No Brakes at 26 mph!

With just six weeks to prepare, colleagues team up for a memorable Velodrome ride

Pamela Maurer clutches the wall with her right hand, her feet clipped onto the pedals of her track bike. Her five Valley Preferred teammates line up behind her, anticipating the start of the Corporate Challenge. The horn blares, and they descend the Lehigh Valley Velodrome.

With precision and skill, they form a straight line, following the rhythmic pace of Maurer for the first lap. She peels away, letting Kim Procaccino and other teammates lead. Finally, Neal Stansbury, M.D., bursts to the finish. The Valley Preferred team clinches fifth place. “The race signifies the passion of our health care deliverers by day and talented athletes by night,” says Laura Mertz, general manager of Valley Preferred.

The opportunity for colleagues to learn to ride a track bike and compete was made possible by Valley Preferred, an exclusive sponsor of the 2006 Professional Racing Series and long-time Velodrome supporter.

“The Corporate Challenge brings our community and area businesses together for fun and friendly competition,” Mertz says. “We also share a similar philosophy with the Velodrome: to promote healthy activities, and by supporting these events, we’re doing just that.”

To join the Palmer Pool swim team, 7-year-old Maurer needed to swim across the pool. So, she jumped in and wiggled and splashed her way there. “People giggled,” she says. But she never gave up. She chose swimming camp over beach vacations, trained with a coach who produced Olympic athletes and eventually won races.

Fast forward 28 years to the Corporate Challenge, where Maurer draws on her swimmer’s resolve. “It’s intimidating cycling on this steep angle with no brakes,” she says. “But I was determined to overcome my fear and race.”

When Urffer was 9, Santa brought her a pink bike with a white basket. “It gave me my freedom,” she says. Years later after a bad personal relationship, Urffer turned to cycling again. “Riding has empowered me,” she says.

“I love to see how fast and far I can go.” That determination wheeled her into third place in the women’s individual Corporate Challenge.

Urffer, president of the Lehigh Wheelman Club, rides more than 4,000 miles a year. “The track has brought new life into my cycling world,” she says. “I can’t believe at 45 I’m doing this.”

Kim and Angelo met while playing in the LVHHN golf league, yet their relationship grew through one of Kim’s passions—cycling. “We went to a cycling camp in Majorca, Spain, a training ground for professional riders,” Kim says.

But neither expected to be racing at the Velodrome. “The team needed women to race,” Kim says. She signed up; so did Angelo. “Cycling is my passion,” he says.

After seeing his first road race in Los Gatos, Calif., 16-year-old Stansbury called the local bike team about joining. He then got a job at a bike shop and bought his first race bike. Within two years, he was competing at the highest level for an amateur rider—and, in his 40s, broke a world record for his age group.

He turned down a professional contract to attend medical school, but he didn’t turn down the Corporate Challenge. “It’s thrilling to race,” he says. “The stress drifts away.”

Hancock often rolls out of bed at 5 a.m. and onto his bike for a 40-mile ride. His love of cycling started in high school after competing on a relay triathlon team. “I did the swim portion and thought it was cool,” he says. “I already was a runner, so I just needed to start cycling.”

Once he started working full time, Hancock found it hard to train in all areas, so he focused on cycling. “Being on the track was exhilarating, like riding for the first time,” he says. “I’m so grateful for the opportunity to train with other cyclists who are as passionate about cycling as I am.”

When Boorse first started running more than 30 years ago, he never thought he’d run a marathon. He started with a 5K and worked his way up. Then, he competed in an Ironman triathlon (2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride and 26.2-mile run).
“I do one thing outside my comfort zone each year,” he says. This year he rode on the track. Because a track bike has a fixed gear, there is no coasting. “You have to keep pedaling. If you don’t, the bike’s momentum stops, and it’s like riding a bucking bronco.”

Boorse rode to first in the men’s individual Corporate Challenge.

Kincaid always loved cycling. But when he started riding in the Multiple Sclerosis 150 City to Shore Bike Tour in 1999, cycling took on new meaning. “I ride for Tania,” he says about his wife, an administrative partner on MICU/SICU and PCU who has MS that caused temporary blindness.

A major sponsor of Team Tania (formed for the MS 150), Valley Preferred approached Kincaid about riding for its Corporate Challenge team. “I’m so thankful for their support. I was thrilled to wear their jersey,” he says.

Interested in cycling? Get a Healthy You article about how to choose the right bike, join colleagues on road rides, learn about the Lehigh Wheelman Club and get details about trying out for next summer's Valley Preferred team by calling 610-402-CARE.

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