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Kansas City's Area Best (12/14 Rankings) and Who they Ride for...

KCCX/Fuji p/b Challenge Tires

#4 Ranked - Shadd Smith

#13 Ranked - Thomas Price

#14 Ranked - Bill Marshall

Ethos Racing

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#5 Ranked - Andrew Coe

#8 Ranked - Travis Donn

#18 Ranked - JP Brocket

----- Women -----

#3 Ranked - Karen Brocket

#5 Ranked - Sarah Worthington

Team Colavita/Parisi Coffee

#12 Ranked - Britton Kusiak

#25 Ranked - Casey Buta

360 Racing

#19 Ranked - David Hejduk

#22 Ranked - Stephen Songer

#24 Ranked - Andy Lucas

Bicycles of Tulsa

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#2 Ranked - Jennifer Herrell-Rhoades

Team Twin Six

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#8 Ranked - Wanda Simchuk

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Weekly Rides           "The Weekly Stories based on Saturday Longview Ride"

Saturday Longview 2 Level of Rides 10/30 Miles

The 1st ride starts at 7:45 AM from Longview College Recreational Center Parking Lot - Very Social! Just 10 miles around Longview Lake approx. speed 12/13 MPH. The 30 mile ride starts at 8:45 AM. Approx. 17 to 20 MPH. Rides go all year provided the temperature is above 45 degrees!

Sunday Dog Ride - Medium/Fast!

Leaves JP Coffee Shop at 8:30 AM. I heard this is a good ride from a number of sources!

Tuesday Lee's Summit Ride

Starts at 6:00 PM from up the street at the Church parking lot near the Amtrak Station in Lee's Summit.

Wednesday Bike Shack Ride

Starts at 6:00 PM from the Bicycle Shack.

Thursday Night Ride

Starts at Casey's at the intersection of Pink Hill Road/RD Mize and Woods Chapel. They head up to Green Hills Road, come through Buckner, and loop back to Casey's Start time 5:45. 35 mile loop. Fast!

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Saturday's Story

7 Jan - Not Sure About This One

When it's 28 degrees very early with predicted afternoon temps in the 40's - I'm riding in the afternoon! I haven't heard if anyone showed up for either of the Saturday Morning rides - but I did hear that a good size group was showing up at Gusto's at 11:00. Well, that's all I know today.... Later...

31 Dec - Maybe a Little Windy!

Only 4 of us today (Brian Lasswell, Mike Neven, Gary Young and Antonio). Nice little easy 'No Stop' at Casey's ride. Well Antonio rode away after we passed Casey's - guess he wanted to train. Anyhow Brian, Gary and I had nice conversations and an enjoyable ride. The only place I was tired today was my mouth from maybe talking a little too much. When we got back to Gusto's there was a great big group of riders (maybe 15 or 20) getting ready to take off at 11:00. WOW! the power of Social Networks! I wonder how that later group enjoyed the longer ride with the wind constantly picking up? Good Training... Later...

17 Dec - To Cold For Me!

Why ride at the crack of dawn when it is 20 degrees when the afternoon temperature is going to 50? Looks like everyone agrees with me. I drove down to Gusto's Coffee, walked the dog instead. At around 11:00 AM a number of bikes and riders were gathering for an 11:00 AM ride. WOW! the power of FaceBook! This relatively new way of communicating is great. There must have been about 20 riders that showed up all due to FaceBook communication. It's a great new world we live in! Later...

3 Dec - No Ride.. But Great Party!

Chilly, Rainy perfectly lousy weather and still it is with great pleasure and gratitude to be associated with the Bicycle Shack! I look around the room with all the people that gathered at Bert and Donna's house Saturday Night and see a room full of people that I am honored to call friends. And to think that I probably wouldn't have known a single one of these people had I not stepped into the Bicycle Shack many years ago and purchased my first bike from Chris. Who ever would have thought that purchasing a bike could change a life so drastically? And you know what? .... It's not about the bike! Merry Christmas Chris Smedley!

19 Nov - Did Someone Say it was Windy?

6 or 7 riders on the 1st early morning ride - 13 riders on the second ride. At the end of my story, I'll tell you who rode.
The year was 1970 when some High School buddies said let's go for a bike ride. So I got my 10 speed out of the basement and couldn't wait to go. A bunch of us were going to ride up to Lake Michigan. I had never ridden that far before and was looking forward to the adventure. We left my house on Mozart St. (near California and Addison in Chicago) and rode through the neighborhoods past the Boys Clubs, Wrigley Field (Home of the Chicago Cubs) and on to Lake Shore Dr. We then proceeded North out of the city limits and headed into the "rich" Northern suburbs of Chicago. At some point we just stopped, walked down to the beach and enjoyed the view of Lake Michigan. We then hopped back on the bikes and headed back home. About half way home, I couldn't pedal any more so my friend Mike took out his cable lock and devised a way to pull me the rest of the way home. I had never felt so bad, I had gone further than I ever had before and my legs just quit.
Why the story? Because... I felt WORSE today and just rode home! I didn't even stop at the college to collect information for the story. Here are the people who rode the Saturday ride this morning: Brian Bradley, Ben Simon, John 3:16, Joe Brown, Chris Johnson, Gary Young, Mark 3:16, Randy Booth, Michael Saif, Brian Casement, Bernell Rice, Antonio and Me. And I don't have a clue as to how anyone did or what they thought of that wind. I will sit at home now and try and recover from an extreme case of the tired's! Later....

12 Nov - The Good Part - It's Nov. and We Are Still Riding!

Only 4 came out early for the 1st ride (Ben Simon, Mark 3:16, Antonio and ME) but 15 or more showed up for the second ride. I should say, "A very healthy 15 showed up for the second ride. And it once again appears that no one is going to stop at Casey's. They (the powers to be) took it easy on the way out. The speed, effort and pace felt comfortable. I don't really remember when it got going fast, maybe it was the turn North after we passed the post office. With the extremely strong tail wind pushing us along, I was spun out in my 53/12. At speeds like this you need an eleven or else a neural muscular coordination to spin above 100. Luckily I found myself still on board when we turned on to County Line. I'm not sure if the efforts picked up drastically, all I know is that my November fitness let me drop half way down County Line. The good thing was, I wasn't alone. Found myself with Joe Brown and Brian Casement and up ahead a lone rider that had hung on a little longer. We caught up to Randy Booth and the 4 of us had our little group to ride back in. It looked like the strongest today (those that grouped together and got back to the college first) were: Brian Bradley, Ben Simon, John 3:16, Kory Dillman, Michael Saif and Eric. Hope I didn't miss anyone. It's great to be riding into the month of November! Later...

5 Nov - Steve Auchterlone and Michael Saif Handled the Wind Best!

WOW, Mother Nature threw her best at us this morning. Wasn't it suppose to start out a little chilly and then warm up really fast? Surprise! No warm-up! I think I'm still cold and it's two hours after the ride! About 15 riders today (2nd ride). Only two on the first ride and unless you count me. I caught up to Gary Young and the other rider when they were half way back. We were all in agreement that weren't going to stop at Casey's in fear of chilling down. It just wasn't getting any warmer. So, 15 started out and two were strong despite Mother Nature's annoying cold chilly wind! Steve Auchterlonie and Michael Saif laughed at what she threw at them and rode in strong. Joe Brown, Brian Casement and Chris Johnson came in seconds later. Lucky for me, Randy Booth and Eric pulled into Casey's and waited for me. They pulled me back to the college so I am thanking them! We caught up to Dave and Bernell Rice. There should have been 5 of us pulling into the college parking lot, but I sat up and called it a day when we turned up by the golf course. Mother Nature beat me today... Anyhow, better to be outside than in the basement on a trainer! Later...

29 Oct - What? Mark 3:16 Riding Very Strong!

WOW Mark... You had a great ride today!
As cold as it was this morning (1st ride) I didn't think hardly anyone would show. 1st ride was about 9 or 10 of us enjoying Mother Nature's cool temp. Then on the second ride 14 of us started out. A couple of guys had other commitments and turned off early, 2 guys didn't stop at Casey's which left 9 or 10 of us at Casey's for the return trip. Leaving Casey's I was once again pretty sure that it was going to be a group ride back. But there was a strong wind pushing us along when we turned North. Now how can anyone resist very fast speeds with very little effort? When we hit the turn on County Line a couple had already dropped. The County Line hills didn't do to much damage either. Even reaching Raytown Rd there was Wade from Shawnee, Eric a friend of Randy Booth, Randy Booth, Me (Mike Neven), Antonio and who is still with us - YES it's Mark 3:16. Didn't he just have 2 weeks off due to an injured back? Now with the help of the South wind pushing us North on Raytown Rd - the speeds really got going. Fun like this doesn't come along to often. Somewhere Mark feel off, then Antonio fell of leaving Wade, Eric Randy Booth and Me to come on home. What fun! Hard to believe that it is almost November! Later....

22 Oct - Is This October Weather?

WOW! What weather! A very surprising small group on the 1st ride. What? Is this Ben Simon pulling up? Yep! 1st Ride at 7:45 AM was attended by Ben Simon, Mike Neven, Jim Flath and Antonio. The hill is all torn up so we left the college in the opposite direction, went down to the end of Raytown Rd and turned around and came back. It was 10.5 miles, so all was good. Well, all was good except for Reggie, he saw us leave in the opposite direction and took off the regular way only to find out that the road was torn up. Oh well, he was able to ride the 2nd ride with us.
The ride at 8:45 was attended by some fast "No Stop at Casey's" guys. (Jeremy Pych, Ben Simon, Jim Rank, Michael Saif, Jeff Lininger and couple more riders that I can't remember right now) Anyhow, it was once again comfortably fast going out to Casey's where the fast guys dropped us off with maybe a 19/20 average. Six of us stopped at Casey's (John 3:16, Mike Neven, Jim Flath, Antonio, Reggie and Vladimer) Now... is it going to be a fast ride back or another group ride back? I started out from Casey's assuming "group ride" and started pacing us. John 3:16 came around just to help pull, probably no intention of ruining the group ride. When we turned on County Line, Reggie came around and really picked up the pace, then Jim Flath came around and picked it up even more to the point that now Vladimer and eventually Reggie dropped. Now it looks like it's "game on" so John 3:16 amd Mike Neven (ME) come around Jim on one of hills. When John and I turned on to the access road at 71 Hwy we had a gap and weren't about to lose it. We rotated and eventually thought that we had a comfortable gap and slowed down a little. But low and behold as I looked back over my shoulder I see two guys actually gaining on us. I told John that it looks like someone is catching back up so this encouraged us to pick up the pace. We held a pretty good pace down Raytown Rd and managed to get back to the college 1st. We had approximately a 22/23 average is our best guess. Jim and Antonio came in next followed by Reggie who was stuck fending for himself and then Vladimer came in a little later. WOW - these stories are easy to write when there are only six people to remember! Later....

15 Oct - Started Chilly - Ended Beautiful!

Weather wise, it was a little bit cool on the 1st ride but not bad if dressed correctly. By the start of the 2nd ride it already was becoming a really nice day to ride. (No Wind!) We were lucky to have the St. John Boys (Jeremy Pych, Adam Miller and Justin Bowes) along with Steve Auchterlonie, Bernell Rice and Michael Saif lead us out to Casey's at a really nice pace. They dropped us off with about a 19.1 average and continued on. The resume's of those riders was a little too high profile for our "Stop At Casey's Group" to chance going along.
Anyhow, it left just 5 of us (Mike Neven, Joe Brown, Gary Young, Antonio and Vladimer) out at Casey's. Since there were so few, we decided to come back as a group. Vlad fell off on County Line and Joe Brown went back to pull him back up to the rest of us. Soon we were all back together and came into the college with a 21 average. Very enjoyable to say the least... Later...

8 Oct - Beautiful Saturday Morning!

Weather wise, it couldn't get any better (Well maybe we could have lost some of the wind). Thanks to everyone who welcomed the NEW rider Terry and made her feel comfortable riding with us. Thanks again.... That's what it really is all about!
Did I mention the wind? Without a doubt it was going to be a fast return from Casey's even if you weren't trying. I think the wind was strong enough that we could have coasted going North all the way back. Sure was fun on the return. Anyhow.... here's how it went. Everyone stopped at Casey's including Kent Woermann, Michael Saif and John Tye. With that said, I thought I could sit right there at Casey's and write the story. We left Casey's at a pretty good clip and by the turn on County Line Rd. there was Kent, Michael S., John Tye, John 3:16, Joe Brown, Mike Neven and Antonio. Antonio was the first to drop off of this group. And I really hate being excuse driven but... I was riding really well one minute and a second later I was done! This has never happened to me before. Usually you start struggling, start getting tired and fall off. Not true today. Feel good - now feel bad and off the back. So I was gone. Now I can see the 5 left leaving me behind but I could read the body language of those in front of me. I start seeing Joe Brown struggle but didn't see him fall off the back till the outer road. Luckily he looked back and waited for me - Thanks Joe! Not thinking it was possible to catch up to the stronger riders, we just got into a comfortably fast pace to have fun with the tail wind. When we turned onto Raytown Rd we see Kent Woermann and Michael Saif riding side by side. They had shut it down and were riding easy. We hopped on the back of them for awhile when I noticed that John Tye and John 3:16 were right down the road. It looked like they had shut it down also, so Joe and I took off after them. When we turned to go South again by the golf course we knew it hopeless to catch up. With that strong headwind, I'm pretty sure there were moments we were going about7 MPH or less. So.... it was the two John's (John Tye and John 3:16) that took the honors on today's ride. Our best guess is that the return speed was about 24/25 MPH - you could practically coast at 30 going North on Raytown Rd. A ton of fun was had by all with that tail wind!
P.S. You may want to hear John Tye's Monkey's and Midget story - that was really worth the stop at Gusto's Coffee Shop. And don't ever ask to hear any of Jack's jokes... Later...

1 Oct - Very Chilly and Fast!

Despite the chilly weather (it was 37 degrees in some low places on the ride over to the college this morning) there were still some small groups on both rides. There is actually one nice benefit of not having perfect weather conditions. The people who come out are more or less seasoned riders. This means the rides can be a little bit faster and the packs a little bit tighter. (I just realized how bad that sounded, since I really enjoy encouraging new riders to join in the fun. Whoops!) Anyhow there was no "No Stop" group today. We all stopped at Casey's with speeds out there over 20. With that said, I was already tired and was hoping there would be a leisure return. And of course, that's not going to happen! Michael Saif, John 3:16 and Nathan were the strong riders today averaging above 23+ MPH. The absolute best reason for me NOT hanging on was uttered by John Tye who I ended up riding with on the return (Once I caught up to him). John Tye said it best: "My Who Gives A-Shit Meter just ran out." There comes point when you can't figure out why you are hurting yourself so bad just to be in the first group back...
I would like to point out that Matt Sweeney offered to pull all the way back (and was the first one out of the parking lot). I guess by coming around him was a way of saying, thanks for the offer - but no thanks! Sorry Matt - but if it's any consolation - you are a great one to draft behind! Later....

10 Sep - Mr. October Arrives Early!

Despite the very nice weather the groups weren't very large this morning. But the people riding and coming out aren't slow which allowed us to move up the speeds slightly on the 1st ride and the ride out to Casey's (19.1).
The "No Stop" Group was gathering in the parking lot and those who were there were fast. So I had to taunt them saying the "Stop at Casey's Group" would probably have a faster average. Lesson learned: "Never poke the bear!" The "Superior Engines" stayed in the back all the way to County Line road. Then they leashed their power and shot out of the pack and down County Line never to be seen again! I want to mention the names of some of the stronger riders, but am fearful that I wouldn't include those who deserve to be mentioned. Let me just say that there were some motors in that group today.
Now to what I do know... Jeff Winter got the name "Mr. October" a few years ago because it's usually in October that he steps it up quite a bit from his summer speed. I think he performs better in the cooler weather. Well, it's only September and it looks like he has started early. We left Casey's at a moderate pace that slowly picked up. At the last hill prior to the access road on 71 Hwy there were 8 riders at the bottom of the hill and 8 riders half way up the hill and then an impressive sprint the rest of the way to the top by Joe Brown. Now there are 5! Mark 3:16, Shunton and Mike Neven (Me) got spit off the back with just about 20 feet left of the hill. Do you know how disappointing that is!!!!? This left Joe Brown, Jeff Winter, John 3:16, Tyler Steele and Larry on the front. It looked like they slowed down slightly when they were going over the 150 Hwy bridge because I said it's now or never and thought the 3 of us had a chance to reel them in since they weren't that far away yet. WRONG!!! It appeared the 5 in front got organized and started a nice rotation. We were done and knew it... I now would have to wait till I got back to the college to see how it all played out. Here's the story I heard - Larry got dropped at the dam. Jeff Winter took off at the turn by the golf course and Joe Brown and John 3:16 couldn't pull him back. I heard they got close but not close enough. So... "Mr. October" Jeff Winter pulls it off with Joe Brown and John 3:16 close behind. Tyler Steele came in seconds behind them. Wish I was there!
And on another note - Happy Birthday Laura Steele who could of had more cake tomorrow IF she would have offered to pull out of Casey's! And... ask Gary Young about his NEW training technique (He rode all the way back from Casey's with a brake on.) AND just one more thing - I will be riding our ride next Saturday but for those who come out expect a small group, next week is the MS150 ride. Good luck to all who are riding the MS150!

3 Sep - What? Matt Sweeney Takes a Pull?

Nice... Big groups this morning on both rides. Beautiful morning weather 1st ride and warmed up nicely (OK not so nicely) on the 2nd ride.
The "No Stop" at Casey's group picked up the speed quite nicely on Ward and none of the "Stop" group got lured into riding with the speedsters. And from what I heard from Steve Auchterlonie - they were FAST! Wish I could mention names and speeds from our "Friends with the Engines" but I didn't get the details of their ride.
Anyhow... back to what I do know. You might have picked up on the title of this story. Matt Sweeney was the 1st one out of Casey's parking lot (he of course wanted everyone to know that fact) AND he pulled the group along at a blazing 12 MPH! Good job Matt! Bob Hicks was scared that he wouldn't get a work-out in so he took off down the road on his own. There is absolutely nothing better than a pack of hounds having a rabbit to chase. (Thanks Bob). Needless to say the strong riders of this "Stop at Casey's" group picked up the chase and soon we were flying down the road. Even registered a 39 MPH speed down to County Line. It was apparent that Randy Booth and John 3:16 weren't going to allow this ride to be a leisure group ride back. Six riders finally broke the elastic that was holding the group together on the hills of County Line road. As we turned onto the access road there was Randy Booth, John 3:16, Joe Brown, Mike Neven, Anson and Shunton. The strongest riders taking the lion's share of the pulls were Randy Booth and John 3:16, as for me and Shunton, I think we were struggling to just hang on. Joe Brown and Anson seemed quite comfortable sitting in. Of course Joe Brown and myself - we knew the game was on and were now only trying to sit in and hopefully have the legs to sprint to our imaginary finish line. Shunton also knew what must be done but was encouraged to try and take a measly 20 second pull right before the dam. This was his undoing as he immediately spit off the back after his turn at the front. John 3:16 now took over on the front pulling hard with Joe Brown on his wheel and I hung on Joe's wheel. I had the sprint and the timing just right but didn't count on my legs turning to jelly so quickly which allowed Joe to shoot around and come in first. Congrats to Joe Brown for being the smart rider of today! And... thank-you to Randy Booth and John 3:16 for pulling a very fast 23+ ride back to the college! Later...

27 Aug - Mike shuns Shunton - Jeff Winter DNF

Quite a surprise this morning. Unbelievable beautiful weather and both groups were relatively small this morning. I was unaware that another popular rec ride was taking place - a similar route as the Tour de Lakes. Oh well, we had about 15 on the 1st ride and about 20 on the second. Tomorrow (Sunday 28 Aug) is the Summer Breeze leaving from Longview College at 7:00 AM with a 40, 70 and 100 mile routes. Hope to see you there!
I was excited about today's ride. I'm feeling pretty good and was praying that Jeff Winter and Matt Sweeney were going to be on today's ride. Because today I was going to pull a Matt Sweeney by hiding in the back and attacking with fresh legs at the last moment. Oh well, even the best laid plans sometimes get whacked. Jeff Winter had to work and turned off on Raytown Rd and Matt was a "No Show".
Joe Brown took off with a couple of guys and they did a "No Stop" at Casey's version even tho the "Big Guns" are somewhere racing today and tomorrow. This left about 10 or 12 of us to race back from Casey's. For some reason, no one was in the mood to hammer and it appeared like it was going to be a nice social ride back to the college. The ride slowly picked up and with a hill to go to the access road there were only 4 of us (Jeff Winter, Shunton, Mike Neven and Gary Young). Jeff did a short little sprint at the very top of the last hill that knocked off Gary Young. Now it's just the 3 of us and we comfortably got into a nice 3-Man rotation. But just like I planned, come Raytown Rd I started hanging in the back - Matt would be proud of me! Jeff Winter turned to go home which just left Shunton and myself. He knew exactly what I was up to and said he road easy so that when I came around he would have the legs to hook on. As Shunton now knows, coming from behind when the person in front is not ready - the gap is huge right off the back. So.... with my "Alabama Matt Cavendish Sweeney" type of kamikaze attack it was hopeless to hook on or catch up. Real estate just runs out a little to quick to bridge back up. In the most humble way I know how to say.... I WON! I WON! I WON! Later...

20 Aug - A Very Fast No-Stop Casey's Group!

by Kory Dillman
Adam Miller and several others decided to terrorize the Longview "No Stop" ride. From what I heard, the front group was Adam Miller, Josh Holder, Craig Morris and Chris Johnson. Ben Simon told me that he was dropped on Country Line - before the turn on Kurzweil! Phil Todd was dropped before the hills leading to 71 Hwy, Kent Woermann was dropped just after the turn on Raytown Road! It sounded basically like a ritual blood bath. Chris said he didn't clock speed, but he'd be surprised if it wasn't well over 28 MPH. Smokin! Just looking at some of the speedsters that were dropped, this thing had to really be fast! What are the "Top Dogs" training for?
Stop at Casey's Group
by Matt Sweeney
The "B" group (Stop at Casey's Group) was a little smaller, hairier and therefore slower! I (Matt Sweeney) did manage to do a kamikaze launch right at the golf course turn on View High and stay away. Hadn’t ridden for 5 weeks - so was surprised my legs didn’t explode.
Well there you have it.... I hope to be there next week - Mike!

13 Aug - GREAT Weather - Fantastic Ride!

WOW! What really great weather for riding. Could it get any better than this? And Nice size groups on both rides... Made for good pace lines...
Once again Gary Young and Mike Neven (Me) led the ride out to Casey's at 17.8 MPH and made 4 of 5 lights. Only got stuck at the red light on Ward and 150 Hwy. Congrats to Paul who finally made it to Casey's with the group! He rode very well on the way out in the pace line. Good job Paul!
Regarding the return from Casey's: Mother Nature provided us with mild head wind all the way back, making it tough to jump out of a pack of riders and leave people behind. We as a group started slow, thus allowing everyone's legs to warm up. Finally either Jeff Winter or John 3:16 jumped out in front and pushed the pace up a notch but not high enough to ride away. Thus the pack continued to stay together. Oh, I almost forgot we had a rabbit to chase in the form of Brian Mitchell. Brian took off from Casey's at a higher rate of speed than the rest of the bikers so he made a really nice rabbit for the pack of hounds chasing him down. IF it wasn't for the very last hill down County Line I think he would of hung on all the way back. (He was only about 60 to 75 seconds behind when the lead group reached the parking lot!) When we reached the dam there were still 8 riders together (Jeff Winter, Joe Brown, John 3:16, Mike Neven, Jeff in a Blue Jersey, Mark 3:16, Mike in a Red Jersey and Gary Young). It was at this point that Jeff Winter's little mind had started formulating a plan of attack. As John 3:16 started riding a little harder on the front, Jeff Winter decided to hide inside the pack keeping his legs nice and fresh. Jeff took a flyer at the right hand turn to the golf course and jumped to a huge lead. John tried to react but had just taken a hard pull on the front. Joe Brown who had recently taken a pull took over and I hopped on his wheel not really thinking that we had a chance at all. I misjudged Joe and made the mistake of coming around him to soon. I sat up thinking it was hopeless and Joe kept going, right past John 3:16 and by the turn into the parking lot had past Jeff Winter. Now the debate had started as to where the finish line really is... Jeff's definition of the finish line put him in first and Joe's definition of the finish line put him in first. I will let those two debate the issue. Anyhow... the group of 8 was pretty close together with an average speed of 22.3 MPH which isn't all that bad with the mild head wind all the way back....! Great fun once again... Later...

6 Aug - GREAT - I Mean GREAT Ride Leaders!

Finally back from vacation after missing 2 Saturdays and came back to many NEW riders who discovered the Saturday Ride. We had about 9 female riders this morning. A few young girls led the first ride around the lake and did quite a nice job leading the ride. Thank-you!
BUT... the story today revolves around the ride OUT to Casey's. Terrific ride leaders or should I say EXCEPTIONAL RIDE LEADERS led the ride out to Casey's today. Gary Young, Mike Neven (ME) and Brian Mitchell led the way out to Casey's. Why so exceptional? Yes... FIVE (5) traffic lights from Longview College to Casey's including the short light at Ward and 150 Hwy and NOT A SINGLE RED LIGHT was hit. Each and every traffic light we came up to today was Green! There were a few mild complaints that the ride out was just a little fast (almost 20) but hey did I mention NO RED LIGHTS? This will probably never happen again but it happened today! WOW! The NO STOP group even stayed with us until County Line because even they saw the greatness in those ride leaders.....!
Well, there is just one more reason why the story is revolving around the ride out to Casey's - mainly because I am almost clueless as to what happened on the return from Casey's. A group got out of the parking lot and started going fast right away. Just a car or two came by before I got out of the parking lot and I couldn't catch up. Soon the group was out of sight - so I apologize for any names I skip from this point on. I think it was John 3:16, Joe Brown, Mark 3:16, Jim Flath, Reggie, Gary Young and Shunton that rode away from me. I heard that Gary Young held on ALMOST all the way down County Line but got shelled on the last hill. Reggie continued down County Line and rode home. Jim Flath went a little longer than turned around and rode home. This left John and Mark 3:16, Joe Brown and Shunton (sorry if I'm missing anyone). Shunton got shelled near the dam and Mark 3:16 near the golf course. So.... I think it was John 3:16 and Joe Brown that came into the college 1st. (Email me with any corrections). I rode in with Brian Mitchell. Have I mentioned that he is a lousy draft? Later.....

16 Jul - The Heat didn't Keep Anyone Away Today!

An unexpected large turn out for such HOT weather today. A pretty good size 1st group at the early morning ride too. Even Chris Smedley was there, and it was great to see him out riding a bike. Here is the link to the Chris Smedley event next Sunday July 24th: http://bicycleshackracing.com/images/Files/30th.pdf
You could also find this information on the Bicycle Shack Racing Team Link at the top of this page. So... for a Good Time - Food/Drink/Great Raffle Prizes/Volleyball Games etc., remember to show up at Shelterhouse #10 at Longview Lake off of Raytown Rd!!!! I guarantee that you will have a Great Time!
Getting back to the Saturday story ... The "No Stop At Casey's Group" lured a number of riders as they slowly crept out to Casey's before turning on the after-burners. For those that didn't stop at Casey's and thought "Hey, this isn't too bad" were going to be in for a big surprise. I heard the speed really picked up right after Casey's on 58 Hwy. And from sources that had reset their odometers as they flew by Casey's, the front group of "No Stop - Shaved Legs Group" had over a 26 + MPH average back to the college. What? In this heat! Are they crazy! Crazy Fast is all I can say!
Anyhow, back at Casey's the refreshed group of riders were ready to test their warmed up legs for the journey back. The group left in a nice controlled single-file pace line with different people popping on the front and slowly speeding this snake line up. Speeds were really high with the help of the tail wind on Madison but it looked like it would have to take the hills of County Line Road to shake things up a little. I thought Jeff Winter was finally going to start all the action so I burned a match chasing up to him and just ended pulling everyone along with me. Each hill just naturally caused a drop or two and it wasn't until the very last hill before 71 Hwy Access Road that left just 4 of us on the front. (Jeff Winter, John 3:16, Mike Neven, Matt Sweeney)
When we turned North, Jeff let it fly and we were really moving now. I looked around to see there was just the 3 of us minus 1 Matt Sweeney. Alabama Matt Cavendish Sweeney was now dropped and we were not going to allow him to catch up now. (Little did we know - he had flatted....) I still want to believe that we dropped him tho, I think I heard him use the "Flat" excuse before...
The 3 of us shared pulls about equally and since I was wearing socks that caught the wind I couldn't be on the front as long. John 3:16 took a hard pull into the wind at the golf course which allowed Jeff Winter to sprint by and take the WIN! (Of course we let him do it....) For those who are interested - it was a 24+ MPH average - not bad considering the youngest guy in our group is over 55 years old! Later....

9 Jul - Large 2nd Group Today!

And... for the most part BOTH groups rode together on the way out to Casey's! What a great ride today as we were all together once again (almost). The "No Stop" group finally took off just a mile or two from Casey's as the rest of us stopped for refreshments (and to watch and wait for Matt Sweeney to fix his bike). I do want everyone to know once again that I was the 1st one out of the Casey's parking lot!
Anyhow, a good size group formed on the front as finally John 3:16 put some space between himself and the group behind. Jeff Winter was the first to bridge to John and with the both of them out there working together it looked like the escape might work. However, the group chasing was large and we were shutting down the distance when Brian Lasswell jumped up to them. Now that they had 3 strong riders the gap started to increase once again. The chasing group didn't seem to get into a good rhythm for awhile so Mike Boles (Quiet Mike) took the lead and pulled for a long time and probably brought us back to just about 75 yards from catching the three escapees when we hit a stop sign and had to wait for a car or two. That was all she wrote for the chasing group as we broke up and didn't get back together again. So... as they say "out of sight, out of mind". They (Jeff Winter, Brian Lasswell, John 3:16) were much to humble to admit to who "WON" from their little group and expressed that it was a TEAM effort and they came in as a TEAM! Give me a break! Later...

2 Jul - Freedom Ride instead...

Another great turn out for a good cause! Thanks for supporting the cause!

25 Jun - Tour de Lakes instead...

Looked like hundreds attended - other than a little rain storm for about a half hour - it was a great day to ride. I have to hand it to the organizers, it was done real well once again!

18 Jun - Not Again! The Hammerin Alabama Matt Cavendish Sweeney at the Line!

Almost the same title as last week. But we will get to that story later.
Only 2 riders on the 1st ride - weather was unpredictable early on. But other than very humid, the weather was good to go by the 2nd ride. The No-Stop at Casey's group was probably very fast today. I saw Adam Miller, Brian Bradley and maybe even Jeff Winkler go by quite quickly. The others in the group were just a blur, so not quite sure who all rode with them. Our group on the other hand went out quite nicely to Casey's with Matt Sweeney and Kory Dillman leading out a really nice ride that kept the group together.
However, the real story is in the return from Casey's. I want everyone reading this to know that I was the 1st one out of the Casey's parking lot on the return ride. And by the rules of riding, that counts as a pull on the front! If you talk to some of the riders in the return group, you would have thought that I never took a pull.
It appeared that the strongest in the group back today was Brent McCoy who took a flyer down County Line and Jeff Winter who pulled the group back up to Brent. I would say that those two did the fair share of the work load on the way back. (And of course, I was on the front out of the parking lot, remember?) Anyhow IF you speak to Matt Sweeney you would swear he positioned himself on the front a number of times. The truth be told, I think Jeff and Matt conspired against me and forced me to the front when we were crossing the dam. I intentionally held the speed down as it looked like a couple of the guys in the group needed a rest. Brent McCoy took another flyer at the right hand turn by the golf course and Jeff Winter was alert enough to jump up to him pulling Matt along for the ride. The rest of us just sat up and eased on in. Jeff came around Brent and at the last minute Matt came around Jeff. Based on the description and location of the imaginary 'finish line' (according to Matt) he won the sprint finish followed by Brent McCoy and Jeff Winter. I of course think this imaginary 'finish line' is somewhere around the dam, in which case I won! Until next week...

11 Jun - The Amazing Alabama Matt Cavendish Sweeney at the Line!

You could really tell by the size of ALL groups that left the parking lot today that Mother Nature was really kind to us this morning. She blessed us with "Perfect" riding conditions! A great Big Thank You to her for such a great day!
The "No Stop" at Casey's group left about a minute or two earlier than the "Stop" group - but they started out slow and we rode up behind them by the time we reached Ward. I can't remember where they finally started elevating their speed since I was on the very back of the group but a couple of people who were going to stop went with them.
Gary Young, Jim Flath, Mark 3:16 kept the group together on the way out. They pulled into Casey's with a 17.5. We did stretch out the legs on the last mile out (nice tailwind) which broke up the group just a little bit. But how can anyone that loves to ride a bike resist a nice tail wind? So it was all good!
The return from Casey's is definitely our little race and/or training session. The nice thing is (at least for me right now) that we now had head wind and it was really hard to get off the front. John 3:16 lost a chain where he had to physically get off the bike and put it on, but he still caught up to the pack before we turned right on the access road. I think he is the only one from our little group who could have pulled that one off.
As long as I didn't put myself in the wind and stayed tucked in, I knew I was going to make it back with the group. The truth is, IF they knew how to rotate better I would have been left behind. Lucky for me there was easy recovery times every so often as the smoothness of the rotation wasn't quite there.
Coming down Raytown Rd into the head wind the speed actually picked up. I don't know who the strong guys were on the front at this time, but there seemed to be some nice speed for long stretches. When we turned right by the golf course, the final stretch our little group was finally breaking up. It looked like Renae took off and John 3:16 and Matt Sweeney went after her. (I tried - but don't quite have it yet). Anyhow.... this brings me to the title of this Saturday story. John 3:16 started flying right past Renae and Matt Sweeney hooked on. And of course, it was "The Amazing Alabama Matt Cavendish Sweeney" flying by John at the very last second to take the sprint. At least this is Matt's version that he paid me to write - so believe what you want. Later...

7 Jun (UPDATED) - Heat didn't deter large number of riders.

Hotter than beans on a tin roof and still they came. All 3 rides had large groups. Nice easy ride around the lake for the warm-up (as if we needed one today). Then Gary Young, Shunton, Mark 3:16 and a couple others took turns leading a very nice 17.6 pace out to Casey's. The hammerin "No Stop" guys didn't even break up the group as they surged past going down Ward. Still waiting to hear something about their ride. Might have to contact Steve Auchterlonie to get the info on the speedsters...
Anyhow, the rest of us still want to train on the way back so we were off and running on the return from Casey's. 4 people broke away quite early from the rest of us. (John 3:16, Ken Short, Jeff Winter and Tyler Steele). In the meantime a nice group of about 8 rotating guys (OK... not all of us were rotating) spotted someone who had fallen off the group of 4. We now had a rabbit to chase down. Wasn't long before we pulled up to Tyler and maybe lost a rider or two with the chase.
The problem with coming home and running errands before I write this story is my poor memory. I can't remember who everyone was that was in the group... Sorry! Needless to say, the chase group had a fix on John 3:16, Ken Short and Jeff Winter but we just didn't seem to be gaining. In fact, we were falling further behind. They came in with a 23+ average while our group settled at 22. Tyler Steele, Shunton, Mark 3:16 did most of the pulling in this chase group and I think Gary Young, Andrew, Rick Mason and myself were just hanging on. I apologize for anyone I missed. Waited to long to type this thing....
Great day of riding just the same... Later...
UPDATED - NO STOP GROUP
It was brutal due to the heat for the NO STOP group. Heart rates were much higher. Kept a 24+ average for an hour plus. Nine folks started the effort - Ben, Brian Bradley, Josh, Phil, Craig, Greg Lohr, Mike Saif, myself (Steve Auchterlonie) and another guy whose name escapes me. A couple guys cramped or backed-off after Caseys and I (Steve)got dropped on the last climb on County Line - dang those TT bikes, at least that's my excuse. It became a serious TT workout for me. This was perfect because it gave me a group of six to chase. They stayed 15 seconds in front of me the entire way until the last two miles when folks started cracking. I think I caught everyone except Josh by the finish line, so the effort was a good for everyone. Steve...

28 May - Haven't heard anything.

I usually have my ear in the right place and could get info on a ride even if I wasn't there. Only heard one single piece of information from Mark 3:16. He said the 1st group back from Casey's had a 22 average. That is ALL I know until someone informs me of more...

21 May - One Nice Day!

After last week's very cold Saturday morning, this had to be a pleasure. I started with the 1st ride (1st time on a bike in 52 days) and it was a pretty good group of riders. It's been so long since I last rode that I fell off the pack on the hill (Yes... the 1st ride!) Anyhow my legs felt OK on the flats so I caught back up. Reggie rode along side me to keep me company. Truth is... whether you are 1st or last it sure is wonderful to be out on a bike. Loved every minute of it!
I will have to wait to hear something about the trip to Casey's and back as I had to get home and rest. I do know that Steve Auchterlonie came to play hard on his TT Bike. He took off with the "No Stop at Casey's Group" or the "Flat Bellies" on the hard and fast group. A minute or two later the rest of the riders left. Looked like the combination of both rides brought out a sizable number of riders. Anyhow... if I hear anything I'll update later...
UPDATE
Word is - the "No Stop" at Casey's Group averaged 26.2 MPH with a sizable group of strong riders. The 1st Group back from the "Stop at Casey's Group" averaged 22 MPH (Reggie Kelch, Gary Young and Matt Sweeney).

14 May - Has to be February!

So Cold... So very Cold... for MAY! At least 15 riders showed up for the Saturday Ride. Even the 1st ride was fast - had to get back to get out of the cold I guess. And of course the 2nd ride was quick almost from the start. No worries tho - real recreational riders don't come out in this weather - so no real reason to slow down any of the ride. Of course Ben Simon herded his little group back the fastest with Steve Auchterlonie, Michael Saif, Eric Burch, John Tye and I might be missing a name or two coming in tow. A few minutes later Joe Brown, Mark 3:16, Gary Young and maybe a couple more followed. I should have brought a note pad - could of wrote everybody's name down. Luke Sorenson (young and tall) will be leaving to live in Florida at the end of the month. Our ride will miss him - he was definitely an up-and-comer to cycling.
I'm still waiting for the OK to ride. Sure do miss it! Later...

7 May - Last Crash - Promise!

At least the crash that happened this morning wasn't about bad riding skills. For once it was strictly mechanical as Tim Colfield's crank broke off as he stood up to turn the pedals. Caused him to go down but not get hurt. Didn't bring anyone down with him... So.. good news actually (unless of course you are speaking to Tim).
The "hammers" started their own ride leaving a few minutes earlier than our 2nd ride. I actually like the idea because a decision has to be made right at the start. Do you think you can handle the next level or not? I'm personally glad they are doing it this way. It allows you to graduate to a next level - isn't that what we strive for? The rest of the ride stays the same and there will be NEW leaders leading the way back from Casey's until they feel they could jump up. I hope they continue to start right at the college to give us that other option. I also think that there will be times when some of the "really fast" guys come down and join us because they want to come down from hard training for awhile. My opinion is that it's a Win-Win situation. We may not have the fancy colored Karate belts showing our levels of achievement but we all will know where we belong as we now have 4 riding levels. 1st Level - the easy 14 MPH 1st ride. 2nd Level - the approx. 17 MPH ride to Casey's. 3rd Level - The "fast as you can" ride back from Casey's. And now the 4th Level - hang with the "Big Dogs" with the no stop at Casey's hammerfest! I LIKE IT....!
Looks like Shunton, Rick Mason and Bobbie led the ride from Casey's back to the college at about 21.5... Awesome!

30 Apr - Proud to be Associated with the Bike Shack!

You guys and girls said it all today... Thank you! Very proud to be associated with anyone who rode or helped support Chris today. You guys looked great riding in that pace line coming into the shelter. What an extended family Chris has! There is only really one more thing left to say...
CHRIS - YOU GOT TO BEAT THIS THING!!!

23 Apr - LET'S COMMUNICATE!

There shouldn't be accidents on a recreational ride. Let's communicate our intentions. Simple things like hold your line, looking before moving over, letting people know you are coming up on them etc., etc. Well oiled and experienced riders communicate with body language... "WE" at the recreational level aren't experienced enough to get these subtle hints. Recognize this fact quickly and communicate loudly and obviously before making moves. We should ALL be going out to Casey's safely if we communicate effectively. "Look before you leap" - also seems applicable!
Also... regarding speeds. No longer can anyone just show up and ride even the 1st ride. It's too fast. "Real" beginners should be welcome and NOT blown off the back. Come on guys... We were all there at one time. I thought our ride was different than the rest in town. At one time we were unique. Beginners could show up on the 1st ride, graduate to the 1st part of the 2nd ride (we also need to slow the speed down to Casey's) and of course everyone's favorite part - train as hard and as fast as you want to on the return from Casey's. IF we loose this uniqueness - we will be just like every ride in town, where you show up and hang if you can....! There's enough of those rides around!

16 Apr - Headlines Say It All

3 on 1st Ride (Gary Young, Pat, Kelley Skinner), 7 on 2nd Ride.
2nd Ride Story by Kory Dillman
Hey Mike. I read the post for the ride today and thought I'd help you out a bit.
The seven were: Kelly Skinner, Shari Dee, Gary, Jared (speed skater), Marlon Anderson, unknown, and me. With a strong NW wind, the ride out was a little faster than it should have been but nothing too crazy. Gary snapped the rear derailleur cable, and cut out at Hook. When we turned on to County Line, the strong headwind blew Shari and Kelly off the back, leaving Marlon, Jared, and me. Since it was just 3 of us, we decided to skip the stop at Casey's and kept on motoring. The pace heading north was relatively tame but not easy. We rolled in with a average of 21.1 MPH. I wish there was more "story" to tell, but it was nothing more than 3 guys pacing into a stiff headwind.

9 Apr - New "Wreck" Ride Led by "AJ" Average Joe and Shunton!

No better way to get a good Saturday Story than by hanging out at JP's after the ride. Conversation was at it's best and very little truth was spoken. But like I always say, "Why let the truth get in the way of a good story?"
Ben made an announcement to indicate that the 2nd ride will break up quickly for safety reasons. (Two broken collar bones last week - Randy Booth and Mr. Curry) The 'hard core' riders will go out hard right from the start and NOT stop at Casey's for a good hard training ride. The rest of the group could go as usual making their stop at Casey's. IF I'm able to get back to biking this summer, I would like to once again lead the group out to Casey's. Don't get me wrong, I still want to train but I wouldn't mind holding the speed down out to Casey's so that the Recreational Feature of this ride stays in tack. Then we could ride hard on the return as usual. This way everyone should get what they want out of the ride. (I do like the Social aspect of the ride.....!)
Anyhow... back to the story. The truth has finally been told about Matt Sweeney - "He's from Alabama!" I just knew it......! Shunton and Joe Thieman will now lead the new "WRECK" ride out to Casey's. I think this was their idea...! Shunton has taken his kick-stand off his bike so that it is not sticking out in the pack. So... everything is good to go! Joe has promised to take off his blind-fold when leading. I am now quite comfortable with how the rest of the summer will proceed....
All joking aside.... Accidents happen when speeds are high and packs are tight. Let's just keep learning from each other and enjoy the ride.... Later.....

2 Apr - No Good - Crash!

Couldn't ride today due to problems with my leg so I drove out to Casey's to see who was on the ride. I waited, waited, waited until Tyler and Laura came by and told me some riders were just hanging out on Kurzweil. A minute or two later an ambulance turned down Kurzweil so I hopped in the car and drove down. Jeff Winter was riding by and said that it looked like Randy Booth broke a collar bone. I guess a few other riders went down also but not as serious. Unfortunately I don't have the details nor know what happened. Get well soon Randy.....! Later....

19 Mar - 1 Got Away!

Cold... Windy... Yet No Rain... Therefore we ride!
Despite the weather there was a pretty good turn out again. It's getting to the point that it's Saturday, We Must Ride! The group broke up into two different routes out to Casey's, some taking Ward to County Line the others taking Hook to Horridge. The group taking County Line said it wasn't as bad as what I had been lead to believe. I'll have to ride it sometime this next week to see for myself.
Getting to the story - Casey's back to the College - I was still waiting for one last rider to get out of the bathroom when the group took off. - Can't blame them as it was getting cold just standing around. Anyhow got a late start which probably was a good thing. Needed to stretch the legs with a long steady effort anyhow. Reason for mentioning this fact is that I have no idea what was happening out in front. Makes it tough to write a Saturday Story. What I did learn is that Ben Simon got back first at least a minute or two before John Tye came in. So... there's your two over the winter fit riders coming in 1 and 2. I did get back in time to hear discussions on better pace line techniques being debated. So much has been written - but of course it's using professional riders of the pace line that it really doesn't apply much when there is totally different fitness levels trying to share the load. Anyhow the long summer, and getting to know each other's strengths and weaknesses will all work itself out in the end.... Later....

12 Mar - It's About Time

Yea! A Saturday Ride! Got up early, turned on the TV to check the weather - they said 35 degrees - dressed way to warm - took off to the ride and it was already in the 40's. With the unexpectedly nicer weather I would have guessed there would have been more riders. Small group on the first ride around but at least 20 showed up for the second ride. A real nice tail wind on the way out to Casey's sky-rocketed the outbound speed to 20 MPH. I was already toast and didn't even start the return journey yet. With a number of good racers along for the ride, I didn't think I'd be seeing the front for to long. However, lucky for me, they were racing on Sunday and cruised along at a reasonable speed.
This reasonable cruising speed eventually dropped all those who hadn't been out riding or training real hard during the winter months. Eventually, Kyle Skinner, Adam Miller, John Tye and Brian Lasswell pulled away. (Please guys, tell me you were trying.....) Anyhow I got dropped and lucky for me there was Jeff Winter to ride with so I didn't have to go it alone. It's a good thing they are racing tomorrow and going easy today - nothing like knowing that fact and still getting dropped. Luckily I lost my ego years ago.
Just one more thing to mention - Jeff Winter also listened to the weather man this morning and was over dressed. I made it absolutely clear that the fact he was wearing his wife's nylons under his bike pants will never get out. Like I told him - his secret is safe with me... Later....

Top 25 Men KS/MO Riders USA Cyclocross Rankings 12/14/11
Previous Ranking 12/05/11 - Green Moved Up - Red Moved Down

Top 10 Women KS/MO Riders USA Cyclocross Rankings 12/14/11
Previous Ranking 12/05/11 - Green Moved Up - Red Moved Down