Today we present another in our series of 10 Questions interviews........this time with Clay Moseley. After a succesful cycling career, Moseley has followed his wife into the world of triathlon. In his rookie season he was able to capture one of the most prestigious races in the Series, The Jay Benson Triathlon as well as a win at the Defined Fitness Duathlon. If you're going to draft off "Sugar" you'd better be fast as we found out........in our newest 10 Questions.

                       "Sugar" Clay Moseley (He's the one on the right)

TT.......Hi Clay, thanks for the interview. Most people in their first triathlon season don’t win major local races…….are you surprised at your success so far this season?

CM.......Actually, not really. I don’t want to sound arrogant, but I thought maybe I would do a little better. When I told people I know in cycling that my wife had talked me into doing triathlons, they predicted I would mop up the local scene – shows how much they know. The level is very high with athletes like Krueger, Montoya, Lugo, Desmond, Uhl, and Hnilkova-Jenks here. There are many others who also provide a lot of depth to the sport as well. Having a cycling background helps, but I’ve always done a lot of other stuff – which is different from most other “traditional” cyclists, who only ride bikes and maybe lift weights a little bit in the off-season. 

 

You’ve got a Pan Am Games time trial gold medal……..you didn’t win an Olympic 5K gold or a 4x100 swimming medal as well did you?

No, but I wish I did. I admire athletes from those sports too. I don’t get anything done during the Olympics because I can’t pull myself away from the TV. My Pan Am gold and national championships wins seem a lifetime ago! 

 

You’ve obviously dominated the bike leg of every race you’ve been in this season…..are you in top bike form now or can you ride even faster?

You know, I’ve given that some thought. I am definitely not as fast as I was back in the years from ’91-’98 (when I semi-retired). I just train for fun, which is only about 50% of the volume and intensity that I once trained. I have a varied schedule, which is geared (no pun intended) to keep me from burning out. It doesn’t make me as fast as I once was, but I can sustain a fairly high level that I’m happy with. I did somehow manage to win the NM State Criterium Championship this year against a full NM field of Pro/1/2 category racers. Perhaps if the stakes get a little higher, I might up my program and get a little closer to what I think I’m truly capable of. Right now though, I am having fun, and in the end, that’s what it is all about… 

 

When you’re racing (in a triathlon) are you keying in on a specific competitor or are you racing your own race?

With the exception of the bike portion, I feel overwhelmed with triathlons. I don’t know who is doing what, where I am overall, how fast I’m going, etc. It’s weird because I’m not exactly sure on what to focus other than sustaining as high an effort as I can. Even that is difficult because I’m not at all accustomed to competing in swimming, and if the run is last I don’t know how hard to go. I suppose I should be pleased with my results, but I have some fine-tuning of myself to maximize my performance. Well, truthfully I’ve been really rough around the edges with the swimming and transitions. The fine-tuning pertains to the bike/run parts. So, the answer is ‘no’, I don’t key on a specific competitor because I’m doing all I can to keep from spazzing out most of the time. 

 

What does the future hold for “Sugar” Clay? Are you considering a run at the pro’s?

Ooh, the “P” word. I don’t know about that. That’s a lot of commitment and I would have to be sure to have some sort of support. I’ve been a pro cyclist, and that wasn’t easy. It’s hard enough to focus on the training part for an entire season, but to handle the travel, equipment, entries, and etc. for an entire season is another matter. It is too hard to get home after a day of work and training in the evening to make dinner and then go sit down and register for events and make travel plans. Then there’s all of the mechanic duties on the bikes and car, etc. I guess my life has just changed too much to really be considering that at the moment. I don’t even have kids and yet I think being pro would do me in! Work is busy right now because of the Cerro Grande Fire of 2000 (Los Alamos). Maybe when that settles down I won’t have to spend as much time at work. It makes me wonder how Governor Johnson is able to even attend a triathlon, let-alone do as well as he does considering his work obligations.  

 

What about next season…..are you planning on going longer (1/2 or full IM)? Or will you continue to work the sprint and Olympic distance?

Actually, Chantel and I are doing the Harvest Moon in Aurora, Co. this September. I am looking forward to this event, as the swim is proportionately not as big a part of the race as it is in an Olympic distance race. Of course, it will be only my second open-water swim so far, so I could lose a lot of time just as I did at Storrie Lake – although that was only my second tri ever. The open water swims take some adaptation and there’s a learning curve to do them well. I was slightly traumatized after having my goggles knocked off and swam over by 50 guys at Storrie Lake. I want to do more ½ -distance races and Olympic distance races, but I have to be careful with the longer events because I’m missing some cartilage in my knee. I also want to do the age-graded nats in Couer d’Alene next year. 

 

If I were to draft you in a race how long would I be able to hold your wheel? If the answer is less than 5 seconds…….just skip it.

In a race? Hmm – it all depends on how long or how many times you can sprint. Bike racing is a whole different animal. It could be that a triathlete would cover a 56 mile course faster by him/herself than a whole peloton of bike racers simply because of the tactics involved. Sprinting is a big part of bike racing, where it has no place in triathlons. I do feel, however, that triathletes should look into training on the bike much as a regular bike racer would. Even further, triathletes could benefit from participating in a few bike races to better themselves on the bike (not just time trials). If you’re sure bike racing is not your thing, at least do some bike-specific speed work (lots of sprints, intervals, climbing, etc.). 

 

You’ve joined up with Coach Mark Mico’s Trisport Racing and helped your team win the NM club title. What about a triathlon team appeals to you?

So far, I’m not sure; camaraderie, I guess. I’ve known Mark for a while, as we once had the same commute to work from Rio Rancho. He is a great guy and besides Rusty DeBlassie, he’s the only other triathlete I knew around here. He just asked me to join his team first, so I did (he did bribe me with a free lunch). I like his philosophy of sport and camaraderie. What he has done for those kids in Rio Rancho is marvelous and I hope that continues. I’m not sure what the future holds as far as a team affiliation is concerned, but Mark and I will be friends for a lifetime and I’ll do what I can to help out his cause. He is a great coach and an inspirational person. 

 

You flatted at Socorro with about two miles left on the bike………could you have won the race without the flat?

That is difficult to say. I definitely lost a lot of momentum coming down that big bumpy hill and into the turns in town, but I had sew-up tires and you can still ride those pretty fast while flat (albeit carefully), except around turns. I thought the race was over, so I didn’t stress out about it and was relaxed going into the run. I suppose my heart rate was lower because of that, and I had a pretty good run. So, perhaps it was a case of “six-of-one or half-dozen of the other…” 

 

 

Tell us what you like to do when you’re not out scorching the course.

I have a lot of things that I dabble in, and I wish I were good at. One of the big things is I like to cross-country ski race. That is like a whole triathlon all at once. It is arguably the most intense aerobic exercise there is. I’ve improved a lot since I first started in the late ‘80s, and now I’m fairly competitive anywhere in the country. I’m doing the master’s national championships this coming winter in Anchorage. I also love mountain climbing, rock climbing, and backpacking. I take a lot of trips now that I don’t bike race ALL the time. It improves my strength, endurance, and mental outlook. Unfortunately, it’s dangerous and I had a bad accident while climbing a big rock column in December 2000. I was nearly killed and that is also how I hurt my left knee. The scary part about that is it wasn’t even my fault – the rock fractured and broke off with me still on it. Hopefully, that was a one-time incident.