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Nationals, News, Photos, Race Reports, Track

Track Nats ’26

Day 1: The travel

This time it’s not so new. The MIT Cycling track team (Matteo Fulghieri) is traveling once more to Indiana to compete in the USAC Collegiate Track Nationals at the Major Taylor Velodrome. The flight into Indianapolis International Airport is every heavy cyclist’s daydream: a landscape flatter than my cast iron pan at home where I stir fry vegetables most Tuesday evenings.

Arriving in Indianapolis, the first step is to make my way to the eventual race site to sign in and register. Akin to a captain at his helm, with the stern facing the land he loves, I stand now with only my bike case and firmly planted feet facing a storm of uncertainty; I can’t know what the following three days will hold for me, but I do know they will occur, and their outcome forever a moment in time.

There’s even a sense of peculiarity; the precisely measured 333m track sandwiched by a highway, a BMX track, and a university. An unusual gathering place for young adults who enjoy riding bikes to gather and pedal harder than they’ve ever pedaled before.

Following this moment of heavy anticipation and retrospection, it’s time to swing by the hotel. It is fortunately surrounded by a multitude of gas stations, which people oft forget are prime fueling stations for cyclists as well. Nothing beats the energy of a $1.99 roll of crunchy donuts.

Day 2: The sprints

Sprints day is the first day. Today is all about speed and acceleration, with little need to endure powers long enough to hurt. The seating for the match sprints is quite straight forward: how quickly can you cover 200m with a wind up.

The best part of TrackNats is making friends, and fortunately the Fort Lewis Cycling team adopted me into their family. So much so that the MIT name was formally added to their tent, and we even shared our equipment. After all, mi chainring es su chainring.

Photo courtesy of Karen Brower Photography

The flying 200m starts with a strong push in the back to get you some speed up the gradual incline of the back straight. With this, you roll ever so slowly through the Start/Finish with 2 to go. The name of the game is building up your potential energy but preserving your legs to the fullest. It’s a bit of a shimmy to get your knees brushing the top railing; pushing and rolling at just the right times to give a momentum kick. Now, rolling towards the Start/Finish approaching your 1 to go lap, the power picks up. A smooth roll evolves into a little pressure on the down stroke, then pressing down like you mean it, then coming out of the saddle to pull on the bars a bit, then the back stroke gets a tug, until you’re at the top of the railing and pushing and tugging with every ounce of strength in the legs. Finally, you round Turn 2 and pass through the 200m mark and it’s time to sit back into the saddle and spin the lower extremities right off the torso and hold on for dear life, pushing 40mph through Turns 3 and 4. This year I crossed the finish line in 11.531s, putting me in 15th and to race the 2nd place qualifier.

The match sprints themselves remind me a bit of my wrestling days, if you take out the wrestling and replace it with cycling—okay maybe it’s not really similar at all. The two lap race to the finish always starts slow, with a lot of eye contact and sometimes some smiles. Coming through the last lap, it then picks up into a battle for position—I was bested by my opponent, who very carefully stole the inside line and kept me stuck at the barriers; besides the fact that he was incredibly quick on the pedals.

Day 3: The IP and Points Race

The 4km Individual Pursuit is not so dynamic. You start pedaling, you keep pedaling, and then around lap 5 of 12 you realize you went out too hard and your legs are screaming. I call this the first stage of the IP: regret. Lap 7 brings the next stage: negotiation. You tell yourself you can handle this and just need to keep going, that this really isn’t the worse thing ever and the finish line is approaching. Lap 9 brings hopelessness; you were wrong, you can’t keep doing this, your legs have reached unregistered pain levels. You can’t even see anymore and the baking of the track is the only item keeping you from crashing. Then, the final laps bring existential contextualization: what does it mean to be a cyclist, what does it mean to be in pain, can I be certain that my pain is real, do I have the free will to stop pedaling, is humanity doomed to eternal suffering, if I am not for myself who will pedal this bike? Finally the finish line approaches, and it seems quite fit to immediately collapse in the grass. Today was a PR in 5:01.

** This is an important moment to highlight a lesson I learned this day: having been adopted into the FLC family also meant total treatment as such, and that meant being screamed at each lap. In those moments of desperation, these forced me to pedal harder. Shout out to the team parents Mari and Drew.

Photo courtesy of Karen Brower Photography

Of course, the rest of my time was spent recovering and yelling words of encouragement to my FLC teammates, who all excelled in their races.

The evening wrapped up with the points race. 36km in 35 minutes does not leave the brain with much time to do math, and math I did not do. I managed to secure a few points on the opening sprint, but failed to encourage the mind to join the breakaway, and this left me in 12th place.

Day 4: The Kilo and Scratch

A deep rain enveloped the sprawled Indiana landscape; a reflection of how my legs felt at this point. On the bright side, this meant sleeping in and hanging out around the house and working. Reality emerged around noon: the remaining races would all take place in the evening. The opening kilo saw me pulling my cleat out of the pedal once more, so details of the frantic effort to clip back in and pull the cranks off the bike will be spared.

Finally was the scratch race. This time just 12km at a blistering pace exceeding 50kph. At these speeds, reaction time becomes critical and knowing the moves to jump into is vital. The race ended together, with myself in 14th. The women’s points race followed; from the vantage point of the pit you can see the entire race, which makes for an exhilarating spectator experience. This race unfortunately saw the only crash of the weekend, which fortunately saw only scrapes and bruises as a result.

After all was said and done, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology cycling team earned the highest club team omnium points, earning the title of a National Championship program. The horizon is bright for the program, and the goals are only higher for next year. And of course the reunion of the FLC-MIT familia.

News, Photos, Race Reports, Road

UVM 2026: From Philo to the Podium

At the end of the ECCC 2026 racing season, MIT cycling sent its largest contingent of the year to the Catamount Cycling Classic hosted by University of Vermont.

The attendees included Emily, our noble logistics officer who was wrapping up a successful spring racing campaign; Paul, our unofficial support team lead; Lorenzo, our men’s road captain fearlessly returning from knee rehab; Sparrow, ready to wattsmax the finale to his first racing season; Matteo and Ryan, our resident hooligans and fast bois; Noah, our team photographer and gravel evangelist; and finally me (Jody), our cyclocross co-captain. After 2 years of training with the team, I was finally attending my first ECCC racing weekend thanks to overcoming my fear of racing on pavement and kicking my habit of running Spring marathons.

Our first day of racing started with a brutally steep climb up Mount Philo for the Individual Time Trial. Having heard about this legendary climb from past racers, I had prepared by doing weekly Eastern Ave repeats over the past month. In a last-minute bargain for extra watts, I also swapped out my aluminum 650b stock wheels to the carbon team wheels. I had never done any training with them, but looked forward to the mental boost of a lighter wheelset.

After shooing off the men’s 4/5 racers Sparrow and Noah, I found myself at the start line, heart pounding and staring at the concrete wall ahead of me. I got off to a slow and wobbly start, finding my rhythm after the first few turns. A few short minutes in however, my legs felt unusually weak and something was up with my gearing. Why couldn’t I downshift? Climbing had never felt this hard before. I struggled to stay upright and finally made it to the top, feeling a mix of relief and despair.

When I got back to the team cars, it hit me. My last minute wheel swap from 650b to 700c had changed my apparent gear ratio. With my 165mm cranks and wobbly legs, it was a miracle I had made it up at all. I sheepishly debriefed with Sparrow, who had also made it up the steepest Philo sections, only to accidentally dismount his bike early due to a mistaken finish line. Meanwhile, Noah had floated up the hill with his sub-1:1 gear ratio, making us regret not taking our gravel bikes too.

Ryan does a wheelie

After some solid ITT performances by the remaining team members and some wheelies by Ryan, it was time for the road race. I felt substantially better and was eager to climb up the rankings this time (pun intended) in my first-ever road race. Things got off to a hot start, and I clawed my way into the lead group. Despite being warned by Emily about the prevailing women’s tactic of attacking mid-conversation, I was caught off guard when Middlebury riders bolted up a hill in the midst of a debate on Trader Joe’s gummy flavors. Before I knew it, they were gone and I was left with one other rider to finish out the second half of the race.

Following our race, Sparrow hopped into his car to volunteer as a follow car for the men’s 3/4 race, where he tried to help Lorenzo avoid being dropped. Noah and I watched from the sidelines and snapped photos, marveling at the pacelines, fast cornering, and beautiful Vermont scenery.

 

Lorenzo takes on the mens 3/4 road race
Matteo (rightmost) takes a pull in the mens 1/2/3 peloton with Ryan (2nd from left) in the back

 

The men’s 3/4 race peloton including Sparrow volunteering as the follow car
Emily pacelining in the road race with the 1/2/3 women
The mens 1/2/3 road race prepares to tackle more rolling hills in the Vermont countryside
Recovery creemees after dinner! From left to right: Lorenzo, Noah, Jody, Sparrow, Ryan, Matteo, Paul, and Emily

The team finished off the day with a hearty Mexican dinner and Vermont creemees for extra recovery calories. The next day, Lorenzo, Noah, Sparrow and I headed to UVM campus early for the 4/5 men’s and women’s races. I trailed the boys during the pre-ride laps, gingerly leaning into the corners and praying I would stay rubber side down in the race.

Following warmup, Sparrow and Noah immediately jumped into the men’s 4/5 race, where they were serenaded by a full brass and percussion band. Both of them put up impressive sprint performances, with Sparrow staying out of trouble until his impressive display of watts rewarded him with a top-5 finish.

The adrenaline of the men’s race had given me a newfound confidence for my race, and I lined up in the front row. The whistle blew, and I easily kept up with the front group, barely noticing the corners. When a rider made an attack with 3 laps to go, it slowly dawned on me that this was my only chance to try for first place glory. Buoyed by Lorenzo’s yells of ‘you can go faster!’, I pulled away from the peloton and chased until the finishing straightaway, where I resigned myself to second – until I spotted the first place rider ahead. I surged forward in a final effort, missing the win by half a bike length.

Jody about to take on the chicanes at the UVM Crit
The team watches in suspense as Emily sprints for a photo-finish second place

 

While I couldn’t finish the job, Emily tried for redemption in the women’s  1/2/3 race. After leading the race and taking a couple Prime lap points, the entire team watched as she outsprinted two other women to snatch second place in a photo finish. Lorenzo decided to skip his men’s 3/4 race due to his knee, joining Sparrow as a star spectator (‘give them hell, Emily!’) and selfie-taker.

The men’s 1/2/3 race wrapped up the day. Matteo and Ryan’s race ended early after getting stuck behind a crash, but that didn’t stop our team photographer from getting some quality action shots.

Resident hooligan number 1 Matteo takes on the men’s 1/2/3

 

Resident hooligan number 2 Ryan takes on the men’s 1/2/3

 

Emily (right) clinches 2nd place ECCC omnium!

With the racing finished, all that was left to do was wait for the awards ceremony. Although we were sunburned, tired, and running almost entirely on post-race adrenaline, the wait was worth it: Emily capped off an impressive weekend with a third-place medal in the road race, second place in the criterium, and a second place in the ECCC omnium, while I was proud to come away with fourth in the hill climb, fifth in the road race, and second in the criterium. To top it off, I was awarded the team’s Most Aggressive Rider jersey, a longstanding MIT Cycling tradition that rewards attacking riders with the privilege of wearing a bright red jersey featuring an intimidating angry face.

Overall, the weekend was one of the most rewarding racing experiences I’ve had. While I’ve raced plenty of running races, cyclocross events, and even gravel, this was my first time being at the very front of a race, chasing down a breakaway and realizing that a win might actually be possible. It’s a thrill I won’t forget anytime soon.

Whether or not I end up racing ECCC again next year, I’m grateful I finally took the leap. Between the climbs, the crits, the wheel swaps, the creemees, and the people who made the weekend memorable, Catamount was an unforgettable way to close out the spring season.

 

News, Photos, Race Reports, Rides, Road, Training

Winter Training Camp 2026

The three musketeers packed their bikes and set off for another spectacular Winter Training Camp (WTC) in Tucson, AZ. In this year’s edition, the team shared Daniel’s house in Oro Valley with two pro triathletes, Marc and Gabi, making for excellent company and great mentors on life as an athlete. Our goals for this camp were to make new friends while riding bikes, to eat well and build up our base miles without overuse injuries, and to race a time trial on our last day.

 

The scenery of the Sonoran desert with its rugged rocks, Saguaro cacti and speedy road runners was a welcome relief from the winter storm on the East Coast. The best way to see it was to warm up our legs on an easy spin out to Gates Pass by setting out on the Loop bike path. It was Sparrow’s first time riding his new road bike and when we crossed the first road he forgot to unclip his pedal and fell immediately, sending his Di2 drivetrain into crash mode. As all three of us MIT PhD students were stopped at the side of the road to diagnose the electronic issue, we asked ChatGPT for repair instructions before eventually figuring out that unplugging the derailleur and plugging it back in would get Sparrow bike to work again. We continued to ride three climbs of increasing difficulty to help us adjust to riding outdoors and practice our descending. As we stopped for a photo, we also spotted the gang of Quinn Simmons, wearing his national champion jersey, on a post-Shootout cooldown ride. We rode home starstruck and planned our upcoming ascent of Mt. Lemmon after recovering with a big chicken stew.

Three musketeers take a team photo at Gates Pass

On day 2, we drove to Le Buzz cafe for our ride up Mt Lemmon. The weather at the summit had been snowy for a few days and at the base we were stopped by a sheriff who told us to turn around after 5 miles. Lorenzo led the climb and decided to stop after 14 miles at Windy Point Vista, when he could see snow a few miles up the road. After a few minutes, he got cold, put on all his jackets and rode down to find the rest of the team. A mile down the road, Martin asked “did you go all the way to the top?” and Lorenzo, still hypoxic, replied while descending “Yeah, just around the corner.” Martin, only hearing Lorenzo say “Yeah” as he zipped by, thought “Man, I’m really out of shape if Lorenzo had all the time to make it to the top and back.” Half a mile down the road, Lorenzo realized the miscommunication and stopped to call Martin. Having no reception, Lorenzo had no choice but to chase Martin up the climb, having already given him a mile headstart. Sparrow, who hadn’t yet been spotted, was dreaming of the cookie cabin waiting atop the mountain as he climbed to join his teammates.

Windy Point Vista with the Mt Lemmon highway and cloudy weather in view

 

Desperation set in when Lorenzo returned to the Windy Point Vista without Martin yet in sight. Three miles later, with snow on the shoulder, he caught up to Martin and turned around, rejoining Sparrow. As the descent began, Martin and Sparrow took off, thinking about the LeBuzz cookie and not having to pedal. Lorenzo started to shiver so badly he couldn’t steer his bike and needed to stop every 100 m to warm up. Meanwhile, towards the base of the climb, Martin was brushed against by a car and crashed, with some serious road rash. To our surprise, Martin’s Di2 hadn’t gone into crash mode. Still full of adrenaline, Martin hopped right back onto the bike without noticing the multiple cracks in his carbon frame. After about a mile or so of riding, his legs started to cramp and the extent of the damage sunk in when he got off and inspected the bike.

The team photo at their turnaround on Mt Lemmon before beginning a harrowing descent

We rejoined at LeBuzz, where Martin needed to inhale a pastry and coffee before addressing his multiple open wounds. The entire screen of his bike computer fell off, but at least the ride was saved and uploaded to Strava. Eventually, we went to the urgent care so Martin could get his injuries taken care of, including a scary swelling bruise. Already, it was clear what everyone’s rose, bud and thorn would be later, and thankfully the dinner of chicken stew and baked sausage was already prepared. Martin had a restless night between the road rash and scheming to commit insurance fraud for a new frame.

After the extreme events of the previous day, it was clear that a recovery day was needed. While Martin stayed off the bike to watch the bruise, Sparrow and Lorenzo, looking splendid in his Belgian kit, went along the Loop to Savaya, the nearest coffee shop with the best views of Mt Lemmon. While enjoying their cup o’ Joe, they saw a roadrunner snacking on meatballs from the coffee shop. Later, they went shopping at an international market with multiple aisles for each cuisine, over 20 in total, adding a lot of steps to our recovery day. While Lorenzo made a lentil stew from the leftovers, Marc “the shark” shared stories about how to race and get sponsored as a pro triathlete.

Captain “Chef” Sparrow studying the varieties of soy sauce at Lee Lee International Market

On day four, Martin was determined to ride and after he bandaged himself better than Tadej Pogacar we set out for a long ride on the Loop where there wouldn’t be any dangerous car traffic. Daniel, our host, made everyone’s day by letting Martin ride his steel 1x bike, formerly owned by Ashton Lambie, Individual Pursuit world champ. On the long, flat stretches of bike path we practiced how to ride in a paceline efficiently en route to the Mercado San Agustin. Afterwards, Sparrow, having just completed the longest ride of his life, sprang into action as chef, cooking a succulent fried beef dish with the best chili oil (aka, rocket fuel) and a pork shoulder stew for the days to come.

Fried beef, noodles, and bok choy dressed with homemade chili oil

Martin planned a route for the next day around Saguaro national park and Colossal Cave. On the way, he stopped at Fairwheel bikes, where the kind folks set him up with a rental bike. At Saguaro NP, the park loop decorated with cacti was so beautiful that all the tourists driving their cars were stopped in the middle of the road. On one such pause, Lorenzo noticed that his shifter cable had snapped and found himself doing torque intervals on his simplified 2-speed bike. We continued our leisurely tour of the park and at last made our way towards Colossal Cave. The slight uphill grade was complemented by a colossal headwind, requiring a concerted push to cover the distance. On the return, we flew downhill with the tailwind, reaping the rewards of our labor. Towards the end, Lorenzo’s rear tire went flat, finally rendering his 2-speed bike useless, as karma had caught up with him for lording the simplicity of his mechanical bike over his teammates electronic drivetrains flawed due to the crash mode anti-feature (false positive for Sparrow and false negative for Martin). On the way home, we tried out some local tamales that would have tasted better with some homemade chili oil.

Daniel’s arrival had been delayed a day due to a snowstorm on the East Coast. When he arrived that afternoon, he complained his back hurt from shoveling snow all day on his driveway. He needed to stretch his legs and went for a spin with Lorenzo to catch the sunset. Back at the house, we feasted on pork stew and were joined by Gabi and Marc. At some point Marc commented that Lorenzo had been rocking his bib shorts all day, to which Lorenzo replied, “when was the last time you trained for a 12 hour ride?” Practice makes perfect.

MIT cyclist rides into the Sunset on the Loop

With the recovery day completed, we were excited about the upcoming ITT and drove out to the mining town of San Manuel to recon the super-fast course. We flew along the downhill stretch to practice a TTT paceline and at the 9 mile turnaround, we stopped to regroup and saw that both Martin and Sparrow had punctures. Sparrow’s sealed, however it took us three MIT students 10 minutes to convince Daniel to stop Martin’s puncture with 2 plugs. Feeling very accomplished, we took a group photo with the festive cacti in the background.

Three cyclists pose as Saguaro cacti in the Sonoran desert

The ride continued with a long false flat followed by a climb up the far side of Mt Lemmon that led to the zipline adventure park. We were sure to stock up on glycogen and refueled with burgers, chicken tenders, and fries at the restaurant. The scenery of the Sonoran desert was truly stunning and thankfully was enjoyed with minimal interruption from cars.

Back at the house, the team joined Marc and Gabi for a barbecue with their triathlete friends. The group traded training stories and placed bets on the winning times for the Saturday ITT.
The plan for day 7 was to taper for race day and get a decent recovery ride. We rode out on the Loop to a coffee shop when Sparrow got a message from his advisor requesting that he go to the U of A to meet with research collaborators. While Sparrow rode to the campus and gave a chalk talk in cycling kit, Martin, Lorenzo and Daniel rode back to Oro Valley and watched some Polish TV shows on an old LCD. It soon became clear that a better TV was necessary for the house so Daniel went to Best Buy to embarrass Martin with Polish humor in front of the employees. A few hours later, we procured a TV and fit it into the minivan together with Sparrow’s bike and all the cyclists.

On our last day, we got ready to race the time trial in San Manuel and calmed our nerves by stress-eating costco gummy bears. We all set out around the same time and rode quickly to get the fastest time on the course and get a solid FTP estimate. While the three musketeers swept the podium of the collegiate C race, Daniel took the win in the masters category. Martin and Sparrow felt extremely dehydrated, and bartered their only remaining gummy bears for two cans of red bull from the race organizer. All in all it was a great success and a fun way to wrap up camp.

MIT cycling takes on the race against time in San Manuel, AZ

On the following day, still gleaming from our podium sweep, we all watched MVDP ride away with his 7th cyclocross world champs on the beautiful new TV before backing our bags and flying home from Phoenix. WTC was a huge success despite the difficulties that came our way and managed to do good training while growing as a team. Everyone finished WTC feeling stronger and excited about the upcoming riding season!

Finally, we owe a huge thank you to Jeff for driving the team home all of these years!

News, Rides, Road, Training

Fall Training Weekend 2025!

Gradient: consistent; Squat depth: variable; smiles: mandatory.

Per tradition, we went back to Western Massachusetts for another great weekend of bike riding and team bonding! Let’s hear what some members have to say about their experiences! 

“Organizing fall training weekend was a labor of love and when everyone finally rolled out on Saturday morning all of the effort had paid off. In the perfect fall weather, everyone responded to the challenging terrain and numerous town lines differently. While Will took flight up Mt Greylock, Mason and Ryan sparred in the sprints and later our resident runner, Andres, would wake up early to do marathon training before showing us how to ride bikes fast. Back at the house, the team gossiped about the best tan lines and happily ate dinner to prepare for Sunday’s riding. After a wise start-line change to a friendly donut shop orchestrated by coach Brad, the team went for its “endurance” spin and gravel adventure before wrapping up the weekend with a team meal at a pub in the Berkshires, where the spirit of fall training weekend waits for the team to return next year.” – Lorenzo

“I really enjoyed Fall Training Weekend. This was my first one and I had a blast. The routes were spectacular. I’ve been eyeing a Mount Greylock summit for awhile now and it lived up to the hype. Meeting the rest of the cycling club was really nice and getting to group ride is always a privilege. I must admit the “become a race member” sweet talk is seriously starting to work on me. Thanks so much to the team for planning this!” – Daniel 

“Fall training camp was a blast as always! I signed up on a whim, coming off a month-long hiatus and was a bit apprehensive about the intensity. Although I was rightly apprehensive (I was cooked), it was a blast to get back on my bike during possibly the best time of the year in western Massachusetts. It was great to get out on some of the nicest roads as motivation to start up my training again.” – Will 

Vinh approaching the top of Greylock with a big smile

“Fall training camp has always been the most anticipated annual event for me. Went every time since my freshman year til now, in my senior year (which potentially is my last..) Here was where I fell in love with biking, which has had severe consequences on my financial well-being. Worth it. Greylock has always been tough and challenging, no different this year (even worse as my goal shifted from biking 225 miles to benching 225). The community and the friends were phenomenal as always, which is what I love the most about the team! The sightseeing squad was mad chill this year. Although I did not go down Greylock without a brake (again), going down whatever it was in the adventure ride was something.. The divine retribution of pretending to fall to mesh with Lorenzo, then fall for real (6 times) was not anticipated. If I am damned to eternal suffering at MIT for 4 more years, definitely coming back, with notifications off this time so no PI may stop me from being a menace on the road.” – Vinh 

“This was my second year going to the training camp out west. It’s so amazing to have an opportunity to get out and ride with everyone for a couple of days, especially meeting new members of the club and people whose schedules don’t always overlap with mine. This year we had fantastic weather, with a nice cool breeze and the trees starting to turn color. I appreciated how much thought went into making sure there were rides going out at every level, whether you were looking to cruise around and see the sights or just wanted to hurt yourself. I was definitely on the cruise side this year after a crazy ride last fall, but still took the opportunity to go as hard as possible up Greylock and set my best time so far. It’s so nice to get back to the house in the afternoon and hear everyone so excited about their rides, and then go out and eat a few dinners worth of food. I was also excited for my first adventure ride of training camp, which ended up including a climb that was harder than Greylock and a downhill I wished I had brought my mountain bike for. I’m really grateful that there’s so many great people working on making this such a fun and easygoing experience every year.” – Cian

Beautiful views on the Ashuwillticook Rail Trail

“Fall Training Weekend was such a lovely time! It was great hanging out with this incredible crew of strong, supportive, funny, and wicked smaht cyclists. We couldn’t ask for a better setting than the Berkshires or for better conditions than this perfect New England fall weekend. We rode on quiet country roads through rolling hills, on the beautiful Ashuwillticook Rail Trail, and of course up (and down) Mount Greylock! Unbridled joy was in abundance whether we were practicing our group riding skills, struggling individually and collectively up the mountain, or stopping just a tad longer for coffee and pastries. I am grateful to the team for the thought and labour that went into this: planning our lodging, our routes, and our transportation; checking in on everyone; and helping us stay safe and just the right amount of uncomfortable.” – Ehab

What’s better than a group selfie? Two group selfies! 

“This was my third fall training weekend (last year I was sick and sadly couldn’t go) and first time organizing it as a road co-captain. The weather was perfect and it was so nice to reconnect with old friends and meet new ones! My rose (rose bud thorn, iykyk) of Saturday was when a big group of us gathered at the top of Greylock to cheer teammates on as they finished the grueling climb and reached the summit. I can’t wait for more adventures with the club!” – Chen 

“This was also my third fall training CAMP and I had a delightful time hanging out with the team sleeping in bunk beds once again and preparing Saturday night dinner for the team alongside my mighty sous-chef Lorenzo. This was my first time climbing up the North side of Mt.Greylock and it was definitely a challenge and while the little voices in my head told me to stop I kept going. The following day a group of us went on a little gravel adventure (which included a significant climb rip). The conditions of the roads weren’t ideal but we still had a blast. I’ve recently taken a step back from training but this weekend was a nice reminder for what made me fall in love with biking in the first place. I am grateful for the community I’ve built here over the last couple of years.” – Tatem

Adventure ride living up to its name

“FTW was the perfect way to wrap up a full summer of riding and gave us the first taste of crisp fall air. After ridding myself of marathon training (goodbye, running shoes) and acquiring a power meter earlier this year, I was excited to test out my legs on Greylock for the third consecutive FTW. Unlike the last two years, we arrived at the base of Greylock both dry and fresh, making for a much more enjoyable and speedy climb. After swearing off any more elevation gain on day 2, the adventure group set out on a rock-and-puddle-riddled route that left us with no option other than… another climb. Amazingly, this new hill was even steeper than Greylock, but rewarded us with lovely gravel, sweeping views, and mountain-bike worthy descents. We ended the day by munching on some fluffy donuts and nerding out about science and bike tech with our coach Brad on the drive home. I couldn’t imagine FTW any other way!” – Jody

At fall training weekend I mostly just read a short story, The Art of the Town Line Sprint, by Rason Meece. Here’s a quick summary of the work. It begins with a quote from the great Lee Lopez: “the key to winning a town line is to surprise your opponent, especially by waiting to inform them about the race until you’re already doing >1000 watts.” While you’re basking in the glory of that first win, begin preparing your excuses for why you will proceed to lose all future town lines against the stronger sprinter. My personal favorite is to pretend that all future town lines are not as important as the first one or that the difference is purely a function of aerodynamics (not the 400W sprint gap). If all else fails, you can always revert to a tried and true strategy of inventing town lines where they are not, it’s a surefire way to simultaneously surprise and confuse your opponent. – Rason

Other highlights of the weekend in photos: 

Andres clearly has this whole nutrition thing locked in
Looks like we were not the only ones on this adventure ride 

“This was my second FTW and I was super excited for it. The climb up Mt. Greylock makes you question your sanity, why you would willingly sign up for this and what your legs did to deserve this torture. But… it gets so much better when you approach the top. The views, unlike last time when it was just misty and rainy, were gorgeous with Fall colors peeking through in the distance. Meeting up with everyone and sharing the joy of completing a big climb is an amazing feeling. The cafe on the top did not live up to the promise of delivering hot beverages because someone decided to get married up there and let the cyclists rot out in the open, but such is life.

The descent was the best part of it all with anticipation for food building up. We were treated to a delicious dinner by Tatem and Lorenzo and everyone exchanged stories of the day. The next morning, despite all dark thoughts of not riding again for a while, started with more excitement to ride in the crisp fall morning. My tubeless tire (fresh from the shop from 2 days ago) gave in to some glass shards with the sealant miserably failing to patch the wound — nothing some good old tube could not fix. That out of the way, we rode through some gorgeous hills with more fall colors and despite promises of not pushing our legs, we kept pushing our limits and had a great ride back to the donut shop. I’m already waiting for next year’s training weekend!” – Gohar

News, Track

Track Day 2025

In the early hours of Saturday, around 6:30am, there was an overwhelming sense of excitement coming from 77 Massachusetts Ave. The MIT cycling team was pumping their tires and housing coffee in anticipation for a ride to New Hampshire. The sky was clear, the sun was shining, and the forecasted rain was nowhere to be seen. A long awaited break in the consistent Saturday rain.

Such luck did not last for very long, and the cyclists found themselves with a face full of road spray and bone rattling chills. Yet they ventured on, and valiantly found themselves at the Northeast Velodrome. Upon seeing the elegantly banked curves and the beaming côte d’azur, they could hardly contain their smiles (see Figure 1).

There the MIT cyclists—Lorenzo, Matteo, and Ryan—met their instructors for the day. A huge shout out to Mark, Ed, and Wolf for putting up with the fixed gear noobies (well except for Lorenzo who already had experience on a track). 

The day started out simple, with sizing the bikes and practice clipping in. From there the first laps were made around the track, learning the rather unusual sensation of pushing down on the pedals to slow down. Matteo could be seen reaching for the brakes and grabbing only air on occasion. 

The sun showed its face intermittently and the outlook improved. The water was slowly making its way off of the concrete and into the chilly air above. So the cyclists gathered up by the boards. 

After learning the ropes, the cyclists were ready for their first race. They were led through both a 12 lap scratch race and an 18 lap points race, with two intermediate sprints. Each was hotly contested, with Lorenzo sending early and sustained attacks while Matteo and Ryan bumped elbows for the fast paced draft coming around corner four. Their high cadence skills were at full display as they crossed the white line in a photo finish. 

At the conclusion of the day, the cyclists were still all smiles and more than ready to make their return. It was fully worth the bike ride there and the bike ride back, and the mud accumulated on the way. See you all there soon!

 

See the Northeast Velodrome’s blog post here:  https://northeastvelodrome.wordpress.com/2025/05/25/finally-a-saturday-clinic/

News, Photos, Race Reports, Road

2023 – Starting off the road season right

The whole team is riding a major high coming off of the first two races of the season.

Weekend 1 was hosted down at Bucknell in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. Derek, Seamus and Guillaume raced the first race of the season (Men’s TTT) in a horrible rain but powered their way to 2nd in the Men’s B/C field. Weather and spirits improved by the road races later in the day. The infamous “Sunrise Climb” combined with 20 mph winds blew apart (literally and figuratively) both Hannah’s Women’s A/B race and the Men’s B/C race. Seamus, Guillaume and Hannah all hung on to varying degrees to finish their races mid pack, while Derek hit a hidden patch of gravel and had an unfortunate slide that took him out of the race.

Coming back the next day with watts that can only be generated by the need for revenge, Derek got himself into a two-man break during the crit. The break eventually became three and Derek came away with a strong 3rd on the day.  Hannah ended up 2nd in her crit after also making the break and lapping the (albeit very small) field. Being the first race of the season and a small group and mostly racing at the same time means we were out of practice taking photos and don’t have majestic shots to show for the weekend. Thankfully, Aaron fixed this for us for Weekend 2 at the University of RI so keep scrolling for those!

Eleven of us made the trip to Southern RI for the second race weekend of the year hosted by URI. This was the first road race with MIT for more than half of the crew. Nothing says ECCC season quite like 5:30 wake ups and watching the sunrise, but at least for this weekend we started our day overlooking the beautiful Misquamicut Beach.

The first race of the day let us break out the MIT TT helmets (we remain the only team in ECCC who race in them, #science). Early in the day, there was some confusion about the ITT course, resulting in annulment of the results for the entire Men’s C/D field. But official results aren’t necessary because of the riders who followed the correct course, Felix and William went 1-2 in the Men’s C/D field so we won in spirit. Meanwhile, Josh and Derek did the same for the Men’s B/C field with times a full minute faster than anyone else in their field and the 5th and 6th fastest of anyone on the day. This placed them just after 4 riders who were all on the 1st or 2nd place team time trial squads at last year’s collegiate nationals.

And then started our weekend of breakaways. Being on the beach meant views, but it also meant wind. The road race course was an 8 mile extended dog-bone loop that ran parallel to the shore for ~6 miles. What started out as a cross wind turned into a headwind / tailwind for the last few races of the day that made the finishing stretch exceptionally fast and caused splits in all the fields.  Andrew, Vinh, Aaron, Seamus and Felix raced in the Men’s C/D field of over 70 starters(!!). With some excellent team tactics and road captaining by Seamus, they managed to send Felix off the front in the last 2 miles of the race. He came in 20 seconds ahead of the field in his first ever road race.

Hannah also went full send in the Women’s A/B field with a 2 woman break that finished almost 7 minutes up on the rest of the field. After working together all race, Hannah took second to the UVM rider with the hope that someday soon more riders in the field will have A licenses and be eligible to join for Nationals at the end of the season.

More team tactics came into play for the Men’s B/C race where Derek, William and Josh worked together for Josh to come away with a 2nd place. Meanwhile, Mason and Lee were on course at the same time for the Men’s A race. After a brief slow down to watch the B finishers come in as their field passed, the pace picked back up. There was a USAC rider off the front but they still came away with 4th and 5th in the collegiate rankings during the bunch sprint.

After a night of watching the Paris Roubaix Femmes together in the hotel, it was Crit Day at everyone’s favorite Southern RI course: Ninigret! The day was complete with tailgating on the sidelines made possible by another new MIT team member, Adam. He was MVP of the day for driving down to spectate, cheer, and most importantly feed us all breakfast burritos throughout the day.

Before the Men’s C/D race, we asked William, Seamus and Felix what the plan was for handling such a large field. Their answer: “make it smaller”. Sure enough, within 2 laps the three of them had a break away off the front. They TTTed together to the finish as planned. The ECCC conference director made a rare appearance on the microphone mid race to jokingly say that we’ve “been spending too much time in the wind tunnel.” Not entirely true since no one on the team was around for the last time the Club went into the wind tunnel. That said, we wouldn’t object to trying it out if anyone has a connection for us these days! There’s always room to improve, even when you’re off the front.

After starting the trend during the first race of the day, Derek and Josh couldn’t resist the temptation of a breakaway in their Men’s B/C race as well. Switching up the order from the ITT the day before, Derek took second and Josh third out of a four man group. Aaron followed up with a win in the Men’s Intro race by riding away from a group of 3 as Vinh controlled the pace in the main group behind. Andrew had an unfortunate encounter with a bush on the sidelines early in the race, but recovered for a respectable 12th in the group.

The Men’s A and Women’s A/B races in the day remained fun but success was more elusive. Hannah was nicked on the line in the final sprint (repeating almost every race in last year’s ECCC season…). With prime sprint points though, Hannah will still be wearing yellow numbers next week as the series leader in the A field for the season so far. A strong break went early in the Men’s A race and despite a valiant chase effort by Lee and Coach Robbie (riding in his USAC team colors for Community Bike Racing), they were unable to bridge. After a lead out from Mason, Lee took 3rd in the field sprint.

All in all, the team is psyched. We missed out on team omnium victory for the weekend by a single point. But we’ll be coming back next week for revenge! Closing out with a few thoughts from Vinh about his first road race weekend with the team:

“These first road races were phenomenal! I had so much fun drafting behind people and sticking into their wheels. I think I did better the second day with the experience I got from getting dropped hard in the first day. Glad that me being an annoyance in the peloton helped Aaron get a big gap in the break out and win the race!! Still, I have a lot to improve with my power and sprinting. Very excited! Being with the team was so much fun too, cheering, getting cheered, and learning from everyone was awesome!! 10 out of 10 would do it again!”

Next up, our home race, co-hosted with UMass Amherst. Will new MIT stars shine as we head to the rolling hills of Western Mass? Stay tuned to find out!

Photo credits: Mostly @aaron_v_photography, with supplements from Seamus, Hannah, Felix, and a stranger in the parking lot who was nice enough to take our group shot

Alumni, News, Photos, Rides, Road, Training

Winter Training Camp: Tucson edition!

At the end of January, our racing team traveled to sunny Tucson AZ for a week of training and spending time together as a team. Tucson is a new destination for our team, but renowned in the cycling world for smooth roads, good weather, and of course Mount Lemmon, a >7,000 foot climb only a couple of miles from downtown Tucson.

the team rocks the hi-vis jackets at Sabino Canyon

We were excited to have a number of new teammates join us for the week! Nick Arango tells us about his experience on Day 1:

“How many snacks can I stuff into a jersey? Nothing about the day one winter training camp route should have been daunting, but my newness to the team, the terrain, and the the large increase in total time on the bike of the week ahead amplified the first day’s modest mileage and elevation gain. Full jersey pockets, filled nervously not practically, prepared a little too early gave extra time for apprehension.

serene view over Saguaro West

The appeal of cycling for me is bound up in the gestalt experience of riding in a bunch; the melding of persons into a rolling mass. And so, with the conversational spin of many bodies attempting to warm, riding through the city and the U of A campus to Gates Pass, it was easy to leave the individual apprehension behind and ride as the group. Houses gave way hills, conversation thinned, and a snap broke the collective as a hard effort up the first short, ten minute climb of the trip stretched the bunch into hard working individuals. Regrouping at the Gates Pass overlook gave us all a view of the week ahead: desert shrubs, cacti, and mountains all around. Feeling good both working as an individual and in giving myself over as a group, the morning anxiety fell away.

A quick, steep descent down the other side of the pass gave a portent of what the reverse of this section would feel like, but that actual experience was reserved for a later day. The descent led us into the heart of Saguaro National Park. It was hard to not imitate their poses, and so a stop at the park’s west visitors center after an hour and a half of riding gave good opportunity to stretch out the arms like the cacti all around us.

One more gradual rise proved to be a vehicle for working out the group’s first day energy as Berk and Dustin took the front and slowly lifted the pace. With eagerness covering my morning’s nerves, the slowly lifting pace slid by me unnoticed until it was over. The relaxed return gave good opportunity to consider what would be a sustainable effort for the week on the whole, but without the anxiety of uncertainty. Back at the house, after unpacking the extra uneaten snacks from still overfull jersey pockets, the new environment and high volume of the upcoming week looked achievable.”

Riding towards Mt Lemmon
The start of the Lemmon climb!
made it to the Cookie Cabin!

On Day 5, we “recovered” from the Mount Lemmon experience with some team time trial practice rolling along the east portion of the beautiful Saguaro National Park. Julie tells us more about discovering the joys of the TTT:

“The morning after our Mt. Lemmon ride, I woke up sore and nervous for the 60 mile ride and team time trial practice that awaited me. I had very little experience doing a TTT, but the idea of going all out for 12 miles on fatigued legs seemed grueling. Halfway through our ride we gathered in groups for the TTT practice. The 6 women at WTC decided to break the course into 3 segments of 4 miles. For the first segment, we would all ride together, and for the remaining sections we would split up into two groups. I expressed my concerns of being a weaker cyclist and how I did not want to hold back the team, but I was assured that each person has an important role in getting the group to the finish line whether they spend most of the ride pulling or drafting. Joanna and Sarah described the TTT as a seamless, consistent effort and gave us helpful tips before we started. Soon after, we clipped in and assembled into our pace line. As we accelerated, I concentrated on maintaining the recommended half wheel’s distance between me and the rider in front. A couple minutes into riding, our group got into a rhythm and we were all moving in-sync rotating in and out of the paceline. When I hit the front of the pack, I felt the wind resistance push against me. I glanced at my Garmin and focused on maintaining my speed for thirty seconds before I flicked my elbow, moved to the side, and merged back into the pace line. I could hear my breathing ease as I received the draft from the wheel in front of me. After a couple hard efforts, Joanna told us that we were almost done and needed to do our last pull. Even though I felt drained, I knew I could give a final push. I was surprised by how much I learned from the 12 mile stretch and found the TTT practice enjoyable and helpful.

Berk, Miles and Lee demonstrating perfect TTT form

After the TTT practice, we continued up to Colossal Cave where we met up with the rest of the team who also seemed wiped out from the hard effort. We got a chance to eat some snacks and enjoy the beautiful dessert scenery before continuing on a chill ride back home. For me, the TTT was one of the highlights of WTC because I loved coming together with my teammates and putting together a collective effort. I am even more excited to translate this practice into race season.”

taking a break post-TTT practice at Colossal Cave

Finally, Berk regales us with some tales from the last day of training camp:

“Everyone knows that best things come in threes. The three course meal. The primary colors. Lord of the Rings. Harry, Ron and Hermione. Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness…

But most importantly, WTC Day 8. One ride to rule them all, to offer a trifecta of adventure of the like few of us had experienced before. We would have a last hurrah in Arizona where we would rub elbows with fellow racers at the super fast Shootout Ride, then climb to the top of Madera Canyon, and then ride the mellow gravel path through Box Canyon.

The Shootout ride meets near University of Arizona campus, which was only a few miles from the house. About half of us decided to participate in the group ride, and another half to follow soon after. The temperatures were low enough that most of us were bundled in every warm item of kit we had brought as we waited for a small group to form (many others had chosen a local race instead). We rolled out on time at 7:30AM, and started getting out of the city. After a while, I got over my initial fear and started getting somewhat excited to be riding in a large pack again. So much so that once I got to the front, one of the locals had to tell me to cool my jets until the official start, at the intersection with Valencia Rd.

After that things got hot pretty quick. Literally. We had dressed for a cold winter morning cruise, whereas more clever folks had put on lighter layers in anticipation of what was to come. A few minutes from the start it was clear that people were eager to rip each others’ legs off. I suddenly found myself in the unpleasant situation of trying to pull my gloves and legwarmers off while riding in the red, cruising in excess of 24mph with a 1-2% grade.

After some savage attacks and chases, the front group came back together, and I was happy to see Jeremy, Guillaume and Dustin still in the group as we approached the final hill sprint. Frankly, I was pretty shot from my efforts in/near the front and pulled the plug when I realized I would not be contesting for the win, but I was proud of all of us for making it until the end. The Shootout definitely met expectations. It was hard and fast, but also safe and friendly, a difficult combination to achieve during group rides. Also, a shout-out to Davis and Gerard, whom we met at the Shootout and rode with during different parts of the rest of the ride.

After a nice cruise to shake out the legs and a very long coffee stop to regroup, we started the Madera Canyon Climb. The beginning was scenic with a surprising amount of green. Some folks were braver than I, and tested their legs one last time while I cruised at a steady pace with Jeremy, chatting and snacking along the way. That is until the last few pitches, which were in excess of 15%, but hey, we had enough energy to stare at our stems for a little while longer.

My favorite part was the Box Canyon gravel climb. My legs were feeling a bit like pool noodles after the Madera Canyon climb and descent, but they soon regained feeling as I got excited to go off the asphalt onto gravel. The unmaintained winding road through the canyon was smooth at parts, and a gnarly washboard at others, but beautiful views and the thrill of dirt were constant. This time Dustin was happy to cruise with me while enjoying the sights. We stopped to take some pictures along the way. There were moments of hilarity when we realized we had no traction standing still and could not get back on our bikes afterwards. But eventually the pitch would relent ever-so-slightly, allowing us to continue to spin our way up.

gravel crew!

We regrouped once gravel turned to pavement, said goodbye to the ATVers and the cows, and started the 35+ miles of descent back to the house. It was ripping fast and mostly easy, with a nice gas station stop to stock up on water and Sour Patch Kids, but of course, I flatted once again 25mi from home (a torn sidewall fixed with the ever useful dollar bill). Dustin and I let the rest of our group go, and cruised back in a two-man paceline.

The last day of WTC is always an epic, and this tres leches of adventure definitely was the highlight of my week. I want to give a special shoutout to our road captains Jeremy and Sarah, who took MIT Cycling to Arizona for the first time, planned everything from scratch, made every ride a blast, and kept everyone happy and safe.  Our alumni also deserve a special mention, taking time out of their busy schedules to share some special memories with us and contribute to the team spirit. Catching up with now-alumni friends is a really amazing part of WTC, and it was special to ride with Dustin, Amy and Stan again.”

Joanna and Amy rockin’ the stars and stripes!!

_____________________________________________________________

We are so grateful to have had a wonderful (and safe!) training camp experience,  growing individually in strength and riding ability, as well as growing together as a team. Next up – race season in just a few weeks!

go team!
News

Volunteer Weekend: Harbor to the Bay and Hub on Wheels

On September 14th and 15th, the team volunteered at two different events to support our local cycling community and help raise money for two great causes. These rides have become an annual fall tradition for us and we’re honored that we continue to be invited back. Harbor to the Bay (H2B)  is a 125 mile ride from Boston to Provincetown to raise money for HIV/AIDS clinical research and care organizations. The event just completed its 17th year and has raised $6 million over that time! We left at pre-dawn hours to marshal at different points along the route; providing safety, guidance, and support for the riders as they complete their journey. Hub on Wheels is an event promoted by Boston Mayor Marty Walsh and EF Education First to increase cycling participation in the city and raise money for Boston Children’s Hospital and pediatric cancer research. Our volunteers helped riders fix flats and other mechanicals and shepherd them through dangerous intersections. Now in its 15th year, approximately 5,000 cyclists participate! These events also offer new riders to the team a great way to get involved and make new friends!

Harbor to the Bay riders receive their briefing before departing Sagamore to ride up Cape Cod all the way to Provincetown

George recaps his long day in the saddle:

If you asked me to wake up at 4:00am on any other Saturday morning than the one for Harbor to the Bay, I would have given you an unenthused response. This Saturday morning was different, though. I hopped out of bed with a pep in my step and I was ready for the day. I had some coffee, breakfast, and then headed out the door. 4:22am. I was excited. Excited not only to complete my longest ride to date, but also excited to meet new people while supporting a cause greater than any single rider. Ever since arriving in Cambridge in early June, I have either been on the saddle by myself or with another Navy buddy completing some of the rides posted on the cycling team’s website. Besides one of the casual Wednesday morning RSC coffee rides, I had never really ridden with the cycling team, or any cycling team for that matter. I did not know what to expect.

After biking the three and a half minutes from my apartment to the meeting spot outside of the student center, all I could see were a few flashing bike lights and the silhouettes of other riders waiting in a circle for everyone to arrive. Once all 15 of us arrived, we started introducing ourselves *in the dark* by name and department we are associated with; immediately, I was at a loss. Luckily, everyone on the cycling team was so friendly and inclusive that once the sun crept above the horizon, I was able to place names to faces.

MIT kit is well represented at our lunch stop in Sagamore before splitting up into pairs for our marshaling stations on the Cape

Halfway through the ride from Boston, we stopped for lunch near the Sagamore Bridge. At this point in the day, more volunteers were out setting up the pit stops and more riders were out prepping to start their trek to Provincetown. I was able to converse with some of the volunteers and riders and during these conversations, I felt what this ride meant to these individuals; yet another admirable aspect of the Harbor to the Bay event.

After our stomachs were refueled and our bottles refilled, we resumed our journey up the Cape,  pairs of people gradually peeling off at our marshaling positions. Around mile 82.5, Sarah, the women’s road captain, and I pulled off the course, changed into our neon yellow mesh marshaling getup, and started directing and cheering on all the riders for the next few hours. Once the final H2B rider passed, we changed back into our cycling kits and waited for the rest of the team to ride through the course to pick us up. After a few hours without moving much, it was quite difficult to get the legs warmed back up to ride the last, grueling 40-some-odd miles left to P-town.

It takes more than a couple group mechanicals to get Dylan down!

After arriving in Provincetown at the end of the ride, everyone was cheering each other on and all of the volunteers were thanking us for our support of the event. Little did they know that without them, we would not have been able to complete the ride. In my honest opinion, after seeing the reaction on everyone’s faces after each of us devoured one (or four in my case) of the homemade chocolate chip brownies at one of the final pit stops is what carried us through to the end. Thank you again to all the other volunteers and SAG wagon drivers that supported H2B.

Finally, after arriving in Provincetown, we all gathered around a few picnic tables on a wooden balcony overlooking the beach at sunset. We all celebrated by either buying a local beer from one of the nearby outdoor bars or indulging in some freshly caught seafood from a local joint right on the pier. This was a perfect ending to one of my most memorable, valuable days yet. Around 7:20pm, we all made our way to the 7:30pm Bay State Cruise fast ferry to Boston. We each filed into the ferry after racking our bikes on the back deck and gathered around tables and other guests. While some were able to hold conversations for the hour and a half back to Boston, some (*cough* me *cough*) almost hit REM sleep. Wow, what a day. I cannot thank MIT Cycling enough for the opportunity and friendship they provided!

The whole crew celebrates at the end of the day in Provincetown

Shreyas describes his experience marshaling at Hub on Wheels:

When I heard that there was an opportunity to ride with thousands of other cyclists, I couldn’t wait to get involved! Having started biking only this summer, I wasn’t quick enough to join the Harbor to the Bay ride out to Cape Cod just yet, but the prospect of major streets in Boston being closed off to motor vehicles to make way for cyclists as part of the ~50mi Hub on Wheels ride was still very exciting. Having set off at 6:30 AM for the ride, I really appreciated the breakfast burrito we were given at registration to help us fuel a bit.

Thousands of Hub on Wheels riders line up at the start at City Hall Plaza in downtown Boston

Although it felt strange to be a “marshal” on the course while being a rider with so little experience myself, riding with the club for a few months gave me a bit of confidence, enough to be able to help other riders with basic mechanical issues. I stopped along with a couple of other cyclists riding with the club, to help direct cyclists at a couple of intersections on the route, but overall, marshaling turned out to be pretty chill. The whole event was extremely well-organized, and we got to eat and refuel at multiple stops along the route. We even got to meet a pro cyclist (Tom Scully) who rode at the Tour de France for Education First this year! My favorite part of the ride, however, was the paceline that we got going immediately after our long stops to fulfill our marshaling duties – thanks to the long pulls by some of the faster riders, I think it’s safe to say I won’t be going any faster on any of those roads in Boston, until next year.

A once a year opportunity: pedaling along Storrow Drive under the Mass Ave Bridge!

 

Nationals, News, Photos, Race Reports, Road

Road Nationals – Second Time’s the Charm!

Read Emma, Amy, and Tori’s account of the week, during which our qualifying athletes won the Club/DII Omnium, got 3rd place in the Team Time Trial, and won a National Criterium Championship.

This year, we sent four riders to Collegiate Nationals in Grand Junction, CO, where the races were held for the second year in a row. For Amy and Sarah, this was their first trip to nats, while Emma and I (Tori) had gone once before. Accompanying us on the trip was our coach Nicole, and Youyang, who had just graduated from MIT, and conveniently for us, moved out to Denver for his new job. The first day was dedicated to traveling. With a flight and a 4 hour drive through the mountains in CO ahead of us, we got an early start. But Amy and I made sure to practice our TTT technique with this dinosaur we found at a rest stop along the drive.

The next day was dedicated to preparing for the races and pre-riding. The six of us drove out to the TTT course, which was in a different (and thankfully, less windy) location from last year. After practicing a few rotations, and doing some openers, we felt ready to race! Emma, Nicole, and I proceeded to drive around the RR course, which was the same as last year, but gave us a great chance to refresh our memories, and strategize.

 

Here’s a recap of the road race by Emma:

I was both excited and nervous to take on this road race course. The nerves came partially from not wanting to crash out again (last year I crashed 3.5 miles into the race…) and partially from knowing the competition would be incredibly strong. The excitement came because it’s a beautiful course, we had a rolling enclosure, and I felt on good form!

The course was the same this year as last year, but the start/finish line had moved to the top of a short, steep hill in the middle of a longer, mostly false-flat section. I knew that that short, steep hill, as well as another slightly longer and steeper hill on the back section of the course, would be the main difficulties. We would go around the course 3 times in total. We started out at a reasonable pace, and when I made it down the first descent (where I had crashed last year) without incident I started to calm down a little bit. The first time up each hill was steady, not crazy, and the pack mostly stayed all together. The next lap, the hill on the back stretch lit things up and a ~10-woman break formed. The paceline was actually pretty disorganized (maybe partially due to the fact that for the most part we had never raced with each other before), and a few riders were shelled from the break. I was feeling really tired as soon as we hit the false-flat section. So when someone put in another effort up the short climb to the finish, on the second lap, I was shelled from the break. I tried my hardest to catch back on, but I couldn’t do it. At that time there were 6 girls still in the break ahead of me. I knew we had put some time into the field but wasn’t sure I could hold them off for an entire lap. Another rider that had been dropped from the break caught up to me and we worked well together for half a lap. Going into the climb on the back stretch for the last time, the moto told us the break was 2 minutes up the road and the pack was 1 minute behind. Though I later found out that “pack” meant about 10 people! Anyways, the girl I had been working with showed some signs of struggle and I knew I couldn’t afford to wait for her. I pushed on and TT-ed my way to the finish line. I just kept thinking that if I had been caught all of the work I had done would be for nothing! Every time I looked behind I could see the group of girls inching closer, but I put my head down and worked as hard as I could, and thank goodness didn’t get caught! I ended up in 7th.

I was disappointed to have been dropped from the winning break, but I knew I had tried my hardest. It also made me feel better that, of the 6 women that finished ahead of me, 5 were from schools at altitude. Of course I’m not trying to diminish their achievements… and winners/ podium finishers from other fields were from schools not at altitude! But it’s always good to have an excuse, right? ☺

Tori had a nightmare for the second year in a row at this nationals road race and ended up on a neutral bike (again, for the second year in a row) after her chain dropped hitting a big bump in a corner, and subsequently getting tangled and stuck. She really deserves some good bike karma soon! But she finished the race like a champion!

The course was really beautiful, and I was extremely glad that there were no bad crashes this year. I’m so glad to have completed my first nationals road race!

 

The second day of racing featured the TTT. Having ridden together as much as possible over the course of the season, and even before it started, we felt confident that we could work really well together as a team, and coach Nicole had prepared us extremely well by talking through every part of the race beforehand, and helping us decide what to do in case of various unexpected situations.

Here’s Amy’s race report from the TTT:

Saturday was the team time trial. The course was a 19-mile relatively-flat out-and-back, with a headwind on the way out, and a steady climb for the last mile. We suffered a few minor mishaps near the start of the race: the “holders” who keep your bike balanced for you so that you can start the race already clipped into your pedals did not inspire a lot of confidence, leaving some of us uneasy and me not clipped in when our time trial started; and, a few minutes later, Sarah dropped her chain, but was able to salvage the situation by quickly shifting back up again.

The rest of the first half passed relatively uneventfully, and we were relieved to complete the U-turn and have the wind at our backs. Even so, the race was above 5,000 feet elevation, and we could feel the effects of the altitude. By the time we started the final climb, we had dropped a rider. During the climb we suffered an amusing miscommunication in which I, going about as fast as I could, said “no faster,” which Emma misheard as “faster!” Emma, who was leading and also didn’t feel that she could go faster, then told me to lead, and was quite bemused when I got to the front huffing and puffing and going no faster than she was! Nevertheless, we soon reached the finish line, coming in third, 21 seconds behind first place and three minutes ahead of fourth place.

 

The third and final day was the criterium – a fast, flat, 6-corner course around downtown Grand Junction. Once again, Nicole had made sure we were ready for basically any scenario we could hope to see in the race, and so now we just had to go an execute it.

My assigned starting position was unfortunately near the back of the group, but I worked hard in the first few laps to make up positions. The riders at the front kept the pace really high, and people were starting to drop off the back. After a rider crashed in the corner in front of me, I temporarily lost the group but put in a big effort and caught back on to what was now a narrowed down group. Unfortunately, a similar situation happened again a few laps later, and this time, I wasn’t able to get back to the group. I ended up in a chase group of about 10 riders with several fellow ECCC riders. We were not far behind the break of 8, which included Emma, and the strongest women of the Rocky Mountain cycling conference. Knowing Emma was up the road, I sat in on the chase group and let the other riders take pulls. It was a motivated group, and we were within sight of the break, but they were able to stay away. I sprinted from this group for 14th overall. I was satisfied with my race, but was even more excited after I finished my race, and realized how Emma’s race had gone!

 

Here is the race from Emma’s perspective:

Well, writing this race report more than a month after the fact, I think everything may have finally just sunk in. This was by far the best result I’ve ever had, and it was honestly one of the best days of my life!

To be honest, I wasn’t as excited about the crit as the road race and team time trial going into Nationals. Last year the crit had a bunch of crashes, and it came down to a group sprint. But possibly this lack of pressure is what enabled me to do so well!

The night before the crit, Coach Nicole went through the entire race with Tori and me, talking through different possibilities and what we would do in different scenarios. The plan was for me to try to get in any break (especially with CU Boulder girls, since they had gone 1-2 in the RR and TT and had 3 very strong women, as well as CU Denver girls, who had been 3 and 6 in the RR and both top 5 in the TT), and if that failed I would lead Tori out in the group sprint. She walked us through where we should be with 5 laps to go, 2, 1, and at the last corner. The next morning, we measured where 200 meters was on the course.

The crit was a pan flat, 6 corner crit in downtown Grand Junction. It was a great atmosphere, with cafes and shops all around the course and tons of people watching. The biggest difficulty was turn 4, which went from a large road to a much smaller one, with potholes and, mostly notably, a bunch of car grease on the ground. This is where Anne and Tori both crashed last year, so we were understandably very cautious about this corner.

I lined up in the second row and so was immediately at the front in a great position. There were a few early attacks, and two separate breaks formed but I let some of the bigger schools chase them down. The pack whittled down in the first half but I stayed comfortably in the front. About halfway through the race, I saw an opportunity (I think after a prime if I remember correctly…) and attacked. I only stayed away for about half a lap, but when I looked at the group when they caught me there were only ~9 of us, including the 3 Boulder girls and 2 Denver girls. I knew that, if a break was going to stick, it would be this one.

We worked together really well together, but at 7 laps to go I heard a crash behind me (at that evil corner), and all of a sudden there were only 3 left. I had no idea what to do because I wasn’t sure if free laps were still available, and I also didn’t know how far behind the pack was. It turned out that it was the last lap where free laps were a thing, so most of those girls got back on. The pace in the break eased up in the last couple laps, and I was nervous that the group would catch us. But there were a few last-minute attacks that really picked the pace up. With ~1.5 laps to go, the girl from CU Boulder who had won the RR and TT attacked, and I think took some of the other girls by surprise. A girl from CSU (who was the same girl I had worked with the in the RR!) jumped on her wheel and I got on the CSU girl’s wheel. The pace was super high, so that order stayed the same until the last corner. The CSU girl jumped right at the corner. I had come in 2nd quite a few times this year thanks to jumping and sprinting too early, so I forced myself to be as patient as I could, and came around her with ~150 (or less!) meters to go. I couldn’t believe it when I crossed the finish line and no one had come around me! I screamed (my friend later described it as primal) in disbelief!

Special thanks to Jeffrey Bush for taking this photo!

I ran over and found Nicole, Youyang, and Amy and screamed a bit more and hugged them all a lot. I couldn’t believe it or really make any coherent sentences because I was just smiling and laughing. Tori came around in the second group and when she saw me she came rushing at me and hugged me. It was a pretty special moment to share with someone who has been my teammate for a couple years now. Throughout the season, Tori has on countless times helped to control the chase when I was in the break, lead me out for a sprint, and just in general been an awesome teammate. And in addition to this we’ve spent many hours training together.


Tori finishing up: So all in all, we walked away from nationals with Emma’s National Criterium Championship, her 2nd overall in the individual omnium, a 3rd place the the TTT, and a win in the team omnium. It was a truly incredible weekend for the team. Before I sign off on this post, I want to send special thanks to our Coach Nicole, who helped with many things throughout the trip, but especially helped us make strategies for the races that were undoubtedly a big factor in the team’s success. Also to Youyang – who lent his equipment, mechanical expertise, and curry-making skills throughout the weekend. It was awesome to have him around. And lastly to Berk! Unfortunately we couldn’t field a men’s team this year, but Berk was instrumental in planning and supporting, and even brought us carrot bread when he picked us up at 5 am to take us to the airport. We couldn’t have done it without help from so many people!

Nationals, News, Photos, Race Reports, Road

2017 DII Club Omnium National Champs!

This year we were able to take 8 students (plus Coach Kolie) to the Collegiate Road National Championships in Grand Junction, CO. We had 4 A women: Katy Olesnavage, Anne Raymond, Tori Wuthrich, and myself (Emma Edwards), 2 A men: Justin Bandoro and Emerson Glassey, and Berk Ozturk and Youyang Zhao joined them for the Team Time Trial (TTT). All of the A-level riders did the TTT the first day (Friday), the Road Race the second day (Saturday), and the Criterium the third day (Sunday).

Most of us traveled on Wednesday, arriving at our house—a house on a farm which we booked through Airbnb—around midnight. Since we couldn’t see any of the surrounding scenery when we arrived, we were surprised with wonderful views when we woke up. We spent the morning putting our bikes together and meeting some of the animals on the farm, including two dogs and a baby goat!

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Assembling our bikes with quite the view!

That afternoon, we pre-rode the TTT course, and we were unpleasantly surprised with two obstacles: (1) the altitude, and (2) the wind! Of course, the altitude was something we had considered a little bit, but we didn’t expect it to affect it as much as it did. We really noticed a difficulty in breathing and much lower power numbers to what we were used to. We had to rely on to how we were feeling to dictate our efforts (instead of power numbers) much more than usual. We really hadn’t thought about the wind at all! It was extremely gusty, so we were being blown all over the road. This made it very difficult to pace-line efficiently but forming echelons was also difficult because of the gusty nature of the wind.

Luckily, it wasn’t quite as windy Friday morning. The gusts weren’t as strong, so we felt a little safer, but it still played a significant role, since benefits from drafting were still decreased. The TTT was about 20 miles, which is longer than any other TTT we do all year. It was an out-and-back: downhill with a head-wind on the way out and slightly uphill with a tail-wind on the way back. This combination made it very tricky to pace, and both the men and the women shed a rider soon after the turn-around. After that, it was a fight against our lungs and the wind. The men finished top-10 and the women finished second! A particularly special moment for me was standing on the podium with my teammates, next to Jen Wilson, an alumni of the MIT team who rode with the Stanford team this year as a postdoc.

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The boys TTT getting ready to start
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Women about to start the TTT!
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Starting the TTT!
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Second step of the podium! With our good friend Jen Wilson on the top step!
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The ladies with our silver medals!

We didn’t have a chance to pre-ride the road race course, but we drove it quickly on Friday afternoon. The course was absolutely stunning, with mountains surrounding us and a great mix of windy descents, hairpin steep accents, and many miles of false-flats.

Unfortunately, I didn’t actually get to ride more than 3.5 miles of the course, though, because I went down! I think what happened is that someone got nervous going around a corner on the descent and pulled on her brakes, losing traction in their tires. It results in 10 girls going down, including me. I was able to slow down a lot before I crashed into her (she went flying across the road, hence why she took out so many other girls), so I wasn’t badly hurt (just a cut on my elbow) and my bike was fine, but it was the end of my day of racing. Tori also had bad luck, with her derailleur breaking on a cattle-guard, a couple miles after my crash. She ended up on a neutral-support bike, 5 minutes behind the rest of the field by the time everything was set up and she was ready to roll. She fought hard, though, and ITT-ed the rest of the race, passing quite a few (13!!) girls on her way to the finish line, finishing 36th. Anne and Katy both did wonderfully, finishing 29th and 25th respectively, out of 61 starters (which is probably 3 x larger than our largest women’s-A race this year during the regular season). In the men’s race Emerson and Justin both did great. Emerson finished 50th out of ~120 starters! Possibly the most successful part of the day, though, was the skill shown in this picture:

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Tori giving a very skillful feed to Emerson

Sunday was the crit in downtown Grand Junction. It was a 6 corner crit around a couple of blocks downtown. It was a really good location for a crit, and it seemed tame except for one corner, which went from quite a wide road to a narrow road, and the corner was smooth and slippery, with a manhole cover in the middle. Tori and Anne both went down on this corner throughout the race (along with many other people!) but were okay! I tried to use the fact that I had only raced 3 miles the day before to my advantage by attacking with 5 laps to go. I held a ~10 second gap for the rest of the race until the second-to-last corner (~200 meters from the end) when I was caught and passed by the group. Katy also finished with the group! Justin and Emerson had a very fast race, with the peloton (of more than 100 people!!) strung out almost the entire race.

We waited around for a while, the suspense building more and more, until they announced that we had won the D2 club omnium! Unfortunately, Justin and Berk missed the podium and the picture:

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2017 Club DII National Champions: Top row from left: Tori Wuthrich, Katy Olesnavage, Emma Edwards, Anne Raymond, Bottom row: Youyang Zhao, Emerson Glassey. Not pictured: Berk Ozturk and Justin Bandoro

This was, without a doubt, a great team effort. We would not have been able to get this national title without every single person that went! Special thanks to Kolie for helping us get ready for races and going over strategies and things to think about for each race. I’m very sad that three of the people who went this year (Katy, Anne, and Justin) are graduating this year, but I’m already looking forward to next year so that I can make it more than 3.5 miles into the road race!

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Nationals was a great team-bonding time, too!

 

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Trophy!

 

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And just for good measure: one final pinning picture!