Contrary to what the Utah Cycling Assoc. website says, the Harvest Moon Crit on Spet 26th in downtown Ogden is back on! The previous promoter decided he did not want to do the event anymore so I have picked up the pieces and put the event back on. All the logitics and infrastructure is in place and the US Cycling permit is pending. We'll have prizes, medals and $1000 in primes! Stay tuned for more details.
Also, good luck to everyone doing LOTOJA this weekend! Ride hard and be safe!
Monday, September 7, 2009
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Finishing Strong
As the season winds down, Team Excelerator p/b Pinnacle Auto Company is still in high gear. Crazy hard races, team time trials, charity rides and gearing up for LOTOJA are just a few things we've been up to.
Jerald Olsen once again tackled the insanely difficult RANATAD, the race around Nebo and Timpanogos in a day. The combination of mileage, heat and 12,000 feet of climbing make this race a doozy. Jerald improved on his time and placing over last year, but it took some creativity to get there. See, Jerald broke some spokes during one of the descents. With no chance of dropping out, he scooted bike to the nearest shop along the race course and they repaired it for him! He climbed back into the route and finished 25th out of 85 riders! The guy's a mountain goat and nothing can stop him!
Kevan, Todd, Blake, Jim, Chad and I all contested the 111 mile ULCER Team TT. The weather felt more like November than August. It was cold! Having the max 6 rider line up was a huge benefit this year and we were able to create quite the draft on the first half of the course. Kevan, Todd and Blake peeled off for the duration leaving me, Chad and Jim to bring it home. I wish I could say I was a huge contributor to the effort, but this was all Chad Holmes! His pulls were wicked strong and he never showed any sign of letting up. The headwind was fierce! Jim, having just completed the 170 mile Tour of Park City and me, having put in intense miles but not long miles this year, really limped to the finish. When we cross the line, we did so in 5 hrs 17 minutes, good enough for 7th place. I have yet to see the full results, but that time beat all the other classes winers, so we feel good about what we accomplished. Looking forward to next year!
Our ladies continued their strong rides as well. Jaqueline Mason rode her goal time in the 60 mile edition of the ULCER. She has been busy this summer riding the Tour of Riverton and will ride the Legacy Parkway ride in Seprember. Keep up the good work Jaqueline!
We also had Todd and Blake riding in the 1000 Warriors ride. This is a charity ride supporting military families that runs along the "queen stage" of the Tour of Utah. It finishes with the grueling 10 mile Snowbird Hillclimb. The race suffered a terrible accident in the beginning as one rider went through the rear window of a lead car. Todd and Blake weren't involved, but we hate to hear of things like
that! Todd was feeling some knee pain and decided to call it early. He needs those knees for LOTOJA. Blake finsihed strong however and it was all for a good cause!
Up next is LOTOJA then a season ending crit at the U of U. We have Todd, Blake, Greg and Jerlad all racing Cat 5 this year for the whole 206 miles. Kevan, Targhee, Cory, Tim and I will once again take on the relay, hoping to improve on our 16 place out of 50 from last year. Rob and Rhonda will also do some marital therapy in the 2 person relay. Good luck to everyone! This is what most of us train all year for!
Jerald Olsen once again tackled the insanely difficult RANATAD, the race around Nebo and Timpanogos in a day. The combination of mileage, heat and 12,000 feet of climbing make this race a doozy. Jerald improved on his time and placing over last year, but it took some creativity to get there. See, Jerald broke some spokes during one of the descents. With no chance of dropping out, he scooted bike to the nearest shop along the race course and they repaired it for him! He climbed back into the route and finished 25th out of 85 riders! The guy's a mountain goat and nothing can stop him!
Kevan, Todd, Blake, Jim, Chad and I all contested the 111 mile ULCER Team TT. The weather felt more like November than August. It was cold! Having the max 6 rider line up was a huge benefit this year and we were able to create quite the draft on the first half of the course. Kevan, Todd and Blake peeled off for the duration leaving me, Chad and Jim to bring it home. I wish I could say I was a huge contributor to the effort, but this was all Chad Holmes! His pulls were wicked strong and he never showed any sign of letting up. The headwind was fierce! Jim, having just completed the 170 mile Tour of Park City and me, having put in intense miles but not long miles this year, really limped to the finish. When we cross the line, we did so in 5 hrs 17 minutes, good enough for 7th place. I have yet to see the full results, but that time beat all the other classes winers, so we feel good about what we accomplished. Looking forward to next year!
Our ladies continued their strong rides as well. Jaqueline Mason rode her goal time in the 60 mile edition of the ULCER. She has been busy this summer riding the Tour of Riverton and will ride the Legacy Parkway ride in Seprember. Keep up the good work Jaqueline!
We also had Todd and Blake riding in the 1000 Warriors ride. This is a charity ride supporting military families that runs along the "queen stage" of the Tour of Utah. It finishes with the grueling 10 mile Snowbird Hillclimb. The race suffered a terrible accident in the beginning as one rider went through the rear window of a lead car. Todd and Blake weren't involved, but we hate to hear of things like
that! Todd was feeling some knee pain and decided to call it early. He needs those knees for LOTOJA. Blake finsihed strong however and it was all for a good cause!
Up next is LOTOJA then a season ending crit at the U of U. We have Todd, Blake, Greg and Jerlad all racing Cat 5 this year for the whole 206 miles. Kevan, Targhee, Cory, Tim and I will once again take on the relay, hoping to improve on our 16 place out of 50 from last year. Rob and Rhonda will also do some marital therapy in the 2 person relay. Good luck to everyone! This is what most of us train all year for!
Friday, July 31, 2009
Team Update: The women ride, crits and more!
It has been an exciting summer so far for Team Excelerator p/b Pinnacle Auto Company. While the hillclimb took up a lot of time and attention, team riders have been busy riding and racing.
Two of our ladies rode in the Little Red Riding Hood tour in June. Derai Paul and Emily Price enjoyed brisk but pleasant weather in Logan. Over 2500 women participated in total. Emily rode the 36 mile option while Derai pushed herself hard to complete the 45 mile option. Derai is riding this year after dusting off her bike. She last rode regularly 16 years ago! She's been getting back into things this year and has already put her goal time for next year on her to do list. We had the team car there to support and there were plenty of families around as well. This female only ride benefits breast cancer research and it was a great day for all involved. Great job ladies!
The Ogden Cash Crits have been well attended by TE riders as well. Ben Towery was successful in not only finding someone to watch his daughter so he could race but put one in the W column for TE as well, winning a prime 2 weeks ago and then taking 3rd in last nights final crit. He missed 2nd by a tire width! Check out the photos on http://www.jossiephoto.com/. Ben also finished a respectable 13th in the Chalk Creek Road Race last weekend. This was the race where he crashed last year, so it was nice to get that monkey off his back.
Coming up for TE is the ULCER Team TT. Ben, Kevan and Jim took 7th out of 22 last year in this event. This year the team is stacked with these 3 being joined by Chad Holmes, Todd Anderson and Blake Mason. The goal is to break the 5 hour barrier for the 111 mile race. And our resident mountain goat, Jerald Olsen, will once again tackle the RANATAD, the Race Around Nebo and Timpanogos is a Day. Good luck to all!!
And finally, The local outdoor TV show, At Your Leisure, aired and excellent piece on the Powder Mountain Hillclimb. If you didn't catch the show, here's a link to the clip:
http://www.atyourleisure.info/episodes.asp?season=7&episode=47&category=4
Two of our ladies rode in the Little Red Riding Hood tour in June. Derai Paul and Emily Price enjoyed brisk but pleasant weather in Logan. Over 2500 women participated in total. Emily rode the 36 mile option while Derai pushed herself hard to complete the 45 mile option. Derai is riding this year after dusting off her bike. She last rode regularly 16 years ago! She's been getting back into things this year and has already put her goal time for next year on her to do list. We had the team car there to support and there were plenty of families around as well. This female only ride benefits breast cancer research and it was a great day for all involved. Great job ladies!The Ogden Cash Crits have been well attended by TE riders as well. Ben Towery was successful in not only finding someone to watch his daughter so he could race but put one in the W column for TE as well, winning a prime 2 weeks ago and then taking 3rd in last nights final crit. He missed 2nd by a tire width! Check out the photos on http://www.jossiephoto.com/. Ben also finished a respectable 13th in the Chalk Creek Road Race last weekend. This was the race where he crashed last year, so it was nice to get that monkey off his back.
Coming up for TE is the ULCER Team TT. Ben, Kevan and Jim took 7th out of 22 last year in this event. This year the team is stacked with these 3 being joined by Chad Holmes, Todd Anderson and Blake Mason. The goal is to break the 5 hour barrier for the 111 mile race. And our resident mountain goat, Jerald Olsen, will once again tackle the RANATAD, the Race Around Nebo and Timpanogos is a Day. Good luck to all!!
And finally, The local outdoor TV show, At Your Leisure, aired and excellent piece on the Powder Mountain Hillclimb. If you didn't catch the show, here's a link to the clip:
http://www.atyourleisure.info/episodes.asp?season=7&episode=47&category=4
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Powder Mountain Hillclimb p/b Diamond Peak Mountain Sports
Eden, UT - The first ever Powder Mountain Hillclimb, presented by Diamond Peak Mountain Sports, was held this past weekend in the Ogden Valley. The road bicycle race, organized by Team Excelerator, attracted weekend warriors and elite riders alike. 50 cyclists lined up on SR 158 to tackle one of the toughest bicycle climbs in the west. Chris Hong, a rider for the elite Bob’s Bicycles team, said that this was one of the toughest races he’s ever done. Chris was using this race to tune up for the Tour of Utah which runs in August. He finished first in the Men’s Pro/Cat 1/2 division and third overall.
The battle for the fastest time to the top, an almost 6 mile, 3300 ft slog up to Powder Mountain Resort from Wolf Creek Utah, was fast and furious for the best climbers. 15 year old Keegan Swenson of Cole Sport, Nathan Cisney from Rooster’s Brewing Co. and Hong were absolutely railing it up the road. Hong attacked Swenson and was able to gap a bit, but Swenson’s steady tempo proved too much and Hong was eventually overtaken. It was then Swenson and Cisney who battled it out for top honors. In the last grueling mile Cisney wasa bale to pull ahead and finish in a standard setting time of 41 min 20 sec taking the overall and 1st in the Men’s Cat 5 division. Swenson was only 30 seconds back good enough for second overall and 1st in the Men’s Cat 4 class. Hong crossed the finish line 2 min 9 sec back.Everyone who finished this race can consider themselves winners, says event
promoter, Ben Towery of Team Excelerator (shown here rockin' out). He was very pleased with the turnout and the quality of the riders who competed. The weather was absolutely perfect and the difficulty of the ride was countered by the beauty of the Ogden Valley.Team Excelerator p/b Pinnacle Auto Company was well represented with 9 riders. Jerald Olsen, Kevan Steed, Greg Stuart, Kirk Johnson, Cub Newton, Mike Christoperson, Todd Anderson, Blake Mason and old friend Jim Gilland. All put in an outstanding effort and we thank them for representing the team well!
A very special thanks goes out to the sponsors of the race: Diamond Peak Mountain Sports, Rooster’s Brewing Co., Peregrine Health, Powder Mountain, Wolf Creek Utah and EBSI Websites.
Full event category winners:
Overall: Nathan Cisney (shown below right)
Full event category winners:
Overall: Nathan Cisney (shown below right)
Men Pro/Cat 1 /2: Christopher Hong
Jr. 10-18: Kyle Wright
Men Cat 3: Manny Cypers
Men Cat 4: Keegan Swenson
Women Cat 4: Lisa White
Men Cat 5: Nathan Cisney
Male Masters 55+: Shannon Storrud
Male Masters 45+: Todd Flitton
Female Masters 35+: Vicky Nielson
Male Masters 35+: Dan Minert
Jr. 10-18: Kyle Wright
Men Cat 3: Manny Cypers
Men Cat 4: Keegan SwensonWomen Cat 4: Lisa White
Men Cat 5: Nathan Cisney
Male Masters 55+: Shannon Storrud
Male Masters 45+: Todd Flitton
Female Masters 35+: Vicky Nielson
Male Masters 35+: Dan Minert
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Team Update
Team Excelerator p/b Pinnacle Auto Company is in high gear as the season moves forward. As you can see, our presenting sponsor, Pinnacle Auto Company has outfitted the team with a sweet Jaguar team car! Matrix Signs did an awesome job on the graphics as well! Look for the car at events around the states and of course when you take a trip to Lehi to shop for a car!Two of our ladies will be riding the Little Red Riding Hood tour this weekend. Emily Price and Derai Paul will be in Logan to participate in one of the biggest women only rides around. Good luck to them both! We'll be there to cheer them on. On June 13th, look for TE to contest the Utah State Road Race Championships during the Little Mountain Road Race in Logan as well. Kirk and Marcy Johnson will also be riding on June 13th to support the fight against diabetes in the Tour de Cure in Brigham city.
And, as you can see from the pic below, TE doesn't just ride on the road. We have triathletes, mountain bikers and cyclocrossers as well. This is Rob Perkins, owner of one of our sposnors, Peregrine Health, running in the St. George Tri. We have some talented and dedicated athletes and we're proud to support them all.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Utah State Crit Champs and Bear Lake Classic
Team Excelerator p/b Pinnacle Auto Company's racing season is in full swing. This past 2 weeks has seen TE racers in the Utah State Criterium Championships and the Bear Lake Classic. 
Kevan and Ben took it on the chin in the Cat 4 crit champs in downtown Salt Lake City. These 2 guys made the jump from Cat 5 to Cat 4 this year and are learning quite a bit about racing and the kind of fitness needed to compete at the next level. It looks like it will take some time to get their legs under them, but they're putting up a great effort. To fulfill the goal of at least being with the lead groups, Kevan and Ben have significantly increased their training intensity. No longer will just getting out to ride suffice, so training has become more technical and focused. The next race these 2 will be June 13th for the Utah State Road Racing Championships at Little Mountain.
Jerald Olsen contested the Bear Lake Classic and notched TE's best result of the season so far. Jerald contested a group sprint for the finish of the 50 mile lap of Bear Lake and came in 15th out of 50 riders. The finish was close as he was mere seconds off the podium. Jerald has seen continual improvement over the last 2 years and he really deserved this great result. Kevan was registered for the event but came down with pneumonia. He's assured us he hasn't been kissing any pigs, so H1N1 isn't the worry.You'll see TE riders at the RMR crits and the Cash Crits in Ogden starting in June. Good luck to all!
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
East Canyon and Antelope Island Road Races
The past 2 weekends have seen TE riders in the East Canyon Road Race and Antelope Island Classic. Both races provided a great early season challenge for our riders. Of the last 7 weekends in Utah, only one has been sunny and dry. Niether of these races fell on that weekend and what were already tough races were made even tougher with cold, wind and rain.
Kevan Steed, Greg Stuart, Todd Anderson, Blake Mason and Ben Towery all tackled the Antelope Island Classic out on the Great Salt Lake. Conditions were nothing less than epic with rain falling steadily almost the entire race.
Todd, Blake and Greg all contested the Cat 5 class in the same brutal conditions. Greg and Todd both suffered flats but got back on the horse and finished strong. I think most everyone involved were happy to have that race over with. Our clothes were balck and soaked and it took quite a while to get warm. Congrats to all involved.
Jerald Olsen was the lone TE rep at East Canyon. The race starts with a brutal, steep climb. It tends to seprate the group. Even with an injured back, Jerald attacked the hill with strength and held on the rest of the race to finish his first race of the season strong. Jerlad travels a lot for work, but takes his bike wherever he goes. I'm sure he puts more miles under his tires than anyone else on the team.
Kevan Steed, Greg Stuart, Todd Anderson, Blake Mason and Ben Towery all tackled the Antelope Island Classic out on the Great Salt Lake. Conditions were nothing less than epic with rain falling steadily almost the entire race.For Kevan and Ben, who are racing up one class from last year as Cat 4's, the race was eye opening. This is a super competitive group with strong weekend warriors and aspiring prod alike. The race started on the causeway and the leaders set a blistering pace of 28 mph. With spray from the tires, finding a good line to draft was difficult. We were soaked instantly.
Once on the island, we did 3 laps of the inner loop then took a 10 out and back to the south end of Antelope. It was here that all involved needed to prove their metal. Ben and Kevan took turns pulling each other ro finish near mid pack, which was the goal for this first race.
Todd, Blake and Greg all contested the Cat 5 class in the same brutal conditions. Greg and Todd both suffered flats but got back on the horse and finished strong. I think most everyone involved were happy to have that race over with. Our clothes were balck and soaked and it took quite a while to get warm. Congrats to all involved.Next up is the Utah State Crit Champs in downtown SLC. TE shines in the crits and we have high expectations. Hopefully our training lives up to that!
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