We caught up with SoCalCycling.com Team member René Corella. Rene is a strong all-around cyclist and competes on both the road and track. In 2019, he rode to a 7th place finish at the Pan American Games in Lima, Peru where he had the opportunity to race for his country, Mexico. Rene has ridden for several Professional Cycling Teams including Jelly Belly and the IRT Racing Team and has competed internationally in Europe. The SoCalCycling.com Team is excited to have Rene on the Team for 2020, where he got off to a great start with a podium finish that he shared with his SoCalCycling.com Team teammate Luis Javelly.
Race Highlights
2nd National Championship, Track, Pursuit, Elite, Mexico, Xalapa (Veracruz-Llave), Mexico
3rd National Championship, Road, ITT, Elite, Mexico, Mexico
7th Pan American Games, Road, ITT, Lima (Lima), Peru
5th GC Valley of the Sun Stage Race
3rd Stage 1 Tour of Murrieta
3rd GC Tour of Murrieta
SoCalCycling.com: Tell us about where you live in Mexico?
René Corella: I live in the city of Hermosillo state of Sonora, my state is the border with Arizona. Tucson is 3 hours away from home so I feel a little bit Arizonan. My grandpa and his brothers were born there. We have a ranch that is 20 minutes away from home where my dad has quarter-mile horses as his hobby.
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SoCalCycling.com: How long have you been racing?
René Corella: This is my 16th year since I first started racing when I was 12 years old.
SoCalCycling.com: How did you get in the sport of cycling?
René Corella: I used to play basketball since I was the tallest kid in my class, I was never the one with the best ability, but I was good in the defense.
I started to have knee issues. When I visited the doctor he recommended that I ride my bike to help my knees to recover. My dad at that time had 2 years riding his bike after being a Tae Kwon Do and full contact fighter and he was in love with the sport. He was pushing me to ride my bike and this was the perfect excuse to do it. After one month riding my bike, my knees were better and my dad took me to the road and time trial state championships where I ended up winning both. I think winning hooked me.
SoCalCycling.com: Who is your inspiration and why?
René Corella: My family has been and will continue being my inspiration. I think every sibling has their own talents.
SoCalCycling.com: How has the pandemic affected your training and motivation for 2020?
René Corella: Training has been an up and down since there were some months that I couldn’t go out. Motivation is always high since I got in love with the sport again in the last couple of years.
SoCalCycling.com: You have Nationals coming up in August, how has your preparation been going leading into your training for Nationals training?
René Corella: Yes, I’m currently training in my hometown where I have been doing a lot of work off the bike to try to heal an injury I have in my lower back. My coach Ashley Knights from the Force Training havs been helping me a lot in the Time Trial preparation where I think I can do a fantastic job after being 3rd in high altitude last year in the TT.
SoCalCycling.com: Would you like to keep pushing for a spot on the Olympic Team in Japan?
René Corella: That’s a pretty tricky situation, we have to see what will happen with some UCI points I may get after one incident.
SoCalCycling.com: You have raced in many countries over the years. What is your favorite race and country to race in and why?
René Corella: I think the Netherlands and Belgium are by far my favorite places to race my bike since I race with the best riders in the world and it demands a lot of bike skills.
SoCalCycling.com: Of all the teams you’ve been on, what is your favorite bike you’ve been able to race on and why?
René Corella: Hard to say, I have been on some amazing bikes in my career. What I can say is that I’m currently super happy with my Bottecchia Emme 4!
SoCalCycling.com: Having been on many different teams over the years. What do you look for as a rider in the teams you’ve been on?
René Corella: Consistency and loyalty is something that I love to offer. I think you get more profits off the bike in a team than racing itself. I see teams and teammates conduct to know people and grow internally.
SoCalCycling.com: We are bummed out that we’ve been shut down for most of the season due to the Coronavirus pandemic. I’m was really impressed with the composition of the SoCalCycling.com Team we have this year. How did you feel about the riders and composition of the 2020 SoCalCycling.com Team?
René Corella: I have to say that I was stoked on the teammates I have this year! Everybody was just nice and friendly. Taking 2nd and 3rd in the first race as a team said that we could do really well this year.
SoCalCycling.com: You participated in some ZWIFT races due to the pandemic. How did you like racing on ZWIFT and how does it compare to racing on the road?
René Corella: I think it helps to keep riders competing, but personally I just think is far from reality.
SoCalCycling.com: What type of music do you listen to when your warming up say for a Time Trial or just whenever?
René Corella: For a warm-up, I love to listen to hardstyle music and of course some Drake songs.
SoCalCycling.com: What do you like to do when you’re not racing?
René Corella: I love to go to see the racing horses that my dad has and ride them. I think horses are really therapeutic. Being with my family and nephews is one of the things I enjoy the most.
SoCalCycling.com: Thank you for your time Rene and best of luck at your upcoming National Championships!
You can follow René on Instagram
SoCalCycling.com Team Sponsors:
SoCalCycling.com, Jenson USA, Law Firm of Richard Duquette, Borah TeamWear, Bottecchia USA, Clif Bar, Pacific Premier Bank, Full Speed Ahead, Vision, KMC Chain, Gizmo Cycling, ABUS, Larsen’s Restaurants, Continental Tires, Rocky Mounts, SH+, Crono, SCC Slick, Echelon Design
