Above and Beyond Cancer Cycling Team p/b Bike World returns to Tour of the Gila for the second time in 2024.

“We are excited to get back to Silver City and defend our overall win in last year’s UCI men’s race,” said the team’s Director Sportif / Performance Director Carson Christen. “Our team’s goal for 2024 will be to defend our General Classification victory from 2023 while also continuing our team’s goal of always being aggressive and never leaving ‘what-ifs’ on the results sheet.”

Above and Beyond Cancer Cycling Team p/b Bike World makes the most of their chance to race in Silver City, home of the only UCI stage race in North America this season. “For our team, being one of the largest races in the USA, it is a good chance to show sponsors their investment into the riders has paid off,” Carson says.” Being able to show the path leading up to and during the race on social media is key to showing a good return on investment.”

And with the challenge of racing at elevation and completing almost a full week’s worth of European style stages that include numerous climbs and a relatively long time trial, Tour of the Gila provides a fabulous opportunity for athletes and is also a great education in managing the difficulty of multi-day races—for both racers and staff, Carson says, highlighting the importance of ensuring athletes are well prepared and that teams have a plan to handle fueling and recovery. “The Tour of the Gila is as close as American riders can get now domestically to a very difficult stage race,” says Carson, who worked Tour of the Gila in 2023, then as Assistant DS / Team Coach.

And while learning is great and all, Carson says, results are the cherry on top. “If the individual riders on the team can produce good results at the Tour of the Gila, they can obtain UCI points and will hopefully be able to reach the eyes of larger American or European teams, who will then hopefully offer the riders a chance to guest ride or even stagiaire later in the season and further their cycling careers at a higher level.”

Ahead of Tour of the Gila, Above and Beyond Cancer Cycling Team members were training well with many athletes living at altitude in order to have the physical acclimation to the thinner air in southwest New Mexico’s mountains. “The athletes are also putting a large emphasis on training their climbing legs!” Carson admitted ahead of race day. “Even the team domestiques are required to be strong and fatigue resistant in order to provide help throughout the entirety of the five days.”

And, with the Tour of the Gila Tyrone Individual Time Trial being a factor in an overall win, Carson says the Above and Beyond Cancer Cycling Team also looked into additional advantages they can gain from paying better attention to the aerodynamics of their team kits and upgrades to bikes to ensure speed and efficiency.

The team generally looks forward to their time in Silver City, which Carson credits for unmatched hospitality.
“The residents of Silver City have also been extremely grateful to open their homes/businesses to riders in the race. It’s always nice to hear their intuitive questions as to how the races go and bicycle racing in general,” he says. “The Stage 4 criterium downtown has always been a great time to see your hosts on course and cheering on the team.”