Apr 26: Erie Time Trial

Another Western Pa. Individual Time Trial season began this weekend with at the Iroquois Sports Boosters, Presque Isle State Park, Erie, Pa., Individual Time Trial.

For the Spring event, the first of three races at this venue each year, we had a good turnout:

Ray Sielski - 8th Place (50-54 Age Group), 74th Place Overall

Dave Hickey - 7th Place (40-44 Age Group), 44th Place Overall

Rich Allen - 5th Place (50-54 Age Group), 58th Place Overall

Steve Marlette - 2nd Place (45-49 Age Group), 9th Place Overall (Personal Record)

...with Steve receiving a Plaque from the race promoter for his Podium Finish:

(Photo by Shelly O'Keefe)

As always, we all hung out for a hour after everyone else was gone from the site, taking in the sun, talking about the race, and dreaming of the exciting summer season to come.

(Photo by Shelly O'Keefe)

On "Injured Reserve" were SuperFans, Sam (aqualung) Morrison, and me, Henry (wounded knee) Dimmick!

Additionally, we had some "retired"(!) Teammates come out for this event:

Jim Miller - 7th Place (35-39 Age Group), 49th Place Overall

Donnie Panizales - 11th Place (35-39 Age Group), 99th Overall

Dave Kramer - 23rd Place (45-49 Age Group), 80th Place Overall

...and one new friend from ProBikes...

Craig Cozza - 7th Place (45-49 Age Group), 30th Place Overall

A beautiful day in Erie, and perfect conditions on the course...a rare occasion to be sure!

Apr 25: Round-Up ReRun

Mike Maher, still on his quest to race a half marathon in May, competed in his second 10K run of the month. This time it was the Round-Up ReRun in Delmont, Pa. Mike finished 21st overall, 4th in the 40-49 age group, with a time of 51:57.9, or a pace of 8:23 per mile. Always one to believe that "Misery Loves Company", Mike convinced his daughter Sierra to run as well. She finished the 5k race 64th overall, 2nd in the U14 age group, with a time of 32:59.1 or a pace of 10:38 per mile. Now, if we could just get him to cut one of his cycling jerseys into a running singlet :)

Apr 19: 2009 Mingo RR Final

Pneumonia is a hard word to spell.

...and having failed a Physician conducted spelling bee (and x-ray), Sam Morrison was prohibited from racing in the 3rd of 3 races of this long running road race series...putting in jeopardy his ability to retain the Series Points lead in the USACycling Cat 4/5 competition.

But, as luck sometimes has it... a combination of who showed for the races and the result of the 15-man sprint finish, Sam was able to pocket the prize, and the money, for the SERIES CHAMPIONSHIP :) ... or "here", on the ACARacing site.

Mark Briercheck was the only Ag3r racer this day, ending in 23rd in the Cat 1/2/3 race.

While not racing, Sam and I were Corner-Marshals at the top of the descent (me) and the bottom of the descent (Sam)... so between the three of us, there was Ag3r ALL OVER the course!~

Interestingly, this is our 3rd Cat 4/5 Championship.

2001 - Jim Miller

2007 - Brian Hopkins

2009 - Sam Morrison

Apr 14/15: ACA Criteriums

Still on the gas (at the time), Sam Morrison raced 2 Allegheny Cycling Association criteriums this week. On Tuesday, he raced the USACycling Cat 4/5 race. (Sam remains a Cat 4 road racer until his most recent results get posted by the promotors to USACycling, so that they can approve his upgrade request to Category 3). He finished 2nd in this race, collecting multiple mid-race prizes ("primes") along the way. On Wednesday, he raced the USACycling Cat 3/4 race. The story of this race, was that he and his two Team Funny Bunny "teammates"(!), attacked the group in the closing laps... just as one was caught by the peleton, the next would attack, and so forth. When asked where they finished, they replied, "We didn't get lapped"!!! "Results" like this emphasize one of Ag3r's mottos, "If you can't be great...anni-mate" ------------------ During the Wednesday (Apr 15) Cat 1/2/3 race, Dave Shaffer was able to pull off a 10th Place finish in his first criterium of the season.

Apr 11: Morgantown Road Race

Thanks to Fred Jorden for the above photo.

Sam Morrison ventured south onto the hills of West Virginia to attend the Morgantown, 47 mile, Cat 4/5, Road Race this past Easter weekend. After 22 miles of flatland "warm-up", the race headed for the sky. During the climbs, Sam initiated or followed multiple attacks, whittling the group down from 50 ...to 15 ...then to 10. Somehow, somewhere near the end of the race, maybe during a brief encounter with trailing riders from a earlier-started race, one of their group slipped off the front undetected, soloing to the race win. Unknown to Sam as he approached the line, he let loose his new found sprint, claiming what he thought was a victory for Pennsylvania, only to learn that he was left kissing his sister in West Virginia(!) ...taking 2nd Place on the day!!! With this excellent result, Sam has now solidified his USACycling requirements in order to upgrade his road racing license from Category 4 to Category 3 ...where he will certainly find more difficult competition, but where he will surely demonstrate his maturing strength. Congratulations Sam :)

Apr 04: You Can Run & You Can't Hide

Story by Mike Maher Two years back for some silly reason during a moment of obvious weekness, I agreed to run a 1/2 marathon with a buddy. I'm not saying that my faculties were altered by mind altering substances, but I won'tdeny it either. Me and running is a bad combo. First of all I'm slow. Secondly and more descriptively, I run like a fat chick in snow shoes. But I've always had great respect for runners and he was a good friend so I reluctantly agreed. After bike season I started running and was up to 9 miles when in acompletely unrelated incident, I blew out my ACL and the dream /nightmare died. Or so I thought. 2 years later... That terrible feeling of unfulfilled goals came creeping back. So there I was on Saturday morning, 35 degrees and drizzling, standing at the starting line of a 10k wondering if a training race was really necessary. The brochure said 6.2 miles of gently rolling hills, a beautiful and rural scenic course almost sounded like fun....right? Well the gun goes off, the rabbits are GONE! Nothing like a bike race where I can always hang on for at least for a little bit. Not here. The wind is howling and I duck in behind a big dude. Hah! I know how to draft.The gently rolling hills turn into 3.1 miles straight down. At about 2.5miles I started to think how are we going to get back to the finish?Then I see the aforementioned rabbits running back up hill. Oh $hit! That was a LONG way down. I make the turn and the hill starts up. Not too bad though and I'm feeling pretty good. Then the hill turns steeper at mile 5 and the 30mph wind hits me head on. I work pretty hard into the finish and was pleasantly surprised to find I was 2 minutes under my best case scenario time... 5th in my age group. Not too bad considering the snow shoes! So all is good and on target for my 1/2 marathon in May. Wish me Luck!

Apr 05: Mingo Park #2

An unusual day today for the second installment of the 2009 Mingo Park Road Race Series ... 40-50 degF and Sun!

Being temporarily sidelined with a swollen knee, I (Henry Dimmick) marshalled the "Mike Friedman Corner" at the top of the descent. A few years ago, Mike (Garmin-Chipotle) took this turn too hot, crossed the (middle line) and crashed head on into a car stopped waiting for the riders to pass.

Cat 4/5 Race:

Sam Morrison - 1st Place

After multiple attacks on the climb by Jake Grantham (ProBikes),

...five riders, including...

...were able to stay off on a breakaway. These 6, with a group of five more chasing them, went to the sprint, with the WIN taken by Sam Morrison...moving him into 1st Place in the Series with one race remaining. Jake finished with a well deserved 3rd Place.

Cat 1/2/3 Race

Mark Briercheck - (20th Place)

Dave Shaffer - (21+)

Master 50+ Race

T.Lyle Ferderber (8th Place) ... moving him into 9th Place in the Series.

After the Awards ceremony, Sam RODE home ... from (near Washington, Pa.) clear up to Butler! Last we heard from him, he was about 10 miles outside Butler... estimating a 130 mile day. Simply Awesome :)

Ag3r now "Powered by ProBikes"

One of the certainties of bike racing is that cyclists "need" to buy all kinds of bike stuff! So while aligning our team with one shop in particular may place (drive time) hurdles in front of our riders, there are many things we get in return. Things we look for, and what made ProBikes our shop of choice, are: The People... ProBikes employees are a collection of young racing enthusiasts who embrace cycling as a way of life, not just a job. The Service... ProBikes has already demonstrated that they are willing to provide special attention to Ag3r in return for our dedication to buying our bikes and equipment through their shop. The Selection... Ag3r has been racing Cannondale bicycles since 1997... following the brand for a 12th year to ProBikes. In addition to being the leading Cannondale dealer in the Pittsburgh Area, ProBikes also offers Specialized, Seven, Giant, Bianchi and Independent Fabricators as well as clothing and accessories from Cannondale, Specialized, Patagonia, Smart Wool, Arc Terx, Endura and North Face. Watch for a picture and HotLink to ProBikes to show up on the right sidebar sometime soon! In the mean time, you can check out their site at http://www.probikesllc.com/, or better yet, visit one of their stores in Squirrel Hill, Monroeville or across the street from South Hills Village.

New Jersey Rt29 Time Trial

3 years in the making, Brian Hopkins opened up a can of Pennsylvania Whoop-A** on a bunch of New Jersey boys, bringing home the Overall Win in a 36k Individual Time Trial. Read Brian's Story at http://www.briansbikeblog.blogspot.com/

Mingo Park Road Race

The start of the Western Pa. cycling season has been marked for many years by the Mingo Road Race Series (Houston, Pa) ...a history built as much on the weather as the race itself. This year's weather did NOT dissapoint! Cat 4/5 Race Sam Morrison - 3rd Place By Sam Morrison: I hate cold. The whole ride down I was cringing watching the rain. Once the race started, Jake (Pro Bikes) and I attacked on the first hill. Unfortunately, no one drew and we weren't prepared to spend the whole race by ourselves so we drifted back. Iron City was there with 3 or 4 riders and tried to control the race. I went with every group but none worked, until a group of 4 slipped away on the descent into the finish. I realized they weren't coming back when we passed through the finish line. At the base of the hill we passed Shaffes and Briercheck and they gave a hearty yell, so I had to attack and bridge up just to justify the cheering. I snagged the breakaway halfway up the hill and managed to not totally blow the 7 man sprint (two guys bridged up the next lap). See more at http://www.samlikesbikes.blogspot.com/ Cat 1/2/3 Race Crossing together... Mark Briercheck - 20th Dave Shaffer - 21st By Mark Briercheck: Sunday morning was a BEAUTIFUL COLD RAIN during registration and a heavy swirling wind out on the course. The entire backstretch up to the climb had a straight on head wind that would make one want to cry. A true Spring race climate! Shaffes slipped off the back on the 2nd time up the hill but managed to climb back on for the descent. At the start of the 3rd climb he was done. I got dropped at the top of the 3rd hill and didn’t have the power to jump back on for the descent. Gah. So Shaffe’s and I were back together by the 5th lap and then we just finished the race out together. Overall we didn’t feel too bad because we saw a lot of other typical ‘Strong Men’ pedaling their bikes home with their tails between their legs.

Blue Peeps?

Dave Shaffer, Mark Briercheck, Mark Hess and Rob Gaus enjoyed the chilly but sunny weekend weather with a ride around Elwood City. During their loop, a long time Easter favorite was re-discovered... Marshmellow Peeps! Rob Gaus and Dave said, "The heck with Powerbars"...

While Mark Hess simply liked the way the peeps matched his jacket...

But Mark Briercheck (and his horse!) turned their noses up at the whole thing mumbling something about, "... their inorganic non-yuppie flavor..."!!!

We will see if Peep-Food catches on in the Peleton! Personally, I like them best after they get ROCK HARD stale!

Lake Ontelaunee TT

For the second year in a row, Brian Hopkins was Ag3r's first racer of the calendar year. "My first race of the year was this weekend it went well but could still be better. Now I get to reevaluate my training and make some changes." Always the perfectionist, Brian: Won his category, while (temporarily) setting a new course record, then losing it to ultimately end up in 2nd Place Overall. Check it out Here!

New "Worm"...?

"Asphalt is for Racing...Dirt is for Worms"... ...is the Ag3r Roadie motto! However, our "Ag3r Worms" say: Either way, a new Worm may have joined our ranks! With the purchase of a 2008 Demo (used) 29er MTB from ProBikes in Squirrel Hill, Hunter Dimmick has entered the "pleasurable" world of Mountain Bike ownership! His first ride was a 20 degF, windy, Rail-to-Trails ride, which included some snow drift surfing!

So, he proved he will ride in the cold & snow...

..but will he ride in the mud? Only time will tell :)

Greetings from sunny Florida!

Unlike the rest of my teammates who have been riding in the cold of winter and across frozen lakes and such I have spent the last 3 weeks in Southern Florida. I've been putting in some pretty big miles (by my standards, not Sam's) and I've finally got back on my TT bike. It seems to take a while after being off my TT bike for so long but things are finally starting to feel "right" again.It was really windy on my ride today and I got pretty beat up but considering it was also 74 degrees and sunny who am I to complain. Been doing some cross training also................not really but I was forced to go so I figure I may as well make it sound like I was training. Don't worry, I rode 52 miles later that day when I got home

Riding on Water

Some of the best rides can only be done (once) a year.

After a bit of road riding, followed by some snowmobile trails, and a stretch of hike-a-bike, we made our way to Moraine State Park Lake for today's ride!

At first, we were full of energy, with Sam and Richy racing each other until Sam found a bit of a snow drift, and over the bars he went!

What may have seemed a bit boring at first, turned into quite a winter workout... and a few gaps opened between riders!

Clear out here... there was no cell phone signal...

...and landmarks were few and far between.

We learned that ice cares not of Studded Tires, nor of Studded Riders!

But there were some fun and games...

...along with a bit of "Island Hopping"...

...with a strange group of "neighbors" proving we were NOT in Kansas anymore!

Near the end of the ride, the ice had melted quite a bit...

...leading to a 3-man, insantaneous & simultaneous crash!

We were all CRUSHED from this seemingly "easy" ride, but we had a great time!

It's a love hate thing......

Did a loop on the fixie this afternoon...around 20 mi. Now in my opinion riding a fixie is one of the best and fastest ways to get into shape....this is the love part...... to read more and see what i found today click here

No Winter Maintenance

Today was a beautiful day for a pre-Super Bowl ride! So while Sam went out with a local C3-Sollay rider for a 7 hour mtb ride(!!!), Frosty and I hit a collection of No Winter Maintenance roads for some packed snow CX grinding! We started by climbing with Jerome(!)... Then followed a few Snowmobiles...

Doing wheelies into snow drifts along the way...

Confirming that behind every Great Team.. is another Great Team :)

Let's Go STEELERS :)