July 23rd 1989, July 23rd 2018

July 23rd 1989, I was 18 years old and home for the summer of my first year of college. At my parents house, I woke up everyday of that month and ran out to the front lawn to grab the local newspaper, The Santa Fe New Mexican. July was the one month of the year that each day I couldn’t wait to see the inside page of the sports section, the page with the previous day’s sports scores. I wasn’t looking at baseball, tennis, or golf scores; I was looking for the tiny little box all the way down at the bottom csorner of the page – The Tour De France. It was this little row of names and numbers that filled my head with dreams and inspiration that would fuel my passion for the sport of cycling and my adult life as a cyclist to this day.

I didn’t know much about any of the riders in the Tour De France, only their nationality and maybe what team they were on from the jerseys that I saw them wear on the limited TV coverage of the race. I followed the riders’ progress in the race by keeping track of the time written next to each riders name, keeping track of which were moving up, and which were falling behind in the overall classification.

I would imagine what each day was like, try to find out what towns they were racing through by going to the library to look at a map of France. I would pretend-dream about the heroic efforts they made to jump ahead in the overall time, or wonder what happened to a rider that was in the top ten on one day and then disappeared from the row of the names in the paper the next day! What happened to him? Did he crash? Did he drop out of the race? The drama and stories I imagined were as colorful and exciting as the race itself! I would jump on my garage sale Nishiki 7 speed bike and ride up Hyde Park Road from my parents house to the Ski Area, pretending I was in the Tour De France, pretending that I was riding in the race with spectators cheering me on as I went up the switchbacks, like my heroes on TV.

I, like many of you, will always remember the significance of July 23rd, 1989. It was that Sunday morning that I ran out to get the paper to see the current standing of an American rider, Greg Lemond, who was attempting his second Tour De France win over his rival, Laurent Fignon, leading the race heading into the last day time trial race. I read in that little row of numbers in my newspaper, “Greg Lemond – Minneapolis, ADR, 50 seconds behind.”

I thought to myself, that is a lot of time to make up, as I had seen riders race for days and only gain 5 seconds or 15 seconds. 50 seconds is a big gap to overcome in one time trial. But I could not know what would happen on that Sunday as there was no “live feed” in those days, no streaming internet, and the broadcast was not planned till that afternoon on the west coast.

What I saw on that pre-recorded and edited show that afternoon would stick with me to this day. Greg Lemond WON THE TOUR DE FRANCE! I watched in my parents TV room, jumping up and down yelling, “the French guy is not going to make it! the American is going to win!” I couldn’t believe it. It was an inspired performance by both riders. Greg Lemond rode the second fastest time trial ever in the Tour De France, and Laurent Fignon completely emptied himself knowing he was losing the race every kilometer he rode, desperately trying to find more power in his legs. “Faster! Faster!” his coach screaming at him out the window of his team car driving alongside him, “Allez!! Allez!!” There was nothing he could do; he was giving it everything he had, collapsing and falling off his bike as he crossed the finish line, 58 seconds slower than Greg Lemond’s time. Fignon had lost the 1989 Tour De France on the last day as the leader of the Tour De France by 8 seconds to Greg Lemond. I watched as an elated Greg and his wife, his coaches jump for joy, kissing and hugging each other, and also the dejected Fignon collapsed on the ground in tears, and I thought to myself, this is something special, this is a real sport of courage, determination, heart, and of dreams achieved and destroyed!

I will never forget that day and every Tour De France I have followed in the newspaper, on TV, and now digitally streaming live. I remember all the years of watching my hero’s like Miguel Indurain as he achieved 5 victories. Marco Pantani famously climbing over the biggest mountains. Watching the epic battles between Lance Armstrong and Jan Ulrich and high speed winning sprint finishes of likes of Mario Cipollini and Mark Cavendish. I followed the careers of the superstars of cycling such as Alberto Contador, Andy Schleck, Cadel Evans, Bradley Wiggins, Chris Froome, Peter Sagan, and now the new stars of the future like Egan Bernal (21 years old). Also, I am inspired by the performances and careers of the professional women of cycling such as Marianne Voss, Katie Compton, and Annemiek van Vleuten.

Today I am the leader of my own little team, a cyclist for almost 4 decades and I have met and worked with many talented individuals. I have seen many ups and downs, victories and defeats. I try to coach my riders and teach them the bigger picture of the sport and what they can learn from competition. Much of the inspiration I try to pass on comes from my life experience of riding a bike. Even today, when I wake up to go train with one of my riders in the park, I tell them. "The riders in the TDF are going into the mountains today! They just rode 200k yesterday; today they will do 10,000 feet of climbing!” It puts our little workout in the park into perspective and hopefully gives us a little boost to get through it. This is what sports should do, motivate us to achieve and keep us reaching for our dreams and goals.

It must be addressed that the sport of cycling needs to be re-invented. The scandals, the controversies have taken their toll, and those of us in the sport need to do everything we can to reverse these perceptions, regain the public trust, and show the world what an amazing sport it is and that it can grow and change. I believe there must be an increase in exposure and support for women’s cycling in all disciplines, development of programs to promote cycling to our youth and create infrastructure and invest in the industry of cycling to promote safety and responsibility in all disciplines of the sport. As coaches and leaders in the sport, we must discourage alienation, elitism, discrimination, and exploitation in all aspects of cycling. I would not be where I am today with out people giving me a chance, helping me find my way in the sport with encouragement and belief in my goals however small or insignificant it may seem.

As I write this blog post on the second and final rest day of the 2018 Tour De France, before the current contenders battle for the overall victory next Sunday, I can’t help but wonder, what would have happened if Greg Lemond didn’t win on that day in 1989? Would I have been just as inspired as a young american cyclist, dreaming of possibly riding in the Tour De France? It was an American rider that won, someone I could identify with, a sense of patriotism and pride. Both Greg and Fignon became heroes of mine on that Sunday. The Tour De France is the biggest bicycle race in the world and should be a showcase of the biggest, brightest, and best of everything that the sport has to offer. We need to work hard to keep cycling positive, inspire others, and be earnest in our accomplishments so that the sport can grow and change. I hope that Annemiek van Vleuten has inspired all the women cyclist’s out there by winning the La Course (The Women’s Tour De France one day race). I hope that some of you can catch some of the race this week as the riders head into Pyrenees to battle for the overall win. If you live in a small town without access to coverage, I hope you can find a little corner of your local newspaper like I did for so many years, look at the results, imagine the ups and downs, the heroics and drama that is the Tour De France, and get on a bike and ride it down your street or up a road that you can pretend is the French Alps, and share in the feeling of what it means to be a cyclist and do what every rider in the Tour De France try’s to do everyday during the race - KEEP PEDALING!

TEAM IS TEAM

September will always be an important month for me. Growing up in New Mexico, it meant the start of cold weather for our epic mountain bike rides at 9,000 ft and the annual Fiestas De Santa Fe, when the air is filled with the aroma of fire-roasted green chilis being sold in parking lots all over town. It is also a month of birthdays: members of my family, and mine; and sadly, September is now the month of the tragedy that I personally experienced on the day of 9/11 here in NYC.

But this year, it is the month of my greatest achievement, not only as coach and director of my own team, but as an individual and member of a cycling community here in NYC, Portland, Boulder, among others, or as my sister calls it, “my family away from home". 

For some, the competitive summer cycling and triathlon season has started to quickly wind down, but for many of us coaches and athletes, it’s ramping up to the ultimate cap on months of hard work: the big race. Whether that means championship events, the final race in your local race series, state championships, or the even the big dance—a national or world championships—for us who target these events, it means that we worked our butts off for at least ten months, maybe even starting in the previous year. All the smaller races, all the training and carefully planned scheduling during the summer season were designed and implemented with these big targets as the goal. 

I’ve been working with a young talent that I took in as my protégé, prepared her for the Age Group National Championships in 2016 where she had a top 15 result, and our work together this year has yielded our greatest season yet with numerous wins and podium appearances in 2017. Allison “Alley Cat” Gadaleta and I teamed up again after a winter break and decided to continue to build on that base level of performance and learn from what we accomplished last year. Our target this year was an even loftier goal: the ITU Grand Final (aka Triathlon World Championships) in Rotterdam, Netherlands. As I write this, she is on a plane headed to Europe to attempt this bid, for which we’ve been preparing all year. I am confident that she will perform above and beyond our expectations. 

But I'm not going to write about Allison or our work together this year in this post.  If you know us, or follow us on social media, you can see all the racing, training, and daily workings of an entire season built with this goal in sight. Instead, what I'm writing about is the complexity, sincerity and passion of a team of inspired and dedicated athletes, coaches, mentors, sponsors, and supporters that makes up what is now Team EVEPC.

This year, I learned that it takes a lot more than just having a brand logo on a uniform, some athletes, a team car, and a training program to make a team. Just as my athletes needed me to design workouts, provide feedback, help them with equipment, shuttle them and their bikes to races and training, be there to raise them up when they have a bad day or race, and encourage them when they do well, I learned that I needed them and many others to help me as well.

I needed our sponsors, other coaches, my family, silent investors, athletes on other teams, and friends to lean on to realize my vision and goals as a privateer project. I realized I, too, needed a coach; I needed a support team that believed in my process, my work, my athletes and my development as a team director.

Not too long ago, I had a conversation with my own coach who is my contemporary and a close friend. He is a talented cyclist who no longer competes, but trains and supports athletes like myself. I remember telling him, "It's good that you are not racing anymore, because your athletes need to know that you are there for them. Their performance and successes are now your interests, and they need to see that you are there 100% for them.” I truly believed this when I shared it with him; at the time, I thought I would never race again myself, that now was my own time to be the coach and just focus on my athletes. 

Several weeks passed, and I noticed a dip in motivation from two of my athletes, a slight lull in what was already stellar season of wins, podiums, top ten finishes, epic training, and general kicking butt! It had been a long season; they were tired. I was tired. We kept to the race calendar as planned, but something was lacking.

I thought about our dynamic as coach/athlete: my constant nagging them to do their workouts, stick to the program and scheduling, critiquing their every race, training session, performance, and always being the guy behind the scenes. I decided at that moment to enter an upcoming race with them.

I dusted off the old race suit and gave it a go. I downplayed it to them, saying that I was just doing it for fun. But what I was really doing was trying to send them a message. I was trying to inspire them in this last month or two after a long season. Trying to show them, "Hey! I'm in this with you! I know what it’s like, I've been there, I'm not just a guy behind the computer picking apart your every pedal stroke, heart beat or power watt!" For years, I, too, raced, and I understand what my athletes are going through. I wanted to show them that I was with them on the same start line that day, experiencing the same anxiety, stress, risk, courage and thrill.

I finished the race, we had fun, we made friends with a fellow competitor, and I was glad I survived! It was my gift to my protégés, to demonstrate solidarity. I don't know if it brought new motivation to them, or that they even realized my motivation in doing it. But I realized that what I said to my coach before was not entirely accurate. Although I do believe that as coaches we need to be 100% committed to our athletes, there are times when being a part of something bigger or  being on a journey or path together requires stepping away from the notion of YOU and ME, and instead step towards the notion of WE.

There are other ways to accomplish this, not just by trying to do what they do; after all, we all have our own roles to play. But it did make me understand the significant involvement that I had in my athletes’ lives and theirs in mine. That we are not unlike brothers or sisters, or an extended family, that we are a part each others’ lives, helping each other in  both professional and  personal challenges and sharing in our successes.

When I look back on this year, I don't define it by the number of podium appearances, wins, shortcomings or struggles. I define it by the development of our friendships and relationships as teammates, the extended network of sponsors and supporters, and by the creation of those moments and memories that framed our goals and exploits this season. All of this is now the big target for me, not just one big race in September. We have already won the big race of this year: we had a great season, built lasting friendships, memories, and became members of a bigger team of sponsors, supporters, other athletes, coaches, and a public following that encourages us all year and shares in our exploits as fans.

I could say my greatest achievement was preparing Allison for a world championship race, elevating her to the next level as an elite athlete, helping her face her competition head on with no fear, and giving her the foundation and confidence that separates her from her rivals.  I could say that it was helping Chris realize his potential as a pure climber, helping him tap into that talent, and teach him about structure, patience, consistency, and show him he could hold his own with the fastest riders on the east coast. I could say that it was getting Sarena to experience what its like to put a plan in motion and see that commitment and dedication rewarded and perform above her own expectations by realizing that she is stronger than she thought, and that it was just a matter of putting the pieces together. I could say that it was helping an inspiring organization that introduces cycling to inner city kids as a way to learn about themselves by working toward a challenge and exposing them to a world beyond the few city blocks where they live and go to school. 

Although all of these were achievements that I am proud of this year, what I believe is my greatest achievement of this year is what I learned about myself: I faced my own doubts, fears, overcame my own challenges, assembled and looked to a group of supporters, sponsors, coaches, friends, other athletes, my family, and even my own athletes, to help me realize my vision, help me understand the bigger picture, and stay on course. What I learned was that it’s not the singular performance or result that is the achievement, it’s the growth and sharing in all that this sport brings to us, the ups and downs, the time, sacrifices, the success, and all the mini victories of an entire year on this path together...that is the achievement. 

An EVEPC former team mechanic and now current mechanic for the Rwanda Pro Cycling team recently explained to me how difficult it is to do many things in Africa due to all the government regulations and control. He said that everyone involved in the team—the sponsors, the athletes, the coaches—they all have to support and help each other, sacrifice and share, and that they could not survive as an organization without each other, so they created a motto - TEAM IS TEAM. He said the only way they can achieve their goals is by committing to the fact that they are all in this together. I now identify with that motto because, Team EVEPC is not just a brand logo on a uniform, nor is it just one coach and a few athletes, it is - Myself, Hermann, Chris, Sarena, Allison, Clarke, Scott, Pete, Rob and Josh, Jason, Tony, Allen, Leslie, Adam, Larry, Justin, Danny, Etai, Devin, Sean, Shane, Stephen, Michael, Lynne, David, Jose, Guy, Lisa, Amy, Cathy, Miguel, Andre,  and the list changes and grows every year, but it's also everyone who cheers for EVEPC, supports us, and contributes in their own way that makes up what is now Team EVEPC.

CAMPIO

Upon returning home from the 2016 Triathlon National Championships in Omaha Nebraska, where EVEPC Triathlon Team Captain – Allison Alley Cat Gadaleta finished a respectable 14th place among the top females in the country in her first national championship event, I kept thinking about that word.. Championships or Champion.

I personally have experienced many championship events over the years. Some as a participant, many as a spectator, and now, as a coach, to support my athletes in their bids. A championship is not just any regular race or event. It’s the primary goal or objective for a competitor, the most important event to an athlete or team. It seemed only fitting, that as I write this, the 2016 Rio Olympics, the biggest championships that exist in sport, are in full swing and provide an appropriate backdrop for this journal entry.

How does one become a champion? Is it only a matter of winning? What does it really mean to enter, prepare for, qualify, compete, or win a championship event? We’ve seen that word used in history, heroic athletic achievements, autobiographies, speeches from famous coaches, in sports documentaries. In high profile sports advertising campaigns, they all try to write that golden tagline, that perfectly inspired cliche. “We create champions!” or “Our product is the product of champions” or “The stuff of champions!” In the real world, there is only one Usain Bolt, Michael Phelps, or Lindsey Vonn, multi-championship winners, but what does it mean for us mere mortals? What does it mean to a cat 5 road racer or an amateur age group triathlete?  As I walked around the race grounds this past weekend, I was thinking, how many of these racers have made this their goal? Are they really ready? What does this race really mean to them? What is their expectation for their result?

I understand now, for Alley Cat and myself, that all the hard work, sacrifice, expense, and preparation, that went into this event for us, goes back to the moment she decided to compete in this championship event. This was a critical moment, a moment of belief in herself, and in EVEPC. At the time, it seemed a perfectly reasonable proposition. We said, “right..ok..cool, lets do it!” We started with a 10 month training plan, scheduled some key races as preparation, then just got on with it. It all started back in the winter of last year, with a message I received from Alley Cat, “Hey, which race should I do for national’s, Olympic or Sprint?” At the time, we didn’t recognize the significance of that question or moment. It didn’t seem unrealistic, for her or myself. From the beginning I believed in her talent and potential and she trusted and believed I could help her get there. Now in retrospect, I realize the significance of that question from last winter. Allison, at that moment, decided, envisioned, and believed in herself and me, so much so, that she would commit to preparing for a championship race. At the same time, I also, committed to our work together, to my process, to help her achieve that goal.

The word champion, its definition and origin, comes from the Latin – Campio – which means Fighter.  I’m very proud of what we’ve accomplished this year, and everything leading up to this past weekend is now a bit of a blur. What is crystal clear, however, is what I have found to be true, for Allison, myself, EVEPC, and all of my pilots this year..

We all have become fighters over the course of this year. Fighting for speed. Fighting for those precious seconds or minutes in a split time. Fighting for a higher placed finish. Fighting to not get dropped on a group ride or in a race. Fighting to stay healthy and without injury for 10months. Fighting to afford, financially, the cost of expensive equipment, racing, and traveling to events. Fighting to create, develop, and stay the course of a maverick concept and approach to coaching. Fighting to get enough sleep. Fighting to find a balance between our personal and athletic lives. Fighting to remain motivated when the less-than-perfect weather here on the east coast just won’t give us a break. Fighting to find enough training hours while having a full-time day job. Fighting with technology to provide feedback and give us marginal gains. Fighting with emotional and mental fatigue after a long season. Fighting to find a silver lining in the amount of suffering that is required to be a competitive athlete. Fighting to not get caught up in the pursuit of winning to the point that we lose sight of the joy of competition. Fighting to feel good about ourselves, our performance, even if we didn’t achieve the result we had hoped.

Most importantly, we are fighting for our goals, our dreams, our vision of ourself on that podium or crossing that finish line and, for me now, to see my athletes achieve their goals with my help. Perhaps to someone like Michael Phelps each new championship has subtle differences from his last, he has the privilege and has earned the right to compare his performances and rank them in his career. The old saying goes “the destination is not the important thing, it’s the journey” I propose a different view, however. To me, EVEPC, Allison, my little gang of talented pilots, I believe, the most important thing is that very significant moment when you decide to take that journey! To me, that is the exact moment you become a Fighter, a Champion..!

10 Cycling Tips for the Dog Days of Summer

Over the years, I've been building, maintaining, and riding all types of bikes and as technology changes, and all the processes that goes along with the sport advances, there are few things I've learned that make's life with bikes a little easier or better. Its not comprehensive, or in any particular order of importance, and I'm sure many people out there have better or different solutions that they've learned as well. Whatever works for you is always the best, but here are some of my Elite Performance tips. 

1. TUBE/TIRE POWDER : Using talcum powder inside new clincher tires and on tubes helps reduce the risk of pinch flats, makes them easier to install, and allows the tube to "roll" inside the tire at pressure under load, achieving a better ride quality.

2. BATHROOM TIRE CHANGES : (relates to #1) Always powder and install tires in your bathtub or shower. Years of trying to clean up powder from kitchen, shop, living room, garage, floors. Soo much easier to just wash down the drain ! 

3. TIRE SEALANT : Use Stan's Sealant in all your tubes, the weight gain is very little, but not having a flat for an entire season is worth it ! 

4. SUNSCREEN : Always apply sunscreen to exposed skin before riding in hot, sunny, conditions. I know this sounds like a No-Brainer, but I learned over the years, that sunscreen (a greaseless formula) allows your pores to breathe better, moisturizes your skin to aid in keeping you hydrated, and actually keeps your surface body temperature cooler. I know everybody loves sharp tan lines as a badge of honor.. But I always thought Cadel Evans (Tour De France winner) was cool, figuratively and literally ! He had the whitest legs in the pro peloton ! No shame in pale legs folks !

5. HOT FEET : or hot spots on your feet when riding. I tried every sock in the world, foot powders, even drilled extra holes in my shoes to allow more airflow. Some say it's about shoe fit, insoles, etc.. believe me, I tried almost everything. What eliminated this symptom completely for me was -- exfoliate !! Yes, you've seen your wife or girlfriend do it in the shower or sink with one of those little lava/pumice stones, or a fancy motorized skin buffer. Well, gentlemen (and gals), I started exfoliating my feet every time in the shower.. mostly the bottoms and sides, especially the heel and contact points like the ball and toe pads.. Try it out, it takes a few weeks before you start to not feel hot but it worked for me. Hope it works for you.

6. COLD COMPRESS PACKS : If you are driving to a race or ride and have a cooler in the trunk with drinks and cold packs. Throw in a couple of soft-gel cold compress packs in with the drinks.. I have done many a long ride where my lower back was jacked up post ride.. Stuff a cold pack in your bibs or whatever's ailing you post-effort for the car ride home. Many years of stepping out of a car after a long drive post race/ride feeling like the Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz.. The ice packs on neck, back, legs, whatever.. made for a better transition from ride to recovery via transport. 

7. CLEAN BIKE : Keep your bike clean ! I know its a pain to wash your bike all the time, and if you don't have a yard or outdoor water source, cleaning your bike indoors is never fun. But I've learned that its not just that a clean bike actually rides better, but it also gets you in the habit of "going over" your bike and looking at it very closely, every part of it. This is a great way to make sure there is no damage, or things out of adjustment, loose cables, bolts, etc. I have found that once you start cleaning your bike regularly, you will also notice when things need maintenance or servicing. If you don't, you often discover things that are broken or need replacement after its too late. Get some cleaning wipes, and try to go over your bike between every ride, you will always ride worry free because you know the current condition of your bike. 

8. SPLASH THE LEGS : When you are riding hard and feeling the effort in your legs and especially in the heat of the summer. If you have enough water (not your mix) in a spare water bottle..pouring water over your head and neck can really keep you going.. But .... I started noticing a lot of pro's were squirting water on their legs on hot climbs in summer races.. I never thought of it till I tried it. I don't know the actual physical benefit of it other than lowering the surface temp , but I must say, it definitely helped keep my legs going and cooled my body down, maybe it is just the feeling of cold water on tired legs that I thought helped but when you are suffering, anything that "makes" you "feel" better is a good thing. (**** Please DO NOT sacrifice valuable drinking water for this, this is only if you know you can refill down the road or have plenty to spare...) 

9. KEEP A JOURNAL : A little book if you are a traditionalist like me, or any iDevice or whatever you write stuff down in. When I was racing, I primarily used it to track my weight, and what I ate pre and post training and racing. But over the years, I started using it for everything. Jotting down notes about gear I wanted , or things I needed to upgrade on my bikes, websites I came across that I wanted to investigate further. I use one now to keep track of any bike fit adjustments I do, if I raise my seat, drop my bars, move my cleats, etc. It's easy to lose track of small changes, and often you don't remember what you changed, why, and if it helped or not. I tell my pilots (team) now to use one to record their post race thoughts. What worked, how they felt, anything they noticed on the bike or with their body.. you can learn from lessons that you write down.. Plus, now looking back at my race reports from 20 years ago, it's great to have a written record of victories and failures, funny training diets, and general bike OCD craziness, e.g. "4/23/94..today I moved my seat 1mm forward.., felt better..!" 

10. BREATHE : In 20+ years of riding and racing, I never really gave it a second thought. Breathing is just breathing, right ? When you go harder, you breathe faster and harder.. simple, right ? Wrong .. Now that I am working as a performance coach with both inexperienced, and experienced riders, I am continually surprised how often I notice their breathing rapidly and shallow, or too deep and/or not enough at the appropriate times. I became more aware of this as I got older, I realized that I had to implement more biofeedback in my training to keep my heart rate and cardio/respiratory system from "jerking" around. I was not a young immortal racer anymore..! I needed to pay attention to my breathing, make sure my legs were getting all the oxygen they needed. I investigated and researched that breathing technique (which swimmers know well) affects how your body regulates core temperature, provides central nervous system stability, emotional stability, and of course, cardiac stability. So the next time you are going "full gas",  practicing your sprints or lead outs, or slogging up a super tough climb, on the limit.. Remember to Breathe ! and breathe well ! and not panting like a dog even though you feel like one ! 

"Transition"

The first triathlon of the season for a triathlete is a nervous, exciting, challenging, and important race to get under their belt. It sets the tone for the season, a gauge of how the form is so far, if the pre-season training was successful. A unique feature of a triathlon is the "Transition" area. It is the nerve center for the athlete. It's where the bicycle and all the gear for the other two disciplines are held, the racer must return between each leg and change in and out of gear for the next. A dizzying place where you see racers come in after 20-90mins or so of extreme effort..they must get sorted and on to the next as fast as possible. You often see them stumbling in, dehydrated, trying to focus on the task at hand, "in the zone" of the race, trying to keep the focus and performance to the maximum. I am truly impressed how triathletes can shift between disciplines and perform at such a high level in all of them. 

But the thing that I take away most from the "transition" area in a triathlon, is the energy. The arena that it creates, the fans, friends, family members, partners, coaches, teammates, volunteers, and all the staff and support crews that are there to make sure everyone is safe and sound. Its palpable, engaging, and inspiring. To watch these athletes, as young as 13, and as old as 70's, all giving it their best.. you cheer them on, shout out split times, try to compare to past results, try to gauge how they are doing, are they ok, are they going to make it, if so.. how fast .. etc. you can't help but cheer for all of them, even if you have a racer that you are supporting and, of course, hoping they win. To me, when they come in-and-out of the transition area, its like a mini finish line, a mini victory, or win, that they survived and conquered to the end of that leg. As a performance coach, yes, I want the top result for my athlete, but what I walk away with is the memory of not one, but three "wins"

Then its all about the breakdown of the race, the tech, what worked, what didn't, what we learned for next race, etc. the work has only just begun.

EVEPC is soo proud of Tri team pilot , Allison "Alley Cat" Gadaleta, finishing in the top five in her age group in this first triathlon of the season. We were aiming for the #1 win of course, but we walked away with 3 in my book !