Of 500 cyclists, Horn ’08 first in the nation

Sarah Palermo Sports Editor

“How’s that, boys?!” Crossing the finish line to win the men’s Category A race at the Boston Beanpot, Peter Horn ’08 could have been asking for some overdue respect from the entire crowd at the April 8 cycling race. But Horn explained later that he was “full on adrenaline” and was pumping his fist in the air in joyous response to the cheers of his teammates.

Vassar Cycling zipped up their spandex suits again this spring, coming back from losing a member to injuries and fighting disrespect from other teams. On April 8, the team raced in the time trial, with Tyler Robinson ’08, Dave Vollbach ’07, and Christian Rose ’07 pulling through the seven-mile sprint. Later that day, more than 500 racers from across the country lined up at the starting point on historic Grafton Common, Mass. After five laps (a total of 72 miles) Horn emerged the winner, but was by no means the favorite.

“Walking around after, if I had on a jacket instead of my team colors,” said Robinson, “I could hear the other guys going ‘Who the hell is Vassar? Where did they come from?’”

‘Vassar’ came from a team dedicated to cycling. Fully organized last year, the team consisted of a group of guys who loved to ride, whether they were covered in pink spandex or black and blue bruises. Two riders suffered terrible falls in spring 2005, but their fates did not stop other members from riding again.

During the third lap, Horn and a friend from Bucknell University attempted to break away from the crowd of racers and pull ahead. Seven other racers pulled ahead with them. After whittling the pack down to four, Horn pushed forward alone.

“The last kilometer was uphill,” Horn said. “I wanted to make sure that it didn’t come down to a sprint, and the next guy behind me was a few seconds back.”
Horn has been cycling competitively for nine years, and while Vassar’s lack of an organized cycling team did not affect his decision to matriculate, he is very excited about “getting a real program started.” Horn added, “Besides, the area is great for riding.”

Horn’s victory drew attention to his role on Vassar Cycling, but he would like to use it to bring more attention to the team as a whole. Every member of the team finished the race, a victory in itself in a sport where athletes often crash into each other during packed turns and twists, resulting in season-ending injuries.

With only Horn racing in the Category A competition, Robinson, Vollbach and other members of the team were able to cheer him on, contributing to the win, according to Horn.

“It’s important to me how much fun I had, because my teammates were on the side every lap,” said Horn. “I could see the guys cheering me, feeding me water bottles.”

On Sunday, April 9, the entire team competed in a criterion, a one-hour race, as opposed to Saturday’s three-hour road race. Horn’s victory made the Vassar racers stand out, and it wasn’t just because they were wearing pink.

Unlike teams from schools like University of Vermont and Harvard, who generally have more members, paid coaches, trainers, and rented buses, the Vassar cyclists pull together a meager budget from the
Vassar Student Association to enter a few collegiate races each season.

The cycling team does not spend much of their season competing in collegiate races, because of the high costs of transportation and accommodations. Nevertheless a large number of racers dressed in the Vassar pink for the Beanpot race, the largest collegiate cycling race in the country.

Horn said, “During the criterion, every now and then I could hear the announcer say my name: ‘There’s Peter Horn of Vassar, winner of yesterday’s race.’ People I didn’t know were cheering for me.”