Team Kenda-Seven’s Mary McConneloug and Mike Broderick report from the Pan American Games
Mary and I contested the Pan American championships in Balneario Camboriu, Brazil a few weeks ago. This trip turned out to be an amazing travel experience. In our short stay we found Brazil to be a country of strong contrasts-part tropical paradise and part exploding commercial nightmare. Something for all tastes.
I am happy to report that our late season effort was well worth it, as Mary successfully defended her title of Pan American Champion!!!! I was happy to finish 10th in the elite men’s race, making our first South American trip together an overall success.
It was definitely a painful 30+ hours of travel to get here, but once in Brazil it was an incredible opportunity to see a bit of this huge and diverse country. We rented a mini van straight off the plane and drove to Antonina, a remote seaside town. We were initially shocked to see cyclists riding on the highway shoulders and just about everywhere else. This seemed especially dangerous since it was night and there was hardly a sign of outdoor electricity, let alone bike lights . The next morning we realized that we were witnessing how a town gets by with almost no cars. We spent the day watching in awe of the thousands of cyclists going about their day, delivering propane, getting groceries, and transporting almost everything using the bike.
Mary and I drove south 200 km through the state of Santa Catarina to the city of Balneario Camboriu. On our way we found a good portion of Brazil to be a bit more “up to date” full of traffic, rampant development and a familiar boomtown hustle.
We met up with the rest of the U.S. Pan American team at the hotel Villa Atlantica, where we were treated to the luxuries of full support by the USA Cycling team crew, including massage, mechanics, and a translator. For the few days we were there, it was really a great chance to spend some time and have fun with our teammates and the USAC staff.
The racecourse was really difficult: a short 4.5 km mix of single and double track torn into a lush rain forest on the side of an incredibly steep hill. The soil was a mix of clay and sand that was unrideable during our wet training days. Lucky for us, on race day the course dried to a fast bumpy blue grove. The wicked climbing was definitely the major challenging feature. This was the first time all year that I put the granny ring back on my bike, and I was glad that I did!
The sun and high humidity pushed temperatures close to 100F on race day. The competition was stacked; the local Brazilian riders were out in force and in addition to the U.S., there were representatives from about 20 other South and Central American countries as well as Canada.
The elite women raced at 11:00. Mary was able to get a decisive gap on the first tortuous climb and ride a “comfortable” pace to stay out front alone for the day. Definitely a good tactic since there is not much drafting when you are in your granny ring. Mary was followed to the finish by Canadian rider Katherine Pendrel (2nd) and Argentinean Jimena Florit (3rd). The other American women were all in the top 10, with Willow Koerber finishing 6th and Heather Irmager in 8th. Definitely a good showing.
The Pro men started at 2:00 in a heat that was making me feel my heartbeat in my temples. The pace off the start seemed as fast as any World Cup race. We were all pretty much forced to go into conservation mode after a short time since the conditions were so demanding. It felt like a walking pace at times, only to be broken up by shocking downhills that took a big toll on the upper body and the braking finger. Though none made the podium, all the U.S. Elite male riders had solid finishes, which made our goal of gathering UCI points a success: Jeremiah Bishop 4th, JHK 5th, Todd Wells 6th, myself 10th, and Adam Craig in 12th.
Mary and I wanted to see a bit of Santa Catarina state while we were here, so we booked a few extra days before the big flight home. We promptly got away from the noise of the city and drove south to Santa Catarina Island where we found a beautiful eco friendly lodge tucked between two forest reserves on the south east side. Definitely more our style. Here we recovered from the race damage even as we hiked the forests and ran around trying to see as much as possible in three days.
Talk with you soon
Mike and Mary