24 hours of madness: Frisco police officer competes in 24-hour bike race

Some people may think Jerry Profeta is crazy. He knows that. In fact, he thinks he's slightly crazy himself.

On Oct. 20, Profeta will be racing his mountain bike for 24 consecutive hours in the 24 Hours of Rocky Hill competition in Smithville. The race will be Profeta's second time competing in the individual event.

Last year, he came in fifth in his division, and this year he has aspirations of winning the race.

"Most of my friends and family probably think I'm dumb for doing this," said Profeta, who is a patrol officer for the Frisco Police Department. "But I really wanted to challenge myself and see how hard I can push myself to see what I'm capable of."

Profeta will be competing in the event for the Frisco Cycling Club, sponsored by Crest Auto Group and Richardson Bike Mart. The group regularly trains during the week, but much of Profeta's training comes on his own, such as biking to-and-from work.

To prepare himself for the event, Profeta rides at least 150 miles a week, although most weeks he generally rides closer to 200 miles.

Beyond the obvious challenge of lasting the full 24 hours, there are other significant obstacles Profeta can attest to. In 2010, he competed in one of the race's team divisions, but his group was unable to finish.

"The race before last year I tried the 24-hour team event with two other guys, but we had to stop at about 2 a.m.," Profeta said. "One guy went to the emergency room, and the other guy's bike broke."

Other difficulties include a large dip in the course that's about 20-feet deep as well as a large climb at the beginning of the course. Additionally, the course is fairly tight, Profeta said, making for an interesting ride.

Greg Maxwell, the manager of Rocky Hill Ranch, said the competition typically sees between 800 and 1,000 participants each year.

"This is one of the premier mountain bike races in Texas," Maxwell said. "The event's grown dramatically in the last 15 years or so to what it is today, and we even keep the course open year-round for people to ride."

Besides the individuals competing, the event also draws a number of spectators as well as attendees who serve as support personnel.

Maxwell said it's important to remember cyclists train year-round for the event, and often times they bring entourages that help teams during the event.

"Teams are very important in mountain bike races," he said. "All these teams get here and put up tents and get situated, and many will even bring their own mechanics and nutritionists to keep their bikes working and help the cyclists stay hydrated during the race."

In the 2011 competition, Profeta completed 140 miles in the time allotted, and this year he's aiming at cycling more than 180 miles. Each lap around the course is 9.2 miles, and his goal is to complete 20 laps -- two more than last year's winner.

Even though the event is technically a competition, it fosters camaraderie between participants, Profeta said. Some of the participants in the event are even his friends.

"A real good friend of mine and I raced together in the same category last year," he said. "I've also got a group of friends racing as a four-man team, and another friend will be racing in the solo sport group with me this year."

Profeta's been an avid cyclist since shortly after high school, he said, and is a routine customer at Richardson Bike Mart's Frisco location.

Some of Profeta's fellow Frisco police officers have helped him train for the event, which he says is full of cycling enthusiasts, both professional and amateur.

"The category I'm competing in is mainly for amateur cyclists -- someone like Lance Armstrong wouldn't be able to race against my group," Profeta said. "But you'll find very dedicated cyclists in this group; everyone likes cycling or they wouldn't be competing in this race."

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