Orthopedics and Upgrades 
The Spring City Cycling Weekend
August 9-10, 2003
by Chance Regina (Cycleworks)

It has been a while since the majority of the team lit out for a weekend of full on race action. We have had several riders here or there but this weekend we had 12 riders racing for Cycleworks and some great results came of it. 

It all started with the Pancake fryer being bolted onto Fotiriffics bike a week ago. In case you don't know what the Pancake fryer is, well it is basically a blade from a saw mill taken and put on the front of Leigh Foti's bike. The front chain ring generally has 53 teeth, but not the PF, it has 56 and is a monster to push. For a week Foti talked about the lead out and 
was seen trying to pop his tendons while sprinting away in his 56/11. 

Friday night we all headed to Huntsville, Al for the Spring City Bicycle Race weekend. Never mind that it is no longer spring and in fact we are almost to the end of Summer. We all met up at the Hilton Friday night to register and get the local USCF official to upgrade Bryan Holloway, Chance Regina and Leigh to Category III as they were ready to make their debut. 
Big Romeo Millar (AKA Big Romeo) would be official for the IV's this week after getting temporary reprieve from the V's a week earlier in Asheville. We tried to get Brad Harper to join us but as usual he sandbagged and bemoaned how he was "too old" or "too slow" when in fact neither are the case and he regularly administers child abuse on us younger souls. Upgraded 
and fed we headed to bed with visions of Cliff bars dancing in our heads. 

We woke early on Saturday and headed out to clear sunny skies and an extremely flat 9 mile loop for the road race. The III's (racing 57 miles) 5 would start 5 minutes behind the 1/2's and 5 minutes in front of the IV's (racing 47 miles). While the V's and women would wait until after the morning races. The III's race was slow and most guys sat and watched with 
the occasional rider going off the front in a fruitless effort until three laps in when a solo rider just eased away from the group. With the help of two guys in completely different uniforms from one another and from the lone breakaway blocking up the front the rider found himself up by a minute and 12 seconds with only a lap to go. That lead was cut to less than 45 seconds 
within two miles and then to less than 30 seconds with 5 miles to go. Then the group sat up and began to watch each other and the rider eased away and held on to win by a hundred meters while the rest of the field raced for second. As the III's entered the next to last turn they noticed an ambulance and a fire truck parked in the middle of the road. There were several Cycleworks Cat IV racers waving our pack to go left around the group. This caused a stir and we were off to the races. Bryan had Leigh on his wheel and Chance was tucked in for the lead out Foti had been promising for a week. The team looked to be rolling strong. However, there was some confusion. There was a sharp right hand turn with 500 meters to go to the finish then a short 150 meter long hill, 150 meter descent and 200 meter drag race to the line. We had anticipated Bryan taking the turn and pulling Leigh and Chance to the front up the hill, Foti lighting up the 56 on the downside and Chance going for broke at the line. Bryan went a little early (because the team had not taken the time to ride the last 2 miles together 
before the race and really discuss the tactics) and that left Foti at the front pulling the field over the little riser. Chance gave up Foti's wheel as it was too far out at the time. As the field crested the hill Foti was done and the field was watching and waiting for a move. Chance jumped to start things and then tucked in behind some riders he had lured into the move. With 200 to go he was back up to speed and pulling away from the field with only one other rider having sling shot by during the initial move. The two raced to the line but Chance was shut out and crossed in third position. After some post race discussion it was agreed that the team should take more time to be perfectly clear how the tactics would be managed. All in all the III debut of Foti, Chance and Bryan was a success, with Bryan and Foti chasing and driving most of the field and Chance bringing home a handful of dollars to help pay for dinner. 

The IV's had even more success and more defeat. The good news or the bad news first? Well, let's start with the bad news. The ambulance and fire truck the team raced around on the way to the III's finish was in fact for one of the Cycleworks IV riders. Apparently the group had stayed together through out the race much like the III's had done. This was in large part 
due to the work of Terry Mathison and Brad Harper. It had been agreed to the night before that James Klotz, Terry and Brad would ride one lap each on guard making sure nothing got away while Big Romeo and Manny Samaniego sat in the bunch preparing for the inevitable field gallop at 200 meters. From the very beginning Terry and Brad were chasing down breakaways and dragging the group around the course. Plenty of hard effort and teamwork from Brad and Terry look to be insuring Big Romeo and Manny a shot at the line. With just under 2 miles to go the field made a 90 degree right hand turn that had them following a big left hand bend on a sweeping 4 lane road. With the racers confined to a single right hand lane the group was packed tight as positioning for the sprint finish was underway. 

Then it happened. A rider with no concern for the rules or caution moved across the center line and began to illegally advance up the left side of the field. As the group screamed at him he dove back across the center line and into the group. However, he had not taken the time to notice the hole he had left behind when illegally crossing over the center line had closed up completely. Thus he banged into several riders forcing them to all shift to the right. With several other riders trying to take the spot vacated previously by the errant rider, there were too many wheels in too little space. This created a domino effect and sent a wave across the peleton until one rider tangled handlebars with Terry and both of them went down. With the race now inside of 1 mile the pace was close to 30 mph and Terry went down hard on his right hip and elbow but missed hitting his head. As the field continued up the road Terry lie in agony on the hot ground in a pile of carbon and aluminum. Terry would eventually be loaded into an ambulance and taken to the Huntsville Hospital for fear that he had broken his hip or pelvis (a very common injury in cycling) or even his shoulder. However, Terry would be lucky (I use this term loosely and when comparing his injury to that of a shattered pelvis) and only have a broken collarbone and some nasty bruises covered in road rash. 

The good news. With Terry taken down in the crash that left Big Romeo and Manny with the assistance of Brad to come up with the money for the hospital co-pay Terry would need later. Brad was pulling hard as they came through the last turn with 500 meters to go and Manny was on his wheel begging for him to give more. Brad gave it his all as they neared the line and Big Romeo lit out on his own taking the right side of the course and getting a jump on the field. While Manny tried to get around to the left side and would race to the line just shy of the money finishing in 7th position. Big Romeo would drive to the line with elbows flying in a dual for first but would come up 8 inches short and would take home second place. It was quite an impressive ride for a guy who just joined the team a few months ago and was racing in the IV's for only his second weekend. 

Also racing in only their second race was the female Cycleworks squad of Linda Pittman and Shelly Walters (AKA T-Bone) who would be racing 37 miles in the women's IV's. The women would all race together, meaning the Cycleworks girls would be racing with the category 2 and 3 women. The ladies started of a few minutes behind the Men's V's and each time the women came by the field looked to be very tame and riding steady tempo. Apparently this was not actually the case. Once out on the course the women were being attacked constantly by the shifty GCC Cycling team. Shifty? Yes, shifty, as the team raced in uniforms that did not match, a violation of rules as it prohibits other riders from clearly distinguishing teams and 
their riders. The GCC teams did this in several categories through out the weekend which prompted the officials to address the issue before the Sunday races. Any way, back to the racing. Breaks were chased and caught through out the 37 miles until the last 3 miles when one rider was able to get away for the solo win. As the field charged down the line there emerged one from the field of IV's and it was Cipo-Linda sprinting to the win with T-Bone finishing in 4th position. The women rocked and the Cycleworks boys are glad to have some testosterone reducers in our group. 

That was some more good news, right? Well, that means there is some bad news as well. In the V's it was Bob Heath and Shawn Geagan to go for the glory. Bob came in with perhaps the best form he has seen this year and was looking lean and ready to flex for his family and friend in attendance, including his son Mini Bob. As the race unfolded there sat Bob in the 
middle of the pack looking extremely comfortable and relaxed. The group waited for the finale and as the pack rolled by, no Bob Heath. Shawn was across in 13th position and after about 2 minutes we became concerned. We knew Bob we too fresh looking with only 9 miles to go to have been dropped. It must have been a mechanical, then we started to hear some of the 
finishing racers talk of a crash. Manny and Brad ran for the car and started to head out on the course to check the damage. Just then Bob came around the corner and road across the line. Bumped and bruised but none the worse for the wear. He had some road rash and some small cuts and the team quickly got him cleaned up and bicycle damage assessed. New shifter, bar tape and helmet. Not cheap but not too much damage. Meanwhile Bob kept saying something about wanting some ice for his shoulder as it was sore. Nobody thought much of it, gave Bob some ice and headed to the results trailer to get the cash payouts. 

Hours later the team gets a call from Bob as he has just returned from the Same Hospital Terry had been at earlier (Terry was now safely seated at the hotel bar enjoying his percocet and libations). Apparently the shoulder had continued to hurt and the family the Heath's were staying with had a neighbor that is a doctor. This gentleman took a short look at Bob and 
said, "to the hospital with you" and suggested it might in fact be a separated shoulder that was causing all the pain. Low and behold it was another broken collarbone. Now Bob and Terry could have matching slings. With enough carnage for one day the group had a great Italian dinner and hosted a few riders from other teams like APB and Team Peggy and then it was 
rack time. Still more racing on Sunday. 

Sunday would be shorter and less painful, at least in the Cycleworks broken bone category. Brad Harper had decided to stop sand bagging and took his upgrade like a man and joined Bryan, Chance and Leigh in the III's. They would race 50 minutes plus three laps around the technical 7 tenths of a mile course that would rattle your teeth out of your head. The tempo was quick but not deadly and the field stayed together for most of the ride with one rider escaping with 20 minutes remaining. He could not use the 5 turns on the course to hide and was reeled in with 2 laps remaining. The team didn't try for any premes as they were all Maxxis tires so we were looking for ultimate glory. Leigh took a flyer at one point in the race to keep 
everyone honest and then with one lap to go Brad screamed at Chance to get on the wheel as he and Bryan came flying around the quarter mile long sweeping 4 lane road. It took Chance a second to catch the wheel as the guys were flying and Chance was asleep at the wheel a bit. Once he was on brad's wheel he yelled for them to "go!" and Bryan hauled the mail. 
Chance's lapse cost them even with Big B's massive pull and the boys couldn't get clear of the field before the chicane halfway through the lap. As we came out on the long bumpy back stretch Bryan and Brad again hit the gas and tried to get by the 10 remaining riders, but the field was stacked across the road. As the group headed into the last turn at 25mph Chance realized he wouldn't get by on the outside so he hit the brakes and dove to the inside and tried to make up ground there when the field blew apart half way through the turn. By blew apart I mean they exploded. One rider in the middle of the pack clipped his pedal and kicked out to the right knocking a John Deer racer to the ground who slid across two and half lanes of pavement 
before hitting a curb with his back. The rider clipping his pedal lost the left cheek of his shorts and a good portion of skin from there. Two or three other riders trying avoid the carnage ended up going over as bikes and body parts flew every direction. Chance was able to make up several spaces coming down the home stretch but only managed to squeeze into the money with 5th place. Fellow Atlanta rider and Cycleworks team friend, Charles Rossignol made the line in second position with a great last lap. Foti, Bryan and Brad all came to the line in the top 15 spots after steering clear of the carnage. 

Thirty minutes later the road was finally cleared from the riders that had gone down and the IV's were under way. With Brad's upgrade and Terry complaining about his shoulder not working or something, it left only Manny, Big Romeo and James. The race started and the boys must have had some pent up anxiety from the delayed start as they hit the gas from "go". Manny rode in his traditional crit position, on the back until halfway through the first lap in some young riders came flying out the back. They nearly caused a wreck between themselves and Manny and they found themselves 10 meters out 
of the back of the group. Manny had a few choice words for the young whipper snappers, showered one with some water and then set in to steadily reel in the group. Only it was not to be. The group was lined out single file and it stayed that way for the entire race with Big Romeo holding a top 10 spot all day and James clinging to the back for 5 laps before being dropped. Manny found himself 30+ seconds down less than 5 minutes into the race and realized he wasn't getting back on with out a Cycleworks train and with Big Romeo riding so strong it made no sense for him to come back. Manny was showered and cheering for Big Romeo before the last 10 minutes of the race were underway. Big Romeo road tough and was in great position going into the last lap, only to find himself at the front of the group with half a lap to go. He kicked with all his might and tried to get away but was caught in the finish straight by another APB rider and then the field. Big Romeo road a truly gritty race and held on for 9th position, rounding out a great weekend of racing for the young IV rider showing he truly has 
what it takes to be a Cycleworks rider. 

As we loaded up and headed home from the weekend we had surveyed the damage 
and here is what we came up with; 
First Place Cat Women's RR 
Second Place Cat IV RR 
Third Place CAT III RR 
Fourth Place CAT IV Women's RR 
Fifth Place CAT III Crit 
Seventh Place Cat IV RR 
Ninth Place CAT IV Crit 
Right Collarbone Broken 
Left Collarbone Broken 
Lots of fun had by all, even the two guys with broken wings. 


One thing to add before we close. Bob and Terry are true team players and genuine tough guys. Bob actually road the last three miles of the course with a broken collarbone just so he could "feel Tyler's pain" and Terry refused to be driven home as both of them came out early on Sunday to support the other riders. These are two guys that lay it on the line for 
the rest of the group whenever asked and never put their personal glory before the team's success. Each of them are already talking about "getting on the trainer" and "being back in time for XXXX race"...Guys you get one hella of an "at a boy" from me and I am sure the rest of the guys will back me on that one. 

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