The cyclocross bug has bit Big D Cycling, with the infection spreading within the team.  The only way to counter the side effects of this infection is to practice at the Vaught Cyclocross Compound or wherever your Cx bike takes you.  However, with the right training regimen, the infection becomes a strength (sometimes an occasional itch), as evidenced by the team results!

Great weather and a fun Cx course ushered in large fields at SMPCX on October 25. Big D Cycling alone had 21 entries across various categories, with multiple racers even doubling up on races. Nigel Vaught was one such racer, getting action in on his first Cat 4/5 race!

Paul Aldeguer used his gazelle-like leaps to bound over obstacles, en route to 2nd place in Masters 40+.

Jim Clevenger, Paul Fancher, Greg Vaught and Chip Zimmer went 2nd, 3rd, 5th and 7th, respectively, in Masters 50+.  This crew has been itching their way to podiums all season.

Reg Robertson and Bill Jennings showed the young ones that age is just a number. It shall not hinder their relationship with the cyclocross bug.

Amy VanNieuwenhuyse earned a top 5 in Women 3/4!

Greg Vaught hit the top of the podium in the Masters 35+ 4/5 race. Wait ~ is he really a Cat 4? Yes. He is. I double checked that to confirm. Ben Christian and Sam Hess have been showing improvement throughout the season, with them going 1st and 2nd, respectively, in Cat 5 of this race (3rd and 7th overall)! 

Steve VanNieuwenhuyse and Cody Jones put on a cyclocross clinic in Cat 4/5. Cody rode away from the field after the second lap, while Steve chipped away at the lead and rode over the short barriers to overtake a rider in 2nd place. Steve and Cody went 1st and 2nd, respectively!

Nick Comiskey and Cody Jones lined up for the Cat 3/4 race. Nick is on another level. The cyclocross bug is especially enamored with him. Nick took 1st place and had a smile whilst doing it.

Tim Herre played with the big boys and took 8th in Cat 1/2.

Yes. That really is Tim Herre above. I wonder how many times those cheeks were pinched.  Seriously, though.  It’s time in the market that is key to a great retirement. It’s never too late to give Keen Wealth Advisors a call to start your retirement plan!

By the way, the cyclocross bug is also known as the oak mite …

Special thanks to Dan Ruettimann of Dan Ruettimann Photography for all of the excellent action pictures!

Chris Braley rockin’ it out of the saddle!
Chris guiding his bike through the rocky run-up!

Nigel Vaught en route to a 3rd place finish for Juniors.

Amy VanNieuwenhuyse cruised into 3rd place in Women’s Cat 4.

Greg Vaught was trying to catch up with Nigel, coming in 5th in Masters 50+.

Steve VanNieuwenhuyse had a great start and was in the lead in Masters 40+ when he obtained a flat ~ his day was done, but his modeling career was beginning to blossom.

Paul Aldeguer brought out the beast face to overcome an early flat, get his pit bike and take 1st in Masters 40+.

Shane Jones was following Greg closely, for he thought Greg was headed back to the beer cooler at the truck. Jones took 2nd in Masters 40+.

Jim Clevenger getting up one of the various run-ups at this challenging course at Hyde Park in St. Joseph, MO. He experienced a mechanical, but still took 3rd in Masters 50+.

Steve once again carrying his beloved Niner bike. He had a great race in Masters 40+, with a good gap, until the unfortunate flat occurred.

Chip Zimmer kept at it and kept pacing himself to a 4th place finish in Masters 50+.

Paul thought he saw an ice cream truck around this corner, but this Oooh! face quickly turned to a frown when he realized it was a mirage, likely from the warm temperatures at this race.

 

Randy Braley is so good that he took this photo of himself while he was racing to a 4th place in Cat 5 and 14th overall place in Cat 4/5.

Nick Comiskey was just too quick to photograph. He won the Men’s Cat 3 race!

Thanks to Randy for all these amazing cyclocross photos.  You can catch more of his work here, if you’re interested in his services.

Big D Cycling had a great day in St. Joseph! Cycling is not a cheap sport. If you want to get sound financial advice, contact Bill Keen and his staff at Keen Wealth Advisors. They will help guide you through these turbulent markets and onto a bike path, cyclocross course or mountain bike trail near you.

Alvaro Gamarra has been chomping at the bit for this race for many weeks now. Sunflower State Games was forced to postpone the original mountain bike race on July 26 due to precipitation and poor trail conditions.

Gamarra has been honing his skills at Wyandotte County Lake, and it paid off on Saturday, October 10, when he lined up for the Category 3 race for ages 30-39.

Gamarra posted one of the fastest lap times at Perry Lake that day, which led to an overall time of 51:11 in his race. His closest competitor finished at 54:16 behind him!

Big D Cycling is strong across many cycling disciplines, chalking up another top podium spot for Keen Wealth Advisors!

Practice makes perfect. Or, as the Belgians would say, “Oefening baart kunst.”

Many members have been attending weekly practice at the Vaught Cyclocross Compound with that thought in mind. Greg Vaught, Steve VanNieuwenhuyse, Jim Clevenger and others put many hours into designing and maintaining the cyclocross course, which includes a nice run-up, barriers, tight off-camber corners, and various other obstacles that allow the team to change the course up to imitate course characteristics for upcoming races.

Clevenger has taken the lead in outlining the practice drills and showing many of our team members, new to cyclocross, the tricks of the trade. Nigel Vaught is new to cyclocross this year, but he is starting off strong. He won his first race at Buffalo Bill Cyclocross and earned podium spots in both of his races this weekend (September 26-27) at Cyclocross at Raytown BMX.

Cody Jones, also in his first year of cyclocross, is a natural, getting 2nd place in Category 5 at Buffalo Bill Cyclocross and another 2nd in Category 4/5 on Saturday at Raytown BMX.

Tim Herre is quickly becoming a consistently strong cyclocross racer in the Kansas City area. How’s this for consistency: 5th place in both of his Cat 1/2/3 races at Raytown BMX and also 5th place in Single Speed on the first day. He improved to the podium with a 3rd place in Single Speed on Sunday’s race.

One of the largest fields at Raytown BMX was the Masters 50+ category, sporting 29 racers in that category for Saturday’s race. Clevenger and Paul Fancher both podiumed , earning 2nd and 3rd, respectively. Vaught finished strong with a 5th place. Chip Zimmer and Ben Christian also navigated the BMX obstacles to great finishes.

Steve VanNieuwenhuyse is getting better and stronger as the season progresses. He had a top 5 at Buffalo Bill Cyclocross and earned a podium spot with Saturday’s Cyclocross at Raytown BMX race. Amy Van Nieuwenhuyse also podiumed in the Women’s Cat 4 with a 2nd place on Saturday.

I’d be remiss if I did not mention our Gazelle of Cyclocross, Paul Aldeguer. He started the year with a bang, getting 3rd at Buffalo Bill Cyclocross. He used his gazelle-like qualities on Saturday to navigate the obstacles at Raytown BMX for 4th in the Masters 40+ category and doubled up races, going 6th in the largest field of the day in Cat 3/4 (32 racers).

Fall is officially here. The leaves will start changing colors. The temperatures will start to drop. The days will get much shorter. The Big D Cyclocross contingent will get stronger.  Oh yeah, cyclocross is here.

The Vaught Cyclocross Compound is only open to Big D team members. Join the team if you want to play. Or, if you prefer to simply sleep comfortably at night as volatility still lurks in the markets, give our title sponsor a call, Keen Wealth Advisors.