Clarendon Cup, Arlington, Virginia

As Bellie has already reported, the Airforce Cycling Classic / Clarendon Cup in Arlington, Virginia, was a resounding success for the team in every aspect! We really enjoyed a day out with the Wounded Warriors from Walter Reed – their stories inspired us and their company really made the day special.

We also had the best ever support crew with Jenette making the huge trip from West Virginia to help out, even though she was unable to race due to her injuries, Staci’s husband Jeff and daughter Claire also from West Virginia, Lorena, Superwoman Michelely Bellie, Kate Flore, Marjika, Devon and a full Altarum cheering squad with supporters all round the course it seemed!! We were inspired to race out of skin!!

The race itself was brilliantly and unselfishly executed by the team, and while we didn’t achieve the top step of the podium we were hoping for, we really rode so fantastically as a team out on the race course that I have no doubt that in one race soon all the stars will align and we will come away with the coveted win. It takes practice to make perfect! To have all 5 who raced finish in the top 20 shows that the form is there. Exciting stuff!

We had a team dinner after the race which was lots of fun (although Kate V nearly had her arm bitten off by Jenette's pet Lion as you can see in the picture) then we all went our different ways until we converge again next weekend in Philidelphia for the biggest race on the U.S calendar – the Liberty Classic. Kate and I did a recon of the course in Philly yesterday, and the photo shows who we found on our adventures.....yep, we race right smack bang in the middle of Philly, passing Rocky on several occasaions!

Till then

DT

Clarendon Cup

My teammates raced an awesome race!! Our event with the injured service members was inspiring, too. I am so proud. Look for the race report from the riders later as I have to drag my arse into work right now.

Good Times Driving Home from Somerville

McLoon, Look what we found? I cannot believe I ate those Jaw Busters after they sat in White Lightning for a month but I was hungry.

Somerville, New Jersey

Kate V carving it up at Somerville

Somerville has always been a favorite race of mine – there is a really neat atmosphere in the town and the community really gets in behind the race. I also like the course, which is wide open and fast.
Something that stood out for me last year was the funeral home that was having a big party to celebrate the race (I was hoping it wasn’t an effort to drum up business. Hee hee), and this year it was the panting cats on leashes – we saw two people who had brought their cats to the race and had them on leashes like a dog. Only it was so hot they were also panting like their canine counterparts (or may be they were having an identity crisis?!). Not quite right, but amusing none-the-less.
We ended up hanging out to watch the men’s race after we had warmed down and stretched. It was great to take some time to enjoy the atmosphere rather than duck straight home.

Michele, Kate V, Kristy and I were the team for the day, and we meant business. I am so proud of the way we rode – super aggressively, strongly, represented in almost everything and if were weren’t, we helped bring the break back……..unfortunately our efforts were not reflected in the results due to events outside our control. On the 2nd last lap a crash meant Kristy had to call upon her extraordinary Kung Fu balance skills to stay upright, which included a yet-to-be-named move involving hopping down the road delicately balanced on one foot (not forgetting that cycling shoes are lumpy on the bottom!). While she impressively stayed upright, it did mean she had to stop and that means race over when the bunch is traveling at such high speed. She clipped back in and carried on to finish though, which is credit to her character as many less tenacious characters would have called it a day at that point.

In the last lap, with Kate and I in good position in the front bunch, there was another crash with 500m to go and we both had to stop and start again as the remainder of the bunch rode away to take the placings. Kate got started again quickly and chased as hard as she could to finish 21st and I was back in the 30’s somewhere. So frustrating as we really felt like we were putting it all together to come up with the goods!! However, we all stayed upright and that is the most important thing. The start of this season has been marred with crashes, and while that is an inevitable part of bike racing, it is really tough to see friends and team mates injured and I sincerely hope that when my reports mention the crashes it is not upsetting anyone too much! Risk is part of sport and the fact that we take those risks to be the best we can be reflects our love and passion for cycling and all it brings with it.

Next weekend we are in Arlington, Virginia for the Airforce Classic, Clarendon Cup. This is an important race for the team and we are amped!!

In the meantime, stay tuned for a Kiwi translations article during the week!!!

RFK Criterium, Washington D.C

The RFK crit is traditionally like racing on the surface of the sun, but this year it was definitely a bearable temperature, just very windy and this ended up having quite an impact on the outcome of the race.

Only four of us raced – Kate V, Kristy and I in the Cat 1/2 race and Anna Kelso in the Cat 3 race. There were a few big teams racing in the Cat 1/2 race so it was going to be hard to cover every break away attempt, but we were definitely out to give it our best shot and were determined we weren’t letting the race ride away from us.

I think we rode really well during the race – we covered most potential break away attempts, rode aggressively and in good position. No breaks were able to stay away as the wind made it too difficult. Things just didn’t go our way in the end and we were swamped in the bunch sprint and didn’t come away with the top finish we would’ve liked.
It was frustrating, but that is bike racing and I have a rule – you take yourself away and give yourself 5 minutes to feel really annoyed, angry, whatever negative emotions you are feeling, then you move on and don’t dwell on what can’t be changed….take on board what you have learnt from whatever mistakes you made and look ahead to the next race!! So that is what we are doing – bring on Somerville!!
Anna Kelso was so strong in her race, but it is tough out there with no team mates and she was also swamped in the sprint at the end with the wind meaning no breaks stayed away.
Till tommorrow
D.T

A selection of photos.....

Team hairdresser - Gerard at Chaos
in Bethesda, Maryland. He's the man!
From L toR: Dale, Jenette, Gerard,
Kate Flore


Hey all!
This is a selection of random photos to check out.....you can look at whole albums using the flicker account (the icon is to the side of the blog)....
More news after the weekend!!
Ciao



An Amish market / yard sale Michele and I
discovered while out riding....then headed back
to it after our ride for a BBQ chicken treat!
Mmmmmmmm!!!



Kate V and Jenette on the bridge in Beaufort,
SC. The middle of the bridge swings out to let
big boats through. Very cool!




Exploring Beaufort...Nora took us on a walk round all the
amazing old houses (hence why we are wearing sneakers
in case you were wondering about our fashion sense!).

The lemonade terraces of Beaufort, SC - hanging

out with Nora and Charles.

Capitol Hill Day

This past Wednesday saw the team take part in the Congressional Cycling Fitness Fair, presented by Altarum, right in the hub of the Government buildings on Capitol Hill! It was a really exciting and fulfilling day and we all felt incredibly proud talking about our role as ambassadors of Cycling Fitness 101 – the program we have been running in some of the local D.C schools (which you can read about in some of the other blog entries if you haven’t already!)

Many congressional staff members and representatives were impressed by the program and several were interested in having the Program at a school in their district – yah!

As well as talking to all sorts of interesting people, we also offered a mini spin class for those who wanted to challenge us at what we do best! Michele spend many hours organizing a top notch music mix for the session – and although there were limited people up for the challenge (we must have looked far too professional and scary in our full cycling kit!), one person who was definitely keen to jump on one of the bikes was Congressman Earl Blumenauer, who is well know for his support of cycling as a preferable mode of transportation. We were all impressed he took time out of his busy day to come and support our cause and we all enjoyed meeting him and his staff!

Several other organizations participated in the Cycling Fitness Fair, including DC Metro Service, Capitol Hill Bikes, Honest TEA and the League of American Bicyclists.

The Cycling Fitness Fair was followed up by a round table to discuss ways to combat childhood obesity, which was well attended and received.

A huge thank you to Jonathon, Devon and Marijka of the Altarum Institute and Michele and Kate Flore who worked like Trojans to ensure this event ran smoothly and successfully and was a highly enjoyable day! Double thumbs up!!!