About a week ago, runners from all over southeastern Pennsylvania came together to run the Chesco Half Marathon and 5K in scenic West Caln Township. Beyond testing themselves on a tough rolling course, the event helped to raise money for the Jacinda Miller Memorial Fund. Miller was tragically killed outside of the YMCA she worked as a fitness instructor, leaving behind two young boys.
The morning started with an emotional tribute to Miller to inspire the runners, many of who were dressed in purple. Representative Harry Lewis started the half marathon runners, and 5k runners of all ages began their race shortly after.
The energy of the event was incredible, with volunteers lining the course to cheer on the runners, and provide water and oranges for thirsty riders. So many volunteers wanted to be a part of the event, that many created their own unofficial aid stations, which may or may not have had beer. The Coatesville High School football team was out on the course, along with many of Miller’s formal students from the YMCA.
Personally, it was a special event for Scott Kingsley Photography, as we were celebrating Vee’s bachelorette party, as I had held mine the day before at the Wilmington Grand Prix the previous day. About 24 hours after the race, we said I do, and became Mr. and Mrs. Kingsley. To celebrate the bachelorette party, Vee had a Lululemon tank top that she ironed on BRIDE on, and wrote “Getting married tomorrow” on it. For me, I had a similar sign on my back letting everyone know that I was the groom and was getting married on Monday. Everyone loved it, and congratulated us all along the course.
Coming into the finish was incredible. I can’t even imagine how the runners felt after completing 13.1 challenging miles. The energy that the volunteers, friends, family, and other runners created as you ran the final 20 yards was bigger any other event I’ve attended. For a first year event, it was incredibly well run, with a great course, and a great location. I overheard one of the organizers mention that parking was getting full. While it might have been a little bit of an inconvenience for the runners, it showed how well attended the event was. Congrats to everyone involved.
It’s not the first time I’ve provided pictures for Cyclocross Magazine‘s online coverage of an event, and I don’t think it will be the last. These guys do a great job covering everything in cyclocross and do it in a way that just seems right for the sport. Cycling caps (caps not hats) off to them, and continue to do the great work.
It was a blast covering Bilenky Junkyard Cross, and something I’m looking forward to in the future. Who knows, maybe next year I might actually race it too. We’ll see.
After what has become a break out year for me personally as a photographer, I am happy to announce I’ll be working with the Colavita professional women’s cycling team at select events during the 2015 season.
Colavita will look to start strong to build off of an impressive 2014 season. The Tricolore jerseys of the Colavita-Fine Cooking team featured prominently in many of the NRC, NCC, and USA Crits races this season. The team brought home the overall team and individual titles in the NCC, and finishing 2nd overall in the team classification of the USA Crits series. More details to come on the team and roster before the end of the year.
Keep an eye on the Upcoming Events section on my page for the 2015 races and events I’ll be covering.
After the women battled through the blistering heat at Nittany Lion Cross, the men’s race started as the temperatures began to drop. The first few laps flew by, but no real selections were made. The group of thirty or so riders continued on at the front of the race until Lukas Winterberg (MG-Cycling Team) began to push the pace even more. The group of Stephen Hyde (JAM Fund / NCC), Jeremy Durrin (Neon Velo Cycling), Dan Timmerman (HOUSE INDUSTRIES/SIMPLEHUMAN/RICHARD SACHS), Mike Garrigan, Curtis White (Cannondale p/b Cyclocrossworld.com), Jacob Lasley (Team Soundpony), Adam Myerson (Team SmartStop), Lewis Gaffney and Robert Marion (American Classic Pro Team), and Cameron Dodge (Pure Energy/Scott Bikes) were able to stay with the lanky Swiss rider.
As the laps ticked down, riders slowly began to fall off the pace. Riders took turns launching attacks, but with one to go, it was just Hyde, Winterberg, Lasley, Timmerman, White, and Durrin left. Lasley launched an attack, and the other riders weren’t able to immediately match the pace. White tried to follow, but had to swap bikes in the pit due to a flat, and was unable to catch back on. The gap slowly started to shrink, but Lasley was able to hold onto the win. Winterberg, Hyde, Timmerman, and Durrin all followed behind one second after the other.
With Gabby Durrin switching from Rapha-Focus to her new husband and wife team of Neon Velo Cycling Team, she had some new sponors and equipment at Nittany Lion Cross. I had a chance to catch up with #TeamAwesome, and was able to steal Gabby’s Boone 9 for a quick photo shoot.
Gabby Durrin’s (Neon Velo Cycling Team) Trek Boone 9. Photo by Scott Kingsley.
Though Nittany Lion Cross is a relatively smooth course, Trek’s IsoSpeed decoupler surely took the edge off of some of the chatter. Photo by Scott Kingsley.
50cm is the smallest size of the Trek Boone 9. And yes, it’s UCI approved. Photo by Scott Kingsley.
Durrin ran SRAM’s Force CX1 drivetrain with a 42 ring. On a grass crit course like Nittany, she didn’t miss a smaller chainring. Photo by Scott Kingsley.
The Force CX1 rear derailleur brings many of the features from 1X, including the Roller Bearing Clutch to eliminate chain slap, and Cage Lock, which helps lock the cage and aid in wheel changes. Photo by Scott Kingsley.
Easton is continuing on as a sponor for Durrin. The EC90’s she raced on look to still be a custom build with the brand’s M1 hubs. With a new EC90 SL Disk Tubular released, the blacked out look might soon continue to the wheels. Photo by Scott Kingsley.
Durrin’s choice of tires were the Dugast Typhoon, which helped provide some extra grip in the corners over the file treads many of her competitors were running. Photo by Scott Kingsley.
Easton also handles the cockpit duties. An EA70 aluminum bar is a durable choice for cross. Durrin also uses a SRAM Garmin mount for her Edge 500 series computer. Photo by Scott Kingsley.
Durrin stays with aluminum for durabuility with a short Easton EA90 stem. Photo by Scott Kingsley.
Gabby runs a Fizik Aliante VS with k:ium rails. Photo by Scott Kingsley.
Over time, I’ll be going back through shoots I’ve done over the past few years, and add them to the galleries.
By the time the amateurs finished up, the Heckle Pit was already starting to fill up. The Lone Wolf Cycling crew had signs, tape, and a rowdy group ready to cheer on and heckle their favorite riders. Lea Davison (Specialized) and Georgia Gould (Luna) were battling it out from the first lap. Evelyn Dong (Backcountry.com) was not too far away, but was never close enough through the Heckle Pit to really contend.
To finish things off for the 2014 Iron Hill Twilight Criterium, here are the podium pictures from the pro races.
In the women’s race, Laura Van Gilder (Mellow Mushroom) stands on the top step with Amy Cutler (FCS|Zngine p/b Mr. Restore) and Kacey Lloyd (Fearless Femme p/b Pure Energy Cycling-Vie13). Mellow Mushroom teammate, Laura Jorgensen was presented with the Laps Leader jersey, Van Gilder joined her to be presented with the overall leader’s jersey.
For the men, Daniel Holloway (Athlete Octane Racing) stood atop the podium with Bobby Lea (Custom Velo) and David Cueli (Team United HealthCare / The 706 Project). Cueli returned to the podium for the Under 25 and Laps Leader’s jerseys. Frank Travieso (Team United HealthCare / The 706 Project) was awarded the overall leader’s jersey, with Cueli and David Guttenplan (SeaSucker/Guttenplan Coaching) joining him.
The Iron Hill Twilight Pro Men’s Criterium capped the night with two separate breakaways lapping the field by the end of the race. An early break that contained current national criterium champion Daniel Holloway (Athlete Octane Cycling), Bobby Lea (Custom Velo), Eric Workowski (Team Alliance Environmental), David Cueli (Team UnitedHealthcare/The 706 Project), Scott Thomas (L&M Group-Richoh New Zealand), and Kevin Mullervy (Champion Systems – Stan’s NoTubes) lapped the field with a little less than half the race left.
Another break led by Tim Rugg (Battley Ducati-Spokes Etc. p/b District Taco) caught the field with around 12 laps to go. Lea tried to make another move off the front, but the field would not let him go with only a few laps left. In the sprint, Holloway claimed the win, with Lea and David Cueli (Team United HealthCare / The 706 Project) rounding out the podium.
View the gallery for all the photos from the men’s race.
I had a chance to spend time with the Fearless Femme p/b Pure Energy Cycling/Vie13 team before the beginning of the 2014 Iron Hill Twilight Criterium. The roster for the race included Christina Birch, Colleen Hayduk, Kacey Manderfield-Lloyd, and Erin Wittwer, with Arounkone Sananikone and Kyle Robinson covering DS and mechanic duties. The team is based in Lambertville, NJ at Pure Energy Cycling and Java House.
The team raced well with Kacey making the breakaway. The rest of the team worked to marshal the front of the race with the Mellow Mushroom and Colvita-Fine Cooking teams, who also had riders in the break away. With one lap to go for the breakaway, two laps for the field, the leaders caught the back end of the peloton as they crossed the start/finish line. There was some confusion in the field, but Christina realized they only had one to go, so she rallied the team to get to the front. Colleen took the field sprint for fifth place, and Kacey finished behind Laura Van Gilder and Amy Cutler for the final podium spot.
The ladies were ecstatic with the final results, as you can see in the pictures. They are a great team to work with, and I look forward to many more shoots with them in the future.
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