Podium finish for Holly Simonson

Approaching the finish line. PCC photo.

PCC’s Holly Simonson came second in the Canadian Masters Criterium Championship yesterday in Victoria. The 2023 champion had a good race but was involved in a crash that forced several riders to sit out a lap. Undeterred, she finished the race in style and came over the finish line first.  However, Red Truck rider Larissa Black was the only one of the seven finishers who wasn’t affected by the crash and so became the 2024 champion.

In the Masters C race Iain Hay placed 4th. And in Friday’s Time Trial Holly’s mother Heather finished first in the Masters G category. Congratulations all!

Holly in a breakaway. PCC photo.

PCC cyclists to compete in Victoria Criterium

The 2023 Criterium elite women start line. PCC Photo

The 2024 Canadian Masters Road Cycling Championships hits the Victoria, B.C. this weekend with three days of exciting competition. The time trial kicks off the weekend on Friday, July 19 followed by the road race in Metchosin on Saturday, July 20 culminating with the exciting Criterium on Sunday, July 21 around the B.C. Legislature.

Four PCC cyclists will be competing in the criterium, an event that can produce thrills and spills with tight corners and sprint finishes.

Holly Simonson at the 2023 Criterium. PCC photo.

Holly Simonson and Brenna Pauly will be back racing in the elite women’s race. Holly won the criterium in 2023, and both are coming off great performances with their teams at the Gas Town UCI criterium.

Brenna Pauly leading the peloton in 2023. PCC photo

Iain Hay is the 2024 Master’s C Men’s Provincial Road Champion, and he will be racing in the same category on Sunday.

Iain Hay on the podium at the B.C. Road Championships. PCC Photo.

Tristan Drews, who is having a phenomenal year, will be racing in the elite men’s 1 – 2 category. In just his second year as a Junior he is the U23 Provincial Road Champion, and a bronze medalist in the Canadian Road Nationals, Junior category.

Tristan Drews – U23 Provincial Road Champion. PCC photo.

See https://www.victoriabikerace.com/ for more information.

Tristan Drews podiums at Nationals

Photo credit: N. Lutz

PCC’s Tristan Drews achieved a third place podium finish last weekend at the road nationals in the Junior race.

He rode well for the whole of the 86-kilomtere race despite the rain and wind which made it challenging for the riders. Because of the conditions the distance was shortened, and there were few flat sections, but steep climbs and many 90-degree turns on the descents.

Tristan also rode in the criterium in the Junior/U17 category finishing sixth. The race featured the same uphill finish as the road race the day before.

“Tristan’s training focus shifted in the few weeks leading to the nationals to meet the demands of the road race. He successfully achieved all his training targets in preparation for this race,” said PCC Head Coach Houshang Amiri.

“While this was his first national road championship, we knew Tristan had a good shot of achieving a podium place given his focus and knowing he needed to race in the front and stay out of trouble.”

 

PCC accepting applications for 2024 programs

Pacific Cycling Centre (PCC) is excited to announce that new applications are now being accepted for all of PCC coaching programs. The programs will identify a group of athletes who are committed to hard work, and who are willing to develop their potential to progress to the next level and eventually to elite status through PCC’s training system.

“Over the past 15 years PCC programs and coaching services have assisted many riders to move to an elevated level, achieving many personal bests resulting in podium performances,” said PCC Head Coach Houshang Amiri.

“We are committed to excellence and to seeing athletes develop and progress in our programs which aids longevity and healthy performances.”

The athletes training will be based on Cycling Canada’s Long Term Athletic Development (LTAD) model at the Train-to-Train, Train-to-Compete, Learn-To-Win and Train-To-Win levels.

Athletes from road, track, gravel, and mountain bike from U17 to Masters’ levels will be accepted into the programs. All will have access to the highest quality professional coaching and training in a peer group setting, training camps, regular physiological testing, and mentorship opportunities with PCC ex-Olympians.

PCC’s coaching programs

Interested athletes can send a race CV and cover letter to info@pacificcyclingcentre.ca

 

Ryder Hesjedal’s Tour de Victoria

Photo: Billie Design Co.

Ryder Hesjedal’s Tour de Victoria is on Saturday, August 17 and early bird pricing is in effect until June 15.  With seven distances to choose from and a kids ride there is a distance for everyone.

Information and registration 

 

PCC Riders Podium in BC Road Championships

Ethan Abbott cycling to a third place finish in the Elite ITT. Photo credit: Filip Funk Photography

Four PCC riders competed in the BC Road and ITT Championships last weekend in Langley.

Tristan Drews – who is having a phenomenal season so far – won the U23 Provincial title. Normally competing in U19 he received a temporary upgrade to U23. As the U23 and Elite races were combined, for a total distance of 155 kms, he also placed 4th overall in the elite category. The next day he came second in the 18.5 km ITT in the Junior category.

“This was a great performance and it showed how Tristan’s technical, physical ability and maturity was of a level that he could race in the elite category and perform well,” said PCC head coach Houshang Amiri. “For the ITT our goal was to work on his pacing and improve his PBs which he succeed at.”

Tristan Drews – U23 Champion. PCC photo.

Ethan Abbott achieved a third place finish in the Elite ITT despite his busy schedule at UBC dental school. He was focused on the ITT and attended as many training sessions as he could to prepare for the championships. “Knowing how busy and the amount of school work Ethan had, I am happy to see his efforts over the 37 km ITT and being able to pull off the podium finish in rainy conditions,” said Amiri.

Brenna Pauly raced in the Elite women’s race despite being sick and not riding for a week. “I was glad to see her recovered and able to race. As team captain she brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to the mix,” said Amiri.

Iain Hay took the 2024 BC Road Championships title in the Master C Men’s category. The 92 km road race started on Saturday in cold and very rainy conditions, but Iain managed to get himself in a three-man breakaway and maintained a good gap from the main peloton to out sprint his competitors and take the title.

Iain Hay winning the Master C Men’s category. PCC Photo.

David Jackson raced in the 76 km Open Men (non-championship) category and managed to win the sprint from the second group in the race. Unfortunately he DNF the Elite ITT due to a rare tire puncture.

“Our goal in PCC is about offering opportunities to all levels of athletes, and help them bring out the best of themselves and achieve personal best’s,” sums up Amiri.

Stage wins for Tristan Drews at the Tour de Bloom

Top of the podium after a win in the criterium. Photo by L. Drews

PCC’s Tristan Drews competed in his first stage race last weekend – the Tour De Bloom in Washington. Riding for Glotman Simpson, he won two stages. “With wins in stages 1 and 3 this was good experience and bodes well for the future,” said PCC Head Coach Houshang Amiri.

Here is Tristan’s recap of the race.

The four-stage race kicked off with a windy 58-mile flat stage. I came into this race quite intimidated, especially by the number of strong cyclists that were lined up at the start of the race. Initially I was caught in the back of the peloton constantly fighting for position and it was quite mentally exhausting trying to find my way around the other cyclists. Eventually in the last 5km gaps were opening and I found myself In the front, with five other guys ahead. Holding my position leading into the last straight away, I made sure to get on any wheel that was to attack. I basically kept this idea in my head, and eventually someone did a massive pull in the last 800 metres, which led me into my first ever big win.

The next day was the 8.5-mile time trial, and my plan was to go hard but not reach my absolute limit, the idea of this was to save my legs for the later race. But I started a little too hard at the start and then found myself having trouble pacing in the second half. Not my best result, but I managed to take this as a learning opportunity for the near future.

Coming into the criterium, I had built up some confidence from the first race, my plan was to save my legs till the end, and not get caught behind any crashes since it was wet conditions, and we were going full speed in all the corners.

Towards the end of the crit I proceeded to push my way on the outside and get in a decent position, but on the last two laps everything changed and I couldn’t see any openings. Once we led into the last corner my position remained the same, and all I could do was give my best. After the corner I shifted on my hardest gear and reefed on my bars as hard as I could. As I looked ahead I could see I was making up positions very quickly, then all of a sudden I find myself throwing my bike ahead of me and crossing the line first.

It was a surreal experience knowing that my parents were there to watch. I’ve learned that your mind plays tricks on you, and you can doubt your own strengths.

Finally, the fourth stage concluded with a challenging 75-mile race, culminating into a steep 1.5km climb to the finish. Throughout this race I found my legs were working harder than I needed to. My plan was to stay with the leading pack till the end, which I did. But leading into the climb I got too excited and I blew my legs on the last 300 metres. I’m still proud of how I performed, especially under fatigue. All I can take away from this race is to be patient, especially near the end. 

My first ever stage race was an amazing learning opportunity, but more so the chance to grow my confidence.      

A winner at the Waterville Road Race. Photo by L. Drews.

94 Forward hosts Cycling Speaker Event

94 Forward is presenting an evening with Shawn Clarke, Women’s Sport Director with GreenEDGE Cycling on Thursday, March 28 from 6 – 8 pm in the 94 Forward Boardroom, PISE, 100-4636 Elk Lake Drive, Victoria, B.C.

Shawn Clarke is a sports director with GreenEDGE Cycling, home to Team Jayco Alula and Liv Alula Jayco, Australia’s first men’s and women’s, World Tour cycling teams, and an all-new women’s development team. Previously he worked with Cycling Canada on projects ranging from Junior National Cups to Elite World Championships and the Olympics. Shawn grew up in Ottawa, Ontario combining alpine skiing and bike racing. He now calls Girona, Spain home.

GreenEDGE Cycling

Space is limited – please RSVP to jmacmillan@94forward.ca

Tristan Drews podiums for the 4th time

Photo credit: L. Drews

PCC cyclist Tristan Drews made it four in a row last weekend when he won the Southie Circuit Race in Langley. His previous podium wins were at the Thunderbird, Wix Brown and Thornhill Circuit Races. His next challenge will be the Junior/U17 track nationals taking place from March 29-31 in Bromont, Québec.

“My path to the nationals has been shaped by four challenging road races, each contributing to my growth and readiness for the grand event,” he says. “During these races I encountered countless obstacles, from treacherous weather to fierce competition. However, it was the Southie Circuit race that truly tested my mettle, as I found myself targeted by rival cyclists, pushing me, testing me to my limits, both physically and mentally.”

Before each race he incorporated training sessions at the track on Fridays in preparation for nationals. “These sessions were invaluable opportunities to acclimate myself to the banking and the speed of the track, refining my technique and building my confidence for the upcoming event.”

Tristan adds: “As I approach nationals, I carry with me the lessons learned and experiences gained from these races and training sessions. From staying calm when things don’t go as planned and using my strengths to the best of my ability. Regardless of the outcome, I know that this journey has been a triumph of dedication, perseverance, and unwavering commitment to my craft.”

 

More podium wins for Tristan Drews

Tristan on the podium at the Wix Brown Circuit race. Photo: L Drews

Congratulations to PCC athlete Tristan Drews who won his second and third races of the season last weekend. He podiumed at the Wix Brown Circuit Race on Saturday in Langley following up on Sunday with another win at the Thornhill Circuit Race in Maple Ridge. This followed a track training session at the Burnaby Velodrome on the Friday.

Last weekend he won the sprint race at the Thunderbird Circuit Race in Langley.

“We used these races to gain experience and for fine tuning his race strategy,” said PCC head coach Houshang Amiri. “This will build a base line for the bigger races Tristan will compete in, in the summer.”

 

 

Pacific Cycling Centre

Pacific Cycling Centre (PCC) provides coaching and training services for Elite, Masters, and Junior athletes in road, mountain bike, track, and cyclo-cross.

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