On our final day in Texas, the 60+ men contested the 3000 meter team pursuit. The Vic's Espresso/Peerless Tire team of Dennis Hastings, Barry Messmer, Jim Kinsinger and Paul Mack were the last team to go in our category and on the day. A mixed team calling themselves Wall-E went first and posted a time of 4:27.435. We were confident we could beat that time but next came the Alto Velo/Webcor men. They were led by Larry Wolff the gold medal winner from both the 2K and the points race with some real horsepower in Mark Rodamaker and two others. They rode well at 4:09.671 nearly 20 seconds better than Wall-E. That was our time to beat.
We lined up resplendent in our matching Vic's Espresso/Peerless Tire kits and off we went. Many teams had mixed kits as they we're put together just for the event. We rode our hearts out and were ahead at every check.
Our final time of 4:00.615 took the gold and smashed the national record
.As the racing came to a close, it was a proud moment for all of us on the Vic's Espresso/Peerless Tire team. Our team had performed well with every one of us going home with a medal.
Note the Specialized "podium shoes" worn by Barry in the photo. They were quite the item with Joe even slipping into them for his Points Race podium appearance.
Perhaps it was the two hour warm-up in the afternoon Texas heat. It's so hard to judge when to start your warm-up at track events.
We're all happy to be back on the Front Range but our thoughts go to all those affected by the tragic Four Mile fire. Now would be a good time for the rain we had in Texas to appear in Boulder County.
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Paul Mack and Barry Messmer lined up Saturday night for the 60-64 points race. There were 12 riders, with a large number of sprinters present. The plan was to trade attacks and try and get off the front to lap the field, our best hope of winning. We attacked from the gun, but were always brought back. After the third of four sprints, Larry Wolfe attacked down low. Barry chased, but was too late. Larry did eventually lap the field, leaving Barry to solo in for the maximum points on the last sprint which netted him third. Paul was not idle in the field, he continued to disrupt the field to ensure Barry's solo bid and a high placing.
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