Hesjedal sold on Maui
Canadian talks about his off-season training camp in Hawaii
Ryder Hesjedal wants to share.
The seventh-place finisher in the 2010 Tour de France is hosting a week-long training camp in Hawaii to give people a taste of what pre-season training is like for a professional cyclist. The idea came up a year ago while Hesjedal and Garmin-Cervelo teammate Christian Vande Velde were training in Maui. After chatting with friend Donnie Arnoult of Go Cycling Maui tours, they decided to create a pro cycling experience for the general public.
“I’ve been coming here in the off season for the last three or four years,” Hesjedal said over the phone from his Maui home. “We all kind of came up with the idea – why not try and put something together more scheduled?”
They settled on Dec. 4 to 11 – which dovetails nicely with Garmin-Cervelo’s first training camp in the Cayman Islands from Nov. 28 to Dec. 3. At $9,850 US per rider, the Maui Cycling Camps experience isn’t cheap, but guests can expect five-star treatment. Service includes mechanical support, physiotherapy, food, drinks, laundry and a reserved lounge at the Four Seasons hotel, where guests will be staying.
But the main attraction is the riding partners. “We’ve got Seamus McGrath coming out. Christian (Vande Velde) is going to be here – he’s sold, he loves it here in Maui. Compared to Chicago, obviously, in December.” Former pro mountain biker Andreas Hestler and Ironman champion Chris Lieto will also help run the camp. “It’s about just really putting it out there and giving people a chance to experience exactly what we do,” Hesjedal said. “I think it would be neat for other people to just plug in. It’ll just be a nice time.”
But there’s another motive behind the camp: Jump-starting training for 2011 and improve on Hesjedal’s 2010 campaign, which included second place in the Amstel Gold Race and third and fifth in the Canadian Pro Tour events. “I’ve got to be in shape for my training camp,” he said. There are still five or six spots available for the camp, which is limited to 15 guests. For more information visit mauicyclingcamps.com.
