The Olympic Training Center has Froot Loops!

The Olympic Training Center. The US has several locations throughout the country but the 2 most noted are in Colorado Springs, Colorado and Lake Placid, New York. These are hallowed halls for the hopeful and hardened among athletes.

When I was a teenager, I was selected to attend a talent ID camp at the Olympic Training Center. It was to be in early spring. I had been selected from a large and talented group of junior cyclists (15-18yr olds) and it was a real honor. Most of the other guys at the camp were from where I was so I knew them, and there were kids from other parts of the region that I didn't know.

I was in highschool at the time and telling my teachers why I was going to be gone for part of a week was a trip. They were basically wondering why I was going to the OTC to learn to ride a bike!

It was April so winter was just letting up. And, lucky me, I got sent to Lake Placid - where winter hangs on longer and harder than most parts of the country. But still, I was pretty psyched to be headed off to be ID'ed so I could "make it."

My parents dropped me off at the OTC with my bags and my bike for almost a week. The riders were greeted by an old school Polish man named Walter. His accent was so heavy he was hard to understand and he had a 70's era mustache that made watching his lips as he spoke impossible.

Every morning Walter had us up at 6am for a short jog and calisthenics around the grounds.

Then breakfast, a short meeting on our plan for riding that day, and off we went.

He was always saying "SAFETY, SAFETY, SAFETY. Vee must always have the SAFETY when vee make ze trainingk!"

We rode two by two. We rode in echelons. We rode single file.

Up and down the valleys surrounding the OTC. It rained nearly the whole week so we just settled in to being cold and wet.

The dining hall was where we could really let go. And much to my surprise, they had froot loops! And all the other junkie cereals you could imagine.

My mother's idea of sugary cereal was frosted mini wheats so I was in heaven!

On the final day of the camp, they held a time trial. I was pretty confident as I'd felt good all week, and because at that time, time trials were sort of my specialty. I'd discovered I had a talent for that race format and really loved being alone with the clock, the bike, and the road.

And on that day I nearly won the race. I was beaten by a guy whose name I don't remember. He never made it to pro cycling. Wonder what he's doing now...