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The P5 cat 4 duo of Greg Nash and Scott Ouimette bookended the 2008 season with some outstanding performances at the season ending Fall Fling 4 stage Omnium race. Scott and Greg opened the series by posting 4th and 5th overall in a controversial Road Race that saw the double points system tossed out due to blatant yellow line rule violations by fellow competitors. The next stage brought on a crit and the dynamic duo were game to makeup points on this stage and did just that by placing Scott in second on the day. By virtue of their finishes in the Crit Scott was able to move into 1st on GC while partner in crime Mr. Nash moved up to 4th overall.
After the TT this past Saturday the tag team partners went into the final days crit stuck in a log jam for 3rd overall. Sundays final crit was a daunting task but our boys held their own battling deep squads fielded by Team Tati and WDT. In the end the filed allowed a lone man to escape and it came down to who was going to take the 2nd place points on the line. With some heroic efforts Greg and Scott worked their plan to perfection with Scott winning the field sprint and moving into second overall in the final GC with Greg netting the final podium spot in 5ht place on GC. Awesome job guys!
Who remembers this happening before? In Sunday’s Fall Fling criterium, Brian Hague (Team Tati) lapped the 4’s field
-- by himself.I can’t remember it happening in the 3’s or 4’s. I’ve seen P/1/2 breaks go up a lap, but usually when one team has a huge numerical advantage, and never solo. Shoot, I’ve never even seen someone do this at Matteson or on the track. I can barely catch my nephew chasing him around the kitchen table.
I’m told that after lapping the field, Hague went straight to the front and pulled for several laps. This memorable performance from the reformed triathlete and cross-country runner
-- he put in a 5-mile run between the citizens and 4’s races-- comes after two weekends of dominance during which he won three of the four citizens stages. It’s a shame the season is ending now, but I’m eager to see how he does in 2009.That wasn’t the only success for Team Tati. In the women’s 4’s, Elena Dorr placed 2nd but more important put enough spots between her and GC rival Morgan Moon (Team Kenda Tire) to climb into the top spot overall.
Avi Neurohr (Cuttin' Crew, M-5)
So it is with some relief that I made it back to the podium this past weekend. ok, it was a beginners' heat. In ABR. In a time trial. (Technically, I've had less than 15 mass starts, so I can, in good conscience, race that division in ABR.)
But...it wasn't a gimme. There were some strong riders out there...some guys 15 years my junior, some with all the high end gear that can shave a minute or two off in the course of 9.8 miles. I dusted off the single speed and killed it in 22:56, for second place, averaging 25.6 mph. (It would have been good enough for 10th in cat 4, but I think I would have gotten over my laziness and set up and tested a proper TT config for cat 4.)
Our team aspirations of putting someone on the overall podium in the Fall Fling weren't panning out. Rather than show up for the final stage running low on money, time, and energy, I decided to go out on a high note.
Jared Rogers reports from ABD Fall Fling Series: So my final exam for the 2008 year was the ABR Fall Fling Series as a recently upgraded Cat 4. In 2 minutes 2 seconds, here are the cliff notes from each race: Westlake Village Road Race: 40 miles of rollers, of which I did not see all of. On the 2nd lap I covered an attack by some rider but then failed to cover the counter by a Tati rider up a slight incline. Despite the field being slowed down by a combine, I would never catch back on. Somewhere around my 4th lap I came up on Tamara and another women who had crashed. Will Pankonin was there so I decided to do what I could to help until the ambulance arrived. The women who was injured was okay when I left and I rode in for 38th or something like that. Chris MacFarland would take 9th. Fall Fling Crit No 1: 40 minutes and 2 laps of riding in the wind. Lots of attacks and lots of slowing into a wall of wind. Never quite got my positioning right and spent too much time trying to fight my way from the back. Last lap when things got strung out I was able to move up a lot, but nothing that would put me in the top 50% of the field. Oh well, there was always next week. Maple Park ITT: This was my first ITT outside of the FCTT we did this year. I was really looking forward to this and getting to use my new aero bars. Overall, it was a windless ride on smooth country roads. I pushed my self pretty hard but managed to get caught by the Pro 1/2 that was 1 min. behind me as well as the WDT rider who was 2 minute back. Both would go on to turn sub 23 times and I came in with a 25.59.80 for 30th. It was my fastest time of the entire season (albeit with aero equipment) and I think I have another discipline I want to take up. Fall Fling Crit No 2: 40 minutes and 2 laps of being out of breath. A Tati rider launches off the front from the start, puts time on us each and every lap, catches up to the back of the field and then proceeds to take the field sprint. Boy do I have a lot of work to do in the off season!
Tim B, who is young at heart, exhibited keen (and appropriately TATI) style on Saturday by sporting a purple lycra Pearl Izumi helmet cover and vintage downtube-shifter equipped Cannondale TT bike with Cinelli Spinaci. On Sunday, he raced M50+ and emulated teammate Brian Hague's off the front efforts by putting fifteen seconds on a field of very tough masters. That the strategy did not entirely work out is less important than the fact that he created some fun and excitement in an otherwise mundane race.
Edward Ekstrom (Tower Racing, M-4)
I go through my typical pre-race 2nd guessing. Did I eat too much this morning? Drink one too many beers last night? Ride too hard yesterday? Did I hydrate enough? At this point, none of it matters, its time to race the last crit of 2008. We line up near each other and hit the start. I follow Tom up the inside to get near the front and try to keep it that way. Somewhere around lap 4/5, they call a prime for sunglasses - I could use sunglasses. If I have a shot, I’m going for it. After turn three, I am in 5th. I see a familiar Tati uniform (it’s that same guy who drove off the front last week) 20 yards off the front. He does not seem to be sprinting just motoring at a high pace. I’m going to try and catch him. No one else challenges except for one, who quickly gives in. Tati looks back and starts to accelerate. I gun it as if the race depended on it. Fly pass Tati after turn 4 and keep going. After a look back to see if the glasses are in jeopardy, I ease up at the line. Hearing Tower Racing takes the prime brings a smile to my face. Tati keeps going. He’s going to do it again. Damn that kid is strong. I wonder if I should follow as we have a good gap at this point. I decide it would be too much effort. I need to work on riding hard while winded (next year.)
I drift to the back and get a great vantage point of my teammates up ahead. Go Tower!
As it turns out that Tati Guy laps us with three to go. I see Tom follow Tati as he drives through the pack a lap up on everyone (impressive). I follow Tati the last lap and a half in 2nd place. Get into a minor scrape when a WDT rider attempts to crowd me out of 2nd place. I’m not moving. He’ll have to move up or drop back. He actually bumps me this time, I push back, fortunately, he backs off this time and drifts back. I don’t like it when this kind of stuff happens. He apologizes later after I call him out.
I decide to leave even earlier than the prime. I take off just after turn 3. I round turn four in 1st. I am doing everything to hold off the pursuits behind, but begin to fade. I get passed by one rider with 25 yards to go and barely hold on for 2nd in the field sprint - 3rd overall. End result: Raced over 26 mph average; Tower is on the podium; I have a pair of sunglasses; $30 goes to Tower Racing Charities (which U.S. Cellular® will match).
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