Seana Giardini of Birchwood Bike Team just edges out Patricia Black of Morgan Stanley/Specialized/24 HR Fitness (sounds like NASCAR sponsorship) for a hard fought win in the Women’s 1/2/3 race at the Granstay Criterium in St. Cloud.

Congrats on the win and the coveted BTOW!

Complete photo sequence -

We discuss stuff and introduce a new segment called “Let’s Ask Homme”.  We’d love to hear your thoughts on this week’s subject.

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The circle was unbroken as St. Cloud’s Granite City Days anchored the Granstay Criterium in a new location for 2008.  The new course was a short loop around St. Cloud Tech High School and featured a tight, challenging final turn and made for some fast and exciting racing on Sunday.

It was a weekend of strong performances by Pat Lemieux of SPBRC/GP. Lemieux soloed to victory on Saturday at the Birchwood Road Race and was aggressive throughout the Grandstay Criterium on Sunday in St. Cloud. Lemieux teamed with Adam Bergman of Texas Roadhouse in a late breakaway that gained a lap on the field but was unable to hold off Bergman in the closing sprint and finished second.

Bergman was the aggressor on the day having been in an earlier unsuccessful break attempt with other members of his former team, SPBRC/GP. With windy conditions and a large peleton, the long breakaway was a longshot and when the Grandstay Team moved to the front to bring the race back the chase was on and things came back together.

Bergman remained aggressive throughout and joined another decisive move later with several others including Lemieux.  Bergman and Lemieux separated themselves from that breakaway group to duke things out after lapping the field with Bergman taking the victory.

Stayed tuned to btdc for more coverage on this week’s racing on our next podcast.

Birchwood RR Results

Granstay Criterium Results

More Granstay Crit photos by Frye

Men’s Cat 3 Field.

The NSC Velodrome in Blaine, MN was the site for another night of exciting racing this past Thursday. A big crowd watched a growing contingent of riders take to the boards for high banked drama.  Tensions were high but I’m not referring to chains.  However there were two incidents of dropped chains and two crashes on the night.

Brian Crosby of Speedfix continued to shine by taking the Omnium in the 1/2 field.  Dan Schueller of Gopher Wheelmen won the Cat 3 Omnium, Elena Dorr of Speedfix took the Women’s Omnium,  and track rookie Pat Lemieux of SPBRC took home the Cat 4/5 Omnium on his first night of racing.  Full results can be found at the NSC site.

The highlight of the night was certainly the Men’s 4000m Team Pursuit which pitted the Speedfix Team of Andy Kruse, Brian Crosby, Mike Sobol, and Ben Dubay against the conglomerate team of James Tainter (Silver Cyling), Tim Mulrooney (Synergy), Joe Johnson (Grumpy’s/LGR), and Derek Lewis (Cat 6 Racing Squad).  After a spotty begining the Tainter led team turned up the heat on the Speedfix crew and began reeling them in and nearly catching them as they finished on the backstretch.  The team of Tainter, Mulrooney, Johnson, and Lewis clocked a blistering time of 00:04:43.663 to a very respectable time by Speedfix of 00:04:51.369. 

However, the event was marred with controversy when a member of the Speedfix team, reportedly Kruse, protested the result due to the aero helmet that Tainter wore during the event.  The helmet apparently did not meet the appropriate safety standards to be used during a USCF/USAC event.  The controversy was resolved by assessing Tainter with a monetary penalty that wil be paid to the NSC Track fund.

The Smoking Gun

More photos from 6/26/08

http://www.purejenius.net/2008/06/im-getting-wood-tonight.html

Dan “Bikethrow” Swanson of Grandstay shows us how it’s done again.  Swanson became the first repeat BTOW winner with this win over Pat Lemieux (foreground) of SPBRC/GP and Derek Goerhe (background) of HRRC/Trek Store in the Men’s 1/2/3 race at the Summit/Hollywood Crit Series this past Tuesday night.

Congrats from the btdc staff on the victory and we’re sure you’re even more proud of taking home another BTOW! 

The man at the helm of the NVGP, Executive Director Dave LaPorte gives btdc his “nickel’s” worth on this year’s edition of the NVGP. Frye and Rookie explore the St. Paul Crit situation, local amateur participation, plans for next year’s race, and much much more with the new “king of the sound bite”.

We also look back on local racing on the track, the Richmond Roller Race, the first night of racing at the Summit/Hollywood Crit Series, what’s on tap this weekend, and whatever else seemed to be bugging Rookie today. 

How can 48 min of your life be spent better?  Only with a beer in hand as you listen away.  Tip one back, relax , and enjoy! 

Summit Series Lives - Despite early concerns about the potential cancellation of the Summit Criterium Series in Rosemount due to official shortages, btdc has learned that the recent scare and discussions has breathed new life into the official pool. Sources say that several individuals have stepped forward and expressed interest in officiating and things are looking good for the Summit Series and the remainder of the season. A long term strategy to shore up the situation will likely be a major focus for the MCF in the off-season.

Thursday Night Lights - Track racing continued Thursday night in Blaine with the Cat 1/2 Men competing in various Madison events. The Speedfix Racing team of Brian Crosby and Ben Dubay threw their way into the top spot on the evening.  Joe Johnson of Grumpy’s/LGR dominated in Men’s Cat 3 action while the Dahlmann sister’s ganged up on the Women’s field once again with Heidi Dahlmann edging out Lindsey Hamilton of Grumpy’s/LGR for the omnium victory. Full results here.

Freewheel Bike State Fair Affair #3 Picture Linkage here.  Photos by William Eddy.

Richmond Roller Race is tomorrow 6/21.  Event info here.

Rookie podcastin’ in his new X Ray Specs.

In this week’s podcast, Rookie, Homme and Frye reunite to recap the NVGP, catch up on the Freewheel Bike State Fair Affair, and talk about upcoming races. The trio also touch on Rookie’s podcasterview style, track/TROY, and Homme fixes what ails you including the NVGP.

Check out the finish sequence of the Men’s 1/2/3 race at the State Fair Affair Finale below. Pat Lemieux of GP completes the series sweep for Grand Performance riders.

More photos from the State Fair Affair…

photos by Andy Frye

Andy Dahl (SuperTeam / Tech Director) 2:15min
-He has a solution for St. Paul Crit!
-Wants to accomodate the riders.
-Makes a local guy’s ego bigger!

Dave Towle (The Voice of Domestic Cycling) 3:30min
-Tells us his thoughts.
-His favorite male and female racers.
-He knows who I…”you’re super rookie…”
-Makes a local guy’s ego even bigger!

Lisa Hunt (Director of ValueAct Capital) 5:45min
-Thoughts on the “neutralized race”

Dave Clinger (Rock Racing) 6:20min
-Thoughts on the rain.
-Wants more chances with Rock Racing team.

Kayle LeoGrande (Rock Racing)
-Name correction!
-Talks tattoos
-Has been injured…on his way back.
-Bummed out about California exclusion

Adrian Hegevary (Broadmark)
-Talks Fixed Gear Classic
-Gives Tips to Crosby
-Talks about his duel citizenship and racing for Hungrary