Colin Joyce was a top finisher in the second stage at the Volta ao Alentejo in Portugal, a five-day race in February. During the next day, the professional cyclist from Pocatello was coughing up blood after flying over the handlebars during a crowded downhill sprint to the finish.
“People were fighting for position and elbowing each other out of the way trying to get to the front,” Joyce said. “We were moving pretty fast and all the sudden I find myself flying over the bars.”
Joyce knew right away that he hadn’t broken anything, but he rose from the tangled wreckage coughing up a fair amount of blood.
“Everything ended up being totally fine, just a bruised lung,” Joyce said. “That all subsided in about a week though.”
Much like the pavement beneath the tires, professional bicycle racing can be full of ups and downs, twists and turns and highs and lows.
At 14, Joyce’s father and close family friend, Sam Krieg, introduced him to the sport. Joyce grew up playing soccer and saw cycling as another avenue for outdoor exercise. As he continued to excel every year on the bike, he put his education on hold at Idaho State University to pursue cycling to his best abilities.
“I love the whole sport in general and everything that goes with it, from traveling to living an active lifestyle,” Joyce said. “But probably the main reason I love cycling is how much you can push your body.”
Joyce, now in his ninth professional cycling season, is riding with Rally Cycling. Last year, Joyce was one of 16 riders on the Axeon Hagens Berman Cycling Team, which consists of cyclists between the ages of 19 and 22.
“It’s a similar level than where I was at last year and will be a good move for me to help step in the right direction moving forward,” Joyce said.
He finished in 16th of 190 cyclists at the Under 23 UCI World Road Race Championships in Doha, Qatar last year.
But because of his age, Joyce could no longer ride with his previous team.“Lately I’ve just been training, traveling and racing,” Joyce said. “I had a fun offseason, relaxed and enjoyed time off the bike. I went to Southern California for the month of January and was training there and spent the month of February mostly in Europe.”
The spring race season is about to start, which will continue through mid-September. Though he completes most of the training throughout the winter, Joyce said he tries to keep up between races, too.
“I view every race as an opportunity to keep developing, learning and continue racing to win for the team,” he said. “I am hoping to ride well at Pro Nationals at the end of June.”
Most recently, he was preparing for a four-day stage race in Fayetteville, Arkansas. This will be his first time racing there, despite traveling to Europe for the first time at 16 and cycling in over 15 different countries, including the Bahamas, Belgium, France, Germany, Switzerland and Ireland.
In terms of the ride itself, Joyce said he doesn’t really have a favorite aspect. It all ebbs and flows throughout the race.
“The jostling and fighting for position can be fun and other times you end up hitting the deck really hard,” he said. “But crossing scenarios or climbs are fun, too. It all has its ups and downs. Getting dropped on big climbs is not all that fun.”
With some riders being great at attacking big climbs, they get up there rather quickly, Joyce said, adding that when they leave other racers behind, those involved with the sport call it ‘dropping.’
In addition to physical endurance, cycling requires a tough mind to compete a successful level professionally.
“A lot of the sport is mental, actually,” Joyce said. “You have to try and remain positive. You have to see it like there will always be more chances the next day, the next week or even on the next climb.”
As someone who lives and trains in Pocatello, Joyce said it’s unfortunate that he sticks to the pavement, and doesn’t ride trails as often.
“I don’t really get out too much on a mountain bike, which is dumb of me,” he said. “I’ve been out on occasion and I know the trails in Pocatello are pretty amazing. My favorite trail when I do go is the 911 trail up City Creek. That one is super-fun and has the roller coaster type feel to it.”
He continued, “And they made that new Sterling and Justice a few years ago. That’s a good connection from Gibson Jack over to City Creek. Unfortunately, when I’m training in Pocatello I’m out on the roads. I’ve always opted out of the trails but that’s something I should change moving forward.”
If not riding, he would probably be finishing up school at ISU. He completed two years studying exercise science before he pursued cycling full-time. But outside of that, he is content for now right where he’s at.
“I don’t really know work-wise what I would be doing,” Joyce said. “Right now, my passion is cycling and I love what I do right now. I just want to keep riding as much as I can until I don’t love it as much or until I can’t.”
