Daniel Holloway

My name is Daniel Holloway. I am an 18 year old aspiring to be a professional cyclist. For the first part of my life I was a speed skater. I first started off skating on roller skates indoors. When I was around 10 my dad introduced me to Ice speed skating. I fell in love with how fast the ice was. When I was 15 my dad introduced me to the Velodrome. I instantly feel in love with that. My need for speed was showing. I slowly started to enter local track races and before I knew it I started to win a few races. With more opportunities presenting themselves I decided to focus on cycling and put skating on the back burner to just use it for fun. Slowly getting faster and learning all the little tricks of the track I moved to the road in my second season. Using road as mostly training time I began to enjoy the local junior criteriums. In 2003 I was presented with a great opportunity to ride for Lombardi sports. Being the only junior on the team I had to race alone in all criteriums, fighting against all the teams with multiple riders. Now about half way up the food chain as a Cat 3, I started to race more elite races. Slowly adapting to the speed difference from juniors to the 3’s, I was able to start showing what I had. 2003 ended up being a really good season. Winning quite a few races and showing a positive attitude with Lombardi Sports, they decided to continue with sponsorship for the next year. I got to hand pick 2 teammates that I wanted for the 2004 season. I choose Erek Riggs and Adam Switters. Both of them being the ones that I was always fighting it out with at the end of a race, I knew with the 3 of us being teammates it was going to be hard to beat us. For me 2004 was a tough season. Slacking off a little bit in the off-season, my form was slow coming through out the first part of the year. But my fitness came along and I achieved my goal of making it to worlds. 2005 started off really slow, feeling burnt out from the long 2004 season. I slowly worked my way into great shape, and started off the season later than I normally do. That helped me a lot. Slowly getting my head into the game, I started to get some good category 2 results on the road and some great results on the track. With nationals coming fast, I felt really good with my fitness and really confident. Winning 7 medals at nationals, I was chosen to the worlds team for Austria. For preparation for worlds I got selected to race the Tour l’abitibi in Canada. My goals and expectations were to win a stage. That I did. Winning stage 3 was one if the greatest feelings I have experienced in my life. Now with some really great fitness I was off to Austria. With bad luck I got sick 3 days before competition. Not at my best I raced the scratch race and didn’t have it to stay off the front in the last couple laps. As 2005 is my last year as a junior, I look forward to next year as a season of learning as much as I can. For the past 3 years I have ridden for the Lombardi Sports Junior development team. With such a great sponsor I have had some really great opportunities to show my talents, and travel with the national team around the world.

Normally I start my racing season early, this year a new approach was taken to help keep me from feeling burnt out at the end of a long season. I did not do any racing until Mclane Pacific.

My focus was to once again make the Junior National Track team with the goal of doing the points race.

The Sea Otter was the first race which I had a big desire for the top podium finish, I wanted to win the circuit race. Opportunity presented itself in the road race and I ended up with a surprise win. My effort in the road race left me flat for circuit race the next day but I can’t complain.

First big challenge of the Track season was the first AVC races in San Diego. I had a solid performance winning the pursuit (under very windy conditions), the 10 mile scratch and the Madison. I was marked heavily in the points race and finished 6th. The elimination or miss and out was just one of the top and 4th in the 5 lap scratch against a field of sprinters. I was top finisher of the weekend in the elite endurance group.

The local track races have gone well with strong performances in the Friday night series, Pro 1,2 group with a few top Omnium finishes. The Junior districts were good as well taking all but one of the golds.

The Junior district Criterium Championship went well once again, lapped the field for the second year in a row, and won for the 3rd consecutive year.

I went to Junior road nationals to help Adam and Eric, we performed well but not like we wanted, Adam got on the podium in the TT and Crit.

Track nationals, which selects the World team, was next. I failed to win the points race, second place was not what I wanted. I won the pursuit, this means I am going to worlds. We win the team pursuit, a second national Jersey. Kilo for fun, finish 3rd, team sprint for fun finish 2nd. Scratch race my second objective, 2nd by a half wheel in another race were I feel everyone is racing against me not the field. The Madison was not that great from an outcome prospective, we were crashed not once but twice, finished 3rd.

In the end I find I am going to do the Madison, pursuit and scratch race at the World Championship in Austria.

Next, superweek, right after Track nats, my plane gets their many hours late.
I finish top 10 in the race I wanted. I worked for Eric in the other races, he came through in final race, top dog it was great.

Home 2 days, then off to Canada for the Tour Abitibi, and UCI 2.HC JR stage race, 8 national teams, all the Canadian provincial teams, US regional teams, and few more for good measure. I am there with the US National team composed of 4 track riders and 2 roadies, Eric is one of those roadies. My job was going to be a stage win. The team was good in the TTT, we finished 2nd (stage 1). I finish 8th stage 2, surprise I win stage 3 and take the points jersey. Stage 4 is the TT out of a mine, I have a flat front from the start, the first wheel change takes over 2 minutes, I get 1 more flat and finish well out the running at 128th. Stage 5, I finish 3rd and retake the points jersey. I finish 10th in stage 6, and finish 3rd in the last 2 stages. 5 days as the points leader, I get the final Orange jersey, whoa!!

Worlds didn’t turn out the way I expected. I got sick 3 days before competition, so I couldn’t train like I wanted. Going in to the scratch race I felt pretty good, not my best but I knew if I road like I know how to ride I can get a good result out of it. The heat went by with no problems, I made it in with minimal effort. In the final I put on a bigger gear knowing that the pace was going to be much faster than the heat. The pace was fast and slow fast and slow. With 12 laps to go I saw an oppertunity and took it. I broke away, with one rider joining me 4 laps later. We had around a half a lap, after about the other guys 4th pull he blew to pieces. We stopped gaining/holding ground on the field. We got caught with 2 laps to go. The pursuit went well, I had beat my old PR by close to 10 seconds so I was really happy about that. I did not get to race the madison because my partner got sick, and was not mentally or physically ready for the challenge.

I have the San diego 2day madison and talent pool races in La leftto go.

Summary of what’s happened to date.

82 race events to date

21- wins
18- 2nd
13 -3rds = 53 top 3 finishes

2 National Championships
7 National championship medals

60 times in top 5, 64 times in the top 10

So I have been working with a friends dad to get this thing personalized. Still a bit to do to finish, but its coming along nicely.