Race Results
NGCSU Race: 2009
Courtesy of: The Humbler Chronicler
NGCSU: Mayhem in the Mountains
They were back in the car, enjoying the warm embrace of a 1994 Toyota Carolla. The weather was bad, and the roads went nowhere but towards the sky. With the Carolla fresh from its gasoline fix, and a stomach refueled with the glory that is Burger King's Double-Stacker meal (#10 on the menu, $4.89+tax), they headed off.
"Man, you are in for a surprise Smola. A big surprise." Hunter cackled.
"What are you talking about?" Smola returned.
"It. It is what he's talking about. Your new worst enemy." Johnny Best replied.
Smola returned to the glorious Double-Stacker with nary a concern. The only thing settling in the minds of the UGA Cycling Team was a small mining town in the mountains of the great-state of Georgia. The tales had been told. The weather was bad. They were concerned, but really, a few feet up? Everyone knows the glory of the cycling world is in the sky, and that's where they all wanted to be.
After a cruise around some hills known kindly to the benevolent cycling world as Wolfpen, and Blood-Mountain, the UGA Team sneered at the sky. "Is that it?" We came in search of something epic, thats all. We don't want a favor, because the only thing that refuels these things we call souls are suffering and Double-Stackers. Fortunately for the crew, fate had in store 2 things worse than they all could ever imagine. Soon after they arrived at Eric Millard's humble mountaintop abode, the first surprise of the weekend revealed itself. Quickly, they understood what Johhny John Best and Hunter meant.
And there it stood. In Eric's house. This wasn't an animal. It wasn't a mammal. The beast itself was obviously a mix of one part Clydesdale horse, one part some type of prehistoric dog, and one part of the devil itself. Parker jumped backwards. Smola questioned whether he had completed what he had wanted to in his life. Matt Miller was at peace with himself since the arrival of the new UGA Team uniforms.
Eric Millard sat idle. "His names Kody. We named him that because he looked like a Kodiac bear when he was little." Eric obviously forgot that the dog grew up, because his heart was not immediately spiked with fear after the dog looked him in the eye. The night was calm, full of fresh-cooked food courtesy of the generous Millard family. The only event of the night was Parker waking up screaming. I'm not sure what he was dreaming about, but I would bet Hunter Garrisons new Specialized S-Works Tarmac that it had something to do with a 5-foot tall dog.
They awoke and headed out to R-Ranch, a wonderful establishment in the usually cozy mountains of Dahlonega Georgia. Fortunately for the team, the usually cozyiness had thankfully been replaced with 34 degree fahrenheit rain. With the crack of the whip, the mens A's race was off. With Parker Smith working on the front, Hunter Garrison, Matt Miller, and Johnny John Best sat in, all of them wondering why they hadn't let a dog named Kody decide their fate. But they were soldiers. They pushed on. Ultimately, the mens A's race exploded into oblivion, as the majority of the field retreated to the stone fireplace at R-Ranch. From the horses mouth: "I was so cold. I think I may have pulled both of my calf muscles because they were numb and I couldn't feel them. I think I was crying too, but it was raining, so it may have been the rain, but I'm pretty sure it was tears." -Parker Smith.
The B's headed out. It was cold. Not normal cold, the only kind of cold you get when you step into a walk-in freezer, and then have someone spray you with a hose. Steven Nakajima, Eric Millard, and Andrew Smola were all amongst the group as the rolled through the hills of the quant mountain town. The race went well for the group, with Nakajima and Millard securing positions in the top 15, and Smola bringing up the back of the group. No visual tears in this group, but I can safely say that most everyone in the race was crying on the inside.
The last to go, was the mens C's race. Being the trooper that he is, Chase Lanier embarked flying the UGA colors solo for the team. After a tumultuous number of miles in the ice cold weather, the group trudged on down the road. The B's riders squinted down the hill, looking down from their perch as the C's field pounded the pedals. As they crossed the line, Chase, head down, heart pumping, and mind focused, crossed the line in 5th place.
They packed up, and drove home. Aside from helping some guy with a Porsche get his car out of the median, driving through 5 inches of falling snow, and fighting a voracious line at Moe's, they had made it. 4 races down, a lifetime of races to go.
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Notable Mentions:
-Everyone who came and rode. The weather was awful. If you were out there, it didn't matter whether you got first place, or last place.
-The Millard Family for their hospitality, good food, and weather reports.
-Special mention to all those ( ksakai, Matt Miller, etc) who helped us get the new kits together. We rocked them this weekend, and they were awesome!
-And last but not least: Kody the gigantic dog. Kody: You may strike fear in the hearts of all that come upon you, but deep down we know your a good guy even if you do in fact want to provide copious amounts of bodily harm to those that come across you.
Sincerely,
The Humbler Chronicler.
Georgia Southern Race: 2009
Courtesy of: The Humbler Chronicler (some would say, the humblest of chroniclers)
Battle in the Boro: More like the Beaches of Normandy than the Paris-Roubaix
The sun wasn't up. The rain was coming down. They decided to gather anyway. They had abandoned the title of cyclists, and adopted the title of soldiers. They weren't a team anymore. They were a band of brothers (and two sisters). Did they sleep in on a sacred weekend? Did they decided to spend the day of loved with their loved ones? They chose suffering instead.
They departed. 3 hours of car riding, only stopping for rations at backcountry gas-stations that had a $5 credit card minimum. Their arrival was unbenounced to many...they were on time. The soldiers knew they couldn't miss their chance for battle, so they arrived comfortably early in the town of Rocky Road Georgia.
The first gunshot went rang out. 3 UGA soldiers took off into the dusky-grey abyss that is known as south-Georgia. The battle had started. The rival battalions made their way out of town, cooing eachothers hopes with the pace, the A's soldiers together with the B's soldiers, riding as one. Were they all on the same battlefield? Would they all arrive unscathed? Their hopes said yes, but their legs, souls, and rivals said no. The battle began when sheer brutality. Amid the rush of the race, one Clemson rider thought he would rather have a taste of pavement than a taste of victory. Unfortunately for the UGA battalion, Jeff Shapiro couldn't avoid the Kamikaze-Clemson and his fate was set: both body and mind had too close an encounter with the lady we all know as Pavement on Valentines day. The soldiers marched on. The pack drove comfortably down the back roads of down south Georgia, keeping a steady but fast pace. Two riders went off the front, from the Clemson and Florida battalions. Then suddenly, halfway into the B's race and a third into the A's race, it arrived: the road. The soldiers from the Georgia Southern camp called it dirt, and unbenounced to everyone else, the fine institution of Georgia Southern has a very different definition of said soil composition than all else. This wasn't dirt. This was a beach. A battlefield. The pack hit the dirt, continuing its drive. Suddenly, it was simple to part the A's and B's group. As they literally plowed through the sand, soldiers fell to the right and left. The field shattered. The view coming out of the sand was bad. Riders rode out, some chugging on, many others shaking their heads in despair. Among them, Andrew Smola. He was shattered, soul, body, mind...broken. The casualties left on that road were many, and the fallen soldiers pulled themselves back to camp. With Parker Smith as the last hope for the dwindled UGA team, he put in his dues. He arrived 6th across the line, but had made no friends in the Peleton, as the other battalions had stationed themselves to ensure the victory of teammates up the road.
Back at the camp, Smola sat broken. "Why?" was all he could say, "Why would you do this to us?" he pleaded with a Georgia Southern rider. The GS rider looked him in the eye, and leaned onto his car. The GS rider looked away, lit a cigarette, and looked back at Smola. "Ain't nothin but a little dirt." Smola put his head in his hands, as the sounds of the GS rider cackling in his head plagued him.
It was after this, that the most valiant riders took to their steeds. With the course the same, the mens C's took off. The ride, much of the same. The fate of the riders was sealed before they left, but Chase and Johnathan departed anyway, unbenounced to them the horrors that awaited them. Both riders trudged on, one finishing with a smile, and another finishing with a new found level of internal rage that no special Valentine could ever cure. The only Valentine he had that day was a sandy road in damp south Georgia.
The women took off. UGA had two soldiers on the field, Rebecca Hutchinson-Stone and Rebecca Carter. Hutchinson was strong, and trudged valiantly through the day. She was off the front with a Florida rider...and A's soldier nonetheless. Ultimately, Hutchinson-Stone wrapped up the day with a victory for the womens B's, with Carter sliding through the finish with a 3rd in womens B's. They arrived at camp with a good finishes, and speedplay-cleats full of sand.
The second day was promised to be fast, and without copious amounts of sand involved. Chase started the day off in Men's C's, and while he did not have the team-artillery of the other teams, he finished well. For the first time crit-racer, his 12th was both a personal victory, and one for that of the battalion. The Men's B's took off. Smola rode solo, amidst a group of ravenous group of UF and Clemson riders. A Clemson rider took off, never to be seen. It was up to Smola and Florida to chase it back. A Florida rider took off... and then there was one. Smola was reportedly clocked doing 16mph being followed by a herd of UF/Clemson guys, who refused to take the lead. Ultimately, Smola captured some Prime-points, as well as a 10th place finish. Parker was next for A's. Do I need to say it? A Clemson rider took off, leaving Parker to do all the work. Parker was seen pulling for almost 40minutes, repeatedly attacking just to further the punishment of the other riders. Purposely. Ultimately, Parker captured almost a half-dozen Prime-points, and arrived 4th across the line. His victory was epic to most, as other A's soldiers passed him after the race, exhaust. Parker smiled.
The group packed up, and headed home. They left. They had been outnumbered all weekend, but never outgunned.
Yours Truly,
The Humbler Chronicler.
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Accolades:
-Rebecca Hutchinson for her victory in women's B's, and Rebecca Carter for her solid 3rd finish.
-Johnathan and Chase for a very strong showing in their first race. Good work guys.
-Parker Smith, while he did not win, for putting other A's riders in as much physical pain as possible.
University of Florida Race: 2009
Courtesy of: Matt Miller, Road Coordinator
Oh man, if you didn't go you missed out on a great time!!
Friday we roll out from Hunter's house around 4:30 sans Hunter. If the boy would have grown a few more inches we could have hooked him up, but alas, his mama was a shorty. Cruise down to Macon in good time, find a Zaxby's for some dinner and everything is going fine. We get into Gainesville around 11, find our host housing places, big thanks to the UF kids!!!, and sleep for the night.
Saturday was characterized by start time chaos, and some missed times, registration line nightmares but with punctuations of glory. The newest lady to don the Red and Black, Rebecca Hutchinson, mashed her pedals to a solid 3rd place! There were many other top10's from the men's women's fields. Greg was in the solid top half of a 40+ person C's field.
Later in the afternoon the women were at it again in the team time trial. 2nd place?!
Saturday was really just the beginning, the real fun was going to start on Sunday. The crit course in Gainesville is relatively flat with 4 corners, but the fun part is that from turn 1 to the end of turn 2 it's cobblestone brick. The day started with the Men's C's crit where Greg Balldweg(I hope I got your last name right) laid it down for the Bulldog's. Greg was hanging at the front keeping the field in check for the entire race. Did I mention this was his first crit race ever? Kid's got talent I tell you!
The C'd were followed by the Men's B's where Smola, Tyler, and Steven had their go with the cobbled crit course. There was a constant barrage of attacks but nothing stuck and it come down to a field sprint. Smola tried to give Steven the lead out but it was a little pre-mature so everyone finished in the field. Solid racing from everyone in the B's!
Next it was the women's turn and man do those girls go fast! Gillis, Becca, and Fancher hung in the pack and did their best. Unfortunately one of the Florida girls slipped off the front and out of sight to a solo victory. The UGA girls stayed tough though and had some good top 10's in the field sprint. Becca, how were those cobbles? "bumpy!". Nice work girls!
Finally the Men's A's got underway. Little did we know, though we should have, that Rebecca Larson was going to show us boys how it's done. After a chaotic barrage of Florida attacks and counter attacks a group of 3 with Rebecca Larson, Bobby Sweeting, and a Southern Florida rider got off the front and would be the break of the day. After a short lul a group of 5 would take up the chase comprised of 4 UF riders and Parker. Unfortunately, the UF kids wanted nothing to do with Parker(they heard he sprints fast enough to break chains) and after purposing gapping him off he was back in the main field. With about 10 minutes to go the group of 4 UF riders had about 45 seconds on the field with Rebecca's group further up the road still. It was at this point, the Ace of the team, Dan Larson, gave the orders to put the hammer down and pull back the 4...he wanted to sprint. After burying myself at the front for 2 laps we had the 4 within 10-15 seconds but I was blown and no one else wanted to pull so the chase was all for not. In the closing laps Bobby Sweeting took off with a vicious acceleration that no one was able to follow that gave him the win. Rebecca left the other boys smarting after out sprinting them for second. Dan won the field sprint for 9th with Parker and myself rounding out the field.
The only downer of the whole weekend came from Chipotle after everyone had finished racing. Apparently if you park in broad day light, in the middle of a busy Chipotle, with the entire Clemson team next to your car, someone will still steal your bike. We'll figure something out to do for you Greg.
Sorry this ended up being longish but I think overall everyone had a great time. If I missed anything or left anything out please post it on the list serve. As Smola said, there is a Flicker account for anyone who has photos to post. Sunday was easily some of the most fun I've ever had racing. This coming weekend is the Georgia Southern weekend in Statesboro, GA. Meeting tomorrow night at 8 for anyone interested in going. There will be a individual time trial, road race, and a crit. Again, good job this weekend everyone! If this is just a taste of what the rest of the season is going to be, I can't wait!
Matt Miller
Road Coordinator