OCC Race Results - 2007
Click here to get a results form. We'll post results in a few days.
Smith Dairy Milk Race - August 12 - Orrville, OH
* Masters 35+
David Young, 4th Place
John Lorson, 5th Place
Wes Jones, 9th Place
Steve Fenster, 10 Place
Patrick Miranda, 22nd
Michael Gorman, 26th
* Women Cat 2/3/4
Linda Miranda, 9th Place
* Cat 4
Chris Gochnauer, 9th Place
"Nice race, great course, great weather, who could ask for more!!"
Ryan Knopf, 15th
Joel Schmidt, 20th
Paul Kinney, 24th
* Cat 5
Whitney Jones, 1st Place
Dick Wiley, 5th Place
Brian Amstutz, 8th Place
Shawn Jones, 10th Place
Andrew Amstuz, 34th
Zoar Festival RR - August 3 - Zoar Village, OH
Michael Gorman, Field @ 1:59:43, Cat 1-3
"I have been struggling with fatigue the past few weeks and I Yo-yo'd all
day. off the front, then off the back, got in two breaks with others, one chased
down and one dropped me on the steeper climb. I was dropped every lap up the big
hill but always managed to chase back on by myself. To help keep the field small I
tried attacking past all the stragglers to keep them from getting back with me. On
the last lap I made it back to the pack just in time for the attacking to start, it
blew my wad and I finished 11th in the field, 13th overall."
Dick Wiley, 4th Place @ 52:33, Cat 5
"Raced with Shawn Jones who set the early pace off the front. We were 1-2
over the big hill on the 1st lap and worked together on the downhill to the
start/finish to establish a gap but were unable to. We were part of a 10 man break
on the final lap. On the approach to the finish I sat in the second row behind who I
hoped would lead me out. He did. We went 4 wide to the finish and I was 4th in the
photo finish. Lot of fun."
The Chapel Cycling Series CR #3 - July 26 - Green, OH
Michael Gorman, 5th Place Cat A
"I tried. I love these races but I was so tired I dropped out of the B warm up race. I didn't feel any better in the A race but tried to stay up front. It would figure that when I got shuffled to the back, someone bungled up a turn & let the field split apart and I was on the wrong end of the split. Steve Twining, Erik Lesco and I tried to pull back Grimmy, An A&F and a RGF rider but a second A&F rider whose team mate was in the break was doing an excellenet job of slowing down the chase because some people wouldn't go around him. Some lappers got mixed in with the group and you couldn't tell who was who. I tried adding what pressure my worn out butt could as the field was wittled down. When I realised I was wasting my time, I sat up and just waited for the field sprint. That will teach me to get caught out."
Brent Owens, 10th Place, Cat A, 1 pt.
"Seventeen riders started the A race of which fourteen finished. Five of us got dropped after about ten or so laps. After a couple laps out by myself I found a couple RGF riders to work with for the remainder of the race. A couple of the other riders decided to jump on the back of the lead group as they were getting lapped and finished the race that way. Not only did they get placed as they finished with the break but they also had team-mates in the break...? The race was dominated by Grimmy - congratulations!"
Troy Classic CR - July 21 - Troy, OH
Steve Fenster, Field, Masters 35+
"Very cool 10-corner turn course with the finish coming around the turnabout into a straightaway. Did not feel great during the race but got myself to the front to try to lead out the sprint for Wes. Finished somewhere in a tight pack of finishers for a strong effort in a sprinters race with no crashes."
Paul Kinney, Field, Cat 4
"Fun course but all kinds of crashes and near misses. A bad crash at high speed into some metal barriers neutralized the race with 3 laps to go, which really changed the character of the race. Very competitive field."
Joel Schmidt, Field, Cat 4
"Paul had a great race summary. Unfortunately I was one of the people that got hit by riders as they crashed into the metal barriers. I somehow did not go down myself, but I was in some pain when my saddle was shoved into my lower back and other places. I chased but never made it back to the field, but still finished."
The Chapel Cycling Series CR #2 - July 19 - Green, OH
Paul Kinney, 1st Place for 15pts. Cat B
"I managed to get in a four man break early with two Summit riders and one Stark Velo and we made it stick for the duration. Got a good jump on the sprint and was able to hold off the other three at the line. Puddles slowed it down a bit this week, averaged about 23.5 mph for the race."
Michael Gorman, 4th Place Cat A
"I tried my best to ride hard and agressive and go with every break. The field was full of RGF riders and a few A&F along with JC Grimm. It rained harder than I ever remember during a race making the course a flood plain. On the last lap I tried one last kamakazi move that petered out and left me in 4th."
The Chapel Cycling Series CR #1 - July 12 - Green, OH
Paul Kinney, 4th Place for 9pts. Cat B
"Was sitting second coming into the finish stretch, competition was very good tonight. Stark, Summit and Orrville did a great job of keeping riders up front and controlling the pace. Didn't get my average but I think we were somewhere between 23-24 mph for average speed."
Ryan Knopf, 6th Place, Cat B
"Fun race. I got in a break with Paul and came in 6th right behind Darrin from Stark. We did 24 laps in 38 minutes with and average speed of 24.2. This is the best place to race if ya wanna do a crit."
Dick Wiley, 9th Place, Cat B
"Starting field of 33, paid 8 places, I was 9th. A group of 10 or so riders broke away early in the race. Brian Amstutz, myself and a rider from PDQ were a trailing chase group with Brian and I doing all the work. With 2 laps to go we were lapped by the lead group. ...(took) the last lap to rest and sprint to finish. 23.2 ave over the 40 min race."
Ohio District RR - July 7 - Danville, OH
Dick Wiley, 4th Place, Cat 5
"4th in a field of about 25. 3pm start temp was 90 degrees plus in full sun made water management/hydration difficult. Sharon Schmidt provided me a water bottle on my second lap of the 37 mile race. During the race I drank 3 bottles. After the race 2 pints of milk, 3 small poweraides, 2 water bottles and a Corona and still did not pee until 10:30. Anyways course was great with 2 significant climbs. I was part of a 5 man break on the 1st climb on the backside on Jelloway road. We stayed together until the final big climb on 514, 4 miles from the finish. 2 riders got away. I battled in unsucessfully with a Stark Velo rider to lose 3rd by a bike length."
Joel Schmidt, Field, Cat 4
"I managed to finish this race which was quite an accomplishment considering that I ended up climbing 5700 feet in 56 miles with it 90 degrees out. I believe I ended up 13th. The course was so challenging that only about five cat 3s finished out of 30 plus starters."
Masters National TT - July 6 - Sommerset, PH
Michael Gorman, Field @ 33:58, Men 40-44
"Finished 23rd in a field of Elite and smokin fast racers. I tried my hardest, it just wasn't near good enough."
Medina Twin Sizzler - July 4 - Medina, OH
John Lorson, 1st Place, Expert 35+
"Stayed toward the front until the hill. Rode that at the front looking for an attack to come over my shoulder. It did, but not from who I was expecting. Nevertheless, me and that dude worked it for a bit, then let the field catch up on the high rollers on Kinnard. Fenster did exactly what should be done when a teammates break is caught and countered. I thought, sweet, now they'll chase them and I'll counter that catch. Oddly, no one seemed to want to chase, so I looked over my shoulder to make sure I could make a clean jump and joined them. It was a beautiful thing. Wes did a great job handling the pack and the whole thing was as close to textbook as we've ever gotten. It was good to win at Medina, it's been a while!"
Steve Fenster, 5th Place, Expert 35+
"A large group of at least 50 seasoned riders started. John (Lorson) was in an early break and I counter-attacked once the pack caught his group. This initiated a three-man break up a long-hill and John and Jason Rapp of Snakebite made a strong bridge to catch us. After the 5-man break was formed, we worked together very well to put some distance between us and the pack. With four teams represented in the break, the chasing teams could not bridge our gap due to strong work by Allied, Spin, Snakebite, and our sole Orrville rider left in the chase, Wes Jones (P. Miranda flatted). John held off Delgros for the 1st overall as I got pipped at the line by some strong sprinters for 5th overall."
Paul Kinney, Field, Expert 18-34
"Managed to stay with the leaders all the way to the finish which I've never managed to do in the expert field before. Got demolished in the sprint but wound up 11th or 12th. Average speed was 25.5 mph, were were really hauling on some of those long sections."
Ryan Knopf, Field, Expert 18-34
"Fun fast race ended up with a 25.5 average. But with that many strong people on those rollers it was like riding in a vacuum. I think the average coulda been higher cause we just kinda coasted Smith back to Medina. Woulda rather of hammered in but the deck was stacked. No one was gettin away. Really had no idea where I placed but like Paul said I pretty much got ate up in the sprint."
Joel Schmidt, 2nd Place, Men 35-39
"I managed to get 2nd in the citizens 35-39 despite someone crashing right in front of me about 300 meters from the finish line."
Dick Wiley, 3rd Place, Men 50-54
"3rd in a field of 35. went on an 8 man break early that held up and worked together. finish was chaotic as we caught and mixed up with the 45-50 group. did not click on my computer till half a mile in, but recorded 24.2 mph ave. for the last 26.4 miles."
Brian Amstutz, 3rd Place, Men 55-59
"Got in a 3 man break on the rollers on Vandemark. We worked together to build a big gap. As usual I lost out on the sprint. I had a 22.7 mph avg. Other two riders had a 23 avg."
Grandview Criterium - June 30 - Grandview, ON
Joel Schmidt, Field, Cat 4
"Started out very good, but after 5 laps someone crashed right in front of me. I was just able to avoid the crash, but was not able to regain the pack after riding on the sidewalk, etc. Then 15 laps later another rider crashed in the same corner right in front of me. I managed to barely avoid him. Good course, but some riders need to work on their crit skills. I finished a lap down."
Ohio State Time Trials - June 24 - Groveport, OH
Michael Gorman, 5th Place, Cat 1/2, 53:12
"Got smoked...Only able to manage a 26.1 on the 23.1 mile rolling course that should have suited
me just fine. I guess I should have trained harder."
Shreve Chiropractic Cycling Challenge RR- June 23 - Shreve, OH
Steve Fenster, Field, Cat 2/3
"I helped initiate a 5-man break at the start of lap 2 but got dropped like a bad cold a long downhill stretch 2/3 of lap later. Aargh!! Lorson rode a great race to hang with some serious wattage from Hopkins and a Color Me Safe rider to take 3rd. After licking my wounds, I was swallowed up by a tough chase group and worked hard to finish with the pack. Nice job by Dr. Schmidt of Shreve Chiropractic and all of his volunteers. Maybe we can get even more racers next year for this race."
Ryan Knopf, 5th Place, Cat 4
"Great race and a tough course. Need more people for next year. Racers
from Stark and Snakebite told me how fun the race was. If this one grows it will be
one of the better races around. Felt comfertable the whole time but with my
sprinting issues I decided to go early for the sprint and towed the eventual winner
with me. Theres always next year!"
Christopher Gochnauer, Field, Cat 4
"Very fun course with just enough rollers to destroy your legs for the final up-hill sprint. Didn't have anything left at the end. Will be doing that again next year!!!"
Brian Amstutz, 4th Place, Cat 5
"Got in a five man break on the second lap. On the third time up the big
hill John Tullis rode off the front and soloed in for the win barely beating
Sebastian Birch from Stark Velo. Aaron Holmes was in a two man chase and came in
6th. Excellent route, good pavement and superbly marshalled."
Allardale Park TT - June 21 - Medina, OH
Michael Gorman, 4th Place, Overall, 34:35
"What a depressing night. I can't put aerobars on the 6-13's bars so I rode my cross bike with slicks and gears and went slower than I did on the single speed. Everyone else went faster than last week. I have a feeling the state tt this weekend is going to suck."
Garrett Wonders Memorial CR - June 16 - Westerville, OH
Brent Owens, Field, Cat 3/4
"The 3/4 was the largest field of the day which also had the most crashes @ four. Somewhere around 60 racers lined up @ the S/F which was held on the four-lane stretch. The first 90 deg. right hand turn went to two-lane and stayed that way through the 2nd, 3rd and then the 4th 90 put you back on the four-lane and back to the S/F.
The first crash happened into lap four. That one took down 15 riders including myself - just minor road rash on the elbow and front wheel. Used the free/mech lap on that one. Overall, the legs felt very strong today - but just didn't quite have the nerve to pass and take chances squeezing into the corners. A small break would have made manuevering way easier and safer. I did manage to stay towards the front/inside and finish at 13th overall. Pat and his wife raced today also and finished well I believe. Just finishing without crashing was an accomplishment. Here are some boring numbers from my low-tech Polar:"
HR Avg/High: 160/175; Dist.: 18.9 mi; Time: 48.05 min; Spd Avg/High: 24.6/30.5; Kcal: 697.0"
Allardale Park TT - June 14 - Medina, OH
Michael Gorman, 6th Place, Overall
"I wasn't supposed to ride hard this week and just rest but...While the course wasn't hard, it wasn't easy either. This course is more suitable to the guy who can power up short hills. I couldn't get confortable on the TT bike while climbing and shifting a lever that is on an aerobar so I opted for the single speed with stubby aerobars. One downhill at the start had me up to 48 mph and I can only pedal 30 on the track bike with the gearing that was on it. Scott Thor started his 1st lap just after I passed to start my 2nd. He caught me in the rollers after the downhill but I was able to regain time on the uphills finishing only 8 seconds behind him. Nextr week I will use a conventional bike with clip ons. Rudy Sroka smoked the 28 rider field and was the only rider under 23 minutes."
Mill Creek Criterium - June 10 - Youngstown, OH
Paul Kinney, 5th Place, Cat 4/5
"Fun race put on by Mahoning Valley Cycling. Spent more time up front than I intended but nonetheless felt like I rode a little smarter than in my last couple races."
Summer Solstice Stage Race - June 8-9-10 - Wilmington, OH
David Young, Field, Cat 3 RR Stage 4 (June 10)
"Flat, windy and long (72 miles) road race. I figured that with no breaks managing to stay out yet, fresh legs in the race with one day entries and the stage racers tired an early break with the strong G.C. men would go. So at the start of the second lap I jumped into one and we stayed out for one 12 mile lap then the pack got close and three dropped out and four fresh riders jumped up... this was it. We hammered a commanding gap but I took one 30mph pull to many and my legs just quit, when I dropped the break slowed down and taunted me only 40 yards away now only going 25mph, but i just could not bridge back so back to the pack for the death march to the finish. With 3 to go I got wrecked when two guys two rows up went down and then took 10-15 of us with them. I got up with no damage to my bike and only a small bruise and scrape but back to the time trailing and I did catch the pack after a 1/4 lap chase. Now I just wanted the suffering to be over, but 2 miles from the finish I came unhooked and soloed in 45 seconds off the back. I gave everything, and was 1 interval shy of staying with the break, I would have jumped into the top 10 on G.C. had I gone the distance with it. My official stage position was 35th. I left before the G.C. finals were posted."
David Young, Field, Cat 3 TT Stage 3 (June 9), 16:31
"Second race of the day, my legs feel like lead, I am still dehydrated from the first Stage race. Off I go for a short intense 7 mile ITT. Pretty flat but still windy I hit my limit within 1000 yards of the start and just tried to finish I had nothing extra so every little uphill brought me to a crawl. My average was just a hair above 25mph good enough for 17th place."
David Young, Field, Cat 3 RR Stage 2 (June 9)
"This was a 65 mile road race on mildly rolling windy roads. Again the story was the wind causing nervous shifty riding in the crosswinds. Again I set up for the sprint in good position but was boxed in when three riders went left of center before the 200m sign marked the left lane open for the sprint. By the time I worked thru them and opened up I was 10m behind the winners and in 15th place. Thanks Lowry."
David Young, 5th Place, Cat 3 RR Stage 1 (June 8)
"Big field in tricky winds made for some tense pack riding, I fought for good position then was patient. The guy who won cut me off and forced me to hit my brakes but I still reaccelerated to get 5th out of almost 70."
Race for Alex RR - June 3 - Middleton, OH
Brent Owens, 5th Place, Masters 40-49
"Amazing - it never rained a single drop all morning. this field saw T Hopkins and B Batke attack the field throughout the race. None of the early attempts stuck, almost though. With the peleton staying together for most of the race - it came down to a breakaway going into the last grade before the turn for the sprint. Batke managed to go on the hill and was covered by a MVC rider who couldn't quite hold his wheel into the sprint. A small group of us got a small gap before the turn and were all hammering on the 53 for all we had. TC went 1-2. MVC took 3-4 and that put me in 5th. If anyone does Mill Creek - kick butt!
Dick Wiley, Field, Cat 4/5
Nice racing on a rolling course. Raced only in the big ring. Placed 14/60 in a 4/5 field. Also racing was Joel Schmidt and Brian Amstutz. I was up and down the peloton throughout the race. I made one solid attack on the 2nd of 5 laps with Nate Loman of Rainbow Inks joining, however we were overtaken within 2 miles. My final attack came about 1 mile from the finish on a gradual climb when I moved to 2nd place, maintained this into the final turn behind Ben Kuhlman also of Rainbow. I faded to 14 on the finishing climb to the finish."
Mohican 100 MTB - June 2 - Mohican SP, Loudenville, Ohio
Michael Gorman, 1st Place, Single Speed 100K
"I had a good ride with a little cramping here and there but otherwise was an uneventfull, but painfull ride.
I figured a top 20 overall was realistic, a top 10 would have been great and a top 5 excellent. I Finshed 6th overall against the entire 100k field which I was very happy with but I was the 1st single speed to cross the line which made my day. Plus I made my goal of a sub 6 hour ride, barely."
Wes Jones, Field, 100 Miles, 9:54:00
"I ended up in 27th place out of 71 riders in the 100 mile open class which included some pretty fast pro types like Chris E., Tinker, Harlan Price . . . the list goes on. The first 30 miles were pretty crazy with 200 mountain bikers trying to do a 2 mile roll down the road to the actual rolling start, then racing to be the first to the single track after 5 miles of road riding. 14,693 feet of climbing 97.5 miles."
OMBC #4 Vulture's Knob - May 20 - Wooster, Ohio
Mark W. Jones, 3rd Place, Sport 50+
"The Knob was dry sunny and fast. The race course was the full upper loop
with the cradle bypass. Joe Merry took a 4th and Tim Bonifant a 7th in the Sport
Masters. Ryan Falk DNF'd in the Sport Senior, and Whit Jones DNF'd in the Expert
and joined the "Briars Club" under the Vulturesgate Bridge."
Chippewa Creek RR - May 20 - Brecksville, Ohio
Michael Gorman, 1st Place, +35
"It was an accident. They blew the whistle and some how I managed to roll off the front. No one went with me so I just took off. Bob, Jeremy and a few spectators gave me gap times. Every lap felt like an eternity and I was always looking back in sharp turns or the end of long straights. Somehow, I managed to make it to the end and Steve Fenster followed it up with a 5th OA and 2nd +35."
Steven Fenster, 2nd Place, 35+
"Great course and race. Gorman soloed off the front for the win and I took 5th overall and 2nd in 35+ category for a 1-2 finish for Orrville!!"
Dick Wiley, Field @ 1:22:00, Masters 45+
"Thought I would test the waters of the Masters 45+ race for a second race today. Not a good investment but a great workout in a sick way. The 1st lap was great! 30/33 riders. 19.3 mph ave. over the 28.6 mile course."
Christopher Gochnauer, DNF, Cat 4
"Went off in a hurry and blew up completely. finished 6 of 7 as the field lapped me on there finishing sprint. not a good day for me."
Paul Kinney, DNF, Cat 4
"Didn't feel well but tried to race anyway (first mistake). Somehow wound up leading the pack off the line and tried to stay up front for most of the first lap (second mistake). Put in 6 of the7 laps then pulled out to watch the finish. Essentially I shelled out $25 for what amounted to a training ride. Ugh, hope this bronchitis clears before the Mohican 100!"
Dick Wiley, Field @ 56:45, Cat5
"Lined up with Shawn Jones and Brian Amsutz and 44 other riders. All 3 of us rode at the front with each of us going off the front but not in an organized fashion. There were no moves to be made during the last lap. We were 3 abreast and 8 deep with Charles Howe on the motorcycle beside us patroling the yellow line. I was glad to make up several positions on the final climb. I finished 12th at 56:45 for 21.57 mph ave. over the 20.2 miles. I bettered my time from last year by over 3.5 min. Shawn finished 9th and Brian 13th."
Wilkesville 2 Wilkseville RR - May5 - Munroe Falls, OH
Steven Fenster, 11th Place, Masters 35+/Cat 3/4, 3:06
"Great course but bad organization. Mixing of 4/5 fields with the field
that I started with (Masters 35+ and 3/4) made for a bad and really confusing
situation. Ended up finishing near the leaders as the pack broke up over Hawk's
Nest (I think I was 11th)."
Race at the Lake Series #3 CR - May5 - Munroe Falls, OH
Brent Owens, 9th Place, Cat 3
"I want to say thanks to John and Dave for their advice and overall help
Saturday. This is my 2nd cat 3 race since upgrading and is proving to be a step up
in endurance and tactics from the fours.
The cat 3 field came to race and that is what they did. It seemed so close at the
line with the uphill sprint that any one rider in the money could have pulled off
the win - it was that close.
The fast course along with perfect temperatures made for an awesome day of racing.
Definetly a better/faster crit course than what Chase had to offer. Great race..."
Michael Gorman, Field, Cat 1-3
"I tried to get in every break that went that looked promising. Nothing stayed away and I got smoked in the sprints."
Paul Kinney, Field, Cat 4
"Had my chances but just couldn't capitalize. Felt a bit squirrelly in my first crit of the year but otherwise ok. Will hopefully get a chance for redemption next weekend in the fourth and final race of the series."
Presque Isle 20K Time Trial - April 29 - Erie, PA
Dick Wiley, 4th Place @ 30:15, Men 50-54
"Beautiful sunny morning for a TT. A flat loop on a perfect road. 193
riders signed up. My time of 30:15 on the 20K/12.5 mi course was good for an overall
placing of 29th and 4/19 in my 50-54 bracket. I was just under my goal of 25mph
ave. and related to my averaging 275 watts rather than my projected goal ave of
280-285 watts. Enjoyed lunch with Mike and Turra Gorman riding as a tandom team."
Michael Gorman, 1st Place, Tandem
"The other tandem was a no show so we won by default. We did however
finish 7th overall out of 172 competitors."
Race At The Lake Series #2 CR - April 28 - Munroe Falls, Ohio
Dick Wiley, 2nd Place, Cat 5
"Finished 2/19, my highest finish to date. Brian Amstutz helped set the
early pace. I managed to hang onto a breakaway group of 8. Made up 2 places
coming up the parking lot and found an inside lane out of the wind that slid me to
the lead by the base of the final climb to the finish. Not really wanting to lead at
that point but without options I just gave what I had. A Stark Velo rider blew me
up to win it."
Michael Gorman, 3rd Place, Masters
"Got into a break with Rudy Sroka, Tris Hopkins and Ed Delgros. On the last lap I tried to break free, Delgros flatted and I was aught before the line to finish 3rd."
Team Akron Covered Bridge Series RR - April 29 - Akron, Ohio
Paul Kinney, 9th Place, Cat 4/5
"I think I was 9th, might have been 10th. Will have to see if anything official shows up on the USA Cycling website down the road."
Steve Fenster, Field, A Race
"I was sent to school by the top notch talent in the field (Cat 1 teams -AF and Texas Roadhouse). Wes and John rode great and were not dropped like a bad cold like me as they finished near the lead riders."
Christopher Gochnauer, 2nd Place, Cat5 B-Race
"Great turnout for the 'B' riders of Orrville! A lot of talking in the
field of who was going with the Orrville riders and who was going with Stark
Velo...Great location, timing, and GREAT work from Teammates put me in the final
sprint...2nd to Stark Velo...good choices on who to follow!"
Team Akron Covered Bridge Series RR- April 22 - Fairlawn, Ohio
Wes Jones, 6th Place, Cat 4/5
"Tried real hard to make the race exciting. Ended up trying to sprint 1000 meters into the wind ended up 5th or 6th"
Paul Kinney, Field, Cat 4/5 Masters
"Fun, fun course! Best weather yet for racing this spring. Hope theweather is just as nice for the next two races in the series."
Christopher Gochnauer, 1 Prime & Field finish, Cat 5
"Beautiful day for a race! Joel, Wes,Paul,Steve, and myself had a great Orrville showing! Paul held the line while i came around for the prime. thanks paul for the socks!"
Steve Fenster, 2nd Place, B Race
"2nd place in the big bunch sprint. Strong race by Orrville as we put 3 in the top 10."
Race at the Lake Series #1 CR- April 21 - Munroe Falls, Ohio
Wes Jones, 1st Place, Cat 4
"Took the field sprint after me and Magnus tried to create a selection thewhole race. Magnus made the race by staying on the front at the end and shutting downall the late attacks."
John Lorson, 2nd Place, Cat 3
"Me and Dave Young were the only "Big Reds" in the mixed field of Cat III'sand Master's 45+. They raced us together but scored us apart from theMasters--we're still too young for that gig. Anyhow, we raced a good aggressive racecover everything and starting a few of our own. With 3 to go 5 of us got away andit was the right mix, finally! The peloton seemed to roll backwards behind ourteammates--Dave for me an guys from Allied and Lake Effect who each had a single guyup there with me. I attacked at the first "strategic pause" on the last lap andthrew myself in for about a 600 meter sprint. I had a good jump on everybody but EdDelgros who nipped me at the line. Arrrrgggghhh. (But hey, maybe it's better to getnipped than clipped--if you know what I mean!)"
Mohican OMBC MTB- April 1 - Loudonville, Ohio
Michael Gorman, 1st Place, Vet Open, 2:59:53
"Frustrating day with broken parts and a slow leaking tire that had to bekept up with a Co2. 2nd lap slowed because I let someone else set the pace. 3rdlap sucked because I blew. Weather humid but tolerable, terrain hilly withexcellent traction."
Malabar RR - March 31 - Malabar Farm, Ohio
Dick Wiley, Field, Cat 4/5
"Field of 40-50 at the start. Also in the race was Brian Amstutz and JoelSchmidt. I was able to race at the front the entire race. Pretty uneventful race. On the second of 3 laps a 2 man break was attempted by Rainbow Inks. I attempted tobridge up and in actuality I just pulled the pelotome up. With 3 miles to go Iattempted a breakaway and gapped about 100 yards but I had no help and my attemptfailed. I was 5th at the bottom of the last climb but faded. I believe to havefinished 15-20th, with only the 1st 15 riders being placed. Overall happy with myeffort."
Tour de Richland County RR - March 31 - Malabar Farm, Lucas, Ohio
Brent Owens, 10th Place, CAT 3-4, 50 points
"Legs felt like lead today. The 3/4 race stayed together until midway into the third climb up the big hill. The last small section that tips up at the top popped two of us right off the back. We spent the next 3-4 miles trying to catch back on - at least until he flatted going into the turn on Pleasant Valley. Talk about a lonely place to be... My chances of bridging were gone and the remainder of the peleton was now in sight from behind. One mile out from the park entrance I got caught by 6 who seemed to have fresher legs than I did. (No wonder after working with one rider and then solo). Feeling really cooked by now, I managed to keep four on the downhill side at the finish for what Tym said was 10th. The race had a great turnout in all the categories. I saw at least three other Orrville riders today who raced the 4/5."
Mid Ohio GP RR - March 24 - Mansfield, Ohio
Michael Gorman, 8th Place, 2:05, CAT 1-3
"Spent about 7 miles bridging to the break. Rode in break till 5 laps togo, got shelled. Soloed to finish in front of field. I figure I spent about 15 ofthe 50 miles riding solo finishing 50 miles in 2:05. Best TT workout I never wantedto have."
Brent Owens, 7th Place, 60 Points, CAT 3-4
"The Mid-Ohio track is such an awesome place to race. The track was free of potholes and gravel - as would be expected - and even though wet, it still felt like good traction was there in the corners. Stark, Echelon, Breakaway and I took turns at the front, although most of the work was done by a single Echelon rider. This guy probably lays down a nice TT based on the work and pace that he kept. I believe somewhere with around six laps to go, Lowry started to go away and six of us went too. I really thought we were away until I realized the break wasn't going to work together. Oh well, pulled back in after one lap and still five (10 mi) to go. Coming into the last corner things were a little too tight as two or three bikes hit asphalt to my left. Coming into the final straight put me on the wheel of Don from Stark and that was right where I stayed. No going around this time - just not enough sprint power. Fun race. The type of race I could do every weekend. Lesson learned: Bike position combined with sprint power in the flats is a must. Time to start adding sprint-work to the training cycle. Also, its amazing how much you can eat after a race like this one!"