Get a Bike, Ride a Bike,
Race a Bike!

Hello Everyone! We are back from Wisconsin and Georgia to report that development certainly took place while we were away. Three Early Bird Women-- Cybil Silberman, Katie Styer, and Caitlin Scheder-Bieschin (with her father, Max)--and myself all traveled out of state to compete during the month of June. There were successes and lessons along the way that racing on the home front would not have been able to provide.

First off, we would like to take a moment to thank each and every one of our sponsors! We could not have done this trip without your support!! When traveling to another state to race, there are many factors to consider: for instance, a 10-day series like the Tour of America's Dairyland (ToAD) brings together the cream of the crop from many different regions around the United States. The same goes for the National Championships!

With great success can also come great challenges, and our athletes tasted both while competing on the road. We are grateful for the growth both can bring and for the invaluable experiences we have had during our travels. Thank you again for reading and your support.

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Come one, come all!! Our annual race that we put on each year is coming up on July 24th. This event is awesome as it raises money for the two racing teams that put the race on. Our co-promoters are the 2Wheel Racing team based in Santa Rosa, California. They are a great bunch, and together we've come up with a fantastic event for your racing pleasure. It's a way for the Early Bird Women to give back to the community in the form of a race. It's an opportunity for the 2Wheel Racing team to join forces with another team, and double the fun and impact of the event.

For you climber types, there's a small rise just before the finish on our course. I know you will love it. It's at least 3-5 feet of rise over the last 200 meters!! We can't wait to see you! We've got a variety of categories!

You can register for this race at BikeReg.

We've got Richard Stone, the ultimate moto for each race to help keep you safe out there! EDGE Design USA will be onsite showing their incredible products and Frank Ammirata of 2Wheelsport consignments will be one of our officials on site.

The course is fantastic, with sweeping turns and some technical spots. There's an awesome Cafe/Bar/Billiards onsite called Sally Tomatoes that you can hang out at post race.

Cash, Prizes, Primes, a KIDS Race, Sonoma County Cheer, 2Wheel Racers (who are by far, the coolest folks on the planet), Early Bird Women, Bay Area Women's Series competitors, what more could you ask for? 2Wheel Racing and the Early Bird Women invite you, and look forward to another stellar event! Call Laurel Green with questions: 707-836-4246

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Tour of America's Dairyland with Katie Styer

Katie is a community organizer for women and the Trans biking community in San Francisco, a member of the San Francisco Bike Messenger Association, and has a sense of people and handling herself respectfully that is hard to find. She is the Early Bird Women's Team Captain, has ridden her bike across the USA, and jumped out of San Francisco this summer into America's Heartland to race her bike.

Wisconsin opened its green pastures and technical bike racing courses to Katie, and she took it all amongst the storms. She raced in the rain, up hills, down hills, around super technical turns very fast, and showed herself and the world that she's ready to take herself to the next level with her bike racing.

Racing Age in 2011: 26
USA Cycling Category: 4
Racing Since: 2009
Number of USA Cycling races completed since 2009: 27
Number of Alley Cat Courier Races competed in: A LOT
Number of ToAD Races in 2011: 7

Quotes from Katie:

"Holy smokes am I ever smoked. But holy smokes was that ever incredibly fun. Immeasurably fun. Magnificently fun."

"I happen to love a good pouring, drenching, soaking, sopping crit because I am fearless and everyone else is fearful."

"Tomorrow we go to Fond du Lac and I race day 5, I don't keep track of the days of the week anymore--just the towns we've yet to visit and how many races we've done. All I do is eat, sleep, race and drive along the Wisconsin freeways. Ah the life--almost like the 42Summer but we base camp and travel from there then back."

"Sidenote: I have been watching the Pro/1/2/3 woman's races and holy sh--. I can't wait to race like these women. They appear to be flying in beautiful formation, as if they were made on their bikes. Twisting, turning, graceful and swift. Soon enough, they tell me. Soon enough."

"There were 40-something competitors. It was hard and I raced seven days straight and now I am ready for the nap to put all naps to shame. This nap will be on the map and I shall reign as the princess of naps."

"People come out of their homes and sit on their stoops, cheer, eat food and wave things. Others line up along the course tape and ad boards along the start-finish stretch, cheering like it's going out of style. Genuine excitement for the sport and the community it creates permeates EV-ER-Y-THING. It's amazing."

"Tomorrow is Madison and I plan on having lots of fun and seeing lots of things. I will race my guts out, leaving it all on the square, like any self respecting bike racer would."

"I feel really special to get to race in Wisconsin because it seems such a unique racing region, nothing like Northern California. Don't get me wrong Cali, we're still in it for the long haul, but Wisconsin has wooed me and wooed me well."

"I also walked down cute downtown Sheboygan and listened to people talk funny and say things like kOWn (cone) and 'I swear to Pete!' They really do talk like the TV says they do. And it's HILARIOUS. Or,cute. Hilarious-cute. I got 11th of 25 or so women. I was edged out of 10th by some women who I helped on the last few laps. That beez. It was a good race though. I was strong and kept a masterful pace."

Tour of America's Dairyland with Cybil Silberman

Cybil--a mother of three, a personal trainer, and a spinning instructor-- has the kind of "go-get-em" attitude we all wish we had about everything. She's got heart, motivation, inspiration, and a sense of herself that helps her overcome bumps in the road of life, and cycling. She has done Ironman triathlons, marathons, and traveled around the world to compete. We are honored to have her on the team, and sorry that she could not do all of the racing she set out to do at the Tour of America's Dairyland.

Racing Age in 2011: 39
USA Cycling Category: 3
Racing Since: 2010
Number of USA Cycling races completed since starting racing: 30
Number of Triathlons completed: 20+
Number of Ironman Triathlons completed: 2
Number of Marathons completed: 2
Number of ToAD Races in 2011: 3

Highlights of ToAD: Just knowing that I could keep up with the other riders of the nation, Nor Cal racing prepared me well. The competition in Northern California is definitely the best in the USA.

Lessons from ToAD: First race, I thought I had the race, and I slowed down and someone came around me right before the line. Ouch. I was second place in that one. During the second race, I jumped early on the last lap to get on the wheel of another rider, who I thought I would be able to get away with me. Unfortunately, she was not willing to work so the two of us got absorbed into the swarming pack and I got 4th place. During the third race, on the final lap, a rider moved laterally into my front wheel while trying to avoid someone moving laterally into her, and her pedal took out most of my spokes. I went down pretty hard and experienced my first broken bone (the 5th metacarpal in my hand). I am still able to train with a broken hand, thank goodness. It was extremely frustrating to be riding in such good form, and have hopes of doing very well in the series. The lessons from this lie in being mentally able to handle setback and continue moving forward. Onward for next year!!!

What you will do differently for next season at ToAD: Do more endurance training, sprint training, longer rides back to back, load up on training more back to back rides, 3 weeks out do more speed work.

Advice for riders expecting to do ToAD: Practice riding in the drops, be confident in bike handling skills, riding among other riders, and bumping other riders. Even though bumping may not be deliberate in races, it does happen, and it's good to be prepared for it.

Other thoughts about ToAD: I want to express how grateful I am to ISCORP Cycling Team's Katie and Mike Weber for opening their home to us and helping us feel like bigwigs! What a great experience to be welcomed with such respect. Thank you so very much for the incredible hosting!

Junior National Championships with Caitlin Scheder-Bieschin

Along with winning the Junior Points Series in Northern California, Caitlin is headed to Stanford University this fall for college. She is a positive, dynamic, humorous addition to the Early Bird Women's Team. Her entire family is also involved and we appreciate this very much.

Racing Age in 2011: 18
USA Cycling Category: 3
Racing since: 2010
Number if USA Cycling races completed since starting racing: 26
Number of Triathlons completed: 20+
Number of USA Cycling Junior National Championships completed: 1

Highlights: The criterium because it was fun racing with other girls who were really strong and were my age; even though I crashed out, it was still my highlight.

Lessons: I learned how to work in the heat and how strong you have to be to be the best both mentally and physically.

What you will do differently for Nationals next year: Talk more with the other girls I was racing with. I kinda kept to myself which was not the best for me.

Advice for riders expecting to do Nationals: Race your best and push yourself because it only happens once a year.

Other thoughts: I really liked having Team Specialized there to support and ride with. I really liked having them there a lot as they very were encouraging.

One thing you'd like to say to your father about the trip: I really appreciated him. He was always out there giving me advice, and water, and he made me take an ice bath even though I did not want to. He was just awesome!

A Super Sonic Honorable Mention to One Awesome Early Bird-Annie Bacon

Annie did her first Ironman at St. George in May, and finished it!

The article linked here is a fantastic overview of the awesomeness we have on our team because of Annie.

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• Training Tip: Remember when descending on a training ride, it's important to be able to manage your cornering. Make sure to practice keeping that outside leg down when you get to a sharp turn in order to balance your center of gravity over the bike. It also helps to put a bit of pressure on the inside bar to provide a counter steering force that will foster stability in the turn.


• Racing Tip: To prepare yourself for the finish of a bike race, practice moving forward at key times early in the race when the pace is going hard so that you know you are capable of doing it. To be able to maintain a forward moving position in the field is a priceless skill that will always pay off in the results. When you are not moving forward in the pack, you are moving backward.


• Rules Tip: In a criterium race, USA Cycling Rules state that your results are final after the protest period ends. Once the results are posted, a rider usually has about 15-20 minutes to check the results and protest if they think anything is wrong about their placement. After this protest window closes, unless there are extenuating circumstances in the race that the officials did not know about, you may have to accept your incorrect placement. So, after the race, cool down a bit, but do not go far from the results board in case you need to fight for yourself.


• Nutrition Tip: Remember that staying hydrated helps your body bring key nutrients to the cells and prevents toxins from building up in the body causing excess stress on the liver and kidneys. Frequent urination does not necessarily mean you are hydrated, nor does colorless urine. A great way to make sure your water is hydrating your cells is to put a bit (1/4 teaspoon) of sodium citrate in your bottles. This keeps the water going into the cells more efficiently to foster hydration rather than urination.

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As key sponsors for our team, Katie and Mike Weber of ISCORP Cycling Team and ISCORP Integrated Systems have been very generous to us for 2011. For our trip to the Tour of America's Dairyland, they provided housing, hospitality, transportation, as well as financial support to get us to Wisconsin to race. This kind of support is what allows the women and girls on our team to get out in the world and race their bikes. The education, the exposure, and the lessons for their development that they receive as a result of this kind of support are priceless. We want to thank you, Mike and Katie, for everything over the past two years!

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Podiums

CAITLIN SCHEDER-BIESCHIN (Catogory 3 and Junior 17/18 Girls)
1st place-Steve Dunlap Time Trial, 17-18
1st place- Memorial Day Criterium, Junior, 17-18
1st place- Panoche Valley Road Road Race, Junior, 17-18
2nd place-Golden State Series Criterium
1st place- Mikes Bikes Criterium, Junior, 17-18

CYBIL SILBERMAN (Category 3)
2nd place-Tour of America's Dairyland Criterium, Category. 3/4
2nd place-IC3 Dash for Cash Criterium, Cat. 3/4
1st place-Memorial Day Criterium
1st place-Golden State Race Series Road Race
2nd place-Golden State Race Series Criterium

KATIE STYER (Category 4)
1st place-IC3 Dash for Cash Criterium, Category 4

LAUREL GREEN
1st place-2011 Master's California State Track Championships, Women's 40-44, Points Race

SANDRA MILLER
2nd place-2011 Master's California State Track Championships, Women's 40-44, Points Race

Top 10's

SANDRA MILLER
9th place- Davis 4th of July Criterium
6th place- Taleo Criterium

CAITLIN SCHEDER-BIESCHIN
5th place IC3 Dash for Cash Criterium
10th place- USA Cycling Junior Nationals Time Trial, Junior, 17/18
10th place- Taleo Criterium,Category. 3/4

CYBIL SILBERMAN
4th place- Tour of America's Dairyland Criterium, Category 3/4
5th place- Taleo Criterium

KATIE STYER
7th place- Joseph Mendes Criterium

Bird's Eye View of What's Next

The remainder of the Bay Area Women's Series:
2Wheel/Early Bird Women's Criterium July 24th
Fast and Furious Criterium August 7th
The Giro di San Francisco September 5th

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