Catching up with…

This edition of “Catching up with…” travels south to Los Angeles to check in with Tela Crane. Tela has been a part of the Marymoor community for more than ten years and in 2011 committed to a life pursuing her cycling dreams. Let’s get going!

Can you give us a quick racing background for those who don’t know you?

I started bike racing when I was 15, after being forced to take a Velokids class by my mom. She still brings that up! I raced pretty seriously as a junior, including winning two national championships and earning selection to the national team for the junior Pan American championships and junior world championships. Based on my performances as a junior, I was invited to live at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. Honestly, I wasn’t quite ready for that level of training and wanted to go to school. I quit bike racing for a while, but got back into it through collegiate road and cyclocross. After graduating from Western Washington University in 2008, I decided I wanted to see how far I could take my cycling. I started working with Jennie Reed, who really helped prepare me for the next level of training. That brings us to the next question!

Why did you move to LA?

In 2010, USACycling hired a new sprint coach, Jamie Staff, and he started looking to build a sprint program in the lead up to the 2012 Olympics. After nationals in 2010, Jamie invited me to come down to LA for a camp. That camp turned into 6 months in LA and culminated with a selection to the Pan American Championship team that year. In the fall of 2011 I made the official move to LA in an attempt to race the World Cup season and qualify for the Olympics. Highlights of the 2011-12 international season included racing the Beijing World Cup and being named to the Olympic long team (the pool the Olympic team is named from). Unfortunately we didn’t qualify any spots for women sprinters, so it was back to building up for the future! I had my best summer season ever last year and made some really big gains that I hope to continue to build upon! 

We know you created your team this year; can you tell us about that?

I am incredibly blessed to have some very supportive people in my life, and I’m very thankful for the opportunity to put together my own team this year. There are currently no women’s track teams in the US, and support is pretty hard to find. I wanted to be able to represent the people, organizations and products that I believe in and who have helped me throughout my career. Building my own team of sponsors was the perfect opportunity to do so. 

Broadmark Capital has been hugely instrumental in helping me get to where I’m at now, and I’m so happy to continue to represent them. I work for JLVelo, and on top of them being extremely flexible with my training and travel schedule; they came on board in a major way to help support my travel to races this season. 

I am honored to represent Velocity Sports Performance, Balestra cycling shoes, Element Bicycles, DBCPhoto, Lill Monster, Team Kog, Chamois Butt’r and Good Karma Racing for this racing season.

We heard that you injured yourself. What happened, how was your recovery, and how are you now?

Unfortunately yes, I was in what was fondly referred to as “das boot” for two months this winter after a poor landing during single leg box jumps. I tore some ligaments in my ankle and it has been a slow recovery process. I did a good job hurting it! There have definitely been some days where Ian [her great brother, ed.] had to remind me that I wouldn’t be slow forever, but overall things are on the upswing now!

For something random…what are your guilty pleasures?

Yogurtland! And pretty much anything coconut flavored. 

What is your favorite aspect of track sprinting?

My favorite part about sprinting on the track is the amount of focus it requires. I love that there isn’t much room for mistake in a race, so you have to be on your a-game. I also really like the full intensity efforts that sprinters do for training. 

Will you be at Marymoor this summer?

Wouldn’t miss it! It is my favorite race of the season, and the home court advantage is huge! Plus, I get really homesick for my Marymoor training partners. 

What are your goals for the season/beyond?

My long-term goal is to make the 2016 Olympic team. There are a lot of little steps that need to happen along that path and one of my biggest goals this year is to qualify myself to race at the world cups this season (you have to individually qualify this year through UCI rankings). Along the way, I hope to defend my USA Cycling national track calendar championship and win my first individual elite national title.

Chocolate chip cookies or snickerdoodles?

Oatmeal chocolate chip cookies! Or, PCC chocolate chip cookies.

Thanks Tela. Good luck this season!

I’m excited to see everyone in July!