Friends are the first to finish at triathlon (Stamford Advocate Article)

Reprinted from the Stamford Advocate. Link here: http://www.stamfordadvocate.com/localsports/ci_9740471

Friends are the first to finish at triathlon
By Rich DePretaStaff Writer
Article Launched: 06/30/2008 02:36:12 AM EDT


STAMFORD - For most people, sleeping late or going out for coffee and bagels is as much exercise as a Sunday morning demands. Yesterday, however, there were hundreds of men and women who had a more dedicated plan of action in mind. If one was at Cummings Beach at 6:30 a.m., they would have seen the start of the inaugural Stamford Kids In Crisis IT Triathlon.
That's one mile of swimming in Long Island Sound followed by 24.6 miles of cycling followed by 6.2 miles of running, if you're scoring at home. That two to three hours of continuous and often brutal punishment.

"I like the competition. Triathlon is a sport with lots of camaraderie," said TARGETRAINING's Mitch West about the lure of it all. "Everybody in triathlon is great. There are no jerks in triathlon."

Which probably explains to some degree the surprising number of women who participate in a large number of such events both in Connecticut and across the country. Relationships can be forged and built on triathlon. That certainly was clear yesterday as close friends from Brockton, Mass. - Tim Snow and Caitlin Shea-Kenney - were the overall champions in the men's and women's divisions of the race. "Yes, Tim benefits greatly from getting pushed by me," Shea-Kenney laughed at the finish line at Columbus Park in downtown Stamford. "I have no kids and we're both teachers so we're home by 3 p.m. each day to train. We have summers off so it's easier to go to races. "But seriously, I couldn't do this without having another triathlon person to train with."
Snow broke the finish line tape in one hour, 59 minutes, 52 seconds. West, who works in the Stamford education system, was second in 2:04.29. Both men were even in the swim (20:27-20.29) and the cycling (1:04.12-1:03.33) before Snow pulled away in the running portion (33.15-38.29). Patrick Wheeler, also of Brockton, Mass., was third in 2:06.21.
"I'm thrilled," the 32-year-old Snow said. "Stamford was a very good venue. I had some doubts when we drove around the course Saturday. But once the race started, it was okay. I wasn't crazy about the hills in the cycling. But the running part was a blast."
Not quite so much for West, who often rides his bikes to work rather than fight the rush hour highway traffic from Wilton to Stamford. "I was very happy leading on the bike course," said West, who interacts with title sponsor Kids In Crisis as part of his guidance work in the Stamford Public School System at Westover School. "Then I saw Tim and I knew I had no chance to beat him in the run. He's a good guy to get beat by."
On the women's side, Shea-Kenney was in command from start to finish. She built a three-minute lead over Ross in the swim, picked up another four minutes in the cycling and five minutes in the run. Shea-Kenney's winning time was 2:06.39 with Ross finishing in 2:17.41. Jessica Broderick (2:19.16) was third. "The police and volunteers made it easy. For a first-year race, this was unbelievable. It was a perfect day weather-wise as the rain stayed away," Shea-Kenney said. "I was a swimmer at age 8. I tried my first youth triathlon at age 13 and loved it. My mom used to take me to events and I continued triathlons in college. "Right now, I'll do eight to 10 events a year including two or three Ironman Triathlons." Ross - a member of the U.S. Junior National Sprint team - was pleased with her results considering the early obstacle she encountered. "The cycling course was a lot more hilly than I expected," said Ross of Doylestown, Pa. "I didn't bring my wetsuit for the swimming and I got stung by a jellyfish. This was good because I'm trying events with longer distances."
It seems one is never too old to triathlon. The husband and wife team of Albert Leon (3:12.29) and Lois Leon (3:16.30) were champions of the age 65-69 divisions. John Cook (3:11.53) stood alone in the men's age 70-74 division. There were male and female age group champions awarded in 10 women's and 11 men's divisions starting at age 20. Equally ambitious were the various participants from the area corporations who took part. Some did all three sections themselves while others split the assignment into three-person teams (one swimmer, one cyclist, one runner). For those athletes, times were irrelevant. Satisfaction came in competing, finishing and other forms. Consider Steve Harris of the SAC Capital Advisors, LLC, team. His young daughter waited patiently at the finish line of both the cycling and running holding her two signs "Giddy Up Buttercup" and the more traditional "Go Daddy." The fact Harris was the next-to-last finisher at 10:45 a.m. made no difference to his daughter who hugged him forever for a job well-done. "I found out I was doing this a month ago," Harris said. "When the sun came out today, I sensed this wasn't the best idea. But I finished. I'm actually looking forward to another race next month in Greenwich."
NOTES - The Stamford Kids in Crisis IT Triathlon corporate sponsors included: SAC Capital Advisors; Continental Airlines; General Electric; Morgan Stanley; Winston & Strawn LLP; Boeing; Navigators; Allen & Overy; RBS Greenwich Capital; Milbank; Dewey & LeBoeuf, LLP; Monomoy Capital Partners; Holland & Knight; The Shoff Darby Insurance Agency; Weil, Gotshal & Manges, LLP; Thelen; The Hartford; WEBE-108; Centrian Life Insurance; Pepsi Bottling Group; Sportsplex. The hundreds of volunteers and the Stamford police are to be commended for their work dealing with athletes and controlling traffic at the Triathlon.
Stamford mayor Dannel Malloy and Lt. Governor Mike Fedele of Stamford were among those on hand for the post-race festivities.

Preliminary weekend activity recap

Lots of action this weekend. Triathlon and cycling galore. To the left you can see Ben Liang's winning sprint (more below).

On Saturday, we had two very good outdoor bicycle training rides at 7 AM and at 9 AM with lots of participants.

We also sent the U-25/Elite cycling squad to Rhode Island to compete in the National Race Calendar Cox Charities Classic. This race around the center of Providence seems to always be conducted in 95 degree heat and 100% humidity. We caught a break and it was only about 90 degrees with 100% humidity. Some of the pro teams had representation there including Colavita (they were there in force), Toyota United (Henk Vogels, Ivan Stevic, Dominic Rollin who won a stage in the Tour of California this year), Bissell, Rite Aid, Time Pro Cycling, and Health Net. More to come on the actual race from Kyle. Results: Eneas Freyre got 15th; Kyle Walmsley from Colavita won the race in a three up break sprint. Official results are here: http://www.cyclingnews.com/road.php?id=road/2008/jun08/coxcharities08.

Even earlier Saturday morning (6 AM), the Masters team sans Max Lippolis and Stephen Badger competed in the Lou Maltese Invitational in Central Park. Scott Bodin and Abdul Kabia both represented well in the sprint but there was an 11 man or so breakaway up the road. Not the best showing for the team but it happens.

On Sunday, the triathlon team went out in force to the new Stamford Olympic Distance Triathlon. Mitch West got 2nd overall, Michelle Faurot won her age group, and David Yockelson won his age group! Also, Megan Griffis won the Aquabike event. So a great showing! Official results are here: http://results.active.com/pages/page.jsp?eventLinkageID=107115. By the way, Mary Money won the aquabike event at the Connecticut Club championship race last week. Belated congratulations to Mary!

Also on Sunday, Eneas did the National Race Calendar criterium in Boston: "Heart Break Hill Criterium". Kyle Walmsley again won in a three man break. Eneas got 11th this time. In the Category 4 race, Ben Liang of TARGETRAINING won! Official results: http://www.bikereg.com/Results/2008/06/29-Boloco-Heartbreak-Hill-Grand-Prix.asp

A group of TARGETRAINING racers went to East Hartford to compete in the Keith Berger Memorial Criterium. In the Pro 123 race, Craig Leukins got 3rd. In the 30+, Stephen Badger got 2nd.

Also on Sunday, the rest of the Elite/U-25 squad as well as a bunch of masters racers tackled Union Vale. Union Vale New York is a scenic and hilly venue. It is one of the top local road races of the year, allowing you to do a serious bicycle race only 1.5 hours from Westport Connecticut. This is more than a training ride -- it hurts too much. Each 14 mile loop climbs about 1400 feet. In addition, the finishing 1.5 mile climb goes up about 600 feet, with the first 1 mile averaging a grade of about 9%. This Sunday the heat was about 90 degrees and the humidity very high. Lots of cramping occurred. Scott Bodin represented the Masters team in the 35+ race in the morning. We're still awaiting word on how Scott did. Rob Weiss did the Category 4 race and finished in the lead group. Mark Gillies and Dave Stauffer did the 45+ race in the afternoon and suffered a lot but finished the race. The Elite/U-25 squad chased a solo attack by a CRCA/Empire kid. The team ended up getting 6th (Will Nowak -- great stuff!) and 7th (Justin Lindine -- now he gets to rest a few days before Fitchburg).

That's it for now.

A TARGETRAINING Champion: Stephen Badger

Apparently, Stephen had to catch up on household chores after two weekends and three gold medals (35+ road race champion, 35+ and 30+ criterium champion).

Notice how even when he does his chores he gets to sit down. Never be on your feet -- recovery needs a resting body.

Congratulations Badger. Next time, please send us a podium shot.

Wine Tasting at TARGETRAINING's Tri&Cycle

Join us after the Wednesday night group ride as host, Jordan Ross, starts with a refreshing glass of sparkling wine. Jordan (www.JordanOnWine.com) will lead a fun and educational seminar: Demystifying Wine: Investigating our Senses and Psychology.

All proceeds go towards TARGETRAINING's two man team doing the Pan Mass Challenge ride in August. You can visit www.pmc.org for event details. This is a major cancer research fund raiser and one of the largest such events via cycling in the world. Spots can be reserved for a donation of $150. For more details and to reserve your place please contact, Eneas Freyre: Eneas@TARGETRAINING.com or 203-227-6177

A freelance writer and photojournalist, Jordan Ross has been published in Wine Spectator, Wines & Vines, Global Vintage Quarterly and Practical Winery & Vineyard. Jordan has published articles on topics such as oak barrels, fining & filtration, wild yeast, the relationship between vineyard yield and wine quality, cork, and others. He is also a TARGETRAINING client who has improved considerably as a cyclist. Jordan's wine tastings are a delight for the senses as well as a joyful way to recover/get ready for your next training session.

Open Water 1 Mile National Championships

Due to injury (stress fracture) I was unable to join the team at the Health Net tri last Saturday. So, I decided to compete in the U.S. Masters Swimming 1 Mile National Championships which were held in beautiful Madison, CT instead.
The race was tough. No wetsuits allowed - the water was a chilly 63 degrees and the course turned out to be more like 1.5 miles. For me, it was actually a more difficult swim course than Alcatraz.
The race went well and I was in the lead pack of women under 44 for the first 10 min or so, then we all dispersed as we caught the stragglers in the men's 45+ wave. The buoys were hard to sight and I think I got a little off course on the way back in -plus I kept thinking to myself "shouldn't I be done by now".
Since I qualified as a disabled swimmer (still wearing a walking cast and not allowed to walk/run) my dad was allowed to run my chip from the waters edge up to the finish line about 20 ft away. There was another girl just behind me and during the tag team exchange she caught up and passed me. My dad must have channeled his sprinting ability (ran track at Yale) because he was able to pass her at the finish (he's 64). I sat in the water laughing my ass off at the spectacle :)
I ended up with a 1st place finish in the 25-29 AG.

Above is a pic of me and my friend Nikki Dryden (1992 and 1996 Canadian Olympic team member) who also competed in the race. As you can see she is really tall!

Sherwood Island long course distance

For those that have been curious as to the distance of the large loop at Sherwood Island, it is .9 miles or 1.45kilometers as measured by a Powertap wheel.

So if you were wondering why you have had some fast 1mile splits, well there you go. But you can be assured that we will add that 10th of a mile to the next brick/run session at Sherwood.

Long bike ride prep series. 225 mile in 3 rides. Starts July 5th. Get ready for the "Cancer Challenges"

Join TARGETRAINING to prepare for the Connecticut Challenge and the Pan Mass Challenge. 3 bicycle rides, the next 3 Saturdays, 225 miles of riding.
Are you participating in the Connecticut Challenge or the Pan Mass Challenge? Then come join us for our TARGETRAINING build up for these charitable events.
Special 3 ride package for $120 plus tax. Or buy a TARGETRAINING 10 Pack (see below). Included for all TARGETRAINING endurance clients.
Contact Eneas@TARGETRAINING.com to sign up.
1. Begin Saturday July 5th with a 50 mile ride
2. Do 75 miles on July 12th
3. On July 19th, complete the 100 mile final preparation ride
All of these rides will be fully staffed with TARGETRAINING coaches and on the road nutrition to help you finish the day strong and motivated.
We will have several groups for each ride to accommodate various levels of fitness. These rides leave at 7 AM from TARGETRAINING starting Saturday July 5th.
Existing clients doing these rides: remember to take advantage of our weekly group rides and interval training sessions to build extra speed and power.

Finally the finale!

Saturday was the fifth and final stage of the Tour of Ohio. So far the race has been extremely exciting in the way the race was promoted and how the Inferno team has been dominating and how great the weather has been all week. All of that was about to change.

The stage was set to be about 50 miles of a circuit race right here in Granville, OH. A stretch out to the farms, 4 times around a 7 mile circuit with two points sprints, the run in to town and then 10 laps of a 1+ mile circuit around the college with paver hills, sharp corners and slick newly painted pavement.

The stage started with the announcement that there were no bathrooms again and severe thunderstorm warnings. How bad could that be? It is the mid west and I dont think thunderstorms mean anything, right?

Well, the first raindrops began to fall as a Kenda rider attacked from the gun.Our own tired cat 3 rider Josh Jamner covered it like a pro. The pair quickly build a lead and Lee Rosenthal bridged up. Two. A few miles later up came No Nickname Nate. Three. Then, as Inferno was in panic and tried to cover the move, up comes Adam Bomb. Four. Very nice.

As my faithful readers may remember, Inferno has been somewhat difficult to deal with all week. They were both leading the points race and upsetting Justin Lindine. Not good. At the criterium, Justin was attacking the points sprints to steal them out of spite and now was in 3rd place in that competition. So, when Inferno sent their green jersey up to score on the breakaway, TARGETRAINING would have nothing of it. Leero stole the first sprint and then da' Bomb and Nate totally pump-faked the world champion and went 1-3 on the second sprint. They were going crazy.

In the breakaway Nate and Josh were drilling it as Lee covered moves and Adam totally messed with the Inferno guys. "what, you want to drift back and leave a gap, I can leave a gap too. Its all good. Oh, now you want to go fast, I can go fast! That's a nice bike, I got a nice bike too." Awesome. They were absolutely dumbfounded by the strength and tactics and started to chase from the field as the move dangled at only 30 seconds on this super fast course.

Right about now the storm kicks in. Lightning, thunder, hail stones and what I think is a funnel cloud start to hit the field. The race turns right into 40 mph cross winds. I am in the caravan and scream over the radio to protect Justin. All of a sudden, Ben, Will and Dave are at the front of the main field with the throttle wide open and slam the group into the wind. Imagine Team CSC but when they are actually fast and working together!. There are three splits in the field and we have all 4 of our riders in the front group and another four in the breakaway. Super sweet.

As the storm got worse, I thought that maybe the promoter would cancel the race when we get back into town so I radio up to the breakaway to make sure we are the first into the college circuit. Adam Bomb destroys the break with two other riders as the rain pours down onto the slick twisting mid west roads.

Meanwhile, back in the field, Ben, Will and Dave have kept Justin calm and covered. Ben is telling him to be patient. Good stuff. As the field gets into town, bang! they hammer the group and Justin hits the hill on the first series of college circuits. They are slippery and scary but Justin doesn't even bother with the small chain ring. He is gone. Justin Wolverine Lindine is off the front in a blinding thunderstorm going sideways through the corners. He coasts past the remnants of the breakaway and into the lead. Inferno is in full panic behind him as the yellow jersey is losing ground. This is incredible. The team has absolutely hammered the race to perfection!

Justin comes around the last and pumps his hands in his now signatory chicken dance salute. Victory. Holy crap! This is awesome. This kid absolutely rode the finale to perfection. As the rest of the team gathered around to congratulate him, all of the Inferno riders came over to say hello and offer "good job, well done". It looks like the team and its riders have finally arrived. They can work and score in this area and in other areas. They worked perfectly together and got better every day. Just fantastic.

Watching the race unfold and the team grow from the Volvo each day was just fantastic. Thank you so much.

The squad takes a few days off before heading to Cox Charities Criterium and Unionvale RR next week and then of course Fitchburg after that. We really appreciate all of your support and good thoughts!


Kyle WolfeManager, TARGETRAINING Racing Teams
www.targetraining.com

Philadelphia Tri Epilogue

*New* official results in this morning...they didn't help my placement (still 3rd master, 26th amateur, 44th overall out of a field of 1843, almost twice what it was 3 years ago), but the time is better: 2:09:39, with a swim now officially 1:30 faster than 2007. The drills worked!

Philadelphia Triathlon, Sunday, June 22

Though I felt guilty about not participating in the festivities in Shelton (congrats, teams!), I wanted to defend my master's title in Philadelphia. This is an Olympic distance race, and I was anxious to complete a WHOLE triathlon after the debacle in Vancouver 2 weeks ago.

Race day was overcast early with sun coming out late in the race but tolerable. I was in the 7th wave of the day, and I jumped into the bathtub-temp Schuykill River (75 degrees) at 7:30 am. Good news: a 1 minute improvement (officially...my watch had me a bunch faster) over last year's swim. The training paid off! Unfortunately, I had to put socks on in T1 because (1) I'd ripped a small hole in my foot swimming in the Sound on Friday and (2) the Rube Goldberg bandage contraption I'd created fell off in the water.

Off on the bike, and I felt like I was FLYING. First of two laps in under 32 minutes, was on target for what I thought would be a 62-63 minute bike. However, it was a bit windy and there was traffic on the 2nd loop, and I must have slowed a bit...the bike ended up as 1:04:24, about 30 seconds faster than 2007. T2 was OK.

Off on the run...felt very good, though a slight nag from achilles. Felt fast, but saw 6:10 at first mile. Also saw a guy up ahead I thought was in my age group. Finally caught him at 4 miles, but it turned out he was 20. Ended up running 38:14, a minute slower than last year. THAT needs a bit of work.

Offical time (after yet another socring SNAFU in which my result wasn't posted to the board) was 1:10:09, about a minute ahead of 2007. However, I ended up 3rd Master (the score the first 3 for everyone over 40) this year. Let's start the count down for 45-49 (one more year)!

Next week: Stamford

Super Saturday: Ohio, Shelton CT and New Britain CT

TARGETRAINING competed in two Connecticut State Championships and completed the Tour of Ohio this Saturday. Unfortunately, the story teller was not on hand to compete or even observe, so this is living vicariously through second hand tales and results yet to be officially published.

The quick: TARGETRAINING won the final stage in the Tour of Ohio. The team perfectly set up Justin Lindine for a solo breakaway. The race was shortened due to hail, high wind and lightning. However, during that time, Justin moved up to 4th in the general classification. Congrats to Ben Z. , Will N., Nate W., Adam St. G., Craig L, Lee R. and Josh J. for racing exceedingly well. Kyle we hope will shortly publish a more colorful and insightful view of what transpired.

TARGETRAINING won the Elite Men's Connecticut Criterium Championship (Eneas Freyre got 3rd in the New Britain P123 race today but finished ahead of his breakaway companions including TARGETRAINING traveling coach and ex-teammate Chris Jones) as well as the 30+ Connecticut Criterium Championship (courtesy of Stephen aka "Stephan" Badger). That makes both of these men double champions this year.

TARGETRAINING made a great showing in the Shelton-based Connecticut Olympic Distance Club championship. While TARGETRAINING was outnumbered, it almost made up for its lack of numbers with excellent results and finished 3rd overall in the club championships. Maybe next year! With the pros on the sideline (Dom and Tyler were still wiped out from two weekends of travel to Alabama and then Virginia for pro XTERRA championship races), the amateur team stepped up. Greg Stewart, Mitch West, Valentin Lopes, Allie Lawler and Michelle Faurot were helped by Lynn McCabe, Michael Driscoll, Cornelia Parchment-Horn, Robert LaBanca, Paul Sllet and Joe Bogdan, showed strongly. Greg got 5th overall and won his age group. Mitch got 11th overall and 3rd in his age group (Mitch is just coming back from an injury and is not yet at full strength). Valentin got 7th overall and won his age group. Michelle got 3rd overall in the women's race and Allie finished right behind her in 4th (and won her age group)! Rob L. got 7th in his age group, Lyn got 3rd in her age group, Joe got 16th in his age group, Paul and Michael got 21st, and Cornelia got 10th! Wow for our first club championship.

Congratulations all around by all the participants in all the venues today. Great stuff!

Plus there was a fairly large group that rode in the two morning training rides today. So we've had a busy first day of the weekend already.

Good article on cycling from NY Times

Here is the link: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/19/fashion/19fitness.html.

There are some small inaccuracies/inconsistencies in the article. 1 -- Christian Vande Velde, who is a great American cyclist, only led the Giro D'Italia for a short span of the entire race. 2 -- Jonathan Vaughters suggests that a $1500-$2000 bike is incrementally different than an $8000 bike. Yet, the article emphasizes using power meters, which themselves cost $800-$3000. The lesson: take your time making equipment choices. What you do with your equipment is more important than the equipment you have -- that's the simple truth.

Summer Special: TT 10 Pack .. for a leaner you...

We are so committed to get you committed to be fit that TARGETRAINING is offering a special introductory offer: a 10 pack card good for any class this summer at a special rate only available for a limited time! For new clients only!

Come on in! Boot camp, kick boxing, track/running, cycling, swimming. You want to get fit, lean, strong, fast. You want TARGETRAINING to help get you there. Bring in this this flyer and get one extra session free.

See you soon.

Tour of No Bathrooms

Greetings yet again from the Tour of Ohio. Last night was the stage 4 Worthington Criterium. It was 35 laps of a 1+ mile loop with about 1/3 straight, 1/3 downhill and 1/3 uphill turning to the finish. Lots of twist and turns. Fast and smooth.

Oh yeah, and no bathrooms. That's right. No portajohns, no bathrooms, just some trees and lots of bike racers with crossed legs. It seems our wonderful promoter forgot that little tid-bit. He did get the mileage correct though, which is good.

The race has been typically dominated by local dirty players Inferno Racing. This is the old Abercrombie and Fitch team and they also sponsor the event, which seems to explain a lot of the issues and things going on.

The race started slow as Inferno tried to set tempo at the front. No Nickname Nate and a Mengoni rider went off the front with a few others and a few laps later...Justin bridges up with Toby Kenda. Super sweet. This is an awesome move as only one Inferno rider has latched himself onto it. They start working really hard and get up to 45 seconds on this ultra fast course. Behind them, a desperate chase move is trying to make it, but Adam Bomb and Leero are covering it perfectly. Back in the field, BFD Dave is killing every chase move perfectly. Things are looking good.

The break is away for about 20 laps before this guy decides to start chasing. He is pretty quick and will some help from Inferno get the break back with only 5 to go. TARGETRAINING immediately shifts gears (literally and figuratively) and gets set up for field sprint mode for Stylin Ben. The lads go to the front and start filling up the pain box with lots of goodies for all the other teams.

As the bell rings, Big Craig Luekens tries to jump the field at about 45 mph. This sticks for bit and forces the other teams to give desperate chase. He is still a bit sick and can't stay away so Justin and then da' Bomb start the final set up for sprinter Ben. At the bottom of the hill is a sweeping right turn that Bomb hits full speed with no breaks and terrifies both the field and Ben. He pulls a bit and then off on the hill but Justin has been chopped by Inferno and Ben is sitting in the wind with 600 meters to go. Too far. He tries to get reset but is actually brake checked by World and Kiwi Olympian Hayden Godfried. What the heck man? Totally bogus there Fred. He goes from 3rd to much further back in a millisecond. Darnit.

We were super close with the breakaway, the solo and the sprint. The team absolutely raced the heck out of their bicycles and did a fantastic job actually making this race exciting. Everyone is commenting about the race this year. We have been told that the same stage 2 road race last year was 12 minutes slower. Everyone is saying how Inferno used to completely control the race but now has to chase and cover and manage.

The one unique difference: TARGETRAINING. Cool. Good job guys. One other sign of the aggression, Justin and Nate are 3rd and 4th in the sprint jersey competition. Trust me when I say that Justin is no sprinter, but if he is miles ahead of you at the line, you are not getting points.

Today is the fifth and final stage which is a big farm country circuit and then 8 super hard finishing loops here at the college. Hugh hill, scary descent to a hair pin turn and even some brick pavers. We think it will be a good day as the Inferno guys were showing some weaknesses at the crit. Talk to you soon.


Kyle Wolfe
Manager, TARGETRAINING Racing Teams
http://www.targetraining.com/

Tour of No Bathrooms

Greetings yet again from the Tour of Ohio. Last night was the stage 4 Worthington Criterium. It was 35 laps of a 1+ mile loop with about 1/3 straight, 1/3 downhill and 1/3 uphill turning to the finish. Lots of twist and turns. Fast and smooth.

Oh yeah, and no bathrooms. That's right. No portajohns, no bathrooms, just some trees and lots of bike racers with crossed legs. It seems our wonderful promoter forgot that little tid-bit. He did get the mileage correct though, which is good.

The race has been typically dominated by local dirty players Inferno Racing. This is the old Abercrombie and Fitch team and they also sponsor the event, which seems to explain a lot of the issues and things going on.

The race started slow as Inferno tried to set tempo at the front. No Nickname Nate and a Mengoni rider went off the front with a few others and a few laps later...Justin bridges up with Toby Kenda. Super sweet. This is an awesome move as only one Inferno rider has latched himself onto it. They start working really hard and get up to 45 seconds on this ultra fast course. Behind them, a desperate chase move is trying to make it, but Adam Bomb and Leero are covering it perfectly. Back in the field, BFD Dave is killing every chase move perfectly. Things are looking good.

The break is away for about 20 laps before this guy decides to start chasing. He is pretty quick and will some help from Inferno get the break back with only 5 to go. TARGETRAINING immediately shifts gears (literally and figuratively) and gets set up for field sprint mode for Stylin Ben. The lads go to the front and start filling up the pain box with lots of goodies for all the other teams.

As the bell rings, Big Craig Luekens tries to jump the field at about 45 mph. This sticks for bit and forces the other teams to give desperate chase. He is still a bit sick and can't stay away so Justin and then da' Bomb start the final set up for sprinter Ben. At the bottom of the hill is a sweeping right turn that Bomb hits full speed with no breaks and terrifies both the field and Ben. He pulls a bit and then off on the hill but Justin has been chopped by Inferno and Ben is sitting in the wind with 600 meters to go. Too far. He tries to get reset but is actually brake checked by World and Kiwi Olympian Hayden Godfried. What the heck man? Totally bogus there Fred. He goes from 3rd to much further back in a millisecond. Darnit.

We were super close with the breakaway, the solo and the sprint. The team absolutely raced the heck out of their bicycles and did a fantastic job actually making this race exciting. Everyone is commenting about the race this year. We have been told that the same stage 2 road race last year was 12 minutes slower. Everyone is saying how Inferno used to completely control the race but now has to chase and cover and manage.

The one unique difference: TARGETRAINING. Cool. Good job guys. One other sign of the aggression, Justin and Nate are 3rd and 4th in the sprint jersey competition. Trust me when I say that Justin is no sprinter, but if he is miles ahead of you at the line, you are not getting points.

Today is the fifth and final stage which is a big farm country circuit and then 8 super hard finishing loops here at the college. Hugh hill, scary descent to a hair pin turn and even some brick pavers. We think it will be a good day as the Inferno guys were showing some weaknesses at the crit. Talk to you soon.


Kyle Wolfe
Manager, TARGETRAINING Racing Teams
http://www.targetraining.com/

Rules?...

Greetings from Day Two of the Tour of Ohio. As you might remember, the U-25/Elite team is out here for a five day stage race. I am not going to lie to you, it is a little disappointing and strange. As you may remember from yesterday's email, Justin was amazing in the criterium with da' Bomb, No Nickname Nate, Leero and Big Craig also rode well. With only about 25 finishers, you would think I was super psyched as manager. Well, the promoters decided to make the race prologue event, and only score the top three finishers with 20, 10 and 5 second bonuses for their placings. Every other rider gets the same GC time, whether they finished or not.

This is a bummer. We absolutely owned this event. The team was amazing. So instead of Justin being minutes and minutes ahead of the rest of the field, he had exactly the same time. Ugh.

The race is being governed by the rules of the American Bicycle Racing Association, not USA Cycling as we are used to seeing. That basically means there are no rules and they can change them without impact; why not? Back to today: a 70 mile hilly road race in southeastern Ohio starting in a big local state park. Things are weird here as they line up at the start line 15 minutes before the stage even starts. If this was back home, Tony would still be in bed! Really though...

Things get exciting quickly as someone who constantly campaigns that everyone but him is a bad sport attacks in the neutral section of the race. Way to make friends there buddy. TARGETRAINING wastes no time and go to the front with Stylin' Ben and BFD Dave to keep everything in control. I am in the caravan behind the race when I see the Inferno team get a mechanical and sit up. I shout to "go" in the radio and the pace goes up as the entire team attacks into a headwind ala CSC. Nice.

And then, chaos. Just as we crest the first KOH (hills, no mountains in Ohio) Justin gets a flat front tire. He pulls over and Adam Bomb calls the team over the radio: Justin has a flat, all hands on deck. Dave, Will and Adam drop back and get Justin no problem. I peel off for the feed zone to get them all drinks.

The zone is 20 miles later and surprise: Justin is off the front in a 3 man breakaway. We are so happy. He grabs a bottle but drops it 50 feet later. Disaster. I get in the car to chase, but the official wont let me by him. The move doesn't stick but now he and Lee are away with a ten man move. It is super negative so it doesnt work and a counter gets away. Craigman chases and tries to launch Lee and Justin again on the final climb. They do tremendous damage to the race, but miss the win.

Ordinarily you would think that this was good. But here in Ohio with the ABA, there are no rules. The promoter says that if you attempted to race, then you get to finish. What? Is this T-ball? There should only be 25 riders left in the race, and at least 4 of them are wearing the green and blue. What is happening?

Well, tomorrow is another lumpy 60 mile road race. We will continue to be aggressive, but instead of letting the course dictate the splits, we will make things happen. Look for updates as I am off to make dinner again. Second dinner. All they do is eat!
Thanks!

Its the Tour of Something!

I am becoming less enchanted with the Tour of Ohio.

It all started bad when the initial race description labeled the race as 61 miles with no points sprint line and no feed zones. The lads of the TARGETRAINING U-25/Elite Bicycle Racing team were prepared to work with me in the caravan for bottles and not to worry about our new nemesis Inferno Racing. Instead, the promoter stated that there would be two feed zones, but while the riders were on the start line! What? Now what do we do? Where is the feed? When? No help. Then, a points sprint about 50k in. This was not in the description! Was he drunk? We decide to go with the original plan.

The race itself was amazing. The team was absolutely amazing. Despite a neutral section contested at about 40mph a small break gets up the road. The lads miss the move, but BFD Dave and Stylin' Ben Zawacki go to the front and work to bring it in. As you might have guessed from my earlier posts, the other teams here are not so pleased with us as we are making the race super hard and not letting anyone get away with coasting to a victory.

This particular move was super strong and it takes BFD and Stylin' about 20 miles to bring it in. Ouch. Let me tell you right now that Ben Zawacki was incredible. He worked the hardest I have ever seen anyone in my life. Constantly at the front and constantly working to keep this break in site. Wow.

Finally, the chasing works and the field comes back together only to see a move go up the road. Who do you think it is? Hmmm....guess yet? Yup, it is Justin Wolverine Lindine with a Kenda, plus Decanio and two pesky Inferno riders. Justin is dropping them on the hills so the Inferno guys ask him to sit up and they will work with him to the finish. "Nice", thinks Justin, "this could work".

Meanwhile, back in the field, the rest of the squad is working like crazy. Nate is tired from humping bottles all day and Ben is blown from the work at the front. As the Wolverine Attack gets up past two minutes, the race leader starts to chase as now Justin is winning the overall on the road.

In the Volvo, I hear BFD asK "what do I do?". Before I can respond, a quiet calm voice from the Adam Bomb states:

"follow the yellow jersey". Brilliant.

BFD immediately latches on to the chase and kills it hard. Up front, the Inferno guys have realized that they do not stand a chance against Justin in the finish and sit up and wait for the field. Once back in the field, they actually help drive the pace with the rest of their teammates to bring the remaining breakaway back together again. What whooses. This is the stupid and most "tool" move we have ever seen. You do not make a deal and then welch on it if you expect to ever get it done again. Jerks. Tools. Freds.

So now the race is approaching mile 60 (it was supposed to be 61). Only, we pass a sign that says Gambier: 13 miles. Holy crap. No one knows what to do. The promoter has mis judged the length of the stage by over 20 kilometers. The lads start to work to set up Lee for the finishing climb hoping for a stage win, but the end never comes. How much longer? What the hell is happening here in Ohio? Is it Marty McFly all over again?

Well, the field is nervous and bunching together and the inevitable happens: crash. About 1500 meters from the finish line every cat 3 wannabe Fred in the midwest decides they can win the race and there is a huge crash at the front of the race. Da' Bomb goes down but seems to actually land upright about 20 feet from his bike. There are bodies everywhere. Justin and Craig have to put a foot down and try to get around the crash and someone is actually on the wrong side of the barriers. I put the Volvo in park (at 35 mph, sorry Ellen!) and help get Adam going again. The race is over for us but they certainly tried.

We absolutely owned this stage again. Either we were in the moves, or made the reaction to them when necessary. The team was perfect in every respect and they did a great job. It was great to see and all the other teams (except Inferno) thought we were great. Unfortunately, we are racing in an event that allows the stages to be of an indeterminate length and the promoter can change things as he wishes. Crazy. Talk after the race was about how the USCF threw him out for not doing the right thing in the past. Too bad as the courses are awesome and the local people have been super cool and nice and excited about the racing. Even those shifty Mennonites have been cheering us! We have learned our lesson again.

Tomorrow is a 40 mile criterium and we plan on making the entire field regret waking up. Everyone is feeling great and getting in better shape every day. So much fun. Tune in tomorrow to hear how the da Bomb, Wolverine, big Craig, Leero, BFD, Stylin, Will, Josh, No Nickname and even me get through the day.Thanks!

Kyle WolfeManager, TARGETRAINING Racing Teams
http://www.targetraining.com/

TARGETRAINING in Ohio

The race is a mess, but we have gotten a little press; accurate or not...

http://www.cyclingnews.com/photos.php?id=/photos/2008/jun08/tourofohio08/tourofohio081/gallery-tourofohio081

Let me tell you about a little Bomb I know

One of our favorite riders on the TARGETRAINING U-25/Elite Bicycle Racing Team is Adam St. Germain.

Let me first describe him: Adam is about 5'7" tall, 135 pounds and has a shaved head. Not the cool Telly Savalas shaved head, but the creaper Robert DeNiro in Taxi Driver head. We expect him to any minute say something like "everything is clear now".

Adam has piercings and lots of tattoos. And Adam St Germain is the funniest person you will ever meet and keeps the spirits of the team high at all times. Craziness.

He is also a good bicycle racer. Just this week here at the Tour of Changing Rules, Adam came up to me before the start of the first stage and stated: "this is a criterium made in heaven". He then proceeded to help split the race into a million pieces. He was awesome.

At yesterday's stage three, Adam was able to take care of Justin, come back for bottles and still make everyone laugh. He is one of the best descenders in Ohio and always tries to do his best.

Now, about the nickname. Adam is from Providence, RI and that whole area is a small cycling community and a local race announcer made the reference as if he were an Atom Bomb to his competition. I redirected the moniker when it always seemed as if he exploded about three hours into a race. Unfortunately, this was even if the race was 4 hours long. Oh well.

Last year Adam was famous for forcing the Fitchburg breakaway that gained the team the Green Sprint jersey as well as being heads up at the criterium the next day.

This year he has been much more fit and is a valuable part of the team. He even has a blog at http://www.kingoftheapplies.blogspot.com/

Check it out and whenever things get tough, think of da' Bomb!

Fitchburg here we come!

It's awesome to see us mentioned in a recent press release for the upcoming Fitchburg/Longsjo Classic Stage Race during the 4th of July weekend. We love this race and the organizers are great.

We hope to do well in the cat 2 event and score in the NRC pro race (high aspirations)!

Hope to see all of you there!

A day in the life

I am really starting to enjoy the change from bike racer to manager. I think...

Today at the Tour of Ohio my day started at 5:00am. I get up and shower, getting dressed in standard manager wear: shorts, sneaks and logo polo shirt.

Then I clean the dorm rooms and kitchen. These kids eat more than a small country. It is absolutely amazing. After that I gather the water bottles and head over to the dorm kitchen to get them washed. I am good at sweet talk and get that done.

Then I clean out the car, fill the tank and plan the day's transfer to the stage and route. At about 7:30 I head to each of the rooms and wake up the riders. There are 9 in all for this race and that takes some time as they just dont want to get out of bed. I have to do this again. After a while all of the team meets in my suite and we head over to the chow hall to get them fed.

I had already filled out the meal vouchers for all of them and they eat under while I watch: not too much and not too little. Then when it is time, I make a subtle hint and we head back to the rooms.

Yesterday I get them kitted up and drove the car behind them for an hour or so for a nice recovery ride from the drive. Today, I just make sure they are getting dressed while I fill up 50 bottles of Cytomax and water, plus Cokes and food. Today is a long road stage and they will need it.

I then load up the car with bike and riders. This is not easy. Each athlete is on a different clock and has a different plan for their morning; the trick is getting them on my plan. Not easy.

We drive to the race where I hand out radios, make sure the officials are on board and get them to the start. Once that is all set I get in the car and drive in the caravan. This is a little tricky as we are the second car in the line and have to fight to keep this spot. That might mean a few dings in the paint (sorry Ellen!).

After a few hours of excitement, the race is over. I then have to drag these pour kids into the car kicking and screaming as they just want to sit and talk about the race. This is fun but there a lot of days left and they have to eat and go to bed.

Back at the college I unload the bikes and get them washed. Then laundry, wash the bottles and make lunch. Get the riders off for naps and try to catch up on some stuff. I call the girl, email the sponsor and buy a bottle of wine. No news on whether I will share it.

After that trip, I meet the cat 2 rider from another team I am trying to steal. I make some secret deals. It could work.

After that, I make dinner. As luck would have it, one of the riders likes to cook and he helps. Then, clean up, get them ready for bed and then in bed.

I stay late, email the sponsors and book the expenses. Send some notes to the promoters and try to get to bed around 1am. A few hours later, the alarm rings.

I think racing was easier.

Time machines and mid west fun

Greetings from Ohio!

Yesterday I took the U-25/Elite team on a long drive in the country out here to Granville, OH for the Tour of Ohio. A five day stage race in Southeastern Ohio with a decent field and some solid team exposure. Racing this week is Justin, Adam, Lee, Craig, Ben, Will, David, Nathanial and Josh Jamner. I am here to make sure they stay out of trouble.

The drive took almost 12 hours as we constantly had to stop to feed Lee and let Adam go the bathroom. This guy can drink a lot of water!! Also, we took the TARGETRAINING team Volvo with the trailer, and the maximum allowable (and safe) speed is about 27 mph! It was almost completely uneventful except when we were passed in West Virginia by three Delorean sports cars. It was some sort of Marty McFly nightmare!

We are staying here in Granville at Denison University. It is a super quaint school in the hills and we are in some nice rooms complete with kitchens and everything. All of the stages are in the area, so it is a good deal. All of the race is staying here, including our arch enemies Kenda/Raleigh! There goes the neighborhood!

This morning we got up, had breakfast and went on an awesome easy ride to open up the legs from the long drive. The farm roads are amazing and with almost no traffic. We had lunch (what is Nutello?) and got ready for the race.

Today was stage 1, a 60 lap criterium of a 0.5 mile, 9 corner loop with a cool hill in downtown Mt Vernon, OH. The race started fast with some locals trying to get things going until the Adam Bomb and Justin Wolverine Lindine went crazy. Justin attacked over and over again and once he stopped, the Bomb took over. After about 8 laps, the officials had to pull over 50 of the original 120 starters as they had all been dropped by the green machine!

Finally Justin countered an amazing Bomb move and stayed away solo for about 35 laps. Adam came super close to bridging up with local guy who just couldn't keep up and they got caught by the field. With No Nickname Nate and Craig-man covering every chase move like a wet blanket and Leero pulling up the rear, Justin stayed away and absolutely charmed the heck out of this small town. Nate even crashed and got back into the race no problem. These guys are motivated!

Finally however, three criterium experts bridged up despite our efforts and they outsprinted Justin despite his last lap attack. It was amazing to watch them all in action as they worked together well and handled every move perfectly.

Tomorrow is a hilly 70 mile road race with a one mile finishing climb. The riders here all seem to be strong criterium dudes, so our big plan is to let the Wolverine wreck havoc on the bumps as normal. They are no where enough prepared to experience the hurt that this team is going to give! All the other teams are very impressed and jealous of our camaraderie and strength. Cool!

Everyone is doing great and are eating well thanks to some pots and pans on loan from Try-Lyn. Thanks! Well, its off to the dorm kitchen to try to talk the night shift into washing our water bottles. Wish me luck! More tomorrow!

Speed Session -- Terrific Tuesdays at TARGETRAINING

Two trips for Tuesday. One to Staples, the Westport High School Track, which is used for speed sessions for TARGETRAINING's running/triathlon. And the other to Sherwood Island, the informal speed track for TARGETRAINING's cycling/triathlon program.

If you read the most recent Men's Health, or Bicycling, or any other general health and fitness periodical, you will see cited the importance of intensity. Intensity gets you lean. Intensity gets you fit. Intensity gets you fast.

Be warned, intensity done incorrectly has dire consequences. Supervised sessions are highly recommended. Doing intensity on your own is similar to cutting your own hair with a razor.
(A) Better to let an expert cut your hair (B) Better to not use a razor.

Eneas for cycling and Tyler/Dom for running are our respective experts. And the results show over time. It's awesome to see a tired yet exuberant group of clients head back to TARGETRAINING (or their homes or offices) after a speed session. They just got a little bit faster and leaner (we know they are going to eat properly and rest properly to be ready for our next session). Whether it is Dr. Rob or Megan or Kim or Andy...everyone has a grimace that quickly becomes a smile...and on to the next one.

Hope to see you out there with us on a Terrific Tuesday coming soon. You are invited!

Harlem Fathers Day Skyscraper Classic recap

Tony Taylor and Abdul Kabia went to NYC and brought back 3rd and 8th place in the 30+ race. Tony then went and competed against a bunch of pros including the likes of "Fast Freddie" Rodriguez. Tony pulled out 14th in the Pro race. Not bad for the 45-49 silver medalist in the US National Championships.

XTERRA East Championships Virginia

Breaking news -- Tyler Johnson grabs 3rd place and Dominic Gillen gets 9th on June 15th. Tyler finished in 2:03:42 less than one minute off the winner and less than 30 seconds from second place. Dom managed a 2:08:33. We hope to hear more from the guys who run the TARGETRAINING triathlon program when they are back and recovered in Connecticut. Tyler also had the fastest bike split (riding the Scalpel Carbon pictured to the left) -- nice! Tyler and Dom rank 8th and 9th overall in the XTERRA American Pro Tour series.

So it was a big day for TT -- first the multiple winners and champions from the Housatonic Hills race and then Tyler's first XTERRA podium of 2008 following Dom's podium last week. Great stuff!

Commit to be fit: TARGETRAINING is here for you!

WIN! The Housatonic Hills/Connecticut State Championship Fathers Day 2008

Just in...that's right -- Justin Lindine has captured the 2008 Housatonic Hills Road Race and Eneas Freyre gets the State Championship (4th overall in the race). The U-25/Elite team rode an excellent team race, with the field chasing down first Matt Baldwin then Eneas and finally a strong final escape by Justin brought him well deserved individual glory and TARGETRAINING a team victory.

Stephen Badger wins the Connecticut State Championship for 35+ (4th overall in the 35+ race).

A record group of TARGETRAINING clients, team members and friends/family all showed up to help as marshals, drivers and racers. Great job to everyone!

Vancouver World Triathlon Championships

Lousy weather over the weekend (gloomy, cold, rainy) was overshadowed completely by an awesome experience at Worlds. Hanging out, training, and having fun with athletes from around the world was a true gift and getting to know folks from my own neck of the woods was just as great. The best part was having my family there to share it with me.

Race day dawned with dry streets, although a couple of showers had us nervous. In the end, it wasn’t rain and cold we had to worry about. The formerly benign waters of English Bay were being whipped into a frenzy by the tempest like winds. It looked more like the start of an Australian surf boat race, with waves rolling in and breaking onto the beach. We were swimming up and down waves, trying to figure out the right time to breathe without getting a face full of water.

Conditions got so bad that they had to rescue four women from my wave, although they allowed us to complete the swim, which had been shortened due to the cold. However, race officials postponed the next waves for an hour and then cancelled the swim for the remaining women and all the men. Their triathlon was turned into a duathlon. It was a controversial and disappointing decision for many athletes.

I was starting to get into a groove on the bike course, until just after the start of the third lap when my left TT bar slipped out and fell into the spokes of my front wheel. Got going again – holding onto the TT bar for dear life -- but realized I was stuck in the little chain ring. Stopped again to manually move the chain to the big ring, but it wouldn’t stay. No options -- I would have to finish the race in the small chain ring.

The run had been advertised as complicated, with three loops not set up in a very clear fashion, and it was! At this point I could tell that the men were running a duathlon, which made it even worse. At least it was relatively flat. For the sprint to the finish line, folks from the U.S. team handed us flags to carry to the finish. It was a proud moment.

Results: Between the run loop confusion and timing errors on the laps, the official results have not been posted, as there have been many appeals. My time of 2:25:53 matches what I had timed on my watch. I was 12^th out of the water and in the same place after the second bike loop. It looks like I lost about 4-5 minutes on the bike from the mechanical. My run clocked in at 47:05, which is my best 10K in a tri, and only 10 seconds off my best 10K. Lots of improvement on the run (4 minutes faster than my qualifying race last year), but still lots of work to do.

I finished 28^th out of 76 starters in my age group according the unofficial results. Without the mechanical it looks like I would have finished in the top 20. In any case, I am absolutely thrilled to have been able to participate and be competitive at such an incredible event with my peers from around the world.

World Age Group Olympic Distance Triathlon Championships, Vancouver, BC

When one considers competing in a World Championships, one imagines great conditions, great competition and, given the amount of thought and training I'd put in for this since December, a great race. Sometimes, though, the best laid plans don't exactly happen.

Vancouver would be a nice venue for this race - if the weather had cooperated. Unfortunately, it rained and was 55 degrees from the moment we all arrived, soaking the junior races and the sprint world championships on Thursday and Friday (the pro women also had a miserable morning on Sunday; the pro men had very good weather in the afternoon). We were also anxious about the 54-55 degree water, but most of us had swum in cold water and were prepared for our race in it on Saturday morning.

However, the ITU in its wisdom canceled the swim for just over half the age groupers, citing surf conditions that prevented boats from being able to pull people out if need be. Yes, they did pull about 13 people from the water in early races (womens races were first, and those pulled were likley in older age groups), but this is the World Championships! We laughed when we thought about Sunday's Alcatraz race, where 2000 people swim in EXACTLY the same conditions for a longer time.

Anyway, we were first told that our races would be delayed an hour and then told around 9:00 that the swim was cancelled and the race was being turned into a duathlon - 3K-40K-10K. Not what I wanted, despite being a former runner, since a fast 3K would not be kind to my recently healed achilles tendon. At any rate, I found some stuff to eat before my race was due to start at 11:15 (instead of 9:45).

I ended up racing to a 1:51:11. I was 4th after the first run coming into T1 (it wasn't 3K either - it was short - I ran about 7:40). I lost a few seconds as my bike pedal caught my bag, but got out. I biked a 1:02 - almost 3 minutes faster than I ever have before - but I don't think I drank enough as, surprisingly, the weather turned warm and sunny after 3 days of chill and rain. Got off the bike and ran. I did a 38:03 10K but was cramping a bit in the last of 3 laps we ran...drank gatorade and took GU and it helped, but I couldn't really fly like I wanted.

Unfortunately, I have no idea yet what actual place I did get as the results for the M40 group were officially still "incorrect" as of last night's awards. For instance, the guy in first place in the unofficial results is down for a 23 minute 10K run; there are athletes with 50 minute and 52 minute bike times; and people apparently missed laps on the run and/or the bike (bike was 4 loops of 10K; run was 3 loops with 5 180 degree turns). I heard they are going through video to try and sort it out.

I will say that the whole thing was very inspiring. Seeing the 60s, 70s and (yes) 80s athletes was pretty cool, not to mention being able to wear the TeamUSA gear (sorry, Rick) and represent the country. Except during the opening ceremonies, which were cancelled due to rain.

Multisport weekend results: Alabama, Alcatraz, Maryland and the World Championships in British Columbia

We'll get more color reporting from the racers but here is the skinny:

Pelham, Alabama Sunday June 8th. Southeast XTerra Championships. Olympic Distance, Off-Road. Dominic Gillen, TARGETRAINING's head of multisport, got 4th place, while Tyler Johnson, TARGETRAINING's newest full time addition to the multisport staff, got 9th. Dom was 5th out of the water and finished out of the third spot by just over 1 minute. Tyler had a pretty slow swim (finishing mid to back of pro pack) but had a solid bike and strong run to pass a bunch of competitors. They are both going to Virginia next week for the Xterra National Championships.

Alcatraz, San Francisco Bay, California. Olympic Distance. Meg Griffis and Greg Stewart flew across the country. Megan was well prepared and had a blistering water leg, finishing first amateur and 5th overall woman. But a combination of cold water and feet positioning during the swim and bike may have led to her dropping out due to severe cramping. Greg finished in 2:33:53 and in 22nd in the 35-39 age group.

Cambridge, Maryland. Eagleman 70.3 Ironman. Scott Feder and Bruce Koffsky braved the fuel prices and the heat and drove to Maryland. Scott went under 5:12 and finished around 30th in his age group. Of course, the timers appear to have thrown off the results. Bruce is reported officially to have finished 12th in his age group with a 5:06 but he seems to have benefited from timing problems. We'll see how it sorts out.

Vancouver, British Columbia, ITU World Championships. David Yockleson got 28th in the 40-44 with a sub 1:52 time. Seems blazing fast.

Please email in any corrections.

Where were the balloons?

Oh my goodness was it hot... Today [Saturday June 7th] was the Balloon Fest Road Race up in Cambridge, NY; home of the Battenkill Roubaix race and promoter. Well, this promoter was able to find the steepest hills and hottest sun I have ever seen. He also threw in a dirt road.

Seriously, it was 90 degrees and 85% humidity.

The Pro-12 race was an 84 mile contest. The U-25/Elite team brought up: locals No Nickname Nate & Justin, Leero, Stylin' Ben, Matt and Adam Bomb to race against a small but elite field of New England and Northeastern riders. Things started badly when Matt broke his chain soon after Leero went on a 20 mile solo attack. This move was brought back and Nate covered a super move while d' Bomb almost died of heat stroke.

Meanwhile, as the more than half the field was decimated by the heat, the hills and lots of crashes, a strong break sans Targetraining was up the road. Nate and Lee chased it down and Justin made the final move with a long lap to go. He was double teamed by Fiordifrutta and Roger Aspholm. Justin held on for an extremely respectable 5th place. He looked very strong and solid and everyone was proud. Nice!

This was a tough day of racing for everyone.

In other races, Ryan Storm stopped contesting the junior race with heat exhaustion, and I saw our good friend Joe in the 3 race, and he finished the entire 63 mile race riding for the final 10 miles with a front flat! Someone get him some good luck! The 63 mile racing masters field saw a strong and excited Max L. leading the chase against an early break (that stayed away) HH Bodin and the Badger covering the rest. I saw Rick in there too but man, was it hot! Scott got 6th and Max, despite flatting, got 7th.

Next week, the new and more painful Housatonic Hills Road Race. This years slogan: If you are not racin', you're driving! See you then. Remember to wish the lads well as they leave HHRR for the Tour of Ohio that same week. Cool! Thanks!

Kyle Wolfe Manager, TARGETRAINING Racing Teams
http://www.targetraining.com/

Why we ride..run..swim...

Look at this...

Mt. Ventoux. It is a spectacular view and if you don't want to take a car, something that requires being fit to get to...

Wednesday night ride...giggles and grins

Ah, it made me miss Bataan...

Last night was the weekly TARGETRAINING Wednesday night ride out of the Westport location. With traffic and pending rain keeping most away, a small but quick group headed out at 6:15pm.

Eneas gave us the directions and pretty boy Max Viega nodded his head. "yes" he says, " Iknow where to go". So, those two, me, client Dave, tri Dave, Frank and Lyn start riding. Max starts going fast and I had no choice but to cover him. it was my moral obligation.

Everyone had a lot of fun, and we decided to suffer too much. Soon, client Dave, Tri-Dave, Frank and Lyn were happy to let us do hill repeats (by the second time up Old Redding Road hill Frank and Lyn were concerned for our sanity). We were going fast...

We kept riding side by side. Max and Kyle. Mano a mano. Shark and Quinn. It was gruesome. This was no half wheel session, this was an all out macho fight. Who could inflict and suffer pain.

Well, we were both pretty tired. And around 8pm when we re-crossed the Trumbull town line, pretty scared. I was lost. Maximus kept talking how he recognized this road and how he does repeats on this hill. Blah blah blah.

THREE HOURS LATER, we make it back to Westport. Ugh. No one was waiting. Nice, we deserved it. I headed South back to my car at the office and Max went home. Until next week...

Bicycle racing this weekend - real racing - no running! (kidding...)

This past weekend was very exciting for TARGETRAINING at races all over the country. First, Justin and No Nickname Nate raced in the Adirondack Region Empire State Games qualifier on Saturday. For you NY State guys, you know how important this is to everyone up there. Well, in a scenario soon to be repeated, Nate got in an early break and Justin bridged up a lap later. Following wheels, Justin got away with two others until they made the mistake of shifting into their small rings on a climb, and Justin didn't and rode away. This may come as a surprise to everyone, but Justin won solo. Again. Seriously, this is getting old. No Nickname held on for 5th and both guys qualified and will be representing their region and TARGETRAINING next month. Further West one time zone, 2008 Elite team rider Will No-Break-From-College Nowak raced in the Winfield Twilight Criterium in Chicago. After an attack on his breakaway mates didn't stick, Will just out sprinted them for his first USCF win of the season. Kick ass! We look forward to seeing him soon, and welcome to the "W" club. Then, on Sunday, the whole team raced at the CCC Criterium in old familiar Bethel. With Rick, Tom Toal and Client Dave racing the 45+ event, things got exciting when Rick was able to get in a solid move again. He sprinted hard and barely got nipped at the finish but took 2nd. Friggin great. Welcome back Rick, looks like things are back to normal from March! Tom was great and Dave was in the mix. Remember that Dave is no spring chicken, so to see throwing shoulder blocks race long (as well as doubling up in the cat 4 event) was pretty cool too! Frank, Jim and Bart were all in the 4 and 5 races too. Great job to Bart, welcome to the 4s. The 3/4 race saw pretty boy Max Viega and junior Ryan Storm going super strong. Ryan got in the winning move, but got bested at the finish. Conserve my boy! Then in the P123 event, the U25/Elite lads were in town in force with yours truly pinning on a number for another afternoon of pain. With cash prizes, a $100 prime and an Ipod prime on the line, the boys had their work cut out for them as their instructions were to win those primes or motor pace home. The first laps went easy as everyone waited for their signature attacks. When none came, some tried to roll off the front. Nate went with them with Justin soon to solo bridge up. (booorrrrinnnggg). A few laps later, Stylin' Ben Zawacki bridged and then soon came Matt Baldwin. So, we had 4 out of 12 up the road. With BFD Dave making a nuisance of himself by blocking in the field (much to Stage 1's dismay) Nate took the $100 and Ben the Ipod. Looks like they can drive home! At the finish, a lap card mistake by the official saw Ben sprint for what he thought was the win, only to get the bell. He tried to stay off for the last lap, but got caught at the hill and hung for 3rd. It was the right thing, he saw "1 to go" and saw red and "green". Next time as this kid is super fast! The guys rode amazing as a team and represented us all well! Next on tap, is the ultra hard Balloon Fest this Saturday (Battenkill without the dirt), then Housatonic and we are off for a week racing in the Tour of Ohio! Look for my daily race reports and wish the lads all good luck! Also remember, we are still in desperate need for drivers to help with the HHRR next Sunday. It is a lot of fun driving either an official or wheel support and is a good way to serve the sport and the club. Please let me know if you can help! Thanks, and go fast!