Youth Cycling Network

It had been a while since Max and I had raced together, but now that Max upgraded to Cat 3, we were super excited to be in the same field at the Verge Series #1 Cat 2/3 Prospect Park road race, along with other friends...

Yes, finally, at the CRCA Central Park road race, I managed to get into a break in a Cat 1/2/3 field. This has been a big goal for me, and it finally worked! My experience has been that these Cat 1/2/3 fields often have winning...

At the first Lucarelli & Castaldi Prospect Park race of the year, I competed in the Cat 1/2/3 and raced very conservatively. This was in sharp contrast to yesterday’s Branchbrook race, where I chased nearly every attack as part of our Star Track team tactics,...

After just racing two of the most popular US junior stage races, Valley of the Sun and La Primavera Lago Vista, you might think that going to the local Lucarelli & Castaldi Branchbrook Road Race would be a letdown, but that is far from the...

I learned so much at La Primavera Lago Vista, a stop on the USA Cycling Junior Road Cycling National Series. Coming off the Valley of the Sun Stage Race, I was put in many race scenarios that I hadn’t been in before. I’ll try my...

Starting off the season with a bang! Max and I raced the 34th Valley of Sun Stage Race (VoS) from February 13–15 in Phoenix, Arizona. This was our first junior stage race, so we were super stoked, even though we had little idea what to...

We should have gone to the Bromont track earlier! Ari and I had such a great time. We left home Friday morning, and after about a six-hour drive, we got to our hotel in Bromont, Quebec, Canada. We quickly unpacked and went straight to the...

We finally raced our first Madison Nationals. For many years, it’s been a tradition to watch the Mad Track Cycling YouTube livestream, and each time, we were bitter for not being there. Two weeks ago, we came to Detroit to get familiar with the track...

We had an awesome time at the Mad Track Arena in Detroit for our first visit, and we honestly regret not coming sooner. Everyone was incredibly welcoming. Our goal for this weekend was simple: get comfortable on their 166m track and race our first Madison...

What a way to end the 2025 road season! Today, we raced the Kissena Fall Classic in Prospect Park. We were super excited because this race has been canceled for the past few years due to weather. This was also our first local park road...

No better way to end our last “away” race this season than the Gran Fondo Maryland! Last year, we had a great time racing through beautiful scenery and tackling grueling hills. This year, I was eligible to compete in the 14–16 category for the National...

First of three done at Road Nationals. We were hoping for more at this Crit, but I’m happy with my 4th place and Max with his 3rd place result. But first off, big thanks to Coach Pete, who came all the way from T-Town, PA...

A lot better than yesterday! Today we raced the second day of the Tour of America’s Dairyland (ToAD). In yesterday‘s race, Max won in a breakaway of two riders, and I had a bit of bad luck – I got caught behind a crash and...

We’re glad we came early to Junior Road Nationals to catch some of the Tour of America’s Dairyland (ToAD) crit races. The series takes place around Milwaukee, and our first ToAD race was in Cedarburg. I raced in the 9–12 field, while Ari lined up...

When recalling the Verge Series #3 Cat 2-3 race, the two words that immediately come to mind are pain and rain. I lined up at the start line, ready to race in the most inhospitable conditions the sky had to offer. The race started with...

Can’t even remember the last time Max and I raced together, but we finally did in the 15–18 field at the Nutmeg Crit in New Britain, Connecticut. First, though, we raced in separate fields per our age categories—Max the 9–12 and I the 13–14. We...

I was so glad to return for the 80th Annual Tour of Somerville. The weather was awesome, and tons of our Star Track teammates and other friends were there too. Coach Brian and Coach Pete brought tents for us to warm up under, and Ms...

Shame on us for missing the Easton Crit all these years! Easton, PA is such a beautiful town, and the six-corner course is one of the most fun Max and I have ever raced. Max competed in an 80-rider Cat 4 race, and I raced...

A goal of ours has been to try races new to us, and the Wilmington Grand Prix didn’t disappoint. What an atmosphere and it was awesome to race in nothing but sun for a change. Our Star Track teammate Viv came too. On Saturday we...

The Garden State Stage Race (GSSR) was even better than the inaugural event last year. Both times, I raced in the Cat 3/4 category. Last year, this was very ambitious and I got humbled. This year, I was determined to do better. My TT performance...

Double Treat! Whenever we go to Boston to see family, I always check whether there are any cycling events in the area. The last time the stars aligned was three years ago – I jumped into the Wells Ave Crit in Newton and had an...

The Tour of Newport News was an absolute blast – not necessarily because of the weather, but thanks to the incredible energy. The super well-organized, three-day omnium packed in a points race, TT, crit, and circuit race, drawing some of the strongest Cat 3/4 riders...

Don’t slack when the field is neutralized! So I learned at today’s Lucarelli & Castaldi Prospect Park Road Race where I competed in the Cat 1/2/3 field. My goal was to ride at the front of the pack and get involved in any potential moves,...

I was in it trying to win it, the Coney Island Crit Cat 3/4. For the past couple of weeks I’ve been racing Cat 1/2/3s to develop my positioning skills, gain fitness, and build confidence. I raced the 3/4s today with the hope of putting...

Gaining confidence in the Cat 1/2/3 fields. This was my second time racing Prospect Park this year and third time competing in a Cat 1/2/3 field following my Branchbrook races yesterday and Mar 15. In those races I was largely hanging onto the fields but...

Most races I want to win and others are for learning. Today’s Lucarelli & Castaldi Branchbrook Cat 1/2/3 road race was the latter – too fast and too competitive for me to race for the win. However, it offered an opportunity for me to refine...

Always super exciting to come to the CRCA Central Park road races. I was competing in the B (Cat 3/4) field and my goal for the day was to get in a breakaway. Should that fail, plan B was to launch an attack near the...

The best experiences are often the ones you least expect. I learned this lesson today at the Gotham Cyclists Crit in Phillipsburg, NJ. The high chance of rain and low registration made the race initially seem unappealing. But everything changed as we arrived. Friendly police...

A big first today at the Branchbrook Road Race. This was my first Cat 1/2/3. When I checked the registration list for this race, I was deeply intimidated. I was lining up at the startline beside New York City’s best, those whom I look up...

The track races at the Mattamy National Cycling Centre in Milton, Ontario Canada are definitely a highlight during the winter and this has been our sixth time going and we again had an absolutely fantastic time. A very large Star Track crew tends to come...

You would think that our last Hincapie Gran Fondo in Leigh Valley would be impossible to beat as Ari placed 2nd amongst the U19 on the Gran route and won some Speed Hound Recovery Boots, but it did get better in Greenville. The above picture...

The Historic Riverton Criterium was so much fun. It was my first time going and it’s now one of my favorite crit races despite me getting pulled. Max came too but there was nothing for him to race because they neither had a junior field...

So glad to be back at Prospect Park for the Lucarelli & Castaldi Cup #5. Prospect Park is one of our favorite local courses because it is really fast and the roads are super smooth since they just repaved them. Plus it takes us just...

The Hincapie Gran Fondos are one of our absolutely favorite events. Max and I have now done five in total – this was our third time in Lehigh Valley, PA and we have been twice to the one in Greenville, NC.  What makes these Gran...

The Tour of Somerville is one of our favorite races and it is our third year in a row that we have been going. On Memorial Day we used to spend time with family that is super close to us but the Somerville crit made...

While I have been training at Kissena Velodrome quite a bit this year, the Kissena Twilight Racing Series #1 was my first time racing at Kissena his year and I had so much fun. They had races on weekends this year but I couldn’t go...

The CRCA Club Series Race #6 was a lot of fun, particularly since it didn’t rain. I raced the B group (Cat 3/4) which had 58 riders. There were three other juniors in my field, all from Dave Jordan Racing, namely Daniel, Julian, and Camille...

The Coney Island Crit was super well organized and the course was lots of fun, just 860 meters long, nearly flat, and with three corners. I raced the 20-minute junior field and Ari raced the Cat 4/5 which was 40 minutes. Unfortunately it was raining...

The CRCA Lucarelli & Castaldi Club Race #5 was a long one, 7.7 laps for a total of about 77 km. One of my longest ones yet! The race finished by the Tavern On The Green. What made this race different from the other CRCA...

The CRCA Bear Mountain Classic is one of our favorite races and what made the event extra special is that it was also the New York State Road Championship. Since we began racing in 2022, only one of us raced at the Bear Mountain Classic...

This was our first time at the Trooper David Brinkerhoff Memorial Race in Coxsackie, NY. We were super impressed with how well the race was organized. There were tons of staff members at registration and each field had at least one lead and one follow...

Three races over two days at the Garden State Stage Race (GSSR) taught me that failure can be more valuable than success. The event left me with a mix of emotions and an understanding of areas I can improve on. So I would say, the GSSR...

Felt so good to be back at Prospect Park, one of our favorite local races. Ari competed in the Cat 3/4 and Max raced with our Star Track teammate Viv in the Cat 5 field. Max’s Cat 5 Race  My race had 5 laps for...

Always awesome to compete in CRCA‘s Central Park road races. Come to think of it, what a privilege to race in one of the most popular parks in the world. This was the third CRCA race this year and we went to all of them....

This was our third year in a row returning to the Frozen Four. It felt great to be back and we had an absolutely awesome time. Coach David came too, as well as our Star Track teammates Desmond, Ian, Jayden, Logan, Lily, and Viv. Amongst...

Was super happy to be back at the Lucarelli & Castaldi Branchbrook Road Race – it’s one of my favorite races and I wanted to come at least once this spring. Max came too but he decided not to race as he wanted to taper...

Max, our Star Track teammate Viv, and I raced the the CRCA Club Race #2 in Central Park. Max and Viv were in the 5-lap / 50km C-group and I raced the 6-lap / 60km B-field. Max finished 16th/21 and I got 28th/45. Viv came in before Max but strangely his result wasn’t...

Today Max, our Star Track teammate Dani, and I raced the final CRCA club race in Central Park! I came into to the race with mixed feelings. Excited to race and sad the series was about to come to an end. Max raced the C...

You search, you’ll find. We are on vacation to visit my aunt on Rhodes, Greece and couldn’t help think about how to get on bikes (despite having two off-weeks). Turns out that Rhodes has a velodrome which was built in 1930. Our aunt stopped by...

We had such a great time. It was our fifth time at Floyd this year and sixth overall. Such an awesome place and everyone is super nice. Max raced the Cat 5 which had five laps for a total of about 18 kilometers and I...

The Lucarelli & Castaldi FBF Summer Fly-By was a lot of fun. There was much excitement and everyone had a great time. Ari, however, sat this one out because he had a pretty hard race the prior day at Prospect Park – his blog post...

The Castelli Series #5 at Prospect Park was a lot of fun. There were a lot of people there and it was very exciting. The night before the race we slept really well. Also, that morning we ate well – oatmeal with raisins. We were...

It was super windy! This was Max and my third time racing the Floyd Bennet Crit this year and fourth overall but we never raced in so much wind, neither at Floyd nor anywhere else. At the race were our Star Track teammates Akira, Daniel...

The NYS Junior Track Championship was a lot of fun. We had fast and exciting races. Mostly Star Track riders were there, about 20 – the only person not from Star Track was our friend Isaac. In our category, 10-12 year olds, we had three...

The Prospect Park Lucarelli & Castaldi Cup #7 was fantastic. My Star Track teammate Logan and I took on the challenge. He did the Cat 5 race and I the 3/4 that was going 9 laps for a total of about 50 km. Max didn’t...

Max and I had an awesome time at the Lucarelli & Castaldi Floyd Bennett Crit. Max competed in the Cat 5 race which started at 18:30 and I raced the Cat 3/4s at 19:00. This was the first time I could watch Max’s race as...

Was great to be back at the Branchbrook Road Race course for the Lucarelli & Castaldi Summer Series #4. We were at Branchbrook first in April of last year for the Cherry Blossom Challenge, one of our first races ever (and you can see some...

The CRCA Lucarelli & Castaldi Open race was a blast. Our Star Track teammates Avery, Daniel, Logan, and Yosef joined Max and me. Avery, Daniel, Logan, and Max did the 5-lap (about 50km) Cat 4/5 race and Yosef and I took on the 7-lap (about...

The Kissena Twilight Racing Series #12 was fun and fast. It was fun because we had teams. We had to chose four people and I picked Josiah, Mark, and Matt. Whichever team got the most omnium points won. There were three races and for each...

We had such a great time at the regionals in T-Town this year – the races were not too long but not too short. We had a 1 kilometer scratch, 6 kilometer scratch, and an 8 kilometer points race. Our field was small, there were...

This was our first time racing the North Woodmere Crit and I believe it’s the first time a race was organized on this course thanks to Alex from Verrazano Team Racing. The course is used by fire departments to train and it’s a two corner...

This CRCA Club Race in Central Park was one of Max and my hardest. Our Star Track teammates Daniel and Julian joined us as well. It was a 7 lap (69 km) race in pouring rain for most of the time. For me, Ari, I...

For me, Ari, the Castelli Series #4 road race in Prospect Park finished early. After 1.5 laps out of 5 in the cat 4/5, I got a flat as a piece of glass stuck to my tire. Hung in well with the field until this...

This was our first Floyd Bennett Crit this year and second overall. We wanted to race more but couldn’t because of Road and Track Nationals. This time around they had a junior field which was awesome! Devin and Gus from Verge were in it. Our...

The 2023 USA Cycling Amateur Road National Championships in Roanoke, VA were a blast! There were three events in total, the time trial, road race, and crit. I came home with two bronze medals, one gold medal, a National Championship jersey, and a wonderful experience!...

The CRCA Mengoni Grand Prix was a lot of fun. Ari and I raced the Cat 5 field with our Star Track teammates Daniel and Julian. But the race was sketchy! There were three crashes in our field. Someone even hit my back wheel! Luckily...

The Prospect Park Spring Classic in New York City was fun, cold, and early! We had to wake up at 4:30 for our 6:20 race start. Our Star Track teammates Josiah, Logan, Max, and Viv raced as well in the Cat 4/5 field where he...

This was our first time to be back at the Kissena Velodrome this year and the season opened with the Kissena 6 Days race series. It was awesome to be back at the track and see everyone again – 120 registered and all were ready...

Today was a super fun race – the Lucarelli & Castaldi Cup #1 in Prospect Park, New York City. I was smiling the whole time. There were 55 racers in the Cat 5 field, so it was a big group. I felt safe throughout the...

Max, and I raced the CRCA Club Race in Central Park, New York. This was our first CRCA Club Race. The race was long, hilly, windy, hard, and FUN! Max raced in the C field (Cat 5) and I raced in B (Cat 3/4). It...

That was a tough Cat 4/5 race. The pack went really fast and it was sketchy. It was about a 6 feet wide course and the pack was 5 feet wide. Ari, Alvin, Viv, and I got pulled out 20 minuets into the 45-minute race....

This race was fun. It was on a new course. We had to wake up really early because it was two hours away from our house. I ate a lot that morning. It was pretty cold, around 30 degrees. It was a 25 minute race...