GamJams.net: Where Mid-Atlantic bike racers roll: 10 Questions With... Blair Berbert

by David Kirkpatrick, Features Editor

10 Questions With... Blair Berbert
(now with 6 Bonus Questions!)

(GamJams) 1. You fit into the general "college grad with a day job who races as an amateur" bin, yet you've progressed quickly and reached a point where most people who throw a leg over will never see. How do you do it?

(Blair Berbert) There are probably two major factors here. One, I was a rower at Georgetown, and was racing at a pretty high level there. That meant I came to cycling with a lot of residual fitness, but also just with my head in place for a lot of training. It (training/racing) was really my thing in school, so it really just came naturally to me to keep going in that direction.

The second factor is that I don't have a lot of other commitments in my life right now besides my bike and my team. So comparing me to folks with a lot more on their plate is not really fair. Also, you don't see a lot of guys in their early 20s racing super heavily in MABRA - I think the main reason for this is that a lot of people spend the years right after they get out of school establishing their careers and/or doing the early-20s thing. That's just not my priority now.

So, short answer to your question is: I came into the sport already knowing how to go hard (though not knowing how to race), and I have few demands on my time, so I ride my bike a whole lot.

(GJ) 2. How did you get started in cycling and when did you figure out “hey, I might be pretty good at this?”

(BB) When I got out of school, I had been rowing for 8 years, the last 3 of which had been at a very high level with some very good coaches and with some incredibly talented and dedicated athletes. One of my team- and class-mates went up to Boston to try and make the National Team (which he did, twice), and I thought about going with him, but decided that I was just too mentally burnt on crew. I figured I would get a bike to stay in shape, basically just dabble and work out for fitness. That lasted all of about a month before I got bored of training below my capacity, although it did end up taking me another 9 mos. of off and on training to fully "de-burn" myself from crew. As far as the "A-ha" moment goes, I think I am still having those at each step along the way - my first win was big of course, but then winning again as a 3, then doing well at Gila as a 2, then starting to finally learn how to race my bike (instead of just going hard) this year...all steps that had to be taken before I could move on to the next one. There was never any real definite moment to me as I was coming into a new sport from a pretty high level in another sport - I would say that there was a lot more frustration at times when I wasn't living up to my unrealistic expectations of how well I should be doing in cycling.

(GJ) 3. What were your goals when you started cycling? Were you already thinking about racing at an elite level or was it more of a “let’s give this a try and see where it goes” type of deal.

(BB) Honestly, I was that jackass with the brand new USCF license saying he wanted to turn pro. Now I'm just that jackass 20-something with a Cat 1 USCF license saying he wants to turn pro. I would say that I had "unrealistic" expectations from day one - the side effect, both fortunate and unfortunate, of basically coming from being the equivalent of a Cat 1 or 2 in crew to being a 5 in cycling who doesn't know his ass from his elbow. On the downside, I got frustrated often because I was never doing as well as I thought I should, and a lot of my early victories I didn't celebrate as much as I should have, simply because I was too focused on the next step (still am). On the upside, it helps a lot to never be satisfied, as corny as it sounds.

(GJ) 4. What’s your current overarching goal in cycling? Pro contract, win an NRC event?

(BB) Both? I guess the pro contract thing gets tougher as you get older, because of the age requirements for Continental teams (which most domestic teams are), but if you're good enough, then you're good enough. I'm not good enough yet. I'm working on that though.

Even going pro though is not the end of the road - if I were racing poorly as a pro, I would be just as upset and angry at myself as when I race poorly these days. There is always improvement and there is always a next step.

(GJ) 5. DC seems a pretty strange place to be to pursue the goals you've set for yourself. Any thoughts about moving to some more typically "pro cyclist" place and if so, where?

(BB) I love DC - granted, I've only lived here since I started college, so 2001, so DC natives like Paul Lengermann and R Muoio can and do school me on DC history. But in so far as bike racing goes, I think it is actually a really good place. For one thing, MABRA has a great community, with some really dedicated officials and race promoters. Add to that the level of racing here - being able to go up against an NRC-level amateur squad or two every weekend really forces you to raise your game. Also, the focus on crit racing around here, combined with the availability of longer road races through the NE, means that you can't ignore any facet of your racing and still hope to be successful at the P/1/2 level. DC is also a pretty big city, but you can hop on RCP, Clara Barton, or MacArthur and be out in the farms in less than an hour. I definitely thought about moving to Boulder or elsewhere last year, and not to say that I maybe won't do that eventually, but living in racing in DC is certainly not holding me back right now - if anything it is making me faster.

(GJ) 6. It’s easy to deal with reaching your goals and keeping your progression on track, but how do you readjust when a goal you’ve set for yourself eludes you?

(BB) I have to admit, I'm not very good at this. All that I have ever found is to keep working at it - maybe I change my approach, but the goal stays the same. I am pretty sure that, to the outside observer, this looks remarkably similar to me banging my head against a brick wall.

(GJ) 7. You work with a coach, right? Who’s your coach, and how long have you been with him or her?

(BB) Yes, I started working with Susan Hefler last fall. I made it to Cat 1 on my own, pretty much training how we had always trained for crew (which is a 100% steady state effort - not at all stochastic like bike racing). This left me pretty strong in things like climbing and time trialing, and mediocre in pretty much every other part of bike racing. Susan has given me the physiological, psychological, and technical tools to fix that.

I'd say the biggest things that coaches need to bring to the table are a huge amount of knowledge and experience in the sport, an understanding of the science and the physiology of the training, and most importantly, the ability to act as a critical outside voice. As far as the critical perspective goes, the perfect example is how I was saying, when pursuing an elusive goal, a lot of times you need to change your approach. Thing is, a lot of times people will get so wrapped up in the feedback loop in their own heads that they are not capable of seeing any other way that what they are currently doing - a good coach should be able to take a step back from the situation and give a new perspective. So beyond just the amount of experience in the sport that she has, Susan's ability to tell me things that I don't want to hear (and then get me to do them) is huge. From making me rest when I would rather train myself into the ground to getting to me to do workouts that I have avoided in favor of more FTP or climbing or whatever in the past, it's paid huge dividends.

I also can't ignore the contribution from the other half of HPC, Pierre Pelletier. Between generously sharing his racing experience, torturing me behind the moto, and the recovery massages, I've benefited hugely.

(GJ) 8. How did you structure your training before you had a coach and how has your training structure changed now that you’re working with a coach?

(BB) Before I started working with Susan, it was really just a matter of seeing how much I could beat myself into the ground each week before I had to take a day off. I always had (and needed) a lot of structure in my training, to the point where I would (and will) have weeks of training planned out in advance. The difficulty of the training was mainly a holdover from crew - crew has a lot more over-use injuries than cycling, which provide a natural volume cap to your training. With cycling, it is very easy to keep knocking out huge weeks until you keel over. Working with a coach and having them plan your workouts also removes a huge amount of mental stress involved in planning what training you will do when, and how much. I would always wonder if I were doing enough and then err on the side of doing more, and I know I am hardly unique in this aspect. Susan provides all the structure that I (mentally) need for productive training, but she has definitely changed what workouts I do, when I do them, and how much of them I do. Some weeks now are way easier than in years past for certain, but some weeks are way, way harder. It is maybe not the best plan if your goal is to prove to yourself how macho and tough you are by knocking out 25hrs week after week with hours upon hours of intervals, but fortunately, I've gotten that out of my system after a few years of seeing how high I could get my weekly hours, kJs, etc. - now I want to actually win races instead of just impressing myself with my training volume.

(GJ) 9. You’re really fast at going uphill, but came through the ranks in a region where there aren’t exactly a lot of mountainous races. How did you adapt your natural abilities to the MABRA terrain?

(BB) Short answer was to gain some weight. Seriously. Next year I have to lose some of it again (or more accurately, some of the fat and less of the muscle) for the slenderness to take effect, but yeah. The other thing to consider though, is that, as Paul Mica pointed out to me last year, strong guys in Cats 4 and 3 (and even 2) look like climbers from their results, just because you don't have to think or even race to win on a hill - you just go hard as hell and if you're stronger than other people, you'll win. Before you can win races that don't end on hills though, you actually have to learn how to race. That why I think that people that come into this sport without a previous athletic background can often be better off - they get stronger and get smarter at a similar pace. Juniors, specifically the Jim Wilson-directed, Susan Hefler-coached ones on NCVC, are the best example I can think of.

So really, I may not be a climber anymore (or maybe next year I will be, who knows?). But I'm okay with that. A lot of times you hear people complain about yet-another-office-park crit in MABRA, saying that "Oh, that's not real bike racing", wishing instead for a XX mile road race, I guess. To me, that is just silly - a "real bike race" is anytime you've got a bunch of guys on bikes and a finish line. That said, I love that we are getting more road races in and around MABRA - I really hope that Lost River and Page Valley continue to grow in the next few years.

(GJ) 10. What do you consider to be your greatest strength as a cyclist?

(BB) I'd say knowing when to think and when to turn my head off. Tactics in races with all the local teams can get pretty layered and complex. At the same time, when you're really suffering, either in a race or in training, there is very, very little that can be achieved by thinking. If you're having a crappy time trial or you're trying to bridge to break and your legs start to go sour, and you start wondering why, are you dehydrated, behind on your nutrition, not warmed up enough, etc., you have just to shut your head off and deal with it once you are done with what you are doing. You've got to be thinking about when to make that bridge, but once you start at it, there's not a whole lot that your head can do to make your legs get you there faster - self-doubt can kill, though. That said, try not to get so cross-eyed that you race like a knuckle-head and/or dangerously.

(GJ) 11. What aspects of cycling do you find to be the most difficult and why?

(BB) Definitely the "luck-factor". Rowing is basically head-to-head time trials, pretty similar to a pursuit on the track. Stuff can go wrong now and again, but by and large, you don't have things like poorly timed flat tires, crashes, missed feeds, etc. ruining your day. Between stuff going wrong and the fact that you can be racing with up to 180 other dudes, even if you are on "no-chain" form one day, there is no guarantee of a win. However, it is important to recognize that a majority of the stuff that we call "luck" is still largely within our control. Sure I have been caught behind a crash, but I was also riding far enough back to be behind the start of the crash. Yes, I flatted, but I'd seen that pothole the past X laps, so I knew it was there. Not to say that every flat, mechanical, or crash is the rider's fault, but not all are random either.

(GJ) 12. What do you consider to be your best result so far and why?

(BB) Tough to say. Having the Kelly Benefits Strategies/LSV team win the 1/2/3 race at Clarendon Cup and 1st and 3rd on the RR and GC at Tour of Washington County this year have to be mentioned. I've had some good results in earlier categories in travel races, but I've still never knocked out a really good result in local racing, so I have to crack that before I can seriously start talking about success at a larger/higher level.

(GJ) 13. This is your first year on the Kelly Benefits team. What motivated the change in teams and how has riding for KBS been different than riding for NCVC?

(BB) I look at it like I graduated from NCVC. NCVC is a great club, and one that does a whole lot of different things very well, from promoting 4 races annually now, to having a nationally recognized junior development program, all while having one of the largest member bases in the country. Because NCVC covers all this ground, I think it can be tough for the club to provide a really sharp focus on any specific area.

I came from 5 to 1 with NCVC, which I'm very proud of, but after last year, I felt like I would benefit from riding with a squad where all the riders shared the same priorities/expectations and had the same ability to travel to races, spend time training, etc. I was very lucky at the end of last year that Kelly/LSV was rebuilding their elite team with a renewed focus/mission and was happy to be invited to join.

Aside from the guys on the team at Kelly/LSV, having a director (Murray Davis) at all of our races is super helpful. I never realized it until I had it, but having somebody show up at all of our races an hour or two pre-start, set up a tent and chairs, then say "Here're the bottles, here're the radios, here's the plan", then go and camp out in the feed zone for 3+ hours in the rain or heat or whatever, that is really huge.

(GJ) 14. KBS also has a national pro team. Is there a lot of interaction between the elite amateur team and the pro team? Is the idea of the elite team to move people onto the pro team? Do the two teams ever race with one another?

(BB) There is not really a ton of interaction, which is pretty normal considering that they have a national race schedule and ours is predominantly local. When we do go to the NRC races, we just act as if we were separate squads; when local guys on the pro squad like Jonny Sundt, Cheyne Hoag, Clay Murfet, or Shane Kline show up, there can be a bit more cooperation maybe, but everybody is still racing, and we are on separate teams of course. I am pretty sure that the pro team has actually taken at least one rider per year from the elite team since the inception of the pro squad, so if that trend is to continue, well, Nate Wilson pops to mind. What it really boils down to though is that John Kelly and the entirety of the Kelly Benefits organization are hugely generous and enthusiastic about the sport to sponsor not only a very successful pro team but also an ambitious amateur elite team.

(GJ) 15. You took kind of a rough fall a few weeks ago and broke your jaw. How has that changed your season’s path and what’s left on the horizon for 2009?

(BB) Yeah, that was a bummer since it came a week before I was to leave for the Cascade Classic NRC stage race with Nate, and I had really felt like my legs were coming around through the previous weeks at Reston and Fitchburg. I was very lucky though that it was a minor break that only required me to have my jaw wired shut for two weeks. It was also great to have all the support from MABRA riders in general, which helped a lot mentally. Right now, I am just trying to get my racing rhythm back for the rest of the season - plenty of racing left through the end of September, so the season is hardly over.

(GJ) 16. Finish the following statement: “12 months from now I’d like to be…”

(BB) Wrapping up the kind of season that Nate Wilson has had, seriously. Or perhaps not wrapping up - I would say getting ready to go into Green Mountain and Univest after having raced at Gila, Fitchburg, and Cascade (posting a stage result at at least one of the three and a GC result at Cascade), along with full local schedule that saw a win at Reston and helping the team win Jeff Cup, ToWC, the MABRA crit and RR champs, and putting a rider up in either the BoA Wilmington NRC crit and/or Kelly Cup. Truth be told, before the jaw, I was getting stomped a lot this season - but it was a year that I had to have before I could take the next step.

(photo courtesy of Jim Wilson)

David Kirkpatrick is a Features Editor with GamJams who races for NCVC. He is enjoying growing fame through his blog Flamenco Chuckwagon, and as promoter of the lauded Lost River Classic.