Monday, May 20, 2013
Media / Blog

TC Athetes: Overcoming Obstacles!

Congratulations to TC Athlete Andrea HIlderbrand for her first place finish in the Ramblin’ Rose Triathlon last weekend. Though Andrea is no stranger to the top of the podium, this race was particularly challenging because her demanding work schedule required her to be up all night before the  race. Fatigue did not weaken her resolve, and she still came out in first place! Way to tough it out, Andrea!

 

TC Mountain Bike Team member Bonnie Kleffman has overcome some challenging conditions on the racecourse lately. Two weeks ago in Winder, GA, Bonnie pulled out a 4th place finish despite a muddy course and a stacked elite women’s field. Last weekend, Bonnie overcame a flooded start line, slick trails, and pouring rain during SERC #4 in Ducktown, TN at the Ocoee Whitewater Center and finished in 3rd place for the Pro/Expert women.Congratulations Bonnie on another great race!

Read more: TC Athetes: Overcoming Obstacles!

More Rainy Weekend Warriors

Scott George and Mike Schaefer braved bigfoot at the River's Edge 50 Mountain Bike Marathon at Uwharrie this weekend. Scott saw the top of the podium again with a win in the Single Speed class, while Mike flew around the course for a 2nd place finish in the men's 40+ category! Way to go gentlemen!

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TC Athletes Race The Rainy Weekend!

TC athletes did not let any foul weather get in their way this weekend! TC was all over the tri, road and mountain scene as April comes to a showery close. Check it out:

A big congratulations to Susan Airheart for qualifying for USA Triathlon Nationals! Her race at St. Anthony's Tri in St. Petersburg yesterday qualified her with a 2nd place in her age group of 39 women. There were 4000 participants in this race which is in its 30th year. Nice job Susan!

TC Athlete Andy Udinsky has been busy on the road bike this month! Check out his results:

4/16/13 Nestor Cup Prologue TT  - 1st place

4/21/13 Savannah Wheelmen Kick Off Crit - 1st place

4/23/13 Nestor Cup Race #1 - 1st place
 
Check him out rocking the pink socks:

Read more: TC Athletes Race The Rainy Weekend!

Another BIG Weekend for TC Athletes!

TC athletes were all over the mountain and road race podiums this weekend! Check out the who, what and where:

Elsa Lee - 2nd, Cat 2 Women, Stump Jump XC MTB race, Spartanburg, SC (pictured above)

Hannah Miller - 1st in the Elite Women -  Ion Village Criterium

TC Coach Winston and Sarah David - 7th National Race: Sunny King Criterium

Scott George - 1st on the Angler's Ridge 6 hour MTB, Single Speed (pictured below)

Read more: Another BIG Weekend for TC Athletes!

Brien Boswell TRIs Hard This Weekend!

Congratulations to TC athlete Brien Boswell for a 2nd place finish in his age group in an Olympic Distance Tri this weekend. He will be doing an IronMan in May, and this challenging, hilly course was just what he needed to get prepared, with a PR of 2:24:56. Way to go Brien!

 

6 Hours of Warrior Creek: Day Perfect

Saturday's 6 Hours of Warrior Creek was a sharp contrast to my last 6 hour, the Bootleg Bangout. This time around the weather was perfect and so was the course. A little rain the days just before the race made the course slightly tacky on the first lap but once 350+ racers did one lap it turned into a seriously fast race track. Huge props to the BMCC guys and their efforts in putting on this race. There is no doubt in my mind that this is THE 6 hour race in the southeast, boasting a solid $6,000 purse this year! The TotalCyclist MTB team had a great showing entering 5 different categories. Here are the results for the day:

1st, Singlespeed Female - Sherry George
2nd, Duo Female - Elsa Lee & Andrea Hilderbrand
2nd, Duo Coed - Bonnie Kleffman & Chris Wieczorek
3rd, Duo Male 40+ - Mike Schafer & Kelly Hudson
13th, Singlespeed Male - Scott George



Scott leads the bunch

Scott had a rough day, still hung over from being ill all week while Andrea had to fill in for the injured Casey Bailey. She'll be back soon.

Here's a little about how the day went for Mike and Kelly:

Kelly Hudson:


"This was my 3rd 6WC. The first 2 were plagued with flat tires and a nasty rock garden crash.  So the goal this year was to ride smart and stay outta trouble.  I was riding with a new teammate in the 40+ duo, Mike Schaefer.


I arrived Friday afternoon to find Mike backing his camper in to spot 21, directly across from registration and right at the singletrack exit before the Start/Finish line….perfect!


After a quick tour of the weekends accommodations we were off on an easy lap to check out the trail. With over an inch of rain 2 days before, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Turns out the 13.5 mile with 2958 bermed turns (at last count) trail was in excellent shape except one climb on the back side that was getting runoff from somewhere and would stay slick for the duration. An hour and a half later...READ MORE

TC Mountain Bike Team Sweeps Podium at 6hrs of Warrior Creek!

The TotalCyclist Mountain Bike Team was at it again this weekend, this time for the famous 6hrs of Warrior Creek endurance mountain bike race in N. Wilkesboro, NC. It was a beautiful day for racing and it showed, and we have podium smiles to prove it. On top of the podium with a first place finish in the Women's Single Speed field, Sherry Haller George had a great day indeed. Here is Sherry and teammate Mike Schafer already having a good time at the start line:

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In the Coed Duo category, Chris Wieczorek and Bonnie Kleffman pulled it out for a second place finish, battling it out all day with the first and third place teams. The Duo Female category saw team member Elsa Lee and TC athlete Andrea Hildebrand in the second place position. These ladies were all smiles on the podium!

 Photo: podium today at 6 hrs of warrior creek with my awesome duo partner Elsa Lee!

 

In the Duo Male category, teammates Mike Schafer and Kelly Hudson finished strong with a 3rd place overall. Scott George was worked hard in the Single Speed men's category, pulling out a 13th place finish within a field of 35! Nice!

Read more: TC Mountain Bike Team Sweeps Podium at 6hrs of Warrior Creek!

SERC #1 Race Report from Ocala, FL

Pleasant Surprises

Did you ever have one of those dreams that shoots you up right in the middle of a great sleep only to leave your mind busy pondering at the possibility of just a few more zzzzzz’s? Happened to me this Saturday at 3am, the morning I left for the SERC Series opener at the Vortex trails in Ocala, FL. My plans went around and around several times but the short of it is that as of Friday morning, my travel companion succumbed to sickness and I knew I would be traveling alone. I did not have the energy to coerce another sucker into going with me, Ocala is in rural, mid-state Florida and a mere 7.5 hours from my house in Fort Mill. Oh, and the forecast? Rain Sat. and Sun., with a 70% chance of thunderstorms and high wind on Sunday. No worries. Solo road trips are particularly adventurous, right, especially when they begin just after 3am.

Even after buckets of coffee, the first few hours in the car were rough. The early start was nice, though, because I was on the trail for the preride a few minutes after noon. Ha! Perhaps my insomnia at least afforded me a dry preride, as the skies looked foreboding but not quite ready to explode. Registration done, I set out on the trail and began wondering if the preride was even really necessary, except for generally unkinking my body after that many hours in the car.

Read more: SERC #1 Race Report from Ocala, FL

Ice Shower: Bootleg Bangout 6hr Race Report

I'm not a fan of the cold. Ask anyone. Scott George knows this the best. He's seen me get blue lipped on the way down Mt. Mitchell in July wearing a vest and arm warmers. So the thought of doing a 6 hour duo in the rain when the temperature is in the 50s is not something I go for naturally and how I ended up doing just that is really more a function of terrible spring weather and stubbornness to get the season going with some fun. Everyone around here is itching to get on with spring and some racing.

 

 

Elsa and I had decided to team up weeks earlier when the weather was nice. I'm sure she would have been content with skipping it had we given it some serious thought, but how bad could it get, right? The forecast early in the week showed 61 and 40% chance of rain. No problem. Then it went to high 50s by mid week. Still, I can hang, that's not bad. By Friday, I knew we were gonna be in for a mess. A forecast of low 50s and 70% chance of rain meant that I brought every winter and wet weather item I had. I even brought WAY too many pairs of socks (learned the hard way at Burn 24 one year). I had a small thought that maybe it would be even worse but put it right out of my head as we sped down I-77 Friday night. It was worse and the hotel didn't help. I'll just say this: NEVER stay at the Radisson there unless you like someone else's pubic hair on your toilet, sludge back up stains in your sink and your room to smell like an ashtray even though it's a non smoking hotel. WTF over.

We woke Saturday morning to decent temperatures (55ish) and fairly clear skies (and by fairly clear I mean think I saw some blue). Getting there was... READ MORE

Pendelton Weekend Warriors!

Congratulations to TotalCyclist's own Trey Miller for his 7th place finish in the Men's Pro Am Road Race and Circuit Race.

Jim Payne also had a great showing in the Masters 35+ Cat 3/4/5 race!

Read more: Pendelton Weekend Warriors!

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