Gorgeous women, strong athletes, filled with love, on a mission to raise funds to fight breast cancer.......read on
For recent race results scroll down the page.

Dr. Vie, Inc. teams up with USA Vera Bradley Team of women cyclists as they cycle around the globe carrying the torch against breast cancer. This amazing team of astute, attractive, powerful women is led by Lisa Hunt out of California. Check out our interesting VIE RADIO interviews with Lisa Hunt and the girls around the USA and globe.


The amazing womens team raise funds for breast cancer.  Mother Vie is a survivor of breast cancer.  The VBF team members are from Canada, USA, Australia, South Africa, Israel and New Zealand.

For complete up to the day 2010 reports scroll below.

 MEDIA COVERAGE:
Alison Powers, Robin Farina, Alexis Rhodes & Carla Swart in top TEN. Read more in Velo News

VIE TV RADIO Interviews for August 2010
Alison Powers 2nd in NRC rankings for 2010, interview by VIE TV, North Carolina, USA, August 2010. To listen to the interview click here.  To check out more information on Alison click here.

Alison Testroete, Team Canada CommonWealth competitor, interview by VIE TV, Italy, 10 August 2010. Alison shares her story about fitness and provides key tips for women and children's fitness.  10 minutes. Click here to listen now.

Exclusive interview with Director of VBF Lisa Hunt

 
Alison Testreote, VBF rider also on TEAM CANADA in Italy, August 2010
Alison is training in Italy for the rest of the season. She has qualified for the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi, India in October 2010
Results 2010
Defending Canadian National Road Cycling Champion of 2009.  3rd  in 2010
Two top tens in the North American championships.
Top 5 in the European championships
UCI qualifier for CommonWealth Games in New Delhi, India in October 2010

Training Camp California, March 2010
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Bradshaw, Farina, Hall and Swart Add to Team VBF Podium Count

Labour Day Weekend
Lauren Hall won her first leader’s jersey on Labor Day at the THF Realty Gateway Cup presented by Residence Inn. 

 “When we came across the start/finish line, someone told me that I had gotten the jersey. Until my team confirmed it, I didn’t feel like I could be sure,” said Hall. “I just couldn’t believe it. Finally! It’s an awesome feeling. Having a teammate here to celebrate with -- enjoying the achievement with her -- makes it even better.”

Hall and St. Louis local, Carrie Cash, competed in the four-day Gateway Cup series over Labor Day weekend. Hall finished third on days one and four in the Lafayette Square and Benton Park neighborhoods. She was second on day two in St. Louis Hills and fifth on day three on the Hill. Hall won the bunch sprint in both St. Louis Hills and on the Hill. 

 

“It’s my second year racing the series,” explained Hall. “It seems like everyone in St. Louis rallies around these races and enjoys having us come into their neighborhoods. I had the opportunity to meet residents, volunteers and business owners each day. They see the races as a celebration of their piece of St. Louis. It’s really neat.”

 

Hall went into Gateway Cup knowing that she had good form. “I’m a late bloomer,” she joked. Still, her success -- beating Laura Van Gilder (Mellow Mushroom) and Modesta Vzesniauskaite (Colavita-Baci) -- came as a surprise to her. “This is for everyone who believed in me all season -- for everyone who told me I could do it. I’m so happy to finally prove them right,” Hall said. 

 

Cash was happy to support her teammate’s efforts in front of a hometown crowd. “We worked for this. With just the two of us, we had to be constantly aware,” explained Cash. “We discussed various scenarios, and in the end, Lauren accomplished what she set out to achieve.”

 

While Hall chased the leader’s jersey in Missouri, Toni Bradshaw went head-to-head with Jeannie Longo (Vital Plus) in Steamboat, CO. The Steamboat Stage Race served as Bradshaw’s final race on U.S. soil before returning home to New Zealand to prepare for the Road Cycling World Championships. 

 

“It was a good race,” said Bradshaw. “It was hard! The circuit race on Saturday was essentially up and then down and then repeat. The terrain made it pretty fun. Jeannie went away on a move that I had instigated, but when we got to the bottom of the hill no one wanted to chase properly. I decided it didn’t make sense to bust my guts dragging the field around in her pursuit.”

 

Bradshaw sought redemption on Sunday, and she got it.

 

“On Sunday, we had the road race in the afternoon. It was super windy by then, and the course was hard! We rode into a headwind out, up and down the whole time,” explained Bradshaw. “Jeannie and I got away pretty early on. Megan Hottman (Treads.com/DFT) and Kasey Clark got away with us, but Megan they didn’t want to work, so Jeannie knocked them off. We carried on together until 15K to go when Jeannie dropped me. Jeannie won the stage race by nearly seven minutes, but I ended up with another seven minutes over third.” 

 

Bradshaw considers the weekend a success. “I’m pretty happy with second overall,” she explains. “Plus, it was a beautiful weekend. It’s so pretty in Steamboat, and the field was fun. It was definitely a good way to wrap up the season.”

 

While their teammates chased overall podiums, Carla Swart and Robin Farina contested single day races in the Southeast. 

 

On Saturday, the duo raced the Sugar Mountain criterium. The criterium, part of the Mile High Race Weekend, was held in Banner Elk, NC on a course that featured 120 feet of climbing each lap.  Farina and Swart separated themselves from the rest of the field from the outset of the race.  The duo lapped the field and Swart took the win.  “Robin and I just drilled it from the gun,” said Swart.  “We did a team time trial and went for it and lapped the field.”

 

On Sunday, Swart was on her own for the Banner Elk to Beech Mountain Road Race.  The 44 mile road race featured 4 laps of a 10 mile circuit with 1,250 feet of climbing per lap. The final lap finished on the 3.5 mile climb to the summit of Beech Mountain.  

 

Swart, who recently returned from a month-long racing stint in Europe, used the race as training in preparation for the World Championships and Commonwealth Games.  Attacking on first climb on the first lap, she immediately got a gap.  A lone rider, Rachel Warner (BMW-Bianchi), managed to bridge up to Swart on the final lap. Swart made an acceleration on the final climb up Beech Mountain that Warner could not match. The effort allowed Swart to solo in for the win.  “When I attacked on the first lap, I actually caught up to some of the Cat 3 men,” commented Swart.  “I wanted to race hard and it was great training.”

 

Robin Farina missed out on Sunday’s road race as she traveled to Atlanta for the US 10K.  The race, formerly on the NRC calendar, is a 10K “sprint,” on a rolling course.  Farina attacked early in the race with Debbie Milne (Absolute Racing) going with her.  Milne, a former national champion, tried to shed Farina on the rolling hills, but Farina kept the pace high on the downhill sections.  “She was drilling it on the climbs,” said Farina.  “I didn’t want the field to catch us, so I kept rolling through and keeping the pace high on the descents.”  The

 

Vera Bradley Womens Cycling Team USA 2010 Results:
3 August 2010 Carrie Cash Sprints to Victory in Sunday's Criterium

Elk Grove, IL - Team Vera Bradley Foundation sent a trio of riders to the two-day Tour of Elk Grove. Toni Bradshaw, Carrie Cash and art director turned guest rider, Chris Roettger, knew they had numerical advantage against a large contingent of strong sprinters racing solo. “The game plan for Sunday’s race was to improve on the things we had learned from Saturday. The unique thing about the weekend was that it was the exact same course two days in a row,” explained Roettger. “We tried things on Saturday and learned a lot, so we got to employ that on Sunday.” Lessons learned led to mission accomplished as Cash sprinted to the win on Sunday.

Around 40 women lined up for both races. Team Vera Bradley Foundation played the aggressor on Saturday. “Toni was amazing,” noted Roettger. “Attack after attack. I think our efforts on the front both days really did some work wearing down the sprint legs.” Roettger took a solo flyer and a prime early on in the race before settling in to control the front.

The course featured a 500 meter finishing stretch. “Because it was such a long finish, we decided to postpone the ramping up until later in the lap -- given that Carrie’s sprinting strength really shines in the chaotic scrambling for position,” explained Roettger. “Saturday’s race was a long, consistent pull by Toni and all the sprinters were just lined up waiting to pounce. Carrie took fifth, but the sprinters were spread all over the road, so the difference between fifth and first was deceptively narrow.”

 

Jennifer Purcell (Hotel San Jose) took the win on Saturday ahead of Laura Van Gilder (Mellow Mushroom) and Lauren Tamayo (Peanut Butter & Co. Twenty12). Jackie Crowell (Team Type 1) finished fourth. 

 

The dynamics of the race on Sunday were similar to that of the previous day although a few new racers toed the line. Sam Schenider (TIBCO) was a notable addition on day two. “Toni was still gunning for a breakaway which didn’t seem likely with a group of solid, strong sprinters committed to a bunch finish,” said Roettger “If that breakaway proved unsuccessful we decided to use her to quicken the pace in the last lap and leadout the sprinters.”

 

Local standout Debbie Dust (Bouledogue Tout Noir) and Julie Jerue (OutSpoken) slipped away from the field in lap one of the 50 minute race and remained off the front for nearly thirty minutes. When the chasing field caught the duo with seven laps to go, Team Vera Bradley Foundation began to animate the race and exploit their strength in numbers. Bradshaw launched constant attacks that sprinters racing solo were forced to cover. Roettger followed moves and went for primes. Cash marked the other sprinters as she patiently waited for the final lap.

 

“I love playing the chaotic finish,” said Cash. “With three turns to go, I moved ahead of Jen [Purcell] and with 1,000 meters to go, I made sure I had Laura’s [Van Gilder] wheel. I wanted to sandwich myself between Laura and Jen.” Cash found her sweet spot, and Bradshaw remained steady on the front driving a fast pace. “The speed and aggression going into those last 500 meters made my job easy,” said Cash. “Without Chris and Toni, the dynamic of that race would have been completely different. They committed to the win. Their hard work for the first 95% of the race allowed me to do what I do best at the end.”  Cash charged toward the finish with Van Gilder, Schneider and Purcell. A final punch at 100 meters launched her across the line first to take the win. Van Gilder and Schneider rounded out the podium. 

Team Vera Bradley Foundation has several key criteriums throughout August.. A full squad will contest Presbyterian Hospital Invitation in Charlotte, NC next weekend and then head to Glencoe, IL for the Glencoe Grand Prix. The month ends with Chris Thater, the USA Crit Series Finale in Binghampton, NY, and the Altoona Criterium in Altoona, PA. 

26 July 2010 Carla Swart wins the sprinter's jersey; Powers 4th overall
Bend, OR - Team Vera Bradley Foundation wrapped up a successful week of racing at the Cascade Classic, with Carla Swart sprinting to win the green sprinter's jersey after the final Awbrey Butte Circuit race.  Tara Whitton (Keller Rhorbach), the current World Champion on the track for the points and omnium, soloed to victory on the stage by over 40 seconds over a hard-charging chase group that included Team VBF's Anne Samplonius.  Samplonius ended up 5th on the stage.  Colavita's Cath Cheatley took second, with overall GC winner, Mara Abbott (Peanut Butter & Co) taking 3rd.

Swart went into the final stage wearing the green jersey, but was tied for points with TIBCO's Megan Guarnier and one point ahead of another TIBCO rider, Jo Kiesanowski.  With intermediate sprint points on the line, the team's goal was to deliver Swart to the line to win the sprint.  A group of 6 riders escaped, which included Lauren Hall and Toni Bradshaw, but Guarnier also was in that group.  "We knew we had to bring that break back," said Anne Samplonius.  "So we started attacking to bring it back and it worked."  The break was swallowed up just 2 kilometers from the sprint, and the team began to set up Swart for the sprint.  Powers got to the front and kept the pace high.  "Alison was amazing," said Carla Swart.  "I was on Jo's wheel and she was on Megan's wheel.  They tried to gap me off, but I went around Jo, then sprinted past Megan for the win.
With one lap to go, the field was all together.  Team VBF's Toni Bradshaw attacked after the climb and a break got clear.  The break of five included Tara Whitten and the gap to the field grew to 30 seconds quickly.  Whitten then proceeded to attack the breakaway.  "No one was working very well together," commented Bradshaw.  "When Tara attacked, we didn't think she'd get very far."  The group got caught, but Whitton continued to ride away, her lead growing to over 1 minute on the field.  Approaching the feed zone, Samplonius attacked again and immediately got a gap.  "We didn't even know Tara was up the road," said Powers.  "The moto wasn't giving us any time splits."  Samplonius assumed she was the leader on the road, and put it in time trial mode with 10K to go.  With 5K to go, Abbott, Cheatley and New Zealand National team rider, Alison Shanks attacked the peloton and joined Samplonius.  At the finish, Cheatley put her hands up in the air, thinking that she had one the stage.  "It was frustrating that we didn't know Tara was up the road," said Samplonius.  "It was a great win for Tara, but I think the race may have played out differently if we had known she was off the front."

Powers finished safely in the field and held onto her 4th place overall on General Classification.  "I am so proud to be a part of such a great team," she commented.  "We went into this race going for the win.  But it's hard to beat the best climber in the world (Mara Abbott)."  Abbott recently won the Giro D'Italia Femminile, becoming the first US woman to win the hilly stage race.  "There isn't a doubt in my mind that this team is the strongest in the country," stated team director, Lisa Hunt.  "We've had an incredibly successful season.  It's hard to win every race, but we go into each race with the goal of winning.  It's all about teamwork and these girls are incredible teammates."

24 July 2010 Carla Swart takes the Sprinter's jersey at the downtown criterium Bend Oregon, USA

Bend, OR - Carla Swart (South African rider) snagged valuable sprint points today and took over the lead in the sprint competition after the downtown Bend criterium.  The 50 minute criterium saw TIBCO's Jo Kiesanowski take the win over Webcor's Joelle Neumainville.  Leah Kirchman (Keller-Rohrbach) rounded out the podium in 3rd.
The pace was kept high throughout the race, as attacks were launched by the Team VBF women and Colavita-Baci.  "The sprint competition was still wide open," said team director, Lisa Hunt.  "So we decided to go for the sprints and Carla's got a great kick."  Swart took 2nd place at both the Sunny King Criterium and the Tour of the Gila criterium.  Swart easily won the first two intermediate sprints, but missed out on getting points on the final intermediate sprint.  "It got a bit confusing as to when the final sprint was happening," said Swart.  "I was keeping track of the laps they had the sprints on, and the last sprint was supposed to be lap 25.  We were on lap 21 and then they said there were 3 laps to go in the race."  With Swart's two sprint wins, she was able to secure the jersey.  "It's still a tight competition between Megan Guarnier (TIBCO) and me, but we're going to go for the sprints tomorrow." said Swart. Despite constant attacks throughout the race, the field was all together with one lap to go.  A crash on the final turn created a gap for the first 5 riders, and Brooke Miller (TIBCO) set up her teammate perfectly for the win.  All of the Team Vera Bradley Foundation women finished safely and Alison Powers maintained her 4th place position on GC.  "We all wanted to race aggressively, but most importantly, stay out of trouble," said Powers.  "Tomorrow will be a great day for us."  Tomorrow, the riders face the challenging Awbrey Butte Circuit Race -- 3 laps of a 17 mile loop that features the steep 2k climb up Archie Briggs. 

 

 

 

23 July 2010 Powers 4th on the stage; Samplonius and Hall drive 60 mile breakaway
Bend, OR - The Team Vera Bradley Foundation women went on the attack today in the Cascade Lakes Road Race, in their quest for another stage win.  And it was at mile 3, where Anne Samplonius launched a fierce attack and was joined by TIBCO's Megan Guarnier, Andrea Dvorak (Colavita-Baci) and SC Velo's Katherine Donavan.  But they didn't stop there, as Lauren Hall bridged up to the 4 women to help drive the break, which stayed away until 15k from the finish.  It was at that point when Samplonius attacked the group and rode solo for another 7 kilometers, until Erinne Willock (Webcor) attacked to reel her in.  But it was Mara Abbott (Peanut Butter & Co/Twenty12) who then took charge and blew past Willock and 2nd place rider, Cath Cheatley (Colavita), for the win.  Cheatley outsprinted Willock for 2nd place on the stage.  Team VBF's Alison Powers attacked the chase group and sprinted for 4th place.

The race was not without its own drama in the peloton early on, as a crash early on took down Willock and many of her Webcor teammates, best young rider, Rushlee Buchanan (Colavita) and Team VBFs Powers.  The peloton eased up in an effort to allow the top GC contenders to get back on.  Powers had the help of her teammates to bring her back to the field, after a bike change.  "The crash was in the front of the field and bodies were all over the place on top of me and my bike," said Powers.  "When I got back on the bike, my handlebars were crooked, so I got a quick bike change from Brian (our mechanic), and my teammates got me back up to the field.  They were awesome!"  Meanwhile the gap to the 5 rider break increased to over 2 minutes.  "Everyone was working really well together," commented Samplonius.  "It was our goal to have two riders in the break and Lauren did an amazing job and worked so hard."  The gap grew to almost 4 minutes, and it was up to both Peanut Butter & Co and Webcor, who missed the break, to bring it back.  

With 12 miles to go, Dvorak went to the front of the break and began to set a hard tempo up the first section of the climb and only Samplonius and Guarnier could stay with her.  As they crested the climb, Samplonius attacked and got a gap and began the final ascent up towards the finish.  As the remains of the break got swallowed up by the hard charging field, it was Willock who launched first, bringing Cheatley and Abbott with her to chase Samplonius down.  The duo caught Samplonius with 8K to go to the finish.  "I was hoping I could hold it to the finish, but I knew that the climbers wanted to have their day." said Samplonius.  "We were going for the stage win and it was all or nothing."

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bend, OR - The Team Vera Bradley Foundation women went on the attack today in the Cascade Lakes Road Race, in their quest for another stage win.  And it was at mile 3, where Anne Samplonius launched a fierce attack and was joined by TIBCO's Megan Guarnier, Andrea Dvorak (Colavita-Baci) and SC Velo's Katherine Donavan.  But they didn't stop there, as Lauren Hall bridged up to the 4 women to help drive the break, which stayed away until 15k from the finish.  It was at that point when Samplonius attacked the group and rode solo for another 7 kilometers, until Erinne Willock (Webcor) attacked to reel her in.  But it was Mara Abbott (Peanut Butter & Co/Twenty12) who then took charge and blew past Willock and 2nd place rider, Cath Cheatley (Colavita), for the win.  Cheatley outsprinted Willock for 2nd place on the stage.  Team VBF's Alison Powers attacked the chase group and sprinted for 4th place.The race was not without its own drama in the peloton early on, as a crash early on took down Willock and many of her Webcor teammates, best young rider, Rushlee Buchanan (Colavita) and Team VBFs Powers.  The peloton eased up in an effort to allow the top GC contenders to get back on.  Powers had the help of her teammates to bring her back to the field, after a bike change.  "The crash was in the front of the field and bodies were all over the place on top of me and my bike," said Powers.  "When I got back on the bike, my handlebars were crooked, so I got a quick bike change from Brian (our mechanic), and my teammates got me back up to the field.  They were awesome!"  Meanwhile the gap to the 5 rider break increased to over 2 minutes.  "Everyone was working really well together," commented Samplonius.  "It was our goal to have two riders in the break and Lauren did an amazing job and worked so hard."  The gap grew to almost 4 minutes, and it was up to both Peanut Butter & Co and Webcor, who missed the break, to bring it back.  With 12 miles to go, Dvorak went to the front of the break and began to set a hard tempo up the first section of the climb and only Samplonius and Guarnier could stay with her.  As they crested the climb, Samplonius attacked and got a gap and began the final ascent up towards the finish.  As the remains of the break got swallowed up by the hard charging field, it was Willock who launched first, bringing Cheatley and Abbott with her to chase Samplonius down.  The duo caught Samplonius with 8K to go to the finish.  "I was hoping I could hold it to the finish, but I knew that the climbers wanted to have their day." said Samplonius.  "We were going for the stage win and it was all or nothing."

At that time, the Team VBF women went to the front to set tempo to minimize the gap to the leaders, leaving a fragmented peloton behind them.  "We kept a solid tempo and had them in our sign the whole time," noted team captain, Robin Farina.  "Our goal was to keep Alison rested so she could attack closer to the finish." A crash in the pro men's field caused the promoters to shorten the approach to the finish to allow for room for a helicopter to land.  "I knew where the 1k to go sign was from last year and my plan was to go with about 500 meters," said Powers.  "But all of a sudden, there was a 200 meters to go sign, so I didn't get much of a gap."  Powers easily won the sprint for 4th.  "The team rode an incredible race," commented team director, Lisa Hunt.  "We want more stage wins here and we're going to get them.  These girls are determined!"

Tomorrow evening is the 50 minute criterium in downtown Bend.
 
For previous results scroll below. 

24 June 2010
Powers rounds out podium in Bend; Cash wins back to back races in Wisconsin

 The 2010 USA Cycling Elite Women’s National Championships opened in Bend, OR with the 35K Skyliners Time Trial. Alison Powers, the 2008 U.S National Time Trial Champion, rounded out the podium in fifth place with a time of 49:53:20 behind Evelyn Stevens (HTC-Columbia), Amber Neben (Webcor), Mara Abbott (Peanut Butter & Co Twenty12) and Alison Starnes (Team TIBCO). Kristin Sanders finished 30 seconds down on Powers for sixth.  “We are competing against some of the best time trialists in the world here,” said Sanders. “To stack up where we did is commendable. Personally, I’m thrilled.” 

 

Powers had her sights set on regaining the national title and initially expressed some disappointment with her result.  She noted that the competition is especially strong this year and recognized she put in a strong ride against one of the most talented fields assembled for time trial championships in years.

Sanders is eager to embrace her result. Ask her how happy she is, and she practically bubbles over with excitement. “I’m beside myself,” she said. “This has obviously been a long time coming. All the work that I put in for nearly a year now, it paid off today. I really couldn’t be happier.” Sanders improved her time on this course by over three minutes from the 2009 National Time Trial Championships. “You know, I think the wind was more of a factor last year, but still -- that is huge,” she remarked. 

 

USA Cycling Nationals continue tomorrow in Bend with the 50K criterium. The 2010 Canadian Cycling Association National Championships begin tomorrow when Alison Testroete and Anne Samplonius contest the time trial. 

 

Carrie Cash, dubbed the Tour of America’s Dairyland “crowd favorite” by VeloNews, nabbed back-to-back wins in the Trek Waterloo Criterium and the Greenbush Road Race in Wisconsin. The two wins bring her total podium count to five podium finishes over eight days of racing. “The Waterloo course was a blast,” said Cash. “The goal was to move up in the omnium and concentrate on the finish. I accomplished both -- and I had a lot of fun out there.” Both the Waterloo and Greenbush races came down to field sprints. On both days, Cash edged out current omnium leader Sarah Caravella (Team CARD) for the win. 

“It’s been good racing. A drag race to the finish today. A tactical sprint yesterday. We’ve been putting on an exciting show,” stated Cash. “Three days of racing remain. All crits. Sarah’s still in yellow, and she’ll need to be on the defense. I’m focused on the finish. The finish and the overall. I’m in a position where I have much to gain. I like it here.”

 

Cash races the Fond du Lac Cycling Grand Prix tomorrow in Fond du Lac, WI. 

 

18 June 2010 Banff, AB, Canada - Alison Testroete earned her second win of the season on stage two of the Banff Bike Fest in Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada. With the win, Testreote gained valuable time bonuses that launched her into first in the overall ahead of compatriots Tara Whitten (Specialized Mazda) and Julie Beverage (Vienne Futuroscope) 

The 1A Sprint course covered 81 kilometers in an out-and-back route that began and ended at Lake Louise. Testroete described the rolling terrain as having “a little bit of everything.” The field raced aggressively as riders launched repeated attacks. Once or twice a break that could have had the power to stay away would get up the road only to be quickly reeled in by the field. “I didn’t think an attack would go,” said Testroete, “so I didn’t put in any effort there. I knew to wait for the finish.”

 

When Testroete saw 500 meters to go, she jumped. “I went early,” she explained. “I caught the field off guard.” The gutsy move paid off. Testroete held off the charging field to cross the line first.

18 June 2010 At the Nature Valley Grand Prix in Minneapolis, Carla Swart just missed out on the podium at the Uptown Minneapolis criterium this evening, taking 4th place.  HTC Columbia's Chloe Hosking took her second victory this week, with Brooke Miller (TIBCO) 2nd and Shelley Evans (Peanut Butter & Co/Twenty-12) taking 3rd.  The race was aggressive from the gun, with Team VBF's Robin Farina driving the pace and taking the first $200 prime early on in the race.   The race has been dominated by the sprint specialists, who have gained valuable time bonuses, with Evans now taking over 1st place on GC after snagging valuable time bonuses in the two criteriums.  Yesterday's 66 mile road stage was called off due to weather, as a tornado touched down within 5 miles of the race course.  "It's hard to do battle against all those sprinters," stated Alison Powers, who was in 4th place after the stage 1 time trial, but dropped down to 6th place after the back to back criteriums.  "But tomorrow's road race will change things."  The 77 mile road course in Menomonie, Wisconsin is new this year and has more challenging terrain.  "It's a great course with a lot of short steep climbs with little recovery in between," commented team director, Lisa Hunt, who previewed the course today.  "You need a course like this to offset all the fast, flat criteriums.   And I think it suits us well."13 June 2010 Arlington, VA and St. Louis, MO - Sunday was a day for podiums for Team Vera Bradley Foundation, as Robin Farina wrapped up a successful weekend of racing in Arlington, VA by winning the Air Force Classic Crystal Cup and Carrie Cash garnered her first NRC podium in St. Louis' Tour de Grove.

12 June 2010 Arlington, VA - Team Vera Bradley Foundation once again climbed onto the podium at the Air Force Cycling Classic's Clarendon Cup criterium today, as Erica Allar sprinted to third place.  TIBCO's Brooke Miller won the race, after clashing handlebars with Theresa Cliff-Ryan (Colavita-Baci) in the last 50 meters of the race, who went down after the two collided. Laura Van Gilder (Mellow Mushroom) was 2nd.  Cliff-Ryan sustained some minor road rash from the crash and no one else went down. 


5-6 June 2010 Tulsa, OK and Philadelphia, PA - Team Vera Bradley Foundation tackled the heat in two places this weekend, where soaring temperatures in both Tulsa and Philadelphia led to tough racing for the women.  In Tulsa, where three days of criterium action greeted the riders, Erica Allar took 4th on Friday evening's Blue Dome Criterium and Alison Testroete, who initiated the winning breakaway in Sunday's Riverside criterium, finished off the weekend with a 5th place.  Today's Liberty Classic in Philadelphia proved to be another battle in the heat, with HTC-Columbia's Ina Teutenberg winning her 4th Liberty Classic victory, while Team VBF's Carla Swart sprinted to 8th place.
 
30 May 2010 Durango and Boulder, Colorado - VB Team member Canadian Alison Testroete countered an attack by teammate Lauren Hall early in the Iron Horse Bicycle Classic Criterium and stayed away, winning by over a minute.  Tiffany Pezzulo (DFT/Treads) was second.  And in Boulder, Anne Samplonius attacked on the final lap of the grueling Morgul Bismark circuit, and only Jessica Phillips (Colavita-Baci) could stay with her, with Samplonius taking the win over Phillips.  VBF's Alison Powers was 3rd.  Robin Farina was 8th today, but with her victory yesterday and 5th place in Friday's street sprints, she took the omnium title.  

22 July 2010 Powers takes 3rd; Samplonius 4th at Skyliners Time Trial

Bend, OR - Alison Powers once again climbed onto the podium at the BMC Cascade Classic, taking 3rd place at the Skyliners Time Trial.  Webcor's Erinne Willock won the time trial, with Mara Abbott (Peanut Butter & Co/Twenty-12) in 2nd place.  Team VBF's Anne Samplonius was 4th.  Abbott's second place puts her into the leader's yellow jersey.

The 16 mile out and back course is one of the toughest time trial courses on the calendar, with over 6 miles of climbing on the outbound section.  The course covers the same out and back section as the Nationals Time Trial course.  Willock, who started one minute behind Powers, caught her and passed her approximately 2 kilometers from the turnaround.  Powers then proceeded to pass her again on the way back to the finish.  "Erinne's riding really well right now and when she passed me on the way out, I knew I had to give it all I had on the way back," stated Powers.  "I love the downhills and she was a great rabbit to catch!" 
Samplonius, who won the silver medal at the Canadian National time trial championships, was very pleased with her ride today.  "I told myself if I didn't feel good today, I'd back off and save it for the road races," commented Samplonius.  "I felt pretty good and started to pass a couple of riders, so I kept going."

Powers lost the yellow jersey after Stage 1's McKenzie Pass Road Race, despite a valiant effort by the entire team to reel in the uber-climbers, Mara Abbott and Cath Cheatley (Colavita).  The duo escaped early on during the 18-mile McKenzie Pass climb and their gap grew to 4 minutes at the top.  But powerhouses Farina, Samplonius, Toni Bradshaw and Carla Swart got to the front and brought the gap down to 1 minute at the base of the final 10K climb.  "This team is so awesome," said Powers.  "They worked so hard to close that gap.  It was incredible." 

Tomorrow stage, the Cascade Lakes Road Race, features a 71-mile loop that finishes at the Mt. Bachelor ski resort.  The loop features a long steady climb up the Cascade Highway, that skirts the beautiful Elk and Sparks lakes.  "This climb isn't steep, but it's long," said team director, Lisa Hunt.  "It's a great course for a breakaway, and if it happens, we'll be in it!"


20 July 2010
Alison Powers in yellow jersey after Cascade Cycling Classic prologue

Bend, OR - Alison Powers won the Bend Memorial Clinic Cascade Cycling Classic prologue tonight in convincing style, with a time of 3:53, five seconds faster than Tara Whitten (Keller Rohback).  TIBCO's Alison Starnes was 3rd.  Powers used her time trial expertise and savvy cornering skills to blaze through the 2-mile prologue course, which featured several tight twists and turns along the Deschutes River in Bend's Old Mill District.  "I've been training for this type of effort and it definitely paid off," said Powers.  "It was a really fun course and I'm so excited to win tonight!"
Under warm, sunny skies, 107 women took to the streets of Bend this evening to do battle in the short, but violent effort.  Jade Wilcoxson (Vuelta/Flywheel) had the fastest time early on with a time of 4:04, followed closely by Meagan Guarnier (TIBCO) and Rushlee Buchanan (Colavita Baci).  But then it was World Champion Pursuit rider, Tara Whitten, who blazed the course in 3:58, just as Powers was on the start line.  Powers was the second to last rider off and was aware of the times that were being posted.  TIBCO's Alison Starnes was the last rider to go off and was the third and final rider to go under 4 minutes.

Powers, who currently sits in second place in the NRC standings, had a lot of motivation coming into this race.  "After losing the top spot to Cath (Cheatley) after Fitchburg, I was super excited to come here and do well," stated Powers.  "I think losing the NRC lead has just made me more hungry to win.  And we have a really strong team here and any one of the us can get on the podium.  We're in a great position." The Team is currently the number one ranked team in the NRC standings.

Tomorrow marks the return of the infamous McKenzie Pass Road Race, a 74-mile point to point stage featuring the 18 mile ascent up McKenzie Pass, as well as final 10K climb to Three Creeks Sno Park in Sisters.  "There will be a lot of changes after tomorrow's stage," commented team director, Lisa Hunt.  "The McKenzie climb is long but not steep.  It's the final climb to Three Creeks where I think you'll see a lot of action."

10 July 2010
Allar sprints to 2nd at Iron Hill Twilight; Cash and Roettger contest NRC's Grand Cycling Classic

 

Erica Allar set her sights on the USA Crits Series overall leader’s jersey after finishing third at Athens Terrapin Twilights. Allar raced Athens, the first of the five races that make up the women’s series, in April. Three months later, she sprinted to second at the Iron Hill Twilight Criterium in West Chester, PA and snagged the leader’s jersey. “I’m excited have the jersey,” said Allar. “I can’t pretend I didn’t want to win the race, but the jersey was the main objective. I’m happy to have the jersey heading into Presby [Presbyterian Hospital Invitational Criterium] which is a hometown race.” 

 

“The crowds were absolutely phenomenal,” noted Allar. “There were thousands and thousands and thousands of people out there tonight. It was awesome.” The women’s field treated the spectators to fireworks. The New Zealand National Team, Bike NZ, brought four riders to the race. “They had the numbers,” explained Allar, “I believe they were the pursuit team. It was pretty apparent that they wanted to get someone off the front, and with their track racing background, I knew that if they got someone off solo, they could stay away. This put solo riders like myself on the defensive.”

 

The four-corner criterium covered .8 miles with a long home and back stretch separated by two short one-block stretches. “The course was not a sleigh ride,” commented Allar. “The short blocks kept the pace very high, and turns three and four were pretty technical. Especially turn three.”

 

Allar reports that she went from the gun. Her initial goal was to keep the pace high in an effort to thin out the field. “On the first lap, I went to the front, and I drilled it,” said Allar. “It was an aggressive move.”  Allar reports that she remained active throughout the race as she covered repeated attacks from Bike NZ and various solo riders. “Unfortunately because Bike NZ had the numbers, I couldn’t cover absolutely everything,” she said. “I covered and covered and covered some more. Lauren Ellis (Bike NZ) got off the front while I took a moment to recover, so I wasn’t able to cover that particular move. In the end, that was the move that stuck. 

 

In the race for second, Allar took control of the final lap. She lead through the final two turns. “I felt that it was necessary to go through corner three first,” explained Allar. “It was so technical. The final stretch was well over 300m, so I held off winding up until I saw Sarah Caravella (Team CARD) moving up on the right. That’s when I knew to kick it for the [field sprint] win.” Caravella rounded out the podium for third.


6 July 2010
Carrie Cash Sprints to Victory in Street Sprints and Downtown Lawrence Criterium

Lawrence, KS - Team Vera Bradley Foundation headed to the Tour of Lawrence with two goals in mind. They looked to top the strong field assembled in Lawrence, KS for the three day race series. They also set out to raise funds toward the $22,500 the team has committed to donating to the Vera Bradley Foundation for Breast Cancer. Carrie Cash and Chris Roettger returned home with two wins and over $300 raised for the Foundation. Mission accomplished.

The Tour of Lawrence opened  Friday evening with the Eldridge Hotel Street Sprints. The 200-meter sprint spanned Seventh Street between Kentucky and Massachusetts Avenues. Cash won the street sprints not once but twice after confusion at the start of the final round led to protests.  Race officials sent the five finalists back to the start line to redo the round. Roettger, the team's art director turned guest rider, snagged second place in the first of the two finals and finished fourth in the re-start.  

25 June 2010
Samplonius 2nd in Canada Time Trial; Allar sprints to second in U.S.A

Anne Samplonious finished second at the Canadian Cycling Association Elite National Time Trial Championships in Devon, Alberta. She covered the 20K out and back course in 29:53. Just over two seconds separated Samplonious from winner Julie Beveridge (Vienne Futuroscope). Tara Whitten (Specialized Mazda) rounded out the podium. “Julie Beveridge rode an amazing time trial today,” noted Samplonious. “This has been a huge goal for her, so it was good to see her pull it off. I’m happy for her.”  Click here for full report in Canadian Cyclist News.

 

While happy for Beveridge, Samplonious candidly admits that she would have loved the top step for herself. “Of course, I wanted the win,” she said. “I always want the win. I had a good ride, so I’m happy with that. It would have been nice to have found those 2.3 seconds somewhere.”

 

Samplonious said the course conditions were exactly as she had anticipated. She had predicted wind would be the biggest factor on the mostly flat course. “There was one descent and a climb on the way out when we rode into a river valley, and it was reversed on the way back. At the top of the climb on the way back, there's less than 5K to go. If you go too hard or are in too big of a gear on that climb, you’re not able to get into the big gear to finish it off,” Samplonious explained. “That was a bit tactical. The only part of the course that required some thought.”

With the time trial behind her, Samplonious and Alison Testroete now turn their attention to the road race. Samplonious looks to make the race as hard as she can from the gun in order to whittle the peloton down to a small group. “The smaller group, the better our chances,” commented Samplonious. “It should be fast, aggressive race.” 

 

Erica Allar gave Team Vera Bradley Foundation its second podium finish of the day at the USA Cycling Elite National Criterium Championships in Bend, OR. Allar sprinted to second behind Shelley Evans (Peanut Butter & Co Twenty12). Lauren Tamayo (Peanut Butter & Co Twenty12) placed third after delivering Evans to the line.

 

Team Vera Bradley Foundation went into the 50K criterium with a focused plan. “Our goal was to race aggressively and make it fast,” said team director Lisa Hunt. “I told Alison [Powers], Robin [Farina], Lauren [Hall] and Kristin [Sanders] to attack. Erica was to conserve and be ready for the sprint. They executed brilliantly.”

 

Lauren Hall launched the first attack of the race. When she was caught, Farina countered. Powers and Sanders followed suit. TIBCO and Colavita-Baci bridged up to to every move, but no breakaway ever got more than ten seconds on the field. “With every team fielding a sprinter, the race seemed destined to come down to a bunch finish,” stated Hunt. “We wanted to keep the speed up and weed out the weaker riders while keeping Erica protected throughout the race.”

 

Kirstin Sanders took a solo flyer for two laps with five laps remaining in the race. She launched as TIBCO and Peanut Butter & Company had just begun to set up their lead-out trains. The timing caught the teams off guard as they were forced to chase. “I was super motivated to race a good crit for Erica. I believe in her so much and wanted to do whatever I could to support her finish,” said Sanders. “I went off solo twice for several laps. It was hard! I’m so happy for her. She deserved this in a big way.”

 

Alison Powers went off the front shortly before the field saw two laps to go. “This turned out to be an awesome move,” commented Allar. “It allowed us to avoid the crash in turn four.” The crash took out race favorites Brooke Miller (TIBCO) and Theresa Cliff-Ryan (Colavita-Baci).

 

Meredith Miller (TIBCO) lead through the final corner followed by Tamayo and Evans. Allar sat on Evans’ wheel. “Shelley [Evans] came around Lauren [Tamayo] when I was getting ready to launch my sprint,” explained Allar. “Her form is incredible right now. She had me by a bike length at the line. I’ll get her eventually. Today, the win was all hers.

Allar is quick to celebrate the result as a team success. “I appreciate everything the girls did tonight,” Allar said. “They did all the work. I’m happy with second. A podium at Nationals is fantastic. It’s a good addition to the results yesterday in the time trial.”

 

USA Cycling Elite National Championships conclude on Sunday with the 113K Aubrey Butte Road Race.

Ten minutes before the slated start of the Pro Women’s Kansas University Circuit Race, it began to pour. Officials postponed the race to allow time for the heaviest rains to pass. The field took to the start line for five laps of the 3.93 mile rolling course under grey skies and with the threat of more rain to come. Treads.com/DFT, with four riders in the field, had numerical advantage, and the course favored Megan Hottman (Treads.com/DFT). “We knew we needed to watch Megan [Hottman],” said Cash. “This is her kind of course. If she went up the road, we wanted to be there.”

 

As expected, Hottman did go up the road. Gwen Inglis (Treads.com/DFT), Lise Oliver (Tulsa Tough) and Roettger went with her. When Cash missed the move, Roettger backed off the pace thinking that she and Cash could work together to bridge back up. Roettger and Cash were joined by Sydney Brown (Treads.com/DFT). With teammates up the road, Brown had a free ride on the chasing duo. Roettger attacked with two laps to go to force Brown to chase. When Roettger was caught, Cash countered and Brown stayed glued to her wheel. Cash handily won the the sprint to the finish for fourth place. Roettger took sixth. 

 

The Downtown Lawrence Criterium held on the Fourth of July pitted Friday’s winner against Saturday’s winner in a drag race to the finish. Cash beat Hottman for her second win of the weekend. “I know it looked close,” she said. “But I had a lot left in the tank.” The race for third also came down to a two-up sprint. Inglis, Hottman’s teammate, narrowly edged out Roettger for the final podium spot. “I raced a smart race,” said Roettger. “I did everything perfectly until that final straightaway. I miscalculated how much time I would need to come around her. I didn’t come off her wheel until 50 meters [to go]. I should have launched earlier.” 

 

Roettger spent most of the race in various breakaways until Cash and Hottman got up the road together. Cash was quick to credit her teammate’s role in the win. “Chris covered moves all race,” said Cash. “There was one instance in particular where I knew she was hurting. I looked at her and signaled that I needed her to close a gap. She dug deep to cover. She did a ton of work to set me up for the win.”  

 

 

 

The Vera Bradley Foundation was founded in 1998 by the owners of Vera Bradley, manufacturer of stylish quilted cotton handbags, luggage and accessories. To date, the Foundation has contributed $10 million to breast cancer research. The Vera Bradley Foundation Womens Cycling Team seen below raise funds for the VBF in 2010. Sponsors include Dr. Vie Superfoods.