Athletes

JUNE 25, 2008

Hayduk Bound for 2008 Track Junior World Championships

Tifosi Optics sponsored athlete Colleen Hayduk is one of only three Juniors age 17-18 to be chosen by USA Cycling to represent the United States at the 2008 Track Junior World Championships.

Hayduk, 17, will travel to Cape Town, South Africa in July to compete against the best Juniors from around the world in hopes of improving on her sixth place finish last year at Junior Worlds.

In addition to her recent Junior World's selection, Colleen is also the current national record holder in the 500mTT, 17-18 Women, and a nine time National Champion.

After placing first overall at the 2008 Minnesota Fixed Gear Classic, Colleen has proven that she can also compete-and win-against a competitive field of Elite Women's racers.

Track Junior Worlds will be held from July 12-16. Check back for Colleen's results and to see where this promising young athlete goes next!

MAY 1, 2008

The Bean Team’s Tour de Georgia

Another Tour de Georgia is on the books and as they have since 2003, Jittery Joe's made their mark on the 2008 edition. With Georgia being the team's hometown, there's never a shortage of coffee cup- clad fans cheering their lungs out on the side of the road. Even with the world-class athletes and beyond fierce competition that the Tour de Georgia draws, the Jittery Joe's team always manages to get on the front and make some waves

The best performance by far came from Neil "KOM" Shirley for his solo effort on the base of Brasstown Bald during the queen stage of the Tour de Georgia. Race officials recognized Neil's efforts by awarding him the Most Aggressive Rider jersey for the day. Brasstown has been called one of the hardest climbs in the world and Neil's efforts landed him second for the day in KOM points.

Perhaps one of the most unique aspects of the Jittery Joe's team is how well they document the team's efforts both on and off the bike throughout such an intense week. In addition to a series of videos posted by Micah Rice, the team's manager, the boys come home with several hundred pictures of everything from team dinners to candid race shots.

We'd like to share of few of our favorite pictures that show the lesser-documented side of a stage race like the Tour de Georgia.

As always, we thank team supporter Barbara Dowd for providing us with these and hundreds of other pictures throughout the season. Enjoy!

Events like the Tour de Georgia expose the next generation of cyclists to the sport and inspire them to compete locally. In this picture, Jerad takes a few minutes after a stage to chat with a young Jittery Joe's fan outside the team bus.

Jittery Joe's draws a wide range of fans. The guys are always on-hand to sign an autograph or have a quick talk with fans before stages. Ryan shares a laugh while signing an autograph before one of the stages.

Support crew is crucial in a race like the Tour de Georgia, as is having a proper team car. This picture shows the team's new ride for 2008 loaded up with spare bikes and parts.

Not only does the team have race support, they also have a crew of people working behind the scenes in the expo area selling coffee and team gear at each stage.

Warm-up areas are another big draw for fans. Here the Jittery Joe's team warms up together before the Team Time Trial at Road Atlanta.

Victory is sweet-especially when it comes in the form of the Most Aggressive Rider jersey at Brasstown.

APRIL 3, 2008

Jittery Joe’s Goes to Camp

Being based on the East Coast has a tendency to make Tifosi sponsored team visits challenging. Even with a team like Jittery Joe's that has been riding Tifosi since their inception in 2003, getting everyone in the same place at the same time is a challenge. This past month afforded the folks at Tifosi H.Q. the chance to meet the men of Jittery Joe's Pro Cycling as they completed their 2008 training camp in and around our hometown of Watkinsville, Georgia.

The boys arrived in Athens, Ga. on March 10, with some of the riders coming straight from Australia-and a more than 24 hour plane ride! The team is smaller this year with only 11 spots, half of which are filled with riders who are new to the team. If any of the newbies had jitters about joining the team, they had all disappeared by the time of their Tifosi visit on March 12.

After introductions and a quick tour, the boys were off on the famous Tifosi lunchtime ride with a few inside sales staffers. The ride went off without a hitch-that is except for a case of mistaken identity; one of the riders bears a striking resemblance to his brother who is also a professional cyclist. We won't name any names (ahem, Ryan Sullivan), but we're sure that isn't the first time someone has gotten those two mixed up.

The team rounded out camp with a few days of reconnaissance in the North Georgia Mountains for the upcoming Tour de Georgia and an exclusive preview of the team time trial stage being held at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Ga.

Tifosi and Jittery Joe's have literally grown up together over the past five years and we here at Tifosi H.Q. have unanimously agreed that the 2008 team is the strongest we have seen in both talent and camaraderie. Keep Joe's on your radar this season and if you are in Georgia April 21-27, be sure to cheer them on in the Tour de Georgia.

For those of you who can't make it to the race, keep up with the guys on their team blog which is being updated almost daily with rider diaries and interviews.

FEBRUARY 12, 2008

Toshiba-Santo Professional Cycling Team presented by Herbalife

After a strong showing at the JAR Tour of the Bahamas and Winston David notching the team's first win in Gainesville, Florida, the TOSHIBA-Santo Pro Cycling Team presented by Herbalife headed north to the Georgia mountains for a week-long training camp outside the city of Dahlonega.

"Dahlonega's a great place to train. Beautiful roads." says Gustavo Carrillo, the team's new directeur sportif. "(Normally), it's kind of a roll of the dice with the weather in February. You can get anything up here. But we've been real fortunate to have great weather. We're really happy to have chosen this great location."

Throughout the week's agenda of long rides, photo shoots, media training, sponsor meetings, team meetings, and dialing in new equipment, new teammates spent a good portion of their time bonding with the squad's veteran riders and support staff. All told the team logged nearly 600 miles on the road, capping the week off with an ascent up the epic climb of Brasstown Bald.

"We came up here (specifically) because of the mountains." Carillo continues. "We're going to scope out some of the Tour De Georgia routes."

In preparation of racing in this year's edition of the Tour de Georgia, training in and around Dahlonega gives the team them special insight to some of the terrain they'll be facing when the Tour De Georgia kicks off on April 21st 2008.

Local headquarters for the team while training in 2008 is the Hiker Hostel (www.hikerhostel.com). Nestled 1980 ft. above sea level and just 6.5 miles from downtown Dahlonega, the Hiker Hostel is a 4000 ft. plus log house on 3.5 acres run by the husband and wife team of Joshua and Leigh Saint. The hostel can accommodate approximately 20 guests in it's bunk room style lodging.

"It's our home away from home." said team Managing Director Ravi Rajcoomar on behalf of himself and the rest of the team. "It's a place for these guys to come train throughout the year too if we have other smaller camps later on."

Testing their early season legs along with the rest of their teammates were new additions Andrew Talansky and Daniel Vaillancourt . Vaillancourt, originally from Saco, Maine, appreciated the relaxed and open the team's staff and management created for the riders."

"This has been great. There are common spaces where we can hang out and get to know each other. Whereas if we were at a hotel everyone just goes back to their own hotel rooms and watches TV."

Vaillancourt who placed 8th overall in last year's Tour of Virginia, is looking forward to the diversity in the Toshiba-Santo race calendar for 2008.

"I want to be a solid teammate and I'm excited about the racing we'll do in South America. It's some really tough racing. There'll be some eight and 10-day races which are uncommon in the U.S."

For his part Talansky, the former 2006 Florida State Road/Criterium Junior Champion who is turning pro with the Toshiba-Santo squad, is also ready to dive into the deep end of the racing season.

"One of my goals…" Talansky said fresh from the day's first training ride. "…is to participate in as many races that are over my head, where the guys are better than me and where it will be a struggle for me to do well and finish those races. I think that will help me to be a better cyclist. And also, while doing races like that, I'll hopefully be able to help out our more experienced teammates like Alex Hagman, Predrag Prokic, and Mark Hekman."

Hekman, who comes to Toshiba-Santo as the defending Athens Twilight Criterium Champion, is glad to be back on the bicycle after a protracted absence from racing due to his injury last year at the USA Cycling National Criterium Championships in Downers Grove, Illinois.

"I shattered my heel in four places and had to take two months off the bike. But in the grand scheme of things, it may have been a good thing. It was forced rest, and has left me more motivated than ever. I'm so happy to be on this team. It's so well run and this training camp has been so much fun."

New international riders John Fredy Parra and John Durango, childhood racing friends from Colombia and Aussie standout Tommy Nankervis were also right at home by week's end, albeit a little tired. "We looked forward to our trip to Argentina in the next few days to represent the team and sponsors and kick off the season with a bang ", stated Nankervis.

From here the Toshiba-Santo presented by Herbalife team heads to Argentina's Vuelta Mendoza from February 14th-22nd. And later on the month, the team will also be participating in the Dominican Republic's Vuelta Independencia (February 23rd though March 2nd).

Team Contact: Joe Silva .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

DECEMBER 5, 2007

Welcome To the New and Improved Tifosi Athletes Page

Welcome to the Tifosi Optics athletes page. Tifosi supports athletes participating in a variety of sports and at all levels of competition. Tifosi athletes are constantly field testing both new and existing product to improve our designs and ensure that every model we sell can stand up to extreme use.

Spend some time checking out our featured athletes' profiles. This news section will have stories and updates on athletes who are making waves around the country. If you have a question on something you see in this section, drop us a line at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) and we will do our best to get it answered for you!