About the Team

Shenandoah Valley's Only Cycling Club Dedicated to Bicycle Racing

Team Traveller is the only cycling club in the Rockbridge County area that concentrates on bike racing. We have a small but dedicated team of Washington and Lee University alumni, students, faculty, administrators and spouses of all the above. We also have several members who are local Bike enthusiasts from Clifton Forge, Covington and Nelson County. We train in Lexington, Buena Vista cities, Augusta, Botetourt, Allegheny, Bath, Highland and Rockbridge Counties and along the Blue Ridge Parkway, all year long. Since there are no races in Lexington, Rockbridge or in the Shenandoah Valley, we race in Pennsylvania, Northern Virginia, Tidewater (Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Chesapeake, Suffolk), North Carolina and South Carolina.

The team was founded in 2007 by Washington and Lee University Student Elliott O'Brien and alumnus David Cobb. Since 2007, we have increased our membership and participated in a growing number of races. In 2008 we will be the only club at W&L to participate in events through the summer. We have races in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Northern Virginia, Maryland, Richmond and the Tidewater throughout the season.

In addition to our own team, we assisted with the Tour of Virginia (formerly the Tour of Shenandoah). We drove the caravan car for the pro team Fior di Frutta, as well as racing in the 6th Stage of the Tour, where Elliott O'Brien won the Cat. 5 Criterium. We are working to develop our own races in the near future and hope to work with nearby clubs to bring more racing to the western side of the state.

Beginnings

Team Traveller has come a long way since its humble beginnings in January 2007. At its inception the club had only one student rider licensed with USA Cycling, and he was out of commission for medical reasons. The first year, the team was funded through individual members. We established two major goals: Promote cycling at Washington and Lee University and to start a viable racing team.

Charity Fundraising

The first major project the team undertook was to support Vice-President Matt Langan, '10, in his Trekkin' fundraising initiative. After a family friend was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, Langan decided to raise funds for the National Parkinson's Foundation (NPF) by riding from Richmond, VA, to Norristown, PA, a distance of 385 miles. He first approached family and friends in his hometown in Kentucky, then proceeded to publicize the ride through his own website, http://web.mac.com/langanm, through National Parkinson's Foundation publications, his local newspapers and the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

David Cobb, '87, President Elliott O'Brien, '10, and Treasurer Woodrow Friend, '08, joined Langan in training through the bitter and sometimes treacherous conditions of the Virginia winter. Many precautions had to be taken to avoid injury and the risks associated with riding in low temperatures. The team was very grateful to Cobb for the donation of thermal riding apparel and a road bike for Matt to train and make the trip on. The Washington and Lee Outing Club also provided assistance and equipment, including water bottles and first aid supplies.

The ride was scheduled for the Washington Break in February. Despite snow in Pennsylvania, the team covered the distance as planned, only briefly forced by a freak heavy snow shower to rack the bikes and ride in the mini-van for the last few miles into Washington, DC, at the end of the second day. Family friends of Langan, Bill and Sam Martin, followed the team in a chase car. Washington and Lee alumni and current students provided lodging and much appreciated-hospitality in Fredericksburg, VA, Washington, DC, Glyndon, MD, and Norristown, PA.

The team arrived in Norristown on the afternoon of February 21st, having suffered no wrecks and only a single flat tire over the course of the whole ride. As exciting as completing the trek was to learn that the funds raised for the NPF totaled over $12,000. Langan is considering organizing another charity event next year. He is intent, however, that future routes will go south rather than north!

Race Experience

After the Washington Break the racing season began and the team set about the process of gaining race experience. The team was registered with USA Cycling and Cobb and O'Brien purchased individual racing licenses. Both competed in Category Five races. Individuals new to cycling must finish ten of these races to advance to higher categories where monetary prizes are offered and the competition is stiffer. O'Brien won races in Greenville, NC; in Rock Hill, SC; and the Tour of Virginia Criterium in Harrisonburg. He also finished in the top three slots in Rock Hill, NC, Newport News, VA; and a time trial in Suffolk, VA. After these strong performances, O'Brien was upgraded to Category Four in May. He finished third in his Category Four debut in the Virginia State Hill Climb Championship at the Wintergreen Resort and followed it up with a second in the South Mountain Mass Start Hill Climb in Pennsylvania. Cobb (remember...'87)was satisfied with simply finishing all the races. Cobb and O'Brien personally covered race expenses such as travel, accommodations and entry fees.