From the Litespeed-BMW blog:
Whoa, has Benjy been going after it out there. The guy has obviously been too busy racing to get any updates out, so let’s knock all of these out at once. We’ve got a whole bunch of races in here, with a whole bunch of our guys…and a whole bunch of great results! Read on!
Perry Circuit race
The line up at the Pro 1,2 race was Benjy, Hank, Wes, Matt and Artur. Artur had done well earlier in the morning time trial and had committed himself to race for a strong overa ll finish in the omnium overall classification. There was representation in the field from Team Type 1, Locos Deli Iron Data and a large group of the region’s strong teams. The race played out with steady attacks off the front, all of which were quickly caught. Artur, Wes and Matt were busy at the front attacking and chasing moves while Hank and Benjy cruised in the field. With about 5 laps to go Matt flies off the front and was out on his own for about 3 laps. About the time Matt is caught by the group, everyone was trying to get position at the front. Benjy was being led toward the front by a hard effort from Hank. With Hank’s help, Benjy hit the final corner in good position and sprinted to a third place podium finish with Artur just back in 10th place.
Perry “Roubaix” Road Race
Benjy and Artur against about the same crew from the previous day’s circuit race. The Perry Robaix is really fun due to the good roads and a long section of dirt road at the latter part of the race loop. The race began with a group of six rolling slyly away before anybody was really paying attention. Turns out that the escape group contained guys from many of the strongest teams in the race…oops. Before long the group was almost five minutes ahead of the peleton. Since Artur was trying to place well in the omnium and he was racing for better than a seventh place finish, we decided the best thing to do was to work together with the other guys who wanted to chase down and catch the break. At this point I was racing for Artur and slowly cooked myself in the chase effort for a couple of loops while Artur was able to conserve energy for later in the race. Hard attacks eventually took a toll and and riders were shed off the back…including me. Artur was able to respond and remained in the group that eventually caught the six man break and then attacked each other for the rest of the race. Artur, alone now amongst the likes of Team Type 1, Locos, Iron Data, and several other strong teams, had to respond to many strong attacks. Artur escaped up the road for a while and was eventually caught. Artur battled to the end with the strong men of the race and ended up with 5th overall for the omniuim. Well done!
Union City Circuit Race
Another good day of racing with most everyone on the team lining up. We were all happy to see Oneil Samuels racing with us, fresh in from Jamaica. Tim Henry quickly established himself as one of the more aggressive riders in the race. Everyone else joined the game eventually. Attacking was constant during the race but nothing ever really stuck and it was looking like a field sprint for the line. Hank put forth a huge effort to try and get away with a small group with five laps to go, but was ultimately reeled in. With two laps to go we fought for position up front with Tim keeping us all together. Just before the last turn of the final lap Benjy sneaks into a good forward position and was able to sprint for a 7th place finish.
Brooks Road Race
Chris Chotas and Benjy Coil raced the 4 lap, 68 mile road race on a fantastic cool sunny spring morning. The Brooks course is a scenic loop through long flats and gentle hills. There were lots of strong riders in the race, most of whom had several team mates. The first lap was a typical display of constant attacking. I was able to get into a 4 man break for most of the second lap. If the three of us were as strong as the young BMC development rider in our escape group we would have been gone for the day, but we were caught. After catching us the counterattacks began and led to another break of four riders. This time Chris Chotas was up the road and I sat back to recover a bit. Chris and most of his escapees worked together like stallions for about 35 miles. The peleton caught Chris’ group with about 10 miles to go in the race. Attacks began again and I gambled and rode away from the front with one other rider. Somewhat predictably, we were caught and I had spent most of the little energy I had left. I ended up 9th place in the field sprint and Chris cruised in with the group after a strong display of strength. Better luck next time!
Perry Circuit race
The line up at the Pro 1,2 race was Benjy, Hank, Wes, Matt and Artur. Artur had done well earlier in the morning time trial and had committed himself to race for a strong overa ll finish in the omnium overall classification. There was representation in the field from Team Type 1, Locos Deli Iron Data and a large group of the region’s strong teams. The race played out with steady attacks off the front, all of which were quickly caught. Artur, Wes and Matt were busy at the front attacking and chasing moves while Hank and Benjy cruised in the field. With about 5 laps to go Matt flies off the front and was out on his own for about 3 laps. About the time Matt is caught by the group, everyone was trying to get position at the front. Benjy was being led toward the front by a hard effort from Hank. With Hank’s help, Benjy hit the final corner in good position and sprinted to a third place podium finish with Artur just back in 10th place.
Perry “Roubaix” Road Race
Benjy and Artur against about the same crew from the previous day’s circuit race. The Perry Robaix is really fun due to the good roads and a long section of dirt road at the latter part of the race loop. The race began with a group of six rolling slyly away before anybody was really paying attention. Turns out that the escape group contained guys from many of the strongest teams in the race…oops. Before long the group was almost five minutes ahead of the peleton. Since Artur was trying to place well in the omnium and he was racing for better than a seventh place finish, we decided the best thing to do was to work together with the other guys who wanted to chase down and catch the break. At this point I was racing for Artur and slowly cooked myself in the chase effort for a couple of loops while Artur was able to conserve energy for later in the race. Hard attacks eventually took a toll and and riders were shed off the back…including me. Artur was able to respond and remained in the group that eventually caught the six man break and then attacked each other for the rest of the race. Artur, alone now amongst the likes of Team Type 1, Locos, Iron Data, and several other strong teams, had to respond to many strong attacks. Artur escaped up the road for a while and was eventually caught. Artur battled to the end with the strong men of the race and ended up with 5th overall for the omniuim. Well done!
Union City Circuit Race
Another good day of racing with most everyone on the team lining up. We were all happy to see Oneil Samuels racing with us, fresh in from Jamaica. Tim Henry quickly established himself as one of the more aggressive riders in the race. Everyone else joined the game eventually. Attacking was constant during the race but nothing ever really stuck and it was looking like a field sprint for the line. Hank put forth a huge effort to try and get away with a small group with five laps to go, but was ultimately reeled in. With two laps to go we fought for position up front with Tim keeping us all together. Just before the last turn of the final lap Benjy sneaks into a good forward position and was able to sprint for a 7th place finish.
Brooks Road Race
Chris Chotas and Benjy Coil raced the 4 lap, 68 mile road race on a fantastic cool sunny spring morning. The Brooks course is a scenic loop through long flats and gentle hills. There were lots of strong riders in the race, most of whom had several team mates. The first lap was a typical display of constant attacking. I was able to get into a 4 man break for most of the second lap. If the three of us were as strong as the young BMC development rider in our escape group we would have been gone for the day, but we were caught. After catching us the counterattacks began and led to another break of four riders. This time Chris Chotas was up the road and I sat back to recover a bit. Chris and most of his escapees worked together like stallions for about 35 miles. The peleton caught Chris’ group with about 10 miles to go in the race. Attacks began again and I gambled and rode away from the front with one other rider. Somewhat predictably, we were caught and I had spent most of the little energy I had left. I ended up 9th place in the field sprint and Chris cruised in with the group after a strong display of strength. Better luck next time!
