[brungus]

can anyone comment on it. how serious is it? how many people go pro?

*note* im not saying i will be the next lance armstrong or jan ullrich. but i think that if i race and ride the next 5 years of my life (until i get out of college) i will have as good a chance as others to go pro.

as of next season ill probably be racing on a pro/am team around here, until i go to college, were i hope to race all 4 years. and of course, who wouldnt mind going pro after that, since most tour de france riders get about 180,000. obviously it would take time to make it to being a tour rider, but do any of you know the chances of going pro? i have the body of a climber (5'10", 137lbs, ~7% body fat) and this is riding a few times a week, today im starting to ride as much as i can until next season, hopefully reaching about 300-400 miles a week by the end of the year. hopefully.

 

[MTB_Rob_NC]

Very interesting... I would suggest picking a school that has a good cycling team?

 

[JMAC]

can anyone comment on it. how serious is it? how many people go pro?

*note* im not saying i will be the next lance armstrong or jan ullrich. but i think that if i race and ride the next 5 years of my life (until i get out of college) i will have as good a chance as others to go pro.

as of next season ill probably be racing on a pro/am team around here, until i go to college, were i hope to race all 4 years. and of course, who wouldnt mind going pro after that, since most tour de france riders get about 180,000. obviously it would take time to make it to being a tour rider, but do any of you know the chances of going pro? i have the body of a climber (5'10", 137lbs, ~7% body fat) and this is riding a few times a week, today im starting to ride as much as i can until next season, hopefully reaching about 300-400 miles a week by the end of the year. hopefully.

To be honest I've never heard of any college racers going pro, however I'm sure there are some but no big name TdF riders. Most of those guys have been racing since they were like 10 and never did anything else. If you have been racing since you were alot younger maybe 14 I would think you'de have a chance but the way racing is now if you didn;t nstart when you were like 14 you're screwed and your body slows it's development by now and you missed alot a crucial time.

 

[COmtbiker12]

To be honest I've never heard of any college racers going pro, however I'm sure there are some but no big name TdF riders. .

Didnt Hamilton go pro after he finished college? I remember seeing in that story about him and his dog saying that he went pro after collegiate or something along those lines, if Im wrong, sorry for the wrong info but thats what i remember.

 

[brungus]

ive been mountain biking forever and raced a few times, and i played 3 sports from like 1st grade until 9th grade (ice hockey, soccer, and baseball) sports have always been a part of my life.

 

[JMAC]

Didnt Hamilton go pro after he finished college? I remember seeing in that story about him and his dog saying that he went pro after collegiate or something along those lines, if Im wrong, sorry for the wrong info but thats what i remember.

Yep your right I forgot about him.
The most important thing is that you do alot of stuff when you're very young because you develope faster when you're young.
Either way anything is possible but just don't let yourself get to discouraged if it doesn;t work out. You can;t go wrong to try for it. Just expect to be riding your bike like 7 hours a day so you have to really love it. So get offline and get on your bike.

 

[mplutodh1]

Several ex collegiate racers have gone pro. I can ask a few of the road guys on our team for specific riders... seeing as I am new to the road scene. However, as mentioned, pick a school with a good cycling team, some don't even have one, others are in poor locations. Our team is new but we have a strong showing in our local events, a lot of team work goes into it as you probably already know. Another thing to consider is your age, seeing as you are young having a body composition such as yours (don't mean to be harsh on ya) isn't super hard. Take a college student or older and maintain that body and it gets a little bit more difficult, although not impossible. At 18 I had 6.7% body fat and since college that has gone up to 7.1%, partially due to injury and bad diet habits, however some of that has just increased with my age. Your metabolism is helping you right now, where in a few years it may start working against you. Just some thoughts.

 

[neurostar]

Yup, "Freshman 15" is a bitch.

 

[RhinofromWA]

Take a college student or older and maintain that body and it gets a little bit more difficult, although not impossible. At 18 I had 6.7% body fat and since college that has gone up to 7.1%, partially due to injury and bad diet habits, however some of that has just increased with my age. Your metabolism is helping you right now, where in a few years it may start working against you. Just some thoughts.

Plut,

You are one skinny SOB Talk to me when you double in size. lol I have a ton to spare if you ever need any more to help pull you down the mountain.

 

[mplutodh1]

haha i know I am skinny, geesh! i'm curious to see how my body composition comes out after the training program I am going on this winter... gonna kick my butt into shape

 

[lanman]

I don't know where you're frome, but check out UNH in Durham, NH (obviously its in NH), anyway, they win Eastern's every year, as far as I know none of them are pro, but these guys and gals are FAST, very talented riders, good cyclocross riders too.

 

[jon cross]

Collegiate racing is as serious as you want to make it. Most big races have as many expert to pro riders as they do party boys and guys looking for a fun weekend. I find college racing to be one of the best parts of the season- very little stress, lots of tough competition, and traveling with a great team to boot (Lees McRae). College is where many riders who didn't get their start at 14 yrs old go to be a part of a developmental team that can help them take riding to the next level. I for one didn't get serious about riding until I was 17 and never made it to Jr Nationals- for me collegiate racing is a second chance to try and make it. You'll want to find a school with a serious program if that sounds like what you're looking for. Look into Ft Lewis, Durango, CO, CSU in Ft Collins I think, UC Boulder, Lindsey Wilson in KY, Union in KY, Lees McRae in NC- im sure there are more but this is all I can think of at the moment. Good luck!