Blair Turner on the Podium

July 1, 2010 13:21 by Steve Baker

The Hincapie Development Team had a great trip to the Junior Road National Championships in Bend, OR.  The team rode well and gave it their best shot to win a stars and stripes jersey.  They came close, scoring some hardware and some great new memories.

The crew in Bend, OR.

The guys went into the event with some great fitness.  Mike Stone was coming off some fresh victories and hoping to continue the trend out west.  Blair Turner just about flew straight to Oregon from Europe, where he has been proving his metal in Belgian Kermesses.  Matt Lipscomb scored some great results leading up to the trip, so we knew he was going great.  Tyler Karnes was eager to show his fitness after a strong collegiate season of racing.  Aubrey Moore was seeking another podium after winning his state championships in May.  Justin Lowe was feeling good after recovering from a nagging knee problem.  Parker Kyzer was excited to show his stuff in his first National Championship competition.  They all raced hard and had fun in the process.

Matt looking huge before the unfortunate crash.

Blair leading the way in the Crit.

Crashes took some of the guys out of action, but we were close more often than not to that elusive podium appearance.  Thanks to some great team work and hard riding, Blair Turner scored a great 5th place finish in the 17-18 road race, after making the early move that stuck all the way to the finish.  That’s his first national championship podium, and he’ll be looking to improve on it next year.  We’re really proud of the guys for the way they raced and we look forward to the rest of the season.

 Blair Turner gets 5th in 17-18 Road Race!

Thanks to all of you for the great support you have given the team.  Thanks to coach Neil Browne for making the trip to Bend with the team.  Big thanks to Mike Moore, Greg Kyzer, Russell Lipscomb and all the other parents, friends and supporters that helped make everything happen.  We couldn’t do this without you.

Our New HED Wheels are Awesome

March 17, 2010 10:13 by Steve Baker

We are fortunate to have some of the best equipment sponsors in the world supporting our Hincapie Development Team.  We love riding and racing the best stuff you can get, and this week we took delivery of some new hoops from HED.  Justin Lowe won a race the very first time he raced on the new wheels!  That has to be a good sign of things to come.

HED makes some of the most advanced bicycle wheels in the world.  They are light and stiff, while providing superior aerodynamics in almost any condition.  They test all their wheels against the wind and publish the information on their website in some easy to understand graphs.

This year, Hincapie Devo riders are rolling on HED Jet 4 and HED Jet 6 wheels.  These things are awesome.  They are smooth and fast, while offering the stiffness we need to rail through corners.  Not only are they fast riding wheels, but they look amazing on our Black/White BMC ProMachines too.  Our friend Eddie Helton took some shots of Justin’s bike last night at the Tuesday Night World Championships.  (Hooray for the time change!)

That's one sweet looking ride.  This one belongs to Michael Stone.

I wanted to try the new HED Ardennes that I have read so much about, with their bombproof 23mm Scandium C2 rim and smooth rolling Sonic Hubs.  Being a larger rider, who is pretty hard on his wheels, I ordered the Stallion build.  HED recommends this build for riders over 190 pounds, because this set up adds one extra pair of spokes to help absorb any extra abuse.

These HED Ardennes wheels are awesome!  They are light, stiff, good-looking and smooth-rolling.  I’ve ridden quite a few wheels over the years and these are definitely some of the best wheels I’ve ever pedaled.  My BMC ProMachine was already a rocket ship, but from the very first time I spooned on my Michelin Pro3 tires, these Ardennes put a big smile on my face.  They accelerate better than anything I've ridden in a long time.  They feel light up the hill and have the stiffness to bomb the decent with the best of them.  HED says these things are great for racing and training, so they are just right for a guy like me who hates switching wheels on race day.  (Hey, you have to practice using what you race on to get good when it counts, right?)  If you aren’t looking for larger, deep-dish wheels like the Jet 6’s, and you want some light, stiff, do-anything wheels, you will absolutely love these HED Ardennes!

Hincapie Development Team Wins Again in Columbia

March 15, 2010 14:39 by Steve Baker

It was another fantastic weekend for the Hincapie Development Team.  Justin Lowe and Parker Kyzer teamed up to race the Blythewood Road Race and the Forest Acres Spring Criterium this weekend in Columbia, SC.  The duo worked well together and came away with some really great results in the Cat 3 races.  Justin and Parker finished 1st and 6th respectively on Saturday.  They followed it up on Sunday with 2nd and 15th place finishes.  The guys are racing well together and we’re proud of them.  They can probably taste the upgrades already…ha ha.

Justin sent me his account of the weekend.

Blythewood RR:
Saturday it was really, really windy. Parker and I sat in for the first 2 laps or so and covered and watched a couple of small breaks get pulled back. At the beginning of lap 3, Parker attacked with a couple guys, and the field had to work hard to pull them back. As soon as they got caught, I countered real hard into a strong head wind. One guy from Uptown Cycles in Charlotte went with me. It was a two man break from then on out. Parker covered everything and helped move us up the road. I had done most of the work in the break, so coming down to the final lap I sprinted around the guy in the last 200 for the win. It felt great!

We've Seen Some Great Teamwork by These Guys This Spring

Forest Acres Crit:
On Sunday, Parker and I planned to set a hard pace and be aggressive. From the beginning Parker and I were constantly attacking over and over. Were tried and tried for a break but couldn’t get anyone to work. We couldn’t get the break to work but we did our best to make the race as hard as possible on everyone else. I sat in the last three laps or so and got behind the guy I thought would bring me home. Well he dragged me all the way to the line, but I couldn’t come around. I got 2nd.

Like Justin, Parker has been aggressive this spring.

These guys are working hard, having fun and learning how to win bike races.  We’re thrilled to have them on the team and we look forward to the day when we can help them upgrade to the next level.  More exciting action is sure to follow.

Stone Scores First Pro,1,2 Victory!

March 10, 2010 14:04 by Steve Baker

It was a fantastic weekend for the Hincapie Development Team.  The weekend was capped off by an impressive win at the SCTAC (Donaldson) Road Race by our very own, Michael Stone in the last race of the Greenville Spring Training Series.  This was Michael’s first Pro,1,2 win and we’re just as excited as he is about the victory.  The entire team contributed to the effort by staying active at the front and covering moves all day.  The guys are riding well together and having a good time as well.

The result on Sunday followed a very difficult day of racing on Saturday at the River Falls RR.  River Falls features a short 1K climb to the finish on a 5.5 mile course in the foothills of SC.  The race is known to attract some stiff competition that combines with the challenging terrain to make it one of the most difficult races of the whole series.

The Hincapie Devo Team was animated from the start, with numerous attacks early on.  Michael Stone and Matt Lipscomb quickly found themselves in a promising break that put over 2 minutes on the field.  They rode strong for several laps until Team Type 1 started working hard to pull back the escapees.  A small group bridged the gap and joined Stone and Lipscomb at the front.  Our dynamic duo held their own and rode like veterans in the front group until the end.  After the bridge, one rider from the original break got away again and won solo.  Michael and Matt finished in the front group after a very hard early season race day.

The Hincapie Devo cat 3 squad raced well Saturday and Sunday as well.  We were happy to have Parker Kyzer back on a bike after his crash last week.  The team rode aggressively on the hilly River Falls course, but was not successful motivating a group.  One lone rider did escape and finish off the front for the win.  The rest of the field remained together until the last hill.  Justin Lowe and Parker both finished close to the front, with Justin making the top ten.

Sunday’s SCTAC (Donaldson) RR was fun for the team as well.  We were active at the front with numerous attacks and counter attacks from the start.  The guys rode well up front, covering the early moves and making sure we were present in most of the groups.  Hincapie Devo mentor, Neil Browne found himself in the most aggressive move of the day late in the race, garnering a strong third place finish.  Parker covered the next group that attempted to bridge to the leaders, and the rest of us covered the field.  Justin and Randy scored 10th and 12th place respectively to go along with Parker’s eighth place finish in the chase group.  Overall, it was a great weekend for the entire team.  Well done, men.

Images by Eddie Helton