While the feature on UW Cycling and the upcoming USA Cycling Collegiate Road National Championships this weekend “With a dedicated leader, progressive agenda, UW Cycling set for Nationals” (May 7-9 throughout Madison, check some events out) was pretty lengthy, there are still plenty more interesting tidbits that could not fit in the paper. First, though, some additional info on Nationals:
Friday: Road Race (Men’s and Women’s D1 & D2) beginning at 8:30 AM at Blue Mound State Park
Saturday: Criterium (biggest event of the weekend, Men’s and Women’s D1 & D2) beginning at 3:00 PM in Capitol Square
Sunday: Team Time Trial (Men’s and Women’s D1 & D2) with beginning at 9:30 AM at Trek Bicycle HQ in Waterloo.
Club info:
Part of UW Club Sports
Top sponsor: Trek
Total membership: 105 paying members
Listserve: approx. 500 subscribers
Nationals team: 4 men, 6 women
Recent success at Nationals: Competed for at least the past 8 years straight
Recent success in conference events: Midwest Collegiate Cycling Conference champions in 2006 and 2007, runners up in 2008 and 2009, 3rd place in 2010 (top non varsity team every year since 2006)
Recent individual success: Steve Scholzen won the regional individual competition in 2007
Additional quotes:
President Jason Carr:
“Coming into the weekend, we were ranked fifth in our conference and we made up enough points to the point where we actually climbed up to third, which is a big deal. We were the top-placed club team; the two teams above us were teams that have varsity programs and we have one have one of the most competitive conferences in the country, so it was a pretty big move.”
“Well collegiate racing starts in the end of February. The way collegiate cycling breaks down is there’s A’s, B’s and C’s. In November, the A’S team, our best riders kinda get together and decide their goals and they start training. November’s when the training cycle for the year starts. And then come Feburary, those guys are already in pretty damn good shape. Starting in Feburary with all the collegiate racing, the first couple weekends people kind of figure out where they’re at and they start to adjust their training accordingly. The conference season is seven to eight weeks long, over that period, people really race themselves into shape. Over spring break, the club does a training camp-style spring break down in North Carolina – we usually send about 60 people down there and they train really hard to get in a lot of miles during spring break. Right now, the riders are actually resting, it’s only a week and a half away, so they’re making sure their legs are fresh as the races approach.”
“Well usually, our goal is getting to nationals every year. We always want to send people to nationals. But we’re realistic, we’ve been real lucky as one of the largest cycling clubs in the country, we usually have a couple very talented riders, so we’re able to have the goal of actually winning races.”
“There’s people I still talk to in the cycling community in the whole region that remember the race [at the 2004 Nationals] that came down State Street and the finish. It was like this epic, legendary finish, and now they’re excited to see something like that again.”
“After 2004, the club tripled in size; it was incredible. It raises the stature of our club, nationwide….We were called, by one of the top cycling publications a couple years ago, a ‘powerhouse collegiate team’. We’re looking to defend that title.”
“I certainly expect to grow again after this year. We expect to grow every year, but we expect to add more members. The other thing we really want to do is attract – we love racing and racing is a big part of the club – but we really want the club to grow into something that welcomes riders of all abilities and has something going on for everybody of all abilities. We try to do that now, but I expect that in the future that’ll become a bigger and bigger part of the club.”
Vice President and men’s racer Jon Cook:
“We are progressive in that we recruit people from all different areas to ride bikes. We have a lot of people that have come over from the triathlon team and we openly recruit any type of people who are interested in riding bikes. And I think we’re progressive in that way, it’s not just a racing club.”
“It’s just nice to also have so many people coming into Madison who maybe haven’t been here and just to see the city and see the area. That’s pretty cool too.”
“One benefit is just exposure within the university. There’s also a benefit of exposure in the community at large, which is huge as far as the races in the future or just people knowing about who we are and what we do. That’s huge, that’s great. The more support we can get, the better. I think that’s probably what means the most, and hopefully to keep people coming out and keep people passionate about the cycling team because for a lot of people on the team, we have 120 members, it means a lot to all of them, to their collegiate careers and to what they’ve done here at UW. As long as we can keep people doing that, I think more good things are to come and things like hosting nationals are to come.”
“I see us staying just as strong or stronger than what it is today. The club has gone through, with officers changing every year, the club goes through a lot of cycles. We’re definitely on an upswing, we have been for the last few years and I just hope that keeps going. Having nationals here can only help the momentum behind the club and just getting people to be members and be more involved in what we do.”
Secretary Ken Huxtable:
“I think that’s sort of the unique thing about our team, especially when you compare it to some of the other clubs on campus. That’s one reason that I keep coming back, just because I’m just surrounded by people who love a common interest, who appreciate biking.”
Women’s racer Kelley Hess:
“Oh man, preparing in Wisconsin is a difficult thing. We do a lot of trainer rides inside. We’ll get a group of people together, throw in a movie and take in a ride for an hour and a half or two and a half hours, something like that.”
