View from the sunflowers: I want my cycling T-shirts

December 30, 2:32 AMCycling ExaminerJames Raia

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A sportswriter for a San Francisco daily newspaper reportedly used to purchase a T-shirt from every event he attended. I don’t know if he also accepts T-shirts often given to media members at sporting events. It doesn't matter. The story I first heard is the reporter had more than 600 T-shirts.

I don’t see the reporter often, but I heard his T-shirt tale at least a decade ago, which means by now he might be able to wear a differert T-shirt everyday for three years without wearing the same shirt twice.

If I were a younger reporter on the cycling beat, I pack my suitcase and head off around the globe, covering bicycle racing and collecting race T-shirts.

Which brings us to the new cycling season. Most of the early anticipation of the  2009 racing season is the comeback debut of Lance Armstrong in the Tour Down Under in Australia, beginning January 20.

But plenty of other races are scheduled and CyclingNews.com does a great job posting the month-to-month international calendar for junior, U23, elite, and masters pro men and women.

Here’s the January calendar:

2-6, Jayco Bay Series (Aus), NE
6-17, Vuelta al Tachira  (Ven), 2.2  ME
7-11, Australian Open Road Championships (Aus), CN                                           
11-18, Jelajah Malaysia (Mas), 2.2, ME
13-18, La Tropicale Amissa Bongo (Gab), 2.1 ME                                               
16-17, Giro del Sol San Juan (Arg),  2.2, ME
19-25, Tour de San Luis (Arg), 2.1, ME
20-25, Tour Down Under (Aus),  UPT, ME
21-25, Tour of Wellington (NZl), 2.2, MJ
23, H.H. Vice President Cup (UAE), 1.2, ME
24, Emirates Cup (UAE), 1.2, ME
26, UAQ International Race (UAE), 1.2, ME
30-1, Giro di Sicilia (Ita), 2.2, ME.

If anyone’s attending the Tour al Tachira in Venezuela or the Giro di Sicilia, count me in for an X-large T-shirt. If unavailable, suitable alternatives include new attire from the Emirates Cup or La Tropicale Amissa Bongo.

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