Link to each race report from the list below or just scroll down to browse:

April 30 Tour of the Gila Stage 3

The Time Trial at the Tour of the Gila is always a big factor in the GC and this year was no exception. Erinne had a great day and finished 2nd in the TT and moved up to 3rd overall.

Link to a photo of her hammering up the hill.

Here is Erinne's report:

Yesterday was the 3rd stage of the SRAM Tour of the Gila and on the days agenda was the 16.15-mile ITT. The conditions were not as windy as the day before but there was still a strong enough breeze that some riders were debating using a disk. In the end at least all of us Webcor riders chose a disk and held it up. The course was an out and back that began with a very long gradual uphill into the cross/tail wind and then some big rollers until the turn around. After the turn around we had more rollers back with one bigger uphill and then the super fast gradual descent with cross/head wind home.

We were on our new Tescher TT bikes, Ritchey equipment, and Fizik saddles and I must brag, because after 15 years of bike racing this is the first and only TT bike that has fit me properly and where I could get a great position that I wasn’t fighting with. I was out on the road and I didn’t have to constantly re-adjust myself. Exciting eh?

Another exciting part is Karen’s excellent advice. On our pre-ride the other day, Karen said that the first hill is where we could gain a ton of time so I raced to the top of the first hill! Also, I was debating using a 53 versus a 55 front chain ring (because of the tail wind of the hill and the head wind on the descent) and again got Karen’s advice to use the 55 and I’m I sure glad I did since 95% of my race was in that gear.

So anyhow, warming up I was listening to some good punk music on the trainer and once I got on the road I just focused on catching my minute man. Because I went as hard as I could to the top of the first hill I caught my minute man by the top, but then she caught me on the descent again (oops), I had gotten out of my TT bars on the descent because I was scared of the wind and I also had to recover from my effort on the hill. Anyhow, we stayed even until the turnaround. After the turn I decided to turn it up a notch again because I got re-motivated when I saw that I still had good time on the girls behind me and knew I was still in good contention. So I passed my minute man again and hammered all the way home into the wind and stayed in my TT bars even though I was still being shaken by the wind.

It turned out really well and I finished 2nd in the stage with a time of 40:51. Katheryn also had a good day finishing 9th with a time of 42:04. Alison Powers won with a time of 39:18 and Meredith Miller was 3rd. The GC got shuffled from the day's efforts but Mara Abbott held onto the lead with Alison Powers moving into 2nd and myself now in 3rd. Katheryn is in 8th. The GC places 3rd to 9th are so close and we are all within 33 seconds of each other. I anticipate today’s crit in downtown Silver City will be very hard and fast; people will be wanting to move up on GC.

Go back to the top

April 29 Tour of the Gila Stage 2

I have raced bikes for 18 years all over the world and directed Webcor for seven years and I have never seen winds as strong as what blew through the women's peloton in Silver City, New Mexico today!! On the final, exposed climb about 15 miles from the finish, I saw riders literally being blown 180 degrees around and headed back down the hill! The women passed stragglers from the men's fields who slowed to let the women by and then lost so much momentum they could not get started again and had to walk their bikes up the hill! Every few minutes the group would sort of explode sideways as a gust came through and then come back together again. It was a day I was glad to be in the car! Miraculously there we no crashes all day until one rider unfortunately went off the road with only about 500m to go in the race.

It was a hard day of racing and the Webcor riders gave their all. We slipped a couple of spots on GC, but hopefully can move back up in the TT tomorrow.

Here is Erinne's report:

Can I say WIND WARNINGS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Winds between 50-86km/hr and I swear we got more of the 86km/hr winds than those at 50. It was truly one of the most horrific days on the bike and probably very amusing for the staff to watch from the car (much worse than any day in Holland).

Anyhow, on with the race report. Today was a 77- mile loop with 5,854 feet of climbing. At six miles we had a 3-second time bonus sprint which Alison Powers attacked hard and it splintered the field pretty well. Joelle did a big effort and got 3rd in the sprint! Unfortunately she was not able to recover in time for the climb and had a long day of chasing.

After the sprint we immediately started the climb up to Pinos Altos. Robin Farina from Vera Bradley got a small gap and then Andrea Dvorak went to bridge, I was on the other side of the road from Andrea and tried to go with her but unfortunately I just don’t have any acceleration at this altitude or this early in the season. After Pinos Altos, the Peanut Butter team started chasing down the two leaders. We had another climb up to Meadow Creek and then a very technical and long descent which lead us into a valley. On the technical descent, Alison Powers went to the front and drilled it. She is one of the fastest descenders and it is very hard to hold her wheel but I was determined, and it was a great chance to truly test out the technical ability of the Teschner bike and Ritchey wheels. Anyhow, they were performing great and I was hanging onto Alison’s pace until unfortunately so close to the bottom of the descent Cath Cheatley took a corner, (or should I say didn’t take a corner) and went rolling into the ditch. I was right behind her and had to unclip and we lost the lead descending group.

Once we hit the valley I sat up and waited for the now quite small group that contained Katheryn and Andrea, as well as many Peanut Butter and Vera Bradley girls. Up front Andrea Dvorak and Robin Farina were caught by Alison Powers, Carmen Small, and Alexis Rhodes. I imagine (but am not positive) that the Vera Bradley girls drove the break while back in our group the Peanut Butter team was chasing. The valley was about 30 miles and the chase was on. Sometimes the break would gain time and then the gap would shrink again – the gap kept fluctuating between 1:30 and about 40 seconds. Nearing the bottom of the final climb our group was totally gaining and we got to about 35 seconds. I thought for sure we would catch them.

When we hit the final climb it was like we hit a wall head on but also like there was also someone hitting you from the side every once in a while. There were girls being pushed to do 180 degree turns. Also, to give you an example, when the master men who we were catching were asked to pull over to the right of the road they were sometimes unable to get back on their bikes and had to start walking! Then there was the sand that was blown into us like a hail storm. Anyhow, Mara Abbott was doing most of the work on the early part of the climb, and up ahead the group of five had split up. Eventually we reeled in Alexis Rhodes and Robin Farina. Later, we were catching Alison Powers and Carmen Small when Carmen attacked again to get a gap and catch up to her teammate Andrea. I also tried multiple times to get away, but Katheryn said either Abbott or Cheatley were always bringing me back.

The two Colavita girls only had a small gap at first but unfortunately Peanut Butter had lost some riders by that time and it took teams too long to organize a chase. Vera Bradley had six riders and started the chase first and then Andrea and I helped out. It was really hard to keep a consistent echelon since the wind would blow people around too much. Carmen and Andrea ended up with about 2.5 minutes ahead and we came in with the group. There were time gaps at the end in our group because of a bad crash within the last 1km when a girl got blown over. Katheryn now stands 5th overall and I'm in 9th.

Tomorrow is the time trial and the wind warnings are over… it’s only supposed to be "breezy."

Go back to the top

April 28 Tour of the Gila Stage 1

The Webcor team is in Silver City, NM for the 5-day Tour of the Gila. This is a tough race – probably the most climbing of any US stage race and also takes place above 6,000ft elevation, which is hard for those coming from sea level. The team is Katheryn, Erinne, Andrea, Joelle and our two guest riders: Amy Dombroski who raced with Webcor in 2008-2009 and Angela McClure of the Webcor/Alto Velo Bridge team.

Here is Katheryn's report:

Stage 1 of the Tour of the Gilla was the infamous Mogollon Road Race – a 73.1-mile point-to-point race. We had a 2.1-mile, neutral parade through downtown before turning onto US 180, a 2-lane road with wide shoulders. The first 40k or so of the course would be slightly downhill and then begin gently rolling up and down until about kilometer 104, where a right turn would take us onto NM 159. The final 10k of the race climbed for about 3.5k before hitting a mesa that gave a small respite before kicking up again (at points of 17%) and topped out at just under 6,800ft.

Stage races typically start with some sort of individual time trial and as this was not the case for Tour of the Gila, it left a bit unknown on which team would control the race. All of the top women's teams are represented (this was the second race in the Women's Prestige Series), and Peanut Butter definitely had one of the strongest as they had Mara Abbott (winner of Gila in 2007, while racing for Webcor).

With an early start of 8:15, many of us had barely begun to feel the effects of the caffeine before we heard the starter's gun go off and we made our way through town. As soon as we turned onto US 180, Anne Samplonius (guest riding for Vera Bradley) attacked solo. As it was so early in the race, no one gave chase or went with her. The peloton seemed fine to let her just ride off and as the early kilometers ticked by, her gap grew.

Soon the gap was over three minutes and there was a bit of uneasiness in the peloton since no one really seemed to take control and keep things in check. Colavita, Tibco, Peanut Butter, and Webcor each put a rider up front (we had Ange, guest riding for us from the Bridge Team) just to roll tempo to keep Anne's gap in check and even with that, it grew to over six minutes. Peanut Butter felt the most uncomfortable with the situation and lined up their entire team on the front and had four of their riders rolling through a hard tempo. With someone finally taking control, Anne's gap began to come down. It looked as if her solo effort off the front was not going to stick.

The energy in the peloton escalated as the right turn approached; riders jockeyed for position at the front before the first part of the climb. Kat Carroll (Peanut Butter) drove the pace hard and we swallowed up Anne within 1k or so of making the turn.

Unfortunately, at one point, just before the road kicked up, there was a cross of wheels right in front of me and several riders went down. I managed to sneak through without injury or going down. Alisha Welsh (Peanut Butter) took over the pace setting with Mara glued to her wheel. About half way up the first climb, Mara just took off like a rocket. I knew better than to try and chase as any effort in the red at altitude could blow me for later. Cath Cheatley (Colavita) took up pace and just before hitting the mesa, I could not hold on and got gapped. Alison Powers (Vera Bradley) came around me and joined Cath and Alisha. Cath and Alison pushed the pace on the mesa and I did all I could to to minimize the distance they put on me. Unfortunately I had Andrea Dvorak (Colavita) on my wheel and with a teammate up the road, she was not going to offer me any help.

As soon as the road kicked up again, I tried to ride my own race and keep the others in view; Mara was nowhere in sight. Cath ended up dropping Alison, and Alisha and I slowly started to real them in. With about two or so k to go, I caught Alisha and Alison and kept the pressure on to drop them. I could see Cath up the road a bit but had nothing left in my legs to try and catch her. It was all I could do to keep the legs from turning over and the last 500m felt more like 5k!

I rolled across the line for 3rd. (See podium photo from the Gila site.) Erinne had a great ride and finished 7th. Unfortunately Andrea got caught up in the crash and although she did not get hurt, was tangled with another rider's bike. Joelle suffered the worst of the crash for us (although she did still finish) and at first thought her hand might be broken; but after a quick (yes, quick) trip to the ER, determined that there was no break, just a bad bruise, whew. Ange did a great job for her first race at altitude and Amy found a good group to ride in with

Go back to the top

April 24 RoadRunner Classic Omnium

The RoadRunner Classic is a new race on the calander this year in Albuquerque, NM. The promoters are trying to grow the event into a good add-on for teams coming out for Tour of the Gila the following week. Webcor sent a small, but strong team of Katheryn, Andrea, and Erinne to support the race and also gain some time at altitude before Gila. The race is an omnium format, which means there are points awarded for finish order in each stage and the greatest points total wins, instead of the usual stage race format determined by time.

Here is Katheryn's report:

Erinne, Andrea, and I joined up in Albuquerque, NM for the 1st Annual RoadRunner Classic, a 1-day omnium that included an individual time trial in the morning and circuit race in the afternoon.

We were met at the airport by Dave, who had driven down from Portland, OR in our wonderful Sprinter. After loading ourselves and our stuff, we went off to a bbq held by the race promoter. It was a great opportunity to chat with other racers and have some really really good food. As we were all tired after a long day of traveling, we said our goodbyes and headed off to our host families. The weather took a turn for the worse as we rolled out and we were greeted with hail and snow! Hopefully this was just a passing storm system and not a sign of things to come.

Fortunately the next day was clear, although a bit cool, and we took the opportunity to sleep in a bit before heading out to the course to check things out. The TT and circuit race was to be held on the same course so that made things very easy. It took a bit of figuring out to determine exactly where the course was but with the help of Colavita, we sussed it out and got set up. Although the skies were dry, it was wicked windy and made for an interesting pre-ride. As this was the first time on our race bikes and Andrea and Erinne on their TT bikes, we took quite a bit of time to make sure that things were set up correctly. Before we knew it, time had flown by and it was already after five. We quickly loaded things up and headed back for a quick shower before needing to get to registration and another racer dinner.

Despite being in its first year, the race organization did a great job of supporting the participants and with full tummies and enough numbers to pin both our skin suit and jersey, without repinning, we headed home to get a good night's sleep.

The alarm went off way too early at 5:30am as the first woman would be off at 8:30 and all three of us wanted to make sure we had enough time before our respective start to digest. The last thing you want to be doing in a TT is retasting your breakfast. With plenty of time to get set up and warmed up, we arrived at the race. Unfortunately, things were delayed an hour due to the barriers not being set up in time; so, we hung out in the Sprinter while Dave got things all prepped.

The Snake Course is a 6.3-mile circuit that starts out flat for two miles before entering the rolling hills of the Snake. The course descends off of the escarpment for 2.25 miles before returning back up to the start finish line (out and back). The final climb has a 7% grade and flattens out for about 1000 meters at the finish. There is a total of 407 feet of climbing.

I was the second of the Webcor riders off and unfortunately the wind was just as strong as it was the previous afternoon. Unfortunately for me, ever since getting blown over and breaking my collarbone in New Zealand, I am a bit nervous riding in windy windy conditions and the conditions definitely caused me to be much more cautious.

I did not have the most stellar ride as I just could not get in the groove and seemed to be battling with myself to keep control of the bike in the wind. My effort was good enough for a 4th place finish. Erinne finished 6th and Andrea was 10th. Alison Powers won, Carmen Small was 2nd, and Robin Farina was 3rd.

As the circuit race was the same course, we hung out at the race venue and did our best to stay relaxed and out of the sun and win. A racers area was set up in a nearby building and a few of us took advantage of the respite from the weather.

With only 17 women in the race (Vera Bradley had 5 and Colavita had 6), we were a bit unsure as to how things would play out and with it being an omnium, we had to be aware of who had how many points and where people finished to secure what we had or move up.

The wind had not let up at all and another factor that played a major role in the race was goat heads, obnoxious thorns that get stuck in your tire and cause very very slow leaks. I got a goat head in my front tire half way through the second lap and with no follow vehicles, I had to ride the wheel to the "neutral" wheels support that was about half way between the start finish line and the u-turn. The two guys in the "pit" handed me a wheel and it was up to me to change it out. This was a less than ideal situation but better than flatting out completely.

Andrea dropped off the back of the peloton to help me get back on and this left Erinne all alone to cover a very aggressive Vera Bradley. Unfortunately, once the group hit the u-turn and the tailwind section, they were gone and Andrea and I did our best to minimize the gap. I made up a bit of ground on the climb coming into the start/finish but this dropped Andrea, I decided it best to continue on to try and catch the group and hope that Andrea could catch back on if the group slowed down.

The group did slow down once it made its way around the other end of the course and hit the headwind and I thankfully caught back on and Andrea did a few k's later. Whew.

Kelly B. (Colavita) put in a strong attack coming into the u-turn and it was covered by Kristen Sanders (Vera Bradley), as Andrea had just caught back on and Erinne covered things while we were off the back, I bridged up to the two off the front, bringing along Cath Cheatley (Colavita) and Carla Swart (Vera Bradley) and a regional rider. As we were in the tail wind section, we gained a good distance from the group pretty quickly. The two Vera Bradley riders did not work as I was a GC threat and even though Colavita had Carmen in 2nd and by working could have forced Vera Bradley to work, they sat on as well. I rolled through with the regional rider and we stayed away for about a lap before being chased down.

The next lap was pretty mellow, yet Erinne got a flat coming through the u-turn. She had to go to the "neutral pit" and Andrea and I monitored the front to make sure nothing got away without us. Coming through the start finish, I saw Erinne throw down a great attack as she used her momentum from chasing back on to launch herself off the front. She was covered by Kristen Sanders and Modesta V. (Colavita). Initially, Colavita was happy with the break but soon changed their mind and put three of their riders on the front. They chased down Erinne's break and as soon as they were caught on the uphill, headwind section, I attacked hard and drew out Robin and Carmen. As Alison was not with us, Carmen and I drove it hard. We later learned that Alison got a flat. Coming through the u-turn, we could see Alison on the front driving it so Carmen and I pushed on. Coming up the finish climb, Cath bridged up and immediately went to the front to drive it. With the tailwind, I did my best to come around Carmen for the finish but I had nothing left in the tank and finished 2nd.

With the way the points worked, Carmen moved into 1st, Alison dropped to 2nd and I moved to 3rd. Erinne still held her 6th place and Andrea moved into 8th.

Despite being a very long day, we had a great time and hope the RoadRunner Classic continues for years.

Go back to the top

April 17 Sea Otter Classic Circuit Race

Saturday the Webcor team of Katheryn and Andrea headed down to Monterey for the Sea Otter Circuit Race. Sea Otter is a "celebration of all things cycling" with road events, mountain bike events, fun riders, trials and just about any other event one can think of that takes place on a bike! In addition, there is a huge Expo event – "Interbike for the consumer" – so it gave the team a rare and valuable chance to meet many of our cycling industry sponsors who we know more as a voice on the phone and an email address the rest of the season! Lindsay, fresh off her crutches, joined us for the expo tour and helped support the team in the feed zone during the race. We got to talk to our representatives from Ritchey, SRAM, DeFeet, Thule, Voler, Speedplay, Fizik, and Maxxis–- valuable people who help keep the team going! We got a podium finish in the race too!

Here is Katheryn's report:

Although Sea Otter can seem like a four ring circus at times with so much going on within the confines of Laguna Seca Raceway, the value of being able to visit with the sponsors out-weighed the zooiness.

Andrea and I were the only Webcor riders to line up at the start with about 50+ other women. Fortunately, despite a history of horrible weather, we were blessed with warm, sunny skies and only a moderate breeze. The course was a circuit of the raceway that we would do for two hours. For those of you not familiar with the Laguna Seca course, it is "2.238 miles (3.602 km) in length with a 300 foot (91 m) elevation change. It has eleven turns, including the famous 'Corkscrew' at Turns 8 and 8A" (wikipedia).

This would definitely be a race of attrition as the first handful of times up the climb did not feel so bad but as the race went on, the efforts built up in the legs and you got that "not so fresh" feeling.

Katheryn in the winning break. Photo courtesy of Karen Brems

The first part of the race was animated by several regional riders who would get a good gap off the front of the field but eventually be pulled in by others wanting to keep the race together. The first significant move came when Alison Powers (Vera Bradley) attacked and the ever attentive Andrea was immediately on her wheel. They stayed away for about a lap while Kristin Lasasso (Tibco) set a steady tempo at the front to keep them in sight. Coming through the feedzone and rounding the left-hand bend to begin the significant part of the climb, I could see that Andrea was getting gapped a bit by Alison. Knowing the strength of Alison, I immediately responded and put in a hard attack to bridge up to Alison and keep the pressure on the peloton to chase. Alison stayed on my wheel cresting the hill and Kat Carroll (Peanut Butter & Co, 2012) was not far behind and the three of us went down the descent together.

This was a perfect break for me as I knew both Alison and Kat would be motivated to keep us off the front. We all took equal pulls to gain distance from the chasing peloton (both Colavita and Tibco missed the break so we knew we had to push it to make the break stick). We still had half the race to go and I knew that I had to pace myself so did my best to pull on the tail wind sections and not go too hard on the climb.

The motobike did a great job of keeping us informed of the time gaps (no more race radios makes it crucial that this happen) and our initial 15" gap grew to 25", to 45" and then over a minute with several laps to go.

Katheryn visits the Ritchey booth at Sea Otter. Photo courtesy of Karen Brems

Knowing that my breakmates were very strong, I had to play to my strength and try attacking on the climb. With two laps to go, there was a slight gap to the others and I kept the pressure on going over the hill, but Alison used her skills on the descent to bring us all back together. Coming through the feedzone, I found myself in front and although ideally I wanted to be third wheel. I put in an attack at the base of the climb to try and get distance from the others. I did manage to gain a few meters and dug deep to get over the top, unfortunately, there was not much left in the tank and Alison and Kat were soon back on my wheel. Rolling down the descent, Alison put in a strong attack and using her strong downhill skills, quickly got a gap.

Kat fought hard to catch her and I tagged myself to the back of Kat, but in the end we could not catch her and Alison rolled across the finish line for the win, with Kat close behind, having put in a strong acceleration coming into the finish, I rolled in for 3rd about 2" later, with nothing left in the tank having left it on my last attack on the hill.

Andrea did a great job hanging in with the chasing peloton and finished 9th.

After the race we had a great time visiting with sponsors.

Go back to the top

March 28 Redlands Bicycle Classic Stage 3

Here is Katheryn's report:

Stage 3 of the Redlands Bicycle Classic was the infamous Sunset Road Race, a circuit race on a 6.4-mile loop that we would tackle nine times before rocketing back into town for a fast technical finish.

Despite the fact that Ina seemed to have the overall GC locked up, we knew that riders such as Mara Abbott (Peanut Butter/2012) and Amber Neben would make her work for the win and the course itself would be quite selective. The normally crazy neutral rollout that brought the peloton to the entrance to the circuit seemed to be a bit more controlled than in the past, yet as soon as the gun went off to start the race, the pace quickened and riders fought for postion before the first time up the climb.

Amber Neben went to the front to set a steady tempo and kept the pressure on all the way until just before the QOM when Alison Powers (VBF) put in a hard effort to gain the maximum points available and I did my best to match her acceleration but couldn't and got second across the line. Even when Alison eased up, Amber came around to keep the pressure on and we soon had a select group of riders. Despite the fact it was so early in the race, a few riders rolled through to keep the pace up and we soon had a gap that was close to one minute. Yet, as Colavita had missed the break, they did the majority of the chasing and soon we were caught.

The next couple times up the climb, Amber and Mara kept the pressure on and there were a few small, solo, non-threatening attacks. I put in an attack at one point, hoping to set up Andrea or Erinne to counter and soon after I was caught; Kristin Lasasso (Tibco) attacked and got off alone, but Erinne did a great job of reacting and bridged up to her. As both riders were not a threat to the GC, the group seemed content to let them go. They stayed away for a lap and a half before the difficulty of the course wore them down and they were absorbed back into the group.

As the fatigue began to set into rider's legs, the lead group dwindled and Amber and Mara turned the screws each time up the climb. On laps 7 and 8, the two of them managed to separate themselves and put pressure on Ina and her team to chase them down. Evie was the only HTC-Columbia rider left to help Ina out and it was jaw dropping to watch her come to the front and steadily motor them back each time. Just past the feedzone on the 8th lap, Alison Powers attacked and quickly gained time on the small group, using her great bike handling and descending skills to get away.

The last time up the climb, I sensed a lull in the group and put in a hard attack. I kept my head down and the pressure on the pedals and a quick glance back proved that I had gotten some distance from the group, but that Amber and Mara were bridging up to me. As they knew it was better to keep me around than drop me, they eased up just a bit so I could latch onto their wheel. Meredith Miller (Tibco) also managed to come across and soon the four of us caught Alison. I rolled through as much as I could along with Meredith, but Amber and Mara did most of the work; Alison just sat on.

With less than 6k to go, on the descent back into town, we were caught by the group, again led by Evie. There were several counter attacks on a flatter section and I covered some strong attacks by Carmen Small (Colavita) and Alexis Rhodes (VBF). At about 3k or go, Evie put in a great attack and got off. No one seemed to have much left in their legs to bring her back and she ended up staying away for the win. I did my best to keep myself in good position but found myself behind Mara in the finish and did my best to sprint around her for a decent result but there was nothing left in my legs.

This was definitely one of the hardest Sunset Road Races I have ever done.

March 27 Redlands Bicycle Classic Stage 2

Saturday afternoon the Webcor team headed to downtown Redlands for the criterium. This is a quite technical 9-corner course that is a lot of fun and always draws a big crowd. Ina Teutenberg (Columbia) started the day only 14 sec. behind race leader Amber Neben, and with 13 sec. of time bonuses available on both this stage and tomorrow's, she was certainly a contender for the win. She is one of the fastest female sprinters in the world, but probably wins as many crits off the front as she does in sprints! Everyone knows she will attack, everyone knows they can move up in GC if they can follow her, and everyone watches her, but she still manages to power away race after race!

After Joelle's podium sprint the day before, the Webcor team had confidence that she could make another good showing. That she did, making an impressive bridge to the winning break being driven by Ina, and finishing 4th on the day.

Here is Joelle's report, edited by Alex:

It was a warm sunny day in Redlands, California for Stage 2 of the Redlands Classic. We were all excited about this race, and everybody showed up! Thanks to Jeremy’s massages, we were all recovered from the race yesterday. It was a 60-minute race, and our plan for the day was to try to lead out Joelle for the sprint points which were at 45 and 30 minutes to go, 5 laps to go (and of course the finish). And to cover any other attacks.

We all lined up at the start line… just before we took off, the cutest little girl sang the national anthem, and wished us all good luck.

The race started, and everyone battled for positions for the first few laps. There weren’t many attacks for the first 15 minutes, as everyone fought for position and some teams prepared for the first sprint line. Unfortunately nobody on our team saw or heard any warning for the first sprint so we missed out on that one.

Webcor is all over it Photo by Veronika Lenzi

Ally, Andrea, Erinne, and Katheryn covered several attacks until the mid point of the race, where the first time bonus sprint was. There were several teams who were in need of those precious seconds, but Ina snagged them, and created a big gap at the same time. So she and a few Tibco riders started to work together and the gap kept growing.

Joelle saw the gap and made a huge effort to get up to the break. Shortly after, a couple other riders joined her in this break, making a total of eight, and the gap kept growing. Most of the work was done by Ina (Columbia), Rebecca Much (Tibco) and Kat Carroll (Peanut Butter & Co). Joelle was pretty spent after the huge effort, and just tried to hang on, to conserve as much energy as possible for the finish sprint. The break stayed away to the finish, where Joelle ended up in 4th, and moved into 11th GC and 3rd in the U25 division.

Ina took over the leader's jersey, and all of the GC placings were flipped around as the break gained 1min 12 sec. by the end!

Go back to the top

March 26 Redlands Bicycle Classic Stage 1

Joelle Numainville on the podium. Photo courtesy of Karen Brems

Stage 1 of the Redlands Classic is a Road Race in the city of Beaumont. It was the first big race for most teams with the 2010 ban on race radio communication between riders and the team managers in the caravan cars. We will see if and how the racing changes this year. This stage is traditionally a stage for sprinters who can also climb the shorter hills on the course. The usual gale-force winds of prior years did not materialize this year. Webcor got a podium place with our new young sprinter, Joelle:

Here is Erinne's Report:

Today was Webcor’s first team race of the year. We were eight strong and had 68 miles to race. The course started with a big loop of 33 miles (with two hills) and two small loops of 17 miles with one hill. We had two QOM sprints and two intermediate/time bonus sprints. It was a 9:15am race start and even us Canadians and our Austrian were shivering our butts off! Anyhow, as the race went on it warmed up, we didn’t have too strong of wind and the sun was shining.

Team goal is to get some stage podiums, work for the climber's jersey and sprint jersey and move up in GC at the same time. First lap we had a QOM at 9.8 miles and we tried to lead out Ally, but the 200 metres to go sign was very deceiving and she went too early; Katheryn ended up 2nd. The first lap was pretty neutral. Joelle was also practicing for the intermediate/time bonus sprints across the finish line each time and both times she had a great sprint to 4th.

The team waits for the podium presentations. Photo: Karen Brems

The 2nd lap we started attacking very aggressively but unfortunately many of the teams wanted a bunch sprint. On the second QOM sprint, Katheryn followed Alison Powers to get 2nd in the QOM sprint again and she is now 2nd overall in the standings. The third lap was again a little more negative; we followed wheels and worked the breaks that seemed promising, but we soon hit the hill again and the teams were keeping stuff together for the finish bunch sprint. In the last 10km from the hill the roads are open and fast. Tibco was launching attacks in order to mess up the Columbia train and make them chase. We were keeping Joelle safe and up front and covering moves. Joelle did a fabulous job of keeping position with the sprinters and this is her quote, (in the French accent of course ) “I show up at the last minute, relaxed. It was fun”.

The team had a great first day and it was exciting getting to see everyone’s strengths and energy and to get to use the great team equipment for the first time. Unfortunately we had one mishap on lap one. Lindsay had a random crash on a slow uphill where everyone was antsy and she broke her ankle. But she’s doing ok and in good spirits.

Tomorrow is the Redlands Crit which is a very fast and technical course. Wish us luck.

Go back to the top

March 25 Redlands Bicycle Classic Prologue

The Webcor team is down in Redlands for the first NRC stage race of the season. Redlands always draws one of the most competitive fields all year and everyone gets their first chance to see who is fit and what all the new kits look like! For the Webcor team, it is also a chance to see our most awesome host "mom," Cid Breyer, who has housed the team every year since 2004 (and also hosted the team I raced for here 14 years ago!)

Amber Neben won the prologue for the 3rd year in a row, 16 sec. ahead of Mara Abbott (Peanut Butter & Co) and Evelyn Stevens (Columbian High Road). Katheryn was the top rider for Webcor.

Here is Katheryn's report:

Day 1 of the Redlands Bicycle Classic was a a 3.1 mile prologue. The course started with a fast, slightly up, straight section before the first right turn took the riders on the first of several climbs. Riders were given a slight respite as the road descended quickly and then a sharp left turn brought them to a long grinding, false flat section, on a very rough road. It was important to not get bogged down on this part of the course as the next right turn lead to the base of Wabash, a steep climb that seemed to suck the energy from your legs. Just when you thought your legs and lungs were going to explode, the course turned left up an even steeper (but slightly shorter climb). The final 1k was false flat.

I was the last rider off for Webcor and got a great warm up on our awesome new Cyclopes trainer. I rolled to the start line with plenty of time to get my bike checked and received many comments on my super fast looking Teschner TT bike. The bike is smokin' hot with the great Ritchey hammerhead aero bars. Topped off with my Laser Tardiz helmet I was ready to tackle this challenging course.

When we pre-rode the course the day before, Karen instructed us to pace ourselves as we would gain more time going hard on the climbs than on the flats; I kept this in mind as I whooshed from the start line. Things were going great until I dropped my chain from the big to the little ring along the false flat, bumpy section, but the K-Edge on my bike prevented the chain from completely coming off. Whew, I did not panic and quickly shifted into the little ring to prevent further issues.

I powered up the last little part of the false flat and took some deep breaths before tackling the hill on Wabash. I was feeling good at the start of the climb and then about 2/3rds up, I got super bogged down and was fighting with the bike. This struggle to keep the pedals turning over continued up the steeper pitch and it took all I had to keep myself going to the finish.

In the end I placed 9th with the same time (slightly faster actually) as last year. Looking back on what when wrong, I realize last year even though I was on my TT bike, I had a 53/39 for my front chainrings and this year I had a 54/42. Hard lesson learned as to why I got so bogged down and could not keep the pedals turning over.

Go back to the top