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August 23, 2010 - Singletrack - Extreme Weather Floods the Fool's Gold 100
August 23, 2010 - Bicycling - Schalk, Carey Win Fools Gold 100
August 22, 2010 - Cycling News - Schalk, Carey win Fool's Gold 100
August 19, 2010 - Cycling News - Racers head south for Fool's Gold 100
August 15, 2010 - Dirt Rag - A New Cycling Team on the Block
August 8, 2010 - WPVI 6 ABC Action News - Neshaminy Classic Race
July 29, 2010 - Cycling News - NUE Series leaders Schalk, Sornson among favorites for Wilderness 101
July 21, 2010 - MTB Race News - Racer Chat with Cheryl Sornson
July 18, 2010 - Cycling News - Tostado wins Breckenridge 100 by eight minutes over Thompson
June 20, 2010 - Cycling News - Schalk crushes the competition by more than 17 minutes for Lumberjack victory
June 19, 2010 - Cycling Dirt - Cheryl Sornson 1st Place Open Women Lumberjack 100
June 15, 2010 - Cycling News - Schalk predicts tight race at Lumberjack 100
June 14, 2010 - The Day - Sprint to the Finish Favors Goguen
June-July 2010 - Liberty Sports Magazine - Putting It All Together
June 7, 2010 - Bicycling - Bishop, Yeager Win Inaugural Trans-Sylvania Epic
June 7, 2010 - Cycling news - 100-miler: Schalk victorious in Mohican 100
June 5, 2010 - MTB Race News - New Full Report from Mohican 100 - Ohio - NUE #2
June 4, 2010 - Bicycling: MB Word - NUE Series Heads to Ohio for Mohican MTB 100
June 3, 2010 - Singletrack - Round 2 of Endurance Series Set for Mohican MTB100
June 1, 2010 - Cycling News - Shogren, Schalk return to defend past Mohican 100 titles
| May 30 - June 5, 2010 - Cycling News - |
Transylvania Epic Reports/Results |
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| Bishop, Yeager win inaugural Trans-Sylvania Epic |
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May 19, 2010 - Cycling News - Bishop, Rusch among contenders set for Trans-Sylvania Epic
May 19, 2010 - Cycling News - Plews and Borelli lead US Ultra-Endurance mountain bike standings
May 2010 - Bicycling - Team CF Wants You
April 24, 2010 - Cycling News - 100-miler: Schalk repeats at Cohutta 100
April 8, 2010 - The Morning Call - New cycling team foster fitness for those with cystic fibrosis
March 9, 2010 - Cycling Dirt - Harlan Price on Team CF in 2010
February 28, 2010 - Cycling Dirt - MTB Cribs: Harlan Price
February 12, 2010 - Cycling News - Price to Team CF
February 9, 2010 - Bicycling: MB Word - Team CF Helps Patients On and Off the Trail
February 3, 2010 - Cycling News - Cyclists unite on new team to promote cystic fibrosis awareness
January 22, 2010 - Velonews - Battling cystic fibrosis with bike racing
January 2010 - Mountain Bike Action - Getting Back on Track
July 29, 2010 - Club Team Brothers Climb Col du Tourmalet
Club Team brothers Chris and David Kvam recently returned from a 10-day cycling tour in the Pyrenees, where they were also watching the Tour de France. They reached the Col du Tourmalet proudly sporting their Team CF kits! Chris, who is 30 years old and living with CF said "I don't know how many people with CF have climbed the Tourmalet, but that number increased by one last week!"
What a great accomplishment, guys - congratulations!
July 13, 2010 - Congratulations to Kaitlyn Rose Broadhurst
of the Elite MTB Team!
Kaitlyn pedals to first place in her very first MTB race!
Kaitlyn, who is a runner for Neumann College and has cystic fibrosis, took on the challenge this year of joining Team CF. She had never ridden a moutain bike before. Kaitlyn has been in training since January, under the skilled tutelage of Nikki Thiemann and Kristin Gavin, also members of the Elite MTB Team. Although delayed for a few weeks by a broken wrist, Kaitlyn did not give up on her goal of competing in a mountainbike race. Sewell, NJ, set the scene for the D&Q Summer Sizzler on Sunday, July 11th, where Kaitlyn came in first place in the Beginner Women 1 Cat. I think we will see several more races on her schedule this summer. Great job, Kaitlyn!
D&Q Summer Sizzler complete race results
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Final Race Results
Team CF ROCKED at the Trans-sylvania Epic!
Selene took first place in women's. Christian finished in fifth place for the men's. Nikki and Kristin finished second in duos.
Complete race results
Day 6 - June 4, 2010
In a highly technical stage, Tanguy slipped from 2nd in the GC to 4th. But he's just 7 seconds back. Yeager took advantage of the early climb to get a little lead but was caught by potter on the ridge. Then she turned up the pace to get the win & widen the gap to about 22 minutes in the overall. Nikki raced solo for the day. But happily Kristin came home from the hospital and is in good spirits.
Day 5 - June 3, 2010
The most notable news in today's mini-XC stage was not which racer finished where but which racers didn't start. Kristin Gavin was rudely awakened at 1 a.m. with a violent stomach bug that would keep her awake and incapacitated until morning, when the race medic sent her to the hospital. So, sadly Nikki and Kristin were unable to participate in today's stage, though being the fighter she is, Gavin was asking if she could start tomorrow before even being discharged from the hospital. On the race front, Christian Tanguy hung tough in a race that featured technical descents and myriad rock gardens, features that don't play to his strengths. He came in 8th on the day, keeping it close enough to hold onto his 2nd place in the OA. Selene Yeager was happy to play it mostly safe, though she and Rebecca Rusch didn't hold much back, duking it out during the four stages. In the end Yeager won two; Rusch won two and Yeager managed to gain 40 seconds on the day to take the stage and maintain 1st overall.
Day 4 - June 2, 2010
Another exciting day out here at the inaugural TSE. Today was Stage 4, a ripping trip through the trails surrounding Raystown Lake. The big concern of
the day was speed--or more specifically, the potential dangers thereof. The
Allegrippis trail network is silky smooth, but punctuated with rollercoaster like G-outs that can send you sailing hindend over head if you take them
with too much speed and not enough BMX bike-handling skill. The race began
with a stiff uphill section of pavement to thin the crowd. Christian Tanguy motored off the front with the men's lead pack, which included Jeremiah Bishop. Current women's race leader Selene Yeager followed in hot pursuit, hoping to form an early gap on the women's field. Tanguy would keep his top
position, ultimately vaulting up to second on the day and snatching 2nd in
the overall. Yeager would hold her lead until about halfway through, when she made a quick wrong turn, only to see Rebecca Rusch come ripping by on the correct path. Righting herself quickly, Yeager latched onto another competitor and sped her way to Rusch's wheel, ultimately passing her on the long
grassy climb. Coming into the final checkpoint, however, Rusch fought back
and made a quick pass. On terrain that is close to home for her, Rusch, charged ahead taking the win. Yeager battled back, ultimately losing about 90
seconds on the day and retaining the leader's jersey. Team Nikki and Kristin "kept the boat afloat" with no mechanicals and had a strong day on the trail, finishing the challenging stage in under 3 hours.
Cycling.com update
Day 3 - June 1, 2010
Today was a climber's day, ascending about 4700 feet of climbing in 46 miles of mostly dirt roads, punctuated by technical singletrack. Selene Yeager took advantage of the day's profile, charging hard off the front in hope to gain a few minutes on the field. It worked. She won the day and took the overall by 13 minutes on second place Karen Potter. Christian Tanguy continues to hang tough in 3rd in the overall, coming in 4th today after duking it out with the top contenders on the tough, slick singletrack in the early stages of the race. Duo Kristin and Nikki had a strong day today, free from mechanicals. They're in the top spot and finished today in great spirits.
Cycling.com update
Day 2 - May 31, 2010
Today was a tough one for the riders. Many broken bodies, bikes, and wills. Part of it was the heat—pushing 90 with as much humidity. But mostly it was the terrain—lots of long, rocky climbs, punctuated by technical trail. Team CF had an up and down day. Chris Tanguy held onto the #3 slot with another #3 finish. Selene Yeager started the day strong with the lead group, but an ill-timed stick into the derailleur, set her back a few minutes as Chris Eatough wrangled the stick out of the cassette and her derailleur out of her spokes. The rest of the climbs until check point 15 were rough going without many shifting options. The derailleur was fixed at checkpoint 15, but she couldn’t make up the time to Karen Potter who won the day.
Nikki and Kristin had an even rougher day. Kristin tore her derailleur clean off and singlespeeded the rest of the day. They still finished smiling and strong. It’s a long week.
Cycling.com update
Also, check out the Team CF MTB blog for more details and photos.
Day 1 - May 30, 2010
I attended the opening stage of the Transylvania Epic which included a Prologue 10 mile Time Trial around the base camp. This is the inaugural race for what promises to become a classic. It will feature 7 days of racing on some of the most technical trails in the state of Pennsylvania.
Team CF is represented in several categories: Selene Yeager - open women’s; Christian Tanguy - open men’s; and Nikki Thiemann/Kristin Gavin - duo women’s. The open women’s and men’s categories are lean but extremely competitive with professional cyclists from all over the country making a go at it. The initial results for the Team are excellent: Selene in first, Christian in third and Nikki/Kristin in first. Today is a very tough long stage. Will keep you updated. A more complete summary of the event can be found at Cycling News.com.
Jim Wilson
Team CF Founder/Manager
WEEKLY WRAP UP - May 9, 2010
The racing season is in full swing and Team CF is on a roll.
Club Team
The Team CF kits are in and are being distributed to our Club Team who are wearing them with pride. The Club Team is growing and making it happen on courses across the country. Here are some highlights from the last several weeks.
Mark Walker competed in the Tour of Gila in New Mexico. This is a stage race involving two road races, a criterium and a Time Trial. He finished 14th in the GC category almost winning one of the road races. Tom Fanning raced the Calvin’s Challenge 12 hr race in Dayton. He covered a remarkable 206 miles! Sherri Stager participated in the Addison Race Fest in Addison, NY finishing 3rd overall. Andrew Lars Stager competed in the 2010 Pittburgh Marathon finishing 491/11,000.
Mountain Bike Team
The last weekend of April was the Team’s first chance to show off their abilities at a National Level. Cheryl Sornson, Harlan Price, Christian Tanguy and I traveled to Tennessee to participate in the first ultra-endurance race of the National Ultra Endurance (NUE) series called the Cohutta 100. This is a fast NUE course with about 35 miles of single track (20 miles at the beginning and 15 miles at the end) with a major climb in the middle mostly on fire roads. The NUE series has been growing in popularity and each year is becoming more competitive. The race started at sunrise with cool temperatures and the threat of severe thunderstorms (including high winds, hail and tornados!!). We all knew that the goal was to go as fast as you could not only to place high but to minimize time on the course when (not if) the severe weather came in. About 30 to 40 miles into the race, the storm hit and hit hard with everything that had been promised. I was in the middle of the big climb in driving rain and some hail, wind, dropping temps and thick fog. The long 15-mile descent was probably the worst as hypothermia set in and the fog made it very hard to maintain much speed while going down hill.
The challenges of the course and weather made it even sweeter when Team CF dominated the podiums. Harlan, riding his first 100-mile race on a single speed, placed 1st bettering his times of past years when he raced a geared bike. Cheryl had a great race against a very competitive Women’s group and place 2nd. Christian took 4th in the Open Men’s category which is a great result considering he was still recovering from a long bout of bronchitis. I came in at 5th in the Master Men’s category. Team CF was represented on every podium!
The same weekend was a chance for Nikki Thiemann and Kristin Gavin to test their skills on single-speed MTB bikes at an all single speed MTB race in Winsor, NY. The weather we encountered in Tennessee made its way to NY creating very challenging conditions. At least Nikki and Kristin did not have to worry about mud-clogged derailleurs! Nikki and Kristin placed 1st and 2nd, respectively, providing a very nice introduction of the MTB team to New England.
Team CF spread out to a variety of venues on the first week of May. Improved weather was to usher in a great weekend of racing. Selene competed in the classic Granogue Endurance race in Delaware which is part of the MASS series. She clearly found her groove in this 4 hr event finishing 1st in Women’s and 3rd overall. Cheryl came out for the 20th running of the Michaux series called Maximus located in central south PA. The Michaux series features some of the most challenging and technical trails that I have every ridden. Cheryl started out strong but encountered multiple technical problems (broken spoke and messed up derailleur) but was able to keep the bike going with some expert “on the trail” fixes. Cheryl finished 1st in the Women’s category and is well on her way to repeating her series championship. Nikki and Kristin traveled to Virginia for a very competitive 12 hr endurance race called the 12 hrs of Lodi in which they competed in the duo Women’s – this is a tag team category in which they alternate laps (harder than you think because you are constantly starting and stopping). Our gals battled with another duo for the first 6 hrs of the race until they both “found their legs”. (Nikki and Kristin – with this kind of endurance you may be headed into the wonderful world of ultra-endurance MTB racing!) They eventually pulled away and took 1st in Women’s and 2nd overall in all duo category.
This last weekend was a chance for Team CF MTB team to convene at the classic MTB race in the French Creek Park just west of Philadelphia. This is a very rocky and technical course with a lot of technical climbs and challenging rocky descents. Team CF dominated the podiums again with Kristin taking 1st and Nikki 3rd in Women’s Expert XC and Harlan taking 4th overall in Pro/Open Expert Men (despite the fact that Harlan was riding a single speed and the others in front of him were riding geared bikes). In the endurance race which lasted 6+ hrs – Selene took 1st in the Women’s category and I came in 3rd.
Mid Atlantic Road Team
The road season is just getting underway for the Mid Atlantic Road Team. This was particularly important since Sean McLaughlin is getting back into competitive cycling after suffering a fractured hip and severe upper extremity tendon injury last year. His first race was uneventful at Farmersville. The real test came just a week later when he competed in the Turkey Hill race which is where he broke his hip last year. Sean had a great outing finishing 24/74 in the cat 3 category. Great to see you back on the bike competing, Sean!
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WEEKLY WRAP UP - April 14, 2010
Mountain Bike Team
The women came together for the first race of the Mid-Atlantic Super Series in a XC event at Fair Hill just outside of Newark, Deleware. The weather was perfect and the racing was competitive on a blistering fast course. Over 700 cyclists showed up. The women’s expert field was as competitive as I can recall in the history of the series. Team CF DOMINATED with Cheryl Sornsen finishing first, Kristin Gavin second, Selene Yeager fourth and Nikki Thiemann fifth. Two members of the Club Team – Sean McLaughlin and Dave Lowe competed in their first MTB race in the beginners’ category with Sean placing first and Dave finishing in one piece. Congrats to the newbie mountain bikers!
The day before Fair Hill, Selene competed in a 4 hr enduro called the Michaux Mash on an extremely technical course with major climbs. She won the women’s division and is in great form for the upcoming national endurance races.
Harlan Price traveled to Costa Rica for a three day stage race called El Reto De Los Volcanes. In those three days Harlan and the other riders raced up and over five volcanoes in the central valley. The race climbed about 15,000 ft in almost 130 miles. Unsure of what bike to take, Harlan ended up taking his Gary Fisher HiFi Pro 29er and loved every second of the downhills. Using the race as a training block, Harlan enjoyed getting stronger as the days went on. He was 10th the first day, 6th the second and 6th on the last day after running for fourth till the last six miles. Harlan ended up 8th overall and was happy to fly the CF colors in another country.
New England Road Team
The major objective for the week was the famous Battenkill race which is an extremely challenging and technical road race that includes a fair share of dirt roads. It was a tough day for the guys with some crashes and technical/physical set backs. Peter Goguen had a great day in the Junior division (13-14 year olds) which included 20 cyclists. Peter won following a successful sprint finish. Great job, Peter!!
Club Team
Our growing club team was out in force representing Team CF in many venues. Aaron Jones competed in two time trials in California placing 9th in the Dana Point event and 5th in the Fiesta Island time trial. Lesley Chown had a great result in the Tour of Bronte (Ontario, Canada) placing 5th in the Elite women’s cat 1, 2, 3. In his first road race, Mark Walker came in 11th of 100 riders in the Boulder-Roubaix.
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MARCH 30, 2010 Update
I am pleased to announce collaborations that have been forged between Team CF and CF clinical care programs in two outstanding regional Pediatric Hospitals: Children's Hospital of Philadelphia directed by Dr. Ron Rubenstein and The Johns Hopkins Hospital directed by Dr. Peter Mogayzel. Team CF will help these clinical programs promote the role of fitness and exercise in their CF patients. If interested in participating in the team please submit an application to join the club team or contact us directly at rideteamcf@gmail.com.
To get the program started, members of the MTB team spent a day at the University of Pennsylvania visiting the CF research program and the clinical program at CHOP. Team member Harlan Price summarizes this experience in the report below.
On January 20, 2010, the mountain bike members of Team CF visited both the Gene Therapy Program directed by Dr. Jim Wilson at the University of Pennsylvania and the Cystic Fibrosis Center at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. The visit gave each of us an opportunity to better understand the history of the genetic disorder and the methods being used for treating CF patients. The entire team made the trip from across Eastern Pennsylvania to Dr. Wilson’s lab at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.
Our Cystic Fibrosis (CF) education started in the conference room with a talk from Dr. Maria Limberis, a leader in CF research. In a power point presentation we learned how CF was discovered by Dr. Dorothy Andersen in 1938 and how treatment, along with understanding of the disease has progressed through the years. From the discovery of CF to present day, advances in treatment methods have resulted in an increase in life expectancy from an age of less than 6 months (in 1938) to 37 years. As the life expectancy increases so to has the quality of life for CF patients. Dr. Limberis stressed that the most recent studies point to a direct correlation between endurance sports and an improved quality of health for people with Cystic Fibrosis.
Dr. Maria Limberis shows normal and CF airways.
After the thorough debriefing from Dr. Limberis the team took a tour of Dr. Wilson’s lab. To non-scientists, the gene therapy lab seemed rather quiet, with lots of lab coats and cryptic formulas written on dry erase boards. We took consolation in the idea that a circus of exciting discoveries was happening beneath the microscopes.
Next stop for Team CF was CHOP, a 10 minute walk from Dr. Wilson’s lab, where we were greeted by Dr. Ron Rubenstein, Director of the Cystic Fibrosis Center at CHOP since 2006. After a brief walk through the facilities, the team learned more about the daily lives of CF patients. Many young children with CF who are inpatients have to be confined to their rooms due to the propensity for bacterial infections to spread quickly from one CF patient to another. Because of that, team member, Kaitlyn Broadhurst who is living with CF, actually choose to not visit that section of the hospital with the team. A consequence of the easy spread of bacteria amongst CF patients is that they are isolated from each other, and their opportunities to create a support network amongst themselves have traditionally been limited. Fortunately, the internet and social networking sites have created a safe haven where individuals with CF can communicate.
Dr. Ron Rubenstein describes a typical annual CF check-up.
For Dr. Rubenstein the value of Team CF is twofold. One is for the obvious connection between exercise and the wellbeing of his patients. Dr. Rubenstein is very excited about the use of endurance-related exercise in helping his patients live a quality life, and even installed different exercise equipment in the inpatients’ rooms to encourage fitness. Clearing the airway of secretions is a big part of the care of people with CF, and exercise and the deep breathing associated with this, can have the same effect as beating on the back of someone with congestion. The other value of the Team is his appreciation for increased awareness we are raising for CF, the cause he and so many others have dedicated their lives to.
For the Team, our visit provided valuable insight into the struggles that patients and their families endure on a daily basis. We came face-to-face with passionate scientists and physicians who viewed our purpose with excitement, and gave us a better appreciation for the cause we have decided to be a part of.
Mountain Bike Team members at CHOP
Back: Kristin Gavin, Nikki Thiemann, Selene Yeager & Harlan Price
Front: Cheryl Sornson & Kaitlyn Broadhurst
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MARCH 2010 Update from the Team Founder
The 2010 season is upon us and Team CF is ready to go! It has been a busy winter for us despite the challenging weather presented in getting on the bike for training. An update of recent developments is provided below.
Following some national press exposure we received a number of outstanding applications to join our Club Team. Included in this group are 5 adults living with CF – 2 of whom have underwent lung transplation, 17 friends and families of those with CF, 6 representatives of the dedicated group of CF health care providers, and 4 avid cyclists who are new to the CF family but want to promote the mission of the team. This is an international group of cyclists from a wide range of locations within the U.S.A. as well as colleagues from the U.K. and Australia. A brief bio of each club member is provided on the Club Team page. We are working with our Team to enable their personal goals and maximally promote the mission of the Team. A U.S. map showing the geographical distribution of American Club Team members is shown below.
The elite mountain bike team has taken shape and is ready to get on with the season. We are delighted to announce the recruitment of two outstanding men cyclists to the team – Harlan Price from Philadelphia, PA and Christian Tanguy from Rochester, MI. Harlan has an incredible list of achievements such as the USA Cycling National Endurance in 2009 and National Ultra Endurance (NUE) champion for 2006. He was the top USA finisher coming in at 10th overall in the 2008 edition of the grueling international stage race La Ruta De Los Conquistadores, in Costa Rica. In 2009, he was elected to represent the USA at the Marathon World Championships in Austria. Christian is more of new-comer to the world of MTB racing but has shown he is a force to be reckoned with. In 2009, Christian placed second overall in the incredibly competitive NUE series. Thanks to the help of Todd Fabian at Trek/Fisher and Anthony Hennessy at our sponsoring shop Human Zoom, all MTB team members have received their bikes. Selene Yeager, Kristin Gavin and Nikki Thiemann will be riding Superfly hard tails while Cheryl “Churtle” Sornson is on a Superfly 100. Harlan will ride a HiFi Pro in super D competition and a Superfly single speed for MTB cross country and endurance events. Christian will be on board a Trek Top Fuel 9.9 SL. Kaitlyn Broadhurst will be entering her first season of competitive cycling on a Trek Top Fuel 8 WSD.
The first MTB race for the team was actually in Ocala, FL on February 20, 2010. Selene traveled from Pennsylvania to compete in the 12 hrs women’s solo division. The 9 mile course was challenging with several miles of very technical BMX style trails in a section called “the Vortex,” linked with some incredibly sweet-flowing single track. Selene was leading her division until the very last lap where she was passed but ended up second in her division and 13th overall. A great start for the MTB team with Selene setting the bar very high.
Finally, the much awaited Team CF kits have arrived.
They will be available for sale shortly and can be purchased through the website.
Jim Wilson
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2010 SEASON UPDATE
As we approach the new year, Team CF is delighted to announce several important milestones and initiatives.
Our efforts for 2010 will concentrate on the development of three programs including an elite road and cross team from the New England area and an elite/pro mountain bike and cross team from the Mid-Atlantic region. The mountain bike team has been assembled and includes some outstanding cyclists: Kristin Gavin, Cheryl Sornson, Nikki Theimann, and Selene Yeager. Included on the team is Kaitlyn Broadhurst who is an athlete with CF who is new to cycling but grateful for the opportunity to take on the challenge of mountain bike racing. Chris Eatough will serve as coach for the mountain bike team. We will be chronicling Kaitlyn’s season through various venues that will be announced soon.
The third program will involve the development of a Club Team that will include cyclists from across the country willing to promote the mission of the Team in terms of CF awareness and fitness for those living with CF. The primary focus of the Club Team will be recruitment of cyclists with CF who have some bike-related objective for 2010 such as competing in amateur races or participating in a cycling benefit. The Club Team will also consider applicants in two other categories: 1) health care providers or family/friends of CF individuals who will use the bike to promote the Team’s mission and 2) elite/pro cyclists who wish to ride for Team CF and serve as an ambassador. We are actively soliciting applications for membership on the Club Team. We can support new members by providing free cycling gear such as jerseys and shorts, purchase of bikes and gear at reduced costs and modest financial support to help them achieve their goals. Click here for more details regarding the application process.
We are pleased to announce our sponsors for the mountain bike and club teams for the year 2010. Trek/Gary Fisher/Bontrager will be the exclusive sponsor for bikes and associated gear. SRAM will provide components and Verge Sports will be the source of clothes. Infinit Nutrition will support the team in terms of nutritional drinks and Chris Eatough will be the coach for the mountain bike team. Human Zoom will serve as the Team’s shop. Eurand and Hill-Rom have committed financial support. We are grateful to our sponsors who have stepped to the plate to support Team CF in our inaugural year!
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MESSAGE FROM THE TEAM FOUNDER
Welcome to the website for Team CF! I would like to provide you with some background about the team.
I am a Physician-Scientist at the University of Pennsylvania who has dedicated most of my academic career to the study of the disease cystic fibrosis (CF) and the development of a cure. CF is the most common genetic disease in the Unites States affecting about 30,000 children and adults (70,000 worldwide). The genetic defect renders certain organs of the body susceptible to obstruction due to thick mucus secretions. The most severe manifestation is in the lung where thick secretions lead to chronic lung infections which require a daily regimen of drug treatments and chest physical therapy to help clear airway secretions. Thick secretions in the pancreas compromise food absorption leading to nutritional deficiencies that can be partially overcome with nutitional supplements and oral enzyme replacement. Advances in the clinical management of CF have improved the prognosis, although current life expectancy is 37.4 years of age (median). There is no cure for CF, however, lung transplantation is the only life saving treatment in those with end stage lung disease.
The inspiration for Team CF came from the story of the Goguen family from Worcester, MA that includes nine children, two of whom were born with CF – Manny, age 18 and Tom, age 15. I know full-well the struggles that kids with CF have just to get up in the morning and make it through the day. The Goguen kids participate in a rigorous exercise program and compete at a very high level in the areas of road cycle and cyclocross racing which is both amazing and inspirational.
An important new concept in managing CF patients is the benefit of a regular fitness program. Regular aerobic activity helps those with CF for a variety of reasons including improved cardiopulmonary fitness and improved clearance of the airways. It is important to emphasize that the high level of athletic performance achieved by the Goguen boys is the exception and not achievable by most with CF (or without CF for that matter). Having spent my entire career developing complicated molecular technologies to help cure CF, I find it ironic that one of the more effective therapies that can make a difference now is running or cycling.
We have assembled a team of cyclists who share a passion for competitive cycling and are committed to improving the quality of life for those living with CF with the ultimate goal of finding a cure. The Team is represented by competitive cyclists from the New England and Mid-Atlantic regions and race in a variety of cycling disciplines including road, cyclocross and mountain biking. Team members have a range of experiences in competitive cycling ranging from Elite Experts to Beginners and include individuals living with CF such as Manny and Tom Goguen.
Through a variety of competitive and non-competitive cycling events, Team CF will promote its mission of increasing awareness of CF, raising money for CF research and promoting fitness in those with CF.
Team CF has established partnerships with many of the CF Clinical Centers on the East Coast to establish programs that use cycling to encourage children with CF to establish safe and sustainable exercise programs.
There are many ways you can help Team CF to accomplish its objectives. Please contact us at rideteamcf@gmail.com if you wish to make a donation or volunteer at our events. If you are living with CF and would like to participate in our fitness programs, you can contact us directly or have your physician do so. Before undertaking any exercise program of any kind, it is critical that you consult with your clinical care team.
We are looking forward to an exciting first season and welcome you to enjoy the ride!
~Jim Wilson |
