NashvilleCyclist.com catches up with one of the premier cycling coaches in the country.  Rick Crawford of Colorado Premier Training shares a lot about himself, but the surprise is he shares the same red neck we do.

NC.com - First off, you are a natural born Tennessean right?  Tell us a little bit about your upbringing and your connection to the Volunteer state.

Rick - Born in Nashville, TN. My Mom's family lived in Donelson. I still have family in Nashville and Knoxville. Spent most of my childhood in Chattanooga. Moved to GA at age 14, but I still consider TN my home state. My neck is Tennessee red.

NC.com - Talk about your personal cycling “career”, what got you into the sport and where did it end up taking you from a competitive standpoint?

Rick - I started on the track. I happened by the Dick Lane Velodrome totally by accident one day at age 16, and saw guys dueling it out in a match sprint. It caught my imagination and I began to integrate track racing into my other sports activities. The longer I cycled the more it was apparent that I was an endurance athlete, a revelation that had never occurred to me before. As I entered college, my focus turned to the endurance track events and road cycling. I got in with some great mentors and teammates in Athens, GA and had the time of my life. Even though collegiate cycling wasn't really happening in the late 70's/early 80's, cycling in a college town with fellow student/cyclists was an amazing experience and I remember those times as the good ol' days. Those early days of my cycling career definitely shaped the focus that I've had on collegiate cycling the last 15 years. After graduation from college, I made a run at the '84 Olympic team that ended in disappointment, but lead me to triathlon, which paid the bills for the next 8 years. Triathlon was booming and it was much easier for me to earn a living, but cycling was always my first love.

NC.com - Colorado Premier Training (CPT) is a prominent cycling and endurance coaching company in the US.  How did you come to start that business, and did you believe it would grow to the level it is today?  Moreover, competition has intensified I would imagine, which surely has been good for your industry right?

Rick - My partner at CPT Steve Owens started the company, and we merged forces 3 years ago. It's been a good relationship. Steve handles the business end so I can focus on coaching; it's a good synergy. Cycling coaching has exploded and that is a truly great thing for cycling. I remember when I was one of a handful of coaches in the US. I also remember that when I was cycling competitively myself, there were no coaches at all, which I'm sure shaped my desire to become one some day. Cyclists of this time frame have no idea how lucky they are.  Today there are thousands of coaches in the US, where 20 years ago there might have been 10 and most of them were the exclusive property of the US Cycling Team. Times have changed indeed, and it's great for cyclists. Tougher to compete as a coach, but that will drive the standard ever higher, and that's fantastic for US cycling.

NC.com - CPT’s wind tunnel testing program appears to be one of the most advanced in the US.  Talk about that program’s advancement, and for those who have not tested inside a wind tunnel what is that experience like?

Rick - Steve Owens is the man in the wind-tunnel. I default to him as the expert in our midst. We are working closely with the largest and deepest pool of engineers and low-speed-fluid-dynamicists on the planet. The design of the test platform is progressive and cutting edge, and the software is the best out there. We can capture more data in less time with more accuracy and better repeatability than any other facility in the US... that says it all. That's why we got into it. If we can't be the best at it, I have no interest in playing.

Anyone with a TT bike, whether cyclists or triathlete, can benefit greatly from a wind-tunnel session. Obviously, in the TT, the battle is with the wind, and to make an investment in figuring out how to beat the wind makes sense from every angle. We try to make the experience as time-efficient as possible, since the time in the tunnel is costly, so the process is dialed. When you come to the tunnel, everything is prepped, rider is suited up in full aero regalia, and the bike is put into the tunnel and situated on the test-bed. Then the wind comes on and data is collected in 20 second samples. Over an hour, you can collect alot of data. Every millimeter adjustment makes a difference, with the goal to be to find the most aero position possible, to see how many watts you can save. It's easier to get aero than to create more watts... that's why the wind-tunnel is such a great tool.

NC.com - At CPT you have worked with some of the best cyclists our country has ever produced; Lance Armstrong, Levi Leipheimer, Todd Wells and Shonny VanLandingham to name a few.  We have often read about your working relationship with Tom Danielson too.  Discuss the challenges and rewards associated with working with such high caliber athletes, and explain how it’s similar or dissimilar to amateurs.

Rick - It's very challenging working with athletes of that caliber. They are demanding and require intensive care. But it's extremely rewarding too. The science is much more finicky at that level... everything is always at the limit so the room for error is minuscule. They are pros so the environment is really serious and sometimes tense because careers and well-being are at stake. Amateurs are sometimes very serious but rarely is a career at stake so there's less on the line. I love working with both as both have their particular bonuses. The pros constantly push me to innovate and adapt because it's their bread-n-butter and there is real-life pressure to survive.  

NC.com - At CPT I would imagine the topic of doping is a much more sensitive subject since it more directly affects the culture of riders you work with.  Since the Festina affair in 1998 a lot has transpired internationally and domestically to alter the landscape of all of cycling.  What were the struggles your athletes were facing during the last decade, and what do you believe to be the cultural mindset now within pro cycling as it relates to doping?

Rick - The infrastructure has changed a lot over the last 10 years, but human nature has not. It's a sad commentary that so many athletes, coaches, directors/managers,etc., will cheat to get ahead, but that has been programmed into human psyche since the big bang. It's like everything else in the world, if we're going to beat it we have to fight it at every level, from testing and screening, to education and infrastructure reform. That is happening, and cycling has really attacked it hard and has made remarkable improvement since the Festina days.

Athletes not only have to deal with any temptations that human nature comes with, but also the raft of rules, accountability, paperwork, and tedious tasks required to keep track of them. It's a necessary evil and just part of every pro cyclist's job description these days. It's a struggle at all levels, not just the athlete... doping happens at all strata. Reform appears to be happening at all strata, so I'm optimistic that there is progress. As a coach, I have really enjoyed working with young developing athletes who can be indoctrinated early on with high ethical standards, who can be hardened to resist the temptations they may face. That is very gratifying, and apparently very effective. The next generation of pro cyclists will hopefully be the beneficiaries of the reform happening now and will lead to a world where doping is a very rare occurrence.

NC.com - You put Fort Lewis College and collegiate cycling on the map to the point now where it is a legitimate opportunity for young cyclists to aspire towards.  Because of your efforts Fort Lewis College won multiple team national championships with countless individual jerseys too.  Talk about how you built something from scratch to such a powerful program and how rewarding that must have been.

Rick - First, I thinks it's important to point out that there were some great leaders at FLC Cycling who deserve credit for helping create that dynasty. I was lucky enough to be present when the primordial soup of the program was coming together in the early 90's, but by the time I had the job of running the program in 2001, FLC Cycling was already a very successful program and had several national championships already. But yeah, we won a whole slew of them in my 8 years there, and I'm sure that legacy will continue for some time to come.

I think my biggest effect on the program at the inception in the 90's was just in guiding the club's original structure and building in institutions that lasted. When I took over the program in 2001, funding was the biggest issue and that is what I attacked with the greatest vigor. Along with excellent student leadership, we created institutional revenue streams that would create perpetual funding. We constantly built proposals to submit to the school administration to justify increased funding. We built a strong community presence so that funding would flow from community partners, with the great fringe benefit of creating responsible citizens out of the club members. At some point, you hit that critical mass where it's self-fulfilling... there aren't many programs out there like that. I think that should be the goal of every collegiate program is to reach that critical mass.

NC.com - When you pull back and think about CPT and Fort Lewis the descriptive word “pioneer” comes to mind.  Others surely use you as a role model and aspiration to become.  Considering your place in life right now, have you given much thought to the legacy you have built and continue to build?

Rick - Sometimes it seems like an affliction I have, but I'm not one to hang in the comfort zone for very long. Gotta find something new and exciting. Innovate or die. I've always liked pushing into new frontiers. It's risky and has cost me a lot in some instances. But I have no regrets. I don't think it's right for me to ask my athletes to push as hard as they do if I'm not pushing too. I feel this constant need to go where I've never been before, or where no one has ever been before. I've learned in my old age that you have to have one foot firmly planted in fundamentals while the other is reaching out to new ground. In the end, I really hope I have left a worthwhile legacy, but it's not my mission.  I live too much in the moment for that.

NC.com - Speaking of collegiate cycling, can you talk about its life cycle over the last 10 years, and what do you make of its current state and what can be done to further its growth?

Rick - It's come a long way. And it has a long way to go. I have a big vision for collegiate cycling, but some do not. Some are really happy for it to be the domain of fun clubbers with no ambition for growth. I really like the fun element of collegiate cycling but I also want it to be a legitimate and serious development entity. I think that dichotomy can be achieved... in fact I have seen that happen at FLC so for me it's a frustration to wrestle with the powers that be over the issue. But it is moving forward and I'm confident that someday collegiate cycling will be that ultimate development program that I envision.

NC.com - Junior cycling and collegiate cycling suffer due to the lack of developed youth programs from grade school through high school.  Moreover, because of that cyclists miss out on tremendous team building skills as young kids.  What do you believe can be done to grow youth cycling in a sustainable way?

Rick - It's beginning to happen somewhat out west with the creation of interscholastic leagues in California and now in Colorado. As cycling becomes more of a mainstream sport and these leagues grow, a critical mass will eventually be reached and cycling could enjoy the surge that soccer has in the last 30 years.

NC.com - Which brings us to your new team and adventure – the Bahati Foundation Pro Cycling Team.  How did you and CPT come to partner with Rahsaan Bahati and what is the goal of this partnership, aside from the pro team itself?

Rick - Steve and I were brainstorming and decided to put out a proposal that reflected our dreams more than what might be actually feasible. We weren't really interested in doing a team by the numbers as we had both done those before and were looking for something different. So we put this proposal together with a community service and coaching centerpiece without even know what the cause was exactly. One of the first people I contacted was Rahsaan, not so much for the community service piece at first but because I sensed he might be ready to move to another team and because he is a prodigious and explosive talent. As we started to develop the discussions with Rahsaan the cause began to reveal itself and a beautiful thing was created. Now we are sitting on a super potent team with a great mission that transcends cycling, and we get to coach/manage the team to our desires. Yeah... pinch me.

NC.com - We appreciate you taking the time to share yourself with the readers of NashvilleCyclist.com.  You get the last word, what would like to leave the readers with?

Rick - First, be proud of the rosy hue of your neck. Never lose your accent... in fact you should do your level best to embellish it. Make sure you watch Slingblade at least once per year just to remember what you're supposed to sound like. You should get one Titans necktie, and one Vols necktie, and wear them to church every Sunday on an alternating basis, and pray for your teams. It's an honor to be a Tennessean and I appreciate very much getting the opportunity to share with yuns.

And check out my newest project in Durango. I've always dreamed of having a facility with all the fixins, and now that is going to be a reality. I've joined forces with David Farmer and Dr. Bruce Andrea to create the Durango Sports Club Cycling Center, with the goal of creating the ultimate (and I mean that literally) cycling training facility. We're pulling out the stops to create a facility that will have the state-of-the-art in training tools, coaching, ex.phys lab, staffing, and cycling-specific programming. The Durango Sports Club is the perfect facility for such a project, one of the nicest you'll find anywhere in the country and Durango is cycling mecca. I'm very excited about this, having the ultimate playground in my backyard... I call it my Champion Factory.

Learn more about Rick Crawford and CPT by visiting Colorado Premier Training.