Hours before the average Harvard undergraduate begins groping for the snooze button on a menacing alarm clock each morning, a diehard band of cyclists rides off into the sunrise.

And before the members of the Harvard University Cycling Association stash their faithful two-wheelers and join their fellow students in class, some of the cyclists will have logged more than 30 miles.

"We try and get out five mornings a weeks," says Lowell House senior Sarah Tracy, the association's president. That means rising around 5:30 a.m. to meet the team at 6:15, and then departing on a 25,30 or 40-mile loop throughout the metropolitan Boston area.

"It's just glorious that time of the morning," Tracy says, adding "especially when you've ridden for about 45 minutes and you're beginning to wake up."

The morning rides, which last around two and a half hours, serve as preparation for weekends, when some members compete in the collegiate circuit and non-collegiate open races conducted by the United States Cycling Federation (USCF).

"In order to be proficient in racing you just have to log plenty of miles," says Jordan Tishler, a freshman who has ridden with the group.

In all, the team competes in approximately eight races during the collegiate cycling season, which begins in the spring and continues through October. Some members who participate in USCF races during the summer, though, compete in as many as 20 races a year, Tracy says.

Club members race individually and accumulate points for their team according to where they place in each event. "We haven't done terribly well this year." Tracy remarks, though she is quick to point out some of the strengths of the team.

The women's team has "finished within the top five quite frequently" this season, she says. Team captain Steve Lundblad, a Winthrop House senior, placed in the top 15 at both the Yale and Drew University races last season, in which as many as 80 people competed.

Despite its relative obscurity on the Harvard athletic scene, the cycling association is no newcomer. It existed as early as 1896, though the original charter, and thus official organization status, have since been lost.

"Currently, I'm drawing up a new charter." Tracy says, adding that the team hopes to attain official University recognition with the help of Dean of Students Archie C. Epps III. With that, she hopes, will come financial help from the Undergraduate Council.

Until then, the $15 dues paid by each member must cover the team's expenses, which include transportation to races and that last year included a spring training trip to Virginia.

Meanwhile, club members continue to rise early and train for competition. Lundblad notes that people react with surprise when they hear about his daily regimen. "I think they think I'm crazy or something," he says.

But he adds that "it's a lot less dangerous to go out when you don't have to worry about anyone else except other cyclers."

"The hardest part is getting out the door," says Gena White, a Lowell sophomore. "Once you get out the door, it's cold enough to wake you up."

And for people who have especially early classes, alternatives exist. People who have 9 a.m. classes "have to go short," says Tracy. That means either the 25- or the 30-mile loop, she adds.

Among the club's members, the comraderie is apparent. "You really get close to the people," Tracy says of her fellow early risers. "There aren't very many people who are willing to do that. You come to expect them to be there."

"Delighted"

As for the effects of such a rigorous routine on other aspects of the cyclists' lives, club members agree that their early morning journeys help rather than hurt.

"You feel good when you come back after two and a half hours," White says, while Tracy notes that the discipline required for her training carries over to the rest of her endeavors.

Lundblad agrees, remarking that the time spent cycling cuts down on time for procrastination. "There's no time to waste," he says.

And the routine allows for more flexibility than is first apparent. "If things work out," he says, "I try to take a nap before class."