Junior Track Cycling

Junior nationals was held recently in Australia, and the results for the usual timed events are now in the Junior Velo database.

At least one Australian record was broken, and there were plenty of fast times.

Thanks to Michaela for the heads up.

He’s apparently too modest to post this link here himself, but here’s a nice interview with Yorick Bos.

Yorick has made some very interesting posts here over the last year or more, and I enjoyed learning more about him. Other riders who have articles or other information online are welcome to leave comments or send a message to velo at juniorvelo dot com.

The Northbrook, IL park district will have an Introduction to Track Bike Racing class beginning in April 2007 at the Ed Rudolph Velodrome. A description of the program can be found at http://www.northbrookvelodrome.org/programs/highschool. It is called a “high school program” but it is open to those entering 7th grade or higher.

Press release:

Former Olympic Team Manager Issues Call to Juniors

Glen Spey, NY—Mike Fraysse, the 1976 and 1984 United States Olympic Cycling Team Manager, has issued an open call to all male and female junior cyclists under the age of 19 across the United States. Fraysse is actively pursuing his commitment to develop the future of American cycling, backed up by one of the most impressive résumés ever seen in the world of cycling. After two years of astounding success with his junior team, Fraysse is now looking to rebuild the team and create more champions.
Mike Fraysse has 112 years of cycling in his blood. The fourth-generation son of the founders of the US Cycling Federation, Fraysse himself has served as President of the USCF three times, as well as having managed the US Olympic Team on two occasions, in 1976 and 1984, when the United States won an unprecedented 9 medals including an astounding 4 gold. He has coached 14 World Championship teams and has coached every one of America’s great champions in the last quarter century, including Tour de France winners Greg Lemond and Lance Armstrong.
In 1994 Fraysse opened Mike Fraysse Sports, LLC., a private cycling-specific training center in the Catskill Mountains of upstate New York. Since that time, Fraysse’s riders have won over 800 races, including 47 National Championships, 5 Pan American Games gold medals, 15 World Championship medals, and 1 Women’s Tour de France
In 2005, Mike Fraysse became concerned with the stagnant condition of American track cycling, and set out to change it. Gathering together a group of little-known juniors with road and mountain bike backgrounds, Fraysse spent two weeks personally instructing them in the basics of track racing, and when the Junior National Championships concluded in July, Fraysse’s dark horses had won 3 medals, including 2 in the team events.
One of these unknown juniors was Barry Miller, who had begun working with Fraysse in 2005 after two years of mediocre results on the road. Seeing his potential on the track, Fraysse invested his time and coaching into Miller, and just one year after entering his first race on the track, Miller lapped a stacked field to win the Junior National Championships Points Race. He also went on to win 4 more medals, including two silvers in the team events, and earned a position on the Junior World Championship Team that August. The final tally for Fraysse’s juniors in 2006: 3 National Titles and 27 National Championship Medals, including 4 at the Elite National Championships.
2007 sees Fraysse’s star juniors moving on into the under-23/elite category, and so the world-renowned coach has turned his attention to developing another crop of young riders into the next champions of the future. To do so, Fraysse will run two training camps at his world-class training facility during the spring, and hopes to bring in riders with limited experience on the track but big aspirations for the future. The camps are open to all riders both male and female under the age of 19. Experience on the track is not required. The camps will consist of testing to identify the strengths of each rider, followed by one-on-one instruction with Mike Fraysse Sports coaches meant to turn these genetic gifts into a winning edge. The camps will also focus on introducing new riders to the track. Those with more experience will be taught the more advanced secrets of track racing and will be placed into the programs for team pursuit and/or team sprint for the Junior National Championships this July.
Fraysse stresses that results are not important at all for these camps. “What I look for in a rider when I first meet him or her,” says Fraysse, “is not super muscle development or an impressive résumé; all I want to see is a desire to work extremely hard. Barry Miller was a nothing when I first met him—a year later he was National Junior Champion, ranked 13th in the World Junior Rankings, and a medallist at the Elite National Championships at the age of 17. There’s a whole lot more out there just like him, and my goal for these camps is to find them.”

For those interested in more information about these camps, please visit www.mikefrayssesports.com or call (800) 994-3335, Monday-Sunday 9 AM-9 PM.

Three separate items.

First, I enjoyed this comment in a rec.bicycles.racing post by a parent of one of the new riders.

Second, there are some photos from the March 4th junior session online. Thanks to Mike Jacoubowsky and Steven Woo for posting them. It looks like Hellyer may finally reach the critical mass required to produce a more consistent stream of competitive juniors.

Third, Hellyer Park Velodrome is undergoing construction during the next few months for some repairs and upgrades. The track is supposed to remain open on weekends, but it will pay to check before each session. I may not stay on top of the flexible schedule which will result, so if you are interested in the age 10-15 junior program, watch the Hellyer site and/or email “sunday at juniorvelo dot com” and ask to be added to the email list for the program.