Cycle Logic get's some press

Now that the Cycle Logic team kits are in and the Orange and Gray will start to show itself on the streets and in the races, word is spreading and we are no longer a "well kept secret". The 5count blog, which has a small but dedicated following in the Gainesville area, has just done a brief write-up on Cycle Logic.

In addition to the 5count blog, we have been approached by a "health-oriented" publication that has distribution all over the state to write an article on the formation of the Cycle Logic team. This could be a great opportunity for the team, it's riders and especially our generous sponsors. If the story does happen, some of the team photos taken at this weekends race in Gainesville may make their way to the pages of the above mentioned publication...so look pretty and show the orange and grey of the Cycle Logic proudly!
Stay tuned for more information as it becomes available

CYCLE-LOGIC'S FIRST WIN!!

Unfortunately, I wasn’t there this past weekend, but I have heard from the few that were that Cycle Logic is currently celebrating our first WIN!!…and just one day after receiving our team kits, mind you.

Congratulations go out to Cat 4 rider Roger Montes for his first place finish, and from what I heard Anthony Musalo gets the assist.

Great job guys!!!

Click here to see some picures from the race

Ron Palsgrove was also present, representing the Cat 5’s this past Saturday. Unfortunately he was pushed off the road in the last lap, and had some trouble reintegrating back into the pack. Ron was happy with his performance throughout the race, though and was pleased that he could respond to the attacks, and positioned himself well.

Don’t worry Ron, I’m sure your spot on the podium will come in a short time.


Now on to new stuff and the next race weekend:

• This upcoming weekend is the UF Race Weekend, consisting of time trials on Saturday (individuals in the am, and Teams in the afternoon), and downtown criterium on Sunday.
• Individual time trials start with the collegiate racers at 9:00 am Saturday morning, and the teams start after 2:00 pm
• (times/ locations may change, so please check the flyer)
• THE TIME TRIALS ARE NOT BEING HELD ON RACE TRACK ROAD. PLEASE CHECK THE FLYER FOR REVISED LOCATION.

• Sunday's criterium is fairly short, with a dip in the middle of the course on both sides, so there is a little bit of a climb twice on each lap. The streets are in pretty good condition, and there is one small section of cobbles.

Download event flyer here

Group Photos:
I have heard from about 95% of the team and I believe that everyone will be in Gainesville during the day on Saturday. Since the TTTs start around 2:00, and there is no certain times when our individuals will be racing, it would be best if everyone could be there by at least 10:30 or 11:00 a.m. so we can all group up and get some team photos together. If anyone has any ideas on a special location for a team photo, please make suggestions.

Of course, we would love for everyone to be on hand to support our individual time trialists (John Duggan, Steve Agronick?) I'm sure we all look forward to seeing the orange and grey battling it out this weekend.

See you at the races.
JP-CL

San Antonio/ Dade City Race For Humanity Feb. 17, 18

For those interested, the 18^th annual Race for Humanity race weekend will be held in San Antonio/ Dade City Florida (just north and east of Tampa).

 

       Saturday’s Road Race event will start in San Antonio at the Sacred Heart Catholic Church on St. Joe Road.  The Road Races will feature Pro racers as well as amateurs racing 40-91 miles depending on category.  The event begins at 8:00 a.m. with the Pro Race beginning at 10:00 a.m. and all other races continuing  throughout the day.

        

Sunday’s Criterium events will be held in Downtown Dade City.   The closed-circuit .6-mile course winds through the streets of Dade City. 

Events begin at 8:00 a.m. with the Pro Race beginning at noon.

 

You can view the race flier for times and locations here:  Race For Humanity

 

More Information on the races and other events.

 

I believe several of our riders were interested in this race, so please show up to support them if you can, and good luck to those competing.

Oh, and dress warm!!

 

 

JP-CL

Take Stock in Children Ride

Take Stock in Children Cycling For Success Century Ride through Marion and Alachua Counties:
This ride is a Cycle-Logic sponsored ride, meaning that all Cycle Logic Members participating will be reimbursed their entry fee of $40. If I can get a firm number and names of those that will definitely be attending, I can register us all at one time.

The ride begins in Ocala the morning of March 10. It is a police escorted ride, usually with 50 to 100 riders participating. Of course, the police escort will be determined by the number of groups once the ride is under way and the size of those groups.

Take Stock in Children:
Founded in 1995 in response to the need for a scholarship program that provided more than just financial assistance to recipients, Take Stock in Children is an award-winning program that provides scholarships, mentors, and hope for a better future to Florida's most deserving children. A public-private partnership, this school-based mentoring organization has positively affected the lives of more than 11,000 children. Scholarships are purchased through the Florida Prepaid College Foundation, which provides matching funds to double the impact of scholarship donations to Take Stock in Children. Take Stock in Children is the only statewide scholarship program in Florida to provide trained, dedicated mentors representing every segment of society who mentor their students weekly from middle school through high school graduation.

Take Stock in Children locally has had 170 students graduate from the program. 90% of these students have gone on to further their education at community colleges and universities. Take Stock in Children is providing a solution to overcoming child poverty, academic failure and youth crime.

Cycle For Success:
Take Stock in Children, Florida's premiere mentoring and scholarship program is looking for cyclists to participate in its fourth annual Scholarship Bike Ride March 10th 2007. Cycling for Success, hosted by the Public Education Foundation of Marion County, Inc. and Santos Trailhead Bike Shop, will begin and end in Ocala. The ride will offer cyclists the option of riding a 25 mile, 50 mile or 100 mile route that will loop through beautiful and scenic back roads of Marion and Alachua Counties.

The registration fee is $40. Each rider is also asked to help raise money to purchase college scholarships for underserved children living in our community. One hundred percent of the funds raised by each cyclist will help purchase scholarships for Take Stock in Children students living in our community.

Local businesses have the opportunity to organize their employees to participate in this event. Ride as a team and promote your organization or ride as individuals. Riders of all ability levels are welcome. Along the route there will be rest areas, SAG wagons and bike guides to support cyclists and keep them rolling! Breakfast and a celebration lunch will be provided.

Find out more about the Take Stock in Children Ride here

Sanford/Lake Mary Race Weekend

The first thing that stands out this year is the WEATHER. Last year we had winds blowing at 10-15 mph and temps in the 40's. This year was more like Spring than mid winter! The early morning temps were in the high 40's to low 50's but by the time the races started we were in the 60's and the temps rose quickly to level out in the 70's. Most of the people I talked to all commented how great the weather was so I now I wasn’t the only one who noticed. The second thing that made the weekend great was the attendance numbers. All categories had large fields with teams from as far away as Kentucky. It sure was fun to be apart of something so well attended. We made some new friends and did some catching up with some olds friends from last year. I have give a hand to all of the folks who put these events on, if these are any indication of what our year of racing is going to be like hold on guys cause we are going to have a blast!

Saturday's races were held in "Old" downtown Sanford right on the lake. The course was a tight one and I'm not exaggerating here. The course was shortened from last year because the cobbles on one section were getting pretty beat up and the transitions were pretty nasty too. The course was about 1/4 a mile long, the short side was about 100 yards and the long side was about 200 yards.

Juniors 10-14:

Justin's race started second after the 15-18 juniors. He was really excited about getting the season going so the start couldn’t come soon enough! The race started in normal fashion with the older kids attacking hard from the bell. This always makes it hard for the younger kids because they usually get strung out all over the course. Justin was able to hold on in the lead group for about one lap and then he was on his own. Holding on for one lap doesn't sound like much of an advantage but when you consider most of the other 10-12 are off after the first corner it's a big help. There were 7 kids in Justin's class, two of which are 12 this year and are really very good racers so it's always a challenge to try and get Justin to hang with those two as long as he can. Justin rode a great race and was basically on a time trial for the whole race. He lapped all but the two strongest kids in his class, they were able to lap him. He was a little bummed about that but in the end we talked about his race and considering the age difference between him and the winners of his class he was happy with his results. I was very proud of his performance as he never eased up and rode hard the whole race.

Masters 35+:

Did I mention this was a "TIGHT" course, I just wanted to get this on the record before I talk about a performance I would just as soon forget! There are 3 bits of advice I would like to give to everyone who races a bike:

1. Don't start at the back of the group!
2. Don't start at the back of the group!!
3. Don't start at the back of the group!!!

So as you guessed it I started at the back of the group, I thought "I'll just move up once we get going", ha! that didn't work. As soon as the race started a group of 3 or 4 was off the front and as is usual this group does not let anyone get very far away. It was a sprint from the start to keep up and as I was at the back it was like being on the end of a whip all I did was stand up and sprint out of EVERY corner, did I mention this was as tight course. Needless to say I got popped out with about 5 minutes left in the race not something I am proud of but hey sometimes you're the bug and sometimes you're the windshield. I have to thank Paul allot for letting me vent on the phone Saturday night when he called to see how things went, Thanks Paul! The best thing I can say about Saturday for me was that I learned a valuable lesson about staking out your territory on the start line!

Sunday's races were held in Lake Mary which was just a short drive from the previous day's races. This course unlike Saturdays was wide and smooth with 3 corners that made a triangle with 1 short side about 100 yards long and two sides that were about 3-400 yards long. This course was also closed so we didn't have to worry about any stray cars on the course.

Masters 35+

Sunday was my day to go first; I have to admit I was a little apprehensive about the race after the previous day's debacle. I did however learn from my mistake of the first race, will wonders never cease. I made sure I got a good starting position at the line so I would be able to react in case it was hard from the start. My second mission for the day was to hold my ground in the group and be conscious of my place in the group. Paul and I talked about this after the race and we both agree about finding the "Sweet Spot" and trying to hold it throughout the race. Once the race started I was able to settle in to a good rhythm and was able stay in the front 25% of the group throughout the race. This really helped to alleviate that yoyo effect that I suffered through the day before. It seems when you're in the front everyone just flows through the corners with no braking or very little at the worst. Just like the day before no breaks were allowed to form and we finished in a bunch sprint at the line. I am happy to report that I actually finished well enough to have my name recorded for posterity 25 out of 60, I just made the cut off for "Recorded" finishers. In all seriousness I hope that I take to heart the lessons I learned over the weekend and apply them to my future races. I want to again thank Paul for helping me through the weekend; he came out to cheer us on Sunday morning.

Juniors 10-14

Justin was warming up on the trainer when I finished my race and we had a chance to talk about what his strategy would be for the day, stay with the group for as long as possible. I decided not to watch the race start but instead take up a position on the back side of the course from where I could see how things were unfolding back there. When the group came around for the first time I was please to see Justin tucked nicely inside the group. On the next lap he was still tucked neatly in the now dwindling group. I thought to myself wow that's two laps with the big kids. So you can imagine my surprise when he came around for a third lap with the group, I had heard the announcer yell a prime for this lap so I was wondering were he would be the next go around. Unfortunately the sprint for the prime was enough to take him out of the group, but he had accomplished allot of damage against his age group so now all I was hoping was that he wasn't going to drop like a rock. To my surprise he was down in the drops going like he had a mission.
He was again all by himself working to put time on the kids behind him. He rode a great race and even had one of his friends, Jon Carlo, he lapped grab onto his wheel as he went by. He came by with him in tow for one lap and was trying to make him drop by zigg zagging back and forth. But Jon was tenacious and hung in there like a little trooper. The next lap I noticed he wasn't there, after the race I asked Justin what happened and he said that when he wouldn't drop he just attacked him as hard as he could to drop him. Justin rode a great race and was able to finish in second place.

I can see quite a difference from last year to this year with his ability if he keeps this up I think he will have a great year racing. It is so exciting watching him learn new things and have a good time while doing it. That is one nice thing about all of the Juniors in Justin's group, they are all great kids and they have fun together before and after the races.


So to Recap:
Saturday

Scott-Finished the race but not with the group.
Justin-3rd place

Sunday

Scott-25th
Justin-2nd place

Scott Pfaff
Cycle Logic

Cycle Logic goes to Nero's

Following this years third installment of practice crits in Alachua, the Cycle Logic Team headed to Nero's Pizza and Pasta for some post-race nourishment. A bakers dozen of us overtook an entire row of tables as we re-hashed the days events.

James Penrod graciously sprung for all the baskets of bread as well as everyone's water due to his substantial winnings from placing fourth in the Cat. 4 crit ($15, and the bread and water were free...cheapskate).

It was a great time for getting to know our teammates and their families. Great food and a great atmosphere were enjoyed by all.

The whole Cycle Logic gang at Nero's

The days big winner...and Vern and Josh

Rodrigo enjoying the company of his Cycle Logic teammates.

Good Luck

To those who are racing this weekend, best of luck to you. I look forward to hearing all about your results.

Josh Pittman

Who is racing when and where?

I received a post card for the DownTown Orlando Spin City Classic. It is a 2 day event. Saturday, March 24th is a criterium in downtown Orlando. Sunday, March 25th is a circuit race at South Port Park, which according to the race map is right next to the Orlando International Airport. Is anyone interested in competing at this event? It sounds like it could be a lot of fun. According to the postcard I have, there will be live music, cultural arts, food, and drinks. The post card describes it as a festival. For more information on this event go to www.spincityclassic.com. Please respond to this BLOG. I'm looking for some feedback on who is available and who is willing to go to Orlando to represent Cycle Logic Bicycle Team.

Thank You,
Josh Pittman

Race Weekend Feb. 9/ 10: Sanford/ Lake Mary

This weekend, we have on tap a fine race weekend put on by FloridaCycling.com.

Saturday Feb. 9, 2007:  The race will be held in Sanford, and consists of a criterium on city streets on the edge of the lake.  A beautiful venue with plenty of turns, the course is mostly paved, with some brick portions to keep you awake.

 

Sunday, Feb. 10, 2007: This race is held in Lake Mary (although not around a lake as the name might suggest) in a corporate office park.  The streets are closed, and the course is fairly open with only 2 90 degree corners from what I can remember last year.  It was cold and windy in 2006, but the weather is looking good for racing this weekend.

 

Please post comments below to let our teammates know if you will be attending or not.

Thanks to all.

 

Cycle-Logic Won Dan's Money!!! (Dan's Crit Series #3)

Before I begin, I must say that our thoughts are with those that have and are suffering from the terrible tornadoes that touched down in our backyards down here in Lake, Sumter, volusia and surrounding communities.  As far as we know, none of our teammates were directly affected, thank goodness.

 

The A Race:

Once again, our own Scott Pfaff raced well with the A's, staying protected, and racing a smart race, letting the pro's, 1's and 2's do their own thing.  Several breaks got away from the main pack, and we could tell the pace was fast as they chased down the groups ahead.  Scott finished with the main pack (I'm sorry I don't have the placings right now), in a respectable position.  I'm sure he is happy with his pre-season results, and is looking forward to his Master's races this year.

Good Luck from all of us Scott!!

 

The Juniors Race:

Well, you should have seen little Justin Pfaff lighting up the Juniors race!!

The juniors start was combined with the women's racers once again.  Justin was unleashed with the rest of the juniors a couple minutes prior to the ladies' start.  I think there were approximately 10 juniors racing.  As I was warming up, I as well as others tried to give some velocity-coaching as he passed us.  he tagged onto a pack of one woman rider, and two juniors toward the middle of the race.  The other two juniors fell off, and the next time he came around, it was him drafting off of the girl in front of him.  (His father has taught young grasshopper well about the importance of the draft)  a couple laps later, here he comes down to the finish all by himself, then with 100 yards to go, he stands up and gives the crowd the ultimate example of a powerful sprint (in his drops, of course).  Justin came across the line as the first junior!!!

Congratulations Justin.  You have a bright future in cycling.

 

The B Race:

I'll try to stay calm whilst I write this one.

So,

On our way up to Alachua this weekend, we found out that many of the Cycle-Logic team members would be absent from the race on Saturday for various reasons.  this was unfortunate because of the great racing that had taken place by all of the teammates that showed for the last two races.  We were really hoping for a great turnout, and an even greater race for the final Dan's practice criterium.

 

When the races started, it was me (yours truly James Penrod), Paul Messal, and Joshua Pittman who decided to come out for his first race of the season, and Cat up to a 4, to roll with the big boys!!   With Josh coming off of a knee injury, I think he was trying to test the waters a bit, and stay safe this time, just to see how bad the effort was going to get.  I can't blame him for that.  He did a great job of staying protected throughout the race, and he finished with the pack, after a quick offroad excursion in the last half lap.  Paul protected himself well also, and sprinted for a top ten finish.  Unfortunately, it's harder for me to sum up their race this time because I was a little more active than I had been in the previous races (which worried a certain spectator named Veronica Geist).

 

The races were split such that the Cat 4 men raced separately from the Cat 5 men (which prompted the cat-up by Josh).  At the start we saw about 8 or 10 colavita riders, as well as 6 or 7 Atomic Riders, and a few more riders that had not shown up at the previous two races.  The Cat 4 field was about 35 or 40 strong, so about the same size as the previous two races, but with no Cat 5's racing with us, so we figured the pace was going to be a little higher.

As predicted by some, and unknown to others, Mike Niemi and Wes Wolfenbarger broke off the front (as they had in the previous two races), but didn't get caught this time.  With only three Cycle Logic riders in the pack, it didn't make sense for us to head up a chase, and since Colavita showed up en masse, we kind of figured they would organize some sort of chase.  Well, the two man break stuck to the end, with Mike getting first place, finishing well ahead of the pack.  With half a lap to go, an erratic move sent several riders into the grass, and one Atomic Rider (Jimmy) back first into the pave'.  I was in third position at this point, and was clueless what was happening behind me.  I think Paul was just in front of the mess, and Josh, who had been saving his energy for the finish was forced off the road, and out of contention.  I approached the last corner in third place, and decided it might be best to get through the corner at breakneck speed in front of everyone.  So as I stood, one of the Colavita riders who had the same idea, slipped by me allowing me to slip right onto his wheel.  At over 27 mph, we blistered through the last turn, flying up to the finish.  I was in the perfect position to outsprint the rider in front of me as he use all of his energy to pull me up to the line.  That's when I realized he was leading his own guy out.  As I heard the carbon wheels accelerate in my right ear, I knew someone else had gotten the drop on ME.  I stood up as he passed, and got to the line 2nd, finishing 4th because of the two-man breakaway.  WHOOOO!!!  After 3 years of trying, I won Dan's Money!!!

 

Once again, a great racing experience for the Cycle Logic team.  Thank you to all that raced, and especially to all that braved the cold and cheered us all on.  I am soooo looking forward to seeing us race in the upcoming season.

 

We'll see you all at the races!!

 

James Penrod

CYCLE LOGIC