Owens Healthcare Cycling Team

Team Profiles
	Thomas Bey \| Profession: Interventional Radiologist \| Racing Since 2004 \| Category: Master's Cat 3 Fourteen years of studies including hundreds of sleepless nights have taught me a lot... I've learned that one has a LIMITED supply of both mental and physical energy and that, in order to succeed, both energies must be used efficiently. I've always sought key mentors and tried to harness the team spirit in all of my past work and recreational endeavors. This team has fantastic mentors especially in Mark, Terry and Mike. A great cycling team functions somewhat like a dynamic real-life game of chess, capitalizing on the current peak mental and physical prowess of all its players...life to it's fullest! Cycling Quote: Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent." Calvin Coolidge 1872-1933 Vice President 1921-1923,President 1923-1929

	Mark Blaser \| Profession: Chemistry Teacher at Shasta College \| Racing Since 1974 \| Category: Master's Cat 2 My interest in endurance sports began 30 years ago as a high school distance runner in Athens, Greece. Since then, I have trained for and competed at distances from 800 m through ultramarathons. In the late '80s, inspired by the Wide World of Sports coverage, I picked up swimming and bicycling and competed as a professional triathlete, twice placing 3rd in the National Long Course Championships, and in the top 15 in the Ironman World Championships. For the past few years, I have focused on bicycle road racing, for the pleasure of riding a bicycle fast, the mental and physical challenges of competition, the camraderie of my cycling buddies, and the overall health and enjoyment it provides. Cycling Quote: "If you can fill the unforgiving minute with 60 seconds worth of distance run, ..." R. Kipling

	Brandon Dillard \| Profession: Student West Valley High School \| Racing Since 2007 \| Category: 2 MTB & Cat 5 road Started by my Dad taking me to a MTB race in Oregon. I got third place. From that day on I have found a passion for cycling. I have been fortunate enough to be the first Junior member of Owens racing team. I can't thank them enough. Cycling Quote: No pain, no gain.

	Tom Dillard \| Category: Master's Cat 4 Cycling Quote:

	Todd Dodds \| Profession: Director of Medical Eqiupment, Owens Healthcare \| Racing Since: 1986 \| Category: Master's Cat 3 Started cycling back in the 70?s riding my sister?s Schwinn which began my love affair with the sport. From that point, I rode and raced BMX bikes for years. Eventually, I started riding mountain bikes which I still enjoy today. However, I found that mountain bike riding took a great deal of time, so, I started road cycling. Whether I am riding on the road or in the dirt, the feeling I get reminds of the first time I learned how to ride a bike. Cycling Quote: "Those who are lifting the world upward and onward are those who encourage more than criticize."

	John Friesen \| Profession: CEO Owens Healthcare \| Racing since: 2004 \| Category: Master's Cat 2 Over the years I have logged a number of hours running. After developing a stress fracture in 2002 from running I turned to road cycling for exercise. I took part in the "Wednesday" evening ride in our area and learned that road cycling is extremely challenging sport. The part of road cycling that I found intriguing is the sport combined both individual and team efforts. In 2003 I had the opportunity to go to Europe and watch part of the Tour de France. After watching the Tour I made the decision to step up of my level of commitment to the sport and began racing as well as forming the Owens Healthcare Cycling Team. The rest is history... Cycling Quote: "Every day you may make progress. Every step may be fruitful. Yet there will stretch out before you an ever-lengthening, ever-ascending, ever-improving path. You know you will never get to the end of the journey. But this, so far from discouraging, only adds to the joy and glory of the climb" - Sir Winston Churchill

	Paul Lennon \| Profession: Custom Home Builder\| Racing Since: 1984 \| Category: Master's Cat 4 My first off road ride was the Whiskeytown Downhill in 1984. That is where it all began. I got 1st place in the Ring of Fire race in 94. Since then I have raced a number of races. I love to ride. Cycling Quote: "Speed is your friend."

	Gina Lowe \| Profession: “Retired” Teacher, Part-time Business Manager for Wayne’s Truck Service, Full-time Sweeper of Golden Retriever fur│Racing Since: 2004 │ Category: Women Cat 3 After being a spectator for much of my life, watching my husband’s motorsports, my oldest son’s musical performances, and still my youngest son’s athletic events; I decided to become a participant. I just didn’t know of what until I decided to go buy a bike in 2003. Riding my bike was what I loved to do most when I was a kid, so why not now? Several bikes have found their way into my garage, and yes, even my living room since then. Now, many century rides and miles later, I’ve discovered racing. It’s pretty amazing, actually, that I’ve found my way into this sport considering my only claim to athletic “fame” was getting kicked of my High School track team for refusing to run the two mile…a sure win for the team as I would have been the only participant in the event. Racing, for me, is not an addiction or obsession, but a passion. It’s a sport that fully engages the body, mind and spirit pushing me to levels previously undiscovered; challenging the limits of will and physical strength, the determination of the heart, the exercise of intuition and the acceptance of grace. Training is a daily reminder of the power that lies in the simplicity of living “like a kid again”, even if it is only for a moment. Cycling Quote: “Opportunities are fleeting, the cracks are small. You have to decide in an instant whether to jump or hold back, and when you pull the jump trigger, you have to fully commit, without fear or doubt, or the crack will close before you get through.” LVP “Can you come out and play?” Every Child

	Jonz Norine \| Profession: Attorney \| Racing Since 1979 \| Category: Master's Cat 2 A bike racer should be mentally and physically disciplined. I was a competitive swimmer, then runner, triathlete, and for the last 15 years, a cyclist, and have learned that lesson over and again. I hope to use my experience to help the team ? and have fun doing it. Cycling Quote: Mankind has invested more than four million years of evolution in the attempt to avoid physical exertion. Now a group of backward-thinking atavists mounted on foot-powered pairs of Hula-Hoops would have us pumping our legs, gritting our teeth, and searing our lungs as though we were being chased across the Pleistocene savanna by saber-toothed tigers. Think of the hopes, the dreams, the effort, the brilliance, the pure force of will that, over the eons, has gone into the creation of the Cadillac Coupe de Ville. Bicycle riders would have us throw all this on the ash heap of history. -P.J. O'Rourke. ?You Bet.?

	Adam Pressman \| Profession: Attorney \| Racing Since 1992 \| Category: Masters Cat 5 In 1973, I got a red Schwinn 5-speed for my eighth birthday. It had a banana seat, a huge gear shift on the top tube, a slick rear tire and chopper-like handlebars. I rode that bike everywhere - school, Little League, friends' houses, motorcycle trails, rural roads, rain or shine. No helmet, no water bottle, no chain lube, no spare tube, no heart rate monitor. In 1992 I moved to Redding and entered the Lemurian mountain bike race. It was insanely muddy and difficult and awesome. My equipment has changed a lot, but I feel like I'm continuing the adventures I started on that old five speed. Cycling Quote: Small wheel turn by the fire and rod, Big wheel turn by the grace of God, Every time that wheel turn 'round, Bound to cover just a little more ground. The wheel is turning and you can't slow down, You can't let go and yuou can't hold on, You can't go back and you can't stand still, If the thunder don't get you then the lightning will -The Grateful Dead

	Bill Reuss \| Profession: Dentist \| Racing Since: 2003 \| Category: Master's Cat 2 Cycling gives me a chance to enjoy the beautiful area we live in and develop great friendships with others who have a passion to push their pedals to the point of exhaustion. Cycling Quote: If one is good two or three must be better... -Bankrupt Cyclist

	Mike Simpson \| Profession: Nurse \| Racing Since: 1984 \| Category: Master's Cat 3 Three words: Down by the river... I am living in a trailer while I build a beautiful home. I will add my bio once I get back on the superhighway aka triway and biway. Cycling Quote: Put your nose on your stem and pedal!!! -Unknown Rider

	Zack Zeis \| Profession: Student Grant School \| Racing Since 2008 \| Category: Cat 5 I started riding before I was old enough to know what a bike even was. When I was four years old I stared racing my BMX bike out at Boomtown and stopped around seven. Since then I have done a lot of sports like Motorcycle Riding, Hocky, Golfing, and Running. I got my first mountain bike in 2007 and with each mile I rode it I just loved it more. Eventually I got a rode bike and did the road clinic that Owens put on. That's when I knew that all I wanted to do is be on a bike spinning the pedals. I ended up getting on Owens Cycling Team as one of the junior riders, it hasn't been long since then but I'm still out riding my bike every chance I get. Cycling Quote: It never gets easier, you just get faster...it's just a hill get over it.

Team Profiles
	Thomas Bey \| Profession: Interventional Radiologist \| Racing Since 2004 \| Category: Master's Cat 3 Fourteen years of studies including hundreds of sleepless nights have taught me a lot... I've learned that one has a LIMITED supply of both mental and physical energy and that, in order to succeed, both energies must be used efficiently. I've always sought key mentors and tried to harness the team spirit in all of my past work and recreational endeavors. This team has fantastic mentors especially in Mark, Terry and Mike. A great cycling team functions somewhat like a dynamic real-life game of chess, capitalizing on the current peak mental and physical prowess of all its players...life to it's fullest! Cycling Quote: Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent." Calvin Coolidge 1872-1933 Vice President 1921-1923,President 1923-1929

	Mark Blaser \| Profession: Chemistry Teacher at Shasta College \| Racing Since 1974 \| Category: Master's Cat 2 My interest in endurance sports began 30 years ago as a high school distance runner in Athens, Greece. Since then, I have trained for and competed at distances from 800 m through ultramarathons. In the late '80s, inspired by the Wide World of Sports coverage, I picked up swimming and bicycling and competed as a professional triathlete, twice placing 3rd in the National Long Course Championships, and in the top 15 in the Ironman World Championships. For the past few years, I have focused on bicycle road racing, for the pleasure of riding a bicycle fast, the mental and physical challenges of competition, the camraderie of my cycling buddies, and the overall health and enjoyment it provides. Cycling Quote: "If you can fill the unforgiving minute with 60 seconds worth of distance run, ..." R. Kipling

	Brandon Dillard \| Profession: Student West Valley High School \| Racing Since 2007 \| Category: 2 MTB & Cat 5 road Started by my Dad taking me to a MTB race in Oregon. I got third place. From that day on I have found a passion for cycling. I have been fortunate enough to be the first Junior member of Owens racing team. I can't thank them enough. Cycling Quote: No pain, no gain.

	Tom Dillard \| Category: Master's Cat 4 Cycling Quote:

	Todd Dodds \| Profession: Director of Medical Eqiupment, Owens Healthcare \| Racing Since: 1986 \| Category: Master's Cat 3 Started cycling back in the 70?s riding my sister?s Schwinn which began my love affair with the sport. From that point, I rode and raced BMX bikes for years. Eventually, I started riding mountain bikes which I still enjoy today. However, I found that mountain bike riding took a great deal of time, so, I started road cycling. Whether I am riding on the road or in the dirt, the feeling I get reminds of the first time I learned how to ride a bike. Cycling Quote: "Those who are lifting the world upward and onward are those who encourage more than criticize."

	John Friesen \| Profession: CEO Owens Healthcare \| Racing since: 2004 \| Category: Master's Cat 2 Over the years I have logged a number of hours running. After developing a stress fracture in 2002 from running I turned to road cycling for exercise. I took part in the "Wednesday" evening ride in our area and learned that road cycling is extremely challenging sport. The part of road cycling that I found intriguing is the sport combined both individual and team efforts. In 2003 I had the opportunity to go to Europe and watch part of the Tour de France. After watching the Tour I made the decision to step up of my level of commitment to the sport and began racing as well as forming the Owens Healthcare Cycling Team. The rest is history... Cycling Quote: "Every day you may make progress. Every step may be fruitful. Yet there will stretch out before you an ever-lengthening, ever-ascending, ever-improving path. You know you will never get to the end of the journey. But this, so far from discouraging, only adds to the joy and glory of the climb" - Sir Winston Churchill

	Paul Lennon \| Profession: Custom Home Builder\| Racing Since: 1984 \| Category: Master's Cat 4 My first off road ride was the Whiskeytown Downhill in 1984. That is where it all began. I got 1st place in the Ring of Fire race in 94. Since then I have raced a number of races. I love to ride. Cycling Quote: "Speed is your friend."

	Gina Lowe \| Profession: “Retired” Teacher, Part-time Business Manager for Wayne’s Truck Service, Full-time Sweeper of Golden Retriever fur│Racing Since: 2004 │ Category: Women Cat 3 After being a spectator for much of my life, watching my husband’s motorsports, my oldest son’s musical performances, and still my youngest son’s athletic events; I decided to become a participant. I just didn’t know of what until I decided to go buy a bike in 2003. Riding my bike was what I loved to do most when I was a kid, so why not now? Several bikes have found their way into my garage, and yes, even my living room since then. Now, many century rides and miles later, I’ve discovered racing. It’s pretty amazing, actually, that I’ve found my way into this sport considering my only claim to athletic “fame” was getting kicked of my High School track team for refusing to run the two mile…a sure win for the team as I would have been the only participant in the event. Racing, for me, is not an addiction or obsession, but a passion. It’s a sport that fully engages the body, mind and spirit pushing me to levels previously undiscovered; challenging the limits of will and physical strength, the determination of the heart, the exercise of intuition and the acceptance of grace. Training is a daily reminder of the power that lies in the simplicity of living “like a kid again”, even if it is only for a moment. Cycling Quote: “Opportunities are fleeting, the cracks are small. You have to decide in an instant whether to jump or hold back, and when you pull the jump trigger, you have to fully commit, without fear or doubt, or the crack will close before you get through.” LVP “Can you come out and play?” Every Child

	Jonz Norine \| Profession: Attorney \| Racing Since 1979 \| Category: Master's Cat 2 A bike racer should be mentally and physically disciplined. I was a competitive swimmer, then runner, triathlete, and for the last 15 years, a cyclist, and have learned that lesson over and again. I hope to use my experience to help the team ? and have fun doing it. Cycling Quote: Mankind has invested more than four million years of evolution in the attempt to avoid physical exertion. Now a group of backward-thinking atavists mounted on foot-powered pairs of Hula-Hoops would have us pumping our legs, gritting our teeth, and searing our lungs as though we were being chased across the Pleistocene savanna by saber-toothed tigers. Think of the hopes, the dreams, the effort, the brilliance, the pure force of will that, over the eons, has gone into the creation of the Cadillac Coupe de Ville. Bicycle riders would have us throw all this on the ash heap of history. -P.J. O'Rourke. ?You Bet.?

	Adam Pressman \| Profession: Attorney \| Racing Since 1992 \| Category: Masters Cat 5 In 1973, I got a red Schwinn 5-speed for my eighth birthday. It had a banana seat, a huge gear shift on the top tube, a slick rear tire and chopper-like handlebars. I rode that bike everywhere - school, Little League, friends' houses, motorcycle trails, rural roads, rain or shine. No helmet, no water bottle, no chain lube, no spare tube, no heart rate monitor. In 1992 I moved to Redding and entered the Lemurian mountain bike race. It was insanely muddy and difficult and awesome. My equipment has changed a lot, but I feel like I'm continuing the adventures I started on that old five speed. Cycling Quote: Small wheel turn by the fire and rod, Big wheel turn by the grace of God, Every time that wheel turn 'round, Bound to cover just a little more ground. The wheel is turning and you can't slow down, You can't let go and yuou can't hold on, You can't go back and you can't stand still, If the thunder don't get you then the lightning will -The Grateful Dead

	Bill Reuss \| Profession: Dentist \| Racing Since: 2003 \| Category: Master's Cat 2 Cycling gives me a chance to enjoy the beautiful area we live in and develop great friendships with others who have a passion to push their pedals to the point of exhaustion. Cycling Quote: If one is good two or three must be better... -Bankrupt Cyclist

	Mike Simpson \| Profession: Nurse \| Racing Since: 1984 \| Category: Master's Cat 3 Three words: Down by the river... I am living in a trailer while I build a beautiful home. I will add my bio once I get back on the superhighway aka triway and biway. Cycling Quote: Put your nose on your stem and pedal!!! -Unknown Rider

	Zack Zeis \| Profession: Student Grant School \| Racing Since 2008 \| Category: Cat 5 I started riding before I was old enough to know what a bike even was. When I was four years old I stared racing my BMX bike out at Boomtown and stopped around seven. Since then I have done a lot of sports like Motorcycle Riding, Hocky, Golfing, and Running. I got my first mountain bike in 2007 and with each mile I rode it I just loved it more. Eventually I got a rode bike and did the road clinic that Owens put on. That's when I knew that all I wanted to do is be on a bike spinning the pedals. I ended up getting on Owens Cycling Team as one of the junior riders, it hasn't been long since then but I'm still out riding my bike every chance I get. Cycling Quote: It never gets easier, you just get faster...it's just a hill get over it.

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Team Profiles

Team Profiles