26 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY april 18-24, 2024 www.montereycountyweekly.com Big Deal The Sea Otter Expo is a place to hang out, to buy stuff and to start a potential Olympic career. By Dave Faries Jon Martin has been participating in the Life Time Sea Otter Classic for 25 years. This time around he is bringing three wood bicycles, a downhill tandem ride and a regular bike for plunging down steep slopes. “I’ve done some strange things at Sea Otter,” he admits, particularly in reference to the downhill tandem machine. He says the organizers humor him by allowing the two-seater on the course. It’s an event where competitors are over the human limit in daring on a normal bike. A tandem sounds a bit crazy. “I get a lot of that,” Martin says. Apart from riding, the retired inflatable boat engineer from Arcata spends his time checking out vendors at the Sea Otter Expo—rows of vendors, games, demonstrations and more. Over the years it has expanded and contracted and expanded again to massive proportions. “I usually end up buying something I didn’t know I needed,” Martin observes. One year it was a bike constructed of walnut. The next time it was a matching helmet. “A lot of the bigger booths are like, ‘Come on in, have some coffee,’” he adds. “It’s more of a place to hang out. I always stop at the places serving beer.” A newcomer to Expo in 2023 returning this year is USA Cycling’s Search for Speed program. No liquid refreshment is involved, no giveaways bearing logos. This is an effort by the national team to identify Olympic level talent in the track sprint discipline that is currently unrecognized and untested. Sprint racing is run as team or individual events on a banked oval track. It is all about power and speed. It is also a niche sport attracting all too few American athletes. So with a grant from the Rapha Foundation and equipment—a highly technical stationary bike and assorted electronics— from WattBike and LOOK Cycle, the national team set out to find athletes who can hit a peak performance level, even if they are not regular riders. In addition to gathering of riders like Sea Otter, USA Cycling has been bringing the unit to underserved communities in the hopes of finding someone with the leg strength to power around a sprint track. The rest can be taught. “The flipside is community engagement to bring awareness to cycling— interest in cycling in general and track in particular,” explains Rex Ainslie of the national sprint cycling team. “It’s been one of the most successful programs in USA Cycling.” Last year, three of the riders who tried out the machine during its stay at the Sea Otter Expo advanced to the next phase of training—which makes the Laguna Seca Recreation Area event one of the most desirable locations for the Search for Speed. At all of their tests in 2023, a total of 15 potential olympians were identified. So the Expo is loaded with unexpected possibilities. Martin says he makes a daily trek through the crowds. When traffic stops, he thinks “there must be a giveaway” at one of the tents. But it may be a line of people trying out their legs. “We’re really excited,” Ainslie says. Check the Sea Otter Classic schedule at seaotterclassic.com/2024-schedule for info on all events including in the expo area. The event, including 14 races, runs from 9am-5pm Thursday-Saturday, April 18-20, and 9am-2pm Sunday, April 21. WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, 1021 Highway 68, Salinas. $100/four-day pass; $30/ one-day pass in advance; $35/day of; free/children 12 and under. The expo offers something for every bike enthusiast including the chance to test their legs on USA Cycling’s stationary machine (left), part of the Search for Speed program that seeks to find potential track sprint riders for the U.S. Olympic team. A pro rider at the Canyon booth draws a crowd as he points out the details of a new bicycle. The Kids Zone is a great place for children to hone their riding skills. Family day is Sunday, April 21, where two adults gain admission with a child age 12 or under. USA Cycling daniel dreifuss daniel dreifuss karen loutzenheiser The Bike Issue
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