Iron City Bikes Racing

I made the trip this last weekend out to Michaux state park to race Iron Cross. I did the Hilly Billy Roubaix earlier this year, so I had some idea of what I was getting myself into. I arrived at the start with Adam Newman from Dirt Rag after camping really close to the start. Rolling to the start line from the pre-race meeting, I knew I had to get a good position. I wanted to stay with the leaders as long as I could, and I knew there would be several bottlenecks leaving the starting ground. I was very lucky and had a front row position that led straight into the short course before we hit the road.

The organizer made some announcements then made the 30 second call. At the go, I made use of the good start technique from all the Tuesday practice starts. I grabbed the hole shot into the first turn. I was feeling pretty good. I let a few people around and was sitting comfortable in the top 5. We went through a narrow passage around a gate, and I knew people would be trying to squeeze through there for several minutes.

If I hadn’t done the HBR, I would have been afraid of hammering so hard so early in the race, but I figured that I would have plenty of energy for the day as long as I was able to drink enough. On the first hill up to checkpoint 1, I lost contact with the leaders and decided I had to ride at my own pace. After CP1, there was several miles of rocky single track. I was pretty sure my arms were going to rattle off, I was going to pinch flat, or just wipe out into some trees. I was feeling glad that I at least had in-line brake levers. I ended up with a couple of guys working pretty smoothly on the next road section and on a gravel climb several guys fell back. After crossing a grassy field I hit the first “run up”. I didn’t have bottle cages, so I was able to shoulder my bike while I passed a couple of people who were struggling up the steep rocky face along some power lines. I was definitely glad to see CP2 at the top.

Between the 2nd and 4th CP was sort of a blur. After CP4, I was starting to feel a little tired, I probably hadn’t eaten enough food before the race. I hit the second section of single track and my spirits dropped. There were quite a few log and tree barriers that I could have ridden, but didn’t. My hands were starting to get raw from all the vibrations. Three guys who I dropped earlier passed me quickly. I exited the woods and started to feel better. I hit the last run up and down the last descent before the finish. I dismounted over the barriers right before the finish, and remounted so I could cross the line on my bike. I drank some coke and ate a couple burritos and started to feel pretty good. I ended up 13th at just under 4h 20min.
I would do this race again (but maybe wear gloves next time). Steph Swan raced the women for ICBR with a good finish, despite breaking her chain near the beginning. So much fun!!

Saturday, February 19 at 7:00pm

The Yeti is back at OTB for another intense session of Black and Goldsprints for 2011. Iron City Bikes and Urban Velo have paired up once again to bring you a crazy night of indoor bicycle racing, music, and beer.

Head To Head Bicycle Racing
Qualifying will begin at 8pm @ Over The Bar Bicycle Cafe
No experience needed
$10 to race, first 30 to register will get a free tshirt
$2 Full Pint Brewing Beers while they last – 100% of Beer Sales goes to the Team
Prizes
And More…
Sponsored By: Urban Velo, Full Pint Brewing, Fat Heads, OTB Bicycle Cafe, and Iron City Bikes

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This last weekend saw a couple of great cross races within easy driving. Kickoff cross was the first race in the WV cross series put on by J.R. Petsko. Dry conditions and a flat course favored riders with a lot of power, with few good places for beer ups. Rob Lochner competed in the singlespeed and 3/4 categories with a 5th place in ss. Eric got a top 10 finish in the 1/2/3 race, and Stephanie represented in the W1/2/3 race. In the 3/4 race, I flatted away from the pit and decided to take Jason B’s mt bike for a lap.

His shoes were too small, so we met back up in the pit and I stole Eric’s front wheel (thanks by the way Eric). I didn’t finish very well, but ICB managed to score some points for the team overall.

Sunday was a whole other story. Overnight rain and half mountain bike course design led to some very muddy condition in the MOM Grove City cross race.   The course started with a one lap promenade on pavement which easily spread out the sport from the beginner racers. The course turned sharply onto some tight muddy sections which the experts had previously torn up. A few small climbs sprinkled the singletack section which gave way to a more taditional cross section around some baseball fields. God handling in deep mud would definitely help here. The course then finished with a paved section with an off camber 180 10om before the finish. A good time was had, Rob, Ted, and Stephanie were also there to rep ICB.

Iron City Bikes Racing and the Pittsburgh Masters Velo Club are proud to present the Tenth Annual “Friday Night at the Track” Race Series at the Washington Boulevard Bicycle Oval every Friday from June 4th through August 27th. We invite you to join us at the track to race, watch, hang out and have fun.

$10 Racing Entry Fee
Registration 6:00 pm
Race Start 6:30 pm
No License Required
Must sign City of Pittsburgh and ABR releases.

Release PDFs and more info at FRIDAYNIGHTTRACK.COM

Time Trials

Freewheel, Front/Rear Brakes, Gears and Helmets Required.

June 4—5 Miles
June 18—10 Miles
July 2—15 Miles
July 16—20 Miles
July 30—25 Miles
August 6—10 Miles
August 13—20 Miles
August 20—25 Miles

Track Races

· Fixed Wheel & Lockring, Drop/Plugged Bars, Front/Rear Axle Bolts and Helmets Required. No Brakes Allowed.

June 11
June 25
July 9
July 23

Masters 50+ Criterium

· Freewheel, Front/Rear Brakes, Gears and Helmets Required.

August 27

Beginner Clinic

· Beginner racer clinics will be offered during track racing nights to help promote a safe and fun race environment and encourage everyone to give track racing a try.

Events subject to change.

Prizes from Magic Hat Brewing, Mad Mex and other Iron City Bikes Racing sponsors, along with other Pittsburgh bike racing supporters. Please let us know if you’d like to contribute any swag. Thank you!

This weekend I found myself headed east to French Creek State Park, to race the 6 hour endurance version of On the rocks at French Creek, part of the Mid Atlantic Super Series.

As the name of the race suggests, the majority of the trails were pretty rocky! It was a nice surprise to do a long race that wasn’t on a ton of gravel and double track. With the exception of the first climb, the entire race consisted of fun, technical trails. Well, the downhills were fun at least, but after every downhill comes an uphill. Most of the climbs were just about as rocky as the downhills were! Fun stuff.

Going into the race, I had set a goal for myself to do 6 laps. Looking at the results from last year, I noticed that only 1 person managed to get the sixth lap in, and I thought that it would be fun to try and do it on my singlespeed.

Despite the 20 minutes or so of heavy rain just before the race, and the few scattered showers in the morning, the trails were holding up pretty well. At least I thought so, until I started my second lap. After about 50 people had ridden the trails, there sure were some slippery sections on some of the climbs. There also were additional races starting just about every hour, so that added another challenge to maintaining my pace.

I kept my pit stops short, just spending enough time to grab a fresh bottle every lap, and a mouthfull of food every other lap, and it seemed to work out perfectly.

In the end, I got 6 laps in about 6:50, and finished in first place in singlespeed, and second overall. There were only 3 of us that managed to get 6 laps in, and I feel really good about the outcome of this race.

Next up, I think I’m going to attempt my first 12 hour race, at the 12 Hours of Tsali, near Bryson City, NC in 2 weeks. This should be interesting.