{"id":276508,"date":"2024-09-12T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-09-12T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=276508"},"modified":"2024-09-12T16:34:12","modified_gmt":"2024-09-12T16:34:12","slug":"cyclists-test-their-skills-in-texas-road-race-at-the-great-place","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=276508","title":{"rendered":"Cyclists test their skills in Texas Road Race at The Great Place"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n Elite racers cross the finish line as a checkered flag waves during their last lap of the Texas Road Race Sept. 7, 2024, at Fort Cavazos, Texas.
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\n Spc. Ebdiel Lewis and Sgt. Jordan McCray, both with 112th Cavalry Regiment, pose on an M2A3 Bradley on display during the Texas Road Race Sept. 7, 2024, at Fort Cavazos, Texas.
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\n Some of the fastest competitors round the corner of the course during the Texas Road Race Sept. 7, 2024, at Fort Cavazos, Texas. The first heat of racers completed three 33-mile laps, just shy of 100 miles, of grueling terrain during the race. The closed course at Fort Cavazos provides racers the opportunity to compete on a long loop without worrying about traffic.
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\n Pfc. Roman Melnyk, Pfc. Aaron Garcia, Sgt. Tyrone Turner and Staff Sgt. Matthew Russell, all with 112th Cavalry Regiment, pose atop an M1A2 Abrams tank displayed during the two-day Texas Road Race Sept. 7, 2024, at Fort Cavazos, Texas.
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FORT CAVAZOS, Texas \u2014 <\/strong>Sweltering summer temperatures gave way to cooler fall breezes Saturday morning, providing ideal weather conditions for racers competing in this year\u2019s Texas Road Race.<\/p>\n

The two-day event saw cyclists from all over the world converge at The Great Place to test their skills.<\/p>\n

Set against a backdrop of M1A2 Abrams and M1A3 Bradley static displays, the fastest racers kicked off the elite event, with more than 160 experienced riders in five groups competing at various skill levels.<\/p>\n

Sunday featured the age-graded championships, as racers from young to young at heart showcased their skills.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the key race of the year,\u201d expressed Andy Hollinger, Texas Road Race director. \u201cThis is the championship. This is something that people train for.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe ability to have a road race that has a long loop, paved road, and closed course is everything,\u201d he said of the location on Fort Cavazos. \u201c(Racers) don\u2019t have to fight traffic, and they can use both sides of the road. It\u2019s a lot like racing in Europe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hollinger added, much to his delight, this year\u2019s race had an influx of women racers, as a majority of the competitors are male.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis year, we have 20 women in the elite categories, which is incredible,\u201d he expressed. \u201cAnd we\u2019re very proud that they decided to come out and race.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pamela Ferguson, co-captain of Haute Wheels Racing, a women\u2019s cycling team based in Houston, said the race is an excellent way for riders to challenge themselves, build character and develop competence.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was such a hard course,\u201d she shared. \u201cI said I would never do this race again, but I did last year, and then decided to try again this year. It really earns its name as a championship course. I keep coming back to challenge myself and to try to encourage more women to come out and race.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hollinger explained racers navigate up to three 33-mile laps around the course, totaling just shy of 100 miles of grueling terrain.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey have hills, they have downhills, they have steep climbs,\u201d he noted. \u201cThat\u2019s 2,500 feet of climbing each lap. That\u2019s a big deal.\u201d<\/p>\n

Since its start in 2009, the race has generated approximately $75,000 in donations for military charities, and each race is held in memory of \u201cthe racers that went before us,\u201d Hollinger shared.<\/p>\n

Also known as the Bill Weinlein Memorial Championship Races, the Texas Road Race celebrates the memory of Weinlein, a cyclist and long-time official who succumbed to melanoma in 2023.<\/p>\n

Hosting the race on Fort Cavazos has special significance Hollinger conveyed.<\/p>\n

\u201cMany of us are veterans, so having it here means a lot to us,\u201d he said. \u201cHaving the Soldiers here, having the national anthem \u2026 it\u2019s very meaningful. We\u2019re very grateful that the base does so much and for the welcome that we get from the Army.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ferguson encouraged those considering racing to give it a shot.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf there\u2019s a woman out there, anybody reading this who\u2019s thinking about racing but is intimidated or afraid, just show up and try it,\u201d she said. \u201cI think you\u2019ll have fun and maybe find a new passion.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhatever you\u2019re thinking about and want to do, do it because you have one life,\u201d she continued. \u201cAnd I think it\u2019s important and essential to find a passion. For me, (it) is
bike racing.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

1 \/ 4 Show Caption + Hide Caption \u2013 Elite racers cross the finish line as a checkered flag waves during their last lap of the Texas Road Race Sept. 7, 2024, at Fort Cavazos, Texas. (Photo Credit: Photo by Janecze Wright, Fort Cavazos Public Affairs) VIEW ORIGINAL 2 \/ 4 Show Caption + Hide […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":276510,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-276508","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/276508","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=276508"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/276508\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":276515,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/276508\/revisions\/276515"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/276510"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=276508"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=276508"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=276508"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}