New Member Meeting

The new member meeting will be this Sunday, September 16th. On the 4th floor of the Rutgers Student Center at 8:00PM. Be there to lean more about the team. This meeting is mandatory for new members that intend to join and old members alike.

The New and Improved Yearly Rutgers Clothing Order!

Hello Rutgers Cycling Team Members, Alumni, Friends, and Sponsors,

My name is Stanley Kerznerman and I am proud to introduce myself as the new Clothing Coordinator for the Rutgers University Cycling Team! The past year included Rutgers winning the ECCC Cyclocross title for a sixth consecutive year, a solid road season, the graduation of several senior members, and the addition of many new racers ready to represent the team and Rutgers University. 

As we prepare to start a new year of riding and racing, the team is glad to hold a clothing pre-order for the Alumni, Sponsors, Friends, and Family of Rutgers Cycling. The support we receive throughout the country is spectacular and extremely appreciated by our team members! The clothing is provided by Verge Sport, who have always supplied us with the highest quality products and have shown nothing but the utmost support for our team.

This year we will be offering the following Rutgers branded items on http://rutgerscycling.bigcartel.com/ for this order:

1. Short Sleeve Jerseys (in both Sport Cut and Race Cut)

2. Long Sleeve Jerseys (in both Sport Cut and Race Cut)

3. Bib-Shorts (Classic and Elite Cut)

4. Skinsuit

5. Thermal Warsaw Jackets

Sizes S, M, L, XL, XXL, and XXXL will all be available for all items! 

Also, please note that this is a pre-order and whatever is ordered will arrive in around December, just in time for the holidays!

In addition to the pre-order items, we currently have Rutgers Cycling Caps, Socks, T-Shirts, and Sweatshirts in-stock and available for sale. You can contact me at clothing@rutgerscycling.comfor any additional general item information, pricing, and photos for everything we offer. This information will also be available at http://rutgerscycling.bigcartel.com/, while you should refer to the chart at http://www.vergesport.com/sizing for any and all sizing related questions.

Once again, this order is NOT for current team members, only Alumni, Sponsors, Friends, and Family of the team.

Please do not hesitate to contact me at my provided email address if you have any questions, as I'll be more than happy to help and answer them! Thank you again for your support of Rutgers Cycling, we couldn't do what we do without all the support we receive and I cant say enough how immensely appreciated your support is.

All the best, 

Stanley Kerznerman

Clothing Coordinator

Rutgers University Cycling Team

clothing@rutgerscycling.com

Involvement Fair: DATE CHANGE

The semester is under way!

The date for the involvement fair has changed due to the recent storm. The Rutgers cycling team will be out in full force during the Rutgers fall Involvement Fair on Friday September 9th from 3:00 - 7:00. We invite students, faculty or staff to come out, say hi, and learn more about the team. This is the place to be if you are new and want to learn more and join. Some of us may even be rolling around in bright red kit on a tandem.

Our first team meeting will be held on Sunday, September 11 at 8:00PM at the Rutgers Student Center on College Ave (3rd floor). If you intend on joining the team this is the time to do it. Be there or be square!

See everyone soon,

RUCycling

Wednesday Night Cyclocross Practice TIME CHANGE

It was recently brought to our attention that the times for our Wednesday Night Cyclocross Practice were incorrect.

Sign will now begin at 5:45PM with practice starting sharply at 6:00PM.

Team Meeting and Involvement Fair

Hope everyone is enjoying the last bits of summer, we know we are.

The Rutgers cycling team will be out in full force during the Rutgers fall Involvement Fair on Tuesday August 30th from 2-6. We invite students, faculty or staff to come out, say hi, and learn more about the team. This is the place to be if you are new and want to learn more and join. Some of us may even be rolling around in bright red kit.

Our first team meeting will be held on Sunday, September 11 at 8:00PM at the Rutgers Student Center on College Ave (3rd floor). If you intend on joining the team this is the time to do it. Be there or be square!

See everyone soon,

RUCycling

2011-2012 Alumni/Friends Clothing Preorder Is Open!

Rutgers Cycling Alumni, Sponsors, and Friends,

Hello! My name is Michael Bachmann and I am proud to say that I have taken over the duties of clothing coordinator for 2011-2012. Although last year was my first year on the team, I have already seen why the team is such a bonded group and how dedicated everyone is to the sport.

This year promises to be an exciting year for Rutgers Cycling. After a solid showing at Nationals for cyclocross, we were sad to see some of our most senior members graduate this past spring. However, this season you can expect to see many eager new faces sporting Rutgers kits to fill those spots. As summer draws down and autumn begins, we hope to see some of you at races!

Now for the clothing. I am excited to announce that the pre-order for our clothing sale has begun! The preorder will run from August to October, with shipments going out in time for the holidays. We will once again be getting our clothing from the fine folks at Verge who are very supportive of Rutgers Cycling and always provide us with the highest quality products year after year. This year we will be offering a variety of products including Rutgers branded jerseys, skinsuits, bib shorts, thermal jackets, socks and more! All of the pertinent information can be found at this link: http://www.bikereg.com/events/register.asp?eventid=14051. You can find out about sizing, payment, and place your order all through our BikeReg page.

Please note that this order is for alumni, sponsors and friends of Rutgers Cycling. This is NOT an order for current team members.

If you have any questions at all regarding this order- whether it be product details, pricing or whatever else- I will get back to you almost always the same day. You can contact me at clothing@rutgerscycling.com

I truly thank you for being so supportive of Rutgers Cyling. We couldn’t do what we do without your continued strong support!

Sincerely,

Michael Bachmann

Rutgers-Raleigh CX Team Up Again for 2011!!

Rutgers Cycling and Raleigh Team Up Again for 2011 Cyclocross Season

Rutgers Cycling is once again excited to announce Raleigh Bicycles as its co-sponsor for the

2011 cyclocross season. Rutgers University-Raleigh Cycling Team will be riding the all-new 2012 Raleigh RXC Pro and RX 1.0 cyclocross bikes and framesets. Equipped from Raleighs new cyclocross lineup, the team starts their unstoppable campaign to win a sixth-straight Eastern Collegiate Cycling Conference cyclocross championship and a National Championship at US Cyclocross Nationals in Madison, WI.

Returning to the team will be senior Marcos Picchio, and sophomore Adam Nawrot both claimed second and first place titles, respectively, in the C men’s Eastern Collegiate Series. The team has also brought in new members as well, including seniors Mike Bachmann, Eugene Berezetsky and Arpeet Ravalji, and second year graduate student Paul Frandsen. George Ghanim will be surmounting the responsibility of racer and team director with the guidance of Mark “MamaBear” Vareschi.

The Rutgers-Raleigh National Championship team will be led by senior Patrick Bradley, whose palmares include 6th place at Collegiate Cyclocross Nationals at the 2009 US Cyclocross National Championships and three time ECCC Men’s A cyclocross series champion. Picchio and Narwot will be joining Bradley at Nationals.

“This really has been a transition year for Rutgers Cycling,” Ghanim said, “and as usual we have brought in many new riders that have become hooked to ‘cross. We are building a solid team of 15 racers that will be racing the majority of the season.”

“Raleigh Bicycles is excited to be partnering this cross season with Rutgers Cycling,” said enthusiastic Raleigh Marketing Director Brian Fornes.

“We look forward to growing this relationship and utilizing their valuable racer feedback on current and future cross bikes we will be producing. We’re even more excited about the level of commitment, and friendly, fun attitude that the Rutgers Cycling program brings to the sport. They are great ambassadors, and we feel that they will continue to help grow the sport on a local basis and be very competitive on a National level.”

The team will be riding the all new 2012 Raleigh RXC Pro and RX 1.0 cyclocross bikes. “We are beyond psyched for new RXC Pro. Raleigh has ushered in a new cyclocross line unlike another. Last year, we rode the RX 1.0 all the way to Nationals. I can hardly imagine what the RXC Pro will do to the competition in the mud” said Ghanim.

The 2012 RXC Pro takes the top spot in Raleigh's new cyclocross lineup. Featuring a flattened top tube, internal cable routing, BB30 bottom bracket and Raleigh’s Direct Connect Carbon technology, the new RXC Pro is a bike to be reckoned with.“For ‘cross, the BB30 is unmatched; it’s lightweight, stiffer, and provides exceptional power transfer compared to conventional bottom brackets used during ‘cross',” Ghanim states.

Raleigh joins a family of sponsors that will be supporting Rutgers for the 2011 cyclocross season including:

Efingers Sporting Goods – shop sponsor

Verge Sport – cycling clothing

Ritchey – cockpit components

SRAM – drivetrain components

Cycle-Smart - coaching

Gaerne - cycling shoes

Rudy Project - eyewear

Gu - nutritional products

Rocktape – kinesiology tape

53x11 Coffee – caffeine

Maul Electric, Inc. – financial sponsor

Berkeley Heights and Beyond – financial sponsor

Rutgers-Raleigh Cycling Team Tentative Schedule

• Stars denote ECCC collegiate races.

September:

10th Nittany Lion Cross UCI C2 – Trexlertown, PA

11th Nittany Lion Cross UCI C2 - Trexlertown, PA

17th Charm City Cyclocross UCI C2 – Baltimore, MD

18th Charm City Cyclocross UCI C2 – Baltimore, MD

October:

2nd Hillbilly Hustle NJBA CX Cup - Elmer, NJ

8th Providence Cyclocross UCI C2 – Providence, RI

9th Providence Cyclocross UCI C2 – Providence, RI

15th Granogue Cyclocross UCI C2 – Wilmington, DE

16th Granogue Cyclocross UCI C2 – Wilmington, DE

22nd Cylcocross at Central Park of Morris County - Morris Plains, NJ

23rd Spa City Cyclocross – Saratoga, NY *

29th Beacon Cross UCI C2 – Bridgeton, NJ *

30st HPCX UCI C2 – Jamesburg, NJ *

November:

5th Cycle-Smart International UCI C2 – Northampton, MA

6th Cycle-Smart International UCI C2 – Northampton, MA

12th Staten Cyclocross – Staten Island, NY *

13th Bethlehem Cup NY Cross Series – Delmar, NY

19th Myles CX – East Meadow, NY*

20th Myles CX – East Meadow, NY*

26th Sussex County Cyclocross NJBA CX CUP - Augusta, NJ

December:

3rd NBX Grand Prix UCI C2 – Warwick, RI

4th NBX Grand Prix UCI C2 – Warwick, RI

10th Ice Weasels Cometh – Wrentham, MA

17th New England Championships – Location Pending*

18th New England Championships – Location Pending*

31th Chicago UCI Cyclocross UCI C2 – Chicago, IL

January:

1th Chicago New Years Resolution Cyclocross UCI C2 – Chicago, IL

5-6th USA Cyclocross National Champinships, U23 and Division 1 Collegiate Men – Madison, WI*

Rutgers-Raleigh Wednesday Evening Cyclocross Practices

Rutgers University-Raleigh Cycling Team is proud to host Weekly Wednesday evening cyclocross practice at the Livingston Campus of Rutgers University in Piscataway, NJ.

Whether you've heard about cyclocross and wanted to give it a try, or you've done a few races and want to develop your techniques, or you're an experienced racer looking to further polish your skills, these weekly practices allow you to perfect crucial skills essential to your 2011 cyclocross season.

Practice:

Race Starts

Cornering

Dismounting

Portaging/Shouldering

Remounting

Run Ups

Off Camber Riding

Barriers

Registration:

For USAC/riders not currently on a NCCA-recognized collegiate teams, the fee is $5/practice and $40 for the entire series (15 Weeks). A valid USAC license is required; one-day licenses will be available for an additional $5.

For collegiate riders, the fee is $3/practice and $20 the entire series (15 Weeks). A valid NCCA license is required; one-day licenses will be available for an additional $5.

NO REFUNDS FOR ANY REASON

Participant Check In will begin at 5:45 PM every Wednesday with practice beginning sharply at 6:00PM. Registrants must fill out a athletic liability waver before each practice. NOTE: The start time is subject as the season progresses to change to maximize the daylight. ALSO: Practice will be canceled in the event of heavy rain to preserve the integrity of the Livingston fields.

Directions:

We will meet in the parking lot at the corner of Kilmer Road, and Postal Plaza, Piscataway, NJ.

From The NJ Turnpike

Please note that due to extensive construction work for the Route 18 expansion project, there may be road delays, detours, and possible closures. For up-to-date information, please visit the Route 18 Construction web page athttp://route18update.rutgers.edu or call the Rutgers Information and Referral Center at 732/932-INFO.

Take Exit 9 for New Brunswick – Rutgers University. Bear right after the tollbooths towards Route 18 North – Route 1. After the merger, keep to the left and get into the two left-most lanes to follow Route 18 North, NOT Route 1. Take Route 18 North to the Metlars Lane / Avenue E exit. At the end of the ramp, bear right onto Avenue E and continue to end. Turn left onto Road 3. Turn right onto Postal Plaza Road. Turn left onto Road 1 and continue to end, park in the lot in front of the Building 4086.

From Interstate 287

Please note that due to extensive construction work for the Route 18 expansion project, there may be road delays, detours, and possible closures. For up-to-date information, please visit the Route 18 Construction web page athttp://route18update.rutgers.edu or call the Rutgers Information and Referral Center at 732/932-INFO.

Take Exit 9 for Bound Brook – Highland Park. Take River Road east towards Highland Park (right at exit ramp if coming from the North, left if from South). Get onto Route 18 North. Take Route 18 North to the Metlars Lane / Avenue E exit. At the end of the ramp, bear right onto Avenue E and continue to end. Turn left onto Road 3. Turn right onto Postal Plaza Road. Turn left onto Road 1 and continue to end, park in the lot in front of the Building 4086.

From US Route 1

Please note that due to extensive construction work for the Route 18 expansion project, there may be road delays, detours, and possible closures. For up-to-date information, please visit the Route 18 Construction web page athttp://route18update.rutgers.edu or call the Rutgers Information and Referral Center at 732/932-INFO.

Take exit marked Route 18 North – New Brunswick. Take Route 18 North to the Metlars Lane / Avenue E exit. At the end of the ramp, bear right onto Avenue E and continue to end. Turn left onto Road 3. Turn right onto Postal Plaza Road. Turn left onto Road 1 and continue to end, park in the lot in front of the Building 4086.

Head over to BIKEREG.com to find out more and register!

The Rutgers-Raleigh Clinic Gets a Cyclocross Magazine Shoutout!

From drizzling rain, to slippery fields, the Rutgers-Raleigh Clinic went off this past weekend without a hitch. Attendees covered the essential skills needed during a cross race, a great BBQ, and some great prizes from our sponsor over at Efingers Sporting Goods to lots of smiling, albeit muddy, faces too. Check out the link below!

Rutgers-Raleigh Clinic Coverage!

2011 Rutgers-Raleigh Cyclocross Clinic Announced! Register Now!

Rutgers University-Raleigh Cycling Team is proud to present a cyclocross skills clinic at the Livingston Campus of Rutgers University in Piscataway, NJ.

Whether you've heard about cyclocross and wanted to give it a try, or you've done a few races and want to learn the techniques, or you're an experienced racer looking to further polish your skills, this clinic will provide a great head start to your 2011 cyclocross season.

Topics Covered:

Safety

Equipment

Bike Fit

Wheel/tire Selection

Tire Pressure

Race Start Technique

First Lap Tips

Cornering & Proper Breaking

Dismounting

Portaging/Shouldering

Remounting

Training Theory

Race Day Prep

Race Ethics

Off Camber Riding

Bike Changes

Last Lap Tactics

Registration:

For USAC/riders not currently on a NCCA-recognized collegiate team, the fee is $30/day and $50 for the weekend. A valid USAC license is required; one-day licenses will be available for an additional $5.

For collegiate riders, the fee is $20/day and $30 for the weekend. A valid NCCA license is required; one-day licenses will be available for an additional $5.

We invite all participants for an 8:00 PM BBQ on Saturday August 6th!

Head over to BIKEREG.com to find out more and register!

A letter to my teammates

As the semester comes to an end, it’s hitting me more and more that after this, I won’t be a part of Rutgers Cycling anymore.  So, with that in mind, I wanted to say a few thank yous and goodbyes.  I’m not going anywhere far away, and I know I’ll see a lot of you often- especially during cyclocross season, but I’ll have on a different kit, and that makes me kind of sad.  

  

When I first joined the team, as Chris or Rich can tell you, I went on a first bridge ride with them, almost passed out at the turning point from cold (turns out sweatshirts are not quite warm enough for 10 degree days) and Chris literally had to put his booties onto my feet for me so I could survive the ride home.  I’m sure at that point, he was thinking that I wouldn’t last a week on the team. 

But then, I started riding more, got proper cold weather gear, and fell in love with the sport and with the team.  I quickly realized that the team wasn’t just a few guys who I would see on race days: you were my new friends.  My first season racing Intros (until Karina and I got bored and upgraded to Bs) wasn’t exactly stellar, but I had an amazing time.  Racing bikes was way more fun than triathlon, for the express reason that I had awesome teammates to hang out with before and after every race.

Then…cyclocross happened.  I’m not ashamed to admit that I got bullied into racing, but it quickly turned into something more.  I had no intention of keeping it up, but then I realized that without actually being good at cyclocross AT ALL, I was still winning the Women’s B’s, and bringing in more points than most of the guys.  Thank you, lack of women in the sport!  So, I stuck with it, and fell in love with it, despite still sucking.  I also realized just how “punk rock” Rutgers Cycling is, compared to the other colleges, and I loved it even more. 

My second road season- thanks to a season of cyclocross to improve my handling skills- was much better than the first, in a drastic way.  Suddenly, the A and B women’s fields were combined, and I was staying with the top few A riders.  It hit me: I didn’t suck at this!

 

Cyclocross this last season was inarguably the high point of my life.  Sitting in the hotel room at Nationals watching the video that Will had put together of all of us made me realize just how much I had gotten from this team, and I actually cried from watching it, I was so happy to be part of this.

You have all been amazing and wonderful, and I will miss defining myself as a Rutgers Cycling racer, because that’s the identity I am most proud of.  This team is part of my heart, and has changed my life in so many ways.  It makes me so sad to realize that so many of us are leaving after this semester, and while I know we’ll remain friends, it hurts to think that we won’t see each other almost every day, or spend weekends cramped into one hotel room together, laughing hysterically about silly stuff.  I mean, this is the team where not one, not two, but five of us have matching cowbell tattoos.  I don’t know of any other team that can boast about that.  Almost all of the defining moments in my life in recent years can be traced back to this team, and there isn’t a thing that I would change about it.

A few specific thank yous I wanted to say:

Mark/Mama Bear: words cannot begin to describe how grateful I am for everything that you did for the team, and for me. On a cycling level, you’re the one who finally managed to teach me how to remount, which I could have sworn I would never do.  I can honestly say that you taught me pretty much everything I know about racing bikes, cx in particular.  And on a personal level, you have been there for me so much in the past two years, and I can’t tell you how much I’m going to miss you when you’re in Texas.

Charlie, Pat, and Matt: I love you guys, plain and simple.  Cyclocross wouldn’t be the same without you, and I can say without any exaggeration that Nationals was the most fun 4 days of my life.  There’s so much more I want to say, but I don’t have that kind of eloquence/space in this email, so I’ll leave it at that.  You mean everything to me.

Karina, Gina, and Gabby: thank you for being women!  Seriously, having you on the team has been awesome.  The women on this team are nothing short of amazing, and I don’t think I’ll ever find a team with a more fun group.  (Also, Karina and Gina, thanks for being part of our awesome TTT team in Philly last year.  We kicked ass.)

Don: thank you for every single pre-race speech about how I “have the fitness” and am “better than all these girls.”  And for teaching me how to corner when I first started racing.

Blake: you were the reason I got into triathlon to begin with, and when I was just a freshman, you introduced me to cyclocross (though I didn’t realize how I would come to love/live it at the time).  And, more importantly, without you, I never would have known about the Rutgers Cycling team.  So, thank you.

Thanks to Will, Marcos, David, Andy, George, Nick, Eugene, Adam, Chris, Rich, and everyone else: I could go on all day with how much everyone has meant to me.

You all have been my family for the past three years, and I have loved every second I have spent with all of you.  There is no team I would rather be on, and the time I’ve spent with you has been unforgettable. So, thank you all.

I’ll end on a note that most of you will appreciate: with a quote from Adam Myerson that Mark had sent out to the team a couple years ago.

“Do you love racing your bike? Is this team the gang you want to be a part of, to throw down with, to stand side by side with?”

Yes.

Good Luck to everyone graduating, and to everyone staying: I'm expecting great things from all of you next year! 

Love,
Molly

Road Season is Almost Upon Us!

I'm not sure how it happened, exactly, but it did: road season is officially less than 2 weeks away.  With road season almost here, Rutgers is in full prep mode (or panic mode, depending on which member you talk to).  This year, we're hosting our traditional season opener with only 1 race run the same as last year.  It's been a year of change, and we've said goodbye to some members, and hello to a few new racers- from Intro on up- for this coming season. 

The team is in a transitional phase as a lot of the seniors prepare to graduate, and the younger members prepare to step up to take on leadership roles for the team.  It's going to be an interesting shift!  Of course, our younger members are 100% up to the challenge of running the team, maintaining Rutgers Cycling's "punk rock cred," dominating in CX, and running a fantastic road race.

But we still have months before graduation!  In the meantime, new and old racers are preparing mentally and physically for the Rutgers Season Opener in just 2 weeks.  We've been hitting the roads on any clear non-snowy day, and Sunday Centuries are back and more crowded than ever, despite the crazy winter weather that we've been hit with.  And when the snow kept up shut up indoors, we turned to team trainer rides for motivation.

The team has also been hitting the gym for a team training session with an awesome personal trainer who has tailored our workout to make us the best cyclists that we can be.  (I admit, I may have gotten a little miffed when she suggested that I use the "girl weights," but after watching me do more pull ups than most of our guys, she reformed her opinion about me.)

After such a successful cyclocross season, it's going to be hard to top our Fall efforts.  Between the excellent race results, the trip to Nationals, and all the fun non-race moments during cyclocross, it's pretty much going to be impossible to top it, but we'll definitely try to match it with road season this year.  It's a last hurrah for a lot of us, so we're going to make it count!

See you all in a couple of weeks!

A Rutgers Cyclocross Retrospective

Just in time for US Cyclocross Nationals...

A Rutgers Cyclocross Retrospective from Rutgers Cycling on Vimeo.

Huge thanks to Will for putting this together

Heading to CX Nationals! (and ECCC CX Win!)

This Thursday, Oregon is getting invaded by Rutgers CX!  Pat Bradley, Charles Thompson, Matt Bathe and Molly Hurford will all be representing Rutgers Cycling at CX Nationals in Bend, OR.  After a long season, including a hefty preseason, it's all come down to this one weekend, and we're all crazy excited. 

More on that later, but for now, we're celebrating our 5th year in a row winning the ECCC CX conference:



We had a ton of individual podiums too, including Pat Bradley winning the A Men field, Charles Thompson winning the B field,  and Molly Hurford winning the B Women field and placing 2nd in the A Women field.  More podiums will be announced later after some final tallying on the part of the awesome MIT crew.

This past weekend, a horde of Rutgers cyclists landed in Warwick, RI for NBX, the final race in the Verge series.  Pat Bradley started the weekend off nicely with a 13th place in the Elite Men's race, and with 9 Rutgers racers in total, the collegiate field was intense.

Sunday saw our final fight to maintain CX dominance, and I (Molly) managed to secure a third place spot in the 3/4 Women's race, making it my first (and very exciting) big series podium. 

We'll be keeping in touch as we get ready to race at Nationals, I can't wait!!

Last Chance for Alumni to Order Jerseys!

The deadline for our jersey order is October 1, so this is last call for alumni and supporters of Rutgers Cycling to order jerseys! The jerseys look fantastic, so make sure to get your order in!

Find the order form here on BikeReg.com.

Thanks for the support!

Rutgers-Raleigh p/b Kim's Bike Shop 2010 Race Schedule

Hot off the presses, the team has confirmed its 2010 cyclocross schedule! If you are in the area, come out and cheer the team on.

The team will be focusing on the Mid-Atlantic Championship Series and the Eastern Collegiate Cycling Conference's Cyclocross Series. In the past four years, Rutgers has won several individual MAC titles and many, many individual and team titles in the ECCC series. Rutgers will also compete in select North American Cyclocross Trophy races and will compete at US Cyclocross Nationals in Bend, OR.

October
10/16-17 Granogue - Newark, DE UCI C2 (MAC)
10/23 Cornell Red Cross - Richford, NY (ECCC)
10/24 Saratoga Spa - Saratoga Springs, NY (ECCC)
10/30 Beacon - Bridgeton, NJ UCI C2 (MAC/ECCC)
10/31 HPCX - Jamesburg, NJ UCI C2 (MAC/ECCC)

November
11/6-7 Cycle-Smart International - Northampton, MA UCI C2 (NECCS/ECCC)
11/13 StatenCX - Staten Island, NY (ECCC)
11/14 West Point #1 - West Point, NY (ECCC)
11/20 Whitmore SuperCross - Southampton, NY UCI C1 (MAC/NACT) and
West Point #2 - West Point, NY (ECCC)
11/21 Whitmore SuperCross - Southampton, NY UCI C2 (MAC/NACT)

December
12/4-5 NBX Gran Prix - Warwick, RI (NECCS/ECCC)
12/8-12 US Cyclocross National Championships - Bend, OR

New Kits!

Rutger Cyclocross 2010 crew sporting our seriously stylish new kits!

Rutgers Cycling Does IRONMAN!

As the Rutgers Cycling token triathlete, I feel like it's my job to do at least one post about my races this summer...

As a lot of you know, my past year has revolved around training for Ironman Louisville. I raced repping Rutgers, rocking my sleevless jersey on the bike and a running t-shirt with Rutgers Cyclocross written on the back. It' s been a good summer with a lot of good triathlon race results, including being the 28th female overall in the Nautica NYC triathlon (out of +1400 women or so), 5th overall female at the Skylands sprint triathlon, and being 2nd in my age group in the Rev3 Quassy 70.3. Ironman KY, I was 7th in my age group, which was an OK finish despite some serious medical setbacks.

In all, I'm glad to be done with IM and starting CX season!

Anyway, here's a race report from Ironman:

Pre Race
Transition opened at 5:30, so at 4:30 I was awake, trying to eat a bagel and drink a ton of fluids, and out the door. Because we had stashed everything in transition the night before, it was a pretty simple morning. Got to transition, got everything set up, and was generally feeling pretty calm. Then, a .75 mile walk down to the start of the swim. We got there and were wondering why everyone was sitting in front of the portapotties.

I got bodymarked, and dad realized that they were all people in line. Honestly, people must have been there since the night before- I kid you not, I saw an air mattress. We walked and walked and walked and about a mile later got to the end of the line. I looked at the guys in front of me and asked if this was the line for Springsteen tickets. They laughed, but I guess that joke makes the most sense if you’re from NJ. Anyway, I chatted and ate, and was still feeling good. The guy behind me kept asking if I was nervous though, which did little to relax me.

The Swim
Once the line started moving, it moved quick. Before I really knew what was happening, I had a surge of volunteers pushing me into the swim chute yelling “keep running!” We went off the 2 docks 2 at a time 2 seconds apart, so before I really realized just what was happening, I was in the water and swimming. It was crazy. Because I started far back, it was pretty rough going. Got elbowed, kicked, and generally manhandled as I crawled my way up. The problem was that I kept getting slowed down because of all of the random people in front of me breast-stroking and popping out to sight. Seriously, there was a traffic jam at the turn buoy! I just kept telling myself to stay calm and just keep going. No crazy antics, just stay calm and KEEP SWIMMING! We swam under a couple of bridges, which was pretty neat, and then before I really realized it, the end was in sight! I got out of the water in about 1:18, which was kind of slow for me, but with the washing machine effect of having to get around so many people, I was ok with it. My only issue with the race setup was that they had so few buoys, it was almost impossible to sight sometimes. You had to assume that everyone knew where they were going and follow blindly until a buoy finally came into sight.

But… out of the swim and into bike transition! I ran into the changing tent and was shocked at how many people were totally changing! I was wearing my bike stuff so I crammed my shoes and helmet on, pulled my Rutgers jersey on over my head and booked it out of the tent, pausing to get copious amounts of lotion everywhere. Ran out, mounted, and took a deep breath… 112 miles to go.

The Bike
The bike started FAST. I was passing people, and feeling really good. (My results are a tribute to this, my average for the first part was 19.5). I was expecting a flat course, but it was more accurately described as rolling. A lot of the time, it was kind of tough avoiding drafting, and I felt like I got slowed down a lot because of it in some segments. I had a nutrition plan in place and I was sticking to it, feeling good, despite the fact that it was getting HOT out. I was refilling my bottles at every station, drinking as much as possible between them, and generally trying to stay calm, but stay going at a steady clip. I didn’t want to be beat for the marathon (though in retrospect I might as well have been) and I was trying to conserve energy. It’s amazing how fast 112 miles goes by, and how exciting it was when we passed through LaGrange and just could hear the crowd going crazy for us. I made a few “friends” on the bike, men and women, because we had a group of about 25 of us that kept constantly passing and re-passing each other. It made it fun, knowing who had just passed you so you could head for them on the next hill. I'm glad I have this picture of me smiling, because honestly, this part was fun:

By the last 20 miles or so, I started having some “respiratory issues,” which made me aware that I was probably getting dehydrated. As I said, I had been drinking as much as I could without making myself sick or cramping. As the miles ticked off, I knew the marathon was going to be tough, but I tried to stay focused. I definitely slowed down a bit towards the end, but still ended the bike with an average of 18.5 mph. Not too shabby, though I wish I hadn’t started losing it at the end.

I'll never be nervous about making it through a full century ride with the team again...

The Run
… to call it the run is kind of an insult to running. I got into transition, actually changed shorts and threw on a running top with Rutgers Cyclocross written in marker on the back. I charged out of transition, planning to eek as much actual running as I could. I made it to the first aid station, got through that walking, and started running again. For the first couple stations, I wasn’t feeling great but I was surviving. But then… my lungs started really hurting.

And this was around mile 5 or so. I kept going, running when I could, walking the aid stations, drinking as much as possible. The ice cold sponges definitely helped, and made me feel a lot less gross. The problem was, I couldn’t eat.

Around mile 10, I started dry heaving. Which is the worst. All I wanted was to actually throw up, but it just wasn’t in the cards. Still, I kept run-walking.

When we hit loop 2, I felt a little better. It is amazing how short 13 miles seems when you have 127 finished! I just kept thinking about how much I wanted to finish, and that kept me going. People were great- I talked to a lot of other racers about IM and about cyclocross, but by mile 15, my lungs were not thrilled with me and talking hurt. By mile 20, I couldn’t really drink, and I was walking way more than I was running. The problem with dehydration, I learned, is that once it starts, no amount of drinking is really going to help when you’re still racing. It was depressing, my legs felt fine but I couldn’t breathe or drink. I wanted to run but every time I did, I thought I was going to fall over. Everything hurt except my legs and I just wanted to keep running. I was watching the clock tick away past my goal times that I could have made, had I been able to take in more fluids. And that hurt. Still, kept going.

Anyway, finally hit those last couple miles and started trying to run from cone to cone- run one cone, walk the next, run one, walk one… And after what seemed like forever, the finish line started to come into sight. Rather, you could hear it before you saw it. A dull roar that you could hear 4 blocks away. And knowing that I wanted to run across the line, and knowing that medical help was just blocks away, I gave it everything I had, ran through the cheering crowd, and finally got to hear that I was an Ironman. Final time: 13:37. Way more than I had planned, but faster than I thought I would do once I started hurting.

It was incredible. There's just something amazing about hearing "Molly Hurford, you are an Ironman."

Right after this picture was taken I went to the medical building and got pumped full of IV fluids thanks to a whole lot of amazing volunteers.

And that is Ironman in a nutshell. It was an experience. I’m glad I did it, and I’m glad I pushed through to finish. Thank you to all my lovely teammates who helped me on crazy long rides all last year, and thanks to all of you for messaging me to say good luck the day before- I was thinking of you all the whole bike leg!

“Swim 2.4 miles. Ride 112 miles. Run 26.2 miles. Then brag for the rest of your life.” -Commander John Collins, Ironman Triathlon creator