It’s aiming to set itself apart from other teams on the bike, and it did it off the bike as well yesterday evening. The Cannondale Pro Cycling team eschewed the traditional type of launch to host one with a little more swagger and pomp, with the riders rocking it up at the Canyon Club outside Los Angeles.
“The entire team is getting ready for great things from Cannondale Pro Cycling for the next year,” said the team’s top rider, Peter Sagan. “I feel good about our squad and the quality of each rider this season. We want to give our fans a strong performance again this year showing our passion at being a part of Cannondale Pro Cycling, and having fun along the way.”
Sagan is normally the big attention grabber but team-mate Moreno Moser was literally centre stage yesterday, rocking his team-mates and the others in the crowd with some vest-wearing, lung-opening singing.
He joined the so-called Green Machine band, a jumble of musicians which included Curt Schneider on bass (known for his work with Five For Fighting and Richie Sambora), Jared Shavelson on drums (BoySetsFirst and Purelove), Michael Ward on guitar (Gogol Bordello and The Wallflowers), John Rubano on the vocals (Jim Belushi and The Blues Brothers) and Matt Rollings on the keyboard (Fiona Apple and Richie Sambora).
In addition to Moreno’s efforts singing Nirvana’s “Molly's Lips,”, the team’s general manager Bob Burbank also let rip with his version of the Bon Jovi classic “It's My Life.”
American rider Ted King anticipates that the season will follow on from what was a successful unveiling of the 2014 roster. “With the combination of the 'best bikes in the world' and the awesome talent of our Cannondale Pro Cycling team, we're looking forward to an unforgettable 2014 season,” he stated. “Kicking off the season with a sweet launch party event wasn't half bad either.”
In addition to the musical moments, the team also introduced captains Sagan, Moser, Ivan Basso, Elia Viviani, and Damiano Caruso plus the rest of the roster. There was also a video review of the 2013 season plus a preview of the months to come.
The launch was part of a four day team camp in Los Angeles. Away from the Canyon Club, the riders have been training on the roads of Thousand Oaks, ramping up their sharpness in advance of the first races of the year.
Click the first photo below to see a gallery of 25 images from last night. Also click on this link for an additional set of shots.