Wren '03 keeps his wheels turning

It's said that Einstein failed algebra, and that Michael Jordan was cut from his high school JV basketball team. So we shouldn't hold it against Tyler Wren '03 that on his very first ride with the cycling team as a freshman, he crashed into the back of the team captain before they even got across Nassau Street for the first time.

That story, an enduring one on the Princeton team, just keeps getting more dated as the years go by for Wren. A national champion while he was at Princeton, Wren has made the demanding sport of cycling his profession since graduation. As a member of the Colavita-Bolla professional cycling team, he has already raced alongside — or maybe slightly behind — superstar Lance Armstrong and is steadily putting in the training required to improve in what seems to be more of a way of life than a sport.

"Until you actually do the sport, you don't realize how difficult it really is," Wren said. "And it's not like I'm making much money at this point, either. I'm just doing it because I enjoy it."

Wren's only showdown with Armstrong, the man most Americans associate with pro cycling, came at the Tour de Georgia last April, and showed just how far the former Tiger has to go. Wren, who finished 71st overall in that race, was in the middle of the pack on the first day when he saw Armstrong coming up beside him from behind. Expecting even the six-time Tour de France champion to be working hard to move up in the field, Wren was chagrined to see Armstrong pull out a cell phone and strike up a casual conversation, as if he was merely out for a leisurely ride through the country.

One similarity that Wren already shares with Armstrong — and all professional cyclists — is his work ethic in bringing his body to peak form. With pro races far longer than college races, and the competitive season lasting for most of the year, Wren has difficulty even describing the commitment required for his sport.

In addition to the year-round training, he must be in tune to his body's requirements 24 hours a day, seven days a week. One indication of what this has done is that Wren, who carries only 145 pounds on a 5-foot, 11-inch frame, has a resting heart rate of 47 beats per minute, well below the normal of 60 to 80.

"It is a full-time job," Wren said. "You're traveling all the time, and you always have to be taking care of your body, even when you're not riding, whether it's what you're eating or how much rest you need to give yourself."

What makes Wren's current commitment to his training even more incredible — at least to anyone who isn't a pro endurance athlete — is the fact that he does it all on his own, with almost no outside motivation. Living with his mother in Rosemont, Pa., there are few other professional cyclists in the area, none of whom are on his team. Yet even in the heart of the blustery Mid-Atlantic winters, Wren says that he manages to get out on the road almost every day, enjoying the time alone, and never being able to stand the monotony of an indoor stationary bike for an extended period.

While he was at Princeton, Wren was a four-time national champion, winning the individual title for the National Collegiate Cycling Association (NCCA) road race in 2001, cross country mountain bike race in 2001 and 2002, and the short track cross country race in 2001. He was also a member of the USA under-23 national team in 2003, and an NCCA All-American in 2001, 2002 and 2003.

Unfortunately, at the current stage in his career, all the hardware Wren has collected on the college circuit means nothing. Cycling requires years of commitment to reach the heights of success, as evidenced by the fact that only one winner of the Tour de France in the past 20 years has been under the age of 25. Wren is 23.

What seems to keep Wren coming back day after day is something intangible that those who don't ride can only guess at. The tight-knit community of cyclists is something he speaks of almost reverently, as each rider has a tremendous level of respect for his opponents' abilities.

At the end of the day, though, Wren makes the decision to get on the bike for himself, not anybody else, and is having a great time doing it.

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"There have definitely been times, in races, where it becomes so difficult that I question why I'm doing this," Wren said. "But after the fact, after the race is over and I've pushed myself to go even further, I come away with some perspective on why I enjoy it."