Long time watcher, infrequent, just a roadie but enjoy the forum. For once I actually have something to post about.
My teammate and I are taking the plunge and have decided to try and make the leap to the professional cycling ranks. Both of us have been racing for ~3yrs and have just graduated college but aren’t ready to start it out in the real world without giving the cycling thing a real go. So here we are, packing our bags and heading to New England to finish out the summer racing at fitchburg and Toona, finish our cat1 upgrades, then to the Southeast to find a place to live in cycling friendly Georgia or Carolina and dedicate ourselves to making it to the pro ranks.
Basically, the cycling community with real jobs and commitments got excited enough about our trip to convince us to host a blog/diary about our trip, training, racing, etc. so they can keep track of our progression. We know so many people that would have loved to do what we’re doing and have given us so much support and encouragement that we thought we’d put a little bigger spin on it.
So we’re trying to get a good following, get our names and idea out there and we’d love to turn it into a non profit cycling organization dedicated to getting young racers past the amateur level and into the elite ranks. We figure it probably is of as much interest to the tri community as roadies. so, lend us your encouragement, advice, age-old wisdom or just laugh at us while you’re at work. Shoot, you can even donate to the cause and help us pay for racing, gas, and food.
Let us know what you think, we’d love the feedback!
All the best,
Matt and Zack
You are me…I was you. Best of luck young lads…it is a hard hard road.
I hear it is a tough road, if it wasn’t then it wouldn’t be worth doing right? we are definitely looking forward to it. The encouragement will be useful a year down the road when the racing is tough and we’re running out of money and morale.
Thanks for the best wishes!
You need to go to Europe, no real cycling in the US, not necessarily due to the level, but because of the availabilty of competitive races. Base yourself in Northern Italy or Belgium depending of the racing you like (classics or mountains). You’ll be in awe.
uli
Good luck!
Depends on what type of pro they aspire to be. For road racing, go to Belgium, live cheaply, and race every couple of days in long tough races (where they will get the crap kicked out of them for a while). If they are crit racers, US is the way to go.
Styrrell
Crits? That’s why I was saying “no real cycling in the US” ;). Is it fun to be a professional crit racer? I mean, would you even have to be professional to do that? Surely you will have to train, but half a day should suffice, shouldn’t it?
cheers
uli
Your Blog could use a results section, may attract some interest. USA cycling has this on ya:
Zack: http://www.usacycling.org/results/index.php?compid=206495
Matt: http://www.usacycling.org/results/index.php?compid=210202
Best of Luck. You got management? peek in at www.revolutioncouncil.com or similar organizations. No I am not connected, just friends.
Paul
cycling in the US is getting exponentially better every single year, not only with the quality of events like the Tour of California and Georgia, but also the quality of the major domestic teams. Slipstream has been competing in protour events these past couple months, Navigators has been doing the continental circuit for a couple years, Kodak Sierra Gallery went to the FBD Insurance RAS in Ireland and dominated a UCI event, and HealthNet and Toyota United have been in the mix at Georgia and California.
That being said, US racing is but a stepping stone and while US crit racing isn’t the end goal, it is partly the means to an end. Hopefully we will be able to raise enough interest, sponsors, and money to make the leap to Belgium and really make this thing happen.
Results section is a great idea, we’re trying to decide whether to put one in, or maybe a link to one because there’s a feeling like putting one in will make us just like every other blog out there devoted to some guy racing his bike where we wanted to go for the whole ‘experience’ so to speak of packing it all up and making the leap.
Thanks so much for all the ideas and interest!
If anything it’s the availability of races that should lead you to Europe!
And for the FBD Insurance RAS in Ireland (I currently live in Dublin): you simply cannot compare that to a decent pro race. That is so far from it.
Collect your cash and go to Europe - nice eye opener. You won’t regret it. If you decide after a while that you don’t like it, head home and kick ass.
Good luck!
uli
We just need to work on the collecting the cash part! Thanks for the input!
Collect your cash and go to Europe - We just need to figure out the finding the cash to collect part! nice eye opener. I think there will be a lot of eye openers in the next year or so, we’ll just have to make incremental eye opening steps until we’re look like a couple of guys hopped up on red bull and coffee!
go to europe! you’re young once; this is the time to live in crappy places because you don’t care! youth hostels or whatever; where there is a will there is a way.
just do it!
just do it!
Well, it seems to have worked for Nike!
Good luck, man. I wish you the best.
I will be moving back to SD in a few weeks and would love to have you guys drag me around on your training rides in the next couple of years. You should post your local training rides and invite people (like me!) to join in.
Best of luck in your quest. I’m a former roadie who now does tris–it’s a hard life but a fun one. Enjoy!
sadly, unless you got lance’s genes, i think you will have a hard time making ‘a go’ of it without joining the PED train.
and not because you don’t have speed and talent (i’m sure you do), it is just that so much of your competition is suckin’ the nasty stuff down …
A friend was talking to Chris Horner about the time he was breaking out- many years ago. He was telling my friend that he “suddenly” became good by using the European training program. Monday - 100 miles. Tuesday - 100 miles. Wednesday - 100 miles… He had cycling buddies say they wanted to start training with him, and they would…start. He did most of those rides alone. It paid off.
Good luck! I hope you have the determination.
I will be moving back to SD in a few weeks and would love to have you guys drag me around on your training rides in the next couple of years.
Sadly, and joyously I might add! We are leaving today and won’t be back until the fall or winter for some serious warm weather training.
However, if you’re looking for some good training rides, check out the Wed ride, leaves from the Coast 101 starbucks in Carlsbad or the Swami’s ride which leaves from B&L bikes on coast 101. They’re both hammer fests and Swami’s lends itself to the likes of Bjorn Anderson (last weekend), Normann Stadler, and Faris Al Sultan in their Kona buildup. I believe Faris mentioned in an intervew he did that it was the most humbling ‘amateur’ ride he’d been on anywhere.
sadly, unless you got lance’s genes, i think you will have a hard time making ‘a go’ of it without joining the PED train.
and not because you don’t have speed and talent (i’m sure you do), it is just that so much of your competition is suckin’ the nasty stuff down …
Come on now, we’re 22 year old idealists and there are enough cynics out there not within the endurance community for all of us. But as sad as it is, you may be right, and that’s when we pack it up and head home, write a book, and get sued for slander.