May 28, 2013 -- A long weekend in which a team of juniors drives 8 hours for Memorial Day weekend and encounters freezing rain and snow. Too much to tell everything. Here are some highlights of the journey
Thursday night: I'm driving me, Jake and Ben DiNapoli, but we can't fit into my CR-V. So, we need to take a bike, trainers and wheels to Dan Klaussen's house to put in his van. 9:30 at night when Ben arrives it is pouring down rain when I take stuff to Dan.
The Weather: early in the week, the forecast was for 60s and sun. Sweet. By Wednesday they were calling for low 50s and rain. Not pleasant but, ok. By Thursday, bets were off and they were saying 40s and rain. So, luckily I had thrown practically everything in a bag (plastic rain jacket, Jake's full winter shoe covers, etc) Oh, if only it had been as warm as the 40s.
Friday: Me, Jake, and Ben are up at 5:30 and on the road at 6AM. The CR-V is jammed
We make good time, but the temperatures were dropping as we head north, and it starts raining. It looks like this when we get up to NY and then Vermont
Rutlidge VT on the other side of mountain from Killington (2pm)
There was still snow on the slopes when we arrived. Me, Jake, Ben, Dan and Luke all stayed in a condo. We went for a 45 minute ride Friday afternoon. It was misty/drizzle and 40s, but ok. By later in the evening, this is what the weather forecast looked like for the Cat 3 race Saturday.
So, Friday night, Dan & I went through all the clothes and outwear to put together a plan for each boy. Dan & I luckily both brought our Castelli rain jersey. Luke would wear Dan's rain jersey and multiple long underlayers. His race was at 9am, when it was to be 40 and rain. It would be 2 laps (37 miles). Jake and Ben were both going with multiple long base layers, castelli rain jersey, rain jacket, and HPC jersey over the rain jackets; neoprene gloves with latex gloves inside; embro on legs under tights or leg warmers; winter shoe covers (I checked; local shops sold out of shoe covers).
Luke did well and got 3rd, with Andy Fleming 5th. But by the second lap they were soaked and Luke's hands so frozen he couldn't shift!
Dan & I got Jake and Ben down to the start area and set up on trainers under cover. It was Brutal. Freezing. This is what they looked like at staging:
Shane (in cognito) Jake, Ben
At sign in we were told they were shortening the stage to 3 laps down from 4 (it was supposed to be 71 miles). Hypothermia among earlier racers was making the officials realize they couldn't have people out there that long. Here they came through the feed zone on the first lap.
Everyone was there (although I couldn't ever see Shane because he was in his thermal jacket). I drove backward on the course to see them again. I caught them along the stream
I rushed and got back to the feed zone for lap 2. Jake was well positioned and at ease.
But then we heard that the race was shortened to only 2 laps and that they were on their way to the finish. So I started driving toward the finish. But a few kilometers from the finish, there is an HPC rider pulled off holding up his hand -- crap, it was Jake. SRAM neutral support gave him the junior rear wheel and he was able to finish. He had hit a severe pot hole (the roads were horrible). He said the guy in front of him yelled "shit" and Jake only had time to get the front wheel up over the hole. His rear Ksyrium wheel looked like this:
This sucked because Jake says he was well positioned to contest the finish. Luckily, the race officials gave him the same time on General Classification as the field since the mishap occurred close enough to the 3km to go. We shoved Jake and Ben into the car, I helped Shane peel, literally, off his wet jacket, and we drove straight up the mountain to the condo to warm up. I did time in the laundry room with clothes in the dryer, and we hung other stuff over the floorboard heaters. We went to Luke's podium presentation, and by dinner time, it was windy and driving snow outside.
fuzzy iphone
G, Dan, Andy, Shane, Ben
Jake and Susan Scoggin
Everyone came to our condo for dinner (Shane & his mom were staying in another condo and Pierre, George Schultz, G, and Andy were in another).
iphone panorama mode
Saturday was the big climbing day, and it was early. Cat 3 race started at 9am. It was going to be 33 and possibly still snowing. Luckily, the snow was stopped, but the cold was not. Jake was able to put the rain jacket in his pocket and not wear the winter shoe covers. But of course it started to rain as they pulled out:
This isn't too bad
Me and Susan Scoggin made our way backward on the course to get to the feed zone, which was mid-course (it was a 63 mile loop with 1 small climb early, then a BIG climb mid-lap then finishing on the big climb up to the ski area near our condo). It was cold and windy at the feed zone, but luckily no rain. Some pretty country scenery:
Water falls were flowing
Risk of Moose at the feed zone
Ben and Shane were in the front group (which was definitely smaller), which lead me to curse a bit that Jake was missing. Jake was with 4 guys 1-2 minutes back.
Video shows Ben and Shane come through. I hit stop before the cursing luckily.
So I rushed back to the finish line, up at the ski area. THERE WERE PEOPLE SKIING! It was very cold and rain and sleet were coming and going. Me and Susan Scoggin waited:
Susan Scoggin at the finish; she deserves more credit
skiing (although conditions must have been terrible)
Shane and Ben came through together about 5 minutes behind the winner.
Notice how "The Beast" sign is pointing at Shane
Jake was farther back. He had a hard day. The 4 guys he was with wouldn't work together to chase so he rode basically the final 25 miles solo to finish.
Luke did well, finishing 3rd to keep his place on GC. Andy was just behind him, and 13 year old G was 9th. Here's a photo of G going past the condo on the way to the final 2km of climb to the ski area.
At the condo, I made all the gear changes to set up his TT bike and cleaned out a cassette. Jake watched Remember the Titans.
We all pre-drove the Time Trial Course after dinner. I tried to get some photos of the lovely views but the iphone didn't deal well with evening light
Sunday, the sun came out and the temperatures rose to the 50s in time for Jake's time trial. Unfortunately there was a serious head wind. We had a little excitement as Dan called just before we were to leave. The officials wanted the 2nd number (tech guide said just one number), so we drove fast to get Luke's second number just 2 minutes before he started. He did well, finishing 5th in the TT and keeping his 3rd in the GC in the Category 4/5 race. So kudos to him.
Jake got on the trainer to warm up.
oh so that's what the top looks like
Brewery by start
Jake ready for start
Jake on the road
Ben and Shane started 10 minutes later
Jake did ok.
Still needs to work on TT position and power. Shane crushed it and was 7th.
Some very pretty views on the ride home. I had to refer to the Friday morning photo to remember how I got everything in the car.
If it had been like this the whole time, it would have been entirely different
It took us closer to 8.5 hours to get home, with stop for lunch and dinner. Traffic really wasn't bad other than in lower New York. After that we flew. A long weekend. A tough weekend. Luke and Andy and G did great in the Cat 4/5 race. Dan was good company as soigneur dad, and really was critical for helping with Ben and Jake. A team effort.
Saturday was the 2013 Poolesville Road Race. Put on by NCVC, an annual classic punctuated by a 1 mile long gravel/dirt road section that is down in a low section near the river, with the real decider being the kicker hills that come right after.
Jake, Shane, and Ben would be in the Men's Cat 3 race, doing 65 miles, 6 laps. It had been raining for days and there was a significant chance of thunderstorms Saturday afternoon.
Ben stayed with us Friday night and we headed out to Poolesville mid-morning. We had heard that there was a small "ditch" cut across the gravel road by rain erosion (about 6-8 inches wide). There were also a lot more small pot holes than in the past. When we got there, the morning races were finishing and people were covered in dirt from the gravel road.
I talked in the parking lot with Jason Berry about looking for a breakaway with Jake.
Shane hadn't pre-registered, but luckily got into the Cat 3 race via the day-of waiting list.
The boys lined up with Shane and Ben up front and Jake sort of tucked toward the back. I was worried about that.
So, like at Page County, I hopped on my bike to ride backward on the course, figuring Jake wouldn't need a bottle for the first two laps. I saw them come by about 2/3 of the way through their first lap, in the rollers after the dirt road. Jake, Shane, and Ben were all well positioned. So I kept heading on down to the gravel road to get some video of them coming out of the trench. When the 123 race came by, Justin was in an early breakaway (that would grow and become the winning breakaway). There was a solo guy off the Cat 3 race, but really too early for that to stay away.
As you can see, Jake, Shane, and Ben were riding together, well positioned. I heard that there was a bad crash in the gravel in the Cat 4 race, but I headed back toward the feed zone. Jake came through the next time and took a bottle but had enough time to bitch at me "where the hell were you the last 2 times" (it turns out Mr. "I never lose a bottle" lost both bottles in the first two laps). After that I stayed in the feed zone. The next time through, the group was still together, but I didn't see Jake. Larry Mauch said that he saw him, right behind Shane. But no one saw Ben. So that was after 4 laps. After a while Ben came up the road. He had crashed hard in the gravel. According to Jason Berry, Ben hit a hole so hard it bounced him up in the air and he got sideways, so when he came down he shot sideways into the guy next to him and went down hard. Sucks. He was pretty cut up but not badly hurt, luckily.
Ben does not like gravel
So, we rinsed off his wounds a bit and sent him to the finish to get cleaned up by the medics. Discussion in the feed zone -- poison ivy horror stories.
The next time they came by was the finish of 5 laps, so one lap to go. Two riders were off the front, and I immediately recognized the riding style of Shane.
photo by Tom Simchak
Jake came by near the front. I yelled for him to take a bottle but he was too focused.
photo by T Simchak
According to Jake and Jason, Shane's lead grew, and Jake spent the whole last lap patrolling the front. If anyone tried to chase he would jump on their wheel to make them drag him along. Jason told me he rode well, and that while he protected his teammate's breakaway, he did it in an appropriate way, that is to say, he wasn't slamming on his brakes and he would roll to the front easy without contributing to the chase just to disrupt the rhythm, but then pulling off and making sure that any attempt to go across the gap was going to take him with it. I appreciated Jason's report. Jake said it was really hard because even until the final turn 600 meters from the finish, he didn't know if they might catch Shane, so he was jumping to react to everything.
Well, Shane came across in first with his breakaway companion following, apparently unable to help, Shane had pulled pretty much the entire last lap.
It was great, and Shane deserved it.
winner winner (photo T. Simchak)
The field came in shortly after:
After working hard the last lap Jake still did ok, tucked in for
16th. A higher result would have been good, but I'm really proud of how
he rode in support and the fact that he did it in a way that others
respected. There were 21 "did not finish" in this race. It was hard and dangerous and Jake did well (even though he only had one bottle of water the whole time because his soigneur was out riding for the first 2 laps).
Here's a great photo that catches me getting video of Shane, with his dad across the street also getting video (photo by Tom Simchak I believe)
Susan and Pierre were also there to see it. Shane got the gravel trophy and a pie that he threatened to eat in the car on the way home.
mmmm, Pie
It was a tough day. Mike Russo, Chris Marrow and Chris Grengs all got caught in a crash just 800 meters from the finish of the Cat 4 race. Andy Fleming I think avoided it but was 15th in the 4s. But Bill Cusmano was 3rd in the 55+ and Justin was 5th in the 123 race. So, highs and lows.
Speaking of highs, Dustin Whitlow took this photo of Andy getting nice air over the cut in the gravel road
Jake drove home, which included driving in the rain and on the beltway. My nerves are fine nonetheless.
Mothers Day was Sunday. So, we gave Loren all afternoon with a quiet house. That relaxation ended far too soon, no doubt.
A big weekend for Jake and the HPC juniors at Tour of Page County -- and also for former Coppi juniors.
Background
Quick background (remember, this is written for grandparents and other family members elsewhere). Page County is out in the mountains, with the central town being Luray, Virginia (home of Luray Caverns). It's very pretty, and you'll remember we've raced the Luray Cyclocross race the last 2 years in a row. The Tour of Page County ("ToPC") is put on by Promoter, Chris Gould, and is a big event in the Mid-Atlantic racing scene. Early season plans for Jake to go race the Tour of the Gila in New Mexico fell by the way-side and so that opened up the ToPC. But, yikes, this year, the Cat 3 men would be run together with the Cat 2 men (no junior field). So, that would make this a real challenge.
ToPC has 3 "stages" and they run as a stage race, which is to say, there is a "general classification" that is won by the person with the lowest total time for the 3 events (and there are some time bonuses involved). Jake was joined by Ben Dinapoli and they would do a 70 mile road race on Saturday, then Sunday morning a 8 mile individual time trial ("TT") and in the afternoon a 45 minute criterium. Here is the "technical guide" if you're really that interested. http://www.pagevalleycycling.com/uploads/ToPC_Technical_Guide_2013.pdf
Luke and Andy would be in the Cat 4 race. Both have been riding well, with Luke in particular exhibiting some sprinter chops (his father, the Colorado climber gets twitchy when I say Luke is a budding crit-banger).
Logistics
Luray is a solid hour and 45 minute drive from Arlington, and because of the early morning TT on Sunday, we would need to stay out there Saturday night at least. I have to extend great thanks to Ben and his parents, Tim & Jessica, who offered to let me and Jake stay with them. They live in Harrisonburg, which is about 35-40 minutes away from Luray. They were great hosts. Because they would be going even earlier in the mornings, Andy and Luke stayed at a hotel in Luray. (Shane is doing Tour of the Gila this week so he was off to New Mexico).
Saturday Road Race
Saturday morning (after my usual Friday night stress-induced freak-out about whether we were packed), we crammed 3 bikes, 7 wheels, trainer, 3 duffel bags, tool roll, pump, and a cooler into the CR-V. It was a beautiful day for the road race. Jake & Ben would race at 11AM, but when we got there we learned that Luke had scored a 3rd in the Cat 4 road race, which was awesome. Jake & Ben took off with 50-ish Cat 2s and 25-ish Cat 3s.
The strategy here would be to hang on and let the Cat 2 teams fight the other Cat 2 teams. I really was nervous about this. So, I went for a ride around the 11 mile course in the opposite direction (my only ride of the weekend). Really beautiful scenery, and I took some video of the pack as they came by:
someone has built their own bmx pump track
Here the bunch comes by on their second lap
Jake and Ben safely in the bunch. And again, they come by at the end of their 2nd of 6 laps (the YouTube title is wrong)
Jake, Ben, check (although farther back than I would like)
So, I rode up to the feed zone and joined Tim, who had brought my cooler in his van (thanks). Now, last week at All American RR, Jake and I had failed a feed zone hand-off for the first time ever. We both said afterward "how did that happen." This time, Jake was really tucked in, but I saw him at the last minute and we executed a very deft hand off in the crowd, phew. So that was their 3rd lap. I hopped on my bike and rode a bit more, but was back in time for their 4th time around. This time I saw Ben, but.....no Jake. Crap. This is the moment I fear. Minutes passed and he didn't come trailing through with the dropped riders (oh, yes, they were going hard). I started to worry about a crash. So much that I jumped on my bike and did a very hard 8 minute effort to the final corner to ask head official, Mimi Newcastle, if there was any word on the officials radio about a crash. Nope. Good. I must have just not seen him. I ride hard back to the feed zone just in time for their 5th time through. This would be their last chance to take a bottle. Jake was tucked in the group and didn't need anything. Ben was also right there.
But a group of 15-ish was up the road a bit, maybe 30 seconds. hmmm. Tim and I headed back to the school for the finish. I rode in just ahead of the finish of the Masters race (does that count?)
Ugh, I look terrible -- photo by Brook Edinger
So, Jake says that he and Ben took some pulls at the front on the final lap which eventually got the Cat 2 Bike Doctor team working to close the gap. They caught the lead 15 really close to the finish, maybe inside the last mile or so. Jake was forward in the group, but the 15 guys who were just caught sat up a bit, and they all got swarmed as riders from the back surged forward for the finish. A group of 3 came in right on the heels of the Pro/Cat 1 race, and then down the road was the swarm of the 2/3 finish. Here's the video:
Ben was well positioned and got 12th. Jake was stuck in a bunch as you can see, and was 28th, not horrible, but he was frustrated by his positioning. He said he passed a lot of guys in the end working his way forward after the swarm.
After the race, we drove the TT route to get a sense of it (down for 4 miles, then climb back for 4 miles). We had a wonderful dinner with the Dinapolis, then talked about books and colleges and the legal industry. Very nice.
Sunday Time Trial
Jake's TT time was 8:38, but the weather on Sunday was cloudy and rain was coming. Jake hasn't practiced on his TT bike, so this would be practice. In a bit of excitement, we bought some used Zipp 303s from Pete Lindeman, and I thought they had a 12x25 cassette, and Jake's TT bike rear deraileur was blocked out of the last 2 cogs to pass junior roll out (on his bike 52x14); after warming up, and probably 10 minutes before his start, Jake looked back and said "is that an 11?" I quickly counted, crap crap crap. Now, we could have just adjusted the derailleur to block out a 3rd cog, but instead I quickly pulled the 12x25 cassette off my wheels and switched it onto the Zipps. I ran to wash my hands and Jake rolled up the hill to start. I ran up there just in time to take a photo and start the timer on my watch.
Mimi and Doug Graham play official with Tim Rugg
I should find out where the photographer's photos are
Jake did a 21:50, which was "ok".
Photo by Jon Winter -- need to work on that position
He said he was too conservative going out and had a lot left for the climbs back, but that's part of learning. Did I mention the steep climb to the finish. The boys were very hampered by the junior gearing compared to the other Cat 3s and Cat 2s who could go much faster down the hills going out (so, for example, Tanner Brown was a few seconds faster than Jake and Sam Winter was a few slower; poor Ben was even slower without a TT bike, but they were all way down in the overall, like over 2 minutes slower than the leaders)
Luke in the Cat 4s had another great ride, at 21:43 (I think) which was 2nd in the Cat 4s and put him in 2nd place in the Cat 4 GC going into the crit in the afternoon.
The TT was done at 9am and the Crit wasn't until 3:45, so Jake and I drove back to Ben's house and had lunch and relaxed.
In a great moment, laying there on the floor with nothing to do, Jake declared that "if this is what it's like at the Tour [de France], I'm going to have to seriously re-think going Pro." I laughed and told him I'd let all those pro agents know he was no longer interested.
Oh, and the rain had started.
Sunday Criterium
The downtown Luray criterium has 8 corners and is pretty much never flat. It climbs up and down main street every lap, so lots of fast downhills into 90 degree turns. In the Cat 4 race, Luke had been in the front group, but crashed twice when his wheels slipped out. He fell back to the 2nd group with Andy. Andy finished 12th and Luke 13th, beating some seriously strong guys. Dan texted me that "turn number 1 is eating racers." Oh, yay. Here is a photo of Luke by Jon Winter
It was still raining a bit when we got there to warm up. We took some advice from Dan and parked on the street at the bottom of the course (in front of the Mimsly Inn). I put embrocation on Jake's legs for warmth and the water repellent and for the "pro" sheen, then set him on the trainer to warm up.
The Cat 1 race was going on while Jake warmed up. They were sliding out left and right. Former Coppi junior Kevin Gotlieb (now with the Kelly Elite team) was in the front and just missed the win, but took the Cat 1 GC. Congrats to him. He deserves a lot of national attention.
Jake got a good spot on the front of the crit. This thing would go nuts from the gun and if you weren't in front, you were doomed.
Yes more filled in behind them; Jake Sitler to the left; Ben over on the right
The rain had stopped, but still, very nervous times. My heart was beating as I tried to calmly chat with Joe Dombroski (back from the first half of his rookie season at the Pro Tour level with Team Sky). Here are some videos from the first few laps. Jake was in there, not great position, but not horrible. Nonetheless, I felt compelled to yell at him to move up (first time this year I think)
Seriously, I can't tell you how nerve wracking this is as a parent. And guys slide out after half a lap.
End of first lap
Jake was hanging in there, but people were getting shelled already. This is just several minutes into the race
At some point, I saw Ben; he had crashed and was at the pit for his free lap. But he was very freaked out about his tires having no grip. I tried to help calm him and push him back into the field, but he struggled. Once your trust in your tires is gone, you're doomed.
At one point about 12 minutes into the race, coming up the big hill, Jake was cracking. I thought "shit." According to him, his tires did a power slide in turn 7 and he basically grazed a hay bale. He didn't go down but was gapped. He says when I saw him on the hill he had put in a big effort to get back to the front. The race was splitting at that instant though. Now, I'm really proud of him because I'm telling you I thought he was done. But he regathered himself and got into what became the second group on the course. Understand that the front group at that point was about 20 guys. Jake's group had about 8. They clearly weren't working well together, otherwise they may have caught back up.
Behind them everyone else was gone, lapped and pulled off the course. Jake looked better and better. Tanner cracked out of the front group a few minutes later and fell back to Jake's group (which also contained Sam Winter, who is 17 I think)
Photo by Jon Winter
Jake leads them up Main Street
Rather than risk having the lead group catch them, the officials pulled Jake's group off the course as Jake lead them up the hill with 1 lap to go. Jake was 22nd (they were all given the same time for GC). So, Jake was the 5th Cat 3 and 22nd over all in the crit.
Jake Sitler did enough to take the GC (so now he's officially a Cat 2). Jake ended up 25th on the GC but 5th Cat 3 (they don't officially break them out but you can count based on registration numbers). Overall, it was a positive weekend. Jake learned some things in each race. Hopefully took some confidence from holding his own with many Cat 2s. Luke finished 8th in the Cat 4 GC and Andy 15th. Unfortunately we didn't see them much because their races were on a much different schedule.
At the end of May, Jake and I will take Ben up to Killington Stage Race in Vermont, so this was a bit of a dry run for that.
This will be fast because it's a week late and there is more to discuss. Last Saturday (April 20th) Jake, Shane & Ben Dinapoli liked up for the Cat 3 All American Road Race in Poolesville.
Jake and Shane, bringing the art of "nonchalant" to new heights
Generally pretty flat-ish course, narrow yellow line rule, means traditionally not my favorite course, but it gets a big turn out. The Cat 3 race was 65 miles. But the temperatures were chilly (cold if you were just standing there) with significant winds that would shape the race. (side note, because this is about what's involved in getting them there, I did the DC Velo 7am ride for the first time in over a year so that I could then get Jake out to AARR; it went well, probably because a lot of people were racing AARR later; unfortunately, it was the last decent ride I did).
So I hung out in the feed zone with Tim Dinapoli and Sam Scoggin. A few solo breaks were attempted but the wind would doom them quickly. It was pretty (except for the cold wind)
Polo fields next to finish line
Blue skies over the finish line stretch
Field of yellow flowers
We had friends in the feed zone. Instead of cows at Battenkill, this time it was horses.
With 1 lap of the 8 mile loop left, there was a strong 3-man breakaway with a little less than a minute lead. Ben and another guy made a strong bid to bridge across to them, but the wind was too much.
When the field came back around for the finish, the 3 guys had stayed away, but there was excitement behind. Shane and former-Coppi Jordan Cross had jumped away from the field a few Km out and held on for what appeared to be 4th and 5th, then one solo,
then the field sprint. Jake came in 9th in the field sprint, which is
not bad for him, since long flat windy sprints is not his current
strength (he has a 15 year old's muscles, not a 27 year old's)
So, Jake was 15th overall, which is pretty good. The guy who won, however, got relegated to 6th for drafting the wheel car after a flat (a somewhat controversial call) so Shane moved up to 4th and Jordan 3rd.
To top the day off, after 65 miles of racing and 10 miles of warm up, Jake hopped on his bike and rode home another 30-ish miles from Poolesville.
