Alex Morgan: Cycling Tribe Interview

DOB: 18/7/1994

Sponsors: De Ver Bikes & the Victorian Institute of Sport (VIS)

Coach: I’mcurrently in a transition between coaches. (Simon Quick (QuickCycle Coaching) and Dave Sanders)

Bikes: Road: De Ver Carbon Road Bike with the new 3R Racing Groupset

           Track: De Ver Eclipse

Favourite Movie: Saving Private Ryan

School: Vermont Secondary College

CT: Alex, thanks for your time. You had a great summer. What was the highlight for you?

AM: No worries, I’m more than happy to support such a great website. The highlight of the summer was definitely winning the Gold Medal in the Men’s Under 17 Team Pursuit with my Victorian teammates at the National Championships. Not only did we win the gold by passing NSW just after the half way point but we kept going and broke our own Australian Record (3:21.589) by setting a new time of 3:20.439 in the 3km event.

CT: At only 15 years of age, the future looks promising. How did you get into cycling to begin with?

AM: I started riding my bike to school at about the age of 9 and completely fell in love with the sport. After a few years of riding for leisure I begged my parents to start cycling competitively and my Great-Uncle (President of Preston Cycling Club) sent them in the right direction. I went down to the local club and did a few novice clinics and before I knew it I was competing in (and winning) my first track race, which was in January 2008.

CT: Lets talk about the Australian Under 17 Team's Pursuit Australian record that you broke just over a month ago now. How regularly did you and your team-mates (Jack Cummings, Evan Hull and Tom Hamilton) train together during the lead-up?

AM:  We started with one session every weekend then as we got closer to the event we did 2 sessions a week, one on the weekend and one at night in the middle of the week.

CT: What sort of training did you guys concentrate on?

AM: We did a lot of high cadence work on little gears as we ride on a restricted gear. Just to give you an idea of the gear we have to ride – the average cadence (rpm) for our current record is roughly 140rpm with an average speed of 53.88km/h.

CT: How did you all get along?

AM: We are all good mates. We have spent a lot of time together and get along very well. We still try to train together when we can find the time.

CT: How did race day itself unfold? Did it all just fall into place?

AM: Both the qualifying and final were in the evening so as teenage boys; we aimed for bit of a sleep-in. We then organised most of our clothing, equipment etc for that evening and went back to one of the rooms for an inspirational movie (Overcoming) and some lunch. The night itself was a blur. The qualifying round was all about saving as much energy as we could for the final, we were a bit up and down but qualified first with a time of 3:25.298. We came straight off the track and onto the rollers to get the lactic acid out of our legs, then a dry off and a drink. With that out of the way, our focus turned to the final. As the final came closer we started warming up on the rollers and put on our race kit (aero booties, aero helmets etc). Before we knew it we were in the gate and counting down to the start. A lot of thoughts run through your mind as you sit staring at the clock as it counts down. My mind turned to the hours and hours of training that we had done in preparation for this one moment. The clock hit 0 and we were off, but not for long, it was a false start by NSW and we had to roll around and start again. Once we were set again and took off it was just like clockwork. Every member knew his job and we were in control the whole way. As we passed NSW (about half way through) our starter dropped off as planned and myself and the two other boys gave it everything we had for the remaining distance. As we came through the line – completely exhausted – our eyes turned to the scoreboard, and there was 3:20.439 staring straight back at us. It was the happiest moment of my cycling career so far. All of the late nights and early mornings, every single training session devoted to that one moment, it couldn’t have turned out any better,

CT: What are your goals for this winter and into next year?

AM: I’m hoping for a good road season and to make the podium in the Road Race and Individual Time Trial at the National Junior Road Championships in September. After that I go into the Under 19 Men Category and hope to be selected for the Australian Junior Road Team next year.

CT: It is quite impressive how fast your have risen to where you are at currently. What do you put this down to?

AM: I put it down to a variety of things that have all combined together. The main ones are setting goals and achieving them, determination, focus, a great coach and a tremendous amount of support from my family.

CT: What are your plans post-school days? Where do you see yourself at when you are in your mid-twenties?

AM: I plan on completing my VCE and then hopefully riding for a professional road team in Europe, which would be my ultimate dream.

CT: In terms of your training. Could you take us through a typical week of training during your winter base period?

AM: It changes all the time because I’m still growing and getting stronger but a typical week would consist of a few light road rides, a light gym session, an ergo session (indoor trainer) and then a couple of bunch rides on the weekend.

CT: And a typical week in Summer?

AM:  3 track sessions, a weekly criterium and a few light road rides.

CT: Do you have a favourite ride or training session?

AM: There are quite a few rides that I enjoy – particularly around the Bright region – but my favourite training ride is the Myers Creek Ride. We ride from Ringwood to Healesville, turn left just after the Beechworth Bakery then up the steep 8km climb to the top of Myers Creek Rd. We then go to the bottom of Chum Creek Rd, turn right and head down the Healesville-Yarra Glen Rd to Yarra Glen, then home on Maroondah Hwy. It’s a 100km+ ride and is full of different types of terrain, coffee shops and weather conditions. It’s best to head out early as Maroondah Hwy can get busy on the weekends.

CT: Thanks for you time and all the best.