4-20-2014 Win VIP Passes to US Pro From VW:”Fans of cycling: we are giving away five VIP packages to the Volkswagen USA Cycling Professional Road & Time Trial National Championships in Chattanooga, Tenn., on Memorial Day. Come in for a test drive at a participating dealer before May 11 for a chance to win!

No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited. The USA Cycling VW Test Drive Experience Sweepstakes is sponsored by Volkswagen of America, Inc., an operating unit of Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. Open only to legal U.S. residents residing in AL, GA, SC, NC, TN or KY, who are 21 years of age or older, have a valid U.S. driver’s license & auto insurance at time of entry. Ends 5/11/14. For official rules including alternate method of entry, ask a participating dealership representative or visit www.vwtestdrive.dja.com.”

4-17-2014 Live Coverage Of The Winston-Salem Cycling Classic Press Release: Cycling fans around the globe can watch the Winston-Salem Cycling Classic road races on Friday and Saturday’s criteriums via the USA CRITS Championship Series YouTube channel. Friday’s 50.4-mile UCI/NRC road race for women begins at 9:30 a.m. EDT, followed by the men’s UCI/NRC 120-mile road race at 12:30 p.m. Live streaming of both races will feature announcing by former professional cyclists Bob Roll and Robbie Ventura. Saturday’s 60-minute NCC/USA CRITS series criterium for women starts at 4:45 p.m. EDT. The pro men’s NCC/USA CRITS series criterium is 75 minutes, beginning at 6 p.m.

4-16-2014  Volkswagen 2014 USA Cycling National Championships Chattanooga, Tenn. is again hosting the Volkswagen USA Cycling National Championships on Memorial Day Weekend 2014, May 24-26. There are a total of six races resulting in five National Championships. In addition to the pro cycling championships, the National Handcycling Championships will be held in Chattanooga the same weekend.

More than 400 volunteers are needed to put on an event of this caliber. So get close to the action one day as a course marshal, member of safety crew or hospitality check-in assistant. Click here to visit the Volunteer Facebook page. Visit Outdoor Chattanooga website to sign up as a volunteer. Follow updates on Twitter – @usacycling #USPRO. Photo Courtesy of Jason Els

4-15-2014 Atlanta Velocity Magazine Atlanta Velocity Magazine did an article on Southeastern Cycling in this month’s issue. Printed copies will be in bike shops soon. In the meantime, read it online.

Allatoona Work Party From SORBA West Georgia: There will be a work party at Allatoona on Sat., April 26 from 9 am til 1 pm. “We will be getting some help from KSU students to get back to the construction of the new 4 mile trail. Please meet at the Old Stilesboro bathroom building located at 5690 Old Stilesboro Road, Acworth GA 30301. Please wear closed toe shoes and bring water and snacks for your consumption while on the trail. Lunch will be served at the conclusion of work. All required tools will be provided.”

Blanket’s Creek Work Party SORBA Woodstock will host a work party at Blanket’s Creek on Sat., April 19 at 9 am. They will be working on several different things.

4-14-2014 Blanket’s Creek XC Race From MGA: “We are making preparations for the second running of the Blankets Creek Cross Country Mountain Bike Challenge on May 10th. Register on or before 4/19 and pay just $35 (includes wicking t-shirt!). Online pre-registration after 4/19 will be $40 and will remain open until Thursday, May 8th at 10 pm and also includes a wicking shirt. Those who prefer to register on race day will also pay $40, however NO SHIRT is included in the race day registration. Please help us plan for your attendance by pre-registering. We will offer first timer, beginner, sport and expert categories. Course descriptions and maps can be found here on the event website.

We are working to raise the bar on XC mountain bike racing. Early registration is $35 and includes one of our sweet wicking tech shirts – one you’ll actually want to wear (not use as a chain rag), as well as chip timing with instant results, great prizes and sponsor swag, enthusiastic SORBA volunteers, and post race snacks. No special racing license is required to participate in this event. We offer a first-timer friendly course that is both challenging and doable for first-time racers. Cash Payout for minimum of Top 5 Overall Expert Men and Top 3 Overall Expert Women! Loads of great sponsor prizes and gift cards as well so come help take it off our hands!”

4-12-2014 Silver Comet Closures Cobb County has updated the Silver Comet Closures. The Ewing Road Bridge will be closed from April 14-20^th for further repairs and paving under the bridge. The Lucille Creek Bridge is closed until April 30^th. The good news is that bridge repairs will be done by the end of this month. The other good/bad news is that parts of the Comet will be closed for resurfacing something in early June. During that time, the entire Comet will be open on all holidays and weekends.

AMP Cycling Series Dingo Race Productions as announced that weekday racing at the AMP Cycling Series is back this summer! It starts May 6^th in Dawsonville.

 4-10-2014 Racing This Weekend The historic Dilworth Criterium is taking place on Saturday.   The Dilworth Criterium will once again be held in conjunction with the Novant Health Invitational Criterium in Uptown Charlotte in the evening and the Belmont Criterium on Sunday. Georgia riders vie for the state crit championships in Macon on Saturday. Sunday is the 2nd annual Tour of Georgia Gran Fondo. With distances of 33, 69, and 108 miles, there is a ride for everyone! There are prizes for the 108 mile’s 4 timed sections as well as for the other distances. Sunday is the DLV Women’s Challenge with 4 divisions for Women, Juniors, and tandems. Two endurance mountain bike races happening are the 12 Ocho 8 Hour,  and the  Night Shift/6 Hours of TNT Night Race.

4-8-2014 TN State TT Championship The TN State Championship TT has been rescheduled for June 14. It will be in Lascassas, TN.

Bull Mountain Work Party From SORBA and CTHA There will be a work party at Bull Mountain on April 12. Meet at the Jake Mountain parking lot at 9 am to sign in and to carpool to the work site. “The plan is to clean out turnouts to divert the water off the trail at the FS28-1 end of the connector trail 223F (heading over toward Bull Mtn road). Please RSVP by Thursday 4/10.

SORBA and CTHA are teaming up to offer some incentives for trail volunteers this year. Below are the details for each incentive. Suffice to say – the more trail workdays you attend, the better your chances to win. The schedule of trail workdays for 2014 is attached.
1. Lisa Randall of Mountain Goat Adventures is giving $25 off your Fools Gold race entry fee for each work party you attend between 1/1/2014 and 9/6/2014 – with a limit of $75 savings per person. So, if you attend 3 CTHA/SORBA sponsored trail workdays at Jake & Bull Mtn – you will get $75 off your Fools Gold registration cost.

2. Bike Tours Direct is donating a $200 gift certificate towards one of their tours to be given away based on work party participation. For each CTHA/SORBA sponsored trail workday at Jake & Bull Mtn – bikers will get 1 entry into this drawing. Lisa Randall will do the drawing for this prize at Fools Gold later in September. Thanks to Richie Daigle of Bike Tours Direct! http://www.biketours.com/

3. IMBA/REI Teaming for Trails program will provide free Cliff bars and some swag to hand out at work parties. They will also give a 30-day membership in ProMotive (super discounts on bike stuff) to volunteers who work a minimum of 20 hours.

Georgia Riders Winning Nationally I normally don’t post race results or such, but I have to brag about a few Georgia riders who were tearing up the national scene this weekend. Brandon Pruett got 2nd in his race at Battenkill, NY. It’s a large NE regional race that is billed as America’s Biggest One Day Race. It’s like a pave ride with gravel and dirt road sections.

Joey Rosskopf (Hincapie Sportswear) took the win on the final stage of Redlands in California. With the win Joey took the overall GC as well. Welcome to the Big Time, Joey! Redlands has been the launching pad for many riders going to Europe and the ProTour.

Sawnee-Burnt Mountain Challenge From the promoter: The 9th Annual Sawnee-Burnt Mountain Century Challenge will be held Saturday, May 3rd in Cumming. This ride has 25, 46, 75 & 100 mile options. The 75 &100 mile options climb Burnt Mountain. All routes include great rest stops and SAG support. An end of the ride meal will also be provided in the Kiwanis Building. All registrations will be entered into several raffle prize drawings, donated by Reality Bikes & Pearl Izumi. This is a major fundraising event for the Cumming Kiwanis Club, with the proceeds to benefit Sponsored Youth Programs. $1.00 of each registration will also be donated to Georgia Bikes, a nonprofit bicycling advocacy organization. Registration begins at 7:00am. 75 & 100 mile rides begin at 8:00am. 25 & 46 mile rides begin at 8:30am.

4-5-2014 US Pro Media Partner It’s official! Southeastern Cycling is an official media partner of the US Pro Championships! US Pro will be held Memorial Day Weekend in Chattanooga, TN! Look for updates on US Pro SE Cycling and social media!

4-4-2014 US Pro Seeks Volunteers  The US Pro Championships in Chattanooga, TN is looking for volunteers Memorial Day Weekend! Register to volunteer here: http://USProVolunteer2014.edgereg.com.

DLV News From the DLV Womens Velodrome Challenge, Sunday April 13th 2014, 3pm, Hosted by LWalkerCycling and the East Point Track Club, this will be a USAC insured event A brand new event for 2014, we’re introducing our Womens Velodrome Challenge, which will include 4 different categories for women, racing for junior riders, and a chance for those with track tandems to dust them off and bring them down to get racing in our open tandem category. You can read more about it over here:

Regular Certification Classes are Underway If you didn’t make it to one of our weekend certification classes, you’ll still be able to get certified in one of our regular season classes, the first of which starts tonight. Those classes run over 4 consecutive Thursday evenings.

2014 Pro Race Series Schedule
Saturday May 10th – Merial presents ‘The Keirin’
Friday May 9th – Maxxis Tires Need for Speed Sprints
Tweet all about it: #merialkeirin
Saturday July 12th – Outback Bikes presents ‘The Omnium’
Friday July 11th – Parks Law Need for Speed Sprints
Tweet all about it: #outbackomnium
Saturday September 6th – Saucebox Velodrome Cup
Friday September 5th – Loose Nuts Cycles Need for Speed Sprints
Tweet all about it: #sauceboxcup

4-3-2014 Racing This Weekend There is a lot of racing going on this weekend around the Southeast! The venerable Sunny King Crit is Saturday in Anniston, AL. It is followed on Sunday by the Foothills RR. Spring racing begins in the Carolinas with the Rock Hill Cycling Classic. Mountain bikers head to Tsali for SERC #3. Endurance racers can choose between 6 Hours of Warrior Creek and Curse at the Crab 6 Hour

Women’s Clinic/Q&A in NC From the Promoter: Attention Female Racers and Female Cyclists We have another exciting opportunity to highlight and support women’s racing in the Carolinas AND give new racers a chance to learn from the pros! Thad Fischer, Race Director for the Novant Health Invitational Criterium and Belmont Criterium p/b Carolina’s HealthCare System along with South Main Cycles in Belmont and the Carolinas Cycling Women’s Development Program have arranged a get together with some of the top pro women that will be in town for the races. To be held on Sunday, April 13th at 11 am at South Main Cycles located at 4 North Main Street in Belmont, NC, this will be an up close and personal discussion with the pro racers. Hear about their experiences, learn how they use their unique strengths to win bike races and ask that burning question you’ve always wanted to ask. USA National Criterium Champion Alison Powers and Multi Time USA National Champion Cari Higgins from the Women’s United Healthcare team are confirmed to attend and possibly others.

South Main Cycles is located at 4 North Main Street in Belmont, right on the criterium course. With the Women’s 3/4 race beginning at 2:20pm, there will plenty of time to get all of your questions answered and still have time to warm-up for your race! Light refreshments will be served. Please share with others that you think might be interested in attending. Additional information can be found at: http://www.belmontcrit.org/Home.php, http://southmaincycles.com/ and http://uhcprocycling.com/womens-team/, Information regarding other races taking place this weekend can be found at: http://www.charlottecriterium.org/ and http://www.dilworthcrit.com/.
Please contact- Marianne Holt for more information and to reserve your spot! marianne57 at windstream.net

Team Engine / MRI Endurance.com News Update Come out and Ride this Saturday up in Ellijay for the Italian Road Bike Festival with Team Engine and Friends.  Cartecy River Bicycles is hosting this event and has described the event as follows: For over fifteen years, the Italian Festival Road Bike Festival has brought cyclists from all over the country to tour the challenging countryside of Gilmer, Fannin and Murray Counties in North Georgia. Start your riding season with some of the best scenic road riding that the Southeast has to offer!

Gianni Bugno 43 miler: rolling hills, about 3000ft of climb, this is an Intermediate Ride. Marco Pantani 70 miler: rolling hills to a 7 mile mountain climb, about 6,500ft of climb, this is an Avanced/Difficult Ride. Giro de Ellijay 104 miler: about 10,853ft of climb, two mountain climbs, this is an Extremely Difficult Ride (no joke, do not attempt unless you are an advanced rider). All rides will have a Que Sheet/Map, Well Marked Roads, Supported Sag Stops (water, sport drinks, fruit), and Broom Wagon. Fees $40.00 Mass start at 9:00AM, Same day registration 7:30AM

Atlanta WBL The final Atlanta WBL of the season is on Saturday. The ride time is 4 hours, 20 minutes.

4-2-2014 Outback Ride Outback Bikes in Little 5 Points will have a casual ride on Wednesdays at 6:15. Distance will vary according to who shows up.

Georgia Gran Fondo The Georgia Gran Fondo is April 13th! There is only 1 more day before the price increases. Current price – $95, $75, $50
10 day out price – $110, $90, $65,  Day of registration price – $120, $100, $75  *T-Shirt included only for registrations received more than 10 days in advance of event date. Maps and GPS Files of the routes are now available! There are options of  33, 69, and 108 miles!

New SORBA-IMBA Regional Director From SORBA/IMBA: “The International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA) and the Southern Off-Road Mountain Bicycle Association (SORBA), IMBA’s Southeast Region, have jointly hired a full-time professional advocate in the role of IMBA’s Associate Regional Director.  Terry Palmeri will work closely with Tom Sauret, IMBA Regional Director and SORBA Executive Director, helping serve the 38 SORBA chapters in his territory of Alabama, Florida, Georgia,  Mississippi , North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee.” Read More. Trish’s Note: Terry is Mrs. Mike Palmeri, owner of Cartecay Bikes in Ellijay. She is very well known for her work as president of EMBA.

4-1-2014 New Sponsor for Charlotte Crit Cyclingnews.com reports that Novant Health is the new sponsor of the Charlotte Criterium. “The state of North Carolina will play host to two rounds of the USA Cycling National Racing Calendar next month, when the April 12 Charlotte Criterium, with new sponsor Novant Health, is joined by the Belmont Criterium the following day to create the Charlotte-Belmont omnium.”

DLV Work Party The final DLV Work Party will be on Saturday from 9 am to 3 pm.

Get Your Guts in Gear Press Rlease: The Ride for Crohn’s & Colitis (“GYGIG”), is an independent, national, nonprofit organization that raises awareness of Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis and related conditions through cycling events that benefit and support IBD organizations and patient advocacy groups.  GYGIG creates and produces well-organized, participant-centric events so that participants feel empowered, accomplished and part of a greater community. Since our founding in 2003 and our first Ride in 2004, GYGIG has empowered the IBD community, while raising awareness and funds for Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, and ostomy-related issues.

This year our Georgia ride will start and finish at the Lebanon Baptist Church in Roswell GA on May 3rd.  Besides our bike ride we are having a festival type event at the end of the ride at the Lebanon Church with a bike-a-thon for the kids.  We have partnered with Waffle house to have a truck and donated food.  We have a blue grass band The Hot Boiled Peanuts and an Ice Cream truck as well as vendors with kid friendly activities.  We anticipate 200 attendees. There will be options of 30, 62.5, and 100 miles. Our routes are fully supported with rest stops approximately every 12-15 miles of the way, providing restrooms, hydration (sports drinks and water), energy  bars, and food.  Sweep vehicles will sweep the route to ensure that all of our cyclists are well taken care of.

3-31-2014 Tony Serrano Century The early registration fee of $35 ends tomorrow night, March 31. There is no added on “convenience” fee. You can register at PreRace.com.

Group Rides Remember that a lot of the after work group rides in Atlanta move to 6:30 beginning either April 1 or the first full week of April. If you are unsure what time your favorite rides leaves, be sure to check with the club, shop, or ride leader. Blinkies are still recommended if you will be getting in close to dark. Dusk is still around 7:40 this week with sunset about 7:56 pm.

Shop News Atlanta Cycling has 50% off all winter clothing! All of their weekday shop rides at both locations move to 6:30 this week. Outback Bicycles has a new casual ride on Wednesdays starting at the shop in Little 5 Points.

3-29-2014 Wildwood Games  Press Release: The Columbia County Convention and Visitors Bureau announced today the inaugural “Wildwood Games” sports festival will take place August 23 and 24, 2014, at Wildwood Park in Appling, Georgia. The multi-sport event will feature marathon mountain bike races, trail running races, and outdoors expo.

The mountain bike race will offer two distance options. The shorter race will take place mainly on the Bartram Trail and cover approximately 32 miles, beginning at Wildwood Park, heading toward the West Dam area, then returning to finish at Wildwood Park. The long option will cover approximately 62 miles. The course will utilize the Bartram Trail, Keg Creek Trail, Mistletoe State Park trails, and some connector roads. This race will serve as a test run for the proposed course for the USA Cycling Marathon Mountain Bike National Championships which will take place here in 2015 and 2016.

The Wildwood Games will be managed and marketed by SixSpeed, a Minneapolis-based agency with extensive experience in producing and marketing action sports events. Their clients include Red Bull, Cannondale Bicycles, the X Games, Trek Bicycles, and St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital. Event registration information and a detailed schedule for this year’s Wildwood Games will be released in late-April.

3-27-2014 Racing This Weekend This weekend in racing….The  Gran Prix of Gainesville is Friday-Sunday in Gainesville, GA. Street sprints will be featured Friday night. Saturday is RAMBO’s Big Creek Quick Six Enduro stage race at Big Creek in Roswell, GA.  The  24 Hours of Iron Maiden, takes place in Alabama for the endurance mountain bike racers.  On Sunday the SERC Series holds a race at the GIHP in Conyers. This round also serves as the GCS #2.

Fouche Gap RR Postponed The Fouche Gap RR that was supposed to be held on April 19 has been postponed. Rome Velo says they hope to hold it at a later date.

3-25-2014 Georgia Rider Suspension USA Cycling has issued a Rider Suspension Notice for Georgia rider Eddie Murray for racing in an inappropriate Masters age category. The suspension runs March 1-30, 2014.

 3-24-2014 Dirty Duathlon Don’t worry! I haven’t started running (reference my 2 knee surgeries last fall and my bad back). I teamed up with Renee Lowe (Team Herbal Intentions), an ultramarathoner, to do the Dirty Duathlon at Blanket’s Creek on Saturday. We won the women’s 2 person division! I was very happy with my bike time considering it’s March, and I haven’t started training yet. As usual, Mountain Goat Adventures put on a great race! They offer live results on tablets in the results tent. No more waiting for results! Also, thanks to Van Michael Salons for the awesome prizes for the ladies! Cycling ladies love our VM!! Now back to your regularly scheduled cycling stuff…..

Trish Albert (Sorella Cycling) and Renee Lowe (Herbal Intentions) win the 2 person female division at the Dirty Du.

Missing Zip Wheel From Cathy Frazier: “If anyone found a Zipp front wheel at the intersection of Marshall Clark and Jackson Trail outside of Hoschton< GA on Saturday afternoon, March 22, please contact  Cathy Frazier, cfrazier at fraziercycling.com, 770-513-8640.  I am hoping that someone found it there and took it in hopes of finding the owner somehow. ”