The team has finally been assembled in Alabama for the USAT Collegiate National Championships. Three cars and 14 people have traveled over 2,000 miles and made it through horrendous crosswinds and dreary Kansas and Missouri to approach UMTri's biggest race of the year. Tuscaloosa has currently been overrun by 1000 triathletes from universities across the country.
Friday, April 8, 2011
One last check in from UM Triathlon
Myke Hermsmeyer checks in one last time before the big race tomorrow.
Johnny Montana looks to lead the men. He's been suffering from a bad cold the last week or so but is getting over it and is looking to turn himself inside out the whole race. Aaron "Shake n' Bake" Little looks fitter than you've ever seen him. After taking it easy last year he's improved big time on the bike and swim while remaining deadly on the run. BLove (Ben Lovelace) will be right there with Aaron with strong bikes and runs. This past year he finished Lake Stevens 70.3 right behind John. The fourth and final scoring spot will be up for grabs. Ed Hirsh is crazy smooth in the water and runs well off the bike. Mike has been biking crazy good this year and will be riding a road bike instead his Jake the snake so we expect good things. Matt Handwerk (as of now expected to be the 3rd fastest Matt at Grizzly) is a powerhouse on the bike and is predicting himself to be the "National Champ of T1." Travis Miller stands ready to surprise everyone. Having not ever done a race he decided to go big at start off at Collegiate Nationals and has been training hard all year.
For the girls it's anyones game. Consisting of mostly new, inexperienced members (many without open water experience) it's unknown how people will throw down. The girls are likely to be led by veteran Katherine Ketterine, who is returning to Alabama after racing in Nationals here in 2008. She always is solid and has the experience to power her through the race. Hannah Reidl has come out of the woodwork and improved faster than anyone we've ever seen. She has a strong running background and has really laid it down and improved on the swim and bike this winter. Cara Lehman is bringing her tennis conditioning and strength to the team in a big way. She's a strong runner, has been getting out on the bike a lot and has been a staple at swimming, just don't ever ask her to play "would you rather." Megan Oberweiser is going to surprise everyone. Most of us only know her from swimming, but she has torn it up training rides/runs this past week. Expect big things in the coming years. Kaitlin Kominsky is looking to avenge her pre-race crash at Wildflower last year that got her helivaced to the hospital. She's the fastest swimmer for the girls and will come out of the water near the front. She's posed and ready for anything the race has to throw at her. Ashley Block has gone all out for the team this year, showing up to most trainer rides and even going so far as to dye her hair maroon for the race. Hellen Magart is going to bring some military toughness to the course. She has been at nearly every practice and like Travis will be racing in her first triathlon ever.
We'd like to thank all of you in Missoula that have supported us throughout the year. Without all of you we wouldn't be where we are as athletes. Special thanks to coaches Jeff Cincowski, Ryan Payne, Elliot Bassett and Josh Goldberg, and team supporters Steve Dahlberg and Giles Thelen. We can't thank you enough for the time and effort you have so generously given us this season.
Roubaix Photos 4/7/11
Final pitch on the dirt climb on the loop.
The beginning of the dirt climb on the loop.
The left hand turn entering the loop.
A look back at the descent right before the left turn entering the loop (also a the climb on the way home).
The first dirt climb of the day.
My thoughts: The road is smooth. It's in better shape then Rattlesnake Drive. There are potholes but not much loose gravel. The sketchiest corner is the pavement corner by the Steakhouse. The crew is headed out to sweep today, but be weary. My biggest concern is the potholes located on key descents. There is a big batch right after the steep dirt descent on the loop. If you don't avoid it, I think it's a for sure pinch flat. The other pothole section I noticed was on the first dirt section of the day. There is a roller coaster dirt section and on one of the slight left hand bends there's a patch of potholes. The weather looks good for Sunday. If it rains and your not sure of conditions feel free to email or call (544-5270).
Thursday, April 7, 2011
TTTT - Round 3
A stiff head wind greeted the riders as they headed up the Snake. It didn't stop Adam Jensen from recording the 2nd fastest ever time of 11:24. 2nd was Tyler Smith with a 12:59, and 3rd was Joshua Phillips with a 13:46. On the ladies side LC was first with a 14:27 followed by Kellie with a 12:52. Tyler takes over the overall.
Adam 11:24:00 Lindsy 14:27:00
Tyler 12:59:00 Kellie 14:52:00
Joshua 13:46:00
Joe 14:30:00
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Collegiate Catch-Up
UM Triathlon
The UM Triathlon juggernaut is on a collision course with Alabama and Collegiate Triathlon Nationals. Get the latest information from their twitter feed. It's been added to the mtcx updater. UM Tri doesn't re-build they re-load. Johnny MT leads the squad but is joined by some solid performers that you might not know about. Ben Lovelace is a strong biker and an experienced triathlete. Also, Aaron Little has been coming on strong and filling in the 2/3 spot for the squad. Rounding out the 4th scoring spot you've got multiple experienced vets. Ed Hirsch who is a top notch swimmer and an improving cyclist, and Myke Hermsmeyer who's ridden more this year then ever. On the ladies side Kaitlin Kominsky (sp) has trained hard and looks to surprise at Nationals. Katherine Kettering brings experience to the plate and should anchor down a group of vets and newbies. Chris Cordingley.com and Travis should increase the group's morale and I expect nothing less then a top 3 team finish.
UM Cycling
Phil said it best "If I won the lottery I'd donate 3% to UM Cycling." The gang has been quietly gathering results. James Bird and Nate Keck in the A's, Peter Young in the B's, TTTT star Wes and Anthony in the C's, Campbell in the A's and Mara in the B's (just to name a few). There are a couple business items to note before we get into the team. 1. UM Cycling Circuit Race is April 17th on the Goodan Kiel Loop (come out and cheer them on) 2. Cafe Dolce Fundraiser night is April 20th. This is the best UM Cycling Team since.....well maybe ever. Whoa now mtcx...what about Mark Legg National Champ, Josh Tack back to back conference champ, Women's TT champs last year? First and foremost this is the best organized team in UM Cycling history. Team time trial practice? Potlucks? Carpools? New Kits? Women's Rides? Second, the talent is there. The results aren't flooding in, but look at it this way. Nate and James are solid cat 2 cyclists, and Nate has the experience of bringing Mesa State to the promise land last year. Peter is on the brink. He's an A/B and I'm not talking blood type. He'll be an A sooner rather then later. So you've got a team trial with Bird, Nate, Peter, and TTTT champ Wes. What if Johnny MT shows up? Or Lovelace? On the ladies side you have one of the top 5 returners nationally in Campbell and probably the rookie of the year for the NWCCC in Mara. They won the Walla Walla team trial just the two of them. It gets better....TTTT champ Kellie hasn't even raced yet?! You get her out for a couple races and you have 3 A ladies and a team trial that not even the UM guys want to face.
See you at the Hell Ride. 5:30 footbridge. Goodan and Kiel Loop, dedicated to UM Cycling and Spring Break! Man, I miss Spring Break.
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
