Race Report: 2026 Tour of America’s Dairyland - Men’s Pro/1/2
Race: Tour of America’s Dairyland - Men’s P/1/2
Date: June 18th-28th, 2026
AVRT racers: Michael Bektas and sometimes George Wehner
Top Result:
Omnium: I don’t even dare to check
Day 1: 25th
Day 2: DNF
Day 3: 38th
Day 4: 34th
Day 5: DNF
Day 6: 52nd
Day 7: 71st
Day 8: 77th
Day 9: DNF
Day 10: 74th
Course:
Day 1: 0.5-mile 4-corner crit
Day 2: 0.6-mile L-shaped crit with a hairpin
Day 3: 0.6-mile, raced like a 4-corner crit
Day 4: 0.8-mile crit with a hairpin in turn 1 and narrow roads on the backside
Day 5: 0.6-mile crit with technical switchbacks in a parking lot
Day 6: 1.1-mile 4-corner crit
Day 7: 0.7-mile 4-corner crit with false flat climbs and descents
Day 8: 0.8-mile crit with many corners and a hairpin
Day 9: 0.9-mile 4-corner crit with false flat climbs and descents
Day 10: 0.9-mile triangle
Strava:
Day 1: https://www.strava.com/activities/18978916278
Day 2: https://www.strava.com/activities/18990282040
Day 3: https://www.strava.com/activities/19003967856
Day 4: https://www.strava.com/activities/19016919537
Day 5: https://www.strava.com/activities/19029088721
Day 6: https://www.strava.com/activities/19043471273
Day 7: https://www.strava.com/activities/19056405670
Day 8: https://www.strava.com/activities/19068442337
Day 9: https://www.strava.com/activities/19079420325
Day 10: https://www.strava.com/activities/19092344354
Nutrition: 500ml water + Maurten 320 (80g carbs)
Race Recap: Written by Michael.
Wow I don’t even really know how to start this. This race was insane and I basically got steamrolled every day.
If you have ever had the misfortune of hearing me rant about the state of crit racing, you have probably heard me say that while people are definitely better than me, I find it hard to pick individuals that are in a completely different galaxy when it comes to ability…
Well, TOAD certainly had PLENTY of people that were on a completely different level to me and it was humbling to say the least.
Day 1
I came into this one pretty fired up. Pro crit nats were happening at the same time so I was looking to take advantage of the slightly thinner field. The course was my style, 4 corners and fairly flat. Each lap was only 50 seconds so I knew the strong teams would be looking to lap the field.
The racing was hard, but manageable. Whoosh NZ (for the sake of storytelling just imagine the strongest and largest Kiwi’s you have ever seen) set a hard pace early and sent guys to lap the field. This made for straightforward racing as they controlled the rest of the race. I was beginning to think about sprint positioning when suddenly a huge pile up formed in front of me and I flipped over the bars. Cut up and in a decent amount of pain, I limped back to the pits and rejoined with about 20mins left. I was able to claw back position before almost going down against on some very bad pavement, leaving me to roll in with the pack. A tough start to a brutal week.
Day 2
As it started to metaphorically rain, it continued to pour. This course featured a downhill into a hairpin that sent the race back uphill. Still nursing injuries from the day before, I gave this race 380W NP for 10mins before being spat out the back. Very disappointing but probably good to recover after the slam. Team Cadence had driven overnight from Nationals and made their presence felt immediately.
Day 3
This one went back to being relatively normal. With no crazy course features, this race was smooth and didn’t require any heroic power. Given the race being so easy, the peloton was very angsty with lots of shoulders and elbows being thrown to make sure everyone got their instagram clips for the day.
NZ forced another break and the rest of the peloton blocked the road so I just had to watch it go up the road. There was no need to do anything crazy to maybe get 15th so I rolled in with the pack again.
Day 4
The next day took us north to the bustling metropolis of Saumico, WI (population 13,000). This course was flat and easy, with a tight first corner being the only noteworthy landmark.
I found my feet a little more on this day. I was starting to learn how these large pro fields ebb and flow and was able to ride a lot more relaxed. NZ ended up forcing another break, leaving the sprinters to race for 4th. I was in perfect position with about 2 to go but the swarming into the hairpin was more aggressive than I anticipated, so I pulled the plug and rolled in with the pack. Anyone starting to see a theme?
Day 5
Fatigue was starting to build and it definitely didn’t help that the hardest course came next. Fast descending turns, slamming on the brakes and then two uphill hairpins made short work of what I had this day. 370 NP for 10mins and the plug was pulled yet again.
Day 6
Morale was getting quite low, especially as I was starting down the barrel of another 5 days of suffering. Thankfully, the atmosphere was building as the race went back south and around Milwaukee. George was also done with the 2/3 series and would race the remainder of TOAD with the Pros.
This was my fastest race, averaging 30.4mph. While lots of fun, the high speeds made it extremely hard to do anything. Even when the field did slow down, the 100ish riders would block the road, leaving me nowhere to go. The primes today were also extremely high value, with hundreds or thousands of dollars on the line as we got closer and closer to the finish.
Coming into 4 to go, there was a big pile up next to me. I was very close to a likely bike and body destroying crash and this definately didn’t help my mindset coming into the final few laps. I let the real pros do their thing, and came in with the pack.
Day 7
Hartland came next. On paper, this looked like another bread and butter 4 corner crit. In reality, false flat uphills on the start/finish and 40mph downhill turns with the threat of rain looming over us made this much more complicated. I had to pull out every cornering trick in the book to make it in this race as it was strung out the whole time.
More and more full time bike riders had started to show up, making the pace extremely high. The unrelenting pace took its toll and with a few laps to go, I was pulled.
Day 8
I came into this one really fatigued after fighting hard at Hartland. This race was technical and had a long start/finish straight with minimal draft. The result was yet another slow and painful death after 50mins.
Day 9
If I thought I was tired on Day 8, Day 9 was even worse. Extreme fatigue and slow leaking front tire meant I pulled myself from this one early. I wanted to have something left for the ACC race where a lot of my old friends would be watching
Day 10
Day 10! Downer Ave! A race with so much history that I really wanted to put my best foot forward for. I had done this race two years ago as a Cat 4 so it was a full circle moment to return in the Pro field.
I was ready for this to be the most insane race of them all but it was shockingly chill. All of the big teams were neutralising each other and no move got any gap beyond a few seconds. At halfway, there were going to be two back to back sprint laps for TOAD specific and then ACC sprint points. I made sure to keep myself towards the front throughout these laps to avoid getting gapped off the back as the speed ramped up. After surviving these, everyone hunkered down for the sprint. The field would surge for the ever increasing cash primes, up to $5000.
I wish I could go on to explain how I heroically sprinted for a huge result, but all the pros did their thing again, leaving me to roll in with the pack yet again. But at least I survived this entire one.
There was one more day of TOAD but with the risk of rain, I figured I would quit while I was “ahead” and avoid any skin donations to the roads of Wisconsin. This series was absolutely the most challenging competition I had ever been a part of but I’m looking forward to getting back out to more national level racing and taking steps forward.