Though my tan lines and sunburns would suggest otherwise, racing has only begun to pick up in the last month around the Old Pueblo.  I have had the awesome opportunity to race with multiple teammates the last four weekends and it has been nothing short of a blast. The ultimate maxim of cycling states that our pursuit is a team sport, first and foremost. The last month, I have had the pleasure of playing nearly every single role as a teammate: pack police, support crew, race leader and lead out train queen. Each experience has taught me that satisfaction can be wrought in pursuit of a singular goal among many teammates, and that personal gain is most experienced when the rest of the team has the same intent. I can truly say that I enjoyed watching Kapri off the front in the Colossal criterium, and Mary taking the sprint win at the San Tan Criterium, just as much as I enjoyed winning the overall at Colossal Cave last weekend. This notion of a common goal is something that many people have a hard time understanding about the sport. It seems so individualized because only one can cross the finish line first. However, there are so many moments, so many opportunities for personal victory in a race that a “W” becomes something desired for the self, but not the be all, end all reason why we compete. Satisfaction is gained when pain has a purpose greater than ourselves. And, when your teammates are people that you respect, both on and off the bike, then wins become a testament to successful connections made and the people who work together to realize a goal.

Tracey awaits her yellow jersey honors at the conclusion of the Tucson Bicycle Classic stage race

The NRC team wrapped up the Redlands Bicycle Classic this past weekend in Redlands, CA.  You can read our first race report here.  Fortunately, the hot temperatures from Friday’s road race did not stick around, and the weather for the crit and Sunday’s road race were just peachy.  Here’s a quick summary of the last two stages.

Lea & Judy make sure to stop and smell the roses

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I got my new Tarmac Comp SL2 a few weeks ago, thanks to Nicollete South Bike Shop in Nicollet, MN. I LOVE IT! It rides so smooth. After going from an aluminum framed bike to a Trek Madone 4.7, I thought things couldn’t get much smoother, but I was wrong. I hardly notice the horribly rough Tucson roads with my new Specialized. It’s black and red matte finish look great and the geometry fits me perfectly.

Thanks again Nicollet Bike Shop and Specialized Bikes.

The 2011 Redlands Bicycle Classic is going well for the Missing Link – Specialized Team!  The steep, hilly prologue and brutal stage 1 through Beaumont have been completed, and the team has been riding well.  This is the first time so many of us have come together for a race this year, so it’s always exciting getting to know new teammates.  We are riding well together and the team dynamics are going to be easy to dial in for the rest of the year!

Prologue: We had 5 riders in the top 40 (ie. the first page of the results)!  Melanie, Cara, and Lea Davison (who is guest riding) were all within seconds of each other.  The conditions were pretty good, but it was definitely a hot one.  Fortunately, the prologue only lasts about 11 to 13 minutes, so it is short and sweet.

Anna B & Kristina show off their FLUID tatoos!

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This weekend was my kind of weekend- San Tan crit on Saturday and Hungry Dog Crit on Sunday.

I’m still learning about race tactics and having teammates, so it was really fun to have Mary Hall and Kimberly Truitt out there on Saturday for the 1/2/3 race! We had a few plans going into the race but nothing 100% set. Then during the race we decided to lead Mary out since we realized it was going to come down to a final sprint. The plan was to start leading out about half a lap to go but I knew that if I waited until half a lap, I might not be able to get to the front, so I shot out to the front at the beginning of the last lap. I basically drilled it as hard as I could until Kimberly came around me and set Mary up for the sprint and the win! That was so exciting and fun! I was so proud that Kimberly and I could help Mary win!

For the Hungry Dog crit, they put ALL of the women together (CAT 1-4)- so Mary and I were able to race together again. They were scoring the 1/2 women separately from the 3/4. There were some REALLY strong women out there and we decided we would just see how things would go and just race smart together. Right from the start, the pace was high. I was basically suffering the whole time but I wanted to try and stay on 1/2 women’s wheels for as much as possible. Mary got in a break and I just sat in with the group as they chased. When the break was caught, we had attack after attack. Another break started to get away but was reeled back in again. It came down to a bunch sprint and there was only one other CAT 3 that stayed in the group that I had to worry about. I was able to sprint hard enough and stay in front of her for the CAT 3/4 win! Mary got 4th out of the CAT1/2 women!

It was a great weekend of racing for Missing Link/ Specialized women and I’m so proud to be apart of this team!

The 25th Annual Tucson Bicycle Classic, aka TBC took place this weekend, and several Missing Link riders contested the three stage event.  A big thanks to promoter Alicia Heiserer, officials Don & Nancy (& others!), moto’s Neil, Andy, Lance (and others!) as well as ALL of the other volunteers that made this a really great weekend.

The racing started Friday afternoon with a 3.5 mile TT on McCain Loop.  As the other 2 stages often end in field sprints, the TT effort can significantly influence the final GC.  Saturday’s race race consisted of 3 20-mile loops south of Tucson, and Sunday’s circuit race was held on a 5.6-mile course just west of Tucson, 6 laps for Cat 3′s, 7 for P12.  As I write, it’s Sunday evening post-race.  I’m both physically and mentally exhausted from a weekend of wholehearted racing, so I thought I’d take a moment to share some of the lessons learned and emotions experienced.  (I might cry; don’t say I didn’t warn you.) [Read more →]

Honey Stinger has a new product – the Organic Stinger Waffle.  I grabbed one the other day when I was out and about and needed a little somethin’ to keep me going.  It is melt in your mouth good!  You have to try it!!!!  Really, I don’t usually get so excited about food that I blog about it – it’s  THAT good!

It’s official, I love to race my bike. This weekend I traveled to Hillsboro, New Mexico for the Trifecta Omnium. Racing collegiately for the University of Arizona, Missing Link teammates Melanie Colavito, Erin Lauterbach and I had ample opportunity to work together. Saturday consisted of a 20k TT and a 35-minute criterium. We swept the women’s collegiate category in both events (there weren’t any other schools represented). However, we were also quite competitive within the W P123 field. In the final lap of the crit, Melanie repeatedly attacked the field while I sat in, allowing others to chase. Finally, I attacked going into the last turn, got a gap, and took the W. Super-fun!!! (Mel and I are continuing to hone our mind-reading skills.)

Sunday’s road race gave us all another chance to work together. The women’s field was really small, so Mel and I worked to control the pace, allowing our other collegiate teammates to stay in the race as long as possible. The hilly race of attrition became a race between 4 of us with ~25 miles to go in the race–myself, Mel, and 2 non-collegiate W P123 riders. Our group worked together well, sharing the effort into the headwind. As we neared the turn-off to the final climb, my energy went to zero. Mel encouraged me to sit in, and she took on my share of the work while I ate and drank as much as possible. With approximately 4 miles to go on the climb, I gave everything I had, attacking hard and forcing the other riders to chase while Mel sat in. One rider got dropped while another rider pulled Mel back to me. I was totally blown at this point, so Mel was on her own for the 2-up sprint/uphill finish. (I hung on for 3rd.) Though I didn’t actually see the finish, I hear it was pretty close. However, it was no surprise to me when I heard Mel took the W! Sweet! University of Arizona/Missing Link women win the road race too!

It was a fun, empowering weekend. We got to experience the benefits of selfless teamwork in very real ways! I’m looking forward to next weekend’s efforts at the Tucson Bicycle Classic. Repeat???

Redlands is just around the corner, but here up north in New England, the USAC road season is still a ways off. Lucky for me, however, as a full-time student at Harvard, I get to race the ECCC collegiate season. I love collegiate cycling, and the Eastern conference is awesome with tons of great people and some fun racing.

The first races of the year were this past weekend, hosted by Rutgers University down in New Jersey. The Harvard team piled all our bikes and gear into a rented cargo van, and the riders into a minivan and made the long schlep down past New York City to New Jersey, where, after a very short night in a hotel, we got up before the sun to get in some racing action. There were time trials in the morning, and in true prolog form, this year’s course was short; close to two miles long. It was shorter than the course that Rutgers has used for the past few years, so a number of us crossed the finish line and were confused that the race was over already…although we could partly blame that on waking up at 5am!

Afterwards, the whole of the ECCC rode or drove a few miles over to the athletic campus for a crit next to the football stadium. The pavement was pretty miserably rough, but suddenly, the sun came out and it got warm-ish!!! Some people were racing WITHOUT LEG WARMERS!! For those of you reading this in Arizona, that’s perhaps not so exciting, but since there are still piles of snow lining many of my favorite training routes here in Boston, it was quite a treat to sit in the warm sun and watch my teammates race. Finally, my turn to race a crit came around, and well, it was a fun one. Kind of. A rider from MIT and I decided after a lap or two to pick up the pace a bit, and then proceeded to lap the field. And then started in on another lap before the race ended. What can I say, the big races are coming, and I need to be ready!!
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I had the great opportunity to chat with Diane of the Outspoken Cyclist the other day, and you can hear our conversation tomorrow online!  The Outspoken Cyclist, if you haven’t checked it out already, is a fantastic show about all things cycling – from industry to advocacy to training to racing and much, much more.  The show’s host, Diane, has 36 years of experience in the bicycle industry, and she brings great perspective, interviewees, and commentary to the show.

I was fortunate enough to be able to talk with Diane about one of my very favorite things: women’s cycling!  And Women’s Bike Talk, of course!  Check out my conversation with Diane tomorrow – Saturday, February 26 at 5:30 p.m. EST – http://www.wjcu.org/media/audio/shows/outspokencyclist

I also highly recommend that you check out some of Diane’s previous shows, as well.  If you have any remarks about how to improve Women’s Bike Talk or the sport of women’s cycling more broadly after listening to the show, feel free to comment on this post or contact us.

And last, but certainly not least, Women’s Bike Talk is made possible with the support of our sponsor Bike Shop Hub (which is run by my brother Josh Lipton, who is referenced throughout the interview).

Thanks and enjoy the ride!