Koppenberg April 28, 2012

55+ Mix1 team Koppenberg start line
Photo: Pete Lucke

Bill Kellagher in a break
Photo: Pete Lucke

8 man break with Steve Matous, Chris Leggere
Photo: Pete Lucke

On front  1st lap where they would stay till the end
Steve Matous, Bill Kellagher, Chris Leggere in photo
Photo: Chuck Parsons, Ghisallo Photo copyright

55+ place well at Koppenberg race today!

Photo by: Steve Matous

Mix1 55+ team came out in full force for the Koppenberg today, with Bill, Butch, Chris, Steven B and Steve M all in attendance.  The wind was blowing strongly, the air temp was cold at 8:30AM and the 15 minute delay to start left us all shivering on the line.  Once underway the plan was to go out fast, get up the hill first and then drill it in the cross winds on the Mesa to get a break.  All went according to plan. Steven B led the way and Steve M took over before the famous Koppenberg steep 12-15% hill.

Steve M led the way up and at the top Bill took over and began to string out the peleton, by the time we hit Marshall road we were down to less than 10. Chris got into the mix as well and beginning the second lap we had established a firm lead over the main group with an eight man break. The next two laps were a combination of Bill, Chris and other teams attacking but in the end all 8 of us made the long slow dash on the final straight to the finish.

Chris went out first and for a time looked to be in place for the win.  However Callen Borgias (Zumxr) came from behind and powered past Chris at the finish.

Still a great day for Mix1 with Chris 2nd, Bill 3rd, Steve M 6th, Steven B 16th, and Butch 18th.

35+ Mead Roubaix

Pedal, skid, almost crash, pedal, skid, almost crash...That about sums it up. Plus Gates 4th, Thies 12th, Holbert 13th.

55+ Mead Roubaix

It was an early wake-up call for another Colorado dirt road classic.  Steve B, Butch, and Bill shook off the cobwebs from a tough day of time trailing at the Haystack raced, and hit the dirt in Mead.  You know it's going to be a hard day when you're on your trainer getting ready to race, and instead of warming up, you're just getting tired! 

There was some aggressive riding on the first of 3 laps from Steve B the Natural Grocers boys and Chris Beaudin which whittled the front group down to 10 guys.  Bill hit it hard up the hill on the 2nd lap and did some further whittling down to 5.  Chris B almost slayed us all the third and final time up the hill with a big attack, but he couldn’t follow up over the top and Bill and one rider from BO held on.  This set the stage for a 3 way sprint, which Bill took handily for the win.  Butch and Steve B came in with the next group rounding out the team placings in 11^th and 12^th respectively.

Mead Roubaix 45+ race April 22, 2012

Danny Sutter (2nd), Peter Ismert (Mix1 1st), Brad Mosier (3rd)
Photo by: Henrik Pederson

Mix1 riders Henrik Pederson, Adam Asnes, and Peter Ismert lined up at the Mead-Roubaix start line today in Mead, CO for four 13-mile laps, half dirt and half pavement. The hilly dirt sections were where the race was won or lost. All our Mix1 riders managed to stay with the main group on the first lap, despite some really rough and sandy dirt sections. They realized the course was perfect for breaking the main group up into pieces, so they stayed as close as possible from then on. Asnes, having completed a hard time-trial race the day before, fell back on the second lap, while Henrik and Peter continued on with the main group. After three hard laps of racing, Rod Yoder (Natural Grocers Cyclng) and Danny Suter (Rally Sport Cycling) made it a real race by setting the fastest pace of the day up the hills and through the dirt on the final lap. Peter managed to stay with them, along with a couple other riders (Brad Mosier and Eric Ray). Yoder and Suter rode hard and led the breakaway group to keep away from the chasers.  Once on the final stretch of pavement, all riders started taking their turns to set up for the final sprint. When the sprint started, Peter was in good position to draft when needed, then come around to win it in a photo finish.

Karen Hornbostel Memorial TT #2

Mix1 represented themselves very well again at the CCTT#2 with five guys toeing the line on a picture prefect night for racing and suspiciously low winds on this night. These conditions along with an unusual tailwind for the last mile plus to the finish made for some fast times. Again this week, Mix1 was on the podium in three different categories...way to ride like bullet trains guys!!!

Gene Palumbo - 1st - SM 50-54
Matt Gates - 2nd - SM 35+
Steve Birnbaum - 3rd - SM 55+
Jim Thies - 4th - SM 35+
Matt Segur - 9th - SM 1,2,3

2012 Haystack Time Trail podiums

Matt Gates 35+ ITT 3rd place
Photo: Jenny Lucke



35+ Team Time Trial Champions!
Photo: Jenny Lucke




45+ Team Time Trial 2nd place
Photo: Jenny Lucke




55+ Team Time Trial 2nd place
Photo: Jenny Lucke

 Great Racing today by our Mix1 team, with more than 1/2 the team racing either the individual TT, team TT of both.  We came up with podiums in all the team events and our hats are off to all the great competitors who made the racing so good today!

Mix1 Action at Federal Center today

Congratulations to all 13 Mix1 riders who raced today!

Adam lead the teams with a win in the 45+. Lee grabbed 3rd and Matt Gates 4th in 35+ and for the 55+ Butch took a 4th racing all on his own while the rest of the 55+ team did a TTT practice.

Especially a hats off to all the team mates who worked hard on behalf of the podium placers.

Karen Hornbostel Mem'l TT #1 @ Cherry Creek

Strong start to the time trial series in Cherry Creek for the team.  Of six Mix1 racers four made the podium: In 35+ race Matt Gates was 2nd and Jim Thies 3rd. 50-54 race Gene Palumbo 3rd. 55+ Steve Birnbaum 3rd.

And two of our strong men went for the SM1,2,3 race: Matt Segur taking 7th and LT Sandvik 9th.  Hats off to you boys!

Boulder Roubaix 2012

Photo by Annette Hayden, Mountain Moon Photography

Photo by David Kutcipal, 303 Photo

Bill Kellagher on his six wins of Boulder Roubaix

Photo by Emily Kellagher

About the 6 wins, I really wasn't thinking about that until after the race when it occurred to me that I have 3 of those rocks now, and I had won it a few times before they started that tradition.  It's fairly ironic because back in the 90s when I was riding 35+ I used to boycott all the dirt road races thinking that racing on dirt roads was a really stupid idea!  I finally did the Roubaix in 2002 the first year I started riding 45+ races and I won in a long solo break.  I was hooked. 

In 2004 I came in third but then the two guys in the break ahead of me got DQed on a yellow line violation.  In 2005 there was no official B-R, but they used the course a part of the Boulder Stage Race, won that one in another long solo break.  I was 2nd in 06, 4th in 07 after flatting out of the break.  In 08 it was another long solo in the rain.  The road was so potholed that I cracked my frame. 2010 was my first year in the 55s and celebrated with another long solo. 

Which brings us to yesterday's race where my team mates covered the front as I went off with Steve Crowley, #6!

Boulder Roubaix 55+ race

Boulder Roubaix is our local attempt at riding a course that is not only difficult but demanding due to the condition of the roads used.  Yesterday the dirt roads were very kind, mostly hard packed, a little loose and of course if you missed the line your body was jarred and bike bounced in washboard ruts.

For those of us racing for Mix1 in the 55+ we came to the race wondering how hard it might be.  Several teams had multiple strong riders present, many of whom were cycle cross racers as well and our field was large, 51 on the start line.

Right from the gun Steve Birnbaum went to the front setting a hard tempo that soon had the line strung out.  Steve Matous was right on his wheel (you have to be named Steve to race in this category) and when the road went up for the first time took over on front and continued to push the pace.  As we turned onto Nelson and went downhill the Steve’s let up to have some other riders pull on front.  Heading north into the next dirt section a Boulder Masters rider was on front when Steve Matous again went right past him and starting to pick up the pace, soon after in the hilly section we caught the group that started 2 minutes in front of us, the 45+4’s.

There were some young and strong riders at the front of their group who tagged onto us as we headed east along St Vrain road swelling the size of the group to 25 or 30 racers.  Heading north on the dirt again Chris, Bill and Steve M all took turns on front and created a break.  With Bill yelling “go Steve go we have a break” Mix1 rode hard to Hygiene road,  but as so often happens in the Masters categories the other teams in the break did not want to work and once we stopped working on front it came back together. 

The rest of the first lap and second lap up until heading west on Nelson road was a repeat of Mix1 working on the front pushing the pace, passing the 45+4’s on the dirt, 45+4’s catching back on the pavement with an occasional rider from another team getting on front. Most noted Dan Grygier from CO Bike Law did a long pull setting a hard tempo on front.

We spoke to the 45+4’s trying to get them to not sit on our wheels and also with our fellow 55+ racers telling them not to sit on the 45+4’s wheels just to ride our own races, but did not get much cooperation.  It certainly helped those other teams who were not working on front when we sprinted for 3^rd place at the end.

Just at the turn back onto the final dirt section at 55^th and Nelson, Steve Crowley jumped and Bill got on his wheel.  Chris and Steve M did not chase and the group seemed not to care as Steve Crowley and Bill went ahead.  Now a group of 20 or so 45+4’s and maybe seven 55+ riders rode hard but did not chase as we headed into the final long straight to the finish.  As we approached 500 meters everything changed and it was game on!

The pace quickened and just when it seemed our group would catch up to Bill and Steve Crowley Bill turned around, saw us and sprinted to the finish.  His 6^th win of the Boulder Roubaix!

The final sprint with the 45+’4’s all over the road was bedlam!  Chris came in 4^th and Steve M grabbed 9^th both four seconds behind Bill.  Steven B finished 21^th after a great day, his racing on front in the first lap setting the team up for its individual and team wins.

Cobb Lake Circuit Race 45+ race report

The Colorado State University Cycling Team hosted the Cobb Lake Circuit Race in Fort Collins. The circuit was 8 miles in length featuring the finish at the top of a hill, dirt roads, and due to the complete lack of trees, full exposure to the wind which would all play factors in the outcome to the race.

The 45s, represented by Marcel van Garderen and Pete Lucke, had six laps facing them for the race. During the first two laps, Marcel set tempo on the dirt to soften up the field and kept an eye on Pete at other times to keep him in a good position and out of the wind. This allowed for Pete to make the winning five man break on the hill with four laps to go. The group of five worked well together until a lap to go when once again attacks occured on the hill. Pete was able to get away with another rider for the final lap. They held their 30 second advantage leading into the final dirt road. Pete was able to get away on a rise at the end of the dirt road and going into the final corner at the start of the finish line hill held onto a 10 second lead on his breakaway companion for the win and the first win of the season for the 45+ squad.

One mans race: Louisville 45+ crit from Adam Asnes

There's a special feeling when putting on race wheels for the first race of the year. When I put on those carbon tubulars, my bike loses about a pound and the hum and spring of the tires while warming up gets me psyched. There was a solid race turnout and evidently plenty of others were there happy to get started with the first Colorado Cup race of the year.

In the 45+ race, our team had Peter Ismert, Marcel van Garderen and myself representing the category, with Steve Birnbaum, Butch Stinton and Bill Kellegher joining us as there was no 55+ category for this event. Peter has the most race miles and conditioning, so we discussed taking advantage of that if the opportunity presented itself. The Louisville Crit course is not particularly challenging from a technical standpoint, but there is a gentle hill after the last corner, lasting for about 600 or 700 meters. That hill can start to wear on the racers' early season conditioning when it's crunch time, but this year, there was a bit of a tailwind pushing the race up the hill and somewhat lessening its effect. The race went along fairly predictably for the first 40 minutes, with a few breaks being brought back usually within a lap or two. Steve had a strong effort leading us up the hill for one lap bringing in one such break. Of note was one move from Charley Hays, Trek Bicycle Store and a Rally Sport rider that was away for several laps, but never quite out of site. Kudo's to those two for what was clearly a hard effort.

Crunch time was inevitable and the last few laps started heating up with everyone back together. Pete, Marcel and I were all near the front of the field, when I saw an attack from Rod Yoder of Natural Grocers near the top of the hill with 3 to go. I shouted to Pete to jump in it, which he promptly did. Marcel and I swarmed to the front and the break quickly got a gap. Natural Grocers, Boulder Orthopedics and Rally Sport also swarmed the front to slow things down as they were represented. It quickly looked like this was the break that would stick and much of the rest of the field was too tired to make a consistent effort to move through the blocking. With one to go, I poised myself, still near the front, expecting to sprint for leftovers. Mike Inglis, of Tokyo Joe's jumped the field early on the last lap backstretch downhill in what I (and apparently others) thought was way too far off from the finish. Then the unpredictable happened. Up in the break Peter accelerated aggressively through the last turn and skipped a pedal sending his bike into a violent lurch and slowing the entire break as they went into evasive action. Peter went from going for the win to on the side of the road with a damaged wheel. I'm told it was pretty remarkable he didn't get close and personal with the pavement. Marcel saw Peter on the side of the road, just as we cleared the last corner at the start of the uphill and took a ferocious jump out of the field. I had been sitting on Marcel's wheel thinking he knew I was there, but he jumped so hard that he cleared a quick 20 feet ahead. This actually ended up helping me as I now had a "rabbit" to accelerate toward and I started digging in to the sprint, knowing that it was going to be a long way to the line. A quick glance back and I saw a gap behind me. Mid-way up the rise, I was back to Marcel, and catching members of the break. I kept up the push but didn't realize one Natural Grocers rider, Eric Cheezum, had been sitting on my wheel the whole way. He easily jumped past me near the line for third, which was good positioning on his part. I ended up 4th, Marcel 6th. Mike Inglis, who had jumped earlier, ended up making it entirely through the break for the win, with Eric Ray, a RallySport rider who was in the break, holding on for second.

Louisville Crit 45+ race

Monika Bunting photo

Monika Bunting photo

 

Louisville Crit-March 31st

VIEW FROM THE 35+ FIELD
The 35 plus guys towed the line with 8 team mates today, which was a strong showing for March.  Our field was larger than expected, given the ACA's new rule to not allow cat 3 in our field, after they have been allowed for the last 30 years............  Ourselves and Boulder Orthopedic were the big teams and we tried to use our size to our advantage.  Jim Thies has been riding well, so our goal was to get him in the winning break.  As a result he sat in for the first half of the race to wait for the right move, as did Matt Gates, and Josh our lazy sprinter.  So the rest of the guys covered moved with CJ, LT, Lee, Segur, and Marc up there.  There was a lot of attacking int he first 20 minutes, but honestly nothing was that strong.  Most of the attacking was coming from the regular riders as some of the strong men held back.  Things got hot about 25 minutes in and the guys were all over the front.  Jim marked his man, Michael Gibson, and they got away in a 4 man move, during a time when the race was under pressure.  It was an interesting dynamic today as the wind was blowing up, and across the hill, which is much easier than normal.   During the race pressure 3 more guys got up to the lead group and that was the only mistake our guys made all day, in not getting a second rider up there.

As such the winning 7 man move was set and with the strong teams represented, it was not coming back. Unfortunately the Boulder Orthopedics team had 2 riders in the break, and they were able to better use Grant to do the work driving things, while saving Michael Gibson for the end.  Jim was well aware of this, so he made sure to use his energy wisely, and he put in a few late attacks.  None the less it came down to a 7 man sprint, which Michael won going away, as he is a very good sprinter.  Jim made a well timed move to come from further back as other guys died and lost a bike throw at the line for 2nd, but was happy to make the podium (3rd).

The rest of the guys let the Boulder Ortho guys do the blocking and we started to attack them.  LT got away with one other rider and set up a great launching pad for Matt Gates, who got away with 4 other guys to form the second group.  Matt dominated the sprint from this group at the end and looks to be on good form.  Back in the field it was a little wild as we went from 6 to go to 1 to go in a lap, but Josh, Lee an CJ contested the field sprint for around 12th, good practice for up coming races.