Gwinnett Final Stage

Yesterday was the last race in the Gwinnett stage race. It was a circuit race on a rolling course. There were no big hills but a couple of rollers that got painful after a while.

The women 1,2,3 raced with the women3-4. We had 6 laps on the 2 mile course which equaled about 50 minutes. At the start of the race the officials called all of the 3-4 to the front of the field because their race was faster than ours in Saturdays RR.

At the start of the race nothing major was happening. A couple small attacks but everything was being pulled back. On the second lap Rebecca Larson attacked. I followed on her wheel and we were able to bridge up to a rider that had about a 20 sec. lead on the field. I was in the break for a little bit, but then wasn't able to hold with the pace.

Once the field came around I dropped back in. They were chasing hard but no one was willing to get organized and work. There was a pace line going with me and two other girls as we tried to bring the break back. An attack went that managed to make it up to the break.

About 5 minutes later another attack went from team Kenda. I followed. We took 1 other rider along and caught up with 1 other girl who was trying to bridge up to the leading group of 3 that was now about 25-30 seconds up the road.

Our little group was just off the front of the field. The Kenda girl and I were rotating but the two other girls were to tired to pull. I was kind of tired but maybe it was just the excitement of being off the front that gave my legs a little bit more energy to push on.

1 lap to go! It took all of us by surprise. We hadn't heard them count down laps and the field was charging up behind us. The two other riders made a couple pulls but we started to get unorganized. Halfway through the last lap the field caught us. I looked around for the right wheel to follow into the sprint. I found my way to the girl that had finished second in the crit. I knew she was the strongest sprinter in the field.

As we rounded the final corner Kenda was leading. I was fourth wheel. I don't think that many of the girls actually knew that it was the final lap, but the girl in front of me finally jumped with about 50 meters to go. Looking back I should have tried to jump her, because she ended up beating me in the sprint. I finished second in the field sprint and 4th over all.

This weekend was really good for me. I got a 3rd,4th,7th, and 8th and finished 5th in the GC. It was great to get out and race one last time before nationals.

We leave for Cali next Monday and I race Wednesday-Friday. I'm very excited for nationals. Also there is a TT this Tuesday at the OIA. I'll have updates as the races come around.

Thanks for reading

Ciao

Gwinnett Stages 1-3

Well its been a while since my last race so I was totally pumped to get out and race this weekend in GA. My dad, my sister, and I traveled up to GA on Wednesday for the start of the Gwinnett stage race. Its a 4 day stage race that consists of a crit, a road race, and 2 circuits. I decided to race the womens 1,2,3 instead of the women 3,4. And I'm glad I did. Its been hard but I've had alot of fun so far.

I don't have much to say about Thursdays race. It was a circuit race on the Road Atlanta race course. Right after the start/finish line was a killer hill that wasn't as long the one on the Luguna Seca course at Sea Otter that I did last year. But it was alot steeper. We had a 6 lap race. The course was hilly without a single "flat" section.

We had 8 ladies in our race and all of which were registered for the GC. A couple attacks happened in the first few laps but everything was pulled back. I don't know where my head was during the race because I didn't race as smart as I could have. I ended up blowing on the big hill and was caught by 8th place on the road. When she flew past me on one of the descents she didn't know that I had hopped onto her wheel. Without looking she turned around and spit =/ it definitely took me by surprise and I had to whip my glasses off.

It came down to a sprint between us. I led it out hoping to beat her to the line but she came around me and I ended up getting last. I wasn't to happy and I was ready to come out to the crit the next day and avenge myself.

The crit the next day was supposedly flat...but in actuality it was rather hilly for a crit. The start finish was mid way up a hill that basically carried around to the back side of the course. There was a steep descent and then a right hand corner into a sharp right into a quick left and after a small descent about 50feet uphill to the finish.

The womens 1,2,3 were on the course at the same time as the women 3,4. We had more girls show up. Including power house Rebecca Larson. I knew what wheel I wanted.

our race was 45 minutes long including 5 laps to go. For the first few laps nothing really happened. There was one small attack but it was quickly shut down by the field. Then BAM Rebecca attacked. Everyone reacted but she still had a gap. I sat and watched. I wanted to race smart today so I tried to keep my nose out of the wind. She was eventually reeled in 2 laps later.

For about 10 minute nothing happened. We wandered around the course waiting for the next move. Then Rebecca went again. This time she was chased and caught fairly quickly. When she integrated back into the field I hopped on her wheel and refused to leave it.

For the next 20 minutes or so nothing exciting happened. There were maybe a few attacks but nothing stuck. I was glued to Rebecca's wheel. With 4 laps to go people started to get antsy. A couple accelerations but no major attacks. Finally we made it to the final lap. I wasn't on Rebecca's wheel but there was only one rider between us. I came down the hill and through the final corners in fourth position. Rebecca led out the sprint. We passed on rider during the sprint but other than that no one passed each other.

I finished 3rd about 1 bike length behind Rebecca. It was my best finish of the year and one of my best ever womens 1,2,3 finishes. I was totally stoked for the Circuit the next day.

Today's race was hilly. There was a KOM on the second lap and 2 hills that made your legs scream. They had the women 1,2,3 on our own today with the women 3,4 2 minutes behind us.

The first lap was really boring. There were no attacks and nothing exciting that happened. just after beginning our second lap we were caught by the women 3,4 field. After being neutralized for several minutes we were allowed to race again. We caught the 3,4 field a couple minutes later and were allowed to pass. When the KOM came around I got 4th and was just off the back of the lead group of 3 riders. I dragged myself up to them and tried to recover.

Lap 3: On the first big hill a Kenda rider started to pull away from the field. I accelerated and jumped onto her wheel. She was a good climber and I was struggling on her wheel. But I wouldn't drop off and go back to the field. She was really cool and gave me a chance to recover and allowed me to pull through when it had leveled out a little. We stayed off the front for nearly a full lap until we got caught by the 3 men which caused all sorts of confusion and allowed the field to catch us again =P

the fourth lap went by with a couple small attacks on the hills but nothing got more than 15 seconds. finally we came around to our final lap. i was pumped. I was a little tired but I felt like I accomplished alot just being able to race hard and aggressive in the field.

On the final hill (a 1 mile climb about about 1 miles away from the finish) the attacks started flying. It was really hard and I started to bonk. About 1000 meters from the finish on the final hill I popped and died. I struggled to the line and gave a little sprint to the line.

Tomorrow is a circuit race and I am very excited. With nationals a couple weeks away I am very excited to be racing well.

We drive home tomorrow so I'll prob have an update for you guys on Monday about how tomorrows race goes. I also have pictures that I will post of the weekends races but now its time to watch the Tour (we jsut realized that we get it in our hotel room).

thanks for reading!

ciao

More Kentucky Pics

Here are some more pics of the Swifties in Kentucky (courtesy of Tyler Brandt and his dad Mr. Eric)

Enjoy!



My sprint finish in the RR for 6th



Ryan and I before the RR



Tyler, Will, and I after our RR



Team picture after all the races are done

As of right now I'm in Georgia chillaxing before the first race of the Gwinnett stage race. I have a curcuit race tonight on a race track. Its going to be alot of fun and I am totaly stocked!!!!!! I'll have race reports up soon.

Thanks for Reading,

Ciao

Body Building Show

So one of the timeless feuds is "my car is faster than your car" or "my dad is stronger than your dad". Now I can't help with those arguments, but here is one I can settle...

My MOM is stronger than your mom!





My mom competed in her first body building show this past Saturday. After about a year of intense training and 5 months of strict dieting she was finally ready for her first show. She stormed her way to a second place finish. It was funny waiting for her to go up on stage because usually I get nervous for myself at the start of a race...but this time I was nervous for my mom.

WAY TO GO MOM!

Thanks for Reading!!!!!

Ciao

Kentucky Tour of the Red River Gorge

Ryan on the attack in the 15-16 crit



Cresting the hill in the Womens Open Crit

After camp we headed up to Kentucky for a weekend of racing. We decided to go up and do the Tour of the Red River Gorge. For the 17-18 juniors it was a world qualifier race but since I'm still 15-16 I raced the women's open instead of juniors.

I was tired from a week of non stop riding but I was very excited to get out and race. There was a crit on Saturday and a Road Race on Sunday. Tyler, Ryan, and Ethan came out from Cali to race here and then head over to the Tour of Ohio. Its always great to see Team Swift so I was pretty excited.

The crit races didn't start until the afternoon because of the Timetrial in the morning so I got to sleep in and take it easy.

The course was crazy. It was in a local high school parking lot and had 10 corners. It was basically a hill and a descent with a ton of corners thrown in. The start/finish was at the top and then you descend and whip around the corners. After making a 180 and a couple 90, there was a small hill, then the final corner, and then 40 meters to the finish.

Ryan raced about 1 1/2 hours before me and he ended up crashing but getting back in and finishing second.

I was pretty nervous at the start. We had about 14 ladies in our race. As we sat at the line I decided that I didn't want to just ride in the group and have all the girls there and have the race come to a sprint. If I had done that then maybe I could have finished a couple places higher but this course wasn't made for a field. I attacked from the line and bombed the descent. I whipped around the corners and tried to keep as much speed as possible. The group ended up splitting and 2 riders were off the front with me. They pulled by me on the hill and I tried to follow but the moment I stood up my legs finally felt tired. I ended up dropping off the pace and slid back to 6th position on the road.

The rest of the race went by without anything exciting happening. With 2 laps to go I was with another lady and we were still racing for 6th place. We were almost caught by the leader but got through without getting lapped. I led through the last lap and hammered on the final hill. I sprinted out of the final corner and almost won the sprint with she got me by a few inches. I wasn't to happy and was out for vengeance the next day.

The next morning I felt a little tired but I was pumped up for the race. The start/finish for the RR was basically at the same location as the crit so we were able to warm up on the crit course. It was really foggy so the officials delayed all the races for an hour to let the fog lift.

It was finally time for the women to start. We set off at a break necking speed of around 15 mph ;). No one was in a rush to start racing so for the first 16 miles it was basically a group ride. About 17 miles into the ride the two ladies pulling sat up and yelled out asking if anyone had to use the bathroom...now I've never stopped in the middle of a race and taken a pee, but the whole field pulled over and stopped at the side of the road...I was totally bewildered as to why they had to stop in the middle of the race but I guess there is always a first time for everything.

We started up again and were about 4 miles from the first climb. When we hit the hill the pace immediately went up. One rider went to the front and just hammered. Riders were shelling off the back left and right. Soon the main field had widdled down to a group of 5. About 100 meters from the top I popped and found myself with another lady. She pulled through and started drilling it in the tunnel (the tunnel was about 50 meters long and one lane wide. It was pitch black and rather wet). As we crested the hill we could still see the field. Her and I took turns pulling as we bombed the descent trying to catch back onto the field. We caught back on just as the descent ended. We had another 12 miles until the next big climb so there was a little time to recover.

A few attacks went on the little rollers that led up to the next climb but nothing stuck. I was tired by the time that we reached the last major hill. My hope was that where ever I was after the climb I would have someone to ride with. About 50 meters into the climb the grade kicked up and it became like a never ending sugar loaf. I ended up dropped and could just see another girl up the road. She was like my carrot that kept me going.

I caught up to her at the top of the hill. There wasn't a real descent for a while so we struggled up the little rollers. Right after the feed zone we were caught by another girl. I was rather happy to have anther set of legs to help pull and a little bit of extra recovery time. We rotated at a steady tempo for the last 20 miles. No one attacked and we didn't add any rider to our little group of 3.

I was pretty tired as we reached the end of the ride. I had to push myself to take my pull and I was ready for the race to be over. About 2 miles out we reached a stop light and a traffic back up. The corner marshal funneled us through a gas station parking lot and the girl that was on the front attacked. I was last wheel because I had just finished my pull. There was a small gap and the other lady wasn't closing it down. I stood up and hammered to catch back on. My legs now screamed for me to stop. I was very tired and it was time for the race to be over. We made the final turn which meant 1 mile to go.

I was at the back and was waiting for the last little bend and the first glimpse of the finish line to attack. I finally saw it and then drilled it. I ended up getting second in our sprint and 6th overall.

Team Swift had a good day of racing. Ryan got 3rd in the 15-16, Tyler finished 21st and Ethan finished 31st in the 17-18.

All in all it was a great weekend. It was great to see teammates and it was alot of fun to race.

Florida has a pretty long down time without any racing so I think my next race is going to be in about a month in Georgia.

Thanks for reading!

Ciao

Junior South East Regional Camp

Thats alot of bikes...

This past week I have been in Greenville, South Carolina at the Junior South East Regional Camp.

After driving all day Saturday and part of Sunday morning we were finally at Furman University. After checking in and getting all of our stuff up to the dorms (OK so it was mostly my stuff...I packed prepared for anything and everything;-)we got geared up for our first ride at camp. It was just an easy 2 hour social ride to get to know everyone. There were 35 juniors at the camp 4 of which were girls and 50% of all the riders were from FL. They threatened to send all the Florida riders to band camp because we seem to be taking over.

After the ride we had 20 minutes to shower and get downstairs to meet for dinner. Four girls + 1 shower = 1 big rush. After dinner we went to a class room for our first class. We got a briefing on the camp schedules, rules, and pointers. After social hour it was time for bed.

The beds were basically springs with a little padding, and the pillows were rather hard, but after a week of hard riding I was amazed at how comfortable that bed got.

The next morning my roomie (Jackie Kurth ) and I along with the rest of the camp were surprised by the absence of the cow bell that had become Rusty's (one of the ride leaders) trade marks for waking us up. Instead he woke us up by banging a tennis shoe on our doors.

After breakfast we headed out to an empty parking lot and started our skills and drills ride. We practiced sprinting through halved tennis balls about 6 inches apart, bunny hopping over a 1x4, and counter steering. The sprinting was alot of fun and after everyone had gone through about 6 times they added water bottles to the right side. It was funny how before most everyone was able to sprint through without hitting the tennis balls but once the water bottles were there we all started veering towards the tennis balls on the left.

After lunch we had another ride. It was just a tempo ride around Greenville. We got to see where we would be doing some of our TT's. After dinner and class, I was finally able to see the field games in action. I had heard alot about "Knock Down" (now known as "Last Man Standing") all year and I was very excited to do it. First we had 30 minutes of bumping drills and then it was time for last man standing. It deffinately lived up to the hype and I really enjoyed this drill.

We all rode around in a circle (created but the coaches) and bumped, track standed, and generally had fun. I never won a game but it was always fun to have a chance to take on one of the guys.

Tuesday was the start of our TT's. This morning Rusty had gotten his cow bell back and was banging it against the doors very loudly.

After breakfast we set out to our doom. Not really but Cesar's head is a pretty big hill. Our first TT was 1.2 miles long. Andy Baker was hanging out at about the halfway point so we were all very happy to see him because it meant we were almost there. After we finished the first TT we turned around and headed back down to the start line. Once we came back down the start order didn't matter so I had power house Micheal Stone chasing me. Once I started I settled into my groove and was just focusing on each pedal stroke. When Micheal passed me I tried to pace off him but he was flying up the hill. Around every corner I was hoping to see the finish. When I finally saw Bob Tyler ( one of the coaches ) I was very happy. I shifted to a harder gear and put my head down. I was finally done with the uphill TT's. After the timetrials we climbed the rest of the way up to the top of Cesar's head to the lookout point for lunch. The view was absolutely amazing. After about a 20 mile ride back home it was time for a quick shower and much needed dinner. Then it was on to our normal night routine. Class, Field Games and then bed. The bed had actually gotten alot more comfortable since the previous night. Funny how that happens.

Wednesday started with Rusty and his cow bell. Followed by breakfast and then our first ride of the day. We rode out about 15 miles to the start of our long TT. It was fairly flat with a few rollers. At the start of the week we were told that of the 25 times that the coaches had ridden out there, 21 times had been with a tail wind. But with today's ride it was still just 21 times with a tail wind. Mother nature threw a curve ball at us and we were stuck with a brutal head wind. Finally it was time for me to start. I was focused and ready to race. I took off and immediately settled into my zone. I started counting to the rhythm of my breathing, but honestly I don't think I ever get past 50 before I loose count and start repeating the same numbers. I was in my zone and going all out. The head wind made it absolutely miserable out there. As I rounded the final corner I could see the finish about 100 meters away at the bottom of the final descent. I hammered and drilled it to the line. After everyone had finished we rolled back to the dorms for a quick shower and lunch before heading out on the rode again. After about 1 1/2 hrs of skills and drills in the parking lot it was finally time to get back to the dorms for a little R&R. But not for to long of course. After the usual dinner, class, and knock down it was time for a good nights sleep. Our thin padding on springs felt as comfortable as a pillow top mattress to me.

The last full day of camp was here in no time. With 4x2mi tt's and then a 90 mile ride, it was going to be a long day. I was looking forwards to the famed sticky buns that awaited us at the local bakery where we stop half way through the ride. I had also heard much about them and apparently they are the best. It took us about 45 minutes to get out to the TT course. It was mostly down hill with a couple small rollers and a false flat. After the first one I had figured out how to gauge my effort to get the best time. I continued to feel faster and faster with each interval. The last one was just pure pain. It hurt so badly but it actually felt pretty good. After we had all finished our last tt we were very happy that we had finished all of our hard efforts for the week. Seventy miles and 1 sticky bun later we were finally done.

The last night at camp was pretty busy. All the packing and craziness that went on. The usual tradition on the last night at camp was the gallon challenge. The challenge was to drink a gallon of whole milk in 1 hour and try not to blow chunks. The coaches ended up canceling it so one of the juniors resorted to whole wheat bread. He ate 1 1/2 loaves of bread with out drinking water. Its not one the things that will ever reach my to do list and I'll leave it at that.

That last morning of camp was hectic, last minute packing and good-byes. About 15 of us went out on one final ride around the campus. It was alot of fun and I will really miss everyone from camp.

I really took alot away from camp and I hope to go back again next year. The coaches there are awesome and the riders are some of the best I have been around. All in all it was a great experience and one that wont be forgotten.

Thanks for Reading

Ciao

KIDS...dont try this at home!!!

Well yesterday was the West Palm crit. I was totally stoked for a great day of racing. My plan was to race the womens pro 1,2,3/women 4 and then turn around and race the mens cat 4 immediately after.

After a long drive we finally got the course. But not before remembering what we forgot...my transponder. After registering and getting a temporary transponder I was ready to go. I sat under the shade of our tent and watched the masters races. I watched the sprints very carefully to get an idea of the prefect position. My dad and I both concluded first out of the final corner was the place to be.

Halfway through my warm up it started to rain. I didn't really care about the rain because I like to race in the rain. To my disappointment it was only sprinkling on and off. Just enough to get the roads wet.

Our field wasn't huge. We had maybe 10 or so riders total, including the cat 4's. I was pumped at the start. I had my race plan and my legs felt great. Once we started I slid back in the field trying to find Tine Elliot's ( Cycle Science ) wheel. She was the power house of the day and I knew if I didn't watch her wheel she would attack and check out from the field. The rain had stopped but the roads were very slick. On the second to last turn I lost a bit of positioning and ended up with Tamera ( Herbal Life ) in front of me.

As we rounded the final corner in the first lap I could see Tamera slide in slow motion. She unclipped on her way down and her bike was shooting out right in front of me. With no where to go and no possible way of avoiding I ended up hitting her bike dead on and went down hard. We took down one more rider and I think it was her pedal that got stuck in my front wheel...



I toasted my front R-SYS and cracked my Specialized helmet. I also landed hard on my right knee, hip, and elbow. I was in shock at first but then managed to get up and followed the official that had my bike to the wheel pits to get my free lap.

Adrenalin was pumping through my body. My right elbow was causing me alot of pain and I couldn't stop shaking, but I was determined to get back into the race. As the field came around (SURPRISE) Tina was off the front with Marylin (Naples Cyclery). I jumped into the field as Tamera hammered at the front trying to pull back the break.

After a lap of sitting on and hoping that the field would pull the break back I got impatient. I was ticked off that I crashed because my legs felt amazing so I put my adrenalin to use. I attacked the field on the front stretch and got a huge gap. As I sprinted and tried to bridge to Tina and Marlin. Every pedal stroke hurt but not in my legs. It hurt to put pressure on my arm. I was so close but then I gave up. I went back into the field.

I managed to stay on for a few laps but I was in alot of pain and ended up dropping out. I also skipped the mens race because once I got off my bike and my dad and I evaluated my condition he decided it was best not to race again. I still wanted to race but with camp next week I finally gave into the fact that racing again would be stupid.

This week I'm going to try and recover and get healthy. I got lucky and my injuries are not bad just some cuts and bruises. My spokes are trashed but the rim and hub are in good shape.

Next week is the Junior Camp in South Carolina (nice time to crash...1 week before camp). I'm really excited and cannot wait to go.

Thanks for reading,

Ciao