Slate.

Black Champions. February, 13 1985. Nelson Vials— [sic]

Vails.

Vails. Camera Roll 55. Sound Roll 27. Sound 83.

Nelson Vails you're recorded in Los Angeles as saying that, in the world of cycling, you are what you train. Maybe you'd expand on that a little bit. What does the daily training routine for someone like Nelson Vails.

Well the season from, I would say, the end of October right on up till August, it begins of, early weights, low mileage, and then you, you gain a lot of weight training, which is three times a week up to three hours in the weight room, to an hour to two hours on a bicycle. And this becomes a weekly process which becomes, after three months, you then increase so much by weights, and so many mileage to where you begin your race season. And then you, you basically you tone, and then you slack down on your program, due to various races that you have throughout the season. That's what you train for.

In the racing season do you have both sprints, or do you race both sprints and extended races, or how do, how do you select—

Basically I'm a sprinter, only ride the track races.

You said that you recieved your first bike for Christmas obviously that wasn't a racing bike however. Tell us a little about the first racing bike you got?

[laughs] Wow that was a long time ago. I guess your average, actually my first real bike was a, a miniature racing bike, that I believe was selected by my older brother. And, I learned to ride that, and I, I picked up on that very quickly, and each year from there I recieved a bicycle every Christmas.

Where did you learn to ride? Where, where were you doing your bike riding as, as a youngster.

In a neighborhood of Harlem, 115th street between 5th and Lenox, at Martin Luther King Towers.

Okay when, when you say you weren't racing it obviously in the street, you were just sort of getting familiar with the bike. Is that—

I just learned how to ride a bicycle.

Do you remember your first competitive effort as a cyclist?

Yeah. I borrowed a bicycle for one of the early annual Harlem Day races, which was held on father's day each year in Mount Morris Park. And I did one of the novice races which is like a quarter mile-type race and I had got third. And that year they, they were awarding prizes to Disneyland, and a free bicycle, and a whole, whole buncha things for the winner. And I lost, and I had got third. And that was a real upsetting thing real dissapointing thing to make me wanna wanna for the following year.

Tell us how old you were when this happened.

Wow, I don't think I can count back that far. It's difficult. It was a long time ago, '73, 1973. I can remember much so because it was a small trophy and I can remember the date being stamped in there.

Who had encouraged you first to go into bike racing?

Umm - It's hard to say. There was no encouragement at all. It was just something I picked up.

Now perhaps you'd describe for us the map of the world of cycling. Where do you go today for the big meets? Where, where are the centers of cycling in the world?

Eastern Europe. The Grand Prix, which is in East Germany and Czechoslovakia, where you get the best of the best people from all over the world that compete on these little weekend events in different Eastern European countries. You go to Moscow and train and then go on to race at the different cities.

Where, where have you been on that cycle? Can you tell us about some of the places that you recall especially?

My first real Eastern European trip was Warsaw, Poland. That was a ten day thing. And, I began to like it a lot. It's a usual trip for me now to go to Czechoslovakia, the Grand Prix and Brno and the Grand Prix at Prague. And those are very big events because you get the, the top eight to twenty guys in the world. And if you make the finals with that then you're doing well at that time of the year.

Peter Westbrook the fencer who we interviewed a few weeks ago said that Americans are not very highly regarded in the world of fencing, and the centers are pretty much the same, Eastern Europe. What's the reception of American cyclists in places like Czechoslovakia or Warsaw, Poland?

Well it's, it's one of those sports such as football, soccer in America. It's bicycle racing and that, and auto racing. A lot of times Marlboro Cigarettes. It's, actually it's growing because the Americans are now recognized, in particular, in cycling, in bicycle racing alone. The Americans are not rated as like, the eighth country. Now we're in the top three.

Are you one of the few, or perhaps the only, black cyclists on the circuit that you're competing in now?

Basically, one of the center, one of the centerpieces on the international circuit. There's another gentleman named Scott Berryman. And, he's a Black gentleman, he's racing, he's sponsored by a corporate sponsor this year, 7-Eleven. And, he's the third or the fourth man on the totelm pole of, of the sprinters

Where do you rank on the totem pole of the sprinters?

Second in the world. Second—

To Mark Gorski?

Yes.

I wonder if you'd talk about the, the community of outstanding cyclists in the world today. Who are the top competitors? Who are the people that you expect to be competing against in the finals of the Olympics?

It's hard to say right now. That doesn't grow on one until August, you know, basically after June when the international events are over with in Europe and The United States, and you prepare yourself for national competition which is important for the coprorate sponsors, and the world championships, which is the same week as what the Olympics was held for cycling.

When you reached the Olympics in Los Angeles, who were the people, who were the most highly regarded people going in to the Olympics?

Number one, Mark Gorski. I was very well underrated, which I didn't realize. That's another thing. A gentleman that didn't qualify for the top eight, which was a gentleman, Nakatake of Japan. And, Gerhard Scheller from West Germany. And good old hard fast, you know, hard earned training, old fashioned training, got me to where I am now.

There's a lot of myth about your work as a messenger, but actually you were already competing as a cyclist when you were to begin your cycling career as a messenger, but perhaps a little bit of the other way around. Could you tell us about, how'd that story get started anyway? Everybody says he was a messenger and then became a cyclist, but [unintelligable] competed—

Well, I believe someone just took it and promoted a good story to get things started. It is true that it did help my cycling somewhat, but it, it also is true that I didn't get my start as a messenger. I, I had become a messenger due to the fact that I was leaving New York to go to the Olympic training center to train. So, from my indoor nine to five, I went to an outdoor job, which I was on my bicycle more times during the day and I still trained early morning or late evening.

When you say it helped you, how would messengering help you cycle?

Basically just dealing with New York City traffic. And, in the particular event that I do, you have to be aware and on your toes.

You get up to speeds of about what, thirty-five, fourty miles per hour?

Forty to forty-five miles per hour—

[coughs]. Excuse me.

What happens at, most of us who, every body rides a bicycle but I don't think most people know what it's like to be on a bike fourty, fourty-five miles an hour. Maybe you could tell us something about that. What, what are the things that you really have to be doing at that speed, to maintain the speed and obviously to maintain yourself on the bike.

Well number one, as a sprinter, it's a one-thousand meter event and it's a head-to-head competiton, so it's just you and your opponent. And, between you and your opponent, each, each individual would think that they're in control of the race at, in the situation that they're in. And, it's a big wind-up of, of about five hundred meters. So, with one lap to go, the pace begins to quicken, and they time the last few hundred meters which you reach speeds up to forty, forty-five miles an hour. And it's, it's like a high speed chess match. You always have to be on your toes, always thinkin' about what's gonna get you across the line first, no matter what happens. That's the name of the game.

What kind of chess moves? Maybe you could describe some of them for us. How, how do you, let's say you're, you're starting a thousand meter race now, against, let's say, one of the top other cyclists in the world, what kind of things do you, you have to think about?

Well, first of all, you go to the line with a game plan. It's like goin' into the huddle with the game plan, and then the blitz comes on, so the play is foiled. So once you leave the line a lot of times your game plan does not work. That's what I mean by bein' on your toes, of aware of what you're doing, and makin' the right move and thinkin' about what you do before you do it. You know, cause you have very little time to make up for it, if you make up for it.

Maybe you'd describe one of your game plans for us. What, what would Nelson Vails be thinking about, what would the game plan be, let's say as you approach the line.

OK let's say I draw second position, and the guy is fast, such as someone like Mark Gorski. The gentleman's fast, so once he gets going it's going to be very difficult to get around him. So the thing is to either jump the guy early, which is takin' off early, with two laps to go. You can take off any time you want, as long as you get across the line first. So it's either makin' your move early, or slowing the pace to where you can get the edge of a better jump on your opponent. And he's always, he should always have his eye on you, and you have your eye on him. And, it's, it's really hard to explain without actually pinpointing—

We're out. We're gonna change mags.

Cut.

Hit it.

Sound 84.

[unintelligable] OK.

Nelson when I learned to ride— [clears throat] Excuse me. When I learned to ride a bike as a kid the big thing for me was my balance, you know. I was never really concered with speed on a bike. How does that function for a, for racing cyclists? Is, is your balance something that has to be developed to a very fine point?

Well, at a young age you learn to balance on your bicycle and it's somethin' that you will never forget. And, and a particular event, such as the sprint, sometime you have to stop at one point on the velodrome, and balance yourself. And, to me, the higher the banking is, the smoother the track, the more comfortable I would be if I was to have to come to a standstill position.

Where are the best velodromes?

Number one, Moscow. Caracas, Venezuela. Colorado Springs. There's on in Italy that's supposed to be really good that the world championships will be on. They're building a new one in Louisiana for the sports festival this year. And, as soon as The United States get, get up to date on some indoor velodromes, I think we will have the best racing in the world, because The United States can basically afford it.

Have you recieved much coaching in your career?

A great deal. Still don't know anything.

Tell us about your coach and tell us about the, the coaches in the sport, perhaps, the outstanding teachers and coaches.

Well beginning with 1980 when I shook some hands and met the staff of the national coaching staff, from then on, right up until '82 when I did finally get a chance to go to the Olympic training center, things just started happening. I, such as the proper coaching of lifting weights properly, pedaling properly, well positioned on your bicycle, and just feeling around and knowing what I wanna do, which is the sprints. And so, I, the key point was to just focus on the different excercises for the dif—, for the event that I had to look forward too. And, right up 'til this day I'm still learning. There's always a lesson to be learned in the match sprints, cause every rider is different.

I wonder if you'd talk about some of the, the coaches, the people who've coached you and some of the coaches you have a great respect for throughout the sport. Who would they be?

Well, the head coach is a gentlemen by the name of Eddie Borysewicz. We, he's known as Eddie B. He's from Poland. He came in, I believe, '76, '77 to The United States to coach the cycling team here, and basically built the program, changed it around, built it up, right up to '84. And that's, that's the key point on a lot of good results. And, from an athlete's standpoint of view, of respecting your coach and listenin' to what needs to be said, that's what got a lot of results for the cycling team this year.

Were there any outstanding cyclists from the Eastern European countries or from The Soviet Union who did not compete, who you expect to compete against in the future? Who would they be?

Lutz Hefllich and company from East Germany. Sergei Kopylov and company from The Soviet Union. And there's only like two, up to, I believe, two Czechoslovakians

Who did not compete in Los Angeles—

Yes.

If someone were to bring, let's say, a son, a nephew, or a neighbor to you and say, Nelson I've got a young kid here, he's interested in being a cyclist, and he greatly admires ou and wants to pursue a career, what would you be looking for here? What would the kind of, maybe the temperment, or the kind of body build, or whatever, what would you look for in a youngster?

Well, for me, that's very hard to answer right now because, like I said, I'm still learning myself. And, I'm not in any real position to coach anyone along. It's hard for me to say because, like I said, I really don't know as much as people would appear to. I'm very intelligent as far as what my goals are, but for a young athlete that wants to get started it's a, it's a difficult point. Because, I gave, I've given up a lot. I've given up my, my life for cycling, and you gotta basically wanna, wanna really do it in order to be successful at it. Because, in the years to come it will grow as a professional sport. You have Europeans athletes that are recieving up to a million dollars now.

What, what are your goals? Talk a little bit about that.

Basically, to be successful in the next four years in bicycle racing. It's not, a lot of people misunderstand, the public misunderstands that you would think every four years, the Olympics, the Olympics. That's only for an event such as, I'll use an event such as like the shotput or something, that's a four year event. Cycling it's every weekend, and the big race rolls around every year which is the world championships. And that's where the world will appear.

Talk about what you have to do to maintain your conditioning edge, your sharpness. Perhaps you'd talk a little bit about your diet. What do you have to do on a day-to-day basis to be competition sharp?

Basically, stay flexible, a lot of stretching. You have to do your, your mileage, the basic road miles every day, and if there's a weight session day. Whatever the program is that the national coaching staff sets, that's wat should be followed. Such as, breakfast, medium ride, excercise, maybe an easy ride, and also what's important is a nap.

What kind of diet do, do you—

I, I don't have a diet.

You just eat anything you want—

I, I just eat. I, I'm not a health food type guy. I prefer more of the junk, such as the good vegetables that are good for you don't apply to me.

Be, besides the Olympics, oh actually you may have answered that talking about the national championships, but are there any, any outstanding meets, perhaps that you haven't mentioned, as something you would look forward to this next year, that you'd say I'm pointing specifically at this competiton because the best will be there.

Well, it's the world championships. Which will be held somewhere in Italy in the, in the first week of August. And, that's where the world will have their eye on Mark Gorski and Nelson Vails, because we're the two Olympic champions. And, for the world championships, that's, that will be held in The United States in 1986. It's a one shot deal to have a good seating for the following year, so it's like a must-do well in order to make your job easier in '86. It's the more the win the less you ride. It's always a weak seed against a strong seed.

One thing we certianley know [coughs] Excuse me.

You good?

Mm-hmm. One thing we certainly know about Nelson Vails, both from what you've said yourself and what we've read, is that a great deal of hard work has gone into this career. But, what else about Nelson Vails would people like to know? If you were to describe yourself, who is Nelson Vails? Tell us about that.

Wow that's difficult. General, all around nice guy, fun to be around I suppose. Number one, I'd probably always gets himself in trouble, but don't really mean any harm. 's just about it. It's hard for me to really continue on. You really got to get me going.

Okay well you said before, I thought it interesting said, you said you've given up your life for cycling. What, I mean you really made a choice at some point obviously to sacrifice a great deal to achieve some goals in cycling. Would you explore that with us? What, what—

Well, beginning with workin' the nine to five job, to become a bike messenger, to continue on, to leave that job to become a full-time cyclist, beginning with the Olympic training center. I have a wife and two kids. My family, all, most of my family is here in New York, and I chose to live in California because that's where the training is. And, I'm away from home twelve months out of the year. Basically, trying to follow a training program, training centers, and going with the flow of the national training system. And, so you give up a lot of friends at, that are here in New York, and you go on to explore and do new, newer and bigger things.

I wonder if you'd go back a little bit for us, now we're going to talk about growing up. What kind of a kid were you? What was your, who's in your family? What kind of neighborhood did you grow up in?

I grew up in a good neighborhood. A lot of people misinterpret that, you know, you think Harlem, young Nelson Vails, baby of ten, you know, and a lot of stereotypical people would think that, you know, I had to live in a basement, in a room with six kids, and. My neighborhood is a general, all around nice neighborhood. A lot of people, like I said, just misinterpret. I was a brat of a kid when I grew up. A crybaby, and I learnt the hard way of, you can't have everything. And I think it's worked out, to the best of my knowledge, to the best for me, to become a better human being.

What's it gonna take for you to win a gold medal at the next Olympics, if you decide to compete?

A lot more self-discipline within the next year.

Tell us about it. What specifically?

It's hard to say right now becasue '88 is so far away. It's basically world championships and, the main goal is, to rebuild for '86. The world champioships will be held in The United States, just like the Olympics for me. It's rolling around again in two years. And, that's the main goal, to do well for the country, for myself, here in The United States.

Are we cutting it short?

Sure can.

Hold on just one sec—

Ticket please.

Black Champions. Nelson Vails. Oh my gosh. Camera Roll 57. Sound Roll 28. Sound 85.

Nelson perhaps you'd talk a little bit about the atmosphere at the Olympics. For those of us who weren't there, saw it on television. What was it like for you?

You missed it. You wasn't there for a good week. Weather wise?

Well—

—actually what it is that the electrifying thrill of the energy that, that the people, not only the American people, but just the people alone that was at the velodrome. And you're all encased in the stadium, and, when your name is announced, and you go out there, and do your thing, and get some results, and then, you know, before you get off your bike to end your day, you just feel so good about, you know, doing what you're doing and accomplishing what's happening for the daily program. And, just the Olympic week, the Olympic feel was so well promoted for all the athletes, I think. It's just a great feeling that, too bad we all can't do it again.

Did you get to know many of the athletes, or do you have time really to—

Basically just the cycling athletes. You know, you meet a few new ones, but basically all the top atheltes, the guys that make the top eight, you see weekend after weekend, different countries. And those are the guys generally to beat. You know who's going, like how, what time of the year. And then you don't see each other until the world championships roll around, and then you see what's happening then. You keep tab, actually. You watch every body race their first and second round, and you make, make notes, because some day during the week you may have to meet up with that, that person.

Tell us about Mark Gorski.

I don't really know much as far as— He's been around a lot longer than I have. He's been around since an intermeiate age of, age of like elven, twelve, thirteen. I guess it was brought, cycling was brought to him through family I suppose. And, he was all, when I first began racing, and found I wanted to be a sprinter, he was the national champion already. So, a lot of catchin' up I had to do. Very well respected athlete throughout the world from his accomplishments. And, he's a great guy. And I'm sorry he doesn't get as much attention as he deserve for winning a gold medal, cause it was a lot of hard work. It was eight years of his time. Because he was on the team that didn't go in '80.

If someone were to ask you what it's like to be a champion, or if someone was to say to you finish a sentence like, To be a champion, etc. etc. What would Nelson Vails say?

Don't do it. Get to do things like that. It's hard to say. I don't consider myself a champion at all. It's hard for me to appreciate my sliver medal right now because, in my particular event, cycling, it's a head to head competition. Silver, right now, it's still a losing spot to me. It's just makin' me work harder to, to get a gold. Only thing I ever really won was a Pan-Am gold medal, was the first American to go 10.6 seconds. Winning national championships that Mark didn't attend, that was durin' the same week as the Olympics. And, that was one of my main accomplish, accomplishments was to win a national championship.

You will meet Mark Gorski, I assume, at the world championships.

All this year. It's we, we have to travel together all this year. Where he goes, or where I go, we have to go and do it together. And that way we'll meet as much time, as many times as we can throughout the year before the world championships.

Tell us, then, how important the championship is for you? What it's gonna mean. What will it do to your life, to your career? You wanna win that and go on to do some other things or do you wanna—

It—

—Incidentally one of the questions I meant to ask you before, how long does one cycle, how old are cyclists?

I would say right up to thirty is all. To be a champion, to be more succesful than I am now, takes one hundred percents of good results. It, it's a future. There's a future behind cycling. Many people say, with a personality like mine, I can go a long way. It's hard for me to believe that right now. In order for me if, no results, no future. Just like the Olympics, no podium, no press, no publicity. And so that was the main goal, was to not get fourth place, not actually, not, not go there, not do anything. The main thing was that now I'm here, I have to do something. And which, I accomplished that, and it helped me out a lot, a great deal for the future that lies ahead.

Rate that future that lies ahead, what would you like to be doing ten, fifteen, twenty years down the road? Where are you headed after cycling?

My main attempt is to be succesful before the age of thirty financially. Hopefully I can do well with a major television station, and some commentary. Or just some expertise analyzing on different things, such as films or movies, anything that has to do with cycling. Or maybe not, I can get in other different fields, anything that basically has to do with television, advertising, commercials. I don't think I can be a, a good actor to be successful.

You've got two daughters. Cheniqua, is it? and Imami. Would you encourage them to be athletes? Olympic athletes—

No. Not at all. I think the baby girl probably can be a successful athlete. The younger one is, is more scientifically sophisticated towards what she wants to do. My, my choice is women's professional golf. Yeah, I don't know, it's only a handful of them that, that are succesful. And I think it's easy if you learn how. It's hard for me to say. They'll pick and choose their own future, such as I had to do. You know, I was set out there and I had my choice of staying in the neighborhood or leaving.

Marshall Taylor.

Oh yeah. We came on, this is realtivley new for us too, perhaps you could tell us a story of Major Taylor. We just got this research piece yesterday, this cyclist before you. I don't know much about him so maybe you could tell us.

Well it's hard for me to analyze that. I read a book a long time ago on him. It's hard for me to remember very much of it—

Nelson would you just pause for a minute. When you go back and do that sentence would you mention his name as you, as you give us—

Let's do this entrance again. The question.

Start again and say, I read a book about Major.

OK. I read a book about Major Taylor a while back ago when I first got involved in cycling. And, I don't remember too much about the book, up to this day, but he was the man in his day. He was a guy that, no matter what they did, they couldn't, they couldn't beat 'im, he was unbeatable. It's just, it's really hard for me to say, because I, I, too bad there's no videos or films of him to watch, to, you know, to see some of the history on 'im, other than the books and photos. And, like I said, from my understanding is that, out of all his opponents, and out of all the guys that used to attempt to team up on him, which they call combining today, out of all the combines against him, he would still come out victorious. And, that's what made a great cyclist. And I think it was a lotta natural ability, such as something, I believe, I have. The magic, with the magic wand, and can pull a rabbit out the hat.

[laughs] all right.

Cut.

Cut it.