Mines cycling team takes third at nationals - #lakewoodnews

While the majority of the Colorado School of Mines' class of 2016 was at the May 31 graduation ceremony, six students were competing in the USA Cycling Collegiate Road National Championships in North Carolina.

"That shows how much fun it is," said the cycling team's president Laura Leonard, "and how much we love racing."

There wasn't too much disappointment in missing graduation --; the team was busy celebrating a couple of big wins.

The Colorado School of Mines Cycling Team placed third overall, out of 45 Division 2 schools, at the national championships. In addition, the men won first place in the men's team time trials race and Andrew Hemesath placed second in the men's criterium.

Other Colorado universities also did well at the competition. In Division 1, out of 61 schools, Fort Lewis College in Durango placed second and the University of Colorado-Boulder placed fifth.

The Mines team consists of about 30 people, but the six students who went to nationals were Leonard, Hemesath, Jake Wands, Jon Wells, Dan McMahon and Rosa Foth.

The cycling team at Mines is a club sport, Leonard said, but members still compete against varsity-level schools.

All of the team members have

a rigorous course load, so academics are first and riding is second, said Wands, 22, who graduated with a degree in metallurgical and materials engineering. Some of the competitors at nationals may have earned a scholarship for cycling, allowing them more time to train, he added.

"We put a lot of hard work in," said Wells, a 21-year-old chemical engineering student. "It's great to see it pay off with a big win."

Mines competed in three sets of races for the collegiate nationals: a road race on May 13 in Marshall, a criterium on May 14 in Burnsville and a men's team time trial on May 15, also in Marshall.

Mines posted a first-place finish of 41:04.7 in the men's team time trials.

Last year, the Mines men were considered a "dream team" and placed second in the team time trial, Wands said. So this year, they were hoping for a podium win among the top five --; not first place.

Probably the best part about winning the time trial was helping teammate Hemesath capture a national title, Wands said. Hemesath, who was out of the country at the time of interviews, has been racing since he was 14, and a number of those years have been at an elite level.

But he had never won a national title, Wands said. "It was really cool and exciting to help him get that."

Hemesath also came in second in the men's criterium.

The third-place win didn't come just from the men, Wands said. "The girls' points mattered just as much."

There weren't enough women to compete in the women's team time trial at nationals, but this year was the first time Mines had women compete in the collegiate road race nationals.

"It was great to be a part of that," said Foth, who graduated with a degree in environmental engineering.

Foth, 22, hopes more Mines women are inspired to do road racing.

"Get on your bike and give racing a try," Foth said. "It's worth it."

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