Bethel Spring Series

A big shout out to Angry Ron (ZCC Zane’s Cycle) who couldn’t make it to the race today. We all hope he’ll be back in action soon.

The day dawned clear and sunny, chilly, but an improvement over the insane wind the week prior or the torrential downpours of the first week. The Bethel Elves had done their magic during the week – we had to literally just dust off the course before it was good to go.

(Results)

Cat 5s

The racing started with the Cat 5s, with a delayed start due to the wait list numbers getting handed out a bit late. We apologize for that but we really wanted to give everyone a chance to race.

The race stayed together with racers testing the racing scene. Unfortunately on the last lap a group of riders crashed. Fortunately no one was seriously hurt.

Cat 4s

The first of the overall battles, and the tightest one for 2011, started off early. Bethel Cycle had Justin Tyberg at 10 points, but the leader was CRCA/teaNY’s Etsu Taniguchi. Bethel launched riders as soon as the race started, with riders off the front forcing CRCA/teaNY’s team to chase.

After a few punches and counter punches, the two teams reached an uneasy truce, with domestique riders taking the front seat. CRCA/teaNY strongman Dan Caridi spent a few laps off the front in his powerful IAB (invisible aero bar) position, finally drawing  out a chase from some individuals. After some inspired chasing by Bethel Cycle, including Tyberg, the group came back together.

Sam Morkal-Williams (CRCA Junior Development) rocketed out to a good lead next, this time drawing a few riders out of the field. Two CRCA/teaNY joined him, making this a potentially dangerous move. Tyberg himself tried to bridge, but in the end a rider dropped off the break while Rudy Bleakley (Navone Studios) rocketed by everyone  to latch onto the break.

With the three there already fatigued, Bleakley drove the break for the last few laps of the race, punching it at the bell to make a go for it solo. He almost made it, getting caught literally meters from the line.

Taniguchi repaid his team’s work by pulling off a fantastic half-wheel win, with Tyberg going second best, repaying his teams work. Bleakley hung on for a well deserved third.

Lorenzo Grippo (Team Danbury Audi / Pedal and Pump) took fourth, with teammates Lee Davis and Kenneth Reilly (Pawling Cycle) finishing fifth and sixth respectively.

Women

Ann Marie Miller (CRCA/Houlihan-Lokey/Snahcez) put her stamp on the Series once again with a decisive win. She relentlessly controlled the field, winning all the primes and the race. Behind her Amanda Braverman (Stage 1 / fusionTHINK) took second, with Sarah Sauvayre (CRCA) in third. BrittLee Bowman (CRCA/NYVelocity Women’s Racing Team) finished fourth, with Donna McMahon (CRCA/Radical Media) in fifth. Rounding out the points placings was Beth Renner (CRCA/NYVelocity Women’s Racing Team).

Masters 45+

The strongest racers spent most of the race attacking each other, with the field almost disintegrating a few times. Finally the overall leader Carl Reglar (Team Danbury Audi/Pedal and Pump) launched what looked to be a desperate final lap attack. With a lead of only a few meters, it seemed a suicidal move. But when he came up the hill for the last time, he still had those precious meters in hand. He finished off an absolutely dominating first half of the Series with a third win in a row.

Behind him a resurgent Morgan Stebbins (Bethel Cycle) won the field sprint. No stranger to multiple Bethel wins himself, Stebbins seems to have found some of that form that launched him to so many victories here. Rick Spear (TARGETRAINING) took third, with Brian Wolf (Team RockStar Games/Signature Cycles) taking fourth. Rich Foley, also of TARGETRAINING, finished fifth, and Jim Escobar (Team Danbury Audi/Pedal and Pump) took the last point available in sixth.

Cat 3-4

With overall leader Bryan Haas (Berlin Bicycle/Best Cleaners) dominant in the field sprints with two wins, his opponents took a different direction this week. Team Danbury Audi/Pedal and Pump sent off strongman Matt Armstrong on a mission to break the field. Joining him was Justin Harris (Team Bikeway.com), with Haas’s teammate Chad Dalles tagging along to keep an eye on things.

Bethel Cycle launched some furious chases, with one of their Jens Voight types (tall, powerful, and speaks with one of those cool Euro accents), Johan Koserius, bridging alone. With his extra horsepower and four strong teams unwilling to chase, the break rode away from the field.

Koserius finished off a great ride with a win, with team minder Dalles taking second. Harris took third for Bikeway.com and Armstrong, the initial protagonist, took fourth.

The field sprint could prove important with two points places up for grabs. Haas slayed all in winning it once again. Ian Farrar (Vibrant Health Cycling Team) took sixth, just behind Haas, repeating his sprint from last week.

P123

With the ever feared Bobby Sweeting (Kenda Pro Cycling Team) in the field, all eyes looked to him. Tethered by this attention, he couldn’t break free and romp away from the field on his own terms. Using this major distraction, two riders slipped away while the field had strung out, gaps appearing everywhere. Greg Olson (CRCA/Jonathan Adler Racing) made one of his numerous attacks stick, and he had the irrepressible Carl Reglar (Team Danbury Audi/Pedal and Pump) for company.

With two motivated riders ahead and a field intent on marking just one rider behind, the pair stretched the elastic until it snapped. The two rode clear, with Olson taking the win ahead of Reglar.

The field sprint revealed the fastest of the rest. Luciano Bezerra (Navone Studios /Greenwood Floors) won the sprint, taking third in the race. Matthew Baldwin (TARGETRAINING) finished fourth after leading it out, with Leader Jersey Gabriel Acaba (Michelob Ultra Cycling) finishing fifth. Eric Merrill (ZCC Zane’s Cycling) rounded out the points earning spots in sixth.