Taylor Phinney sets off on second Olympic journey

Taylor Phinney on his TT bike near Boulder, CO

Taylor Phinney (BMC Racing Team) competed at the 2008 Olympics in the individual pursuit on the track. Today he compared that experience to being “a kid in a candy store.”

Tons of distractions can dilute an athlete’s focus at the Olympics. The biggest distraction for 18 year-old Taylor in 2008? “The U.S. women’s gymnastics team,” he said.

Taylor plans to minimize distractions the second time around when he competes in the Olympic road and time trial races in late July and early August this year because, he believes, it’s a key to performing well at the Olympic Games. He aims to do well in 2012, perhaps even surpass his seventh place in the 2008 Olympic individual pursuit.

And why not?

Taylor leaves Skratch Labs for training ride with Giro shoes

Taylor’s calm and cool. He’s fast. And he’s got the power.

After today’s training ride which followed the press conference coverage in the video below, Davis Phinney walked into the Skratch Labs storefront in Boulder and announced his son Taylor had averaged 400 – 420 watts during the ride.

Earlier in a follow-car that tracked Taylor and training partner Tim Johnson, Davis mentioned that after the last two weeks of training Taylor is fitter than he was at the end of the Giro d’Italia.

Skratch labs’ Boulder storefront

Apple fritters for Taylor today instead of rice cakes

That follow-car took off a few minutes after Taylor started his ride and more than a few minutes had passed by the time it reached Taylor spinning the gears on his TT bike. “If you don’t leave with Taylor,” Davis said, “you have to go 50 mph to catch him.”