Snowshoe Nationals - NY Bellas’ Jano!
March 13, 2010
Fabius, New York
Saturday, March 6, 2010
(pictures courtesy of NY Bella and professional photographer,
Laura Kozlowski
(Be sure to see her “pets” section on her webpage…)
It was a delightfully sunny and balmy day, and thanks to a more than 2 foot dump of snow the week before, there was plenty of snow for the racers to actually run through. While Janet looks the relaxed sunbather in the pic above, the 10K course for the senior racers was incredibly grueling. The finishing hill was at best “pukable” and Jano’s cheering team all agreed, we would not want to do what she just did.
Almost done…just a few more steps!!!
Too pretty, eh?
LiLynn sporting the proper Bella Cheerleader Flair.
Janet’s Fan Club (this pic not by our professional, but rather a course marshall who was very excited by the bella hoopla that just came with us…)
We are so proud of her!
Mudbath for Beth
November 18, 2009
By Beth Welliver
Somewhere in Louisianna
Finally. I’m writing a race report. Granted, I did do some road races this summer, but they were not blog worthy. That’s because road racing is lame. This weekend I headed just down the road to Ruston, LA for the Piney Hills Classic. The race is actually part of the Texas Mountain Bike Racing Association’s Fall Cup points series (weird, huh?), so the turn out is pretty good with lots of fast folks from Texas coming over to race. I raced on these trails for the duathlon I did back in June when I first got here, and have ridden them a few other times. It’s an incredible 10-mi loop of mostly singletrack up and down ravines and through the woods. Plenty of technical with tree roots and stuff. The event follows a stage race format, with Cat 2’s (that’s me) doing a 3-mi time trial and the regular cross country race towards the stage results. There was also an optional short track cross-country race on Saturday morning, and the cyclocross fiend in me couldn’t pass that up!
Weather geek interjection: I should mention that its monsoon season down here. I don’t think we normally have monsoons here, but its an El Nino year (that’s Spanish for “the Nino”) so the rain just keeps coming. Rumor today was that in the last 41 days a rain gauge near the course has collected 26 inches of rain. I think they got somewhere between 3″ and 4″ in that area last week. Fortunately the weekend brought crisp, sunny autumn days, but there was plenty of mud out on the trails.
Short Track
Well, the starting field for this one was a bit sparse. There was me and one other girl. Wow, two of us. Since the short track didn’t count towards the stage results for us, most girls chose to skip it. But I wanted do the the short track more than any of the other events to get me ready for cross…yes that’s right, I haven’t done a cross race yet this year. The race official asked if we wanted to shorten the race and I kindly said, no thank you, full length please. So off we went, I guess I got the hole shot, and cruised from there. It was obscenely muddy, but riding in soupy mud is strikingly similar to riding in Ft Ord sand. I sort of didn’t know what to do once I had a good gap…keep hammering for the fitness, or conserve for the coming races? I kept hammering along with taking some lines I wouldn’t normally take through some spots for the practice. Overall, it was fun, I got covered in mud, but stayed safe and upright the whole time. Felt great, with that nice lung burn at the end.
Time Trial
After I got the bike and myself cleaned up, lubed up (the bike, not me), and made a quick trip to the Subway in nearby Wal-Mart for lunch (Wal-Mart in southern town…that 15 minute experience is worthy of whole other blog), it was time for the time trial. I generally loathe roadie time trials, with the crazy wheels and crazy bars and crazy helmets. But a mountain bike time trial…heck yeah! Plus, given that I got dropped in all those CCCX pro/expert mountain bike races at Ft Ord, I’m fairly familiar with the solo mtb effort. The course was sa-weeeet…started at the top of this crazy steep hill–coming over the top of it was like cresting the top of the big hill on a roller coaster…super steep, straight down, and only a bit bumpy, so you could let go of the brakes, hang your butt off the back of the saddle and go…just make sure you don’t launch yourself over the berm at the bottom! I felt amazing, but didn’t know how long 3.5 miles would be, so I was conservatively hammering. The course had just a few gooey sections, but otherwise it was generally tacky and fast. We went off at 30-second intervals, and I caught the two girls ahead of me, so I was happy. The only bummer was that it was over so fast. I think I could have gone harder had I realized the course was so short. But, in the end, I posted the fastest time in my age group, so I held the lead after Stage 1.
Cross-Country
Despite how hard I’d ridden yesterday, I was still feeling pretty good during my warm-up this morning. I held close to a 1-minute lead in the GC (saying GC about a mtb race makes me giggle), but I didn’t want anyone in my class to get a gap once we started. The xc was supposed to be 2 laps around the 10-mile loop, but due to all the rain, they had to chop off about 2 miles for parts of the trail that were unrideable. My great warm-up was really all for not…the officials had us all stage 10 minutes before the start. And by all, I mean every single age group of Cat 2 men, then they finally staged the women…but the first group of men still hadn’t started. So I think we stood around in the upper-40 degree early morning shade for about 20 minutes before we finally got the gun.
The race started off fast and furious, with a couple of girls from the 20-29 age group getting a good gap on the rest of us. There was one girl right on my wheel thru the first section of woods, and it turned out it was one of the local Shreveport riders, so I was happy to let Kim go by…she was flying and looking great through the technical stuff. The ride was going well, rather uneventful, just muddy, until I clipped a handlebar on a little tree…I crashed. But, no harm done, just a little muddy, so up I got and on I went. Then, sometime in next few mud puddles or stream crossings, my rear cog/freewheel/derailleur/chain decided it didn’t want to cooperate anymore. Every time I was grinding up a grunter of a climb, my chain would either slip the freewheel or I’d get chain suck that would lock up the cranks. I guess my cyclocross trail running training paid off, because I had to start running up a bunch of the hills. Then I crashed again in the weird place when my front wheel just slid right off the trail. Lesson learned: 30 psi is too much in the Schwalbe’s in the mud.
Slowly my competition started catching back up, and as we neared the end of the first lap, I was exhausted, covered in mud, and Tammie, my main competition, was right on my wheel. Eeek! And with a whole lap remaining, I still had another hour to race. My technical skills would allow me to get a gap on her, but she would reel me back in on the climbs. The soupy mud from the previous day was now gooey, sticky, clay-like mud that sucked your wheels down and bogged you down…and with a finicky rear freewheel, it was quickly getting miserable. But I knew I needed the fitness so I just kept hammering. I slowly caught the other younger girls who had gotten away at the start when they had major mechanicals, so I was at the front of the women’s Cat 2 race. It really was a race of attrition in those conditions. Finally, towards the end of the lap, I finally got enough of a gap to relax a bit and cruise in for the win. I think this was my first ever cross-country win.
Bummer of the day…Kim, the local girl who was crushing it ended up crashing pretty hard during the race. She broke her arm near her elbow and has to get it surgically repaired. Heal up fast Kim! I want to go ride with you!
The aftermath…this (photo above) is what the bike looked like when I got home today. She was clean at the start. I think I’ll have to replace the chain, and possibly the rear cog. I also have mud stains on my legs that I can’t get off. Stupid red mud. I have also official resigned from road racing. Its lame…this was so much more fun!
Binghamton Bingo Cross Race
November 16, 2009
Binghamton Bingo Cross Race - 15 November 2009
“My report” from L. Dawg Graves
About 3 weeks ago I started taking this sport a little more serious. I started pointing questions to the “pros” on strategy and specific training and all I could get was just go “balls to the wall” and hope you don’t blow up. Well easier said than done. That is a very scary place to go without a little guidance. So I had to practice this feeling and try to get used to it. Kinda like riding “crossed eyed.”
I’ve been dragging my cross friends out on Tuesdays to do these painful 30 second to 1 minute all out sprints with 1 minute easy x 12 times on a gradual uphill. We have been doing these on our road bikes and they make you want to puke especially when it’s 40 degrees out. Then skills work on Wednesday in some park for a few hours. Some really cold road rides for as long as we until we can’t feel our extremeties on the other days. On saturday we get together and do a little skills work and then some 5 min medium intervals with 5 minute rest and then some 1 minute grass sprints with 5 minutes rest and race on Sunday. Not much but it definitely kick started my confidence into cyclocross “redlining” for 45 minutes.
No more riding a cross coarse like a 50 mile road race. NO SPINNING. And to think I have spent a few years mastering the art of high RPM’s. Just throw it out the door and make those thighs burn baby. Power to the pedal. Well that’s what I keep telling myself and it’s starting to work. Plus my sprint work has helped my starts so much. I have started out in second place the last two races and finished 3rd overall. Up until my “training” started 3 weeks ago I was mid to bottom of the pack. Whoooo Hooo.
And now that I’m figuring it out, It’s quitin’ time. And soon it will be time to go back to spinning on the road bike. So I guess I am hooked on cross and will be back next season. I might even train a little before I start racing.
Final ‘cross news from NY Bellas
November 15, 2009
Katina Badass Sayers-Walker is #1 in the NY Series!
Katina finished the last race of the NY series in Delmar, NY today and managed to maintain her overall standings to the win the overall NY Series!
Bellas placing in the NY Series were:
Christina Perkins - 1st Cat 4
Jennifer Clunie - 4th Cat 4
Kate Stewart - 22nd Open Women
Sue Atwood - 33rd Open Women
LiLynn Graves - 41st Open Women
Balmy temps in the high 50s today but still muddy enough require a rack on your car afterward…
Other NY Bellas finishing strong in the Delmar Race were:
Cat 4 Women:
Christina Perkins 2nd
Jennifer Clunie 3rd
Previous news…
Podium Girl Laura Kozlowski
gets 3rd in the Ellison Park Cross Race in Rochester, NY on November 1st!
LiLynn Dawg Graves (a.k.a. L. Dog) comes in a dandy 7th place!
“I won a pint glass for being the only master woman. Ha!”
Chasing BatGirl
November 3, 2009
By Josie Stubenrauch
Columbus, Ohio
I did my first cross race this past Saturday, Halloween, and had a blast! I knew it’d be a good race to do as my first one, since costumes were encouraged and I knew that would relieve some of the pressure. The race was put on by our local cross group, Cap City Cross, who also doesn’t take themselves too seriously. I did the women’s C race with 5 other women, who were all very friendly and encouraging at the start line.
Conditions were cross-like: It had been raining the previous 12 hours, it was overcast and 50 degrees, and the course was a mix of mud and grass, all bumpy. I rode the course once, very slowly, before the race. My only goal was to not fall in the pond during the extremely muddy off-camber section that went around one length of the pond.
Our race was 30 minutes, which I didn’t think would be too bad, since we’re all used to longer rides, etc. WOW was I wrong! After 3 laps, I thought it would be time to finish, and I was not too excited when they waved me on for a 4th lap! The picture below was taken during lap 2, where I was with BatGirl and a goth chick….I tried to pass them both, but BatGirl passed me again. She cheered me on the rest of the way when we would pass somewhere in the maze of the course.
I ended up 4th out of 6th, which I didn’t think was too bad, considering my only goal was to not go into the pond or fall off in a mud pit, neither of which I had to do! My handling skills improved 100% in those 30 minutes. I gained a ton of confidence when it came to corners and short, steep muddy uphills! My tail stayed on the first 2 laps, but it was recovered by a bystander. I am very excited to do my next race!
MUD CITY: NY Bellas Go Cross
October 25, 2009
Red Cross Race - hosted by the Cornell Cycling Team
Broome-Tioga Sports Center, Richford, NY
October 24, 2009
How is it cold, rainy and muddy weather still don’t prevent L Dawg from flashing her model-like smile? Must be the pink handlebar tape. In any event, it was wet, it was muddy, it was gross. But hell yes, it would have been a blast on the moto-cross track if it had been dry.
Classic Whoop-de-doo bumps!
Katina shows her winning pace. A hanging tongue helps to keep the momentum up.
Another NY Bella with great teeth (and pearls): Laura Koz.
Final results - Open Women:
1st - Katina Sayers-Walker
5th Laura Kozlowski
8th LiLynn Graves
Hooked On Cross
October 13, 2009
By Dionne Ybarra-Knudsen
Pacific Grove, California
Instantly hooked!
Yesterday I attended the Cross clinic sponsored by no there than ours truly, Velo Bella. Not knowing at all what in the world I was getting into which is always better, I borrowed a mountain bike from my friend’s daughter, and shoes, cleats and pedals from Miss Mary. I received lots of encouragement from other Bellas.
The clinic was so helpful!!!!! A must-visit when offered again. I was so excited afterwards when my new friend Susie Barber hooked me up by taking me to get some new mtn bike shoes.
Race day, very nervous, total fish out of water. But again the Bella Crew true to their form helped calm my nerves with gettin me together and all of their encouragement. I met Rachel Wolff at the back of the start, so sweet, both our first time and both of us on mountain bikes. On my first lap I fell in love!!!!!!!!!! The pain, fatigue, dirt in my mouth, the nerves. It was all wonderful and I can’t wait to do it again.
Today I learned about overdressing, about the importance of the right equipment, and that you can teach an old dog new tricks. There are definitely benefits of being of part of the right cycling team. I couldn’t have done without the team support. Grazie!
Ommegang Brewery Cross, NY
October 12, 2009
Better late than ever…but the setting and these photos,
courtesy of Sue Atwood and Rebecca McCarthy, should make the lateness of the report worth it…
October 4, 2009 Cooperstown, NY
A total blast of a race - complete with beer handoffs, the course running through a circus tent, celebrity racers in the Open Women, a great live band and Nutella as prizes.
Open women had a VERY tough field, including a 19 year old junior pro who had been racing for Lip Smacker, Anna Young. Suffice it to say, she smoked the field quite handily, and then went off and did the open mens’ race and beat most of them as well.
The changing leaves in brisk central NY…it was a BITTER cold start, but by the time the open women’s race began, it was warm enough for some to race with jerseys unzipped…see the blog link below.
Sue entering the beer tent…
Buff-legged Katina rounding a corner..
So, here’s the celebrity sighting: Bicycling Magazine’s “Fitness Chick” Selene Yeager, who was no slouch. At all. Check out her blog on the race
Official results have yet to be posted, but here’s what I THINK we got:
Women 4s:
Christy Chambers - 1st
Open Women:
Katina Sayers-Walker ~5th?
Kate Stewart ~ 8th?
Sue Atwood ~ 10th?
PS. Here’s our Race Wench, Kim and assistant Eric. She “won’t” race cross. Yet.
And I couldn’t help but add this other mascot - from our “Brother Team, SCARR-Ommegang”
Mary Goes Cross Crazy
October 9, 2009
By Miss Mary Perez
La Selva Beach, California
1st Month Down, 4 more to go!
So this month consisted of 6 CX races for me! 2 in just this last weekend alone! Livermore Area Recreation and Parks District Series (LARPD) #1, 2 and 3, Central Coast Cyclocross Series (CCCX) #1 and 2, and Bay Area Super Prestige Series (BASP) #1.
My first two races LARPD 1and 2 were more of a gauge for me to see where my fitness was. I mostly just had fun in these races as the course (which doesn’t change much for the series) is mostly swirly grass and sandy dirt with a 4 log dismount. Fields were relatively small, but really good crowd and we’ve been lucky with GREAT weather at all 3 races so far! At both races Brittany Thibault got 3rd in the Women C’s and I got 5th and 6th respectively in the Women B’s.
In regards to the 3rd race, I kinda chickened out in this one…since it was a Saturday race just before the 1st BASP on Sunday, I didn’t want to over-do it so I sat up on the last lap and cooled down…I also did this cuz I’m such a DORK and when I thought I had 1 lap to go (even though I had 3) I punched it and dug deep to catch the rider ahead of me…coming around to the finish strait I saw the 2 laps to go sign and almost cried! So I kept the pace up for a little, then backed off, and finally sat up coming around for the finish lap. Oh well, gave me something to think about for the next time (though I have a history of miss-calculating laps…) I ended up 3rd in the B’s and Soni Andreini-Poulsen placed 3rd as well in her Women Masters 35+ race.
The CCCX races so far have been at Manzanita Park in Prunedale and Fort Ord in Monterey County (one of my favorite courses!!!) The 1st race didn’t go off as planned. Got caught behind a crash and cut the course to get help. The event organizer talked me into jumping back in, which I did but sat up and used the next 3 laps as a training ride, which was fine by me! Natasha Perry (14th) and Devon Haskell (1st) raced the A’s, Janet Bellanstoni (1st) and Brenda Mai (3rd) raced the C’s, but I was the only B (8th).
The 2nd race was at Fort Ord and I just couldn’t stop smiling. Lovely friends and awesome course as usual! Thank you to Lilly Bella for my feeds! I had a blast even though I did get lapped, but still had to ride that full last lap! OMG! 
But it was cool cuz and it was such a fun course with the biggest sand pit! (which I LOVE) and lots of swoopy turns and down hills and a horrific run-up. Crazy! Natasha got 9th in the A’s, I got 7th in the B’s, Janet Lafluer got 4th in the Women Masters 45+ and Brenda got 3rd in the Junior Women.
Today’s race was the 1st BASP at McLaren Park in San Francisco and boy did I get my but kicked! We started off 45 secs after the Women A’s and the top women lapped me TWICE in 43 minutes. OUCH! I did 4 laps consisting of a HUGE mud run-up, 2 long climbs, lots of super bumpy descending and some soaked in grass sections with only one set of double barriers. It was a world of hurt. My problem wasn’t with the HUGE mud run-up as I’ve been doing run hill repeats in Nisene (crazy-I know) but what I haven’t been doing is climbing on the bike. I’ve been so focused on my technical skills in training, that I’ve been riding flats for the last month! I sure paid for it today! No teammates in the B’s category as usual…but Natasha Perry rode the A’s and not sure how she placed. But as always I got to see so many wonderful faces out there! This is why I LOVE CROSS!!!
Next month the Surf City Cyclocross Series (SCCX) starts (I’m part of the organizing for this so who knows how I’ll fair after course set up). So that’ll be 3 SCCX, 1 CCCX and 1 BASP…call me crazy…Cyclocross crazy!
Beth the Crusader
October 9, 2009
Cross Crusade, Race #1, Portland
By Beth Hamon
Portland, Oregon
Mood: Ecstatic
I had a nice calm morning to gather everything up, make a few last-minute wardrobe adjustments based on the weather report and enjoy a simple breakfast of oatmeal, yogurt, juice and coffee before my sister Sari came and picked me and Liz up at 11:30 in her truck.
Once at Alpenrose, Sari and Liz situated themselves in bleachers seats inside the velodrome. I alternated between checking out various parts of the course on foot and chatting with Liz, Sari and pal Lynne for the first twenty minutes or so. Liz and I checked out a little of the Singlespeed race and I led Liz around to the end of the velodrome and showed her where the sick run-up was that I had tried out at the last cross clinic. Liz’s eyes grew big and she gasped, “You have to run up THAT?”
“Well,” I replied, “I plan to walk. But yes.” We stuck around and watched as the Singlespeed class (almost entirely men) made their way around the course to the run-up, and we cheered our friend Joel Metz mightily as he clambered his way up the more than 45-degree hill of clodded, hard-dried mud. Then I excused myself to go do some easy spinning as a warmup. At the conclusion of the Singlespeed race the course was opened for a very brief practice lap, so I rode the part I hadn’t seen at the clinics and called it good. I didn’t want to totally blow up before my race. While out on my warmups, I ran into — gasp! — another Bella. Kari (Carrie?) and I greeted each other and chatted briefly before wishing each other a good race and heading off to complete our respective warmups.
Twenty minutes later, I was near the back of a huge field of all the combined womens’ classes (A’s, B’s, Masters 35’s and 45’s, and Beginners). We chatted amiably among ourselves while we waited to begin. I was happy to see my co-worker Hazel line up next to me on a bike she’d finished building up earlier that morning (!!). She said this was her first cross race and she wasn’t seriously planning on finishing. Then, we were off.
Although it had rained overnight, the course was mostly dry by the time of the race, with only a few damp patches of something that had once been mud. This made the course fast — and bumpy. In short, much of it was similar to the feel of the course at short-track. The primary difference was that the ‘cross course was less technical and success depended more on just going hard, rather than on any special bike-handling skill. Reminding myself to stay within my own race, I tried hard to keep a steady (albeit slow) rhythm throughout the event. My goal was to finish, period. If I was able to complete three full laps, that would be bonus. If I could only complete two, well, fine.
The sick runup was about three-quarters of the way through the lap. And it was very, very hard. I treated it like a sort of rock wall and just looked for foot-holds on the way up each time. And yes, I walked. There was no way I was running up that hill or I would simply blow up. To my surprise and delight, some of my cycling friends (Joel, plus assorted folks from Team Cthulu, Team Beer, and a couple of kids from PSU Cycling — go Vikings!) and even a co-worker of mine were at the top of the runup. When I pulled in, dismounted and appeared at the bottom they all screamed my name and shouted all kinds of encouragement, which I heard like bits of words phasing in and out, like an odd sort of petit mal seizure, between the loud clangs of dozens of cowbells. The noise was deafening, a little terrifying at first and then sort of thrilling; and I am convinced it helped me get up the hill. I made my way through the course laid out inside the velodrome, and was so happy to hear Liz, Sari and Lynne yelling for me as I dismounted and leapt over the barriers and completed my first lap.
As I began my second lap, I shouted out to a spectator, “Time?” — he looked at his watch and yelled back, “Two-twenty-five!” That told me I could definitely do a second lap, and MIGHT be able to complete a third lap if an official didn’t pull me first. All I needed to do was to keep going.
The second lap was a little harder physically, but I found better lines and was able to avoid getting hung up behind too many geared riders because the field had spread out more. Down in the turnaround at the base of the parking lot I skidded a tiny bit in some damp mud but otherwise managed to hang on. More shouts of encouragement from other members of Team Beer who had assembled in the grassy field near the pit area.
The runup was insane, and much harder the second time. This time, Liz was standing at the top of the runup and cheered me on. I didn’t see her among the dozens and dozens of spectators but I definitely heard her!
And just like that I was back in the velodrome finishing a second lap. The counter at the line indicated that there was one lap to go, so I went for it. Impossibly hard! I lost momentum getting stuck behind a junior who struggled to find a working gear (note to self: race Singlespeed class next year) and had to walk a little distance up a small, off-camber incline. As I re-mounted my bike, a photographer saw my tired look and suggested with a smile, “hey, you’re near the pit, maybe they can do a body swap for ya.” I laughed in spite of myself as I passed the neat rows of stacked wheels in the pit.
I found my momentum again, enough to get me around the parking lot and back to the –UGH! — runup. This time it felt impossible, and every step up was a struggle. But people were screaming and cheering me on and ringing cowbells in my ears, and somehow I made it to the top, and back into the velodrome for final pass.
A sloppy pair of barrier hops in the velodrome, and suddenly I was using my very last bit of energy to push across the line. I had ridden the entire time, and as a bonus I had completed three laps. I was insane with delight, and exhausted by the effort. This was the sickest thing by far that I have ever done on a bicycle. And the scary part is, I want to do it again. Carrie and I met up again at the finish and congratulated each other. She said the course had been challenging and that she was feeling pretty done. I hope there will be an opportunity for me to meet other Bellas at future Cross Crusade races and actually have a little more time to talk. Today I was on a tight deadline because my sister (my ride) had to get back as soon as my race was done, so I had to leave.
Results? They’ll be posted later online at the OBRA Web site. I assume I finished at the very back of the pack, and I do not care in the least. I rode the full time, I got in three full laps on a challenging course in a discipline I’d never raced before; and I am very, VERY happy.
