He Is Ted King

About a week ago, Ted King came to Landry’s Bike Shop in Boston for a questions-and-answer session.  Although I had to leave slightly early, he was a very receptive, an all-around cool guy, and had some darn good things to say.

For those of you who are unaware, Ted King is the only American on the Cervélo Test Team.  A Middlebury College Alum, he raced within the ECCC for a number of years.  After graduating, King turned Pro in 2006 with Bissell.  His first 2009 season with Cervélo hit a bump when he broke his collarbone in the Amgen Tour of California.  After some recovery time, King got back to the racing and eventually drew copious amounts of media attention racing in the Giro d’Italia in support of Carlos Sastre.

A smorgasbord or riders showed up to the Landry’s-hosted event: Green Live Velo; Boston University, the jackets of which Ted King noticed; Northeastern; ex-Union/Wheelworks; MIT; and then a whole bunch of people who actually have solid jobs, money for bikes, and a midlife crisis epitomized by spandex wearing.  Harpoon Brewry and Upper Crust Pizza were also there in full, free, and glorious force (thanks Mark V.).  The event started out with questions from the MC, who was a local bike race announcer (no…not me, but his name currently escapes me.  Expect me to make a return to bike race announcing come March).  The Audience received a good grasp of Ted’s history and his time with Cervélo.  It’s daunting, he admits, to have to start a TTT at the Giro next to the then-current TdF champion.  The floor then opened up for questions from the crowd.  What about Cadel Evans??  Well, we’ll just keep that one to ourselves.

A blurry photo I snapped from the event in a various obvious manner  on my phone:

Hoppy asked Ted King in which racing environment he’s had the most fun racing: collegiate, US professional racing, or European.  Without a pause, Ted answered “Collegiate, for sure” and continued in his explanation.  He spoke of the networking, the fun, and living, eating, sleeping and breathing with your team who race not because you’re paid to do it, but because you love to do it.  This answer is no surprise, as it was in the collegiate racing scene where Ted got his start racing at the ace of 19 for Middlebury.  19, people; George Hincapie started racing before he was 10 and has never looked back.  Ted King was a college student who fell in love with bikes, not that different than many of us.

The last thing I wish to convey from the event is a verbal exchange that Ted said he had with Jason McCartney (Team Saxo Bank) in the Giro this year.  While Ted King is a fairly tough-skinned rider thanks to the brutal New England weather he’s lived and breathed, the weather one early stage in the Giro was cold and miserable and he was feeling it more than usual.  McCartney asked Ted how he was feeling and “miserable” was the answer.  Ted asked McCartney the same questions, to which he responded “I’m on a bike.”  With the revelation of “yes…I’m on a bike,” Ted had a much more enjoyable stage.  I’ve decided that this line will be my pick-me-up when I’m cold and miserable and my quads are burning, and I suggest you try the same, if you are so inclined.