The Heat of the Summer - Part 1

Take a break from the 90+ degree temps and catch up with us on our season so far.

We know. It's been a minute since we last dropped one of these - but hey, we are busy training, working, racing, and building bonds as a team so what more could you ask for?

It would be quite lengthy for us to retrace all the highlights dating back to the very beginning of the season at Auburn, Alabama in February were the squad endured wicked cross winds in the road race and someone ahem had a stem bolt explode on a hundred year old brick street that we hit numerous times during the crit. We will, however, hit some of the big races of the year so far so grab your coffee cup and take a break from Le Tour highlights to indulge in some story time.

Sunny King & Sumatonga Road Race

Sunny King is one of the big crit "send offs" every year that often is seen as the beginning of the race season. For us, we had a pretty full squad with Bratcher, Richards, Yates, Chandler, and Gauthier all lining up. Our biggest goal was to take control early as best we could and ensure we were communicating.

The race started off hot for the first few laps, and within fifteen minutes a break of three went up the road including a rider from Belgium that is consistent and strong. Chandler, Richards, Bratcher, and Gauthier all worked at the front. A promising bridge attempt went from a strong rider we know regionally that Yates followed but was quickly reeled back in. Shortly after, one of the three riders from the break returned to the peloton and began immediately putting pressure on the chase. Once he pulled off, there was a brief lull in the pack that allowed Richards to slowly ride off the front at around 7 laps to go.

Richards began to slowly build his gap. In the pack, the team began fighting for position for the field sprint that was soon to occur. It's hard a place to be in - fight to position for the sprint, but you cannot take control as you don't want to close the gap on your rider off the front. In the last lap, Richards was one corner ahead of us with dwindling seconds as the field closed rapidly and the sprint began. As he moved up the hill, he stood up and dumped everything he had left into his pedals.

3rd Place for Richards. A grind for the last step on the podium with mere seconds ahead of the field sprint finish. Yates took 7th on the day and as a team we gained invaluable experience.

The next day, the squad lined up (this time split) in the Sumatonga Road Race in both the Cat 3 and P1/2 fields.

In the P1/2 field, the first several laps, albeit the whole race, was quite uneventful with a field of around 60 and a flat course. So much so that the field jokingly called the race "The Reign Storm Grand Fondo." Nashville Local would drive the pace at the front alongside Reign and CLIF Family Drifters. Occasionally, a small group would go up the road but with the field sustaining 28+ miles per hour on a relatively simple course, the likelihood of a break dwindled. In the final lap, the fight for position began. In a quite hectic and dangerous final kilometer, Yates finished 16th on the day in a bunch sprint finish.

Similarly, the Cat 3 race took off slow but heated up quickly with attacks and break attempts. Richards, Gauthier, and Manley all took turns following attacks going up the road. Manley in a later-race move went up the road and the pack made the mistake of allowing him to hang out front with just enough of a gap to be dangerous. Soon after, a rider bridged and towed another Mustang to the break with him - Gauthier. Soon after, another rider bridged. This break of four set the stage for what would be the winning move. Eventually dropping one rider from the break, the move of three soared towards the finish with a very manageable gap. Logan launched an early move to try to play off his strengths but was caught at the line and finished P3 on the day.

In the pack, the stage was set for a sprint. In a late move for the finish, Richards secured P5 for the day.

The Road to Athens

The Athens Twilight Criterium needs no explanation. It's the East Coast Super-Bowl of bike racing and is viewed by thousands both in person and via livestream. It's a race that everyone wants to win no matter the category in which they are racing. But for the Mustangs, Athens this year was a bit different.

Days before Athens, a member of the team endured an unimaginable loss and the impact ricocheted throughout the team. There are no words to express the sympathy that each member felt for not only a teammate, but a close friend and brother. Beyond the team, several in the regional cycling community stood to provide as strong of a support system as possible. The one wish of our teammate - go and race our asses off at Athens in his stead.

Truly, rolling to the race while missing a key member of our team and friend who was supposed to be there with us at the start line felt wrong, but we knew his wish. We put our heads together, committed to giving it what we had, and ratcheted our cleats down.

This next bit, I'll give from my (Nick) perspective. The amateur course at Athens is difficult and starting position truly is everything. I knew this going into the race and still ended up near the back. It's one of two races that I've found myself clawing so hard to move up but still hitting gaps to the point that I just don't have anything left. In 2023, I lasted 13 minutes in the Cat 2/3 race. In 2024, I lasted 39 minutes with a good majority of the race hanging just off the back clawing to try to catch back on in any way that I could. The voice of my teammate rung in my head. "What would he do?" I asked myself over and over, so I continued to claw. In that process, I put out an all time best 30 minute power and gained the last slot to the amateur finals being pulled with less than ten laps to go.

Meanwhile, Bratcher and Richards absolutely killed in staying towards the front and within the bubble of efficiency. I've found the amateur course tends to dwindle the race down to around 20-25 riders as an optimal pack size that can ride without significant gaps opening up at the back of the field.

The amateur finals proved to be fast and furious. We were down one rider that didn't qualify, but that didn't stop us from giving it what we had. The second race of the day saw myself, Richards, and Bratcher working well to communicate, navigate, and attempt to move up in the pack that was full gas from the start. Admittedly, the "Pro" course that ran reverse of that earlier in the day proved to flow much better for my strengths. After a quick stop to the pit to have my tire filled with air after losing some while my sealant did it's job, Bratcher quickly assisted in moving me back through the field though we couldn't make it far enough forward before the last few laps' pace picked up. We finished all around 20-25 out of 70+ in the finals.

THE Notorious Tulsa

As the crew moved into June, everyone packed up and ventured to the center of the world (well.. the United States at least) to participate in none other than "critmas." AKA, THE Notorious Tulsa Tough.

Tulsa is known for many things; wrecks, speed, roaring crowds, and difficulty all peaking the top of the list for most people. It's an event that you go to because you simply have to. Racing on Cry-Baby Hill alone is worth the drive to experience at least once.

The team lined up with a few goals and our squad split between the Cat 3 field and the (P)1/2 field. In the Cat 3s - Richards, Gauthier, and Manley. In the 1/2 - Akins, Yates, Bratcher, and Chandler.

There is entirely too much that occurred at Tulsa to attempt to lay it all out here, so let's just hit the highlights.

Alex podiumed Blue Dome in the 1/2 race (P3) and held on strong to snag 3rd Overall in the Omnium at the end of the weekend.

Richards won. I repeat WON day 2 at Arts District. But not just any win - an off the front solo move to hold a gap long enough for the course traffic marshals to allow people to cross the road on the start finish stretch before the rest of the field even rounded the final corner.

The rest of the squad worked and had their own victories. For some, it was developing better pack awareness and simply finishing the events with all their skin. For others, it was making it through the races after hard crashes from Blue Dome. Above all, the team performed fantastic and maintained steadfast in our goal of being stewards of the sport and doing the best we can.

This sport is a constant recurring process of learning, unlearning, and re-learning. Race dynamics change as does the way that people race given the course and any external factors. This team has shown resilience, a willingness to learn, and a desire to succeed. More than that, this team remains a family.

In the next post (Part 2) we will dive into Tour of America's Dairyland, Momentum Indy, Music City Crits, and more as we continue to race the remainder of summer.