Support Crew...

In an effort to expand this blog a bit more and to give people an idea of the inner workings of this team, I thought I would share an email that went out to the team yesterday...

"Every once in a while this team goes out of its way to support their own racers; the TDD for instance is a huge event for this team and drew in not only racers, but lots spectators. Well, that happened again this weekend at the Grand Prix of Gloucester, with no less that a whole crew of us racing in the Cat 4 field, Jen towing the line in the Women's Cat 3/4 field, Carey drilling it in the 3s and Kurt S showing up and racing the Master's 1/2/3 race. It was awesome, but what made it even cooler was all the support than came out on Saturday morning! When you all could have been donig something else, you took the time to come up and support the Black and Orange! We had more spectators and cheering squad than racers and it was AMAZING! In every challenging section of the course you could hear someone yell your name and offer some encouragement and while some of us are so far into oxygen debt at that point and post race we sometimes forget to acknowledge you and say thanks, I wanted to take a minute to say thanks to each of you! Thanks to all of you that came out and supported this team! It makes the pain seem that much more bearable for that moment and makes you push just a bit harder, so I would encourage each and every one of you, if you have never gone out and just cheered on our fellow racers, give it a shot. It can be both fun and inspiring! Thanks again!"

My point in sharing this is that, while this blog is mostly about our racing exploits, we are more than just racers. We have lives, and loved ones, passions and fears and sometimes, that little extra support can go a long way. So next time you are driving passed your local road race, stop and cheer for 5 minutes. The next time you drive passed a rider in the dark of night or torrential rain, who is out there training hard, know that he isn't trying to slow you down and he may never win a race, but he will appreciate just a few words of encouragement. I'm not saying we need to give everyone medals at the end of the day, but let's support those people who put their hopes and fears on display for everyone to see, whether they come in first or last. Bottom line, go out and show some support to a local race, because you never know who you might see or how you might be inspired at the end of the day.

To those of you who come out and support us each and everyday, spouses, friends, girlfriends and boyfriends, neighbors, aunts, uncles and parents, we, the racers Thank You. To those of you who have always wondered if we hear you cheering, the answer is Yes... And to those who haven't been out to a race, go check out what you are missing!

Later,
K