WEEKEND OF APRIL 6 & 7 DECLARED 55/60+ RACER FRIENDLY

By John McKee

It isn't every weekend that there is a race for both 55 and 60+ racers and have a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow like a cash purse but this weekend came up roses. The weekend of April 6th and 7th had TWO races that were 55 and 60+ friendly. Saturday saw the very challenging Rosena Ranch 2 and Sunday saw the prestigious Redlands Criterium run in conjunction with the Redlands Classic pro stage race. RR 2 had $200 for both categories going 4 deep in each while Redlands had $225 for both cats going 4 deep in each as well. Pretty darn good!
Rosena Ranch is on a rolling 3.74 mile course with grades up to 3.7%. The race was being run counter clock wise the same direction of vehicular traffic flow. Though the course was closed to cars there was an off road trail that intersected with the course. In prior races some kind of vehicle got on the course so it was decided it would be safer to go the same direction that a motorcycle/car would go as speeds would exceed 40 mph for the bike racers.
Sign ups were lower for the 2nd Rosena Ranch race. 55+ sign ups went from 29 for the 1st race to 24. 60s was worse going from 22 which was a season high for any race to 15. Either some had their fill of this tough race, one time was enough or burnout. I do know that this is a flat belly race and a race for the younger racer. I heard talk about racing is hard and should be challenging but add some extra weight, extra years (lower VOMax) and it really gets hard to the point of just keeping up being a major challenge. I say that the racing peleton can provide plenty of challenges for most every racer to motivate them to get faster, lighter, healthier, etc. Aren't those worthy goals? Would you be so motivated to eat right if you weren't racing? Would you do those intervals that could make you faster? Would you be doing core strength exercises or go to the gym in the off season to get stronger? Maybe NOT! Yes, racing is plenty hard but there are plenty of benefits and I don't see that in rec riders that go for a spin on a Saturday or Sunday morning.
OK RR 2. The weather was good. The start time was excellent at 9:30 am. Thank you. Thank you. It's only fair that the new guys, gals, young lads and lasses go 1st. Time in grade should count for something.

Their off at Rosena Ranch 2- Photo courtesy of Ken Hill

 The racers started off at the prescribed time running counter clockwise. The race would have a slightly different feel. The race started off pretty fast as expected. Mark Hoffenberg always likes to make the beginning of races as hard as possible. This is a course that can make people hurt. Malcolm Hill would be a person to watch here for sure. I had no idea what Jay Wolkoff could do on a course like this. Obviously he is very strong so anything was possible. One thing I noticed when we started racing was how strong John Roest looked. "Big John" must go 210 to 220 pounds and he was moving around pretty easy. I got on his wheel a lot. What a wind block!
The turnaround at the bottom was a little different considering the direction we went. Maybe a little easier but the pitch of the road was going to be pretty much the same. Your just on a different side of the road.  Early moves by Mark and others were covered. Brad House threw down the gauntlet early but it just made the pace slightly faster and the race harder. All good for most. The race didn't explode into 2 packs like last time. Not sure why.

Malcolm Hill with Jeff Moreton midway through the race-Photo courtesy of Ken Hill

A break did occur about midway through the race and it was Malcolm Hill that got things going for the Amgen Masters race team. Rokform/Rock N Road would have to be in any break or it just wouldn't work. Jeff Moreton was the man for his team to match pace with Malcolm. The 2 of them got a decent gap on the field but they weren't out of sight by any means. I am not sure if Jeff was working it with  Malcolm or just sitting on but he fell off the pace at some point and that was the going to be it for Mr.Hill. Mark organized a chase that quickly reeled in the lone leading rider.
Each lap was pretty hard especially the downside turnaround. The leaders sprint out and it is uphill for a ways so you have to suffer to stay in contact. Lap  4 I just stayed on "Big John" Roest because we were a bit off the leaders but he pulled hard and caught back on just before we headed back down. That first downside after the turnaround was a blessing. A recovery gem.
We started lap 5 and it looked like a bunch sprint to me. For all the jockeying and Cleave Law gave it a go on the last uphill late in the race but nothing was going to work at this point. The bell lap came and after we made the 1st turn it got really fast. On the downhill after we went by the start/finish line we hit 41.5 mph. The downside turn came and everyone was holding back and keeping decent position. The sprint was going to be different than the 1st race. The group would be larger and the pace would be faster than the field sprint in the 1st race. The lead up pace was also a little harder and the sprint was going to start further out from the finish line. I was right there and felt good most of the race but knew I wouldn't have anything for the sprint.
This course fits Hoffy very well and he started the sprint. All hands on deck! It's a sprint to the finish. Hoffy got a bit of a gap and thought maybe he had it but Jay Wolkoff came up on Mark's left to make it a photo finish. Both threw their bikes and Mark won by inches.

Mark Hoffenberg edges Jay Wolkoff for the 55+ victory-Photo courtesy of Ken Hill

Field sprint shows Gary Shuey finishing 2nd in 60+ and Howard Miller finishing 3rd. Kal Szkalak has already ridden through for the 60+ victory-Photo courtesy of Ken Hill

In 3rd place was Bill "The Unknown" Pickard. That was quite a kit he had on. A splashy red, white and blue thing. He definitely stood out. Bill was followed in by Malcolm Hill,  Steve Hensler and Brad "Never has an opinion" House. The 60+ race went pretty easily to Kal Szkalak. Gary Shuey and Howard Miller rode very well and placed 2nd and 3rd respectively in 60+. 4th went to Kirk Freeman and 5th went to Steve "William Powell" Bernede. 6th went to another unknown rider by the name of Roy Turner. Don't even know what team he rode for. I believe he was wearing a pro Garmin jersey.
There are riders out there and it sure would do them and everyone else some good if they would show up more often. No crashes and a good hard and fast race at Rosena Ranch. Thanks to the promoter for putting 55 and 60+ riders in the event and with a generous purse to boot! THANK YOU! It felt good just finishing this race. I was the oldest rider in the event and Bruce Steele was the 1st 65+ rider to finish. This was a hard course but challenge yourself. I did and had fun and got a great workout though I didn't finish well.
Sunday was the Redlands Criterium. The turnout was light and only one of last year's podium placers were present and that was Malcolm Hill. Redlands is a fun course and love to do it though it is pretty hard. Redlands favors bike handling and bike strength. Of course a good sprint nevers hurts. Malcolm Hill would definitely be the man to watch. Without him I would surely predict a bunch sprint but Malcolm was going to try and get away. Cut the odds down to a few strong riders like himself.

The start of the Redlands Criterium-Photo courtesy of Ken Hill

It takes a bit to get the feel of the course once the race starts  and riders seemed shy except for Don Davidson. Don has done this race many times. Don was out there looking good off the front. It was inevitable though with the entire race left that the peleton wouldn't let him stay away. We were assured by the officials that we would get 40 minutes. We were delayed because a fund raising ride called the RUFF Ride started on the course and got to do one lap. Wow was that slow! Lol. A 100 k ride to raise funds for a local dog park. All good except it took a while to get these guys and gals and dogies in dog trailers off on their adventure. Hope the funding was successful.
I was going to watch Kal and John Roest. I had been 4th a number of times and wanted on the podium this year. The 55+ race was up in the air. No clear favorite though Malcolm was the strongest and Cyril Hunte was the fastest.

"Blue Boy" Cramer getting things going. He wore blue because of his nick name. He may be wearing a darker blue coming up-Photo courtesy of Ken Hill

UC Cyclery team leader Kal Szkalak looking for teammate Steve Hensler-Photo courtesy of Ken Hill

 There were a lot of primes and Cyril used his speed to pick up most of them. The primes drove the race. We got a 20 minute notice with 20 to go or so we thought. A $90 prime came up and the pace really picked up. I stayed near the front but wasn't planning on contesting the prime sprint and going into the red zone. The race favorites were all up front and Cyril won the $90. When is the best time to counter? Off of a hard prime sprint. It worked at Ontario last week. Malcolm of course knew this. Once Cyril came off Malcolm's wheel and won the sprint, Malcolm took off. Cyril sat up. I was 2 riders back and saw the move and thought damn! Cyril is just going to let them go? I sat there like a dummy. Steve Hensler was tight to Malcolm and Kal came into the action. John Roest came later to the party and tried to get on and did within a lap. He was very close but it took a lap for him to get on. One other rider was with them but got dropped quickly.
 

Malcolm makes his move. All in!-Photo courtesy of Ken Hill

 One lap around and the break group wasn't that far off the front. SC Velo had to make a decision. They had the most riders. Rick Swanson conferred with team captain Mark Planellas and excepted Mark's call to not chase. Not sure I agree with this because Cyril could win the whole thing but they had John Roest in for 2nd in 60+ and Cyril could win the field sprint for 3rd in 55+ and have 2 riders on the podium. It was good thinking but they were giving up a chance to win the 55+ race. They were worried that "Big John" might not get on the podium in a bunch sprint. Don't know because it didn't happen.
Without SC Velo chasing the break group wasn't going to get caught. No Swami's or Rokform so the field was light on strength. 4 guys were now racing for the win in both categories. Malcolm pulled a lot of the last lap and Kal came around for the overall win and the 60+ win. Malcolm did hang on for the 55+ victory and a winner's jersey. Steve Hensler crossed the line for 2nd in 55+ and "Big John" rolled across for 2nd in 60+.

Kal Szkalak is the 1st rider to the line with Malcolm Hill winning the 55+ race-Photo courtesy of Ken Hill

3rd place was still out there in both categories in the peleton. We got a sign of 4 laps to go. We WERE NOT going to get 40 minutes of racing. It was going to be more like 30. Bummer. Don't think it would have made a difference in the race. The peleton kept a steady pace. My teammate Howard Miller was moving up and I was thinking...hey he got 3rd yesterday. Lol. If Howard finished ahead of me that was good. We went around for the last lap and I got a little far back and started to fight back on the downhill and was right next to Howard. I didn't see crafty Don Kimper on the inside. A Citrus Valley Velo rider was right ahead of Howard and I and seemed out of position and spooked. He banged into Cyril and went down. I was thinking this maybe another time on the pavement but the rider slid from right to left since we were starting to corner. I slowed up and Howard had to slow up more than I did.
Cyril rebounded well and went wide and cut into the last corner and really wasn't contested for 3rd place in 55+. I came around the last corner and thought the 55s weren't doing that well and gave a half hearted effort and saw Don Kimper to my left after I crossed the line. Bonehead McKee! Not sure I could have caught him but it was possible thinking back on it. Don was inside the crash and didn't have to slow. Don was 3rd in 60+, I was 4th(again!) and Howard was 5th.

Field sprint with Cyril already having crossed the line-Photo courtesy of Ken Hill

No one else went down which was good. Sorry to see anyone hit the pavement. This is always a great event with the course, the vibe, the payouts, the podiums, the winner's jerseys, podium girls and a lot more. A really fun event. Too bad we had a poor turnout. Burnout seems to be setting in. It was a great opporunity of racing for both 55s and 60s this weekend. Lukewarm response by everyone. Complete results below. I was again the oldest rider at Redlands and Don Kimper was the 1st 65+ rider across the line. All the photos but the podiums were courtesy of Ken Hill. You can see all his photos at www.public.fotki.com/quatre24. That's all for now folks! Train hard and race safe!

60+ podium- Roest 2, Szkalak 1, & Kimper 3

55+ podium- Hensler 2, Hill 1 & Hunte 3

Rosena Ranch 2  (Rank 1.5)
Masters 55+
Place	License	Name	Team	SoCal Points
1	45461	Mark Hoffenberg	Rokform/Rock N' Road	21
2	38811	Jay Wolkoff	Radsport Cycling Team	17
3	291027	Bill Pinckard	Microseal Racing Team	15
4	156650	Malcolm Hill	Breakaway from Cancer Masters	13
5	15874	Steve Hensler	UC Cyclery/JW Floors	12
6	16837	Brad House	Big Orange Cycling	10
7	274212	David Benner	Wolf Pack Cycling	9
8	203308	Daniel Yeager	Swami's Cycling Club	7
9	25023	Jeffrey Moreton	Rokform/Rock N' Road	6
10	189931	Kasey Haws	Team Redlands	4
11	222764	Thomas Buescher	South Bay Wheelmen	3
12	45582	Cleaveran Law	Lightning Velo	2
13		UNKNOWN RIDER		0
14	69952	Robert Willcox	UC Cyclery/JW Floors	0
15	174212	Brian Carrico	PAA/REMAX	0
16	61353	Reed Moore	UC Cyclery/JW Floors	0
17	49191	Kim Bleth	Rokform/Rock N' Road	0
18	148853	Dale Raymond	Southern California Velo	0
19	23303	Michael McConnell	UC Cyclery/JW Floors	0
Total # of riders	24

Rosena Ranch 2  (Rank 1.5)
Masters 60+
Place	License	Name	Team	SoCal Points
1	54522	Kalman Szkalak	UC Cyclery/JW Floors	21
2	44197	Gary Shuey	Swami's Cycling Club	17
3	49424	Howard Miller	OCW/Paramount Racing	15
4	12354	Kirk Freeman	CA Pools / Primal	13
5	126351	Steve Bernede	Team Werks	12
6	163360	Roy Turner		10
7	277180	John Roest	Southern California Velo	9
8	236498	Bruce Steele	South Bay Wheelmen	7
9	195498	Donald Kimper	UC Cyclery/JW Floors	6
10	269972	Fred Haim	Michelob Ultra - La Grange +21	4
11	7677	Jim Cooke	CA Pools / Primal	3
12	180386	John McKee	Paramount Racing	2
13	254258	Hugh Lothrop		0
14	57891	Bruce Geddes		0
Total # of riders	15

Redlands Criterium  (Rank 1.0)
Masters 55+
Place	License	Name	Team	SoCal Points
1	156650	Malcolm Hill	Breakaway from Cancer Masters	14
2	15874	Steve Hensler	UC Cyclery/JW Floors	11
3	52086	Cyril Hunte	Southern California Velo	10
4	93812	Donald Denegal	Velo Allegro	9
5	107559	Rodney Malloy	Bahati Foundation-CA	8
6	36299	Daniel Valentin	Citrus Valley Velo	7
7	104199	Mark Parra	Team Redlands	6
8	177958	Kevin Ryan	METALMTN Cycling	5
9	271566	Alex Gonzalez	Bahati Foundation p/b Major Motion Cycli	4
10	120335	Dan DeMuth	Team Redlands	3
11	202041	Mark Planellas	Southern California Velo	2
12	58799	John Ward	Citrus Valley Velo	1
13	54084	Lothar Cramer		0
14	34753	Rick Swanson	Southern California Velo	0
Total # of riders	16

 

Redlands Criterium  (Rank 1.0)
Masters 60+
Place	License	Name	Team	SoCal Points
1	54522	Kalman Szkalak	UC Cyclery/JW Floors	14
2	277180	John Roest	Southern California Velo	11
3	195498	Donald Kimper	UC Cyclery/JW Floors	10
4	180386	John McKee	Paramount Racing	9
5	49424	Howard Miller	OCW/Paramount Racing	8
6	50765	Richard Roberson	UC Cyclery/JW Floors	7
7	245777	Steven Borer	UC Cyclery/JW Floors	6
8	126668	Joey Valdivia	UC Cyclery/JW Floors	5
9	45047	Glenn Baldwin	SLO Nexus-Gym One	4
10	101582	William Carvin		3
11	7677	Jim Cooke	CA Pools / Primal	2
Total # of riders	13

OPPORTUNITY @ ONT #3 -"BIRDMAN" & "BIG JOHN" JUMP AT CHANCE

By John McKee

45 riders showed up at Ontario # 3 at the 7 corner Grand Prix course. 28 55s and 17 60s including one woman who we welcome racing with us. 2 category 5 riders did show up. This has been a buzz issue for weeks with 55/60+ racers. Fortunately for everyone the riders blended in without a problem. I have to say this was one of the least strong fields I have seen this year in our races. Rokform and UC Cyclery were light with riders. Rokform had zero and UC Cyclery was without Kal Szkalak the one man 60+ wrecking crew. Swami's was on the fence but decided to come. Radsport had Jay Wolkoff and Wayne Rosenkrantz but not Bruce Hartley. I was happy to see Rino Barbagiovanni back and racing with us after a layoff from a bad crash. Always good to see riders get back racing after an injury. So many don't make it back for lots of reasons.
The weather was good for this time of year and 100 times better than Ontario # 2. O #2 had gale force winds that deterred many riders like myself. I was thinking without Kal and Mike Marotta in 60+ I would have to look after a few other strong 60+ riders like Wayne Rosenkrantz, John Roest, Tom Reilly, John Wagenaar and Mike Fleming who I have all beaten before but would I this day. The total purse was $200 for 6 places for a mixed result. OBVIOUSLY  favors the younger stronger 55+ riders. The downside to this race was there was no one there to take pictures. I love to insert pictures in my blog.
I had some problems with Sciatica coming into the race and wasn't on full power in my right foot  so I figured to play a counter game rather than be aggressive. In 55+ Mike Birditt was the odds on favorite. Who could challenge him? We were called to the line by official John Allen. A few instructions were given and we were off. The driving force at this race would be primes. Most are lets say were... not much. There were some tires and a few others things that were useful but Reggie Jones won a T shirt in large that was several sizes too small for our former basketball player.

Ray is looking for another prime prize for 55/60+ racers

The opening laps came and went uneventfully. A few spurts and the like but nothing that really made a difference in the race. "Blue Boy" always likes to pick things up at the beginning of races and that is always appreciated. "Blue Boy" has been wears a white jersey now but I can't call him "White Boy" now can I. His name is Lothar Cramer and he rides unattached. Just a few years ago USAC tried to promote the racing teams and asked promoters to charge unattached riders a $5 surcharge but no one does any more.
We might as well get to it. The pivotal part of the race. The series point prime sprint. This always gets everyone riled up. Jay Wolkoff was leading Wayne Rosenkrantz around. I was "stalking" them. I don't usually go for any primes but had this in the back of my mind. I was watching Wayne but was on Mike Birditt's wheel. Everyone seem to let me go where I wanted in this race. I expected Wayne to take off but Mike opened it up and Wayne just sat there. "Big John" Roest went with a small group that included Cyril Hunte and Mike McConnell. The sprint took this small group away from the pack. I just sat there. My leg problem was more in my head. Wayne and Jay didn't chase or close the gap. I think most people thought that it would come back together. Mike Birditt figured Jay would counter off the prime sprint but it was Mike McConnell. The small group starting from there.
The break group got going and with 2 major teams in the break like Swami's and SC Velo. John Roest had just joined SC Velo and Cyril has been a member for a short time. I wasn't even thinking that they were members. Citrus Valley Velo tried to pull but didn't have the horse power. Lothar Cramer came to the front and tried. Gene Poyorena and Fred Hoblitt of Swami's went to the front to mess things up. I was watching Gene and thinking "Do riders actually read my blog??". Gene did exactly what I was talking about at a prior race. He got on the guy chasing and created a small gap. Riders were scratching their heads. Go around me lads!
The pack got pretty close the next time coming toward the start/finish line and Dale Luedtke doing what an experienced veteran would do jumped hard but way way on the left side of the road. As you know the roads are wide at Ontario and everyone let him go. I just sat there and watched thinking "Damn". We really missed Bruce Hartley and Cleave Law. Bruce would have buried himself to chase or tried to go across himself. Cleave would have worked for his teammate "Tailgunner" Alann. Jay Wolkoff was the strongest rider by far left in the pack but he figured to let the break group be. They made the right move so they deserved to be where they were.
In the break group Cyril had a flat tire. He got back in at some point. "Big John" was pulling hard and as most know he is very strong. Mike and Mike were pulling through but maybe Mike C. was getting a little  tired going into the last 3 laps. Cyril was thinking to soft pedal with 3 laps to go but was harassed into taking appropriate pulls. John Roest just had to stay away to win the 60+ race though the purse was 6 deep mixed. I just think John wanted to win the 60+ category. The purse would be a bonus. Dale was tired from coming across so he just sat in.
The pack looked like it was resigned to racing for 6th place overall and 2nd in 60+. I started following Jay Wokoff. The break group was still working together but the last lap "Big John" took 1/2 to 3/4 of the pulling. He knew victory was his if they stayed away. Birdy was planning his sprint program for the overall win and the 55+ victory. Right after the turn Mike Birditt hit it hard and created a gap. Mike looked back and soft pedaled a bit and saw Cyril Hunte making a run at him so Mike hit it again. Mike won the overall and 55+ fairly easily. Cyril was 2nd with Dale and Mike McConnell following in. "Big John" Roest rolled in for the 60+ victory.
With one lap to go in the peleton the speed was quite slow. Jay Wolkoff decided to jump the field at turn one. Caught me by total surprise but if you think about it, why not make a move like that. If Jay gets a gap, he should be able to maintain right to the house. Fred Hoblit wasn't having anything of it and gave everything he had left to chase. Fred told me earlier that he was feeling lousy. I decided to chase as well. I thought if I could get aboard this train that I could place 2nd. Fred caught Jay somewhere near the end  between turn one and two and I caught on soon there after. After we turned the corner Alex Collins came aboard. No one wanted to pull through or could actually at that point. Jay threw in the towel and the pack caught on before the next corner. Fred was finished but Alex, Jay and I tried to sit in and recover. The pace wasn't bad again so recovery was coming but slowly. Between turn 5 and 6 "Tailgunner" Alaan came to life and went all in. Nelson has a good acceleration so he was going solo pretty soon. Everyone else reacted and the finish game so on. I kept an eye on Wayne and hoped for the best. We rounded the last corner and Nelson was going to come in fairly easily for the bunch sprint win and the last paying spot. Ontario pays $200 to the 1st 6 across the line whichever cat they are. I have been lobbying for a separate purse for 60s but no luck here.  Nelson's top speed was 34.5 mph which isn't bad but with a last corner sling shot this is typically a little slow here. I jumped out of the saddle but had nothing. Dan Valentin showed his cycling strength and came across the line after Nelson for 6th place in 55+. Wayne Rosenkrantz rolled across the line for 2nd in 60+. Tom Reilly blew by me for 3rd place in 60. I finished 4th and Mike Fleming took 5th.
There was a snafu in the results for 60s. I stayed to get the results though I didn't do the 50+ race which I hear was very fast out of the blocks. The 1st list on the board was the combined result so there could be a payout. The separate results were a bit slow in coming but there are lots of categories finishing in the morning with all the junior categories. Anyway the 55 results came out and were fine but the 60 results left off Reilly, McKee and Fleming. I got them changed and took away a hard copy of all the results and posted them on my 55/60+ bike racing facebook page. Hint, hint.... Lol. The 60+ results that came out on the SCNCA website were the pre corrected ones. A few emails to Eric Smith and Larry Shannon and everything was corrected. No worries there.
This race was a bit different than some we have had but that is what makes it interesting. Changing situations and riders reacting to what is happening and what they think is happening. One thing though is I saw everyone stay within there comfort zone including me. That is probably not a good thing. The oldest rider to race was Michael Edwards. I was the 1st 65+ racer across the line. Sorry there weren't any photos. Complete 55 and 60+ results are below. That's all for now folks! Train hard and race safe!
 

Ontario 3  (Rank 1.0)
Masters 60+
Place	License	Name	Team	SoCal Points
1	277180	John Roest	Southern California Velo	14
2	30596	Wayne Rosenkrantz	Pinnaclife Racing Team	11
3	155459	Thomas Reilly	Santa Clarita Velo	10
4	180386	John McKee	Paramount Racing	9
5	129293	Michael Fleming	South Bay Wheelmen	8
6	195498	Donald Kimper	UC Cyclery/JW Floors	7
7	243425	Mark Wisnosky	ACQUA AL 2/SDBC	6
8	7677	Jim Cooke	CA Pools / Primal	5
9	9271	Pete Dern	Montrose Bike Shop- CW Builders	4
10	61193	John Wagenaar	UC Cyclery/JW Floors	3
11	180041	Angela Wimberly	Michelob Ultra - La Grange +21	2
12	126668	Joey Valdivia	UC Cyclery/JW Floors	1
13	254258	Hugh Lothrop		0
14	24050	Steve Mera	Citrus Valley Velo	0
15	366450	Joseph Deem	Citrus Valley Velo	0
16	50406	Michael Edwards	Michelob Ultra - La Grange +21	0
17	266647	Allen Kizuka	Michelob Ultra - La Grange +21	0
Total # of riders	17

 

Ontario 3  (Rank 1.0)
Masters 55+
Place	License	Name	Team	SoCal Points
1	47255	Michael Birditt	SKLZ-Swami's Cycling Team	14
2	52086	Cyril Hunte	Southern California Velo	11
3	47262	Dale Luedtke	SKLZ-Swami's Cycling Team	10
4	23303	Michael McConnell	UC Cyclery/JW Floors	9
5	64439	Nelson Alaan	Lightning Velo	8
6	36299	Daniel Valentin	Citrus Valley Velo	7
7	93812	Donald Denegal	Velo Allegro	6
8	38811	Jay Wolkoff	Radsport Cycling Team	5
9	15625	Demi Hechanova	Southern California Velo	4
10	104199	Mark Parra	Team Redlands	3
11	202041	Mark Planellas	Southern California Velo	2
12	58799	John Ward	Citrus Valley Velo	1
13	148853	Dale Raymond	Southern California Velo	0
14	54084	Lothar Cramer		0
15	49110	Rino Barbagiovanni	Santa Clarita Velo	0
16	46255	Alex Collins	UC Cyclery/JW Floors	0
17	187428	Michael Evans		0
18	94345	Gary Jones	Citrus Valley Velo	0
19	98996	Mark Sauer	Cycles Veloce	0
20	167453	Bob Estupinan	Citrus Valley Velo	0
21	178640	Reginald Jones	Lightning Velo	0
22	45552	Douglas Knox	TIME - Velo Pasadena Team	0
23	34753	Rick Swanson	Southern California Velo	0
24	51400	Mark Rich	Southern California Velo	0
25	16360	Fred Hoblit	Swami's Cycling Club	0
Total # of riders	28

VELO ALLEGRO CRIT SHAKY BUT PLANTING ROOTS FOR THE FUTURE

By John McKee

Velo Allegro was thrown a strong right cross by the Bahati Fountation racing team. A number of members went across to Bahati leaving fewer members to work their event. None the less they decided to do the entire race themselves and despite having trouble with the flyer and payouts and the 50 % rule they are off in the right direction. The payout to the top 55/60+ racers was totally merchandise and to only 3 people. No payout for 60s. The race course is the popular Hughes course. Wide and seemingly safe with 2 soft turns and wide turn areas to turn into for the other 2 corners. Fast course. Overall the race was a huge success with racers. 758 race entries including 2nd and 3rd races by riders. The course is in Long Beach near the 405 and 710 freeways. Central location.

Start line with the 55/60+ racers at the Velo Allegro Criterium

Signups for 55/60+ racers went slow before the race but their were 32 before pre reg ended. In the end there were 53 racers. 35 55s and 18 60s. Good turnout. Mark Hoffenberg and many of his Rokform/Rock N Road teammates were not there. Taking a break between the Tour of Murrietta and Sam Dimas Stage Race. As mentioned this was a flat fast criterium course and should be safe. LOL.

Another start line picture

I predicted a bunch sprint but after the race got going there were a lot of break attempts. Once one got caught, another would get going. No grouping got much of a lead. Mike McConnell was super active. He definitely takes the "Energizer Bunny" award. Mike Birditt was quite attentive. Sizing up efforts and getting in some breaks and chasing others. Even Robert Paganini got in on one break attempt. One break that I actually got in had all the teams in it with about 10 riders. Sometimes though  you have a few maverick/independent riders or someone from out of the area like this Webcor guy. He chased this group and closed the short lead down. "Blue Boy" also likes to chase but he has been racing in a white jersey lately so I guess I should jettison his nick name.
The thing to do with them is isolate them when they are the front. Create a little gap to their wheel. Subtle blocking is in order here when your teammate is ahead. Pretty soon they look around and where is everyone. Make the other riders come around you if they wish. Nothing dramatic. Blocking seems to be a lost art.

Bruce Hartley having a go with "Blue Boy" pulling the pack

Cleave Law and Don Denegal off and away

Even sprinter Cyril Hunte tries his hand at getting away with Guido Quezada

Brain Carrico and Mike Birditt with Don Denegal chasing on

Mike McConnell with Deogracias Asuncion

This is the big group break thing falling apart. I am looking around like "Am I suppose to chase the 'Energizer Bunny'"??

McConnell applying the pressure late in the race. Ron Mallory is pulling everyone back to Mike

None of the efforts you saw stuck. The lap card soon came up with 5 to go. Without Rokform/Rock N Road who was going to keep the speed up late in the race? It was a mismash as to the pace and who would be at the front. This is where our all category race can get us in trouble. You see promoters actually can't restrict the 55/60+ race to cat 1-4 like in other lower masters age categories. The race would not be eligible for Socal Cup points. Plus national championship races are all category for 55+ and up. I am pretty sure that's why the SCNCA made it such. We can try for a rule change next year to exclude cat 5 racers. Their are plenty of venues around(El Dorado, Great Park, Fiesta Island weekly crits, etc.) to hone their group racing skills.
Their were a number of riders that tried to help at the front including Mark Planellas and Cleave Law but the pace was not very feisty with the laps counting down. The bell lap came and the Swami's train hadn't kicked in yet. Birditt was near the front with Fred Hoblit, Dale Luedtke and Mike Marotta. I was a little further back behind Mike McDonnell who was behind Peter Allen who was behind a "new guy". A cat 5 racer with what looks like 2 group races under his belt. He is a former triathlete and pretty strong but his group racing skills were lacking. At turn 2 with the pace picking up our new racer found himself over his head and that wouldn't be that much of a problem usually. Riders would just go around him when necessary but our new rider took a bad line through the corner. He leaned his bike way over and kept pedaling. Bannggg, zooommm! Down he goes. Peter Allen was right behind him and you can see from the pictures what happens to him. Craig Jones, Tom Herman and I believe Mike McConnell went down. Tom had a very sore back but no one from later reports had any broken bones. I went way wide left to get around and just made it before the door closed there. No exit left as riders piled up there.

Rider down alert!

Peter Allen tries to fly over the rear wheel of the downed rider

Gravity took over Peter's flight. Wayne and Dale ride by on the inside

The pace set ahead wasn't that fast so I chased back on. The riders that were able to get through on the inside also closed the gap. I was breathing kind of hard and tried to sit on and catch my breath before the sprint. Lee Romans moved ahead and passed many riders on the outside. Fred Hoblit was in the lead and Mike Fleming was right behind him with Marotta and Birditt stacked up right there. As we rounded turn 3 Fred soft pedaled leaving Mike Fleming in the lead and scratching his head as to what to do.
Mike Marotta got out of the saddle and started a lead out for Birditt. Cyril Hunte was on Birdy's wheel. As they rounded the last corner Cyril took a shorter radius in his turn then Mike and overlapped his wheel. Mike started his sprint right after coming around the corner and moved to his right to get clear of Marotta. Cyril did a shuffle and came out of his right pedal to avoid Mike's wheel. Mike got clear and sprinted toward the line almost uncontested. Mike Birditt the 55+ winner. Cyril had to reclip and then sprint. In the mean time Dale Luedtke came flying around the corner and showed some of his old form sprinting for the line. Dale was 2nd in 55+ with Cyril taking 3rd. Lee Romans who used some of his matches getting to the front on the back stretch finished 4th in 55+. Mike Marotta had enough left to hold off Wayne Rosenkrantz and Kirk Freeman in 60+. I came in behind Kirk for 4th. This was a crash marred race that didn't have to be that way. A shame all the way around. All the photos are courtesy of Maki Yamazaki and Lee Romans. Lee did a video cam for the last 4 laps. Here is a link to it on You tube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6nC6Cb5VWo
Full results below for those that were able to roll across the finish line plus the 50+ results. The 55+ racers are in bold print in the 50+ results. Mike Marotta was the 1st 55+ racer in the 50+ event and Mike as you know is over 60. Nice job, Mike. Pags was the oldest rider of course and I was the 1st 65+ rider across in the 55/60+ and the 50+ race. That's all for now folks! Train hard and race safe!

Birditt rolling to victory!

St Patricks Day Criterium  (Rank 1.0)
Masters 55+
Place	License	Name	Team	SoCal Points
1	47255	Michael Birditt	SKLZ-Swami's Cycling Team	14
2	47262	Dale Luedtke	SKLZ-Swami's Cycling Team	11
3	52086	Cyril Hunte	Southern California Velo	10
4	110259	Lee Romans	Paramount Racing	9
5		Don Denagal		8
6	50532	Deogracias Asuncion	South Bay Wheelmen	7
7	36299	Daniel Valentin	Citrus Valley Velo	6
8	46255	Alex Collins	UC Cyclery/JW Floors	5
9	107559	Rodney Malloy	Bahati Foundation-CA	4
10	106988	Guido Quezada	Velo Allegro	3
11	45431	Bruce Hartley	Radsport Cycling Team	2
12	393555	Larry Castillo	Velo Allegro	1
13	64439	Nelson Alaan	Lightning Velo	0
14	271566	Alex Gonzalez	Bahati Foundation p/b Major Motion Cycli	0
15	148853	Dale Raymond	Southern California Velo	0
16	202041	Mark Planellas	Southern California Velo	0
17	45582	Cleaveran Law	Lightning Velo	0
18	174212	Brian Carrico	PAA/REMAX	0
19	88537	David Tonello	Peaks Coaching Group Racing Team	0
20	16360	Fred Hoblit	Swami's Cycling Club	0
21	45552	Douglas Knox	TIME - Velo Pasadena Team	0
22	55635	Pedro Ordaz		0
23	314194	Steve Hernandez	Lightning Velo	0
Total # of riders	35

 

St Patricks Day Criterium  (Rank 1.0)
Masters 50+
Place	License	Name	Team	SoCal Points
1	35248	evan teske		0
2	135047	Stephen Gregorios	Pinnaclife Racing Team	0
3	182097	James Wiznura	Pinnaclife Racing Team	0
4	21278	Troy Lindstrom	CA Pools/Primal	0
5	68549	Craig Miller	BBI-SIC Cycling	0
6	188885	Brian Schroeder	CA Pools/Primal	0
7	219611	Kurt Bickel	UC Cyclery/JW Floors	0
8	249644	Tod Smith	Bicycle Haus Racing	0
9	23409	Steven McDonald	Pro Bike Supply	0
10	285925	David Fetah	Radsport Cycling Team	0
11	188986	Gary Wall	Pinnaclife Racing Team	0
12	306544	Chuck Winn	South Bay Wheelmen	0
13	72880	Mike Marotta	Swami's Cycling Club	0
14	47262	Dale Luedtke	SKLZ-Swami's Cycling Team	0
15	171706	John Bergman	PAA/REMAX	0
16	73132	Gregory Page	Lightning Velo	0
17	72177	Ed Marcelo	Team Velocity	0
18	177283	Eugene Poyorena	Swami's Cycling Club	0
19	180386	John McKee	Paramount Racing	0
20	108680	Michael Carro	Surf City Cyclery/STERLING BMW	0
21	107559	Rodney Malloy	Bahati Foundation-CA	0
22	160306	Alan Morissette	South Bay Wheelmen	0
23	61161	John Cardenas	Southern California Velo	0
24	393926	Frank Carone		0
25	80089	Lee Ziff	Velo Club LaGrange	0
26	62673	Michael Joseph	Bahati Foundation p/b Major Motion Cycli	0
27	50775	Stuart Anderson	San Diego Bicycle Club	0
28	333410	Frank Picarelli	BBI-SIC Cycling	0
29	52086	Cyril Hunte	Southern California Velo	0
30	271867	Lane Reid	South Bay Wheelmen	0
31	60231	Steve Morton	GST Racing	0
32	191929	John Camilli	METALMTN Cycling	0
33	45249	Brad Decker	Win-Team Racing	0
34	69591	James Nelms	Pinnaclife Racing Team	0
35	195498	Donald Kimper	UC Cyclery/JW Floors	0
36	209072	Eric Richardson	Big Orange Cycling	0
37	23303	Michael McConnell	UC Cyclery/JW Floors	0
38	54084	Lothar Cramer		0
39	88537	David Tonello	Peaks Coaching Group Racing Team	0
40	186377	Christopher Allen	Breakaway from Cancer Masters	0
41	222764	Thomas Buescher	South Bay Wheelmen	0
42	379784	Alfredo Tadeo	ADOBO VELO	0
43	272791	David Cranston	Michelob Ultra - La Grange +21	0
44	174212	Brian Carrico	PAA/REMAX	0
45	138633	chris keller		0
46	51400	Mark Rich	Southern California Velo	0
47	47255	Michael Birditt	SKLZ-Swami's Cycling Team	0
48	30596	Wayne Rosenkrantz	Pinnaclife Racing Team	0
49	45431	Bruce Hartley	Radsport Cycling Team	0

St Patricks Day Criterium  (Rank 1.0)
Masters 60+
Place	License	Name	Team	SoCal Points
1	72880	Mike Marotta	Swami's Cycling Club	14
2	30596	Wayne Rosenkrantz	Pinnaclife Racing Team	11
3	12354	Kirk Freeman	CA Pools / Primal	10
4	180386	John McKee	Paramount Racing	9
5	129293	Michael Fleming	South Bay Wheelmen	8
6	170779	Edgardo Potes		7
7	50765	Richard Roberson	UC Cyclery/JW Floors	6
8	9271	Pete Dern	Montrose Bike Shop- CW Builders	5
9	45763	Robert Paganini	PAA/REMAX	4
10	62271	Louie Rivera	ADOBO VELO	3
11	257503	Philip Walters	Encino Velo Cycling Club	2
12	101582	William Carvin		1
13	50406	Michael Edwards	Michelob Ultra - La Grange +21	0
14	266647	Allen Kizuka	Michelob Ultra - La Grange +21	0
Total # of riders	18