07/19/02 by Ted Ingraham
We are well past mid-season as far as racing is concerned, so this mid-year update is a little late, but I wanted to review some of what has been happening with the Freewheelers. Generally, it has been a very good year so far. To tell you about it, I've separated it into topics:
Race Team: We've had good success with cat 2/3 race team (Team Summit). Just last week the team ended up with third place in the 3/4 category for the Deer Creek series - most impressive since they only raced in 3 of the 4 races! Of our original four team members, Bryan Huntley has missed a lot of races due to a knee problem but Jim Gilmore, Jim Mullins, and Denis Osowski have been hitting all the races. The "Team" just got a new member Angelo Catalano upgraded to 3 and is now officially part of Team Summit. Congratulations to Angelo - he will be a strong addition to the group! Considering it is our first year to have an organized C 2/3 team, we have done very well. We expect to build on our accomplishments next year, becoming more organized and hopefully adding more Cat 3 or higher racers.
Club Racing: Of course more of us are Cat 4 or 5 racers than Team Summit members. The rest of the club has also been very prominent in races and we are racing well this year. Twin Sizzler was dominated by Freewheelers and there is always a large showing at Westlake. It is great to see so many members racing as I can recall just a few years ago it was unusual to see other Freewheelers at local races. We have a lot of new young members that I expect will continue to develop into strong racers.
Team Helmets: We decided to spend a little of the club's money in a way that everyone could benefit. We got a great deal from Marty's on 18 Bell Ghisallo helmets. The helmets cost us $75 plus tax. Members pay just $65 and can get reimbursed for $40 of that by doing 10 races or volunteer efforts. Thanks to Angelo, Jim Mullins, Brian Shelford, and Tom at Marty's for putting the helmet deal together. We still have one additional helmet if anyone wants it.
Race Support: As most of you know, we provide limited support to the Team Summit members by reimbursing part of their race fees when they all race together. We found our original formula (requiring them all to race) didn't work well due to schedule conflicts. As a result we haven't reimbursed much in fees. With our treasury still healthy, we developed the concept of "Focus Races" to provide more support to Team Summit members as well as encourage the Cat 4 racers to race in C 3/4 races when possible. Focus Races are described below.
Focus Races: These are significant races where we hope to have a strong showing by the club - particularly in the C4 and above categories. To encourage participation, the club will reimburse race fees (no late fees) for focus races for the Team Summit racers and C-4's will be reimbursed when they race with the Cat 3's. (such as 3/4 category races.) We may also provide some additional support in Focus Races where expenses such as overnight stays are required. The objective is to make it easier for Team Summit members to get reimbursement help as well as encourage Cat 4 racers to race with the team when possible. We will also reimburse C 3/4 women who race in focus races. Following are Focus Races: Tour of Ohio (8 races total) We will reimburse $25 per race because the fee varies from $22 to $27. Major Taylor the Michigan State Road Race - race fees and we may also do something if a group stays overnight. Windsor/Detroit Labor Day weekend same deal as Major Taylor. If all this seems a little confusing to you, drop me a line with any questions.
TOP: We have been on-again-off again with the TOP schedule this year. We will be posting the schedule for the remainder of the year soon. We still have plenty of races to do. We will have a picnic after the two-man time trial on August 1st. It will be at Hampton Hills Park.
Fall Race: The club plans to promote at least one more major race this season. Denis Osowski is planning for one, possibly two "Fall Challenge" races. Details will be announced soon.
Points Program and Reimbursement: Don't forget to post your results to the points program when you race or volunteer. The points program helps us show our sponsors how active we are and it is a fun way to track each others progress. It is also required to get your credit for reimbursement for either your uniform or helmet. Once you qualify for any of the reimbursement programs, it is your responsibility to notify us that money is due to you.
2003: Yeah, it is already time to start planning for next year. We want to get a head start on plans for 2003. We need to select officers, decide on uniforms, solicit sponsors, plan races, and many other tasks. We'll start work on all theses topics at a club planning meeting scheduled for Saturday, July 27 at 7:30 am at Bruggers Bagels (come on folks it is summer you should be able to get up that early!)
Upcoming races: Looking at the race schedule, the cancellations are disappointing. Sharon is cancelled, Dog Daze Crit isn't happening, and Mill Creek is cancelled. Another good race, although not close, in Williamsport Pa has been changed it is now a stage race on Labor Day. That conflicts with the closer Windsor/Detroit races. Tour of Ohio provides lots of racing opportunity in early August but it takes some driving and many races are on weeknights. New Waterford competes with Tour of Ohio (New Brenem) race on August 2, and for those who don't want to travel to western Ohio, Waterford is a good citizen's road race much like Twin Sizzler. We are trying to get a group to go to the Major Taylor Road Race in Michigan on July 28. Anyone interested in that race, please let me know.
We should all be pleased with the success of our racing and the health of the club. Still, there are lots of ways we can improve for next year. Think about what you would like to see different next year and bring your input to the meeting on Saturday, July 27th.
Ted