Looking to once again dominate the competition this season, Andover Cycling started out well by earning first place in both of its races so far. This past Wednesday, the team traveled to Holderness to race against Exeter, Gould, and Holderness. While boys and girls race separately, both Abby Levene ’09 and Mike Discenza ’09 placed first after their 22 mile races. Captain Hillary Rich ’09 followed in second place in the girls’ race, and Austin Novis ’11 finished second in the boys’ race. On Sunday, the team traveled to Gould academy. Working together with Levene, Rich managed to secure second place in her race. “Strategy is key in cycling,” said Levene. “It’s much easier to ride behind someone than in front of them.” Rich said, “Everyone’s definitely given the races their all, and we’re especially good during the final sprints, bringing it into the line strong.” Newcomers Levene, Scotty Flemming ’10, Sascha Strand ’10, and William Thompson-Butler ’09 look to bring depth to the team. The team also has a strong group of returners including Rich, Discenza, Novis, Louisa Chafee ’09, Eliza Nguyen ’09 and Vivian Wehner ’09. Some things the team looks to improve upon this season are nonverbal communication skills and building stronger aerobic bases. While the Andover team is one of the strongest teams in the league, the cyclists continuously strive to better their times. “We always want to make each race better than the last one. We take the things we did well, and the things we need to improve on, and focus practices based on those,” Discenza said.
