Meet the Racers - Four Person Relay Teams

Friday July 14, 2006 by George

Relay Team, 4 person, Recumbent, Open

400 Team RAO Speedwagon – Rand Milam, Bakersfield, CA, Keith Kohan, Salem, OR, Michael Wolfe, Portland, OR & John Williams, Philomath, OR – The defending champions. Speedwagon has it all. Great racers, an amazing crew, an amazing crew chief and the desire to win. John has piloted the Quest to numerous overall victories at the OBRA time trials this year. Rand Milam is living in the Bakersfield heat these days so he is primed for the desert. The versatile Kohan is fast no matter what type of terrain he’s on. However, the final outcome of the race is going to be squarely on the able quads of Michael Wolfe in my opinion. Wolfe is in some of the best shape of his life having just won the Wasco Wild West with a record setting ride. The route changes are going to make it mandatory that Wolfe – Speedwagon’s designated climber – have an exceptional performance. Speedwagon set some eye popping splits from Butte Creek to Monument, Fox to Keyes Creek (where they made up more than an hour on upright leaders Gerry’s Kids!) and Ochoco summit to Madras. The killer for everyone was the performance the team had climbing Ochoco. The Kids were unable to drop Speedwagon on the climb and Williams delivered the knockout on the descent. Last year I predicted Speedwagon would win if they were within an hour of the leaders cresting Ochoco. This year Speedwagon will have to maintain closer contact through the first half of the race to be in the thick of it at Timberline. The way the team has been racing this year we expect them to do just that.

401 Team Bacchetta – John Climaldi, Portland, OR, Larry Graham, Westerville, OH, Jim Verheul, Westlake Village, CA, & Don Appel, Atkinson, NH – Bacchetta bicycles have been winning all over the place of late. In ’05 the team turned in one of the finest finishes in RAAM history. No one expected the ‘bents to be in contention after the steep climbs through West Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania. Instead, they stayed close and then surprised everyone when all four of the racers drafted each other at nearly 30 mph to catch and pass the team ahead of them for third place setting a record in the process. This team is here to win. If they have a weakness it’s that the team hasn’t previously ridden the RAO course. Some of the upright racers told us last year that their friends would never let them live it down if they lost to a recumbent. A word to the friends out there – there are eight great bicycle racers making up these two teams no matter what type of bikes they happen to be riding.

Relay Team, 4 Person, Men’s Open

402 Doug And The Descenders – Doug Peterson, Hillsboro, OR, Dylan Cernitz, Canby, OR, Matt Chango, Chicago, IL & Josh Babcock, Chicago, IL – Peterson logged an impressive solo finish as a rookie racer at RAO last year. He had no physical problems to mention but overcame numerous logistical troubles that would have put many a rider out of the race. Peterson is one of the strongest climbers in the field. Judging from the name of his team and the size of their t-shirts he will be riding a majority of the route’s uphill sections.

403 Team Shark Attack – Jeff Tedder, Portland, OR, Ivan Meadors, Hillsboro, OR, Dean Lucas, Portland, OR & Mike McManus, Portland, OR – This will be Tedder’s seventh RAO (in ’03 he was injured so crewed for the Sharks and took ’05 off to officiate). This is the third RAO for Lucas. Dean put his mark on the race in ’03 when he rode away from the rest of the field on the climb to Government Camp. Anyone who has competed in OBRA events during the past 20 years has lost at one time or another to Meadors. Ivan is one of those guys at Estacada that wins his numeric category, starts again and wins his masters category then starts one more time to win the tandem division. All he needs is a Bacchetta and he can go for four wins at one race. McManus is new to the area but he immediatley made himself known by winning the Category III division of the Mt. Hood Stage Race. Shark Attack is going to be very difficult to beat. This team is comparable to the Bravard, Gierga, Thomas, Lucas, Beatty ’03 incarnation. If there’s anyone who can outclimb Lucas in this field it would be his teammate McManus. Meadors can race with anyone on any terrain and Tedder is riding stronger than ever. Long time Shark crew chief Shari Matias is back for her seventh RAO.

404 Team Maillot Jaundice – Drew Bryenton, Corvallis, OR, Pete Kalet, Knoxville, TN, Jimmy “Slim” Wills, Pendleton, IN &
Tom Reynolds, Berkeley, CA – Unfortunatley I am not familiar with the racers on this team. Suffice it to say they have logged some of the first Salami Points for having the most creative team name. I can’t wait to see their jerseys.

405 Team HeadHunters – Lance Heppler, Vancouver, WA, Michael Gilbert, Vancouver, WA, Rob Rusunen, Camas, WA &
Chris Hoops, Camas, WA – The returning champions of the 4 Person Mixed division decided not to defend their title and instead make a run at the 4 Person Men’s crown. The Headhunters encountered a ‘problem’ in that their racers are too talented. Two of the original ‘hunters had to be replaced when they found themselves qualified for Ironman Canada. They were worried that RAO might take too much out of them for Ironman. Regardless, the Tri Club is fielding a competitive quad. Their race against the Canadian team Four Play up Timberline Road in ’05 was epic. This is not a team to have chasing you in the final miles.

406 Team Falcons – Gary Baierl, Lake Forest, CA, Mac Imacseng, Solana Beach, CA, Colin Wright, Sunnyvale, CA &
Jim Ryan, Sammamish, WA – A big welcome back to Team Falcon. Bairl crewed for the team on which Ryan was a racer in ’03. Jim had an inspiring ride for everyone but himself. He’d come out on the bad end of a crash with an SUV two weeks before the race and ended up racing with broken ribs. Winners of the ’02 four person relay at the 508 they’d come to RAO to have a fun, competitive race. Instead they found themselves circled by Sharks eager to prove that they could compete against the winners of another ultra and a fired up HP team that was having the RAO of its life. The Falcons are back for ’06 again seeking a fun, competitive race. This will be Ryan’s fifth RAO – twice as an official and now three times as a racer.

Relay Team, 4 Person, Men’s 50+

457 Team Aging Bulls – Michael Goldsmith, Lake Oswego, OR, Ed Kendrick, Portland, OR, Andrew Black, Portland, OR &
Jeremy Wilson, Portland, OR – The Aging Bulls were the brainchild of Michael Goldsmith who crewed for Team Bag Balm in ’05. Goldsmith is in amazing shape at the moment having just ridden cross country from L.A. to Boston. Kendrick – a frequent name in the OBRA race results – was a late addition to the team. The Bulls may be aging but they’re going to set a 50+ mark that will be tough to beat. They are also going to give the younger bulls in the field quite the race.

Relay Team, 4 Person, Mixed Open

428 Team Saddle Soarers – Kevin Conroy, Klamath Falls, OR, Rob Sturm, Klamath Falls, OR, Ross Leonard, Klamath Falls, OR & Lillian Schiavo, Klamath Falls, OR – Another team whose racers I am not familiar with. I’m expecting a strong performance from the Soarers as they’ll be coming from the K Falls altitude. With the proximity of Crater Lake and some truly epic routes in the area they will be undaunted by either the heat or the hills.

429 Team Bag Balm – Laura Recko, Portland, OR, Scott Saulsbury, Seaside, OR, Linda Moreland-Hooker, Portland, OR & Richard Seton, Portland, OR – A team in the classic 2 × 2 mixed formation. Recko suffered a horrific crash at PIR shortly after RAO last year. She’s come back from her injuries and is racing well. Saulsbury was fast in ’05 and is rippin’ it up this year – he’s going to have a great RAO. Moreland-Hooker has excellent TT credentials. Seton is equally strong on the climbs and flats. Bag Balm returns in tact from it’s ’05 incarnation. Also returning is super crew chief Susan Otcenas. The rookie Bag Balmers rode like veterans in ’05. With the experience gained from last year we are expecting a fine finish from the BBs in ’06.



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