The Kwik Trip Tour of America’s Dairyland pro cycling race is on June 13-23 in Wisconson. Ahead of one of the premiere events on the US racing calendar, Lauren Dodge of the Automatic|Abus Cycling team took a few minutes to share some thoughts on what makes this race special.
Interview Questions
1. Please introduce yourself and give us a little background on you and your team.
I’m Lauren Dodge, and I am the manager of AUTOMATIC | ABUS Racing. Tom Gibbons is the co-founder and performance director. We founded the team in January of 2019 as a dual squad (men’s and women’s) crit team. All of the athletes on our team are coached by Tom. We have found that this model has significantly increased the number of podiums each year. Our team culture recruits impressive and kind athletes who look for a space where they can work hard and have fun. We call this model “supportive competition” and it has worked well for our team.
2. What’s your history with this race and what do you think makes this race unique from other races?
The first time AUTOMATIC came to ToAD was in 2021 as a mini squad. We returned again last year with a full squad for the full series and had a blast! ToAD is unique because of the communities where each race is based. We get to see a wide variety of Wisconsin gets to offer, and each city has its own flavor and interesting offerings.
3. Any special memories or stories from racing here in the past?
My favorite memories from last year were grilling on the side of the course at each race. I found that it can sometimes be hard to get dinner for the athletes after some late nights. Plus, the women’s team wants to stay close to the course to watch the men race which can delay their recovery. For a multi-day series like this, it’s important to stay on top of fueling and hydration. So, after a race, the racers will drink Skratch recovery while they change and debrief, but after that, we would cook rice, veggies and a protein to have a real dinner within an hour of finishing the race. This made for fun, low-key block parties where we got to share food with other race team staff and ToAD staff. A particular stand out was offering Bill Koch a hunk of chicken over the race barrier.
4. Goals for this weekend – what do you and the team hope to achieve?
The team hopes to win both sprint jersey’s this year for the P/1 fields. (Look out 54-11!). The sub goal is to enjoy this expansive amount of time together taking in the environment and the beer 🙂
5. What would you say to riders and fans who haven’t seen this race before?
I would say that if you are a racer and you haven’t done this race yet, you need to. The vibe is unlike any other race in the country. Here are the upsides: These are professional grade races with great prizes and money. We, as a criterium circuit, get to see each other all summer, but we rarely have THIS much time to chat and bump into each other. It’s like returning to your college hometown, but your college home town has every cyclist you know. You come with your group of friends, but everywhere you turn in Milwaukee, you bump into a pal who lives in some distant place. You have the opportunity for more coffee spins, more post race beers, and hugs than anywhere else.
As for fans, Milwaukee and the surrounding towns have SO much to offer. If you live out of state and are a cycling enthusiast, this is honestly worth putting on your calendar as a vacation. 1) you get to see a TON of bike racing. 2) the food and drinks are affordable and delicious. 3) the beer and coffee scene are unbeatable. The first time I came to Milquakee was as an intern with Snap-on Incorporated. I didn’t have a clue what to expect, and I was blown away. I look forward to returning here every year.
The photos are sent through as a google link – please let me know if you need them sent differently.
Thanks!
Lauren Dodge
• The Tour of America’s Dairyland website
• See the latest news from North American road racing at the PEZ Hub Calendar
• See more AutomaticRacing.org
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