President John F. Kennedy once went on record claiming, “Nothing compares to the simple pleasure of a bike ride.” The iconic Mark Twain advised his readers, “Get a bicycle. You will not regret it if you live.” Of course, he was probably basing that on relaxing strolls through the park on his 50-inch penny-farthing (you may not know what this is, but I guarantee you that you’ve seen one). These guys were not referring to the intense physical test that the sport of cycling has transformed into over the last half-century. There are no free throws, no 2-foot putts, or second serves. As Tour de France legend Greg LeMond put it, “It never gets easier, you just keep going faster.”
As this is the season in which many of Columbia’s lesser appreciated teams end up salvaging the dignity of our sports culture by securing Ivy and national titles, I’m dedicating this space to the cycling team. I’ve gone on record boasting the merits of our tennis, golf, fencing, and swimming/diving teams. While these teams bear the burden of providing Columbia with hardware, club teams are doing it with little to no internal monetary support. There are a slew of such squads on campus tearing it up with almost no props from the University.
“Under the radar” is a wildly unsatisfactory cliché when it comes to describing the cycling team, one that boasts future pros and perennially sends individuals to the national stage. How many of you know we have a cycling squad? A cyclist friend of mine was kind enough to enlighten me on the going ons of a team in the hunt for a conference championship. Columbia competes in the top-tier of the Eastern Collegiate Cycling Conference, which includes four of the Ivies in addition to 12 other mid-Atlantic and Northeastern schools.
Currently ranked third in the ECCC, the Lions are within striking distance of a tough University of Vermont team with three races left in the collegiate season. Unlike Ivy football or basketball, cycling infuses its finale (known as the Easterns) with a bit of excitement, allowing for double the normal number of points to be at stake. Within the conference, Columbia is tops, followed somewhat closely by the Elis (led by senior Geoffrey Calkins) a la the runaway status of Princeton and Harvard in men’s swimming and diving. The rest of the Ivies trail much farther behind.
We’ve got Alexander Bremer Miele, SEAS ’09, in the mix for a top-three finish individually in the A bracket (which is quite impressive considering he only races part-time at the collegiate level). Rest assured, he will be on board to help Columbia finish the season strong. On the women’s side, Margaret Shirley, Medicine ’09, leads the way, ranked fourth in the A bracket. The team also fields a number of riders (10-15) at each race in the lower brackets, who also count toward the team’s total tally. The moral is that numbers matter and having a deep team goes a long way in determining success.
The story of this team is quite unique and my column is not enough to do justice to the attention that it deserves. Director Rob Rowan (not a paid coach, simply a cycling-lifer and volunteer) has breathed new life into what was a shaky team three seasons ago. Looking at the roster now (27 deep), you see premeds, M.D.s, J.D.s, Ph.D.s, MBAs, engineers, and history majors (i.e. these guys are smart too).
As is the case in many racing sports, the team supports itself through sponsorships and fundraisers. The program drew national attention with the fourth-place finish of Dave Wiswell (now with Nerac Pro Cycling) at Nationals in 2006. After breaking into the winner’s circle early in 2007, Columbia has doubled the feat this season for the first time in its growing history with wins in Philadelphia and at Penn State.
Looking for a dominant Columbia team on the rise and on its way to becoming a serious contender nationally? Look no further than the cyclists.
Kartik Kesavabhotla is a School of Engineering and Applied Science senior majoring in biomedical engineering.