Series gaining speed / LJWorld.com

Archive for Friday, June 6, 2003

Twilight races popular among cyclists

June 6, 2003

Lawrence's Mike Vickers feels the need for speed.

No, Vickers isn't an aircraft pilot, like the witty wingers who used the same line in the movie "Top Gun". The owner of Star Signs & Graphics Inc. doesn't captain a race car, either.

Instead of those turbo-blown beasts, Vickers gets his kicks from a bike.

"It's about as much fun as I've ever had in sports," said Vickers, one of several local cyclists who participated in Thursday night's second installment of the Twilight Series races at Haskell Indian Nations University. "And I've played them all."

Vickers said he enjoyed cycling because of the frequent adrenaline rushes, but more so because of the camaraderie.

Does that sound a bit strange, considering most people think of cycling as a one-man show?

Not so, said Vickers.

"The team aspect is a big thing," said Vickers, who races for the Lawrence/Kansas City-based Team X. "It's about the guys, not just one individual."

The spry 47-year-old also said he enjoyed the ribbing he absorbed as the elder statesmen on a team of mostly 20-somethings.

"We go back and forth a lot," said Lawrence's John Hackman, who recently graduated from Kansas City (Mo.) Rockhurst High and plans to ride full-time next year in California. "But really, he helps me out a lot."

Category A men's division cyclists, from left, Chris Hess, Dean Parker and Lyle Reynolds, lean into a turn. Hess, from Mission, and Parker, from Lenexa, were two of the top three finishers in the Twilight Series race Thursday night at Haskell Indian Nations University.

Vickers, however, said he was envious of Hackman.

"I wish I could have gotten in this when I was his age," said Vickers, whose start in cycling began after he tore up his knee in a triathlon race.

Despite his age being double that of most riders, Vickers has kept his competitive edge.

"He's the oldest on the team," said Lawrence race promoter and rider Jim Whittaker, who's also Vickers' Team X teammate. "But he's also really good."

That didn't necessarily show Thursday.

"I was terrible," Vickers said, jokingly hiding his face. "I just haven't been practicing like I should."

Most Category A riders -- the highest level -- train 20 or more hours a week, but Vickers has been doing about 10.

Team X rider John Hackman leads Mike Vickers, Mike Koons and Ed Noll through turn two. Noll won the Category A men's division Twilight Series cycling race Thursday night at Haskell Indian Nations University.

Still, Vickers insisted the sport was more than just exercise.

"I really like it because of the bond I share with my teammates," he said. "There's obviously that incredible feeling you get when you're riding fast in a pack of guys, but there's also something special in riding around all the time with the same people."

Even when they beat you?

"Yeah," said Vickers, who was the second cyclist eliminated from Thursday's Class A Category Miss-n-out race -- where the last-place rider on each lap is eliminated.

"But at least I wasn't the first one out," Vickers said with a smile.

The third installment of the Twilight Series will take place June 25th. Registration starts at 6:30 p.m. at Haskell, or for more race information contact Jim Whittaker at 843-8356 or e-mail him at alta-sport@sunflower.com.