Team News

Escape Velocity Spring Series #4 & #5 – Langley, BC – March 20, 21

Race winner Rich Macchein

With riders racing MTB on the island, one racer as far away as China and another sick, only a small contingent showed for the third week of Spring Series racing. However, the two lone racers in the B group, Rich and Zach proved that size doesn’t matter by taking 4 top ten finishes including a victory on day one and a 3rd on Sunday. The weather was beautiful on Saturday, and so was the uphill finish in Aldergrove, at least for Local Ride Racing. After Zach help Rich maintain position down the last stretch on Zero ave, Rich was able to use his high cadence uphill sprint to earn the win. Amazingly he pulled this off after having to slow down to avoid a line violation. The tireless worker Zach held on to finish 6th. The weather and the results were not as stellar on Sunday as Rich had to settle for 3rd with Zach in the top ten.

Escape Velocity Spring Series #2 & #3 – Langley, BC – March 13, 14

The weather stayed dry both Saturday and Sunday, which was great for racers, support crew, and spectators alike. Steve, Mike, and Rich gained some experience in the ‘A’ Group on Saturday amongst a very strong field of riders, including pros Andrew Pinfold and Cody Campbell, while Rachel and Andrew duked it out in the ‘B’ Category and Ryan J. finished top 10 in the ‘C’ Group sprint.

The daunting Armstrong Hill course scared away many a rider on Sunday, resulting in smaller, but tougher fields. Local Ride Racing’s top result came from Rich, who placed 5th in the ‘B’ Category after 11 laps, but Mike threw down the most courageous ride, finishing strong in the ‘A’ pack’s chase group. Ryan N. worked hard in the ‘B’ race to finish in the pack, along with Jean Ann and Sandra, while Ryan J. and Jeanine conquered Armstrong in the ‘C’ group.

Escape Velocity Spring Series #1 – River Road, Langley, BC – March 9

Local Ride Racing kicked off the 2010 racing season on Sunday with the first Escape Velocity Spring Series event of the season. In traditional Spring Series fashion, the clouds rolled in just after the start and rain chilled the competitors and made the roads of Langley slick, resulting in sketchy maneuvers and crashes. The sky was red that morning and Mike took the old sailors’ adage to heart: “riders take warning.” Mike was pleased with his first foray into the “A” category, after podiuming at two races in the “B” category last year. He was active in the group and involved in attacks before running out of steam.

Steve was also content with his first “A” race. “At about 8 laps to go out of a 17-lap race, I started to get pretty cold and found myself at the back of the pack. Then with about 6 laps to go, I said: ‘Okay, I’m cold, I’m done talking to this guy at the back.’ So I moved up.” He jumped into the rotation at the front, taking pulls at 48kph, trying to get warm. Suddenly, with 4 laps to go, Steve was disappointed when his tire went flat.

Jean Ann logged a personal best, placing 4th in the “B” category in her first race of the season. She had to dodge crashes and use race savvy in order to make it safely through the race and the final sprint. Zach and Rachel got caught in a crash and were, unfortunately, unable to finish.

Ryan J. put down the power in the “C” category, in his first road race ever, making it into the final sprint with a good chance of making the podium, but he was boxed in and unable to move up. With a little more racing experience, Ryan J. will be making trips to the podium for sure. Pete and Maggie raced in the Youth competition and did very well with Pete placing 2nd. “Maggie raced great,” said Team Manager, Barry. “She suffered through the 4 laps in the freezing wet weather. She rocked!” Congrats to everyone and thanks to our race support crew Marie, Dave, Paul, and Barry.

Introducing the 2010 Giant TCR Advanced 2, the bike chosen by the Local Ride Racing men’s team.

With this bike, Giant has created the perfect package for an aspiring cat 1/2 racer. Advanced-grade T-700 carbon fiber keeps the weight feather light – 16.0 lbs out of the box for a medium. The overdrive headtube and powercore downtube keep the bike stiff, making it fast and responsive for crits, while the compact frame geomerty and areo Vector seatpost keep it comfortable enough for 140km races.

For the budget conscious athlete, Shimano’s other high performance Ultegra group is great for Local Ride Racing members. With a full Ultegra 6700 gruppo, the TCR has all the style, 95% of the performance, and only half the cost of a Dura-Ace equipped TCR. The look of the new carbon-fiber-under-the-bar-tape 6700 shifters is awesome, and Ultegra’s new cranks and brakes offer the best shifting and stopping of any gruppo. Throw in some Michelin ProRace 3 tires and this bike will help you fly.

Rest assure the men of Local Ride Racing can’t wait to test their new bikes. Look for them at the races, and cheer them on as they push the limits of body and machine. In the meantime check the pics below, or better yet, come by the shop and see if TCR Advanced is the right bike for you.

Local Ride Racing is pleased to announce that they will be hosting Barry’s Roubaix on April 11th 2010. This will be a new twist on the old classic Harris Roubaix road race. It will be a modification of the old course, and in the spirit of the classic Paris Roubaix it will contain more gravel, and an additional series of corners on the back side of the course. It is sure to serve up a tooth rattling and gritty good time.

“We are very excited about this new course” says team manager Barry Lyster. “This is one of the local classics, in the tradition of one of the true Classics, Paris Roubaix. When the opportunity to host this race presented itself, we had to jump. The new changes to the course will make it even more physically and technically demanding, so that it will further live up to its name and tradition.”

Please stay tuned to our website for details and early bird registration information.

photo courtesy of John Irvine : (l to r) Pete, Roy, Jean Ann, Maggie Sandra

Local Ride Racing Wins Medals

This past weekend Mahon Park in North Vancouver hosted the 2009 BC Cyclocross Provincial Championship, and Local Ride Racing showed in force with 14 racers plus 2 support tents. Out of those 14 racers, 5 managed to battle their way onto the podium. The Local Ride development team proved that they will be a threat in the future with both Maggie and Pete grabbing 3rd place against strong competition in the U17 category. Roy had one of his strongest CX races of the season also netting himself the bronze in the Master 40-49 category. Don’t let that age fool you, those guys are FAST. First place went to Norm Thibault, a CX legend from the island.

Then it was time for the elite women to snag some hardware. Unfortunately Local Ride was shut out from a gold medal by none other than Alison Sydor, arguably the greatest female mountain biker in Canadian history. That’s OK because Jean Ann and Sandra filled up the rest of the podium in 2nd and 3rd respectively.

Congratulations to all the amazing performances!!

Full LRR Results

Elite Men
9th Steve Devantier
10th Steve Doreen
11th Mike Berkenpas

Elite Women
2nd Jean Ann McKirdy
3rd Sandra Walter
6th Chelsea Bilsbarrow
7th Jeanine Ball

Masters 30-39
9th Ryan Newsome
15th Andrew Kerr

Masters 40-49
3rd Roy McBeth
15th Paul Craig
19th Barry Lyster

U17 Men
3rd Pete Whalen

U17 Women
3rd Maggie Coles-Lyster

Local Ride Racing presented by Local Ride Bike Shop in Maple Ridge is excited to announce its 2010 women’s road team roster. The elite women’s road team was recently awarded BC Cup Female Team of the Year for its achievements throughout the 2009 season, including helping squad rider Laura Brown achieve the overall BC Cup Series victory.

“As a new team on the scene, I was thrilled with our success this year,” said Team Manager Barry Lyster. “Now, with a season of experience behind us and the high quality riders on our crew for 2010, we expect to accomplish even more on the race courses.”

The 2010 Local Ride Racing women’s road team roster includes steadfast 2009 riders Chelsea “Pickle” Bilsbarrow, Jean Ann “Animal” McKirdy, with planned guest rider appearances by Sandra “Red Racer” Walter. Local Ride Racing is thrilled to announce the addition of three new young riders to the crew: Gillian Carleton, Rachel Canning, and Lisa Perlmutter.

“We’ve added some young riders to our roster who have already shown huge promise. For next season, we’re mixing fresh talent with power and experience, and I envision this combination will be winning races for many years down the road,” said Lyster.

The Local Ride Racing women’s road team will contest the BC Cup road series, Race the Ridge – a premier three-stage omnium road event in Maple Ridge presented by Local Ride Bike Shop, the prestigious BC Superweek, and other high-profile events in Western Canada and the Pacific Northwest.

“I’d like the team to challenge for the win in every race and repeat as BC Cup team champion. I’d like to see at least that, but I think our bigger goal will be to finish on the podium at BC Superweek. I know these talented women have the potential to accomplish that,” said Lyster.

Local Ride Racing is based at Local Ride Bike Shop, a small, locally owned store in Maple Ridge, BC. The squad is recognized nationwide for its high-profile racers, friendly and approachable members, and marketing savvy, which garners them recognition across North America, in local, national, and international press. Local Ride Racing can offer great promotional opportunities to business wishing to support team for the upcoming 2010 season. The team has not finalized its 2010 sponsors, and still has partnership opportunities available.

2010 Team Roster
- Chelsea Bilsbarrow
- Rachel Canning
- Gillian Carleton
- Jean Ann McKirdy
- Lisa Perlmutter
- Sandra Walter