All the riders and their national flags for the 2012 season. Only the American's can come out for this race.
Some riders get ready faster than others.
Head of the group on their way out to Paris Mountain.
Chase Pinkham (foreground), and Carter Jones (background) chat it up at the rear of the group.
Andy Baker grabs his ride from the stable. Greenville is actually his home town, and he attends Furman college here as well.
The group passes under an overpass.
The group skirts the edge of downtown Greenville, snaking their way along the roads that will lead them to Paris Mountain.
Tippy toes.
There's a steep kick even at the base of the Mountain.
Plenty of recreational riders like to test themselves on Paris Mountain as well. This gentleman just so happened to be wearing a Giordana Cycling Apparel Custom Jersey.
Ben Jacques Maynes leaves the others behind as he puts in a deep effort. He wasn't messing around on this training ride.
A smaller group of riders stick together for the majority of the climb.
Ben passes through the shadows, Paris Mountain has a heavy canopy along many parts of the climb. The air can get still and muggy on days like these,
Sometimes photographing from a car can ruin a shot. Sometimes something cool happens.
Carter Jones is isn't far behind Ben Jacques Maynes at the summit.
Not every shot needs to be in focus.
Ben powers his way up the final 300 yards of the climb towards the summit.
The rest of the riders tap their way up the end of the climb. Ben swoops back down for another go, and to give us another shooting opportunity. What a nice guy!
The entire team reforms as a group for the decent as a local rider comes up the mountain in the opposite direction.
Some local cycling enthusiasts. This shot gives you a slight idea at some of the inclines Paris Mountain has to offer.
The descent stretches out the group, and they fly reaching speeds of over 40mph at some points. Omer Kem the team director, informs us they'll be taking bigger risks in the stage tomorrow and will be getting down the mountain even faster.
Another great shot of Ben approaching the summit for the second time. He is considered to have one of the best chances on the team for reaching the podium tomorrow.
Hay bails are placed at some of the more precarious turns on the course. Safety is an important part of any well organized race.
The ol' Red White and Blue, how appropriate.
My view for most of the recon ride. That's Omer Kem, Bissell's team director for the weekend.
"The Armory" as head mechanic Jim O'Brien likes to call it.
Some well earned watermelon for the guys after the hot ride.
The mechanics are hard at work trading out training equipment for race equipment. Fresh tires are always glued up for race days.
Rider feedback is essential since some of these guys haven't been on their racing rigs for over a week or two. Jim will get as much dialed in today as possible, to avoid any surprises come race day.
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Photo Shoot: USA Cycling Championships Day 2 (Training)
On the second day we spent in Greenville, we accompanied the Bissell Pro Cycling team on a reconnaissance ride of Paris Mountain. They will ride this climb three times in the following day's National Road Race Championship. Some of these shots work well for promotional purposes, while others I just liked.
