Cycling Illustrated

A Win at the Sea Otter Classic Circuit Race

April 23, 2013 by Sprint Finish Leave a Comment

A Win at the Sea Otter Classic Circuit Race
by Daniel Holloway

A Win at the Sea Otter Classic Circuit Race

The Circuit race at Sea Otter is always difficult, you are either coasting or pedaling nearly full on. Team Mikes Bikes pb Incase plan for the race was to lay low and the the GC guys chase each other down only going into a move if it has a the GC riders in it and would make it to the line. Roman and Shawn were the ones to keep a look out in the early part of the race for any moves that were noted as dangerous. Eric and myself were to relax, sag climb the hill and save as much as we could for the end. Marcus may of had the hardest job of the day, he was there to shuffle around the group and get any of us four into the position we wanted to be in. It was going to be a tricky day with only a 5 man squad racing against strong 8 man teams.

The race starts off aggressive and doesn’t really let up. Teams are attacking, but we stay calm and collected to not waste energy on moves that will be caught shortly after they start. Roman and Shawn did a great job representing the team in the first half of the race, actually the whole race. They never missed a beat. After 5 laps or so a 6 man group was up the road with a 15-20 second gap. It contained two of the faster finishers in the race and a couple other strong men. One of the other larger teams missed the move which helped us as we choose not to follow that move. We kept our cool and let the others do most of the grunt work to keep the gap in check. Any time the field slowed Eric would reignite the fire and keep the peleton within distance. [Read more...]

Filed Under: News, Team Mike's Bikes Tagged With: 2013 Sea Otter

Lessons From A Bad Crash By Adam Switters

April 10, 2013 by Sprint Finish Leave a Comment

Lessons From A Bad Crash By Adam Switters

By Adam Switters (Team Mike’s Bike)

All cyclists know the saying, “It’s not if you’ll crash, but when you crash”. Over the last two years, I’ve been pretty lucky at avoiding crashes, but I got into a very nasty crash at the Beaumont stage of the Redlands Classic.

After 95miles of fast racing, we were coming into 1 lap to go of the Beaumont RR. Turning onto the finish straight, we were single file, everyone just trying to hold onto the wheel in front of them. We were going about 30mph when the riders in front of me swerved hard to the right. The rider in front of me made a very hard last second swerve, and I started to follow him when a race motorcycle appeared 2 ft in front of. He was parked on the course and straddling his motorcycle. At 30mph, I slammed into the straight into the back of the motorcycle and flipped over the top of him and his bike and onto the ground.

Here are couple of lessons I learned about what to do next. Obviously, the first instinct is to get back and finish the race, although I knew that this would not be the case for me. Always take a second to analyze your well being before you try to jump back up. The first aid people were very quickly at my side, and it’s best to let them do their thing rather than rush anything. [Read more...]

Filed Under: News, Team Mike's Bikes Tagged With: 2013 Redlands Bicycle Classic, Beaumont Road Race

Merced Cycling Classic Hilltop Ranch Road Race

March 5, 2013 by Sprint Finish Leave a Comment

Merced Cycling Classic Hilltop Ranch Road Race

by Adam Switters (Mike’s Bike)

This was probably my 8^th or 9^th time doing this road race. I’ve it in the juniors, the 2’s, and been top 10 in the pro race. I like to think I had a pretty good idea how the road race was going to play out: break goes on the first lap, leader’s team rides tempo, big pack sprint. Turns out that I was wrong…way wrong.

Team Mike’s Bikes p/b Incase had been having an up and down race. On the first stage, our sprinter and I had been caught out in the 2 crashes within the final 3km, but we still put 2 guys in the top 20. We managed to put me and Roman Kilun in the top 25 of the TT (not good, but not bad either), and we finished just off the podium with a 4^th in the criterium. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Merco Classic, News, Team Mike's Bikes Tagged With: 2013 Merced Classic, 2013 Merco Cycling Classic, Classic Hilltop Ranch Road Race

Merced Criterium by Adam Switters (Mike’s Bikes)

February 26, 2013 by Sprint Finish Leave a Comment

Team Mike’s Bikes p/b Incase came into the Merced Criterium hoping to improve upon the previous day’s performance. We were hoping to put some of the main guns on the back-burners and let them work hard to catch an early break, before hopefully having the race come down to a field sprint for Daniel and James.

Travis, Rainier, and Marcus did a great job covering the first portion of the race. Just after the 5th lap, I came around the field on the outside and hit it as the field swung inside. I immediately bridged to Willie Myers (Fremont Bank) and were soon joined by a rider in red, white, and blue. I actually thought it was a Leopard rider at first since I looked back and saw the blue and orange on the shoulder, but soon realized it was Ken Hanson (reigning US Pro Crit Champ). It seemed like immediately we had a big gap which would force the other heavy hitters to chase. The only problem was that Ken and Willie seemed to be super human that day. [Read more...]

Filed Under: News, Road, Team Mike's Bikes Tagged With: Adam Switters, Ken Hanson, Merced Criterium

Cherry Pie Criterium Season Opener by Daniel Holloway

February 12, 2013 by Sprint Finish Leave a Comment

Cherry Pie Criterium

by Daniel Holloway(TEAM MIKE’S BIKES)

Ahhh. Good ole’ Cherry Pie, Northern California’s season opener. It has been awhile since I have done the race, and it felt good to be back. After a long year abroad, I have been champing at the bit to get back to racing. The aura around TMB/Incase was a positive one. Laughter and calmness makes everything that much easier at the end of the day.

The race started off at a fast pace. All the teams wanted to have a good showing for the first race of the year. Our young guns did a fantastic job covering early moves and representing the team well. Adam Switters was doing a great job being aggressive for our team. At about the halfway point, the field was getting tired and stretched out. That was the time for any break to get away.

Switters was off the front with Fast Freddy. Soon after that, Nate English (Kenda/5hr), Simon Holt, Chuck Hutchinson and his teammate Mike Sayers, Jake Maddox (Specialized Juniors), Logan Loader, Eric Riggs and I (Mike’s Bikes p/b INCASE) bridged up with 4 others. It took about 2 laps for the break to be fully established, but with such a large break it was hard for everyone to stay committed. Riders wanted to rest or have an easier ride. With three in the break and another team with two, it was up to us to keep the break moving along. [Read more...]

Filed Under: News, Team Mike's Bikes Tagged With: Cherry Pie Criterium, team mikes bike

Cherry Pie Criterium: Pro/1/2

February 11, 2013 by Sprint Finish Leave a Comment

Cherry Pie: Pro/1/2

By Adam Switters (Mike’s Bike)

Cherry Pie criterium is usually considered the start of the racing season here in Northern California and it didn’t disappoint this year. Among the 100-or-so registered racers were big squads from Mike’s Bikes p/b Incase and Marc-Pro Strava. Also included were former winner Logan Loader (CashCall), Fast Freddie Rodriguez, a host of Cal-Giant riders, and 5hr Energy pro Nate English.

For the last few years the race has alternated between sprint finishes and breakaways, so teams came prepared for any situation. The race started with the all-too-familiar smell of brake pads against carbon wheels as riders bombed down from the start line into the first corner, and it wasn’t long before Marc-Pro and Mike’s Bikes had riders up the road. Around 20 minutes in, I found myself off the front with Chuck Hutcheson, Nate English, and Fast Freddie. 8 more riders bridged up including my teammates Daniel Holloway and Eric Riggs, Marc-Pro’s Jonathan Teeter, Specialized Master’s Mike Sayers, Great Britain’s Simon Holt, junior Jack Maddux, Clif Bar’s Eric Losak, and Cash Call’s Logan Loader. It was a stacked break for sure. [Read more...]

Filed Under: News, Team Mike's Bikes Tagged With: Cherry Pie, Cherry Pie Criterium, norcal cycling, Pro/1/2

The 2013 Team Mike’s Bikes roster:

January 1, 2013 by Brandon Leave a Comment

Team Mike’s Bikes
Our Elite Men’s road team is racing on Specialized Tarmac SL4 and Venge frames, Sram Red components, Zipp wheels and cockpits, and Specialized shoes, helmets, and saddles.

San Francisco, CA., Dec 31, 2012 – Team Mike’s Bikes elite cycling team is again poised to dominate Norcal racing and will also pursue success at NRC and NCC races with the announcement of new recruits: Daniel Holloway (25), Roman Kilun (31), Marcus Smith (19), and Nick Newcomb (20). Returning riders are: Eric Riggs (26), Dana Williams (37), James LaBerge (19) , Andy Goesling (25) , Travis Lyons (19) , Shawn Rosenthal (26) , Ryan Johnson (22) , Hank Scholz (24) , Rainier Schaefer (26), and Steve O’Mara (30), and Steve Pelaez (40).

As the best Elite team in Norcal with 50+ wins in 2012, Team Mike’s Bikes will turn their attention to more quality wins at the national level. Daniel Holloway, 2010 US PRO Crit Champion, and Roman Kilun of Kenda 5 Hour Energy are both seasoned professionals who will add tremendous strength and leadership to the team.

“We are very excited to have Daniel and Roman on the squad. And I’m equally optimistic about the new young riders, Marcus and Nick. They will blossom in our U23 program, like James did in 2012. James will step it up this year in the national level,” said team director, Steve Pelaez. ”Riders like Eric Riggs, Dana Williams, Andy Goesling, Shawn Rosenthal will add serious horsepower and results potential to an incredibly talented team.” Each rider was carefully picked from a long list of applicants. “It’s easy to find talented riders, the hard part is finding selfless riders who share our team’s values.” said Pelaez.

At the team’s recent team development camp on Dec. 8, 2012 in the headlands, Team Mike’s Bikes focused on establishing the foundation that will see the team propel itself to greater success in 2013. “It’s important that we develop the effective habits of a successful team from the beginning. We need to be a team first and foremost. Then the rest will take care of itself.” Consequently, team director Steve Pelaez, who is also a leadership and team development consultant, is devoting a lot of attention and energy to making sure that the team’s atmosphere and goals are inline with the team’s core values and mission.

“It’s going to be a fun year for Team Mike’s Bikes, and I hope we can deliver a lot of happiness to the cycling community.”

The 2013 Team Mike’s Bikes roster:

Roman Kilun
Andy Goessling
Daniel Holloway
Ryan Johnson
James LaBerge
Nicholas Newcomb
Steve O’Mara
Steve Pelaez
Eric Riggs
Shawn Rosenthal
Marcus Smith
Rainier Schaefer
Hank Scholz
Adam Switters
Travis Lyons
Dana Williams