Chalk Creek Road Race

It seems as though Team Excelerator has hit a streak of bad luck, with 3 crashes in 4 weeks, 2 while racing and one on a training ride. Ben Towery was the un-lucky rider this time around at the Chalk Creek Road Race.

Ben, Joel, Jim and Casey all represented this past weekend for TE. Casey made the jump from Cat 5 to Cat 4 and put in a strong race with Joel. The Cat 4 group is dominated by team tactics, but Casey and Joel are strong enough riders to hold there own. They finished strong with main pack. Jim finished in the top half of his Master's 55+ class. He's made a strong recovery since his traing crash just a few weeks ago. It is exciting to see the team progress through the classes and make themselves known.

Ben made himself known as well, a bit more for his bike and body ending wrong side up on the pavement, however. After winning a prime in last Thursday's final Ogden Cash Crit, he had a ton of motivation going into Saturday's race. A long gradual climb out and a fast downhill back to the finish suited him well. After working hard to stay with the leaders, a few attacked at the turn around. Ben and 3 others managed to bridge back to the front 10 or so leaders when Ben took his eyes of the wheel in front of him a a split second, hit it and then hit the ground. He put his bike back together and managed to finish the race in 27th place out of 50 riders. Bloody, bruised and showing bit too much skin, but a strong finish indeed.

Ben will now join Jim Gilland and Kevan Steed in the ULCER 111 Mile Team Time Trial. Cory Price will also be putting in the grueling and hot ULCER miles with his bro-in-law. Our long hauler Jerald Olsen will spend Aug 4th doing the RANATAD, a 160 mile suffer fest with 12,000 feet of climbing through the Mountains of Utah County. After that, we've got the Snowbird Hillclimb and then LOTOJA. Good luck to all and lets keep the rubber side down, eh boys!

Team Update

Even without the updates, Team Excelerator has been busy the past few weeks. There's been some good training miles put in and some great racing at the Cash Crits.

Casey, Jerald and Russ have been hitting some climbs up the divide and Powder Mountain. Brett Poor has been putting some miles on getting ready for LOTOJA. He ran a marathon this spring and says its good to be back on the bike. Kevan, Ben and Jim also did some climbing up The Divide and Old Snowbasin Road, doing some recon for the Mt Ogden Road Race. Jim hit the pavement, then dirt on Old Snowbasin. He was bloodied up a bit and his helmet looked as though it saved his life. He soldiered on however. Targhee and Cory actually ran into Jim out in Eden on their trip around the valley the next day. Way to get back on it, Jim!

Coming up for TE is the remainder of the Cash Crits at BDO, then the Mt Ogden Road Race Aug 2nd. Aug 9th will see TE represented at the ULCER and Huntsville 100. A week later is the Snowbird Hillclimb. Then on to LOTOJA. There are 12 TE racers participating in LOTOJA this year. We'll be well represented! Good luck!

Team Excelerator Wins Again!

For the third time in as many weeks, Team Excelerator took 1st place at the Ogden Cash Crits. Here's how it went down

TE had 4 riders in the B Flight. Casey Marker, Targhee Child, Ben Towery and Russ Parry. The pack started slow but answered each breakaway by bridging to the leaders. TE didn't contest the prime laps but kept in touch with the leaders. The pace stayed hot for the duration. With multiple teammates, the Biker's Edge guys tried to send off a rider and block the pack. To counter, TE, with some help from Bingham's, wedged their way in between their foes to keep the break from getting away. As the last lap approached, TE's rivals kept up the break and block moves until Casey broke away 1/4 of the way into the lap. Russ, Ben and Targhee were content with letting their teammate go and the rest of the field had no answer. Casey solo'ed the rest of the way for an emphatic win. Ben and Russ held their own in the field sprint while Targhee finished his second crit strong.

Congrats to all involved! And thanks to our sponsors, Price Orthodontics, The Bike Shoppe, Vitality Nutrition, Mountain Valley Health Services, Business Law Associates, Slacker Sack and Bunnell Concepts for making Team Excelerator possible.

Utah Road Racing Championships

TE riders Ben Towery, Kevan Steed, Jerald Olson, Russ Parry and Joel Rackem raced in the Utah State Road racing Championships this past weekend. The weather was beautiful, if not just a tad warm.
The Cat 5 men, Ben, Kavan, Jerlad and Russ, raced around the 16 mile loop 3 times. The last half of the course took the riders up a steep, 1 mile climb that had the potential to really break up the group. The pack completed the first lap and a half together with Ben pulling up front once or twice. The second climb was decisive however. Ben, Kevan and Jerald fell back a bit, but Russ soldiered on. After a windy last lap, Russ took 11th, Ben 22nd, Jerald 25th and Kevan came in at 26th in the 40 + rider field. Joel also took 11th in the competitive Cat 4 field.

TE also keeps showing its strength on the crit course in Ogden. After 2 victories, Ben will now mix it up with Joel, Russ and Casey in the B flight on Thursday nights. Look for Targhee Child to keep improving as well in the C flight. The Thursday night crits a make a great family outing and are very spectator friendly.

Emily Price had a great time at the Little Red Riding Hood Century and TE riders will be representing at the High Unitas Classic this weekend. Good Luck to all!

Sugarhouse Crit

Another great day for TE riders! Russ Perry took first place at the Sugarhouse Crit. He set himself up for the perfect sprint and pulled off a big win. Congrats to all TE racers these past few weeks. We've been able to show depth, versatility and good sportsmanship.

Ogden Cash Crits

Its been a busy couple of weeks for Team Excelerator. We've been at the Salt Lake Century, Garden Creek Gap Circuit Race and Ogden Cash Crits.

Casey Marker is proving to be a force to be reckoned with. At the Garden Creek Gap race in Idaho, he pulled off a top 10 finish even after flatting on the last lap of the circuit.

The Cash Crits in Ogden have also been fruitful for Team Excelerator racers. Casey again put forth an awesome effort in the B flight on Thursday June 5th and sprinted for a 3rd place. He has joked that he should tattoo a big number 3 on his calf as this was Casey's third 3rd place finish this season!

Ben and Targhee put together a great team effort in the C flight. Targhee led the group out until the first prime lap. He set up Ben nicely for a big sprint helping Ben win the first prime. The second prime went uncontested by TE, but the pace picked up after that. Ben joined 2 others in a breakaway on the last 2 laps and out sprinted his rivals to take a decisive first place. Targhee finished strong in the group sprint. You'll find these and other Team Excelerator riders at the Ogden Cash Crits every Thursday night at Business Depot Ogden this summer.

Up next for the team is the Little Red Riding Hood Century for our lone female rider, Emily Price. Jerald Olson will contest the Draper Hill Climb. Then the Utah State Road Race Championships are on June 14th and The High Unitas Classic on June 21st. Watch for Ben to try and transfer his crit winning form to a road race and Kevan and Jerald to prove their climbing abiltiy at the State Champs. Look for Casey as well to break his lock on 3rd place at the High Uintas. He's a powerful climber which should suit him well from Kamas to Evanston.

Bear Lake Classic

This past weekend provided for some great racing up at Bear Lake for TE. Casey, Kevan, Joel and Russ all represented and represented well. Russ took 5th in Cat 5 A while Casey did the same in Cat 5 B. Kevan hammered into the top 10 in the same class. The weather was beautiful and for those who haven't done that race before, its definitley one to put on your calendar for next year.

I was entered to race knowing however my wife could go into labor anytime with our first child. That happened on Thursday May 15th and Damia Abigail was born later that day. She was 6 lbs 12 oz and happy and healthy. The happiest day of my life.

Up next for TE is the Salt Lake Century this weekend. There will also be a few of us up in Idaho for the Garden Gap Road Race. Also, our lone female rider, Emily Price will be doing the Little Red Riding Hood century on June 7th. The Ogden cash crits are also going on at BDO on Thursday nights. Watch for TE riders to score top finishes there as well.

Good luck to all!