MM Racing Matt & Mo – Page 9

Seven’s Mary McConneloug Takes the Podium at Providence

Mary races 'cross — Photo Courtesy of Natalia Boltukhova Pedal Power Photography 2011

It was sunny and hot at the Providence Festival of Cyclocross this weekend, which everyone found disorienting and dusty.We managed to see several of our favorite riders do well despite the trying conditions.

On Saturday, Mary McConneloug of Team Kenda/Seven/No Tubes finished second in the elite women’s field, and then outsprinted the Day 1 winner, Laura van Gilder, for top spot on Day 2.

These were extra impressive results for McConneloug who is only just back from racing the World Cup circuit in Europe for the summer. Making that transition from mountain to cross can be difficult, but it’s a testament to Mary’s sheer class that she can hit home soil, swap bikes and come up with a big win and a second place. Laura van Gilder, who topped Mary on Saturday, said of McConneloug after Sunday’s race, â€œthe ideal cross racer is a mix of mountain biker and roadie. Mary has those both, sheâ€™s incredible.â€

Bob’s Red Mill and Seven racer Mo Bruno Roy took 10th on Saturday and 7th on Sunday, a pair of results that bring her to 5th on points with two weeks break before Downeast Cross in Maine.

Andrea Smith of Ladies First Racing rode her Seven Mudhoney SLX to 7th on Saturday and an impressive 4th on Sunday. Smith won the Verge Series last season and stands 3rd on the New England points list for 2011, just behind van Gilder.Since winning at Monson in her opening race of the season, and finishing 11th in a super tough field at Cross Vegas, she’s been solid and consistent, big keys to winning any series.

With Mary, Andrea and Mo doing so well, that’s three Sevens in the top ten in Providence, BOTH DAYS!!!!!

Carl Ring was there to represent the Seven Development Squad on the men’s side:

“I lined up both days, I got stuck behind a bad start line crash on Saturday, fought my way up to the front half of the field, then lost all my spark. Back slid all the way back to the tail of the field. Sunday was better. I managed to advance pretty well in the first two laps, but I’m still lacking the fitness I need after knee surgery early this year. I hope to be back to full strength in 3-4 weeks. Still it was fun racing and a great venue…(it) was great to see Mary McConneloug line up. I noticed that Andrea Smith and a few of the other Ladies First riders are also on Seven’s now. Looking forward to seeing you at the Maine VergeSeries races.”

Seven’s Latest Cross Bike: Mo-Honey

Mo Pro lugs before and after — Photos Courtesy of Matt O’Keefe; Collage Courtesy of Matt Roy

We recently unveiled our latest cross bike – lovingly and tongue-in-cheekingly dubbed the “Mo-Honey”; stay tuned for the actual name. Seven racer Mo Bruno Roy is currently testing the pre-production bike and providing feedback on ride characteristics.

This cross project came together out of three distinct and disparate projects. Initially the venture started surreptitiously two years ago in part as a product of the Seven Cycles Collaborative. The design also evolved from specific aspects of our Elium SLX line, and the project even includes some of the best elements of the A6 carbon frame platform. We chose to create this bike because of our track record with the carbon tube design and ride performance on the Elium SLX, knowing we’d be able to make our lightest bike yet, while maintaining the durability for which Seven carbon frames are known.

As with the Elium line, the titanium lugs enable us to easily accommodate any frame geometry, tube size, ride characteristics, and frame options. Mo’s cross frame is a testament to this – her bike includes many of the custom aspects and features available on any other Seven model.

Recently, this bike was accused of being our “most artistic frame” yet. We definitely agree. This new model is the lightest, most technically sophisticated, and visually stimulating frame we have in our line.

The frame price is $4,995; this includes full customization. All the tubes are carbon except the chainstays and bottom brackets, which are titanium.

In addition to the cross bikes, first production road bikes will be available mid-November. Contact us for more details.

Thanks to Matt Roy of MM Racing for putting together this photo collage the bike with photos by Seven’s Matt O’Keefe.

Keep your eyes out for Mo on the race course and other rides on some stealthy looking Seven road bikes.

Seven at NEPCX Gloucester

Mo Bruno Roy before the mudfest that was Gloucester

Seven was out in force at the Grand Prix of Gloucester over the weekend, basking in the mud and gratuitous suffering. Bob’s Red Mill and Seven-sponsored rider Mo Bruno Roy finished top ten both days in the elite women’s race, and Andrea Smith from Team Ladies First rode her Seven to a podium spot – second overall – on Day 1, bagging a solid 5th place finish on Day 2.

Carl Ring from the Seven Development Squad was in action, and the guys from the Seven office: Keith Cardoza, Jake Bridge, and Joe Wignall all flew the colors in the mud at Stage Fort Park, too.

Keith Kardoza — Seven employee Keith Cardoza on his Mudhoney

New England has turned cool, wet and rainy: ideal cross weather. At Gloucester this weekend, Richard Fries’ bombastic ranting ringing from the PA was a perfect accompaniment to the race’s mayhem and conditions.

The New England cross season is in full swing, with races almost every week from now through December. It’s not too late to register for The Night Weasels Cometh in Shrewsbury, MA Wednesday night. You can warm up on Tuesday night at the pre-race party at Ride Studio Cafe in Lexington, too. And who is excited for Providence next weekend?

Any of you Seven owners out there who raced at Gloucester, write to us in the comment section below and let us know how you did!

Mo Bruno Roy Race Schedule

Muddy mo in a 'cross race — Mo taking 4th at USGP Nationals-Madison, Wisco.

Seven is a proud to sponsor champion Cyclocross racer Mo Bruno Roy. Here are some of her upcoming races this fallâ€”if youâ€™re in any of the cities where Mo will be racing, come out and cheer her on to victory!

Stay tuned to this 7 for Mo’s race updates!

Date	Race	Series	Results
9.17-9.18	Starcrossed/Rad Racing	National Calendar UCI Events	2nd place finish
9.24-9.25	USGP Madison	USGP National Series	4th place finish
10.1-10.2	Gloucester NEPCX	New England Pro CX Series	Day 1: 9th place
			Day 2: 8th place
10.8-10.9	Providence NEPCX	New England Pro CX Series	Day 1: 10th place
			Day 2: 7th place
10.16	Coupe du Monde UCI, Plzen, Czech Republic	UCI World Cup	20th place finish
10.23	Coupe du Monde UCI, Tabor, Czech Republic	UCI World Cup
10.29-10.30	Colorado CX Classic	National Calendar UCI Events
11.5-11.6	Cycle Smart Northampton NEPCX	New England Pro CX Series
11.12-11.13	USGP Louisville	USGP National Series
12.3-12.4	NBX NEPCX	New England Pro CX Series
12.6-12.8	US Nationals	Us National Championships
12.10-12.11	USGP Bend	USGP National Series

Mary McConneloug + Mike Broderick = R&D Bikes

Sola SLX - Mary McConneloug's Race Bike — Mary McConneloug’s Race Bike

We had another visit last week from Mary and Mike! Last time they visited we made some progress on mountain bike R&D for the 2012 season. During this visit we’ve added some cross bikes, too. This is a project that’s similar in some ways to what we’re working on with Mo Bruno! So many prototypes happening at once. At the moment we’ve got 12 prototype and pre-production bikes happening simultaneously – it’s that time of year. Stay tuned for photo glimpses – and keep an eye on Starcrossed for spy photos soon. Continue reading “Mary McConneloug + Mike Broderick = R&D Bikes”