I drove the HSP van down to Bend, Orgeon on Tuesday afternoon to spend a few days at the Cascade Cycling Classic (Bend is at altitude). NOT to race ( though I did bring along my bike) but rather to catch up with some of the athletes I work with and to see some old friends and teammates. It’s getting less and less strange going to an NRC race as a spectator where as when I first stopped racing full time I felt strange, like I should be racing, NOT standing around. But at the end of a hot stage when the guys are all rolling back to team cars looking like they have been dragged behind a bus on a hot day in Manhattan (NYC) and after hearing the many tales of woe from my guys I don’t feel strange at all NOR do I particularly miss that kind of suffering. I am reminded though of how hard bike racing as a sport can be.
It was a great trip. Mike Sayers invited me to stay with him at the hotel the BMC team was staying at (he’s an assistant director and often directs in the US) and also offered to let me ride in the team car during Stage 2. I’ve been working with Brent (Bookwalter, who rides for BMC) since December and I had yet to get any face time with him so it was a great opportunity to spend some time talking with him in. I was also excited to see Davide (Frattini) who was my roommate in NYC and teammate at Colavita and now we work together on getting the most out of his engine. Carson Miller is one of the U 23 guys I work with who I met when I stayed with his family the first time I did the Cascade Classic in 2003? Maybe 2002? Regardless. (At the time I was riding with the first year Healthnet team alongside Sayers and Gord Fraser- who I was also glad to catch up with and who is now one of the directors for Team Type 1- also at the race) Carson was really getting into cycling at that time and now in a few weeks he will be heading over to Belgium to spend a few weeks at the national team house. Go Carson. Nick Clayville is another one of my guys and rides on the Hagens Berman team and I have not had a chance to see him race at a big show yet this season so it was good to see him in action. He’s on the bubble so to speak, hoping to get a pro ride for next year and REALLY digging deep to try to impress this week. It’s a lot of pressure for a guy when he’s CLOSE to getting to the next level but everyone goes through it on their way up, it’s simply part of the game. I also saw one of my new guys, Sean Passage, who was riding the race solo, no team at all, which makes for a grueling week in the heat. The good news is that he is from Bend and did not have to travel far from home. He’s a super kid with plenty of motivation and is based in reality: he knows it’s going to take some time to make the front group going over the big climbs but he is willing to put in the time – KEY. I also caught up with old teammate and friend, Johnny Page who is more g’d up than I have seen him in years. I think he is on the road to re-discovering the form that scored him a silver in the Cross World Championships a few years back I would not bet against him for this years Worlds.
I got called to duty the morning of the TT as Mike needed a driver to follow one of his guys during the 14 mile grind. SURE. Driving behind Steve Bovay as he stomped up the long false flat/long ass rollers was without incident. I was wondering if following a rider would get me all motivated to get home and hop on my TT bike and get g’d up for the team time trial that is coming up in the next few weeks. NOPE.
The other notable highlight was having dinner with Beverly Lucas and her husband Alan. They own Bend Bike and Ski and Beverly is a marketing genius who is currently steering the marketing ship for Edge Composites- GREAT wheels, forks, etc. We ate at some amazing pizza joint whose name escapes me and we ran into Ryan Trebon there. He reminded me that he bested me a the Redlands prologue back in 2005? On a cross bike…… whatever. I was 10th I think and he was…… faster. I could be mistaken but I think that’s right. Regardless.
I met Beverly back when she was working for Felt and I was riding for Colavita and we were on Felts- the FIRST team in America I might add. I ended up staying with Bev and Alan a few years back when I did Cascade with one of my teammates, Ian Ayers- who has since left cycling and is a smarty pants computer type rumored to be working in Europe somewhere. Regardless. I’ve kept in touch with Bev over the years and I’m currently working on a project with her that I am really excited about and can hopefully give some details on in the coming weeks.
Then I drove 6 hours back to Seattle. Lucky for me I tossed one my 100 CD cases into the van before I rolled out- no i pod hook up in the HSP van sadly. This case had an amazing selection. I will admit to listening to: Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Jim Croce, America, George Michael (really), Catherin Wheel, Cheap Trick, Aztec Camera, Husker DU, Don Maclean, Foreigner, The Strokes, Fleetwood Mac, Beastie Boys, Green Day, Whodini, Grand Master Flash, Pink Floyd (obviously) Smashing Pumplinds, Echo and the Bunnymen, Jeff Buckley, Galaxy 500, Mamas and the Papas.
Van Halen, The Proclaimers, Red Rider, Chemical Brothers, Queen, Gene Loves Jezebel, Spacehog and Price. Those are the ones I remember. Really. I stopped at Burger King and ate some hammys and drank a big ass shake and I called a LOT of people on the phone- thankfully I bought a car charger before I left town. I also had a Red Bull and a Starbucks and a burrito. NO candy. When I finally got home I felt like I had been away for months!
I’ll go back next year for sure. I am pretty sure I will NOT be racing again but somewhere in the back of my head I still have this idea that MAYBE I could do that race again. MAYBE.
Best,
TH
