Team TIBCO’s Jennifer Wheeler stands with her Specialized machine on SRAM’s fourth floor balcony overlooking Chicago
TIBCO® neo-pro Jennifer Wheeler stopped by SRAM Headquarters in Chicago, IL, to pick up her SRAM RED equipped Specialized Amira bike before this weekend’s Alexian Brothers Tour of Elk Grove Village. We sat down with her and uncovered some interesting facts about the Indianapolis native. We will also profile her Specialized bike in a later post.
Wheeler, like many cyclists, has taken an unusual path to the profession. Originally a runner turned professional roller skater (more on that later), she discovered cycling in her late 20′s. She is now a professional with one of the World’s top ranked SRAM-equipped Women’s teams, Team TIBCO. Despite the steep learning curve, she mentioned the great leadership within the team. “Meredith Miller and Joanne Kiesanowski have helped me so much; TIBCO is an awesome team. I’m lucky to have started here.” Prior to TIBCO, Wheeler raced on a locally based team in Seattle and had several top placings at Nationals in 2010. Team TIBCO Founder and Manager Linda Jackson recognized her talent and recruited her.
Originally from Indianapolis, IN, Wheeler went to college in Kentucky, and then found her way to Chicago and eventually Seattle. She works professionally (now contractually) as an Instructional Designer for a range of clients building and writing E-Learning tools (websites, lessons, etc).
Wheeler flashes the guns that helped make her ‘Rookie of the Year’ during her one year as a Rat City Rollergirls…
Her most unusual career turn was when she joined the Seattle based Rat City Rollers roller derby team in 2008 under the professional name “Arsenio Brawl,” and proudly received Rookie of the Year honors. “I was really dedicated, but it was just too hard on the body. I would come home covered in bruises after every event.”
Her strengths as a cyclist are yet to be fully defined, but she excels in prologues and time trials. “Next year will be a big indicator of where I can go in this sport, but this year is all about learning. The 2016 Olympics are something I think about, but right now I am just working on learning, improving and helping my team any way I can.”
Wheeler’s machine is the 2012 Specialized Amira, which features women’s specific frame geometry, and is fully SRAM RED equipped. “Once I got on this bike I understood that there is an advantage in having the best equipment. As far as my SRAM componentry goes, it’s so much easier to be able to execute both up and down shifts with a single lever (SRAM DoubleTap)”
We want to thank Jennifer for taking some time to visit HQ and sharing some stories with us. We wish her and her team the best of luck at Elk Grove, as well as the remainder of 2011.
She called this pose “the Schneider” after being coached by teammate Samantha Schneider