Aside from the sweltering heat that beat down racers at the Tour of Kansas City criterium races on Saturday, June 21, in Lee’s Summit, Missouri, racers were greeted with light winds and sunny skies. The heat index, though, made the challenging course even tougher, testing racers ability to handle the heat while cutting tricky corners throughout the course.

Kurt Wilson showed some true grit in his Masters 40+ criterium race. He was trying to stay towards the front of the pack, and he could see the pack was thinning as the race progressed. About midway through the race, in an attempt to avoid a rider that crashed in a corner, he ended up taking a bad line and took a tumble in the grass.

“I sprang up and no cuts. Bike was good – just chain came off and that was it,” Wilson said after the race. Wilson took his free lap and cemented himself in the lead group again. With a couple of laps to go, the eventual winner of the race, Bob Cummings, shot off the front and opened up a gap. Wilson’s chase group of five attempted to close the gap, but they could not match the strength of Cummings in the muggy heat.

Wilson was able to sprint to a fifth place finish in a stacked field of tough competitors.

The Big D Cycling team had many other success on this day in Lee’s Summit. Jim Clevenger placed seventh in his competitive Masters 50+ field. In the Masters 60+ field, Donavon Hottman and Frank Quinlan took fourth and fifth, respectively. With the team’s eye on the future, Peter Whalen and Nigel Vaught also did well in their first criterium races, placing fourth and sixth, respectively, in the Junior 9-14 age category.

Steve and Amy VanNieuwenhuyse, new members to Big D Cycling in 2014, each participated in their first criterium races, as well. Steve raced aggressively in his Category 5 race, leading in the first lap and doing most of the pulling for his chase group. Steve was able to hold out for a fifth place finish. Amy, meanwhile, learned she can hang with the more experienced racers and earned a fourth place finish in the Masters 40+ women’s category.

Special thanks to Dan Ruettimann Photography for spending the day in the heat with the team to snap these sharp and fun images. See more of Dan’s pics from the early Saturday races here.

Frank Quinlan and Donavon Hottman traveled north to participate in the Iowa Senior Games on Saturday, May 31. The time trial was delayed due to strong winds and rain. Quinlan advised that, during the time trial, the competitors experienced a 20-mile per hour headwind and a much nicer tailwind.

The time trial was an out-and-back course, with two races in one. The 5K time was taken just prior to the turnaround, while the 10K time was taken at the finish line. Quinlan placed third in his category, Men’s 65-69, in both events, qualifying him for those events at the 2015 National Senior Games. The events will take place July 8-9, 2015, at the Minnesota State Fair Grounds.

Hottman was just a few seconds out of qualifying for the National Senior Games, but he is optimistic that he will be able to qualify at another 2014 NSGA qualifying game in Kansas or another nearby state.

Masters Crit specialist Bill Smith, along with Kurt Wilson and Shawn Knight collected a handful of top tens at the Kaw Point (Free Wheels for Kids) Criterium over the weekend.

Day one was a preview of the Cathedral Crit weekend KBAR series, which will take place later in the season. Wilson got into a break with about half the race to go, that looked like it was going to stick. Smith and Knight were doing their part in the pack, covering any bridge attempts. Mother Nature waved her fickle hand and let loose a deluge onto the race and the break dissolved into more cautious riding. Late in the race with Smith on his tail, Wilson slid out in a corner and took his teammate with him. The two collected themselves , took their laps and still managed to make something happen. Smith and Wilson finished third and fourth respectively, while Knight came in seventh in Masters 35+ racing.

While Wilson stayed home to heal a swollen knee, Smith came back Sunday to tempt fate once again and found himself in an early break in the first race. Smith and 360’s Steve Songer were doing most of the work, but ultimately decided to take their chances in the pack. With one lap to go Smith looked strong and was in a great position on the final turn, but was forced out and over a badly placed manhole cover. “I didn’t want to go over that at full speed, so I just held up a bit and by the time I cleared it, the sprint was already past me,” said Smith. He did hang on the grab fourth place in the 35+ field. Later in the day Smith snatched another good placing with fifth in the 1,2,3 race.

Big D Cycling attended the Jesse Blancarte Time Trial with strong numbers on Sunday, May 25. Eighteen, wearing Big D green, attended the event, contributing to our KBAR campaigns for the season. We had eight competitors earn podium finishes in seven different categories. Check out the times posted and results at the Kansas Cycling Association website!

Our junior team may be small in numbers, but, if these youngsters had power meters, the computers would likely show normalized power averages stating, “Are you sure you are a junior?” Greg Vaught escorted his son, Nigel Vaught, around the course during the junior’s time trial. At different points during the time trial, it appeared Greg was struggling to hang onto Nigel’s wheel (Nigel was getting up to 27 miles per hour into the turn around approach), while he was yelling at his son, “I’m off the back. The turn around is just ahead, Nigel.” Nigel Vaught and Peter Whalen take first and second, respectively, in their Junior 9-14 year old category!

Further to the North, Kurt Wilson cut his teeth on the Snake Alley Criterium and the 36th Annual Melon City Criterium in Iowa. If you want to see a wicked climb on a crooked road over bricks, google Snake Alley and click on Images. Wilson gained valuable criterium experience against stiff competition, which should lay the ground for good results in the upcoming criteriums in the KBAR series.

While a large portion of our cycling team was volunteering their time and efforts at the 8th annual KCK West Kiwanis Bike Safety Rodeo, Big D Cycling saw 11 of its racers attend the Midwest Masters Cycling Team 2-Day Road Race in Salina, KS, on Saturday, May 17.

Cool temperatures prevailed at the start of the race, while light winds swept across the plains. The Men Masters 60+ and Women Masters 50+ fields navigated a 30-mile, out-and-back course, while the other racers were challenged with rolling hills and long flats along a 63-mile road course.

Alex Brizuela continued his winning ways after having a mechanical issue at the Joseph Sheehan Road Race. He nabbed the top spot on the podium in his Men’s Category 4 race.

Josie Measures was faced with working against three Free State Racing cyclists in her 30-mile race to earn a spot on the podium. She was able to get second in the Women Masters 50+ KBAR category.

Donavon Hottman, Frank Quinlan, and Bill Wells enjoyed a great race, earning fourth, sixth, and seventh place, respectively, in the KBAR category for Men Masters 65+.

Our largest group competed in the Men Masters 40+ and 50+ categories, which was also combined with the Men Cat 1/2/3 racers, due to their limited field. A well-timed breakaway by two competitors spoiled the plans for the team to get someone on the podium. The race, unfortunately, was marred by a crash near the finish line, sending Greg Vaught and Dan Ruettimann to the pavement. Each of them was able to get up and finish the race, but it ruined what was shaping up to be good races for each of them.

Joe Kleidosty, Kurt Wilson, and Leo Simbaqueva put in a lot of work at the front of the peloton, earning fifth, sixth, and seventh place finishes, respectively, in the Men Masters 40+ category. Jim Clevenger earned third place in the Men Masters 50+ Category, evidence that his form is starting to come back from his bad wreck at the Spring Fling criterium race earlier this year.

Shawn Knight continued to work on his criterium racing skills and raced the Men Masters 40+ category on Sunday, May 18. He was able to earn a fourth place finish while working alone and against two larger teams within the race.