Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Ending the season, starting the next

   When my 2013 road and track season come to a close, I look back to observe my strengths and weaknesses throughout the season. A strength could be my improvement on TT's and a weakness could be that I couldn't stick on the climbs with Adrien Costa at Road Nationals. I also look back on achievements and if I reached my goals for the season. 
 
   At Road Nationals I rode what turned out to be a great time trial for me, coming in 12th, which is a great improvement from the other TT's I did earlier this year. In the Road Race I rode as best as I could for the team and for myself. I chased down attacks early in the race taking some of the pressure off of our team's climbers. I also paced Nick back into the break after he was separated on the very technical descent.   

   At Track Nationals I was pretty upset when my 200m time was just a tenth of a second away from qualifying for the match sprints. After that I was pretty much out of the omnium so I decided to focus on getting Gage the omnium win and just go for individual wins. I ended up 6th in the points, 5th in the individual pursuit, and Gage ended up missing the omnium win by one point. On the bright side we ended up winning the 3k team pursuit with Chazmichael Morales. 

   Overall my season wasn't great but I had a lot of changes, a new team, a new coach, and just starting high school. Next year I'm hoping for a MUCH better season seeing that no big changes are hopefully going to happen in the next year. But even though my season didn't go as planed I still met some incredible teammates, and had the most fun I've ever had in a racing season!

Grant McElroy

 

  

What a year!

With the racing season coming to an end, I'm taking time to look back.  I've had a very good year, and so has the Team.  I've had my up's and down's but all in all it's been a very good year. I won San Dimas with my teammates taking the next's three placing's.  At Sea Otter I didn't ride so well, but my teammates managed to get on the podium.  I won all my State Championships, then rode poorly at the Punch Bowl race. But for some perspective - we train all year to do great at Nationals.
                   
That's a story in itself, because Larry, Nick, Dad and I drove back to Madison, WI in the team van. It took us four days of driving. In those four long days we learned the art of eating out at gas station's. Nick (the city boy) cracked in the middle of Wyoming, not that I kept it together myself. But we made it to Madison in one piece, thats when all the fun began.
                   
When all the racing got started we had some great and not so great thing's happen.  Matt got hurt in the road race and had to go to the hospital. Gage finished 2nd in the TT and then finished 3rd in the road race with Nick and Jason finishing in the top ten. I won the TT, road race and criterium championships, but not without the help of my great teammate Jules.  He alone set up the move that allowed me to win the criterium, in which he finished in 5th place!

When Nationals finished up Larry, Nick, Dad, and I set out for the long drive home.  It only took us two days of driving to get back to California.  Larry and Nick had a Camp to get to, and I had my Grandma waiting for me. She came out for a family wedding. I don't get to see my Grandma but maybe once a year as she lives in Kansas, we had a great time together.

My teammates Gage and Jack went off to Belgium to race for the USA Team in August.  I checked on their results every day, and wished that was me over there with them. But I am not old enough yet so maybe next year. Gage and Jack and the US Team did great in Belgium by winning races and placing well in their races.

My teammates Gage, Jack, Jules, Matt and Grant all did great at the track Nat's, winning eight more National Championship's, and so did the Master's.

The team and I have had a very good year but none of this could have never taken place without the help of our sponsor's.  So at this time I would like to thank all of our sponsors: Specialized, Openwave Mobility, Clif, Touchstone, Squadra, Smith, Fit Kids, Zipp, and the NCCF who are the ones who make it all possible.  And thank you Larry for all the help you made me a better rider.
              
Yesterday I got my Cat 2 upgrade approved, now I've got my work cut out for me. My Dad say's "now we will see what you are made of".  So through the winter I'm going to be training hard so I can
make this a better team next year.
               
And one more thing - today was my Dad's Birthday, So HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD, I Love You. Sean










Monday, August 26, 2013

Vacaville - a perfect race


photo by Alex Chiu Photography
Kevin is on fire! With his house remodel running over budget, he backed off his goal to go to Road World's in Italy to target Masters Road Nationals, which starts next Wednesday with the time trial.

For the 26 years that our team has been around Nationals and World's have, and always will be the goal. Local races like the Vacaville Grand Prix serve to hone race fitness, criterium skills and team tactics. Put another way - Vacaville is a Velopromo event, so we know the prize list is a joke, but it's also a classic downtown course, with loads of botts dots, a hairpin turn, a haybale in the middle of the road, a 15 second climb, a descent towards a pot hole and a big two kilometer course for tactics to be played out over each lap.

We met at Greg's house - just four blocks away from the start - to change, prep and talk. Kevin won Winters on Saturday and was the first to speak up "I want to win solo". Greg is coming back from injury, I'm riding inconsistently and not confident, and Jeromy had raced (and placed 4th) in the Tempus Fugus TT Sunday morning. We liked Kevin's plan and made no other.

Kevin will be the first to tell you that he is not a "sprinter" so how will he win from a field of 50 (or so) starters? Smarts and experience, that's how! We had planned to get into a break with Kevin plus one off us, drive it until he flies solo. Simple, eh? Here's how Kevin won, from my perspective - Jeromy is active in the first four laps (of 16), I start the break and Kevin is with me, plus five others so he and I do more than 2/7th work to make this stick. There's a prime lap in there that helps to split us up. We have a gap, we work together for just three laps when the gaps start opening because two guys have decided not to work. Kevin is on the sunny side of the breakaway with Dean LaBerge (Primetime) and Chris Baker (Folsom). I didn't want to leave Kevin that early and going away with two sprinters is not ideal but Patrick Briggs has Dean up the road so he and I take the other three back to the pack and the gap grows.

Fast forward to one and half laps to go. Exactly how does a non-sprinter get rid of two sprinters? Reputation played a big role. Dean has a well known reputation to outsprint most anyone, and Chris has a few sprint wins as well this year, but when a non-sprinter attacks, he forces the sprinters to choose who will spend the energy to chase. When the sprinters get to the point that they thinking "I'd rather Kevin win than helping you win" the gap grows. Smarts, experience and really good form in the days leading up to Nationals.

Dean was 2nd, Chris Baker 3rd. The chase behind the breakaway trio was hot, with Larry following wheels to 5th place. Patrick Briggs was 4th.

Thanks for reading, Larry Nolan, Team Specialized Masters

Friday, August 9, 2013

Breakaways

Road and Velodrome Nationals had really tough competition in the Juniors 13-14 this year, which made for some great racing! I chose to race in breakaways, which greatly raise the chances of winning, or even getting on the podium. 

Coming into Road Nationals, I knew that there were some phenomenally fast sprinters in my field, so it would be risky to wait and sprint at the end of the road race or criterium if I wanted a place on the podium; I decided to try to get into a break. In the road race, my teammate Sean Mcelroy first went for a break sometime in the middle of the race; The pack must have been really nervous, because they were hauling after him. At the small hill in the course, I laid the hammer down and broke away from the pack, trying to bridge the gap to Sean. There he was, lingering a few hundred meters away, but for some reason, I just didn't have the energy to bridge the gap. I eventually returned to the field and had a middle pack finish of 8th (many riders were dropped). The next day in the criterium, I broke away first, but unfortunately I was caught again. Sean then pounced on the other riders that chased me and he broke away to a solo victory. I learned something about the art of counterattacks that day and was ready to use them in the upcoming Velodrome Nationals.


Velodrome Nationals arrived two weeks later, and I was rearing to win. I was still a little wary of breakaways after my two failed attempts at Road Nationals, so my plan for the 4k scratch race (the first mass start race) was to wait and sprint at the end. When I talked to Larry about it though, he told me that my plan could get me a spot on the podium, but might not be enough to win; he thought I should breakaway. I thought about this, but the memories of my breakaways at Road Nationals still sat fresh in my mind and made me nervous. Then, an amazing thing happened in the 15-16's scratch race; Gage, one of my Specialized teammates as well, broke away to a solo victory! It really pumped me up and I started to fantasize doing the exact same thing in my race. My race began, and I sat back and waited until it was my time to shine. With 8 laps to go, the announcer excitedly spoke, "It looks like Jules Gilliam from Team Specialized has broken away from the field!" A rush of adrenaline shot through my body and time seemed to stand still, but when I came back into reality, I had 2 laps to go. I pedaled and pushed all the way to the line, but was barely beaten by Sandor, who had been one of the top sprinters at Road Nationals. Man, was I disappointed  But, I was also very glad to have made that move; Larry and Gage both inspired me to breakaway in that race. Through all the excitement, I was determined to win the next day in the 10k points race. 

When the race started, my plan was to try to lap the field, so I went right after a sprint when everyone around me was tired; In a way, it was a counterattack. Another rider, Samuel, was up the road a little ways, and when I caught up to him, we both worked our fair shares of effort. Yet, right before the next sprint, I whipped up the pace and dropped him to make sure he didn't lap the field with me (he was ahead of me on points). My tongue felt like cotton from the effort I had given so far. I kept going and pushed away all doubts and worries. Down to 1 lap to go, and I was 1/8 of a lap from the field. I finished without lapping the field, but winning the sprint and getting third in the points race. If I had lapped the field, I would have won on points. Another slight disappointment  but I was so glad I didn't take any chances in trying to win a national title.

I definitely learned the cold, hard truth of breakaways this year; They are risky and don't always work out. But, that being said, field sprints have an even greater risk of crashing, getting boxed in, or just not having the pop in the legs to podium. Breakaways broaden the chances of winning, and are overall much safer. Hopefully someday I will win in one, and that will be my greatest victory yet.

To racing and learning,
Jules

Monday, August 5, 2013

Owen Gillott interview

Tour de l'abitibi - Owen Gillott - 10th stage one, 3rd stage two, 4th stage three, 26th stage four, 11th stage five, 4th stage six, 1st stage seven, 2nd General Classification.

Team Specialized - 600 kilometers over seven stage and six days – what’s the best training for 17-18’s that want to attend Tour de l’abitibi in the future?

Owen Gillott – "First, I planned to train in six day blocks.  I would ride 100km or more each day to condition myself to the race distances.  In the weeks leading up to the race, I would cut down on the distance and work on intensity"
TS – 4th place and 19 seconds back going into the 7th and final stage.  You won the stage solo!!!  When did you start to think about a solo flyer?
OG – to be honest, the plan wasn’t to go solo.  I wanted to get in a breakaway and it happened a few times but it never stuck.  So, with 3 laps to go I thought I’d try one last effort.  And, with 3km to go the opportunity arose, so I took it.  I “took a flyer” in track terms.  Cut the corner and never looked back.
TS – well, your “flyer” earned you the win and your time bonuses pushed you up to 2nd in the final General Classification.  Congratulations!  Can you please describe the thoughts running through your head in the last 3km?
OG – “if this sticks it’s going to be something I’ll remember”… “I might even pull off the Tour win”
TS – when did you realize that you were free and clear?
OG – “I never actually did.  When I went solo every pedal stroke I thought would be my last which made me push much harder.  Not looking back I had no idea how close they were”
TS – our team only has two 17-18 year old so you joined another team (Race against Childhood Cancer) – how cohesive was your new team, given that you had just met each other?
OG – yes, coming from a team with only one teammate was hard, but I dove in head first and within 24 hours we had made a strong friendship with the guys.  People thought we had been racing all year together.
TS – most stages are wide open road races into final circuits in the host city.  Describe what the racing is like on the days with a massive (120+ rider) field sprint.  Where would you position yourself?  How fast were the finishes?
OG – well, lucky for me, I just came from the Tour of Ireland (9th stage one, 10th S2, 4th S3, 2nd S4, 1st S5, 34th S6, 14th GC) where the roads are narrow and tight.  Getting on the open roads made it so much easier.  With a large bunch of rider s it is hard to move forward at times, but I would always make sure to be up near the head of the race with 20km to go.  As the “sprint finish” would start this far out!  I would hold my position and move forward whenever the chance came up. 
TS- after 14 hours of racing  you ended the stage race just 2 seconds off the winning time.  That’s a lot of time off the bike in a week of racing.  What else fills your day?
OG – well, it’s longer than most people think and you spend anywhere from 3 to 4 hours before the race either getting there or making sure everything is packed and ready.  After the racing some days I had podium or drug testing to go to which can take an hour or more.  But, for the rest of the time we would try to sleep and recover as much as possible for the next stage.
TS – what’s it like racing in such a widely international field?  Varying styles of racing or the same?
OG – well, every rider has their own style of racing but so does every country.  It was interesting to see how all the different styles clashes.  It made for very intense and scary racing at times!
TS – any example (of racing styles) to share?
OG – some aggressive styles, then you have riders who waste energy sitting in the wind all day and some people who ride with no fear!  Everyone has different styles and when they all come together there can be some big crashes like the ones we saw on stages 1, 5 and 6 and the biggest one on 7.
TS – podium and drug testing (Owen had two of each)… can you tell us what those are like? 
OG – podium is always, fun especially when you win.  This is the only race of the day so all eyes are on the podium.  Hearing your national anthem and the sea of people looking back at you is something special - that’s for sure.  Drug testing on the other hand - not so fun.  For those that have never had the experience it pretty much consists of sitting in a room until you need to pee then doing it with someone watching you.  Plus about 30 minutes of paperwork.  Not ideal recovery for a stage race.
TS – thanks for your time
OG – thank you!

Turning point

Post 2013 USA Cycling Junior Road and Track National Championship ramblings...

Junior Nationals presents a turning point to the majority of young cyclists that attend.  All across the USA, juniors are placing well in local races and dream of winning at Nationals.  Most can tell you the podium for the past three years!  Two year age-groups present a challenge when one is at the bottom of the age-group and a ripe opportunity when one is the elder of the field.  This year Nationals were hotly contested.  On the road side, the 15-16 and 17-18s need to be a category 1 (rare), 2 or 3.  Which leaves a bunch of category 4 and 5 juniors at home.  The 15-16, 17-18 fields were packed with star talent and almost 100 riders in both fields.  On the track, fifty-two 15-16 year olds were vying for one national championship over a five-event omnium.  Talk about competitive!

The results are in, each athlete receiving their placing for the road time trial, road race, criterium and omnium.  Some were pleased with their performance, some had hoped to do better.

Now we're into the "turning point"... will all of the riders that didn't win in 2013 come back even stronger in 2014, or will they give up this sport?

The rate of rider turnover in our sport is too great, which is why I'm writing this note.  I hope that Juniors are patient with their development.  Case in point - Tanner Putt (2013 U23 road race champ) and Ty Magner (2013 U23 crit champ) were not stellar Junior races... but just a few more years of consistently improving and they are at the top of their game.  All riders mature/ growth spurt differently.  Are you patient enough with yourself and your performances if your best years are still three or four years from now?  I hope so!

Larry Nolan, Team Specialized Junior Director