Where to begin in summarizing the "Big Bang" that was the JMC 2005 season? More races! More racers! More divisions! New records! Who to focus on from this year's field of determined competitors? Which events to feature from so many quality races, both old and new? Which of the many season-long rivalries between friendly competitors to describe?

New events and new competitors brought new strategies to the table requiring new approaches to racing for some of our historic division leaders. Racers had expanded opportunities for difficulty four races in the form of 1200K brevets, as well as an increased number of 12/24 events.

Last year's women's and men's champions were both challenged by newcomers and had to change their strategies and race particularly well in order to retain their crowns.

Nancy Guth, Overall Women's Champion

Nancy Guth has dominated the women's JMC the last three seasons (2002-04). Cassie Lowe raced RAAM in 2000 and won the women's overall division in the inaugural JMC and she won RAAM and the JMC again in 2001.

This year Cat Berge completed RAAM and belatedly entered the JMC. In the middle of the season Nancy Guth suddenly found herself behind by eight performance points and without yet recording a difficulty three event. Riders are required to complete a difficulty three (3 DP) event to contend for the overall championship. Would Berge continue to race? This season-long uncertainty made Guth's season one of her most stressful. Complicating this was the constant pressure from Christine Graham, who was racing frequently and well. From mid-season Guth chose to compete in some of the most challenging events on the JMC calendar to realize her hard-won championship.

The podium for all-women:

First:	Nancy Guth, 56, Virginia	161.16 points
Second:	Christine Graham, 44, Ohio	106.64
Third:	Cat Berge, 39, California	88.64

Early in the year Jurczynski, last year's overall champion, encountered a newcomer to the JMC scene: John Fuoco. After the first three races in which they faced off, they were in a dead heat. As the season wore on, the margin between them varied little. However, due to job responsibilities, Jurczynski had conflicts with the dates of the remaining 3 DP events. His only option was to set a cross-state record of a distance that would qualify for 3 DP. He raced from south to north across New Hampshire and back again. The double crossing was 478 miles in 30 hours 20 minutes.

John Jurczynski, Overall Male Champion

At the end of the season, however, the ultimate contender would be not be just Fuoco, but Bryce Walsh as well. Walsh's strong finish started with the UMCA 24 Hour Championship, followed by excellent results at Furnace Creek and the Texas 24 Hour. But it wasn't enough from either Walsh or Fuoco to overcome the "man of granite" from New Hampshire whose 214.54 points broke the record set in 2001 by James Trout.

The podium for all-men:

First:	John Jurczynski, 48, New Hampshire	214.54 points
Second:	Bryce Walsh, 34, Illinois	185.43
Third:	John Fuoco, 49, Pennsylvania	176.64

Racers earn JMC points based on the difficulty rating of an event multiplied by the rider's average speed for the event. Each event in the JMC is assigned a numerical value, or difficulty points (DPs), of between 1 and 8, based loosely on multiples of 12 hours, i.e.:

• 12 hour races and double centuries 1 difficulty point
• cross-state record (125-299 miles) 1 DP
• 24 hour races 2 DPs
• cross-state record (300-474 miles) 2 DPs
• all RAAM Qualifiers 3 DPs (roughly 30 - 36 hours to win)
• cross-state record (475+ miles) 3 DPs
• 1200Ks 4 DPs (roughly 48 hours to win)
• RAAM 8 DPs

A rider can earn a maximum of 12 DP; if a rider does events totaling more than 12 DP, then the rider's best 12 are counted. To be eligible for the overall championship, a rider must complete an event worth at least 3 DP.

In the 12- and 24-Hour Divisions the mileage from each rider's best three 12- or 24-hour races is totaled.

Division races
Male:   Under age 25
Garrett Loomis, the first rider to compete in this new division, showed the way for younger endurance cyclists by participating in three 12-hour races while averaging nearly 16 mph overall! Loomis ranked fifth overall among the male 12-hour racers!

Male:   25-49
Jurczynski, the overall champion, took the honors over a field of 33 riders. He was also first in the 24-Hour Mileage Division, averaging 428 miles per race, and second overall in the 12-Hour Mileage Division. Fittingly Jurczynski won the UMCA 24-Hour Championship this year in Iowa with 408 miles. Fuoco (3rd), Walsh (2nd), Chris Hopkinson and James Trout pressed him at various times during the year. Hopkinson was the overall mileage champion in the 12-Hour Division, averaging 239 miles, and took first place in the 12-Hour race at the UMCA 24 Hour Championships this year.

Male:   50-59
John Guth faced fierce pressure all season from Marc Pritchard (3rd) and Ralph Pruitt (2nd). But Guth put himself on the top with a third place finish at the season ending Tejas 500, qualifying for RAAM. Pruitt finished less than three points behind Guth. Pritchard was the mileage leader in the 12-Hour Division with Russ Loomis taking the laurels in the 24-Hour Mileage category. These riders provided the closest competition of any of the divisions this year!

Male:   60-69
He started at Calvin's Challenge in May and kept racing through Tejas in October. He gave it everything to achieve a record 165 points that exceeded his total of 162 set in 2003. James Cartwright raced eight events and needed only 11 DP to break his record. He also took first place in both the 12-Hour and 24-Hour Mileage contests. Cartwright had reason to keep his rear view mirror at hand. Gerry Goode finished second with 144 points. He takes ronman honors by qualifying for RAAM at the Fireweed, finishing three 1200K events and Furnace Creek (gasp). Steve Gerbig finished third. Although he only did six events, his average speed was right up there with Cartwright's. Competition just makes these guys go harder. It should be a division to watch next season if all these racers return.

Male:   70+
Lew Meyer raced against his own season personal best and broke his record of 47 points with an impressive 72, including racing the Fireweed 400.

Women:   25-49
The leading competitors used diverse strategies. First place finisher in both points and 24-Hour miles, Christine Graham was very active in double centuries, 12- and 24-hour events. Englander Ann Wooldridge, aside from her single 24-hour event in which she recorded a quad century, concentrated her efforts in 12-hour events. She took first in the 12-Hour category and third place in points. Cat Berge, on the other had, parlayed an excellent performance in RAAM into a second place in her division for JMC point.

Women:   50-59
Dominating is the only word to describe overall women's champion Nancy Guth. She retained her points title for the fourth consecutive year, took first position in her division for 12-Hour Mileage events and women's overall for mileage in 24-hour events.

Women:   60-69:
Elizabeth Wicks had a short but successful season, recording a near 14 mph average for her two events this year!

Recumbents:
He finished first in points, first in both the 12 and 24-Hour Mileage competitions, but it wasn't the run-away one might assume. Larry Graham was the champion, but had to wage a season-long comeback to take the lead from James Kerns and finish with only a 5.40 point advantage! Kerns also took second place in the 24-Hour competition while John Foote took second place in the 12-Hour contest.

Yes, it was the year of the big bang in the JMC! Participation exploded with 75 riders competing this year compared to 54 last year. The goal of the JMC is to bring out the best in racers through head-to-head competition throughout. Rivalries were fierce and total points records were set in the men's 18-24, men's 25-49, men's 60-69, and men's 70+ divisions. Congratulations to all the riders.

Each participant who earned at least five difficulty points will receive a UMCA medal and is eligible for a prize from our sponsors. The prizes will be awarded by random drawing.

The action starts again with the Sebring 12/24 on February 18, 2006. The full JMC schedule will be published at ultracycling.com and in the January UltraCycling.

Final 2005 JMC Standings
2005 Events and Difficulty Points:
Sebring 12/24 (SE,1/2), Tarheel Dbl (TH,1), Heart of the South (HS,1/3), Davis 12/24 (DA,1/2), Mulholland Dbl (MD,1), Calvin's 12 (CA,1), Devil Mountain Dbl (DM,1), Central Coast Dbl (CC,1), Race Across Oregon (RO,3), Balltown Classic Dbl (BT,1), National 24-Hour (MI,2), RAAM (RA,8), Cascade 1200 (CD,4), Fireweed 400 (FW,1/2), Grand Loop Dbl (GL,1), Saratoga 12/24 (SA,1/2), Gold Rush (GR, 4). Tinbutt 12 (TB,1) Petersham (PE,1), New England 12/24 (NE,1/2), Boston-Montreal (BMB,4), UMCA 12/24 (24,1/2), Ring of Fire 112/24 (RF 1/2), Last Chance (LC,4), Adirondack 540 (AD,1,2,3,4), Furnace Creek 508 (FC 3), Tejas 500 & 12/24 (TX 1,2,3)
DPC: Difficulty Points Completed. Maximum allowed is 12, after which a competitor's best 12 are used, and prorated if necessary.
*Completed three DP event and eligible for overall championship.

12 HR COMPETITION (Best three)

24 HR COMPETITION (Best three)