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Tue, 23 Dec 2008

Holiday Dinner 2008 Recap
The 2008 Awards dinner held December 14th was heavily attended with 50+ guests. The annual event took place for the first time at Bella Italia located in Andover on Route 206. This year Mike Norton from Calyon Pro Cycling/Verge spoke to the club members and their families regarding traveling, training and goals of a pro cyclist. He concluded his speech with his personal goals for 2009 which include local racing and coaching for those interested in becoming a stronger racer or rider. We continued the evening by handing out various awards to both volunteers and racers.

Gerry Ryerson was the first recipient of the Outstanding Club Member award. He was recognized and chosen based on his continued support for the club, the Giro Del Cielo stage race and his generosity with his time. He also designed a registration program which made our race registration process run smoother than it ever had in the past. This made life easier for our volunteers and our racers.

Gerry and Neil Remsen received the Distinguished Club Member award for their special efforts during the clubs Vermont trip in July. Gerry and Neil worked diligently chopping wood, when they were not on the bike. Gerry has also taken an active role this year in organizing weekend rides for the “B”’s. He designed special routes based on goals that members had set for themselves.

Linda Kristiansen has given so much of her time to the club over the last year and without a doubt deserved the Outstanding Club Volunteer award. She handled registration for all but one race this year, and for this I cannot thank her enough. With her smile and her friendly disposition, the racers could only feel welcome from the moment they entered our venues.

Now even though Bruce and I made a secret pact, Buz Tomasino knew that Bruce Kristiansen had to be acknowledged for his dedication to the club. Bruce will argue that he was a paid official for the Clubs races, but he did so much more than that. He was always willing to help me when needed. He would arrive early to help with the course. He would take time out of his day to help with meetings at the fairgrounds. And these are just a couple of examples of how he contributed to the success of the club this year. So for his time and effort, Buz gave him the gift of coffee. (we wouldn’t want him falling asleep!)

Bruce then broke our secret pact by presenting me with a much appreciated basket of Starbucks gift cards. Now, for all those who don’t know this about me, I am basically your classic Starbucks junkie. It was a wonderful gift and truly appreciated as were his kind words. (Mr. Ryerson also shared some kind words, but enough about me…)

Dan then took over the awards portion of the evening by presenting the top racing awards for the year.

John Jackson did a phenomenal job this year. Not only did he win our very own Augusta Training Series (B Category) but he came in 3rd in the HoFC and 2nd in the NJ Road Race Championships. Later on in the season he finished 1st in the HoFCC, and then 1st in the NJ State Criterium. He showed great passion and dedication for the sport this year and Skylands is proud to be able to award him Cat 5 racer for 2008.

The 2008 Cat 4 racer of year award was given to Gene Victori who not only took on more responsibility in the club this year by becoming a board member, but also proved to be a real threat in a number of Cat 4 races. With 24 days of racing this season he finished in the top 10 of 23 of them. He clearly had the drive and the talent which is why he was given this year’s Cat 4 award. We can’t wait to see what he does in 2009!

If you read my recap of the Augusta Series (which has been referred to as the next great epic novel), you know that Milo Bastianelli is a very talented racer who is quite modest. He won the Augusta Series (A category) leading the series and his team with his ability to race like a champion. He finished 3rd in the NJ State Road Race Championships as a Cat 3. He hands down earned the title of 2008 Cat 3 racer of the year.

Andrew Buchanan has been racing for Skylands Cycling for a few years now. He has trained during our clubs Thursday night rides as well as the weekend rides Gerry, Dan or Gene have organized, in addition to his own routine. He has become one of the riders that the guys look at for the breakaways during group rides. He was one of the guys they kept an eye on during races and because of this simple fact; he is the one who deserved to receive the Most Improved Racer of the year award. So don’t take your eye off him, because I am sure he is going to do great things next year.

The Masters Category is defined by a racer who is 35 years of age and up. With that said there are many of us who fit in this category, but only one this year can say they won Best Master Racer, and that person is Gerry Ryerson. Not only is he a dedicated cyclist, a modest winner and a graceful racer, but he is also a great person and one of our original sponsors. He came in 1st in the HoFC and finished 3rd in the Maxxis Cup, just to name a couple. He trains with the commitment of a professional while being able to maintain balance in all aspects of his life which is commendable to say the least.

Skylands Cycling had the honor of having Myles Billard of New Windsor, NY join this year. He is a very eager and talented young man who thrives from cycling knowledge. His enthusiasm for the sport of cycling is contagious. His results speak for themselves, for this young man has put the time and effort into becoming a strong racer who will undoubtedly have great results in the coming years. Even with his training interrupted this season he finished the year with some very competitive CX results. These are just a few reasons why Myles won Best Junior Racer of 2008.

Cyclocross, in my mind, is a combination of mountain biking, road racing and sheer will to punish yourself in very chilly conditions, but Kevin Keane is able to do this with such style that it is impossible not to recognize it. He began his training for CX days after his last road race. He was also willing to train and coach others who are willing to endure this type of individual suffering. Kevin finished the NJBA CX season in 3rd place this year out of 67 racers. Way to go!!

In 2007, he won Best Master Racer of the year but this year Brian Gristick earned the status of Best Rider of the Year. He is the most diverse racer Skylands Cycling has. He races in Time Trials, Crits, Road races, Track, and Circuit races. We just need him to race in Mountain and Cyclocross and then we could say he does it all. But he too is a reserved rider/racer who will take the time to help others become better riders, whether it is for racing or recreational purposes. He is a wealth of knowledge and more than willing to share. He has also contributed to the club by once again being a board member. His experience and input are invaluable on and off the bike.

Thank you to everyone who made this year such a memorable one. I hope 2009 is as much fun as 2008 was. Without your help this year would not have been as successful!

Happy Holidays
Blake Hargrave
Skylands Cycling President

posted at: 08:54 | path: | permanent link to this entry