Joy on Bike: We made it through!

The TEAM:

Angus Morton and Patrick Drapac from Australia and Drapac Porsche Professional Cycling

Larry Warbasse and Chris Butler, BMC U23 Team

Alex Jarmin and Orion Berryman from Swami's Development Elite Team, San Diego

And Rouge cyclist Carson Miller

Plus of COURSE, our own favorite BMc

What did I do? haha well....I "managed" the team. This meant sitting near Axel Meryx in the managers meeting and trying not to sweat. I cooked dinner for 12-18 people a night, lined up some massages, made sure our killer mechanic Jason was availible for tune-ups and clean-ups each evening, set up ez-up and chairs and camp at each stage, made sure we had upwards of 60 bottles filled and ready to go and the list goes on. Had to have some chats with the chief officials, accidentally stole two Mavic neutral support wheels, and basically stressed out. The Breyers, Mark, Tine, Jason, the Mortons, Lanzas, Welsh and the list goes on and on, of people who really stepped up so I wouldn't literally jump into the middle of the peloton during the crit so I could just DIE. What a massive, yet amazing and rewarding undertaking!

This team came together as a dream of Brian's that most people just smiled and played along with. By mid February it was clear that it was gonna happen whether we liked it or not, so we better batten down the hatches and ride it like we stole it! I think we truly got the pick of the litter for our Composite team. With 7 Guest Riders, you never really know what could hit the fan. Coming from Australia, Gussy and Patty are some of the most unassuming, gracious, and well-rounded athletes I have come across. And they can throw down on the bike!

Chris and Larry came hot off of BMC pro training camp and ready to whet their appetite on the competition. Post Classic, Chris got the call up to race for BMC Professional team!

Our Swami's riders made the long trek from San Diego to ride with us. It was great having some local riders who we have seen at other events and at least gotten aquainted with a little bit.

And then there is Carson. This kid is nuts. Totally self-supported, rode for Land Rover last year and this year has no team, yet finished 37th on the Beaumont Stage and went toe-to-toe with other fully supported riders the entire weekend. Awesome.

Just look for the lungs!!

We had a hard time spotting the new jerseys. Until I realized they looked like lungs, and now I can see them everywhere! Here, Gussy with 18 year old little bro Lachlan Morton pre TT. Lachlan is a machine! He rode in the brake of 10 on the sunset race, on his junior gears! We will definately see more of these boys!!

Ack!! FEEDZONES!!!! Man, looking for and feeding 8 boys is stressful! Especially when I do not know then that well. I didn't know if they would flip a lid if I missed their feed, which bottles they really needed, and basically they came at me at mock 7. After one feed I swear my pinky finger was broken! Thankfully on Friday Matt Breyer was driving the follow car stocked with at least 20 bottles filled with goodness. Carson sent BMc back to the car to get 6 bottles! Welcome to the NRC baby!

The crit was really amazing. Living here in Redlands brings the added bonus of having a huge home-court advantage and extremely large support crew. Brian is a friend to EVERYONE so the corners were packed with cheerleaders! Meredith Lanza made the COOLEST tshirts for Destry, Joey and Jamie that all said "GO MCCULLOCH" and the crew could be found littered around the coures cheering. Although Destry did say "hey that's my blue shirt!" He wore it with pride!

If you have ever watched Brian race a crit, you can tell he is a natural. He can squirrel himself into the smallest of places, probably because he is small too, and his professional motorcross background really comes in handy! Brad Huff from Jelly Belly called him "Hot Route"! This stage was Brian's best performance of the weekend, finishing 77th and on the lead time! He came around turn 11 completely roached and holding on the every bit of sprint he could muster!

It was so awesome post race to have our little compound swarmed with friends! All the other teams were packing up and our rag-tag crew was high-fiving and giving hugs to everyone involved.

Autographs for Kailee!!Brian and Destry! Yup, he's drinking a coke! Yikes! Carson taught me a lot of manager tricks. Have a cooler wtih premade recovery drinks, cokes, and cold towels for after each stage. Money!

Sunday Sunday. Brian took the approach to race each and every stage like it was the last one EVER and there was no race the next day! getting to Sunday was a huge deal, for many reasons. Brian is a cat 2 racing against a field filled with mostly pro/cat1 racers who are paid to ride their bikes and have a lot of experience. This is Brian's first season as a 2, he works 40 hours plus a week, trains around 20 a week and a lot of it in the dark. This picture here is one I will keep forever! At the start of the stage, a few awards are given out. One of them being the Carol King Sportsmanship Award. Brian got it!! When Scott Welsh was giving his little speech, he had to stop because he was getting choked up! If you know Brian, you know he is very unassuming, hates the spotlight, and would give you his jersey, shoes, helmet and even bike if you really needed it. To recieve such an award, in front of your peers, mentors, roll models and friends, was really really amazing!!

Then, he had to go upfront again! Being a solid philanthropist, Brian, with the help of teammates Mitch Porche, Evan Trubee and everyone else, raised over $5,000 to give back to PossAbilities which will enable more disabled athletes to particate in really cool events!

Here is Orian, Gussy, Carson, and Patty D waiting for the start. The kits will grow on me...

Only the front group is let through on Sunday and onto the circuits downtown, so we had our whole team to chear and support Lachlan Mortan as he flew through the last 5 laps of the crit course!