Sunday, November 07, 2010

ICEMAN 2010

THE BIGGEST WIN IN ICEMAN HISTORY NOV. 6th 2010 BRIAN MATTER WINS ICEMAN

Visit cyclingdirt.org for more Videos

SUE STEPHENS 6th PRO W
ERIN VICARY 11th PRO W
STEVE DEMPSEY 18th PRO M
Scott and Christina 11th Tandem

The Sunset on the Season Party was awesome. Thank you Bells Brewery, the Orbitsuns, the Brothers Brzuchanski, Scott Quiring, Stans No Tubes, Louis Garneau, OAKLEY and Cyclingdirt.org

Saturday, October 23, 2010

BELL'S MOUNTAIN BIKE TEAM presents: The 9th Annual SUNSET ON THE SEASON PARTY!

Come one! Come all!
Let's celebrate another year of racing & good times... Speed & Alcohol!
Video by: the Brzuchanski Bros.
Music by: The Orbitsuns
Song Title: Speed and Alcohol
Starring: Sue Stephens, Erin Vicary, John Meyers, and The Orbitsuns

Wednesday, September 01, 2010

Update On Jason's Recovery

Today was a rough day for Jason but it ended on a positive note! When I spoke to him earlier via texts he said pain wise it was his worst day yet. I checked in on him again later today & he said they had upped his dosages again & got the pain in check but he wasn't sure now if they would be sending him home from the hospital today. Well, about an hour ago I received a call from Kathy Lummis & Jason did indeed get to go home today :o)! Kathy said "It's so good to have us all back together in our home again! I'm so happy." She also stated again how much it means to her & Jason to know so many people care. To know that people are wishing Jason well day in and day out since the accident is very heart warming & has lifted their spirits to get through this difficult time. People are still trying to spread the word about the type of vehicle that struck Jason. Once again that vehicle is a 1999-2000 Ford F250, F350, or Excursion that has a broken passenger side mirror . People are also asking what they can do to help Jason & his family through this recovery... there has been a fund set up at PAYPAL : jason.lummis@charter.net


Thanks again to everyone... I was very happy to report Jason is HOME :o)!!!

-Erin

Stony Creek XC

Stony Creek Metro Park...'Stony Baloney'.... 'Stoner Creek'... the wonderful park we off road cyclists have the opportunity to race at what seems like every other weekend throughout the season. There's the Stony Creek TT, Stony Creek Marathon, Stony Creek XC, 6/12 hrs of Stony Creek, Stony Creek Cyclocross... Out of the 5 races I've done in the last month & a half 2 have been there....lol. I'm not complaining because I really like Stony...this is just an observation I've made. The only time I ride there really is for races so it's funny to me how well I've gotten to know the course over the years just from that.
So, without a pre-ride or a warm-up I took to the line this past Sunday to battle it out @ Stony once again along side 4 other expert/elite women in Tailwind's final XC race of the season. I didn't do a proper warm up because the race was going to be 2.5 hrs & I didn't know if I'd be able to even finish trying to ride at 'race pace' for that long. My plan was to pray that no one started terribly hard & just get warmed up while I was racing to conserve energy and that's kinda what happened :o). Melissa Mabry (Precision MTB.com) took the lead at the start, with Marne Smiley (Scott Bikes/Ollett Coaching), myself, Dana Baurhenn (Wolverine/ACFstores.com), & Heather Patterson (Dark Horse Racing) following behind in a group. Melissa stayed on the front for at least the first 10 minutes & then I jumped up front to take a turn. I think everyone was still together at this point but I'm not sure how long that lasted as eventually behind me I heard Marne ask to 'get by' someone & the next time I checked it was just Marne & I. And that's how it stayed until the beginning of the 4th and final lap. Marne & I had an absolute BALL ripping around that trail in unison. I don't think either of us were trying to break our necks because we were just having too much fun riding together. I for one was pleased that I was actually able to ride with her... something I wasn't counting on at all because I know she's getting fast for her upcoming cyclocross season. SO round and round Stony we rode together until the beginning of last lap when Marne laid it down RIGHT in front of me going into a loose, 90 degree right turn coming off the two track heading back into the single track. I slammed on the brakes with my front tire barely making contact & managed to stay completely upright. Marne popped up, shook it off, checked her handlebars, & put her chain back on. She said she was alright & ready to go so I scooted in front of her, looked back to make sure she was ready & we were off again. After a couple minutes I didn't hear her behind me anymore (& afterwards I found out that her chain fell off again right away so she had to stop.). So I was missing my buddy but reminded myself it was a RACE...lol... & I should press on before someone caught me lollygagging. Being my final lap I decided it would be a good time to test what I had left in the tank after riding 2hrs. I ended up having more left than I would've thought & started catching & passing some of the Expert men. I was so pleased with everything at that point... the fun trail, racing with my friend, feeling strong,etc that NOTHING could've wiped the smile off my face. From what I can tell looking at photos Andrea Tucker (www.tuckerbikes.com) & Hans Nyberg (www.tenmilemedia.smugmug.com) took... looks like I may have been grinning ear to ear pretty much the whole race.

And the smile just got bigger the closer I got to the finish line until I finally crossed it for the win :o)!

Of course my teammate & friend Jason Lummis was not far from my mind during the race & he served as inspiration for sure. I noticed there was quite a bit of Bell's flair going on @ Stony in his honor. People wearing Bell's jerseys in lieu of their team kit, buttons, etc. .. really nice to see the support for Jason! One racer in particular, an expert/elite woman (whom shall remain nameless because I'm sure she didn't do it expecting to get a shout out), approached me after awards while I was by myself & on the phone. She handed me the cash filled envelope she received from being on the podium & whispered that she was giving it to me to pass on to Jason & his family. I was so touched my eyes welled up with tears (as they are right now typing this), I said thank you & hugged her. So yeah... thank you again to everyone who has shown support in one way or another for Jason. Our little bike racing community in Michigan... we have something very special here ;o).

-Erin

Sunday, August 29, 2010

Update On Jason


He's going to be fine :o). He is out of ICU & in a regular room now. He is still heavily medicated for pain and it will be a long road to complete recovery but the bottom line is he's definitely going to make it there eventually! He is doing better than expected & getting better each day. Anyone that knows him, knows he's pretty darn tough & very determined. Both are qualities that will prove to be important in the months ahead. Amazingly Jason has has already managed to take some short, slow walks down the hospital halls & to the restroom with the assistance of a walker! Also he has to wear a special brace (wearing it in the picture) to keep his spine in place for a few months while his fractured lower back heals.






I'm not sure yet on how much longer he will have to remain in the hospital. I believe Jason said he could find out tomorrow when he may leave.

Thank goodness he has a lot of friends & a wonderful family to help him through this tough time. Him & his wife Kathy have definitely been touched by everyones support and really appreciate it.

I'll leave you with Kathy's own words...
"THANKS EVERYONE for all the support, thoughts & prayers! We R truly blessed it has been breath taking & heart warming knowing so many people care! Jason is going to be fine we R SO LUCKY & know it will be a long recovery, but we all know Jason he is a strong one & WILL be back in the saddle soon. God Bless each one of you for touching our hearts & making this very difficult situation so much easier! LOVE U ALL !!!"

Friday, August 27, 2010

Teammate Jason Lummis Severely Injured In Hit & Run




On Wednesday August 25th, our teammate Jason Lummis was riding his 20 mile commute by bike from his job at Great Lakes Cycling & Fitness in Ann Arbor to his home in Pinckney when he was struck by a vehicle around 9:00 pm & severely injured. The vehicle has been estimated to have impacted Jason at a rate of 50- 60 mph. The driver never stopped when they struck Jason & sent him into a ditch where he laid bleeding & critically injured until two motorcyclist found him. 911 was called & Jason was taken to UofM Hospital & has remained in the ICU to treat his injuries. He lost a lot of blood because of a vein punctured through his left gluteus muscle. That wound is 1" wide but of unmeasurable depth. He sustained many other injuries & fractures of the hip, pelvis, lower lumbar, & sacrum.

Today Jason will be getting a brace that goes from the neck to his upper hip area to stabilize his spine. It may still be too early to tell but so far it appears that his fractures could possibly be able to heal in time without any need for surgery. I spoke with his wife Kathy this morning and she says that the out pouring of support from everyone has been a huge uplift to Jasons spirit. We all appreciate everyones kind words, thoughts, & prayers for Jason & his family. It is helping!

Besides helping Jason we need to find him justice! We all hope the person that drove away after hitting him will come forward on their own and admit what they have done. The search will continue until they find this person and the vehicle. The police are looking for a FORD F250, F-350, or EXCURSION with a BROKEN PASSENGER SIDE MIRROR. PLEASE BE ON THE LOOKOUT. Especially in the DEXTER-PINCKNEY AREA. Anyone with information about the crash or the driver of the vehicle that stuck Lummis should call the Washtenaw County Sheriff's Department tip line at 734-973-7711.

Please follow our Team Facebook Page for updates on Jason's condition & the investigation.

Thank You!








Wednesday, August 25, 2010

A Weekend of Time Trials


First off was the Maybury TT on Saturday in Northville. At one time I used to live 10 minutes from Maybury & rode there all the time. Having the advantage of knowing the trail helped me for sure in the twisty single track. If you get into the zone there that trail can have amazing flow but if you don't you can end up working a lot harder than need be. Besides the fun single track they added a few more miles of other stuff like pavement, a stretch of gravel rd, & some long grass sections. The turn out for the expert/elite women's group was a bigger than average... 9 ladies! Good to see :o)! The results say 8 but that's only because we lost my friend & former teammate, Andrea Balding (Dark Horse racing), after the first lap to a DNF (bad crash). I think I was fourth to start so I had 3 ladies to chase down & 5 stay in front of. I caught everyone in the first half of the first lap & then just tried to keep a steady pace & not get gobbled up by the competition that started behind, namely Tara Jansen (Farm Team). At certain points on the course you could see other racers & a couple times I saw Dana Baurhenn (Wolverine/ACFstores.com) somewhere not too far behind me but then eventually lost sight of her. At the end of my first lap I was chugging along down a wide grassy section when I spotted a group of 20 people standing on the trail in front of me. I rode through the group & exited with a growling dog nipping at my feet. My first instinct was to 'fight' but I like dogs so instead of feeding it the cleat on my shoe I decided to try 'flight' first. Thankfully that worked as the dog finally gave up the chase. With my heart rate pegged I headed into my second lap. It was for the most part exactly the same as the first... minus the dog and add some rain. I ended up finished in an hour & a half feeling good & never getting passed by my competition. After finishing I cooled down a bit, talked to friends, & got cleaned up. I still hadn't checked results to see how I finished when my friend Brian came over to me & said "Erin you won!". I hadn't had winning ANYWHERE on my radar so I was pretty taken back. #1.Staying Upright & #2.Having Fun were my only goals so needless to say the unexpected bonus of winning left me tickled pink :o). I celebrated with an Oberon, collected my winnings, & then went home to clean up my bike & recoup for the Fort Custer Time Trial the next morning.
Sunday I woke up feeling like I had been in a wreck but I managed to come around enough to prepare a to-go breakfast , throw my stuff in the car, & head out. I wanted to get there early so I had time for a nice long warm up but it turned out I almost didn't even make it to the race. Cruising by myself down 94 West, coffee flowing, radio cranked, starting to wake up... I got a flat tire :o(. I called Lummis & luckily (for me) he was running late & driving behind me about 10 minutes back so he agreed to stop & get me :o)! After that we were running REAL late! When we finally arrived we basically had only enough time to grab our #'s at registration, throw on our kits, & GO! I had preregistered earlier in the week so I started first amongst the ladies along side Erin Disterheft (Team Billy's). Erin & I were always good competition for each other in the past. Knowing what kind of shape she was likely in & knowing what kind of mess I've been coming back from I wished her luck & said "goodbye" before the clock even started. Winning the race at Maybury the day before didn't mean somehow I magically got fast again...lol. I know there is MUCH work to be done still so I let Erin D. go at the start & focused on staying ahead of the other 5 ladies. With no warm up & initially being so sore from the day prior I was surprised at how good I actually felt!!! The trail was in awesome shape & just an absolute rip roaring blast to ride on my 29er. Again I had the same goals... #1. Stay upright & #2. Have Fun! Both were accomplished in about an hour & ten, managing to stay ahead of the competition again for the entire race. After finishing I went for a cool down spin in the park. My friend Andy found me & informed me I got 2nd place! Another big surprise! Again I was shocked & very happy.

Jason Lummis ended up 10 seconds off the podium in 6th & John Meyers in 8th. After awards and Zack Lummis's 'kids race' we all piled into the mini van & headed to Bell's Eccentric cafe for lunch in the beer garden. Eventually Lummis got me back to my car & I sent them on their way. I can honestly say I almost enjoyed sitting there staring at the corn on the side of the expressway waiting for my tire to get fixed. I had such a great weekend it was actually kind of nice to sit there & reflect on it for awhile :o).


Thanks to everyone who has given me words of encouragement about returning to racing.
I'm so thankful to be healthy enough to be back at it again!

And one more thing... A HUGE congratulations goes out to Sue Stephens on accomplishing her 2010 season goal of winning the Ontario Cup Series. She raced all season against some of the best names in Canadian mountain biking and came out on top! Congrats Sue! We're very proud of you!

:o)
Erin

Friday, July 02, 2010

Summer Fun



I'm not quite sure where to begin on this post. That's probably due to the fact that my last blog entry pertaining to riding was for the '08 edition of the Peak2Peak race . It's been a while since I've had anything to speak of in the realm of riding or racing because I had been injured for so long. It took forever & a day ( about a year & a half) to finally heal up enough that I felt normal... let alone well enough to throw my leg over a bike. I'm happy (<-- HUGE understatement) to say that I've been back in the saddle & riding consistently since the begining of June. Now, when I say I've been 'riding', I'm not talking about hill repeats or vo2 intervals. Hell no! Not yet at least ;o). I'm talking about cranking out pure enjoyment on the bike, in the woods, flying through the trees... just for the fun of it. That is exactly what Sue & I did the other day at Maybury.




Erin doing the fallen-tree-limbo.





Sue is cleared for take off!





We even scoped out S.E. Michigan's cycling expressway: Hines Dr.




Afterwards we chatted for hours over some cold one's. What a blast we had! I love my Bell's Boys and now having Sue on the team.... it just ROCKS! I can't wait until the day we get to line up together at a race. Until then though, these fun rides together will most definitely suffice ;o).

Cheers to riding with friends :o)!
Happy 4th of July! Have Fun & Be Safe!

:o)
Erin

Thursday, June 03, 2010

2010 Team bike--- JASON LUMMIS

2010 Bells Brewery/ Quiring Cycles Team Frame is an aluminum BB30 29er frame. The bike rolls on STANS ZTR RACE rims with a ZTR rear hub and a lefty front hub, Drivetrain is supplied by SRAM with the SRAM XX 2x10 42/29 with a 11-32, suspension is taken care by CANNONDALE LEFTY CARBON SL Tires are Barro race from Geax. the bike weighs in at just under 20.5lbs.
The great folks @ GREAT CYCLING and FITNESS of Ann Arbor MI
















What a crazy year year I have ahead of me after 4 years of mostly rigid bike racing with mechanical Vbrakes,. This year with the help of my great sponsors I have a front suspension/disc brake bike that weighs just as much as my previous years rigid Vbrake bikes !
--JL

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

More Good News From MyPOV360.com

MyPOV360.com is an Official Sponsor of the Bell’s Brewery/Quiring Cycles Professional Mountain Bike Team

MyPOV360.com, a new online retailer of point-of-view wearable action cameras and accessories is excited to announce their title as the Official Point of View Camera sponsor for the Bell's Brewery/Quiring Cycles Professional Mountain Bike Team.


05.25.2010 – Boyne City, Mich., (May 25, 2010) – MyPOV360.com, a new online retailer of point-of-view wearable action cameras and accessories is excited to announce their title as the Official Point of View Camera sponsor for the Bell's Brewery/Quiring Cycles Professional Mountain Bike Team.

MyPOV360.com offers an excellent selection of wearable video action cameras, perfect for any mode of bicycling, including the: Drift Innovation X170, GoPro Camera HD Helmet Hero, Contour HD, and more. All video cameras have bike-specific mounting options for a bike helmet, handlebars, or bike seat post, to provide hands-free video for many shooting angles.


The Drift X170 (above) is the camera the Bell's/Quiring Team will be using.

The Bell’s Brewery/Quiring Professional Mountain Bike Team is based out of Michigan and is claimed to be the Midwest’s best mountain bike team. Michigan-based Bell’s Brewery is famed for being the oldest craft-brewer east of Boulder, Colorado. Quiring Cycles of Charlotte, Michigan is a customized-fit high quality bike builder specializing in 29ers. Team members include: Scott Quiring, Jason Lummis, John Meyers, Steve Dempsey, Sue Stephens, Erin Vicary and Jason Jones.

“MyPOV360.com is thrilled to sponsor the Bells Brewery/Quiring Team,” said John Rounds, MYPOV360.com founder. “They are a high-profile, professional riding organization with great connections in the Midwest cycling community. ”

To welcome friends, fans and family of the team, MyPOV360.com is offering a promo code for $30 off any order over $150, plus free UPS ground shipping anywhere in the continental US. Sign up at http://www.mypov360.com/bells-brewery-quiring-team-promo/ to receive this exclusive promo code.

The team is excited to share video footage of their rides. To get all the latest updates and videos from the team please visit: http://www.bellsmtbteam.blogspot.com/. For more information about Drift and MyPOV360.com please visit: www.mypov360.com.

About MyPOV360.com
MyPOV360.com is an online retailer of the hottest point-of-view wearable video sports cameras and accessories for video and photography enthusiasts. Not only the go-to website for simple and easy to use hands-free video products, MyPOV360.com also provides the online shopper with valuable market information from the online video community to determine the best wearable camera for each individual lifestyle, purpose and budget. The MyPOV360.com experience is about finding the perfect camera and accessories to “Capture the World From Your Point of View.”


Drift Innovation · GoPro · VHoldR · Liquid Image Video Swim Mask Explorer


Right now GoPro and Drift are on sale. Deep discount.

$229 for GoproHD
$169 for Drift X170

Then promo code is another $30 off that plus free ground shipping in USA

So anybody who has been thinking about a POV camera this is one of the best promotions of the year.

Friday, May 14, 2010

MyPOV360.com Is On Board with Bell's/Quiring Pro MTB Team

MyPOV360.com is now the official Point Of View camera sponsor for
the Bell's Brewery/Quiring Cycles Professional Mountain Bike Team!
This means lots of 'helmet cam' fun this year. We'll be shooting &
editing, for your viewing pleasure, footage from rides & races we're at.


Also MyPOV360.com is offering $20 OFF the Drift X170
plus FREE SHIPPING to friends, fans, & family of our team.
This offer is valid today through 06/30/10. Just use the special code
'bellsmtb
' (lowercase) to receive this limited time offer.

Bring on the sunshine for the Brighton Rec Stage Race this weekend!
It should be a great weekend of racing!
Have FUN and GOOD LUCK to all the racers :o).

Thursday, April 22, 2010

2010 Oberon Mini Keg Design


2010 Oberon Mini Keg design inspired by Salvador Dali's "Persistence Of Time" .
Out sometime in May.

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Sue's 'Small Bike'



I’ll start by saying thanks to Scott Quiring, Jason Lummis and the rest of the Bell’s team for ramping things up so I can have my bike for my first race of 2010. I’d also like to thank Oscar at Great Lakes Cycling and Fitness for taking time to set up the finer details on the bike. I haven’t really had a chance to ride the finished product yet other than a quick burst around the parking lot but it feels really quick and light. Needless to say I’m pretty excited about how my ‘small bike’ turned out! It sure is pretty! ;o)

Here is a quick run down of how it’s spec’d:

Full SRAM XX
Stan’s No-Tubes ZTR Race 29’er wheelset.
GEAX Barro Race 29 x 2.0
Truvativ World Cup flat bar, stem and seat post
Crank Bros. Candy 4ti
ESI grips

Total weight with pedals 20.8 lbs

Cheers,
Sue

Tuesday, March 30, 2010





The sun is back!
Oberon was officially released March 29th for 2010.
Enjoy!

Friday, March 19, 2010

Planet Bikes Super Commuter

Planet Bikes on line article:



billy knudson

4. Supercommuter - Jason Lummis, Pinckney, MI


A super commuter rides through every season, in all types of weather, day and night. Choosing the simplicity, health and pleasure of bicycling, a super commuter simply prefers to ride a bike to the grocery store, to work, to a concert or the cafe. Planet Bike’s winter Super Commuter is thirty-nine year old Jason Lummis who embodies the very essence of a super commuter.

A long time resident of Pinckney, MI, Jason commutes year round to his job at Great Lakes Cycling and Fitness in neighboring Ann Arbor. He averages 45 miles round trip, half of those miles being ridden after work in the darkness of night. The rolling hills and modest plowing of the rural roads make for an interesting winter commute. The scenery can’t be beat though as Jason travels past the Pinckney State Recreation Area daily.

Jason was hooked on two wheel riding at a young age. In his teen years, he latched onto a bmx bike and an 80cc dirt bike. He eventually fell for mountain biking, becoming an avid racer in the Midwest. Jason routinely finishes on the podium in cross country and 100 mile ultra-endurance races throughout the Great Lakes region.

A good portion of Jason’s life revolves around bikes. He works in a bike shop, rides 10,000 miles a year, and races on the weekends. When he is not working or riding, he is still promoting cycling. He’s an IMBA (International Mountain Bike Association) member who helps maintain local mountain bike trails in the Ann Arbor area. Jason also manages the Bells Beer/Quiring Cycles mountain bike team, one of the fastest (and friendliest) mountain bike teams in the Midwest.

According to Jason, the toughest part about such a long daily commute is “the extra time I spend away from my family.” Jason counters this extra time by substituting his commute as race training. This savvy substitution allows Jason, his wife, three year old son and two dogs the time they need to go camping, hiking, or canoeing in the beautiful Michigan wilderness.

With such a long commute, Jason has dialed in the equipment it takes to be comfortable in all conditions. His custom Quiring Cycles steel 29er is the perfect rig for the job. Jason prefers the simplicity and low maintenance of a single speed drivetrain for the winter and a 1 x 9 for the summer. He also makes note of clothing choices for different conditions in a journal so he’s always sure to be properly dressed.

If you would like to nominate a Super Commuter, please contact us at info@planetbike.com.

Friday, February 26, 2010

North American Hand Made Bicycle Show

Team Bike Sponsor and teammate Scott Quiring of Quiring Cycles is attending the NAHBS this weekend in Virginia. He has built Titanium, Steel, Stainless Steel and Aluminum frames for the show, including a 2010 Bells Brewery Team bike.

Here are some diplay art Scott will have@ NAHBS. Photos by Andrea Tucker

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Winter Training Rides

This one was kindly dug out of the Brzuchanski Bros archives in order to fill the void that has been our blog this February. Thanks Joe & Brian :o)! The video was filmed in 2006 & stars current Bell's Brewery/Quiring Cycles teammates Jason Lummis & Scott Quiring as well as former teammates Joe Brzuchanski & Mike Simonson. We hope everyone's been training hard so far in 2010...

Monday, January 11, 2010

2010 OFFICIAL TEAM JERSEY !

THE OFFICIAL 2010 BELLS BREWERY / QUIRING CYCLES PROFESSIONAL MTB TEAM JERSEY DESIGN IS DONE. Jersey will be for sale at the end of March/ 1st week of April from the Bells Brewery General. They also have 2009 jerseys still available, as well as socks and wrist bands. If you do not find it on the website just give them a call.

The 2010 jersey design was created by our team mate Erin Vicary. She did an awesome job again by creating another original design. The team THANKS Erin for her abilities on and off the bike, we hope she finds her way back on the bike in 2010 after some serious injury causing her to miss 2009.

click photo for larger image



Coming soon the 2010 Quiring Cycles Team Frames. Aluminum Dedaci tubing with a BB30 bottom bracket and POWERED BY SRAM XX. All this coming together with another custom paint job By Scott Quiring !

ps. HOPSLAM is out and taste awesome.