Photo: John Howard
The “Ride With” Program is an opportunity to meet and ride with some of the most interesting people that ride the San Diego Century. Some are real Legends of Cycling, whose exploits on the bike excite everyone who loves the sport. Some are experts who can offer advice on training, nutrition, cycling technique and the history of the sport. And some are the people who have done incredible things in their life and brought that to their cycling. The San Diego Century Bicycle Tour is privileged to host a wonderful group of cyclists.
John Howard Profile:
We are honored to bring you more information about 3 time Olympian and cycling legend John Howard, the featured "Ride With" Athlete for this edition.
We are thrilled to announce that John Howard, cycling extraordinaire, will be joining us at the San Diego Century Bicycle Tour on May 22, 2010. John is our featured "Ride With" athlete for this week's edition of cycling news.
John Howard's illustrious cycling career has been a passion for him for 50 years. He has accomplished as much in one career as many of us would dream of doing over several lifetimes. Fellow UltraCycling Hall of Fame inductee, Lon Haldeman, once spoke of John by saying, "John Howard was a lot better rider than me. The only way I could win was to have better organization and try to make up time when the weather conditions were bad." To put it simply, John Howard is one of the most respected and admired cyclists in the sport.
His accomplishments are long as his illustrious career.
John is a 3-time Olympic Cyclist, competing in the 1968, 1972 and 1976 Summer Olympics as part of the US Olympic Cycling Team. He won the gold medal in the 1971 Pan American Games road cycling race in Cali, Columbia beating Luis Carlos Florez in a memorable sprint finish. He was a member of the U.S. National Team for 10 years, and a 4-time U.S. National Road Cycling champion accomplishing the feat in 1968, 1972, 1973 and 1975. If these cycling accomplishments weren't enough, John Howard also won the 1981 Ironman Triathlon in Hawaii. One year later, Howard partcipated in the 1982 Great American Bike Race, which is the precursor to the revered Race Across America that John helped establish. He came in second to the man who respected him immensely, Lon Haldeman, with a time of 10 days, 10 hours and 59 minutes.
On July 20, 1985, John Howard sealed his legendary career by setting a land speed record of 152.2 miles per hour (245 km/h) while motor-pacing on a pedal bicycle on Utah's Bonneville Salt Flats. His record stood for over 10 years. Later in the decade, John set the 24-hour paced record after 3 attempts cycling 539 miles in Clearwater, FL in June 1987.
John Howard is an UltraCycling Hall of Fame founder and inductee, and still enjoys all types of athletic events. A resident of Encinitas, CA, John has stated this his proudest achievements are setting the 24-hour record and the co-founding of RAAM (Race Across America).
We have the great pleasure of welcoming John Howard as one of our "Ride With" athletes for the San Diego Century Bicycle Tour in Encinitas this May. We are very excited to have him part of this year's bicycle tour. As a special gift, San Diego Century is proud to offer a complimentary bike fitting with John as part of the Double VIP promotion running now through March 5, 2010. Sign up today for your chance to win this opportunity to learn from a legend.
If you are interested in contacting John visit his website at http://www.johnhowardsports.com/
San Diego Century Bicycle Tour "Ride With" Athletes
Here are the rest of the current “Ride With” Program members who will be out on the course in May:
Kim Mueller – Kim is an All-American Triathlete, a Registered Dietitian and is armed with a master’s degree in Exercise Physiology/Sports Nutrition. She used her expertise to develop and launch Infinit Nutrition, a company that custom blends functional ingredients to address a variety of performance and health goals. Kim thoroughly enjoys helping others achieve optimal health and peak fitness performance.
To read our feature article on Kim, click here>>.
Darryl MacKenzie - Darryl has been a Licensed USA Cycling Coach since 1997, has 30 Double Centuries completed, and is a leader in the cycling community. He trains 50-100 riders a year through a combination of spinning classes and road rides.
To read our feature article on Darryl, click here>>.
Damon Poor – Damon underwent gastric bypass surgery in 2001, and went from 350 pounds to 4 Double Century’s in 3 years. He’ll be on the course providing inspiration for all of us.
To read our feature article on Damon, click here>>.
We look forward to building upon the “Ride With” Program for the San Diego Century Bicycle Tour in 2010 – we hope you get as much fun and inspiration out of it as we do.
Leave a comment if you are interested in riding with or contacting the “Ride With” Program members.
Click here on The San Diego Century Bicycle Tour to get more information, register for the ride on May 22, 2010 or purchase the 2010 Jersey!
Ride on!
by Chris Hendrickson
editor: Greg Hendrickson
Greg's Blog: WatchMyRace
Photo: John Howard
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