We are the Champions of Arkansas!

Arkansas Senior Games 2008

Story by Earl Hill

On September 20 and 21, Connie French and Earl Hill participated in the Arkansas Senior Olympic bicycling competition. Jim French has a daughter living in Benton, AR, and my wife and I have a daughter living in Little Rock, AR. Therefore, we both took the opportunity to visit family while enjoying the camaraderie of competitive cycling

The TTs were held at National Park Community College and the road races were held at Lake Catherine State Park—both in the Hot Springs area.

The weather for both TTs was hot and the humidity was relatively comfortable.

The temperature for the 20K road race was reasonable, but rain started almost as soon as we were off. This was an out and back course—half of which was on newly resurfaced blacktop and the balance on an older chip & seal surface. The course starts near the shore of the lake and climbs to the heights above. The chip & seal surface was quite slippery at the turn around. The finish line was at the top of a short rise following an exhilarating descent.

Connie took gold in the 5K TT, 10K TT, 20K road race as well as the 40K road race. I took bronze in the 10K TT. My time was actually 20 seconds faster than the next competitor. But the next competitor was a local, and apparently the local rules say that he could be elevated above an out-of-state rider. They do strange things in AR. Nevertheless, I got to know the second place competitor during the weekend, and if I had to lose to someone, it could not have been a better person. Despite the disappointment in not taking the silver, it was still a fun weekend. And when competing, you must accept the rules of the local venue.

I don’t know the exact numbers, but I believe there were at least as many out-of-state competitors participating in the weekend events as there were riders from Arkansas. There may have been other States represented, but I personally met riders from Texas, Louisiana, and Illinois.

If you like moderate hills and hollows, the Arkansas Senior Olympics might be for you.

Chequomegon Champion - Dwight Beavers

3 newbies and 2 veterans...

raced for North Iowa SPIN at the 26th annual Chequamegon Fat Tire Festival 40-miler in Hayward, WI, on Saturday, September 13, 2008. Barry Trump is a veteran of many Cheq 40s, as is Dwight Beavers. The new riders were Stuart Schurtz of St. Loius Park, MN; Mike Hummel of St. Paul, MN; and Martin Izakovic of Iowa City, formerly of Mason City. About 2200 riders started out in downtown Hayward at 10AM. The first several miles of the rollout were on hard surface roads. Then the racers hit Rosie's Field near the Fish Hatchery and began to spread out. Unfortunately, Stuart broke his chain at Rosie's and was the last one out after getting help with the repair. He was able to catch 300+ riders and passed Barry about 30 yards from the finish. Martin was the first in at 3:11:51. Dwight was second at 3:49:11; then Stuart, 3:52:59; Barry 3:53:16; and Mike 4:06:59. Dwight won the M70+ age group on a bike he'd never riden previously. It had rained a bit in northern Wisconsin prior to the race. It was not raining at the start of the race, but by the time Stu, Barry, and Mike came in, it was raining pretty hard. Hot showers were mandatory and appreciated by all.

All the riders, except Mike, are planning to race next year. That is, if they get accepted through the lottery in March. Two NI SPIN veteran Cheq 40 racers did not get in this year - Eric Rust and Dave Delperdang. Steve Younker and Tim Putnam did not enter the lottery this year. Steve was focused on training for Ironman Wisconsin, where he did quite well on September 7 in Madison, WI. Tim was focused on his role as Director Sportif. The four of them provided an excellent support crew for the Cheq 40 riders, as well as for Steve Schurtz, who rode the Short & Fat 16-miler with 700 riders that started simultaneously in Cable. Steve finished in 1:38:37. Both races had the same finish at Telemark Resort, where beer and the Iowa/Iowa State game on XM were enjoyed by all in the parking lot.

2008 Chequamegon 40 Photo Set