In my last interview I told you about Athletes by Design, one of Chicago’s oldest and biggest teams. Now it’s time to learn about one of the area’s newest teams, Team Pegasus, which is wrapping up its first season. (Profiling teams seems to be a good way to get us through the dark period. If you’d like your team to be next, drop me a line.)

Pegasus made only occasional road appearances this year, but it has performed admirably on the dirt. In the Wisconsin Cycling Association Cyclocross Cup, Cale Wenthur leads the Cat 4 men and Katy Steudel is 2nd among Cat 4 women. And although he now rides for Killjoy, Ben Popper earlier rode the pink and black to some fantastic results in both mountain bike and cyclocross. 

To find out more I caught up with Ben Van Couvering, 25, a Chicago software consultant.

How did the team come about?
In 2006 there was a group of people in Chicago and Milwaukee who had met each other in online bike forums. We wanted to compete in organized cycling and wanted to build something from the ground up. We designed the kit, we arranged some sponsors, and we signed up friends of ours who wanted to be on the team.

There are a lot of quality teams in Chicago and Milwaukee. Why not join one of them?
The important thing was building the team from the ground up. And other than XXX, there aren’t many Chicago teams that accept new Cat 5’s. More choice is a good thing.

I have so many questions about the kit: Why the squirrel? Why Pegasus? Why pink?
Cale Wenthur gets credit for the kit design, `The Pegasus is the most majestic and intimidating of all animals.’but here’s how it breaks down: The Pink Squirrel is a drink, the Pegasus is the most majestic and intimidating of all animals, and pink kit looks awesome. But you already knew that.

What lessons did you learn your first season?
I learned a ton, something new in every race. The first thing I learned was that I needed to train a lot more. Track racing was a great way to start, both because of the great clinics that they run at Northbrook and because track races are shorter than road races I didn’t need to be as fit to compete in track vs. road. Track racing is like a the highlight reel of a road race, so I learned a lot about strategy and tactics.

What race was the most fun for you this year?
That would be Sherman Park, because it was the first crit where I hung on and finished in the top 10. There was a real sense of accomplishment over the course of the year. Either that, or the Friday night at Northbrook where every Team Pegasus racer won a preme.



What changes are in store for next year?
The team’s mission remains the same. We’re going to keep on doing what we’ve been doing, supporting each others’ development as cyclists. You should expect to see more Pegasus riders out training and to see more of us racing. We’ve also made some administrative/organizational changes, mainly to help us communicate effectively with all of the team members.

Do you plan to put on any events?
We’re in the midst of planning for next year, but we do plan on putting on some events. We’d like to find some niche to fill, some clinic or race that people could get excited about. We’re also interested in working with other teams to put on events.

How big do you expect the team to be in 2008?
We haven’t finalized the roster, but the size of the team is going to be about the same as last year, about 50 riders. It’s about 35 men, 15 women. It’s also a pretty even split between Chicago and Milwaukee.

Where do you see Team Pegasus in five years?
I think we’re going to have a core of Cat 2’s and 3’s, people who grew up with the team. By then some of us will have kids, so I guess we’ll have to start a junior team.

What does someone have to do to join Pegasus?
We’re pretty happy with the size of the team now, so we’re not actively recruiting many new members. We want to know everyone on the team. Then again there are areas that we want to flesh out, like road racers and women, so if we meet a rider at a race or a ride and we think they would fit well with our team, we’ll try to get them on board.

What kind of rider are you looking for?
We’re looking for people with a serious cycling addiction and a good attitude. We want riders who we can get along with, but racing is what we’re really about, so above all we want people who are serious about working together to become better cyclists.

Are you guys actually sponsored by PBR, or are you just fans?
Last year we were sponsored by PBR, and we are also fans.`Sometimes the cold beer waiting at the finish line is the only thing that gets a racer through a tough race.’ They were great, they gave us many cases of beer. Don’t all teams have Wisconsin party weekends?

Do you guys do beer hand-ups at the cross races?
We’ve made vigorous support of our teammates our calling card. We’re the folks with the cowbells. We try to keep it above-board on the course though. We respect other racers and officials, because we’re going to be back next race, and next year. But sometimes the cold beer waiting at the finish line is the only thing that gets a racer through a tough race. And feel free to come by after the race and enjoy a cold one!

Who’s the cyclist with who you’d most enjoy splitting a case of PBR?
It’s a tough choice. Top 3 right now would be Bob Roll, David Millar (Slipstream), and Chris Horner (Predictor-Lotto), but I’m going with Bobke, just for the laughs. I bet Bobke knows how to party.