Houston Chronicle article 6-15-05

[dannynguyen]

Paper: HOUSTON CHRONICLE
Date: THU 06/16/05
Section: SPORTS
Page: 11
Edition: 3 STAR

UH makes inroads on the college circuit / In twoyears, Cougar squad goes from 7 to 50 riders

By STEVE SIEVERT

After three years of racing, the University of Houston Cougar Cycling team has officially arrived on the collegiate cycling scene.

The team turned in its most successful season to date during the recently completed 2004-2005 school year, claiming a men's team championship in cyclocross and several individual victories. Team president Blake Krause put an exclamation point on the campaign by taking first place overall at the collegiate track championships in the spring.

Never heard of collegiate cycling? You are probably not alone. We're talking no cheerleaders, no SportsCenter highlights and no March Madness. Team members even have to supply their own bikes.

This under-the-radar sport is sanctioned by USA Cycling, with colleges and universities across the country fielding both men's and women's teams and competing year-round. Most are club teams that receive little, if any, funding from their schools' athletic departments.

The UH team was created in 2003 with a handful of riders and competes in the South Central Collegiate Cycling Conference, which includes universities in Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Arkansas. After modest success in its first two years of racing, the team grew into a powerhouse this year, thanks in large part to an aggressive recruiting effort.

"Our roster exploded this year," said Krause, a fifth-year senior in the university's architecture program. "We went from seven riders to a total of 50 team members. About 25 of those raced throughout the year. We spent a lot of time this year getting the word out and better organizing the team. It really paid off."

The team had racers in the competitive mix on almost every weekend during the school year in virtually all disciplines of cycling, including road, track, off-road and cyclocross.

In addition to the team SCCCC cyclocross title and Krause's blue ribbon on the track, Danny Nguyen was the sport champion at the cyclocross event hosted by Cougar Cycling earlier this year. Among the women, Gail Gardner finished third in her race category at the collegiate road championships in Wichita Falls.

"This was our first really strong showing in the conference," Krause said. "We've been able to compete with some of the top teams in collegiate cycling."

Collegiate cycling has been around for about 10 years. It gives developing cyclists an opportunity to compete against peers in three categories. Krause says racing at the college level gives cyclists an alternative to competing against pros at the regional or national levels.

Krause has another semester at the helm of Cougar Cycling, and while he's already left an indelible mark on the team, he wants to accomplish more. This fall, Krause will continue his recruiting efforts, try to attract additional events to UH, and seek more sponsors to support riders.