Shippensburg Scurry Circuit Race
A Saturday morning drizzle receded into lively spring weather,
and Penn State riders donned lightweight jerseys and arm warmers. The wind peaked at 25 mph, a fast clip but
nothing compared to Sunday’s gale force winds.
The circuit race course began with a neutral rollout, and proceeded
counterclockwise around a 2.2 mile loop on scenic Shippensburg roads.
The course consisted of gentle rolling hills that provided an even
playing field for both climbers and sprinters.
Turns were tight, which made precise handling skills a must.
Men’s A: Kevin Bernstein
The A’s raced for one hour on the small course, and the seemingly
endless number of loops ensured mastery of every turn and incline. Two riders broke away early in the race, and
maintained a large gap between themselves and the peloton. Kevin hung with the aggressive pack for the
first half hour, but found himself disconnected after a hill climb. The rising gusts of wind made it difficult to
regain lost ground, and Kevin pulled himself from the race.
Women’s A: Monica Volk, Jess Bunchek
The afternoon wind divided the peloton into small
groups. Monica broke away with three
other riders, and held a two minute lead against the remainder of the
racers. The breakaway group was milliseconds
apart in the final sprint, and Monica earned 2nd. Jess finished 8th, continuing Penn
State’s domination of women’s cat A.
Cobie Arnold moves to the front in the Men's D Ciruit Race
Men’s D: Cobie Arnold, Will Gowen, Jacob Brown, Noah
Smith, Noah Stauffer, Sam Banks
The men’s D circuit race was unusually safe, and the only
crash involved a rider hitting a mailbox on the first turn. Cobie launched a solo breakaway on lap 2,
which upped the speed of the peloton and added to the already-competitive
atmosphere. After leading for one lap,
he dialed back his effort and sat in to save his energy for the final sprint, where
he took 3rd place. Will sat
in with the peloton for the entirety of the race, but attacked on the final
hill climb and sprinted for 6th.
First-time racer and steel bike enthusiast Sam powered his way to a 16th
place finish, past competitors on carbon superbikes. After crossing the finish line, he proudly
propped his bike upon its kickstand so he could observe the looks of shock
uninterrupted. Jacob worked his way to
the front of the peloton during the first several laps, but eventually decided
to drop back to catch a draft, and finished 21st with Noah Smith
right beside at 22nd. Noah
“Why So Sirrus?” Stauffer finished 30th, and overtook many carbon-wheeled
competitors on his converted hybrid road bike.
Women’s D: Rebecca Storch
As the rain shower passed over and the clouds cleared, a
strong wind took its place. The
conditions demanded excellent drafting skills from the women’s D division, and
the course led them through 25 mph headwinds.
Rebecca tactically positioned herself within the center of the
peloton. This ensured that she had the
ability to get to the front, yet ample riders to draft. The wind made it difficult for her to hold on
to the peloton, but she still crossed the line 14th.
Shippensburg Scurry Time Trial
Saturday afternoon’s TT course led riders 6 miles up South
Mountain in a mass start. The first two
miles of the course were flat, and allowed the contestants to spin their legs
before the serious climbing began. The
gradual ascent taunted many riders to expend their energy early, which divided
riders. Despite the short length and
moderate incline, the course seemed to drag on endlessly as riders muscled
their way uphill. The road briefly
leveled off in parts, tricking the racers into thinking they were close to the
finish. After cresting the mountain,
riders had a ¾ mile straightaway to the finish line, which called upon all
their remaining strength to secure good results.
Men’s A: Kevin Bernstein
Kevin scouted the course in advance, and planned out
strategy for himself and his teammates.
Significantly fatigued from his first race, as well as jetlagged after
his trip from California, Kevin did
his best to stay competitive in A’s,
landing 28th.
Women’s A: Monica Volk, Jess Bunchek
An afternoon tailwind shifted the importance from drafting
tactics to pure climbing ability. Monica
and one other rider quickly scaled the climb, and she secured 2nd
place in a close final sprint. Jess
racked up points with an 8th place finish, and held down a sub-30
minute time on a difficult race.
Men’s D: Cobie Arnold, Will Gowen, Jacob Brown, Noah
Smith
Riders in men’s D burned matchsticks early, resulting in the
division of the peloton between climbers and non-climbers. Throughout the race, riders continually fell
out of the front pack, one-by-one giving in to exhaustion. Will had a lock on third place, but with no
energy to spare, he lost ground on the final sprint and earned 4th. Cobie came in close behind for 5th
place, maintaining a substantial gap between himself and the rest of the
riders. Jacob and Noah fought hard in
the pack, and also earned consecutive finishes with 27th and 28th.
Shippensburg Scurry Road Race
In addition to a severe drop in temperatures, punishing 50
mph winds reared up overnight, which sent the real-feel down to 16
degrees. The gale force gusts bowled trees
and power lines onto the road course, and ECCC officials were forced to nix the
infamous Horse Killer Road ascent due to fallen debris. The revised course was an 8 mile loop with mild
rolling hills, although the weather ensured it was equally challenging. Riders huddled in the heated community
center, and only the most dedicated warmed up outside before their races. Throughout the course of the day, cyclists
were shoved across lanes from fierce lateral gusts, and tailwinds allowed
riders to coast at 15 mph on straightaways.
Women’s A/B: Monica Volk
Determined to preserve her yellow jersey, Monica raced
despite the unpleasant weather. She and
two other riders broke away, and created a substantial gap which caused the
remaining riders to be pulled and placed.
The seven grueling laps eliminated the majority of the field, and the
three riders battled it out for podium finishes in the final sprint. It was a close finish, and they crossed the
line within milliseconds of one another.
Monica locked down 2nd place, but 1st in her
category.
Will Gowen sprints for the finish in the Men's D Road Race
Men’s D: Cobie Arnold, Will Gowen
Cobie raced defensively for the first several laps, and let
the inclement conditions weed out the weaker riders before pushing to the front. Cobie strategically drafted off of the other
riders, and finished 3rd in the race after 3 hellish laps. Will asserted himself towards the front of
the peloton throughout the first lap, but was unable to maintain his position, and
lost touch with the group. The
hurricane-level gusts were impossible to battle solo, and he ended up dropping
back to form a pace line with the remaining riders.
After another exciting race weekend, Penn State riders have
once again held their 4th place position on the ECCC
leaderboard. So far this season our
riders have amassed 401 points, with many more to come in the next several
weeks.
No comments:
Post a Comment