Cycling set to defend Ivy and Eastern titles

The club cycling team faces stiff odds due to the absence of key racers. West River Drive doesn't look much like Franklin Field, but it will also be hosting droves of racers this weekend. Penn plays hosts to the Relays for the 104th time this year, Easterns will be hosted by Penn for the first time this Saturday and Sunday on the shores of the Schuylkill River at Fairmount Park. The co-ed Quakers Cycling Club will be defending its Ivy League and Conference titles at the season's most important event -- the Eastern Conference Road Cycling Championships. The most accomplished cycling teams in the Northeastern conference -- spanning from New Hampshire to Southern Pennsylvania -- will gather at Easterns for a two day multiple race competition consisting of three events -- the road race, team time trials and the criterium. Cycling teams will compete for points during the three races, each of which has four different men's categories -- A, B, C and D -- and two -- A and B -- for women. At the end, the team with the most points will win the competition. Due to the nature of the scoring of the event -- overall points determine the winner -- teamwork is essential for any team to succeed at Easterns. "You often have five or six teammates racing in a pack and they have to work together to assure that they will earn the highest amount of points for the team," Penn coach Peter Durdaller said. In addition, Durdaller explained that, at times, strong cyclists have to race in less competitive divisions to assure the teams accumulation of sufficient points. Having won Easterns in Road Cycling last year, as well as the Eastern Mountain Racing Competition this past fall, the Quakers have proven their ability to harmonize their efforts into a cohesive unit. The question now is will they be able to do it again? Two weeks ago, many Quaker cyclists would have answered yes. But the sudden withdrawal of three of the club's top cyclists due to academic obligations has hurt the team's chances of repeating last year's performance. "We are not in great shape, we're definitely having to struggle for the moment," Durdaller said. "We lost three personnel over the past week because of academic obligations and one of those riders was an excellent point producer." Despite lacking accomplished riders, team captain Tal Zamir stressed that although victory is not likely, it is possible. "It will be close, every year the competition seems like it is getting closer," Zamir said. "It all seems to come down to who does well on that day." In addition, Zamir noted that race conditions would be a major factor in determining who succeeds. "It depends on the conditions, the course and luck -- there are crashes in the race all the time," Zamir said. "It's a matter of being able to properly cope and adjust oneself to the conditions demanded of the race." And considering the practice each of the cyclists has engaged in throughout the semester, the chances of the Quakers falling prey to slick pavement and bicycle tangle-ups are unlikely. Riding 40-70 miles in the span of two to four hours on typical weekend days and climbing half-mile hills in the rocky Gladwyne terrain in suburban Philadelphia, the Quakers are well equipped to handle adverse conditions. "These kids have trained immeasurably. They are very well conditioned and very well focused," Durdaller said. "Given the fact that 75 percent of the team had never cycled competitively before coming to Penn, their achievements thus far are spectacular." And the students are likewise glad to have Durdaller as a volunteer coach. "Our coach is great, I have never seen somebody who can generate so much enthusiasm out of a group," cyclist Bryon Gomberg said. "He puts more time and energy into the team than anyone else." Zamir similarly praised Durdaller's effects on the team. "Most riders are first years who were introduced to cycling by Peter," Zamir said. "Because of him, we have gone this far." The official team chiropractor and assistant soungie for the professional Team Saturn and a former Quaker City Wheelmen from 1992-1994, Durdaller's cycling experience has molded many inexperienced riders into accomplished cyclists. "The Coach catapulted me from being a nobody racer to winning the championship in the category D criterium," former Penn cyclist Kevin Girard said. Despite their impressive training and leadership, it remains unlikely that the Quakers will excel at Easterns. They do, however, remain viable competitors in the race for the Ivy title, which will also be determined at Easterns. Yale appears to be their only competitive threat. And even if the team loses both the Ivy title -- which they have held for the past two years -- and Easterns, they still hope to accumulate enough points to send team members to the nationals later this year.