Cycling

High School Cyclocross Resources

The Academy is helping OBRA with the Oregon High School Cyclocross Series, which is integrated into the Junior Cyclocross Series. The JCS is in it’s second year and will offer 8 Races, mostly in the Willamette Valley. The JCS uses existing races to add junior categories so that any racers age 10+ can race against their peers for an overall series champion.

The High School Cyclocross Series is specifically for High Schoolers, includes 5 races that overlap with the JCS and is designed to get schools to create clubs and compete as regions. The HSCS will grow after its first year to include schools, clubs, races and racers from all over Oregon. The size and scope of the HSCS is unlimited and we all hope it will grow quickly to include hundreds of Oregon high schoolers.

Junior Cyclocross combines with High School!

The Academy believes that growing cyclocross into the high school sports arena is one of the best ways to introduce junior cyclists to racing. Academy Cycling Director, Bill Warburton, is the Bend regional coordinator to help get the OBRA series going. Use this page to find resources and read updates on the 2 overlapping series.

The Junior Cyclocross Series

Run by the Pacific Power Blue Sky Cycling Team. Below is information about the overall Junior Cyclocross Series from John Wilson jfw100@comcast.net.

Our generous sponsors:

Pacific Power

Willamette Valley Cycling

The Oregon Bicycle Racing Association

Redline Bicycles

Castelli

Sellwood Cycle Repair

Hammer Products

Northwest Multisports

I am pleased to announce the 2010 Oregon Junior Cyclocross Series and the Oregon High School Cyclocross Series.

The JCS is back for its second year and promises to be bigger and better. The same great schwag, awards, and racing action plus expand race venues reaching out to a town near you! The JCS is a best 6 out of 8 race series. Must participate in 5 or more races for series awards / grand prize awards.

New for this year is a High School CX Series. This series rides on top of the JCS. It is a best 4 out of 5 race series. Must participate in 3 or more races for series awards / grand prize awards. The HS Series is configured so all HS participants can simultaneously race the JCS. Two series and two sets of titles/schwag on the line for the price of one $5 Entry/event. These are OBRA events. All rules apply. Helmets required. Memberships available for $5. http://obra.org or Day of Race.

Within a week or so we will have a new dedicated to Junior Racing web page up on the OBRA site (Thanks Cheryl Willson). Keep an eye out for this (but I will send out a reminder to everyone once it is up). This site will provide all the series info plus track race / series results. It will also provide all the contact info and context for the High School teams.

JCS Awards:

We have great awards, medals, and cool swag 5 deep in each JCS category, plus great Grand Prizes. Series Champion Jerseys from Castelli for each JCS category. Equal awards for Girls and Boys. Grand Prizes will be based on a lottery system factoring in race participation + finish position in the series.

Special thanks to: Jeff Lorenzen, Jeff McNamee, Sal Collura, and Brad Ross for opening their arms and welcoming Junior racing into their awesome Cyclocross races and race venues!

If you have more questions about the JCS please contact:

John Wilson

Willamette Valley Cycling Team / Pacific Power Blue Sky

JCS and HSCS Series Director

541-760-1331

OBRA High School Cyclocross Series

Created by OBRA, Kenji Sugahara is the main contact person: kenji@obra.org

Read the Initial White Paper on the Series by downloading the PDF.

Below is some information from Kenji about the series:

Goals for year 1:

1. Get the ball rolling. Start putting the structure together for high school competition.
2. Get kids/parents to start cyclocross clubs in each of their schools.
3. Introduce cyclocross to high school administrators and other key people in schools.
4. Pull together high school kids so they can compete directly against each other.

Basics:

The High School Cross Series is a 5 race series that culminates in the OBRA Championships. This series allows high school age kids to compete directly with each other for the title of Oregon High School Cyclocross Champion. The first year we do not expect enough kids per high school to be able for individual high schools to field teams. Thus- we plan on pulling together regional teams. Races are 30 minutes in length.

Organization:

The competition is being run as part of the Junior Cross Series, which is run by the Pacific Power Blue Sky Cycling Team. (See below for more info about the JCS) OBRA is providing logistical support to the series.
Regions:

Portland
Hood River
Bend
Salem
Eugene/Corvallis
Coast
Southern Oregon

HS Categories:

Team
Male (no age distinction)
Female (no age distinction)

Jerseys:

Castelli has generously offered to provide teams with jerseys at preferred pricing rates. You may use other vendors. More info on this once the web page is up but the deadline for artwork is August 6th to ensure a September 15 delivery just a week prior to the first HS race. Castelli will provide a choice of templates to help create your team jersey or you may provide your own artwork.

Proposed Calendar:

Date	Name	Time	City	JCS Race	HS Race
Sun 9/19/10	HR Double Cross	12 noon	Hood River	1
Sat 9/25/10	Psycho Cross	12 noon	Eugene	2	1
Sat 10/9/10	WVC Heiser Farm	12 noon	Dayton	3	2
Sat 10/16/10	Psycho Cross	12 noon	Eugene	4
Sun 10/24/10	Cross Crusade	12:35 pm	Hillsboro	5	3
Sun 11/7/10	Cross Crusade	12:35 pm	TBD	6	4
Sat 11/13/10	Psycho Cross	12 noon	Eugene	7
Sun 11/21/10	OBRA Champs Double points	12 noon	Salem	8	5

Categories and Start order (all will race together in one 30 minute, mid day race, Juniors only, no adults on the course).

Start order	Gender	Age Category	Series Points
First Group	Boys	17-18	JCS and High School Ages scored separately for JCS
First Group	Boys	15-16	JCS and High School Ages scored separately for JCS
Second Group	Girls	17-18	JCS and High School Ages scored separately for JCS
Second Group	Girls	15-16	JCS and High School Ages scored separately for JCS
Third Group	Boys & Girls	13-14	JCS Only – B&G scored separately
Fourth Group	Boys & Girls	10-12	JCS Only – B&G scored separately

Scoring:

Top three finishers in each race receive points.
Best 4 out of 5 races.
Must participate in 3 races to qualify for series awards.
Double points for the championships.

Practices:

We encourage teams to get together and practice as often as possible. We would prefer if these practices were held on school grounds. But- folks must always ask permission before doing so. The first step to get permission of course is forming a club.

Insurance:

We can provide liability insurance for practices. This covers damage done by riders. It does not cover damage to rider’s equipment. It also does not provide medical coverage. Teams will need to submit an application for this coverage.

Coaches:

Teams may choose to have a coach.

Equipment:

We will be working with Redline to help kids purchase bikes at a discount through their first bike program.

Jerseys:

Castelli has offered to provide teams with jerseys at preferred pricing rates. You may use other vendors.

Castelli Information:

1. No production minimums for the program (three Jerseys min for approved teams)
2. Cost per jersey is $40.00.
3. Use the provided design template (place your name here, and provide school colors) - DOWNLOAD TEMPLATE
4. Orders and artwork must be turned in by August 6st for a September 15th delivery .
5. Orders turned in after Aug 6 will be scheduled on a case by case basis (plan for 6 week turn).
6. Castelli can lend some design assistance for those in need but the program does not support complicated and time consuming design. Please be respectful and considerate if requesting design help.
7. For more information you may contact:

Richard Desmond
Manager-Servizio Corse
Castelli-US
Office 503-222-3500 ext23
Cell 503-816-7504
Rdesmond@castelli-us.com

High School Awards:

HS Categories: Team, Best Girl, Best Boy. Series Champion Jerseys for Top team, best Girl, best boy. Medals three deep.

Parents please get the word out to all the kids you know who may be interested. If you are interested in creating a High School team Contact Kenji Sugahara kenji@obra.org / 503-278-5550. If you want to join a regional HS team contact one of the following region coordinators:

Portland: Rick Potestio potestio@comcast.net

Hood River: Jeff Lorenzen obra369@yahoo.com

Bend: Bill Warburton bwana.bill@gmail.com

Salem: Omer Kem omerkm1@yahoo.com

Eugene/Corvallis: John Wilson jfw100@comcast.net

Coast: TBD bikenewport@charter.net

Southern Oregon: Glen Gann ggann9@charter.net

HSCS FAQ’s

I don’t have a team, can I still participate in the series?

Yes- we’ll set you up with a team from your region

My child is not in high school. Can they still race?

Not in the high school series, but they are welcome and encouraged to try the junior cross series. However, there is a minimum age of 10 years old. There is a kiddie cross race at most races for those under 10.

What are the prizes?

For the High School Cross series, we will provide letterman style jackets to the winners. Medals will go to the top three teams and individuals.

We have a team, do we have to race in every race to be eligible to win?

No. The team only has to race in 3 of the 5 races to qualify but the best out 4 out 5 races will count.

What kind of bike can I use?

Although cyclocross bikes are preferred, mountain bikes may also be used.

There’s no race in my area. Can we put on a race?

For 2010, the calendar is set, but for 2011 and beyond we will need more regional races all across Oregon. These races should be sanctioned by OBRA for insurance and equipment purposes.

Who to contact about the HSCS: Kenji Sugahara: kenji@obra.org

Cycling Program Update

Greetings,

I would like to update you on our Cycling Programs now that we’re half-way through our season. We redesigned our cycling offerings for 2010 and my vision of a complete Bend Endurance Academy Cycling Program is coming alive! Check out the headlines below to see how our mission involves our athletes, their parents and the greater cycling community.

Our Mighty Bikes Session 2 is about to start, so enrollment is open online and we have room for lots more kids! At only $150 for 5 weeks, it’s a fantastic deal and will elevate your child’s riding faster than you can say, “Hey, wait for me!”

What Changed for 2010?

We debuted our Freeride Program, allowing kids to learn how to dirtjump and use more technical skills to be safe on the bigger terrain that is being developed on our trails.
We reformatted our Mighty Bikes program to have a more specific progression over both 5 and 10 weeks so we can better track improvements and provide more specific coaching.
We created our Development and Competition Programs. For athletes ages 12 – 18 these programs are the most comprehensive cycling programs in Central Oregon and are modeled on the most successful programs from around the country.
We are integrated much more into the community.
We will debut our redesigned Cyclocross Program this fall and it will work with local schools, race promoters and OBRA to get as many new juniors into the sport as possible.
For July and August we’re adding Mini Bikes, for ages 6 – 8, where kids will play and ride on the trails to get ready for next year’s Mighty Bikes.

Mighty Bikes

XC Mighty Bikes explore some technical terrain

With an emphasis on skills progressions masked by fun rides and games, this is our summer cycling program for 8 – 12 year olds. They build fitness automatically at this stage. We offer cross-country (XC) and freeride (FR) mountain biking. XC and FR are very similar, but we decided that FR needed its own specialized coaches to provide an outlet for those kids who really want to pursue dirt jumping and other types of stunt riding.

We have had nearly equal enrollment in these programs so far this year. Both programs meet for 2 hours, twice a week, allowing them to participate in other sport interests, like soccer, little league, etc. without major scheduling conflicts.

Scarlett at the Slalom Play Loop

Our Mighty Bikes groups maintain a coach to athlete ratio of less than 1:7 and by the end of the program the more advanced riders are often capable of riding for 2 hours on 99% of the trails in the Bend area.

Most gross improvements happen quickly, within the first 3 weeks. Then we can work on finer skills and bring up fitness and strength until the end of the 10 weeks. Many athletes and parents only notice that initial large improvement but we coaches know that the biggest improvements happen over the course of the full 10 weeks.

Development Program – 10 Weeks

The next step for riders 12 – 18 are the Development Programs. Riders meet about 3 days a week, sometimes more if there’s an event or race. Riders choose a discipline and stay with it for 10 weeks. We offer XC & FR mountain biking, Road and Cyclocross. These riders are interested in a specific area of cycling and get specific coaching for technique and fitness with the philosophy that they will race or compete in their discipline. Racing is not required but is often one of the best motivators to build internal drive.

We work on all aspects of preparing for competition to help minimize nervousness, stress and build confidence. I believe that competing can be a goal; winning is an outcome of competing well, but is a secondary goal for our Development program.

At this level, we begin to introduce our riders to the greater community around them. We have guest coaches who drop in to share their knowledge, we try to connect them to good mechanics and shops, help them understand how they can focus on a particular discipline but call themselves “cyclists,” and we help them find their place in the community. I believe our cycling community in Bend is one of the largest by population, but some organization is lacking to give it true visibility and strength.

Competition – 30 Weeks

We started on March 16 and have so far traveled to 4 races outside of Bend and competed as a team more than 10 times, with a rider on the podium at almost every race. We have 5 riders on the roster, ages 15 – 17. Highlights include Colin Dunlap winning the Junior Mountain Bike Cup Series and Cole Sprague helping some friends win the OBRA Jr Men Team Time Trial. We’re half way through our Comp program, with a break coming up in August, then we’ll take up cyclocross from September through Nationals in December.

Competition athletes ride road, mountain and cyclocross

School Involvement?

There are some high school cycling clubs forming right now and there have been others in the past, but the schools have little resources to make them sustainable. Often, parents or students take the lead only to have momentum die once the athletes graduate. OBRA (Oregon Bicycle Racing Association) is trying to help the schools have a more sustainable program, specifically designed around cyclocross because of its lower cost to participate, ease of staging events, confluent schedule and growing worldwide popularity. We all hope cyclocross will be the introduction to cycling and bike racing that opens the door for other types of racing.

The OBRA program would be score the following age groups: 10-12, 13-14, 15-16, 17-18.

I am personally involved with helping establish the OBRA Junior Cyclocross program in Bend because I know it will be good for our community. I am designing our Bend Endurance Academy programs to parallel and take advantage of the high school program, but let me be clear, the Academy will not administer the program or compete with it for riders. Riders can choose to be high school, Academy or both.

The Academy will offer resources to the schools and we can help coordinate coaches education and events. The Academy programs are not designed to pull the best riders away from the high schools, they are designed to provide a long-term approach to cycling and training that encourages cycling before and after high school.

COCC Club Cycling

We’re working with Bill Douglass at COCC to integrate our Nordic and Cyclocross programs with their Club Sports. With the trails at COCC there is good potential for training and racing on campus so we’re excited to be working toward supporting their club sports.

The Overall Goal

As I see it, Bend has lots of cyclists and we all tend to do our own rides and not pay attention to the bigger picture. As cycling director, I’m invested in looking at the big picture and finding ways to bring groups together so we can all have more resources, share adventures and eventually have all types of cycling represented in our community as a cohesive voice. We all want safer routes to school, better roads, more diverse trails, easy access, fun events and world-class races, so let’s work together to make this our reality.

Other Community Partners

Cog Wild Bicycle Tours – we partner with them to run our Mighty Bikes Program. They have a talented group of guides that we use to help staff our programs and we share resources like transportation and loaner bikes.

Commute Options – we will work together to provide fun events for kids that help them learn new skills. We have already collaborated on a bike rodeo that was very successful.

OBRA – we have received grant money from OBRA in the past to help establish our program and purchase loaner bikes. Our missions overlap in several areas and we’re working together on a regular basis.

Local Bike Shops – we do not have an official shop sponsor. We want our athletes and families to find a shop that fits their needs and makes them comfortable. That said, WebCyclery, Pine Mountain Sports and Sunnyside have been supporters of our program and we work together on a regular basis to provide discounts and fun events.

COTA – we are a major user of the trails so we are working with COTA to help give back. The Bend Bicycle Film Festival is a joint fundraiser for COTA and the Academy.

Stay Connected and Get Others Involved

Find us on Facebook for regular updates, photos from races and rides along and special offers!

http://www.facebook.com/bendendurance

I hope you’re summer is going well and please contact me if you have any questions.

Sincerely,

Bill Warburton

Cycling Director

Bend Endurance Academy

541.335.1346

bill@bendenduranceacademy.org

www.bendenduranceacademy.org

Peanut Butter Picnic - Meet Professional Cyclists

Kristin Armstrong won a gold medal for the USA in the time trial in Beijing and is the current World Time Trial Champion. She now coaches the Peanut Butter & Co. TWENTY12 professional cycling team. The Bend Endurance Academy and Webcyclery invite you to join Kristin and her team for a Peanut Butter and Jelly Picnic on Tuesday June 22 at Webcyclery.

The picnic starts at 6PM with free PB&J sandwiches, snacks and drinks, including beer for the adults. Check out the team cars, bikes and casually meet the riders in a family-friendly atmosphere.

A free bike rodeo and obstacle course will run from 6PM – 7PM. The course is designed for kids but is open to anyone who wants to try out their balance skills. Helmets and bikes will be available for use.

The TWENTY12 team will present at 7PM with an overview of top-level professional cycling then answer questions from the audience. With some of our country’s best hopes for a medal in the 2012 Olympic Games in London, this is an excellent opportunity to meet the athletes and show them your support as they compete locally at USA Cycling’s Road Nationals. The Junior/U23/Elite National Road Championships are being held in Bend, June 22 through June 27.

“It takes a lot of effort from all of the racers to travel to Bend for these championships and we want to welcome them,” said Bill Warburton, Cycling Director for the Bend Endurance Academy. “Having such talented riders come and mingle with the community is a great way to motivate our local juniors to succeed and to let the whole nation know how much Bend loves cycling.”

Guess the amount, win sunglasses!

The Fitzsimmons family has been filling a 5 gallon mason jar with coins since we launched the Bend Endurance Academy. On June 30th, we will count the coins and the person with the best guess will win a pair of Ryder sunglasses, thanks to George Wescott and Ryders Eyewear.

To enter, submit your guess in the ‘comment’ section below.

The change in the jar will go toward the purchase of the Academy’s Cycling team van!

As you can see there is a little space in the jar left to fill- you can help us top it off by bringing in your spare change. Simply fill a plastic bag with any change you can find around your house and bring it by the office!

Thank you to the Fitzsimmons family for their generous and creative contribution to the Academy!

Women's Triathlon Clinic

The Bend Endurance Academy will host a Triathlon Clinic for Women!

The Clinic runs from 9am to noon on June 19th and 20th and will be taught by local triathlete and certified triathlon coach, Joanne Stevens.

The clinic is open to women of all abilities who are interested in exploring an exciting sport in a supportive, energetic and fun atmosphere.

According to coach Stevens, “This clinic is designed primarily for beginner triathletes and aspiring racers who would like either a hands-on or instructional class, or both. We will be swimming, biking, and running as well as working on transitions, learning about bike maintenance and open water swim technique. We will be covering triathlon-related items such as training, equipment, what to eat, changing a flat tire, what to wear and how to take off a wet suit. If you are planning on racing the Deschutes Dash, or just want some triathlon experience this will help relieve any anxiety you might have and give you the chance to meet some fun women.”

Saturday will be a instructional class.

Meet at Bend Endurance Academy.

We will cover everything you need to know to participate in a triathlon; from nutrition to equipment to strategy etc. Bring running shoes, active clothing for practicing transitions, and a snack.

Sunday will be hands on.

Meet at the Bend Park and Recreation Office, 799 SW Columbia (new building with Kayak sculpture near the Old Mill District/dog park).

We will be swimming, biking, and running parts of the Deschutes Dash Sprint course as a group. Our goal is to learn strategy and techniques for each stage of the race. Bring a wet suit (recommended), bike, helmet, running shoes, training clothing for all 3 disciplines, water, electrolyte drink, and energy food.

Cost is $90 for both days, $50 for Saturday only, $50 for Sunday only.

Click here to enroll.

Contact Joanne with questions:

jlestevens ‘at’ hotmail.com

541.848.3691