Picking up the pieces of this season

To our awesome race team members;
Hello - In case you don't know me, I'm Marie Michalski. Long time team member (7yrs) previous women's captain, race organizer and team event coordinator.  My (volunteer) job is to plan training, social events and new racer workshops and training sessions.
This year we started out strong with the indoor races.  These were well supported by you and were awesome. Such a good time and great training.
At our AGM we expressed a new direction of "quality over quantity" and we had a very cool new J-Lap race weekend and kids event in the works.  We also had planned to reinstate the Saturday Wheeler race-sim rides and Fat Tire Fridays for both mountain and cross.
I had planned to offer several "learn to race and skills" clinics for our new and newer team members and coached rides for the women.
We had planned to target several races as a team as well and were excited to foster the love of cycling and racing in our community.
This plan went completely on hold.  As many of you know, I have been totally off the radar.

On May 23rd, my husband was in a very serious bike/car collision while training in Victoria and has been in the hospital ever since.  I have had to put most of my life on hold to take care of him and the kids.  Several key members of our cycling team have also put much of their lives on hold to support my family; especially Trev Williams (team founder and captain) who is a long time family friend.

Mark is still in long term care, but is getting better by leaps and bounds and his recovery has been incredible. He will remain at the Foothills for several more months as he continues healing.

We are all just getting to a point where we are ready to focus on what we love to do and are able to put the energy and passion back into the team.  I know I am ready to pick up the pieces of what remains of the season.

Firstly, the last remaining omnium race is the ever-popular and well organized Tour de Bowness.  I am in no shape to be racing but I will be there in team colours, happy to be part of the event.  Just do it.  I am and I hope to see you there!  The TT is less than a kilometer and the road race is one of the closest to town so, no excuses.

 If you have never done this race, plan to bring your family to the community of Bowness on Monday the 7th to hang out at the street festival and take in the Criterium Race.

Secondly, I will be posting training rides with the focus on newer events and experiences such as the Velothon in Edmonton (which I plan on attending) but also some fun events and fondos that have taken hold here in Alberta.  I love racing but also see the value of these events to present a less intimidating avenue of cycling.  Let's do it all and be stewards of the sport in multiple areas!

Lastly, I'll be working towards a better mode of communication for team members.  Please weigh in on what you prefer; email, blog, text or Facebook.

Thank you for your continued involvement in what I believe is one of the most welcoming clubs in Alberta and think you for your support of both myself and my family.  I hope you have all been enjoying one of the best Calgary summers for riding in history!

JayLap MotoGP Criterium - CANCELLED

Sorry folks, we had to cancel the race this year. We weren't able to get a lead commissaire due to track safety concerns.

It was great to see a lot of people willing to volunteer - thanks for stepping up!

Wednesday Night Series

Don't forget to show up for some great cycling at the Wednesday Night Series hosted by the Calgary Crankmasters. Here is the website.

STC Clothing Order #1

The clothing order is in!  I will have it ready to pick up in The Engine Room, which is my Indoor Cycling Studio inside Speed Theory Calgary. There is a box at the front of the studio with a bunch of blue bags in it. There will be a bag with your name on it waiting for you.

The clothing is ready to grab. It is available during hours the store is open.

Training With Power Presentation - Tues May 9

Ian Watts, manager of the Speed Theory Calgary store, is hosting a presentation on Training with Power, hosted by 3433 Triathlon Club and Pioneer at Speed Theory on Tuesday, May 9th at 6:30pm.

The format will be a 2-part presentation. Jack VanDyk will be talking about training with power. In particular, how the information is used to maximize gains in training. Russell Johnston, from Pioneer, will follow with a presentation on the broad array of options available for measuring power on a bike.

Food and beverages (pizza and beer) will be served, but you need to RSVP to dennisbland@gmail.com.

JayLap MotoGP Criterium on Sat June 3 - Call for Volunteers

One month to go!!!

Who wants to watch some never-before-seen-in-Alberta Criterium action? 14 turns PER LAP?!??

This venue doesn't require a large number of volunteers, but we need the following:

- 3 Corner workers (if we get more, we can do shifts so you can race)
- 1 Corner worker helper/sub
- 1 ABA helper
- 1 parking lot traffic director (can race)
- 2 Course inspection/sweep, if required (can race)
- 6 Kids Noon Race helpers (can race)

Please reply to this forum or send an email to dennisbland@gmail.com if you are interested.

Race details are here: JayLap Tech Guide

This is our event for the year. Let's make it great!

Good racing and too much pizza and beer !!

I guess having too much pizza and beer is a good thing. We can use the beer for another get together soon!

Saturday night was fun and the racing was solid. The course was a rolly 16km and the winning time was Kevin with a sub-24min big ring show of power!

About near the end. You can spot Dennis in the background finishing his '1 minute bonus' beer!

No one look up !!

STC Final Indoor social and race before heading outside for good !! April 22nd at 6pm.

This is the fourth in our four race events!  It's made the winter go by a little faster and provided some great motivation.  This one will be a slightly rolly course, not the frustrating endless uphill of event #3 ?!?!

We will put on Drafting to add an element of fun to the evening.

We will once again go in heats of 15. The circuit will be designed to take a strong cyclist about 25min.   So make sure to come, even if you managed to get out in the day. This is meant to be fun and a social as well.

Here is the link to throw your name in the ring!

Marie won't be there for this one, so I will need someone to press 'Play' for me for the heat I am in!

See you all there. Try to make this one as it will be the last big get together before heading outside. Let's all meet and plan some good group riding times and maybe get an update on the Penticton Training Camp.

Trev

STC Clothing.... order by tomorrow !! March 31st !!

OK, we were having technical difficulties with the Store Front of Champion but it should be all sorted now.

You can order until tomorrow evening. Make sure to get on it, since we're going to lock it down and process the order so people get their kit in a reasonable time.

ONLY CLICK ON THE PROOFS THAT SAY '2017....'  

Here is the link to the store front.

Penticton Training Camp

Penticton Training Camp

STC traditionally runs a training camp in Penticton BC the week before the Victoria Day long weekend in May.  This year's edition will run May 14-19 with the option of riding thru the long weekend.  Riders are responsible for arranging accommodations and transportation but the group meets every morning for a ride and sets a location for evening dinner.  Rides vary in length from about 100 km up to about 160km.

Because the team is in a rebuilding phase the number of attendees are down, last year we had 7 riders, which worked well because everyone was at about the same level of fitness.  Right now there are 5 people expressing interest and a couple of possibles.  Past rides had as many a 30 attendees.

If you're new to the team and haven't ridden the roads south of Penticton this should be on your bucket list.  Contact me if you're interested and I can tell you more.  Once we confirm numbers and commit to going I'll post more info on this blog, so periodically check back here for updates.

Chuck Johnstone

chuck.johnstone@gmail.com

UPDATE for March 18th Race #3 Saturday Night

It looks like we're going to have enough cyclists for 2 heats tomorrow night! Come at 5:45pm and we'll put all the women and some of the guys in the first heat, and the rest in heat 2 that goes at 7:20pm.

If you aren't racing, come at around 6pm and cheer the first heat on while having a beer and pizza! Kids welcome.

CLOTHING: NOTE, there is something wrong with the clothing portal currently, I will contact Champion on Monday and get it fixed and extend the deadline to the 23rd. I want to order it soon though so we have it in time for the spring races.

See you tomorrow,

Trev, Marie, Darcy, Dennis, and Michael.

Speed Theory Cycling Club

STC Indoor Race #3 (March 18th) Other clubs welcome.

We had a great time with the 21k race and a huge turnout! Several people gained valuable time with the beer rule.  Unfortunately I'd need to have like 3 beers to really make a dent in some of those times!
Ok hold the date!

Next Saturday the 18th of March.

Warmup for heat #1 starts at 5:45pm and race starts at 6pm sharp!
A second heat is a real possibility and as this is a long one, we'll add a heat every hour or so.

This month's joy de vie, is the infamous 14.6km Latigo Hill climb.  A hotly contested Strava segment, inside and out.  Bring your "climbing bike" as this baby is 14.6km uphill.

Again, (because it was so much fun) we will be inviting a few members from some other clubs to increase the quality of trash talk.  If you have little people, bring them.  There will be toys, games, crafts and food for the little ones and some monitoring from some very responsible tweens.
We'll make sure the music is loud.
Pizza and beer haters need not apply...

Click here to register

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STC Clothing !! ORDER BY March 19th !!

I have opened the Champion Systems Clothing portal and selected what I think are the most appropriate items to order from. I have tried to limit the offerings so new members aren't too overwhelmed.

For new members:   All you really require is a Jersey (and get the 'Tech Short Sleeve' if this is your first year). if you plan on competing in any of the midweek or weekend events. However, you look way cooler in a full kit, so if you can, get the Bibs or Shorts as well. If this is your first year, get the least expensive stuff and then work up from there if required. Some cyclists never get the expensive stuff, it is purely a matter of preference.

Here is the store link !!  

The store will CLOSE at midnight on March 19th....  for real!

Fun turnout for #2 STC Race Night!

We had a great 'invitational' on Feb. 18th to do the 20.1km Course made famous on the Kevin Costner's best movie 'American Flyer'. The Coors Morgul-Bismark lap!

We had representatives from STC (of course) and Velo Cafe and The Crankmasters!

Thank you to Gilles Brassart for organizing his club and to Marie for hosting the fun evening.

The front row:  Cranky, ST Mechanic, Velo Cafe, STC VP....  great to see everyone racing together!

Gilles would have been faster if he was actually trying hard!
Great to see families cheering on in the background

Baby Jane made an appearance, but wasn't quite sure if it was fun.

Next STC Party / Race ! Feb 18th.....book it!

Sign up here !!

Date:  Feb. 18th
Time:  6:00pm
Course:  Coors Morgul-Bismark 20.1km
Type:  Rolly to Hilly
Family Friendly, bring your kids. Bring a DD if you are planning on drinking.


There was some feedback on the 'Beer Rule' and needed clarification.

Update to the Beer Rule:

Beer needs to be in a can and 5.0% or higher so it is still deemed 'beer' and not 'juice'. You can open the beer before the race, but not much before. You get a 2 min bonus for every full beer you drink inside the time confines of you completing the course. You get a 1 min bonus only if you drink the full beer but lose it up to 10 min post-race.

Additions to the Beer Rule:

Several riders want a 'Wine Rule' and a few have asked for a 'Crown Whisky' rule. We are in to that. Let's figure out an appropriate amount since the carbonation of the beer is one of the challenges that doesn't exist with Wine or Whisky.    Let's hear your feedback on this!



I've invited Crankmasters, Peloton, and the new Velo Club to come and have some fun with us!

STC Part / Race Wrap Up

Great times at the STC AGM/Party/Race last night.

It is well known that I am a terrible Beer Miler, but I may have finally found my calling:  Beer Bike Racing!

The rules were simple:   10km Rolly TT. Fastest time wins.  Bonus 2min if you drink a full beer inside the race and keep it down. Bonus 1min if you drink a full beer inside the race and don't keep it down.

What I seriously lacked for in watts compared to about 7 cyclists last night, I made up for in beer consumption!!

Fun STC party,  Trev hitting a 'Beer Breakaway'.

Keep you eyes on this page for the next event in a couple weeks!  

We'll also be posting the clothing order here soon.

Thank you to everyone who came last night. See you all soon!

Let's Ring in 2017, STC Style! (UPDATED with sign up link for Sat.) (UPDATED, FAMILY FRIENDLY!)

Now that the chaos of the holidays is but a distant, frozen memory, let's get pumped for the season ahead!  Hold the date;

January 21st, CRUSH-FEST, AGM and PARTY
THIS IS A FAMILY FRIENDLY EVENT!
Marie and Trev will have their kids there.

Let's start 2017 right.  Plan to be in The Engine Room at Speed Theory at 5:30pm for an evening of Crushing it!  Riders up for heats of a flat(ish) 10km TT on the Computrainers.  (Sign up link here.)

We will plan to hold an efficient, concise AGM to lay out some of the plans for the club this year as well as an update for the new and improved JLap.

Then we can kick back, and enjoy some bevy's, snacks and the wicked company of teammates.
If you have a friend that is considering joining, please bring them along.  They will get a great feel for our club's culture.

ON THE HORIZON

Membership link for 2017 is live.  Sign up here!  That way you can continue to use the blog to post training rides and get togethers.  (Yes, some of us ride outside all year long... it's a denial thing.)

Monthly indoor races/rides will be scheduled starting with our January AGM, and continuing until the weather beckons us to take the trainer tires off.

January - Flat(ish) 10k ITT  (Sign up here)
February - Rollers all the way
March - Hill Climb mega challenge
April - Circuit Course with drafting turned on

Clothing orders will be taken shortly.  We typically do two orders, in Febuary and June. With so many of us riding later in the season and testing the waters of "Cross" don't forget to add a fleece lined winter kit in there!

This year we are hoping to offer skills clinics and a bit more formal guidance for new and newer racers.  The Women's "Learn to ride and race" weekend will happen in April.  We would like to also add in Men's Cat 5 "Road Race" and "Crit Race" clinics in addition to the ABA learn to race weekend that they typically offer.  If you have any other ideas for what you may be interested in or would like to offer, hunt one of us down at the AGM or shoot us an email!

See you at the AGM!

Trev, Michael, Marie, Dennis and Darcy