Tour of Kensington Valley 2010 - 05/12/2010
Not even some of the most challenging weather Mother Nature Valley on May 8. Cold? Rain? Crosswinds gusting from 35 to 55 mph? Hey, we’re from northern Michigan. We call that kind of weather “summer.”
On a day like this most kids his age would be tucked inside playing video games, but Hagerty junior Sean Brownell braved the elements to fight it out with the Men’s Junior 13-14 peloton.
Over in the Men’s Cat 5 race, and at the opposite end of the age spectrum, Alexander Yockey duked it out in his first race as a Hagerty team member, scoring an impressive 10th place against a deep field.
New Hagerty Cat 4 women’s racers Melissa Fritz and Barb Beauregard were baptized in their first ever road race and came in 5th and 8th, respectively, serving notice to one and all that a new crop of lady Hags is ready to take no prisoners.
Sue Vigland, Lauri Brockmiller, Jennifer Rautiola, Rachel Decker, and Michele Howard rocked the women’s Cat 1-3 race, with Ms. Vigland coming in the money at 6th; serving notice that our veteran women not only take no prisoners they eat them for breakfast.
It was up to Lars Welton to hold down the Hagerty fort in the Men’s Masters 55+ race, showing the new kids how the job is done.
Meanwhile, over in the men’s Cat 3 race, Tim Barrons and Scott Howard attempted to fend off multiple attacks from a deep and talented field like the small band of Spartans turning back the Persian hordes at the Battle of Thermopylae. Some were seen to weep at the very sight. Look for the fireworks to really begin when the rest of the Cat 3 team joins these two warhorses at the upcoming West Branch slugfest.
And finally, nothing could prepare the field for the absolute unholy fury unleashed upon it by the Men’s Masters 45+ team. Steve “Lightning” Andriese, Dan “Thunderbolt” Hofstra, Don “Diesel” Fedrigon, and Craig “Spartacus” Webb, joined by Myles “Attack Dog” Weitzman and Peter “Domestique” Worden, laid out a thumping the likes of which has rarely been seen. From the start the boys in blue were out front, chasing wheels and taking names. Mr. Webb tried rolling with a 3 man break early on, decided that wasn‘t his style, and then rode off on his own for two laps because, basically, he could. Then he sat up and let a five-man chase catch him, because he decided he wasn’t ready to be done with the up close and personal infliction of pain on his opponents. And that chase turned out to include none other than Thunderbolt and Lightening themselves, Mssrs. Hofstra and Andriese.
Hats off to the two non-Hagerty racers in that final group, who rode with guts, determination, and strength; but they were (let’s face it) at that point outgunned, outmanned, and outmaneuvered. On the last lap the three Hagerty masters took turns attacking the group; each time one of them was caught, another would attack, inflicting the kind of punishment that would get you arrested in most states. Finally Mssrs. Hofstra and Webb were able to get away with one of the non-Hagerty fellows; meanwhile, Mr. Andriese steadily marked the other rider who had fallen off the lead pack a bit. On the last hill Craig Webb pulled hard, then pulled off to force the last opponent to lead up the hill; and at the top Dan Hofstra threw out a last hard attack, soloing over the line for the win.
In the end it was 1st for Dan Hofstra, 3rd for Craig Webb, 4th for Steve Andriese, and 8th for Don Fedrigon.
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