Update from Andy

Hello to my Empower Coaching Systems Family,

I wanted to send out a quick update concerning my sabatical at ECS for the last year. In August of 2009 I was approached by the UCI to lead a new track program at the UCI World Cycling Center in Aigle, Switzerland. For the last year I've had an amazing and unique coaching opportunity of coaching 80 athletes from over 15 countries.. The project produced some great results including 4 World Championship wins (producing the first-ever Korean and African World Champions), 2 World Records, 11 Continental Championship Gold Medals and 10 National Records. A busy but rewarding year!

Following a successful project in Switzerland, I was approached by Irish Cycling in a project to qualify start positions for the 2012 Olympic Games in London. In addition to my scaled-down ECS duties (thanks Dotsie!) I started this project in August and in the last 8 weeks the Irish team has seen some great improvements. Our first race was the European Championships in Poland.

Safe travels,
Andy
Empower Coaching Systems
Empower. Inspire. Grow.
http://www.EmpowerCoachingSystems.com

September Empower Athlete of the Month

Jon Mcgee works hard, really hard. He does not have a lot of free time to cruise around and dilly dally, as like many of us, he has a very full plate. He owns his own company and has a beautiful family of a wife and 3 little girls. Every minute of his life is filled to the brim and he needs pure quality training to reach his cycling goals. When he came to me a few months out from the famous Leadville 100 mountain bike race and said he wanted to race it and make it in under the magical 9 hour barrier to receive the very coveted gold and silver belt buckle (not to be confused with the under 12 hour silver belt buckle), I was ever so slightly skeptical that we could achieve this lofty goal. Man oh man, was I wrong. Jon works fast, really fast.

He put his mind to the grindstone and never let up. Even when family called and he had to miss or change a workout, he was relaxed and trusted his program. He had planned to go race the Silver Rush 50 one month before the Leadville100 race which is in the exact same location and would have given me a plethora of information to work with from his SRM, not to mention to see how his body responded at over 10,000 feet in altitude. He had to cancel that trip and just about gave his coach a coronary with not doing that "test" race. I think he is the one who talked me off the ledge on that day. He assured me he could still do Leadville in under 9 hours. He just kept repeating his goal. As he got faster and faster over the weeks, he got more excited and his excitement poured over into his training, and that is a dangerous combination for his competitors. He was going to reach his goal. 2 weeks out, I knew he could do it. As his Functional Threshold (one of the key components in a race of this length) rose over 20 watts and he lost over 15 pounds of body weight in prep for the steep mountain pitches of Leadville at over 10,000 feet in altitude, he was going to be hard to beat. On August 14th he hammered his way to that shiny belt buckle, along with his brother Rob, in UNDER 9 hours! As I watched the athlete tracker on the Leadville 100 website it was like waiting for Christmas morning, as the time ticked toward the 9 hour mark. He came in RIGHT under the cutoff time, and I mean RIGHT UNDER as I believe he was the last racer to make the cut. He texted me right as I was reading his time come across my computer screen and it pretty much made my entire month! I love coaching an athlete with a purpose and rough neck determination!. Next year, we have done the math and he only has to go 3.7 miles per hour faster to beat Levi's record setting time. If anyone can do it, trust me, its Jon Mcgee. No pressure Jon:-)
Congratulations to Jon Mcgee on being Empower Coaching's Athlete of the Month for September 2010!

Here are Jon's answers to his Empower Athlete of the Month questions:
ECS: What motivates you to train so hard and stay so focused on a daily
basis when no one is watching?
JM: When I started with Dotsie I really saw how much work went into putting together a good training program. I was motivated by the fact that I never wanted to disappoint Dotsie. The goals she set made the training exciting and I looked forward to seeing the improvement week after week.

ECS: What do you like best about your Empower Coaching Systems Coach?
JM: Dotsie is Great! She really knows what she's talking about. I had so much confidence that I had the best coach and training schedule which really helped me give a 100% day after day. She was always available to answer questions and always gave advice.

ECS: What prank would you play on your coach if you could do anything you
wanted?
JM: Dotsie is too nice to prank! (Dotsie says: "clearly he does not know me well enough yet. I will change that for 2011)

ECS: When you get your monthly Empower coaching Schedule, what do you look
forward to seeing on it the most and what do you look forward to the least?
JM: I enjoy seeing the next challenge and look forward to reaching the new goals. The tuff days are never fun when you start off but feel the best when you finish for the day.

ECS:: Any advice you have for a new rider beginning with Empower Coaching
Systems?
JM: Really trust your coach and follow the schedule with exactness. Their experience will provide great results. Don't be afraid to ask questions.

ECS: What are your goals for next season?
JM: I'd like to get a few road races in before the end of the year and I'm shooting for a good result in Vision Quest 2011. Also, looking forward to Leadville 2011 and improving my time.

The Cascade Experience - By Lisa Campbell (Guest rider for SC Velo)

Report #1
Hi Everyone,
Well, it's been an interesting few days. I'll keep this as brief as possible. The week before the race had some excitement since I ran a red light and crashed my car just prior to leaving for Oregon. The car is not okay (luckily not a total loss and getting fixed) but I wasn't hurt. My parents, James, me and 4 dogs arrived safely on Sunday and I had my first team meeting with "the girls", (as I like to call them since they all seem like little kids to me) and Coach Dotsie. 6 of us racing in all.
We pre rode the prologue course, a short 2 mile out and back with several turns and an uphill...that unfortunately for me, was removed prior to the start of the race and the turn around was placed at the hill.

The night before the prologue we came home to 4 terriers that had gotten into a large box full of many, many dog treats, rawhides, jerky sticks...and more. Unfortunately Poppy had to go to the local Emergency Hospital and stay overnight on IV fluids, and many medications to try and help everything pass through him without needing surgery. I slept a few hours that night, and figured, hey, it's only 2 miles...and we didn't start til 6pm the next day...(I didn't really think that, but that's what I told myself.)
The good news is that I wasn't last at the prologue (but close), with about 40 -50 seconds the gap between the winning and the slowest time. I was like a Fred, or a "Fredette" for this race. I had to tuck my jersey into my shorts for a makeshift skinsuit (Dotsie's idea, not mine...) and I was the only bike out there that wasn't decked out aero...I had some aero bars, but we decided not to use them since the course was so short, with so many turns and I was spending more time out of them than in them. I will use them in the 16 mile TT coming up today. By the way, I thought I was going to cough up blood at the end of that prologue. I have NEVER felt burning in my lungs like that. But the girls all assured me that was normal, and I felt better when I saw almost all the girls coming in coughing, hacking, grimacing in pain and looking like I felt too.

The real torture came yesterday. 74 miles of a road course that has not been in the race for a few years due to fires, road closures, etc. According to Dotsie (and the other team managers), we were "not to worry" because the 18 mile climb up Mackenzie Pass was a "rolling" ascent between 3-5%, 6 to 7% in a few places and was probably going to be "tempo"...WRONG, WRONG, WRONG....Okay, maybe it was tempo but it sure wasn't my tempo. And this is all before the last 8 mile climb with 11% pitches.
The climb started 28 miles into the race and those 28 miles were the scariest 28 miles I've ever ridden. The pack was huge, lots of surging, lots of breaking and a very bad crash on a steep descent that happened just 5 girls in front of me. Luckily I was able to swerve to the left towards the shoulder (looking for something soft, just in case...) and avoid the carnage. But girls went down all over the place just because they braked so hard. I was frantically looking around for 2 team mates I knew were behind me and a few miles down the road they caught up and were pretty white in the face since they just avoided the after math of the main crash.
The first mile or so of the hill was "tempo" and then it was just surge, after surge, after surge...I remembered Dotsie saying to just go with the surge and relax since they would surge and relax and come back...but after about 4 surges I knew I would not last another 5 miles if I tried to stay with the lead group...so I backed off and got into a smaller pack of girls. (Here is what was going on in my head...."What the hell am I doing here? There is no way I am going to be able to do this for another 18 miles, I'm not going to make the time cut"). I had to slap myself around and snap out of it. My pack of 7 girls bridged to another pack of 7 that had been dropped from the lead group. (With women like Mara Abbott, Cath Cheatley, Allison Powers...) Incycles Katie Donovan was up there too, but unfortunately I found out later that she was dropped on the technical descent.

I stayed with this group of girls (hanging on for dear life at the back during the descent) until I bonked at mile 70, with just 3 miles to go. I was passed my a chase group of about 7 women. I finished 53rd, 15 minutes behind the winner. Time cuts were made and luckily our team is still intact. I thought I ate and drank enough, and I may have...I am just not used to this intensity, this pacing...and this level...Dorothy gave the team massages last night and it helped. Today my legs feel like they weigh 5 thousand pounds. This TT is 8 miles up and 8 miles down. I'll be working, but not killing myself since we have another 70 mile road race tomorrow....and the time cuts keep coming! Hope I didn't bore you all and I will keep you posted. Thank you for all your support.
Lisa C

Report #2
Hi Everyone,
Thought I'd give a quick Cascade Classic update as I wait for the crit to start (and as you all know, crits are my FAVORITE thing....).
So the second time trial was on Thursday. An out and back, 8 miles up a very gradual, ie. big gear hill, and then back down. Like my previous TT, it was not exactly my type of thing..but again, I didn't finish last...just close to it. :)) The winning woman was somewhere around 36 and I was 43 minutes..so there you go.
The second road race and the 3rd stage was another exercise in sheer pain, determination and torture.
The race started with a 4 mile climb and we had a "heads up" from the Colavita team manager...her words were "I'd be warmed up if I were you"...oh great. So, exactly as we thought. The race was a literal sprint from the whistle (what happened to the neutral role out?). The field of 90 plus was shattered in the first 500m and my heart rate was up to 185 and that is where it stayed for the next 20 minutes. I struggled up the hill and as we crested the top was off the back of the main peleton (about 20 girls, and I didn't know this yet, but a 5 woman breakaway had formed and Katie Donovan, from my team was in it). Bea from my team yelled at me to jump on her wheel...and people, I'm telling ya (no offense Mo), but I have stayed on Mo's wheel easier than hers...She sacrificed herself, when she could have bridged and didn't, and waited for me and pulled my ass up to the peleton...about 5 minutes after we caught them the rest of the pack caught us and the pace settled down...for a moment then....
CRASH...for no good reason..One minute my teammate PC was asking me how I was doing and the next minute I was climbing up the back of someone who was climbing up the back of someone else and over 20 of us were tangled up and frantically trying to get up and get going. PC landed on top of me and Bea went down too. Besides a bruised knee I was okay, but by the time my handlbars were straightened and I was able to determine that my badly mangled shifter still worked...the peleton was gone...Bea again, waited for me to get up and settled before taking off. 7 other girls were also trying to fix mechanicals and the nine of us time trialed for about 8 miles before catching up with the peleton. I again, learned what it means to have a team mate work their ass off for you. So by now it is only mile 20 and I have redlined not once, but twice.

I remember thinking "how the hell am I going to go 50 more miles?". Somehow we all managed to make it through feed zones without crashing, and it was 5 of us from Incycle all in the main peleton for awhile until we hit mile 50...this is where the 20 mile climb to the finish started. I lasted til about mile 60 and fell off the back of the peleton. I learned that the 5 woman break was caught with about 10k to go. I limped along okay until about mile 67 where I again, couldn't quite hold the wheels of the chase group I was with (causing me to lose about 12 places and 50 seconds, since they all came in as a pack).
So I think I ended up about 70th on this stage and hanging out at 58th overall right now.

I was just glad to survive yesterday...and gave Bea a big, wet smack on the face for pulling my ass all over the damn road.
The crit is tonight and I'm sure you all know that I am not looking forward to it...but hoping to stay positive, in the front more than in the back and hope that from somewhere my legs will find some strength for tonight and tomorrow cause they are TIRED!!!!
Keep you all posted...
Lisa C

Report #3
Hi Again,
Well, I found one way to make sure you stay safe in a crit...get pulled half way through...actually I got pulled just shy of half way through...but I was off the back by lap 5. I have never "quit" a sporting event and I know this wasn't technically quitting...but when you see that red paddle and hear the announcer saying "these girls are going to get pulled soon"...it sure feels like major crapola...
I never in a million years would have thought this would happen to me...but now that I've been through it...I never in a million years would think that at this level of my fitness I could make it through that crit.
There were maybe 8 or 9, maybe ten other girls that were pulled, but much later than me.
Dotsie came up to me after and told me that she was pulled from every pro 1/2 crit she did for the first 3 years racing pro (not sure I believe her). What did make me laugh, though, was that she said "Did you see all those other girls off the back who got pulled later? Well, they are in big trouble...you're not...You are not pulling a salary and you are not to this level....these girls are pulling a salary and I guarantee you their team meeting is not a happy place to be right now"....That did make me laugh. But then the laughing started my cough that I seemed to have picked up from the prologue and it just keeps getting worse.
Which brings me to today...just walking the dogs up the stairs to our rental house my lungs were burning, my legs were burning. I have bruises in places I didn't know could bruise...muscle pains in places I didn't know I had muscles...and one last, brutal circuit race coming up in about 2 hours.
The forecast is for 94 plus degrees with a chance of lightning and winds...
Oh my frickin god...I have no lungs left, very little left in my legs...and I'm wondering how I will make it through this next stage.
But...I didn't barely squeak by last night to quit today...so ready or not here we go for the last stage and the last day of 6 unbelievably painful...epic...torturous...fun (yes, I did say fun...), days of bike racing.
Thanks for everyone's support...oh, and what I mean by squeaking by last night...is that I had to make 1/3 of the winners distance in order to be able to start today. The winner did 22 laps...I did ten...
Lisa C

Race Report #4
Hi again everyone,
As I type this my left pinkie finger and my right little toe are still numb. My leg muscles feel like those big huge rubber band balls kids make in kindergarten and my lungs are still screaming at me!
I did make it through to be a finisher though...even after the horrendous beating (emotional, physical and also in terms of my overall GC finish time) I took in the crit.
After the stage yesterday, if this is even possible, I have even more respect for the women in this pro 1/2 category.
Here is a description taken from Velo-News of the circuit race yesterday....

"The 17-mile Awbrey Butte circuit was the site of the final stage of the six-day Cascade Cycling Classic. The circuit, on the northwest side of Bend, rolled over undulating terrain until the quarter-mile, 6 percent O.B. Riley climb from Tumalo Creek to the feed zone, nine miles into each lap. A false flat carried riders to the base of the day’s KOM climb on Archie Briggs Road, which began with a punishingly steep right-hand switchback and a 10-plus percent ramp before stair-stepping to the summit and eventually descending over a series of rollers to the start/finish."

From the gun it was a sprint out off the starting line. There were several turns, wheels screeching and bakes grinding as we flew through the first few miles. On the first little climb there was a crash to my right (on an uphill) and the girl next to me got tangled in my bars. I yelled "just keep going, we'll untangle as we go"...and we did. I managed to stay with the peleton (furiously fighting to stay in the top 1/3 of the group..something I've found very hard to do these last few days)...until the "stair steps", which felt like I had hit a frickin brick wall. I watched with dismay as the peleton pulled away and one of my team mates came up beside me and said "stay tough Lisa"...as we fought through those stair steps it was me, two team mates and about 8 other women who were dropped. I had two team mates in the peleton, two with me in the chase group, and one off the back. We struggled for about 4 miles, with the peleton just ahead of us and then we all fell apart. No one wanted to keep the pace line going, everyone was tired and our speed crawled to about an average of 21 miles per hour...yes, that was slow for this week....Another chase group caught us and we were about 20 girls all just kind of half fighting, half screaming at each other (not me, I just drifted to the back when everyone started yelling at each other)...and half kind of cheering each other on...We just couldn't close the gap and struggled our way through 2 more laps.

My teammate Bea looked at me with about ten miles to go and said "Are we heading toward the finish line? We're going towards it, right?" I assured her we were...and that's what we did...just headed toward the finish line. There was a tiny effort with about 1K to go and I made up about 8 places. Finally finishing somewhere around 66th overall in GC, I think. We started out with 105 women and ended the race with 83.

Besides learning a lot about myself, my fitness, my weakness's, my strengths..I also learned something else. I learned that Fast Friday is a great team...being around other teams made me appreciate what I have and I am SO grateful for all the support. I just wish that more of you were women!!! No offense...but it was so awesome to have these great women around me, supporting me and encouraging me and often, saving my ass....And, I know my guest team, Incycle is grateful for having James and my Dad in the feed zones...and I'm grateful to my Mom for babysitting the dogs on the long, hot days when we were out on the road.
What a damn great experience. Next year...Master's Nationals...watch out.
Peace out.
Lisa C

Coach Chris Demarchi WINS Nationals!

In a colorful display of determination, true grit and raw, mind blowing speed, Empower Coaching System's Coach Chris Demarchi, won his first individual National Championship last week in Jeffersonville, Indiana at the 2010 USA Cycling Masters National Criterium Championships.

Masters Road Nationals(women 40-44) - By Bonnie Breeze

This year I had the opportunity to compete for the Masters National Championship Title in Louisville Kentucky. Most of my training this season has focused strategically planning for peak performance for the Road Race and Criterium Championship scheduled for the first week of August. My coach, Dotsie Bausch (Empower Coaching Systems), and I carefully planned each race and training day specific to these events. Since I work very long hours this meant most of my training needed to be done at O’dark thirty with a set of lights, or in the garage, staring at my Garmin computer, doing intervals on the trainer. Bottom line, it was all painful no matter how you look at it. But let’s face it, if racing at an elite level was easy, everyone would be doing it.

This year’s Championship race was more special to me than in the past because it was to take place in Louisville, just two hours from my hometown of Cincinnati. It had been over 10 years since I had raced as a senior and since my father, who was my biggest fan, had seen me race. So we decided to make it a family gathering in Louisville with hopes of the fam watching me snatch the Stars and Stripes honors.



Unfortunately in November my father was diagnosed with cancer and underwent numerous operations and died six weeks prior to the event. All the events that took place up until the time of his death in addition to what followed were so extremely painful and draining I cannot even express. My training took a back seat to everything else.

I am so thankful that I am associated with such a fabulous team. I received an enormous amount of support and encouragement not only from my coach, Dotsie, who encouraged me to continue to push forward toward my goal of winning the Masters Championship, but also from my teammates with their kind words and faith in me.

As the Road Race day approached there was record heat being reported. Fortunately by the start of my race the heat wave had been broken….by a thunderstorm. It was pouring rain at the start. Within the first half mile the race saw at least 6 casualties. One of which was moi! I hit the pavement pretty hard, but quickly got up and began to chase. But unfortunately never regained contact with the field. Debbie Milne (Absolute Racing) soloed away from the peleton to win solo.

Next up was the criterium (two days later). This was a beautiful, flat, four corner, course with tight and narrow corners. I couldn’t wait to fly through the corners. I felt like a horse chomping at the bit. Additionally, my relatives, who live in Kentucky, not far from Louisville and have NEVER seen me race, all decided to pile in the family wagon and come cheer me on. I was thrilled to see them.
The race started out fast and furious. Half way through the race I threw down my best card and attacked as hard as I could attempting to get the party started for real. Once I was caught by the field, Milne from Absolute Racing who, just two days prior, rode away from the field, attacked me back and the fight was on to the finish. A group of 15 riders remained together and continued attacking each other before the field sprint. With one to lap go I was on the front, neck and neck with Jane Evely, Team Summa, on the back side. Summa jumped just before the 3rd turn and blasted through turn 4 first. Summa held on to the first position across the line and I was finished 2nd. Anne Grabowski (Flat City Cycling) was 3rd.

This was such a thrilling event and I am so proud to have been a part of it. Even though I didn’t win, it was remarkable to compete such amazing athletes, all who came to Louisville for one thing: To take home the Stars and Stripes. But we all know there can only be one winner. Hats off to Milne and Evely!!

This season would not have been possible for me without the support from this fabulous SC VELO team and sponsors. I thank each and every person who is affiliated with this team and who made it possible.

Masters Road Nationals(women 50-54) - By Pam Schuster

My expereince with National championships are that they are always a little different. My first ever Master Road Race was no exception. At the elite level I have always seen less team work at these events for numerous reasons and this was even more so at the Master's level. At the elite level many times your teammates are foreigners and are not eligible, so you have less teammates. The other reason is that the event has a title and more significance than winner of the XYZ road race. At the elite level the title is also many times a ticket to the Worlds team and the National team. At the Master's level many of the competators do not have teammates because of the different age groups and I personally only knew one other athlete in my race. Sue McDonough was unbeatable back-in-the-day when her and Karen Bliss won 90% of the National level criteriums in the country. Not a person I thought it would be wise to take to the line. Loisville Kentucky decided it was tired of the heat and decide it was time to rain. The fun course was not so fun in the rain with the fear of carnage at every bend. I am only thankful that it was the road race and not the criteriun taking place on this wet slippery day. The first 2 laps were all about staying safe. I either pulled the field or gave my self plenty of room. On the third lap 3 riders went down and I had to come to complete stop. I chased back on to the 7 leaders knowing the urgency after watching the previous races and the effects of the crashes. Numerous attempts by myself and others to get away were made. This was the fittest group of advanced aged women I had been with and we all wanted a chance at those stars and stripes. I thought about where I wanted to punch it chewy, did just that and it all worked out this time! Show me the jersey!

The criterium 2 days later was a different story with nice, dry weather(my 2nd Master's Crit....I did one as a 30 year old when I was a cat 3...got dropped of course!). The races prior to mine on this fine August 7th day all ended in a field finish. I was licking my chops because my sprint has been working and I think it is due to the lunges, squats and step-up routine I learned from Dotsie at one of her camps a few years ago. It's a great little routine and I throw it in when I am short on time(I am short on time 10 times a day!). I tried to work at the front to de-motivate the group from attacks. It worked great until 4 laps to go when Christine Schryver (Rochester, NY/Genesee Valley Cyclng) launched an attack that caused all us sprinters to hesitate until we realized she was gone like a frieght train. Even when we all decided it was over and started working she was gaining time on us. She so deserved this win and title! With 20 secounds and the dwindling pack exhausted I gave my final effort with one lap to go to claim the silver.

I learned not to take your medal home in your carry-on. TSA didn't know me(Can you believe that? TMZ does!) and wasn't sure if I should be allowed to swing it around with all my bags. I was just too elated to bring home the medal for my team who has been so supportive this year! I thank all the sponsors for believing in us and helping us be able to do what we do. I now have National RR win in both elite and Masters but only a 2nd in both elite and Masters! How ironic is that!

July Athlete of the Month - Dominic Galenti

Empower Coaching Systems has crowned yet another California State Championship Road Race Athlete. We would like to congratulate Dominic Galenti on his epic win at the Sisquoc State Championship Road Race.
His dedication to train on his specific plan and constantly develop into a great junior racer had really paid off.
Dominic is a great example of balancing his life to get it done. He not only does a great job on the bike, but excels in school as well. The future for Dominic is extremely bright. His desire to win grows by the minute. He has big goals to enter this off season with a focused plan to develop as an all around rider and compete at the highest level in major stage races. With his talent and continued dedication to his training plan his dreams will start to become reality.

Coach Chris DeMarchi

Performing when the HEAT is on..... literally!

IT'S HOT and sticky and you feel like you wanna run naked through a cool sprinkler over and over and over. How do you make sure you are taking all of the precautions possible to achieve peak performance in important races coming up like Elite and Junior National Road Championships in Oregon and Masters Nationals in uber humid Louisville, Kentucky in August of all months? What if you want to do well in your next crit, which is only an hour, right? Your core temperature along with the more important, muscle temperature, can overheat and greatly reduce performance in as little as 5 minutes of exposure. WHAT?

Mechanical performance of muscle is greatly influenced by temperature, as are most biological processes. Maximal forces developed by muscles and their rates of force generation, contraction, relaxation and power output are all altered when body temperature varies. Hmmmmm.......

In The Effects of Temperature on Performance by By Lawrence Fine, he states:

"A human being can only tolerate a variation of around 5° F in internal body temperature without physical and mental performance being impaired."

Did he just say MENTAL performance? Yes he did and as we know, that alone can play an enormous role in how we perform when the temperatures are normal!

Here is a quick and easy explanation on the 4 ways heat is released from Mr. Fine.

Most of the heat is conducted in the blood stream to the skin where it is released into the environment in four different ways:

1. Conduction: excess heat is transferred through direct contact with an object (e.g. when swimming in cold water).

2. Convection: circulating air allows heat to be transferred to air passing over the skin (depends on the air temperature).

3. Radiation: Involves heat being lost from the body through radiation (e.g. loss of heat within a cold environment).

4. Evaporation: excess heat is transferred to sweat which is then evaporated. Sweating is the most important means of dissipating heat when exercising under hot conditions.

What to do? I have written a tip sheet with very effective tips for dealing with the heat and optimizing your performance in the heat:

1. It is paramount that you know if you are someone who loses a lot of sodium during a hot and/or long event. If you cross the finish line looking like a powdered donut but have not yet cramped in a race, you are lucky. Know it’s coming though at some point and take the precautions to counteract cramping. There is nothing you can do to change the fact that you might be someone whose body loses sodium at a rapid rate. Its genetic and you either are or are not that person.

2. If you are going to be in a hot (over 35 degrees C) or long event, take precautions 3 days prior up to the morning of and during. Start drinking fluids with electrolytes mixed in, up to a gallon per day 2-3 days out. Keep cool the morning of and start eating electrolyte tablets or salt tablets 3 hours before the event and have them also readily available in your jersey pocket to continue taking during the event. Sodium, potassium and magnesium are the 3 components to ward off cramping, with sodium being about 90 percent of the ratio, so don't be afraid to salt your food as an athlete (unless you have been diagnosed with hypertension or high blood pressure). You need the sodium to stay hydrated!

3. Studies have shown that our muscle temperature runs about 2 degrees Celsius higher than our core temp and that muscle temps higher than 37 degrees decrease performance exponentially. Stay cool the morning of the event, especially if it’s hot out. Small ice packs in your jersey pockets placed near your kidneys during your warm up will help you stay cool, drink refrigerated temperature electrolyte drinks and soak yourself with cold water before heading to the start line. IF you just can't cool down, soak your extremities (hands or feet) in ice water for 2 minutes. The extremities carry the highest amounts of small veins and capillaries with the ability to quickly carry the cooler blood to the whole body.

4. Clothing can be an inhibitor of performance or a great aide and should be light colored if possible and made of a lightweight, breathable material that allows sweat to evaporate and pulls or wicks the sweat from the athlete’s skin.

5. Acclimatization can be very effective in preparing an athlete for competition in hotter weather. Athletes can become acclimated to hot conditions by spending a defined period of time in the designated place beforehand (10-14 days is recommended as a good adaptation period).

6. Your coach can judge or measure whether the temperature is too hot for training. Training should not take place in temperatures above 38 degrees Celsius or 102 degrees F. Particular attention to the conditions must be taken with children when training. It is best on hot days to train very early in the morning before the sun warms the day, which needs to be planned the night before to adjust sleep so that an athlete can get adequate hours of rest.

For more information and/or specific help please feel free to email Dotsie at: dotsie@empowercoachingsystems.com

Sisquoc Road Race - June 12, 2010

Who raced: Katie Donovan

I stopped by my mom's for lunch on my way home from the race. She handed me a garmin GPS for my car and told me she's sick of me calling and waking her up everytime I get lost driving to a local race. I don't know how I passed my exit , but this was one of those races where I had to start putting on my kit enroute to the race.

I was the only SC Velo rider racing. The Colavita team out of Nevada seemed to be the strongest team there. They started attacking from the start which ruined my plan of using the first of four laps to warm up. Kirstin (colavita) broke away on the first lap. Nobody seemed to want to chase and by the second lap she had over a minute on the field. I didn't want to have to bridge a 2 minute gap so I went to the front and kept us going at a steady pace. When we got to the back side of the course which was a slight climb I picked up the pace even more and a split was created.

The split consisted of two colavita girls, Tammy Wildgoose t(paramount) and Laura Hines (unattached). Colavita did a lot of work to help bridge up to their teammate. At the backside of the course the gap was 20 seconds. Julie from Colavita attacked and we dropped three girls. We kept drilling it and caught Kirsten in the feed zone starting the fourth and final lap. At this point it was me and the two of them. They started attacking me one after another. I was dying, but their jumps were getting kind of weak so I just kept responding. Finally they were like "let's just work together", so I attacked and we dropped Kirsten. I buried myself on the hill until Julie popped off. With 1k to go I looked behind me and could see that she was gaining ground on me, but I felt pretty safe and knew that unless I completely died she wouldn't catch me. I crossed the line first with Julie and Kirsten getting 2nd and 3rd.

Dominguez, CA - CBR race May 31, 2010 - By Steph Roorda

Who raced - Pam Schuster, Steph Roorda, PC Calderon, Bea Rodriguez

The race started fast, attacks were made in the first lap by others as well as by some of us. I countered a move made by Bea, and immediately had a gap with one other girl. We were driving it hard when i look back and to see one of my own coming across. It was Pam. She joined us and the three of us worked together and the gap continued to grow. With 3 laps to go Pam laid down a spicy move and broke away from the breakaway, as her style goes. I sat on the other rider in the break until 1 lap to go. Pam had a lengthy gap by this point and i made the move to get away from the rest of the breakaway. We both stayed away, Pam taking top spot, I finished second behind her. PC won the field sprint for 4th and Bea crossed in 6th!

Team Time Trial - Lake Los Angeles, CA

May 29, 2010

With so many strong riders on the team we decided to split our efforts and put together two teams for the state championship team time trial event. One in the elite womens category and one in the mixed open category.

Who raced - Dotsie Bausch, Kirk Bausch, Chris Demarchi, Heather Jackson - Mixed 4 person Open


The Incycle/SC Velo p/b Empower Coaching headed out to the methamphetamine
capital of the world on Saturday to compete in the State Championship Team
Time Trial in Lancaster, California. Empty, non-traffic roads are all but
guaranteed out there in the wee hours after sunrise. The long, flat, windy
straight aways give an illusion that you are closer to the end than you ever
really are.
We had 40 kilometers to cover on the baking hot pavement of the high desert.
My team was mixed team of 2 women and 2 men. We borrowed my hubby Kirk
Bausch and Chris Demarchi from our big brother team, Amgen/UBS and added pro
triathlete, Heather Jackson as our guest rider, while our other 4 Incycle
women came together to form a team of there own. We had a goal of 47 minutes
and change and crossed the line in 48:01. One of my pet peeves in time
trialing is finishing a mere one second over the goal time. CHECK. I mean I
would rather it be 30 seconds or even 10, but not ONE. Oh well. We sure had
a blast out there, despite Heather and me being residents of the hurt locker
from the first pedal stroke. The boys were awesome and our goal of keeping a
smooth rotation was accomplished with Heather and I taking shorter pulls but
just as fast speed wise as the boys had dropped us off at. My team pursuit
background came into real handy in this race, as team pursuit redefines the
definition of wheels sucking. I displayed my very finest wheel sucking in
this team time trial. We were very excited to find at the end of the day
that we would have gotten the bronze medal in the 4-person MEN'S open
category and were the 4th fastest time of the day.
It was a real pleasure and honor to race on the same team with these fine
athletes, as everyone gave 110% of themselves all the way from start to
finish, in true Incycle/SC Velo STYLE:-)

Ontario Mid Season Criterium - May 16, 2010 - Report by PC Calderon

Racers: Katie Donovan, PC Calderon, Pam Schuster and Bea Rodriguez

After our long ride home, and getting only a few hours of sleep, 8 o'clock in the morning came entirely tooo early. With our race at 10 o'clock Katie seemed to be the only one that was bright eyed and bushy tailed. Pam gave us a much needed pep talk before the race and told us how the race should go down, and if it came to a field sprint Katie would start , Pam would take us to the last turn with Bea following her wheel, and me sweeping.

At the line, Helen's came with their full squad, La Grange rider Morgan, Jen from B&L, Squad of possibilities riders, SDBC, Colivita and a few lone rangers .... We had a field of about 35 girls, and this time our race was only 50Min's. With a couple of good attacks made by Helen's, nothing was sticking, Katie did an awesome job with keeping the pace up, and having a few solid attacks herself. Every attempt for a break was unsuccessful, with 3 laps to go, SC Velo/Incycle/TTT girls meet at the front to start our lead out. I'm not gonna lie, I was pretty physically tuckered out from the race and drive from the day before and Maria from Helens was definitely testing my mental game, I was battling behind Bea, fighting for her wheel, Maria is very savvy when it goes to steelin wheels. Katie started the lead out and Pam took us to the final corner. Bea came around Pam and started her sprint with me on her wheel sweeping and Maria puttin the pressure on. I could feel her coming up hard on my left, so I had to sprint and secured the spot for second place and Pam (who lead us out) finishing strong for 3rd, and none other then BEEEEEEEATRIZ ROOOOODRIGUEZ winning the field sprint. WOOT WOOT! 1, 2, 3! awesome racing, awesome team, awesome job.

Scotts Valley Grand Prix - 5/15/2010 - Report by PC Calderon

Racers: Bea Rodriguez, PC Calderon and Pam Schuster

Lining up at the line, with a full squad of Tibco, Peanut Butter, Third Pillar and Colivita was an eye opener. Every team was well represented. The whistle blew and off we went for an hour of fun! The field was very agressive. With tibco and pb launching attacks and counter attacks, with scvelo/incyle/time to track representing (woot woot). Just as it seems like NOTHING was going up the road, a strong attack was made by vanderekitten rider jen x, riding solo for a lap or so. She was quickly countered by a tibco, pb, rooster and a third pillar rider, which made a break of six up the road with seven laps to go. As it turns out the break up the road was committed and that break stuck, but not without a fight from the field. Bridges were attempted by those who were not represented in the break, including us. With one lap to go the break had a mere ten seconds on the field. Coming out of the last turn (which btw was super sketchy) we brought the ten seconds down to five. Pam sprinted for an overall finish of 11th, bea 13th and myself finishing 14th...

Fast, hard and agressive would sum up today's Scotts Valley Grand Prix, which makes for a good day of quailty racing.

Long Beach Grand Prix - Bea Rodriguez

When I grow up I wanna be like you ladies!





Saturday's race went down at the LBC. The field of about 35 had great crowds cheering all thoughout the course. The course was reversed from last year, with the final stretch going into the wind on a quick, technical 7 corner course. At the line we noticed Heather Jackson (i think that's k-swiss-won-roger-millikan-triathele girl's name?). We pointed her out to eachother and she did not disapoint. She was on the run, attacking early in the race and helping the LaGrange, Helen's and Paramount girls stay in the game. Nothing was going up the road for very long. Everyone was there with a mission. Pam, Bonnie, PC and Katie all had strong performances, keeping the field on their toes, reminding them any one of us could be the winning move. We got all the good premes (Pam and Bonnie) including LADY GAGA TICKETS!!!fifth place (PC) and the "W."

.... And bonnie killed it in the popo race, woot-woot!

P.S. And Special shout out to Coach D ;) for her kick ass coaching



Finishing up the podium was Jennifer Weinbrecht from Herbalife LaGrange and Cara Gillis from Specialized Designs for Women/Bicycle Haus.

Paramount Criterium - Carson, CA - Report by Pam Schuster

Masters Southern California State Criterium Championships - Bonnie Breeze racing 35+ and Pam Schuster racing 45+ (fields racing together).


A fairly good showing for the 35+/45+ early morning race...30 ish riders. The pace was moderate with nothing getting away. For the Incycle/TTT gals it was just me and Bonnie. Our plan was for me to take Bonnie to the line if it came down to a field sprint. However I got a little boxed in with 400 meters to go so Bonnie got out and by time I got up to her Suzanne Sonye was aready heading fast towards the line. I still tried to get to Bonnie and head for the line but Suzanne had clearly earned her medal with a very long haul. Bonnie still won for the 35+ because as she said...I only saw 5's ahead...(that was the numbers on the 45+). Great job Bonnie! Finishing off the podium for the 35+ was Suzan Given from Paramount Racing and Gwen Inglis from Treds.Com/DFT for third. In the 45+ Suzanne Sonye not only won the race overall but gets the bear for the 45+ championship, Pam finished 2nd and Louise Keoghan from NOW-MS Society finished 3rd.


Racing the Elite women's race: PC Calderon, Bea Rodriquez, Pam Schuster and Katie Donovan



The Elite race 1 hourish later was mostly the same group with a few added youngins with fresher leggs. Our team was blessed with the added addition of Katie, Bea and PC. Much more agressive race with one break gaining about 15 secounds. It was a big break with 7-8 riders, me being the only Incycle rider however it was created by teammate Bea. With 3 laps to go this break dissolved and once again it came down to a field sprint. As planned Katie got to the front for our lead out on the final lap. Helen's girls jumped past with 2 corners to go and I jumped on them. Knowing I hopefully had PC or Bea on my wheel I took over with about 300 meter and was sooooooo pleased when lightning fast PC came by in the final 50 meters clearly winning another race for the team!!!! As I know she would say...woot! woot! Sorry don't know exact placings after that because I had to bolt home for a Mother's days celebration!

SC Velo Sweeps the Podium and Snatches up Fifth Place at the 2010 Barrio Logan Grand Prix! - By Bonnie Breeze

SC Velo Participants
Dotsie Bausch
Bonnie Breeze
Not So PC-Pricilla Calderon
Beatrice Rodriguez
Steph Roorda
Pamela Schuster


Uno, dos, tres, cinco! ¡SC Velo lo hace otra vez!


The .8, mostly flat, but screaming fast course consisted of a figure eight and was set in the Historic Barrio Logan area of San Diego. The field was approximately 35 deep with all of the local favorites present.

The race start was delayed for a short period, while the carnage from the previous race was scraped off the street. Nerves were high as Ralph continued to announce how fortunate we were to have ambulatory services located on the course…..none the less, when the whistle blew to indicate the start of the race, the SC Velo girls were ready, and blasted into the first turn with no fears. Immediately the prime bell started ringing, lap after lap after lap. SC Velo was attentive and responded by collecting the majority of the prizes.

Numerous attacks and breakaway attempts were made by the SC Velo and Helen’s teams, however none were successful, until SC Velo’s Steph Roorda launched off the front with Kelli Jones from SDBC with approximately 7 laps to go. The field, anxious for the “5 to go” announcement, chased Roorda down, and SC Velo’s Dotsie Bausch skyrocketed off the front to join Roorda. Kelli had come off the break and moved back into the field. Team Helen’s Suzanne Sonye attached herself to the back of Bausch's wheel, and it looked as though the top three places were riding up the road. But the sheer power of the two team pursuit specialists proved too much for Sonye and she came unglued from the two powerhouses and rejoined the field. Roorda and Bausch continued to drive forward and crossed the finish line for first and second, respectively. The field finished close behind with SC Velo’s Pam Schuster crushing the field in the sprint and Beatrice Rodriguez grabbing the fifth spot. Simone Morsette from SDBC grabbed fourth.

Vive SC Velo!

San Luis Rey Race Report - Pam Schuster

Racing is never easy. And as much as it would appear with our Team sweeping the podium both days made it look…..it was anything but easy. SLR course is challenging and has components for all to enjoy. Cross winds, climbs, sprint at the end. The field was small….15ish riders. We had 70 plus miles and 5 laps to get to know each other. The first lap was very slow with all chatting the way I know the typical men’s pelotons frequently appear….OK maybe on the last day of the Tour with 150 miles to go…Well at that pace we were going to be out there until sundown. Dotsie decided the 2nd time up the climb to get to know the other rider’s legs, lungs and desire. Well that was a little too early for one ol lady and about half of the group. So at the top of the climb there was 3 Lagrange riders and only 2 SC Velo gals(Dotsie and Steph). My group’s motivation was dependent on when the front group was in site. My motivation was the opposite. I wanted to bridge when the time was right. When they were all working it made no sense for me to do anything and when they weren’t working I had to check my inventory levels of energy to see if a bridge was now or I needed the groups help to get a little closer. Anyway…I am sure I confused them. The cycling powers decided that my group would catch the front group and so my desire to bridge was left unsatisfied. I decided I needed to attack but with over half the race left I didn’t want to be out there alone. I tapped Helen’s rider Karen Menske(she was in the back and I figured strong enough to help) on the hip to get on my wheel. As soon as the groups came together I attacked and with my teammates up front was instantly given a gap. Karen and I worked together with me doing the lion’s share because I was the freshest but soon after that she was gone and decided she didn’t want ride that hard. Well the rest of the race was me all alone never letting up with memories of 1998 Elite Road Nationals when I rode all by myself for 50 miles. At least this wasn’t that far and in 100 degree humidity and heat but the pain was felt just the same. I’m not as good as I once was but I am good once as I ever was by Toby Keith was the toon I played for all those lonely painful miles. Dotsie lit up the final climb like the 4th of July on the final lap for 2nd followed by Track Star sprinting power, Steph who won the field finish. The race was anything but easy but with the great cohesiveness, positive feedback, sacrifice and teamwork the Team really made it appear that way. Thanks goes to the Team and all the sponsors who make it possible! We really are hoping to be an inspiration to the other teams to race with their hearts, throw caution to the wind, learn from every experience and enjoy the process. Now kiss the joy as it flies away!

Torrance

Race Report-Torrance - By Pam Schuster!

20-30 women. Continuous fast pace. I had the usual plan to make a break, get in a break, be in a break or bridge to a break. Half-way through the race I thought to myself that I should have asked Helen's for a combine since their plan was to gang up on me. Oh yeah, they even told me this before the race and I was scared. Nothing was getting away though. Helens set up a lead out with 3-4 laps to go(for Maria), mixing it up with SBDC....which is like 1-2 laps to go on a more common course The course was a short 0.4 mile 4 corner loop. I knew I wanted to Jump 2 corners before the finish which I did, jumped again before the last corner and again for the finish and held to the line for the win just an old lady hair in front of Suzanne Sonya...not sure who was after that. Of course there was a crash on the final lap. No one hurt. I won a preem that I don't know how to use but I want to give to my team before our next race because I know they will know how to use it. Remind me!

Sea Otter Road Race

Who raced: Steph Roorda, Dotsie Bausch, Bea Rodriguez, Katie

Dotsie Bausch of team Incycle/Time to Track presented by Empower Coaching Systems took 2nd place in the Sea Otter Classic road race this afternoon. Bausch was part of a six-rider selection that got off the front on the fourth of six laps of the hilly circuit around Fort Ord on the Monterey Peninsula.

The stage placings were essentially determined by who had the best climbing legs at the end, as the circuit finished with a 2.5-mile climb. Carmen Small (Colavita-Baci) put in the late attack that got the stage win. Rebecca Much (Team Tibco) stayed with Dotsie Bausch (InCycle/Time to Track) until the final 200 meters but had to settle for 3rd.

The Incycle girls were all present in the first half of the race with Steph Roorda and Bea Rodriguez following all of the early moves. Katie Donovan and Bausch were able to slide on to dangerous moves in the second half of the race, sticking on the wheels of the dangerous climbers, which eventually led to the final selection.

"The team was awesome," said Bausch. "I just get so inspired by them and if I am the one in the break, I want to win for them. We have a great thing going with this team."

Dana Point Killer Cove Time Trial!

Dotsie Bausch and Bonnie Breeze in action. Took 2nd and 3rd on the day for Incycle/Time to Track presented by Empower Coaching Systems!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3Ydikk_Q1Y

Dana Point Criterium

Dana Point

Who raced: Katie Donovan Bonnie Breeze, Pam Schuster, Bea Rodriguez and Priscilla Calderon


This year was not an NRC event, so the field size was expected to be smaller and less aggressive then last year. Although the field size was smaller, with all the local teams in attendance, the race started and stayed fast almost the entire time. Attacks and counters were going the whole time. There were lots of primes keeping the pace high too. The teams with sprinters wanted things to stay together. Team NOW, Vanderkitten, Paramount and Helens were out in full force. Our team was short two riders, which would have been a big help considering the aggressive racing…The last lap was fast with Bonnie starting the lead out and Pam taking the next pull. Strong headwind going into the last turn certainly wore out the leadout and Bea had to fend for herself. The last turn had a crash, taking out a handful of racers. Kendall Ryan from NOW won the field sprint, Maria Lechuga got 2nd and Coryn Rivera fromthe peanut butter team picking up 3rd. Bea made it throught they mayham for 10th.

Ontario Easter Criterium

Ontario

Who raced: Katie Donovan, Lea Adams, Bonnie Breeze, Pam Schuster, Dotsie Bausch and Bea Rodriguez

Happy Easter! The race is a key race for our sponsor, INCycle. They provide race primes and they offer up a bike frame to the series winner. This particular event also conflicts with a CBR race only an hour south. We knew the fields would be diluted for both events based on the close start times. (Yes, we would have driven down south after to make the other race!).

The key teams that showed was paramount and SDBC with three racers each. We had almost the full team out with the exception of PC and Steph. We attacked on regular intervals to try and create a break away. Everyone was very aggressive in trying to keep things together from the field. Pam was the first to break away with Kelli Jones from SDBC. Bea later bridged up to the break clean. The field started to chase and got very close to the break. At this point Hillary Crowley from Paramount bridged to the break and later our Katie Donovan made it to the break. The break was now bound to stay away with little motivation from the field. Coming into the final lap, Lea attacked the field and Dotsie countered on the catch to stay away and sweep up 6th place.

Bea won the race! followed by Hillary from Paramount, Pam, Katie and Kelli from SDBC.

Photo from SC Velo Club member Kenneth Hill...

Tour de Murrieta 3/12 - 3/14/2010 - Race report written by Bonnie Breeze

Tour de Murrieta was a three day event beginning with a 20k time trial, followed by a fast and furious criterium on Saturday and grueling 3.5 mile circuit race on Sunday. Points were given at the end of each stage and accumulated for an overall placing at the end of the three events.
Team INCYCLE/Time to Track showed up in full force to compete in the three day event. Here is their story:

Stage 1 The Time Trial took place on Fiesta Island in San Diego. The course was an approximate 3.5 mile, flat as a pancake, loop around the island. Each rider rode three laps to complete a distance of 20k. The time trial was won by California State TT Champion Ruth Clemence, followed by Shelly Evans and Lauren Tamayo, both from the Peanut Butter & Company pro cycling team. Team INCYCLE/Time to Track’s own Dotsie Bausch landed in 4th just mere seconds off Tamayo’s time. Team INCYCLE/Time to Track’s Pam Schuster and Bea Rodriguez finished 6th and 7th respectively, and me 9th. Those girls are smokin’ fast!! Impressively, Team INCYCLE/Time to Track placed all of our riders in the top 15 spots.

Stage 2 The Grand Prix stage consisted of a fast, technical six corner, one mile loop through the downtown streets of Murrieta. Prior to the start of the event, world class tacticians, Pam and Dotsie, developed the plan for the day. POINTS, POINTS, POINTS!! With the entire INCYCLE/Time to track team placed in the top 15, and four riders in the top 10, our plan was to get as many points as possible to stack the top ten with the INCYCLE/Time to Track flag. What transpired from the criterium was nothing less that absolutely amazing. As with most criteriums, the race started out hot off the blocks. A few laps into the race Lauren Tamayo attacked and obtained a substantial gap on the field. After what I witnessed from Lauren yesterday, I believed this to be a very dangerous move, and I launched a scud missile in her direction in attempt to bring her back. Once my match was burned, Pam took over and turned the grip full throttle! Approximately a lap and a half later, Lauren rejoined the group, however, that didn’t stop the madness. From that point on, a prime was offered every lap, which kept the pace high and the field safe. Attacks made by Team Now, Team Helens, and Paramount racing made this a top notch criterium. I have to give super kudos to the NOW girls, who have demonstrated they have stepped up their cycling program and are not afraid to be aggressive. That makes for awesome racing!
When it came down to the final lap, it was the Team INCYCLE/Time to Track and Peanut Butter & Company all over the front. Lauren won the sprint and her teammate, Shelly, was second. Leah Guloien was third. I finished 5th, Pam was 9th, and Bea was 13th. Mission accomplished! POINTS, POINTS, POINTS!!

Stage 3 The Circuit Race was an approximate 3.5 mile loop that was mostly flat with a few big ring rollers. The finish, located in downtown Murrieta, was fast and technical and with criterium type flair. This course was a definite MUST BE TOP 10 to win and or avoid casualties during the charge back into town.
I entered the stage as the Team INCYCLE/Time to Track GC leader, in 3rd place. Pam was one point behind me in 4th. Tammy Wildgoose (Paramount) and Leah Guloien were, a few points back, but definitely within reach of the podium.

Our Mission, again developed by the strategic specialists, Dotsie and Pam, was to win the stage and keep our podium spot. Pam and I were advised to keep eyes on riders who threatened our position. The rest of the team was amazing, as they covered every move and reacted with counter attacks. In my book, the MVP award goes to Priscilla Calderon (aka PC, or “Not so PC”), who after covering numerous attacks, launched a solo attack off the front resulting in the opposing teams need to chase this dangerous move. Once PC was caught, this set up the winning move where Team INCYCLE/Time to Track’s Katie Donovan took a flyer with five laps to go and separated herself from the bunch by almost two minutes. Katie crossed the line solo for the victory. The move by PC was so critical for our win.

Once again the field sprint came down to a wave of blue (Team INCYCLE/Time to Track) and white (Peanut Butter & Company) at the front. The field sprint was won by Coryn Rivera (PB&), followed by Shelly Evans (PB&C), & Anna Drakulich (LaGrange/Herbalife) pimped Pam and I for 6th and 7th respectively.

Mission Accomplished!! Team INCYCLE/Time to Track won the stage and Pammy and I tied for 3rd and a spot on the podium. Bea also picked up the 5th spot in the overall GC and Katie moved herself up to 9th with her stellar performance in stage 3. Since Pam had to split, I took the Kodak moment with the Peanut Butter girls!! Woot woot!!

That’s the facts, brought to you by INCYCLE/Time to Track and most definitely presented by EMPOWER COACHING SYSTEMS!

Santiago Canyon Time Trial

Incycle/TTT presented by Empower Coaching rips through the canyon to break the course record!

Saturday March 6th.
Ok, so breaking the course record was not the plan I had going into this race. It was more of a tune-up race for Track World Championships which I will compete in with Team USA in Denmark in late March. All training, recovering, eating and focus is set towards that race in the Bausch house right now. I had my fabulous teammate and Empower client, Ms. Bonnie Breeze talked into doing the time trial as well to shake the TT cobwebs out in prep for next weekends Tour of Murietta. She blazed in on her road bike no less for third place on the day. Very impressive.
I have done this TT multiple times, given its in my backyard. I knew the course record was set on 2/28/09 by Ruth Clemence in a time of 27:02 because I raced it the very next month and missed the record by 8 seconds. It was a fast day on the 6th of March this year and the speeds were blazing. Made for a really fun TT! After the climb, about halfway through, I don't think my speed dropped below 32mph. It was smokin fast. My husband started behind me and I kept waiting for him to pass me, and when he didn't 3k from the finish line, I thought, "its game time!" I know how fast I can go for 3K! He got me literally 100 meters from the finish line. Its ok. Our dogs still show him love around the house. I still smoked home in a time of 26:06, shattering the previous record and hopefully in good form leading into this weekend with my incredible and inspiring team mates to do some more damage on the race scene.
My girls really inspire each other to keep stepping up their game. They have not been off the podium in one race so far this year. Talk about a stellar start to 2010! And I watch them reach out to newer riders and share smiles and encouragement, spreading our vision for growing women's cycling one nudge at a time.
Dotsie

CBR, Dominguez Hills, 7 March 2010

Women 1-3, 40 Minutes, 4 corners



Priscilla (1st), Pam (3rd), Bonnie, Katie, Lea, Beatriz



No rain and clear skies, we were off to a good start. With Pam and PC leading the series, the plan for the day was to set up for PC. After what the team unleashed at the last CBR, we were all confident in being able deliver PC. What actually happened was even better, as Bonnie put it, “unpredictable.”

Lea attacks off the line. And we’re off! Helen’s, SDBC, and LaGrange had a good showing, sending out attacks or covering ours. Nothing was going up the road. Everything was being chased, even when a motivating gap was established. The pace would quicken and speed up, tiring people out and making for some twitchy corners (and more yelling than I’ve heard this season).

It seemed we were all in a separation that seemed promising at some point during the race. Next thing you know its five laps to go and its time for the “Woot Woot!” Train to start rolling. With three laps to go, Debbie from Helen’s and Jen from LaGrange were strong contestants for PC’s wheel. Pam started us off, with Katie, Bonnie, Lea following and me behind PC ready to sweep. Helen’s get brave and send out an attack, but we are right on it, taking the Train on a small detour. We get things back under control when at one lap to go Debbie attacks and Bonnie is on her wheel and trying to keep the Train alive so hard she does not realize they have a small gap, but we are now at the second corner and the field is gaining on these two. As we get closer I see a hesitation from the separation and the field so I decide to just GO!, knowing the Train must keep going and NOW. Heading into the third corner I glance back hoping PC and Train are on my arse, (hoping it doesn’t hurt this bad in vain), when I catch a glimpse of PC out of the saddle and a Helen’s kit on my wheel. That’s when I dig even deeper through the corner and somehow find the strength to push as hard as I can up the incline between the third and fourth corner. I put in my last effort through the last turn and PC takes care of the rest. As the field swallows me up and Pam punks the youngins for third place, the crowd is amazed and confused for a second, only to realize… That was a SPIDERMAN that just happened!

I finally cross the line, out of breath, but with a smirk on my face… Damn, it’s good to be part of Time To Track/Southern California Velo presented by Empowered Coaching Systems/presented by INCYCLE/”WOOT WOOT” Train!

Callville Bay Classic Race Report – By Katie Donovan

Who Raced :
Katie Donovan ( 2nd GC ), Bea Rodriguez (2nd Stage 3, 6th GC), Pamela Shuster (3rd Stage 3, 9th GC), Priscilla Calderon, Bonnie Breeze, Lea Adams

Stage 1 Time Trial - The time trial was 3.39 miles on rolling terrain with a short section near the end at about 6%-7% with a slight tail wind. The team raced this stage on road bikes, with Bea using clip on aero bars, which was probably the best decision. The first half hurt and then the second half hurt even more. I ended up 2nd, less than a second behind Alicia Welsh from Peanut Butter & Co. Teammates Bea and Pam were also in the top 10.

Stage 2 Road Race- There were no time bonus in the road race and no QOM. The race started in the rain, so the first half of the race was pretty tame with few attacks and mostly some pace making at the front. A few attacks started half way through the race, but no one was committed to a break getting out there. The race didn't get aggressive until the last mile. With 1k to go we were told that there had been a crash at the finish line and that the finish line was going to be moved. A few minutes later, someone in a car yelled "400 meters to go" and people started sprinting. The improvised finish line was some dude waving a tarp. I'm not quite sure how many people actually realized it was the finish line. Nichole Wangsgard won the stage, LaGrange Anna Drauklich got 2rd, and Kirsten Darley from Colovita got 3rd. I finished right behind Alisha so no changes in the overall GC.

Stage 3 Crit - The crit course was fun and a little bit technical. There were a ton of primes throughout the race and lots of attacks, but nothing got away. With 2 laps to go, Ruth Clemence (3rd GC) attacked and got away for a couple laps. She was chased down by PC and Bonnie and caught. With 1 lap to go, my teammates were on the front and I was on Pam's wheel as planned. The plan was to try to get me a time bonus for the win, or for my teammates to get the time bonuses. I braked in one of the turns and lost Pam's wheel. Bea and Pam ended up sprinting for the time bonus and got 2nd and 3rd. I finished just behind Alisha in the stage and kept my 2nd place overall. Bea was able to advance to 6th place in GC.

CBR Simple Green Race Report - By Priscilla Calderon

Wm pro 1,2,3, had a good sized field of about 40. The field contained very good sprinters which included Anna Lang, Jennifer Wilson, Tiffany Pezzolo and the Helen’s squad was out in full force. Helen's being the more "dominate" team as far as numbers goes. Once the whistle was blown and off we went a few attacks here and there and all of the SC Velo - Incycle/TTT girls were on every move. Lea was on everything that looked dangerous yet promising. There were only a few primes, but Incycle/TTT managed to collect them. If there was a move up ahead Incycle/TTT was being represented. With 4 laps to go it was obvious that it was going to come down to a field sprint. Just by instinct we all meet at the front of the field for a perfect lead out train. A girl from NOW-MS told me after the race it was a sea of blue n orange at the front. Our team captain, Pam, had discussed before the race how she wanted the lead out train to go down and who would pull where and how far, and it happened exactly like she said it would. Katie started the lead out with Bonnie delivering Pam and I off at last corner. I was battling for Pam's wheel for laps on end it seemed like. That's a VERY popular wheel by the way. Jen Wilson trying to over take my wheel countless times with one to go, In the last turn Wilson tried one last time to overtake Pam's wheel by taking the turn inside, but to no success. Pam started to sprint with me closely on her wheel, I looked back to see that we had a pretty descent gap to roll in first and second WOOT WOOT!!!

Complimentary Photo by Tom Shao @tomshaophoto.com

Incycle/Time to Track Presented by Empower Coaching Systems (AKA SC Velo) starts with back to back wins at Boulevard and Red Trolley!

Boulevard and Red Trolley were the team's season openers. The weekend started wet and with a small field at Boulevard, only 10 finishers. The race was reduced from 3 laps to 2 by consensus of the field. Kathryn Donovan and Dotsie Bausch finished 1st and 2nd respectively with Treads.com rider, Lindsey Bradshaw-Sandoval, coming in third.

Sunday the course was dry and in much better attendence for the women's race, with 36 finishers. The race was aggressive and fast. All of the teams worked hard to avoid a dangerous break from going up the road. Many local sprinters were out for one of the first crits of the season. Becky Quinn, Kendal Ryan, Maria Lechuga, Jule Hines and Dianna Del Fante to name a few. Our team attacked often throughout the race to keep the pressure on. Dotsie Bausch attacked the field in the last lap and Becky Quinn is right with her. There is a small split between them and the rest of the field. Dotsie holds off Becky for the win and Paramount racing's Hilary Crowley comes in third.

Below is the race report as told by Dennis Gonzales, the teams representative to SC Velo and team photographer.

The SC Velo women's team puts on a racing clinic at Red Trolley. With instructions, "Attack the field.", the team controlled the race from the start. Attack and counter, setting a fast pace on every lap, the women sent a very strong message in their first race as a full squad. It was pretty impressive even from the sidelines; I haven't seen this level of racing in the local women's field in a long time. The girls were relentless, leaving the competition wondering "When will this stop?". If today is an indication of things to come, this will be a great season.

Women on a mission: InCycle/Time To Track presented by Empower Coaching Systems strives to walk the talk

New elite women’s SoCal cycling team looking to launch tomorrow’s pros,
veterans Bausch & Schuster lead effort to develop young female athletes

(Irvine, CA): Seeing a void in the development of well-rounded female athletes in Southern California, a pair of veteran cyclists, Dotsie Bausch and Pam Schuster, have formed the InCycle/Time To Track presented by Empower Coaching Systems cycling team. While the elite eight-rider squad will primarily compete throughout California, the young riders will race in regional and National Racing Calendar (NRC) events while being mentored and groomed to compete on the national and international circuits as professionals and Olympians. While success on the bike is important to the team, InCycle/Time To Track presented by Empower Coaching Systems will define success differently because the mission of the unit emphasizes fostering a fun, positive, respectful and nurturing environment to support young females in goal-oriented pursuits in cycling and life beyond athletics.

Bausch, a six-time National Champion and a Pan American Championships gold medal winner who has been racing as a member of the U.S. National Team since 2002, had so much fun last season racing around the globe mentoring young Australian, New Zealand and Canadian riders on Team Jazz Apple that it inspired her to focus on the talent right in her own backyard. “The women on InCycle/Time To Track presented by Empower Coaching Systems were specifically selected because of the enormous potential they have shown in winning races and as quality women who realize the importance of giving back,” said Bausch. “When I first came into the sport, I was blessed to receive generous mentorship from Jim & Katie Stafford, who demonstrated that they believed in me no matter what. They taught me cycling and the importance of team concepts, and they encouraged me never to give up on myself. That is the legacy Pam and I want to impart upon the young women coming up in our sport. We hope to build women’s cycling locally, regionally and, eventually, nationally by setting an example for our competitors, sponsors and fans that we are athletes who promote generosity, kindness and fairness in sport, and that we are only as great as the sum of our parts.”

Bausch and Schuster, who are serving as race directors, have a long-term vision for InCycle/Time To Track presented by Empower Coaching Systems. “Pam & I have great respect for what Jonathan Vaughters has done with Slipstream Sports over the years. He committed to mentoring and developing young riders, taking them from national and international junior and U23 (under age 23) competition onto professional and ProTour levels while being committed to ethical fair play in sports. Ideally that is the type of ground-breaking program we would like InCycle/Time To Track presented by Empower Coaching Systems to become for women,” explained an impassioned Bausch.

As part of their commitment to mentorship, each InCycle/Time To Track presented by Empower Coaching Systems team member is required to provide support and serve as a mentor during at least three category 4 (beginners) women’s races this year. Bausch said, “Our whole motto is to walk the talk. It’s people who make a difference in each others’ lives. We stand behind our riders in the pursuit of their cycling goals and we want our girls to do the same for new female riders. It is the only way for women’s cycling to grow.”

The InCycle/Time To Track presented by Empower Coaching Systems team will focus on the SoCal Cup Series, state and national championship races. Having concluded a three-day training camp in Thousand Oaks earlier this week, the women are eagerly anticipating the start of the season February 6th at the challenging Boulevard Road Race outside of San Diego.

Riding for InCycle/Time To Track presented by Empower Coaching Systems in 2010 are youngsters Katie Donovan, Priscilla Calderon, Beatriz Rodriguez and Steph Roorda along with veterans Lee Adams, Bonnie Breeze and co-captains Bausch and Schuster. A former competitor as a professional triathlete, Donovan morphed into a full-time cyclist last season before going on to win the Ventura Stage Race and set the record for the fastest women’s times ever recorded on both days of the epic Everest Challenge. Heading into her forth season, Calderon won a State Criterium Championship in 2006. Also embarking on her forth season of racing, Rodriguez’s resume includes winning the 2008 U23 National Criterium Championship, the 2008 SoCal Cup Series, and a state cyclocross title. Roorda, who raced with Bausch last season at Team Jazz Apple, is entering her second season on the road. She won gold in the team pursuit racing for her native Canada at the World Cup track event last December in Cali, Colombia. Bausch, who is targeting the 2012 Olympic Games as a member of the team pursuit, will represent the U.S. in that discipline at the UCI World Track Championships in Denmark in late March. Still fast after 18 years of racing, Schuster won the SoCal Cup Series last season. Adams, who is the team’s manager, placed 3rd at the 2006 Master’s World Championship Road Race. Breeze has 20 years of racing under her belt, the highlights of which include winning back-to-back Master’s State Championships in 2007 and 2008.

InCycle/Time To Track presented by Empower Coaching Systems is sponsored by InCycle Bicycles, Time To Track, Empower Coaching Systems (a cycling coaching venture of which Bausch is a partner), Champion Systems, Amgen Cycling Club, EPIC Performance Hydration & Recovery Drinks, Selle Italia Bicycle Saddles, SpiderTech, Smith Sunglasses, Hibiscus Sunglasses, Sequoia Technology Group, SC VELO and Great Scott P.R.oductions.


Link to Team Photos: http://web.me.com/dennis_gonzales/INcycle_Time_to_Track_(SC_Velo)/Photos.html

"Spinning Her Web of Spider"

SpiderTech Athlete Ambassador wins Silver Medal in Women’s Cycling Pursuit at the U.C.I. World Cup Classics!

January 4, 2010

Professional cyclist Dotsie Bausch (Team USA Women’s Cycling Pursuit) brought home a silver medal last month at the U.C.I. World Cup Classics in Cali, Colombia. Bausch, along with her teammates Sarah Hammer and Lauren Tamayo, went on to break their U.S. National record for the second time this year. The trio first qualified with a riding time of 3:29.5, exceeding their previous national record by 2 seconds. In the final, they surpassed their record yet again with a riding time of 3:28:4. Bausch looks towards the future with great anticipation of medalling at the World Championships in March. She exclaims, "The world record is 3:22, so we are getting there!!!"

Bausch continues to cycle with eternal stamina, fearless leadership, and a Full-Knee Spider; one of Nucap Medical’s SpiderTech tape-based supports. Made from the original Nitto-Denko tape, Nucap Medical has re-invented a line of 16 pre-engineered kinesiology taping applications known as SpiderTech.

Dotsie Bausch, SpiderTech’s Athlete Ambassador, shares stories of the silver medal victory with the Nucap Medical team. Nucap Medical is thrilled to learn of Bausch’s success, spinning her Web of Spider along the World Cup cycling tracks.

For more information, contact Jen Hart, jen.hart@nucapmedical.com