I love the competition & the camaraderie.
Cyclist Ryan Woodall
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the sport,” says Ryan, whose brother Regan is also a competitive pro division mountain biker. “But I want to compete at my best in every race, so I put in the hours of training that it takes. You have to have the dedication to do well.” For Ryan, off-season training involves gym work with a focus on leg exercises to primarily build quadriceps strength. He also does weight work to strengthen his forearms. “Because of the way you have to ride the bike, almost upright, you need to have strong quads and forearms,” says Ryan, who works at Brick City Bikes. “Strong legs keep you on the bike. Strong forearms help with the maneuvering up and down and around.” During the Florida fall racing season, it’s all about bike time. Ryan says he’s “on the bike almost every day either for one-hour easy rides or three-hour all-out ones.” While his focus is on mountain biking, he does do some road bike training and racing “to help with basic strength and speed.” Ryan has two mountain bikes and one road bike. The races held across the state can vary from 20-35 miles and sometimes there are more than one a weekend. Points are awarded according to the finish in each event leading to the season finale “Buy the best bike championships you can afford.You in respective can get a good divisions. mountain bike for Ryan, who around $500.Shop mentors young around at the local mountain bikers, bike shops,talk to does have an ultimate experienced riders goal in his sport. and get matched “I hope to upwith the best be picked up by a bike for you.Then go national pro biking out to the bike trails team,” he says. “It and start out on the would be great to be beginner’s trails.Most able to make a living of all,have fun!” doing what I love.”
Ryan’s
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Photos by John Jernigan
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s far as champions go, Ryan Woodall is rather unassuming. Think Superman’s alter ego Clark Kent. Having acknowledged that he is indeed a five-time state mountain bike champion, Ryan modestly adds later that, oh, yeah, he’s also a two-time Southeastern regional champion. For the record, Ryan captured the USA Cycling Florida State Pro Men’s championship titles in 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009 and 2010. In 2006 and 2009, Ryan claimed USA Cycling’s Southeastern Regional Pro Men’s championship title. USA Cycling is this country’s official governing body for all disciplines of competitive cycling, including road and mountain biking. In addition to the state and regional competitions during the fall season, USA Cycling also hosts the summer season’s Pro Mountain Bike Cross Country Tour. Ryan has competed in those national events as well, notching two Top 10 finishes in 2010. And all of this success began with Ryan, his brother Regan, and his father, Cullie, chasing each other through the woods. “My family was very competitive in motocross sports,” says Ryan, 25. “Then a friend told us about the mountain bike trails at Santos and we decided to check them out. I was 13 at the time and it just clicked with us right away. Next thing we knew we were on bikes, chasing each other through the woods.” Soon the chasing turned to competition and Ryan quickly excelled, snagging his first state championship in the Junior (ages 11-14) division in 1999. He moved seamlessly into the Pro Elite level, scoring in 2005 his first of five state championships to date. “I love the competition and the camaraderie within