Team SIB Party!

Come party with us as we discuss the 2012 Scholars Inn Bakehouse Cycling Program. All are welcome from the Bloomington (and beyond) cycling community!

Scholars Inn Bakehouse 2012 Cycling Program Call-Out and 2011 Celebration!

Join the party if you’re interested in learning more about our program (or just to hang out with your cycling friends)!

Scholars Inn Bakehouse
Downtown – 125 N College Ave
Thursday, October 6th, 2011
8:00 p.m.

Food and refreshments will be served

RSVP before Oct 4th to Tom Saccone, sacconetom@yahoo.com

It's official....totally bangable!

Screw the Cutters, screw Little 500, screw the Bloomington Crit, screw CX! THIS is the biggest news out of Bloomington in the history of this blog...

RYAN KNAPP IS A BANGABLE DUDE...it's totally official!

Elizabeth Cobb Named OVCX Female Athlete of the Week

Breaking news from the OVCX Facebook page:

Congratulations to Ryan Hubbs (Speedway Wheelmen) and Elizabeth Cobb (BikeReg.com), whose tough performances over the weekend in Indy have made them our Zipp OVCX Athletes-of-the-Week! They each will be getting the pro treatment riding Zipp 303's this weekend at GearFest CX and John Bryan Cyclocross Classic p/b Buckingham Financial!


Photo Credit: Cycle Exposure

Specialized Safety issue

From Brian Drummy, who is available to take compensation law-suits....jk

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/specialized-bicycle-components-recalls-bicycles-due-to-fall-hazard-130364278.html

$$$ needed for L-ville 2013

Losing this would be a little embarrassing. Any $10 donation will help I'm sure!

Indy CX Weekend

The OVCX series rolled on this weekend with two races in Indianapolis. Saturday's race at Brookside Park featured a slightly slick "power course" with multiple road sections and three dismount points per lap: the famous old stone stairs, a fallen tree, and of course, the regular barrier section. The light rain that spit on and off throughout the day on Saturday started up in earnest in the evening and fell steadily through the day on Sunday. This turned what would have been a pretty flat and straightforward course at Fort Harrison State Park into an epic mudfest for the afternoon races.

The Bikereg.com women dominated the weekend with Sarah Fredrickson taking the Cat 4 women's victory and Elizabeth Cobb winning not only the women's Cat 3, but the entire elite women's wave on Saturday. Sunday saw another Cat 4 win for Fredrickson, while Cobb hung on for the Cat 3 win but placed further back against some of the elite women with greater mud handling skills. Lindsay Rodkey benefitted from Sunday's muddy conditions, rounding out the women's Cat 4 podium and placing fifth in the wave.

Photo credit: Luther Prater

In the elite men's wave, Fred Rose and Adam Rodkey both saw improvements on Saturday, with Rose in fifth overall and Rodkey in eleventh. Fred was also the Elite Master's 45+ category winner.

Other Bloomingtonians who came out to play in the mud over the weekend included, but were not limited to Ashton Wischmeir, Ryan Preske, William Sorg, Corbin Baird, Aaron Knapp, Matt Kiel, and Ryan Kiel. As the Sunday results are not yet posted, please note any Bloomington CXers that may have been missed in the comments, so that we can keep up with them throughout the rest of the season.

Further afield this weekend, the US Gran Prix of Cyclocross kicked off at the Planet Bike Cup in Madison, WI. Andy Messer had a successful weekend in the Master's 35+ category, taking sixth place each day. Local/former local fast guys Ryan Knapp, Mike Sherer, and Isaac Neff all competed in the Men's Elite races, which featured several European pros, including former world champion Bart Wellens. Knapp held his ground against this stiff competition in Saturday's race, breaking into the top 20.

Up next in the region will be OVCX race #4 and #5, both taking place in Dayton, OH area on October 1 and 2.

http://www.bikereg.com/events/register.asp?eventid=13245

http://www.bikereg.com/events/register.asp?eventid=14163

Also, it's not too early to start planning for Bloomington's own OVCX race, DRT BloomingCross presented by Wagner Research. Registration is open, and in addition to the normal OVCX race program, BloomingCross will feature a Little 500 bike category with cash prizes for both men and women. If anyone has a small (<= 50 cm) Little 500 bike that they wouldn't mind loaning out on October 16, this writer will gladly provide some entertainment for the crowd by attempting to maintain forward momentum AND avoid collision for 30 minutes.

From GP- I added this to Lindsay's post..it's taken from her blog and it's good fun so worth including here as well! Getting crazy on the barriers!

2012 Little 500....the long odds

A few folks have asked about the pre-season 2012 Little 500 odds as generated (seemingly randomly) in the previous years (2009, 2010). Now these thoughts aren’t exactly based on knowledge for obvious reasons but are more to start the debate from people who might actually know! Have at it....

Womens Little 500- April 20th 2012

2/1 Teter- Three time champs know how to win and replace CvK with Hutch, which is as good as it could get.

5/1 Delta Gamma- Doogs and Phillips with plenty talent in waiting looking to put such a strong show in 2010 into a big result

5/1 Kappa Alpha Theta- Surprisingly poor result in 2011 doesn’t reflect their talent and dedication. Look for them to bounce back strong.

6/1 Wing-it- The facilities and expertise leading the team have got to get this talented group on the podium soon, right?

10/1 Kappa Kappa Gamma. Always there….

15/1 Delta Zeta- Big surprise from last year surely on the uptick.

16/1 Army Cycling- Otteweiler returns as one of the strongest riders on track but losing 3 strong seniors will be tough to replace.

18/1 Kappa Delta- Coach Norm knows how to organize a house that embraces the race so will be around the top ten.

25/1 The Field- No clue but don’t see anyone else making the top 5.


Mens Little 500- April 21st 2012

3/1 Cutters- 5 time consecutive champs but only 2 returning rings…unless ‘Patches’ jumps back in…. The team to beat as ever.

7/2 Phi Delta Theta- Four returning riders, have been very aggressive in the past two years. Steve Sharp will battle RJ Stuart to be BMOtrack. 1st or 33rd is the mantra and they need a win!

5/1 Delta Tau Delta- Will miss James Coudright but RJ Stuart was amongst the strongest in 2011 and the team will surely continue to be aggressive.

5/1 Sigma Chi- Fish and Morrow are back and may just win it!

6/1 Beta Theta Pi- Bad race in 2011 but should bounce back with a strong squad of dudes.

10/1 Black Key Bulls. Rex Raffety in the house and on the track!

12/1 Hoosier Climber?- I’m assuming they will continue to improve

12/1 CRU cycling- Not sure what happened in the 2011 race but they seemed to have a good organization and some talent

15/1 Acacia- A nice renaissance in 2011 will hopefully enthuse the house to get the program back on track

15/1 Delta Chi- On the upward track…may be the surprise team in 2012

15/1 Sigma Nu- Fratstars amazingly took the pole in 2011 and talked a good game. Can they back it up in 2012?

20/1 The Field- That’s all I got…anyone else out there to challenge?

Joey's OK....

I think this has been doing the internet rounds but is pretty funny for the non-CXers out there...

Torch ride last call

The event is this coming saturday the 24th.... Eric Anderson needs YOU!

Details here.

OVCX #1 Fisherman's Park

The 2011 Ohio Valley Cyclocross Series opened to a rainy morning at Fisherman's Park in Louisville, KY on Sunday. Along with course's traditional off-camber sections and steep uphill grunts, the course designers added many new twists and turns as well as a forced dismount at the bottom of one hill. The tight turns and brake-clogging wet grass made for slow going in the early races, but conditions dried up for the elite races in the afternoon.

Quite a few category changes were made to the OVCX series this year. This included a Cat 4 only women's race and a separately scored Cat 3 women's category within the elite women's wave. This seems to have been beneficial for Bloomingtonians as Lindsay Rodkey took the women's Cat 4 Open win, and Elizabeth Cobb became the first-ever OVCX Cat 3 women's winner.

The other big category change for 2011 was the combination of the men's Elite 1/2 race with the Elite Master's 35+ and 45+ races. The result was a massively competitive 50 man field vying for 20 place's worth of prize money. Erik Hamilton, Andy Messer, Fred Rose, and Adam Rodkey all rose to the challenge, each finishing within the top 15. Additionally, Erik Hamilton finished second overall, with Andy Messer taking the 35+ win and Fred Rose taking second in the 45+ category.

Raw wave results for OVCX #1 are here.

Up next on the OVCX schedule is a double weekend in Indianapolis. Saturday's race will take place the classic Indiana cyclocross venue of Brookside Park, and Sunday's race will be held at Fort Harrison State Park. These races will also serve as the opening rounds for Indiana's own 12-race series, the Indiana Cyclocross Cup.

http://www.bikereg.com/events/register.asp?eventid=13984

Collegiate Track Nats

Yesterday the 2011 USA Cycling Collegiate Track National Championships wrapped up and to nobody's surprise Marian University once again clinched the team omnium title. The IU boys managed to sneak into 11th with a small contingent of riders and no women's team.

Chris West, Sam Harbison, Kevin Depasse, and Rex Rafferty compete in the 3K team pursuit. Photo from the Indianapolis Star.

Rex Rafferty managed to another top-10 finish in the Sprint (in addition to his 7th place finish in the Kilo). Full results can be found at the official website (https://www.usacycling.org/events/2011/collegiatetrack/) and the final wrap-up from USA Cycling here: http://www.usacycling.org/news/user/story.php?id=7058

Great job to all who represented the Hoosiers this past weekend!

Collegiate Track Nationals Day 1

Today was the first day of the 2011 USA Cycling Collegiate Track National Championships. IU had good representation with Rex Rafferty taking 7th in the Kilo and Kevin Depasse taking 20th in the 4K - both scoring points! Great job guys - keep it up!

IUSF Ride Friday 9/16/2011

Reminder that the weekly IUSF ride will be leaving from the Wilcox House tomorrow at 4:30pm. Route options this week are: Low Gap (long route) and Sample (short route). Hope to see another great turnout! (65+ last week!)

Tuning Up for Cyclocross

Cyclocross racing started up in the region this weekend with three tune-up races over two days. On Saturday, Kingwood Park in Cincinnati hosted Lionhearts CX, and Huber's Applecross offered two days of racing on the Joe Huber Family Farm near Borden, IN. Around 350 total racers participated in the three events, which appears to be a sign of big things to come when everyone converges into the first OVCX race.

A few Bloomington racers tested their early season fitness at the Huber's Applecross weekend. The course was located further away from the main farm and resturant site this year, taking place at "the lake house" down the road. This afforded the racers their own separate parking and a nice pavilion for the festivities. The course featured smooth, swoopy sections and some gravel straightaways, but also a sandpit with an 180 degree turn, a short run-up, and the inevitable bumpy trip through the apple orchard.

Fred Rose proved to be Bloomington's big winner for the weekend, as he fought off hungy up-and-comers to take first place in the Men's Elite 45+ category both days. Ryan Preske garnered a fourth place finish in the Men's Cat 3 on Saturday, while Lindsay Rodkey earned a spot on the Women's Cat 3/4 podium with a third place. Chris Wood and Timothy Nixon also represented Bloomington in the Men's Cat 4 race on Sunday.



Results for Lionhearts CX and Huber's Applecross can be found here and here.

Next Sunday will kick off the OVCX series Fisherman's Park in Louisville, KY. Pre-registration closes at 11:00 p.m. on Wednesday, so get your entry in soon.

http://www.bikereg.com/events/register.asp?eventid=13943

Track Nats 2011

It's National Collegiate Track Champs this coming Thursday-Sunday back in Indianapolis. We all know the IU successes of 2010 and this year promises to be exciting as well. Maybe no National champs on the squad but Chris West, Kevin Depasse, Sam Harbison, Tim Nixon and Rex Raffety have all been riding strongely so will represent IU very well (sorry if I missed anyone)! The schedule is here so go support them if you get the chance. The announcer won't be as biased this year but I'm sure it'll still be fun times!
See the CCN preview here.

IUDM Torch Ride

55 Miles to Save a Child!

Dear Riders,

On Saturday, September 24th, IUDM will be hosting its 6th annual Torch Ride, a cycling event, from Riley Hospital for Children to Bloomington. Each year this event is a centerpiece of the IUDM experience, serving as a ride in honor of Ashley Crouse, an IUDM Vice President who passed away in a car accident on campus in 2005. Current IUDM Fundraising leader Eric Anderson, will lead the pack of cyclists from Riley Hospital to Bloomington, while carrying a torch that will ultimately be placed at the marathon as a reminder of Ashley's legacy and dedication to IU Dance Marathon and the children at Riley.

IUDM works year-round to raise funds and awareness for Riley Hospital for Children. Since it began, the IU Dance Marathon has raised more than $10 million for Riley Hospital for Children, which built and continues to support the Ryan White Infectious Disease Center. If you click here, you can learn more about IUDM and the Center it has built.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ReLrlwR5WH4

We will be leaving Bloomington at 8:00am and will be providing transportation for riders and their bikes up to Indianapolis for the start of the ride at 10:00am. We will be using this route to make our way back down to Bloomington:

http://classic.mapmyride.com/route/us/in/indianapolis/143131344391685772

The cost for participation will be $20, or $25 which includes lunch.

Riders can register by signing up online at:

http://www.helpmakemiracles.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=donorDrive.eventDetails&eventID=951

Help make a difference today and gather your friends and teammates to join in on this amazing event! For more information please visit www.iudm.org or email ericande@indiana.edu for questions!

For the Kids and ALC,

IUSF Friday Ride

Just a reminder that tomorrow there will be another IUSF Little 500 Group Ride at 4:30pm leaving from the Wilcox House. Last week there was an enormous turnout (55+ people!), so come on out and make some new friends! Rookies in particular are encouraged to attend - there will be numerous Riders Council members there for guidance. Routes for this week are: Paragon Loop for the long route and Robinson-Nehrt for the short option. Any questions can be directed to Riders Council or the Race Director Jordan Bailey.

WW Update

There are large portions of tonight's course that have been chip and sealed, indluding the large downhill into Paragon. Therefore, I recommend changing the route. I think we should do 2 forest loops. We can decide at the gates whether to go up or down Beanblossom. Hope to see everyone there.

Final Morgan-Monroe State Forest TT Times

Final MMSF TT Report from Sarah Sanders:

So we had a good showing for our final TT. Cool weather, but some wind action. Not too many PRs set but still some solid times. RCS had the fastest time for the night (21:00). Awards were given out to fastest male/female times for the evening: Jonathan Atwell (21:21--we skip over RCS on award night) and Lindsay Bruick with a PR of 26:45--which she debuted a a killer skin suit for the finale last night. Most improvement over the year went to Sarah Frederickson who dropped 2 minutes. The two top times gunning for guys' award didn't show so John Kinder walked away with the prize because he had dropped 1:23 this season. Then it was raffle galore! Soma, Laughing Planet, Village Deli, and Bloomington Bagel Company outdid themselves this year with the generous load of merchandise and gift cards. Much thanks to them once again for supporting our series!!!! Also, please put a major shout out for my lovely timing and raffle assistant Melena Kolovou Raglin.

Times:

Ryan Shanahan 21:00

Jonathan Atwell 21:21

Kevin Depasse (M) 23:11

Jason Romain 23:25

Steve Sharp (M) 23:42

Scott Jerden 24:01

Alex Jerden 24:11

Tom Cox (M) 24:37

Chris West (M) 25:01

Sam Herbison (M) 25:32

Tom Chorny (M) 25:37

Thomas Walsh (M) 25:40

Nick Torrence (M) 25:42
Eric Brodell (M) 25:42

Cameron Johns 26:08

"Doug" Sam Stanford (M) 26:44

Lindsay Bruick 26:45

John Kinder 27:03

Sarah Fredrickson (M) 27:17

Tatiana Kolovou 27:34
Brian Drummy (M) 27:34

David Shirley (M) 27:42

Nicole Richardson (M) 28:54

Amy Dickman (M) 29:21

Kate McDougal (M) 30:34

**** ALSO: someone left a set of keys (!) and their flat kit on the ledge of the forest sign. ryan picked them up and will take them to the bike shop for the owner to collect.****

Final MMSF TT!

Reminder: There will be another MMSF TT tomorrow (September 6th) at 7:00pm. 10-mile out and back course in Morgan-Monroe State Forest, start/finish where Main Forest Road and Old 37 meet. Riders will go 30 seconds apart starting at 7:00pm. A group usually leaves from behind the Bicycle Garage, Inc. shortly after 6:00pm for a brisk ride out. Current course record is 20:31 by Ryan Shanahan.

See previous post about prizes!

Final Morgan-Monroe State Forest TT

From Sarah Sanders:

Morgan Monroe State Forest TT Finale...Come one, come all!

We'll be wrapping up the summer TT race series this Tuesday,September 6th at the Forest (Junction of Old 37 and Forest Road) First rider is sent off at 7 p.m. As always, this is the one to attend because there will be PRIZES!!! Some of our favorite cycling-friendly businesses have rallied to make the evening more exciting by donating some schwag. THANK YOU TO SOMA, LAUGHING PLANET, VILLAGE DELI and BLOOMINGTON BAGEL COMPANY!

We'll be honoring the Top Female & Male times for the evening, Best Improvement/time dropped on comparable bike (Female & Male), as well as some extra schwag that will be raffled! So whether you've been out a time or two to ride the TT, or if you just got back to Bloomington and want to hop on the bike and enjoy some 70 degree weather on the bike, come on out and join us!

Young Reflects on National Cycling Win

Read the IDS coverage on Eric's Pro Criterium National Championship win here:

http://www.idsnews.com/news/story.aspx?id=82609

IUSF Group Ride!

Hey All-

Join the new Race Director Jordan Bailey and Riders Council today for a group ride at 4:30pm leaving from the Wilcox House! Pace should be relaxed and genial. Rookies especially are welcome - loaner bikes are available at the Wilcox House if needed! This is planned to be a weekly ride every Friday afternoon at 4:30pm, so come out and make it a success!

Something Worth Reading

Elite National TT Champ Jonathan Jacob was considerate enough to share this article on his Facebook. I definitely agree with many of the points the author makes and everyone who rides around Bloomington (particularly those with little cycling experience) would do well to read through this. The article is called "Lost Art of the Group Ride." The link is below:

http://carolinacyclingnews.com/2011/09/01/lost-art-of-the-group-ride/