UK Cycling Team Succeeds at Regional Meet
LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 27, 2011) − Recently three members of the University of Kentucky Cycling Club competed in the Mid West Collegiate Cycling Conference regional championships and brought home several awards.
Ian Baker, a kinesiology and pre-physical therapy junior; Regan Baum, a third-year pharmacy student; and David Rose, a mechanical engineering freshman, attended the April conference hosted by Lindenwood University in Saint Charles, Mo.
The three UK Cycling Club members competed in two events, a road race on Saturday and a criterium on Sunday. A criterium is a bicycle race over public roads that have been closed to automobile traffic.
The road race was contested on a 21-mile loop through the Missouri countryside, departing and finishing at the Daniel Boone Home in Defiance, Mo. The men completed the loop three times for a total race distance of 63.3 miles, and the women completed the loop once. Baker placed third in the Men's B Road Race and Baum placed first in the Women's B Road Race.
On Sunday, competitors rode a one-mile criterium course in downtown Saint Charles. Racers repeated this one-mile circuit for a set amount of time. Men rode for 45 minutes while women rode for 30 minutes, and then each had to complete three additional laps. Baker earned 16th place and Rose earned 17th in the Men's B Criterium, and Baum received first place in the Women's B Criterium.
"Our successful season could not have been possible without the support of our sponors, Big Ass Fans and Lexington Bicycle Center," said Baum. "We thank them both very much for their support."
Currently the UK Cycling Club has seven members, five men and two women. Any UK student can join the club, but only full-time students can compete. Only collegiate racers in the A category can qualify for and continue on to nationals. Riders in lower categories must earn points based on good finishes in order to gain experience and move up to the A category. This was the last competition for this school year, but the races will begin again in February 2012 for the club. Next year, the club has aspirations of being able to send riders to the national championship.
For more information on the UK Cycling Club, please contact Regan Baum at Regan.Baum@uky.edu.
MEDIA CONTACT: Gail Hairston, (859) 257-3302, ext. 235; gail.hairston@uky.edu