Caption Contest 3.0

Ben Renkema, former teammate and good friend, as he snags his first ever National title at Downers Grove in 2005, quite possibly one of my most favorite cycling photos of all time! Also, John Coyle, current teammate and Olympic medalist is to his left. Ben is featured throwing up two fingers on each hand for what I assume is representing his State Title he claimed just the week before and his newly claimed National Title…or it could just be promoting peace in the Middle East, I never really asked him straight out.


Ben is one of the few riders I know who has the apparent skill, drive, and talent to take his game to the next level. I look forward to seeing how his season develops this year as he makes the move to his new team TURIN, and to take pride in claiming that I at one time, shared a bed with him while on the road at Superweek.

Austin in Summary

I spent my last day in Austin taking in the sights from the view of a borrowed 29er Kona Unit. The goal of the day was to roll a hundo but I ended up conceding to a mere 75miles, as the trails were a little more challenging than I anticipated.

There were a few cliff ledge trails I stumbled upon that left me fearing for my life a bit as I peered down the edge of the trail at the rock garden about 100 feet down…one slip and one could end up in a world of hurt.

In summary, my first trip to Austin reminded me that there are still places in the US where people are happy and have a healthy well-being. I had forgotten what a thriving and growing economy looks like. From my perception, it seemed that the people of Austin seemed to be financially stable and placed an emphasis on experiential based value (i.e. travel, cycling, hiking, climbing, contributing to community, etc.). In addition, it seemed that they consumed less than we poor Michiganders do. The city was making major strides to ensure a “greener” more sustainable way of living as well as placing recreational activities as high priorities. I would say that for every 1 car in Austin there is probably 2 bikes. Not quite par with Portland…but getting there. Its ironic, that while Michigan’s economy continues to plummet radically we still see the emergence of the wildly unnecessary places like the new outdoor Partridge Creek Mall, huge subdivisions with houses way bigger than we would ever need and with one entry layouts that resemble a rat trap. We have less, but consume the most.

Of course the legend, legacy, and claim to fame of Lance Armstrong is clearly present in Austin. As I rolled the group rides, I listened to many stories of local riders and there run ins with the cycling superstar. Everyone seemed to want to claim at least one degree of separation from the cultural icon…I’m not sure I can blame them. Lance has recently decided to open a new bike shop in Austin named Mellow Johnny’s. The shops intent is to promote bike advocacy and increased emphasis on making biking a primary tool for transportation, recreation, and maintaining a healthy well-being. The shop will feature lock and go cycling lockers for individuals who commute from out of town as well as showers. Although this shop presents a threat to the business of some pre-existing shops in the area, it seems the concept behind it is worthy.

In a nutshell, this cycling/companion reunion trip served as a great way to recharge my batteries and break free from my everyday mundane, routine lifestyle that I complain about but am not sure I could live without. I never thought I would make it to 29 years of age and still live in this area, it just didn’t seem likely or something I wanted to be in the cards. However, I can say that I love and embrace the cycling community I belong to. You guys all hold me up and keep me going…not sure I could find such a tight knit group in other cities. We all share the same passion and as a result, we are the minority, the black sheep, and the alternative. Our priorities lie elsewhere than driving new escalades, buying houses bigger than we would ever need, spending ludicrous amounts of money on ugly purses with gaudy letters on them, wearing our Sunday’s best to a smokey bar, and ignoring the fact that other cultures exist outside of the Metro Detroit Motor City. I take pride in my community…so lets all raise our pint glasses we busted our asses off to win in a prime at some local crit race to ourselves, “Who Cares? We’re Flying!”

Finally some good weather!

Sunny and in the 70s yesterday, you couldn’t ask for better weather…I even got to work on the tan lines a little!

“The Damned Loop”-What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger!

Today I awoke to my cell phone ringing at 7:40am. I was supposed to meet another rider from Bicycle Sport Shop this morning at 7:30am. Unfortunately my alarm clock did not function properly. However, after a quick phone call to Brandt…he rolled back over to pick me up for the “Fast Group ATC Ride”. The loop was named “the Dam loop” because it meandered out to a Dam about 2 hours away, around a lake and back (about 60 miles round trip). We started the day with the lofty intentions of doing two loops. I quickly shoveled in some oatmeal, threw back some coffee like it was a shot Jaeger and we were on our way.

As we rode to the meeting point of the ride, a few things were on my mind:
1. I did not have a pre-ride BM- a sure recipe for disaster!
2. I did not know any of the roads or routes, which always causes a bit of cautionary apprehension.
3. It was only 40 degrees and rainy and I was way underdressed.

As we arrived at the start of the ride, Brandt quickly informed me that there were comparatively very few riders out today due to the inclement weather (only about 10 or so). He also instructed me to be very careful on the turns because due to the extreme lack of rain in this region the roads become treacherously slippery with oil…he was right, it was like ice.

I am usually never one to throw in the towel due to conditions but as we got 2 hours into the ride the temperature dropped about 6 degrees, the rain became torrential, and I couldn’t take it anymore. I could no longer feel my fingers, toes, and had the shivers so bad that I would shake the top tube of my bike causing my handlebars to flutter. Most of the guys had ditched the ride already, stating that today was only for the hardest of core.

Just after a long arduous climb, I turned to Brandt and said uncle. He seemed to be suffering too so we headed to the nearest coffee shop and planned out a strategy to get home in one piece. After a failed attempt to plea for someone to come pick us up, our saving factor was found in the local newspaper. We shoved as many newspapers as we could under our jerseys for added warmth, tried to mentally go to a happy place, and headed back on our 1.5 hour trek to downtown Austin. The sites were amazing but were dampened by the downpour and pour visibility due to fog.


After much mental digging, we finally made it back to the shop in one piece and chalked the day up to one that will go in the storybooks. Just before we took our last turn, Brandt looked at me and asked sarcastically asked if I was sure I didn’t want to do another loop. We ended the ride by both agreeing that every rider has to feel pain to experience pleasure. Bike racing is all about learning how to suffer, today we got a lot of practice in and probably built a little more character as well.

The miserable post-ride/pre-shower Finkelstein










The post-shower/pre-nap Finkelstein








Tomorrow is the Austin Marathon. I will be cheering on some of our Michigan native talent, The Hansen’s Team. Lets hope for better weather and longer miles…if not, oh well…a horrible day in the saddle always trumps a day at work.

Land of the Longhorn

This past Christmas Angela gave me the very thoughtful and selfless gift of a plane ticket to Austin, TX for some early season warm weather miles and to reunite with my great friend Brandon Richter. Brandon is no stranger to bicycle retail, his resume includes shops such as Village Bike Shop, Antoons Bike Shop, Continental Bike Shop, Chain Wheel Drive (Fl), and now Bicycle Sport Shop (Austin, TX), he was also the top sales associate in the Midwest for Independent Fabrication.

I met Brandon during a very pivotal time of my life; I was just starting to ride more seriously. In addition, I had just graduated from college, finished a post-graduation season long binge of snowboarding, and was finally conceding that I was going to have to move back home with my parents and search for a more career oriented job. Brandon just happened to call me on me on my final trek home from Kalamazoo. I had all of my belongings loaded up in may car, was heading in a direction I didn’t really want to go, and had no job lined up whatsoever. Bob Dylan was playing and I was trying to wrap my head around the thought that the “best years of my life” were now behind me…now what? That is when I got the call offering me an exciting job at Antoons. At the time, it gave me hope. I had never met Brandon before, but during my interview we instantly connected and have been very close friends since. My first recollection of Brandon was asking him when I could employee purchase a new cross bike. His response was, “Well, technically our policy is that you have to work here for three months before you can do that, but you seem pretty passionate…if I let you fill the paperwork out today, you promise me you won’t screw me and quit after you get it?” We ordered the bike the day of my interview and Brandon has been pressuring me to buy bikes and more parts ever since. His famous move was to put new parts on my bikes while I unknowingly built up my employee layaway account. In 2002, just after 10spd Dura-Ace was released, he swapped my entire 9spd group to 10spd the night before the State Road Race without my consent. His justification was always that he knew I would love it…he was right.

Fast forward to the present. My flight to Austin was pretty nice, I shared the plane with 30 girls from the U of M softball team and some Hansen’s runners getting ready to race the Austin Marathon on Sunday. Needless to say we had some good conversation and exchanged the pleasures and pains of being addicted to our sports.

Brandon greeted me at the airport with two ice cold Sierra Nevadas, perfect tranquility fuel after a long flight and an even longer day at work. We went immediately to John Korioth and Lance Armstrong’s bar Six. I forgot what it feels like to be in a town where the economy is not only stable but thriving and people are happy, healthy, and seem to have their priorities straight…I don’t think I’ve seen one “pimped out” H2 since I’ve been here! We celebrated our reunion the rest of the evening with many cowboy pops!


This morning we woke up, ate, and headed over to Bicycle Sport Shop. The shop is owned and operated by Hill Abell, the IMBA President, huge cycling advocate, and all around great guy.



Bicycle Sport Shop is a Mecca of all things to two-wheeled!



The shop was gracious enough to allow me to ride a rental 2008 Madone 5.1 free of charge. It also happened to match the Wolverine Kits just perfectly.



After I got the fit of the bike dialed in we headed out for a nice leisurely loop to get to know the town and the roads.


Despite some bad luck, we had a great ride. I hit a razor blade in the middle of nowhere and slashed my tire from bead to bead. As a testament to how great the employees at BSS are…one call, and minutes later a car pulled up with a new wheel and we were back on our way for more miles.

Tomorrow I am meeting up with “the fast group” ride out of the shop in the morning. I have aspirations of an epic ride day but fear that they may become unfulfilled due to projected inclement weather. If so, oh well…I’m still having a good time.

A Tale of two Gentlemen: Young Buck and Old Dog

This is Robert. Robert likes to ride bikes in the dirt. Robert is also roughly as old as dirt.








This is Tim. Tim likes to ride bikes on the smooth pavement. He is a young lively energetic lad. Tim looks up to Robert for the ungodly miles he rides each year and for his stylish look.



One beautiful day, Robert and Tim met on a park bench and shared a few laughs about their differences in riding preferences. Robert told Tim, “Anything you can do, I can do better”. Tim replied, “Well, I haven’t seen you riding your bike too much lately”.

Robert retorted, “that is because my back hurts now when I ride a bike, but in my day…not only could I throw a football a quarter mile while wearing painted on silver pants and playing a rocking Queen guitar solo…but I could also ride farther and faster away from any peloton I encountered”. Tim instructed the old man to prove it. The two then shared a sheepish laugh and went on their merry ways.




The very next day, Tim received this photo in his email inbox.

Same rig…revamped design…new look.

Once again, thanks to our good friends at American Cycle and Fitness, Bontrager Components, and Lemond Racing Cycles, the WSC Elite team will be swinging their freshly shaven legs over these gratuitously carbon fiber adorned steeds in 2008.


Lemond upped the ante this season by offering the lightest frameset available on their Dura-Ace equipped Victiore, the triumphe ultimate carbon. I just built mine up last week and am proud to announce that it has joined the ranks of one of the lightest bikes I have ever had in my stable, weighing in at a lean 15 lbs…a weight that would make any anorexic supermodel jealous. In addition to the frame upgrade, Lemond redesigned the rear seat stays to maximize any unnecessary material to reduce weight. The bikes design integrity follows the min/max philosophy: maximum amount of material where necessary (high torque/load bearing and flex areas) and the minimum where unnecessary.




Complete with a beautiful candy metal flake red, the new Victiore is sure to catch an eye or two in the 2008 peloton.