Paris Roubaix Juniors Re-cap - My hands are Effed-up



USA National Team: (L-R) Curtis White, Jordan Cullen, Tyler Schwartz, Miguel Bryon, Justin Oien, and Seth Veenbaas



Entering the famous Roubaix velodrome for the finish. You can see the 3 leaders on the far side of the velodrome. The group of 14 in the foreground include USA rider Justin Oien. Jordan is just entering the track a couple seconds behind the group



Post race. All 6 Team USA riders finished!

Jordan finished 18th out of 121 riders in the 2013 edition of Paris Roubaix Juniors, 34 secs behind the winner. Only 66 racers finished the brutal race.

After the race, Jordan stated "Good luck, bad legs." and "My hands are effed!"

Jordan's legs felt heavy and lethargic from the start of the race. They came around a little later, and he even made an attack later in the race, drawing out the eventual race winner, but they were bought back. He lost touch with the front group on one of the final tough cobbled sections, almost regaining them upon entry to the velodrome (as indicated by the photo above). Part of his chase was through the caravan, including bouncing off one of the follow cars.

During the race, he negotiated his way through at least a dozen crashes and pile-ups, where he managed to knock down a lady spectator, and ride over the hand of another rider.

The Juniors raced on the same course as the Pros, at the same time, doing half the distance. Therefore, after they finished, they had the privilege to stick around, and watch the spectacular finish of the Pro race. What an amazing experience.

The video below shows the front group whittled down considerably part way through the race. Jordan is the USA rider passing through the picture at 0:41 secs, with the blue helmet, and yellow sunglasses.

Jordan returns today to Williams Cycling Academy in Texas, in preparation for his next big race, The Tour of Gila in Silver City, New Mexico.

Success at Ster van Zuid-Limburg, 3rd Stage 2 TT, 4th Overall

Stage 1 - 105K Circuit Race

Stage 2 - 10K Time Trial

Stage 3 - 120K Circuit Race

Jordan finished 4th overall in his first race with the USA National Team this past weekend in the Ster van Zuid-Limburg 3-day stage race in Belgium. His stellar 3rd place finish in the Stage 2 10K time-trial solidified his overall position.

This was Jordan's largest race to date, with 170+ starters. He towed the line in stage 1 with his American teammates, Miguel Byron, Curtis White, Justin Oien, Seth Veenbaas, and Tyler Schwartz. Half way through the 1st stage, Jordan suffered severe right knee pain, and struggled to stay in the field. He said "Had to dig deeper than I ever have mentally, just to stay in the group." He finished 99th out of 173 finishers, in the same time as the main field. A solo rider broke away for the win, with the 124 rider deep field following 21secs later. USA riders Miguel Byron and Seth VeenBaas finished 8th and 13th, respectively. Stage 1 Results

Stage 2 was a 10K time-trial. Jordan could hardly walk after stage one. His knee pain was due to the saddle position on his USA team bike being set lower than the height he specified. Not a problem for the TT, since he brought his own TT bike to Europe. The knee didn't stop him from ripping a time fast enough to place him 3rd. USA rider Tyler Schwartz finished 7th. Jordan's time was just 8 seconds off the current European and Danish junior TT champion, Mathius Krigbaum. Krigbaum was 5th at last year's Junior World TT championship. Jordan's time was faster than Belgian's Nate Van Hooydonck and Brent Luyckx, who were 6th and 7th at last year's Junior World TT championship.

Jordan's time moved him up to 4th overall in the stage race general classification, with USA teammate Tyler Schwartz moving up to 7th overall. Stage 2 Results

The final stage was a 120K circuit race, with 3 1K climbs with 15% grade, and 35kph winds. Raising the saddle resolved most of Jordan's knee pain, but then he flatted 50K into the stage. Thankfully, his generous USA teammate, Curtis White, swapped wheels with him, a truly classy move. Jordan was able to catch up to the main field after a 15K solo chase. By the time Jordan regained the field, the riders in 1st and 3rd place overall had broken away, and were gone for good. Jordan finished in the field. USA rider Justin Oien won the field sprint for 3rd, taking the final time bonus, solidifying Jordan's 4th place overall. Tyler Schwartz maintained his 7th place overall as well. USA also finished 2nd on overall Team GC. Stage 3 Results

Congrats to the USA National Team on a great race, and good luck and Sunday's Paris-Roubaix!

Slipstream Craddock prevails at Fayetteville Stage Race

Jordan wins Stage 3, solo

Slipstream Craddock in control of Stage 3



Slipstream Craddock Junior Development continued their dominance of the Cat 2 races in Texas, winning all 3 stages, and taking 1st-4th in General Classification at the Fayetteville Stage Race.

61 starters in the Cat 2 field for Stage 1, a 70 mile road race, over rolling terrain. It was Slipstream Craddock rider, Imari Miller, taking the win in a sprint finish. Zeke Mostov was 5th. Noah Williams, Jordan Cullen, Michael Dessau, Adrian Costa, Carlo Villarreal, and Jonah Tannos finished in the field.

Stage 2 was a 9 mile time-trial, with Slipstream Craddock taking 1st - 4th:

1st Jordan Cullen 18:19

2nd Adrian Costa 18:59

3rd Michael Dessau 19:18

4th Zeke Mostov 19:22

Jordan's winning time was the fastest of the day for all riders by over 30 seconds, including the Pro/1/2 field.



Stage 3 was a 90 mile road race, also over rolling terrain. Slipstream Craddock raced with patience, and eventually Jordan got away with another rider with 10K to go. Jordan let the other rider do most of the work, to keep the rider from leap-frogging his teammates on overall GC. With 5K to go, Jordan attacked, and finished solo. Adrian Costa caught and passed the other rider, to finish 2nd solo. The rest of the team finished well, easily hanging onto 1st-4th overall on GC.

Congrats to Director Christian Williams and the team on another successful weekend of Texas racing!

Slipstream Craddock Dominates La Primavera Lago Vista

Slipstream Craddock teammates Jonah Tannos and Jordan in an early break at Lago Vista Day 1. Photo by Philip Shama

Imari and Jordan in the 80 rider Cat 2/3 field at Lago Vista Day 2. Photo by Philip Shama



Noah Williams and Jake Silverberg 1st-2nd at Lago Vista Cat 2/3 Day 1. Photo by Chloe Williams

 

Noah Williams does the double, at Lago Visa Cat 2/3 Day 2, this time solo. Photo by Biff Stevens

La Primavera Lago Vista is the premier, non-stage race in Texas Bicycle Racing. Slipstream Craddock fielded a six man team for the Cat 2/3's, Imari Miller, Jonah Tannos, Jake Silverberg, Jordan Cullen, Grayson Brookshire, and last year's Day 1 winner, Noah Williams.

The team took control early on day 1, with an early break by Jordan Cullen and Jonah Tannos. This setup the team beautifully, allowing Noah Williams and Jake Silverberg to breakaway with a small group later in the race. The pair finished 1st and 2nd, with Noah repeating his win from 2012.

The team was even more dominant on day 2, with Noah Williams doubling up on the weekend, with a solo victory. Even more amazing, the team placed all six riders in the top 12 places, in an 80 rider field.

Congrats to Sliptream Craddock and Williams Racing Academy!

The Road to Paris Roubaix - Appreciate the Journey

Jordan received an e-mail from USA Cycling on Feb 18th, inviting him race for 2 1/2 weeks this spring, for Team USA in Belgium and France. He will be competing with 5 other elite American 17-18 year old juniors in 3 events:

24 March: Meer (Hoostraten) kermesse, Belgium

30 March- 1 April: Ster van Zuid Limburg, Belgium http://stervanzuidlimburg.be/index.php?cat=2

 7 April: Paris Roubaix, UCI NCup, France

This marks Jordan's first opportunity to race for the Junior National Team. This will be Jordan's 3rd cycling trip to Europe, after going to EuroCrossCamp in 2011-2012, and Racing in Belgium for his trade team, Slipstream Craddock last summer. We are so proud of Jordan, and wish him the best of luck!

It's far too easy to get caught up in the thought of achieving your dream, that you fail to appreciate the journey. The road to greatness is challenging, and if you focus too heavily on the final destination, you will fail to gain happiness and satisfaction from the intermediate successes along the way. If you have great day on the bike, celebrate it, and wait till tomorrow before contemplating what if means for your future.

As Jordan's father, other parents of junior cyclists often approach me and ask how they can help their child become the best they can be. I think the best advice I can give them is help their kid dream big, set intermediate goals, and appreciate the journey.

Where Have I Been Lately?

For Sale: 2010 Ridley Oval Track Bike - $900

Jordan's 2010 54cm Ridley Oval Track Bike is for sale. Raced sparingly for two seasons. Excellent Condition.

Complete as pictured, including new wheelset $900

Specs:
2010 Ridley Oval Track Aluminum Frame 54cm Silver/Black
Carbon Fork w/integrated headset
Brand new Vuelta Zero Lite 700c Clincher Wheelset 16T Cog
Serfas Seca RS Tires
SRAM Omnium Crankset 167.5mm 48T chainring
Ritchey WCS Seatpost - Black
Selle Italia Flite Signo Gel Saddle - Red
Specialized Comp Stem 100mm - Black
Specialized Pro Shallow Drop Bars - 42cm c-c
Fizik Bar Tape
Track Chain

More details on Ridley's website: http://www.ridley-bikes.com/pd/gb/en-gb/6/203/fitness-track/oval

contact: j.cullen@sbcglobal.net