Half Wheel Hell is constantly on the lookout for cyclists with unique perspectives. This week we asked one of our new correspondents, Chris Johnson, who races for Champion Systems p/b Stan’s No Tubes, to catch up with Lenore Pipes, who used to raise money for cancer research both by donating her not-insignificant winnings and using her blog and race reports to generate revenue in support of The Wistar Institute. Pipes is currently racing as a domestic pro for the RIDECLEAN/PatentIt.com women’s team. Here’s what she had to say…
HWH: Lenore, thanks for talking to us. Can we start out with a little introduction? I mean, you have a very unique personal story. Can you tell our readers a little about your background?
LP: Sure. I was born and raised in Guam, and moved to the mainland for school when I was 18. I go back once every 1 or 2 years. The Guam Cycling Federation and the Guam National Olympic Committee have been very supportive of my racing over the last couple of years. I am very proud and honored to have been able to represent Guam on several occasions.
CJ: I think I first saw you riding in Philadelphia a few years back on the famous Tuesday night drive rides, can you bring me up to date with what you’re up to? How’s the racing, living and learning going for you?
LP: Well, I moved to Ithaca, NY last July after I got accepted to the Tri-Institutional Computational Biology and Medicine Ph.D. program. This is a program that encompasses Cornell University, Weill Cornell Medical College, and Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. I just finished my first year in the program. It is an amazing program with some of the top researchers in the world, and I know that I am on the right track to a great career in science. My research involves studying cross-primate genomics.
HWH: So does graduate school help or hurt your cycling? I would think the time commitment is pretty intense, right?
Pipes races hard for and fully supports the mission of RideClean / PatentIt.com
LP: Obviously, when I entered the program, my activities in cycling took a backseat. Unfortunately, this happened to be an Olympic year, and I wasn’t able to score enough UCI points in time to obtain a qualification spot for Guam in the road race. It is very difficult to score UCI points while being in the US since usually there is only 1 US race, the Liberty Classic, that offers those points for women. This year, there was the Exergy Tour, which was the only US race that offered UCI points before the qualification deadline. Although I didn’t make it to London, I’ve been so lucky to have so many great opportunities with my team RIDECLEAN/PatentIt.com. I was asked to be on the team after struggling for a long time trying to find a team. I feel lucky to be able to learn from our team director, Jame Carney, and my experienced teammates. I also very much align with RIDECLEAN’s mission to promote clean sport and bicycle safety.
HWH: I know that you race a ton! What is it that fuels you to race week in and week out? The community? The racing itself? How many races do you do a year you think? 50+?
LP: Actually, this season, I’ve scaled back the racing to focus on my goal events. I’ve probably raced maybe around 30 races. I love to ride well for my team and fulfill my team’s goals, and so that is probably the number one motivator. I also have the desire to make myself a more competitive athlete, and knowing that one day I will represent Guam on the world’s stage really drives me.
HWH: You have had some great success this year! What are some goals that you have down the road? Competing in certain races or winning a particular race?
LP: Thank you! It’s been a really fun year. The biggest goal for me right now are the world championships in September. After not being able to get a spot in London, I am focusing all of my training on that event.
HWH: But you do get some new opportunities to race at the collegiate level now, right?What’s that like? Specifically, is the collegiate cycling program and USA cycling helping to promote womens cycling? Could they be doing more?
LP: First of all, I love collegiate cycling! This was my first year racing in the ECCC, and they are doing an awesome job to help promote women’s cycling. So many women have told me that if it wasn’t for the ECCC, they wouldn’t be racing. They do so much to help women get into the sport with their racing clinics and beginner races. I try to help out in the clinics whenever I can. I was so surprised at the big turn out the women’s races have there. The ECCC also does a great job for preparing cyclists for the national championships because the courses are so challenging.
Pipes kick-started her season this year by racing with the Cornell University Cycling Team.
HWH: What kind of results have you had on the collegiate scene? With all of your experience as a Cat 1, do the collegiate races still help you improve?
LP: After collegiate nationals, I was selected for the Kowalski’s Marksets Collegiate All-Stars Team, which was a great honor and opportunity. The team fully supports women to race at the Nature Valley Grand Prix so that they have the opportunity race their best at the highest level of competition in the US. I am so glad that there is a program like that for collegiate women racers. The collegiate races really helped me get into race form faster this year. I don’t know what the ECCC could be doing more to get women into the sport. Cycling is such a difficult sport to get into because there is such a high start-up fee (buying a bike, helmet, etc.).
HWH: So which do you prefer? Riding in upstate NY or outside Philadelphia?
LP: Philadelphia is special to me because that is where I started riding and racing. But I would have to say I haven’t ridden in any place better than Ithaca. The riding is amazing because there is so much variety in such a small area. There are 30 minute climbs, short steep climbs like the wall, and there is one direction you can ride where it is mostly flat. Best of all, there are hardly any cars or stoplights and the roads are well-paved. You could probably do a TT on any road.
HWH: Thanks a lot for talking to us, Lenore! I would imagine you’ve got lots of work to do now that the 2016 Olympics are less than four years away! Time to get going with the base training.
Know of any racers out there with a unique perspective on life, liberty and the pursuit of primes? Send your ideas to me here and talk to us about becoming a HalfWheelHell.com correspondent. We love hearing from you!
