Team Get A Grip Cycles

Cherry Roubaix '09

2009-09-02T12:55:00.002-05:00

By Ben LaForce

6 of the Chicago boys raced the Cherry-Roubaix races in Traverse city this weekend. Brian and I from get a grip and Newt, Luke, William and Liam from xXx racing. Newt hooked us up with a condo/lodge type place a few miles out of town. The weekend forecast promised lots of showers. Brian and I drove early friday to check out the road race course, of course it was hurricane outside but we gave it a go anyways.
Saturdays race was a 6 corner downtown criterium with a large section of pave. The day was horrible, rain all day long. By the time our race came things were completely soaked, and the day separated the men from boys... the boys stood on the side and watched the men race. The race starts and people get used to taking corners at speed, not brian. Brian comes from a mtb background so hes got the technical skills and made an early break with york and another guy. They held it to the line and Brian took 2nd in the sprint, I got 8th. Chicago took 2nd, 4th, 7th and 8th on the day. Not bad for a field of 35.
Day 2, an epic 5 lap 60 mile course with as much climbing as any sane person could ask for. A break of 4 got up the road after 3 laps containing brian and luke. another lap later a bridge came from a shattered field up the s/f climb and 5 more joined on including myself. This group made it to the finish together (losing brian due to cramping). this was a really disappointing race because the course suited me well but was a little longer than what ive been training for. i havent been putting any long rides in this year especially the last couple months and i could feel it on the final lap. lap 4 i felt as strong as anyone in the break and confident i had a good chance at winning but lap 5 i began really struggling on the climbs and killing myself to stay with the group. By the time we got to the final climb I had nothing left, I told luke he was our only shot... i had nothing. i made it up the climb in 7th a good 15 seconds or so behind the rest of the group.

and thats the season... half ironman under 2 weeks away !!

Blue Mounds and Harmon Hundred Training Days

2009-09-01T11:26:00.010-05:00

Blue Mounds training camp: Is it ever to late for a training camp? While there are still a few road races left in the 2010 season to stay really fit for there are other reasons to partake in a weekend full of riding the hills in the Blue Mounds area. How about good old fashioned male bonding, I mean team bonding. A two day weekend full of destroying or being destroyed by your ride mates on some of the best roads in the Midwest, hanging out in nearby Mt. Horeb and eating at a bar called the Grumpy Troll was certainly a great camaraderie and friendship booster. It was trollishly delightful? Without such fun and friendship what’s the point to calling each other teammates? These ties can and should outlast one’s racing career and it certainly transcends any present/future team affiliations. Thus, it’s never to late for a training camp. Tall and tasty troll burger with beer anyone?

The Wheeling Wheelmen’s Harmon Hundred: I was introduced to this ride last year and rode with Spider Monkey/former teammate Bryan Merrill, TT experts, Jim from ABD and Gary from VQ. The course rode into WI and right by the Spring Prairie RR course used for the WI State RR Champ race, thus it rode over many nice country roads with hills. Unfortunately this year’s event had a different start location and stayed south of the WI border. Last years event I would have rated 4 stars, this years event slips to 3 stars mainly because of a less safe and challenging route (more hills like the previous year please). Otherwise the service from the start to the finish from the volunteers was excellent and the route was easy to follow. I rode the first 25 miles in an hour trying to catch the Spider Monkeys who started 30+ minutes before me. After being reunited at the first rest stop we set out together for the next two 25 mile sections. The last 25 were spent riding with my WI friends Brooke and Peter Tampa. It was overall a good 100-mile training day. If you think that such rides are only for recreational riders know that local racing legend Scott Pearson our IL State RR Champ also rode the ride. What were you doing?

Elk Grove and Downers Grove

2009-08-19T23:29:00.002-05:00

By Ben LaForce

Elk Grove was very very hard. I had a 300 watt average for the race after trying many breaks... nothing had a chance. The sprinters owned this race from the start with all the primes offered. I finished by coasting in with the pack. After this one Brian, Tim and I watched the domestic pros including flandis and mr. horner duke it out for their 98 mile race as we hung at the tent with beers in hand. I wish somebody told me how much more enjoyable this was than actual racing.

The Downers Grove course suits me fairly well as its not a pancake like so many other crits in the area. I tried for a prime about 15 minutes in and got nipped by inches then after another 15 minutes tried to get into a break but this race was owned by the sprinters too and i coasted across the line in the pack after a sketchy final corner i took it easy up the finish just happy to be upright.

Time to take it easy for a bit and get some swimming and running in so I don't embarrass myself too much for the half ironman and of course so cousin Jeff doesn't beat me.

Upgrade pending...

The Tour of Elk Grove

2009-08-03T16:12:00.006-05:00

By Brian Hill

Yes I know I never ever post any race reports. Believe me this is only due to a lack of time as opposed to things to say. So today was the Alexian Brothers Tour of Elk Grove, which as most are already aware of, offers up huge cash purses to both Pro and Amateur racers. Let me start by saying I rolled into this one a little tired after racing aggressively on Sunday's (Chicago Criterium) and Wednesday's (Soldier Field Criterium) leading up to this. Didn't help either that friends had come to town and felt it necessary that sleep become a non-necessity. But with a stacked field and a $600 pay check to the winner, not to mention a ton of cash primes, the focus and determination set in quickly. I arrived nice and early, set up the team tent, and retrieved my number with ease. Things are looking good. Got a nice warm up in with Alex and Ben in a slight rain shower. Things are looking really good for me. No better way to eliminate a large portion of the field then to have the course do its part. Initially race plan was to sit comfortably in the field for the first 40 minutes and then move to the front for the last 20 minutes and see what we got. Well with the addition of the rain time to make a few adjustments, better stay closer to the front so the people can crash at will behind me as opposed to in front of me.

Race officials announce for all riders to the line and a young kid falls over trying to get through the gate causing me to be shuffled to the back of the field. No big deal the race is 60 minutes, plenty of time to move up. Whistle blows and to my surprise the junior rider to my left falls over causing a domino effect, which results in me crashing into the gap in the railing at 2mph shoulder first. A barrage of profanity flies out of my mouth followed up by a quick warning from a race official. Two seconds into the race and I am trying to calm myself down and take a free lap. Quick cut across the course and a little begging of the official and I am quickly reintegrated into the back of the field. Now the race has started. The first 10 minutes are somewhat similar. Sit in the top 15 of the field, Enter turn one at 8mph & sprint out at 30mph while riders hit the deck, Enter turn two at 8mph & sprint out at 30mph, Enter turn three smoothly move back around juniors and dumdums that crashed the line on the last three corners, fly through turn four and five safely in the top 15, hide from the wind on the home straight and refrain from contesting any of the $25 primes. Then I hear the call for a $100 prime on the next lap. Obviously I could use a $100 so I go for it and get pipped at the line. Realizing Ben has a better chance of taking out primes then I do I decide to lead him out on the next two opportunities. First one we fail to connect and I burn a little energy unnecessarily. Next one we are spot on. He is tucked in right on my wheel, I drive the pace up to a level that I know will shell anyone that didn't see it coming and we motor on for 1000 meters. 50 meters from the line Ben comes around me as well as two others and he is pipped at the line. Wasted energy again!

The rain has picked up and I quickly decide to go back to the original plan of hiding mid-pack and getting after it the last 20 minutes. Over the next 15 minutes I get the pleasure of watching people use the pavement in turn one like a slip and slide. Somehow Ben, Alex, and myself seem to avoid this practice like the plague. From this vantage point I get the pleasure of riding along with the less then skilled bike handlers and each corner seems to make me angrier and angrier. Perfect! We can use this to get away from the field and hopefully solo to the victory. I decide that I should be able to hold the field off for 5 laps maximum and begin to move forward. We pass by the start finish line and I see the lap counter at 6. Think to myself really already, I was hoping to hang out for a minute and then go. Well a plans a plan so I move up over the course of the next lap and then attack once we come onto the home stretch. The move it appears has surprised everyone and they let me go screaming up the right side close to the barriers. Head down I am determined I pass under the finish line, 5 laps. You can do this. Blaze through the corners, amazing how much easier it is when you are following your own line. My gap is hovering around 8-10 seconds. Pass under the finish line again, 4 laps you got this. Hug the barriers, try to stay out of the wind, and keep pressing. On the backstretch I hear the ever-familiar sound of another riders gears behind me. Quick glance and I see it is a XXX rider and we still have a gap. I motor on and then flip the arm for some help. Nothing doing, he appears to be spent and I have to just keep driving it. As I approach the finish line I see 3 laps to go. Awesome! Then I hear the announcers voice screaming. $200 prime on the next lap! $200 prime on the next lap!!!!!!! WTF!!!!! This is no good for the guy with a 8 second gap. Pedal harder! Pedal harder! Take every corner as fast as you can, risk it all. DO NOT let them think they can catch you for this prime and you just might make it to the line. 200 meters from the line a quick glance and I still have the gap. 100 meters from the line and I am thinking awesome I just won $200. 25 meters from the line I hear the whoosh of 5 riders blazing past me. Damn that was quick. Get back in the field and try to jump them again after a little rest. In the last 2 laps poor bike handling skills and rain really seem to kick it into high gear and become a factor. I'm in the top 10 and then 8 wide into a corner become the norm and I am in about 30th. Next corner a guy hits the deck and I move back into the top 15. Next thing I know we are entering the final two corners and I am sitting about 25th. Not good if you want to get paid. We are all lined up entering the final 500 meters and the guy in front of me loses the wheel and a gap is opening. Nope! Get around him and sprint damn it. Guys are dying left and right. I move into the top 20 and then watch carnage unfold 75 meters from the line as two XXX riders on my left get cut off. One hits the railing and the other flips over him and slams into the curb face first at 35mph. Slow motion kicks in at this point and for a split second I forget I am supposed to be sprinting. I blow through the line and instantly am thankful to have been able to keep the rubber side down. We will live to fight another day.

Superweek and Chicago Crit

2009-07-29T13:07:00.002-05:00

By Ben LaForce

Last Thursday I tried my hand at another superweek race after the success of the lakefront road race. Athletes can be pretty superstitious, and what the heck I wasn't going to mess with success so I tried to mimic my morning from the lakefront race as much as possible. Breakfast at wildberry, no socks, no sleep, etc... The course was about a 1 mile crit which we did 30 miles of. The series leader (Marc) was at the race and I knew he was one of the key guys to watch if I was going to do well.

The race started and a few laps in Marc took off and I was the only one who went with him. We were away for 10 or 15 seconds only, the field would never let him get away. After about 8 laps a group of 8 got up the road and I saw it was a well represented break so the next lap I took off on the hill dragging a couple guys and we made the bridge. Geoff from leadout took control of the group and got us into a good rotation and gaining time on the peloton (which marc was in). Most of the group worked while some guys sat, we ended up gaining a lot of time on the pack and after dropping a few went to the line with 7. I managed to get myself in the 4th spot coming toward the winding finish line and sprinted first, with no one able to catch on soon enough!

Fast forward to yesterday and we have one of the biggest races of the year, the chicago criterium. This was its 2nd year being run, and my first crack at it. We had 7 get a grippers in a field of over 100. The race was very fast, about 27 mph and with no hard sections to really break up the group. There were a bunch of prime opportunities and even some that rewarded the 2nd guy across the line. I went for a couple and got one of them for $50. No breakaway really had a chance with the field pushing so hard until padfield snuck away with 3 laps to go. Get a grip got to the front in an effort to block and nobody in the field knew what to do or wanted to waste energy doing it.

Eventually burnham and team leadout with some help from others did a hard chase and closed the gap with under a lap to go. Right before the last corner things got tight while I was sitting in 8th or 9th place and a team leadout rider went down, I was immediately behind him slammed on my brakes and rode over his bike and flipped over my handlebars at close to 30mph. Somehow there was no serious damage and even the road rash was pretty minimal. The bike however got smashed hard and the handlebars jackknifed into the top tube on the fall and put a good ding in there. No finish for me, oh well but I got to do the whole race so overall a good experience.

heres an epic photo from ed white http://www.flickr.com/photos/ewwhite/3761347148/sizes/o/

Oh and one more thing, when racing in the city, park somewhere where you can ride to the race because $25 parking garages for a couple hours are no fun.

Racine Criterium - Superweek

2009-07-29T13:03:00.002-05:00

By Chris Padfield

After Schlitz park my next Superweek race was the Racine Criterium. The course was a figure eight, think Proctor but shorter, with a little downhill/uphill between turns four and eight. The weather was sunny and warm to start for the thirty five of us in the Cat3. Going into the race I was hopeful that a break could stay away but wasn't going to be surprised if it came down to a bunch sprint. My plan was to sit tight until about twenty to go and then get serious about initiating some moves.

The race was fast from the gun and I wasn't on top of my game, making simple mistakes like letting gaps open through some corners. There were some early attacks and even a threatening looking break of maybe six riders that contained two which I was watching, but it only lasted a few laps before falling apart. About a third of the way through the race the wet stuff started to hit my glasses. Trouble.

At first it looked like it wasn't going to be enough to hamper the race, but it kept coming down just enough that the course turned into a slick mess of manhole covers, tile crosswalks and road paint. My tires were not inflated for wet traction (or just over inflated) and I almost washed out twice when my front wheel skipped into turn four and my rear slipped in turn one. For about two laps I seriously considered dropping out lest I actually kiss the pavement. Luckily though no one was interested in taking serious risks and the race progressed at a leisurely pace.

The rain did pass on though and with twelve laps to go I could see that it was just dry enough to take the turns at full speed again, but everyone was still continuing on like it was wet. Without putting more than a second's thought into it, which was probably best, I attacked. I took a quick glance back and no one wanted to come along and suffer with me, but that's cool, less to worry about.

As I passed the start/finish I saw eleven laps to go. Eleven laps. Man, WTF was I thinking. Here I am. Again. And again. Well, at least I'll have some fun with it and make people really do some work to chase me down. Taking your own line and slamming it through every corner, powering out of the saddle through the uphill, having people yell splits at you, all of that never gets old.

My gap wasn't anything threatening to start, probably sub 10 seconds but it started to grow with each lap. I knew I was in this for the long haul so I settled into a "comfortable" rhythm. I'm told my gap stretched out to about 20 seconds and then there was a serious concerted effort to bring me back. With about six laps left I was brought within striking distance of the peloton, but no one wanted to seal the deal, and my gap opened up again. Or so I'm told, I wasn't looking back.

With two to go and with the gaps being yelled at me at about twenty five seconds I knew I had this one in the bag. I was honestly surprised I pulled it off. Cruising across the start/finish I was ecstatic not only to win a Superweek race, but to win in front of my parents there who were in town from California.

Schlitz Park - Superweek

2009-07-29T12:55:00.003-05:00

By Chris Padfield

This was my first Superweek race this season so I was extra excited for the extra duration and difficulty. The race was 44 laps of the 0.8 mile course, and about 1:15 total time, basically uphill on the front side with a steeper section to finish it off, downhill on the back with some very lumpy pavement on the downhill and through the bottom turns. I was off the front early with thirty something laps to go and had built up about a 30s lead(?) over six laps when i had a rear flat. It was an unintentional move, I basically just rolled off the front.

I lost a large part of my lead with having to slow down on the corners of the descent and the wheel change and was brought back shortly after reentering the race from my free lap. From there for the next twenty or so laps i stayed up at the front as some attacks went off and i made some of my own. Marc Howe and another rider went off with maybe 18 or so to go and i was unable to respond because i was still recovering and was forced to sit in. The two riders ahead never opened up more than a 15 second gap until maybe five more laps and more people started attacking out of the peloton, and it looked like it was now or never, so I attacked as well.

With maybe thirteen to go there were the two riders with a solid lead, a group of three chasing and then me about 5 seconds behind the trio. Over the next ten laps marc howe dropped the rider he was with and the chase was down to one rider maybe five seconds ahead of me. It was a race for second at this point and i just kept my own pace until I caught the lone chaser, a tiny junior. And no joke my front wheel maybe got a draft off this kid, and that was all. It was a pairing of the smallest and largest riders in the race. We stayed together until the bell lap when I attacked him on the hill, got a gap and held it to the end for second place.

Unprepared to Win

2009-07-29T12:46:00.005-05:00

By: Ben LaForce

Today I raced the Lakefront Road Race, superweek's 7th race. Usually I'm a little unorganized going into races but today was really over the top. I left my house and 9 and got to the race in plenty of time... so far so good. When I got there I realized I didn't have cash so I had to pay by check, extra fee = $46 to race. I forgot socks so I raced without any (gross), I had a flat front tire so I went to the neutral start to be told like a 5 year old to bring a tube until they finally felt bad enough for me and helped me out. I thought it was a crit so I brought only 2 gels and a skinsuit, and to top it all off I had only 3 hours of sleep. Not too condusive to having a good race... but somehow it worked.

The course was a 2.2 mile lap which we did 23 times totaling 50 miles. It started with a 30 second winding climb then at the top it took a near 180 and was fairly flat with a slight rise to the downhill which was snaking and technical to a 90 at the bottom where the wind hit you in the face for the long finishing straight. The race started off fairly easy with a lot of people attempting to break away but nothing stuck. With 18 laps to go 3 guys got up the road and got themselves a 35 second lead. I knew the break had a chance as nobody was chasing it so the next time on the climb I attacked hoping to get a couple guys to come with to bridge up... nothing. I was in no mans land 10 seconds ahead of the break and still too far to bridge solo. I didn't care anymore so I just went for the break. After 2 laps of chasing, slowly but surely I caught one guy from the break who was just dropped and we worked together for a few pulls. As the 2 leaders were only 10 seconds away on the hill I gave it a good push leaving the guy behind and I soon caught them. After a short rest I jumped in the rotation and the 3 of us worked really well together.

For the 17 remaining laps it was probably as close to sharing an equal workload as you could have asked for. We all knew our strengths and pulled hard on different spots on the course to keep our gap. The peleton got close at one point and after that effort the gap started growing again up to almost 2 minutes. There were attempts off the front but nobody caught us so we went to the line together. I knew I had a decent sprint as long as there wasnt a pure sprinter in the group so I took off at about 150 meters and when I looked up I was the first one accross the line!

January 1, 2009 to July 4, 2009

2009-07-16T20:36:00.033-05:00

I recently sustained a rather bad injury from a crash that took place while competing in the UW Whitewater Road Race. Thus with all my riding and racing suspended for several weeks I thought that it would be interesting to do a quick summary of my 2009 season up until now.

January: My training was completely halted as my chronic back pain had flared up so bad that I was left in the fetal position for much of the month. I had been experiencing back pain from my sciatic nerve since March of 2004 when a roller bladder who lost his balance collided into me while riding on Chicago’s lakefront. This was a start to the season I desperately had wanted to avoid. The 2008 season had been sabotaged by a muscle tear in my lower back just as the season started and then by 2 unfortunate encounters with the pavement due to the careless ignorance of some motorists. Likewise, the 2007 season suffered from constant severe chronic tendentious of the knees and a very hard crash at the 2007 Winfield Criterium which resulted in a slipped disc in my neck.

February: With my back pain subsiding, training resumed and consisted of lots of spinning on my stationary trainer and rollers supplemented with weight lifting, plyometrics and abdominal workouts on a balance ball. However, my strength, endurance and weight were still far off from where I had planned and hoped they would be.

March 1: An indoor group-training ride on the compu-trainers at Well-Fit (http://www.wellfitinc.com/home.aspx) presented itself as an excellent early season opportunity for the team to get together and get in a good group workout on a day that otherwise would have had us train separately at home due to the foul weather outside. Our course was the one that Teammate Jonathan “Chip” Gray had experienced several weeks earlier while riding up and down the hills in the San Francisco Bay area (http://teamgetagripcycles.blogspot.com/2009_01_01_archive.html) with former Teammate Angelo DiGiovine. (http://adigsspot.blogspot.com/) The course was so hard that we ended up cutting the workout off at the 2 hr mark. Really, the resistance was at times almost insane. Happily I compared quite favorably to my teammates on this day. Unfortunately by the next day I had come down with the flue, which lasted two weeks, and thus all training had stopped again.

March 15: This was the first official Café De Luca ride of the year. I believe that this ride is Chicago’s best group training ride from the inner city. It’s a route that leads to the Palos Hills and Lemont IL area taking in as many hills as the roads there can offer. The veteran riders from the Higher Gear/Club Bicicletta team, Brad Menna and Jim Vehe, showed these routes to me many years ago when I was part of that team. With much thanks to them I’ve done my best to continue to promote but not over-promote this ride. It’s a 4-5 hr ride with 8-12 riders and it has never experienced the crashes and police reprimands that the other larger and more famous rides from the city have experienced. It’s currently the official Sunday Team Get A Grip Cycles training ride. On this day we had 10 riders and as always, it was a hard ride.

April 4: The Hillsboro Roubaix Road Race was the first team-targeted event of the year. My thoughts of this event have changed over the years from an event that was a target event to train for to an event that is really more of an actual training race to start the season with. For me, it’s simply to early in the year and followed by few other early season races to be taken very seriously. Worse, the race has become so popular that the combination of the strictly enforced double yellow line rule and large field sizes on many narrow roads leads to a dull but dangerous bike tour like experience. If you’re in the middle or at the back, you’re stuck. This results in far to many desperate attempts to move-up in the potential crash causing gutter entry and exits or violations of the double yellow line. My thought is, that unless some of the narrow roads can be closed to auto traffic and the riders really allowed to have at each other and race, I will likely skip this one next year. Besides, careening down cobbles at 30+ mph is neither fun nor physically challenging, just dangerous. Riding up those cobbles would be far more interesting. The highest placed finisher from the team was Aspen Gorry in 9th place.

April 11: It was time for our now annual St. Louis training camp. Actually it’s 2-3 days of riding with former teammate Jim Vandeven on the many hilly roads surrounding his house in Crystal City, Missouri. I had experienced severe cramping of my hamstrings the previous week at Hillsboro and must have pulled the right one because it was still hurting me yet thankfully the pain slowly subsided during the 2nd day of riding. The weather was far better here then it had been in the Chicago area, that and the great roads with little car traffic allowed us to get in some great endurance miles with some high effort hill sprints. The hospitality of Jim, his family and the use of the Subaru Tribeca team car made this great training weekend possible.

April 25: This was the first of 3 “Team In Training” group rides that several members of Team Get A Grip Cycles helped lead. Basically we road with the athletes who were in many cases preparing for their first triathlon, politely helping them by giving them support and advice. (http://www.teamintraining.org/)

May 2: Two weekends earlier, a training camp that was to include races on both Saturday and Sunday at the GDVC crits in Madison WI and riding in the Blue Mounds WI area was cancelled due to bad weather in the area. Thus the camp was rescheduled for the May 2-3 weekend. This time we’d ride around Blue Mounds and race the Circuit of Sauk Road Race. The weekend was made possible due to the generosity of my friend and former race mate Peter Tampa who allowed us to stay at his Mt. Horeb home. My attraction to the Circuit of Sauk race are the smooth roads and tough hills combined with the usually strong spring winds and smaller/safer field sizes, which help make for a great racing experience. Because we came to the area to both race and ride we choose to do the earlier Masters 3-4 race instead of the much later cat 3 only race. My summary of this race begins with two riders simply ridding away off the front while I mistakenly allowed myself to be boxed in while climbing the first hill on lap one. As the peleton started ascending the second climb I quickly rode up the outside and to the front to avoid being boxed in again. I soon found myself off the front with another rider and stayed away to finish in 4th place. So overjoyed was I that we stayed away and that my break-partner did his 100 percent to help that I didn’t even really bother to contest the sprint between us two. The camp continued with two tough rides on the beautifully challenging roads around Blue Mounds WI.

May 16: The previous Mt. Horeb training camp was such a great success that another was undertaken with more Blue Mounds riding combined this time with the Larue-Denzer-Larue Road Race. Due to all my recent hill climbing and the previous result at Baraboo, I was feeling confident going into this race. Sadly, my start was a disaster. I take a notoriously long time to warm-up pre-race but due to limited time and surprising cold weather (low 40’s) I started totally cold and simply could not get going. On the first real climb fearing I was going to be boxed in and miss what looked like a split in the field I tried moving up the only place I could, to the far right in the gravel. Sadly the gravel quickly turned into deep sand and I came to a complete stop requiring me to unclip and pick my bike up and then place it back onto the road. The steep incline of the hill made restarting very difficult and the strong winds there after made rejoining the peleton an impossibility for me. Other notable memories included descending at 50+ mph while being hit by 20-30 mph cross winds and climbing the race’s marquee attribute, a 1 mile climb that makes even the best local climbers suffer. I finished in 16th place. The following day with my legs more than a bit tired I decided to skip the Wheels On Willy crit in Madison WI and instead rode from Mt. Horeb to Madison with my friend Peter. There we watched a few races including the cat 3 race where unfortunately teammate Alex Smetana was caught in a crash with 1 lap to go that resulted in a frame write-off. After ensuring that Alex was Ok, Peter and I got a bite to eat by the lake front then rode back to Mt. Horeb. The next day I rode up to and around Mt. Horeb for 4 hrs before heading home to Chicago.

May 20: This was the first official Wednesday evening training ride for those of us from the team that can make this inner city ride start. The route is a time tested one that leads from Chicago to Highland Park IL and back. It’s a small group ride with mainly riders from the Spider Monkeys joining a few others and myself. But, like the Café De Luca ride, it is fast, efficient and safe. The ride takes about 2:30 hrs and includes several sprints and quite a bit of pace line work. I have always looked forward to this ride and would never forsake it for any of the competing rides that have always proved to be populated by far to many riders looking to inflate their egos or ride with poor ethical standards. Their reckless actions often causing the motorist anger toward cyclists the rest of us sometimes experience while out riding. A big thanks to former teammates Bryan Merrill and Dean Okun for helping keep this ride such a safe, reliable and fun training tool. The ride usually ends with a stop at J.J. Peppers for some chips and High Life.

May 23: Then came the announcement of a new race series, The Tour of America’s Dairyland. It included a race that of all locations would take place on the very roads around and up to Blue Mounds State Park that I had ridden on several times this year. Thus, I headed to Mt. Horeb with my U.K. friend Simon Clark to do two days of riding on all the roads that the race would take place on, doing the final killer mile and a half climb to the finish several times. What’s more, this is also the proposed course for the 2016 Olympics if Chicago wins the bid as the host city. With spring having finally really arrived in the area the scenery was now almost at its most beautiful (can’t beat the Fall colors). The roads here are truly awesome, smooth, no cars or dogs and one tough hill after the other. It’s the kind of riding that has helped rekindle my love for the bike after so many months/years stuck in the city riding the pothole and traffic congested roads of Chicago. This was a truly awesome riding weekend, two 80-mile days of sun, fun and camaraderie on the bike.

June 7: Teammate Chris and I drove the Subaru team car up to WI to do the Spring Prairie RR. It’s the WI State Championship race and it’s always a tough race due both to the large, fast field and the many hills, especially the final kicker only a few hundred meters before the finish. I rode most of this race conservatively. But, as we past the three quarter or so complete point I attempted to help get two consecutive breaks going which unfortunately both failed. Getting stuck at the front often in the final two laps and then boxed in as the finish approached and my chances at a high finish lost, I rather passively pedaled in for 20th place. (Chris’s race report: http://thetourdechris.blogspot.com/2009/06/spring-prarie.html)

June 18: The Blue Mounds Road Race was one of the most anticipated races for me in years. I so badly wanted to not only compete at this event but also finally prove to myself that I still had what it took at being a competitive cyclist at one of if not “the” hardest road course on the Midwest’s cycling race calendar. Sadly my fate was sealed before I even started the race. I was tired and clearly suffered from over-training. In the race, I did well for most of the first of this two-lap 44 mile race, even trying to get a small break going leading into the last big hill, which came at the end of each lap. Unfortunately I simply didn’t have what it took to climb this last killer hill anywhere near the pace I had done in the previous training camps here. I soon found my self amongst the 20 or so other riders spit all over the road, dropped by the now only 25 rider or so peleton. Yet with a 3-mile downhill ahead of me I never suspected that all the other dropped riders but two would quite. I had never experienced a cat 3 field do this. In the end I rode with Andy Powell from Project 5 for the remainder of the race and finished in 27th place. (Andy’s race report: http://www.project5racing.com/index.php/?p=66) Finishing so weak at an event that I had so very much looked forward to left me more than a bit disappointed and now very tired and in need of some serious rest. A big thanks goes to Spider Monkey Jake Teitelbaum for giving me a ride to the event, Jake placed 3rd in the cat 4 race. (Jake’s race report: http://spidermonkeycycling.blogspot.com/2009/06/blue-mounds-road-race.html)

July 4: On that jubilant Saturday afternoon Chris and I raced in the cat 3 event at Palmyra WI for the UW Whitewater Road Race. Unfortunately before our race started I saw teammate Ted Ramos walk to the finish after a crash he got caught up in during the cat 4/5 race. (Ted’s race report is here: http://offroadracingteam.blogspot.com/2009/07/whitewater-road-race.html)

The cat 3 race that Chris and I were in had maybe 25 riders. It was for the most part a good overall race and I felt great, actually better then at any other race in recent memory. Chris and I rode well and all was OK until the final 1k. The finish had a slight down hill with a tailwind so we were going easily 30+ mph without much effort. The rider in front of me stood to accelerate, I stood to grab his wheel when suddenly two riders went down in front of me. My bike hit them and I literally flew over them and hit the road hard and tumbled a bit. The bike was thrown like a Frisbee 20 feet or more into the adjacent field. I had hit my head hard, helmet broken, and received a large bruise on my head. A very sore neck, road rash across 1/3 of my back with a really deep rip in the flesh on my right hipbone, which is still swollen like a half-softball. Worse, I have 3 fractured ribs, which will take 4-6 weeks to heal. For a week I could only breathe with very shallow breaths and was pretty much upper body immobilized. Ironically the same rider that had caused my crash had also caused an earlier one in the race. (See XXX Racing’s Kyle Wiberg’s race report: http://www.xxxracing.org/index.php?/site/reports/cherry-bomb/)

Is the season over for me? In the days following the crash I avoided making any decisions as to what I would do after I healed. Weeks earlier I had told a few of my teammates that I was looking at this race as a sign as to whether or not I should still continue to race. Short story, I've simply been caught up in so much injury, accident and illness these past few years that I’m now only a faded shadow of my former self on the bike. At nearly 40, can I still justify all the sacrifices in life for racing my bike? With that in mind, I do still plan on returning to racing for one more event this year, The IL State Road Race Championships on the 22nd of August. One way or another, I will be there, I refuse to go out quietly.

2009-06-10T12:29:00.001-05:00

Spring Prairie By Chris Padfield

After last week's performances I was excited to race Spring Prairie, one of the more well-known road races in the area. Every time I race I want to win, and this week was no exception, because I felt the course suited me well with no climbs I couldn't get over. I wasn't going to win if it came to the close with a large group however, because the final climb was long enough that I could lose some ground. If I wanted to win, it needed to be from a break. During the week Pat had backed off my training load because I just wasn't responding as well as I had previously. Unfortunately, my legs didn't show up for this race.

From the start, Peter Stritmatter (xXx) went off the front and there was some action in the field, but nothing stuck. I put myself out there in a couple of the break attempts and could already tell things weren't 100%. I wasn't recovering as quickly as I would have anticipated after the big climb, and overall I felt like I was exerting myself more than I should have been. The field seemed content to keep Peter in sight and ride tempo for the most part. It was maybe five more laps of the same; I can never recall the details after a race, until Peter finally came back. I was impressed he stayed away solo as long as he did.

After Peter came back the pace in the field rarely dropped, as there were attacks from Luke Seeman and Dave Moyer of xXx and other riders. I thought of trying to take off as well, but didn't foresee myself lasting until the finish if there were more than two laps to go. So I hung on as the field was whittled down more and more.

On the final lap, Luke was off the front, solo for a bit, until another rider made the bridge and within sight. I was never able get away and just ended up being "that guy dragging the pack along." Within the last kilometer to the final climb, I gave up and drifted back in the pack, relegating myself to around where I would finish, about 16th, as the lighter riders took off.

This was not how I wanted to end my day, but that's how it goes sometimes. I wanted to make the winning break, but wasn't able to pull it off.

By the conclusion of the race, our field had shrunk from 40-something to under 20. The next day I felt like junk and my legs were sore like I had been doing 300 lb squats the day before.

It was a great performance by xXx, Luke and Dave, and they got the win they deserved.

2009-06-10T12:19:00.002-05:00

Holding off the rain

By Ben Laforce

Saturday after work I quickly drove an hour south to a small town called Winfield. I was going to try the ABD directed Winfield Twilight criterium. The atmosphere right away was better than most races. The course was nothing like a Monsters of the Midway, or Vernon Hills (both of which are relatively flat with 4 corners), but included a nice gradual climb of maybe 5% followed by many tight 90's descending into a left hand turn to the finishing straight. I think this course is what my body was built for: a technical crit with a repetitive annoying hill thrown in for good measure. The categories were split up a bit different than usual and the field was 2/3 combined.

We had 5 Get A Grip guys in all, Chip, Chris Kelley, Chad Chennoweth, Dave Reyes, and myself. To spare the boring race details, I missed a prime by a couple of feet because I race wayyyy too conservative and I was alone for 2 laps. With about 7 laps to go, I couldn't hold as Ryan Fruend and Waylon Janowiak came by when I was drifting back towards the pack. I coasted across in 11th of a field of 46 and considering the field I wasn't too upset.

Afterwards at the top of the hill, a bunch of houses were grilling out with food for the racers. I had a couple hot dogs, pasta salad, and a cupcake. It was pretty neat and made the $35 entry fee well worth it. After doing this race, and experiencing the course and atmosphere, I would definitely put this race into my top ten... that list coming soon.

2009-06-10T12:17:00.002-05:00

Chiropractic Criterium & Bong 30k TT By Chris Padfield

Chiropractic Criterium

I didn’t come into this event with any expectations. I knew nothing of the course beforehand, was going to be the only rider from the team, and I really only wanted to get more racing in.

The course was top notch. The defining feature was a shortish climb at about a 7% grade with the start/finish mid-way up the climb. Once you reached the top, it was a right turn into the straight downhill, an easy 90º right into the only flat stretch that had a headwind, a gentle right turn, and back up again. With this course profile I was betting on a break getting and staying away. It was a small field of under 20, with IS Corp. being the best represented with four riders.

My goal here was only to be very aggressive and to get in some solid training. If being aggressive resulted in me placing, all the better, but the truth be told, I just wanted to make people suffer.

The first half of the race brought numerous breakaways and was punctuated by my own attempt along with another rider from LAPT I remembered from the Duluth Classic Stage Race. Unfortunately, we only lasted a handful of laps, even after an IS Corp. rider bridged up. I was feeling surprisingly good on the hill and sometimes pushed the pace at the front just for the hell of it. Suffer - Suffer - Suffer.

After the 20-minute mark and into the last half of the race, I still pushed it on the climb, attacked a couple times, but nothing stuck.

Going up the climb the final time, I pushed hard to maintain my position at the front and slotted in neatly about 5th wheel going downhill. About halfway through the flat section the guys at the front decided they did not want to keep the pace so hot and started to slow down. They started to peel to the right with the stereotypical, “No you do the work!” move, which I recognized as my perfect opportunity to jump. I took a flyer on the opposite side of the road and didn’t look back.

As I saw the finish line maybe 50 meters away the aforementioned LAPT rider came around my right side. I wasn’t able to close the distance and he took the win. If it wasn’t going to be me though, I’m glad he took it, because he had worked hard during this race and at Duluth. So, second place, was not too bad, and a result I was more than pleased.

Bong 30k TT

It was your usual time trial. I made funny faces while I flogged myself on the bike and sweat lactic acid. I came in second place overall at 39:50, cool.

Duluth Classic

2009-05-29T07:53:00.005-05:00

Thursday night, Chris Padfield, Brian Hill, and I met at Steak and Shake where Brian, (the guy who doesn’t eat fast food), had just finished off a double bacon cheeseburger and a vanilla milkshake. We loaded up, and I felt like we had enough bikes to be a small pro team. The 3 of us had 2 bikes each, a roadie and a TT. We then drove up to Madison to get a couple hours out of the way before the long drive in the morning.

Friday morning we enjoyed the continental breakfast offered at the Econo Lodge, and went on our way up north. We arrived in Wrenshall, Wisconsin, the site of the time trial, at about 2:30… we didn’t go off until almost 7. We went inside the unmarked building I remembered from last year, and saw a couple people from the race stunned to see racers there so early. There were a few others ready to sign in too since they went off at 5:30. The officials told us to come back later, so we went and drove the course to check out what would be dishing the pain for the next 30 some odd minutes.

Eventually we got checked in, and we chose our camping spot for the next 5 hours. We picked a luxurious parking spot which offered an adjacent grassy area with both sun and shade. I got out the stand, and started setting up my TT bike with the power cable, and a few other odds and ends I needed to do to get the bike ready as it pretty much hadn’t been ridden since the same race last year. Chris and Brian, much more prepared with their equipment all set to go, laid out and took naps in the sun. As our start times neared, we changed and began warming up. Brian was first up, he was on Kevin Corsello’s (G-a-G owner) TT rig, a custom carbon and Ti Serotta with 808s and a Zipp cockpit... let's just say it wasn’t a piece of crap. I was a few minutes later. Tony being my 30 second man I knew it would be a hard challenge to catch anybody. Last off from the team was Mr. Timetrial himself, Chris Padfield. As expected, he lit up the field with the only sub 37 minute time posted. Brian was a bit of a wildcard being a MTB’er, and came in an incredible 2^nd only ~10 seconds behind Padfield. I didn’t touch their times, but put in a solid effort for just under 39 minutes for 17^th place. After the race we drove to our host house, where we stayed with some college girls for free… not a bad deal!

Saturday morning the results were posted from from the TT, and it was confirmed, we were going to be the target of the others teams attacks since we were holding the 2 top spots.

Saturdays race wasn’t a really exciting one though. It was 3 laps of 17 miles on a course that didn’t have anything to help separate the field. We patrolled the race really well and let a couple of guys lower on General Classification (or GC) sneak away to snag some bonus seconds toward the end. We questioned other teams tactics when we saw numerous downhill attacks which quickly got swallowed up by the field. A racer not far behind Padfield put in a good effort, unfortunately took the field sprint along with the 10 bonus seconds that came with it, and moved to a dangerously close 7 seconds from Chris. The worst part of the race, which we didn’t find out until the results were posted, was the 30 second time penalty given to Brian for crossing the center line. We tried to talk to the lady official who posted it, but she wasn’t having it. With a big boy stage the next day, we went to our favorite burrito union for the 2^nd time in two days to refuel. That night, we did our usual of compression tights (Padfield), elevated legs (Brian and I), and lots of relaxing mixed with drinking water.

Sunday was the 2^nd most crucial stage of the race (after the time trial of course). It was 5 laps of a 12 mile loop with a leg burning 10% climb for over 1km that lead to the start/finnish, and rollers throughout most of the rest of the loop.

After the first lap, a break of 3 (lower GC guys) went away on the hill and gained up to 3:30 on the field. The entire race Brian was putting in monster pulls to keep the peloton moving along. The gap slowly decreased with attacks from the group. Then the serious work took place when two Brone domestiques (2^nd on Team GC), and both Get A Grip domestiques (Brian and I) worked together to real the breakaway back. Another guy who was high in the GC took off as the 3 guys in the breakaway were down to less than a minute, but the 4 of us at the front quickly shut the entire breakaway down with 1 lap to go. I turned around for the first time just after catching the breakaway near the start finish with 1 lap to go, and realized the group that started with over 40 racers was down to about 25. A few other attempts were made on the final lap. One of the attacks stuck, and it worked in our favor because the rider that escaped ate some of the available bonus seconds. The main field crossed in little groups with Chris Padfield and I in the pack 4 seconds behind the guy who took the solo flier. Brian, content after all his hard work, took it easy on the last hill and came in with the next group at 13 seconds behind the stage winner. All in all it was a good stage as some people were finishing 10+ minutes back, and Chris retained the jersey to fight another day.

For dinner we were looking to carb up for the fight ahead. We tried to support the local economy, but I guess the local economy took a break because the restaurant we liked was closed. Instead we drove a bit out of town and hit up an Olive Garden where each waitress was required to wear a Topsie Turvy with a 4 inch hair lift.

The final morning began at 6:30. We left some Biciclete wine, a card for our gracious host Juliana, and left with a full car to the criterium in Cloquet, Minnesota.

This day's stage was a new addition from last year. The course went like this: 1 fast and technical turn right after the start/finish line to a short kicker (hill) roughly 150 meters long that led into a hard right turn at the top that exited to the finish line.

The race for the overall was so close that there were 2 guys in a dangerous striking position of the GC. If they placed in the top 5 in this day's stage, these riders would receive precious bonus seconds and could win the overall.

We strategically let a break go with about 18 laps to go that didn’t consist of one of these guys. By doing this we forced the other teams to work in our favor. With 3 laps to go Brian lead up the hill and then Chris attacked like a man possessed at the top making a run for the stage. The Brones team's domstiques immediately chased because their team leader was close in the GC and could win it all with a top 5 finish too! When Chris was caught on the next lap, the leader for the Brones team counter-attacked. At the same time Chris was getting caught Brian and I both yelled to him to hop on the counter-attack, but it came from behind, and he missed it. I jumped on Brones’ wheel to cover the move as he tried to breakaway and sat on his wheel around for a lap. With 1 lap remaining, Brian then went to the front of the pack and gave it everything he had to drive the lead out and to close the gap to the original breakaway. He did it heroically with a half to go and the Brones leader was now sufficiently tired! As we rounded the guys coming back from the breakaway, a single rider could still be seen up the road. He must have escaped from the original breakaway during the confusion of the furious attacks and counter-attacks! The solo rider managed to stayed away and the rest of the group (that didn’t get dropped) came into the line hard and fast, but together. The race gods smiled down on us because neither of the 2 important guys close to Chris in the GC took a spot in the top 5. That meant Padfield held on to his GC victory by an incredible 1 second!!

The stage race could not have been any tougher and the margin of victory been any smaller! The last stage was a focused effort that showcased a lot of excellent teamwork. We received a lot of complements for our smart racing during the 4 days. I was really proud to wear the Get a Grip jersey.

~Ben

Home Field Advantage

2009-05-18T11:29:00.002-05:00

Monsters on the Midway may very well be my favorite race -- purely for the selfish reason that it is 2 blocks from my home. Instead of disappearing from my family for half of the day, I was able to race in front of my wife and daughter, go home for lunch, race a second time, and then make it to my daughter’s school fair – showered and changed – 30 minutes after my last race. Can we just all agree to have every race on the Midway?That said, I wish I could have put on more of a show for my cheering section. I’ll remember it as the day of the failed bridge.

In the 30+ race, I recognized a strong looking break starting to form. Instead of riding at the front, where I know I’m supposed to be, I had drifted to the back third of the pack. I launched an attack and attempted to bridge for about 3 laps, but I just couldn’t close the last 50 meters -- which, of course, was about how far from the front of the field I was when I launched my attack. The break stayed away and an old lesson was re-learned.

In the Cat 3 race, I launched an attack and was joined by a fellow from Burnham Racing (Julian B., I think). We got a good gap on the field and were working well together to catch an xXx’er, who was up ahead. Just as we make contact, the xXx’er decides he has a better chance of soloing the last 20 minutes of the race than trying to work with us and attacks us. The field, of course, swallows all three of us up about a lap later. The field stayed together to the end when my legs decided two races were enough.

While I didn’t win a “trophy,” as my daughter had wanted (were there even trophies?), I was, at least, fortunate enough to win a bag of Metropolis coffee as a prime. She was mildly impressed.

Winona Lake Road Race

2009-05-04T12:08:00.003-05:00

The problem with racing in the Chicago area is that sometimes there are too many races to choose from within a reasonable drive. Last weekend there were the Iowa City races and the new Leland race that got great reviews. This past weekend there were again many good races on Saturday with the race in Baraboo, WI and the Winona Lake Road Race in Indiana. While the hills up in Wisconsin sounded attractive to help sort the field, Ben, Chris, and I decided to take the shorter drive down to Indiana for the rolling hills and cross winds. Despite having no real climbs the course is never flat and ends up making for fun racing.

Despite the calm winds when we arrived, it picked up just enough before the start to make the race interesting. After just a few races together, the three of us have really started to work well during the opening stages of the race. We all fought through the cross winds to be at the front when the early attacks started to develop. After three guys were off on the first attack, Ben made the bridge with another rider to give us representation in the early break. With Chris and I marking further bridge attempts the group was able to open a decent gap, though they remained in sight. Coming through the finish at the end of the first lap, two riders fell off the break and came back to the field. With only three off of the front, the attacks to bridge started again. Chris jumped on a move and was able to complete the bridge, leaving us with 2 of 5. While this was great for us, it forced up the pace in the pack and they were soon caught.

On the next climb, a rider launched an attack and the rider in front of me jumped to go with and I followed. We were soon a group of 4 and quickly got organized to work together. By the end lap 2 we had about 20 seconds on the field and kept working hard to extend the gap for the whole third lap. After all of the efforts we had the field out of sight for a brief period, but as we grew tired they re-appeared at the end of lap 4. With the field bearing down again, one rider dropped off and we were down to 3 with one more lap to go. We kept working well together and were able to hold off the field to the finish, but I didn't have any gas left and ended up 3rd. I don't think that the break would have been able to stay away without the help of Ben and Chris in the field who were able to latch on to every chase attempt and keep the pack at bay.

Iowa City Race Weekend

2009-05-04T10:00:00.003-05:00

Last weekend Ben, Chris, and I headed out to Iowa City to get in two days of racing with a Road Race on Saturday and the Old Capitol Criterium on Sunday. It provided a good opportunity to take an early season road trip and learn to race with new teammates. With high winds and storms forecast for both days of racing, we didn't quite know what to expect from the weekend.

The road race was held on nice farm roads with a few nice sized rollers. Nothing large enough to prove decisive, but making for a fun course. Despite the dire forecasts of wind and strong storms all we got was cloudy and calm. The lack of wind made it difficult for any break to get away from the field as the race proved to be quite fast. After riding near the front for most of the race and attempting many breaks the three of us were set up well, all riding in the top 10 with about a mile to go to the finish. When the sprint started to open up we found ourselves swarmed by riders coming up over the yellow line and coming back into the field. Ben and I both drifted to the back and Chris was able to hold onto a top 10 finish. Disappointed that we were not able to put someone higher in the results, we were able to come up with some strategies that will hopefully pay of for racing later in the season.

The Old Capitol Criterium in downtown Iowa City is one of the best courses that I have ridden. It starts with a screaming fast downhill into a 90 degree corner followed by a long straight before a steep climb. The course finishes with 4 tight corners through downtown city streets. With the finish so close after the last corner the race comes down to final positioning. To avoid bunching at the end, if there was no breakaway our plan was to all be in the top 10 (hopefully top 5) over the last climb and push the pace all the way to the finish. After the first prime, one racer escaped from the field and despite a few later attacks no one else was able to get away or chase him down. With about 5-6 laps to go the race started to get twitchy with everyone starting to pay more attention to their position in the field. Up the hill the last time I was able to come over in third position just as a rider ahead of me was attacking off the front. I bridged to his wheel and he pulled hard all the way into the final turn, leaving me in perfect position to contend for the sprint. I ended up taking the field sprint for second by a hair at the line with Ben coming in right behind in third (fourth place overall). A satisfying end to the weekend knowing that some planning and team positioning payed off at the end of the race.

Hopefully there will be photos to come if I can find any of the finish!

Gregg Bednorski Spring Race #2

2009-04-21T08:14:00.005-05:00

I was up in Madison on Sunday for the second of the Great Dane Velo Club's spring crits. The rain held off all day until 10 minutes before the cat. 3 race was set to go off. Standing on the line in the freezing rain for the few minutes before the sent us off was enough to get soaked and chilled to the bone. As everyone was wet, cold, and contemplating dropping out of the race, I figured that it would be a perfect opportunity to attack from the gun (at least I would get warmed up again).
When the gun went off, I started going hard and opened a decent gap up the first of the two short climbs. I held the gap through the first lap but was soon caught on the climb to start lap two. One rider countered immediately, but no one else was yet ready to ride as they left me on the front and let the other rider get away. Our pace was uneven as the pack was unwilling to let a second rider go, but no one wanted to ride hard at the front to bring the one back. He eventually lapped the field in the final laps causing enough confusion for me to sprint with one to go. I was able to win that sprint uncontested, but had enough time to recover and get second in the actual field sprint for 3rd in the race.

Rider Profile: David Jones

2009-03-30T06:57:00.010-05:00

Height: 6' 1"

Weight:
185

Residence: West Loop

Occupation: Small business owner, Certified Personal Trainer, Sneaker Hustler

Strength: Hard work ethic

Weakness: Inexperience

Why do you ride: To redeem myself from getting dropped so often as a rookie.

Current/Favorite bike: Giant TCR Advanced SL

What/who started you riding: I was a messenger for 4 years, took two years off got fat, got back on the bike.

Worst cycling moment: Being arrested naked while riding my track bike, the package had extensive shrinkage.

What I wanted to be as a kid: Rich Bitch!!!

Favorite food: The vegan B.L.T. @ Cafe M in L.A.

Favorite Music: Anything not in the top 40.

Best idea of having good time: Bikram Yoga

Favorite place to travel to: Kauai is sweet, need to go to Spain.

Most respected bike riders: Cesar C, when he turns pro.

Other respected athletes: Dara Torres

Advice to beginners: Buy some Assos and ride like a man!

Other sports you follow: Muay Thai

Do you have a coach: Cesar C

Typical training week: Ride 5 x per week, Bikram Yoga 2 to 3 x per week, Ab wheel 100 reps 5 x per week.

Cycling Highlights: None yet, many to come!

Goals for 2009: Make the haters hate!

2009-03-26T18:08:00.005-05:00

Web site: www.firefoxtech.com

Tel: 801.377.4542

Fax: 801.705.0808

March 2009

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Fire Fox Announce Sponsorship Of

Get-A-Grip Cycle Team

Get-A-Grip Team To Benefit From Top-Of-The-Range Communication Systems For Training And Races

Fire Fox Technologies has just announced that it will be supporting the Get-A-Grip Cycles team from Chicago. This is great news for Get-A-Grip because they will now be benefiting from the very latest in throat-mic communication systems which will aid the safety and the performance of the team in their upcoming training and racing events.

Whether they are just training or are racing for real, cycle team members are always aware that safety is paramount. When riding in a group, it is often difficult to know what is going on with other team members, and cars pose a real hazard on the roads. Many teams rely on members calling out to one another to warn of these hazards, but now Team Get-A-Grip will benefit from clear communication for the whole team through Fire Fox’s special communication system.

The system has huge benefits for the cyclists, not just in terms of safety but also in the increased ability to communicate and discuss tactics whilst on the road. Intense competitions require a superior communication system so that riders can find out who is in the lead, where their team members are positioned, and what the current conditions are.

However, it is the technology incorporated into Fire Fox’s throat mic system that will give the Team Get-A-Grip a real edge over their competitors. The microphones pick up on voice signals from the throat vibrations, rather than through the air, leading to excellent sound quality and clear communication with zero background noise. The system also benefits from a soft rubber covering on the neck rings so the riders will hardly know the mics are even there.

A spokesperson from Fire Fox said: “We are delighted that the Get-A-Grip race team has chosen to go with sponsorship from Fire Fox Technologies. Our systems are state-of-the-art, cutting out background noise entirely and allowing the racers to communicate with each other in perfect clarity – even at a whisper! This will lead to increased safety during training, and will hopefully give their performances a boost on the race course.”

The Get-A-Grip Cycles team will be keen to push themselves, and their new equipment, to the limits. Fire Fox is confident that their equipment will be able to withstand even the toughest of races, and that it will add a whole new dimension to the team’s performances.

Team Get A Grip at the Races

2009-03-26T14:32:00.002-05:00

I don't fancy myself a great writer so I'll just post the links here for all of you to review. I would like to note that there were total of 3 Team Get A Grip riders the whole day.

Luke Seaman's report here: Chicago Bike Racing

" 'Get a Grip' just schooled the field on how to control the race when you make up half the field (okay, they didn’t exactly make up ½ the field, but they sure seemed to be everywhere)."-Ed Hernandez

" The race was dominated by Get a Grip.”-Kristen Meshberg

Rider Profile: Chris Padfield

2009-03-09T10:38:00.008-05:00

Height: 6' 4"

Weight: 185lb-ish

Residence: Humboldt Park, Chicago

Strength: Time trials / breakaways / suffering.

Weakness: Short sprints.

Why do you ride: Competition, staying fit, legs triple the size of my arms.

Current/Favorite bike: My one and only road bike, Cannondale CAAD9.

What/who started you riding: I started riding about four years ago to commute because public transport wasn't as consistent my legs.

Worst cycling moment: My Hillsboro debut last year. My bike and my
ego are still dented.

Favorite food: Anything my girlfriend, Rachel, makes. She cooks for a job, so it's always tasty.

Favorite Music: Totally depends.

Best idea of having good time: Race day.

Favorite place to travel to: I'm happy to travel anywhere.

Most respected bike riders: Wiggins, Zabriskie, Voigt, Boonen, Cancellara, Vande Velde, Chavanel, Tuft, Hincapie, Zabel and others that I can't think of right now.

Favorite ride and race: Favorite ride has to be the Santa Rosa road
loop combined with the Solvang time trial course back home in the
Santa Ynez valley; the perfect mix of terrain. As for favorite race I
compete in, I can't say, since i've only had one complete season it's
all still too new to have a favorite. Favorite race to watch,
Paris-Roubaix by far.

Advice to beginners: 1) Race, race, race, as much as you can.
2) What you do off the bike is just as important as your time on the
bike - rest, recovery, diet, flexibility, etc.
3) Spend your money on a top notch bike fit, not those fancy parts.
4) Don't just sit in on the group ride, that's what recovery days are for.

Other sports you follow: Red Sox baseball, football.

Do you have a coach: Emphatic yes! Patrick McNally of CycleAnalyze is stellar and I would not be where I am now without him, no question.

Typical training week: 7 days on the bike, 7-15 hours total.

Cycling Highlights: So far the Cat 4 stuff: Illinois State Crit Champion, 1st place: Chicago Criterium, Downer Ave., Monsters of the Midway.

Goals for 2009: Race race race! I want to be a little more selective with my races this year, shifting my emphasis away from criteriums and towards road races and time trials with maybe a stage race or two thrown in to see how I stack up at the next level. As for specific races, I have a score to settle with the Tour of Oak Brook (IL State Road Championships) and I don't want to miss the state TT championships this year. Finally, depending on how well I perform, I may look to move up to Cat 2 by the end of the year.

Rider Profile: Eric Wiecek

2009-03-01T16:32:00.006-06:00

Height: 5'9"

Weight: 165

Residence: Chicago's West Loop.

Occupation: I sit in a cube and act like I'm busy but I'm really thinking about riding.

Strength: I think drafting is my number one strength and number two would have to be really really short climbs like the Winfield Twilight "climb."

Weakness: Medium climbs like the Berverly Superweek "climb."

Why do you ride: I ride for the feeling I get after eating...after a 100K Superweek crit.

Current/Favorite bike: Cannondale System 6!!!

What/who started you riding: I used to watch Greg Lemond on TV...My brother and I would lug a 150 pound exercise bike to the family room and ride it while we watched the weekend TDF specials.

Hardest part of life: Getting dropped from a breakaway!! That sucks!!

Worst cycling moment: See hardest part of life question.

What did you want to be when you were a kid: I wanted to be a pinball wizard but that job was already taken...so the next thing I wanted to be was an independently wealthy stock broker...that never happened either.

Favorite food: Anything from Trader Joe's.

Favorite Music: I like both kinds...Country and Western.

Best idea of having good time: Riding in weather that doesn't suck!

Favorite place to travel to: San Fran. I'll see you soon San Fran...Let' plan for a meeting in October!

Most respected bike riders: Steve Vandeven.

Other most respected athletes: The entire NHL.

Favorite ride and race: Winfield Twilight Crit.

Advice to beginners: Shave your legs with the grain...you'll be glad you did.

Other sports you do: I grew up playing ice hockey... I was a 1993 Illinois All-Star... If Facebook was around in 1993 you would all have seen me pics of me and my blond hockey mullet.

Do you have a coach: My work is sort of my coach...

Typical training week: I rest M and T then fast ride on W and rest on T and F and race on Sat and Sun. I'm getting really old!

Cycling Highlights: 2007 Superweek Cat 3 6th place overall.

Goals for 2009: Get as many people on our team in the top 5 at every race!!! Also, help all the riders reach their goals!!!

Well Fit

2009-02-21T11:46:00.007-06:00

I want to take this opportunity to begin a series of posts designed to showcase the products or services provided to, and used by the team members. I will begin by reviewing the Well Fit sponsor. I encourage comments and questions regarding this post and will edit as more members take advantage of the faculty and facility.

Well Fit is situated in a nice central niche at 1700 West Hubbard St. Chicago IL 60616. It makes accessibility easy for their clients that live in the north, south and west areas of the city. The hours are convenient too, with experts on hand from 5:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. most days. I would bet that with the level of dedication, and professionalism oozing out of the staff, arrangements could be made to fit even the busiest of schedules.

I haven't had the pleasure of touring or using equipment at all of the workout facilities in Chicago, but I will say this: it is by far the best and most well rounded as far as features are concerned. It houses 9 high performance treadmills, strength training equipment including: a squat rack, bench press, and several other combo machines. It also has a bike storage, showers, lockers (coming soon), laundry service, a recovery room complete with recovery drinks and snacks, a flat screen T.V., and multi-sport library. Not to be left out is the ginormous 6 h.p. Endless Pool which has features such as a floor mounted mirror to observe your stroke, a pace readout, heart rate monitor, and video analysis. The best feature for the Chicago cyclist should be the large room containing no less than 17 CompuTrainers which can be loaded with custom rides, bike legs of almost any triathlon course (Patrick likes the challenge of mapping out these), or any race you've competed in.

"But I have a coach already and I work out at the gym or on my own." Let the staff at Well Fit test your limits while running or cycling by using New Leaf lactate threshold and VO2max equipment. Your coach can then use these numbers to chart a path to better physical performance. If your coach uses the Training Peaks program to monitor your progress, the faculty can download your workouts and upload your results before and after you train.

"I have a hard time motivating myself to get to the gym or train on my own." Perfect! Well Fit offers programs designed to motivate the individual. They have one-on-one sessions, online coaching, class in each of the 3 disciplines, and even race-oriented packages. They use group training and classes (available for an additional cost) to bring like-minded people of similar ability together to create a social community. For those of you who don't know, having someone train with you or suffer through the tough times is just as important a piece as getting a carpool together to get to the race. Support through friends develops excellent networking skills. As you can tell, they have something for everyone at any ability level from beginner to crazy competition geek. (I fall into the latter category.)

"What's it cost?" I urge you to call or visit Well Fit either in person, or online to find the most up to date discounts. You can save money buy making Well Fit your one-stop fitness shop. I can tell you that for the amount of awesomeness and wealth of information pouring out of the people and equipment in that building, they have every right to charge up the wa-zoo. The best part is they don't! There aren't contracts to sign either! A member can pay per month if that's more convenient.

Don't let this year pass you by! Go there, check in, get well and become fit!

Rider Profile: Chris Kelley

2009-02-18T07:32:00.004-06:00

Height: 5'9" ... used to be 5'11" ... stupid ditches...

Weight: Off-season: 175, Racing-season: 165

Residence: Bloomington, IN

Occupation: Student and bike mechanic/salesman

Strength: Time trialing

Weakness: Dicey sprints

Why do you ride: Because I have no hand-eye coordination.

Current/Favorite bike: '08 Scott Addict

What/who started you riding: My father. He made me ride across town to join him and my mother for lunch. I just kind of tacked on the miles before and after lunch. Grew into a passion and I started dumping the cash and racing bikes.

Hardest part of life: Studying instead of riding.

Worst cycling moment: Laying in a ditch bleeding, waiting for the ambulance to come.

What did you want to be when you were a kid: I wanted to be an FBI agent or an Orthodontist.

Favorite food: BBQ chicken pizza. You got protein. You got fat. You got carbs. You got the food pyramid all in an ironically pyramid shaped food.

Favorite Music: Metal.

Best idea of having good time: Riding my bike during the day, taking my girlfriend and parents out to dinner, and then watching a movie and going to bed early.

Favorite place to travel to: Ireland and Buffalo, New York.

Most respected bike riders: Jens Voigt

Favorite ride and race: Spinning up and down the constitution trail on the first warm day in a campus town.

Advice to beginners: Listen to every bit of advise you can.

Do you have a coach: Ms. Lisa Meninger

Cycling Highlights: Getting on Team Get a Grip!

Goals for 2009: Get the team the results necessary to get major sponsorship next year... free bikes?! At the same time, building strong teamwork, leadership, and great communication within the team.

Rider Profile: Ken Mitchell

2009-02-03T06:06:00.003-06:00

Height: 5'11"

Weight: Ouch!

Residence: Chicago

Occupation: Former public radio and T.V. nerd turned bike shop nerd

Strength: Sprints

Weakness: Climbs

Why do you ride: Because I love it, plain and simple.

Current/Favorite bike: Current, well a Cannondale SystemSix of course (soon to be joined by a CAAD9), a Lemond Zurich, and Bianchi Volpe. My absolute favorite is my Seven Axiom Race.

What/who started you riding: Watching Greg Lemond as a wee child in 1983, but I had been riding bikes since I was about 4-5 years old. I knew about the Tour before Lemond (and loved it) but never thought a North American rider could or would ever win it.

Hardest part of life: Getting up early.

Worst cycling moment: Two races, two weeks in a row where I was doing well, felt great with good positioning and had someone go down in front of me for no apparent reason.

What did you want to be when you were a kid: An architect, I even studied it at college.

Favorite food: All food, but maybe that is why I can't climb.

Favorite Music: Lots of stuff. 4AD is my favorite record label. Throwing Muses is my favorite band with My Bloody Valentine a close second.

Best idea of having good time: Hanging out with good friends enjoying great food and beer.

Favorite place to travel to: I love New York City!

Most respected bike riders: Mario Cipollini and Eddy Merckx!

Other most respected athletes: Ryan Sandberg and Derek Jeter.

Favorite ride and race: Favorite ride: any that allows me to really enjoy myself. Favorite race: the Gateway Cup. It really has a welcoming vibe.

Advice to beginners: Have fun and hold your line... please.

Other sports you do: Well in my youth I was a runner, played football, and played baseball.

Do you have a coach: No.

Cycling Highlights: Coming soon?

Goals for 2009: Upgrade, upgrade, and upgrade.

San Francisco Training Camp Pt.4 with Pics

2009-01-30T16:39:00.010-06:00

This, the last and final day in San Francisco was by far the best! The sky was cloudless, the weather was warm, and the route was scenic perfection. The four travelers plus Angelo trickled out of the hotel one at a time to head to the usual meeting spot of the bridge entrance. On the way we met up with a few more riders that Angelo had invited. Anthony Coando and Phil (who's last name I never got) lived just down from where we were staying and chided us for going out during the crappy weather the days before on the way to the bridge.

On the way over the bridge we hooked up with yet another new rider/friend named Tom (who's last name I also did not get) who was out testing his new bike. We continued the usual route, descending into Sausalito and across the bike path. When we were ready to cross the highway to get on Hwy 1 I happened to notice we we short a rider. David had turned back due to possible stomach problems. He had no idea what he was about to miss and neither did I.

After 2 rather steep and windy climbs the road opened up. BEHOLD! The wonder and beauty of the California coast line! I rode up and down, around each curve like I was glued to rails. The whole time there was this picturesque landscape to the west. I could see for miles. The waves lapping the rocks as they jutted into the ocean, and the hills on the other side, were perfect. I hardly felt the chain on my bike. This is what I came for!

We regrouped in Stinson Beach at a quicky mart before rolling out. We pace-lined down the flat coast towards the lagoon, before turning right to climb back up the mountain. This road went up for 8 miles or more, switch-backing the entire way. The landscape changed every other mile or so to go from hot desert like to shaded rain forrest. It was just spectacular!

After finishing the climb we stopped for some nom nom and decided that the best way home would be up and over the Seven Sisters. For those of you who haven't been there, the Seven Sisters are a group of rolling hills (hills, mountain peaks, whatever) which have the absolute best views of the coast line. They now make the previous seem less grand.

Once up and over we started to decend. This was THE best day for descending! The roads were dry and I never once got cold during the 30-45 mins in took to get to the bottom. We were weaving in and out of the cars like pros working

back to the peloton. It was amazing!

I can't wait for the chance to go back! If I do go, I may just

never return!

Stats are here for those interested.

San Francisco Training Camp Pt.3

2009-01-27T15:43:00.002-06:00

Whew! It's about time the weather broke! Today was partly sunny and the temps were in the high 50's. We met up with Angelo's teammates on the Bay side of the bridge for a larger group ride. It promised to be longer and flatter. Good news for me. Not that I hate climbing, but I was definitely feeling the effects after the last 2 wet days.

On the bridge the wind seemed a bit stronger, so my goal was to sit in as much as I could before the climbs. That way I had a small chance of hanging on to a wheel during the climbs. After we descended into Sausalito, we met a few more riders, and the ride was officially under way.

The group took the bike path north, and we snaked our way closer to the first real climb. The pace was nice. We chatted along until we got just outside of Nicasio. The pace then picked up and I worked my way towards the front. If I was going to have a chance, I needed the extra room to slip back as we ascended. I did well enough, but just before the summit I popped. Angelo was next and as we crested we could see the group just ahead.

We agreed to work together on the flat and got to it. It seemed like something off the T.V. The main group was just ahead and there were 2 lone riders absolutely flying along. Bombing the corners on the downhill trying to make up any ground before the next big climb. We almost made it too. It was a mere few seconds, the gap, when the group turned right.

As I rounded the turn I saw then that we would have to regroup at the half way point. The road shot skyward and the wind left my sails. I settled into a rhythm at went to the task of climbing again.

The scenery was amazing. It was like I was in every picture or postcard I had ever seen. Lush trees on the hills and the road just snaked and curved between them.

The group waited and refueled before taking back to the road. The rest of the ride was pretty uneventful aside from the scenery and a puncture. You can find the stats here.

I will have a few new pictures for the last entry. So don't forget to check back.

Rider Profile: Ben LaForce

2009-01-24T07:07:00.003-06:00

Height: 5'10"

Weight: 160

Residence: Deer Park, Illinois

Occupation: What do you mean?

Strength: Crits.

Weakness: Longer road races; getting to races on time.

Why do you ride: To get my competitive craving out.

Current/Favorite bike: Cannondale CAAD9 duh.

What/who started you riding: My Dad got me into it by taking me to a MTB race when I was 16, then conned me into doing a few adventure races.

Hardest part of life: Finding a job.

What did you want to be when you were a kid: An adult.

Favorite food: Pasta and chicken.

Favorite Music: Prince.

Best idea of having good time: Weekend road trips to bike races and seeing how many cups of coffee I can drink in one day. Especially when the two events are combined.

Favorite place to travel to: Arizona, it has great riding pretty much all year long.

Most respected bike riders: Christian Vande Velde and Dominic Ori.

Favorite ride and race: Superior Bike Fest.

Other sports you do: Cross country skiing, touch football, blogging...

Do you have a coach: Yes, recently got with Pat McNally.

Cycling Highlights: Winning Downers Grove (cat 5), 2nd overall Superior Bike Fest stage race (cat 4).

Goals for 2009: Win Superior Bike Fest overall, win or help teammate win Downers Grove, become one of Miley Cyrus' backup dancers.

San Francisco Training Camp Pt.2

2009-01-23T23:40:00.003-06:00

Sorry folks. No pictures for today. I know you were looking forward to some great shots of the mountain top views and of the guys and me descending, but the weather was like a rainforest. The temps weren't too bad but there was a lot of fog and mists climbing to the mountains causing us to become more wet with every pedal stroke. We went up Mt Tam's front side to get to East Peak. We tried yesterday to do this coming from the back side and traveling across the Seven Sisters, but the road was closed from the Alpine Dam Reservoir up due to rock slide maintenance. You can view the stats here. Nothing much happened of significance other than a flat on the steep decent from Mt. Tam and the soggy uniforms. Tomorrow we are going to try to join a larger group ride. Twenty riders or so going about 80 miles. I hope I don't get dropped and have to find my way back alone.

On a side note I thought I might end up doing a lot of climbing solo today, but after regrouping at 900 feet, it was decided that I was going to lead the charge the rest of the way up Mt. Tam. At a few points it was extremely difficult and I didn't think I was going to make it, but my teammates rallied around me and encouraged me onward. This is, by far, the hardest riding I have done in my entire cycling career.

San Francisco Training Camp Pt.1.2

2009-01-23T11:26:00.001-06:00

Pictures. Pictures. Pictures. I can't seem to get the layout right for the pictures to display correctly, so check here for the pictures. Check back frequently because I will be adding more as we ride along.

San Francisco Training Camp Pt.1

2009-01-22T20:51:00.014-06:00

Well, I didn't have much time yesterday to start this, so I'll have to give you some background. Three of us, Cesar, David, and I (Chipper), boarded a plane at 8:10am and departed Midway airport looking forward to leaving behind the dreary weather and brutal temps behind. We were in search of some prime training ground in which to prepare for the upcoming 2009 season. Besides, who really likes to put in hours on the trainer inside while staring out at the depressing midwest?

The flight was great, we flew super fast at well over 40,000 feet, and landed 45 min ahead of schedule. We jumped on the B.A.R.T. , which is slow as hell and smelled like an old gym shoe. That took us to the Civic Center where we tried unsuccessfully to board the #19 bus to take us to the hotel. If you're not familiar with that area it is also know as Market Square. That's where most of the seedy bums hang out during the day looking for cast offs from the shoppers and tourists browsing the fresh produce stand that populate the park. It then took us a while to catch a cab or two since the cabbies here seem more interested in driving around than picking up fares and making money.

After getting settled at the hotel, assembling the bikes, and grabbing a bite to eat, (plane food sucks even during the four hour flight) we met up with former teammate Angelo DiGiovine. He took us through a short ride to open the legs up. We rode over the Golden Gate Bridge to the Headlands and switch-backed up aprox. 800 feet. Then after a short rest we zipped up our warmer wind proof layers and rocketed down in a fraction of the time it took us to get up. From there went rode through Sausalito and did a small loop. If you haven't noticed yet there is a common theme every day and that's climbing. Climbing is what we came here for and we are going to do it like it's going out of style. On the way back to the hotel we decided to race up to the top of Fillmore St. before rolling back around and hitting the showers. Yadda, yadda, yadda, on to day two.

We woke and left Eric, who arrived late that night, to assemble his bike and ventured to nom nom some breakfast before the days climbing started. I was expecting a 4 hour ride and about 5,000 feet of elevation gain based on the ride we did the day before. Angelo met us outside and after a few more tweaks by Eric we were underway. To make thing easier for me and to not bore you to death click here for the numbers/stats and navigate to see the route. Suffice it to say it was epic! See the elevation gain? Yea......! After that we went to our new found favorite restaurant Pasta Pomadoro and ate enough calories (hopefully) to last us through tomorrow's ride.

Check back soon for pictures and the next chapter!

Rider Profile: Charles Biro

2009-01-16T08:06:00.005-06:00

Height: 5'9"

Weight: 148

Residence: Hyde Park

Occupation: Attourney

Strength: Fast, four corner crits.

Weakness: I ain't sayin'.

Why do you ride: The feeling of speed created by my own power.

Current/Favorite bike: Cannondale.

What/who started you riding: Lemond.

Hardest part of life: Finding the time for everything.

Worst cycling moment: I once bonked so bad that I ate grass.

What did you want to be when you were a kid: Not an attorney.

Favorite food: Indian.

Favorite Music: Indie rock - Archers of Loaf, Handsome Family, Poster Children.

Best idea of having good time: Playing with my daughter; dinner with friends.

Favorite place to travel to: Wisconsin.

Most respected bike riders: Erik Zabel.

Other most respected athletes: Walter Payton, Courtney Hall.

Favorite ride and race: Sunday morning LaGrange ride in L.A. Favorite race is Snake Alley -- though I stink at it.

Advice to beginners: Base miles, never underestimate the importance of base miles.

Other sports you do: Some years I have played so much pick up basketball that I have forgotten to ride my bike.

Do you have a coach: Nope.

Cycling Highlights: Finishing just off of the podium at the state RR. Winning a couple of juniors races a long time ago. Racing against George Hincapie and Kevin Livingston.

Goals for 2009: Podium at the state crit and Evanston.

Get A Grip Members On the Web

2009-01-13T13:35:00.002-06:00

Members of the team are making news here in the cycling community. Seems being bicycling ambassadors is as important as chalking up victories.

Rider Profile: Alex Smetana

2009-01-12T08:01:00.003-06:00

Height: 6'1''

Weight: 175

Residence: La Grange, IL

Occupation: Medical Student (UIC)

Strength: Sprinting.

Weakness: Long Climbs.

Why do you ride: Walking is too slow.

Current/Favorite bike: Cannondale SystemSix.

Worst cycling moment: The moment before every race when I give my calf a chainring stamp.

What did you want to be when you were a kid: Indy 500 Champ.

Favorite food: Cookies... all types.

Favorite Music: Deep House.

Best idea of having good time: Wearing spandex to class.

Favorite place to travel to: Anywhere with good riding.

Most respected bike riders: Cancellara.

Do you have a coach: Dr. Jonathan Dugas.

Cycling Highlights: 2008 Cat. 4 Superweek Overall Points Champion.

Goals for 2009: Upgrade to Cat. 2. Be a solid team player.

Rider Profile: Jonathan "Chip" Gray

2009-01-09T08:16:00.008-06:00

Photo Courtesy of Ed White

Height: 5'9"

Weight: 170

Residence: Mchenry, IL

Occupation: Culligan Man

Strength: Dicey sprints.

Weakness: All day climbs.

Why do you ride: To reduce stress, stay skinny, and punish.

Current/Favorite bike: Cannondale System Six/Gunnar Streetdog fixed.

What/who started you riding: Weighed 240 and lived the rock 'n roll lifestyle for 2 people, then I woke up and did a 180 in 2 months.

Hardest part of life: Bills.

Worst cycling moment: Crashing more than 12x the first competitive year. I had one serious crash that made me reconsider my choice of hobbies.

What did you want to be when you were a kid: A professional athlete.

Favorite food: Pizza by far. No fish and no onions.

Favorite Music: Anything but country or gospel.

Best idea of having good time: Being outside with my friends and loved ones.

Favorite place to travel to: Anywhere with good riding.

Most respected bike riders: Lance Armstrong, Robert Kron (Team Mack), Andrew Crater, and Devon Haskell.

Other most respected athletes: Dan Gable and Mike Phelps.

Favorite ride and race: Anything but long, flat, and straight.

Advice to beginners: Don't give up when it gets hard, everyone has been there at least once. Always have extra everything, better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it.

Other sports you do: Is resting a sport? Anything but golf, I cant hit the ball to save my life.

Do you have a coach: Yes, I do now that I'm in the 1/2's.

Typical training week: 15-20 hrs of good quality riding.

Cycling Highlights: The whole 2008 season. Chicago Athlete cover.

Goals for 2009: To hang with and then beat the big dogs in the pro 1/2 field.

Photo Courtesy of Ed White

2009 Team Get A Grip Cycles

2008-12-31T04:17:00.025-06:00

2009 will mark the third season of road racing for Team Get A Grip Cycles. One of our main goals in 2009 is the further development of the team’s elite Cat 1-2 men’s squad, which began in 2008. Over the past two seasons the team has also established a strong and focused Cat 3 men’s squad with excellent leadership and support. This achievement has been an important element in helping to attract and develop new young riders who have the desire and talent to one day join the team's elite squad.

The invaluable leadership and support of its founding members and the Get A Grip Cycles bicycle shop will continue in 2009. Also continuing as valued sponsors to the team will be Subaru, Cannondale, SRAM, and Sidi. Added as new sponsors for 2009 will be Rudy Project, Endura, American Classic, Continental Tires, Fizik Saddles, and Ritchey.

Get A Grip Cycles and the riders of Team Get A Grip Cycles are thankful to everyone that have made the past two seasons so successful.

Men’s 2009 Roster

Category 1
Cesar Correa
Category 2
Chris Kelley
Eric Wiecek
James Holton
Jonathan ‘Chip’ Gray
Steven Vandeven
Category 3
Alex Smetana
Aspen Gorry
Ben LaForce
Chad Chenoweth
Charles Biro
Christopher Padfield
Uwe Krueger
Category 4
David Jones
Ken Mitchell

Team Get A Grip Cycles

Cherry Roubaix '09

Blue Mounds and Harmon Hundred Training Days

Elk Grove and Downers Grove

The Tour of Elk Grove

Superweek and Chicago Crit

Racine Criterium - Superweek

Schlitz Park - Superweek

Unprepared to Win

January 1, 2009 to July 4, 2009

Spring PrairieBy Chris Padfield

Holding off the rain

By Ben Laforce

Chiropractic Criterium & Bong 30k TTBy Chris Padfield

Duluth Classic

Home Field Advantage

Winona Lake Road Race

Iowa City Race Weekend

Gregg Bednorski Spring Race #2

Rider Profile: David Jones

Team Get A Grip at the Races

Rider Profile: Chris Padfield

Rider Profile: Eric Wiecek

Well Fit

Rider Profile: Chris Kelley

Rider Profile: Ken Mitchell

San Francisco Training Camp Pt.4 with Pics

San Francisco Training Camp Pt.3

Rider Profile: Ben LaForce

San Francisco Training Camp Pt.2

San Francisco Training Camp Pt.1.2

San Francisco Training Camp Pt.1

Rider Profile: Charles Biro

Get A Grip Members On the Web

Rider Profile: Alex Smetana

Rider Profile: Jonathan "Chip" Gray

2009 Team Get A Grip Cycles

Spring Prairie By Chris Padfield

Chiropractic Criterium & Bong 30k TT By Chris Padfield