Team Bacchetta

Team Bacchetta Member Bio - Jim Verheul

Name: Jim Verheul
Sex: Yes!
Age: 44
Location: Westlake Village, CA

Riding Background: Rode to school and back every day, even in snow, from the age of 7. Won the first race I ever rode in ’86, a criterium in Kingston, NY. Worked in a bike shop and lived bikes from '87 to '94. President of 2 cycling clubs. USCF category 2 racer, official, and NORBA expert MTB racer. Race director of at least 30 events. Rode hundreds of road events and a few dozen MTB races. Been riding a Bacchetta since buying a Ti Aero in 2003. Since then I have set several UMCA  <http://www.ultracycling.com/> records on Bacchetta Bikes. Currently an associate coach with JBVCoaching.com <http://jbvcoaching.com/> , helping other riders reach new levels of performance and achieve their goals.

How did you get into Recumbents? After 2 months of rest, supervised core strengthening, and flexibility work, I did an easy road ride on my MTB. I kept my heart rate under 130bpm. I figured the full suspension plus the stem turned upside down to move the bars up would give me the best odds of not hurting my back yet again. I was wrong. I had to crawl around my house until the afternoon the next day it hurt so bad. That was my last gasp as a DF rider. Fast forward 2 years and I am 40 pounds overweight, depressed, and recovering from a broken leg. My physical therapist is also a good friend of mine. He suggests I get on an exercise bike to rebuild the weak leg. I look at him and shake my head. He then points me to his new toy in the corner, a recumbent exercise bike. We discuss my back and the forces involved on this new bike. Fast forward a few weeks, and while no one is watching I am doing intervals at 400W on it. The real news was that I could walk the next day too!! After PT was over, I picked up a cheap used recumbent to ride outside, just to see if I could still stay pain free on longer rides out in the real world. It worked, and in 5 months I was in much better shape and spirits, and ready to invest in a fast recumbent bike. I took a Ti Aero out for a test ride. It had a speedo on it! I was cruising down the Santa Ana River Trail (SART) doing 22mph easily. I ramped it up to 27mph. As an ex racer I was shocked, as my legs did not feel the burn they usually did at that speed. So I ramped it up to 32mph. Ah Hah!! Now that felt like 27mph should. I was sold on just being able to ride again. The speed was real nice bonus.   
 

What Bacchetta do you ride? Currently, I’m on a CA2.0 (700c Large) most of the time, and loving it. I also still have 2 aluminum Corsa’s (one a travel bike for me, another for my GF). I have a steel Corsa I lend to friends, and am saving for an MTB project. I also got to spend a few years on a CA1.0 and my original Ti Aero.  

2009 Race results: Super Randonneur, Cyclos Montagnards <http://www.cyclosmontagnards.org/WhatAreCM.html>  R-70 Honoree, PCH 600K Brevet Event Master and finisher.

Personal Best Rides: Calvins 12 Hour Challenge <http://www.calvinschallenge.com/>  2007, 267 miles, this is still the unfaired course record. Hotter'n Hell 100 <http://www.hh100.org/>   John Schlitter and I caught and passed several large UCSF race fields (Category 3 and 4) and even got sight of the Pro12 pack, finishing 100 miles in 3:56, in 2004 and 2005.  2009 PCH Randonneurs <http://www.pchrandos.com/>  Big Sur 600K, a wonderfully scenic 26 hour ride down the Pacific Coast, and a trip past my preconceived boundaries. Every single Thursday night training criterium in Camarillo.

Events planned to attend for the rest of 2010:  

6/12 Team Bent Up Cycles RAAM
7/10 The Markleeville Death Ride <http://www.deathride.com/>
9/11 PCH Randos 400K or Battle Mountain In a Larry Lem Liner (Scimitar II?)
10/9 PCH Randos 600K (in under 24 hours so I can get on the R0-60 list)
At least 20 Camarillo Training Criteriums, a few Piru TTs