The Friday night lineup, starting June 15th, is a mix of sprint and endurance events that will bring the world’s best track cycling talent to T-Town this summer. Last season, we brought in racers from 13 countries, including 12 Olympians. Fans, approximately 2,500 on any given Friday, flocked in to see international superstars compete with our hometown heros on popular nights like the Keirin Cup, the Sprint Gran Prix and the Madison Cup.

One of the highlights of the season is the USA Cycling Junior National Track Championships on July 13th. The most promising junior track racers from across the USA will descend upon T-Town to compete for national titles on the country’s most celebrated velodrome. “We’re ecstatic to have been selected to host Junior Track Nationals for the next two years. We pride ourselves in our top-notch development programs and this is an opportunity for our future stars to shine,” said Marty Nothstein, Executive Director of the VPCC and an Olympic Gold Medalist who came up through these very programs.

Many nights on the calendar feature an event from our reputable community programs, including the Red Robin Marty Nothstein Bicycle Racing League, the Air Products Developmental Cycling Program and the Teva Respiratory PeeWee Pedalers. This gives next generation of track talent the opportunity to share the spotlight with the pros and experience the thrill of racing under the Friday night lights.

The World Series of Bicycling 2012 Schedule:

June 15- US Sprint Gran Prix

June 22- Mike Walter 100 Lap Madison

June 29- Red Robin/Marty Nothstein BRL All-Stars

July 6- US 10 Mile Championships

July 13- USA Cycling Jr. Nationals

July 20- Festival of Speed

July 27- Keirin Cup

Aug 3- Tandemonium

Aug 10- Fastest Man on Wheels

Aug 17- Corporate Challenge

Aug 24- Air Products Finals

Aug 31- Madison Cup

Gates open at 5:30, racing begins at 7:30. General Admission is $5, Finish Line seats are $8, Kids Under 12 are Always Free. The VPCC is proud to serve all-organic, locally sourced fare at the Breakaway Cafe, courtesy of Rodale Catering and Events.

Get your season tickets today! The VeloClub has all new packages with awesome merchandise packages!

What a week! Now that the Beijing World Cup is over and the team has dispersed, I’m left to reflect on what was one of the most incredible trips of my life.

It all started with a midnight flight from LAX to Beijing. The whole US team had the same flight, and I quickly realized the unwritten contest of who would sleep the most on the plane. I put in a valiant effort, but couldn’t match the impressive skills of some, like Sleep-Champion Matt Lipscomb.

Once we got to Beijing and settled into our hotel, we were treated to a trip to the Great Wall of China. The trip would help us stay awake and have some fun before our bodies realized that it should be dark outside (as if we needed an excuse to see one of the new Wonders of the World).  After taking the rickety cable car up to the Wall, we all stood back in amazement: China’s wall really is Great! We walked along the wall about a kilometer, stopping for photos and to marvel at how something so vast could have been built centuries ago, literally by hand. Luckily, there was no cable car to get back down from the Wall. I say luckily because, instead, we had toboggans! I shot down in a mini train with fellow T-Towners Giddeon Massie and Bobby Lea: a perfect way to end our day at the Wall.

Zack and his Team USA teammate, Liz Carlson at the Great Wall.

After enjoying our tourist experience, it was time to focus on what brought us to China. After a couple days of good training, it was time to race. In my event, the team pursuit, being technically sound and smooth is the name of the game, and our coach Benjamin Sharp set us up for a great ride. He told us to focus and visualize every part of the race, and the execution would come. It worked! Each of my teammates were absolute powerhouses, and we rode to a time of 4:15, the second-fasted time a US team has ridden since the 2000 Olympics. We still have a lot of work to do before we’re fighting into the medal rounds, and it’s hard to get too excited about 13th place, but it was definitely a step in the right direction and a ride we can be proud of.

After our pursuit, I had 3 days to cheer on the rest of the team and explore Beijing. I got directions to Tiananmen Square from Bobby (who’s basically a Beijing local by now), and set off into the smog. Drivers in Beijing treat traffic laws as suggestions, so a bike ride quickly turns into a real-life game of Frogger. I won this round, and made it to Tiananmen and back without getting killed. In the next couple days Team USA kicked some butt, with highlights including Bobby Lea’s impressive 7th place in the Omnium, Adam Leibovitz’s 10th in the Individual Pursuit, and PRs coming from the Team Sprint women and Kevin Mansker in the 200m sprint. It was awesome to see everybody taking it to the world’s best.

Before I knew it, Monday had come and everybody was packing up their prizes from the Silk Markets, excited for their own beds and good food. Beijing was certainly a trip that I will never forget and I have to thank everybody that made it possible: USAC, the coaches, soigneurs, mechanics, teammates, and everybody back home. It really is a dream to get these amazing opportunities, and I can’t thank you all enough for the support!

Until next time!

Zack Noonan

Zack is currently at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs where he was invited to USA Cycling’s U23 Development Camp. An accomplished roadie, Zack will be racing for Bikereg.com/Cannondale for 2012.

Team Type 1- SANOFI rides through the streets of Rwanda

Mandy Marquardt can be seen Friday nights in the summer battling on track with other pro women during the World Series of Bicycling. What you may not know about Mandy is that she wages a much bigger battle off track. Mandy is a Type 1 diabetic.

Instead of seeing her condition as a limitation, she saw an opportunity to pursue her dreams and inspire others in the process. Riding for Team Type 1- SANOFI, under the leadership of CEO, founder and fellow diabetic, Phil Southerland, Mandy has traveled the country and now world, spreading awareness through the sport of cycling. Team Type 1- SANOFI’s mission statement reads, “We strive to instill hope and inspiration for people around the world affected by diabetes. With appropriate diet, exercise, treatment and technology, we believe anyone with diabetes can achieve their dreams.”

Mandy’s most recent adventure took her to Rwanda for 12 days at the end of November. The men’s professional cycling team, which includes athletes with Type 1 diabetes, competed in the 8 day Tour of Rwanda, while Team Type 1-SANOFI’s development team, including both Mandy and Kate Evans, who raced T-Town last summer, participated as diabetes ambassadors, riding the route each day in advance of the official start and meeting healthcare providers and patients in each district.

Mandy with teammate Laura Ely and a crowd of excited Rwandan children.

It was Team Type 1-SANOFI’s second year competing in the tour. They used the opportunity to spread the message that people with diabetes can live normal and productive lives with access to the essentials of diabetes care. In a country where diabetes is a death sentence, Team Type 1 delivered blood glucose meters and over 100,000 test strips to patients in need, and also conducted diabetes care training sessions with patients and healthcare professionals across the country.

We spoke with Mandy about the experience. “The people are so friendly. The kids were so excited to see different people riding bikes. They yell out ‘sista!’ and ‘courage’! when you ride by.” The team brought over 7 bike boxes filled with diabetes medical supplies. Mandy helped spread the message of staying on routine and keeping regular exercise to help manage your diabetes. They set up a checkpoint where Rwandans could test their blood sugar.

Some of her adventures included bargaining at the local market, whizzing around streets on a motorbike, sleeping under bed nets, eating goat for the first time, lots of cold showers and riding the course in advance of the race- over 100K each day through the agricultural terrain. On watching the pro race, Mandy shared,  “Each time they would go through a town the Rwandans would go to the front. On the final stage, it was the first time a Rawanda won a UCI race. The crowd went nuts.”

Mandy plans on continuing with Team Type 1- SANOFI through 2012. She is thrilled to be part of the program and speaks with great admiration about the team’s founder Phil Southerland, “He’s really dedicated to work. He wants to help people and bring people together. He’s changed the world and how we deal with diabetes.”

Team Type 1- SANOFI are an inspiration to us all. Keep up the good work, Mandy. We’re proud you call T-Town home.

The team’s Rwanda mission was documented through photos, videos and blogs throughout the duration of the race. For more information please visit their blog.

We want to keep up on all the exciting things our racers and fans do in the off-season. Have a good story? Email us!

Photo courtesy of Liz Reap Carlson http://lizreapcarlson.com/

The recent UCI Track World Cup in Cali, Colombia must have felt like a reunion for T-Town. Over 25 of these international superstars have raced at the Valley Preferred Cycling Center in the past 2 years!

Their are 4 UCI Track World Cups each year and they feature the best international talent. This year is especially competitive as racers are trying to earn qualifying points towards the 2012 Olympics in London next summer.

Team USA came away with a couple podiums. Sarah Hammer won gold in the Omnium and our women’s Team Pursuit (Sarah Hammer, Dotsie Bausch, Jennie Reed and Lauren Tamayo) captured a bronze right behind Great Britain and New Zealand. Our own Zack Noonan (Bikereg.com/Cannondale), Liz Reap Carlson (Black Dog Professional Cycling)and Dana Feiss (Home Depot Center) were selected to compete in the Cup. Liz and Dana nabbed an 11th in the team sprint and a 24th and 30th, respectively, in the sprint. Zack and his squad came in 16th in the men’s Team Pursuit.

As exciting as it is to see Team USA and our local legends compete on the world stage, we cannot help also rooting for all of the international racers that we have come to know and love during their summers spent at the Valley Preferred Cycling Center. Not only do they raise the level of competition in T-Town, putting us on the map as one of the premier Velodromes in the world, but they offer a welcome smile and encouragement to our hometown heroes when they are racing abroad.

Liz Reap Carlson told us how it feels to reunite with your fellow competitors on foreign soil,  “On our first day of training, I walked into the ALCIDES NIETO PATIÑO velodrome, set down my bag and Simon Van Velthooven (NZL) snuck up and gave me a kiss on the cheek. It was such a surprise & made me feel like I was at home straight away being greeted like that.”

Kamil Kuczynski, the Polish Olympian sprint force who has been adopted by T-Town the past few summers, was thrilled to catch up with his American friends. As Liz shared, “This past summer, I got to know Kamil a bit better, and when I ran into him in Cali he talked my ear off! He’s a sweetheart, a big-hearted guy who loves the sport. I saw him after the Team Sprint, and we got to download our rides, commiserate about the result and share how we thought things could’ve gone better. That’s a valuable conversation to have with another athlete. You learn so much from their perspective you can apply to your own experience.”

It was inspiring to check results each day and see so many of our friends competing for their respective countries. Their success is a testament to the Olympic caliber of racing that takes place in T-Town each summer. They make us proud and we look forward to seeing them come back each summer! Congratulations to all competitors!

Here’s a catalogue of these international T-Town alums and their stellar results from the Cali World Cup last week:

For full results click here

Tuesdays and Thursdays, December 1-22nd

4-6pm at the Valley Preferred Cycling Center offices

Stop by for some holiday cheer, cookies and the best gifts for the cycling enthusiast in your life. Introduce someone to the thrill of Friday Night’s World Series of Bicycling with a 2012 VeloClub Season Ticket! Get your name stamped on the apron by sponsoring the VPCC with a meter podium package!

1151 Mosser Road, Breinigsville, PA 18031 610.395.7000

We have S, M, L, XL of all T-Town T-shirts and Sweatshirts. Sweatshirts come in youth sizes as well!

T-Town 2011 Cycling Kits:

We have a limited number of  kits left! All kits are Champion System Race Cut. We have S, M, L, XL Jerseys. We only have 2 Small bib shorts and 1 XL bib short left! Our next kit order will be in the spring, so get them while they last!

Price List:

T-Town T-Shirt $15

T-Town Sweatshirt $35

Pint Glass $5

Valley Preferred Cycling Center Baseball Cap $5

T-Shirt, Cap, Pint Glass Package $20

Cycling Jersey $70

Cycling Bib Shorts $70

Jersey and Bib Shorts Full Kit $130

Masters T-Shirt Blowout $5 (no XL left)

Masters Clover Hill Limited Edition Wine $10 (2 left!)

2011 Screen Printed Posters Blowout $1

Questions or you con’t make it from 4-6pm? Email us and we’ll find a time that works for you

The US Bicycling Hall of Fame posted this tribute detailing Marty’s accomplishments:

Marty Nothstein is widely considered the most successful U.S. track cyclist in the sport’s long history. Marty began his legendary career on the banked concrete track in Trexlertown Pennsylvania, popularly known as T-TOWN. His resume is full of major road and track cycling accomplishments, including a record 35 U.S. National Titles, 4 Pan American Games Gold Medals, 3 World Championships, a silver medal at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games, and Gold Medalist at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney Australia. Marty also has more than 50 professional road racing victories. He is a former world record holder and is still a national record holder. Marty won more than 150 races throughout his international career.

Marty will attend the ceremony this weekend in Davis, California, at the U.S. Bicycling Hall of Fame. He is joined by his wife Christie and a special fan club including friends Heidi Rodale, Pat Marzi, Andy Taus, Zack Grice, and Hilda Patton. The Valley Preferred Cycling Center is proud of Marty and the example he has set as an athlete and leader in the community. Pat Marzi, friend, cyclist and sponsor of the Salamander Madison Cup, put it best, ”This honor just reminds me of the many talents, the passion, the dedication, the vision, and the inspiration that is Marty. What a treasure we have right here with us in TTown. Congratulations, Marty, we’re very proud of our hometown hero.”

Gary Blockus, the Morning Call’s sports reporter and a longtime friend and fan of Marty and the VPCC, shared some fond memories, “Marty is the epitome of making hard work pay dividends. I watched his determination from the time he broke a heel in 1994 and, despite not being fully recovered, competed in the Pan American Championships in order to secure a spot at Worlds, where he won world titles in the sprint and keirin. I watched his disappointment at winning a silver medal at the 1996 Olympics turn into keirin gold at the world championships that year. His loss to Jens Fiedler in the Olympic finals fueled his every waking and sleeping moment for the next four years, and it culminated with the Olympic gold medal and Marty taking victory laps with the American flag and his young son Tyler. He switched to a road career after that, but in 2004 still made the Olympic team in the keirin. He has been the consummate professional, but also the consummate mentor to a generation of cyclists growing up behind him. He now leads the track he grew up on, known as T-town throughout the world, imploring people of all ages to get on their bikes for fun, exercise and competition. He has evolved from competitor to community leader, and his induction into the Bicycling Hall of Fame is both a fitting tribute to him and the cycling culture of the Lehigh Valley that was forged by the late Bob Rodale. Cheers, Marty!”

CONGRATULATIONS, BLADE! From all your friends and fans at the Valley Preferred Cycling Center!

We’ve put together a fun recap of the 2011 season at the Valley Preferred Cycling Center. As the leaves are falling and temperatures are dropping, take a moment to relive the summer of cycling.

Thanks to everyone who made 2011 one of our best years yet. Click the below link to download the 2011 Season Review.

2011 Season Review

The pair of T-Town Sprinters have been selected to represent the USA at the prestigious Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico. The Pan American Games are the second largest multi-sport event after the Summer Olympics. The competition is held between athletes from nations of the Americas and takes place every four years in the year before the Summer Olympics.

Dana Feiss (Home Depot Center Team), will compete in the sprint and keirin, and Liz Reap Carlson (Black Dog Professional Cycling), will compete in the team sprint with Madalyn Godby.

Liz and Dana have been preparing for the games for the past month in Colorado and California. We caught up with the sprinters shortly after their wildly successful Elite National Track campaign (each sprinter won 2 National Championships in early October) to discuss this exciting opportunity.