CyclingNews  (Race: Giro d’Italia, Stage 1)

Taylor Phinney (BMC) is only 21 and in his second year as a pro, but the talented young American’s road career took a huge leap forward today with victory in the opening short time trial that was stage 1 of the Giro d’Italia.

Phinney’s strong late spring form already hooked him a lead inthe Giro del Trentino when BMC won the team time trial, but the 21-year-old’s victory in the Giro, his first individual road success since the Eneco Tour prologue last August, is a breakthrough of huge proportions.

Watched by his mother Connie Carpenter Phinney, herself a former World and Olympic road and track champion, Phinney explained in the winner’s press conference in Herning that he hoped that his Giro success and lead – the first for an American since Christian Vande was first across the line in the Giro’s opening team time trial back in 2008 – would be just the start of more success.

“We’ll see what happens tomorrow, but tonight I’ll sleep very happily,” Phinney said.

“This is incredibly special for me, I’ve been nervous for a couple of weeks coming into this race, but nervous in a good way. I knew I could do something really big here today.” “It just came down to going out there and doing it.”

Local favorite Alex Rasmussen (Garmin-Barracuda) had said pre-race that the second section, with the long straightaways and strong headwinds, would be crucial, and Phinney made a point of “keeping a little extra mojo for that part because I knew the last three kilometers were the most difficult section. So I put my head down and gave it everything I had.”

“It’s a huge honor to be here in Denmark, and wearing the leader’s jersey is just incredible.”

If one of BMC’s managers, Jim Ochowicz, was particularly delighted given he was in the team car with the 7-Eleven squad when Andy Hampsten took America’s first ever Giro lead (and win) back in 1988, so too was BMC’s Max Sciandri. Sciandri acts as Phinney’s mentor at his Euro-base in Tuscany, Italy and Phinney – apart from thanking his team profusely in general – made a special point of mentioning the former Tour de France stage winner as having contributed big-time over the last 18 months to his victory.

Looking ahead, Phinney said, “Now we take it day by day, but I have to thank my team and staff and directors for believing in me. My mom is here, and I also got to talk to my dad” – Davis Phinney, the USA’s first ever Tour de France stage winner – “and my sister [Kelsey] just as Scarponi was coming across the line, and I knew I’d got the win. So for me this is incredibly special.”

Although he already has an U23 world championship and track world championship titles to his name, Phinney said, “I wouldn’t say these results come easy to me…I’ve always targeted big events and tried to be at my best at really important parts of the season. Last year was not quite as fruitful as I think a lot of people expected it to be, I had a couple of knee problems, and

“So coming into this year I had a lot more experience under my belt, and I knew this time trial was in a way a season-maker, a huge opportunity for me to showcase myself and my abilities.” I knew it would be a struggle of a year, a learning year.”

Cycling News

Pulling on the Giro d’Italia’s maglia rosa is a prestigious moment in any rider’s career and Taylor Phinney believes that if he succeeds in wining the race’s opening time trial on Saturday, his life will change forever.

The BMC rider lines up as one of the favorites to win the race’s 8.7km time trial in Denmark, with a pancake flat course ideally suited to his style of riding. However, with a number of strong rivals, the American is well aware of how difficult the test will be.

“I know that I can potentially change my life on Saturday. I can change my year, my career in a way and post my biggest result to date in just 10 minutes of racing. That’s just extra motivation for me,” Phinney told Cyclingnews.

“I’m looking forward to this time trial. It’s been a huge goal of mine for the whole year. I’m in a really good place to tackle it and I really want to win it.

“There are going to be some guys there that will put up strong opposition: [Alex] Rasmussen being from Denmark and being a prologue specialist; I know [Geraint] Thomas is coming off of a win in Romandie and rolling on some good track from; I’ve also seen that Daniele Bennati is also keen on it. But I’m super excited for my first Giro.”

Phinney believes that his fitness and mentality to race have never been better but the opening time trial only marks part of the American’s mission. The main goal is for Phinney to complete his first Grand Tour. Last year he survived part of the Vuelta a Espana before retiring but eight months on from his three-week debut, completion is the task.

“The biggest goal for the Giro is to try and finish it and tough it out for three weeks, but I just know I can win this first time trial. I’m going to give it everything that I have.

“Pulling the pink jersey on would be the biggest result of my career. For me the Giro is almost on par with the Tour de France. Obviously the Tour is the biggest race in the world, but the Giro is in the same scope as Paris-Roubaix for me when I’m thinking about the biggest races. I’ve been going to sleep every night dreaming of the pink jersey.”

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Cycling News

After displaying prodigious talent as a teenager, Taylor Phinney has long been identified as the next big thing in US cycling. After a meteoric rise to fame that included a host of world and national junior championships on the track and victory in the U23 race at Paris-Roubaix in 2010 in Livestrong Trek colours, much was expected of him when he signed to race for BMC last year.

But not everything went to plan in his debut season as a full-time professional. By his own admission, the 21-year-old from Boulder wasn’t fully prepared for the step-up and didn’t find his feet until late in the year. But he is confident that it will be a different story this time round and claims that he is “excited” rather than “stressed” as he begins his season at the Tour of Qatar.

“Compared to last year I think that having a full year underneath me as a pro has been really important and I’m a lot more relaxed,” he told Cyclingnews. “Last year I had a couple of knee problems and I didn’t really know what was required during the winter to get myself into the best shape mentally and physically.

“Having a season with 70 plus race days under my belt has made a huge difference. My busiest year before that was around half that number, so last season was a big step up for me and I don’t think I was truly ready for it.”

Up until that point Phinney’s reputation in the sport had climbed every year, so hearing murmurs of doubt from the press was a new sensation for him. Having come out the other side, does he feel that he has a score to settle with both himself and some of the critics that came out of the woodwork in the early part of last year?

“I don’t really feel I have that much of a score to settle,” he said. “I got back up on my feet quite well in the latter part of 2011. I had a good show at the ENECO Tour in August and then a decent time trial in the Vuelta. I got further than I thought I would in that race and it gave me confidence. I just need to keep progressing from those performances and keep improving. I feel that I am in good shape to do that.

“Happiness and stress levels are a huge factor in a rider’s performance. Generally I’d say my stress levels are a lot lower now and happiness is much higher, and that has helped me to have fun at these races as opposed to being nervous about them. I have really been looking forward to racing with Thor [Hushovd] and Phil [Philippe Gilbert], who are two of my huge idols when I think about my favourite riders on the peloton. Being be able to race alongside them is a huge thrill.

“This time round everything is more familiar. I know people on the peloton and have made a lot of friends now. I am able to be more social and hang out with the guys a bit more. I’m really excited to be here in Qatar and I know Eddy Merckx puts on a really good race every year. I missed it last time but I’m glad to be back.”

Vail News

Many young athletes dream of going to the Olympics. For Connie Carpenter, that dream came true when she was only 14. Now Carpenter is watching her son, Taylor Phinney, make his own goal of Olympic gold a reality. Carpenter and her husband, Davis Phinney, also an Olympic medalist, will give a presentation about their experiences, called “The Olympics Now and Then,” at the Donovan Pavilion in Vail tonight.

Carpenter first competed in the Olympics in 1972 as a speed skater. After a series of ankle injuries and tendonitis, she could no longer skate. She decided to try cycling because her brother was involved with the sport at the time. Cycling turned out to be the right fit for the young athlete, who won a gold medal in the 1984 Los Angeles games at the age of 27. This was not only a milestone for Carpenter but also for the sport itself.

“It was the first time women’s cycling was included in the Olympics,” Carpenter said. “I had never competed (as a cyclist) in America, much less the Olympics.”

Bicycles made for competitive cycling normally aren’t built for two, but that didn’t prevent Carpenter and Phinney from connecting over the sport in the late ‘70s. The couple married in 1983. Phinney’s first medal also came in 1984, with a bronze in the Team Time Trial. He then went on to garner two stage wins in the Tour de France (1986 and 1987). Phinney is a U.S. National Champion and has won more races than any other American cyclist in history.

A life-changing diagnosis

Phinney retired in 1993 in anticipation of the birth of their second child, Kelsey. At that time Phinney had no idea that the next chapter of his life would bring a challenge far more difficult than cycling. At the age of 40, in 2000, Phinney was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.

“Getting diagnosed with Parkinson’s was life-changing,” Phinney said. “As an athlete, it’s a particularly cruel disease because it is a movement disorder and I am wired to move.”

Phinney’s diagnosis has affected the whole family, but both husband and wife said that it has also helped them treasure the tiny triumphs they overcome each day.

“When you have an illness you learn to appreciate the small events in your life and the small victories,” Carpenter said.

Phinney, along with Sports Illustrated senior writer Austin Murphy, has written a book about his battle with Parkinson’s called “The Happiness Pursuit.” Phinney said he used the skills and tools he learned as a cyclist to help him deal with his disease.

“As an athlete, I have the fortitude for the long haul,” Phinney said. “It’s not easy and it took me a few years to adjust to it, but life does in fact go on and I’ve made the conscious decision to make the very best of it.”

Following in the parent’s pedals

Being the son of two champion athletes, you would assume that Taylor Phinney came out of the womb with a gold medal around his neck. But Carpenter said Taylor’s success came as a compete surprise to both her and her husband. While Carpenter and Phinney encouraged both their children (daughter Kelsey is a national class Nordic skier) to try a variety of sports, they knew that cycling was one of the toughest.

“It was nothing we ever expected,” Carpenter said. “It’s a really hard sport and you pick it for a couple of reasons. One is that you have the personality that can handle it. (Two) you do it not so much for the results, but for the experience and striving to be better. Perhaps he got a little bit of that from us.”

Taylor finished seventh in the Men’s Track Cycling Individual Pursuit at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China. He is currently competing for a bid to the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. At Carpenter and Phinney’s presentation they will discuss the differences between their Olympic experiences and their son’s. Carpenter thinks that the changes have been both negative and positive.

“A lot of athletes talk about sacrifice, I don’t buy that.” Carpenter said. “Being an Olympic athlete is a privilege, a rare opportunity to pursue something so single-mindedly. It’s hard to live with pressure that you live with for any sport … but I didn’t have the resources my kids have, like coaching and sports psychology, a lot of it is for the better but the scrutiny and analysis, it really takes a special personality to deal with that kind of pressure.”

A speed skater turned cyclist, a cyclist dealing with a debilitating disease, and a son trying to honor his parent’s legacy, the story of Carpenter, Phinney and Taylor is one for the record books.

Cycling News

Taylor Phinney (BMC) has donated $25,000 to help his father’s cause, the Davis Phinney Foundation.  Phinney made the donation in order to spread awareness of Parkinson’s disease, which his father was diagnosed with in 2000 and has battled since.

“I’ve started this fundraiser for the month of January. I decided that I would donate 25,000 dollars to the foundation,” Taylor Phinney told Cyclingnews.

Phinney has set the challenge of asking the public to make smaller donations in a bid to match his pledge.

“It’s the first significant kind of donation I’ve made to any foundation or any

charity. Obviously my dad’s condition impacts me, not only as a person but as a cyclist. So for me to be able to give back in that way is special and I’m grateful to have the ability to make the donation.”

“Like most people I have a really special relationship with my dad and he’s very much one of my best friends. He’s been a really good role model for me and he’s made sure I was raised properly.”

“He was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 2000 so it’s been almost 12 years now. He was only 41 then so it was fairly early on and it took a long time to accept. Luckily he’s been able to live with it pretty well and that’s the message that he’s spread around the community. He’s really good at inspiring people.

“He still looks and acts like he’s doing really well, that’s the reality, but of course he still has his struggles every day. Sometimes it’s harder to see than other times and I’ve seen him struggle through a few things and after coming back after such a long break from home you notice prominent changes.

“He’s still smiling a lot and lives a great life but it’s a great reminder to me not to take things for granted. My dad’s a guy who pushed his body to the outermost limit and every single day he was doing everything he could to make that day worthwhile. My dad still does that, it just takes him a little extra time to do it. It’s motivating.”

Readers in the US can donate $10 to the Davis Phinney Fund by texting VICTORY to 80888. Alternatively you can donate here.

'Despite having Parkinson's disease, Davis still goes for training rides with Taylor' (The Happiness of Pursuit, Davis Phinney. Photo- Robert Beck)