice...um, sorry if I disappointed!) – THANK YOU!!! You’ll see some great photos taken by Dianna later in this thread. (And maybe she’ll post a picture of Matthew too – he’s a little sweetie!)

Ok…back to the race. Held in a business park a couple of hours after the TT, the crit was 8 laps of a 1.5ish mile closed course. After hearing so many “crash” stories & being very new to group riding, I was grateful that the cat 4 field was small…only 6 riders. [And also grateful that I saw the horrendous men’s cat 5 finish line crash after my race was done.] The more numerous 1/2/3 women were on the course at the same time, but we didn’t see them. I tried to apply all of the “teachings” from Kathy, Dianna, and velobellabb for riding w/out team, but in the end I wound up just doing a lot of experimenting and learning about how people (and how I) would or wouldn’t react. A very good learning experience on many levels......and I wasn’t last…...4th/6 & bye bye yellow jersey!

Stage 3: Road Race (May 20). 5th/7

By Sunday’s road race, I had answered some questions about what my strengths/weaknesses are, but hill climbing (relative to the other riders) was still an unknown. The course was 3 x 8.5 mile loops of scenic, quiet roads in Kensington Metropark, including several rolling hills, one steeper climb, and a Paris-Roubaix-esque turnaround in a shelled/gravelly parking lot.

I rode along for the first loop to get a feel for the other riders & how I would climb relative to them…and, unfortunately for this course, quickly determined that climbing is a weakness (…for now)! I skirted a crash that took out one rider and delayed another, & things went well until the steepish climb on the 2nd loop -- when I and another rider were dropped. The other dropped rider was no where to be seen, so the rest of the race was a “reverse breakaway” for me … trying to bridge back to the lead group of 4. Embarrassing confession: Trying to catch up was actually really fun! I did get the lead group back within sight & the gap was diminishing as the final lap finished. But I couldn’t make up the difference in time & finished 5th/7. Many thanks to Sarah McGuire (Priority Health) for encouragement & coaching tips during our cool down lap!

Century Ride around Lake Tahoe

2007-06-11T19:14:00.001-07:00

by Diana

I am back from what is rightfully named "America's Most Beautiful Bike Ride". I was one of 3400 riders! (Over 2000 of them were Team in Training riders.)

The morning was brisk so I started the ride with leg warmers, arm warmers and the Bella gortex jacket. As the day progressed I stripped down to just the Bella short sleeve jersey and Bella shorts! And what did my bike wear? I wish I had a photo to show you, but I had this very cute little pink basket on my handlebars and a pink bell that I rang when I passed someone. (After all, I am a Bella now.) It made this very odd whining sound at faster speeds! hee hee Part of the charm of doing this ride is that every Team in Training team from the different states will decorate their helmets to indentify themselves. (Detroit had half of a Motown Record on their helmet which very much made them look like they had mohawks!)

Going into this ride I was far less confident than I had been in years past. Why? Well, I have a nine month old so I have not done any training in earnest since September of 2005! Pre-Matthew I could do a flat century in about 4 1/2 hours and a mountain century in about 5 1/4. I knew I had a better chance of seeing an alien then I did finishing with a time remotely close to my historical times. LOL!!!

Despite the lack of TITS (you know....Time In The Saddle), I did quite well. I did many of the miles solo, but managed to find a few fast groups so I could suck some wheel! Somehow I finished this 100 mile mountain course in 5 hours 34 minutes. I joke to my closest friends that I now have a twelve pound battery pack to draw from since my pregnancy! However, I think there are probably easier and more effective ways to find power when you need it.

The best part of the ride??? The cheers I heard! Yep, I heard several "Go Bella" shouts. One guy from Tennessee said he rides with his Bellas on occasion. I was even fortunate enough to meet another Bella! She was a coach for one of the regional Team in Training teams out on the ride.

Yep, I'll be doing the ride again next year I am sure. If you have the time or desire to ride a very challenging course, I highly suggest it! See attached photo for a pic at the rest stop. Yep, the whole ride has scenery just as beautiful!

6 hours of addison oaks mtb race

2007-06-11T19:10:00.001-07:00

by Dana

my awesome friend kim volunteered to be an honorary bella for the day and be my teammate for the 6 hours of addison endurance mtb race.

the weather was cold and cloudy, with some drizzle coming down intermittently all morning. we signed up for the 2 person open sport class and had 3 other teams to compete against... all men!

kim started out the race, fought the crowds at the start, and got pushed hard during the first lap... she tagged me in the chute and i took off. i was feeling really nervous and not quite 'in the zone'. about 2 miles into the course there was a really really tight section. i came in with a little too much speed and not enough focus on my driving and clipped my handlebar on a tree. i freaked out, squeezed both braked and did a somersault still clipped into my bike. i landed hard on my back and the nose of the saddle somehow whacked me hard on the lower back. i was really shook up but calmed down enough to get back on the bike and finish my lap while obsessing over whether i had seriously hurt my back and/or neck. i rode a bit more cautiously and chatted with some 12 hour solo guys who were very encouraging (thanks carlos and travis) for the rest of the lap. i tagged kim at the chute and warned her that i did not know if i could go back out right away, if at all.

our velo fella rob met me at the chute and helped my back to the tent and assessd the damage. he made sure i drank and had a gel, and cleaned the hunks of dirt out of my shifter pods and brake levers. he gave me a pep talk, and i decided that i would at least do 1 more lap so that our team would not be disqualified (each rider was required to do 2 laps.).

when kim was expected back i went into the lap counting chute to meet her but she never arrived. we expected her to be out for 40 min (7 mile laps) but it had been over an hour and i started to worry. then the announcer informed everyone that a man had a very bad crash on a split log skinny at the end of the course and that an ambulance was coming to take him out on a backboard. then some friends came through the cute and told me that kim had stopped to administer 1st aid to the man who was hurt. she stayed with him out there for over 30 minutes, kept him immobilized, and covered up so he would not go into shock until EMS got there. it ended up that the man broke his back, and if he had been moved he might have been paralyzed!

after the injured rider was put in the ambulance kim rode the 1/2 mile to the chute and i left for my second lap. i warned them that i was going to take it easy after my fall... but once i got out there the sun came out and i started feeling stronger and more confident. i was sore, but working hard out there. i made it back so much faster than kim and rob expected that she was hanging out at the tent when i came down the straightaway to the chute. i yelled out to her and she had to scramble to get on the bike and meet me for the tag!!

during my recovery i decided to check the preliminary results and discovered to my disbelief that we were not in last place, but appeared to be tied for 3rd!! i was so excited that somehow kim and i were in the running for a prize against a team of men, despite our early problems.

i let our velo fella know that if we really worked hard that we could still be competitive. he let kim know when she came back and we were on fire. what had started out as a just for fun race ended up really getting our competitive spirit going.

we realized that we were coming up on the 4pm deadline for starting laps very soon. i got in from my 3rd lap around 2:30 and kim went out. rob and i were trying to figure out how many more laps we could squeeze in before 4. we were still tied for 3rd.

kim came back in from her 4th lap at about 3:15 and just yelled "ride fast- so i can go out again!!" so i went out and rode as hard as i could. despite feeling really fatigued and sore i hammered on the flats and stood on the climbs. i rode in the big ring on a lot of the singletrack where i had always used the middle before. all i could think of was how rotten i would feel if i got back at 4:00:02 and kim couldn't get out for another lap.

my ffg friend chris caught me at the last mile and told me i had to sprint the rest of the way to make it. this was a flatter section so hammered all the way to the tents and the chute. rob was waiting and started yelling when he saw me!! i had made it back with 4 minutes to spare!! kim went out for a hard 5th lap. i drank my endurox and cracked open an oberon. we finished with 9 laps total and 3rd place. the 1st place guys had 10 laps. 2nd also had 9 laps but finished ahead of us. 4th had just 7!!! we didnt't realize it but we manage to get ahead by 2 laps in the last hour!

we were so proud of our come from behind finish in a class full of men!! we won cool messenger bags filled with swag with the 6 hours of addison oaks logo on the front.

Firecracker at Falls City

2007-06-11T19:06:00.000-07:00

by Shannon

So this past weekend my husband, Noah, and I headed to Portland, Oregon for a weekend of riding, racing and, well, family time. It was a beautiful weekend until the evening before the race in which it started pouring. It poured most of the night and most of the next day. We drove from Portland where my sister lives down to Falls City for the Firecracker MTB race. The race is held at a free ride park, that should tell you how the course is going to look. It was raining when we got there but I decided I needed to pre ride. So I went out and got some pre race mud. The course climbs on a fire road for some time before it turns left and heads up a muddy slippery pitch, in which at the top you get to climb over tree which is about waist high, unless you can ride the off camber slippery ladders that go up and down each side. You then hit the fire road again for about 1/2 mile until you make a right turn up a totally unridable climb. This was the longest hike a bike I have ever seen in a XC race and once again quite slippery. Once to the top more ladders to get over some more downed trees and then another fire road up. Once at the top it is fun downhill for about a mile, turns to fire road for a little then it turns left and goes straight down the hillside, crazy dhing. From there the DH is fun for a little a few more ladders one with a drop at the end then a fire road decent which makes a 180 and goes straight up a slipppery mudd climb back to the start finish. It sounds like a lot but it was all compacted in to all but 4.5 miles. Now to the race. I felt pretty good. The course is totally my husbands style so I felt a little strange with him on the sidelines watching Noah. I started pretty good, no one would go so I took lead and a couple of girls went with me. I let them by and hung on the rear wheel for awhile. We climbed up and up and when we finally got to the downhill one of the girls was downhilling like my husband, insanely fast. I was dropped. I was having problems with my glasses so I had to take them off. This turned out to be interesting because when we hit the fire road decent I was going so fast that it was like I was being attacked my a million little mud nazi's. It was crazy, I couldn't see anything, If I opened my eyes I would get splatted with mud and then my contacts would move all over. I decided then that I needed to put my glasses on before the Fire road next time, even if I couldn't see out of them. I lost a lot of time the first laps trying to figure out the vision issue and just getting used to riding in the mud. I actually got caught by another girl, which pissed me off so I stepped up my downhilling the third and fourth lap. The awsome thing was that as muddy as it was my shifting stayed perfect and my brakes worked awsome the entire time like there wasn't any mud at all. Got to love Easton and SRAM. My husband put on a Nobby Nik and a Skinny Jimmy so my climbing traction was awsome even though it was slick as snot, I could ride better than I could walk. So I kind of settled in the Second and third lap. I haven't raced much there year and I think it was showing. I was unsure of how my body would do (especially my knee) so I settled in and I shouldn't have. The last lap I decided I needed to go. So I cranked the climb. Just as hard as I could go 185 plus Heart rate the entire time, and pushed the downhill, testing my limits. I made some awsome time on the girls in front of me and put 3 minutes on the girl I passed at the begining of the lap. Now if I could just figure out how to get my mind and body to push that hard the entire way. It was a good race, I got 3rd to some amazing riders so I am happy. I was so caked in mud, about 1/4 inch on my bum and I couldn't even unzip my jearsey because there was too much mud in the zipper. My face was unrecognizable. The best part about it was I got to race my mountain bike and race on some awsome trails improving my skills. After the road race last weekend I have realized my true passion lies with the nobby tires. I just LOVE mountain biking.

So for those wondering how my knee is doing, here is a little update. My friend is a rep for a certain bike company (name not to be disclosed) he gave me their newest pair of MTB Shoes to try. I switched over 2 weeks ago and have been riding them soley. They are very very stiff and seem to keep me more in alignment. Between that, Physical Therapy, icing twice a day, and motrin, my knee seems to be doing a little better. Maybe I am mental but it seems better. I still have pain when racing but it is tolerable for now. I am hoping this is a trend and I will be back to myself in the next month. I am just so happy to be racing at all right now, that placings don't matter. They will come when they come. Welll Noah and I are off to support my husband this weekend for his first every solo 24 hour race. Should be fun!!! I will enjoy his pain I think after doing it solo last year. He He He.

Until next time...

Happy Trails.

Smokin' - SERC #6, Jackson GA

2007-06-11T19:04:00.000-07:00

by Tasha

2.5 weeks after graduation and I'm putting my B.Sc to work with a job in the local coffeeshop. And biking. Brother and I were on the road at 530am for the sixth race in the SERC (Southeastern Regional Championship) series. I woke up as we were going through downtown ATL and saw the rising sun in a apocalyptic-looking gray haze. Not clouds. Freakin' smoke, drifting north from the huge wildfires in the south Georgia swamps. The swamps dried out (the state is already in a 100-year drought, and it isn't even June yet; scientists say that we need several tropical storms to break the drought cycle and extinguish the fires.) and now the peat is burning. The smoke regularly drifts all the way into the north GA mountains where I live.

Jackson is a typically south GA looking place. Pines and red clay. The course was at a nature center, on land that was probably farmed 50 or 60 years ago judging from the age of the forest and the steep terraces that we rode up and down repeatedly. I volunteered to be a rabbit for the kids' race and almost missed my own warmup thanks to one of the little shrimps who required shepherding (he was walking his bike up and down the hills...we ended up walking out together while he told me ALL about dogs and Star Wars).

Started the race at 930 in dense smoke. Race SMRT Cowie. S-M-R-T smart. Grab second wheel, stay there, try not to breathe too hard. The smoke was fog-thick for the first two of three laps and I inhaled so much of it that my snot was black. And it was dusty. But my Zeal Zests did remarkably well in the nasty conditions. The polarized lenses weren't too dark, and they kept dusty smoky crap out of my eyes.

Incidentally, I decided that I needed high performance eyewear for graduation too, so I wore my PINK PINK PINK Juice Zeals perched on my head when I picked up my diploma from the Vice Chancellor. (By the way the Zeal office and warehouse are built from recycled styrofoam and concrete blocks, and they do a bunch of other minimal packaging and major recycling things. This is super cool. Check their website at http://www.zealoptics.com/company/eco_zealot.htm?m=4&s=3 for more info.)

The first three women gapped the field at the start. I was super sneaky. Paula and I got away from Kym on the last lap, and when she slipped on a steep climb I kept going. Carefully, so she wouldn't think I was breaking away and try to chase. Once I was out of her sight I took off. (Note to self: this trick will never ever work again with Paula and Kym so don't try it next weekend.) And then nearly crashed into my dumb brother crossing the finish line. (Tristan, the youngest in the pro/semipro class at 18, took 3rd.) But I managed a nice little finish salute anyway. My first ever.

And then I couldn't figure out how to open the bottle of champagne on the podium, so Kym had to help me because everyone else ran away when I started shaking the bottle. (I know how to open beer bottles, not champagne bottles.) Then I sprayed the crowd. And drank the remainder. Warm champagne is the best way to finish a race. Fun!

Kern County Stage Race

2007-05-22T12:40:00.000-07:00

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

2007-05-09T21:46:00.000-07:00

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.

Corral Hollow Downhill Series #1: Everything good!

2007-04-23T08:25:00.000-07:00

by Allie

It’s been a long weekend spent in the dustbowl of Carnegie State Rec area where the first race of the Corral Hollow Downhill Series was held on Sunday. I just got home, am still dirty and am pretty spent so here’s a rundown of events in my semi-conscious state.

Saturday: Practice from 9-2pm. Get up at 7, drive to Jackie’s, load up, pile in and take off. I had been honestly dreading the return to this venue since a disastrous race run a few years ago and since then I had built up the parts I dreaded most in my mind. I guess that’s what happens when demons of a bad race are allowed to live.

We arrived and the place was hopping. Registration was going, shop tents went up, bbq smoker was heating up, even a DJ mixing and spinning tunes. The vibe was definitely fun and positive to set the mood for a good ride. When the shuttle (flatbed stake trucks) arrived we loaded up into the back (moo-cow style) in groups of about 30 or 40 and they hauled us away up to nearly the top. From there it was a few hundred yard uphill hike to the start, a grade too steep for the trucks. I threw on my helmet, snapped my trusty Zeals to my face, took a breath and let the brakes go as best I could down the ultra-steep start, right to the place where I had eaten it hard in prior years.

Something snapped. I don’t know if it was my bike and me actually being in tune or my head being pulled out of my rear at that exact moment, but whatever it was made me focus, load up and lean into the berm that had previously sent me flying. I pinned it and was sent accelerating down the course!

I was having a good time right up until I saw the 20’ double in the middle of the trail. Slowing down I didn’t pay attention to position and slowly slid off of the side of the takeoff. I never actually did get a good look at it, but I heard someone on the course say “I saw a girl launch this earlier.” That was all I needed. I turned the bike around and headed back up to get a good head of steam. CHARGE!!! Pedaling as hard as I could I hit the takeoff and from the air got a good look at the length of the double…and the transition wasn’t getting any closer! CLANK-BRAAAAAAP! The rear wheel didn’t quite make it but I was still upright. That was all I needed.

Finishing the rest of the course I took a couple more runs and headed home. It poured rain on the dusty course for the rest of the night.

Sunday: The dirt was Velcro. In my practice run I did the following to prepare for a solid race run: Put more air in my tires, practiced a faster line around a tight turn, learned to make motorcycle noises when hitting the double.

It all came together for a solid, yet conservative run. Good enough for third place in a field of about 8 pro women! A HUGE showing for a local DH event!!!

I was 10 seconds off of 1st place and I know where I can make it up and what I’ve got to work on.

Gals, Please come out to this race series if you have any desire to try DH! It's an awesome course and every racer is appreciated and treated like a pro! The guys at RideSFO.com have done alot of work to make an outstanding venue for our local area!

Cat-ywompus

2007-04-20T11:00:00.000-07:00

by Jen

This was my tenth anniversary otter. Woot! I'm not generally a fan of the early morning start. Really, nothing important in life should ever happen before 10 am. But John and I hauled ourselves out of the every stylin' Salinas Motel 6, drank our Bella Blend espressos, ate our rainbow sprinkles, and drove on out to Laguna Seca all dark and early like. Unlike the last few years of chaos, we got to drive right in and park real close like (last year, we ignored parking attendants, signage, and assorted barricades and dumped the car at random - miraculously, it was actually still there when we got back.). This early morning start thing, looking better and better.

Bike race part. Chatted it up with Ryan at the start. Always fun to have friends at the bike race. Rolly-rollyied around the track toward the back, then used that nice taily wind up the road climb to find the front for the start of the dirty fun. There followed lots of bikey riding. Woopty-woop up and down the hilly hills. Got all cattywampus in the sand. Ack, who put that there? Pedal pedal pedal up the little climbs. Wow, cool rainforesty single track. Is that moss hanging in the trees? Pedal, pedal. Swoosh through the ticky-tacky corners. Bobsleddery. Pedal, pedal. What's this road descent doing here? And back up we go. Woosh. Oh, my, that's quite a head wind isn't it. Ok, almost there, gotta go hard, maybe I can catch a few before the line. PEDAL, PEDAL, PEDAL. Oops, one more climb, forgot about this one. PEDAL, PEDAL. Down the track. PEDAL. Any y'all seen a finish line 'round here? Woop, there it is.

I finished somewhere around 16th of 40ish. Weird thing, these combined age groups. It was too much fun being a Bella; lots of cheering fans, which made me grin. That, and the socks; it's all about the socks. Big Congrats to Ryan for the podium finish!

John managed two laps without harming any trees or other wildlife. Both John and bike finished in one piece.

Then, I did some booth time (pics above). It was such onerous work, what with the dancing and hula-ing, and the coffee drinkin'. I flaired out lots of little (and not so little) girls with beads. So shiney. Happiness all around.

Boy 1: I wanna get one of these boy beaters for my girlfriend.
jen: What size do you need?
Boy 1: Uhhhh.
(jen holds up some sizes)
Boy 1: Uh, she has like big boobs (makes boob shape with hands)
jen thinks, congratulations, are they real?
Boy 2: get the small, it'll be all like tight and stuff. she'll look hot.
Boy 1: Uhhhh, ok, I'll take a small.

All Downhill at Sea Otter

2007-04-20T10:48:00.000-07:00

by Allie

It could have been the aroma of Bella Blend whipping through the gale force winds, possibly it was the snazzypants for this year’s theme or maybe it really was the beer, but DAMN I had a great time at ‘Otter this year! (well, minus Saturday’s Dual Slalom fiasco, after which I admittedly slinked off to the back of the trailer to throw my own little pity party. Attendees: Me, myself and our pal Jose C.)

The Sea Otter downhill course is nothing new to me, however the beating my confidence took on last year's course left me a little freaked out this year.

Friday’s first practice run was very cautious and reserved but unwarranted. The guys who basically had to rebuild the course after last year’s wear did a fabulous job!

I kept riding through practice and although the course was slightly duffy, the “grin-factor” was climbing to about an 8!

Saturday was dual slalom. The event happened, now it’s over. That’s all I have to say about that. Fast forward to Sunday.

We practiced Sunday morning, and Saturday’s deluge left the course’s dirt tacky, grippy and all-around yummy!!! I took a couple of practice runs and then stayed up top to play in the berms. The Sea Otter downhill course berms are pretty legendary and by the time I felt like I was railing the set of “S” berms, the course had rocketed up to “grin-factor” 10!!! WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEe!!!!!!

Needless to say I was having a great time. My race run, although not fast, did a huge boost for my riding confidence. I know where I lost time, however it was not due to uncontrolled bobbles or tactical mistakes. I simply didn’t pedal hard enough. Lesson learned but a good time had. I wasn’t first, but not nearly last either.

Thanks to Bella extraordinaire Jeni Udall and our Fellas Mike and Kyle for the support at the downhill race and for making me wear a jacket so I didn’t catch cold. Actually, thanks to everyone who was there watching and cheering on. It’s an awesome push to hear people rooting along the course!

Copperwhopyerarse

2007-04-09T20:35:00.000-07:00

by Marian

All the boys at the shop had been telling me for days how absolutely maximum extreme Copperwhopyerarse is. I got excited instead of scared after listening to the elaborate Copperwhopyerarse stories of "uphill, in the snow, both ways, we had to rub sticks together to make fire, I saw my life flash before my very eyes."

So I'm excited about the race. And I'm excited because it was going to be the first time I raced with my rockin' teammate, Amy.

Our race wasn't until 11:20 so we had a reasonable, downright civilized departure time of 8 am. I rolled up to Amy's house at about 7:40 and Amy, pro that she is, is already loaded and ready. Chad, Amy's husband, tells us that the course is hard enough and that we should just "let the course do the work for you. Don't feel like you have to work to get the pack settled because the course is tough enough."

So, off Amy and I went, with a quickie stop at Peets. Mmm, coffee, how I love you. Quickie stop about 45 minutes from the course to get gas and I, amped on the large Peets coffee and not one who understands the concept of moderation, stupidly purchased a Red Bull. And not the standard issue 8 oz Red Bull, but the Big Girl 12 oz can of Red Bull. For after the race I tell myself.

Get to the racecourse and it's the standard registration, "Oh, hey, good to see you, how you doing", (Amy knows everyone!) and the port-o-pots.

Amy and I head back to the car and I hear the Red Bull calling me. I couldn't hear the voice of reason over the pounding of my heart, so as we're changing into our spandex superhero suits, I polish it off. I rationalize it by telling myself that "It's got about 300 calories and it's liquid, so I'll be able to absorb it easily before the race."

Pro Tip from Amy: Pin your number on your jersey before you put it on to ensure full three pocket access. It's really a good tip, however, I found that pinning my number was a bit more technically challenging because by this time I was all hopped up on caffeine.

Not enough warmup for either Amy or I.

To the line. 16 Cat 4 women in our race. 3 Velo Bellas. Soni, Amy, and myself. A couple women from Nor Cal, Deb from Left Coast, and some other people in spandex on bikes with two wheels. It was kind of a blur.

Off we roll. Soni, Amy, and I had staked out spots on the line and so we were all able to hold great positions for the first part of the race, although I think I let myself get pushed off of people's wheels a little to easily. I still don't fully understand the finer points of cromulent pack etiquette. Oh well. It'll come.

First couple of miles: choppy, choppy, choppy pavement, which I'm totally fine with, I'm not afraid, but I'm not so happy riding up in a group on crappy roads.

First lap, we kind of grind up the the alternatively textured hill, but because we're at an uphill tilt, it's not so bad. It's decently long climb and the pack is grim, concentrated, and focused. No small talk about who you are, where you're from, how was your drive, isn't this nice weather, man the wildflowers are going crazy, eh? Just grinding, grinding, grinding uphill, uphill, uphill.

We get closer to the top, where it flatted out and you can pick up a little speed before the last kicker, and one of the Nor Cali girls tells the other women at the front "Alright! Let's whip it up and string the pack out. Let's go!"

When I heard this I just couldn't help but ask myself:

Why? I mean, we hadn't even done the first lap. Jiminy juice boxes, we hadn't even done 10 miles! Why, why do you want to string the pack out? Why do you want to "whip it up"? What is so bad about enjoying the first lap as a pack, with a group of 16 women? I mean, I hardly ever get to enjoy a nice ride with 16 people, let alone a nice ride with 16 women. That just doesn't happen. Can't we all play nice for the first lap and enjoy this as a group?
But noooo.

The Nor Cali girls want to "whip it up!" and so, because I'm not going to get strung off the back so easy-like, and because I'm fully-caffeinated and wearing my smarty-pants, I throw out some Devo. You know, "Whip it. Into shape. Shape it up. Get it straight. Try to detect it. It's not to late." But, thankfully, I'm not the only one who's not fully on the over-eager style "Let's whip it up! Let's string the pack out!" page, so a couple other people join in.

And, I'll admit right here and now that I was a total bitch. Why? I didn't want to string the pack out. What's in it for me to string the pack out this early? Nothing! So I would ride up to the front (deliberately!) of the group and then downshift, sit up, and soft pedal. Maybe that was the wrong thing to do, but I'm sorry I just did not see why it was necessary to break the pack up in the first 10 miles. Especially when I've got some teammates I would like to see come with me. And besides, it's to early in the race to be working that hard.

We reach the top of the first climb, and when I look around I see that Soni is still with us.
Yay!
But when I look back, I don't see Amy.
No, no, no, no, no!
This is not at all what I had planned, this is not at all part of my scheming. I'm kind of worried because Amy's not one to get dropped easily so I wonder if something bad happened. (I find out later that yes, Amy was struggling with some asthma issues. Ugh. Total bummer.) But Soni was still with us (about 8 of us I think?), so I had a familiar, friendly face and was content.

Through the "flats" which weren't so flat and were actually awfully windy we tried to paceline it. Key word "tried." The ringleader suggested that we have a rotating paceline and pull off to the right. No, the other right. Wait, what are we doing? Which side are we pulling off to? Are we pulling through or dropping back? I am so confused. Good thing Soni was there because she had it all dialed and all I had to do was copy her. Yay!

Blah, blah, blah. Then there were 6 and when we turned into the wind, we lost Soni. Nooooooo! No, no, no, no! Why did we want to string the pack out? What was the point of this?

And then there were 5. Another climb, which wasn't that bad, and then that rattly downhill.

Now I think I've made some considerable gains in my descending skills, but it was noticeable that those Nor Cali women gapped me on that descent. Note to self.

Neutral feed and I bobble my first bottle, and yes there's a reason I ride bikes but maybe I should spend some time practicing that because that was positively heartbreaking dropping that bottle. Heartbreaking.

Thankfully, 50 feet up the road there was another feeder, which I didn't bobble, but the lid was screwed on all cattywompus style (yes, you can cross-thread a water bottle!) and so every time I took some water, only half would end up in me and the other half of it would end up spilling all over me. Grrr.

But, Hernandohoot's out, cheering for the ladies, and shouting out encouragement, like the color black, is always in style.

We climb. We paceline, or rather everyone else pacelines and I try to fake it as best I can. Blah, blah, blah. Finally, we roll into sighting of the last hill and our pacelining efforts are breaking up. No sense in pacelining up the hill, so we spread over the road. I climb and I look left and I look right. Wait, that's funny. Where did you all go? I wasn't trying to attack so why are you all back there?

So I shout out to the ladies, because maybe it's still a little early to go off and play by myself and I hadn't gapped them that much, "Hey, c'mon, let's go ladies!" But, no response from the ladies. In fact they get smaller. What's up with that?

I had to make a choice. Those Nor Cali women put time into me on the downhill. I had about 4 or 5 more miles of racing. I can sit up and wait for the four ladies back there or I can put my head down and go for it.

Alright, head down, time to get rolling. I look back and am thrilled (and shocked) at how much time I was able to put into them. Oh, but it hurts. The hill flattens and I big ring it. Oh, I am ready to rock! More climbing. Ok, this whole climbing thing is really getting on my nerves now.

Finally, the top and it's time to rail it on the descent. I've got the mental image of the Nor Cali women dropping me on the descent so I'm gunning it. Zen, I am one with my bike. I am one with the road. I am a descending genius.

Until I look back and lo and behold, one of the Nor Cali women is back there in the rearview. How? I had dropped you like a stone on that climb! I didn't even see you when I looked back at the top of the hill! How have you caught up to me? I'm not a crappy downhiller either. How do you do that? What is your downhill secret? Dah!

She catches me. As she rolls along side me at 35 mph+, she shouts "Work together?" And of course I respond with"Yes! Lets!"

Newsflash: In order to work together you actually have to be together. In about a minute she's waaay up the road from me, so working together becomes, well, a dream. How? How did she do that? I was barely even working the brakes! How?

Alright. Fine. We've still got some flats and some rollers, I'll just minimize the damage on the rest of this descent. Ok, here are the flats and I start working back up to her, but man, total rockstar that she was, she got herself waaaaay up the road from me. How? How? What is your secret oh Nor Cali Zen Mistress of the Downhill?

A little climb before the last 1K. I get serious about reeling her in but she's still a ways up the road from me. But she's getting closer. "Ok, I guess I need to stop messing around and get this done." She gets closer, I'm reeling her in, I'm going to make it happen, and I can taste the finish. Or maybe it's the Red Bull and the powerbar that I'm tasting.

200meters to go. It's uphill, but I've got my diesel engine getting fired up, so as we kick it up the hill, I'm able to pass her with some time to spare, still accelerating and people hollering on the sideline "You've got her, you've got her, you've got her!" and I look back and yes, I do have her, thank you. (After the race I find out that that was her husband yelling to her not to me. Ah, well, it was pretty exciting and I'm easily confused when I'm red-lining it.)

Across the line, I glance back and she's just finishing and I was a little shocked. "Is that it? Wait, did I really just finish the race? First? What? Are you sure there hasn't been some mix up with the numbers?"

And so there you have it.
Soni finished in the top ten. Yay!
Amy had some asthma problems (total bummer!) on the first climb and spent the race working with some of the other women she was able to find. She said that a couple of the women that she worked with dropped out after the first lap, which was probably not easy to take.

SERC#2, MTB in TN

2007-04-03T11:12:00.001-07:00

The Tennessee Bellas were out in force for the SERC #2 race at Chickasaw Trace Park in Columbia, TN, on Sunday, March 25. Three Bellas hit the trail in three categories, and the formidable cheering section kept the faith throughout the hot race day temps.

THE BELLAS RACE!

Angela Brown started with the first wave of one-lap Beginner Women racers at 9:00 am. Despite losing her chain twice because of a bike mechanical, she turned in a 00:60:47 lap on the 9-mile loop to take 6th place (revised to 6th from 7th because of a junior participant, according to usacycling.org).

Jennifer Moorehead challenged the Sport Women with a 4th place win in two laps on the 9-mile course. Jennifer’s lap times were 00:52:70 and 00:53:99, respectively.

Sandy Kern started in the heat of the day with the Pro/Expert Women. After a strong start, a bike mechanical kept Sandy from completing the third lap of her race.

Additional results can be found at www.goneriding.com

THE COURSE AND ADDITIONAL RACE NOTES

The day was peppered with crashes off of a hill at the beginning of the course (thank goodness our Bellas made it safely through). One accident appeared to be serious. The rider was taken by air to Vanderbilt medical and is doing fine now with what appears to be no lasting damage.

Here is a crash photo from another race and some additional course notes from Dustin Greer, who is currently the #1 ranked semi-pro XC racer and a big Bella supporter.

“It was a humid 87 degrees today when the Pro/Expert wave went off at 12:30. The trail was loose and the powder was deep in some areas. A lot of riders were complaining of chainsuck during their pre-ride on Saturday as they couldn't keep enough lube on their chains to combat the dust.”

“The course was almost exactly the same course used last year. One section was rerouted...that was the downhill that overlooked the dump, which has been moved farther into the woods. Also the finish climb was moved from the pavement into the grass on the left side of the road. The loop was just over 9 miles long. It began with a long drag in the grass that lead to a dirt road and onto a long pavement stretch, which by the way, will not be used next year. At the end of the pavement comes the famous (or infamous whichever way you look at it) steep downhill to the lower field and into the singletrack. The singletrack is rocky for the first mile, including one steep climb covered with rocks. Some of the rocks were removed making the climb much easier. After this section comes the River Trail which is flat and really fast. The Ravine Loop then takes you into a slalom section through a bamboo forest before you climb up to Rick's Trail which descends back down the hill. Then its into the Trail of Tears which features all the climbing with the worst being the last climb up to the dump. The new downhill takes you into the final section called the Black Hills Trail. These last two miles are rough and fast. There is a little climb that takes you back out to the start/finish. It's an uphill in the grass for the last 400 meters to the finish line.”

Great Job Bellas!!

De La Paz Coffee Pugs

2007-04-03T11:04:00.000-07:00

by Dee

Some people just have coffee mugs.

Not me.

A few days ago Molly brought me 5 bags of Velo Bella Coffee to give to Abby and Shelly. One bag was for me. It smells AMAZING!!

I put it on the stairs.
I went out.
I came back home.

As I was putting the key in the door to open it, I thought, why does my house smell like a coffee shop?

I opened the door and found out.

My evil pugs had attacked and mauled the coffee and strown it all over the front entrance. Coffee beans were EVERYWHERE!!!

I have no idea pugs liked coffee, but apparently it drove them into a pug nip frenzie!

They completely destroyed 3 bags. 2 bags escaped unharmed.

I gathered up all the unharmed coffee beans in the ripped up bags and kept them for myself, gave Abby one bag and I am giving Shelly the other bag on Monday. Maybe they were trying to get the cat on the label?

Weird.

But my coffee pugs are fine. I thought they'd be wired and peeing all over the house - or worse....but nothing else happened.

And the coffee is INCREDIBLE!!!!

Can we get more?