Check it! Team Keep It Tight is excited to share a new venture with you: Squadra-PTHD.

What is Squadra-PTHD, you ask?  “Squadra” consists of riders within Team KIT who like to go big (centuries, gran fondos, long gravel rides, etc.) and welcome a little PTHD (put the hammer down) in their training sessions.

Why Red?

In honor of this endeavor, there is a dedicated “special edition”, thoughtfully designed Squadra-PTHD kit. This deliciously red kit is a nod to the Tour de France prize given to the “most aggressive” or “most combative” rider (like Lotto’s breakaway specialist Thomas deGendt). Squadra-PTHD isn’t a race team, so what is the connection here?  Many of these Squadra rides will feel like a long breakaway, where working well together is key, sprinkled with the occasional attack and town-line sprints.  Most importantly, we like red.  Whatever the reason, this new kit will spice up your cycling wardrobe.

Why The Belgian Flag?

Belgium’s cycling history offers the quirk of a small population country of 11.5 million that has produced an enormous amount of successful professional road riders. The Belgian Classics, the history that predates Merckx (Rik Van Looy), the Lion of Flanders (Museeuw), and currently, stalwarts as deGendt, Wellens, Gilbert, all contribute to strike the hearts of cycling aficionados around the world. The Belgian Flag evokes the drama that warrants devotion among sports enthusiasts, as the country and cycling fans worldwide stop to celebrate the Spring Classics season and its fearless heroes. We, the roadies, the riders, the racers, all play an active role at keeping the flame of bike racing burning white-hot, embracing the Belgian flag as proxy of our love for the sport. At KIT, we rolled out our newest jersey to pay tribute to a history that predates us, and we celebrate and honor its culture with every pull, every kilometer, every town line, and every bite of frites with mayo. If you, like us, love the sport in all its glorious heroics, we’d like to welcome you into our paceline.

Squadra-PTHD will pick a handful of centuries and other long rides to perform as a team.  Some of these centuries will be led by team members; other outings will be part of already established organized events, such as CRW centuries, Tour de Cure, Climb to the Clouds, D2R2, Blazing Saddles, to name a few. We will post the Squadra schedule soon but the first century will take place in April.  The goal is to complete at least 7 long events in 2018, targeting the Blazing Saddles Century in late August as our main appointment of the season.  This could also be a great fitness build-up for those focused on racing cross in the fall.

Whether you’d like to do all 7 or just 1 long event, Team KIT extends an invitation to all members to join and be a part of Squadra-PTHD.  Not a member of Team KIT? Join here.