Tour of Ohio FINAL

Well we pulled it off! We raced great once again as a team and completed a great week of racing for Team Inferno. I played my cards right and let a move go away for the 1st bit of the race and they ate up the sprint points so I kept my green jersey for the 4th year in a row. We looked after Matt as the weather went to complete craziness with 40mph gusts and hail. The race was shortened a bit and we drove the race pretty good into town so Matt and Bennett could have a clean look at the finishing climb. It was quit crazy as the weather was wet and crazy and the course was crazy enough in the dry. In the end the boys rode great with Matt finishing off the week with a 3rd place and Bennett had a great ride as well moving up and taking the College Jersey as well. Joe also held onto the Polka Dot Jersey making it a clean sweep of the jerseys this year.

We had a great week of racing and the team really raced well together especially since it was the 1st time a few of us had ridden together. I am happy I had some form although I still have some work to do to get back to top shape. Only having 3 weeks or so of training going into this definitely hurt me in the hills but hopefully I will come out of this super fit and ready to rock the rest of the year.

Time for some rest today as the team is gonna roll over and have a few quite beers (just a few) poolside. Should make for some good fun.

Tour of Ohio Update

Stage 2 - Hocking Hills

Today was by far the hardest stage of the race. 70 miles and tons of hard hills. I was a bit worried about this stage as I usually have to be in pretty great shape to get up the hills. Well since I haven't been back on the bike for very long I wasn't sure how I was gonna go up. We had a good race plan and my job was to cover early. Which I did but my day was over pretty quickly over 1 of the big hills. The boys did a great job looking after Matt and in the end he made the 3 man break taking 2nd to Dan Campbell and Dickie. Matt stayed in 2nd but now by 2 seconds.

Stage 3 - Gambier-Coshocton-Gambier Road Race

This was a tough out and back 70 mile road race. There was 1 sprint basically at the turn-around so my job was to try to get over the hills and contest the sprint. We were hoping to get a break off to eat the points up as we only really needed to watch 1 guy that could take the green jersey from me. We did great placing Joe and Bennett in an early break but the only guy I couldn't let win the sprint went across in a group over the top of one of the hills. The 2 groups joined and the team didn't realize he was there and he won the sprint taking the jersey from me. Joe did a great ride winning a hand full of KOMs and took that jersey. My day was over on the way back as it was too much climbing for me. The team did well again leading Matt out into the final uphill sprint and Matt sealed the deal taking out the sprint for his 1st stage win and the Yellow Jersey.

Stage 4 - Worthington Criterium

This is my hometown race and it just gets better and better every year. The neighborhood seems to be getting into it more every year as well. With 3 sprints today we set out a plan that Josh would help me and we would sit Hayden and Matt for the end. The 1st sprint rolled around and we were all together. Josh gave me a sweet lead out and I left it perfect getting the sprint and leaving Josh to get second ahead of the green jersey. This gave me a 2 point lead now. Soon after another break rolled away with Bennett and no GC threats. So we let it roll out pretty good and it sat about 40 seconds most of the race. The team did a great job covering and letting Hayden and Matt rest. In the end the break came back and we were all together. I was pretty waxed from covering moves but coming through to see 2 laps to go I took Hayden from about 50 guys back to the front and lead him up the hill as far as I could to see 1 to go. I left him in perfect position and was hoping he would cap the day off. Sure enough the world champ came through to win and to make it even better he had Matt in tow for 2nd. Inferno 1-2!! great ride today. Its not often you set a plan out and it works to perfection, but today it did.

So we head into the last day and its a tough one. We head out and do 8 laps around a rolling circuit then head back into Granville for a death circuit with a steep cobbled climb. The race is still wide open and with KOM and Sprint points today as well. We currently hold the Yellow, Green, and Polka Dot jersey and Bennett is close to the Red (collegiate) Jersey as well. It will be a hard day for the team so hopefully we are up for the challenge. Will keep ya updated.

Tour of Ohio Stage 1

Stage 1 was a tight little half mile crit course with a bit of a hill on it. With 100 guys it was bound to be chaos and the promoter decided to make no time splits. So if you lapped the field there was no time benefit and if you got dropped there was no time penalties. Pretty weird but whatever. We field a pretty sick team: Tim Swain, Ryan Gamm, Bennett VG, Joe Cooper, Josh England, Matt Winstead, Hayden Godfrey, and myself.

Our team plan was to keep our GC boys safe and for me and Hayden to go after the 3 sprint jersey sprints and then see how the end played out. I was immediately in the 1st break-away as D Dickey went off the line. Our group swelled to about 10 with Bennett joining me. At one point I thought we would lap but it got shut down in about 15 laps. The race stayed really aggressive but we were all together for the 1st sprint and Josh did a great job leading me to the final corner and I took care of the rest winning the 1st sprint. I stayed out of trouble and on the 2nd sprint there was a group of 5 away and I jumped across to them catching them in the 2nd to last corner but came up short running the leader down and got 2nd in that one. Back together for the 3rd sprint and I told the boys I needed to win this one. Josh lead me and Hayden to the 2nd to last corner and Hayden launched me around to win the 3rd sprint. Back in GREEN!

After the 3rd sprint the race picked up and I was struggling to hold on. There were only about 30 guys left out of the 100 that started and the race got super aggressive. With about 15 to go Matt flew off the course and smashed into a spectator which was pretty scary. He recovered well and instantly went off the front and made the winning move of 4. He did well finishing 2nd on the day and I survived and finished in the field.

All in all a good day for the team. We like to win but not having the jersey might do us some good the next few days. For me, I am super stoked about going from being hurt to being back in the green jersey. We have 2 road stages next with no sprints so I will atleast keep it until Thursday. Will post some pictures when I get them.

Time for bed as we have an early start tomorrow with lots of climbing...

I'm back!

Well my 1st weekend back racing was somewhat successful. I did the 1st 2 stages for Summer Solstice Stage Race that was about 1 hour from my house. A 50 mile RR on Friday night and a 65 mile RR on Saturday. Friday night was raining and pretty crappy. We were outnumbered big time and in the end I was 2nd in the field sprint for 6th. Not bad after doing a fair bit of work.

Saturday was nice and hot just the way I like it. The team rode well and we just came up short catching the breakaway and I ended up 3rd in the end. So pretty happy with the fitness and my true test will be tonight at Stage 1 of Tour of Ohio. We have a strong team here again this year and we are looking forward to nothing but success this week. I will keep this updated as much as possible. Super excited to back in the game.

till next time!

New meaning to Murdered-Out team truck...

I have been hitting it pretty hard training and have been feeling great. It is crazy when you are healthy how much better you feel. I have not been racing as I want to just really ramp it up and get some great training in and come back swinging for the fences when I do race. Looks like there isn't much around this weekend so I plan on some good long rides with the Kiwi's and relaxing by my pool:-)

Some good news and bad news for the team this weekend. We were spread out all over but had a super successful weekend. Hoppy kept rolling at the US Crit Series and is now in the overall lead after Tulsa Tough. And the rest of the team swept the podium at 2 different races in Ohio with Jimmy B taking out Garrett Wonders Memorial Crit in Westerville and then Joe "Brit" Cooper took out Rusty Boots Brick Criterium in Nelsonville by impressively lapping the field 2 times by himself. Great job boys! Can't wait to get back to racing with ya!

Well it can't always be good news as our Murdered Out team truck put good use of its name smashing into a deer that forgot to look both ways before crossing. A bit of a mess but luckily everyone was ok... has Hayden put it it was team truck vs deer and the truck won.. well sort of. Joe being the soft sentimental guy he is tried to revive the deer but to no success. Apparently they do CPR and mouth to mouth a little different in New Zealand.