Twenty Seconds of Bouledogue tout noir in Your Face

Bouledogue Team Leading at the Alpenrose Six-Day Race; Ryan Competes in Highest Tier

Valerie Brostrom and Josh Ryan, with their respective team mates, are competing in the Alpenrose Six-Day track event in Oregon. Six-Day racing is one of the oldest genres of cycle racing, still popular in Europe, but a rarity in the U.S. It is a grueling series of races that tests the strength and endurance of each two-person team. Val reports in on the first two days of competition:

"My partner and I, Dena Eaton from L.A., are currently in first place, up one lap on the field and ahead by 30 some points. In Madison racing, laps count more than points so as long as we can keep our lap (hopefully gain more) we'll be fine. We would actually be up 2 laps going into tonight if we hadn't botched an exchange. Because of that, we were actually down a lap last night and had to lap the field to finish the night even.

Josh and his partner, Jack Lindquist from LA, made it into the Men's A field thanks to Josh's awesome standing start in the qualifier. They're holding strong in 6th place and looking to move up to 5th. The top 3 teams are pretty much untouchable so the best they could do would be 4th.

Each night we do 2 mass start events and a Madison. I'm not too tired, although getting there, since our field isn't that tough. Josh on the other hand is really getting drained. Tough racing for the men."

There are videos here, you can see Josh and Jack in Bouledogue regalia.

Track Omnium Win - June 4th - Northbrook

Seriously, what's going on with the weather? I have this "rule" that I try to stick by and it goes something like this: When it's under 60 and/or raining I will not race. Why? Because I've had too many interesting moments in the rain and my body just doesn't respond well to chilly air. Thankfully I never have to worry about the second part with track racing and usually not the first part either. But racing on Thursday night broke the first part of my rule, it was easily in the low 50s all night. Brrr.

Here's Lara and I huddled under two blankets. By Ed White.

It's easy to not be enthusiastic to race when you're nose feels like an ice cube and that's exactly how I felt for our first race, a Danish Win and Out. Plus there were only 3 of us, which is less than inspiring. I thought I would come around Kristen Meshberg (Team BH USA) with about 200 to go to take the win but I failed and ended up leading Francine Haas (Alberto's) out and got 3rd. Blegh. An uninspiring start.

Next up were the Points Races, the various mens' fields did 50 lap, 30 lap and 25 lap races which meant A LOT of sitting around for me. I was so cozy under my blanket I didn't even warmup for our race, which was a 24 lapper with sprints every 3. Since this was the marquee event of the night we were combined with the Women's 4s for a total field size of 8 to 10, not really sure. Our race was pretty active with a few primes thrown in. Tamara Fraser (xXx) and Christina Peck took a flyer for a prime and stayed off to go 1 and 2 on a points lap. It was great to see Tamara being aggressive! I remember Kristen jumping around turn 3, a lap and a half before points, which caused me to mutter (yell) something special. I put my head down and knew I had to catch her. With about 3/4 of a lap to go I closed in on her and thought about just sitting on her wheel, but I had a lot of speed so I passed her, hoping I wasn't leading Francine out again. I put my head down and went all out and won the lap. In the end, I think I got 5 of the 8 sprints and got points in the other 3 sprints, which was enough for the win. I felt really good accelerating and jumping on the points laps, a few times I even got a sizeable gap. This is good for me since this is what I'm training for this year.

During the Points Race. Note I no longer sprint with locked elbows! By Ed White.

Our final race was an Unknown Distance, just the 3 of us again in the 1/2/3 field. It was getting late, everyone was freezing so we urged Carl to make it short. We didn't have a neutral lap, he blew the whistle from the rail and I think he would have rung the bell as well except someone decided we should have a prime. We got going, Kristen had a decent gap, I caught her wheel and didn't contest the prime. Carl rung the bell when we passed. I sat on Kristen's wheel until about 200 to go, accelerated out of the saddle and won the race. It was short and fast, a perfect ending to a cold night at the track. As always it was great to race with Francine and Kristen and I was happy to see a strong Women's 4 field. There's a lot of talent out there!

Bouledogue tout noir Rules the Spring for Third Straight Year

Since 2007, Bouledogue tout noir has consistently unleashed an unknown talent on the female peleton, and this year's beast bears the name of Jannette Rho.

With five wins and an equal number of podium placings to her credit, Jannette has continued Bulldog's Spring tradition of winning, winning, and winning.
Notable Spring results from 2007-present (female riders):

2009

• 1st-Wonder Lake Criterium
• 1st-La Rue-Denzer-La Rue Road Race
• 1st-Leland Kermesse
• 1st-Kevin's Crit Series #1
• 1st-Kevin's Crit Series #4
• 3rd-Vernon Hills Grand Prix

2008

• 1st-NCCA National Road Race Champion
• 1st-NCCA National Championships Omnium
• 1st-Snake Alley Criterium
• 1st-Quad Cities Criterium
• 1st-Mellon City Criterium

2007

• 1st-UW-Madison Criterium
• 1st-UW-Sheboygan Road Race
• 1st-Mizzou Road Race

Vernon Hills - May 3rd - Women's 1/2/3

I decided to break up the monotony of LFP training and headed out to Vernon Hills on Sunday to race my inaugural race of 2009 - the Vernon Hills Gran Prix. I have never done this race before but was given a primer by Mark Zionts at the track on Saturday. Basically he said the biggest factor in previous years was the wind. Big surprise, right?

Josh and I left pretty early, which was a good thing because the directions provided were wrong and we had to backtrack through suburbia to find the race. Luckily we had left early enough that I didn't get too stressed out about all of that. I usually can be quite a basket case when lost before a race.

We pulled into the Vernon Hills HS parking lot, wondering if we would see anyone we knew and just as I was parking I spotted our wonderful teammates Jon and Emily. Excellent. I went and registered. I offered Emily one of my UofC jerseys (our team kits are still MIA), she declined in favor of racing incognito in a stealthy black T-shirt. Emily is one of the strongest women I know and I figured if no one knows we're on the same team, perhaps we have a chance for some big things. I mean, who expects a woman wearing a T-shirt to win? If any one could do it, it would be Emily. She would probably lap us in the process too, she's that strong.

The next 30-45 minutes in a nutshell - Emily and I started warming up next to our cars, across from each other, not really saying much lest the other 3 women take note. Josh went off to cheer on Jon in the 3s. A few HS kids were leaving the parking lot, I got some "looks" from a car of pre-pubescent boys which I chuckled about.

(Man, I'm running out of steam with the race report and I have yet to get to the race!)

We come to the line. There are 8 or 9 of us racing, better than the 5 I had expected. Jessi Prinner was there, along with Francine Haas and a new lady from Team MS racing who I had result stalked the night before (she was the only one pre-registered), Jessica Hill. I figured the 3 of them along with Emily could make for an interesting race. The usual pre-race formalities ensued and then we were off for a windy 40 minutes around an O'hare air traffic control structure that looks like a flattened mushroom. We had about 15 minutes of extremely boring, slow and negative racing. Yawn. Jessica and Jessi both laid down some strong attacks but they didn't last. Then coming around the final straight, Emily looked back at me, smiled and just laid it down. We got a decent gap but were caught going into the first turn. Then Jessi and Jessica jumped with Francine in pursuit and I knew that was it and I needed to be on that break. I caught on and we proceeded to hammer it, each taking short pulls. We worked wonderfully well for the next 25 minutes together (after I remembered to pull through with a little goading from Jessica -- I admit I was a bit rusty from the off-season).

With 2 to go I knew the cat and mouse games would start soon and I knew I didn't want to be the one dangling out in front. When we came out of the final turn with one to go, I let Francine take her pull and then I settled in behind Jessica. Francine was sensing the game had started and managed to get off the front leaving Jessica there to pull us all through the final lap. She tried her hardest to give up that front spot, but none of us budged -- not wanting to needlessly tire ourselves out in the headwind. With 2 turns to go, I looked back and saw a rider approaching, knowing that someone had been gaining ground on us for the past 10 minutes -- turns out that was Emily time-trialling up to us, told you she was strong! It turns out the person I saw was a lapped rider catching up to us. I admit it was kind of nuts how slow we were going ... 8-10 mph. Haha, it would have been funny had Emily caught us and then won while we dicked around.

We came out of the final turn, all itchy to get the sprint started. I looked up and thought we were approximately 150-200m out, so threw down a hard acceleration. It felt really good and I think I had a decent gap ... BUT ... I had jumped way too soon and got passed by Jessi and Francine. It's so much easier to tell distances on a track! Jessica was coming up as well but I was able to throw the bike and finished in 3rd. Emily finished amazingly close to us, given her time trial effort, in 5th place. Go Bouledogues!

Overall it was a great early season race. I had a lot of fun, I love racing with Francine and Jessi (my break partner from the Nekritz race last season at the track). Jessi is going to bring on the hurt for us this year, she is developing into a strong rider who I'm sure we'll see in the Pro ranks in a few years. And Jessica, newly transplanted from out East, will definitely spice it up this year as well.

My coach (Colby Pearce) wants me doing more road races and crits, so I'll be trading in my track bike for my road bike in the months to come. Exciting!

But next up: Dick Lane Velodrome for some weekend racing. Josh "Mad Cow" Ryan will be racing The Keirin and is officially slated as the "dark horse". He's #10 and will be wearing brown. Go Mad Cow! We'd also like to thank Team Pegasus for lending us both a skinsuit for the weekend. While racing in The Keirin, Josh will be wearing pink, like a real man. :)

Waite Moves into Fifth Place in Wisconsin Cycling Association Series

After competing in three out of four races of the season-long Wisconsin Cycling Series, first-year All-Black Matt Waite is now ranked in fifth place in the standings.

Waite opened the season with 10th and 7th place finishes at the Great Dane Velo Club racing weekend in Madison, Wisconsin. He was one of the few riders to remain in contention during the first day of racing, and a major animator in an aggressive contest dominated by large squads from the host and Gear Grinder teams. On Sunday, Waite survived rain and extreme wind and finished the race solo in 7th place.

In the Fond du Lac Cyclery Criterium in Sheboygan Wisconsin, Waite again faced a stiff wind, rain, Wisconsin cold, and some elevation change that "was just steep enough to hurt." The conditions and competition diminished the starting field considerably and Matt was able to secure a good 6th place finish against top competition.

Additional congratulations is extended to Dallas Fowler, another recent category 2 addition to Bouledogue tout noir. This past weekend Dallas put regional and national fields on notice when he led the Midwest Collegiate Cycling Conference Regional Road Race for 72 miles with one other rider. He still managed a top-ten finish after being caught by the field very late in the race.

L'Equipe Bouledogue Tout Noir Rider Janette Rho Wins First Contest of 2009

How long into the Bouledogue tout noir's 2009 racing season would it take before we marked up our first win? Thirty minutes or the duration of the first women's race of Kevin's Crit Series, a week-long escapade into south side bike racing.

It was only appropriate that the women's race came down to a duel between riders on sister teams: Janette of the All Blacks and Sophia of team Tati (supported by the tactical genius of Tati's J ). Although Janette did the early work, it was Sophia who ultimately split the field with a well-timed attack. As Janette dragged the lead group of three around the course, concern grew that she might be burning the candle wax at every end. But those thoughts were incorrect. During the last lap Rho managed to attack, get caught, and (with perfect advice from team mates Val and Josh) won the sprint by several bike lengths.

Rho recapped the final lap: "The bell rang. I kept pushing through the wind, rounded the corner...and powered. I knew it'd be me or Sophia at that point... saw Val screaming by the final turn. I took it sharp, put my head down into the wind, and hammered. Looked like I won."

Half Acre Cycling deserves much credit for putting the Kevin's Crit Series together. It was a smart, fun, and well-timed idea; and we can't thank you enough for taking the time to put it all together.

Storck Vision Light at First Blush

While inspecting the latest shipment of team bikes for team all black, my attention was immediately drawn to what is probably the best aluminum bike on the market and the best-kept secret in bicycle manufacturing today. I love carbon-fiber bikes, but the Storck Vision Light is the most drool-worthy frame drawn from the element with a standard atomic weight of 26.9815386(8).

The tubes are brawny and do not feel as if they are made out of soda-cans like many other aluminum bikes. It has an anodized black finish that is very durable and white graphics that make for a stunning and timeless look. Storck also uses a type of double-pass welds that no other bike company can do. As a result, the welds do not need filing, which results in a much stronger joint.

With all these points aside, I believe that quality of manufacturing can often be measured in the care put into small features, and I usually look at the construction of a bike's dropouts for some sense of the engineering invested. Most bike manufacturers will use dropouts made by stamping out a flat piece of metal. They take a thick bit of aluminum and then cut some holes out of it: easy and cheap. However, take a look at the dropouts of the Storck Vision Light:They definitely do not look cheap, nor will those internal ribs allow your rear wheel to twist the rest of the bike like a flat dropout might.

The Vision Light also has the cleanest and most appealing cable-stops that I have ever seen, and they use the same stops on their more expensive carbon frames.Photographs do not do this bike any justice, and you will just have to see it for yourself. With a pair of deep-dish carbon wheels, the Vision Light would probably be the best criterium bike on the market (and relatively cheap). It is built to race, and you can only find it at Tati.

l'equipe Bouledogue tout noir to ride the Lightest, Stiffest, Most Durable Frames on the Planet

Bouledogue tout noir doesn't compromise. We ride bikes that are precise, beyond stiff, and always with molosser-like tubing. For the past two year's we rode a bike that met those requirements very well, but with recent changes the team was hunting for new ride and found one that literally pushes the previous rig off the page (of bike rankings).

In 2009, Bouledogue tout noir riders will be stretching their legs aboard bikes built by Storck of Germany. Independent testing on stiffness, weight, and ride quality by a major European magazine elevated Storck bikes into four of the top five places--including the top step as "World Champion"--proving that these sleds just crush the competition. After looking at the quantitative data and this video, people will be rethinking about that Scott or Cervelo as the best carbon ride around. To put things in perspective, Storck's entry level carbon fiber frame (the CD 1.2) is known as the "Madone Killer" by industry experts.

Our partner Tati is the only platinum Storck dealer in the Midwest and the only place to find these rigs. What is even wilder is that most of the Storck bikes slated for US distribution are going to sell out before they even arrive on our continent. For more on Tati and to investigate landing your own Storck, go to the Tati website or just peruse Tati's own take (shamelessly lifted by me) on Storck :

"Storck is a German brand led by an engineer's engineer with an obsession with simultaneously building the stiffest and lightest road frames in the world. And for the most part, Markus Storck has achieved this for the past decade. German Tour Magazin's annual wrapup of strength-to-weight ratio, head tube deflection, and bottom bracket stiffness has had three or four Storck models in the top five in every category in recent years. Storck doesn't just purchase modified molds. The firm models dozens of patents, ranging from the very first carbon fiber crankarm design to the latest vacuum void control process for carbon tube fabrication. Storck is the only company for which Zipp produces private labeled wheels (the Storck/Zipp 69mm rim is faster than a 404 and much lighter than an 808).

But then worry set in. Sure, Storck can produce a durable 740g frame -- but does it make sense to market such a thing in this economy?

Pro shops around Chicago are scaling back, hedging bets, and even folding. 2009 prices for components, frames, and bikes are set over the summer -- before the dollar began to really fall, so we will see another year of 10-20% increases, which could really hurt the high end. But Storck is odd that way. Storck neither has model years nor did they raise prices for 2009; in fact, several models fell in price.

And so while a Fascenario 0.7IS frameset is still listed at $9,500, the not-so-humble CD 1.2 has been lowered to only $1,700. And those in the know understand that even Storck's entry level frames are stiffer and faster than most companies' top of the line, gimmicky offerings...having closely examined all of the boutique road brands -- I feel confident that Storck is heads and shoulders above all of them in terms of construction quality, engineering, and surprisingly, value."

Bouledogue Tout Noir Appears in Chicago Sports Magazine Ad

For the third time, a rider from l'equipe Bouledogue tour noir has appeared in the leading Chicago endurance sports magazine, Windy City Sports. In the February 2009 issue, Steven Vandeven is pictured in a full-page ad for the 2009 Chicago Criterium held in Grant Park.

The photo was taken in the heat of the action in the previous year's race, and Vandeven is shown racing in last year's team uniform (when the stripes were green) alongside some of the nation's top-level professional athletes like Fred Rodriguez (Tour of Italy stage winner), Jonathan Page (thrice a US national champion), and Ivan Dominguez (Tour of California stage winner).

Just a few months after this photo was taken, Vandeven suffered severe head trauma when a Chicago cab collided with him and his bicycle. Although Vandeven will most likely be unable to race his bike in 2009, everyone in Chicago expects to see him racing alongside the nation's elite in 2010.

Bouledogue tout noir wishes Steve a quick recovery and a safe reunion with the peloton.