New year

So the track season is almost over and I'm already thinking about next year. I had a hectic summer of travel, moving, graduating, starting a new job ... all in all, I totally slacked on anything and everything blog related (I didn't even do write ups for my team until last week). Yes, excuses excuses.

I'm going to ring in the new season with a complete write-up from Elites next week. Stay tuned.

Major Taylor Velodrome

I'm not sure people in Chicago realized this year that Major Taylor was holding races on Saturdays this season (cat 4 men at noon; 1/2/3 men and women at 7PM).

Well unless we rally the troops next year, the Saturday option will likely disappear. So track racers of Chicago, let's figure out a way to get ourselves down there on a regular basis. It's just under 3 hours (depending on how many stops you make).

Brian Piccolo Velo in florida

im down in Ft. Lauderdale for buisness so i figured I'd stop at the Brian Piccolo velodrome and see how it measured up to Kenosha.

I was quite impressed it seems like a copy of Major Taylor Velo in indiana really nice infield with a nice tunnel under the track into the infield.


plus some cool ground owls hanging out just outside the track.

Kenosha Tuesday night Wrapup

Photos by: Ed White

This week was another good night out at the Velodrome, the schedule started with the pro 1/2 Kierin Qualifying heats.
The best thing about Kierin heats at Kenosha is this bad ass motorpacer that comes out to do the pacing, it's a sweet restored '80's Honda and you can tell that the owner loves showing it off.

usually the 3rd position is the spot to be in a motorpaced Kierin and in Ed Whites heat there was a guy who just would not give up trying to slot in ahead of Ed he ended up riding 3 of the 4 motorpaced laps outside of the draft trying to get in ahead of ed (who was in 3rd) but Ed held his spot and the guy ended up having to back off and get in the back of the line. anyways the final was won by John Freyley who was the first person behind the motorpacer which is usually a bad spot but he made it work and led the whole way to the finish for an impressive win.

after that was the Cat 3 mens Scratch race which was a fast race with Ed White taking the win and Kaz Miles taking 2nd (he actually came in 3rd but Jason nine was relegated for passing below the blue line)

then it was the womens turn to hit the track for a 5 lap scratch race, Katy Steudel (check out her blog for a detailed report and some nice pics) rode away from the field for a convincing win in that race.

the it was time for our race except for the first time ever (that i know of) we got split up into cat 4 and 5 fields which was cool so i had one more race to watch before my turn. we lined up for a 6 lap scratch and i took my usual spot at the front of the pack leading people around for the neutral lap. when the whistle blew we picked up the pace pretty quickly afterwards and then Frank Chemotti made a jump and i hooked on to his wheel and we got a 20 foot gap on the field but he had misread the lap cards and went with 3 to go instead of 2 to go so he sorta faded just before the start of the last lap and i came around him along with a few others who made a surge out of the field. unfortunately when i came around frank i ended up back down in the sprinters lane with a few people infront of me and i got boxed in in the final sprint and ended up in 6th place with Tim Strege coming out of the field with a strong sprint finish for a surprise win.

after that it was tempo races where i once again failed because i cannot sprint, but katy took a second win in the womens field and once again Tim Strege took the win in the Cat 4 mens field with my teammate Andy Toumanoff taking 2nd.

the main event was a 40 lap points race that went off at a blazing pace and left many people totally spent . it was won by Alex Wilson with Rob Springer taking 2nd. another impressive rider was Kyle Jacobson who would consistently make some impressive solo breaks in the race to come in 4th place.

the final race of the night was the consolation which was a 20 lap points race, i really wanted a placing in this race since i hadn't done much all night but it was not to be and i ended up taking 1 point and getting another 6th place finish. ahh well there is always next week i guess.


Final Results:




Photos By: Katy Steudel

opening friday night...

well, opening night was a beautiful night. i would say about 16 racers came out to play. i wish i had more info as to who exactly came out...i'll do my best to tighten up on details for everyone. the races were brutal but the 5's had a good time out there doing there best to upgrade to the cat 4's to play with the big boys/girls. i may not have details(i'll work on that) but i do have pics...



report by andrew yeoman of team pegasus...also, yojimbo's track-cats were out in full force and attacking the velodrome...



...more pics. if you have a blog and have a write up of your racing please contact us at chicagotrackracing@gmail.com so that we can link to it. also, if you would like to add a write up don't hesitate to send it. we'll do our best to load them up...peace.

DIRECTIONS, Part 2

Thanks to Jeff Perkins (Chicago Cuttin' Crew) for sending us a list of Metra times to both Northbrook and Kenosha. Also, remember this info about Metra:

Bicycles are permitted on all weekday trains arriving in Chicago after 9:30 AM and leaving Chicago before 3:00 PM and after 7:00 PM, and on all weekend trains, with the following exceptions:

• Blues Fest (Weekend only - June 7 - 8)
• All days during Taste of Chicago (June 27 - July 6)
• Independence Eve Fireworks (July 3)
• Venetian Night (July 26)
• Lollapalooza (August 1 - 3)
• Air & Water Show (August 16 & 17)
• Jazz Fest (Weekend only - August 30 - August 31)

Bicycles must be secured to the lower rail of folding seats in the designated priority seating area with bungee cords or other devices supplied by the cyclist that will adequately secure the bicycle.

NORTHBROOK
Here are the trains that count. Western stop is at 420 N Artesian.
Union Station / Western / Northbrook
4:48 / 4:48 / 5:33
5:12 / 5:22 / 5:48
5:15 / 5:25 / 5:54
5:25 / XXXX / 6:02
5:30 / 5:39 / 6:13
5:50 / 5:59 / 6:24
5:58 / 6:07 / 6:40
6:19 / 6:28 / 6:56
That last one is probably too late.
One-way fare is $4.30
A 10-ride ticket is sold at a bit of a bargain for $36.55.

The last two trains leave the Northbrook station at 8:47 and 10:58PM.

KENOSHA
Here are the train rates.
$7.05 gets you there one-way.
$59.95 gets a 10 day (perhaps he means ride).

This train has about 4 departure points in the city. Ogilvie (500 W Mad), Clybourn (2001 N Ashland), Ravenswood (4800 N Ravenswood), Rogers Park (7000 N Ravenswood).
Here's the site with the schedule: http://metrarail.com/Sched/cnw_n/cnwn_wko.shtml
It's going to be real nasty getting back in so we should plan to accommodate extra people in the vehicles. Otherwise you won't be getting a train back from Kenosha until 11:35 and it gets into the 606 at 1:10 AM
Ogilvie / Clybourn / Ravenswood / Rogers Park / Kenosha
4:13 / 4:21 / XXXX / XXXX / 5:39
5:03 / XXXX / 5:15 / XXXX / 6:27
5:10 / 5:18 / XXXX / 5:26 / 6:40

Kenosha Opening Night Report

Since we got rained out last week tonight was the first real night of racing at Kenosha this year.

We were scheduled for 3 lap sprints, a snowball, a point’s race for the consolation and a Madison Main Event.

3 lap sprints are not my favorite event since I don’t like sprinting or races under 15 laps so I sorta resigned myself to sucking, but hey you gotta give it a shot right?

They had heats of 5-7 riders with the top two advancing to the finals in each heat. So the night started off pretty slow. With the juniors and masters 4/5’s. The first race I really watched was the women’s sprints since my teammate Katy Steudel was in it. The race started off slowish but not a crawl like a few of the other races before it, there was no real attempt at a jump just a steady acceleration through the 2^nd lap and a group sprint starting in turn 2. Katy was sitting a bit far back and down in the sprinters lane about 4-5^th coming through that turn so I yelled for her to get up track and she started moving up into 3^rd place where she got boxed in by Katie Antano, and Sarah Huang so she was sitting in third coming into turn four with a pretty good gap on the rest of the field all three fought it out down the final straight and it was damn close but Katy ended up 3^rd with Katie A. winning, Sarah H. coming in 2^nd and Beth Engvis rounding out the top 4 . Not a bad way to start the night.

After that I was up for my 3 lap sprint heat. I was in with my teammate Jon Raleigh, Frank Chemotti and 3 guys from Hayes they were taking the top two so Jon and I wished each other luck and started riding. The pace basically just gradually increased throughout the race I tried to stay 2^nd or third wheel until the back straight where I yelled for Jon to jump and I just latched on to him and we passed the leading hayes guy on the outside in the last turn and I beat him in the final sprint by about 4 inches with Jon taking the win in the heat. I was really surprised at how it turned out but the pace of the race really played into my strengths since I don’t really have a good jump but I do have a pretty good top speed.

In the first 3s heat Lyle Hanson won with ED White taking 2^nd and Casey Masterson getting beat out finishing in 3^rd. After that I sorta took a break and went and talked to a few people while the 1-2s and 30+ heats were run.

In the fours finals john and I were lined up against Gideon Stitt and Zack Geyer as well as two other guys who I didn’t catch the names of. This time we rolled around the track at a snail’s pace for the first lap I just sat on the front waiting for a jump to happen we made it to the back straight when a guy from Hayes jumped and I hopped on his wheel, he was pulling up but not getting a gap so I just sorta marked him and stayed up with him until 2 other guys started coming through underneath him I then dropped down and went with them I couldn’t tell what type of gap we had if any coming into the final straight but I could see a shadow coming up behind me so I knew it couldn’t be much. So I gave it all I had and just beat out Jon at the line for 3^rd place. He swore loudly at that and got a talking to but it was all cool in the end. So I ended up in 3^rd overall which I’m pretty happy with since I don’t consider myself a sprinter at all.

After that it was the women’s Snowball which was five laps, they were only giving points for first though which seems like it takes away a lot of the strategy in the race. Anyways Katy nabbed the first point, got 3^rd on the 2^nd lap got the 3^rd lap points, got 3^rd again in the 4^th lap and just missed out on the final lap points getting 2^nd in that lap. So she ended up 3^rd overall in the race since Katy Antano won the 2^nd and last lap and Sarah Huang won the 4^th lap.

The fours snowball was a large field and I basically just tried to stay in the front of the pack since I knew I wasn’t going to really be able to contest many laps because they were only giving points to 1^st. so I just sorta hung out and rode hard for the first ¾ of the race and then took it easy for the last couple of laps.

That race was won by Corey Belchams (sp?) with Chaz Martin taking 2^nd with Jeff Bradek and Chris Hurst taking 3^rd and 4^th respectively.

After that it was time for the 3s finals where Lyle Hanson got beat by Ed white(1st) and Len Caveltera(2nd) in the finals.

As for the consolation and Madison results well they weren’t up when I left so your guess is as good as mine but I’m pretty sure Andy Crater and his teammate took the win in the Madison.

Pic By: Gary Lake, more here

Full Results are hard to read but click on the Pics to check em out.

DIRECTIONS ~

These are driving directions for northbrook if you're coming from Chicago. Well, as some of you know and might have found out the hard way...there's alot of construction on the edens or 94. Without the construction there it would be the usual way to get there for me and others coming from Chicago...you know, take 94/edens north to willow west...then hit a right(head north) on waukegan rd which isn't too far away from the 94 exit. Once on waukegan you hit a left(head west) on maple ave. and you're there.



Now that there is massive construction going on there are a few more options I have come across. You can take 90/94 north...at the junction you stay on 90 west. now, here you have two more options...you can get off at harlem and take that north and it'll eventually turn into waukegan rd. which you will take to maple ave. and then hit a left. Can take a little long because of all the traffic lights but still might be faster than dealing with the construction on 94. The other option is to stay on 90 west and take 294 north...take 294 until you reach willow east. head east and hit a left on waukegan rd(head north)...take that to maple ave. and hit a another left.

I hope any of that made sense to those attending from Chicago. Everyone has their own ways to get to northbrook. I think the important part is to actually get to northbrook. Even a spectators presence is seen as participation...peace.

Thursday Night Wrap-Up

Photo by Edmund White

Our first night of summer weather, temps in the 80s, humid and windy. Ah Chicago. Teams were out in force in all fields and as usual there were some spectacular finishes.

I really wanted to be a good blogger and watch every race and comment on who did what, but I got wrapped up in seeing people who I hadn't seen in almost a year. Sorry, I'm new at this blogging thing. I'm going to enlist someone next week to help out on the commentary. And hopefully we will have a track scorecard of sorts so we can give a next day, preliminary report of the results.

So keep checking in, this is a work in progress!

If you raced and you would like us to include your report in our weekly write-up, please send us your blog address or send us a commentary via email, chicagotrackracing@gmail.com. Also, we love pictures! Send us your pics and we'll link to them or put them up directly on the blog.

Other things in the works include weekly wrap-ups from Tuesday night racing at the Washington Park Velodrome in Kenosha and a 'Meet Your Competitors' feature, where we will interview a different local racer each week.

Photos from 6/5/08
by Edmund White (Half Acre)

Glossary of Track Events

Here is a Glossary of Races (from the Northbrook Velodrome and USAC sites). Some of these events are more common at weekly races (Tempo, Point-a-Lap, Win and Out, etc.), while others are more common at National/World Events (Individual Pursit, Time Trials)

Belgian Win and Out
Similar to a (Danish) Win and Out, except that placings are awarded backwards, i.e., the first contested sprint garners 5th place, then 4th, 3rd, etc. lastly picking the race winner.

Chariot
A one lap race. Each rider has a holder who holds the racer ready until the starter’s pistol. At the gun, riders try to get out front quickly and stay away from the others to win the race. (This race is usually run with heats of 6 riders, with the top one or two finishers advancing to the final.

Danish Win and Out
The race gets underway from a rolling start (usually 2-3 neutral laps.) When the riders here the bell, they are racing for the win. The second lap is for 2nd place and so on.

Devil’s Scratch
A combination of a Miss and Out and a Scratch race. The race starts as a Devil takes the Hindmost (Miss and Out) eliminating half of the field, the remaining field get a neutral lap and then start a 3 lap Scratch race to contest the winner.

Handicap
A handicap race is a race in which the stronger riders are given either a greater distance to travel or a later start so as to equalize competition.

Individual Pursuit
Pursuit is a race between competitors who are started at equal intervals around the track, and is run until one rider catches the others or until a certain distance is covered, as specified in advance. A rider catches another by overtaking and drawing even.

Keirin
A Keirin is a race in which riders sprint after completing a certain number of laps behind a pacer. The race will be 8 laps on a 250 m track, 6 laps on a 333 m track and 5 laps on a 400 m track (approximately 2 km total race distance). No more than nine riders may compete in a Keirin. If the number of entrants warrants, there may be qualification and/or repêchage rounds leading to a final race. Normally the pacer rides a derny or motorized pacing bicycle.

Madison
Essentially a Points race with 2 person teams. Riders still race a set number of laps, receiving points on the points lap but they do so with a teammate. In this race, one rider is racing on the bottom of the track and their partner hovers at the top of the track waiting to tag in. This is done by means of a handsling to help get the rested rider up to speed quickly utilizing the tired rider’s momentum.

Miss and Out
Also known as “Devil takes the Hindmost.” The last rider across the line of each lap is pulled out. This continues until three riders remain. After one neutral lap, the riders are then racing for first place.

Point-a-lap
A race which rewards the leader of each lap with 1 point. Only the leader of each lap receives points, no other placings. Rider with the most accumulated points is the winner.

Points
Points are awarded every 5, or so, laps of a pre-determined overall number of laps. The top four riders on the ‘points lap’ receive points, usually 5/3/2/1. The winner is the one with the most points.

Scratch
A race for a specific distance. That is to say, a 10 lap Scratch race is a 10 lap race. The first rider
across the line is the winner.

Snowball
The first rider across the line on the first lap gets one point. The first rider across the line on the second lap gets 2 points, 2nd place gets 1 point. Each lap the points increase by one, until the 5th lap, with scoring 5/3/2/1 points, 1st – 4th place respectively.

Sprints
A three lap race. Seeding is often done by flying 200m times. The field size is a small group of riders with the top 1 or 2 riders advancing to higher rounds, ultimately the finals. The tactics of vary, but fall into one of two categories – cat and mouse game with short hard sprint at the end or early attack with rider trying to keep a high pace for the entire time.

Team Pursuit
Pursuit teams are made up of two or more riders, usually three or four, covering a distance of 4000 meters. The rules for a particular event must appear in the official race announcement and be explained to all participants before the start. The official race announcement must specify how many riders must finish and on which finisher the time is taken. The team is considered to have finished when the third rider crosses the line. Three riders must complete the distance or the team cannot be classified.

Team Sprint
Team Sprint is a race run by two teams of riders, each of whom shall lead for one lap. The number of riders per team (and total laps) may be specified as either three or two; generally it will be three for men and two for women. The event shall be organized into qualifying heats leading to a final. The qualifying heats select the four best teams on the basis of their times. In the finals, the teams with the two best times ride off for first and second and the other two
teams ride off for third and fourth. In three lap events there may be four riders entered for each team, but no more than three of those riders may compete in a given round. The team whose final rider crosses the line first shall be the winner. In case of a tie, the team with the best
time on the final lap shall win. All timings are based on the lead rider.

Tempo
A race which awards the top two riders of every lap. First place receives 2 points, second place 1 point. The winner is the one with the most points.

Time Trial
Riders are timed over a fixed distance. Starts may be either flying or standing, as specified. If a session is interrupted, all competitors must ride in a subsequent session.

Unknown Distance
Riders race for an undetermined number of laps. The bell indicates the last lap.


Of these races, the races found at National/World events like Elite Nationals, Worlds or World Cup Races are:
Points
Scratch
Keirin
Madison
Individual Sprints
Team Sprints
Time Trials - 500m, 1000m
Individual Pursuit
Team Pursuit

Upcoming Events

The long anticipated MN Fixed Gear Classic is this weekend up at Blaine. I'm not going to mention the weather since, as Midwest track racers, we all have 5 sites bookmarked and maniacally hit refresh on the radar. There's a nice prize list - $5000 - prizes being awarded per event and for the omnium. For those of you who can't make it, there will be a live webcast of the weekend's action on the NSC site, with Super Rookie as a contributor.

(check the weather)

Here's the schedule for the weekend:
Men's categories Pro/1/2
Women's categories Pro/1/2/3

Saturday June 7th, 6:30-9:30PM
Women: 1 Lap standing TT
Men: Flying 200 M TT
Women: 1 Mile Sprint heats , 6 laps
Men: Chariot heats
Women: Miss and Out
Men: 50 Lap Points Race
Women: Keirin heats
Men: Miss and Out
Women: 1 Mile Sprint Final
Men: Chariot Final
Women: Keirin Final
Men: 12 K Scratch Race Final
Women: 10 K Points Race

Sunday June 8th, 1-4PM
Women Handicap heats
Men 1 Mile Sprint heats
Women Miss and Out
Men Keirin heats
Women: Chariot heats
Men: Miss and Out
Women: Handicap final
Men: 1 Mile Sprint final
Women: Chariot final
Men: Team Sprint TT
Women: Team Pursuit TT
Men: Keirin final
Women: 12K Scratch final
Men: 20 K Pts /Madison

This from James Tainter, one of the organizers, "the fields are filling up quickly and we would like to have anyone coming to fill out an online bio sheet to get them on the rider's list ... If anyone else is coming, it would really help us if they did as well: www.nscsports.org/sports/cycling/fgc_form.html." Northbrook represent!


In other news ... There was talk last Thursday night about heading down to Indy and racing at Major Taylor on Saturday June 14th. This year MTV is alternating their 1/2/3 nights between Fridays and Saturdays, which is convenient for those of us who work. If you're interested in going and/or carpooling respond here or just find me, Val, at Northbrook June 12th. Major Taylor Schedule pdf or click on image.


Northbrook has published the schedule for tomorrow night, June 5th. According to the NCC listhost there will be a Madison for Cat 1/2 and 3/4, but it does not appear on the schedule.
Click here for pdf or on image below.

Correction: Madison nights will be June 12th and 19th, not the 5th. The 12th will be Cat 1/2 only, while the 19th will have a Cat 1/2 and Cat 3/4 Madison. The Cat 3/4 Madison must have at least one Cat 4 on the team and all Cat 4s must pass the Monday night Madison Clinic.

CLINICS ~

Clinics are held on Mondays and Tuesdays at the Ed Rudolph Northbrook Velodrome.




Click on pic for more details or e-mail Kevin Perez at sprinter001@comcast.net.

AND SO IT BEGINS ~

it's just an idea for now but soon...very soon we will be a legit site/blog where chicago can show the nation/world how track cycling is done in the midwest...