Hello NC.com readers

This past week it seemed that the winter training season was a distant memory as I rode with my new team up and down the hills around Malibu and worked on my tan lines.

Now I am looking out the window of my parents' house in Park City as the snow flies and the idea of riding my new Cannondale outside is not all that enticing. A lot has transpired since my last diary, which didn't really cover any current happenings anyway, so I will use this entry to bring my 2010 season up to speed.

Bahati teammates Matty Rice (L) & Evan Hyde (R) soaking up some sun.
Photo by Veloimages.com

The year started off with a training camp in Tucson hosted by Colorado Premiere Training. My coach and Bahati Foundation Pro Cycling Team DS Rick Crawford was there along with the team's general manager, Steve Owens. They brought along Tom Danielson for good measure and the training was on! Danielson was doing 'base,' but for someone like me to keep up with his base pace on Mt Lemmon, I have to ride at threshold. He is chatting away at a heart rate of 140 while I am sucking wind at 175 and trying to pretend like it doesn't hurt! He is a truly gifted athlete who works insanely hard and I hope his luck improves this year and beyond.

After that camp I continued with a nice big block of tempo riding that culminated in my first two races of the year at the end of January. Three local crits in Arizona were a nice way to check the early season fitness and make sure everything is on track. During January I was also taking an LSAT prep class that I signed up for almost on a whim while walking through the U of A student union one day. I pretty much became obsessed with it and was doing 25-30 hours per week of studying, and when test day finally came I was really happy to be done with it!

Valley of the Sun was next and I found the race to be just about as frustrating as I have always heard it is, but I made it through without crashing and finished just inside the top 20 without doing much of anything in the race. One of my housemates for the winter, Jelly Belly rider Jon Chodroff, absolutely crushed the TT and won the stage race for a repeat victory, but I don't think that surprised anyone!

Up next was a week off to clear the head and rest a bit, so I went home to Park City for a few days where I got to hang out with some of my friends team mates from Cole Sport , including nordic combined olympian Billy Demong. He had just flow back from Vancouver after his first race and was spending a few days at home before returning for two more races. We all know how those last two races turned out and I can't believe that I have a friend and training buddy with a gold and silver medal at home! So cool!

Up next was the Callville Bay Classic just outside of Las Vegas. The race is 4 days long and the courses are selective, and the field was solid so it was the biggest test of the year so far. I felt pretty good there and almost nailed a stage win on the long road race, jumping first in the sprint and finishing 3rd. My friend and travel companion from Tucson, Mike Mathis, rode super strong to hold off Floyd Landis and take the overall prize back to Tucson. I expect some big things from Mike this season, so keep an eye out!

With Callville out of the way I was able to focus on what is probably my favorite race ever, Rouge Roubaix. I flew to Texas to drive over with my friend and Cycling Center alumn Colt Trant. The field was stacked this year and the race was really hard and fun, and I got to see a bunch of the NC.com guys as well as meet one of my new team mates, Cesar Grajales. After shredding the dirt roads of Louisiana and Mississippi we drove straight to New Orleans and I tripled my prize money on Texas Hold 'em. What an awesome day in the south!

I hustled home from Texas and went straight to team camp in Los Angeles. We all had so many questions about the team and this was the week we expected a lot of answers. Our team launch in downtown LA was an incredible event and watching the Crenshaw High School Band perform and to see how deeply Rahsaan cares for the mission of the Bahati Foundation made the whole thing real for us as riders. It inspired us and convinced us that yes we are a cycling team, but our mission is about so much more than winning bike races. I am incredibly excited to be a part of the Bahati Foundation as we go forward making differences in kids lives this season and beyond.

After the launch in LA and meeting the awesome guys from Cannondale and the team it was time to go to the hills and get on our bikes! Finally! We had so many things to work out as far as equipment and bike fit and what not, but we got in some killer training anyway. It is motivating to ride with so many talented riders and I think we all went home feeling excited and extremely motivated to train hard and to represent the foundation.

So here I am at home, looking at the snow and thinking about going skiing. It won't be long before I head back to Tucson for one more month of training and tune up racing, and my first official team event is the Sunny King Criterium in Alabama so I am excited to see many of you there!

If anyone is interested in supporting the Bahati Foundation, check out www.bahatifoundation.org.

Evan