Fall Fling #1 & #2

The Fall Fling is a 4 race series down in Illinois that finishes off the Midwest road- racing season.  Team GEARGRINDER once again proved they have some great end of the season fitness.  Stage 1 was a criterium at the Pella window factory, and was basically a large flat velodrome. Aside from the person in front slowing down there was no reason to hit the brakes, just put your head down and pedal fast.  Ryan and Chad showed up to do battle with the wind and the other racers, and did they.  The attacks started early a were relentless until the field finally snapped, following a strong move by Ryan, Chad jumped away with two other rider and put some distance on the bunch.  For over half an hour the three work together and built up a large time gap.  Once it came down to a sprint Chad had it in the bag.  Ryan came home 3rd in the bunch for 6th.

The Crete road race seems like a typical no-frills square flat course, but add in some 20 mph wind, and heck, we got our selves a race.  After his win the day before, Chad found himself heavily marked, and had a few too many "shadows". He found allies in Ryan and the wind.  Ryan took some opportunities to jump off the front a get some time in the hopes that Chad could come across and have two GEARGRINDER's up the road.  But each time Chad moved so did everyone else. This is where the crosswind came in.  Each time a strong cross wind blew, Chad hit the front hard, splitting the group again and again.  Eventually there were few rider left.  On the final lap a break of six was up the road with a 1:15 gap.  Chad had all but blown up the field with only one rider hanging one, when he set off to catch the leaders.  In the cross tailwinds the speed odometer was pegged at 36mph, into the headwind the gap was down to 20 secs.  Inch by inch he clawed back to the front, catching the lead 6 right before the final corner (800 meters to go). A brief rest let Chad recharge for the sprint, and at 200 meters he shot out of the small group.  Some were unaware two more riders had caught on, but Chad held on for stage win #2. 

He leads the series, which continues next weekend with a time trial and circuit race.       

 

Ronald regan criterium

This weekend Team GEARGRINDER head down south to the boyhood home of Ronald Regan in Dixon, IL for the, you guessed it, the Ronald Regan Criterium.  At this late in the season the field size was small and even we didn’t show up with our full squad.  Rob and Chad were eager to capitalize on some later season form, and did just that. 
Festivities started early as Jelly Belly rider Bryce Mead attacked the field on lap 2.   Rob was on immediately with a few other riders and Chad waited to see how it developed.  Half a lap later it was time to go.   Once both Rob and Chad were there they wasted no time in breaking apart the move.  The next lap the break went from 8 to 4 riders as the pressure stayed on.  It only took 20 minutes to lap the field the first time.  With 40 minutes left to race Rob and Chad punched it straight through the field and off the front again. 
This time only three from the original break made it. A few successive attacks and it was too much for the jelly belly rider (who had done a 40 km TT that morning).  Rob and Chad joined together alone off the front and went “all in”.  Drilling the pace they caught the field a second time and went straight to the front and made sure no one caught on from behind. 
On the final lap they had plenty of time to sit up and stay safe and put their arms up for Team GEARGRINDER’s second 1-2 of the season. 

 

 

Il state road race

Rob and Chad Headed south this weekend for the Il state road championships.  As one of the final road races of the year a surprisingly strong field assemble to fight out the days prizes.  Riders from Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Minnesota showed up to take their shots.  As the season winds down, Rob was still looking for a good win this year.  After a few laps of attacking, testing, and measuring a flurry of attacks resulted in rob off the front with 5 others.  We knew this was his chance as he could out sprint all of his breakaway companions.   Back in the field Chad did his best to hold back the pack and give Robbie his chance.  On the final lap all rob had to do was keep the group together and it was his for the taking.  At the bottom of the final climb it was all together and the pace lifted.  At the bottom of the hill to the line rob started his sprint from the front and blew the group off his wheel.  Rob won by more the 50 yards.  Back in the pack Chad finally broke away after some others did the same and soloed in for 12th.  Rob took the top step and the gold medal, but being from Wisconsin the state jersey went to 3rd place (first IL rider). 

 

gateway cup- st louis

Over the long Labor day weekend Team GEARGRINDER headed south to St Louis for the Gateway Cup.  This final 4 day crit series proved once again the we are a force to be reckoned with.
The opening night is the Tour of Layfette and the gun goes off at 9:30 PM! This race is DARK, very dark.  Jim, Rob and Chad spent most of the time patrolling the front making sure nothing dangerous got away with out us. Late in the race a serious move got up the road with some major players and Chad was right there with it.  The big local team was not about to let that one roll away and put former NRC winner Scott Moninger on the front to bring us back in the fold.  The break was caught at 2 to go.  It would be a field sprint.  Chad came home in 6th followed by Jim in 12th and rob in 35th
The next day was St. Louis hills.  A new course for this year and WIDE open, it was at least three lanes all the way around.   With the high speed nature of the day no breaks stood a chance.  Coming into the sprint Chad saw an opportunity to jump the lead-out trains and leapt out of the pack at 600 meters.  Out of the last corner the gap was small but had a chance.  Only in the final 15 meters did two rider come surging past.  Chad hung on for 3rd, Jim was 13th and rob was 25th.
The Third day is the Giro della Montange.  A St. Louis tradition this has been a hallmark race for 50 years.  With a good size hill and a tighter course this one tends to split up a bit.  Been ever present on and off the front, Team GEARGRINDER was in every move of the day.  Some serious move came and went but in the end Jim found the right one. After a few laps Jim followed US Olympian Colby Pearce and dropped the rest of the break.  The Two worked well together to stay away, but in the end Jim found it hard to out sprint an Olympic track racer, Jim got second.   In the bunch behind the sprint for third was all but a tie.  After much discussion and review of the tape there was no discernable gap between Chad and Dan Schmatz, yellow jersey wearer and local favorite, for 3rd.  Crowd applause helped the officials choose dan for 3rd and Chad in 4th.  Rob was 35th
The Final day was the Tour of Missouri downtown crit.  The early start was need to be able to compete on the same finish line as the first stage of Tour of MO.  Again a fast wide open course suggested a sprint finish.  Chad and Jim came in 7th and 8th after a lead-out by rob. 
Chad finished 4th overall with Jim also in 9th.  Team GEARGINDER proved once again we are a force in any race.  

 

Downers grove

Every year the US peloton heads to downers Grove, IL for the National Criterium Championships.  This race has a different ‘feel’ then most, as everyone is fit, ready, anxious to get started. 
The weekend starts off with a rather short Saturday night event to give a preview of what’s to come and open up the riders legs.  With nearly 200 starters and lots to prove the race is a quick one.  Most of the pros would rather work harder to keep out of trouble the day before the championship.  Team GEARGRINDER rode a great race with Jim, Rob, and Chad making multiple breaks.  Near the end of the quickly darkening race, small groups jumped away, leading to some confusion.  At 3 to go, sensing hesitation, Chad jumped away from the field attempting to bridge to the leaders.  The 7 riders up the road were shattered in groups of two’s and three’s.  Chad was caught from behind on the last lap by the splintering field but still managed to win the field sprint for 8th. 
The next day was the National Championship, 80km would decide who get to wear the stars and stripes.  We had the day all planned out, and we were all set to go when the curve ball came.  Torrential rain.  From about 10 laps in to about 10 to go we rode through a downpour, as fast as safety would allow.  The single file pace was a waiting game as crash after crash whittled down the field.  Inside ten to go the roads were drying out a little and the pace nervously picked up again.  A small group jumped away but sat 10-15 seconds off the front, hardly away.  At 6 to go rider were getting itchy if not frantic trying to get across to the break.  With 2 corners to go a massive pile up derailed some 20 riders, Chad and Jim were both went down.  Being thrown in a five to go (the last free lap) Jim and Chad made quick work getting back to the front.  As two team set up shop blocking on the front Chad once again jumped away at 3 to go trying to bridge to the leaders.  Going solo he got to within 5 seconds of the break before turning back into the headwind and loosing ground.  He got caught again with half a lap to go and held on for 11th.

tour of elk grove

This weekend was the NRC ranked Tour of Elk Grove down in Illinois.  Team GEARGRINDER once again showed we are a force to be reckoned with. 
   On Saturday Team GEARGRINDER riders Jim Stemper, Rob White, and Chad Hartley lined up for the 70km race.  The race got off to a quick start with a prime on the second lap, Chad attacked after the sprint and set up a break. Jim was right there and came through with the furious pace only he can set.  Some rider in the middle couldn’t hold the pace and the break split, Jim up front, Chad behind.  Little did the field think one the third lap that would be the last they saw of the break.  65 km later however they were still dangling just off the front and on the line held on with just 8 seconds.  Jim came home with a podium place and his first “big check” (the big cardboard kind). 
   Sunday was the same course but 6 more laps and a lot less wind.  Again we were of to a quick pace as, this time, they rang the prime bell on the start line.  Attacks came and went all day with Team GEARGRINDER in the mix with all of them.  But it wasn’t until later in the race did a 27-rider split work its way off the front.  Up in the hunt were Chad and Rob.  They took turns trying to distance themselves from the other breakaway riders.  Split after split the big group was on the edge of collapse.  At 8 to go a small group looked good but was disrupted as two rider crashed.  Then at 5 to go another split with Chad and three other look like it might have a chance.  With the slimmest of time gaps and uncooperative riders Chad attacked again and again trying to gain time.  He was getting away from the group but not the other breakaway riders.  Rob held on to an attack and was flying across to the front.  On the final lap 6 riders had about 4 seconds on a shattering peloton.  Chad Attacked again putting everyone on edge.  At half a lap to go Rob through in one of his own and was away with one rider and looked great for the win.  At 500 meters two sprinter came through full gas in desperation catching Chad off-guard… Rob too.  We had to settle for 4th and 5th on a day where we clearly made the race. 
   It is a small point of pride now in any race GEARGRINDER rider are among the most marked, most watched riders in the group.  with good reason, we rider hard.
 

Superweek 2009

  Much like ToAD, Team GEARGRINDER was always aggressive, and fought hard toward our goals.  In the end we came away with 2nd, 3rd, and 4th in the sprint competition, and Jim Stemper was the top amateur and top American, and had two podium appearances. Rob also spent 6 days in the red jersey.  
   Some of the highlights include- Beverly hills, where both Jim and Rob made the winning break, lapped the field and went off the front again.  That day both finished top-10 in 7th and 8th.  Bensenville was the next fine performance with Jim breaking away early with one other rider and taking a lap, in the end he finished 2nd and his first podium appearance.  This was also the day Rob made it into the red jersey, which he held for 6 days.  The team had top-10 placing’s at Arlington Heights, Shorewood, Evanston, and Racine.  Another notable race was the lake front road race, where Jim left the field on the final lap and almost caught the leaders on the line but still finishing a respectable 3d place.  
 

UW Whitewater

In an off weekend between big series, racing was scarce.  The UW Whitewater team did have two events that had to contend with tired legs and a national holiday.   Jim and Chad made the journey out to the start, along with 6 other riders…  Yes, really- 8 riders total for the pro-1-2's.
With 8 riders it’s like starting the race in the breakaway.  Jim and Chad executed a perfect one-two punch.  Chad hit it hard up the climb and drew out the contenders, over the top Jim blew by us forcing a small group away.  The chase was quick but to no avail.  A lap later Chad bridged across to the leaders and they distanced themselves from the field.  The four rider rode well together for most of the day, and the only attack came on the last lap.  Chad marked it well and was poised for the win.   The sprint was a formality for both Chad and Jim, Chad for 1st and Jim for 3rd.  As the WCA winds down Chad’s overall lead looks better and better.

TOAD… part 2

Waukesha- June 28th
With Chad having a very comfortable lead and the next three on GC very tight attentions would be in the GC riders.  Rob and Jim both knew this and used it to their advantage as they went away on the first lap.  With hard riding up front and the yellow jersey slowing down the field, they were quickly out of sight.  Riders tried to bring them back but it was never going to happen.  After almost 50 minutes they could see the back of the field and knew they would fight out the stage win from there.  Back in the field Chad had picked p a few primes but waited for the $1000 ultimate lap prime.  When they rang the bell for the ultimate lap he couldn’t have been better placed.  As another team lead-out their sprinter, Chad got the jump before the final turn and surged for the line.  Chad proved again he’s one of the quickest riders at ToAD.   Back up front Jim and Rob worked the break to their advantage.  Rob was the first to attack, being chased by a third rider with Jim sitting on.  When Rob was caught Jim launched a race winning counter-attack.  As Rob watched Jim get a gap he launched another attack leaving the other riders for dead.  Team GEARGINDER finished 1-2.  Another stellar day for team GEARGRINDER!
Three Stage wins, ToAD Overall win, and 2 big-money primes. 

Downer Ave. –June 27th
Some might say that Downer Ave is the jewel of ToAD.  It has the biggest crowds, and the biggest primes.  The Ultra-prime was up to $5800 by the end of the night, not bad for a few laps of effort.  Everyone had the same thought- be in the break!  After 30 minutes of trying no break had more then a few seconds in hand.  After a small prime a group has a slight gap and Chad jumped across to cover it.  With two GC riders now in the break both of their teams shut the field down.  The yellow jersey managed to slip into a break and was gone before anyone got on terms.  Up in the break, five riders worked well to open the gap on the field.  Before to long we could see the field rounding the corner ahead of us.   With 11 to go the break got the bell for the Ultra-prime.  After some attempts on the backside the five riders watched each other down the home straight.  Chad launched his sprint before the first corner and put his hands in the air for the big money dash-for-cash.  At ten to go they got back to work and headed for the finish.  A few attacks were neutralized and rounding the final corner Chad once again launched his sprint.  No one came by this time and he put his hands in the air for second time that night.  Jim and Ryan came in for 10th and 11th.  Not a bad night!

Greenbush- June 26th
This Road Race was one the team was concerned about.  It was an event that we didn’t have as much advantage as a flat criterium.  But the plan was simple, keep it together for the GC riders and another bunch sprint. As usual an early break took it shot, trying to take some early time.  In the bunch was an easy day waiting for someone to start up the attacks.  All came and want without much success.  Finally a small group with non-dangerous-GC riders got a gap and we waved good-bye.  As four riders up the road fought out a stage win, action in the back saw a good GC battle.  Jim out rode a whole team in a chase, as rider after rider dropped back, Jim was left by himself at the front.  Coming into the final straight Rob guided Chad to the front before launching on the final climb to the finish.  Chad hit out and but space between himself and his rivals.  He finished right where he wanted… in the yellow jersey!

Sheboygan- June 25th
As one of the GEARGRINDER team events this one had a big star next to it. With the wide-open nature of the course the day was destine for a field sprint.  With riders trying to slip away in vain the race was fast all day.  Jim Patrolled the front not letting anyone get more than a few seconds.  When it came to crunch time Jim was the first in the lead-out paving the way for Robbie on the last lap.  Rob hit out perfectly on the backside and guided Chad to the last corner.  In the sprint Chad blew past all in front of him and had 150 meters of daylight between him and the line.  Just as he was going to chalk up his second win a rider came racing by in the final meters.  Again a very close 2nd

Fond du Lac- crit- June 24th
Again the heat was a major factor.  After the hot day before the field had some tired legs.  After 20 minutes of attacking a break went away two riders slipped away.  Not long after another group slipped off too.  Chad managed to slip into a group of five and put time on the yellow jersey.  Late in the race Rob rode an express train across the gap and joined Chad at the front.  Our group never caught the front two, but stayed away from the yellow to move up.  Rob was 8th and Chad 10th.

Fond du Lac- Road Race- June 23
The main opponent today was the 95-degree heat.  The plan was to drink, drink, and drink so more.  It worked out very well.  Rob jumped away in the early break right away while the rest of the team waited for the heat to take its toll.  By mid way riders were starting to fade.  Chad made his way into a chase group and bridged to the front group, a lap later Jim did the same.  With 12 riders at the front of the race and 3 from Team GEARGRINDER, we were in great position. After several attacks Jim got away with one other rider.  In the fight for the line Jim got nipped on the finish, but a well-deserved 2nd.  Chad was 10th, Rob 13th, and Ryan was 19th

Manitowac – June 21st
The Dead flat, wide-open course and a motivated field held the highest average speed of all the races at ToAD.  At the end of the night the Pro field sustained 29.8 mph, and with such high speeds no breakaway had much of a chance.  A few short lived breaks ruffled some feathers in the final minutes but on the last lap the bunch sprint was in the cards.  Chad finished 5th and rob was 8th. With Chad’s 5th place he also moved up to 3rd overall.
 

Toad off to a great start!

team GEARGRINDER wins giro de grafton!

After the first 4 day of the Tour of America's Dairyland Team GEARGRINDER has showed up ready to race.

Blue Mounds- as the potential Olympic road race course you know you’re in for a difficult day. It was.  Of the 100 Pro-1-2 starters there were 26 finishers, a high rate of attrition.  Jim Stemper came in 10th an amazing finish on such a tough day.

Waterloo- under very treating skies the race got under way with warnings that it could be called or finish early at any point.  Luckily the deluge held off until the final 5 laps of the scheduled race.  Jim had been off the front with one rider for more the half the race and looked good to go the line...until the rain.  Jim's breakaway partner couldn't handle the corners as well in the wet and they began to lose precious seconds each lap.  With two laps to go they were caught, and the sprint was on.  Chad hit out a long way from home hoping to avoid crashes only to be caught in the final 100 meters.  He held on for 3rd.

Grafton- Jim again was the man in the break, this time he had more help.  Out front for most of the race he got Team GEARGRINDER announced again and again.  But again it wasn't to be as the group got caught 100 meter before the final corner.  Chad was ready and waiting again, he came through the final corner third and launched a sprint no one could match.  

Manitowoc- the course was dead flat with wide-open corners that resulted in a race with an average speed of 29.8 mph!  Team GEARGRINDER was once again the aggressors trying to blow apart the field.  Attacks went again and again but no one could hold the 30+ mph required to stay away.  Chad slipped into a late break that looked to have a chance at 5 to go.  But with slim 4-second gap it came back with one to go.  The wide open course allowed for a drag race like no other, 10-12 down the back side into the final two corners, Chad managed to hold on for 5th place and rob in 13th.   Chad moved up to 3rd in the overall standings.

Nature valley grand prix

Nature Valley Grand Prix is the first in a long line of up coming races.  As an NRC status event it is also one of the hardest.  The 5 day race has 6 stages with a time trial, 2 road races, and 3 crits. 
Being our 2nd time trial of the year and first with aero bars, the expectation wasn’t too high going in, just get through it and to the rest of the race.   That night was the St. Paul criterium, a short fast lap very similar to the capital crit in Madison.  On a day where a handful of rider got shed out the back Team GEARGRINDER was right at the front end of the action.
The Cannon falls road race was next.  This day was 67 mile done in 2:12…. Fast! The tight fast technical finish proved no problem for the GEARGRINDER boys as the field was reduced by half. Chad and Jim came in with top 30 finishes. 
The Uptown crit on Friday night was a spectators dream.  Fast racing, a few crashes, tons of action.  Is was one of our best days,  the whole team was in the mix right until the end .  Chad came in 16th with Jim just behind in 30th.
Mankato is generally regarded as the “start” of the real race.  The large hill on the finish circuits destroys the field and the big boys come out to play.  Despite losing a bit of ground on the first time up, Chad and rob hung tough and didn’t lose any more time on the final three laps.  The field was oh so close yet just out of reach.  Jim also had some great legs that day, despite testing the durability of a Minnesota curb. 
The final day is the Stillwater criterium, arguably one of the hardest crits in America.  The race starts at the base of an 18% climb, followed by another kilometer of flat and more uphill before relenting and dropping back down to the start.  This race rarely sees more then 5 riders come in together at the finish and maybe 30-40 total finishers.  We started this incredible day with just about the worst start position you can get…dead last.  But again we hung tough and as the riders around us dropped like flies, we held on.  Rob hung until 6 to go and Chad and Jim made it to 3 to go (30% of the riders left) before finishing out the day. 
The guys did great against a field of Americas best racers, they held their own and proved they deserved a spot at the front. 
Up next is Tour of Americas Dairyland… watch out.
 

Another Account of the State Road Race

After a few too many recovery drinks on a Wednesday night team ride, Tom Felton managed to coerce me into being his domestique for this year’s Cat 4/5 State Championship Road Races. No sooner did I accept did that very date of the event, “smack me square in the saddle.”

 

 

Never having the opportunity to race before (with the exception of managing 4 laps in last year's Whitefish Bay criterion on a single speed) I really didn't know what to expect. Others including: Big Al, T-Mahon, Mac, RyanW, DanO and Felton warned of what to anticipate by telling me you’ll experience “more suffering on the bike than ever,” “forget about breathing cause you can’t,” “enjoy the moments of complete chaos,” “remember to relax,” “stay in the front group,” “don’t get gapped or dropped” and “make sure you take a leak before the start.”

 

 

After finding a clear head that Friday (notice I didn’t say, the Thursday after the team ride J) I not only had time to contemplate what I had agreed to with Tom, but also I had time to think back to the valuable advise of my mates. Surprisingly, I felt more energized and committed to the cause than I ever did, “TeamGG WILL TAKE THE CHAMPIONSHIP,” was my battle cry.  

 

 

On the ride down to the race, Tom and I had a good opportunity to not only strategize, but also to agree that we would stay in the front of the group so as to conserve as much energy as possible, because THE HILL (I swear this was worse than Brown County, Mac) would separate the group. I was to do my best to keep Tom out of the wind, maybe try a break, chase down an attack and take the lead out on the backstretch prior to heading up the hill to the finish. “OK,” as I said to myself, “good thing they don’t test Cat 4/5 riders for Ned’s Wicked Margarita Dope,” because I’d be doing my best “Boonan Walk of Shame back to the car.”

 

 

When we arrived at the event, and to our surprise we found that there were two additional TeamGG riders kitted up and ready to go, (TerryB and BrendanC). This was great, four TeamGG mates to work the group.

 

 

As we waited for the pace car to take us up the hill for the rolling start, heart pounding faster than it has since I found that bear in the woods at training camp, we all managed one final salute, as we listened to the sax-man jam the Star Spangled Banner to the 60 or so riders. As we pedaled our way up that “Frickin’ Hill,” as I appropriately named it later, I realized I was in for some serious suffering.

 

 

With the start came a rush of calmness. The first 3 laps (6 total) were slow, I mean spring riding slow. So I started to convince myself that this wasn’t going to be that bad. Wrong decision!

 

The boys were right; the next time up the hill was the first break that consisted of about 15 riders. The subsequent lap felt like it was twice as fast as the first two. I was definitely redlining at that point.

 

 

Thank God we slowed after that one “lap of nuttiness,” as I was about to let my partially digested GU2O free itself. Unfortunately, the pace allowed the chase to regroup prior to that “Frickin’ Hill” - only to be broke once again at the top. This time around though, some young kid (with too much nut butter in his bibs) managed to pull out, only to let the head wind pound him back into submission.

 

 

Of course I didn’t learn a thing from that unfolding, so I thought I’d give it a try myself. Stupid idea! Nevertheless, we were getting close to the final backstretch, and I had to recover fast, if I were going to live up to my part. No sooner did that happen, Felton starts looking over his shoulders trying to find me, of course I was doing my best to hide.

 

 

As I worked my way up next to Tom, all I heard was “GO!” “GO!” It was like being shot out of Big Al’s 454 Casull! I was out of the saddle takin’ the boys to the base of that “Frickin’ Hill” for the last time. Legs burning, trying to do my best to hold it together, all I could I hear was Felton screaming – “COME ON CHIP,” “FASTER, FASTER!” “COME ON!!!” “HARDER!!!!!”

 

 

On the verge of having a cardiac arrest (hoping Savitt was near), we made it to the base of that “Frickin’ Hill” with Tom and Brendan 1-2 sprinting to the top. Not having a clue as to how things transpired at the finish, all I could do was not fall off my bike and crawl up that “Frickin’ Hill” one final time. 

 

 

Once at the top, I heard some friends say that Team GG took 1^st and 2^nd. “No shit!” Not only did the team strategy work, but also the strength and guts of Tom and Brendan made the vision a reality. What a day for Team Gear Grinder, an 18-year-old high school graduate and a 45-year-old doctor, (husband and father) finishing 1 and 2! What a first time experience for me!

Chip Pieper

Silver medal at state championships,

3rd at winfield twilight.

The boys had two great races this weekend that suited their abilities very well, Saturdays Winfield twilight criterium and Sunday was the Wisconsin State Road Race.  With some big racing starting next wendesday the form need to be tested. 

Winfield's course has a good sized hill that cut the field from 60 starters to 25 finishers.  Team GEARGRINDER was always active and aggressive.  Either Jim, rob or Chad was off the front from start to finish.   the boys proved the legs were good and only a mis que in the lead-out keep us from winning.  Chad came home in 3rd and Jim 5th. 

The State Road Race in spring prairie, WI is always a hard race.  This year it had the added difficulty of 20 more miles.  Jim was the first to have a go, getting up the road with three others.  While IS Corp was represented in the break they were unhappy with their chances so the step up shop on the front and chased it back.  Half way done, the break was in striking distance and Rob and Chad let the attacks fly.  A group of 8 formed with both Rob and Chad and only one IS Corp. Again unhappy IS Corp chased, reshuffled, and broke away again.  this time it was for good.  Matt Busche, Tristan Schouten, Chad Hartley, and Tim Pacholski formed a group and the field said good-bye.  We rode hard and the lights begain to go out one at a time.  Tristan was the first to go, followed by Chad and Tim.  Matt Left us all out there and rode home with the victory, Chad won the sprint for 2nd.  Rob and Jim finished out their day in the field (until jim broke a spoke and limped in). 

Nature Vally is next. a NRC race in Minnesota. 

Two Big Wins for Team GEARGRINDER!

This weekend was one of the first big goals for Team GEARGRINDER elite team.  Memorial Day weekend in Iowa is the kick off to a long fast summer of Midwest racing.  The Four-race weekend consists of an 80 mile road race on Friday, the famous Snake Alley Criterium on Saturday, Melon City criterium and the Quad City criterium on Monday. 
     The Burlington Road Race is a flat fast course that often sees 30 mph averages.  This year was much of the same.  After some early jockeying for position a break slipped slow away before the turn-around in Wapello.  No team was too concerned as any short bout of attacking brought the break back to a hand full of seconds. This is where things got a little lazy, we all sat back and gave the break a little leash.  At 20 miles to go the break has 1:30 on the bunch…a little too much for comfort.  Chad went to the front and got in the rotation with 3 other rider and went to work on the time gap.  With in 6 miles it was down to 30 seconds.  Figuring a flurry of attack would shut the rest of the gap down the chase fell apart as riders leaped of the front.  However with 1 km to go the break was still hanging off the front with 7seconds.  The Texas Roadhouse team was in a tough spot with a lead-out train on the front and a rider in the break….stay in front and catch their teammate, or block and take your 1 on 7 chance?  They lead out.  We caught the break at 800 meters to go just as we were hitting top speed.  At 600 meters to go a lead-out rider jumped too early and Chad took his chance.  Charging out of he line after the escapee, Chad blew past with 300 to go and 45mph downhill sprint was all but over.  With a over a bike length gap Chad had time to put the arms in the air and collect Team GEARGRINDER’S first big win of the year.
      Up Next was the famous Snake Alley criterium.  The key to his race is being in the top 10 into the Snake, a tall order for most of the 140 starters.  This year there was the additional challenge of the rain making the 13% brick climb an ice rink. Like every year there was a crash in the first corner of the snake.  Chad slipped his way into the top 3 going up the snake on lap 1, and a group of 14 were away.  Hanging tight and conserving for the first half of 20 assents of the hill, Chad found himself with less and less riders by lap 12 the group was down to 8 in contention.  With 6 laps to go Chad pushed the rain soaked descent too hard and met some hay bails head-on, letting a top-10 slip and slide away.  Ryan was still in the race, a victim of early crashes and other hold-ups.  One of the last riders not to be pulled and finish the total distance came home in 37th
     The Third race of the series is the melon city criterium.  The team added reinforcements with Jim Stemper, just 5 days of the hospital for a collapsed lung.  This race is very fast due to its mostly downhill nature, followed by a good hill right before the line.  The high speed of the course makes breaking away a tall order, but it doesn’t keep guys from trying.   The race stayed fast all day but nothing dangerous happened until the last 10 laps.  Inside five to go there was a big split forming with 15-20 riders up the road.  Team GEARGRINDER made their way across and to the front.  It was all-together on the last lap insuring a field sprint.  The top of the hill is about 250 meters from the line, being first there almost guarantees victory.  So the real race is to the top of the hill (and the last corner).  Chad was up front on the downhill and as soon as the road tilted skyward launched his sprint.  A drag race up the final climb between Chad and last year’s winner, holding second wheel through the final corner, Chad had enough time to sneak through and be first to the line for his second win of the week. 
The final day was the Quad Cities criterium, a flat fast, wide-open course. Each year the riders on Team GEARGRINDER do very well at this race.  Mid-race there is a lucrative hot-spot sprint competition, and Chad was motivated to win it like he did last year.  3 sprints in 10 laps decide the winner.  Moving to the front and leading out the field, Chad won the first sprint. Some attacking followed the first effort and Chad stayed right with the leaders.  The next sprint he collected a second place but remained 1st overall.  The final sprint was won by Chad, securing the sprint title for another year.  Phase two was the final 15 laps to the finish.  After a blistering 10 surge for the sprints the field took a collective breather… except for 2 riders.  Texas roadhouse and panther both put a rider up the road.  The two biggest teams then started blocking.  With 12 riders at the front disrupting the pace the bunch was forced to settle for third.  The Lead-out was slow, as Texas Roadhouse guaranteed victory for their rider up the road, but it also bunched up the race.  In the final two corners too many riders in too little space left a number of guys on the ground and disrupted everyone’s sprint.  Chad came home in 9th, Jim “one and a half lung” stemper was 20th, and Ryan White was 22nd.  Chad still made it up on stage to collect his Sprint title, flowers, and Champaign. 
2 ½ wins in a 4 day weekend, no a bad show by the GEARGRINDER squad.       

  winning Burlington RRClimbing the snake (in the rain!)
 

Joe martin

Did you ever have one of those days you wish you could go back and do all over again?  Well that was pretty much the first day of Joe martin for us.  It starts with a 2.5 mile uphill TT.  Winning time usually is in the 8:20-8:30 range (a short effort) but today the big boys came out the play and 2 riders went 8:03.  That moved the time cut line to 10:03.  Jim rode a safe 9:34, while rob and Chad were around 10:06, 3 seconds slow and Ryan a bit further back.  In the first 10 minutes we went from 4 to 1.  Not a good day. 

Jim did well the rest of the race.  The first day he was more nervous then anything as he had never ridden with "the big boys".  Once the race got under away he was relieved at the "get to work" mentality the bunch had.  It went hard to get a break away the easy to let it get a gap and when to was time to bring it back, the boys clocked in and went to work.  When it was time to go hard they went really hard! The technical finish caught Jim out a bit and the time gap rule was unknown to him.  (If you are not with in 2 seconds of the ride in front of you they split the field and give riders a time gap). Jim cruised in for 50th and was awarded a 15 second time gap.  Lesson learned.

The next day was a tough circuit with a fast flat finish.  Jim hung in well all day being on the good side of all the splits.  The speed was a shock to his system, as easy as the day before had been, today everyone meant business.  Coming in to the finish Jim play the sprint well and was 16th. 

The final days criterium is one of the hardest on the country.  With the GC separated by seconds the racing was viscous. The pace was hard all day with riders falling off the pace every lap.  A break got away with one dangerous rider and at one point had the overall on the road.  But with 5 to go the leaders team hit the afterburners and brought the break back shattering the field at the same time.  Jim hung in well with the front as only 20 riders survived the onslaught.  He moved up to 47th overall.          

Speed week part 2

The final races of speed week had a slight change of pace to the rest of the series.  Where most of the courses were flat and fast the final days had some hills to contend with.

Dilworth is basically a football shaped course with one side a big uphill and the other down. Everything was fine until mid race when the sprinkles came from the sky.  That signaled a furious change in pace.  After 2 laps of fear the sky opened up and the downpour began.  With slippery paint and manholes in both corners and zero visibility on the downhill, the race slimmed down pretty fast. In the end Chad finished 14th out of maybe 30 finishers. 

Sandy springs is the final day and the course is had a long uphill home straight with a tight technical downhill back side.  After a long week of racing the big teams were eager to put a man off the front and call it a day.  Within a few laps a group of 8 were away with the pro teams shutting down the race.  After the break got a sizable gap the race began again from behind.  Attack after attack brought the group back into sight and by the end we were nipping at their heels but they managed to hold a slim 5-second gap.  Chad came home in 22nd moving up to 9th overall.

Speed week

The season really kicked off the week with the start of speed week down in the southeast.  Athens twilight is one of the fastest races of the year and a little shock to the system after only a few Great Dane crits.  The crowd is amazing at twilight, close to 20,000 people.  The race finally started around 10:15 pm (finished a few minutes shy of midnight!)  Team Gear grinder made their way into a few breaks but the speed of the race didn't allow anything to get very far.  In the end a late break of three riders snuck away and finished 7 seconds ahead.  Chad was the top gear grinder coming home in 20th.

The next evening was Roswell- although a bit earlier at 7pm.  The race got off to a quick start as always. Rob got a great start and was first most of the first lap.  There was more fighting to get in the right break, but after following a series of attacks one got away without us.  A group finished up the road, and Chad came home in 19th.

The third race was Beaufort, sc.  After two days of high speeds we were finally getting on terms with the pace.  The course was very narrow and we need to be up front fast.  Rob make a few breaks that we were sure would get away, but they all got clawed back.  At 7 laps to go the race was on the verge of blowing up chase after chase but everyone in a tough spot.  Rob made a great move at that point a slipped into a late break. It had all the ability to go but some of the pro guys got up there and just looked at each other.  It came back with 3 to go and the sprint was on.  Chad finished 11th and rob was 27th

Up next was Walterboro.  A big wide course with a long back straight where speeds hit 35-37mph each lap.  Two tight turns to the finish made the fight for the 3rd corner "the race".  The race early on was quick but Chad managed to get prime.  Attacks were everywhere but not many could handle the speed on the back and were short lived.  Rob was covering the moves like a champ but none went anywhere.  Two riders got a small gap when the pro team had a stand off as to who needed to chase or lead-out.  No team was represented but they all gambled that another one would do the work.  None did.  The ease in the pace in the last few last made the fight for the last corner hectic to say the least.   The bubble was too big to get around safely and Chad settled for 23rd and Jordan came in 27th.   

There are three more races in the series and Chad is sitting 11th overall, a good spot to move up....