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04.16.07 Sea Otter Classic Circuit Race

It is a little hard to write a race report about a race that didn't actually complete! The team was poised for a good result at the Sea Otter Classic circuit race at Laguna Seca, but mother nature had other ideas. With 10 of 22 laps to go, despite pouring rain, the Webcor team was leading the sprint competition, was 2nd and 3rd in the QOM competition, and had just initiated a break of six riders with three Webcor riders in it. Then the officials stopped the race due to safety concerns about course conditions. No results are recorded.

Here is Beverley Harper's report:

Sea Otter always seems to be plagued with "dodgy" weather, so it was no surprise that after weeks of sunshine, the report for the day of the circuit race promised a 30% - 80% chance of precipitation!! Nothing seemed further from our minds, however, as we lathered on lashings of sun screen in balmy weather before the race. I certainly didn't take the announcer's ominous warnings of imminent rain on the start line seriously!!!

Spirits seemed high as usual amongst the team – we'd recently returned from a great few days at training camp and were ready for a good team effort. Plus, with the exception of Rachel, everyone was healthy. The big surprise for me was that despite my "love, hate" relationship with this race I was actually really looking forward to it. I attribute this partly to the fact that March had been a complete write-off for me due to constant sickness and I was eager to get out and have a good race with the team.

I'd estimated that there were around 60 girls on the start line with some fast notables missing in action in Europe, including our own Katheryn Curi. Lipton, Expresscopy, and Colavita seemed lightly staffed, but Aarons and Cheerwine were out in force.

The race started at a mellow pace and I was glad for the easy warm-up. Katherine Carroll (Aarons) and Ann Samplonious (Expresscopy) went off the front on the second time up the climb, but it wasn't long before they were amongst us again. My first time down the corkscrew I was in raptures at how well my Orbea Orca handled. Rock solid and steady, yet agile, it rode like a dream. The back side of the course was gusty as usual, but nothing too dramatic. Surprised at how good my legs felt, I joined the sea of green at the front of the bunch on the second lap as Christine and Laura played a great decoy for Amber as she swept up the first sprint points, just as planned. A couple of laps later it was time for the first QOM. My job was to pick up the pace on the climb – Felicia (Aarons) just took first, but Webcor picked up 2nd and 3rd. A few more laps went by and it was time for the 2nd sprint which was again won in style by Amber, and then came another QOM, which was pretty much a repeat of the first. The team was working really well together and things were going pretty much to plan.

I can't recall exactly when the skies opened, but what started out as a gentle sprinkle quickly became a torrential downpour at around lap eight. Pretty soon visibility became negligible as we were pelted with giant size rain drops accompanied by a nasty drop in temperature. Mudslides started to appear across the course. After a couple of laps of deteriorating conditions, the pace picked up and the peloton started to string out a little. Coming into the home straight at the end of lap 11, I found myself just behind Christine in about 5th wheel. Looking over my shoulder I sensed the pack was off guard so I attacked. I put my head down and made it three quarters of the way around the track before Dotsie Bausch, Ann Samplonious, and Shelley Olds caught me at the hairpin bend with Christine hot on their tail. Shelley picked up the sprint points that were up for grabs at the line, then Amber joined our little group of six. We were looking in great shape heading off up the hill when news started to come over the radio that the race was going to be "neutralized." In denial, we pressed ahead, only to be brought to an unceremonial halt by the lead moto under the underpass. This abrupt stop in mid action came as a bit of a shock to some who couldn't understand why. Why were we cut off in our prime when things were just starting to get exciting just because of some inclement weather? How could they conclude the race without so much as a "one lap to go." However, it was becoming more obvious by the second as the group of shivering, quivering, bedraggled riders grew, that this was the right decision. Hypothermia amongst the riders was a concern as were the mud slides across the road, apparently two inches deep in some places. Confusion was the name of the game as some seemed to think the race might get started again. I wasn't buying that one and shot off to seek refuge and warmth with the rest of the team in the team cars which were fortunately close by.

So what was the outcome of this half race canceled as a result of an "Act of God?" I believe initially the powers that be had considered giving the victory to Shelley as she was the first across the line on the last lap. However, I heard that this did not go down so well so it was decided that the race remain resultless.

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03.27.07 Redlands Bicycle Classic Final Stage

The team finished off the Redlands Bicycle Classic with class and determination. We won the overall team classification and the Queen of the Mountain jersey, put two riders on the podium in the overall individual classification, and took 2nd place on the stage. We threw everything we had at Amber Neben, but she rode a very smart race and with all the courses heavily favoring climbing, proved to be the strongest rider in the end. Webcor definitely had the strongest team though and made the race – and a lot of people took notice of that.

Photos from CyclingNews:

• Amber and Rachel on the climb
• Helen
• Mara going for the sprint
• Mara on the Stage Podium
• Final GC Podium
• Team GC winners
• Amber listening to the peloton sing happy birthday on the start line
• Mara and Amber Neben
• Mara on the podium
• QOM winner

Mara Abbott's report: Redlands Sunset Loop – "Simple, but not easy"

Today, I was tired. Today was a long day. Fortunately, today was also a pretty good day, so I suppose that just means that it had an even longer time to be good. Today we had the Sunset Loop Road Race, which was just over 105 km in length – nine laps of a course that basically went straight up and then straight down through the neighborhoods of Redlands.

Our plan was simple, but alas the simplicity of its details was masked by the the fact that it was quite difficult to execute. Going into the stage, we held places two, three and four. Christine and I were both about thirty seconds back of Amber Neben, and Kathryn about a minute and a half. Thus, the plan: to attack Amber N., make her work, catch her off guard, and make a big enough gap to put some GREEN on the top of the podium. Unfortunately, as the yellow leader's jersey she wore demonstrated, Amber Neben is NOT an easy rider to drop.
A secondary goal of ours was to retain the Queen of the Mountain jersey that I had been given the previous day. The first interesting point of the race came on the first lap, as there was a QOM sprint on the first, fifth, and seventh laps. Unfortunately, despite amazing positioning help from my teammates, my closest QOM competitor, Leigh Hobson of Cheerwine, was first across the line, and I was second.

The first big move of the day came shortly after, as Felicia Gomez of Aaron's and Ina Teutenberg of T-Mobile got a gap on the field. Over the next few laps, we tried to keep the pressure on – Amber, Kathryn, Christine, and me all launching several attacks. Although these attacks were strong enough to temporarily break up the field, at least a decently sized group still was together before the Unfortunate Moment of the Day.

After a few more circuits, I THINK on around lap four (this subject to the time warp effect of the Sunset Loop, in which everything sort of smushes together, and also, is a little uncomfortable), we caught Felicia and Ina. The field was therefore primed for more action. Despite the descending mantra that our Amber Rais had taught me the previous day, I still tended to find myself closer to the back on the descent, although I was pleased to note that this was a far cry from OFF of the back. And I saw, from this unfortunate position, a gap open between the group and a small breakaway. Christine had already successfully covered several of these, and I felt badly that I had NOT, especially when I realized that in the break was T-Mobile's Kim Anderson, Lipton's Kori Seehafer, and *RED ALERT* Amber Neben. Rats.

Finishing the decent, I decided to make up for lost time by rocketing to the front and absolutely drilling it to reach Amber, who had already out-climbed her two breakaway companions. This was a decidedly difficult thing to do, HOWEVER, to my downright delight, I was able to catch up to her about three-quarters of the way up the climb. Unfortunately, this now put me in a slightly awkward position, as I had little to no inclination to work WITH Amber, as much as I wanted to get rid of her. We spent a little time looking at each other, and during the next decent, we were rejoined by Kim Anderson and Kori. This was actually quite useful, as they were the ones who drove the break through the last two laps after I attacked Amber several times and she decided (wisely) that the best place to be was directly on my wheel, making said attacks measurably less effective.

The four of us stayed in front of the main pack until the second to last corner, in which Kori unfortunately crashed. This was a huge bummer, because she had been one of the main instigators of the break, and for her to not cross the finish line with us was really a shame. In the end, I was second, behind Kim Anderson. Katheryn kept an iron grip on our team's third place coming through with the chase group. Christine was next, closely followed by Rachel and Amber Rais (the 26-year-old version). Bev and Helen also stuck together in the results – I guess green travels in packs! Major props to Bev, Laura, and Amber, who all fought through an amazingly difficult race while being sick!! They were quite inspiring. 

All in all, it was an incredibly successful weekend for the team. We took second and third on GC, the QOM jersey, and perhaps most importantly, we won the Team general classification! What a wonderful weekend with an amazing group of ladies (and also, Bernard).

03.24.07 Redlands Bicycle Classic Criterium

Today was the downtown Redlands Criterium. Sixty minutes of fast racing and the Webcor Team again showed they will fight to the very end for the overall lead. This is turning out to be a very exciting race!

Here is Helen Kelly's report:

In contrast to yesterday's hilly stage that finished at 5000 ft on the summit of Oak Glen, today's stage was a fast and technical criterium held in downtown Redlands. The course was 1.6 km per lap with nine tight corners. 

Before today's race, Mara Abbott and Christine Thorburn (Webcor) were trailing Neben by 32 and 60 seconds, respectively. With only a minute separating the top three positions in the general classification, today's goal was to erode the margin held by race leader, Amber Neben (SC Velo).

I love racing criteriums and enjoy the thrill of cornering at speed and listening to the cheers from the crowd. My Orbea cornered like a racing car and it was an absolute pleasure to push it to its limits. Our peloton included some of the world's top sprinters and during our pre-race meeting, race director Karen Brems, advised us to target key danger riders.

As soon as the gun fired, the race was on. It took me a lap to maneuver through the field to the front where I took a few deep breaths and settled in for an hour of flat out racing, Rachel, Amber, Kathryn, and I followed many early attacks, while Christine sat comfortably in the top 10 and patiently shadowed T-Mobile rider Ina Teutenberg. Teutenberg was twitching and it was only a matter of time before she would launch her predicted power attack.

Seehafer (Lipton) won the first intermediate sprint, which was immediately countered by Oenone Wood (T-Mobile). The pace was really high and my legs were stinging from yesterday's climbing. A lap later a bell rang, signifying that there was a sprint prime for money on the following lap. The pace increased to 30 miles/hour and the peloton stretched into a single line of pain. After De Geode (T-Mobile) took the sprint, Teutenberg launched. Former national criterium champion, Laura Van Gilder (Cheerwine), immediately sprinted onto her wheel, while Brooke Miller (Tibco) and Christine Thorburn (Webcor) buried themselves to close the gap. It took Miller and Thorburn half a lap of all out power to get to Teutenberg and Van Gilder.

The break worked well together and with Teutenberg and Thorburn doing the lion's share of the work, their lead stretched out to 30 seconds. Thorburn successfully took the intermediate time bonus sprint and then continued to drive the break. Thorburn did the final two laps on the front, as the three sprinters eyed off one another. Van Gilder reacted first, jumping out of the 3rd last corner. Teutenberg was glued to her wheel timed her sprint to perfection, taking the stage win.  Van Gilder (Cheerwine) held on to 2nd, ahead of Miller (TIBCO). Christine's hard work paid off, as she succeeded in moving 26 seconds closer to race leader, Neben.

Heading into tomorrow's stage, Neben wears the leader's yellow jersey. Mara Abbott sits 2nd in GC (32 seconds down) and also wears the Queen of the Mountain jersey, while Thorburn sits in 3rd position, 34 seconds behind Neben. And not to be discounted is in-form Kathryn Curi, currently in 4th position overall. Tomorrow's final decisive stage will be very exciting – stay tuned.

03.24.07 Redlands Bicycle Classic Stage 1

Stage 1 of the Redlands Classic is the "Queen Stage" up to the famous 2100 ft. summit of Oak Glen. This is the stage that typically determines the General Classification. Former winners of this stage come straight from the Who's Who list of US women's cycling. Amber Neben showed in the prologue she was probably the strongest climber in the race, but Webcor had the team card to play and we knew we had to make her work before the climb.

The team rode a fantastic race that culminated in a stage win for Mara Abbott (her first NRC podium ever!). Three of the last four riders left by the top of the climb were in the Webcor jersey and we cemented our lead in the Team GC competition by over six minutes! Amber Neben proved just how strong she was by holding onto the leader's jersey by a slim 32 seconds over Mara. Christine is in 3rd, 1 min down, and Katheryn is in 4th at 1:38. Mara also took the lead in the QOM competition with category 1 points on the line at the finish.

Here is Mara Abbott's report:

Personally, the day began with two goals. One was a life goal – win flowers for my placement in a race. The second was a Goal of the Day. While perusing a brochure about culinary attractions in the Redlands area, I noticed a Jamba Juice. As I admitted to Rachel this morning, today's aim was to race well enough that I would have enough sway to beg for a Jamba Juice run. Both aims were achieved. What an excellent day.

Today's stage had a little bit of lots of things. It started with a relatively flat section, including several sprints, then had several QOMs (top of a climb sprints), and then finished with a 6-ish mile climb up Oak Glen. Helen was the first Webcor gal in a big move, as she sprung free with a decently-sized bunch shortly after the first sprint. It was pretty amazing – we successfully covered all attacks with GREEN representation. Amber flatted and then returned with warp speed. I was shocked and delighted to see her return! Laura and Christine worked together for a fourth place in the second sprint – another team victory. Some of these details are filled in with help from my teammates, as my memory is taken over with thoughts of avoiding cracks in the road, other riders, and not getting shot directly out the back of the pack.

In the first QOM, Katheryn and Rachel took good care of me and helped me "sprint" to a third place; and after that, Kathryn made the MVP move of the day, as she initiated a solid break of five riders, which would hold until the bitter end of the race. Her break held as we passed through many of the hazards of the course – a dirt section (where the race caravan took the opportunity to pass us by, demonstrating with startling efficacy what it would be like to ride during a sandstorm. If I had harbored any lingering doubts that this was a good life experience to pursue, they were thereby erased), some medians, and trees, growing directly out of the median in the middle of the road! 

At the base of the climb, Kathryn decided that she didn't really NEED the rest of her break, so she attacked her former compatriots and broke away on her own. This put us in an excellent position. Since Kathryn was up the road, we were free to let others do work, and since Amber Neben was essentially team-less in the leader's jersey, she sat on the front and rode, until it was just her, Christine, and myself. As our trio plodded up the climb, we began to near Kathryn. Karen advised me to make a counterattack when we passed our previous noble attacker. Being the good student, I have lots of practice being, I took all of the attack-making advice I have recently been deluged with, and popped around Amber N. and Christine. There was still about a kilometer and a half to go, but Karen gave me the motivation to keep up the pace with a brilliant reminder – s we had learned from Christine's impressive TT performance the previous day, podiums in Redlands equal FLOWERS. Following a vision of a bright bouquet, I stuck it out to the line for my first stage win at a big race! Christine was right on Amber's heels for third and Katheryn behind her for fourth. 

Rachel and I later celebrated the team's victory with a Jamba Juice, and as the flowers are now thirstily drinking up some water in a vase, I can confidently say, check, check!  March 23 appears to have been quite a success.

03.24.07 Redlands Bicycle Classic Prologue

The Redlands Bicycle Classic is one of the biggest stage races for women in the US. It is also the first race of the season-long Women's Prestige Series. This is a good race for our team of strong climbers. We proved this handily on the first stage, a 5 km mostly uphill time trial. Webcor had two riders in the top five, four in the top 10, and six in the top 15.

Here is Christine Thorburn's report:

This is one of the team's favorite races, and my home away from home with our fantastic homestay mother, Cid Breyer, welcoming us into her home every year. This year the race returned to a more significant 4-day stage race after last year's 3-stage event. Importantly, the organizers returned the Oak Glen mountaintop finishing stage.

However, the first stage was a 5 km prologue that finished with a 1.5 km fairly steep uphill. This was the same prologue as last year. It was a bit unclear whether a time trial bike or road bike with clip-on aerobars was a better choice. Webcor women chose the latter.

Last year's winner of this stage and the race overall, Amber Neben, was back to defend her title. She spends the majority of her season racing on a Dutch team in Europe, but being from southern California, she likes to start her season in Redlands. We went off at 30-second intervals. We all had a good warm-up on our new team Blackburn trainers under our Webcor Go-Green tent. Our stellar mechanic set up the bikes with our Easton Tempest II deep dish carbon wheels, and our supportive soigneur Merry sent us off with the final sip of water at the ramp.

We wanted to stack the overall GC with Webcor riders so we would have options the rest of the weekend, and that is exactly what we accomplished. I finished second to Amber Neben at 33 seconds (Neben had a great ride), and Dotsie Bausch (Colavita) rounded out the podium. Mara took 4th at 54 seconds, Katheryn 6th, and Rachel 7th under a minute behind Neben, and our Amber was 13th and Beverly 14th. Helen and Rachel had good rides as well.

We were in good position going into the mother stage the next day.

03.19.07 Quad Knopf Sequoia Cycling Classic Criterium

Here is Helen's report:

On Sunday, 18 March, I raced the Quad Knopf Sequoia Cycling Classic Criterium with three of my Webcor teammates, Amber Rais (USA), Rachel Heal (Great Britain), and Laura Yoisten (Canada), Amber and Rach both felt a little sore from the previous day's time trial effort. After our warm-up, however, we were all fired up and ready to race hard. The course was flat and fast with six corners per lap. Each lap was 0.7 miles or 1 km for the metric readers. Our strategy for the race was to keep our sprinter, Laura, protected and as rested as possible for the finish. Rach, Amber and I had the job of watching for attacks and ensuring that at least one Webcor rider was represented in any break that went up the road. 

The race was fast, with attacks starting on lap 1 by T-Mobile. Riders from the Colavita, Aarons, and Cheerwine teams also rode aggressively and kept the pace high for the entire race. With so many good sprinters in the field, a bunch finish seemed inevitable, and none of the many breaks ever gained more than a 10-second advantage.  With 10 laps to go, the field was together and the major teams jostled at the front to help position their sprinters. Unfortunately, there was some confusion towards the finish as the lap counter erroneously showed two laps to go and then proceeded to display three laps to go on the following lap.  As a result, a few riders sprinted for the line, only to hear the bell ring, signally one lap to go. Showing good early season form, Susanne de Goede (T-Mobile) took line honors, ahead of Laura Van Gilder (Cheerwine), and Rebecca Larson (Aarons).  Laura sprinted to 6th overall, Amber 8th, Rach 16th, and I was 13th.

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03.18.07 Quad Knopf Sequoia Cycling Classic Time Trial

While team staff and some of the riders were spending a rare weekend at home (the only one in March!), the team of Amber, Rachel, Laura, and Helen could not pass up the opportunity to get in another race. A late addition to the NRC calendar, the Quad Knopf Cycling Classic in Visalia, CA, consisted of a time trtial on Saturday and a criterium on Sunday. They were separate events, not a stage race.

See these photos from CyclingNews:

• Rachel Relaxes before the ride
• Amber catching T-Mobile

Here is Amber Rais' time trial report:

After an adventurous caravan down to Tulare, CA (I was pulled over for rolling a flashing red light on a right turn, but I and my Aussie copilot Helen sweet-talked our way out of a ticket; a little later, the Volvo dropped the Subaru over Pacheco Pass, so Rachel texted me and Helen that the sprinter was suffering a bit on the climb. We regrouped for a perfect leadout into Visalia, as Laura never left our bumper again until the parking lot), we hit the sack around 11pm, only to awake at 6:20am to get to the course to sign in (as per the CAPITALIZED WARNINGS that there would be NO SIGN IN WHATSOEVER past 7:30am on the website) where we were greeted by a friendly fellow who immediately said, "Oh, YOU don't have to be here this early! All the pro teams called to see if they could just sign in later in the afternoon." Given our 12:30pm start times, that would have been nice, though we did get to drive the course and enjoy a magical sunrise over the hills before a leisurely breakfast back at the hotel.

We unloaded the cars on arrival and had the tents, chairs, and trainers set up in no time. Laura immediately took over mechanic/soigneur/manager duties, swapping cassettes, putting wheels on bikes and making sure Helen, Rachel, and I had all the water and food we needed. She kept us on schedule with periodic time checks, with special emphasis for me (no surprise that I was first to gear up and get on the trainer – no tardiness for me today!). We were quite efficient, and Laura took care of every detail for us, including re-pinning each of us at the start at the last-minute request of the official.

The course starts flat, heads over a hill and down, flat out and back, then back over the hill to the finish. I metered my effort well on the way out, and turned around into a flat-out headwind that nearly knocked my socks off. I had caught two riders by the turnaround, and began reeling in more. The bad pavement and headwind were a little rough, but I stayed calm, thinking we're all in the same boat. I began picking off more riders one by one, passing three by the sharp left leading into the return climb over the hill. I passed four more on the climb and began reeling in Suzanne de Goede on the descent, spinning like crazy in my 11-tooth cog (thanks Bernard!). I passed her on the flat heading to the finish, but she came back around just at the line.

Laura immediately appeared with cold water – I could barely speak, I was so parched. I climbed on the trainer as they announced I'd had the fastest time yet of the day. Shortly thereafter, Alison Powers came through 20 seconds faster, and later, Leigh Hobson came through just two seconds ahead. I'd held on for third – my first podium finish of the season. By that time, Rachel and Helen had also finished, so the four of us cheered and high-fived.

Rachel finished 9th in a good effort, and Helen 36th, her fitness coming around. We managed some nice winnings among us and celebrated St. Patrick's day at Chili's for dinner. At least three people today took one look at us and said, "Ah, yeah! I forgot today was St. Patrick's day!" It was hard not to laugh out loud. Go Green! :)

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03.13.07 Bentley's Central Valley Classic Final Stage

The final stage of the Central Valley Classic was the Tower District Criterium. The team defended Christine's overall lead, as well as Katheryn's podium spot with flying colors.

See these photos from CyclingNews:

• Helen in the Crit
• Rachel at the Start
• Christine after the race

Here is Laura Yoisten's report:

Pass the sunscreen. This was the common phrase amongst the teams in the pro parking area before the Central Valley Criterium. On this balmy 80-degree Sunday, many teams were anxious and maybe a little nervous about the unusual final stage which included the infamous U-Turn Criterium. This was not the case however at the Webcor Builders tent ,where race leader Christine Thorburn felt unusually calm and relaxed before the 60-minute race. In the days before, the Webcor women had stepped up to the plate and put in an incredible effort to come into the final stage in 1st, 3rd, 5th, and 8th overall. With this strong team to support her going into the race, Christine was confident that the team would ensure the victory. 

Right from the gun the attacks from the field started coming from Aaron's rider Felicia Gomez. This set the tone for the race and the Webcor Builder riders knew they would have to be at the top of their game. This was absolutely the case. For the next 60 minutes it was a sea of Webcor green at the front of the pack with one goal in mind – to protect the leader's jersey. There was an opportunity in the second half of the race where a time bonus of five seconds was awarded. Other than the finish, this was the only time riders would be able to gain time. Webcor riders Rachel Heal, Helen Kelly, and Kathryn Curi did an excellent job on ensuring that Christine was in position for these crucial seconds in case second place rider Dotsie Bausch tried to challenge. The Colavita/Sutter Home rider was not in sight and soon there were only nine laps remaining in the race. 

The Webcor Women remained strong at the front and prepared for the finish. With one lap remaining, the pack came flying through the start/finish to complete their last time through the U-turn. The T-Mobile squad had a strong leadout at the front with the remaining sprinters fighting for position behind them. Through the last corner, it was a mad dash to the line where Webcor rider Laura Yoisten sprinted to an 8th place and wrapped up the weekend with Christine and Kathryn placing 1st and 3rd respectively to win the overall. 

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03.13.07 Bentley's Central Valley Classic Stage 2

This was the day the Webcor Builders team has been waiting for all season – a 16.5-mile Time Trial! This is the longest TT in any stage race of the year and the team came through with the overall win plus 3rd, 5th, and 8th place on the stage!

See CyclingNews photo of Christine on her way to victory.

Here is Christine Thorburn's report:

This year's Central Valley Classic had the same point to point time trial course as last year, but this year the effort counted towards total time for a timed stage race as opposed to individual race placing for the omnium event of last year. This, of course, meant racing as hard as possible and not just racing for the win. The 26.4 km course started completely flat for the first third, then a couple of light rollers before a sweeping right turn, and another 7 km of flat before a 1 km "climb" (maybe 4%) to the finish. The temperatures were perfect but the wind was picking up during the late morning.

Our team traditionally has had a lot of excellent time trialists, and this year is no exception. I think the only misfortune of our day was Amber's missed start by about 1:20 to 1:30. She still pulled off a 16th place overall, but otherwise would have been top 6! Christine did not succumb to the pressure she had to win, finishing in 39:06, putting her 23 seconds ahead of Dotsie Bausch (Colavita/Sutter Home) for the day as well as the overall GC going into the final race of the weekend – the Tower District Criterium. The top three riders of the road race (Tina Pic, Colavita; Brooke Miller, TIBCO; Kelly Benjamin, Cheerwine) finished more than two minutes behind Christine, so their time bonuses would not affect the final result.

Katheryn Curi had a fantastic day, finishing 3rd, less than a minute behind, and Rachel Heal showed her consistency and turning form with a 5th place at 1:35. Webcor's under-23 US National TT champion, Mara Abbott, finished 8th at 2:12, demonstrating her promise for the future. Helen Kelly, who has been back training for only three weeks after an injury, still managed 29th overall, and our sprinter Laura Yoisten cruised home on her road bike, preparing for the criterium the next day.

So, with four riders in the top eight, and 1st and 3rd overall in GC, the team had a lot to look forward to in the final stage the next day.

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03.10.07 Bentley's Central Valley Classic Stage 1

The Webcor Builders team is racing this weekend in Fresno, CA in the first NRC stage race of the season, the Central Valley Cycling Classic. We like stage races and this one in particular has a 16.5 mile time trial, which our team is very excited about. This is also the first time all eight members of the team are racing together. Helen arrived from Australia this week and Mara is on her spring break from school and came down to join the team from Walla Walla, WA. The race started with a 68-mile road race on Friday.

Here is Mara Abbott's first-hand report:

My personal season opener as well as my first race riding for the wonderful WEBCOR (!) team began with the Raymond Granite Road Race at the Central Valley Classic.  The race consisted of two laps of about 34 miles each.  The terrain was what could be defined as "rolling," with a medium sized climb at the beginning and end of each lap.  I preferred to define it as "a veritable cow paradise," as the startlingly green hills rolled away on all sides, punctuated with scrubby-topped trees and odd fake looking Walt Disney rocks.  The cows agreed with me, because there were a lot of them.

We went into the race with the plan to set Christine up to take the overall lead after the time trial on Saturday. Therefore, by Karen's expert reckoning, either a bunch sprint or a small breakaway was an acceptable outcome for the day.  The bunch rolled out in a fairly self-contained manner as it experimentally crested the first hill and began the descent.  It is most likely that we were all paying attention to the most important and unique detail of this particular course: a barrel marked with a red "X" at the end of the feed zone.  The cow farmer's desire to maintain their pristine paradise had spurred the race organizers to insert this added challenge to reduce extraneous litter. Any rider who tossed their water bottle into the barrel received an extra $25! 

After several smaller attacks, the first large move of the day went off, as Victoria Bastide of Team TIBCO daringly darted forward in a solo attack.  She stayed off the front of the group through the second hill and was caught by the group as we approached the feed zone. 

This set off a counterattack by Dotsie Bausch of the Colavita team as we began to revisit the first ascent.  Having just come off an impressive time trialing performance in Australia, Dotsie was a woman to watch out for.  I was startled from my delight at having acquired a new full sized water bottle by the phantom voice of Christine on my radio recommending that it might be a good idea if I did something about that.  We pulled a large group together by the top of that hill, although it was admittedly smaller than the one which had started.  Over the next section of the race, the entire team performed a masterful job of controlling the front. Each attack was noted and neutralized by a member of the Webcor team.  Ultimately, after chasing down one attack, I found myself in a small break which was fairly well represented by all the major teams.  It contained myself, Alison Powers (Colavita), Kim Anderson (T-Mobile), Kristen LaSasso (Lipton), Stacy Marple (Team TIBCO), Felicia Gomez (Aaron's), and Chrissy Ruiter (Cheerwine).

This was a decent situation, as I was able to hang out on the back of the break (not wanting to contribute to any substantial gap over our masterful time-trialist), and the other Webcor girls congregated on the front of the group as Kathryn, Rachel, and Amber kept the break on a short leash of the under 30 second variety.  The gap slowly decreased as we approached the finish, and attacks began within the break, as both Kim and Chrissy launched attacks, whose results were twofold. Alison abandoned the group, and the rest of us, I feel, began to admire her wisdom in doing so.

Our break was caught with just about a kilometer to go, and we all dashed to the line together in a field sprint, which was won by Tina Pic of Colavita.  What we all knew, however was that it was a victory for the Webcor crew as well, with the GC relatively even, and Christine poised for domination in the following day's time trial.

Kathryn was the top finisher in 14th, followed by Christine in 16th, myself in 20th, Amber in 23rd, Rachel in 37th, Laura in 47th and Helen in 54th.  Alas, that tally was not supplemented by any $25 bonuses, although Helen proved to score the best in hand-eye coordination, her water bottle shot just deflecting off the rim of that tantalizing barrel.

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03.06.07 Merco Credit Union Cycling Classic

The National Racing Calendar officially started this weekend in Merced, CA with the Merco Credit Union Cycling Classic. The Webcor Builders women came with a team of six riders, fresh in their new green kits that arrived just the day before! This was the first time the team raced together, so the important thing was to learn to communicate and race together as a team. Rachel was fresh off the plane from the UK and Bev was recovering from a stomach bug she had all week, but the team was otherwise fit and ready to race.

The first big race of the season is always a bit dicey as riders dust off their pack skills that tend to grow rusty over the winter. We knew we had the strongest team in the race and wanted to capitalize on that by racing aggressively and keeping the pace high (and therefore safer!). We also wanted to start learning how to do an effective leadout for our new team sprinter, Laura.

The team rode very well in the crit with everyone being active at the front. Unfortunately with about 2 1/2 laps to go, we lost Laura to a crash just as the team was gathering at the front for the leadout. By the time we realized Laura was down, it was 1 lap to go and too late for anyone else to try to take over the sprinter's role. Christine and Katheryn both finished "in the money" in 14th and 20th respectively. Luckily Laura was OK with only a bit of skin lost. Brooke Miller of TIBCO won the race in a photo finish over Suzanne De Goede of T-Mobile.

The Road Race went better with the team again making lots of attacks in the middle half of the race, but there were too many teams content to wait for a field sprint and nothing could get away. In the final 2 km, Rachel brought Laura up to position and Amber and Christine were there for the leadout, but in the final 1km chaos, the Webcor riders got separated. Laura finished a respecable 8th and Christine was 13th. Brooke won again.

Here is Katheryn Curi's criterium report:

The Merco Credit Union Cycling Classic Criterium was the first race of the season for many of us and we were anxious to dust the race cobwebs out of our legs.

Beverley, Amber, Christine, Rachel, Laura and I lined up on a sunny, warm day after a slight delay due to a crash in the race right before ours. Not a great way to start a fast NRC crit, but as the gun went off and we settled in, our focus was on our race.

Although Tina Pic and Laura Van Guilder (two of America's best sprinters) were racing in the Southern Hemisphere, we knew it would still be a hard and fast race as there were many other strong teams and sprinters in the field. One of our biggest challenges would be to get used to seeing riders in their new kits as there has been quite a bit of shuffling around within the women's peloton.

Our aim was to keep it fast, and thus safe, and to try a lead out for Laura for the finish. T-Mobile had four strong riders in the field and were quite active going for primes, as well as a few other teams. Christine and Amber were able to snag a prime each for the team. Despite some strong attempts by us and other riders to create a break, nothing stuck and as the lap cards counted down, we turned our focus to keeping Laura up at the front and out of trouble. Unfortunately with about three laps to go there was a crash coming out of the second to last corner and a quick look around proved that Laura was no longer with us. A bit of miscommunication caused some confusion as to how to reorganize for the finish and we found ourselves trying to surf the final surge for good position.

Laura was just a bit bruised up and in good spirits as we soft pedaled to our hotel to get ready for the next day's road race. All and all we were content with the fist race and knew that we had much to look forward to in the coming season.

Here is Laura Yoisten's road race report:

The Women's Webcor Builders Cycling Team rolled out with almost 100 women Sunday morning to start the first road race of the 2007 season.  Under sunny skies and warm weather the team of six was prepared for three laps of the flat and rolling course adding up to 72 miles in their fresh new Voler kits.  The plan of action was to ride out the race until the second lap of three when the aggression of the team would shine.

The first half of lap one proved to be quite mundane. Just when things finally began heating up, Webcor veteran Katheryn Curi flatted and was forced to drop back to the parade of cars to grab a new Easton wheel. The bumpy, pothole filled roads of the Merced County had lost their first battle when the team pulled together to help Curi regain the pack. Amber Rais and Beverley Harper dropped back while Christine Thorburn and Laura Yoisten went to the front to try and neutralize the attacks and speed of the pack.  All the girls where back together in time to execute the day's main goal.  With each rising opportunity, a Webcor Builder was off the front forcing the pack to chase. For the next 40 miles the Webcor team kept the pressure on continuously splitting the pack and forcing the other teams to chase.

With 15 miles to go it was clear a bunch sprint was inevitable.  The Webcor women started moving into position at the front of the field to set up Laura Yoisten for the sprint.  Rachel Heal brought Laura into position onto the wheel of Christine for the final kilometer of the race.  Within 500 m to go, the sprint started to go up the final rise and down to the finish.  Laura carried out the sprint on her three-day-old Orbea Orca for eighth among this stacked field for Merco Cycling Classics biggest turnout ever!  The team definitely showed their colors and proved to still be the most aggressive group of ladies in the pro women's peleton.

The team will head south of Merced this weekend for more action at the Central Valley Stage race in Fresno, California.

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