This is awkward

It’s that time of year again – awkward team photos! It’s hard to design a kit because something on paper can look entirely different when actually produced. And sometimes an idea for a photoshoot might sound good in conception but the reality turns out quite different.

Case in point: do you remember the kit from the women’s Skoda ladies team with the red chamois that continued down their inner leg? Hmmm… And a kit that I’m sure was created on a drunken dare was the Footon kit of golden-brownish with a large footprint across the front. How about the Quick Step photos of the guys leaning on each other while resting their heads on a sponsors pillow? And there’s countless others throughout the history of cycling – professional as well as amateur. But let’s take a look at some recent editions.

I for one was happy to hear that several of the women from the HTC-Highroad squad had found a home in the new Specialized-Lululemon team. I’d seen some of the early photos and I liked the jerseys – black and white striping that matched their Specialized frames. It doesn’t particularly stand out – but otherwise it’s a good looking kit. However, at what looks to be a team meet and greet with journalists a few of the ladies are being presented. Once again the crotch area of the bibs might lead to some awkward moments when the squad is introduced on a stage before a race. When the legs are close together it looks heart shaped or triangular. I’m hoping that Specialized can crank out a version 2.0 of the bibs which wraps the black and white design around the whole leg.

A night at the Roxbury?

Omega Pharma – Quick-Step Cycling Team has a new kit this year and it looks like the Leopard-Trek clothing designer jumped ship and went with the Belgian squad. The colors are still the classic blue we have seen in the past but it is now highlighted with the Leopard-Trek teal. I said last year I was a fan of the Leopard-Trek kit, so I’m on board with this design as well. Clean, classic and non-distracting colors doesn’t lead the eye to the chamois area. And the team is so excited about the kit that they even created a video clip with battle cry sounding music in the background – bad ass! Reminds me of the trailer I just saw for next summer’s Battleship movie – makes me want to blow shit up! Speaking of videos – check out the YouTube clip of the team’s boot camp from a week ago. New recruit Levi Leipeheimer  at the 30-second mark has a look of, “We’re going to do what? I did not sign up for this!” But once again, the photo director jumps the shark with some rather odd posing of their athletes.

Three team members are posed on the guard rail, arms interwoven with each other with fake smiles in full effect. Maybe it’s my American sensibilities, but if I was that middle guy there’s just too much man crotch being aimed in my direction. I expect this to happen. Whatever happened to the classic standing, arms crossed with a stern look?

Sometimes certain actions demand attention by not just staff but authorities

Finally, the series of team training photos that made me go WTF was Liquigas Cannondale’s training camp photo of the guys hanging out in the steam room in their bib shorts. I’m really not sure what more I can say about that photo. Did it not seem weird that his photographer pops his head into the steam room and starts snapping away or was it his idea for the riders to go into the steam room, take off their shirts and tell them to act “relaxed?” Regardless it has a creepy Sandusky vibe to it and I think authorities should have been notified.

It was reported that the Greenedge team presentation was a stereotypical laid back Aussie affair. However, the squad is producing a team song done to a Tom Petty tune? I can’t wait for that to hit iTunes.

Of course the man who everyone can thank for starting the trend of sending teams off to mini boot camps is Saxo Bank’s Bjarne Riis. He had his boys up to the same old shenanigans, but in this latest round of press photos he has Alberto Contador strapped to another dude for some parachuting. First off, I don’t care who you are, you look ridiculous harnessed to another person as you leap out from a perfectly good plane. In the photos that were released, Contador’s face looks like he’s being made a wife to his prison cellmate – it’s a combination of terror with the realization that it is happening no matter how much he protests.

There are still several more team camps coming up and I for one can’t wait to see the photos from those.

Sometimes it’s hard to get a whole organization to a photo shoot. In the case of Leopard Trek it seems that sports director Lars Michaelsen couldn’t make it to the location. So the webmaster at the team did the next best thing – Photoshopped his head onto Torsten Schmidt’s body.

Should Michaelson be upset at the choice of body doubles – I don’t know. Schmidt, according to his biography, is a long-time professional racer and at least didn’t let himself get sloppy like some ex-pros I could mention. But I wonder if Michaelson was given a choice of whose body he’d get? Did Michaelson pick Schmidt? That’s got to be an awkward conversation if he did in fact pick the Belgian sport director’s body.

“Hey Torsten, it’s me Lars. I can’t make the team photo shoot. I know this is going to sound odd, but I couldn’t help but notice you’ve been looking good lately. Doing a lot of gym work? Anyways can they put my head onto your body for the website photo?”

Schmidt - still looking good

If I could choose whose body I would put my head on, without a doubt it is Fabian Cancellara. He looks tall in the photo, plus he has an athletic build, not some scrawny waif-like profile. I know, he’s not management, so Fabian might not be a choice. But Photoshop in a scarf and it’s good to go! One rider I definitely wouldn’t pick is Jakob Fuglsang! I’m not sure what the hell he was doing in November, maybe hitting the speculoos hard, but he’s fat! Jakob – have some self respect!

Team RadioShack-Nissan-Trek just wrapped up an informal training camp in the Belgian town of Spa. And following tweets from the riders that made the cut onto this new merged team it seems like everything was fantastic. Chris Horner posted that it was good to meet up with the new guys and it’s, “Going to be a great 2012” season. Can’t argue with that. With the cream of both squads combining the RadioShack-Nissan-Trek team could be a dominating force in both the Classics (Fabian Cancellara), the European Grand Tours (Andy Schleck) and as well America’s version in California, Utah and Colorado (Chris Horner). However, there seemed to be a couple of odd tweets by Fabian Cancellara and Andy Schleck that smacked of corporate boilerplate.

The reason I’m such a fan of Twitter is that it has allowed riders to say things off the cuff before the media relations person gets a hold of them to spin it toward a team/sponsor’s message. Mark Cavendish is a great example and I’m sure he has given the team’s p.r. person fits during the season. But hey, that’s why we love him. Cav is just one of several riders that aren’t afraid to pick up their smartphone and let their feeling known in 140 characters (Brad Wiggins – I’m talking to you). But let’s return to Cancellara’s and the Schlecks’ recent tweets.

Spartacus tweeted, “Back after few days with #RadioShack-Nissan-Trek in Spa.. We not only strong on the paper. We already createt nice group and atmosphere.”

The classic “Fabianese” language that has been made famous by @mmmaiko was in full effect. Then a couple of hours later Andy Schleck takes to Twitter with this post.

“Back after few days with RadioShack-Nissan-Trek in Spa We not only strong on the paper We already createt nice group and atmosphere.” This sounds familiar.

In a recent article CNBC sports business reporter Darren Rovell noticed some out of character tweets by the NFL’s Michael Vick.

“Earlier this month, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Michael Vick tweeted: “Check these prizes from the McDonald’s monopoly game,” and included a link.

Next to the tweet it said “spon,” which I assume meant sponsored.”

Vick also “tweeted” that he was looking for some Thanksgiving recipes. Turns out they were sponsored tweets from a company called MyLikes. At the end of the article Rovell writes, “ And how much are those clicks worth if the celebrity is turning into a shill tweeting out brands that don’t fit them just for a quick buck?”

I realize that both Schleck and Cancellara are professional athletes, as such, paid to promote the sponsor’s brand or message in a positive light and their tweets weren’t a sponsored ad. Although behind the scenes such warm and fuzzy feelings toward this new Luxembourgian created Frankenstein team may not exist, team management still needs to portray a unified public front. My warning is to both Fabian and Andy – don’t ruin your public perception to the fans. Tweets that look to have been issued to you from upper management will do nothing but set you up for ridicule and will turn off your fans. I understand that being pro means pushing the sponsor’s message, but don’t abuse it and don’t make it look so unauthentic. Or at the minimum, when Bruyneel tells you guys to tweet the corporate message, make the effort to at least add your own style.

One team that has made a splash in the European peloton is the Luxembourg based Leopard-Trek team. Their line-up includes the Schlecks, Fabian Cancellara, Jens Voigt and several other strong riders. While victories at E3 Prijs, Criterium International and the Tour of Luxembourg earned them column inches, they were creating quite a stir before one pedal turned on the road.

The press about the name of the Luxembourg super squad was full of speculation before the team presentation. When the name was announced the genesis of the title and proper usage of it rankled a few writers who are not accustomed to being told how to use or pronounce a team’s moniker. The British magazine CycleSport let their feelings be known in an open letter to the squad. I even took a good natured swipe at the boys in white and blue.

The name Leopard-Trek comes from the holding company of team general manager Brian Nygard – Leopard True Racing. During the team presentation Nygaard explained, “We had a meeting with a notary and when we signed the papers, he asked us what we wanted to call the company. I looked at Becca and we said ‘we don’t care, can you pick a name? He came back two weeks later with leopard, and the more I looked at it, the more I liked it. The leopard is a slick, strong, elegant animal, and if we can be something like that with this team, I’d be very happy.”

Sure the name sounds like something you’d give your kid’s soccer team – but whatever.

Now during the Tour de France Versus’ Phil and Paul have been telling the story of how the team was named after a German tank used in World War II. I’m thinking naming a team after a German tank that P&P claimed to have seen action in WWII is not a wise marketing choice. The French, for one, can’t be thrilled with that.

However, a quick Wiki search states that the Leopard tank project started in 1956 by West Germany. For those who aren’t history buffs, Germany surrendered in May, 1945.

I think we can safely call “bullshit” on the Leopard Tank story. And no, I’m not going to pronounce the team LAY-oh-pard Trek.

You want us to pronounce it how?

As a journalist your e-mail inbox can be full of requests from companies and athletes. Sometimes it’s a press embargo (please don’t announce our new widget before this date) which never works. This time of year, and because cycling’s sponsors swap around as much as a two dollar whore, we get requests on how to spell their new team name. Perfectly reasonable request. Someone or some company has ponied up the money to be on the team jersey and they have the right to tell the press how the name should be. Usually it’s Team XYZ presented by W. You have to feel sorry for the “presented by” sponsor because after a while they get hosed and to the consternation of the team marketing guy it gets left out of any press the team might have scraped up.

Journalist Shane Stokes pointed out that the whole “presented by” was started by the Postal Service team. The full name was the United States Postal Service presented by Berry Floor. Of course no one remembers the Berry Floor part and I bet right now Berry Floor is happy about that…

As you all know the new team on the block Leopard-Trek was unveiled in a very Cirque du Soleil manner. There were acrobats and a guy dressed like TRON in a hamster wheel rolling around on the stage – very surreal and not sure what it had to do with cycling, but hey, maybe this is how they do things in Luxembourg? Little did we know that this was just the beginning of odd behavior.

Today Leopard Trek not only sent out a press release on the official manner in which they would like the team to be written but also how to pronounce the squad’s name. I read through it and thought, “Are they kidding?” I re-read it thinking it was some kind of hoax. Nope – they were serious. Now I totally get the reasoning about how they want the name written – they have a marketing plan and they want the squad branded in a certain manner with the sponsors getting maximum love. But telling us how to pronounce the team’s name and to spell it with all capitals – that’s just plain ridiculous.

First off don’t push your Euro accent on me. That’s your burden – not mine. Also all caps to spell out the name? That just looks ugly when written out. In all the times I had to write “Trek” the Wisconsin based company never once told me that it should have been all caps. I will respect their request for no hyphen between the two names, but I’m not going to write LEOPARD TREK.

Below is the press release/ cheat sheet from Leopard Trek and maybe I’m just part of a massive hoax. I’m sure all the journalists will have this printed out and placed beside their laptops for reference.

It’s been an exciting week for Trek as we announced our co-title sponsorship of LEOPARD TREK. The anticipation behind this launch is understandable, considering the fire power in the roster. There will undoubtedly be a significant portion of media coverage surrounding the team as the season kicks off next week at the Tour Down Under.

Please follow these naming standards when referring to the team in the media:

The team name is LEOPARD TREK. Please do not insert the word “Team” before LEOPARD TREK, in writing or conversation, as that is not part of the official name.
Please do not hyphenate LEOPARD TREK.
In written communication, LEOPARD TREK must be set in all caps.
In spoken communication, please use the appropriate pronunciation: LAY-oh-pard Trek.

INCORRECT: The new Team Leopard Trek includes…
CORRECT: The new LEOPARD TREK team includes…

INCORRECT: Leopard-Trek was presented to the media…
CORRECT: LEOPARD TREK was presented to the media…

INCORRECT: Trek announces sponsorship of Team LEOPARD TREK…
CORRECT: Trek announces co-title sponsorship of LEOPARD TREK…

Thanks for your help in establishing the proper team name standards. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.

Andreu is leading the charge with the Kenda p/b Gear Grinder team

If you are reading my site chances are you already know who Frankie Andreu is. A quick primer: he was the backbone of the U.S. Postal team with rides in the Tour de France as well as the Classics. You have also seen him on television doing pre and post stage interviews during the Tour and in the recent past he had done stints at Toyota-United and Rock Racing as a team director. This year Andreu is once again behind the windshield this time for the Kenda presented by Gear Grinder squad. When I saw the press release linking him to Kenda I mentioned the obvious; his experience to any team would be invaluable. What I didn’t know about Frankie was his no-nonsense approach to directing a team. I’ve spoken to Frankie before and to me he always seemed an easy going guy. However, he expects results from the team and is expecting them to race hard and aggressively. If they don’t, well…

Browne: You have been a team director before what has made you want to return?
Frankie Andreu: Mainly I missed it. I enjoyed working with a team and it’s something I loved doing. I have been speaking with Chad Thompson for the past couple of years and in 2009 the talks became a little more serious. For me it’s a way of getting back into the peloton.

Browne: Are you going to be behind the windshield at all the races? This is a full-time gig?
Andreu: This is a full-time director at Kenda. Doing tactics, strategy and logistics as well as helping the riders achieve their goals. I want to grow this team into a powerhouse team in the next couple of years.

Browne: The team this year has a modest budget. What do you see as some of more immediate goals of the Kenda team?
Andreu: Our first immediate goal is the Tour of Taiwan. That’s definitely a major goal of ours. It’s difficult because it is really early in the season and it is our first race, so you are not sure on how the riders are doing. You have to rely on them training at home. After that we have a good criterium team in which we can be very competitive at NRC events like Speed Week and the USA Crits Series. We have also brought on a nice balance of climbers, some overall workers and time trialists. In some smaller stage races, five to six day races, we can be competitive. I expect the team to win and I won’t expect anything less than that.

Browne: Of the riders on your team roster who do you think we should keep an eye on?
Andreu: Phil Gaimon is a good climber and came from Jelly Belly. Stefano Barberi I brought back to the team. I worked with him from the Toyota-United days. I think this guy is a very talented climber but has always been in the position of being a worker. I would like to see him come out from that role and start achieving some of his own objectives. Chad Hartley has had injuries in the past and I think he has recovered from that and is training well. I think he is going to be coming back to the top of his game. Then we have some sprinters like Chad Burdzilauskas and a super strong rider in Jake Rytlewski. This guy is an animal! I think the best thing about the team is how aggressive they are. The guys are not ones to just follow. They like to attack and race aggressively. If we can continue doing that, that will pay off big dividends with these guys. And that’s the way I like to see bike races. You do better when you are aggressive, rather than being on the defensive.

The Kenda team will be riding Masi frames with SRAM components

Browne: Is that the Frankie Andreau influence: the aggressive nature?
Andreu: These guys already have that aggressive nature so I am just trying to instill that in them. I’m going to tell them when we are at a big race just because some of the bigger teams are there, doesn’t mean we change the way we race. When you are aggressive, that is how you get into the breaks and win races. I’m going to continue giving them that confidence to attack whenever they want to.

Browne: The economic climate for cycling is tough right now. Some ProTour teams are losing their title sponsorship at the end of the year, while other teams are having to cut back. Races are also disappearing off the calendar. What do you see the future, domestically, for cycling?
Andreu: That’s a good question, because there seems to be more races disappearing than appearing. Without the bike racing there isn’t a need for teams. Hopefully the economy will start to turn around and a lot of companies have put the brakes on their marketing objectives. Hopefully they will start to see the value of cycling, which will bring more events. It’s a fight because everyone is fighting for the same dollars. Cycling is widespread, but it doesn’t appeal to everyone.

Browne: You have been in the sport and have seen the ups and downs in cycling. Why do you keep coming back to it? Are you crazy?
Andreu: It’s my passion. Someone asked me the other day what was my long-term goal. My passion is cycling, and I love doing the commentating and announcing. I love being part of the team and directing. I love working in cycling. I work hard at trying to stay involved in the sport and I think I do a good job. My experience is wanted in different areas and I would love to stay in the sport as long as I can till I’m forced out or have no choice.

Browne: You mentioned commentating, are we going to see you on Versus?
Andreu: I’m pretty sure the Tour de France again. That’s the only thing I do. Versus has cut back a lot with their programming. And again I’m lucky I’m able to go to the Tour de France. I love my job over there running around and it’s fun. The play-by-play is something I really enjoyed doing, but I won’t get into that for a long time.

Browne: What are some of the team’s long-term plans?
Andreu: We are doing a couple of international races and I think long term. We like to be able to grow the budget and grow that depth of the roster. We have a great roster right now and it is up to the riders if they want to remain on the roster. They need to train and race hard. If they race hard, they will stay on the roster. If they don’t come up to that challenge there are lots of riders out there that don’t have contracts or other riders that are looking for teams. I think that riders that are on any team should realize they are benefiting from finding a team and are lucky. They need to make the most of that opportunity. Eventually I would like to have a powerhouse team for the US but also expand into doing some international races.

Browne: You mentioned that riders are lucky to be on a team. It brings to mind Burke Swindlehurst who is racing solo. That’s a unique situation.
Andreu: I saw that and it is very unique. But as you well know, in criterium and road racing the team is really essential. With Burke, he is such a great climber so he can go to climbing races and make his own way. But it will be tough. I definitely don’t want to see the sport going with individual riders scrounging for individual sponsors like mountain biking does. The beauty of the sport is its team aspect. What I think Burke is doing is smart because it keeps him in the peloton and keeps him racing. Burke’s a great climber and if he gets good results someone else will pick him up and that will be his way of getting back in.

Browne: Team owner Chad Thompson seems to be working like a dog to get the team going. What do you think motivates Chad to pound the pavement, work the media and work any angle he can?
Andreu: I think a bit his pride. He has put a lot of time and money into building this team and he wants to see it succeed. Also, the passion. He loves cycling. He used to be a rider and loves riding. I tell you he is one motivated individual and I have enjoyed working with him. Like you said, he is always out there pounding the pavement, always positive and reaching out to everybody. He works his tail off to find that sponsors to make this thing work. I have to give him credit. He is 100% committed to the team and to see that passion is similar to the passion I have for cycling, which is great. He’s a good boss.

Floyd Landis - Man of Mystery Photo: John Segesta

As the season approaches and teams are conducting training camps, Rock Racing has been surprisingly silent. No press releases of upcoming training camps or even a 2010  team roster. In 2009 Rock rode in a splashy kit proclaiming “Rocks not dead”. For 2010 team owner Michael Ball stated he was taking the team to the next level: pro continental. Rumors swirled around the team. Rock Racing was going to be registered in Mexico, they were going to race in Europe and even earn wild card entries into the Classics and smaller stage races. With a strong core roster of Spanish riders like Oscar Sevilla, Victor Hugo Pena and Francisco Mancebo the team has proven to be a force to be reckoned with domestically, so why not take it to the next step? Hyperbole ramped up to overdrive at Interbike where Ball unveiled a complete line-up of Rock branded cycling apparel as well as full carbon fiber frames and components. For 2010 they strengthened the Rock team by signing Tony Cruz, a rider who has raced successfully on both sides of the Atlantic. However the new marquee rider Ball was rumored to have signed was Floyd Landis. Landis issued a press release in December stating his departure from the OUCH team (now UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team) however leaving out who he was going to be racing for in 2010. This only fueled the fires of speculation of who he was racing for in 2010. But all those Rock Racing dreams of a European campaign, and perhaps even an American campaign, have seemed to have crashed with the denial of pro continental status by the UCI. Sources have told me that Ball still owes money to riders and race promoters which will seriously hamper any chance of competing in any races of importance.  After several days of text messaging with Landis I was able to track him down on the phone to discuss the upcoming season and whether Rock was indeed dead.

With the apocalyptic weather conditions that has been lashing down on Southern California I asked Landis what he has been doing for training. “Oh the usual. Riding around, bowling, just doing stuff.” I pressed him on the status of the Rock team and the rumors that he had signed with the team for 2010. On this subject he was a little more to the point. “I’m racing in the Tour of the Bahamas this weekend in a Rock kit, so yeah, I’m doing that. I told them (Rock Racing) that I wanted to do that race so they sent me a kit.” Landis is lining up for his first race in 2010 in a Rock kit, but what is the status for the rest of the year? “I honestly don’t know. I don’t know even if Ball has thought about the team these last two weeks. I don’t know what is going on. I’m focusing on my training and my bowling. I need to think of my future after cycling and bowling might be it.” After the Tour of the Bahamas his future is not so crystal clear. “I have no clue what’s going on. After the Tour of the Bahamas I’m going back to my shack behind the car wash. Maybe I’ll write a book.”

George set the tempo all weekend CREDIT: Chris Anderson

This past weekend the 2010 Hincapie Development squad got together for the first time. Excitement had been building for the riders the week before and the U23 riders were chomping at the bit to throw a leg over the new Shimano Dura-Ace, Ritchey and Thomson equipped BMC Pro Machine. This was going to be my first time meeting the riders as a mentor/coach for the team. The Hincapie’s have been spending their time and resources on developing future American talents and it was starting to come to fruition. Craig Lewis, now a member f the HTC-Columbia squad, got his start on a team sponsored by Hincapie Sportswear. Chris Butler, a member of the Hincapie Devo team last year who made the jump to BMC for 2010, is heading off to the team training camp in California at the end of the month. Strad Helms is another rider from the Hincapie Development class of ’09 that made the jump to the big leagues joining Team Type 1 for 2010. With that kind of track record this year’s crop of U23 riders should be showing results.

Friday night was the first official team meeting. And like any professional organization there were certain rules and regulations that are expected of the riders. As I sat there I thought how similar this was to other pro team training camps I’d attended. Just before forms were filled out and swag bags passed out Steve Baker, Hincapie team liaison/mentor, reminded the riders how important this opportunity was to them. He also relayed the fact how important it was to the team that no one drops out of a race unless it’s an injury or mechanical failure. “George doesn’t quit a race.” Baker said. I thought about that and I couldn’t think of an instance when George Hincapie headed to the broom wagon because he’s been dropped or when the race wasn’t going his way. The times he hasn’t finished a race was when he had crashed out and was physically unable to cross the finish line. Crossing the finish line, or completing what you say you are going to do, is an important trait for the Hincapies whether in a race or in the business world. Hopefully the riders on the team will pick up on this type of work ethic and transfer it to their daily lives.

Sponsor goodies courtesy of Oakley, Giro & Hincapie Sportswear

Saturday was a team training day and George met the squad to lead the ride. This Tuesday he packs his bags and leaves for the Tour Down Under, so he still needed to log training miles. The temperature in the morning was in the 20s. Thick tights, insulated jackets, shoe covers and full finger gloves were the bare essentials for the day. Our group had swelled to over 20 riders which included almost the entire Hincapie Devo team, as well as also mentor riders and supporters. We rolled down the road, riding two abreast, George at the front keeping a steady tempo. I have ridden with pros before and I am always in awe of how easily they flick over the pedals as if the cranks were just an extension of their legs. George is no exception and kept the pace constant and unwavering. Beyond the smooth nature of Hincapie’s pedaling I also noticed new BMC rider Chris Butler’s style. Butler’s pedaling is just as fluid, however his body is more compact than George – the obvious morphology of a climber with the results to back it up. Butler is a student at Furman University in Greenville and had planned on missing part of the upcoming BMC camp. That has changed and he is going to attend the full training camp, which means recon rides of key Tour of California stages. The new devo riders showed the potential that caught the eye of Hincapie Sportswear and showed a certain amount of souplesse as we ticked over the miles. None of the riders had hunched shoulders and sloppy pedaling technique even after several hours in the saddle. When it was all said and done my Garmin 705 laid out the facts: we’d ridden for three and a half hours, 60 miles total and with an elevation gain of 5,800 feet (twice over Paris Mountain). Not too bad. I didn’t hear any whining or complaining from any of the riders, even when we made that left hand turn to climb over Paris Mountain for the second time.

The following day was a shorter ride with George again riding point. While the previous day’s ride was well over 20 riders, Sunday’s was down to the devo riders, mentors and George. We zig-zaged across the Upstate with seemingly no rhyme or reason. George apparently knew where we were going as he confidently and without hesitation pointed which way to turn. He must have the innate gps-like ability of a homing pigeon as I had no idea where we were. I have written this before and I’ll say it again; I don’t know why most pros don’t live in this area. The conditions are fantastic. Sure we’re in the middle of an unusual cold snap, but when dressed for the conditions, it isn’t that much of a hardship. And I can count on one hand how many cars we encountered once we were out of town.

This is what it looks like to follow George up Paris Mountain

After about an hour and 40 minutes George and Chris Butler turned right, heading to the six-mile climb of Caesar’s Head. For those two it was another long day in the saddle, but for us it was time to head for home. With riders coming from all over the southeast, a few riders were facing several hours drive back home. Back at the starting point it was a little over two hours, but with some heavy legs from the previous day, that was enough. It’s only January and a lot of racing is still in front of them.

It was a great weekend of riding. We rode, swapped stories and consumed massive amounts of well deserved calories together. Some riders knew each other and the staff, but for me it was a great opportunity to get acquainted with the riders and be a part of something that these guys will always remember.

Hincapie Sportswear Development Roster
Stephen Colavito
Justin Lowe
Parker Kyzer
Tyler Karnes
Mike Stone
Blair (Edison)Turner
Logan Haskew
Matt Lipscomb
Aubrey Moore

Sponsors
BMC
Hincapie Sportswear
Shimano
Oakley
Giro
Thomson
Ritchey
FinishLine

Hincapie photo by Chris Anderson

National champion kit

One of the advantages of riding with the Hincapie Sportswear staff is that I’ve gotten to see or hear the inside scoop on what’s going on with the BMC team. When I rolled into the office today for a ride, UPS had just dropped off a huge shipment of the first batch of team issue BMC clothes. The staff was quickly separating what the team needed for the upcoming Tour Down Under and what they need for the California training camp later this month. While they allowed me to take a look at the new kit I had to take a blood oath not to post pictures or even discuss what colors they used. I’ll say that the kit looks clean and will standout from the rest of the peloton.

I spoke to Rich Hincapie about the production details of the clothes Hincapie Sportswear had to produce for the BMC team. Add to the fact that the team has two current American national champions, a world champion, as well as former national champions on the team there needs to be elements beyond a standard jersey design. The UCI has certain standards for how a world champion stripes, as well as how a national champion jersey, is to look. After the technical details of how wide the stripes need to be or exactly what shade certain colors needs to be, the rider gets to weigh in on the design. This takes a lot of emails back and forth with the rider and many late nights at the office. After seeing the kit myself and witnessing the work first hand, I’m confident that the tifosi will approve.

Quick Facts:

• The BMC team has 23 pro and three U23 riders.
• Each rider will get approximately 60 pieces of cycling clothing throughout the year. Clothing is replaced when riders crash, lose them or wear out.
• Casual clothing will include Hincapie denim jeans, track suits and collared shirts. If you want to hear a fun story ask Rich what he had to do to the track jackets before they were sent to the team.
• The total amount of clothing pieces sent to the team are in the thousands (in addition to the basic kit of shorts and jersey there are many different types of gloves, various skinsuit types, various jackets and shoe covers to name just a few pieces).
• The retail cost for the amount of clothing for the team is between $300,000 to $400,000.

There's a lot of clothes that need to be checked in

BMC Pro Machine full Campy, Easton parts, Speedplay pedals

It is officially the beginning of the pre-season. Teams are coming together around the globe for training camps. There have been some early training camps, but those are mostly for the sake of the press and sponsors. The camps from here on out are getting a little more serious. Today I had an early evening meeting with Hincapie Sportsware. I will be one of the mentor/coaches of the U-23 Hincapie Development squad and at the end of the week the U-23 guys are coming to Greenville for a mini version of a training camp. We’ll be handing out team products, explaining goals and aspirations of the team and having a good time for the few days that we are together. I am very much looking forward to working with the riders. It’s going to be a great year of racing and riding from a personal standpoint. I’m hoping these young pups will whip me back into shape.

As I was waiting for the meeting, the Hincapie art department was doing a photoshoot with George in the new national champion kit along with his new bike. Over the din of the cranked to maximum spaceheater I think someone said his BMC Team Machine was 15.1 pounds. Soon George will be heading to his training camp in California and other local teams will be having theirs. Team Type 1′s camp is in Georgia next month and I’ll drop by and see the guys. Another pro team that I have a weakness for is the Kenda p/b Geargrinder team. Their founder Chad Thompson is a can-do guy and has put his blood, sweat and tears into making that program work. An example of his Herculean effort is bringing Frankie Andreu onto the staff. Andreu is a stand-up guy and any organization should be proud to have him working for them. Their camp is also next month in Georgia so that gives me another reason to visit. It’s only January and my travel calendar is starting to fill up.