Entire Team DQ'd At Sunflower Games

The Raging Bulls decided to venture out into the world of team road racing by participating in the 2014 Sunflower Games Road Race in Topeka Kansas. The team was able to pursue and contain an early attack, putting Todd Johnson in a position to take a sprint finish on a tight two lane road.  Unfortunately, the rest of the peloton would not take his bait and forced a closer sprint won by none other than the early attacker. 

The efforts of Big Todd and the rest of the team, Rick Pysher, Edd Pineda, Jim Myers, Mike Somers, and Blake Spencer would have been in vain anyway.  After the race, Rick Pysher was notified that the entire team would be disqualified under USAC Rule 8A2(a) pursuant to which a rider competing in a class or category for which he/she is not eligible faces disqualification and a suspension.  The Bulls had opted for the longer 40 mile Cat 4 race given that there was no equivalent distance in Cat 5.  According to the race official, the rule is safety driven.  Riders must learn pack handling skills before moving up a class.  While the Bulls were unable to persuade the official to lift the disqualification, the team did avoid suspension by citing Raging Bulls Rule Z6(b) pursuant to which any Bull who has participated in a group ride with Tony Zink is automatically qualified as to pack handling skills.