Team Kaos placed two riders on the podium of the Cat. I-II category. Marco Vasquez (left) finished third, Jarred Berger won his first state TT crown and Husker Road Club's Jeff Luedtke (right) was second.
 Gretna, Neb. — Jarred Berger had never ridden the Nebraska State Time Trial course near the Ak-Sar-Ben Aquarium before Saturday. But it made no difference.
Team Kaos’ sensational talent blasted away the Cat. I-II competition, winning the 20.32-mile race by more than a minute. Berger averaged 27.60 miles an hour to finish in 44 minutes and 10 seconds and capture his second state title of the season.
Berger was the 12th-to-last starter on the day. Click here to view more race photos by Jeremy Alm.
In June, he was the highest-placed Nebraska finisher in the state criterium of the Dave Babcook Memorial Stage Race.
"I went pretty hard the first half of it — out to the turnaround and back to the finish," Berger said. "But then I really slowed down on the third section for some reason. But at the end, I had enough."
Mark Brackenbury (left) earned Team Kaos one of its three state time trial titles by winning the Masters 35+ division.
Berger’s time was just two seconds slower than this year’s course record set by Husker Road Club’s Jeff Luedtke, who had won all three of the previous time trials in the Ak-Sar-Ben series. Saturday, Luedtke finished in 45:25, his slowest time of the season by 30 seconds.
"I was right on schedule until the last turnaround," Luedtke said. "But from there to the finish, time kept slipping away. I really can’t give anything as an excuse. I went as fast as I could."
Luedtke and the later starters of the field of 51 riders faced a slight headwind on the closing five-mile stretch of the out-back-and-out course near the Ak-Sar-Ben Aquarium. Other than that, conditions were nearly ideal for the fourth and final race of the series.
Team President Marco Vasquez missed out on the silver medal by one second.
Finishing just one second behind Luedtke was Berger’s teammate, Marco Vasquez. Racing his own time trial bicycle for only the second time, Vasquez bettered his time from a month ago by more than two minutes.
"My gift time trial bike from my lovely wife felt great," Vasquez said, carefully choosing his words as his wife Jacqueline, looked on. "It’s good to have all kinds of teammates here and have a few more times in on this bike. The last time I raced here, I was dehydrated and my seat was an inch-and-a-half too high."
Berger, who was riding a Giant time trial bicycle borrowed from Team Kaos teammate Jordan Brasch, said he trained hard in the days leading up to the race on a 10-mile course in Lincoln.
"I expected to win today. I was confident," Berger said. "I trained really hard and got some good rides in on Jordan’s bike. Looking back, I think I would have gone faster had I known the course."
Morgan Chaffin was all smiles before the start.
Two other Team Kaos riders captured state titles besides Berger. Morgan Chaffin added to the Nebraska State criterium championship she won earlier this year despite clocking her slowest time of the season. Chaffin said the decision to use aero bars for the first time might have cost her valuable seconds.
"It’s really hard to shift when you don’t have bar-end shifters on the bars," she said. "Plus, I’ve been really sore lately. I’ll do the last two races in September (the state road race championship weekend and the Elmwood Murdock race weekend) and that will probably be the end of my season."
Team Kaos’ Mark Brackenbury won the Masters 35+ division state title by clocking a 47:31 — nearly four minutes faster than his other outing on the Ak-Sar-Ben Course. In June, the Omahan placed 15th in the 40-44 age division in June at the 2005 U.S. Men's Masters 40-44 Time Trial Championships in Utah.
Gary Schmidt won the silver medal in the Masters 55+ division.
Gary Schmidt of Team Kaos also medaled, finishing second among Nebraskans in the Masters 55+ division.
State time trial champions in other categories were: Pierce’s Scott Blair (Cat. V), Lincoln’s Nate Elmer (Cat. IV), Mike Munson (Cat. III), Mike Melton (masters 45+) and Steve Meyer (masters 55+).
Team Kaos will next be in action in Nebraska at the State Road Race, Saturday, Sept. 10, at Branched Oak Lake State Recreation Area.
Nebraska State Time Trial Championship
Aug. 27, 20.32 Miles At Gretna
Conditions: 82 degrees, south wind 5 mph, sunny skies
USCF Women: 1, Tamyra Barnard, Aerospace Engineering, Dania Beach, Fla., 49:43. 2, Morgan Chaffin, Team Kaos, Omaha, 55:14. 3, Cheryl Gerkins, Ciao Baby, Lincoln, 1:01:53. State champion: Chaffin.
Cat. V: 1, Scott Blair, unattached, Pierce, 52:15. 2 (tie), Lucas Marshall, unattached, Omaha, and Duane Blair, unattached, Norfolk, 52:16. State champion: Scott Blair.
Cat. IV: 1, Nate Elmer, Ciao Baby, Lincoln, 47:38. 2, Buck Hood, Ciao Baby, North Platte, 47:59. 3, Mike Bartels, Revolution Cycling, Omaha, 48:58. State champion: Elmer.
Cat. III: 1, Mike Munson, LBC/Highgear, Omaha, 45:30. 2, Scott Stevens, LBC/Highgear, Lincoln, 48:14. 3, Mike Campie, Revolution Cycling, LaVista, 48:49. State champion:Munson.
Cat. I-II: 1, Jarred Berger, Team Kaos, Lincoln, 44:10. 2, Jeff Luedtke, Husker Road Club, Omaha, 45:25. 3, Marco Vasquez, Team Kaos, Omaha, 45:26. State champion: Berger.
Masters 35-and-over: 1, Mark Brackenbury, Team Kaos, Omaha, 47:31. 2, Craig Schmidt, Lincoln Plating-LeMond, Lincoln, 48:28. 3, Jeff Bergen, unattached, Omaha, 51:09. State champion: Brackenbury.
Masters 45-and-over: 1, Mike Melton, Ciao Baby, Lincoln, 48:43. 2, Fred Galata, unattached, Omaha, 50:34. 2, Ron Nelson, unattached, Lincoln, 52:19. State champion: Melton.
Masters 55-and-over: 1. Thom Leonard, Kansas City Bicycle Club, Lawrence, Kan., 49:26. 2, Steve Meyer, unattached, Lincoln, 57:52. 3, Gary Schmidt, Team Kaos, Omaha, 58:15. State champion: Meyer. |
