To Upgrade or Not To Upgrade, That is the Question...

October 3, 2012

Well, THAT didn't take long...
It happens every year and this year it only took 2 races for the discussion to begin.  Because I have been with the leadership of Red Zone Cycling for 6 years, I hear it every year.  So I guess I shouldn't have been surprised, but now my kid is in the group being discussed.

Mitch Graham and other powers that be spend a lot of time taking into consideration all of the issues that come up with the OVCX and the scheduling issues.  The day is only so long and everyone wants their own category, so compromise must be reached.

Before I go on, below are some of the recent comments on the OVCX Facebook page.  I think these discussions are important, but I do want to address some of the issues raised:


"Your U19 categories aren't recognized by USAC or u23 so of they are crushing the field in those categories, by USAC rules they have mandatory upgrades for them to the next level. It's not fair for a legit cat3 or cat4 that wants to get upgrade points to upgrade if a kid that has the points to upgrade is taking them week after week and year after year."

"High Level USAC coaches coach cat 3's? I'm not saying that they should be forced to race with the elites, I'm just saying that the U19's, not the juniors that race with the 4's, clearly need their own race or some other race than the cat 3 wave because they're clearly not cat 3's."

"I'm not just Cat3 pack filler complaining about wanting points. I am racing for top 5s in the wave and Cat3 poduims, and Im fine racing against the U19 Elites that are beating me every week. They could easily hold thier own in the elites but make the Cat3 race competitive also. I dont think anyone is calling Jr's baggers for winning, but when there is an appearance that they are riding in a field that clearly offers no challenge to them and are preceived as taking away from the experience of other riders, it's worth talking about. Just because some are questioning if the system is working to keep thing fair doesn't mean we're hating."

"I'm not hating. I've seen the same juniors in the same categories for YEARS with mandatory upgrade points for years. Since USAC doesn't recognize the categories their are racing in for OVCX, they are taking away upgrade point from guys that are: married, with kids of their own, work full time jobs and want to do well. I am all in favor of supporting junior programs and I have had the privilege of being there for someone that didn't have the benefit of the LVV junior programs BUT the juniors results are listed on USAC under the cat 3 or cat4 results NOT a junior race."

"Perhaps one can ask why a U19 category even exists? Either you're a cat 3 or a cat 2 (or a cat 1). It just seems like this year the U19's are all talented enough to be racing the elites. (which is a great thing)."    


I cannot speak for any other junior other than my own, but here is where I stand on the issue:

Cycling is my son's sport.  Cyclocross is his passion.  There is not a high school league for him to race in.  Our local scene is his league.  He has been at it since he was 9 years old and just like in any sport where you pass through each level to the next, he has followed those rules; first as a 10-12 year old, then a 13-14 year old, then a Cat 4 and now as a Cat 3.  He is currently racing in the U19 category and is a Cat 3.  As I type he does NOT have the points to be given a mandatory upgrade.  But he will have those points soon and it has been the topic in our house what to do at that point.  Keep in mind that he is just 15 years old.  Even if he is given a mandatory upgrade, he is still able to race in the U19 category.  That is the elite category for his age group. 

Everyone wants to do well.  Ian wants to do more than that.  He wants to take this sport to the next level.  He wants to race in college.  He wants to race in places that the rest of us can only dream of.  And to do those things, we have to be smart about his rise through the ranks.

Ian had some top 10 finishes in the Cat 3s last year.  With another year under the belt and more miles in his legs, he has really come on at the beginning of this season.  Riding well?  Yes.  Elite men material?  Maybe.  But what would happen if he upgraded and decided to race the Elite men and the additional 15-20 minutes at CX pace.  Would he physically and mentally be able to handle that pressure?  It is a giant decision to make, because he, after all, is still just a kid.  People are scouring the lap times and yes, at 40 minutes, these kids might finish top 15 in the elite category.  But the elite men category goes on for another 20-25 minutes.  No one can say what would happen to these kids in that last 20 minutes.  The worst thing would be to mentally crack these kids.  We want to grow the sport, not turn them away from it. 

High level USAC coaches do recommend that kids race competitively at shorter race lengths.  That is what the USAC has adopted with their own change in race lengths at the national level and that is what is done in Belgium and other European countries.  But what they have that we don't is a greater number of competitive juniors at the same level.  We don't have those numbers in the U19 category here.  We're talking about 6-7 kids, not 50, taking up the finishing positions in the Cat 3 race.

You would be hard pressed to find a junior that has remained in a Cat 4 or Cat 3 category year after year without upgrading.  Every kid I have ever worked with always wants to upgrade.  And they usually do so before they are really ready.  I call BS on that logic.  I find it very unusual that the debate is over upgrade points.  This is the second year of the U19 category.  Before that the juniors were racing just as Cat 4s and Cat 3s and all hell broke loose because the juniors were taking all the prizes and the podium spots.  Hence the 15-18 and the U19 categories were created.  That way the kids got the competition numbers to race against to give them decent points for USAC rankings (which affects their start positions at Nationals) and the Cat 4s and the Cat 3s got their podiums and prizes back. 

Now Cat 3s want the upgrade points, too?  The kids that are currently racing in the U19 category are legitimate Cat 3s and have a right to those points.  My suggestion to the other Cat 3s would be to work for them.  I know plenty of the Elite men and Elite master men that are family guys, with jobs and everyday problems wearing them down, but don't use them as an excuse.  So I know if you really want to do well and upgrade to the Elite level, you can do it.  You can put in the effort.  Trust me, Ian is putting in the hard work and he never goes at just 80%.

Wanting to do well and doing the things that you need to do to actually accomplish it are two different things.  Riding your bike is only part of the equation.  Ian puts in 3-4 mornings in the gym before school starts.  He works his overall body strength, including core.  He stretches to keep his body injury free.  He runs and does bleachers for leg speed.  He makes sure to get plenty of quality sleep.  He manages his recovery intake after workouts and races.  He eats balanced meals and has cut out all crap food that teenagers love.  He listens to his body and makes sure he doesn't get run down.  And I haven't even started on the actual bike workouts.  Being really good at something, even as a weekend warrior, has to be attacked from all sides.  

The other thing I would suggest would be to watch these kids, especially those that have been on a bike for years.  They are beautiful to watch.  Their technique is incredible.  Learn from them and your own lap times will come down.  Our kids here focus on technique, technique, technique.  If you don't have good fundamentals, no amount of power straights on a cyclocross course will help you.

I don't know a single junior, especially those in the U19 category, that would ever turn someone down if they asked for help.  But make no mistake about it, they are there to race and to win.  If there are Cat 3s that seriously want to upgrade to the Elite men level, my advice would be to use these U19s to get faster and prepare yourself for the next level.  If you are competitive with them, then you know you'll be ready for the next level.  I don't think getting an upgrade would be an issue at that point.

So for us, if Ian does upgrade and move up to the Elite Men level it will be because Mike and I think he is ready.  It will be because Ian thinks he is ready.  It will not be because anyone else says he is ready.  That is the bottom line.  Until then, while he might be given a mandatory upgrade, he will stay in the U19 category. 

Le tour de je ne sais quoi

Close your eyes.  Imagine you are 15 years old.  You race bicycles.  You’ve had some success and some failure.  You’re slowly and methodically moving through the junior and category ranks of the sport.  You get an opportunity to participate with others your age in an international stage race, teams representing USA, Canada and other countries.  You are staying with 99 other young men in an “athlete village” and are responsible solely for yourself.  Next, you are on the starting line, your team is ready and the announcer and most of those around you are speaking French.  The countdown, “trois, deux, une” and the gun to signal the start ring in the air.  To me, who grew up in Frankfort only playing softball for the YMCA during the summer, this international dream seems unreal, but Ian got the opportunity this week.

Getting ready for Stage 3 - 80k

Ian on the line

This is normally a CX blog and we will be getting to that later in this post, but let me say how incredible it was to watch not only Ian and his teammates with Borah Development compete in le Tour de la releve international de Rimouski, but all of the other young Americans that we have seen grow up over the last several years kick some international booty.  And if results speak at all, it would say that we have some very strong young competitors moving up in the American ranks.

The sprint for stage 3 win

Emily from Borah Development takes 3rd on stage 3 & 4 and 4th on stage 6

Jonny Brown of Hot Tubes wins the sprinters jersey

Ian didn’t win anything, except for 1 sprint point in the crit – after which the French announcer called his name, which THRILLED his mother.  But we knew going in that this would be a learning experience and it most definitely was for all of us.

Michael Gaines in the crit

Josey Weik in the crit

Alec Porter in the crit

Ian in the Hot Tubes crit train

Ian, Josey and Michael up front

This stage race for 15-16 homme cadets and 15-16 femme cadets and 17-18 femme juniors (15-16 year old men and 15-18  year old women) was no joke.  There were 6 stages in 4 days, including a team time trial, an individual time trial, a criterium and 3 brutal road races between 57 and 80 kilometers with climbs as much as 20% for over 2k.  No aero equipment was allowed (save clip on bars and aero helmets) and gears were restricted to a 52x16 for all 15-16 year olds.  Rims were restricted to 35mm depth.

The peloton and caravan 1/2 way through stage 3

The peleton

Mike riding in the caravan

The view from the feed zone on stage 6

The group coming up the 20% climb and into the feed zone

Michael hanging tough in the group

The race splintering all over the hill

There were 25 teams of 4 equaling 100 starters at the beginning of the 15-16 men’s stage race.  73 finished the whole thing.  Ian finished 44^th overall.  His best finish came in the ITT in which he finished 21^st.  But it was more than the results.  There’s nothing better than this experience to show the strengths and chinks in the armor and what could be done differently to improve the overall outcome for next year. For that reason I am glad Mike and I were there.  Not only that, I’m glad to be an ambassador to tell others what a great experience this was and is for racers this age.

And then there is Ian. Who was that kid that got in my car at the end of the week?   It certainly is not the one that we dropped off at athlete’s village on Tuesday.  Ian raced very well.  He did make some basic tactical racing errors along the way, but I found him so much more grown up by the end of the week.  Not only that, but he made some friends for life.  What a great group of young men and women that made up the Borah team!  Larry Martin did an awesome job of putting together a strong group of incredible young people.  Thanks aren’t enough for what he, Jean and Oscar did for these kids this week.

Ian and his Borah teammates

The Borah group - except for Ian who had gone to take a shower so we could hit the road.

Ian and his promised goodbye hug from Michael

So what’s next?  Cyclocross season starts in one week – for Ian anyway.  He is one of 4 OVCX kids selected to attend Geoff Proctor’s Cyclocross Camp in Helena, Montana the week of July 24^th.  He, Gavin Haley, Drew Dillman and Spencer Petrov will all maneuver themselves by plane to hang with 11 others selected from across the country.  They will be riding in the mountains and elevations above Helena and learning as much as possible from Geoff before we get into the meat of the CX season.  It’s a time to come down from road and refocus on CX.  It’s a time to make even more new friends, ones they will be racing against and with over the next years.

Barely 15, working hard and livin’ the dream…

But alas, reality starts Wednesday.  It is the first day at his first real job.   He’ll be working at Dooley’s Bagels.

CXADMIN

Thank you to all of the Red Zone Cycling and Borah Development sponsors, especially to Clarksville Schwinn and Brian Blackwell for getting Ian’s bike all tuned up and ready to go.  Also thanks to all those that have busted butt and helped get bikes bought and built for CX camp.  It has been a real scramble and it's done just under the wire.

Okay, this blog wouldn’t be complete without a list of French Canadian truths that Mike, Cate and I discovered while vacationing around the stage race…

1.     French Canadians serve French fries with everything.

2.     Gravy is a condiment that comes with almost every meal.

3.     Gas, food and hotels are all very expensive.

4.     They don’t use ice in their drinks.

5.     Tim Horton’s (or Timmy Ho’s as we called it) is a very popular food chain in Canada and is a big hangout for older folks.  It is Canada’s version of McDonalds in the breakfast hours, but all day.

6.     You think you know how to speak French until you go to a French speaking country.  How many times can I say “Je ne pas parle Francais?”  I can still read it though and spent 5 days interpreting signs and menus for both Mike and Cate.

7.     Ice cream shops are very popular.

8.     Starbucks?  Never heard of ‘em.

9.     International Data Roaming is off the charts expensive unless you buy a global plan up front.

10. Have some Canadian money with you, but carry your VISA – it is an international language all it’s own.

11. Never go somewhere without telling your parents or you might end up in a police car.

12.  As Willet told us, whenever anything, anything happens, call the polize.

13.  There is a good craft beer shortage in Quebec.

14.  Gas looks cheap, but then you remember it is sold in litres.

15. The mail does not run on Saturdays at all.

16. The “Empress of Ireland” passenger ship sank near Rimouski 2 years after the Titanic and killed a much higher percentage of people.  Over 1000 of the 1500 passengers perished in the 14 minutes it took to sink.

17.  In Rimouski, the people were very patient and friendly.  Thankfully they spoke more English than we did French.

I am a cycle citizen.

Tuck 'N Run

I wish I could report that Mike had the ride of his life because he threw down the gaunlet and let it all hang out for the win in the Masters Cyclocross Worlds final yesterday.  Well, Mike did have the ride of his life and he did let it all hang out, but he finished 17th on the day.

You know, nothing surprises me anymore.  Despite the ups and downs of the season, I thought Mike had a great chance to finish top 5.  He woke up in a great mood.  I got in a run in with some friends.  Cate cooked breakfast.  Ian walked the dogs without arguing.  This was the day the long season was going to end.  I mean the day that Mike was racing in the finals for a World Championship.  He was on task and got a warm-up on the trainer in the morning.  We got packed up and to the venue on time.  Brian got his bikes and wheels ready.  Mike pre-rode the course and was liking the conditions.  Joe talked strategy while Mike jumped back on the trainer.  We headed to the line.

Warming up in the Team CF tent with Joe and Brian.

Racing in the WORLD Championships!  Now THAT is cool!

Everything is done.  It's just time to do it.  Mike was coming from third row so his work was cut out for him from the start.  The start was okay.  With 5 laps in the race, sitting around 8th for the first lap was good.  Mike looked comfortable although I wanted him to move up a bit.  But he felt okay with the technical riding of the conditions while others in his little group were freaking a bit.

Fred had an incredible season.  He is ready to rumble.

The start.

Mike on the 3rd row on the left of the photo.  Already an obstacle to overcome.

Madman Tim Butler takes the holeshot, but crashes hard right after.

The problem with being in a little group with people freaking is that they will make mistakes that will cost you a good finish and that is what happened to Mike on the second lap.  He was moving up well, still sitting around 7th and a guy crashed on a downhill right in front of Mike.  Because it was muddy and slippery, Mike didn't have any choice but to try to ride through him.  He did and went superman down the hill.  It whacked his bike out and he went from 7th to 25th in 30 seconds.

Mike fighting for position in the first lap.

Mike supermans down the hill.

I was so afraid he would just give it up, but ever the warrior, Mike got a pit and started working his way back up through the field.  His third lap was amazing and he got back up to 18th by the run-up.  He was riding things others were running.  The hometown crowd was incredible and were showing him major love.

Fighting back.

Then it happened.  At the top of the run-up, Mike was riding to the inside of a guy who was running the section and the dude came over on Mike, putting him into the wood stakes stopping him dead.  Mike's handlebars grabbed the stitching of his chamois and ripped them off his body.  Of course I didn't know this at the time.  He kept riding and I noticed that he had a hole in his shorts, but no one said anything.  He had a much slower next lap, slipped back a few spots and I was worried.

Peek-a-boo, I see you!

Through the hometown crowd packed run-up section the next lap I noticed there was extra yelling, pointing, laughing and Mike laughing and yelling back at the crowd.  I couldn't figure out what was up so I ran over to the start/finish straight to yell at him.  "Stop talking to the crowd.  You have a group of 4 right in front of you, there's 1 to go.  GO!"  He looked me dead in the eye and yelled "My junk (sic) is hanging out!"

Boz, Mo and Eric giving Mike some love.

The heckles came fast and furious!

Well, that stopped me dead in my tracks.  It all made sense.  I looked over behind me at the crowd. Some were looking at me and when I went over to them, many confirmed his statement.  But of course we're all bike racers and instead of being disgusted, they all thought it was the greatest thing ever.  I just had to smile and laugh, too.

At that moment I knew the real race was over and I just witnessed the love that everyone had for Mike.  Everyone had respect for him staying out there and finishing.  He told me later that he had contemplated quitting the race when the "wardrobe malfunction" happened.  He said all he kept thinking about were all the Red Zone juniors out on the course cheering him on.  It didn't to seem as bad when he was on the bike, but he said that when he got off to run, including all of those sections where the crowd was the largest, he just had to "tuck and run, tuck and run".

Tim and Marty encouraging Mike to keep riding.

Someone shooting video.  I'm sure we'll see that on YouTube.

I think once he realized he was going to continue, he dug in a little the last lap.  He caught and passed a few guys and ended up crossing the line in 17th.  Luckily Brad Swope had picked up Mike's warmups from the start grid and had pants ready right past the finish line.  Good thing because the media was thick there.

Mike shows the finish line what he's been hiding for 3 laps.

Getting post-race love from our boys.

This is why you should pit.

Local friend Keith Lucas ended up 4th - Great race!

Mike and Brian.  Brian is top-notch!

Marty and the City of Louisville really stepped up - Thanks so much - we had a blast!

The season is OVER!

Since then all I keep thinking of are all the photos and videos we are going to see posted over the next week.  I don't want Mike to be the next "Joey"!  We're going to hear a million of 'em, including Ian's favorite so far about Mike's race down at the "junkyard".  But oh well, such is life.  Many people contemplated afterwards what they would have done in a similar situation.  I heard answers on both sides.  But no question about it, I am proud that Mike just kept going and finished the season with a bang.  Not exactly the kind of bang we were looking for, but a bang nonetheless.

Well that's it for the season folks.  I'll be putting on my RDADMIN hat soon enough.  It has been an incredible season.  I stated in my first post on our way to Sun Prairie, WI back in September that the blog would be a running record when we got to this point and couldn't remember how we got here.  I would never have believed half of the things that have happened to us over the last six months unless I read them written in this blog over the months.

I can't sign off without thanking all the people that have made this season possible, endurable and memorable.  So many names of sponsors, supporters and friends.  Bob's Red Mill, Challenge Tires, Stevens Bikes, Mad Alchemy, Panache Clothing, Sinclair all on the sponsorship front.  And of course, Joe Collins Coaching, Brian Blackwell and Clarksville Schwinn, Mike Purvis and Work It Out, Drew Hartman and On Your Left Cycles, Wayne Simon and Enzo's, Joan Hanscom, Bruce Fina and the best CX series - USGP.  Then of course our own families, as well as our Bob's Red Mill, Red Zone Cycling and Texas Roadhouse cycling families.  To all of our friends that we have made along the way, thank you for making this sport fun for all of us.  And last, but not least, a special shout out to all of our close friends that have supported us all along the way.  There are just too many of you to mention, but my heartfelt thanks for all the love.

Till next season ya'll, I'm tuck'n and run'n.

L

PS - This is what I love about working with juniors.  Professional ice runner, Luke Haley, testing the ice.  See the following series of photos.

Don't do it.

Don't do it.

Awwww....he did it.

Yep, there is water under this ice.

I bet it's cold.  What's your exit strategy?

No sympathy, just lots of laughter.

Every Village Must Have An Idiot

January 12, 2012

Okay, before I get any comments regarding this post, this title was suggested by Mike himself and we have laughed about it.  There, disclaimer made.

The U.S. National Cyclocross Championships have always been the big ending to the race year in cross.  Except for those racing Worlds, it is the last stop of the year.  It's not that way in road. Nationals are a destination during the season, but the season goes on after the big show.  So, there is a lot of pressure to be ready for this big race at the end of the year.  Ending your season on a peak after racing for four and a half months is hard.  You are tired, burned out and ready to take some time off.  Forcing yourself to train through these feelings is extremely hard.  Getting that last 10% out of yourself at these times is what separates us.

It got harder this year with the move of Nationals from mid-December to early January.  I wasn't sure how it would go, but I have to say, I don't like it.  Dragging the family through semester finals, Christmas holiday and New Years while training was a real downer.  But, that's not what this blog is about.  I disgress...

Nationals went just okay this year.  As a family we have been very lucky in the past with Ian on the podium 3 times and Mike near the podium a handful of times.   And Red Zone has made over 12 podium appearances in the last 4 years.  The McShanes went into Nationals with just an okay feeling.  Mike spent the week leading into Nationals doing 12 hour days in a room in Colorado manning the phones of a call center.

We all just seemed to be misfiring all week.  Ian wasn't quite with it, the bikes weren't quite with it and Mike didn't fly in until Thursday night and when he did get there, he left his brain in Colorado.

Ian's race on Friday was just okay.  He didn't race terrible, but was probably about a minute off what we would have thought to be a good race.  He did still finish 17th overall and 3rd 15 year old which puts him in a great position going into next year.  And he was satisfied, which makes me happy.  Not to mention the fact that he was interviewed by Colt of CyclingDirt, which made his day. 

Link Here:  http://www.cyclingdirt.org/coverage/247673-USA-Cyclocross-National-Championships-2012/video/559946-Ian-Mcshane-Cyclocross-National-Championships-Junior-15-16

A lot of Red Zoners had some funky luck with crashes, bloody noses, bad tire pressure, etc.  Frances Haley saved us with an incredible podium performance in the 13-14 women's race.

KK Santos with blood covering her jersey

Ian races to 17th place

Frances Haley represents with a 4th place finish in the 13-14 Women's race

Of course, nothing could stop us from celebrating with all of the kids and parents on Friday night at a local watering hole.  We had 50 people join our celebration and it put all the air back in the day.  What fun people to hang out with!  But some still had to race, Mike and all the 17-18 year old men.

Red Zone Cycling and friends celebrate

With Mike flying in late the night before and most of the kids racing on Friday, Mike was supposed to pick up his numbers Friday afternoon.  Well, back at the hotel after dinner, during bike prep, it dawned on him.  He had not picked up his numbers.  He was to race at 9am the next morning.  We didn't even know if it was possible to pick up numbers the next morning.  We jumped on the computer and found that luckily they were opening registration at 8am, but not at the venue.  So the tone for the next day was set.

We were up very, very early.  The course had gotten sloppy the day before and Mike had chosen NOT to pre-ride because his conditions were going to be very different.  So he had to pre-ride (after the sun had come up), get to registration and then warm up on the trainer all before getting to staging by 8:45am.  Anyone else who hadn't dealt with such situations may fold under this pressure, but they aren't the McShanes.  We are the ones that have regularly dressed for a race in the car, jumped out, signed a waiver and gone straight to the line.  It's how we roll.

We got to the course at 7:45 and Mike pre-rode a couple laps.  We jumped in the car at 8:15 to go to registration.  I had called Larry Martin who was working the table, so he was aware we were on the way.  Mike was in and out of registration and we were back to the course by 8:22.  He was going to have a solid 15 minutes to blow it out before heading to the grid.  We were going to make it.

Arriving at the outbuilding where Mike was to warm up he started looking for his gloves.  He found one, but we tore the car apart and the other was missing.  I called Larry and yes, he had dropped his glove on the way out the door of the hotel.  Numbers had to be pinned, warmup had to be done, WHO was going to drive back to the hotel to get the glove?  Input suspenseful music here.

Heaven forbid anyone volunteer to help out where needed because our angel, Sherri Thompson was there and volunteered to go get the glove.  Brian Blackwell got Mike's bikes ready and tires pumped.  Joe Collins got Mike calmed down and ran through a warm up.  I pinned his numbers.  Barb Saive, John Haley and others all picked something up and got it to the pit.  It sincerely took a village that morning and as I was pinning Mike's number and people were running around us I told him "It really does take a village." Mike came back with, "and a village idiot."  We laughed.  It was funny.

He made it to the line in plenty of time.  The start went great and I heard over the loud speaker that "McShane" was second in the holeshot.  I was so excited, but it was short-lived.  Mike crashed early and had some bike and steering problems that others were able to overcome.  He ended up 20th.  It just wasn't his day.  They can't all be your day and that's what we all realize.

Mike was also interviewed by Colt and his interview is here:

http://www.cyclingdirt.org/coverage/247673-USA-Cyclocross-National-Championships-2012/video/560383-Mike-McShane-Cyclocross-National-Championsips-45-49

The start line of the 45-49 race.

Mike negotiating the snotty course

Mike races in the heats of the Masters Cyclocross World Championships today right here in Louisville, KY.  It is almost surreal because it is here.  Real life is going on around us.  Mike worked Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday and didn't get today's PTO approved until yesterday.  He has to work again tomorrow before he races in the final on Saturday.  It's just all been weird, but we haven't regretted a moment.  Like I have said many, many times, it is more about the memory of being there, the comraderie of like-minded individuals, the little things that all added up that make it an experience like none other.  Even for village idiots.

Spencer Petrov, Ian and Ethan Reynolds after the 15-16 race

Ian, Gavin Haley and Josey Weik after the 15-16 race

Morgan Webb, Mike and Tim Butler enjoying some Great Dane beer post-race

A race in Wisconsin is not complete without some Polka Music