http://www.niagaraadvance.ca/2015/04/22/teen-wins-five-golds-at-cycling-championships
Joey Carone is a provincial cycling champion - in five different events.
The Niagara-on-the-Lake teen has also set a new Canadian record for his age group in the 2,000-metre event.
The 14-year-old St. Michael student competed recently at the Milton Velodrome in the Ontario Track Championships, and won each of his five events.
His record-breaking time in the 2,000-metre indoor pursuit was 2:35, breaking the existing 2:41 record.
He also won gold in the 500-metre time trial, the Scratch race, the Points race in which he earned extra points for lapping all other riders in the field, and the 200-metre sprint.
He was also the overall provincial champion for the men’s under-15 category.
Carone trains with the National Cycling Center Hamilton once a week, and the rest of the week cycles on the roads and hills of Niagara-on-the-Lake with his father Jid Carone, a competitive cyclist with 31 years experience.
They spend about 25 hours together a week, between indoor training and cycling, sometimes on endurance rides of 60 to 80 kilometers, and other days climbing the hill to Queenston Heights or up to Bevan Heights above St. Davids.
Jid said he thought Joey would do well at the indoor championships - he’s seen a big improvement in the power and stamina of his son while riding with him, he said - but they were both surprised by just how well he performed.
Joey has been riding since he was six, but this is his fifth year of regimented, intensive training, as set by his father, which now includes a planned diet of 4,000 calories a day.
He also runs with the Niagara Regional Athletics to help balance his muscle development and prevent injuries.
But cycling is his first love.
“When I’m on the bike, I feel like that’s where I want to be,” said Joey.
During the winter, when the weather was too bad for cycling, they also did some cross-country skiing and snow shoeing, as well as working out on two different types of indoor trainers.
But he really prefers to be outside, both for training and competing - his first outdoor competition of this year will be May 16, and he has eight planned over the summer.
His father often picks him up from school early so they can get out on the road and make the most of the daylight hours, he says, and also to keep to his regimen of 10 hours sleep a night - everything he does revolves around training.
His goal for this year is to win road racing provincials, and to compete in an important race in northern Quebec - one involving lots of hills - for under-17 year-olds.
The hard work is paying off, but not only in cycling - it teaches so much more, including a good work ethic, focus, time management - everything just falls into place, says Jid.
It’s an expensive sport. Joey has six different bikes to choose from, including his mountain, road and track bikes - at about $8,000, his carbon fibre Pinarello Prince road bike is the most expensive. The cycling club he rides with in Hamilton has sponsors, but he also has 10 local personal sponsors, including Willow Cakes and Pastries in NOTL.
Long distance goals? Joey has his sight set on being a professional cyclist, competing at top level events, including the Tour de France or the Italian equivalent, the Giro d’Italia, and he’s willing to do the hard work it will take to get there.
For now, what does he like to do in his spare time, when he just wants to hang out with other kids his age?
“I ride into town with my friends,” he says.
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