Grayslake Crit

Nate and Kevin at the start of the race today.

Nate at the front of the race.

Nate at the end of the race.

Nate and I headed to the race today in Grayslake Illinois. Nate was sitting near the front of the race most of the time and chased a few breaks down. He said he was feeling good and never felt like the race was moving and he could go after anything and then sit in and move back to the front with ease. So with 1 lap to go he got to the front and was sitting 3rd wheel and in one of the last turns the lead guy went down and took out most of the field. Nate was bummed after the race as he thought he had it set for another win. Kevin was also taken down and Gage was lucky as he got past it and finished 7th or 8th. Now Nate leaves tomorrow for Jr Development road camp. The missing skin should be OK and he said he will be fine. Oh well. Later..

Peloton Star: Loose ends ...

Peloton Star: Loose ends ... Thanks John. The kids did good and I will link you up.

Beat Down

The kids chatting it up before the ride.

Peter and Leif before the ride. Peter forgot his jersey and had to wear one of mine. Just a little big on him but it worked.

Nate, Chris and Brad before the ride.

Last night was the Beat Down ride. I was wondering through out the day if we were going to ride or get rained out? Well in the end there was no rain and the temps were hot and muggy. Nate called and asked if he could pick up Garrett and Peter to bring them to the ride and then Max called and got dropped off for the ride to so we had a few extra kids along. Once there Leif made it along with his Dad Brad to round out a nice group of Jr's on the ride. It was a nice fast pace and everyone made it to the finish making it a good ride. Can't believe that the there are only about 5 more Thursday night rides, wow where did the time go? Well off today to go the St Francis High School and get Nate and Maddie's class schedule as we are enrolling them there as St Thomas More just got to be to much money. All good though and they will do great there too. Later..

Pic's from the Gun Show

Here are the picture's that Ronsta took on the Gun Show last night. It was a nice sized group and a steady pace of fast. Can't wait till next week to enjoy it again. Have to go alone though as Nate will be away at the Jr National road camp. Boy does that kid live the life. Later..

Back to regular programming

Nate is back from racing the l'Aibitibi and said it was the best experience that he has had yet in all his racing. He raced and left nothing out there every race and has learned a lot and said that next year he will be super prepared and ready to battle for the top boxes. He got in at midnight so Cece and the girls came along as they all missed Nate so it was a super long day with me getting little sleep before heading to work this morning. But it was worth it all and I would do every day if I had to.

Tonight was the Gun Show and as always Ronsta and the gang never disappoint. It was a larger group then most weeks as word it out that if want to get fast you better start riding fast and this is the group that with provide it. I hung on to the group even though the average tonight was a brisk 24.1 mph. I was getting ready to jump up the last series of hills and as I pressed the left pedal down the rear wheel came out of the drop out and wedged in the rear triangle. I got the wheel back in and Nate, Kyle, ark and myself caught back on and I rolled in with the group. I can say I finished with the group on the Gun Show. Then it was dinner at John's Drive in tonight. Good food and fun as always. This is the real reason I ride a bike, friends and food. Nothing beats it. Later..

Results from stage 7

Just posted the results for today's race and Nate finished 70th. He finished in the main group and it was a 94km race to end the tour. From what I read from Joe yesterday that there was a huge hill that the racers had to climb today. It was big enough that the racers could had struggled and maybe have been dropped during the climb. But with the results Nate again was able to finish with the main group. That is awesome as Nate was able to finish in the main field for every race and just the fact that he had a bad time trial cost him a high place in the GC. But still super proud of his racing and we will have him ready for the time trial next year for sure. Thanks ISCorp, Lowell and Joe for the awesome chance for Nate to race the l'Abitibi. Later..

Picture form yesterdays race

Here is another picture from the l'Abitibi race. Again Karine Belzile. Nate is sitting 2nd wheel pulling the train train of racers behind him. Still waiting to find out how he did today as the results have been posted yet. Thanks ISCorp, Lowell and Joe for that awesome chance for Nate to race out there. Later..

Race results for 7/23

Nate finished n the field again today at 76th and moved up in the GC. he has finished in the lead field in every race and I am so proud that he has raced his ass off.

day 4 results

Nate is in the picture right in front of the guy in yellow. Picture taken by Karine Belzile .

Today was a long road race with a 4 lap crit style end. The race was out in some real beautiful forest and mountains. Well Nate was able to make it to the end in the field and pulled a solid 36th place finish. I don't have any of the details of the race but Nate has moved up in the GC making up some of the time he lost in the time trial. Now he needs to keep up the hard work and try to finish high in the field and he can keep moving up in the field finishes and even maybe the GC to. http://www.charlesfaubert.com/resultats/Etape5.pdf. Tomorrow he has a 99 km race of 9 laps on a 11 km course. Later..

Results from Day 3

Today was a double up race day. Nate had a time trial in the morning and then anther road race in the evening. Nate was sitting pretty good in the overall in the top 40 and then the time trial came up. I know that we don't practice the time trial but he has done a bunch of them and has held his own. But today he had a bad one and I don't think that he can recover the time that he lost. Then I looked in the results from the road race and he finished in the field again. I am hoping that he is learning alot and that maybe in the last few stages that he gets to the front and tries to get in a break or maybe get one started to get some of the time back. But that is easier said then done. Well there are 3 more stages and hopefully he is learning and be better prepared for the race next year. On the good side is that he has not crashed and is still in one piece. Here is the results link for the race. http://www.tourabitibi.qc.ca/resultats.php Later..

Result update for todays stage.

http://www.charlesfaubert.com/resultats/Etape2.pdf and it is here in cycling news to http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/tour-de-labitibi-2011 Here is the results from todays stage. Nate still finished well and Kevin killed it with a 11 place finish. Way to go Kevin. Tomorrow is a busy day with a time trial in the morning and a crit in the evening. I hope that they keep up the good work and stay out of the crashes. Later..

Day 2 l'Abitibi

Just heard from Joe and the race yesterday was a average speed of 28mph plus for 112km. That is a pretty fast pace for a bunch of kids in jr gears. Today was another 108km race and Nate was sitting in a good spot and in the last turn there was a snafu and it caused him to lose a bunch of spots. I don't know where he finished but once I find out I will post up the results. I also do not know the how the rest did either, but again once I do I will post the results.

Today was another warm one outside but I don't really mind working outside and riding in the heat. I guess I know that once it is done that there is the air conditioning and the pool. That always makes the time go by fast. I looked at the temperature of the pool water and it was 89 degrees. But it was still refreshing and felt good after work and riding today. Know I need some dinner and a huge bowl of ice cream and freshly picked raspberries. Later..

Day 1 at the l'Abitibi

http://www.charlesfaubert.com/resultats/Etape1.pdf Here are the results from the race today. Nate finished in the field for the finish and took a 48th place. I don't know any of the details but it was a great finish out of the 132 racers. I will try to find more info later. Later..

l'Abitibi pic's

Here are a few pictures of Nate and the ISCorp team at the l'Abitibi. The racing starts today with a 112.8 km race. It is a 87.8 km race with 5 laps at the end of a 5.3 km with a steep hill each lap. Should be a fun one and I will try to find out any results that I can and post them. But here is the web site link. http://www.tourabitibi.qc.ca/ Later..

l'Abitibi

Well they got to the race site safely and now it is time to go over everything and make sure that they are ready for some racing the next few days. I looked at the race schedule and they have the team presentation tonight and a dinner party to attend before the racing starts tomorrow. The first race up is a 112.8 km road race that starts at 4:15 their time. Then it is a 108.4 km road race on Wednesday. Thursday is a 12.4km time trial with a 52.7 km road race in the evening. On Friday they have another road race and it is 120 km long and then on Saturday it is a 99 km crit race. Sunday they finish the races with a 86.7 km road race. Sounds like fun as in 6 days they race 7 times and a total of 599.1 km. I will try to keep any updates I get posted asap and here is the site to try to follow along if they keep the updates current. http://www.tourabitibi.qc.ca/ You can translate it from French to English. Hoping for some safe and fast racing. Later..

7/17

Well I seen that on a post on Facebook that Nate and the team made it to the l'Abitibi today and were setting up their room where the team was staying. I am glad to see that they had safe travels and now I hope that they have safe and fast racing to. Good Luck Team ISCorp.

Last night Cece and I went and watched the Superweek race at Downer ave. It was a nice night as we meet Len and Traci and had a nice dinner and a few drinks during the race. I do have to say that the TOAD series has taken a bite out of some of the Superweek races as the fields are smaller and the crowds are to. But the races are just as fast and fun to watch.

Today I got up and watched the tour and then I went out for a road ride. I was thinking the entire time that I should just head out and ride and watch the tour on the DVR when I got home, but I sat there and watched it anyhow. Well when it was over I looked at the thermometer and it said 97, great as I now know that i was in for a hot ride. I rolled out and was thinking I would ride an hour and a half and turn it back. But once I got out and I got stung by a bee and said enough of that and turned it home and ran out of water in my 3 bottle so it was a good time to call it a day. I got 39 miles in 2 hours and 10 minutes, a good day on the bike. Then I sat in the pool and drank Margaritas before grilling a tenderloin. Living the high life with no kids around. Later..

Press release for the ISCorp I'Abitibi

Nate got his last training ride in today and now he has to toss the last few things into the travel bag, go over the bike one last time and then load into the team travel van and head to the race tomorrow morning. Wow the time has flown by and now it is time to put all the hard work together for a good race and a good time. I hope that the team does well and they all have safe travels and a safe race. I will try to keep you posted on the results as I find out.

2011 ISCorp l’Abitibi Team

The ISCorp Cycling Team will field a junior squad in the 43^rd edition of the Tour de l’Abitibi July 18-24. The Tour de l’Abitibi is an UCI sanctioned international stage race for junior men 17 and 18 years old held in Amos, Quebec. National teams, regional teams, and club teams will compete in the largest stage race for juniors in North America, if not the world. The race will consist of point to point road races, circuit races, and an individual time trial. Please visit the official tour website at: www.tourabitibi.qc.ca for daily results.

2011 ISCorp l’Abitibi Team

Kaleb Koch (17) Glenview, IL 2011 US Junior Olympic Sprint National Champion

Kevin Lindlau (17) Waukesha, WI

Vance Fletcher (18) Chariton, IA

Leif Byrge-Leibig (18) Menomonee Falls, WI

Paul Kumm (18) Wausau, WI

Nathan Labecki (17) Milwaukee, WI

2011 ISCorp l’Abitibi Personnel Support Staff

Lowell Kellogg (Director Sportif) Menomonee Falls, WI

Joe Cieszynski (Soigneur) Wauwatosa, WI

Josh Hanson (Mechanic) Green Bay, WI

Another resource for learning more about the Tour de l’Abitibi experience is the DVD “Dreams on Wheels” which is available at: http://www.dreamsonwheelsthefilm.com . The video follows four athletes from four different countries as they prepare for and compete in the 2008 Le Tour de l’Abitibi.

Lowell Kellogg, Director/Coach

ISCorp Junior Cycling Team

Let the fun begin

Well Nate has packed his bag and I am really hoping that he doesn't forget anything. We stopped at Ben's and went over his bike and then had Brett do a once over on Nate's fit and everything is looking good for the race. He leaves at 8am tomorrow morning from Lowell's house with the rest of the bunch for the long trip to Amos in Quebec Canada. They start racing on the 18th and go through the 24th with 2 races in one day twice in the series. Should be a fun one and we are just hoping that he can get through without any crashes and some good finishes. But here is the link to the race and hopefully they will keep the results update to date. http://www.tourabitibi.qc.ca/

The girls are up north with my parents for the nest 2 weeks so that will leave Cece and I a quite house. Man that is going to be a change and I don't know how we will handle it. Probably just get used to it and then they will all be back home and it will be back to normal. But we will enjoy it while it lasts and maybe even go out to dinner a time or 2. We are going to go watch the Downer ave races tomorrow though as it always means that the summer is here when you get to watch the bike races. Later..

A tad busy

Pictures taken By Ronsta.

The last few days have had me running a little and trying to get things done before Nate leaves for his race in Canada on Saturday. After the races on Sunday we had to celebrate Nate's 17th Birthday on Monday. He went out to Waukesha in the afternoon for a nice 3 hour plus ride with Kevin and then he came home and we went out to dinner and then Nate and Kevin went to the batting cages and what ever. Then yesterday was a orthodontist appointment for Nate before we went out for the Gun Show. It was a great night as I hung onto the lead group till 3 miles from the end as I hit a hole in the road and got a flat. Nate, Kevin and Kaleb waited up and then once fixed we rolled in. It was a awesome ride and can't wait till next week and try to hang again. After the ride it was a nice cookout at Ron's. Now tonight we have a 3 to 4 hour ride planned and then we have to start getting Nate packed and ready for the trip. Later..

State Championship Crit races

Jr 16-18 podium with Nate 1st, Leif 2nd, Kevin 3rd.

The cat 3 podium, Nate 1st, Leif 2nd and I don't remember the name of the guy in 3rd.

We have been busy the last few days. We had the Thursday night group ride and it was a nice and smooth ride that stayed together and was a fast mph average at the end. Then Friday Wade was in town so we all went to Summerfest for the Jason Aldean and it was a awesome concert. Then after Nate and I did a nice ride on yesterday we meet Wade, Debbie, Tim and Ken at the Iron Horse for a lunch and then went to Tim's for some grilled meats.

Today was the State Championship Crit race and Nate raced the Jr 16-18 race at 8:40 and won the State Championship with Leif 2nd and Kevin 3rd. Then I loaded the car with Nate, Kevin, Peter and Theo and we came home so they could jump in the pool and then have a lunch before the cat 3 race. We went back and got ready and then during the race Nate won 2 $20.00 primes with the help of a great leadout by Peter. Then with 2 to go Peter and Nate made their way to the front and coming out of the last turn Nate was sitting 2nd wheel and popped out of the slip stream and hit the gas and won the Cat 3 State Championship race too. A good day on the bike and just in time before he leaves to race in Canada on Saturday. Later..

Kettles

Yesterday Nate got to tag along with Ron for a spin in the Kettles. Nate said that he wishes that he had done it a few more times this summer but with the racing and all it did not fit in. But maybe after he done with the races in Canada he will go and then after National camp he will fit in a few before school starts. Thanks Ron for taking Nate for the ride. Later..

Going's on

Pictures from the Gun Show by Ronsta.

It has been a few days since the last update. But on Monday was the 4th of July and we had a little celebration at our house since Summerfest was closed and that had Maddie, and my parents free to get together. So we had a cookout and celebrated Nate's birthday early as my parents will be out of town by then. My brother, Ken, Chris, Paul and Cece's Mom came over to. It was nice as we swam and sat around and talked for a while. We were going to go to the crappy bike ride but after the heat and sun plus a few beers I sat at home and went to bed early. Maybe next year we will make the crappy bike ride.

Yesterday was the Gun show and I was thinking great no one there to ride with when I get dropped. But the group was smaller and the pulls were not as fast and I made to the end. Well Nate was my wheel as he sat at the back and kept it smooth on the surges and I was able to hang on for the entire ride. Well most as John had a miss hap and bounced off his top tube flew sideways into me and then we both almost went down and both stayed up. The group waited to make sure John was OK and Shelly and I rolled on to get past the last 2 hills by the time the group caught us. But as we were rolling they stopped for a flat and a few of us rolled in and finished up before they rolled up. But it was a nice pace and I was able to hang on and hope to have it happen again. Then Nate stayed over night by Ron's as those 2 are going for a stroll at the Kettles for a few hours. Lucky guys as the weather seems perfect. Today will be a spin on my own after work then a swim in the pool. Later..

Whitewater Time Trial

Today was the WCA Whitewater time trial. It was a 12.2 mile time trial that was a out and back from the UWW campus. I don't want to beat a dead horse but the UWW cycling team seems to drop the ball in a few areas of all of the races that they put on. Today was the course was not marked well and the corner marshals were either late getting to a few spots or just not paying attention when riders came up to their areas. I heard about at least 15 riders that missed turns or the corner marshals didn't say anything till they passed them. That makes for a bad day for many of the racers. But Nate knowing the way the race is run kept his eyes open for the poor markings on the course and did not miss any turns and turned a 2nd place finish. Theo had a great ride and beat Nate, but Theo had the TT bike and areo helmet and Nate just had the standard bike and equipment so he was happy. So in the end it was Theo, Nate, Kevin and then I think Chris Noah and then Garrett rounding out the top 6. Then we got home and I got a nice single speed ride along the trails by the lake. Now it is time to watch the DVR'd stage of the tour. Later..

Kettles

Nate and I hit the road at 7:45 this morning to pick up Garrett and head to the Kettles for a spin. We got there at 9:30 and got dressed and hit the trails to try to beat the heat. No chance of that as when we were heading to Emma via the connector trail we were with the wind and the heat was like a furnace blasting you in the face. Once at Emma we took a 15 minute break to drink the rest of the bottles we were carrying and refill for the ride home. They way back was a lot hotter but the wind was in our face so the sweat was at least not just dripping in my eyes. It had to one of the few times I thought maybe ride the road back as the heat was starting to get to me but like Nate said in the car it would be like cutting the course or cheating. I will have to always remember that when I am out for a ride to always do the intended ride. Once we got back to the parking I was just sweating moving around trying to change and load the bikes, I bet that during my ride I lost double digits in weight before drinking tons of fluids. It was nice to get in the car and get the air conditioning turned on and blast it in my face for the ride home. Once we got home Nate and Garrett got in the pool and cooled off as I took Maddie to work at Summerfest and stop at Ben's for a few things. After that it was home to grill out and now sit for a while and take a nap before going to get Maddie around 11:30 tonight. She gets the job and I have to run her all over. Oh well she likes it and I guess I really don't mind losing sleep over it. Now for my nap and then ice cream before getting Maddie. Later..