Travel: U.S. Race Tours & Camps with Frankie

After their 2005 cycling camps proved to be a big hit, Frankie Andreu and Discover Adventures have teamed up for 2006 to offer a full schedule of training camps and race tours called the PRO Series™ Brand (Proficient Riding Outdoors). I talked to Frankie about what makes these tours and camps different, and why you might want to book yourself in…

** Check out the PRO Series™ Holiday Sweepstakes now through December 12th and ENTER To WIN a Discover Adventures Tour, or PRO Series Camp with Frankie Andreu, or a bunch more cool prizes.

Guests will enjoy – and learn from – personal coaching
by Frankie Andreu.

“Racing in America is growing, and the quality of racing is for sure getting much higher.” Frankie told us. “Having more big ‘tour’ type races benefits everyone. It’s really important for young riders, and riders on the continental teams to have a chance to go to these races and go up against some of the top riders.”

It’s also a great time for cycling fans old and new to get close enough to see, hear, and smell the action of big time bike racing. The Tour de Georgia has proven itself PROTour-worthy in just 3 short years, and in February we see the start of the 9 day Tour of California – which will be a hit with Euro-pros who don’t want to fly all the way to Oz for some winter racing.

Discover Adventures will be taking fans closer to the action at the biggest US races in 2006.

Discover Adventures, the official tour operator of the Tour de Georgia, has stepped up its tours for ’06 by adding the Tour of California, Philly Week, and the USPRO Championships in Greenville, SC. In addition to showing guests some great home-grown bike racing, they’ve also expanded the PRO Series™ cycling camps, hosted by Frankie Andreu.

Pez: The PRO Series™ camps obviously proved popular enough this year to warrant expanding the Program. What makes them different?

Frankie: The PRO Series™ events are educational-style camps – a lot of camps available right now are “vacation-style” camps, where you ride around a bit, drink a bit, relax a lot, and after you leave sometimes the only thing you gained is a few pounds. We’re offering real “coaching” camps, where our objective is to teach people training techniques and principals to help them ride better, through one-on-one coaching, so they’ll actually take home some things they can use on their own. Whether it’s learning how to ride 50 miles, imPROving their centuries, strength, speed, endurance…

Pez: What level of riders are the camps geared to? Who will get the most out of the camps?

Frankie: They’re for all levels of riders who want to improve their game, both men and women. Age isn’t a factor, motivation to improve is. Although, they’re likely not going to appeal to the Cat. 1 racer, since someone who’s achieved that level already has a pretty good understanding of what they’re doing. But they’re perfect for anyone below that level because the object is to do better on the bike.

The first PRO Series Camp of 2006 will take riders through the gorgeous hills of north Georgia.

Pez: You talk about the personalized coaching – what can guests expect?

Frankie: Each afternoon we’ll have a specific lecture on topics like nutrition, weight training, bike fitting, then I’ll sit down personally with every guest to discuss their goals and areas they want to improve, and then by riding with them I can see better exactly where they are and areas they can work on.

So over the 5 days of the camp, guests will get direct coaching from me, and benefit from the lectures by our experts in different areas of cycling.

Pez: You raced the Tour de France 9 times, so you’ve got some pretty impressive credentials as a rider…

Frankie: I wouldn’t have reached those levels without knowing how to train and peak in a specific way. And since I’m no longer a professional, I don’t have all day to train, so we try to gear our camps to real riders with real lives, and how they can make the most out of a few hours of training each week.

Pez: When and where are the camps? I understand Discover Adventures will be taking guests to the Tour of California in February?

Frankie: Yes they will, and I’ll be there as well, but that Tour of California trip is actually one of the new Discover Adventures Tours for ’06, not one of our PRO Series™ camps. But it will be a great way for people to follow the race, ride the routes and enjoy some sunshine in February. The PRO Series™ camps are more focused on the training techniques and aspects that we actually go out on the road and do.

The camps are in north Georgia, where there is some great riding… Our first camp is March 12-17th, and some spaces are still available. We’ll also have a camp mid-year, probably May, and again in the Fall, probably the best time of the year in Georgia.

I should add that my camps are open to men and women, but Tina Mayola Pic is also a special guest director for a couple of women-only camps next year.

Of course guests receive their own
custom PRO Series kit.

Pez: Of all the tour companies out there, why did you decide to start working with Discover Adventures?

Frankie: First, the idea of the camps really appealed to me – an educational camp where riders can learn to be better cyclists. And so many tour companies focus on going to races – the Tour, the Vuelta, or places like Tuscany or the Alps, which require a lot more time for travel and vacation, and for most people it’s hard to get 3 weeks, or even 2 weeks off, so we wanted to offer something that was easier to get to (in the US) and easier for people to schedule. Second, I worked with Discover Adventures this year also, and really like their level of organization, how they treat their guests, and their style – which is laid back and friendly. They also do a fantastic job of getting access to courses, arranging VIP areas on the finish lines, and making it easy for guests to watch and understand the race and really enjoy it…

A lot of times when you try to do it on your own, things don’t go so smoothly, and Tom (of Discover Adventures) designs all those bumps out…

PRO Series™ – Proficient Riding Outdoors – The HIGHLIGHTS
When: March 12 – 17, 2006
· VIP Director FRANKIE ANDREU
· Frankie’s personally selected COACHING STAFF
· DAILY RIDES, each with a distinctive focus
· DAILY CLASSROOM LECTURES, including:
· BIKE POSITIONING Workshop
· MECHANICAL Workshop
· Building a PERSONAL TRAINING PROgram for your 2006 Season
· Personal RIDING ASSESSMENT
· Frankie’s CYCLING SKILL EXERCISES
· Frankie’s ‘Behind the Scenes at the Tour de France’
· TWO RIDES on portions of the Tour De Georgia Mountain Stages
· One SPORTS MASSAGE Session

Check out the full itinerary, dates, and other pertinent info at DiscoverAdventures.com and after you get an eyeful of that, call Discover Adventures and sign up. Hurry up, as spots on this tour are bound to fill up fast.

Check out the PRO Series™ Holiday Sweepstakes now through December 12th and ENTER To WIN a Discover Adventures Tour, or PRO Series Camp with Frankie Andreu, or a bunch more cool prizes.