Over the last decade, cycling has made its mark on campus as a club sport. Former and current riders have ranked nationally in competitive racing during their time here as Whitman students and years after in the professional arena as alumni. The strength of the club can be attributed to   successful recruitments at beginning of the year that have brought beginners into the fold of a highly experienced team.

“We have about 40 members on the team and almost half of them are freshmen or first-year riders,” said senior Colin Gibson, a former member of the Whitman swim team. Gibson is the current president of the club and an experienced rider who has competed nationally.

Usually dominated by athletes from other sports, the current cycling team features many former varsity athletes including Nordic skiers, swimmers, runners and other athletes who have competed on the college-level. The large membership of beginner-level riders is unusual, but a promising sign for the energy of the team.

When senior and fellow nationals competitor Ben Chaddock decided to design a cycling course for students to take for credit, he kept in mind the needs of new riders who would be continuing on the success of the club. Like Gibson, Chaddock will be graduating this year.

“We’re all leaving this year and we don’t want to see the team fall apart,” said Chaddock. “Cyclical movements happen in all club sports where you’ll see ups and downs come and go.”

In an effort to open riding experience to the Whitman community as well as allow students to train for credit, this SSRA course is team taught by Chaddock and Malcolm Dunn. Dunn is the head cross country running coach who has been teaching endurance training at Whitman for the last five years and has shown support for the cycling team’s athletic efforts.

“It’s not something that’s done too often,” said Dunn of the collaboratively designed course. “When a student has an interest beyond what the course catalog has to offer, they must petition for a class like this to be included.”

Along with the help of Athletic Director Dean Snider, Chaddock and Dunn were able to establish a one-credit conditioning class this semester for 15 cyclists, with the prerequisite being that each student must have his or her own road bike to use. Although not exclusively for club members, the majority of the students in this class are the team’s first-year riders.

“It’s pretty much a crash course in everything from proper recovery, athletic lifestyle philosophy and how you should apply training,” said Chaddock. He noted the benefit of having Dunn team-teaching the class because of his experience with coaching and teaching in the classroom setting.

“This class is unique because everyone in the class is very motivated to pick up the skills and apply them this cycling season,” said Dunn.

The cycling course meets twice a week with Tuesdays mainly devoted to classroom time and Thursdays allotted for actual training. This includes everything from working out in the gym to going on actual rides.

For this year’s students and new riders, Chaddock hopes his fellow team members avoid that cyclical movement that most clubs experience, facing waves of successes and failures.

“If we can keep the team running consistently physically and on an educational level, we can avoid that movement and experience continued success,” said Chaddock.

Seasoned riders like junior Roxy Pierson have the experience level that is hard for any new beginner to keep up with. After being abroad last fall, Pierson is excited to meet the new members and work with them as racing season approaches.

“It’s nice to have new riders who are willing to work to get on the same level as others on the team,” said Pierson, who will lead the club when she becomes a senior.

Although Chaddock will not be present for future offerings of this class, Dunn hopes to have it continue.

“I’d like to offer it to an even larger audience. Everyone in the class right now has an interest in becoming a competitive rider, but it might be nice to give it a broader scope and also include the recreational rider,” said Dunn.

For more information on the Whitman cycling team, check out www.whitman.edu/cycling.