TIAA-CREF / CLIF BAR Juniors in Action

Peter Stetina & Stu Gillespie from the Rocky Mountain Sustainable Living Fair

Last weekend I attended the Sustainable Living Fair in Fort Collins, CO. I
could only begin to get a feel for what was going on because I had to zipp
off to a race that afternoon. What I did see, however, I liked.
Located in the backyard of cycling and enviro-friendly sponsor New Belgium
Brewing Co., the fair had everything. Live music, lots of promo tents and
tons of free swag! There were also lectures on how to build houses
according to more efficient design patterns and about healthier living in
general and much more. We visited tons of companies and made good small
talk. Everything there was compostable (aka water cups made from corn!) and
natural. I decided to support the local farmers and bought some honeysticks
in a variety of flavors. I truely believe this is a very progressive event
in addressing the issue of enviornmental sustainability; they were able to
keep it fun and informative at the same time!
-Pete

John Verheul - Forest Guardians dinner

On 9/21/06 my wife and I attended a benefit dinner for the Forest Guardians. Forest Guardians is a Santa Fe based organization dedicated to preserving and restoring wildlands and wildlife in the Southwest US. The organization was founded in 1989, as a result of eight years worth of erosion of federal conservation law.

Forest Guardians work primarily as an activist organization, lobbying state and federal officials on issues of wildlands conservation and preservation. As an excellent money raising organization, they are also able to literally buy Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land leases which would otherwise go to factory farming organizations who would graze cattle on the land. Cattle are particularly hard on land, as they pull grass up by it’s roots, making regrowth much more challenging. This is primarily due to their lack of front teeth, they must grip the grass with their gums and pull it out in order to graze. In comparison, horses and other animals cut the grass with front teeth, making regrowth a matter of days (how often do you mow your lawn?)

Additionally, Forest Guardians work to protect several endangered species in the SW, as well as old growth forests that are a main source of biodiversity.

The benefit dinner featured a silent auction, followed by a live auction, and a catered vegetarian dinner. We estimated there were nearly 200 people in attendance, and that over $30,000 was raised in the live auction alone. The items auctioned off ranged from a one day horseback riding trip in Southern NM to a 5 day ski vacation at Telluride. Bidders seemed to enjoy bidding against each other, and in many cases auction items sold for well over their retail value.

The president of the organization gave a short welcome, followed by a keynote address from Jim Baca, a former mayor of Albuquerque and BLM commissioner.

Besides enjoying a fun evening out on a weeknight, my wife and I met a number of active environmentalists in the Northern NM area, and also saw a model environmental fundraising event in person.

For more information, see http://www.fguardians.org/.

CLIF BAR’s Development Cyclo-Cross Team Starts Global Cooling, Starts Season

Boulder, Colorado October 15, 2006—When the members of the TIAA-CREF/CLIF BAR Cyclo-Cross Team rolled to the start line in Gloucester, MA for the opening round of the 2006 Crank Brothers US Gran Prix of Cyclo-Cross Series, they not only began the third season for the national-level development program, but also set off on a pioneering environmental sustainability mission.

The American Cycling Association’s Junior and Under-23 cyclo-cross development program took inspiration from CLIF BAR’s exemplary sustainability commitment. The team is focusing on three major sustainability components:

1. Promoting CLIF BAR’s “Start Global Cooling” campaign: Through the wind energy company Native Energy, the team’s carbon footprint from the season’s travel miles will be offset by the purchase of wind energy credits. To learn more, visit www.nativeenergy.com.

2. Working with Boulder-based Eco-Cycle to become a Zero Waste operation: During team events in Boulder and when traveling to races, the team will be recycling and composting as much of its waste as possible. To learn more, visit www.ecocycle.org.

3. Supporting local and organic food sources: Team sponsor Door to Door Organics is providing each kid and their family with a box of fresh produce every week of the season, and when traveling to races the team is seeking out local and organic food sources to cook all of their meals. To learn more, check out www.doortodoororganics.com.

Each of these is a relatively small step towards sustainability, but each component will add up within the team, across the season, and will begin to make a difference. It is the team’s hope that through it’s sustainability education program and sustainable operations, it will help educate and inspire cyclists, teams, events, and the industry to start taking their own small steps towards sustainability.

On to the start of the race season: October 7-8 at the famous New England race venue Stage Fort Park in Gloucester, MA. Headlining the team’s development effort were three juniors who turned in outstanding performances. In the 15-16 age group, new team member Andrew Barker rode aggressively and notched two 3rd place finishes.

Cyclo-cross rookie Jim Lennon finished up his second cyclo-cross race ever in 4th place on Saturday, and then Sunday, Lennon and teammate Daniel Summerhill (defending Junior National Champ) put the USGP on notice that the junior field will continue to feature some of the most exciting racing of the series. The two used impressive teamwork to form 2/3 of the lead group, and Summerhill helped Lennon sprint to his first USGP win and the Series leader’s jersey – while taking 3rd place himself.

Next up for the team will be their hometown race weekend, round two of the USGP Series in Boulder and Longmont, CO.

You can keep up with the kids and find details about their in-progress website on their blog: www.eurocrossers.blogspot.com

Team Roster:

Andrew Barker (15) Golden, CO
Stu Gillespie (24) Boulder, CO
Alex Howes (18) Boulder, CO
Brady Kappius (19) Golden, CO
Jim Lennon (17) Centennial, CO
Taylor Phinney (17) Boulder, CO
Peter Stetina (19) Boulder, CO
Daniel Summerhill (17) Centennial, CO (2005 USGP and Jr National Champion)
Tejay van Garderen (18) Fort Collins, CO
Troy Wells (23) Durango, CO (2005 U23 National Champion)






2006 TIAA-CREF/CLIF BAR Cyclo-Cross Team Sponsors:

CLIF BAR
American Cycling Association
5280 Magazine
Cyclocrossworld.com
Boulder Cycle Sport
Javelin bikes
Alpha Q forks
fi’zi:k saddles and bar tape
Crank Brothers pedals
Mavic wheels
Challenge tubular tires
Hutchinson clincher tires
Hincapie team clothing
SWIX baselayers and gloves
Sheila Moon accessories
Curve socks
JBV Coaching
Cycle-Smart, Solutions for Cycling

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Exclusive Sustainability Partners:

CLIF BAR – The Natural Performance Enhancer
Pedro’s environmentally-friendly bike care products
Door to Door Organics produce delivery service
Patagonia outerwear
Equal Exchange Fair Trade coffee, tea and chocolate

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Staff:
Ben Turner, team manager
John Verheul, team coach and assistant manager
Daimeon Shanks, mechanic
Nick Legan, mechanic
Reed McCalvin, soigneur
Rob Wuebker, sustainability consultant
Jason Kawakami, team chef

THE KING HAS FALLEN!!!!!

We just got back from watching the pro race and thought that this information was worthy of a quick post: Sven Nijs crashed out of the race (He had a really bad crash. With the way he bent over backwards and laid on the ground motionless for over a minute I thought he broke his back.) and my main man Erwin Vervecken pulled off the win!! Craziest thing I have ever seen. I knew Vervecken could pull it off! It seems like me and Bjorn were the only ones that thought he could do it before the race started. I can't tell ya'll how many drunken Nijs fans wanted to bare knuckle beat us when we said Vervecken was going to win. Man, this is sooooooo SWEET!!!!!!!!


This one is for the new world champion,
d'howes

P.S. Not shure if we will have time to put up another post today so I thought I would throw up a few pics for your viewing pleasure. Enjoy, and thanks for reading.

The Cyclo-Cross Chamionships of the World

The day began with the Junior race at 11:30. Everyone had a pretty good start. Bjorn made the front group for the whole race. It was so amazing to watch on tv. With half a lap left he was in 3rd, but then faded back to 7th at the end. An awesome ride either way. Danny was the second American in 19th place. He was the 4th 17 year old so he has some good chances for next year. Mr. Alex Howes got 35th place. Strong showing. The American team ended up 5th overall which will give the a great starting position next year.

The U23 did not go as well. There was a huge crash right at the start. Troy went down really hard. He ended up with a few stitches and a broken elbow. He even finished the race. Everyone got stuck behind it. Jesse got his brake stuck in his wheee. Adam, Dan, and I were all behind it. So by the first corner we were a good 15 seconds behind the leaders. We had a long way to work back up. Newt and I rode together for a while until he flatted. I almost managed to not get lapped but I was pulled before the finishng straight. I think I could have made it though. Oh well. Me - 48th. Troy - 55th. Lots of bad luck for the US U23's.

U23 Results - http://www.cyclingnews.com/cross/2006/jan06/CXworlds06/?id=results/CXworlds062

Junior Results - http://www.cyclingnews.com/cross/2006/jan06/CXworlds06/?id=results/CXworlds061

Tomorrow, the Big Day

Tomorrow it is, the World Championships. Today we went and rode the course again in the morning. Its still pretty slick but should be fast. Warmer temperatures are expected tomorrow so we will see if it changes any. We spent the rest of the day resting up. We had a nice pasta dinner to fuel us up. Now we are headed bed. Hopefully our nerves wont keep us up. Wish us luck!! Look for another update tomorrow!

Brady

Lots of hotel time and some slick turns

Today we awoke at 7:30 and headed out for a nice little morning walk. We were out for about 10 minutes then headed back and had some breakfast. We then went back out for a ride at 10:30. The course is only about a half mile from the hotel so we headed over there. We rode 1 lap and checked most of the course out. Alex took a nice little fall on the slick downhill section. Lots of oooohhhh's and aaahhhh's. The stairs don't seem too bad. They are pretty similar to stadium stairs - not too much vertical gain and a lot of horizontal gain. The road climb at the top should hurt pretty bad though. We headed back, took a shower and ate some lunch. The food is pretty good, I'm happy. Lounged around the room for a while and watched some T.V., did some Physics homework, then went back to the course to see how it had changed and did a couple of efforts. Again, we came back, watched T.V. again then ate some dinner. More T.V. and here we are, getting ready to go to bed. Only one more day before the big race, so we better get our act together. Do a couple efforts tomorrow and we should be ready.

Until tomorrow,
Brady

10 hours in the plane, 12 hours in the airport, we're not even 50 % efficient

After 36 hours of traveling, we have now arrived in Zeddam, Netherlands. Not too much to say about today; nothing but sitting on the plane and sitting in the airport. In quick summary (it's going to be quick because the fingers are having trouble typing and the eyes are having trouble staying open) these were the highs and lows of the day:

Highs-
-Stunning the euros with our amazing (not really) hacky sack skills as we waited in the airport.
-Playing soccer with a Listerine breath strips pack and later, a ninja turtle foot we found in the airport.
-Watching "Back to the Future" from start to finish for the first time (the skateboard chase scene is the coolest thing I have ever seen on an airplane. Period).
-Trying to court a group of 25-50 Swedish female student w/ the standard Belgian wink.
-Watching a man dressed in a $1000 ensemble, strut around w/ a piece of toilet paper stuck to his foot.
-Getting some sweet new national team clothing.
-Seeing the peoples faces as they see us sprawled out in the corner sleeping (and drooling - Danny).
Lows-
-Sitting in the Washington-Dulles airport for 2 hours.
-Getting shot down by 25-50 Swedish female students.
-Sitting in the Brussels airport for 10 hours.
-Airplane legs.
-The odors that can come off 3 guys.

Well I guess when you weigh the pluses and minuses against each other I suppose you could say we came out on top. What ever, no matter how you look at it, it was a long day.

Grinning regards,
d'howes

Sleep any one????

Well the weekend of racing is over... Yesterday went well with a 16th @ Zonnebeke. It was a complete mud feast. It was the type of course where you had to put out all the power you had to just stay on your bike. Tonkin ended up 14th. After the race me and Tonkin rode the 25km home to spin the legs out for todays World Cup. My preparation/1st lap couldn't have gone much worse. First off I haven't been sleeping at all lately. I just haven't been able to fall asleep. Ever since I got the stomach bug last weekend my sleep has went to crap. Tuesday I fell asleep @ 4a.m. Wed 3a.m. Thurs 2a.m Friday 1a.m. So I was hoping I was on the road to overcoming my new found insomnia. No such luck for this guy last night I never fell asleep. I was actually never recall falling asleep at all last night. At around 4:45 I gave up on whole sleep thing I hear it is overrated. I ventured down to the kitchen and began preparing my 1st of two pre race meals. We had to leave at 7:15 so I figured sense I didn't sleep I should @ least have more than enough fuel in my system. Jesse informed on the car ride it is cocky to race a World Cup without sleeping. Well the stage was set this was going to be my second race in less than 24hrs with out sleep. When we arrived @ the course the first question I get when I get out of the car is do you have an extra helmet for Lance Noble. Lance decided he didn't need his helmet for the world cup today even after Jesse told him not to for get it last night. I wasn't in rush to get on my bike so I decided chill in the Box Van for a good 20 to 30 min and pre ride the course right before the Juniors race. When I was pre riding the course I felt like I couldn't even get around the circuit @ recovery ride pace needless to say race pace. Finally it was time to start the race and test the theory I have heard forever that is the sleep 2 nights before not the night before. We linded up and I'm almost positive I got a fine for not wearing a National Champ skinsuit b/c it is a new UCI rule National Champs in U-23 and Junior don't wear federation team clothing and the UCI officials pointed @ me and talked among themselves. That should be a nice fine. Finally the race was off and I proceeded to break a spoke down the 1k road section. This forced me to pit and to good from the nice front row start. I would have been better off last row. I proceed into the pit only to see Jesse about 30 feet in front of me pitting in order to move up a couple spots. I slowed up hoping that Proctor would see me following Jesse no such luck. When I saw no reaction from Proctor I figured maybe we had to separate teams with bike so I continued on down the pit. At this point it became apparent that I would have to get off my bike and wait for Proctor to run my bike up to me. At this point I was DFL OTB whatever you want to call 200 meters off the back on a dirt crit style cross. I held it together and began to move up. I caught up to Jesse who had decided he wasn't going to race the 1st lap and was OTB as well. Jesse and I began to move through the field and caught Newt and Danimal. At this point Jesse yells out stupid americans always riding together. At this point he attacks so hard I had to go red to go with him. Now Jesse and I are off fighting from the mid 50's. We worked are way to just in the top 40 when I put in a hard effort to reach the two dutch guys in front of us. Jesse pulled through and put me out the back. This was basically where we would stay the rest of the race. I felt good power wise considering I raced yesterday and that sleep difficulties. I think next weekend will good well as my fitness is coming around. I just have to put it all together. Jesse seems to have his back figured out and his legs are coming around as well.