Milwaukee-based cross team moves 2nd 2012 race to Noyes Park
By Andrew Hellpap
spindailynews@gmail.com
After a run at Doyne Park, Milwaukee, My Wife Inc. (MWI) has
moved its second race of the cross season to Noyes Park.
The 2.5-kilometer venue at 8235 W. Good Hope Road, Milwaukee,
is a short nine-hole golf course, that offers a mix of features to challenge
racers, but also to create an experience that has the team excited about the
public response, said Mike Heenan, MWI technical director, and the team's
co-founder/director.
"We have developed a great relationship with the parks
department and they thought Noyes Park would offer more variety of terrain and
ultimately be a better venue than what we used last year, Doyne Park, he said.
Though Heenan is know to make last minute changes to a
course, he said, the venue should feature a fair amount of elevation change,
but the team has also tried to utilize it in a way to minimize the amount of
straight climbing in each lap.
"I design our courses to reward bike handlers — racers
that have developed the skill set to drive their bikes, stay off the brakes and
rail through corners," Heenan said.
My Wife Inc.'s, second race of 2011 at Doyne Park MWI hosted
about 230 racers, while the team's first race, Cross the Domes garnered 330
people.
Heenan admits it is sometimes difficult to get large
attendance at a first-time venue, he is hoping the team's reputation with
designing strong courses will sell itself, he said.
"I think what makes our races unique is our
perspective. Most of the team has raced throughout the Midwest and has the
opportunity to see big, well-organized races in Ohio, Kentucky, Colorado,
Missouri, Iowa, Massachusetts; seeing and racing on well designed courses from
different regions allows us to take the best of what we like at those venues
and bring them to our races," Heenan said.
For those who participated in Cross the Domes, Oct. 6, which
was also part of the Wisconsin Cycling Association cross calendar, they may
find Noyes Park a bit familiar, he said. Both parks feature a similar design
philosophy, flowing off-camber turns, wide apexes with multiple line choices,
and a good mix of power and technical sections.
The only drawback to the new venue is parking, Heenan said.
Noyes Park has a small parking lot, so he is asking participants and spectators
to be courteous. For example, racers should set up team tents on the grass so
they don't take up available parking space in the lot. My Wife Inc., is working
with the local municipality to provide temporary parking in the south side of
Good Hope Road.
Like working with the city as a partner, moving to a new
venue or puting on a race at all can't be done alone, Heenan said.
"These races would not be possible and without the full
support of everyone on the team. Designing the course is really the easy part,
the team does all the heavy lifting; 5 a.m. course set up, registration,
equipment rental ... putting on a quality race is a ton of work and I am
thankful that everyone in our tight knit crew at MWI does their part to pull it
off," Heenan said.
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