Coach's Corner
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Tales from Track Center Montage
Of all these stories, experiences, and lessons, I developed “race craft” as a skill. By this I mean I learned everything there is to know about running a race as a team. How many staff you need, where and when. What they need to do where and when. What mechanics do, where and when. What parts we need, what the riders need. What to do when X happens, or Y or Z, or ZZZ, an entire profession I learned. Leaving this racing world and heading back to life in retail and the bike shop was a wake-up call. Sure, I can bleed a brake upside down and backwards in pitch black in a French parking lot, or grab the middle bike from the roof rack in 5 seconds, or change a rear track wheel in less that 45 seconds on the apron. But, forecasting the number of chains we need to book with Shimano to not run out by June. Uh yah, I have some learning to do! -
Tales from Track Center. Part One
Many things in my life lead up to becoming a team mechanic. Too many pieces fell into place to really make a point with my skill as a writer. A more succinct explanation is to give you context into how it became possible. The biggest and most important thing in my mind is the addition of A women’s team endurance event to the track cycling program at the Olympics. Everything that came after, at least for me, was a result of this.
