October
29, 2004
The famous Jittery Joe’s Cycling Coffee has partnered with the team to become an associate sponsor of the Junior men’s team in 2005. Jittery Joe’s also famously sponsors the Jittery Joe’s Pro Cycling Team. This team is notorious for being the only team to attack and beat Lance Armstrong and the US Postal Service team in summit stage finish of any major stage race in the past 5+ years. At the 2004 Tour de Georgia Cesar Grajales attacked and beat Lance Armstrong of USPS and Jens Voight of Team CSC to win stage 6 of the TdG.
Watch for the juniors team on the roads of the Midwest as they fight their own cycling battles. Oh, and if you see us, ask for a can of Jittery Joe’s coffee. It’s exceptional!
The Midwest Cycling Group team management and event promotion organization has been officially launched. Under this organization the teams will be funded and managed. Additionally, the planned race events will be promoted. Look for the MCG in 2005!
The team is going to be well represented at the 10/30 Tailwind Stoney Creek Cyclocross race as well as at the 2004 Iceman Cometh Mountain Bike race in Kalkaska and Traverse City. Look for the bright green at the races and stop by to say hello to the guys. More information is available at www.tailwind.net and www.iceman.com. Hope to see you out there!!!
October
18, 2004
The Bikesport Cycling Team continues to have one of the largest team representations at Michigan CX races. Since 10/1 the team has put in great performances at the following races:
10/2 – Tailwind Michael Rabe Memorial CX Race, UCI Category 3
10/3 – Tailwind Kinetic Systems CX Race #2
10/8 – Kisscross Richmond Park Race #2
10/17 – Tailwind Tree Fort Bike & Board Race #3
The Cyclocross weekend out at Waterford Hills Race Track was a BLAST. Back to back races, Saturday and Sunday. In the Elite races Jeff Weinert dominated both days taking the wins.
The 10/8 Kisscross race in Grand Rapids was wild! The promoter was going for the EXTREME CX race and had thrown the UCI guidelines out the window. There were multiple obstacles, with one including a downed tree which blocked the single track trail. Thick brush on either side forced riders to climb over the tree, which was WAYYYY too big to hurdle.
Yesterdays Tailwind race (10/17) served up cold temperatures and slick corners. This was a great spectator race as riders were wiping out all over. Again Jeff Weinert dominated the Elite race, easily taking the win. Vince Roberge hung in for a 6th place finish, just behind Nate Griffith of Ford/Giant and former pro cyclist, Paul Martin of Lake Effect.
As of 10/3 team members were well placed in the standings.
=> Vince Roberge - 4th Place Overall Elite/Open Category
=> Ramon Corpuz - 2nd place Overall Masters 35+ Category
=> Paul Kundrat - 3rd place Overal B Men 30+ Category
After yesterdays race (10/17) Vince and Paul will both be moving up with good performances in the mud.
Race results can be found at: www.tailwind.net, www.kisscross.com
Photos can be found at: www.gattoracing.us
Even though the road season is over, there’s still a lot of racing going on. Coming up are:
10/30 – Tailwind Stoney Creek CX, a fast CX course.
10/31 – Kisscross CX at Robinette’s Orchard (Grand Rapids), Costumes optional
11/6 – ICEMAN, the largest single day mountain bike race in the WORLD. Registration for this closed in JUNE! At present 9 team members are racing. It’s still possible to buy a scalper registration. I’ve seen them on eBay for upwards of $100.00
11/14 – Tailwind Dexter Bike Veterans Park CX, our HOMETOWN. Let’s see lots of green out there
If you didn’t make the cook out on 10/10, here’s the new team members for 2005:
Ramon Corpuz
Jason Rafeld
Louie Kudznia
John Zaccone
Shoot them emails welcoming them to the team when you get a chance. Ramon has been tearing up the Midwestern CX circuit, so if you race CX, you’ll see him out there. The other guys are all students and have been hitting the books. Expect to see them at the races and on training rides in the near future.
September
30, 2004
Wow! The team put in a fantastic showing the the Bloomer Park Tailwind CX #1. Andy Weir, Steve Geerligs, Joe Lekovish, Brian Rosewarne, Vince Roberge, Jordan Stohl, Paul Kundrat, and Ramon Corpuz were all on the start line for this race. From the looks of it we had the best representation any other team, especially in the A Elite Mens race were 5 team members raced in a field of 20. Vince Roberge and Jordan Stohl laid the smack down for Bikesport, placing 7th and 13th, respectively. As expected 2001 Masters CX national champion Jeff Weinert smashed the field, soloing from start to finish and beating the closest rider by over 2 minutes. However, the battle for second place on was hard fought and the team did extremely well. Unfortunates were Andy Weir who rolled his tire on the last lap and ran his bike to the finish to place 17th, and Joe Lekovish who flatted with a lap to go and DNF’d.
Great showing everyone! Race results are at www.tailwind.net. Great pictures from the race are available at www.gattoracing.us and www.luv2mtb.com. Check ‘em out!!!
Again team members have been holding Thursday night practice sessions at Island Lake Recreation area and Helms Have Park (Hines Drive). Tonight there were about 20+ riders at each session. Seems the team is ready to do battle this weekend. Rumor has it that RedBull will be out in force with energy drink for all competitors. Slam a couple of these before your race and you’ll be ready to power off the front. John Rigdon and Jeff Elam will be setting up the tent early so bring your trainer to warm up at the Bikesport ZONE!
Check out the new 2005 Felt model lineup at www.feltracing.com. They’re offering an all carbon model for 2005 which just makes me DROOL! Also very striking is the ORANGE Felt F-25. I don’t know about you guys, but I think I’ve found my 2005 bike!!!
Okay, the end of year cook out is firmly set for 1pm, Sunday, October 10th at John and Katherines house in Livonia. Most of you guys have probably crashed there at least once during the season, so you won’t need directions. PLEASE RSVP so we know how much food to order. Family and friends are welcome. See you all there.
September
23, 2004
New Bikesport Cycling Team member Ramon Corpuz stormed to victory in the first CX race of 2004. Unsure of his form and recently upgraded from USCF Category 4 to USCF Category 3, Ramon entered the B race at the KissCross Cannonsburg CX race on 9/19. Well, the form was there as Ramon blasted through the watercrossing and up the steep run-up to take 1st place. As this was the B race, which was run before the A race and it was the first CX race event in Michigan for the 2004 season, Bikesport notched the first CX victory in 2004!!! Way to go Ramon! For the rest of the season, Ramon will be racing in the A category. Ah, victory tastes sweet, but it unfortunately it’s too short. Now to battle with those A’s. Check out full results, photos and race schedule at www.kisscross.com.
Team members are practicing at too sessions, both held on Thursday nights. Racers from Ann Arbor and Oakland County are meeting at the Kent Lake Beach shelter of Island Lake Recreation area, while Wayne County racers are meeting at Helms Haven park on Hines Drive. Both courses are exceptional. Make it out on a Thursday between 5:30pm and 6:00pm. Hope to see you there!
The team expects a strong showing at the upcoming Bloomer Park CX on Saturday, 9/25. Preliminary counts show at least 4 team members racing in the B race and another 4-5 in the A race. Wow, there’s going to be a lot of GREEN out there!
Just got back from the Helms Haven CX practice and I can report that Team Director, John Rigdon, is riding a really SWEET Felt F1X! This ride is totally tricked out with very nice SPOOKY cantilever brakes and Egg-Beater pedals. When you see John out on the course, go out of your way to splash a little mud on this beauty, I’m sure he’ll appreciate it.
Is he guilty or is the test flawed??? As of today, 9/23, he’s keeping his Gold Medal cause the lab workers froze the sample. But the Vuelta B Sample came back positive. This doesn’t look good. There’s still some question as to the validity of the testing. We’re going to be keeping a close watch on how this one plays out. Don’t expect to see Tyler racing anytime soon though.
September
14, 2004
The state of Michigan had fantastic representation among the finishers at the T-Mobile International in San Francisco, CA on Sunday, 9/12. Navigators Cycling Team member Kirk O’Bee of Rockford, MI placed 5th and Team Seasilver rider Brian Sheedy of Ada, MI placed 29th. Kirk was the recent winner of the 2004 Rockford Criterium, where he worked with Brian Sheedy to lap the field and place 1st and 2nd in the race. Brian Sheedy finished well despite a cracked carbon wheel which was rubbing on his brake pads the last 15km of the race. That must have been killing him riding up those climbs with a rim dragging on his brake pads!
The last race of the Michigan Challenge Series will be this coming Saturday, 9/18, at the Waterford Hills Sports Car track. Weather is forecasted to be excellent. The team recently competed in the Michael Rabe Stage Race which was also held exclusively on the race track. This was great preparation and the team is really looking forward to racing there again. If you can, this is a great event to cap off the road season with.
Wow, the road season ends on 9/18 and Cyclocross begins the next day! Check out www.kisscross.com and www.tailwind.net for complete information on the CX season schedule. The team has been holding CX training sessions at Island Lake on Thursday evenings. These have been great workouts and a fantastic way to get prepared for the upcoming season. So, get out the CX bikes, toe spikes and helmet visors!!!
The ever popular Tuesday Dirt Road Rides have started. Club members meet at 6pm at the Barton Dam parking lot and ride from there. You’ll need a bike capable of handling moderate to rough dirt roads. These rides are extremely fast paced so make sure you’re familiar with return routes before heading out with a group. More information is available at www.aavc.org.
August
25, 2004
The Team Bikesport Cycling Team website was officially launched. The result of the singular effort of team member Jeff Elam (with minor editorial assistance from John Rigdon and Joe Lekovish), the site contains encyclopedic details on the team and what we’re all about. News, information, results are added daily so check back often!
Various team members have organized training rides lately emphasizing short, steep uphills, similar to the course at Rockford. The team has been out at Kensington, Barton Hills and the Cass Benton section of Hines Drive in Northville. Everyone expects the Rockford Criterium to be a race of attrition and are getting ready for a suffer-fest. The promoters have lined up an unbelievable prize list, with a purse of $4,200 for the Pro 1, 2 race alone! Expect to see some regional pro riders come out for this one. Another neat feature is the rumored Red Bull King-Of-The Mountain (KOM) competition. That should be interesting. The Rockford Criterium is promoted by the ABG Cycling Team of Grand Rapids. You can get more information at www.abgcycling.com.
Recently some team members were able to get their hands on the latest clincher tire from Ritchey. The Open WCS is a mind-blowing race tire. Don’t expect to get 1,000 miles of training out of this, but for racing, you can’t get any better from a clincher. This tire is a handmade, 290tpi, supple cotton casing with a grippy, slick rubber tread. Pressure rating is a solid 160psi. Weight is 230g for 700x23. Team members raced this for the first time at the Lapeer Days Criterium on 8/22. Team member Joe Lekovish had this to say, “This tire didn’t back down from the fast corners on the Lapeer course. I pushed the envelope on the corners and stuck to the road like Velcro. I love this tire!” Look for a full review soon. For more info check www.ritcheylogic.com.
The end of year BBQ is in planned for sometime mid-September. Keep an eye out for a notice. Hope everyone can make it.