From the Director's Seat

I had the honor of directing the Saturn Women and assisting the Saturn Men to wins at the 2003 Nature Valley Grand Prix. As a director, you are privvy to an inside look at the mechanics of a race - from the volunteer organization, to the sponsorship side, to the official's handling of the actual race, to the promotion of the race to the media, to the host housing, etc. Many riders do not realize the tremendous amount of work that a crew of several hundred people put into the NVGP.

The army of volunteers, officials, media required to ensure the continuance of this event in such mainstream cities has been so successful, in my observation, due to two reasons. The first is the leadership that David LaPorte provides to his staff and support he provides to the teams. The second is the hard work of all the staff; their love of the sport and appreciation for having the some of the top athletes in the world compete in their backyard.

David and I got to know each other when I received a phone call from him asking for ideas on how to draw more women to his race. Way back when (2000, 2001, 2002) NVGP and the HP Women's Challenge (back then one of the top women's Tours on the UCI calendar) overlapped. David tried to entice women with prize money - but that did nothing to peak the teams' interest.

After much brainstorming, David and I created a laundry list of ideas to draw the women's teams. Many still exist today (The Yoplait Women's Summit, for instance). David's hard work and dedication to the women's teams has paid off nicely. NVGP is one of the highest regarded races on the women's calendar, and to win a stage or be in the top ten on GC, or a jersey winner, is a very high honor on a woman's palmares. NVGP is what I would consider the crown jewell in the Women's Prestige Series, and rightly so. It tests all types of athletic abilities, and requires not only all around talent, but a strong tactical plan, and a dedicated team.

But I digress. The year that I mention in the preface to this blog submission the Saturn Team had the honor of being on the top of the podium in both the men's and the women's race. Both races were spectacular. In the men's race the Saturn Team passed the jersey from Viktor Rapinski to Trent Klasna as Trent handily won the final stage. It was Katie Mactier taking home the honor of NVGP champion with an outstanding ride in both the Time Trial and Saturday's road race.

However, the race that year was an exhausting one. We began the race by putting the riders on a plane in Philadelphia, PA, then the staff breaking every speed limit out there to get all the vehicles necessary to MN. The race began that year up in the Iron Mountain Range - a far bit from St. Paul. Although beautiful and challenging, the amount of transfers wore on everyone - staff, riders, officials, and race crew. When David asked me what changes I would like to see, like many teams' staff members, I said "Please, not so much driving - hard on riders, harder on staff."

And like a great leader, David concured, and the following year the race was far more manageable, yet retained its challenging courses and state-wide fan base. And that is only one of the reasons why the Nature Valley Grand Prix will always be one of America's top events: a race director who listens and adapts to the teams' needs instills trust with the teams, and support within the competitive cycling community. David can count on the best athletes of the country duking it out at the NVGP, and can sell that to sponsors and the media. This in turn brings more awareness to the sport, and more positive support of our sport. This becomes an upward spiral, benefiting all involved.

In 2008 I will return to Nature Valley, with the Proman Women's Team in tow. I am excited to return to a race I have such fond memories of and to see how it has grown. I feel like I knew the NVGP when it was just a small child and now it has matured into a young adult. MN - here we come!