HOME
ROSTER
SCHEDULE
SPONSORS
RESULTS
RACE REPORTS
PRESS
PHOTOS
GO GREEN
CONTACT US
SITE MAP
Brilliant team tactics win Redlands |
 |
| Alex Wrubleski dons six new winner's jersies over her Webcor jersey! Photo courtesy of Karen Brems. Click on photo to see larger view. |
|
||
Link to each race report from the list below or just scroll down to browse:
05-04-08 Tour de Berne World CupThe Webcor Builders team of Alex, Erinne, Christine, Gina, and Rebecca raced the Tour de Berne World Cup in Lyss, Switzerland this weekend. It was a beautiful course with a view of the Swiss Alps at the top of the climb. The view was only enjoyed on the pre-ride of the course, not during the race though! After finishing the first portion of my 2-month long trip in Europe with the national team, Erinne and I took a day trip by train from Stoumont, Belgium to Berne, Switzerland to join our team Webcor for the Berne World cup. We arrived there a few days early, so we tried to make good use of our time by checking out the course, the country, the town, and maybe do some shopping…? Turns out that Switzerland is the most expensive place in the world! So after spending $200 each on groceries in three days, we decided to spend our time in our hotel room on the Internet, and hand washing our clothes. Two days before the race, our three teammates, team staff, and Chris Georges (acting director sportif and host for our European trip) joined us in Berne. The race was 136km long divided into four laps of 34km each. Each lap had a 6km climb with a GPM/QOM at the top and a sprint at the start/finish each time through. After pre-riding the course we knew the climb would determine the outcome of the race and we had three riders here capable of making any moves that went on the climb. Since the finish was on the flat, I was probably the best shot for the sprint finish, so our plan was for the girls to cover the moves and save me for the finish. The climb started only 4km into the course, so needless to say the field shattered in the first 10km of the race. Many of the climbers were not well positioned going into this first climb and Cervelo drove it up until there was only Christiane Soeder, Kristin Armstrong, Nicole Brandli, and me. Since I was there, I went and got the first GPM sprint. We had a pretty big gap over the top and Cervelo just kept rotating through until the gap grew to 40 seconds. Since it was so early in the race, and Nicole wasn't pulling through, I didn't either. High Road chased for the whole lap until we got caught right before the start/finish of the first lap. On climbs #2 and #3, the climbers were better positioned, Cervelo and Bigla drove it up these climbs usually with about six of us by the top. But over the top, the break never lasted longer than 5km because nobody really wanted to work. People only attacked and nothing stayed away. On the 2nd and 3rd lap about 5km over the top, a group of about 20 riders caught back on with Christine and Erinne. There were several attacks which they covered and brought back. As expected on climb #4, riders like Kristin Armstrong, Nicole Brandli, and Amber Neben made their last attempts to get away or at least form a very small break that they could ride away with. Suddenly Suzanne Ljungskog came out of nowhere and flew by us immediately creating a fairly big gap that nobody attempted to close. This time at the top there were about 10 riders that had managed to hang on in hopes of making that winning break to the finish… But again over the top nobody was willing to work, so there were some more unsuccessful attacks. Our group stayed off the front for about 10km or so this time, and eventually a group of about 15 more riders caught us – including Erinne and more teammates for Cervelo, Bigla, and High road. Once these riders caught on, Suzanne got reeled back. Many more attacks were launched by Cervelo, Bigla, and Flexpoint. Then Suzanne went again and got another gap. Nobody chased her. For the last 5km of the race, riders like Kristin, Amber, and Priska attacked but didn't get away. The chase on Suzanne was over and the left turn (1km to the finish) came very quickly. Cervelo had two riders giving Kristin a lead-out, and I tried to squeeze in behind them taking some wind. The leadout died and riders started swarming. I stayed near the front on about 5th wheel into the last turn (500 meters before the finish) unsure of when to jump. Judith Arndt went first, and behind her was Mirjam Melchers van Poppel. I started coming up on the left, but both girls kept veering to the left until there was a loud scream of a girl getting squeezed into the guard rails behind me. Across the line it was only cm's apart and I got 4th. Somehow they seemed to forget me on the results, but now that has been fixed. And next up for Webcor is Tour de L'Aude. 04-12-08 Ronde van Drenthe World CupFollowing Redlands, our three Canadians (Alex Wrubleski, Gina Grain, and Erinne Willock) headed across the pond to race in Holland and Belgium with the Canadian National Team. They started with the cobbled classic, Ronde van Drenthe. This was the 4th round of the World Cup. Alex proved her incredible versatility as a rider, placing 6th against the worlds' best in a very difficult race. Here is Alex's report:
Today was definitely the fastest and most furious race I have ever done! After Thursday's race, I didn't think it could get much harder. The pace wasn't as hard for me because I wasn't in a break all day, but the terrain was unforgiving and need for good positioning was crucial. The race was 136km and consisted of three sprints at the end of three cobble sections, three premier sprints, and three GPM (Grande Prix Montagne, aka QOM) sprints. People went full on from the start, I guess because the first GPM was 9km into the race. I clipped handlebars and hit so many wheels before that GPM just to stay in good position, that I really started to scare myself. Now when they said that there were three cobble sections in the race bible, we all thought that it meant like 500 meters or so. But each section was 2-4km, and they were more like boulders! Haha. I was sure that something had to be broken after that, either on my bike or my body. Going into the first cobble section 38km into the race, I was probably top 40 (out of about 170), and the rest of the Canadians were a bit behind me. The gaps opened up immediately and by the end of the first cobble section the breaks were formed!! The first break had about 10-12 riders, the second had about 10, and I was in the third with about eight riders. We could see the other groups 15-20 seconds ahead, and we were all working to catch them. The rest of our team were one group behind me with 40+ riders (including Suzanne de Goede, and Marianne Vos). Since those two girls missed the breaks their teams drove it. After two more nasty cobble sections, and after over half the race had passed, we were caught by the large peloton behind us, which Anne was with. Now Nurnberger and DSB Bank went to the front for Suzanne and Marianne, to try and catch the front group. It didn't seem like it would be possible because the winds were so strong and there weren't that many of them chasing. But when a break of three riders went off the front break, they slowed, and we eventually caught them! So now there were three riders off the front and about 40-50 riders in our pack. So the fight for position never ended. Right before we entered the city circuit, we caught two of the girls. Chantal Beltman had attacked them and dropped them. Now some teams were sort of chasing and some were attacking, and it split up the field into two. I was in the front bunch with about 24 riders. In the last 5km, I went with nearly every attack because I didn't want to lose any opportunity. None of them stuck and the moment I saw the 500m sign I jumped. Into the turn before the finish, I knew that I had gone fairly early, but I didn't want to wait and risk getting boxed in or anything. I saw Vos, Ina, and Suzanne pass me by 200m, and then Rochelle Gilmore passed me on the line. So I ended up 6th. I don't think this race report really sums up what we went through out there today, but I just wanted to bring up the main points. I was very happy with this result, as was the rest of the team. Ciao. 04-06-08 Redlands Bicycle Classic Stage 4The Webcor Women’s Cycling Team pulled off a dramatic come-from-behind victory in the last stage of the Redlands Cycling Classic to win the four-day event by a single second! With a history of close finishes at Redlands (a one-second win in 2005 as well) Webcor devised a gutsy plan of attack to risk it all for the win rather then defend Alex’s second place. Through the hard work of her teammates, Alex Wrubleski, our rising Canadian star, not only won both the stage and the overall, but brought home all of the race’s different jerseys (leader’s jersey, sprinter’s jersey, climber’s jersey) and since this was the opening round of the Women's Prestige Series, she won all those jerseys as well! (best young rider, prestige series leader, series sprint leader). This success came despite having four riders suffer broken bones in the last six weeks. Redlands is the most prestigious women’s multi-day race in the U.S. and the Webcor victory was highlighted in the international and national cycling media as well as the Los Angeles area local print media. See our Press page for links to the news articles. Link to these CyclingNews' photos: Alex on the podium Here is Christine's Report: The Webcor women had been doing a fantastic job all week keeping Alex in good position to take on the time bonus sprints at both the Queen of the Mountain (QOM) competition line, the intermediate sprinter's line, and the finish bonuses, and Alex was chipping away at Mara Abbott's prologue lead of 30 seconds (to Alex). Webcor has a history of close finishes at Redlands with the team supporting Christine to a 1-second win in 2005. We were equally ecstatic about this year's entire team effort over the four days of racing. Master Mechanic Dave, Super Soigneur Avery, and Director Karen provided flawless support and strategy. Huge thanks to the volunteers at this all-volunteer-run Redlands Classic and the biggest hug to our annual host mother, Cid Breyer, who provided us with nourishment all week, and to our new hosts Ann and Daryl Brandt who are now super bike racing fans. Next up for team Webcor will see the Canadians (Erinne, Alex, and Gina) in Europe racing for Team Canada at the next World Cups Drenthe and Fleche Wallone, and Americans Katheryn and Christine racing for the US team at Fleche, before we all regroup again as Team "Go Green" Webcor for the Berne World Cup in Switzerland in early May and the 10-day stage race Tour de l'Aude in France the end of May. The up-and-coming riders will show the Webcor colors at Tour of the Gila and Mt. Hood Classic during the same period. 04-05-08 Redlands Bicycle Classic Stage 3Stage 3 of the Redlands Classic was a 60-minute criterium. The team rode an aggressive race, ending with another podium finish with Alex in 2nd. We also continued our trend of moving up one spot on GC each day! The rest of the race remained fast and furious; many more attacks went and were towed back. With three laps to go, Cheerwine formed their train with about six of their riders leading out Laura Van Gilder. With two laps to go, Erinne jumped their train with me and Gina on her wheel. She kept the pace hard, and with one lap to go, a Cheerwine rider took over again, and then Gina took a pull until High Road and a few others went for it. Into the last couple turns before the finish it was Brenda Lyons (Advil), Emilia (High Road), and me. Emilia and I went on the inside on the last turn and sprinted to the finish. I ended up 2nd gaining six more seconds which moved us into 2nd. 04-04-08 Redlands Bicycle Classic Stage 2Stage 2 of the Redlands Classic was a new course for everyone: a 17-mile loop in the city of Beaumont. It doesn't have nearly the climbing of the old Oak Glen stage, but there was a short, fairly steep QOM climb each lap. We made up nine seconds and moved into 3rd GC. 04-03-08 Redlands Bicycle Classic Stage 1 (Prologue)Today was the start of the 4-day Redlands Bicycle Classic, one of the top US stage races for women and the first race of the Women's Prestige Series. 03-15-08 Sequoia Cycling ClassicWebcor Builders was a team of one at the Sequoia Cycling Classic this weekend. Due to our longish list of riders recovering from injuries, Janel Holcomb was our sole representative in Visalia, CA, but she represented us quite well. Against a top field of domestic riders, Janel placed 12th in her first time trial ever, and 9th in the criterium, her first top 10 NRC placing ever, in only her second year of racing. With four of my fellow California teammates on the mend from illness and injury, I braved a weekend of NRC racing alone so the women's peloton wouldn't forget the omnipresence of the Webcor Builders Cycling Team. The first event of the weekend was a 40k time trial in Exeter, CA. It was a day of firsts for me… first ever time trial, first time racing a TT bike, first ride on tubular tires, first time hearing the "whirrrrr" of carbon wheels coming from my bike, first bike inspection by an official… and the list goes on… The course started with a straight, flat road that pointed you toward the, apparently, famous Rocky Hill, where riders would ascend 500 feet within the first 5k of the course. After that, a quick descent led us to miles of twisting and rolling country road, that, if you had the time to notice, would stun you with the beauty of hills blanketed with spring flowers in bloom. Even though I'm new to time trialing, I know enough not to sit back and enjoy the view! There were challenges at every passing kilometer: a rain shower, a little hail, fast turns on descents, rough roads, cool temperatures and strong winds. If the road wasn't going up or around a turn, there was a head wind to keep me pushing harder and harder on the pedals. As the time passed, I took notice of a few things that either gave me some hope that I was performing well or provided me with goals for improvement: (1) anytime the road turned skyward I gained on my competition; (2) if there was flat road, I didn't quite have the "umph" to keep gaining on them; (3) as I got closer and closer to the turn-around on this out-and-back course, I saw lots of people coming down the hill (meaning I was getting closer to people who started before me) and only saw one person near me once I had made the turn-around. During the second half of the time trial, I battled the wind and rough road and, finally made it back to Rocky Hill where I could get back to doing what I know how to do best: climbing hills. I easily slipped into the "pain zone" and worked and worked until I passed five women on the climb. Now, all I had to do was avoid a crash on the fast descent and keep my effort level high so my time gained on the hill would pay off. In the final two miles, I dug deeper and deeper (as I imagine seasoned time trialists can do for the full 40k) and held off the other women on the road. And when I finished… I was happy! When the results came in, the former World Time Trial Champion, Kristin Armstrong had posted the best time of the day, not me. Nevertheless I was very pleased to finish in 12th place out of the 60 women who started. It was truly a day to become "one" with my equipment and the road… and after completing my first TT, I feel certain I'll be back for many more. Day two of the Sequoia Classic was a 40-mile criterium in downtown Visalia, CA. The course was a flat, 6-turn, 0.7 mile beast that a group of more than 80 women were going to battle for more than an hour and a half! Without team members to ride for, my goal was to finish safely, watch for potential breaks, and take a prime if I found an opportunity. As an NRC race, many teams were there with full squads and I knew I would have to watch for quite a few key players. Less than one-third into the race, a big crash happened on the only right-hand turn in the course: it was all around me, but I managed to find an 18-inch gap in the mayhem and I jumped up to the group of 10 or 15 women who had survived. After two laps with this group, we rounded to the start/finish area to find a pack of more than 40 women waiting to rejoin the race from the pit. I was quickly absorbed by the mob and started working my way back to the front. There were constant attacks as we were in the final 10 miles of the race, so the pace was high and the field was often strung out. The speed was kept high by the frequent offering of primes. With about 12 laps to go, yet another prime was up for grabs, and with a decent position, knowing it was too close to the end for the good sprinters to go for it, I battled for a prime with a High Road rider and got it! In the final laps, I was focused on staying relaxed, moving up position, and taking "smart" lines through the high-speed corners. As we approached two laps to go, I found myself in an excellent position near the front of the peloton "hidden" between four teams who were battling to get their lead-out train in front. On the final lap, I maintained contact with the front group, and with the pace so high, there wasn't anyone moving up from behind. At that point, I knew that if I could just keep it together I'd have a good shot at a good sprint finish. Going into the final turn, I took an inside line and had made it clear when I heard the tell-tale sounds of a crash happening on the outside… my first thought was, "OK. You're upright," which was quickly followed by, "SPRINT!" I crossed the line and found myself with a ninth-place finish; my best yet in an NRC crit. It was a great weekend of racing and another great experience racing for Webcor. Next time around, it'll be our whole team at the Redlands Bicycle Classic, and the other ladies in the peloton will sure know that the Webcor Builders Cycling Team is there in full force! 02-28-08 Tour of New Zealand Stage 2Stage 2 of the Women's Tour of New Zealand was a rolling 100km road race with one QOM climb. Here is Katheryn's report: After a lovely bus ride from the host hotel to the start, the Webcor team rolled to the start line ready to race. The first 50k were pretty uneventful save a few attacks by smaller teams that posed no threat to the overall GC. Things did not get exciting until Just as I went back to the car to feed, attacks were going off left and right and the nice calm blob of riders was strung out from end to end. Needless to say, this was not an ideal situation to be in and it was a huge effort for me to make it back to the group. Meanwhile, my teammates did a great job of covering attacks and making sure nothing dangerous got away. High Road went to the front leading into the main climb, a 1.5k climb averaging about ~8% (although the chip-sealed roads made it feel like 21%). I did not have the best positioning going into the climb and had to work my way through many riders to establish myself at the front. There was a small group just ahead of me who had gone off the front containing Oenone Wood (High Road), Lorian Graham (AIS), Miho Oki (Menikini), Kristin Armstrong (Cervelo-LifeForce) and a couple of riders racing with a local team. I managed to stay with Judith and Chantel (High Road) and was soon joined by Erinne and a few other riders. Going down the decent, the small group off the front still maintained a gap and it was not until a few kilometers on the flat road that my group joined the front. We were now 15. High Road had the most incentive to keep our group separate; many riders who were in the front group yesterday had been dropped on the climb and they did the majority of the work. Since Kristin was not working, Karen instructed Erinne and me to just sit on. With about 4k to go, Oenone flatted and the group slowed down enough to allow her to catch back on. Erinne tried to lead me out, but was forced to the front too early and we got swarmed with about 1k to go. In the end, Oenone won, followed by Lorian, and Miho. I finished 9th and Erinne was 14th. The next group, containing Christine and Alex finished Back to the index02-27-08 Tour of New Zealand Stage 1The Webcor Builders Women are now in Wellington, New Zealand for the Women's Tour of New Zealand. This is a 5-day, 6-stage UCI category 2.2 race. Most of the teams from the Geelong World Cup are here. The race was fast right from the start and since the sprints was 10 minutes apart, there was no time to rest in between. Everyone was fighting for position on the wide windy stretches before each of the narrow corners. There were several attacks each lap that our team covered, while I tried bringing Gina up for each sprint, competing with the USA train of four, leading out Lauren Franges. Gina got points at two of the sprints and we decided to save the rest for the finish. There were three Cervelo Lifeforce girls and two High Road girls in the break; it was a fast and guttered remaining 20 minutes of the race. I managed to stay on and place top 10. 02-24-08 Geelong World CupThe Webcor Builders team rode flawlessly in the first World Cup event of 2008 and scored the biggest victory of the team's existence by winning the race! Katheryn showed her great form in the Geelong Tour and followed it up with the biggest victory of her career – a World Cup win. Only one other American, male or female, has ever won a World Cup race and that was Dede Demet Barry in 1998 and 2002. See these photos: Course: 120k total distance, 8 laps on ~15k circuit. Mostly flat with one 1.5k, 4% average climb. After a successful race in the Geelong Tour, the Green Machine was ready to take the season-opening World Cup by storm; plus Gina, our sprinter, had taken a break from racing the track WC circuit to join us. Compared to some of the other WC races I have done (Flanders, Fleche, Drenthe, and Montreal), this course was more straightforward and the biggest factor would be the wind. During the preride we scoped out the finishing 2k and laid out our plan should it come down to a field A short ride to the course allowed us to spin the legs before the start and tame some of the inevitable pre-race jitters. We knew that several teams (Nurnberger, High Road, and Menikini) would want the race to comedown to a bunch kick, while teams like Cervelo Lifeforce, who did not have a sprinter would be racing for a break to stick. We felt we had many cards to play and were fine waiting to see how the race unfolded. Right from the gun, Cervelo was active with the attacks, yet nothing really stuck and it was not until early in the second lap that a break of 12 got Cervelo was again active – Emma Rickards attacked through the feed zone, I immediately covered, and Cervelo got what they wanted – separation from the main field. Emma and I expected to be joined by other riders, but Chrissy (US National Team) was the only rider to try and bridge, yet she was unsuccessful. Emma and I fell into a smooth two-person time trial, exchanging pulls from the get go. She was motivated to not have the race come down to a sprint finish; I was motivated to make the other sprinter teams work and tire out should it come down to a sprint finish. Meanwhile, the peloton seemed fine with allowing the two of us to ride. As we still had 75k to go (she attacked about 45k into it), I knew that we could not completely bury ourselves to make the break stick. Karen did a great job directing me to not pull too hard and make sure that I kept eating and drinking. Despite the large gap that we had, I did not want to get too confident, knowing that there were motivated teams whose sprinters wanted the win. Even when the gap grew to almost seven minutes, Emma and I did not let up on our effort. With two laps to go, High Road finally went to the front and gave chase, yet initially they found little help from other teams. As High Road had shown their strength in the Geelong Tour a few days earlier, other teams did not want to hand them the win. Starting our final lap, Emma and I had about four minutes on the main group. As my strength is not in sprinting, Karen instructed me to attack her on the hill to try and get away. So, on the lead-in to the hill, I had her pull through and up the first part of the climb. When the road pitched up a bit, I attacked hard on the right, yet she was immediately on me. My biggest fear after that was that she would not work with me, but we soon were back to trading pulls. With just over 1k to go, the course went right around a round-about and I led into it, swinging wide to force her to pull through, ultimately placing me behind her. At this point, having never been in a match sprint situation, with a charging peloton coming from behind (we still had a couple minute's Back in the main peloton, Christine flatted with 2k to go (major bummer), and Erinne and Alex worked hard to keep Gina up in good position for the The win puts me in the World Cup leader¹s jersey, as this was the first World Cup. I will go to Italy in March with the US National team to wear the leader¹s jersey in the next World Cup race. Thanks to all of our awesome sponsors for making this trip happen and providing us the BEST equipment – Orbea, Easton, Speedplay, Bell, Voler, Hudz, Schwalbe, Enduro Bearings, Lake, and DeFeet. Kudos also go to Karen for her calm and solid directing skills, Dave for making sure our bikes worked perfectly, and Avery for her massage and awesome feeds (way to go for working your first feed zone!) 02-21-08 Geelong Tour Stage 1The Webcor Women are now in Geelong, Australia for the 2-day, 3-stage Geelong Tour. Due to our late race invitation, we arrived only the day before the start of the race. Nothing like racing to get over jet lag before the World Cup on Sunday! The course was an out and back 8k effort with very little elevation gain. Due to the raging head wind on the way out and tail wind on the way back, Amy was the first Webcor rider off and it was also her first ever international road race (although she is not new to the international scene having raced in the Cyclocross World Championships in late January!). I was next and did not really know how my legs would feel due to the jet lag. Going out, I did my best to not get bogged down and stay as low as I could in the drops (we were not allowed to use any time trial equipment except for TT helmets). It was a blessing to finally reach the turn-around as I was not sure I could battle the head wind any longer. Coming back was a blur and crossing the line, I felt great about my effort as there was nothing left in my legs (always a good indicator of a solid ride IMHO). I was followed by Erinne, then Alex, and finally Christine. We each had a solid ride and the results for the top 5 and the Webcor riders are as follows: 1 Christiane Soeder (Aut) Cervelo-Lifeforce Pro Cycling Team 11.28 02-21-08 Geelong Tour Stage 2Stage 2 of the Geelong Tour was a flat, windy stage of 75 km with two intermediate time bonus sprints and time bonuses at the finish. We knew it would be very hard for Katheryn to move up on GC with top sprinters ahead of her. The goal was to protect her 5th place on GC and to try move Alex or Christine up by getting them into a break. 02-22-08 Geelong Tour Stage 3The final stage was another flat, windy road race. There were some short-lived breaks, but in the end, it was a massive field sprint with Alex finishing an impressive 5th place against the best sprinters in the world! Overall, Webcor placed two riders in the top 10 and finished 3rd on Team GC. Here is Alex’s report: Today we finished off the Tour of Geelong with six laps of a 15km circuit. It was a pancake flat stage along the ocean front with a very strong wind. We went into the race with pretty much the same goal as stage 2… trying to keep Katheryn in 5th and go for the stage podium. There were four intermediate sprints that none of us were planning to go for. But on the first lap Kristin Armstrong surprised us by going for the sprint and getting it. This moved her into 5th GC and bumped Katheryn down to 6th. So for the 3rd and 4th sprints we tried to lead Katheryn to the line, and she managed to get 1 second but not quite enough to get her spot back. Other than the sprints each lap there wasn’t much action throughout the rest of the race. There were the occasional attacks but none of them stuck because of the strong wind. The top two teams: Cervelo Life Force and High Road didn’t initiate anything. Cervelo Life Force just needed to protect their leader’s jersey and High Road just wanted to wait for the finish so they could go for the stage win. So for the last 7km of the race, High Road drove the pace into the huge tail wind which strung all the riders out and created some gaps. Unfortunately Christine went down in a crash right when the pain train started (fortunately she is ok). It was probably the longest, fastest sprint finish I’ve ever done. I managed to stay on some of the top 10 wheels and got 5th in the stage. So to end the tour with 7th and 8th GC and two top 5 stage finish’s we are very happy with this as Webcor’s first international race of the year. |
