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Village of Winona Criterium Warsaw, IN. Winona Lake: home of Grace Theological Seminary and the Billy Sunday Museum. It's also the former stomping grounds of one Hobart Freeman, himself a graduate of the Grace Seminary. Freeman was a self-anointed apostle of the "True Faith" who in the early '70's misled thousands of zealous yet gullible followers to eschew medical science as evil, opting instead for faith healing. Additionally he taught his followers to become generally dogmatic and judgmental people. The "apostle" died in the mid '80's of cardiac arrest from pneumonia, a complication of being bedridden with gangrene of the lower leg which had set in as a result of refusing medical treatment for an open sore on his foot from ill fitting orthopedic shoes he has to wear as a result of childhood polio. He was waiting for God to heal him. There is some irony to all of this but it's best left alone in respect for the thousands of ruined lives left in his wake. His movement died shortly after he did. This race was well funded and attended by the local community but wasn't well publicized. Team Turin was planning on racing at the Eagle Creek Indy bragging rights stage race but opted on Friday to change plans and follow the money. We're glad we did. It was a beautiful setting on the banks of Lake Winona. On a course little more than a half-mile around, it goes like this: 100 meters from the start, cross a bridge over a canal take an off camber left hand, downhill turn onto a narrow road past a row of artist cottages, left hand off camber over the same canal into a vicious headwind past bungalows and bed and breakfasts homes heading toward the lake. At the lake, make a sweeping left hand turn, catching a tailwind past the Killarney Castle Inn before exiting onto the finishing straight with about 250 meters to the start finish. Warming up the tour took about 1:30. During the racing you had barely over 1:10 to enjoy the view. Hay bales were pilled high at every corner. MASTERS 35+ Small field. Druber takes sprint for prieme at 10 min. Break of 4 riders is formed. Break laps remainder of field at least twice. Druber wins another prieme. Sweet merchandise. Kudos to the sponsors. Try as he might, and he tried plenty, Druber is unable to shake the 3 companions in the break. On last lap Druber is sitting 2nd wheel. Bill (no relation to Jim) Plunkett of the Honeywell team is 3rd wheel. Druber, after witnessing flames shooting off of Plunkett's bike while sprinting for a set of Specialized Mondo tires, is afraid of Plunkett's acceleration. Druber is riding tail of great big bike racer from South Chicago Wheelmen. Just before turn 4 Plunkett squeezes through a gap of 42cm on the left gutter. Druber tries to follow but since his handlebars are 44 cm cannot make it. Passes great big bike racer on the right and tries to catch Plunkett who is 40 meters up the road by now. Nothing doing. 2nd.
Small field. Present is the 2000 masters 30+ Criterium champ. The Gashouse Gang, Reservoir Dogs and Turin are well represented. Turin has full squad intact for only the second time this season.
Whistle Blows and Sout' Side Johnny is through the first corner before the head Blue Coat inhales. Small field is attacked repeatedly and gut punched by Johnny who has the collar of his leather jacket turned up and a pair of brass knuckles on his fists. Druber sits back and observes as breaks form with two Turin riders present in each. Druber has instructions to wait until later. This is fine, because Druber has stuffed his jersey pockets with donuts from the bakery on the corner and he wants to enjoy them during the race. Eventually a break with Big D and Ryan sticks. Sout' Side marshals the front. Druber makes sure the back of the race stays intact. Eventually Big D and a Gashouse Gang member jump off the front of and the break is two. The Philippino and Sout' Side jump on every wheel attempting to bridge. It goes like this for the next 30 minutes. Druber, still patrolling the back enjoys a sour cream cake donut. With the efforts of the individual riders and the Reservoir Dogs thoroughly frustrated by Ryan and Johnny, a Gashouse Gang rider attacks out of the filed with about 15 minutes left to race. Sout' Side is put in a spot of bother trying to reel him in. Seeing this as a call to action, Druber wipes the donut crumbs from his face and moves forward. Attacking into the headwind, aided by the energy from his stash of pastries Druber quickly separates from the field and starts pursuit. In a lap and ½ Druber and Gashouse Gang rider hook up and work up to our teammates who have been laboring 26 seconds off the front for 30 minutes. The field accordingly provoked by two Gashouse Gang and two Turin up the road starts to chase. Gashouse Gang is unwilling to work in break. Gap shrinks. Knowing that Big D has secretly loaded his new Turin issue Orbea Mitis with a solid rocket fuel booster, Druber does what he does best, move to the front for a 3 mile pull. D won't let me down. Six laps to go, Big D is resting, Druber is burning recently consumed calories and the gap is growing again. On the money lap, Big D jumps out of the mini van sized wake created by Druber just before turn 3, floats on the tailwind through turn 4, gets on top of his 11, ignites the solid rocket fuel booster and launches himself toward the finish line. Despite leading out the sprint, Big D wins handily, and shuts down the rocket before he ends up in the hay bales or worse, in the canal. Druber limps home behind the Gashouse Gang, burping up sour cream cake donut and enjoying the second opportunity to savor the pastry. Back in the field, Sout' Side Johnny gets nipped in the field sprint by the Y2K Masters 30+ crit champ for 5th. Ryan is the 4th Turin in the top 10 at 9th. Well done. After the race, the atmosphere was congratulatory, celebratory and down right civil. Perhaps is was because we were after all, racing on hallowed ground, but in the parking lot after the race, Druber even used the word "heck" rather than the alternative. It was almost like a time trial. Hopefully this race is put on again next year. It was well run, well attended by locals and it's a great setting.
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