Turtle Pond Circuit Race

THANK YOU!

On behalf of the MetLife Cycling Team, organizers of the Turtle Pond Cycling Race, I’d like to offer a huge thank you to the racers, volunteers and sponsors that made this year’s race possible.  With unseasonably warm weather drawing out over 450 cyclists, we had an incredibly successful event in 2009 and we look forward to returning in 2010. 

The Turtle Pond Road Race has quickly become a classic of the New England road calendar.  The rolling course and central location have made it a racer’s favorite.  Our sponsors have made it a well-supported event.  Please frequent them given the chance:

Panera Bread in Concord, loaded us up with enough loaves to feed our mass of racers and volunteers as did Constantly Pizza and Dos Amigos, also in Concord.  Jordan’s Ice Cream offered up complimentary gift certificates.  There are fewer gifts that are going to please a hungry racer than the best ice cream in the Lakes Region.

In addition to calories, MetLife partner, HED Cycling, donated a classic, light and aero’ Bastogne wheelset that were raffled off, with more than $600 raised for our charities.

Finally, we relied heavily on the support of Grappone motors who let us borrow a fine collection of new Toyotas to act as our lead and follow cars.  It goes without saying that our race felt more professional, more organized as a result of having a collection of sleek vehicles patrolling the edges of competition.

 A race this large is a great undertaking and we certainly could not do it without the overwhelming support of our sponsors, supporters, volunteers and riders. Our race brought in over $5000 for the Loudon Elementary School Technology Fund and the Dr. Dennise Maslakowski Graduate Education Scholarship Fund, two very worthy causes that support education in New Hampshire.

Money donated to the elementary school will help ease the costs of buying new computers and other technology applications.  Since 2009 marks the fifth year the team has promoted the race in Loudon, New Hampshire, it seems only right to give back to our great host town.

Dennise Maslakowski was Plymouth State University’s associate vice president of the College of Graduate Studies and a friend of MetLife Cycling.  Late last year she passed away after a battle with cancer.  Our donation to the fund set up in her name will encourage potential educators looking to go to school at Plymouth State University to become capable, smart, and enthusiastic teachers who, perhaps, will choose to work in New Hampshire.

Turtle Pond Circuit Race 2009 edition

Mark your race calendars: The 2009 Turtle Pond Circuit Race is ready to roll on April 25!  Now into its seventh year, the same smooth and twisting course adjacent to the eponymous Turtletown Pond on the roads of Loudon, New Hampshire, returns to test racers’ early season endurance, stamina, and will.  Some changes, however, have been made.  The course has been tweaked and fine tuned to include a second steep climb up Hot Hole Pond Road.  But climbers, don’t rejoice just yet!  Since what goes up must come down, the finish line has been moved from the summit of Oak Hill to a sprint line on the much flatter topography of School Street.  This updated course should level the playing field somewhat, providing a balanced diet of ups and downs, twists and turns.

Race for a great cause
2009 marks the sixth year that the MetLife Cycling Team has been promoting the Turtle Pond Circuit Race.  This year organizers have decided to donate 100% of event proceeds to two local causes: the Loudon Elementary School technology fund and the Dr. Dennise Maslakowski Graduate Education Scholarship Fund at Plymouth State University.  For seven years, the kind citizens of Concord and Loudon, New Hampshire, have shared their roads with the racing community and the team would like to show our appreciation for their continued support and enthusiasm.  If you or your business would like to help support these causes, sponsorship opportunities are available. Please contact us. 

WIN a pair of HED Bastogne C2 Wheels!
Bastogne. The small city in the Walloon region of Belgium. The halfway mark of the famous Ardennes Classic, Liege-Bastogne-Liege (L-B-L), one of the most brutal one-day races of the year. Now there's a wheel tough enough to bear the city's name.

HED, the official team wheel of the MetLife Pro-Am Cycling Team, has donated a pair of Bastogne C2 wheels for raffle at this year's Turtle Pond Circuit Race! SRP of $850! A $10 donation enters you into the drawing to win the perfect spring wheelset. You can enter when you register on-line at BikeReg.com, or on race day.

All proceeds go toward the Loudon Elementary School Technology Fund and the Dr. Dennise Maslakowski Graduate Education Scholarship Fund. 

Course Description
Surrounded by residences and farms, the East Concord, and Loudon, New Hampshire, area provides the perfect backdrop for a classic New England bike race.  With excellent road surfaces on much of the course from a repaving in 2005, expect one of the nicest courses in the region.  Staging and the start line have been moved this year to the Loudon Elementary School on School Street.  The course begins with a left turn up the legendary Oak Hill Road climb and follows a twisty and rolling 11-mile circuit.  A second climb up Hot Hole Pond Road is short but steep and should have racers gasping by the time they sprint for the finish line on School Street.

Registration
To register, visit our event page on BikeReg.com or mail your USCF rider release form and check, made payable to PROJECT CYCLING, to:

Brad Sheehan
7 Nottingham Street
Newton Center, MA 02459