PA State Championship and Chamois Cream

PA State Road Race Championship
Great course, great weather. The course is 48 miles for the women on a challenging 12 mile loop that is located in rural Berks County in eastern PA. Patty was at the race representing team VA Asset Group by herself, she got into a quick break that got pulled back and then spent some time chasing a solo break. In the end it would be a group sprint for the women who were still in the peleton, at this point 12 -15 riders. Patty did an awesome job in the sprint and took 2nd place, even with some confusion about where the finish line actually was. Nice work Patty! 


Chamois Talk
This week our team sat down to talk (over some coffee, of course) about chamois cream, and here is what our riders had to say about the topic:


Amanda- "it took me 5 years of racing to figure out where i'm supposed to apply chamois cream... now i just can't get enough!!!"

Tiffany- "Chamois cream is crucial for pregnant riders too, all that extra junk in the trunk needs some serious tlc."

Julie H.- "I started using Udderly Smooth Chamois Cream earlier this year when I became involved with the team, and I’ve never looked back. With its shea butter base, this cream has a great consistency and makes rides much more comfortable."

Leslie- "Udderly Smooth is so smooth and silky. It almost makes me wish I were a cow!"


Emily- "Even on the long hot rides Udderly Smooth goes the distance and makes me one happy cyclist "


Erika- "Udderly Smooth chamois cream with shea butter saves my behind every ride. Can't climb into the saddle without it!"


Erin- "I've even started wearing it when I'm not riding my bike..."


"Like" our page today, we have some complementary chamois cream for the 200th fan on facebook! 


See you at Page Valley and Crossroads Cycling Classic next weekend!

Grandview GP and Liberty Crit, short race report

Pennsylvania was the place to be this weekend, with a double race weekend and a very competitive women's field at both races. Virginia racing was not happening this weekend after Blacksburg was cancelled (and Erin was sad). 

Grandview Grand Prix: Saturday, July 23

This is a great, technical 1-mile course neighborhood of Grandview, PA. The course has six turns over one mile, with a long straight finish on wide Grandview Boulevard. The course did have a lot of shade, but it didn't matter much because it was HOT! Leslie and Patty were representing team Virginia Asset Group this weekend. The women's field had good numbers and the riders were a strong group, this combined with the technical nature of the course led to a smokin' fast race. Leslie raced about 5 laps and pulled herself because she was feeling the heat. Many riders were dropped from the main field during the race for one reason or another, and by the end of the race the pack size was whittled down to about 15 riders. Position was critical for this race and Patty did a great job staying where she needed to be. In the final (very long) sprint it was Kacey Manderfield (Pure Energy) for the win, with Patty at a solid 6th place. 

Liberty Criterium: Sunday, July 24

Course description: a fast 1-mile oval loop in the Great Valley Corporate Center, with one small rise in the course. So totally different from Grandview. Leslie and Patty both raced again on Sunday and Leslie felt much better and was ready the hot day. About 5 laps in Patty got off the front for 2 laps with a CAWES rider before it was pulled back, another rider managed to get off solo for a few laps but in the end it would be a large, sketchy bunch sprint. Team Kenda won the race, Patty took 19th and Leslie 23rd. 

Great job to Leslie and Patty and good weekend racing. Here are some races we are looking forward to in August: Tour of Page County, Crossroads Cycling Classic, Dawg Days Crit, Tour of the Catskills, Chesapeake Criterium, and probably a few others I am forgetting! 

training & massage, a winning combination

Sports Performance Training Blog
by Emily Joyner


This week I got to blast my muscles and then get a massage all at one convenient location! Although the massage is not part of the standard performance training package, it is an option because In Motion has a certified massage therapist in house. Massage is a special treat for me, but I can see why many pro athletes have sport massage as part of their regular routine.

I scheduled the training session first. It happened to be an off-day for cycling so this was the only hard effort I would put in that day. I enjoy the warm-up and stretching sequence, and find it really loosens me up without taking very long, I use bands and active stretches. The plyometric section of jumps and bounding make me sort of nostalgic to my old gymnastics days because of the emphasis placed on sticking the landing and focusing on balance. I think I am improving with the bounds, too, or at least I am more aware of my actual abilities... when I first started doing the jumps from one leg to another I would try to go much farther than I could actually land and end up falling over, now I can stick them.

The strength circuit this week was pretty awesome, every time I come I learn new exercises or variations that are exciting to me. This session, he split the strength up into two circuits. Circuit 1 had a leg exercise followed by a hip/quad stretch, then pull ups followed by a shoulder/back stretch. Circuit 2 focused on strength, but took away stability rather than adding weight to make the exercise more difficult and utilize core muscles during the exercises. With my recent back injury I can see the weakness in the left side during this type of exercise because I loose balance very easily, but the exercises do not cause pain in my back. While the entire workout engages the core, the last set is directly targeting core strength. This time we did a plank series and then a variation of a crunch to finish it off. Protein shake for the road and I am done... now it's time for the massage!

What can I say, it was a one hour massage, and I loved it. The massage therapist was able to combine a relaxing massage with stretching , especially in my legs. Problem areas like my IT bands and my piriformis received attention and I know massage helps both of these areas just from using a foam roller on my own. In the end I felt very relaxed and could have fallen asleep, but my hour was up and I had to drive home. I was actually sleepy for a while and even after riding later that evening fell asleep very quickly when I went to bed (which is not always easy for me).

Overall, I really like the combination of training then massage at In Motion- it's like he icing on the cake!

Franklin Omnium: race report

Race Report by Emily Joyner
The Franklin Omnium is a new race this year, and were are very thankful to the hard work of the VBVK team and Celerity Cycling for all the work that went into it. The Omnium consisted of three races, anyone who registered for all three races was entered into the omnium. The other option was to sign up for individual races, people who did this were not eligible for omnium points.



Time Trial: the course was a 10 mile route that went out and back, flat and fast with not too much wind. We had one rider who came out for the TT, Erin, so all our omnium hopes fell to rest on her shoulders.... all the sprinters had really good excuses for not being able to make it. When the dust had settled and the results were posted Erin placed 2nd in the time trial behind Ali (VBVK) and 1 second in front of Laura (VBVK).

Glad I got new tires before the corners!

Criterium: A very technical course with 5 left turns and 2 right turns, some of which were faster than others. The field was a strong but small group of women with VBVK well represented, plus Tripower, Fat Frogs, and VA Asset Group now had 3 riders present. After several attacks (including our own Leslie off the front for the first 1/4 of the race) there was a break with Ali (omnium leader), Erin (2nd in omnium), and Emily (Erin's helper) that was able to push off the front and stick. Erin and Emily tried several strategies to get Erin off by herself, but Ali kept it together for a 3-person sprint. With 2 1/2 laps to go Emily went to the front and held pace. With 1 lap to go Emily started winding up the lead out and Erin kicked it into full gear after the final corner and won the crit. Ali placed 2nd and Emily placed 3rd. Back in the field the VBVK team attacked regularly and Leslie responded, however, Jen (VBVK) eventually got away solo for 4th, and the rest of the field sprinted. Leslie showed her skill and jumped first with a strong acceleration that gave her the field sprint for 5th overall. Erin and Ali were now tied going into the last race of the omnium, the road race.

The happy team after some great team work! 

Road Race: All the same faces as at the crit, plus one more from our team, Ava, who was busy all day Saturday selling people great bikes with great service with a smile on her face at BikeBeat. Laurel Larson (SynFit) was also there as a fresh face for the weekend and competitng only in the road race. We started the race late, but eventually were off and rolling on a nice Sunday pace-line for the first eight miles of lap one (14 miles/lap). Erin and Ali (VBVK) were marking one another and both teams seemed very focused on the competition for first in the omnium rather than the road race. Leslie got up the road with Laurel briefly and VBVK quickly pulled it back. Emily responded with another attack that got a big gap with no one interested in chasing except Laurel (SynFit), who bridged up. By the time Laurel and Emily received a time gap a lap and a half later the gap was up to around 10 minutes. Back in the pack the several attacks were launched to try and get Ali away, both Ava and Leslie helped cover these with Erin, but mainly the pace was casual. With a few miles to go for the leaders we were informed that the race would be shortened to 3 laps and we were to finish when we crossed the line. Laurel took the win and Emily came in second. The field sprint would determine the omnium winner, at about 1K to go Leslie got to the front and gave a killer lead-out getting Erin close enough to sprint for the win, which she did!

Omnium Results: Erin won the omnium, Ali (VBVK) placed 2nd, and Emily placed 3rd.

Ironhill Criterium

Report by Emily Joyner

This race is so much fun. The crowd is fantastic from the amateur mens race through the pro women and right until the end of the pro men you will have a difficult time finding a place to watch the race along the front side of the race with out being in a crowd. The primes are typical for a USA Crit event, constant bell ringing for $50 - $250 sprints, and that really gets the race moving. I really like the course, too, it is a 1k rectangle-shaped course through the streets of downtown West Chester, PA, and while the streets are fairly narrow the turns feel fast and the course really works well. Oh, yeah, and its flat.

Although missing some of the heavy hitting pro teams, competitors were some of the top USA Crits racers like Erika Allar (Ride Clean) and Kacey Manderfield (Pure Energy) were there to push the pace, especially during prime laps. The primes seemed to be the main motivator and kept the speed consistently fast for the first half of the race. I worked on moving up every chance I could, although my teammate Leslie always seemed to be a few places ahead of me.

photo of Leslie by Todd Leister from www.cyclingnews.com

The race stayed together and strung out through the mid-race points prime until Kacey attacked and Erika went with her getting a quick 10 second gap. The gap held steady for a few laps as the group was unable to organize for a chase. When the break got a few more seconds on the field Arley (CAWES) and a Kenda rider attempted to bridge up to the break. The pack was still unorganized, but a few good efforts was enough to pull the bridge attempt back. With a lap and a half to go a Kenda rider went to the front and attacked/pushed the pace until the sprint. There was the typical jockeying for position on the last lap and a two-rider wreck coming out of turn 3. I think the wreck spaced people out a bit more for the final sprint, and my position going into corner 3 was the same place I finished in.

In the end the race winner was Erika Allar, followed by Kacey Manderfield, and in 3rd place Colleen Hayduk (Pure Energy). Team Virginia Asset Group had two riders in the top 20, Emily with 11th and Leslie with 19th. Special thanks to Leslie and family for hosting us on the farm for a great weekend!

The big 'Toona: continuing tour blog

Tour de Toona has historically been a favorite race among top female racers both in the US and internationally because the promoters give women the same routes and distances as the men and offer equal prize money for women, the result is a very exciting and very competitive race. This year the women's start list is actually bigger than the men's start list with teams from Canada and New Zealand represented! 


This blog will be updated as each stage is completed tracking the progress of team Virginia Asset Group p/b Artemis/Trek throughout the week. Our team for Toona includes riders from other teams in the Mid-Atlantic region who all joined together to meet the 6-rider minimum to enter the race. Erin & Patty race with this team all season, other riders on the Toona team include Lindsay and Monika from XO Communications, Ainhoa from Cardio Sports Lab, & Sarah from Sticky Fingers. 

Wednesday July 6, Stage 1- the prologue time trial:
This 3 mile very technical time trial took riders through downtown Altoona with 17 turnes before the finish line. The winner of the stage was Team Tibco's Tara Whitten who will go into the road race in stage two with the yellow jersey. The riders wearing the Virginia Asset Group team jersey finished in the following places after the short time trial: 30th - Patty, 35th - Lindsay, 37th - Monika, 50th - Erin, 65th - Ainhoa, 71st - Brenna, 76th - Sarah. The race is still wide open, with two long road races and the criterium still to go. Good luck ladies! 


Thursday July 7, Stage 2 - Richland to Blue Knob
This 73 mile road race was basically uphill the entire way with varied difficulty of climbs along the way. It was a fast race and the winner was Veronique Fortin (PK Express) with a time of 3:29:02. Our first rider in was Patty, just two and a half minutes behind the leader and in 22nd place for the day. Monika and Erin came in close together at 31st and 32nd, followed by Lindsay at 41st, Ainhoa at 44th, Sarah at 61st, and Brenna at 67. Full results available here. Team Virginia Asset Group riders all made the time cut and will continue on to stage 3, the next road race, after a rest day tomorrow. Happy resting and good luck on Saturday with 91 miles!


Saturday July 8th, Stage 3- Altoona to Blue Knob to Altoona

The rest day was well appreciated by our team, all of who lined up to start the 3rd stage of the tour. This stage reads 91 miles on the map, but that probably does not include all the extra miles from going off course... the moto took racers on the wrong route 2 times during this race, and at one point the main field had to stop and wait for the break away to get back on course because they were so far off they were behind the field. 3 miles after the group restarted was the big 6 mile climb and the group was shattered on this climb. Several groups were re-directed again, before finding their way to the finish line with 103 miles on the computer. The stage's results are posted here in full, here is how team VA Asset Group finished: Patty 25th, Lindsay 34th, Erin 45th, Monika 48th, Ainhoa 52nd, Sarah54th, Brenna 63rd


Sunday July 9th, Stage 4- Downtown Altoona Criterium
We are proud to report that we had our full team roster lined up at the start of the final stage of the tour, it was a tough week and the field size had decreased going into the the crit, so the team was really energized by having everyone still present and racing. The crit course is a one-mile downtown course that is all up and down with 6 corners and an s-turn. It proved to be an intense all-out race. Everyone seemed to get held up by a wreck at some point, and riders many riders were shelled off the back pretty quickly, with less than 30 riders finishing with the pack for a sprint finish won by Laura Van Guilder (NOW & Novartis for MS). Team Virginia Asset Group had 2 riders finish the crit, Sarah in 24th place and Erin in 32nd place. Full Crit results are here. The overall GC was effected heavily by this final stage, and the only riders who were placed in the GC were the riders who finished the crit and received a place and time in the stage. Janel Holcomb (Colavita) won the overall GC.  On team VA Asset Group Erin and Sarah both received a GC placing. Erin finished the tour at 30th and Sarah 39th. 


Great job to all the VA Asset Group riders during the difficult Tour de Toona: Brenna, Lindsay, Monika, Ainhoa, Sarah, Erin and Patty. 

ID3: Roanoke's 3-race weekend

This is the 3rd year I have traveled for this race and each year it's a good time and a weekend I always enjoy.


Day 1- the Mill Mountain TT:
This time trial is a hill climb, 1.87 miles up Roanoke's Mill Mountain for an elevation gain of 900 feet. For as much as I really dislike time trials and as much as I am really not a climber I have to admit I enjoy this race every year. My enjoyment has little to do with my result in this stage of the race, but it's more of a sense of accomplishment from just being in so much pain for 12 minutes and still pushing hard. This year was no different and my effort put me in 3rd place (my best result but 1 second off a PR).

Day 2- the first Criterium: 

Getting ready for a hot race

This race is a 5-corner crit on a flat 1KM course (flat in Roanoke is unique enough), it has long fast straight sections and a tricky first 2-corner 180. It's a great course for spectators because of the shade and ability to watch the almost the entire race from one spot. I rode on the front and set pace for the first few laps to make sure the corners would not be too ugly. After the primes started I found myself testing my legs on the sprint, and then fielding attacks that began to follow. The main attacks came from the VBVK team, who sat in first and second after the hill climb. After numerous attacks and with less than 10 laps to go Jen (VBVK) launched off the front, I was able to get in her draft and the gap got smaller after a lap. As soon as the group caught up with us Brittney (VBVK) used the momentum to sling-off on her own attack. I jumped and got in her draft on the back of the course and she held her speed through the line taking a prime. We worked together for the last 6 laps gaining about half a lap on the field before our bell lap. I took the lead for most of the last lap at an easy pace until the 3rd corner where I wound it up for the sprint. I had the jump on the last corner and held it to the line for the win. Jen took the field sprint for third. After this race the overall points race was a three-way tie for first between Jen, Brittney, and I. It would all come down to the final race.

Day 3- the second Criterium:

funny jersey, cat5 = squirly

The final criterium is the more technical with an "L" shape, a short steep uphill on the back side, and a longer more gradual uphill on the front. Today I was really focused on getting the win, which would mean a win in the overall points omnium. The race had several primes which gave everyone a chance to take the last corner fast and try out the sprint. I pushed the pace after one prime with a rider from VT to see if a gap would stick but it was too early and the VBVK ladies pulled it back pretty quickly. Towards the end of the race on a prime lap I saw an opportunity to get a gap up the short steep hill and took it, Jen bridged up and we worked together to stay away for the rest of the race. We had a big enough gap on the last lap to take it slow, I went to the front on the back side of the course and started my sprint out of the last corner. Jen has a very good sprint and used the uphill to her advantage, but I jumped first and was able to hold her off by half a wheel at the line. I got the race win and the omnium win, and I was very happy.

Great race, well organized and really fun with lots of great primes at both crits. I recommend it!