Cycling at Indiana University

With second semester coming up quickly, that can only mean collegiate racing is starting in the next couple months.  Both our men's and women's squads have been training together and getting in a lot of miles this fall. We are making a lot of progress and really coming together as a team. Numerous riders have set aside their Little 500 allegiances to help improve IU's cycling program. We have made no secrets of our main goal for the season: Qualify for Nationals. So far we have had about 8 men and 4 women show up to represent our A's squads. But everyone is welcome to come give it a shot! As second semester starts, we will be introducing more training races and drop rides to give a real feel for the racing atmosphere. Look for a call out meeting when we all get back to IU. If you need any gear for the upcoming season please fill out your order here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0ArihldUDClW4dGxEQ25TWTdXcDBzSzk3VUtmbUQxQkE And finally, here is the...

The Mens' C race departed at 11:00 am for two laps on a challenging and hilly 22 mile road course. Several attacks over the first lap of the course including a long solo effort off of the front by Turner Duncan broke the field of around 50 riders into small fragments led by the breakaway controlled by Turner Duncan, John Becker, Chris Passolano, and Austin Venhuizen. Unfortunately, Austin flatted and was forced to remove himself from the race at the end of the first lap. After opening a gap of over 5 minutes over the field, the remaining IU contingent expanded that lead with continued attacks spurned by the Indy-bred climbing supremacy of Turner Duncan, with the course eventually leveling out once again to allow for a race average speed in excess of 22 on a particularly hilly course. An expert lead-out from John Becker delivered Turner Duncan to his third race of the season, with the Turner and Becker crossing the line 1 and 2 with Chris Passolano just a stone's throw away in ...

A small contingent of IU riders made the trip to the University of Missouri road race this past weekend. The 35 mile course had it all; flats, rollers, and climbs that will rip you legs to pieces, but the Hoosiers were ready for the challenge. The Hoosiers continued racking up points across most of the categories, most notably with a 1-2 finish in the Men's C race by Jacob Read and John Becker. Read and Becker were followed closely by IU teammate Turner Duncan in 4th, with Austin Venhuizen (6th) and Chris Passolano (11th) not far behind. On the women's side, Emily Palmer narrowly missed the podium in the B/C race by finishing in 4th. She was accompanied by new IUCCers Christine Ball (8th) and Dana Van Der Genugten (13th). The big race of the day was the 70 miles Men's A race where RJ Stuart was looking to better his 9th place finish from the Lindsey Wilson road race. He did just that by finishing a strong in 6th place. The Hoosier are currently sitting in 5th place in the ...

This past weekend marked the start of the MWCCC road season at Lindsey Wilson College! IU had plenty of representation across all categories with 30+ riders in attendance! Team Time Trial The weekend started at 8AM with the Team Time Trials. The 12km, rolling course was deceptively difficult after the turn around when riders would face a 2km climb into a 15mph headwind but IU was up for the challenge! First to go off was the TTT of Austin Venhuizen, Chris Passolano, Diego Rodriguez, and Joe Dempsey. They destroyed their competition by over 2 minutes to take 1st place in the D category! Next up was the A's TTT of Greg Bortz, Graham Dewart, Sven Gartner, and Chris West. The A's struggled to find their rhythm in the first few kilometers but hit their stride in the second half of the TTT. The A's ended up 6th overall in a very competitive A's field. Road Race The next event on tap was the Road Race. The scenic 25 mile course consisted of 3 significant climbs, false flats ga...

A message from Women's Coach, Randi Cox. Hello, Ladies! Okay, it’s that time again. The first collegiate road racing weekend is the weekend of the 25 th , so let’s make sure we’re ready for it. We’ll do a practice race this Saturday at noon, meeting at the Sample Gates. This is truly a come one, come all event--anyone interested in racing should come check it out! If you’ve never raced before, this is your chance to see what it’s like. And if you are an experienced racer, here’s a chance to remind yourself what racing feels like. Regardless of your experience level, it’s an opportunity to get out there with your IU teammates for a great workout. We typically do a lap of the Forest (down Bean Blossom), though last year we did an out-and-back on 446 (due to ice on Bean Blossom). Either way, it will be familiar roads so no one gets lost, as this is not a no-drop ride...but we will all ride out together to the starting point. Attacking is welcome, as is teamwork…so come ready...

Ashton Wischmeier was the sole representative of Indiana University at the 2012 Collegiate Cyclocross Nationals. Ashton finished in 31st in Division 1 USAC collegiate race. Congratulations on a successful Cyclocross season Ashton! Ashton wrote a recap of his personal experience at this years nationals event: "Collegiate nationals - Madison, Wisconsin Arriving two days before the start of the collegiate race I witnessed the course change daily in appearance and in difficulty. It ranged from having several inches of mud to being covered in frozen ruts that were several inches deep. I arrived at the course at 7:45 the morning of the race to get in a final few practice laps before the start. It was 20 degrees outside and the course was extremely rough and unforgiving. The course was already one of the most challenging of the season with little room to recover in between climbs and other barriers, but the addition of 5 inch deep ruts covering every inch of the course not covered in a...

Hope everyone is enjoying their semester so far! We will be having out spring call-out meeting on Monday January 23rd at 9pm at the Wilcox House. At the meeting, we will be going over the plans for travel, hotels, entry fees, etc… for the spring road season that kicks off at Lindsey Wilson on February 25th/26th. For the full road schedule, please visit the IU Cycling webpage . If you intend to race this spring, please attend this meeting. If you haven't already, you'll be able to sign waivers, pay dues, and purchase and IUCC Kit at the conclusion of the meeting (you will not be allowed to race if you haven't signed a waiver and payed dues!) Also, dont' forget to renew/purchase your USAC Collegiate license! Be sure to select Indiana University-Bloomington as your club! That is all we have for now. As always, if you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact us! Looking forward to seeing everyone at the meeting!

It's that time of year! The road season kicks off in a little less than 2 months and MWCCC has released the following schedule: February 25/26 Lindsey Wilson March 3/4 Mizzou March 17/18 Lindenwood (also part of NCCCC season) March 24/25 Ohio State March 31/April 1 Michigan/Michigan State April 7 Marian (with Easter April 8) April 14/15 Purdue April 21/22 Notre Dame (Regionals) Please be sure to keep an eye out on your e-mail, the website, and the IUCC twitter for an announcement regarding the upcoming meeting where we will provide additional information about the upcoming road season as well as provide an opportunity to sign waiver, pay dues, and purchase IUCC clothing!