Herriott Sports Performance

Mike Sayers

In 1992, after a promising early career in ski racing and amateur bike racing, Mike Sayers traveled to France for a month to try his hand at amateur racing in that cycling crazed country. In 1994, Mike got an excellent offer to ride for the best amateur team in Switzerland: GS Mazza. Mazza was the developmental home to many Swiss professionals including the Zberg brothers and Tour of Swiss KOM winner and current BMC teammate, Alex Moos. The following year, Mike was dominating the local racing scene in Northern California, and he was also getting significant results at the national level.

In 1996, Mike was asked to ride for the Einstein's Cycling Team. While there, he was part of a formidable team that included 2007 Tour de France 3rd place Levi Leipheimer and current domestic pro Burke Swindelhurst. The next season, Mike was offered a continued contract with the team and its new sponsor, the Mercury automobile company. For the next five years, he rode for Mercury and was a pivotal part in their development from a division 3 to a division 1 team.

Over those five years Mercury, including Mike, made several trips to Europe to compete in some of their biggest races. In 2001 Mercury became one of 18 teams that make up cycling's first division, and the team spent most of that season ranked in the top 10. That very season, Mike was given the opportunity to be one of just a few Americans at that time to race the famed Belgian one day classics--races that included Paris-Roubaix and the Tour of Flanders. In 2002, he returned to race full time in the states, and after the demise of Mercury he became the founding member of the powerful Health Net/Maxxis program.

While at Health Net, Mike led the team to two straight NRC team titles. In 2007, he moved to the newly formed BMC program, and that program has grown into one of three Division 2 programs based in the United States.

Mike represents Herriott Sports Performance in Northern California and is available for cycling coaching and skills instruction.

Aaron Levin, M.D.

Aaron Levin comes to HSP as both a physician and an accomplished athlete. Aaron received a B.S. in Biophysics from Yale in 1989, spent a year doing molecular genetics research as a Fulbright scholar, and followed up with an M.D. from Cornell in 1994. He completed a residency in Anesthesiology at Harvard in 1998.

While obtaining his degrees, Aaron also engaged in elite, athletic competition. His cycling career started as a fifteen year old Junior. In his second race, at the 1984 National Road racing championships, Aaron entered the final corner on the wheel of the defending national champion. A crash took them both out of contention, and Aaron has been chasing that lost national title ever since.

By eighteen he was racing successfully as a Category 1 Road and Track cyclist. His cycling resume includes multiple state championships, top placings in NRC criteriums such as the Tour of Somerville, and a podium appearance at the 1992 Track Olympic Trials. Aaron has ridden as an amateur with several top teams, including the Philadelphia Flyers, the Massachusetts-based O'Neill's Bud Light team, and the Miami Wheelers of the National Cycling League.

In addition to racing bikes, Aaron swam competitively for the Yale varsity team, and also has won several local sprint triathlons.

As a physician and an elite athlete, Aaron brings unique insights to the medical aspects of performance training. He will periodically write articles for the HSP website, illuminating those areas where science and sport come together.

Mike Rogers, MSPT

Mike Rogers received his Masters of Science in Physical Therapy in 1999 from the University of the Pacific, graduating with highest honors in Orthopedics. Prior to obtaining his degree in physical therapy he achieved a BA/BS from the University of Washington in history and zoology.

As an athlete and former high school cross country/track coach, Mike’s passion in physical therapy lies in the analysis and treatment of movement and how movement dysfunction affects athletic ability and contributes to painful conditions. He utilizes his manual therapy skills and movement training background to specialize in lumbopelvic conditions, knee and shoulder rehabilitation, running and cycling biomechanics, and sport performance enhancement training. His philosophy of care focuses on restoration of muscle performance and proper biomechanics during movement for individuals with varied athletic abilities as well as those that are more sedentary. His ultimate goal is to assist each individual to achieve his or her fullest physical potential and adopt a lifestyle that promotes health, wellness, and fitness.

Mike has been a competitive cyclist for the last 22 years and at the elite level for the last 12. He shares his passion for athleticism through training and coaching cyclists, runners, and triathletes. As a USA Cycling licensed Coach , Mike is nationally recognized for his expertise with cycling biomechanical analysis, bicycle retrofit, power enhancement training, and injury intervention and prevention. Athletes under Mike’s care have gone on to win athletic awards at all levels, from High School to the Masters level.

Nancy Smalley, LMT

Nancy is a Nationally certified massage therapist holding licenses in Texas and Washington. Since graduating from The European Institute for Massage Therapy in 1998, she has enjoyed a career in sports massage. Her work with a sports massage clinic treating runners, triathletes, and cyclists further fueled her passion for working with athletes.

Inspired to start her own practice, Nancy started working with the University of Texas Women’s Athletic Dept. and expanded her work to include National and International Olympic track and field athletes, professional cyclists and NFL football players.

Along the way, she was fortunate to work with several professionals -- such as expert biomechanics coaches, as well as European physiotherapists and soigneurs -- which gave her the opportunity to learn advanced injury rehab skills. In addition to her experience working on athletes, Nancy knows first hand how the body feels under the stresses of training, as she is also a competitive cyclist.

Nancy's approach with clients is to assess their needs, provide appropriate treatment and educate them about self-care techniques and stretching which may complement their routine. She believes that massage can be an important part of your life, whether to serve as an injury prevention and rehabilitative wellness tool, to assist in recovery, or to be that needed break from the stresses in your life.

Dale Cannavan, PhD, CSCS

Dale is a certified strength and conditioning specialist with over 20 years experience in exercise performance conditioning. A native of N. Ireland, Dr. Cannavan relocated to the USA in January 2008.

He has a Ph.D. in Biomechanics and is a member of the National Strength and Conditioning Association, the American College of Sports Medicine and the European College of Sports Sciences. His research area focuses on the plasticity of the neuromuscular system to different training modalities. He has co-authored numerous peer-reviewed articles on the topic of strength and conditioning, and co-authored a book chapter on strength testing for the British Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences.

Dr. Cannavan received his Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Exercise and Health from the University of Surrey (UK) and he received both his Master of Science (Distinction) and Doctorate from Brunel University (UK).

An international speaker and university lecturer, Dr. Cannavan also served in the British Army for 13 years as a Physical Training Instructor. He believes firmly in putting theory into practice. He owned a personal training business in London and has worked with many organizations including the British Olympic Medical Center, the Real-Tennis UK elite squad, GB weightlifting, the Brunel University Athletics and Netball teams, Morgan Stanley, HSBC and the Blackstone Group.