U.S. Masters National Championships

I travelled to Louisville, Kentucky for the Masters National Criterium Championship. I would be racing the 35-39 category and I was nervous because I had never raced the national championships. This category has a reputation for being one of the fastest and most competitive age groups. I felt good and my preparation had gone reasonably well. All the work was done and now it was time to race. The race was 50 laps of a 1 kilometer, four corner course.

When I took the line, I immediately noticed no fewer than five former national champions in my race. The Amgen Masters Team was well represented along with large contingents from Texas Roadhouse, Litespeed-BMW and the Bike Hut. I thought the race would end in a sprint, so my plan was to conserve energy and try to sprint for the stars and stripes jersey. I wanted to stay near the front so that I could go with any break that had more than 5 riders. There were enough large, strong teams in attendance to disrupt a chase if they were all represented.

The first 10 laps were perfect. I was sitting in and felt great when disaster struck. The race was single file and travelling about 33 mph when a rider in front of me crossed wheels and went down. He tumbled right in front of me and I had no where to go but join him on the ground. I did a front flip in the air and landed hard on the asphalt. I jumped up and ran my bike over to the pit. Surprisingly, my Trek Madone was in good shape other than the flat front tire. I had a bloody knee, hip and elbow, but nothing was broken.

Due to "safety reasons" the race officials pushed me back into the race at the back of the pack. I now had to pass the entire field to get back to the front. I tried to stay calm and passed groups of riders as quickly as possible without blowing myself up. It took me 10 laps, but when I got close to the front, there were 5 riders off the front with a 20 second gap. I took a deep breath and attacked out of the field to the break. When I made it there, I found myself in the company of two former national champs but the break was working well. Over the next 5 laps we put our heads down and really went to work. We dropped one rider out of the break and the rider from Texas Roadhouse quit working. He said he was barely hanging on and his team did not want him to work as they were trying to chase down the break.

Our lead continued to increase, even though we had one passenger in the group, and soon we could see the back of the field. As the final laps approached, I knew that the race would be decided in the third corner. One rider attacked the group on the back straight and I immediately responded. I did not want to leave anything to chance. As we approached corner 3, I took a deep breath and attacked. The Amgen Rider, and former national champion, attacked at the exact same moment. We were banging into one another like two track riders in an effort to get to the corner first. He was able to get under me and exited the corner with a bike length advantage. I put my head down and put everything into the pedals but I could not close the gap. I finished second for a silver medal.



It was a great experience and I am proud to have finished second in the National Championships. I was proud to race courageously with the Lindner Capital Advisors colors. It stings a little to have been so close and not to have won, but that is racing. I finished second or third numerous times in the Florida State Criterium Championship prior to winning this year so there is always hope for the future.

- Curtis Long

FL State Criterium Championships 5-8-10

Karel, Curtis, and Ralph lined up at a scorching hot course in downtown Lakeland for the Florida State Criterium Championships. The temperature on the bank marquee read 102 degrees and the wind that was blowing felt like a convection oven instead of a cool breeze. This was going to be a hard day on the bike.

Curtis and Ralph raced the 35+ race earlier in the day, with Curtis winning the 35+ State Crit Championship and Ralph taking 5th on his comeback tour. Our strategy coming into the Pro-1-2 race was to cover any dangerous moves and try to set Karel up for something near the end of the race. Karel raced and finished all of the USA Crits Speed Week races the previous week and was in stellar form. Racing back to back crits against the best talent the nation has to offer was perfect preparation for a run at the State Crit Title. This course tends to wear on people because it is always hot, windy and there is a long hill on the front side of the course coming to the finish line. Every rider in the race harbors dreams of raising his hands as State Champion, so it is always very aggressive and fast. Over the years, the race has usually split apart in the final laps. The chaotic nature of the race and the uphill finish fits Karel to tee. Unfortunately, Karel was hit with a stomach bug the night before the race and was not feeling very chipper at the start.

The race started fast and a large break of 10 guys formed about 20 minutes into the race. It was a dangerous move and Curtis made an attempt to bridge across on the front side hill. The effort brought the pack close enough that Karel was able to follow a counter move to the break. Everything looked good as Lindner Capital had the man it wanted in what appeared to be a race winning break. As the break got close to lapping the field, one rider from ZMotion attacked solo to close the last few seconds to the field. The entire ZMotion team then went to the front and dragged the remainder of the break back over the next 20 minutes. The rider that lapped the field is not an American citizen, so the State title was still up for grabs. The bad news for Lindner was that Karel had spent a lot of energy in what turned out to be a fruitless break. It was time to reshuffle.

The inevitable attacks came thick and fast after the break was caught. Curtis bridged up to a break of six riders with 8 laps to go. This break established a 20 second lead over the field. Another ZMotion rider attacked the break and was away solo. The break seemed content to watch another rider go up the road. Curtis attacked the breakaway in a bid for a podium spot. He was caught at the line by several fast sprinters from the break and ultimately finished 6th. Behind the break, Karel attacked out of the pack and held off the field in an impressive effort for 7th place. Curtis and Karel had hoped for more, but were ultimately satisfied with their efforts on the day with both riders finishing in the top 10.

Fl Time Trial Championships 5-1-10

Jeff, Clint and Curtis headed out to the west side of Jacksonville to contest the Florida State Time Trial Championship. The team split into respective age and category groups in order to have better representation. We knew it would be a hard day in the saddle as the wind was blowing at 15-20 miles per hour. The wind was a straight tailwind on the way out and a block headwind on the way back to the start-finish. This scenario is always tricky because you can loose a lot of time if you don't press hard enough to keep the speed as high as it needs to be in the tailwind. However, if you burn too many matches on the way out, the return trip home can be a nightmare with a strong headwind.

Each Lindner rider reached into his suitcase of courage and called to the engine room for more power. At the finish, Jeff Kopp finished a very respectable 4th place in the P12 against heavy talent. Curtis was 2nd in the 35+ age group and Clint fought hard for a 2nd in the 30-34 age group. It was a successful day for the team with two podiums and all riders finishing in the top five of the respective category they raced in.

Next week will be the State Championship Criterium in DeLand, Florida.

Webster-Roubaix RR: 4-3-2010

Karel Sumbal, our Czech Republic connection, was the sole member of team Lindner Capital Advisors to make the trip to race the long, hot, and dusty Webster-Roubaix. Racing on these types of roads were similar to the major highways and byways of his motherland, so he felt right at home. With many miles fought on dirt roads, this was a 4 1/2 hour epic event. Karel established himself in the winning break, and then fought on to take 8th place. An awesome ride on a brutal course. This was one of the remaining four Florida Cup series events.

Here's Karel's brief email update on how the race went:

"The Webster was brutal!!! Half way through the race I got into the counter attack of 5 and we were chasing the first break of 3. Than another 3 guys came across from behind. We caught the 3 guys at the front and it was the move of the day with eleven guys total. We were gaining time on the field but I started to cramp and it was still a looong way to go. I had to soft pedal and was not able to push very hard, so when Phill Gaimon and Juan Gaspari attacked the break I could only watch them go away. Than another 2 guys went clear and we were racing for 5th place. I finished 8th as I really couldn't push and was in all kinds of pain."

With his 8th place, he's taken another step towards the coveted Florida Cup. With only 3 races left, a Lindner Capital series victory is well within reach.

Sugarloaf Circuit Race: 3-20-2010

Last Saturday had Team Lindner Capital taking on the hilliest and arguably the hardest course in Florida, the Sugarloaf Circuit race. Six laps equaled six trips up the infamous Sugarloaf. Jeff, Curtis, Clint and James would be tasked with keeping their current on form Czech (Karel) in contention for the win.

Beginning from the first trip up the hill riders were falling off the pace. On the second ascent a rider broke his crank bringing everyone around to a standstill. As the riders up front attacked, the riders caught out by the wreck scrambled in an attempt to regain contact...some wouldn't make it back on. Up front Jeff and Curtis drove the peleton to bring back a break with all the major teams represented...except Lindner Capital. This same scenario played out over the next 2 laps as Jeff and Curtis chased down any moves made over the top of Sugarloaf.

With the team exhausted, the last two laps left Karel to fend for himself. Karel found himself covering a break late in the race only to have it pulled back by ZMotion. In Zmotion's attempt to make it onto the final podium, or possibly score their first win of the season, all their rider's were cooked going into the final climb. This gave a single Santos rider an opportunity to solo in for the win, with Karel dusting the field to grab second place. Riders were stretched out over the next 10 minutes as they struggled to finish the race.

With Karel's second place, he now holds a sizable lead in the Florida Cup series. With half of the events complete, Karel is the odds on favorite to take the overall prize...and bragging rights in Florida for 2011.



Remaing Florida Cup events:
Apr 3 Webster Roubaix
Jun 10 Stuart Criterium
Sep 19 Bartow Criterium
Sep 26 St. Joe Road Race

Chain of Lakes Cycling Classic: 3-6-10 & 3-7-10

Chain of Lakes Cycling Classic Road Race

Warm temperatures and sunshine greeted us for the 70 mile, 5 lap road race held in Winter Haven, FL this past Saturday. Lining up were Jeff Kopp, Ralph Teton, Clint Bridier, Karel Sumbal and James Sweeney. The announcer made it clear that the yellow line rule would be strictly enforced, which would make the race more difficult considering the category 3’s were added into the already large field…and the howling cross winds would also do their part.

Several attempts to flee the field didn’t get far until lap two when James joined 5 other riders. The break consisted of a rider from ZMotion, John Durango from Santos, a rider from Atlantic Shores Velo, and one rider each from two other teams. After gaining one minute on the field the break looked promising, until the ZMotion rider started attacking the break with 35 miles to go. This happened several times, so the break lost cohesion and with a little of one lap to go it was “grupo compacto” with everyone together.

This would not last long as a group of riders broke clear on the last lap. As riders were dropped from the break only three remained: Ivan Franco from Santos, Calixto Bello from ZMotion, and Karel from Lindner Capital. The last mile was very tactical and Karel secured a podium spot with his second place finish to Ivan Franco.
James was able to take 4th in the field sprint (7th overall) aided by Clint’s outstanding work to bring, and keep him near the front towards the closing meters of the race.

Chain of Lakes Cycling Classic Criterium
Karel entered the last stage of the Omnium in the top three, with a great chance to move up to the top step on the podium. The plan for Jeff, Clint, and James was to keep the field together unless Karel was in the break. This would give him a chance to win the weekend Omnium as well as take the lead in the Florida Cup series.

Sunday's course featured a tight eight turn true criterium course. From the gun the pace was fast as ZMotion tried to shred the field. James had a good start and kept an eye on the action up front while Karel saved himself the the last half of the race. As the race progressed Jeff and Clint took turns covering attacks and pulling back the ones which Lindner Capital didn't have representation.

With many unsuccessful attempts to form a breakaway, it looked as though the race could come down to a mad dash for the line for the remaining survivors. But, with time counting down a ZMotion rider and a Santos rider established a good gap. Moments later, when another ZMotion rider and Ivan Fanco from Santos attacked, James followed them. As the two groups met there was some disorganization and soon everyone was back together. And as often happens, another group of riders moved clear and Karel made his move to follow. Once in the break most riders worked well together and soon they had 1/2 a lap up on the rest of the field. This eleven rider break would make it to the line to contest the win. Karel took second place even with some dangerous riding by other riders in the sprint. This was enough for him to secure the Omnium win overall and lift him into the lead of the Florida Cup.

Tallahassee Cycling Classic RR: 2-28-10

Tallahassee Road Race Report, February 28, 2010

Karel, Clint and Jeff headed out to Tallahassee on a cold Sunday morning to take part in a unique Road Race early in the Florida Racing Season. Having not been able to do the Criterium and Time Trial on Saturday the trio from team Lindner Capital Advisors figured that some fresh legs and not being in the chase for the overall GC could possibly make for a good day. The Pro,1,2 field was smaller than usual but was very top heavy with talent. Team Type 1, a domestic Pro Team was in town for a fund raiser and a little race training so that alone would make it interesting and probably very difficult.

The RR was a 7.5 mile loop in the rolling hills with a 1.7 mile dirt section each lap. With the race being 70+miles Team LCA figured we would take it easy for a few loops and read the race. From the gun it was more like a Criterium race with attack after attack going up the road trying to establish a break. During lap 2 a break of 3 riders got up the road and finally the pace settled into an uncomfortable grind. The dirt road was an adventure with each lap as it was filled with deep dirt sections, potholes, rocks and a climb. As the race progressed riders dropped out as the hills and dirt road took its toll on the riders and bikes.

With 3 laps to go the break was caught after a few riders in the break flatted on the dirt road. As usual when the break gets caught everyone on the field feels they have a chance to win and new attacks went one after another trying to establish another break. With 2 laps to go Team Type 1 sent a few riders on the attack and with them was Andy Crater. Crater has won several races in FL already this year with his sprint. Recognizing this move right away Karel jumped across to the three riders with another Team Type 1 rider getting a free ride. At the last possible second Jeff bridged to the 5 riders as the three Pro riders formed a three man time trial and took the pace off the charts up hill, down hill and through the dirt. Just like that the 6 man break was gone and Team LCA had two riders.

Clint was back in the field and he described the move like a bomb going off in the field as rider after rider tried to bridge the gap unsuccessfully. Karel and I instantly were suffering massively as we quickly realized that being in a break with 4 riders who do this for a living was going to not be an enjoyable experience. With the pulls being long and hard Jeff decided Karel should sit in and try and recover a little if that was possible. As the break went through the start finish for the final lap we knew that nobody from the remaining field was going to catch us. Crater attacked on the dirt road with a Team Type 1 rider on his wheel and Jeff got on the front and took up the brutal chase. With the Team Type 1 riders sitting on his wheel and Karel suffering Jeff pulled the two man break back to within 10 meters leading into the final climb. The sprint started with Karel giving it everything he had up the hill and through the two turns. Karel just missed the podium taking 4th and Jeff finished in 6th. Even through all of the suffering the riders on Team Lindner Capital Advisors were happy with recognizing the deciding move of the day and placing 2 riders in the winning move.

- Jeff Kopp