December 2, 2006 (Toronto, ON) — In the afternoon on Saturday, Nov. 25, Gord Fraser gave his seminar titled “Inside the Pro Peloton” as part of the OCA’s Cycling Celebration. A total of 46 cycling enthusiasts took advantage of the opportunity to hear Ottawa-born pro road racer provide a fascinating overview of a successful racing career that has spanned over 20 years, 12 of them competing at the pro level.

Fraser spoke fondly of his early years riding with the Ottawa Bicycle Club, where he was one of many juniors who raced for the club. “Those days definitely ignited my passion for cycling. In high school my friends would have pictures of Iron Maiden and nude centerfolds in their lockers”¦ I had up pictures of Bernard Hinault and Steve Bauer.

After a period of racing track for the national team, Fraser joined the Toronto-based Magicuts road cycling team in 1990. One of his most memorable seasons was spent competing in the Canadian Tire racing series, which provided national coverage and substantial prize money. “If we had even close to the amount of prize money that we had back then, it would be like heaven. You get spoilt when you’re a first or second year senior and you don’t go for a $1,000 prime because it’s not enough — nowadays, in the States, if there’s even a $50 prime everyone’s killing each other for it.”

During this time, Fraser also began to get his first taste of racing in Europe. In 1993, Fraser competed at the World Road Championships and at the challenging Tour de L’Avenir. During one stage he got into a winning 6-man break, but lost to none other than emerging sprint superstars Eric Zabel and Lyle Evans. “I didn’t know who they were — I was just disappointed that I didn’t win the stage.”

In 1994, Fraser finally got the attention of the Pro teams. “I got this call from [Motorola team manager] Jim Ochowicz — when he calls you, you drop everything.” Fraser didn’t have to think twice about accepting the opportunity to race alongside Lance Armstrong, George Hincapie, and Steve Bauer. “I’m like, this is great, I’m riding with the guy I used to have on my locker in high school — and now we’re roommates.”

Fraser struggled with the higher level of competition in Europe. “I didn’t win a race for two and a half years. It was a real eye-opener, going from the top of the amateur ranks to the pro ranks. I was getting slaughtered. But what was great was being a part of that type of team – it was so well-run… and we had all these great icons of the sport.”

After Motorola folded in 1996, Fraser joined with the smaller French team Mutual. While he was underused on the Motorola team, now the opposite was true. “I had to do every race — Paris-Nice and many others, and then we got selected to do the Tour De France. Racing every week, 200 kilometres a day for 100 days a year, it was a pretty incredible experience” His hard work started to pay off. “I started getting results — a lot more top 5 finishes — and then I finally won my first race, in a stage of the Grand Prix Midi Libre, a big prep race for the Tour.”

Despite his success, however, Fraser became frustrated with Mutual. “Even though I thought my results were fine, they were constantly putting me down and berating me.” After they threatened to cut his salary in half, Fraser boldly quit the team and moved back to Tuscon to be with his wife, Caryn.

Unsure of what to do next, he signed up with the Mercury Team. It was very different from being on a Tour team — although the level of racing was easier, accountability was high. “It was a big step up in terms of what the team expected of all the riders. That really set the tone for my last nine years”¦ it made me hungry to win.” Team manager John Moore was clearly very good at accessing talent — his other discoveries include Floyd Landis (an “unemployed mountain biker” at the time), Tom Danielson and Baden Cooke.

After Mercury, Fraser accepted a job with a small team called Health Net, which would allow him to stay in the U.S. On the day he accepted the job, Caryn broke the news that she was pregnant “One day I’m unemployed, the next day I’m employed and I’m going to be a father — it was quite a day in my life.”

Fraser flourished as Health Net grew from a bike-store club to the top team in the U.S. “When I came back from Europe, I was hoping to get three or fours years”¦ it turned out I got nine solid, well-supported years in the States.”

Those years finally caught up to Fraser, and in August 2006, he decided that it was time to leave the sport and move on. “Last year, the training that I normally do in Tuscon, which always seemed really easy, didn’t feel so easy any more”¦ I reassessed my feelings during the season at each race, and at every one I felt, you know, I don’t really need to do this race ever again. And that was the final nail that confirmed that this was a good year to retire.”

Fraser’s seminar was well-received. Adam Ruppel, President of Chico Racing, commented that “”¦it was a fascinating look into the career of one of Canada’s best and hardest working professional bike racers. His humorous and intriguing stories showcased the tough but rewarding road he took in becoming one of America’s winningest road racers.” Also much appreciated were the behind the scenes stories that Fraser shared, such as how Team Motorola found out about him through their team mechanic Geoff Brown, a fellow Ottawa native. Aaron Hershoff, VP Finance & Administration at the OCA and a CCA Board Member, said that “after hearing Geoff Brown last week at the CCA’s AGM, it was funny to hear Gord’s version of how he got his pro contract with Motorola.”

After the seminar, Fraser shared some of his views on cycling-related issues in an informative Q&A session with me.

ON DOPING
“It’s tough as an athlete, when there’s so much innuendo, especially in Europe. The biggest thing I heard when I was over there was if guys were doing it, they’re just “˜leveling the playing field.’”
Whatever Lance did, he’s probably the only one who could do it clean. He’s that good — he always was. And now with Floyd — I know 100% he’s telling the truth. You can be a great pro and be clean. I’ve done it, and there’s a lot of guys who are better than me who have done it.”

ON ENCOURAGING YOUNG CYCLISTS
“I think the biggest thing, for a young rider, is to be patient, and to do it because you love racing”¦ the journey shouldn’t be rushed. Over time, you’re going to get stronger, and you’re going to mature into a better rider. A lot of riders see overnight successes because those make good stories. But I didn’t win my first race until I was 24 years old — I think it was the Springbank Road Race. But then things started happening.”

ON GOVERNMENT SUPPORT
“It’s hard to instill patience in support governing bodies, especially if they are answering to someone else who wants results. I think that in cycling, especially, you have to be patient with your riders. There’s probably some great riders that we never knew, since they had to give it up because they didn’t have the support.”

ON TRAINING
“I’ve been unscientific with my training. I didn’t like the pressure of structured training, because I always felt that I disappointed myself”¦ if I had to do a certain amount of intervals, for example. For me it was definitely volume that helped my career. When I realized that I needed to do 30-hour weeks, for a month or two at a time, to get my best”¦ I just followed that pattern and it worked for me.”
“Maybe I could I have been a better rider if had been more dedicated in terms of training, data collection and diet, but I was doing as good as I wanted to be and I was happy with that”¦ I felt, if it’s not broken, don’t fix it.”