Rich!

Sorry I forgot to mention Rich...just looked at a bunch of pictures from the 35+ and he was all over the front of that thing both days, not to mention he has been in the mix with us in the A race a Dixie and doing really well riding strong!

Fun in Greenville!

Hey everybody!

Just wanted to give a quick re-cap of the Fun in Greenville! The Master's guys were flying! With Peter Cannell winning the 35+ both days! Congrats to Chip and Daryrl who also finished in the money both days. Looks like Chip is ready for the teams first upgrade of the season! Micheal was riding strong in the cat 3/4 combined field, which made for 2 hard days of racing for him which will surely pay off soon. Riding in the rain on Saturday was a blast. It poured, but the course was safe and Jay and I had fun riding very aggressively. Yesterday was really fast and hard, somehow the same course backwards had a hill in it? The wind was cranked up to about 25mph on the backside, I was riding my new Easton wheels it was so windy I could not ride by myself on the first corner because the wind would rip the bars right out of my hands with nobody to block (I have to get the the weight room). We were really aggressive again, but I think it is pretty obvious by now Jay and I want nothing to do with a sprint, so when we attacked we always get lots of company...like everyone! Congrats to Jay for finishing in the cash Saturday! I was able to drink the most beers on Saturday night with the other racers and was able to bring home the "Rider that had the most fun Jersey" which I am quite proud of! Till next race weekend....

Joe

Good times to come!

Hello All!

Just a last reminder that if anyone needs a place in Greenville to crash please let me know. Email is jacarpisjr@hotmail.com. Keep your fingers crossed on the weather. This is a race that survives on participation not sponsorship, so if you can be there they would love to have you and they will show you a good race and some good Mexican food! It is worth getting your legs ripped off in a crit. for. It is going to be hard for me to stay with the "fast kids" on this course, but I am looking forward to the challenge! Hopefully I will see most of you soon. If not, happy riding this weekend!

Joe

Salisbury racing weekend

Congrats to everyone who made it out to Salisbury this weekend....it was so cool seeing the MOB flags flying in so many categories, and especially neat to see so many strong finishes! Katie, Sirena, Rip, and Angela rocked it as usual, Daryl and Kelly were making it look easy, Chip and Steve man'd up and raced twice on Sunday....all awesome stuff! I didn't get to witness the 4's or P12 races, but word on the street is that we were looking tough out there.

I did get to see a lot of Pete....he lapped me several times before I decided to stop smearing mud on my MOB kit and pulled out of the 35's.....jeez, they're fast. Congrats Pete!

Good luck to everyone going down to Greenville this weekend. I'm sure it will be another great weekend of racing for this fine crew.

Charles

MOB Race Team Supports Ride for Heart Fund

On Sat. March 21st the MOB race Team provided support for the Heart Healthy Poker Run Bike ride that raised proceeds for the Heart Fund. The Heart Fund was established to purchase equipment and educational materials for heart patients of the High Point Community. We had 90 riders who braved the cold temps to cover either the 30mile or 58mile distance.
This event could not have taken place without the support from Mock Orange racing. We had Paul and Julie Paisant working registeration, Doc Duckett providning SAG support for the 30milers while Blair Palmer worked the 1st rest stop, Rich Melencio and Matt Mason worked the second rest stop and Frank Mullins worked the 3rd rest stop. We also had syndicate Team members working reg. as well as the SAG for the 58mile loop in the way of Peter and Amy Freeman. My Hat is off to all of you for there is no dought this is the greatest Team in the Traid and in the State.
I greatly appreciate all the efforts and could not have done it without you! Rodney

GREAT WEEKEND FOR MO RACING

Wow,
Lots of racing in Salisbury and a great charity ride in High Point to support the Cardiac Rehab Program of HPRH. Thanks to Carolina Masters Race Team and Neal Boyd of Charlotte for putting on great races this weekend. Thanks to our own Rodney Simpson for putting on the charity ride in HPon Saturday. Rodney put in alot of hard work and gave up racing on Saturday to make the event happen.
As to the racing.......in every category that we competed, we impacted the races positively and pushed the pace. The women rocked with wins and great podium finishes both days. Way to go Sirena,Rip,Katie,Angela. Peter Cannell sent a strong message that our 35+ masters team will be a factor in all masters races this season. 45+ was strong with Daryl,Kelly in top 10. Cat 4 presence was strong........we just have to stop doing all of the work for every one else! Pro1-2 had a great presence and included a guest, Charles Thibault from Canada. Great guy and fun to have him ride with us. I am sure I have forgotten something/someone.......sorry. Bottom line is the TEAM rocked and the comaraderie was awesome.
THANKS.......and looking forward to Greenville, NC this weekend.

First Criterium

First of all I want thank everyone on the team for welcoming me on the MOB Racing team. I felt a real honor today to line up for my first criterium in the MOB team kit and to be part of such a great group of cyclists!

Being new to the racing scene I learned a lot about racing as well as my own strengths and weaknesses. I finished the race learning a lot and I hope to take this to my next races to help my teammates out. But overall I had a lot fun...and I'm looking forward to the next race!

Womens 4 race at City Park

It always makes me happy to see familiar faces at the start line; its probably one of my favorite things about our girls team because Julie always makes us laugh, while Theresa can always teach us tech stuff and I know Rip has always got my back. Today was special because it was Angela's first crit and I was happy to see her at the line when I lined up....and even though she is a Piedmont Velo girl; it was good to see Sarah because I know what an awesome rider she is, and knew she would crank up the 4 race! As most girls races (especially 4's) seem to go, we stayed pretty much together until about 3 to go when Sarah finally went. I knew she was strong enough to stay away and already feeling fatigue from yesterday, I didnt want to burn myself out chasing her. Luckily Rip couldn't resist and went to chase her, and I am proud of how aggressive Rip rode today. As much as my instinct was to join Rip on the chase, from what I have learned about strategy it was smarter for me to sit in the pack and not work... so either she could stay away w/Sarah, or I would be in contention at the field sprint (yeah thats it, it had nothing to do with my heavy legs!). Rip is so strong she stayed away until the last climb as we were all approaching the finish. I was patient on the last climb and knew I had more strength for a sprint than the Shields girl in front of me; before anyone else could make a move I went and Rip and I crossed the line at essentially the same time for 2nd and 3rd. Honestly I am happy to take 2nd to Sarah, and it felt great to have 2 MOB girls in the top 3.

See you at Dixie,

Sirena

Girls take home the $ at Out Like a Lion

Today's womens open race was one of the largest I have been a part of. The field was a total of 33 women: Pro 1,2,3, and Cat 4 with 3 juniors as well. The course was as Pete described it, fast and challenging...but thats what made it fun. Today was my first chance to race with Katie and I was happy to see her before our race. Both of us in the 4's we were more in a "hang on" type mode than anything (at least I was, haha.) The womens open completed 5 laps for a total of 33 miles, and as girls were dropping off alond the way...Katie and I were there, right in the middle of the main pack of CAt 1,2 and 3 riders. Although our legs were pretty burned by the largest hill of the course, we were still there for the field sprint! Katie ended up with a fantastic 7th overall and I was 15th but very pleased to finish with the field. They had a Cat 4 bonus as well today and Katie and I were 1st and 2nd of the Cat 4 racers so we got $, it just makes me laugh to say I got paid for racing my bike this weekend.

-Sirena

Race Report: Out Like a Lion Cat 4

Ken Craven and I lined up for the Cat 4 Out Like a Lion road race as part of a huge field, probably 80+ riders. The yellow line definitely had its work cut out for it. We had 5 laps of the 6.5 mile loop. Uwharrie Wheelmen put this on, and do a great job.
My plan for the day was to be patient, which is something I need to work on. I need to resist the urge to go in every break and learn to save energy. Ken's plan was to hang on as best he could, as he works himself back into shape, and if everything went perfect, be in a position at the end to either help me or score a good finish for himself.
I followed my plan for 1.5 laps, but then couldn't resist joining another rider and bridging up to a break on the second lap. There were 5 other riders there and I hoped 7 of us working together could make it stick, but it didn't happen. After that I honored the plan, and stayed out of breaks for the rest of the day. A few more breaks went and came back. Now I just need to break myself from the habit of chasing breaks. Eventually we got to enjoy the typical field sprint.
I made my move a little too early and then tried to hang on for dear life. I have not seen the results (couldn't hang around...soccer...) but i think i managed to hang to to 6th or 7th. Mike Chappell with Central Carolina Racing / Uwharrie Wheelmen took the win. congrats to Mike it was well deserved, he rode a smart race and finished strong.
Looking forward to the season, I think we can make some good things happen. Special kudos to Ken for getting out there and giving it a go. It obviously won't be long and he'll be firing on all cylinders again. definitely had a lot of fun and lessons were learned, filed away somewhere in the back of the brain.

steve b