It Is What It Is

And what it was wasn't pretty. Headed to Newport News Saturday for the Casey Crit @ Todd Stadium. Tunnel traffic & a wrong turn made a short road trip a bit longer & more comical to start things off. Laura & Ali raced with Suszann & about 15 other women in the Women's Open category. BJ was there to take her standard stellar photos of several different races on what turned out to be a sunny Saturday afternoon.

The pace started slow & didn't change much with a couple of surges during the first several laps. Eventually Cook set up Ali to break which worked but another racer got on her wheel. They made a few laps together and then Cook bridged up to assist. Keeping their gap from the field, they continued to run laps around the half mile track, the two of them primarily doing the pulls. As they came into the back side of the course during the bell lap, with Cook leading Ali out, the sprint started right before the final turn. Emily came around the outside and got the win. Ali 2nd and Cook 3rd. Suszann, racing Cat 4, finished in the pack in the field sprint shortly thereafter.

Another well done event this year and a forecast that wasn't expected but appreciated. Thanks to the JRVS Team & to the ladies who came out and gave it their best effort!

Cause for Paws Criterium - June 13, 2010

Vanderkitten Racing proudly announces their first annual “Cause for Paws” crit to be held in Chesapeake, Virginia on June 13.
This is a VA Cycling Bar event which promises to have great primes, lots of race money taking place on a spectator friendly course. We have a 50 plus men’s category and also have special medals for the juniors.

A portion of the registration fee will be donated to the Virginia Beach SPCA so that they can take care of our furry friends.

Registration is now open on BikeReg at: http://www.bikereg.com/events/register.asp?eventid=11064

DE, MD, VA: Abbreviated Race Reports

DELAWARE: Hit the road early Saturday morning to head up to the Wilmington Grand Prix. Cook, Anna Lang & Kacey Manderfield raced with another 65 or so ladies in the Pro 1/2 crit held on the streets downtown. The pace was fast and aggressive cornering on a couple of downhill right turns probably helped to split the field, though long straightaways after allowed for some regrouping. For safety reasons, riders were pulled & eventually only half remained to dig it out. Kacey Manderfield was in that group and got in a five person breakaway. She came in a strong 2nd behind Laura Van Gilder.

MARYLAND: Sunday we headed on to Baltimore for the Kelly Cup/Bike Jam. This was a Pro 1/2/3 race so Ali Cat joined them and another 35 or so who showed up to race around Patterson Park. Fun course with swooping turns, one a little tighter then the rest. Group stayed together for the most part with a handful of break attempts being pulled back. In the final lap, Kacey led out Anna who grabbed 3rd, Van Gilder again taking the win.

VIRGINIA: Locally, Suszann raced with the Cat 4s at the Sleepy Hole Smackdown out in Suffolk on Sunday. Heard it was a close finish for 1st and 2nd place. Hope to get more of a report soon!

Knott's Island Century/Sprint Into Spring

A few of the Vanderkittens travelled to Chesapeake to ride the Knott’s Island Century last Saturday. After 25 miles at a sedate pace, we boarded the ferry from Currituck to Knott’s Island. We embarked an hour later to finish the last 75 on country roads. The weather was nice and the ride ended with a pasta dinner hosted by TBA. The only glitch was the unexpected rain washing away the markings which told us which way to go. Since we’d all ridden this course before, we were able to get our 100 miles in, while missing 2 rest stops, by adding 12 miles on at the end.


Suszann made her way to the Sprint into Spring crit at Fort Lee. She loved the course and can’t wait until her next race. It’s always nice to have a newbie on the team whose enthusiasm is infectious. We love having her with us!

Cleo, the $500 Cat

Cleo was a stray cat that had been coming up to John's back porch since his wife loves to feed the strays. He returned from a long bike ride to find her laying on a blanket in the family room. Apparently, she had seen one of their other cats at the back door and walked right in to socialize. Although she was covered with fleas, he knew that this cat was here to stay so he went to Walmart that evening and got some Sargent’s Flea stuff, the kind you place on the back of the cat’s neck.

The next afternoon, John heard the cat meowing downstairs and found her laying on on her side with her legs straight out like she was paralyzed and panting heavily. After consulting with his wife, he put her in a cat carrier for a trip to the vet. Apparently she'd had a bad reaction to the Sargent’s flea medicine but, with $500 of treatment, is going to be fine. Shortly thereafter, she was named Cleo and she is now a part of the household, fully recovered and playing with the other two cats, Penny and Browney.

JB - Fellow Cyclist, Photographer and our Friend

Many hearts were broken this week with the news that John, affectionally known as JB, passed last Thursday. Not only was JB a cyclist but was a fixture on the sidelines taking photos of every race he attended. There were times when JB said it was a tossup as to whether he should buy a new bike or a new lens for his camera. After a JB sighting at a race, folks were patient to wait for the great photos he shared with everyone. When I saw him at a crit in downtown Norfolk, he lit up when he saw Kevin Dillard there because of the common bond they shared capturing the perfect picture.

I got to know JB back in 2004. I would see him here at the beach, see him in DC the next day, hear that he made a quick trip up to NY to race and then would head down to Florida to see his folks. When he wasn’t racing and chasing races up and down I-95 he was taking care of his patients and doing that quite well.

JB was also a cat lover and named his cats after cycling heroes. JB was a gentle giant.

I feel lucky that JB and Barb were able to come to Bike Va where we spent lots of miles on the road and many drinks poolside. I also feel blessed that JB was able to come to my home often for meals. His laugh and smile always lit up a room.

JB was a man behind the scenes. He was known to drive bikes for cyclists out of state while the cyclists were able to fly to their destination. He started his blog “Love2Ride” back in July, 2005, which was read by everyone. He did mountain bike endurance events, crits, Ironcross, road races and gave hours of his time to clean up trails. He never met a stranger. He never brought attention to himself, he always gave to others.

JB – We miss you, we all loved you. May you rest in peace.

BJ aka Podium Cat

A photoshow has been created in JB's honor. You can view it at:

http://www.photoshow.com/watch/Hk7WM3GD

We Conquered the Canal and the Langley Speedway as well!

There was an amazing turnout on Saturday for the Conquer the Canal time trial. 13 of our girls were able to test their skills in a 12 mile out and back course along the Dismal Swamp. This race filled to capacity early in the week so we’re glad our girls all chose to pre-register and be a part of this great race. Everyone performed well in all categories.

Laura, Ali and B J were the top 3 female times of the day.
The race results are as follows:

CAT 1-2-3
1st Laura 29:00
2nd Ali 29:52

CAT 4
5th Karen 32:52
6th Roberta 33:54
12th Lisa 37:36

40 plus
1st BJ 30:37
8th Barb V. 35:43
9th Suszann 35:53
12th Claudia 37:02
14th Susan 38:00
15th Wendie 38:17
16th Donna 38:30
17th Christy 39:07

LANGLEY CRIT

26 ladies showed up today for the Langley Speedway Crit. Rumor has it that times were fast. Laura and Ali got up the road quickly and did what they do best – get away and keep going! Everyone kept the rubber down so it was nice to race with a safe crowd. In the end, Laura took 1st , Ali took 2nd, BJ got 4th in the 40 plus women and Suszann took 6th in the Cat 4. It was a great weekend for racing and thanks to FAT FROGS for an outstanding job.

Well done ladies. Well done indeed!!!