News

WE’RE BACK! The RACES ARE ON THIS WEDNESDAY April 1st!! No foolin' here! The forms are being prepared, the baked goods are getting ready for the oven and the weather looks like it might work for us too!

The Wednesday Night Criterium Series is in full effect for the 2015 season. This is a training series that targets racers of all ages and ability level and allows them to learn pack riding and racing strategies in a safe, closed-course, environment. The following is the schedule for each and every Wednesday Night event that we host:

• Registration: 5:30PM
• Race #1: 6:15PM
• Race #2: 6:45PM
• Race #3: 7:20PM

For more information about each race during the night as well as the course and more, head on over to the Wednesday Night web page.

Joe Berenyi won GOLD in the C3 Kilo TT and the C3 Pursuit at the UCI Para-Cycling Worlds in Apeldoorn Netherlands.
Results here

RESULTS

Last stop of the Chicago Cross Cup series was on Chicago's lakefront at Montrose beach. The course changes from year-to-year sometimes incorporating various parts of the beach and the surrounding terrain, but you can be guaranteed lots of sand and at least one trip up Cricket Hill. This year many of the technical features of year's past were taken out in favor of long power sections and taping wide enough to give an advantage to riders skilled at carrying their speed through turns. Add to these long power sections a few trips through the loose, power-sapping sand and it made for a tough course. Temps were chilly, but not too bad and the sky, but the wind was howling.

Results (via crossresults.com):

• Women Cat 4: Natalie Mouw 34, Catlin Urban 37
• Masters 55+: Tony Pacini 2, Ludy Montfort 13, Craig McKenzie 17, Walter Stoops 24, Ross Browne 26
• Masters 45+: Jim Nowak 16
• Masters 35+: Brad Dash 31, Brian Urban 62, Steve Prinner 64
• Junior 9-14: Brianna Urban 14 (2nd girl!)
• Cat 4/5: Shane McQuillan 5, Jerry Meister 12
• Men Cat 4: Shane McQuillan 14, Jerry Meister 53
• Cat 3: Ben Demong 15, Bryan McVey 28, Andy Walker 59, Jim Cannella 63

Highlights from the overall series standings:
Team ABD finished 9th in the overall team competition

• Jim Nowak 13th in 45+
• Tony Pacini 4th in 55+
• Brianna Urban 2nd in Girls 9-14
• Ben Demong 6th in Cat 3

Finally, before I wrap this up, I want to give a quick thank you to everyone who made this year of ABD CX not only a success, but a ton of fun. This has been a bit of a challenging year for me, but the camaraderie has kept me motivated to keep coming out. Thanks to everyone involved this year from Jim, Ben, Brad, Jim to all the new faces I have gotten to know this fall. It has really been fun. Not to mention that the setup was amazing - everything from a tent to keep the sun off our heads to astroturf to keep the mud off our feet. And of course, the support of Mary Lee, Mike Farrell, and Prairie Path Cycles is greatly appreciated. I am so excited at the growth we have seen over just the past few years as more ABDers get the CX bug. Looking forward to next year. See you all on the road (maybe, we'll see).
Andy Walker

The folks at Garner Cyclery and Flatladia brought us to Melas Park in Mount Prospect to race in a massive drainage basin (aka the racin' basin). Temps in the 50s and plenty of rain Saturday and a constant drizzle on Sunday made for some muddy, slick conditions - perfect 'cross weather! The course was exhausting. Lots of muddy off camber. Three trips through sand. Steep climbs. If you could catch your breath on some of the long descents, you were promptly treated to a leg-draining power section. A few off camber sections were littered with tree roots giving riders plenty of "ride or run" decisions. All in all, a fun and very challenging course. Don't forget your bike maintenance! Sand and mud tends to get everywhere. Your headset (especially if you went down in the sand), bottom bracket, and entire drive train are most likely in need of a little TLC. Just a little maintenance will help avoid real costly repairs and, even worse, a DNF!

Results (via crossresults.com):

• Women Cat 4: Natalie Mouw 31
• Masters 55+: Tony Pacini 1, Craig McKenzie 15, Ludy Montfort 25, Walter Stoops 26, Rossinator DNF (he was sick)
• Masters 45+: Jim Nowak 18, Steve Prinner 58
• Masters 35+: Brad Dash 26, Brian Urban 45
• Junior 9-14: Brianna Urban 15 - she was again on the podium for the girls!
• Cat 4/5: Jerry Meister 12
• Men Cat 4: Jerry Meister 57
• Cat 3: Ben Demong 10, Jim Cannella 40, Andy Walker 45