Collegiate cycling can last a lifetime

Today is the final race for the Colorado Mesa University Class of 2013 Cycling Team. Patric Rostel is the last of the four-man dynasty to graduate. With Conor and Kevin Mullervy, Richard Geng and Patric, the team won back-to-back team time trial national championships, the overall men’s omnium and two individual criterium championships. When Patric graduates this month, he will trade his chamois and lycra of an athlete for the grind of coaching. He was recently selected as the ...

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Doctor’s orders: Get out and ride!

Colorado is a treasure chest for those who love the outdoors: hunting, fishing, rafting, cycling, hiking, mountain biking, skiing and many others. But this is also a bit of a Pandora’s box, too, because it is rare to meet someone from Colorado who hasn’t had some sort of injury sustained while enjoying the outdoors. Our active lifestyle and rugged terrain just lends itself to injury. During a weight-training session this past winter, I tweaked my knee, and skiing 19 inches of ...

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Ride your bike to ward off cycling’s Zombie Apocalypse

In the ancient poem “The Epic of Gilgamesh,” the Goddess Ishtar proclaims: I will knock down the Gates of the Netherworld, I will smash the door posts, and leave the doors flat down, and will let the dead go up to eat the living! And the dead will outnumber the living! There can be little doubt the Zombie Apocalypse has begun. At least it has for professional cycling. A zombie usually is characterized as the living dead and as a mindless, flesh-eating nincompoop. In some ...

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Fall of some of our heroes can serve as hope for the future

What a long, strange trip it’s been. Ray Lewis recently was accused of using a banned substance to help him recover quickly from a torn triceps muscle. He claims to have passed every test in the NFL and then went on the attack against his accuser. He labeled him as a “coward” and “foolish,” and claimed, “The guy has no credibility.” He also tried to distract from the issue by claiming, “The trick of the devil is to kill, steal and ...

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‘Beaver moon’ ride a great time for friends

December, with its short days and cold temperatures, is normally the time of year that the bikes get put away and the skis come out. Although there is still plenty of winter yet, the unseasonably warm weather and lack of precipitation are threatening to derail yet another Colorado ski season. It is also the time of year that spin bikes, rollers and indoor trainers are usually the tortuous methods of maintaining fitness. The upside of this weather, however, is that daytime rides are ...

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Taking ride on Rim Rock Drive offers a great escape

The public revelations of doping on a massive scale within the professional cycling peloton have served as a distraction from my favorite activity: Riding my bike! The weather is starting to cool off, and there are not too many nice days for road riding left, so today I am writing about one of my favorite rides: Colorado National Monument. The monument estimates more than 16,000 cyclists traverse Rim Rock drive each year, and with nearly 2,000 cyclists for the inaugural Tour of the Moon ...

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Evidence against Lance Armstrong can’t be ignored

Secret payments to Swiss shell companies, lies upon lies and fraud and deception on a massive scale. No, we’re not talking about politics or Wall Street, but rather the past decade and a half of professional cycling. The “greatest comeback in the history of sport” has now been revealed as the greatest fraud in the history of sport. A mountain of evidence has been released by the United States Anti-Doping Agency, detailing that “the U.S. Postal Services Pro Cycling ...

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Showing students best of professional cycling in our area a real treat

Every once in a while an event comes along that is either too exciting or important to miss. With a stage finish in my hometown of Telluride, former teammate George Hincapie’s final race, a course design with enough hard finishes to create suspense and some of the best cyclists in the world, the USA Pro Challenge had all the necessary ingredients. But to me, those were on the periphery. I didn’t want to miss this event because I had a chance to take two students from Colorado ...

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Olympic Games tough, yet rewarding experience

The Olympic Games are an event like no other. Every four years the world comes together for 16 days to celebrate and compete. The London Games boast 193 countries and 11 territories and more than 10,000 athletes in 26 sports. Twenty years ago I was fortunate enough to have earned a spot on the U.S. Olympic Cycling Team in Barcelona, Spain. To this day, it remains one of my proudest personal achievements, but also the most disappointing. For Olympic Day this year I spoke in front of ...

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Tim Sewell remembered as strong, determined cyclist

God’s tears. That’s what I thought to myself on July 5th as a rare summer rain hit my windshield, that God himself was crying. Cycling can be a mixture of blood, sweat and tears. It can involve nearly unimaginable suffering both mentally and physically. It is clearly visible on the riders’ faces during the Tour. But nothing can compare to the suffering felt by the entire cycling community of Grand Junction when on July 3rd, our beloved Tim Sewell took his own life by ...

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Vernacular and tactics of cycling important in big races

2012 is a great summer to be a cycling fan: The Tour de France started Saturday, the London Olympic Games follow, and the USA Pro Challenge starts right on our doorstep in Durango on Aug. 20. If you watch any of these events, the dialogue of the commentators can be confusing. So, for those interested in learning the vernacular and tactics of cycling, here are some basics. Intricacies of the peloton The large group of riders is known as the peloton. Peloton is a French word which means a ...

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Iron Horse Bicycle Classic exciting for everyone involved

The Iron Horse Bicycle Classic is a festival of cycling over the Memorial Day weekend in Durango. There are fun activities for everyone including spectators, roadies, dirt chasers, townies and kids. You can race, ride, or get dressed up in cool costumes. And there are no shortages of places to cool off with a frosty beverage. The marquis event however, remains the Iron Horse ride itself from Durango to Silverton. It is 50 miles with 6,650 feet of vertical climbing and two passes more than ...

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Equipment, clothing, fitness key for successful biking season

Summer is almost upon us. For many, that means baseball, golf, hiking or rafting. For me, it means riding a bike. Town bikes, road bikes, track bikes or mountain bikes; group rides, solo rides, kids’ rides or competitive rides, it doesn’t matter. I just like getting on a bike. Early summer is one of my favorite times to ride. It is always brings back memories of my early childhood, when getting on the bike meant freedom from parental supervision and the mental joy of knowing ...

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It’s winter? Riding can be a joy, drag

The cold temperatures, poor air quality from the winter inversion and short days can make winter cycling and maintaining fitness very challenging. Normally at this time of year, I find diversions from the bike up in the mountains. But this year’s early winter drought and lack of precipitation have not allowed for many powder days. And while I would prefer the temperatures to drop and the snow to fly, I don’t mind the warmer temperatures and dry roads down here in the ...

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Enjoy the ride and the landscape of Arches National Park

Moab is known around the world as an outdoor playground; it boasts excellent Jeeping, climbing, whitewater rafting, mountain biking, and, of course, road cycling. So this past weekend when I was invited by Chip Chilson, owner of the Aspen Sports Institute, to be a guest speaker/rider at his fall camp, I jumped at the opportunity. The camp was a four-day affair focusing on training techniques, racing strategies, bike technology and nutrition. The featured speaker was Tour de France color ...

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Stage in Pro Cycling Challenge the perfect way to show off our area’s great scenery

Hardly a day goes by without someone in the community asking me about the status of bringing a stage of the USA Pro Cycling Challenge to Grand Junction. The deadline to submit bids is Monday. The Grand Junction LOC has been working on our bid for more than a year. Our bid was mailed last week to Medalist Sports for consideration. Our initial thought was that we would resurrect one of the most famous races in the world of cycling: The Tour of the Moon over Colorado National ...

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Intimidating bicycle ride up Little Park Road exciting, beautiful

Little Park Road is probably one of the least ridden, but most intimidating and spectacular rides in the Grand Valley. It is so steep and long that no matter what, you are going to suffer. The college kids had an unsanctioned race up the hill about seven years ago. It was a cool fall day and there was a group of about 30 warming up before about an hour of pain. My friend, Todd Brock, noticed a very fit-looking college woman and said, “Oh great, now I’m going to get killed by a ...

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Being part of caravan from Gunnison to Aspen in USA Pro Cycling Challenge a treat

When the USA Pro Cycling Challenge rolled through Colorado last week my wife and I decided to catch a few of the stages. We went to Crested Butte to take in the atmosphere and to watch the only true uphill finish of the race. We had VIP passes, which ensured that we would have a great view of the finish and ready access to cold beer and snacks. Levi Leipheimer of Team Radio Shack won both the stage and the overall race. The 10-second time bonus he earned for the stage victory was pretty ...

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Right from start, atmosphere captivates Colorado cycling fans

By almost any definition, the inaugural USA Pro Cycling Challenge was a smashing success. From its start in Colorado Springs to its traverse of the Continental Divide to its finish in downtown Denver, the race captivated cycling fans throughout the country. The atmosphere on the high alpine climbs and in the finishing towns was almost electric. One could feel the energy and excitement in the air. At each finish the crowds grew and grew until the culmination in Denver, where it seemed the ...

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USA Pro Cycling Challenge brings some of top racers to Colorado

It has been 23 years since international cycling raced on the roads of Colorado. With Stage 1 of the inaugural USA Pro Cycling Challenge starting Monday in Colorado Springs, it has returned in a triumphant manner. The race will cover over 500 miles of the Rocky Mountains in seven days of racing. For the first time, a race in the U.S. will feature the first-, second- and third-place finishers from the Tour de France: Cadel Evans from Australia and Andy and Frank Schleck from ...

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Aspen ride benefiting Susan G. Komen Foundation will have splendid views

Aspen. The name itself conjures up many images: great skiing, glamour, celebrities, “Dumb and Dumber,” wealth, and, of course, mansions the size of the Rocky Mountains. Road cycling does not quickly come to mind. So when I met with an old friend who suggested I help a cycling fundraiser for the 8th annual ride for the cure benefiting the Susan G. Komen cancer society, I was excited to be a part of the effort. I was a bit skeptical, however, that we would find great ...

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Tour de France can make memories that last a lifetime for cyclists, fans

Le Tour! July is my favorite month of the year. We usually take a family vacation to the ocean so the kids can play in the sand and water. The days are long and warm and the riding is great. And finally, July is when I get to spend three weeks watching one of the most beautiful sporting events in the world, the Tour de France. Today marks the final stage of the 98th edition of the Tour, which has become a global sporting event. It is broadcast in 190 countries representing every ...

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Riding a bike over Colorado National Monument in dark is a real treat

Colorado National Monument is without a doubt one of the most spectacular places in the world to ride a road bike. The steady climbs between sheer cliff walls, the three short tunnels, the rolling terrain over the top, the snaking switchbacks and the silky smooth road offer cyclists of all abilities a challenge and a reward. The suffering endured while climbing the east side to Cold Shivers Point is but a remote memory as you cascade down the west side with just a slight flick to the ...

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Career as professional cyclist has come full circle for Scott Mercier

Editor’s Note: Former professional cyclist Scott Mercier will be writing a column every other Sunday about one of Grand Junction’s passions, cycling. He’ll write about his time as an Olympic and professional cyclist, offer training and equipment tips and share some of his favorite rides in the area. His first column offers some background on his start in the sport. Bill Haggerty’s hiking column will run on alternate weeks. When the U.S. Olympic Committee asked me to ...

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