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2002 Race Results
Click here to get a results form. We'll post your results in a few days.
Towpath Marathon - October 13 - Penninsula, Ohio
Mike Slusser/Brian Coote, 2nd overall, two man team, 15.23 (Mike 1:38:11) - 10.97(Brian 1:17:08)
"This was a great experience. The weather was OK, the scenary fantastic, and we kicked butt."
2002 El Lobo Loco CYClocross Series #1 - Sep 28 - NW Pennsylvania
Mark "crossracer-wanabe" Bergman, not quite last place, Cat 4/B
"Hills, mud and washboard. Forgot my legs and lungs . . . "
Akron Duathlon - September 25 - Portage Lakes State ParkAkron, Ohio
Mike Slusser, 3rd overall, Elite Open, 1:24:16
"Had a chance for second ... but couldn't hang. Lost second place by 16 seconds."
Westlake Crit Series - Sep 24 - Westlake, Ohio
Jeremy Grimm, 2nd place, Cat 1, 2, 3
MRSR Crit - Sep 2 - Williamsport, PA
Jeremy Grimm, 7th place, Cat 3
Firelands Duathlon - August 25 - Vermillion, Ohio
Mike Slusser, 1st overall, 1:39:08
"After 15 years of racing, I finally pulled in a win. First first ever!"
Smith's Dairy Milk Race - August 18 - Orrville, Ohio
John Lorson, 4th place, Masters
Jeremy Grimm, 2nd place, Cat 2, 3, 4
Tour of Ohio Crit Series - Aug 2 - 11 - Various Cities in Ohio
Jeremy Grimm, 1st place Overall, Cat 3
8/2 - Perrysburg - 2nd place
8/3 - New Bremen - 2nd place
8/4 - Marion - 13th place
8/7 - Delaware - 5th place
8/8 - Mt. Vernon - 6th place
8/9 - Maarysville - 3rd place
8/11 - Loveland - 5th place
Michigan State Road Race - July 28 - Grand Blanc, Michigan
Jeremy Grimm, 9th place, Cat 3, 4
Westlake Crit Series - July 9 - Westlake, Ohio
Jeremy Grimm, 5th place, Cat 1, 2, 3
Avon Duathlon - July 7 - Avon Lake,Ohio
Mike Slusser, 10th overall, 1st 35-39, 1:22:08
"Not a good race. I don't think I recovered from the Twin Sizzler."
Medina Twin Sizzler - July 4 - Medina, Ohio
"Sunny skies and temeratures in the high 80s made for reserved racing early on but things heated up as the riders got comfortable. Orrrville Cycling Club's showing at the July 4th Twin Sizzler in Medina was outstanding. Several members participated in the 5K and 10K runs and a whole host of red and white jerseys raced in most of the bike categories. After the usual mess ups of placings and after everything was sorted out 14 out of the roughly 25 OCC riders placed. There were three 1st place winners, two 2nd place, three 3rds, four 4ths and two 5th place riders. In a few days we'll have some pictures posted."
5K Run
Mike Slusser, 7th overall, 2nd 35-39, 17:00
"This was a PR for me. I've never broken 17 for a 5K ... but I'm close!"
28 Mile Road Race
Trey Working, 3rd place, Men 50-59
Jim Stedman, 4th place, Men 50-59
Neil Baker, 5th place, Men 50-59
Bill Buckwalter, 1st Place, Men 40-49
Jeff Warner, 4th place, Men 40-49
Mike Slusser, 5th place, Men 35-39
"I still haven't been able to hold back. I found myself pulling at the end for the 3rd year in a row."
Todd Caldwell, 2nd place, Men 30-34
Adam Thompson, 3 place, Men 30-34
Mark Bergman, 4 place, Men 30-34
Ryan Knopf, 4th place, Men 25-29
David Young, 3rd place, Expert Men 19-34
Tracey Weber, 1st place, Women 40-49
Kristin Lorson, 2nd place, Women 35-39
Catherine Scott, 1st place, Women 25-29
Maumee Duathlon - June 23 - Maumee State Park, Ohio
Mike Slusser, 8th overall, Elite Open, 1:29:05
"This is a very flat race. No hills to be found anywhere ... Yahoo!"
Michigan 24 Hour Challenge - June 15, 16 - Grand Rapids, MI
Tracy Weber, 3rd place @267.3 miles, Women 40-44
"In my first ultra race I was extremely pleased to walk away with 3rd in my age group. It was an experience I will never forget and hope to do again."
Clarendon Cup - June 2 - Arlington, Virginia
Jeremy Grimm, 2nd out of 100, Cat 3-4
"Going into this weekend, I was fighting a cold and eye infection. The race started out too fast for me. I was in about 90th place for the first 3 laps. I worked my way up to the top 20. On the 5th lap, an older woman was walking across the street in a turn. The rider in front of me knocked the woman down and was thrown in front of me on the ground. I then proceeded to run over him, taking him out of the race. I was cut, scraped, bruised, and left for dead as the other 80 riders proceeded to try to stampeed over me. I lost my water bottle and broke my sunglasses and then remembered, "I am bleeding", I get a free lap. I seemed like an eternity for the riders to go by, when it was only about 10 seconds. I went backwards on the course to the free lap area, where they checked out my bike. (I used my dad's Rolf Pro Vector wheels to run over the rider, who couldn't avoid the woman. My dad's wheels are better known as "The Tank" wheels.) After being warned sympathetically because of the blood running down my face, for going the wrong way on the course, I didn't receive a free lap because I made it back to soon. Then next lap 5 riders were then put back in the race from the wreck. I never saw the rider that I had run over. At the beginning of the race, they told us the primes were for prizes and not money. I didn't go after any primes. The main reason is because I was never in the front. Until the last ten laps, I finally learned how to pass 80 riders in 1 km. With 3 laps to go, I stayed in the top 5. In the final turn, I was in 2nd place and I passed the leader and then was passed by 1 rider. I jumped on his wheel thinking I could stay on. I ended up getting 2nd place wondering where the rest of the field was in the final sprint. I later found out there was a wreck in the last turn. For my first Cat.3 Criterium race I was very blessed to do as well as I did. Thank you Lord for keeping me safe!"
Jeremy Grimm, DNF, Cat 1-3
"I decided I want to become a Cat.1-2 rider because the race was so much smoother. I sat in the first 30 minutes and decided to go for the 3rd prime because I was already at the front. I took 3rd place in the 3rd prime. After that I dropped to 120th place out of 120 riders. I was dead last. It was a good thing because about 15 riders fell down at the start finish line. One ended up being hospitalized. That was enough to scare me, after already wrecking once today. I dropped out knowing that I can't go for the primes and think of finishing with the 1-2's. Maybe next time!"
Nordonia Duathlon - June 1 - Macedonia, Ohio
Mike Slusser, 3rd overall, 58 min. 47 sec.
"Wasn't quite ready for the high intensity ..."
Maumee Valley Triathlon - May 18 - Northwest Ohio
Mike Slusser, 1st in Division, Two man team, 4 hrs. 39 min.
"This was sort of an adventure race. It consisted of 6 miles canoe, 8.5 miles trail running with 1/5 your body weight in a backpack, and 30 miles bike."
Ohio State Road Race Championship - May 27 - Penninsula, Ohio
Jeremy Grimm, 4th place, Cat 4
"First lap was a piece of cake, 4 laps to go. I was hoping the rest would be this easy. The 2nd lap, Zach strung out the field, going up the hill. I hung on by a thread. I finished one water bottle, I told the pace motorcycle to go around me, and I went back and handed my water bottle to my dad in the van. As I went back up to the field the USCF official told me that I am not allowed to have a transport. My dad knows the rules of cycling and told the official that I am allowed to give things to my dad and not allowed to receive anything. The official gave me a warning because of this and told him it wouldn't happen again. He ended up taking the warning away after he spoke with my dad. I ate a banana that I had already had in my back pocket. I recovered very quickly after the first hill. The USCF official and I were talking about how I lost 70 pounds, so we ended on a good note. The race continued to be easy until we came to the hill the 3rd time. I placed myself in a good position. After being in the back of the pack for 2 laps trying to conserve my energy, I raced to the front. The 4th lap Dave broke away. I was feeling very tired to do all I could to block the other riders. It wasn't working, so I decided to break away from the field, and set up a 1-2 finish for Orrville. Dave was too strong for me. 4th time up the hill, we were all together again. The field was dwindling. On supposedly the last lap, (they never rang a bell) I was setting up strategy with Dave and another rider. We didn't need that strategy because none of the climbers broke away going up the hill the last time. It was going to be another field sprint finish. I got to look at the video of the finish, I was 4 inches from getting 2nd place. This was the best 3 days I have had so far! The Ohio State Champtionship awarded me with the best overall rider in category 4."
OMBC Series, 1st event - May 26 - Vulture's Knob, Wooster, Ohio
John Lorson, 3rd, Expert 35+
"Great day for the Knob! This was the first race in the OMBC Series and there was a huge turnout. I took the lead early in lap one and thought I was gonna have a glide when about 3/4 into it Chris Skinner road by me like I was on a cinder-block Big Wheel. I was willing to accept my fate at the hands of the non-mortal and settle for second, but then some mystery "Racer X" appeared off of my shoulder half way through lap 2 and we then proceeded to torture each other for the next hour and a half. He aced me with about a half mile to go so I had to settle for third. By the way, the weather was fabulous this time. Maybe the curse has been broken. (Knock on wood!)"
Ohio State Criterium Championship - May 26 - Akron, Ohio
Jeremy Grimm, 1st place, Cat 4
"The best part of the whole day wasn't even close to winning the race. I felt a tap on my shoulder and I turned around and to my astonishment, there stood my loving wife. I was so happy to see her because she hasn't been able to go to any of my races since her surgery. I knew I had to win for her! An explosive 1st lap took away from our teams strategies. They had one prime during the race and I came around Zach to win 6 Akron Aeros tickets. The finish was going to hurt a lot. A gigantic field finish five men wide going after the top 3 medals in the state of Ohio. There was intense burning in my legs as I came closer to the finish line, hoping the other riders would just quit. I wanted to win this race so bad! I wanted to show my wife that we could do it together. I threw my bike across the finish line hoping it would be enough to win the race. I didn't get to see the video of the finish, but was told I won by an inch. My brother Chris finally got to see me race! I would like to thank Jesus Christ for being my inspiration in life! My main goal is to witness how important he is in my life! I would also like to thank my wife, dad, mom, brothers, brother in-law, Dave, Mark, John, and all the other Orrville Cycling Club members who show up at the races."
Canfield Communication Criterium - May 25 - Canfield, Ohio
Jeremy Grimm, 1st place, Cat 4
"Almost didn't get to race in this race because of a broken spoke just before the race started. I changed wheels and we started out the first three laps, led by Mark. We then did a prime for 10 tubes. I won the prime and immediately Austintown attacked. I jumped on his wheel and the two of us were alone for 10 laps. As soon as we were caught, I attacked again and led for 3 laps. Towards the end of the race, Dave led out the last couple of laps, hurting the field. Coming to the finish line it was going to be a huge field sprint. Dave and I took 1st and 2nd for our Orrville Club."
David Young, 2nd place, Cat 4
"Jeremy, Mark and I took turns working the pack over. The race came down to a pack sprint that Jeremy won with ease and his tow put me into second with little effort."
Chippewa Creek Road Race - May 12 - Brecksville, Ohio
Jeremy Grimm, 2nd place, Cat 4
"Climbing up the hill for the first time, my legs felt tight and I felt like I wasn't warmed up good enough. The group stayed together on the 2nd lap. On the 3rd lap, Zach (from Lake Effect) and I broke away. We didn't see any of the riders after the 3rd lap. The 5th lap I broke a spoke going down the hill. The last lap I went down the hill slowly, for my safety and
Zach's. He was beating me up the hills and waiting for me, so I knew I wasn't going to beat him. He finished 30 seconds ahead of me, a minute 30 in front of the field. It rained real hard on one lap. Out of 10 races this year, it has rained or snowed 7 times."
David Young, 9th place, Cat 4
"Jeremy Grimm took off on lap 3 with another rider. I sandbagged the chasers. Jeremy placed second despite riding a lap with a broken spoke. I then finished with the pack."
Vulture's Knob MTB Night Race - May 11, Vulture's Knob, Wooster, Ohio
John Lorson, DFL (Dead Freakin' Last), Expert 35+
"OK, so this time it wasn't 38 degrees, but it WAS raining, just like every other race at the Knob this year. It was also dark, but that was a given. I started out great, took over the lead of the Experts early in lap one. Things began to unravel-specifically, my chain-by the time I hit "Mazeville" about 3/4 into that lap. I broke my chain in and had a wonderful time trying to find it in all the mud. By the time I had fixed it I had been passed by nearly all of the sport riders who had started several minutes back. I worked my way through that field, one-by-one and had just about caught up to the experts again when I broke the chain once more! End result? By the time I started my last lap I was pretty much the ONLY soul left on the course! I did finish, thank God-and kept my lead in the point series-but it was one long, ugly road my friends. One long ugly road."
USCF Mid-Atlantic Championship - May 5 - Wilkesville, Ohio
Jeremy Grimm, 3rd place, Cat 4
"Saturday, late afternoon, I decided to go down to the race. Little did I know, it took 3 hours to get down there. I got there with no time to spare. I didn't have time to warm up or put my number on correctly. Thanks to Steve for helping me out from Team Lake Effect, I was ready to race. Well almost ready. I had to eat my banana while I was racing. The first 10 miles were slow, so I attacked. I was left out there for dead for 5 minutes. They caught me on an 18% or greater climb. (bigger than Dearfield) After another 5 miles, I felt like a superhuman. So what do I do, I attack again, foolishly. They left me out there for 10 minutes. I decided to sit in for the next 45 minutes. Then one of the Westerville cyclists attacked on another excruciating climb. According to the other riders this was the last climb of the race. I tried to jump on his wheel, but the next thing I know he has 10 seconds on me and I have 20 seconds on the field. I decided to go back with the field because I wasn't strong enough to catch him. It seemed like two others and myself out of the field were trying to catch him. We gave up with two miles to go. Five Westerville riders then started the attack for the sprint finish. Two Westerville riders broke from the field. I took a deep breath and jumped on their wheel. I didn't want them getting 1st, 2nd, and 3rd in the championship because they didn't deserve it. They did absolutely no work all day! Fortunately, I took 3rd, almost 2nd. I was more pleased with the way I worked with the group. It feels better to be complimented on the way you worked for the field than how you place in any race. I was disappointed that I didn't receive my medal. Tym Tyler said I would get it in the mail, but didn't know when. That is reassuring!"
Calvin's Challenge (12 Hours) - May 4 - Springfield, Ohio
Tracey Weber, 3rd place, Women 40-45, 178 miles
"Several OCC members participated in Calvin's Challenge 12 hour race. There were two loops. The race started on a 50 mile loop and ended on a 7 mile loop. Results can be found at Calvin's Challenge."
Dan Shook, 1st place, Men 50-54, 221 miles
Carmella Massaro, 7th place, Women 45-49, 171 miles
Dean McIlvane, 17th place, Men 40-44, 171 miles
Race at the Lake # 4 - May 4 - Munroe Falls, Ohio
John Lorson, 4th place, Masters 35+
"Learned a little from last week and put myself in a better position coming into the sprint. Thanks to George and the Summit Freewheelers for putting on another exciting and very smoothly run race series this year. It's one of the best around."
Jeremy Grimm, 5th place, Cat 4
"Orrville had two racers today, Mark and myself. The first prime I took 2nd. I wasted a lot of energy trying to catch the guy who won the prime. Mark had done a great job of chasing down the breaks, it helped conserve a lot of my energy. I won the last two prime and tried to finish strong. I would like to thank my brother Chris for being there. He was the awesome camera man. He took over for my Dad, since he was out of town watching my brother play baseball. I would also like to thank the other OCC riders that were at the race cheering us on! Thank you, I can hear you loud and clear. Feels good to have a cheering section."
Covered Bridge Series #4 - April 28 - Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Ohio
John Lorson, 1st place, Cat 4/5 & Masters
Todd Caldwell, 2nd place, Cat 4/5 & Masters
Jeremy Grimm, 4th place, Cat 4/5 & Masters
Wes Jones, Field, Cat 4/5 & Masters
"FINALLY! Total OCC domination of the peloton! We had four strong riders in this race (Todd Caldwell, Jeremy Grimm and Wes Jones) and it paid dividends that will be remembered for years! We covered every move, we had a rider in every break, but what really made the difference for us was the move nobody expected. As we rolled toward the finish in the final, slightly uphill stretch, Wes rolled up out of darkhorse nowhere and caught everybody (us included) by surprise. Suddenly there were four OCC jerseys in the front ten of the pack. Everybody flipped into a millisecond freak-out and that's just when Jeremy hit it hard and jumped out from behind Wes! I jumped on Jeremy's wheel, Todd jumped on mine and with 400 or 500 meters and a tailwind we cranked it out in the longest freakin' sprint I ever wish to be involved in. I took it, Todd got second, Jeremy ended up fourth and Wes got the satisfaction of knowing that he made it all happen. This was a great, great day! for Orrville Cycling Club, and hopefully a sign of more good things to come. Todd, Jeremy, Wes-You know I've gotta say it-ILUM! =;)"
Race at the Lake #3 - April 27 - Munroe Falls, Ohio
John Lorson, 6th place, Masters
"Nice day, good race. Just barely "in the money." Shoulda, woulda, coulda came out of the last turn in a better position..."
Jeremy Grimm, last, Cat. 4
"Thanks to Mark, Todd,and Dave, I won both primes that day. Todd finished 6th place. I felt really good during this whole race. Coming around the 2nd to the last turn, I tried to pedal through the turn, and almost seriously injured myself. If it wouldn't of been for my stupidity, I could have finished within the top 3. I had a flat tire and almost took out Dave.Thank the Lord no one got hurt."
Vulture's Knob Mountain Bike Race - April 21 - Wooster, Ohio
John Lorson, 1st place, Expert Combined
"Another muddy mess! Let me do a little Trek commercial here. On a day this crappy, the cash often goes to the guy whose bike runs the best. Two MTB races this year so far and both have been sub 40 degrees and mud out the wazoo. My Trek 9.8 has been flawless both times. So has Wes'. If I've said it once I've said it a thousand times, that bike is the best mountain bike ever built. Dualies go home, carbon fiber does it all! If you want to change your life, go see Roger and order yours today!"
Race at the Lake Crit Series - April 20 - Munroe Falls, Ohio
Jeremy Grimm, 3rd place, Cat 4
"Dave , Mark, and Todd led me to the first prime of the race, perfectly. The second time was even better. The third time, they wore me out! I would like to thank them for all the hard work they put in. Without them I wouldn't of finished first in the two primes and 3rd place overall! This race will go down in history. Jesus gave me the strength and encouragement by my fellow teammates, telling me to keep pedaling. Thanks again guys. I would do John's "I love you man!" speech, but I think I'll pass!"
Mark Bergman, Domestique, Cat 4
"It is great to have four OCC cat. 4 riders in one race. Great team work guys."
John Lorson, 4th place, Masters
"Cool,dry, and windy. A beautiful day for a race. Racing alone I had to cover every break or risk being left in the pack. Two guys made a great counter attack and I had just finished covering another attack so I couldn't respond. They won it. I got away with about 5 guys with 2 laps to go and we made it stick. Took second in that sprint."
Covered Bridge Series - April 14 - Cuyahoga Valley, Bath, Ohio
John Lorson, 3rd place, Cat 4, 5, Masters 35+
"Finally, I got to race with some teammates! Jeremy and Mark, I love you, man! Also, I can now proudly declare that I have raced and entire road race in a blinding downpour. "
Jeremy Grimm, 4th place, Cat 4, 5, Masters 35+
". . . I did run off the road again,that's twice in 2 days. Team Orrville finished 3rd, 4th & 7th. What a great day, Thank you Jesus for an awesome day."
Mark Bergman, 7th place, Cat 4, 5, Masters 35+
Race at the Lake Crit Series - April 13 - Munroe Falls, Ohio
Jeremy Grimm, 7th place, Cat 4
"A lot of rain today but the course was very nice to ride on. The 11th lap to go I got 2nd on a prime. Two laps before I tried to break away. On the 6th lap to go I won the prime. The next to last lap Mark rode the racers into the ground and I felt good. The last lap I broke away Two others were on my wheel and told me we have a gap. The little climbs felt like Mountains! The sprint was a good one from where I was, 7th place. My legs felt like bricks, I had a little pinch in my left hamstring."
Team Akron's Bicycle Spring series - April 7 - Bath, Ohio
Jeremy Grimm, 1st place overall, Cat 4-5-Masters 35+
"I attacked the first lap before the second hill, less than a mile into the race. I forced them to chase for two miles. After that, I relaxed for four laps. There was a very strong head wind. I let the other racers chase down the breakaways. The fifth lap we all stayed together. It came down to the final sprint. I let three racers pull me to the front. I chose the right racers wheels. I started sprinting 300 yards out. I had four to five bike lengths on the peloton. I looked back and let up easy. I ended up beating them by three bike lengths. It feels good to win a race, since I have been away from the sport for so long! First and foremost I would like to thank Jesus Christ for giving me the ability to be healthy and to have fun racing again! I would also like to thank my wife for being very supportive for all the long hours of training I have put in. I also want to thank my mom and dad for also being very supportive and taking care of me all those years when I had Lyme's Disease. Thank you Dad for getting me back into the sport!!"
Circuits de Richland County - April 6 - Malabar Farm State Park, Ohio
Jeremy Grimm, 15th of 50 riders, Cat 3-4
"Cold, very cold! It was 31 snowy miles.This was my first race in thirteen years. I am glad to be back in racing again.I did better than I had expected. I want to thank my wife for being very supportive."
Vulture's Knob MTB - March 26 - Vulture's Knob, Wooster, Ohio
John Lorson, 3rd place, Expert/Gobbler (35+)
"38 degrees, rain and, of course, plenty of mud. Weather-wise there's nowhere to go but up. Right?"