Lugging a hunk of steel with wheels to Central Park at 5:30 a.m. might not be everyone’s idea of fun, but for the NYU Cycling Club, it couldn’t be enjoyed any more. During New York City winters, it is too cold to practice outside, but the team will return to Central Park when the weather warms up.
While the team lost a number of strong riders who graduated last year, there are many newcomers with strong potential. As a whole, the cyclists hope to place in the top five — or podium — at the Eastern Collegiate Cycling Conference.
Members are currently preparing for the season with the trainer — a stationary bike machine — and other cross-training methods. It’s almost impossible to ride outdoors on icy and salty roads, making the trainer the next best option, even if it’s not ideal.
“I get extremely bored on the indoor bike,” Sichen Liang, vice president of NYU Cycling, said. “I’m hearing voices in my head that say ‘I don’t want to be here.’ But I know I have to be there. I have to show up every day. It’s good mental training, but you quickly miss the scenery from outdoor riding.”
Besides the trainer machine, members enjoy workouts, such as running, hiking, swimming or skiing to stay in shape.
“We also need some diversity in training because it’s not ideal to be sitting on the bike hunched over in the same position for hours,” co-president of NYU Cycling Club, Jialing Gao, told WSN. “You’re not working all your muscles, like your upper body and core. That’s why you need some additional training to keep your body healthy.”
Once the season starts in early April, normal outdoor practice will resume. Outdoor training trumps the trainer when it comes to preparing for race day. External factors such as wind, temperature and road texture create a more realistic training environment. During weekdays, the team practices at Central Park early in the morning to avoid Citi Bikers and pedestrians. Practice consists of one to two hours that focus on short intervals and technique. On weekends, the cyclists bike on U.S. Route 9W on the George Washington Bridge, a 60-mile bike ride ending in upstate New York.
“In Central Park, we have to watch out all the time for other cyclists and people, but on the bridge, we can just go,” Liang said. “We ride in a big group and practice our aerobic respiration. And the view is astonishing — it reminds me why I first joined cycling.”
Liang, a sprinter, got into cycling back in Beijing, China. He would ride his bike to and from school since it was several miles away. When his friends invited him to join their professional cycling team in China, he agreed.
“The first time I rode with them, they smoked me,” Liang said. “So that’s how I got into cycling. I wanted to enjoy the view, but mostly to impress my friends. I used to ride like 60 miles a day. Just me and my bike. Alone, with nothing but my motivations. Now it’s different. I’m motivated by the fear of losing a race. How things change.”
Gao also started cycling back home in China. He expressed how there is a huge cycling community in his hometown of Shanghai. Cyclists from different countries would frequently visit, and Gao took the opportunity to ride with them.
This year, the team will kick their season off on March 29, with the Buzz the Tower race in Charlestown, RI, and the official ECCC season begins in early April, with the championship in the second week of May.
Contact Isabella Bickenbach at [email protected].