I did a little checking on the internet today to find out just exactly what the term "Scarletfire" means. There were phrases like “bright colored flame” and “rich iridescent tones.” I like the last one: “Stir it up.” Stir it up was exactly what the weather did at the inaugural Scarletfire / Verizon Racing 2-person time trial in Garden Prairie, Illinois this past Saturday. The conditions at the Bong 20k time trial two weeks prior were baby food alongside of what GP had in store for the MATTS faithful on this day. The weather was in the crisp, low 50’s with patchy rain, cloudy skies, and did I mention wind? There was plenty of it!
Teams took advantage of the tailwinds on the way out to the turnaround. However, the trek back to the finish was a whole other story. I heard so many stories of good riders saying they could not wait to get to the finish line with three miles to go. The winds were so strong on the finishing stretch that teams where riding sideways to keep their aero rigs upright. Many riders compared this race to Leland-Kermesse minus the gravel.
Dave Polin and Jeff Otto (WDT/ Allvoi) rode the fastest time of the day annihilating the course and the competition in a stellar 52:07, followed by Jason Smith and Kurt Spoerle (Zipp Factory Team) 54:11. Kyle Mindick and Nick Lauterbach (XXx Athletico) rode a 55:00 even for third place honors. On the ladies side, Kristin Wrede and Christine Anderson (Unattached) lit up the course riding a 105:00, narrowly nipping Francine Haas and Wendy Gaddey (Alberto's) who rode a stellar 105:08 for second place honors. Third place belonged to Pascale Petro and Ginger Sides who rode a 1:10:03 respectively.
Other Teams having good rides on this day were Gary Painter and Frances Manfred (Fort Wayne Outfitters), Brian Harris and Chris Mosora (Scarletfire / Verizon Racing), Heidi Sarna and Eileen Neville (XXx Athletico), Wayne Simon and Bob Karlow (Verdigris), Michael Jones and James Host (PACT Dish Network), Richard Kreutzfelt and Dan Madsen (PACT/ABD), Clara Smart and Ann Luckow (Northwestern University Cycling Team), Robert Burke and Ziggy Demel (PACT Dish Network), Curtis Bice and James Snedden (ABD), Angela Rochester and Nancy Heyman (Alberto's), Reed Oliff and Charles Gerlach (Lamb Little Racing), Gerald Beam and Ray Putman (Turin), Marilyn Powell and Mimi Fagen (ABD), Sal Troia and Dave Thomson (Mad City Velo), Al Stern and Vitor Alcazar (Velo Club Roubaix / Colavita Chicagoland), Pat Beam and Nancy Iglinski (ABD), Brian Karlow and Vince Boyer (Redline Racing), and Robert Herbert and Edward Wang (Midwest Masters). 
The race was not without it’s interesting moments. An irate driver upset with racers riding on both sides of the road decided to take it upon himself to run over the turnaround cone, drag it under his car onto U.S. Route 20, and shred it into a thousand tiny pieces. This indiscretion made it hard for both the turnaround marshal and on the riders who saw no bright orange cone at the turnaround portion of the course. On another occasion, a lady driving a blue Chevy Cavalier told the finishing officials that she had a CDL license and she could not legally by law pass other vehicles in no passing zones and neither should riders (I guess she did not know this race was permitted, and I never knew that one needed a CDL license to drive a compact Chevy). Finally, it appears that some farm equipment or a scofflaw took or took out some of the turning arrows in the middle of the course. These are things that no promoter could foresee, and as a new promoter to the series Scarletfire Racing gets a "10" for doing an excellent job putting on a great event in inclimate weather. Thanks to Mark Swartzendruber, Mike Zellmann, Brian Harris, Chris Mosora, and the rest of the Verizon Team for putting on this great event!
Next week takes us to Champaign country for the Cham Pain 40k in Tolono, Illinois put on by Wild Card Racing. The results for the 2-person time trial are posted on the ABR website located in the "News" section. A copy of the link to the Cham Pain 40k along with a link to the ABR website are listed below. On-line registration for Cham Pain ends 5/14.
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