The Season
Clemson Weekend (March 7th-8th)
The second race that our USF cycling team competed in was at Clemson. The team did not get to experience much of the great town upon arrival because exhaustion was taking its toll from the long car ride. The next day, however, replenished the team with excitement. The first day of racing was quite chilly but the scenery and freshness of the South Carolina country allowed the team to overcome any frustrations and concentrate on racing. The road race was first, followed by a team time trial. It is very frustrating because results have still not been posted online for this race weekend, so I can only give short recaps of my race and the activities that went on after racing. The men’s “A” road race went very well. David Wright got himself into a break away sometime after the halfway point of the race and stayed there until the finish where he placed 4th behind a different break away that was ahead of him. Anthony Astrab and I finished at the front of the main group, earning ourselves respectable top ten finishes. As for the other categories I do not have official results and I personally don’t feel like calling each individual to find out their exact position. After the road race the team took a very nice ride through the Clemson campus to get back to the hotel. We were absolutely amazed by this campus. It was laid out completely different than USF, with a huge recreation field that actually got USED by the students. It looked like a college setting that only occurs in books and movies. The field was full of students laying about and playing different games. This was just something that we had never seen before in Florida. After riding through the campus and being completely amazed the team got a little fuel for the time trial and headed back to the course. I am not exactly sure how the “B” and “C” teams did but I know our “A” team learned a lesson. Anthony and I were sore from the RR but we were still able to ride, however, David spent most of his energy in his break away earlier in the day and John Stelljes (Category 4 rider) was just not used to back-to-back races of such high intensity. Both of these fine riders had trouble keeping a fast pace so it was hard to keep a third guy with us. We eventually finished and we were disappointed, but we had more important things to be worrying about and that was food and rest.
The next day was quit a surprise for the criterium. I was actually very excited when I saw the course was an old half-mile racecar track. All I knew was that this was going to be a fast race and I was just hoping that my legs would last for our 60-minute race. The men’s “C” team looked very strong, with Chris Bloome at the front for most of the race. He was in contention for a great finish, but found himself in a bad position and did not finish as well as he wanted. The men’s “B” team seemed to have a really good plan with 7 strong riders and a good 20-minute pow wow before the race. Their strategy making must need some improving because with the biggest team in the race they only managed to get 1-2 guys in the top ten. I think that a mentor should enter their pre-race pow wow session next time and let them know that attacking on the first lap is not the best idea. On a different note, the Men’s “A” team had a very good race, proving to be a strong force in collegiate cycling. Both Anthony and I got in breaks throughout the course of the race which ended up getting caught. This did not dampen our spirits though. At the end of the race all three of us found ourselves in great positions and finished 3,4 and 5 which is an accomplishment that we are really proud of.
After everything was said and done the weekend turned out to very successful for the team’s first out-of-state race this year. We learned what it took to race against the best schools far from home and we also learned a lot about each other. I think everyone became closer friends on this trip and it only fueled our desire to train harder to achieve great results.
University of Florida Weekend (February 7th-8th)
2009 has been an amazing year so far for the USF cycling team. With a whole new group of riders and talent, we have been able to rekindle the cycling spirit here at USF. The races that we have participated in thus far have not been reported on, making our website one step farther from completion. A weekly report will now be written following the progress of the team and the races that we compete in.
Our first race was held in beautiful downtown Gainesville, where the uphill finish and cobble stoned corners made every rider push themselves to the limit. It was a great place to watch a bicycle race and it drew a very large crowd. Because this race was many weeks ago, the details to how each race went are not available to me, however, the results are. Starting with the women’s “B” field we had two participants. Lilly Richardson participated in the Criterium on Sunday where she earned an 8th place. Our other Woman’s rider, Cheryl Weldy, did the opposite and rode in the individual time-trial earning herself a 7th place finish. These two Women, along with Sarah Milton also rode together in the TTT where they finished 3rd place.
In the Men’s “C” race there were two riders who were both racing for the first time. John Stelljes and Chase Powell both impressed everyone in their first race, but a crash caused John to loose his rhythm and he ended up with a respectable 8th place and Chase finished the race in 12th place. The “C” team also competed in the TTT earning a well-earned 3rd place.
USF had only one rider to participate in the Men’s “B” race. Dayne Johnson rode a very aggressive race earning a 3rd place prime but falling below his expectations in the final finish at 17th place.
The A race will be much more easier to report on since I was in the race. Seeing that it was my first college race ever, I was a little nervous at the beginning because I did not know what to expect from these fast riders. The race started off very fast with a few attacks and breakaways, but nothing lasted very long. Our team consisted of Anthony Astrab, David Wright, and Myself (Jimmy Page), which proved to be an excellent group of teammates. Roughly 20 minutes into the 60-minute criterium Anthony found himself in a breakaway, which lasted for a few laps before it was caught. When this happened I attacked, along with three other riders and managed to create a very nice gap on the field. With 30 minutes to go we knew it was going to be tough to maintain this distance on such a demanding course. However, my teammates, along with the UF riders were able to break apart any rotation in the main field. By the end of the race our breakaway attempt proved to be successful and I finished 4th behind the other riders in the break. Back in the main group a sprint still had to take place where David and Anthony did their best to finish 11th (David) and 12th (Anthony).
The Weekend also consisted of a Team Time-Trial where we were able to have a team compete in every class except the men’s “B” race. John Stelljes was my hero in this event. As a first time racer in the “C” class, he stepped up to be the 4th man for the USF Men’s “A” TTT team. He rode a very impressive race, giving the other three riders just enough time to rest before going and pulling again. The team came in 3rd place behind UF and Clemson, which is very respectable for our first TTT.
Congratulations to the whole USF team, it has been great meeting a whole group of new people my age that are into cycling as much as I am. I will not report on the ITT rides but I will list each rider and their position and time.
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Name |
Pos. |
Time |
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Men’s “A” |
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Anthony Astrab |
8th |
22:42 |
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Jimmy Page |
9th |
22:45 |
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David Wright |
14th |
23:21 |
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Men’s “B” |
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Mike Suver |
14th |
25:52 |
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Men’s “C” |
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John Stelljes |
8th |
25:01 |
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Women “B” |
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Cheryl Weldy |
7th |
29:48 |
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