Top Finishes at Furman Cap another Weekend of Racing

- Greenville, South Carolina -

Final Results
Photos Album 1
Photos Album 2

Going into the SECCC’s Furman race weekend, Mercer Cycling hovered at fifth of the 16 teams in the Division II SECCC Conference standings despite only racing 3 of the 5 events this spring. Hoping to have a strong showing in their final SECCC team event of the spring, Mercer Cycling answered with another team time trial victory, three Top-10s in the men’s ‘C’ road race (including one in the women’s A race), and a Top-3 finish during the rain-soaked Criterium. Traveling to Pelzer, South Carolina, about 30 minutes south of Greenville, the team time trial was a held on a surprisingly tough 15.5 mile course that exposed teams to plenty of elevation, head-winds, and chilly weather for a Saturday morning.

Mercer’s first entry (Jason Glow, Andrew Lockwood, and Kevin Roberts) posted the fast time in the ‘C’ team time trial at 41:53, only 21 seconds ahead of 2nd place King College. Mercer’s second entry (Gabe Denes, Paul Rush, A.J. Sholly) came in minutes later at 46:26 to finish in 4th. Saturday afternoon’s road race event was the longest for the ‘C’ riders thus far in the season, stretching to nearly 44 miles as the peloton completed three laps on a course that provided more than 3,000+ feet of climbing during the 2 hour race. With a field of 53, odds were that no attack at the front would survive for very long (as no attack during the course of the race had survived for more than 5 minutes at the previous three road races).

However, the dynamics of the race changed when eventual winner Brooks Bostick (College of Charleston) would blow up the field only 10 miles into the race, holding off the peloton for another 7-8 miles before being caught on the hill section of the course. Soon after, Mercer rider Kevin Roberts followed the lead of Brian Arne (CoC) in another attack that lasted the longest (nearly 14 miles) during the midsection of the race. Several teams worked up front to help the peloton reel in the attack groups. South Carolina, Georgia, Florida State, Clemson, King College, and ETSU all did work to stay in the front 1/3 of the field. With two miles to go, the Mercer team started to work as a team up front but a costly official ruling sent team member Andrew Lockwood to the back of the peloton with only minutes to go (Lockwood passed a rider on the yellow line instead of squeezing into the peloton when the field slowed).

Nevertheless, the Bears worked up to the top-10 for the final sprint. Lockwood would lead out Gabe Denes and Kevin Roberts to outstanding finishes at 4th and 6th respectively while he’d finish tenth. Jason Glow had a quiet, but consistent day in the peloton and stayed out of trouble to capture 20th while A.J. Sholly and Paul Rush dropped out of the race after the 2nd lap after falling off the back of the lead group.

“It was a long-grueling, painful end to the race. It was quite a challenge for me with all the hills but our team was certainly outstanding today,” said Denes after his best collegiate finish this season. Not known as a climber, Denes did the work he had to in order to position himself in the peloton for the final sprint. It was certainly a testament to the hard work the freshman has put into his training this spring.

In the women’s ‘A’ field, Elizabeth Lee repeated another strong showing, perhaps her best collegiate performance yet, with a 4th place finish.

The Criterium held on Sunday morning on Furman’s campus was perhaps the most technical race of the season as it featured seven turns on a rain-soaked 0.8 mile course. Part of the course was composed of a 270 degree loop of cobblestones while several 90 degree turns came into play. The field of approximately 50 started out fast and furious again, so much so, that sophomore Kevin Roberts was unable to work his way up front after a late clip-in at the start line.

Gobbling up attacks that went off the front, Andrew Lockwood rode a safe race, staying within the pack until the last few laps in order to position himself near the end. In eighth place with one lap to go, Lockwood passed all seven riders in front of him on the wet cobblestones to lead the pack out of the final turn. A Lees-McRae rider attacked to the right out of the final turn but had both wheels slip out from underneath him en route to his second wreck of the day (he wrecked midway through the event over his handlebars after his tire popped, cracking his helmet).

CoC’s Brooks Bostick found himself in the victory circle again with another Criterium win holding off South Carolina’s Eric Cash at the line. Lockwood would finish third after nudging out Furman’s Michael Bingham by only two inches. Despite the tough luck at the start, Kevin Roberts would record an 11th place finish while Jason Glow and A.J. Sholly barely missed the cut-line at 23rd and 26th respectively. In total, there were 6-7 wrecks during the 37 minute, 14 mile affair as the precipitation came in spurts.

“That was quite a race,” said Lockwood following Sunday morning’s event. “My bike felt extremely loose in the turns with the slick pavement and I was just fortunate not to get caught up in a wreck today as two happened right in front of me and one behind me. I was extremely proud of our team’s efforts all weekend long.”

Elizabeth Lee would endure constant rain in her 30 minutes + 3 lap event to finish 6th in a talented women’s ‘A’ field.

“This was probably the most fun and relaxing weekend of racing we’ve had,” said Roberts. “This weekend showed how strong our team really is and we worked together to use our strengths to post top results in the team time trial, road race and Criterium.”

A special thanks goes to Jason [Mercer Alum 1995] and Amy Daly of Greenville, South Carolina for providing lodging and delicious meals all weekend long.

Kevin Roberts and Gabe Denes interview post-race [Road Race]

Team Gearing Up for Furman Race Weekend

- Macon, GA -
Race Flier

After two weeks rest, the Mercer Cycling team will again hit the road, traveling to Greenville, South Carolina for the SECCC's fifth collegiate event of the season. Racing in their third collegiate competition of the spring, Mercer named the following riders to their traveling roster this weekend:
- Gabe Denes
- Jason Glow
- Elizabeth Lee
- Andrew Lockwood
- Kevin Roberts
- Paul Rush
- A.J. Sholly

Saturday's team time trial and road race will take place in nearby Pelzer, South Carolina as Mercer's two men's team will take off at 9am. The two teams (Lockwood, Roberts, Glow & Denes, Rush, Sholly) will look to take the podium again for the third race in a row after winning the 'C' time trials at both Georgia Southern and Georgia Tech. The 15 mile rolling hill loop should provide for plenty of action early Saturday morning.

Perhaps the most anticipated collegiate cycling event up to this point in the spring will be Furman's 40 mile 'C' race as the peloton will travel 3 laps around a course surrounding the town of Pelzer. Women's entry Elizabeth Lee will also battle the Women's 'A' field in a 40 mile affair as well.

Sunday's criterium events start early as the 'C' race kicks off the events at 8:30am. The 30 minutes + 3 laps race around Furman's campus will be an electrifying race for the men as Elizabeth Lee will go the extra distance (40 minutes + 3 laps) in her competition.

Stay tuned to MercerCycling.Blogspot.com for more details following the racing action this weekend.

Online Registration Now Open for the Macon Cycling Classic!

-Macon, GA-

Online registration is now available for the 1st Annual Macon Cycling Classic on Saturday, May 1st across from Mercer University around Tatnall Square Park. Working in conjunction with Macon’s Walthall Oil Cycling Team to promote the event, this Criterium bicycle race will be the first of its kind around the park. Moving last year’s downtown Macon Criterium to the park adjacent from University will bring hundreds of cyclists and thousands of spectators to the Mercer Village, one of the centers of the city’s revitalization efforts in recent months.

Event information including a list of races, start times, and entry fees can be found by visiting the race website at www.maconcyclingclassic.com.

Epic Road Races Cap Racing at Georgia Tech

Photos
Results
Saturday Sprint Finish Video
Handy, GA –

Coming off of a spring break rest from school, Mercer Cycling once again had a great showing in their second collegiate event of the season. Racing in a nearby rural suburb of Newnan, Georgia, a total of seven riders would compete for Mercer in the team trial, individual time trial, and road race portions of the event.

Saturday’s early morning session saw Mercer’s team time trial entry of Evan Ayoub, Jason Glow, Kevin Roberts, and Andrew Lockwood take first place in the ‘C’ category with a time of 28:16 around the 11 mile course for an average of 23.35 mph. The team reached speeds of 39 mph coming down a large descent that made up the first four miles of the course before strongly climbing the middle section of the course to finish 3:14 before second place finisher North Georgia (31:30).

In the individual time trial, Mercer’s Gabe Denes finished 7th (32:19) while freshman Alex Lockwood placed ninth with a 34:46 mark.

The afternoon road race shifted to a nearby 8 mile course on which the ‘C’ race would consist of four laps. As a climber-friendly course, Mercer riders worked up front for most of the race in the most epic event of the weekend. Gaining more than 2,100+ feet of elevation over the course of the race, the peloton of 30+ was split into a much smaller group of 12 riders by the end of the race with Andrew Lockwood and Kevin Roberts working with several teams up front.

Jason Glow experienced an excruciating wreck at the 10 mile mark when a rider in front of him slammed on his brakes, causing Glow and another rider to pile up behind him. Gabe Denes would also be forced to pull off of the course at the 24 mile mark with mechanical difficulties.


Kevin Robert’s attack at the base of a steep ladder climb halfway through the race helped set him up for a last minute sprint to the line at the top of a hill to finish 6th. College of Charleston’s (CoC) Brian Arne would manage to barely eek out the win over Georgia Southern’s Matt Gentry. Andrew Lockwood would finish 5 seconds behind the sprint group after suffering from cramps for the last half-mile to register a top-10 finish in 9th. Evan Ayoub would follow up the peloton in 15th, crossing the line just off the pace.

“I saw there was a steep climb coming into the race when we drove the course and I came into today wanting to use that climb to my advantage. Out of the two courses, I loved the Saturday course the most because of the uphill finish,” commented Roberts after the weekend of racing.

In the women’s ‘A’ race, an early breakaway from the Lees McRae team would prove costly as the Bobcats took positions 1 through 5. Mercer entry Elizabeth Lee would finish in the chase group in 8th.

After a night of recovery, Sunday’s race was an interesting sprint to the finish as well as almost the entire peloton finished at the same time. Attacks from CoC, Clemson, and Georgia Southern throughout the 33 mile race were unsustainable, setting up the group for a wild finish at the end. Wild finish it was as Georgia Southern’s Matt Gentry would race out to the lead with merely yards left before rounding the final turn. Gentry would cross the line first, but would later be disqualified for crossing the yellow line on a hill during the final sprint.

South Carolina’s Eric Cash would win the race, picking up his first of the season while CoC, Auburn, Clemson, and Alabama would record riders in the top 10. Andrew Lockwood, Kevin Roberts, and Gabe Denes would turn in a hard day’s effort up front for 6th, 8th, and 9th respectively while Jason Glow finished 14th.



Elizabeth Lee would also turn in a hard effort in the 44 mile women’s ‘A’ race to post 7th.

“Both road races were great experiences for our team,” said Andrew Lockwood. “We were able to really focus a lot on racing tactics, something that’s hard to simulate in training rides and in the big picture things went very well for us. Three Top-10s on Sunday will certainly help us in the points and I think we gained a lot of respect from the other schools in the conference today. Working up front with some of the top riders was fun and certainly taught us a lot,” he added.

Mercer Cycling now continues to train for the next collegiate competition of the season, hosted by Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina on March 27th and 28th.

Mercer Cycling Races to Top Finishes in Statesboro

Photos
Results
- Statesboro, GA -

It was a wild weekend for cyclists as representatives poured in from 17 colleges and universities around the southeast to participate in the 2010 Battle in the 'Boro. The race, held as a SECCC points race hosted by Georgia Southern, was the first collegiate race of the season for many teams, including Mercer Cycling. Starting the omnium race weekend off, Mercer's two teams of time trialist fared reasonably well given the chilly weather Saturday morning.

Taking the race trailer to Rocky Ford, a rural town 30 minutes from Statesboro, Mercer's first time trial team (Gabe Denes, Andrew Lockwood, Kevin Roberts) finished first in the 'C' category, 10th of 15th overall, with a 20km time of 33:02. The Bear's 2nd team consisting of Jason Glow, Paul Rush, and A.J. Sholly came in third in the 'C' category with a 12th place finish in the A, B, and C combined standings.

After Saturday morning's team time trial effort, the cyclists moved to Georgia Southern's campus for the afternoon's criterium races. The venue, which featured 8 hairpin turns, was quite a fast course for the riders but also whipped up winds as cyclists sped down the second straightaway. In the 'C' criterium (30 minutes + 3 laps), College of Charleston's Brooks Bostick and Brian Arne jumped out to an early advantage in front of a sizable chase group. The field of 44 quickly narrowed down to a chase group of 8-10 riders midway through the race as Mercer's Kevin Roberts attempted to bridge the gap to CoC's top riders. Briefly successful, Roberts dropped back a lap later to work with Andrew Lockwood in shuffling through the chase group. Late in the race, lap traffic began to become a problem as Bostick and Arne would easily claim 1st and 2nd. The rest of the field became a nightmare to sort out however as the chase pack finished in the middle of the lapped peloton.

Unofficially, Lockwood would finish 4th behind an ETSU rider while Roberts would hang onto 5th in a highly disputed and contested race. A.J. Sholly would hang on for a surprising mid-pack finish followed by Jason Glow, Gabe Denes, and Paul Rush.

Mercer's lone women's entry in Elizabeth Lee would take a 9th place finish out of the 13 woman field in the Collegiate 'A' category.

Sunday's road race was also highly controversial as the 22 mile course quickly morphed into a 27 mile course for the 'C' riders. Elizabeth Lee's 44 mile race also gained distance, increasing to 50+ miles by the race's end. Confusion and poor race organization by led to a combined peloton of 'B' and 'C' riders despite more than a 5 minute staggered time around the 22 mile Rocky Ford loop. In the men's 'C' action, all Mercer riders hung on with the peloton until the pace truck unexpectedly pulled over to the side of the road after missing a turn. After the confusion settled, Lockwood, Roberts, and Denes found themselves racing upfront with King College, College of Charleston, and riders from ETSU until the final sprint. Roberts led out a tad too early in his sprint, falling back to finish 18th as Lockwood would garner 3rd place behind CoC's Bostick and Georgia Southern's Matt Gentry. Gabe Denes would rebound to take 14th while Jason Glow (24th), Paul Rush (25th) and A.J. Sholly (33rd) would round out the results. Mercer Cycling now takes a two week rest break and resumes racing at the SECCC's next official race at Georgia Tech on March 13th and 14th.
Saturday's Kevin Roberts Interview

Saturday's Andrew Lockwood Interview

Collegiate 'B' Racing