LiveStrong Training

So today Gerry Remsen planned a training ride for us. He did this for us last year as well. He would organize great long routes for us to ride each weekend. And this weekend was no different. He planned a 60 mile ride which ended up being 63miles, but who's counting? He claims he emailed us the route but I highly doubt it. He knows me too well, and if I had known what we were going to do, I would have attempted to bail. The whole ride was based around climbing. Now, I understand that climbing is a great way to train, but I just suck at it! The ride begins with 7 of us heading out of beautiful Kittatiny. It was a perfect riding day!!! and with our group, it was sure to be a great ride. Once we were far enough from the parking lot, where I most likely would not bail, the phrase "massive climbing" came out of Buz's mouth. ??? What was he saying? and then they told me.....we were going to climb Sunrise Mountain, High Point and Library Hill to name just a few. Gerry was laughing at this point as he could tell, he got me. Then he mentioned that those were just 3 of the 13 climbs he had planned. His laughing was actually a good thing for me since my "what does not kill me, will only make me stronger" attitude kicked in. I was soooo not going to let Gerry's torture training get to me. So I looked at him and quietly said...."bring it on", this of course made Buz laugh. Library Hill wasn't so bad. Catherine and I took the lead up the hill and Gerry complimented us by asking "why was he training us?" :) then over to Sunrise Mountain via Culvers lake. Not the most direct route, but it worked. Now, keep in mind I have not ridden up Sunrise Mt. since 2005 during for race and there was a very good reason for this. Gerry explained that we were going to go up and then down the back side, which I had never done. Cool, spiral downhill cruising! So up we go, Catherine, Eric and I took the lead again. Our legs felt pretty good at this point. I even had enough energy to take some pictures while pedaling. I waited at the top for the group and then we headed down. Gerry forgot to mention that there is this quick incline after a blind bend....this information would have come in handy since Catherine and I were both in our big ring at this point. Ouch! That hurt. So we finally made it out of there....on to High Point. As we rode through Sawmill, we needed to make a quick stop for Gary. His back was starting to tweek out a bit. Go Gerry gave him a big Chiropractic bear hug and stretched it out for him. At this point the comments started to fly...and I will leave it at that. So we made the turn up High Point....we had lost one of riders. He headed home from Sawmill. Catherine, Eric and I were up front once again pedaling at a nice comfortable pace. Then Eric pulls off to make a call. ?? Catherine and I reach the top and even though Gerry told us to head up to the monument, we decided to completely ignore that coaching tip and head down the Sussex side of the mountain. This too was a first for me. I had cruised down the P.J. side before but apparently the Sussex side was steeper. Gerry actually said it was scary steep.....Catherine and I thought it was fun! Buz zipped past me at one point. He later said he didn't know what was worse, riding way too fast or trying to break. Then it was turn off time...onto another hill. Great! From there we rode towards Wantage and Frankford Park. We were running low on water so we stopped at the Fire station where they gave us ice cold water bottles. They rock!! Gary had his wife pick him up at the station because his back was still bothering him. Now we are down to 5 riders. We rode through Branchville, over route 206 and then down towards Buz's house.....then we turned into Buz's house where he fed us lunch and then he to bailed. Our group was getting smaller by the minute! We had about 15 miles to go which didn't seem so bad. Unfortunately Gerry was starting to bonk, and Catherine's knees were starting to act up. The climbing was taking prisoners. We slowed the pace down until we were about 5 miles out at which point Eric and I pushed forward. We finished the 63 mile ride in just over 4hours (of riding) which was pretty good considering the climbs we had done. Gerry gave us an excellent day of training!!! THANKS GERRY!

Skylands Cycling Vermont Trip

So we just returned from our first Skylands Cycling Vermont trip. One of our club directors was able to get us this ski lodge for a song. So 17 of us headed up to Middlebury on Friday and stayed until Sunday morning. When we arrived the group that had driven up on Thursday were heading out to watch the Jazz Festival. we were able to join up with them after a quick unpacking job and a bite to eat. We had a great day on Saturday which started out with a huge breakfast, with pancakes and scrapple (not sure I would try that again, but at least I can say I tried it) and homemade sausage. Then we all headed out for our rides. Bill and Heather took the climbing route which covered 80 miles of mountainous terrain. It also included a major rain dump. They looked like wet rats when they returned. We on the other hand rode for 32 miles which included some nice hills and a lot of great long flattish passes. Catherine and I took advantage of these and worked on some TT training. Kevin Keane was able to keep up while he rode with 60lbs of added weight, he had his 2 kids in the trailer behind him. This BTW did nothing for our self esteem. We would have this great pace going, feeling good and then we would realize we hadn't dropped him. how is that possible?! He is freaking strong. Afterwards a bunch of us took the kids to the beach with the Kayak and swam and paddled around until it was time to go to dinner with the Skylands Group. We found this great place to eat that had massive beef choices but also had this great salad bar. :) My son Sean only ate the salad bar, which is amazing for him. Heathers daughter did the same. then we headed back to the lodge and sat around until 11pm or so. Dan showed up to hang as well. He and his wife stayed at a hotel down the road. They wanted A/C and with the heat we had, I couldn't blame him. When we woke up the next day, it was raining and all of our plans to ride went out the window. So we packed up and headed home. It took 6 hours with 5 adults and 2 kids in my car. And even though that sounds like pure torture, we had a blast. Bill got me laughing so hard at one point I thought I was going to either drive off the road or bust a gut, but we made it and we can't wait until next year.

2008 Giro del Cielo

This was a very exciting weekend for Skylands and Team Somerset and it went beautifully with the help of many of our club members. The Giro del Cielo has in the past been held as solely a women’s stage race but this year we opened it up to Cat 4/5 men which turned out to be a well received idea. We had 101 people pre-registered for the weekend in varying event combinations. Saturday was our most challenging day with 2 stages, the time trial at Sunrise Mountain and the Crit at the ballpark. The concern I had was that we had to be completely packed up and out of the Skyhawks parking lot by 3pm. We had moved the Crit start time up to accommodate this request, but this meant wrapping up the time trial and setting up the Crit in record time. Well, apparently this was no big deal for we had an amazing crew which broke down and set up by 9:40am. It was incredible.

The times for the TT were just as impressive with the 1^st place Cat 4/5 Men at 15:48, the Women’s 30+ at 16:49, the Cat 3 women at 17:15 and the Cat 4 women at 16:54. We had a total of 66 people race up the mountain with the first racer heading out at 8am. It was an early yet gorgeous morning. And the best part of it was the excitement among the racers. Even with the visiting Bear at the top, we had fun. I am not sure how Lois and Kevin felt about it, but they remained calm.

The Crit was just as exciting with 22 women racing in the Cat 4 race. There were 3 groups which formed during the 30 lap race. Up front were the top 4 winners in a break. Alejandra Madrinan, Chistine Kavanagh, Lenore Pipes and Julie Carson powered around the course, taking turns winning primes (Alejandra won most of them) for merchandise and points. I believe me when I say we had a lot of primes. Apparently there was some chatting on the back stretch as to who needed the Lube or Socks and then they teamed up. The Cat 3 women went off with 10 women, all of whom were strong and determined. The women 30+ were up next and a few of the Cat 3 racers joined in as well. This group included Betty Tyrell and Krista Swope along with Tracey Lea, Jackie Paull and Marie Derosa. Barbara Shweky joined in after finishing her own Cat 3 race. Unfortunately Barbara crashed early in the race and had to head off to the hospital for stitches to her eye brow. She is fine and was able to drive home. Betty and Jackie Paull duked it out during the race but in the end Jackie pulled through for the finish with Krista right behind her. Then the 32 Cat 4/5 men lined up for their turn at the course. It was fast and furious for them and with only a few laps to go one of the leaders, Joe Sieracki went down. The reason is unclear but a blown tire is our theory. He is fine as well. In the end there was a small break away of 2 who crossed the finish line with Douglas Kauffman winning and Eric Salzer coming in second.

The next morning proved to be as beautiful and fun as the last. Everyone seemed to enjoy the course. “The hills were manageable” someone mentioned “yet hard enough to apply strategy and technique on each lap”. Each category had excitement but for Skylands Cycling, our moment was in the Men’s Cat 4/5 race. John Jackson, Gene Victori, Michael Adsit and Michael DeGeorge all joined the Giro for the last stage. AND they all wore their new kits! They looked great! At this point in the day it was HOT but there was a breeze so that helped. At least I thought so. It was probably different for those racing. The pack went off with our guys huddled in the back half. But then Gene and Keith Licata (from Team Bulldog) made a move… and then there was the final sprint and Gene won! I was getting calls from all the volunteers, who were still marshalling the course, “did Gene win? What happened?”. We were all so excited. Keith Licata came in second place which was great to see as well. John Jackson came in strong in 21^st place and Michael DeGeorge finished his first big race moments behind the main pack. Michael Adsit showed great determination during this race. Kudos to all of them! It was nice to see the Skylands colors out there.

For me this race was a foreign entity. I had never been able to attend or volunteer for any of the past Giro’s. Bob Cary was the one who handled a great deal of the work in the past. Brooke Wilson, from Team Somerset, and I were determined to put this together with as few errors as possible. And so we did but not without help from an amazing group of people. The Skylands Cycling board spent many weeks scouting and discussing road courses and once one was decided on, Dan Mitchell took the bull by the horns and was able to get all the necessary towns to approve the use of the roads. This is not an easy task. It takes time and effort. Well Done Dan! Bob Perlee once again put together a great site for racers to go to for information on the race. This made Brookes and my life much easier since very few questions came our way. Kevin Kielty, who has attended the Giro in the past, was the one I looked to for set-up. He knew what needed to be done and was able and willing to delegate and direct when I couldn’t. We were lucky enough to have Lois Cary on hand as well. As an official she knew it all, calm and collected as always. Thank you Lois for helping out. The man who worked his fingers to the bone during each and every race was Kevin Keane. He handled all the scoring and the video finishes. It was amazing. He was extremely efficient and determined for all 3 stages. His spreadsheet is daunting but without it I don’t know what we would have done. Catherine Babin was kind enough to come out and snap some, what I anticipate to be, great shots of all the races. Gary Worth, Gerry Remsen, Buz Tomasino, Kelley Barrick, Velo Barrick, Brian Gristick, Larry Henderson, Dan Mitchell, Barry Nazarian, Earl Perretti, Heather Labance all came out to volunteer for any duty I threw at them. It was amazing, we had 2 marshal’s at every corner. We had follow cars and lead cars for each group, when 2 were out at a time. Gary’s daughter came out and was willing to help Brooke with anything and everything. It was adorable, as was she. And Team Somerset provided almost as many volunteers throughout the weekend which made everything go smoothly. So my hat goes off to all of you for helping this year’s Giro del Cielo go off without a hitch. Nicely done!! I hope you all had as much fun as Brooke and I did.

If you have minute, go check out the blogs from some of the teams and racers, so far they all have posted some very positive feedback. Many of the racers spoke to Brooke and I after the race and congratulated all of us on a job well done!

Augusta Series Winners 2008

Last night turned out to be just as exciting as we had anticipated. The weather was perfect, the racers were ready and the course was in decent shape (the pavement on one corner is started to pull away). We had a total of 54 racers for the night with 20 or so spectators which made it a great atmosphere for the last race of the series. I hope our new recreational riders who can to watch had a great time. Thanks for joining us and supporting the racers.

On to the results.....

The U19 race: It started with 18 juniors which is more than double any one of our other U19 races this season. Mike Fraysee brought a bunch of his boys from his camp, which made the race very exciting. The three main players racing for the podium were Steven Tvedt with 32pts, Max Mancuso with 28pts and Dag Anderson with 24pts. While the boys raced hard as usual the Fraysee boys changed up the usual tactics for Steven which caused him to come in 11th in the pack which did not give him enought points to keep his title. Dag and Max stuck in there with Kevin McGuire and came in 3rd and 4th which bumped them up to top spots on the podium.

1st place: Max Mancuso with 43pts (Upstate Velo, Skylands member)

2nd place: Dag Anderson with 40pts (Somerset Wheelmen)

3rd place: Steven Tvedt with 39pts (Colavita Racing Inc.)

The Masters race: The main challenge here was the fight for third place. Earl Perretti basically had 1st place all wrapped up with a 18pt lead. Vin Mancuso had a secure hold on 2nd place as well with an 11pt lead but John Autore who was in 3rd place and only had a 2pt lead from 4th place which was held by Andrew Buchanan. Now before I continue, keep in mind that although not all of these men race for Skylands, they are all Skylands members who have showed an great amount of respect for one another during the season. And the finish line proved to be as exciting as we had hoped for with David Buegler crossing the finish line first which was his goal the whole season. With his "finally" cry the moment his wheel crossed the webbing from the much delapadated tape, we all smiled for his success but where was Andrew and John.....Here comes Vin....ANDREW and JOHN!! and a few men later we saw Earl. Andrew closed the gap but not by 2. So all places remained the same in the end. It was a great effort by both men.

1st place: Earl Perrtti with 169pts (Montclair Cyclists, Skylands member)

2nd place: Vin mancuso with 155pts (Skylands Cycling)

3rd place: John Autore with 142pts (Montaclair Cyclists, Skylands member)

(Andrew had a total of 141pts, nice job!)

The B race:

Unfortunately the B race contenders who held 1st and 3rd place were un able to attend but there was a threat from Nick Iacovelli in 4th place. John Jackson did am amazing job this year from begininng to end proving what a strong racer he has become. And as I mentioned in my last long email, John missed 6 races due to work yet he was able to maintain top podium position for his return. In the end the 1st place was determined by the number of second places awarded through out the season. John picked up 2 pts on tuesday which tied him with his absent competitor. So Bruce and I tallied up the number of 1st places they each took during the whole season...another tie. So on to 2nd places...Nate had one and John had two. John was the winner!

1st place: John Jackson with 91pt, 2 1st's, and 2 2nd's (Skylands Cycling)

2nd Place: Nate Morgenstern with 91pts, 2 1st's and 1 2nd(Montclair Cyclists, Skylands member)

3rd Place: Doug Allen with 67pts (DKNY)

The A race:

The dynamics of this race were a bit different due to the number of Fraysee kids who were Cat 3 racers. So we sort of had 2 races going on. The kids who were vying to win the nights race and the Men who were racing for top positions for the season. The comment that was made by Glenn at the end of the night was "they picked this year to race like a team..." which is the beauty of this season. Milo had everyone of his teammates working for him, so he could beat Glenn in the final race. Erik Kristiansen, Kevin Keane, Gene Victori, Brian Gristick all gave 100% to box in Glenn, pull or lead out Milo to his spectacular finish. So in the end the break had the kids and the pack contained the season's racers which made the pack sprint really exciting. It looked like a swarm of bees heading to the line with Milo in the front. :)

1st place: Milo Bastianelli (Skylands Cycling)

2nd place: Glenn Babikian (DKNY)

3rd place: Dave Freifelder (Westwood Velo, Skylands member)

This was truely a blast to be part of this year! Thanks for making it so exciting. I can't wait to see what the team can do next year. Keep up the great racing and the fanastic team work. You should all be really proud of yourselves.

Thanks for all the support you all gave me. I really appreciate it!!!