Come Feb 9th Strada Racing Club will host the mother of all bike races, the Sun Devil Classic. Here, top racers in the Southwest will put the pedal to the mettle on a fast, flat, electrifying course. At the head of the pack (figuratively speaking) will be Mike Kolin, head honcho of Strada and a racing superstar in his own right. Mike started cycling in 1961, won four State Championships in Michigan, went on to co-author three books on cycling and has coached numerous world champions (that was a mouthful). Mike moved with his wife Lisa (who has won numerous bike races including 18 State Championships) to Scottsdale in 2001 and started coaching the Strada Racing Club. “We’re very enthusiastic about our rider development program which produced 81 State Cycling Championships and three National Championships last year,” says Mike. Here, Coach Kolin cycles through his local fitness faves…
Favorite Cycling Route
North on Pima to Legend Trails, turn right on Stagecoach and ride to the top of the hill where the road stops. Turn left and continue uphill through the beautiful new neighborhood until the road stops at Cave Creek Road. Turn right on Cave Creek Road and continue uphill (notice the common theme here….it’s great fun coming back down the hill!) past the Bartlett Lake turnoff on the right. Stay on Cave Creek Road up and down the rolling hills and through the exciting corners. You’ll pass the Sears Kay Ruins turnoff as you go up another good size climb. Stay on this road until it turns into gravel. You deserve a few minutes of rest at this point as you’ve conquered many miles of rolling terrain with great views, few cars and exciting corners that make you feel as if you’re racing in the Tour de France! Turn back around and enjoy a few climbs but the majority is downhill with incredible views.
Favorite Bike Store
Domenics Two Wheelers at Rural Road and Broadway in Tempe. Ex-professional cyclist Domenic Malvestuto started the Strada Racing Club and his bike shop in 1976 creating a legacy of developing cyclists and serving the cycling community for over forty years!
Favorite Bike
I ride a Trek Madone 6.9. After over 50 years of riding professional racing bikes, mostly from Italy, we discovered the new “Made in America” Trek Madones which have industry-leading technology and are super lightweight, but built for the rigors of professional racers. Good enough for them… good enough for me!
Favorite Healthy Restaurant
Uh-oh. I try to eat healthy every day at home, and when I go out it’s usually for pasta… and lots of it. We love the Maggiano’s at Frank Lloyd Wright and Scottsdale Road. The food is great, the prices are good and we usually get the buy one pasta and take one home…. the second one is free! For me it’s bowtie pasta with Bolognese sauce.
Favorite way to cross train
I like to play banjo and the seat is a lot softer! Seriously, though, the best cross training for cycling is speed skating on ice or rollerblading.
Check out that Strada Racing Club site! The Sun Devil Classic has over $9,000 in prizes in just 12 races – with awesome sponsors. That’s is nothing short of amazing!
My teammate Melissa Ross took second, in a photo finish, in the Women’s Pro-1-2 race. Another teammate was second in both the the Men’s 40+, and the Men’s 50+. I missed it nursing cracked ribs, but will be there next year! Thanks Strada!