Riding with the Korean Pro Team LX Systems 엘엑스 선수단과함게라이딩후기

Last Sunday my team got a pretty cool opportunity.  We went for a ride with one of the Korean professional road teams and then went out for lunch and coffee with them.  The team consists of just 6 riders but they were all really nice guys.  It was a really great opportunity for me to ask some questions about how pro cycling in Korea works.  The team Captain Seon Jae Jang was really good at English and helped answer a lot of my questions.  Pro racing in Korea is much different than the US. 
First all the distinction between pro and amateur in Korea is very strong.  The pros have a completely seperate set of races they do and amateurs are not allowed to participate.  There are about 100 registered pro riders in Korea so they still have ok size fields at most of their races.  Also they only have pro racing about once a month which is usually a road stage race or a set of track competitions.  Most of the pro riders do both road and track as a result of this.  Finally the biggest difference is that even though most of the teams aren't registered as UCI continental teams all of the riders get paid a decent livable salary and as a result can focus on nothing but training and racing.  Also their races don't give prize money but if they do well they will get a higher salary the next year.  Definitely a big difference between many of the continental pro racers in the US.  Also basically every pro rider started biking in middle or high school at a sports high school and were basically brought up through the Korean pro development system.  There aren't many riders who are pros who didn't participate in an organized high school racing team.  It was interesting to finally get a lot of my questions answered about how pro racing works!
Overall it was a really fun and informative day and a nice ride with some great guys.  The pros are doing a 3 day stage race that starts tomorrow in Gapyoung north of Seoul.  Following this race there is a one day race for amateurs that I will be riding in.  I can't wait to get my season started! 
I didn't take many pictures but my teammate Myo Jin did so I'm putting a link to her blog here if your interested in seeing them.  She writes really nice detailed blogs about every team ride and race.  Click the picture with the rider in the red jersey to see the blog about our ride. 

http://blog.naver.com/miao333

지난주 일요일 너무 특별한라이딩있었어요!  우리팀 LX 시스템 선수단이랑 같이달렸어요!  나 한국 프로선수들에게 물어보고싶은거 너무많있어서 신났어요! 장년 투르두코리아에서 장찬재선수 한번만났지만 이번에  찬재선수형 장선재선수만났어요.  선재선수 영어너무 잘할수있어서 얘기 많이했어요.  한국 선수 생활은 미국 프로 선수 보다 많이 달라요! 
우리 자전거 40키로 정도 타고 칼국수 먹으로 갔어요!  너무 맛있는 가평 칼국수 먹고 유명한커피샵왔어요!  이커피샵바리스타 몇년전에 월드바리스타 대회 일등했어요!!!  선수들이랑 우리팀과함게 너무 재미있는하루보냈어요. 
이번주  토요일  내 올해시작이다.  가평에서 열심히타고 환걸형 일등다시하기위에서 좀 도와지봐야해요! 
나 이번에 사진 많이 안찍었지만 묘진 누나 브로그 보면 좋은사진이너무많아요. 

Getting back in shape 자전거 몸 좀좀 좋아지고있어요.

첫 라이딩 보다 여즘 몸이너무 많이 좋아졌어요!  2월마지막주 부터 훈련 조금했어요.   매주 월수금 나 학교에있는 헬스장에서 웨이트트레이닝 하고 다는 날 시간있으면 자전거 탔어요.  이번주는 나 내친구 어익선 우리 동내로 라이딩 하로 왔어요.  익선 1년동안 호주에있어서 오랜만에 만났어요.  우리 화요일 오후에 성대에서 송추, 장흥관광지로 탔어요 그리고 마지막에 부각스카이웨이 올로갔어요!  자전거 타고 우리 내 같이 공부하는 외국인친구들이랑 밥먹었어요. 익선 호주가기전에 보다 영어 많이 늘었어요! 
다음주 내시즌 시작이에요 그래서 좀 탈거에요! 가평 부터 대회 많이 나갈거같아요! 
그리고 저 지난주 모델링 했어요!  바이크온 자전거 옷회사 여름 옷 입고 4시간동안 사진 찍었어요!  재미있었지만 너무추웠어요!!  밑에있는사진은 나익선이랑 일영리에서 찍었어요, 내새로 받는헬멧입고있어요! 

I'm in much better shape than I was for my last post!  I've been lifting weights 3 times and week and riding when ever I have time.  I had a really great ride on Tuesday since Ik Son, a Korean friend of mine from Suwon, came to visit me up at my school.  He was the first Korean bike friend I made who was my age.  I met him at the first club I rode with in Suwon.  He just spent the last year in Australia working as a bike mechanic and traveling and his English has gotten way better.  We did a nice 3.5 hour ride north of Seoul on some new roads I discovered that have some nice long gradual climbs.
 The first race of my season is next week.  Its in Gapyoung north east of Seoul and the course is pretty hard. Its a 20km loop with a 4km ish climb each lap and a finishing climb of about 3km.  There are going to be over 300 riders in the race though so having a pack that big will make the climbs seem a lot smaller.  I need to get out and do some more climbing this weekend to get ready for it.

Also, last week I got to be a model for a Korean bike clothing company.  Its called Bike On.  We did a 4 hour photo shoot in a park north of Seoul.  It was for their summer line and it was only about 45 degrees so was freezing.  Once I get some picks back I will post them on here.  The pic below shows me and Ik Son plus the new helmet I got from Bike On. 

Back to Training! 이제 훈련 다시 시작이다!

Sorry I haven’t updated the blog in a while.  I had a long and eventful winter but it did not involve much training.  School was really tough for the past 7 weeks and I had an awesome trip to China 10 days too.  I also spent a lot of time skiing and organized a ski trip for my classmates in January.  Its time for a new semester at school though and I’ve arranged a pretty good schedule for training.  Also the snow that has stuck around most of the winter has finally melted making it a lot easier to train outside. 

The first race of the season was actually last week but since I haven’t been training I decided to skip it.  My teammates Hwan Geol Lee and Myo Jin Kim won the race though for the men and women overall though so for the team it was a big success.  The race was the first in a 6 race series that is being promoted by the Korean Cycling Federation.  Other than the Tour de Korea this is their first foray into organizing amateur races.  Basically they have pro stage races in Korea about once a month and along with every pro stage race they are going to have an amateur road race now.  These races are a points series and serve as the qualifying process for the Tour de Korea which is being moved to October for the amateurs this year.  The courses all look pretty tough and there is another race at the end of the month, which I will do.  Its exciting to see amateur racing in Korea progress like this. 

April has a lot of races too.  There is either a road or mtb race every weekend for the whole month.  I’m hoping to get a lot of good training in for the next few weeks to be in shape for the April racing. 

오랜만에 브로그 쓰고있어요!  이번겨울  자전거 안타고 너무빠브고 안썼어요.  하지만 재미있는거 많이했어요.  설날때 중국 갔다왔어요그리고 스타힐리조트에서 스키랑 보드 많이탔어요.  하지만 3월부터 자전거 훈련시작햇어요.  이번 학기는 일정 너무 잘됐어요.  화목금 자전거 타는시간 너무 많아서 훈련 많이 해볼거예요. 

지난 주 올해첫대회있었지만 훈련안했어서 안나갔어요.  가평대회 부텨 열심히 달릴거예요.  나 안갔지만 우리 팀 너무 잘탔어요.  환걸형, 묘진 누나 둘이 일등하고왔어요!  대한싸이클 연맹 마스터즈 시리즈 만들었어서 올해신난다!  그리고 4월에 대회 너무 많아요.  그래서 3월동안 너무 열심히 탈거에요!  매주 산악이나 싸이클대회있어요.  훈련 잘하고 4월달 대회 잘타면 좋겠어요!