“Coach Adrian” is recognized as one the strongest riders around: He holds his own in NRC races, and is a former Hungarian National team member. This year, in the midst of law school at UW, Adrian had breakthrough year that has led him to a pro cycling contract with OUCH. One of Adrian’s nominators also mentioned that his mom is a former dean of the UW nursing school, which means she was raising two kids at the same time she was making that school #1 in the country. So, here’s kudos to Adrian and his mom:
Age: 25
Education:
BA: Comparative History of Ideas (2005, UW)
JD: (2011, UW)
Employment/Work/Career:
2003-4: Crew Leader for Washington Trails Association; led 8-day volunteer trips to fix up hiking trails
2005-present: Coach at Cycle University; duties include everything from private and group coaching, bike fitting, and teaching skills clinics to painting and applying for trademarks.
Year started cycling:
1998: Two races as a junior (no training, that was that)
2000-02: Raced cyclocross and some road as a junior
2004-present: Started road and track racing while on the UW collegiate team
What bikes are you currently riding?
Road: Kuota Kult w/ SRAM Red (new team bike)
TT: Kuota Kueen-K w/ SRAM Red (new team bike)
Training: Old fixed gear; old ‘cross bike with spare parts and aluminum fenders
Any other cycling gear you love at the moment?
Leg warmers! You can never have too many of those. I have 4 or 5 pairs in rotation. Anything else thermal is a life-saver for Seattle winters. I wear 5mm neoprene whitewater-kayaking gloves on really cold/wet days. Good sturdy training tires are a must as well–something in the 400+ gram range should do it (per tire). Finish it all off with a pair of aluminum fenders and you’ll think you’re in Arizona.
What were your athletic experiences before cycling?
Limited. Before “cycling” I rode bikes. I was the kid puttering around the neighborhood popping wheelies and jumping off curbs. I turned out for the occasional school sport, but for the most part I succumbed to the lazy streak in me. I mostly just liked finding big hills then riding down them as fast as I could.
How did you get into cycling?
I feel like I just always did it. I’m not sure why I started racing, or kept racing. I guess the primary “vehicle” was my time on the UW team. I never really got fast there, but we had a good group and that’s when I realized training is fun and that it makes you faster. I’m not really the guy who gets super good at something right away, it usually takes some time for me to build up momentum; I tell myself that’s better in the long run…
What does your yearly cycling schedule look like? Miles per week/year?
It varies a lot, but typically I don’t ride less than 15hrs per week and rarely ride more than 25. Mileage is usually 200-450 per week. I focus primarily on intensity though, year-round, so that’s where most of the “training” comes from. Double-days are a big part of my training as well, usually 2-5 per week. Right now I’m doing short, morning workouts every weekday with longer, harder sessions in the evening. Weekends I do a single, long ride both days.
I also don’t plan to take days off, and do so only if something comes up or the weather is horrible; so far this year I’ve had fewer than 20 days off, and most of them included a bike commute in there somewhere.
Any other sports that you do? What kind of cross-training do you do?
I run some in the off-season, do some plyometrics, and anywhere from 2-10hrs of yoga per week. I notice a big improvement in riding when I focus on core strength and flexibility; weight training and other cross training never really did much for me. I do lots of fixed gear training as well; if you chose the right gearing and route, that can be really good ‘cross training, and lets you know about all kinds of muscles you never knew existed. Dance parties and hula-hoops are also really good for core strength and mental health.
Tell us about some of your cycling career highlights:
I chose three that aren’t necessarily my biggest on paper, but were really significant at the time. In chronological order:
1: KOM Competition, Mt. Hood Stage Race (2006): it was the third stage of six, the weather was horribly cold and wet, and I wasn’t having a great time. I basically just threw caution to the wind and attacked from the gun of a 90mi circuit race, and stayed away with one other guy until the final 10mi of the race. In that one stage I earned enough points to win the overall climbing competition, and with that I swore to never again sit in at a race, no matter how big. It’s a huge part of how I like to race now: come up big or go down swinging hard.
2: Stage 3, Berlin 6-day UIV (2007): it was my second week of European 6-day racing, and partner Keven Lacombe and I were just starting to get the hang of things. Berlin has the biggest crowd of all the sixes, and all the racers want a piece of the action so the field ballooned to an impressive 18 teams (36 riders) on a 250m track. The night we won came from an early solo attack in which we lapped the field and held onto the advantage until the end of the 60min race. That happened to be the night they handed out whistles to all 13,000 fans in attendance, so as we lapped everyone was blowing the whistles so hard I remember my ears hurting more than my legs because of the horrendous noise reverberating throughout the underground track (built in an old secret police facility). It felt like I was doing something very illegal; riding as fast as I could, loud German techno drowned out only by whatever the announcer was saying, the ear-piercing whistling, smokey air from cigarettes and grilled brats on the infield, all in an apocalyptic underground lair. Definitely one of the most incredible experiences I’ve had on a bike.
3: Athens Twilight Crit (2009): Similar to the previous two races, my podium at Athens came when I least expected it. Athens is one of the most prestigious races in the country and has a reputation for obliterating the 150+ rider field on a tight, 1km course over nearly two hours of racing in the dark. I honestly don’t remember much of the race until the final 20min, when I found myself bridging into a group of about 10 riders already off the front, then a few laps later attacking that group and riding away with two others. We held off the field for the finish, and though I botched the sprint from that group, it was by far my biggest national-level breakthrough and was a huge confidence boost at the beginning of what would become an incredibly memorable season. The fans were out of control as well; I couldn’t figure out during the race how there could be puddles on the course since it was still over 80 degrees at 10pm, then while rolling around after the finish I realized it was from beer splashing out of people’s cups.
Tell us about your most memorable race or ride:
Aside from the races I already mentioned, I’ll point to a pretty insignificant ride I went on this time last year, just as I was getting back on the bike after a few months of recovering from a separated shoulder and concussion. Amidst a very stressful week for school and personal reasons, I had just a gem of a ride on a beautiful, Seattle fall day. I distinctly remember riding down the Burke-Gilman trail on my way home, nursing a feeling of overwhelming clarity and elation, realizing right then that few things make me as happy as riding my bike, and knowing that if I could somehow make a living out of it, that would truly be the racket of the century. I’ve thought about that moment at least once a week since…
As the 2009 road season winds down, what’s on your radar for 2010? Tell us a bit about the trials and tribulations of getting the pro contract.
Well the big jump is that I’ll be riding for the new incarnation of the OUCH-Maxxis team next season (UnitedHealthcare p/b Maxxis). I don’t yet have a race schedule, but I anticipate doing lots of support for the lead riders of the team like Rory Sutherland, Tim Johnson, Karl Menzies, and others also to be announced. Getting onto a team of this pedigree is about the biggest jump I could have made in a year, so my primary goal will be to learn as much as I can from the more experienced guys on and go ballistic in every single race I enter.
Once I get some idea of the races I’ll be attending I might start to come up with more specific individual goals. Broadly, I’m thinking pretty hard about winning an NRC, and I’d like to be top-10 at the US Pro TT.
As for tribulations… that could fill several pages. Probably the biggest struggle for me was first figuring out how the process works, then once I realized how dependent it is on personal contacts, working to make those without becoming 1) inauthentic, or 2) bankrupt. Seattle is a long way from most of the racing in the country, so directors only get to see us at the biggest races of the year, where results are very tough to come by and everyone is hyper-focused on the task at hand. My old team, Hagens Berman, is one of the best-supported elite teams in the country, and even still we can only afford to attend maybe 10% of the national races available. Thankfully this year I had a few results that spoke for themselves, and several very devoted friends who pulled out all the stops in making calls on my behalf, and that’s absolutely what sealed the deal for me.
How will the pro contract affect law school and your future plans in law?
Only in good ways. Pragmatically, the economy and job market are bad enough that most people graduating from law school are working for less money than I make bike racing–if they can even find a position. Beyond that, I feel like the career paradigm is different with my generation, and employers don’t necessarily expect you to enter into a “career” right out of school. Second and third careers are increasingly common, so waiting until I’m done racing my bike before I embark on the legal journey shouldn’t be much of a mark against me.
Ironically, I’ve probably made more contacts in the legal field as a result of bike racing than I would have just trying to be a lawyer. Lots of lawyers like riding bikes, and I’ve had multiple informal job offers from people I know in the cycling community for “when I’m ready to hang it up.” People who know cycling respect what it takes to reach a high level in the sport and realize those skills translate to whatever else you do. I’m completely confident that I’ll get my first law job as a direct result of my cycling career.
Finally, since UW is on the quarter system, I’m planning to take off spring quarter next year (and beyond). That means my school year will perfectly coincide with the off-season, running from early October through early March. After that I’ll have just four quarters to finish, which I could complete in one year if I wanted, or stretch into as many as five years according to the rules.
What are your favorite Seattle-area rides?
Easy summer-morning cruise: Golden Gardens loop
Mid-week ride under two hours: Mercer Island loop
Long ride: Snoqualmie Falls loop through the Snoqualmie valley
Do you have any advice for folks getting into cycling or for cyclists thinking about racing?
Figure out why you’re doing it, how much energy you’re willing to commit, then GO for it. Finding people like myself to help guide you is valuable, but nothing substitutes raw experience, and frequently you need a significant baseline just to figure out what you don’t know. The first two steps are essential though; racing professionally isn’t for everyone, and riding your bike faster than other people will never make you a better person. Be honest with what you want to get out of the sport, then put in the work and go get it.
What keeps you excited about cycling?
Everything. I really realized this year that I just truly love riding my bike. I don’t know why it was such a mystery before; it’s just what I do, what I’ve always done. That’s why I don’t cross train, I’m just not into it. But I have no problem getting excited to go ride my bike every day. I suppose if you think of something as “training” then maybe you’ll want to take off days because now all of a sudden it’s hard work. But who would want to take time off from playing?
What obstacles get in the way of cycling?
I had an epiphany in a criminal law class last year when the professor continually corrected students who would remark “the law prevents you from doing X;” he would interrupt and say: “no, let’s be clear, you still do that if you want. You’ll just go to jail if you do.” I think you can approach everything in life with the same attitude; you really can do nearly anything you want, the decision is just how much of a consequence you’re willing to face.
So it’s important to distinguish between things you think are necessary with those that are ESSENTIAL. My hunch is most people’s lists would be smaller than expected if it came down to it. I’m incredibly grateful for the support of my friends, family, community, and sponsors, without whom none of this would be possible pragmatically. But at the end of the day, I think the greatest obstacle is still probably somewhere in myself, and I don’t see myself stopping what I do until I’ve figured one what it is.
