What I Do It For

In February of this year, my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer.  It was the week going into the teams first target race of the year, Valley of the Sun, when I found out about this. Fast forward to today, October 26, my moms birthday. As I reminisce on this past year, I realize how much this year really meant to me to be victorious in life. With my mom going through treatments all year long, she still managed to support me with everything I do. It has made me realize that this is another reason why I race my bike. It has taught me to help me face challenges in life just as she has. I thank her everyday for what she does for me. Today I thank her even more for all that she has done for me. Happy birthday mom!

 

-Nick Castellano

My Season In Review

I would like to start by saying thank you to everyone I interacted with during my 2013 season for an outstanding year. I enjoyed every minute (there may have been some seconds that weren’t so great though) of racing and training whether in sub 30 degrees or 100+ degrees.

I want to say thank you to Team Specialized for all of the support and the great memories. We shared the “successes” and the “failures”, the glory and the pain that make cycling the sport we all love.

Thank you to Specialized, Sram, and Zipp for the bikes and components. Thank you to Clif for fueling all of our riding and shenanigans. Thank you to the NCCF for funding it all. And thank you to Larry for making it all possible.

This season taught me many lessons, from teamwork to how to truly put my head down, grit my teeth and suffer to the importance of preparation. Each of these lessons have their own story or stories, which could be whole blog posts in and of themselves, but none of it would have been possible without the support I received from the team, our supporters, and the guy who decided to spend 20 minutes of his day, and create a traffic jam driving behind me and shouting encouragement while I did hill repeats.

The season saw me learn the importance of dedication, humility, flexibility (both kinds), etc. The season saw me get into countless (respectful and half-joking) arguments with my P.E. teacher on any given Monday, when I tried to explain why I couldn’t and wouldn’t run the mile. The season saw me ride on two continents, four countries, and five states. The season saw me ride for over 600 hours and 10,000 miles.

As I enter my offseason and continue to reflect on my 2013 in preparation for 2014 I am excited and intrigued for what lies in store, as I know that 2014 can only be better.

Again, I want to thank everyone that was involved in my 2013 season, especially my teammates and supporters on Team Specialized. Here is to all of the pain, learning, fun, victories, losses, and joy that the 2013 season brought and that 2014 will bring.

See you all during the offseason or next year, I will be wearing the same shit-eating grin on my face and the same Specialized “S” across my chest, so wave, say “hi”, or if you happen to be in a car spend part of your day driving behind me, honking, blasting music, and shouting.

Jason S

Growing Up Stinks

Famous basketball player Michael Jordan said it all when he said, "In reality, I never want to grow up." At 16, I can say growing up sucks. I realized this as I rode the Grizzly Century this year. I've ridden the Grizzly many times before. I first did this ride when I was only 12. I was the little guy surrounded by many young mentors. These mentors were all young, single guys just out for some friendly competition. In 4 years so many things change. Now those young mentors are all married and becoming fathers. I'm no longer the little guy who needs a push up the climb. I'm now the guy to chase up the climb. My parents no longer have to take me to the rides, I'm now driving the carpool to the rides.

Things change, circumstances may change, but somethings will always be. Team Specialized will always be a part of my story. I grew into the person and rider I am today because of Team Specialized. I learned how to have fun both on and off the bike from Larry Nolan.

 I learned how to race with integrity, dignity and competitive intensity from the masters on my team.  I made mistakes over the last 4 years (remember our first Snelling Road Race, Matt?)  but I also shared some of the sweetest victories with my team, the most notable victory  happening in July when Matt and I won the Madison at Track Nationals. Matt and I practiced so much, I thought my arm was going to fall off.

 Besides winning the Madison, the other victory I'm very proud of was when  Matt won the state crit in 2010. We surprised everyone with a leadout out of  the last turn. Matt won and I got 10th. That was the sweetest 10th place ever.

Things may change, but the fact remains that I will be forever grateful to Team Specialized for giving me the opportunity to be a part of a racing family that helped mold me into the person I am today.

More than just the Bike

Cycling entails a grueling work ethic, and countless of hours on the bike. Throughout the year the team travels all over the nation to race, yet what many people may not know, is that Team Specialized is involved with a lot of charity rides. One of the many charity rides that our team is involved with every year is the Cure The Cycle Ride for the Urea Cycle Disorder Foundation. The first time I rode this ride was in 2010 in San Francisco and I was able to ride again with them last August. UCD is a rare disease and the UCD Foundation uses the Cure the Cycle Ride to raise awareness and money for families that suffer from this disease.

The importance of charity rides teaches Team Specialized riders to be grateful for the opportunity to race their bikes, but also to be thankful for the lives they have off the bike. Our life outside of cycling is sometimes overlooked as we spend most of the year racing, but it is just as important to be thankful for the friends and family that support us in whatever we live to do.  

Matt Valencia