...Ok so no, I'm not actually racing the Giro, but I sort of feel like I should be there. Our good friend and former Hincapie Development team rider Craig Lewis, riding for HTC Columbia, will be rolling off the start ramp for his first Grand Tour test. I can't wait to watch live as he flies along the streets of Amsterdam with the world watching - it's a big day for him but probably an even bigger one for me.
I met Craig when he was a 15-year-old kid at Donaldson center (our local Tuesday night race). I remember seeing this skinny kid with an afro riding with the A group and still remember how fast he would spin his then-junior gears and how smooth he was. I asked around for a few weeks and found out Craig was a good local mountain biker from Duncan and had just started riding on the road. It's funny actually hearing the story from Craig: He says he occasionally rode his mountain bike and was watching the Tour de France. When he heard George was from Greenville, he quickly went to the local bike shop and asked if it was true. They told him yes and that he was occasionally spotted riding at Donaldson Center, so Craig decided to give it a try. Although Craig never actually met George that summer, I took quick interest in him without ever seeing him race and we became close friends, and still are to this day.
Somehow we came across a copy of Craig's eighth grade yearbook.
Craig raced just a few races that summer as a junior or a Cat 4 rider. He showed good promise in training but sometimes it's hard to tell until riders get put in harder races or are out of their element. Back then I promoted an October NRC criterium here in downtown Greenville, South Carolina called the Michelin Cycling Classic. Many of the top pro teams would race (including George) as the $10,000 prize list was fairly high for the pro race in those days. Craig had never done a criterium aside from that morning's junior race. This being the last race of the season Craig asked me if he could do the pro race that evening. After thinking about it for most of the afternoon I figured what's the harm, he'll only last a handful of laps. With a difficult technical course, the top pro riders, and Craig on junior gears in his first criterium, the odds were certainly against him. I just told him to stay at the back for as long as he could. Lap after lap Craig would come by spinning an obviously smaller gear and as the field dwindled down Craig would always come by last man as he was told. He ended up finishing his first criterium as an inexperienced skinny 15 year old; Craig certainly turned some heads that day.
The Fairway-Subaru Cycling Team
(Craig's the one with the "hair.")
The next year I put Craig on our team, called the Fairway Subaru cycling team which consisted of mainly local Category 1 riders. Craig fit in perfectly with all of the guys and to this day most of us are still very close. Craig quickly stood out from the group with his desire to work hard, ability to soak in all info and always being on time and prepared and with a spotless bike. These traits are hard to come by with a group of weekend warriors. Craig was the go-to guy at races when the riders forgot food or needed help setting up a ride computer or fixing up their bikes. We always turned to Craig even though he was just a 16-year old; the roles should have been different but we grew accustomed to having one guy on the program we could count on. I'll never forget when Craig moved on to the TIAA-CREF Development Team (Now Garmin Transitions) Darren Fuller said, "Man, who's going to teach me how to use my bike computer next year?" Funny but very true.
Outside Magazine Feature July 2005
Many of you who have heard of Craig Lewis have probably heard of his frightful crash at the Tour de Georgia in April of 2004. Craig was 20 years old and had already turned some heads on the American scene. Jonathan Vaughters had been quoted as saying, "of the 20-year- olds in America, Craig has the best chance to win the Tour de France." We had all seen sparks of greatness, but hearing it from someone like Jonathan made us proud to hear it. We packed a van full of friends and drove the 3 hours to Rome, Georgia to watch Craig in his first big time trial against the pro's. The 18-mile course was basically half uphill and half downhill. We had gotten reports from the car (I was following George that day) that Craig had one of the fastest times on top of the hill - pretty exciting news. I remember after a few minutes getting a call from Chuck Hodge (Technical Director for all of the major tours in the US and my former roommate) saying, "Where are you?" I told him I was in George's team car and he said, "Get to the finish as quickly as possible." I remember thinking to myself - that's strange, he knows I have no choice. In the 20 or so minutes it took me to get to the finish I had several phone calls from Chuck as well as the race director, so I knew something was seriously wrong. Once I got to the finish, I was told that Craig had been involved in a serious crash and that I needed to get to the hospital as quickly as possible. Instead of meandering our way through the closed downtown, I ran the 2 miles to the hospital where there were friends and hospital staff outside waiting. Since I was the closest thing to Craig's family in town at the time they would only give information to me. I was brought into a room where a preacher was waiting on me, and the prognosis was not good.
Craig being the fighter, he spent 27 days at the hospital and recovered well from the 2 punctured lungs, 48 broken bones, and a stomach infection. It was a long month, but Craig's drive and desire to get back to normal won out and he was back on his bike in June. The lasting physical and mental effects of the crash never deterred Craig from being positive about his recovery, and although he didn't race for the rest of the year, he did begin his first winter of training with George that year, which led to his quick rise to the pro level.
Craig climbing Brasstown Bald at the 2008 edition of the Tour de Georgia
(Photo by Darrell Parks)
George and Craig became daily training partners, neighbors and close friends. Much like the 15- year-old Craig that we raced with, his willingness to learn and work hard was soon taken to the next level by riding with George every day. Craig soaked in every detail of life as a pro and it soon paid off. In July of 2006, a little over a year after his terrible accident, Craig won both the U-23 Road Race and Criterium at the USA Cycling National Championships in Champion, Pennsylvania, both in solo moves. I remember getting calls from old teammates during each of the races and you could hear the emotion in their voices. We all felt like we were a part of the win and just a year after his life threatening accident, our boy was 2-time National Champion.
Craig on the Podium of the 2006 USA Cycling National Championships
The promise and good results continued to come and in September of the same year Craig placed 7th overall in the Tour de l'Avenir, also known as the mini Tour de France. One of only a handful of Americans to ever crack the top 10 overall in that race, the result proved that Craig was one of the best amateurs in the world and adapted well to European racing. Craig continued to work hard and progress as planned; one of my most memorable days in cycling came soon after when I was able help Craig secure a spot on the then T-Mobile team (now HTC Columbia). We were all super excited as the 2-year deal would put Craig alongside George on the best team in the world - we could not be happier. To this day, Craig remains on the team and is a highly-respected teammate as stated by Michael Barry.
Craig and George together on Team Highroad
On Saturday, Craig will start alongside the greatest in the sport in the 2010 Giro d'Italia and so will I. Well, not exactly but I almost feel that way. We will all be closely watching Craig roll off the start ramp for the flat 8km prologue. And much like his first criterium, he will be gracefully spinning his biggest gear, proving to himself and us that he deserves to be there.
Go Craig!