Results AND Recap from May 24th

What another great night of racing it was. I have a little more of a recap from the last track night so here it goes. All results are at the bottom of this post (all that I have anyway).

There were a total of 31 riders, eleven of which was their first time out at the track this season. There were two new juniors but Eva Berger was absent because her school was singing the National Anthem at the ballpark that evening. We did have two junior-only races during the evening. There were four women racing.

Hey, During the time before we race the track always needs at least some sweeping and remember I offer $5.00 off of registration fee to those willing to work a broom for about fifteen minutes. There is no requirement to sweep but if the track is not sweep before each night then there will be more mishaps (flat, etc.). Please help out with the sweeping and more importantly if there is someone on the track with a broom please give him or her some courtesy and safety and do not ride hard or fast right by them. I really need some improvement with this issue, the alternative is that the track will be closed to all riders until all of the sweeping is done. Warning, I might just employ this at some time especially if the track is such a mess as it was on the 17^th.

The highlights of the evening were mainly in round two. In the A snowball race Kevin Weyman took a flyer and quickly collected the first three sprints and held on for second place on the next sprint. That effort awarded him enough points (9) to hold on to fifth place overall in the race. Zachery Slavens followed Kevin’s example in the B’s snowball and did the same but one better, he took all four of the first sprints (10) and he too held onto fifth overall. Both were edged out of fourth place in the round due to placing on the final lap. Good job gentlemen!

The Women’s points race was together for all of the sprints. No rider went up or down a lap. It was quite a different story in the Men’s A points race. That event blew wide apart and was a bit of a challenge to score. I apologize to my officials; I should have given you more assistance in judging that race. I will do so in the future any time we run another points race.

There was not enough time to run points races for the B’s and the C’s and each deserve their own event so combining them was not fair either. So we came to a decision to run Miss & Out races for the last two groups. In the B event Dave Stone took the flyer but the group worked to chase him down while still trying not to get eliminated them. In the C Miss & Out Kurt Schenk showed four riders exactly how to do it. He was well behind in each of the first four laps only to make sure he was not boxed in and accelerated just enough not to be the last rear wheel to cross the line. Textbook execution!

We did get a little scare during the junior chariot race. Maddie was riding faster and faster as the night went on. She had the save of the night in turn three when she lost her footing on the flat pedals but she did not crash. She stayed upright, finished the race and handled the incident like a seasoned track rider. Good job girl.

That is about it for my recap. Keep posted about next week though, the extended forecast states there is a chance of thunderstorms on the 31^st. As always I will broadcast track conditions when the weather threatens through the usual outlets (stlbiking forum and twitter). Also I need to be in Chicago mid-day on Friday for three days of racing up north. Thanks as always to everyone who is involved, to all of those who lend a hand with running things, to my officials doing their best to score, and to everyone else interested no matter how little that is.

@swikles

Mr. Bumpy Results   for Thursday 24^th May 2012       

                       

            Round One             Scratch Race                     

Place   Women           5 Laps             (and junior)              

1          69       Mariasol Johannes

2          258     Molly Brady

3          241     Kate Hrubes

4          250     Allison Braddock

5          252     Ashton Braddock

                       

            Men A's          5 Laps

1          19       Tyler Bicknese

2          1          Devin Clark

3          253     Thomas Cuneio        

4          23       Luke Bligh

5          26       Kevin Weyman

6          16       Robert Mayfield

7          38       Rob Ollermann

                       

            Men B's          5 Laps

1          256     Hayden Warner

2         38       Rob Ollermann

3         9          Andrew Petty

4         49       Dan Wenzelburger

5         32       Tom Petty

6         52       Zachery Slavens

7         46       Chak Lattanand

8         238     Bill Howells

9         255     Frank Brummer

10       53       Josh Picker

11       239     Dave Stone

12       12       Kayce Shelton

13       262     Kurt Schenk

                       

            Men C's          5 Laps

1          255     Frank Brummer

2          50       Matt Karnowski

3          40       Jim Smith

4          41       Dennis Roberts

5          262     Kurt Schenk

6          54       Alex Mellion

7          257     Oscar Sangulnette

8          249     Samuel Hall

Junior Round        Scratch Race

Place                           4 Laps

1          252     Ashton Braddock

2          254     Maddie Ollermann

            Round Two            Snowball

Place   Women           9 Laps                                    

1          69       Mariasol Johannes (54)

2          258     Molly Brady (35)

3          241     Kate Hrubes (19)

4          50       Allison Braddock (0)

                       

            Men A's          9 Laps

1          1          Devin Clark (47)

2          16       Robert Mayfield (20)

3          256     Hayden Warner (17)

4          253     Thomas Cuneio (11)

5          26       Kevin Weyman (9)

6          38       Rob Ollermann (4)

7          19       Tyler Bicknese (2)

8          23       Luke Bligh (0)

                       

            Men B's          9 Laps

1          49       Dan Wenzelburger (28)

2          256     Hayden Wagner (27)

3          32       Tom Petty (16)

4          9          Andrew Petty (10)

5          52       Zachery Slavens (10)

6          238     Bill Howells (3)

           

            Men C's          9 Laps

1          255     Frank Brummer (51)

2          32       Tom Petty (27)

3          50       Matt Karnowski (24)

4          41       Dennis Roberts (6)

5          262     Kurt Schenk (3)

Junior Round        Chariot Race

Place                           1 Lap

1          252     Ashton Braddock

2          254     Maddie Ollermann

            Round Three                    

Place   Women           20 Laps Points Race                                     

1          69       Mariasol Johannes (20)

2          258     Molly Brady (11)

3          241     Kate Hrubes (8)

4          250     Allison Braddock (5)

                       

            Men A's          30 Laps Points Race

1          1          Devin Clark (30)

2          253     Tom Cuneio (21)

3          16       Robert Mayfield (1)

4          9          Andrew Petty (-1)

5          19       Tyler Bicknese (-1)

6          38       Rob Ollermann (-3)

7          32       Tom Petty (-8)

                       

            Men B's          “Devil Takes the Hindmost” (Miss & Out)

1          256     Hayden Warner

2          53       Josh Picker

3          46       Chak Lattanand

4          239     Dave Stone

5          238     Bill Howells

6          12       Kayce Shelton

7          32       Tom Petty

8          52       Zachery Slavens

9          9          Andrew Petty

                       

            Men C's          Devil Takes the Hindmost” (Miss & Out)

1          255     Frank Brummer

2          50       Matt Karnowski

3          52       Zachery Slavens

4          262     Kurt Schenk

5          40       Jim Smith

6          54       Alex Mellion

7          257     Oscar Sangulnette

8          41       Dennis Roberts

P.S. the formatting does not jive well when coming from a word doc, I'll try to work on that in my spare time ;)

Parks Bond Issue

As most of you know, the dilemma about gaining funding for repairs to our velodrome has been a hot issue for several years. More recently it was revealed that there is a chance for Penrose to receive some funding through a bill in the city called the Parks Bond Bill.

Local cyclist and alderman, Scott Ogilvie (who has consistently raced track when not being a city official) gave us the means to be in contact with other city officials who have some pull when it comes to this bill.

We were given an email address. And as dubious as writing a damn email and actually making a difference seems, we sometimes have more power in our actions than we realize.

So I wrote an email. A four paragrapher and then some at that. It was impassioned and probably really cheesy, especially to a person who is not into cycling. But I wrote it and sent it and thought, 'well, at least I did something, right?'

Then I got a response! I didn't actually think that Mr. Gary Bess would read my email, let alone respond to it.

Here are some of the cheesy bits and pieces from my letter:

"I am writing to you as a plea on behalf of Saint Louis area cyclists....
 I am a competitive, recreational, and commuter cyclist. Three years ago a few
friends convinced me to join them for an evening of racing at Penrose Park
Velodrome. ..."
 "When we arrived, I realized I had passed this strange place many times, without ever
know what it was. After that night of racing I was hooked. Since then I have
become even more actively involved in St. Louis's cycling community. From
volunteering at charity bike events to racing, I try to be as involved as
possible. It has become the core of my friends, recreation, and even
employment. ..."
"There was a time in Saint Louis's cycling history when Penrose Park was a 
destination point for midwestern track cyclists... 

Penrose creates tradition. It has built a community. Last summer a
gentleman came to the track on a Thursday night. We were racing, and he had seen
us there before. This man lives in North City, and works with local kids to get
them involved in sports to inspire healthy living...We 

welcomed him with open arms, because we love expanding our community."

...This year our Track Series has started strong. Perhaps it is word of mouth, and
all the positivity surrounding racing at Penrose. Maybe it was the t.v. spot
done on KSDK. It's certainly encouraging to see new faces return again and
again. My only lament is for the surface of the Velodrome. It was fallen to such
disrepair that I fear this could be our last season on it. We have literally
taped the track together in some spots. We have a dedicated group, and many of
us will arrive early each Thursday to spend hours sweeping away thorns and
mulch, checking for additional corrosion, and picking up trash. We even have
guys that come on non race days to spray for weeds.
We do what we can, but none of us can afford to put the money into Penrose that
it really needs. We work hard for what we have, and try not to complain. "

I thanked him for reading it, yadda yadda, signed my name and sent the damn thing.

Here was his reply:

"Thanks for your comments  The veledrome is on our list of improvements in Penrose park  The Comptrollers Office will be handling the sale of the bonds and have advised us the earliest funds would be available is July 2013" 

 Short, but very very sweet. 

Lets keep the positivity alive, lets keep pushing for what we need. 

-Molly

Various Velodromes

Thinking about starting an intermittently consistent group of posts about velodromes. Me thinks that I'll limit this genre of post to one image only, that way I'll be able to stretch out the material I have for at least a half of dozen posts.

Starting off with a bang, here is the first one. A time-lapse movie of the London Olympic velodrome

Here is more official information about the venue. GO USA!

@swikles

Snowballs and the Dark Track Sorcerer

Thanks to all for an awesome night of racing last night!

I started the night by working registration. I think I had at least seven "new" people register. These were either returners from last year or folks brand new to the track.

We certainly missed some of the gals, but Allison came back and held her own out there. None of the Wolfpack dudes made it out to dominate that C race either. Eduardo wasn't there to push that A race, but Devin finally showed his face and did a nice job working some tactics.

Last nights races were some slightly longer ones, and we even had the opportunity to run two different Juniors races! The races were as follows:

Scratch Race (5 laps)

Snowball (9 laps)

Points Race (20-30 laps)

Miss and Out

For those not acquainted with some of those races, here is a brief description from our friends up at Northbrook

It seemed like all the races were running pretty fast. It was kind of a strange night as far as weather goes. The day had been pretty damn hot and really freaking windy. By race time the sky had clouded over pretty good and for those of us who occasionally use shadows around turn 2 and into the straightaway on the backside of the track, it just wasn't happening. The wind was especially strong it seemed as soon as you hit turn one and continued until turn three. Midway through the night it had either died down considerably or we were all just acclimated and the heat had let up as well.

The races were wrapping up and us ladies had just finished that brutal points race (which somehow always seems to be a favorite of mine. What does that say?) and I was peeling my nasty kit off when a man approached the track. He was tall and lanky with greying hair and a patch on one eye. I said to myself "Some local's first time here and he gets to see me change my nasty shorts, awesome." This guy seemed to just be some guy rollin by who decided to see what we were all about and asked Steven about the races we were doing. Soon I forgot that he was there, he had sort of wandered off, but when the races were all over he asked Steven if he could ride his bike on the track. With the go ahead he again disappeared, presumably to get his bike. The next thing we knew this man was sprinting around the track, in full kit, on a fixed gear with Zipp wheels. I was amazed. After a few laps he again disappeared. He returned on a different bike, tucked into an aero position, once again on Zipp wheels. Where did this track sorcerer come from? It was then that my attention was directed to the hearse he had arrived in. It was complete with a roof rack and license plate proclaiming residency in Kansas City. He sprinted and sprinted some more before breaking out a final bike more insane than the rest.

Imagine this without the shock, as a fixed gear, full carbon, and aero as fuck.

I left before I could see what else he might pull from the magic hearse. I was hungry and needed a shower, but hopefully the dark track sorcerer will return and give some of his magic sprint action to the rest of us.

The end. 

p.s. Thanks again to our wonderful officials, those who help to set up and break down, and anyone bringing new folks out to race. Every bit helps!

-Molly

Schedule for May 24th

 Just a quick post to announce what events we are having tonight. During the warm up please look out for the juniors we will have tonight.

Round One    Scratch Races

Women           5 Laps for all groups

Men A’s         

Men B’s

Men C’s

Junior Round (optional)           Scratch Race

Round Two     Snowball

Women           9 laps for all groups

Men A’s    

Men B’s    

Men C’s

Junior Round (optional)           Devil takes the Hindmost (Miss n Out)

Double or triple elimination TBD

Round Three     Points Races

Women           20 laps

Men A’s          30 laps

Men B’s          20 laps or handicap with C’s

Men C’s          20 laps or…

Round Four(?) Depends on the amount of daylight remaining.

@swikles

May 10th & 17th Results

The track looked like hell when we first got there. Apparently those cutting the grass just had to run the mower along the section between the fence and the race surface. What took minutes to mess up took hours to sweep up. Thanks so much to everyone who swept and especially to those who brought out their blowers. Yes I will be shopping for one if there is enough entry fees to cover the costs. One that note some of the entry fees are going towards a porta john. One unit is being delivered each Thursday and is being picked up the next day. I just wish there was better coordination with the company just in case there is rain threatening.

There were some exciting events during last Thursday’s track racing. Many of the races had a few tactics and strategies applied, some worked and some did not. There are some riders like Edwardo and Emilie who are dominating and then there are some that are winning their first race. Not only did Ms. Flanigan win all of the women’s events she won two of the three Men’s B’s placed third in the other B and also won one of the Chariot races at the end of the evening. Chak did give her a hell of a push but it is a little easier to push a 90 lb. rider than the 250ish I was holding, (good try Micah, you did not give up).

Here are the results

         Mr. Bumpy Results May 17th               

                       

            Round One             Scratch Races

Place   Women           5 Laps

1          48       Emilie Flanigan

2          51       Ashley Rethemeyer

3          0          Molly Brady

4          241     Kate Hrubes

5          240     Eva Berger

                       

            Men A's          7 Laps

1          7          Edwardo Niewenhuyzen

2          16       Robert Mayfield

3          45       Darrell Bratton

4          11       Joe Walsh

5          47       Mike Flanigan

6          38       Rob Ollermann

7          19       Tyler Bicknese

                       

            Men B's          6 Laps

1          48       Emilie Flanigan

2          49       Dan Wenzelburger

3          51       Ashley Rethemeyer

4          9          Andrew Petty

5          46       Chak Lattanand

6          32       Tom Petty

7          239     Dave Stone

8          12       Kayce Shelton

                       

            Men C's          5 Laps

1          237     Jon Reinhart

2          44       Andrew Mullins

3          246     Micah Goulet

4          247     Nikita Lindgren

5          50       Matthew Karnowski

6          251     Jeff Stein

7          40       Jim Smith

8          0          Molly Brady

9          262     Kurt Schenk

                       

            Round Two            Danish (Win & Out)

            Women          

1          48       Emilie Flanigan

2          51       Ashley Rethemeyer

3          0          Molly Brady

4          241     Kate Hrubes

5          69       Mariasol Johannes

6          240     Eva Berger

                       

            Men A's         

1          7          Edwardo Niewenhuyzen

2          19       Tyler Bicknese

3          45       Darrell Bratton

4          47       Mike Flanigan

5          11       Joe Walsh

6          38       Rob Ollermann

7          16       Robert Mayfield

                       

            Men B's         

1          47       Mike Flanigan

2          70       Tim Gaidis

3          48       Emilie Flanigan

4          49       Dan Wenzelburger

5          9          Andrew Petty

6          32       Tom Petty

7          239     Dave Stone

8          52       Zachary Slavens

9          51       Ashley Rethemeyer

                       

            Men C's         

1          50       Matthew Karnowski

2          44       Andrew Mullins

3          237     Jon Reinhart

4          9          Andrew Petty

5          32       Tom Petty

6          247     Nikita Lindgren

7          262     Kurt Schenk

8          251     Jeff Stein

9          40       Jim Smith

10       246     Micah Goulet

                       

            Round Three         Unknown

            Women           10 Laps

1          48       Emilie Flanigan

2          51       Ashley Rethemeyer

3          0          Molly Brady

4          241     Kate Hrubes

5          240     Eva Berger

                       

            Men A's          13 Laps

1          7          Edwardo Niewenhuyzen

2          45       Darrell Bratton

3          16       Robert Mayfield

4          47       Mike Flanigan

5          19       Tyler Bicknese

6          11       Joe Walsh

7          38       Rob Ollermann

                       

            Men B's          11 Laps

1          48       Emilie Flanigan

2          38       Rob Ollermann

3          70       Tim Gaidis

4          32       Tom Petty

5          52       Zachary Slavens

6          49       Dan Wenzelburger

7          239     Dave Stone

8          46       Chak Lattanand

9          9          Andrew Petty

10       12       Kayce Shelton

                       

            Men C's          10 Laps

1          9          Andrew Petty

2          247     Nikita Lindgren

3          32       Tom Petty

4          237     Jon Reinhart

5          248     George Jordon

6          44       Andrew Mullins

7          246     Micah Goulet

8          251     Jeff Stein

9          50       Matthew Karnowski

10       262     Kurt Schenk

11       40       Jim Smith

                       

            Round Four          

            Chariot Races One Lap

First Race                  

1          237     Jon Reinhart

2          32       Tom Petty

3          9          Andrew Petty

4          247     Nikita Lindgren

5          248     George Jordon

                       

Second Race              

1          48       Emilie Flanigan

2          47       Mike Flanigan

3          52       Zachary Slavens

4          246     Micah Goulet

And if that were not enough here are the results from the previous week, that being the first week of track racing this season.

         Mr. Bumpy Results May 10th      

                       

            Round One             Scratch Races

Place   Women           7 Laps

1          27       Cristel Santiago

2          3          Soli Johannes

3          18       Stephanie Nadeu

4          240     Eva Berger

                       

            Men A's          8 Laps

1          7          Edwardo Niewenhuyzen

2          242     Russ Murphy

3          16       Robert Mayfield

4          43       Rubin Ayuerich

5          19       Tyler Bicknese

6          26       Kevin Weyman

7          87       Karl Stover

                       

            Men B's          7 Laps

1          245     Michael McCullough

2          46       Chak Lattanand

3          31       Tom Grehn

4          49       Dan Wenzelberger

5          238     Bill Howells

6          239     Dave Stone

7          5          Eric Seaver

8          6          Phil Nadeu

9          4          Todd Nowlin

10       12       Kayce Shelton

                       

            Men C's          6 Laps

1          237     Jon Rinehart

2          243     Ted Weiss

3          31       Tom Grehn

4          41       Dennis Roberts

5          35       Mark Hasler

6          50       Matt Karnowski

7          244     Brad Gutting

                       

            Round Two            Miss n Out

            Women          

1          3          Soli Johannes

2          27       Cristel Santiago

3          241     Kate Hrubes

4          18       Stephanie Nadeu

5          240     Eva Berger

                       

            Men A's         

1          7          Edwardo Niewenhuyzen

2          87       Karl Stover

3          43       Rubin Ayuerich

4          19       Tyler Bicknese

5          242     Russ Murphy

6          16       Robert Mayfield

7          26       Kevin Weyman

                       

            Men B's         

1          5          Eric Seaver

2          49       Dan Wenzelberger

3          238     Bill Howells

4          46       Chak Lattanand

5          245     Michael McCullough

6          6          Phil Nadeu

7          4          Todd Nowlin

8          12       Kayce Shelton

9          31       Tom Grehn

10       239     Dave Stone

                       

            Men C's         

1          31       Tom Grehn

2          237     Jon Rinehart

3          243     Ted Weiss

4          41       Dennis Roberts

5          50       Matt Karnowski

6          35       Mark Hasler

7          244     Brad Gutting

8          246     Micah Goulet

                       

            Round Three         Tempo

            Women           8 Laps

1          3          Soli Johannes (15)

2          241     Kate Hrubes (14)

3          27       Cristel Santiago (2)

4          240     Eva Berger (1)

                       

            Men A's          10 Laps

1          19       Tyler Bicknese (16)

2          16       Robert Mayfield (13)

3          43       Rubin Ayuerich (6)

4          26       Kevin Weyman (5)

5          31       Tom Grehn (1)

                       

            Men B's          9 Laps

1          245     Michael McCullough (15)

2          49       Dan Wenzelburger (8)

3          31       Tom Grehn (5)

4          238     Bill Howells (4)

5          239     Dave Stone (3)

6          5          Eric Seaver

7          6          Phil Nadeu

8          46       Chak Lattanand

9          12       Kayce Shelton

                       

            Men C's          7 Laps

1          243     Ted Weiss (16)

2          237     Jon Rinehart (9)

3          41       Dennis Roberts (2)

4          50       Matt Karnowski (1)

5          244     Brad Gutting (1)

6          M (246?)        Micah Goulet

7          35       Mark Hasler

What another great night of racing up at Penrose Park. I will try to take better notes for later posts here on Molly’s blog for future races. We had another great turnout and are expecting more to show up next week. We may just have a couple of “Junior Only” events on the 24^th. Also if you come up next week be sure to bring plenty of water or other beverage and a towel or two would be nice.

Thanks again to everyone who shows interest and especially to those who make this happen. See you all next week.

@swikles