by Lawrence Bywater | Jan 10, 2013
Bradley Wiggins in his hotel room after winning the yellow jersey. – ©The Guardian
As every new cycling fan, such as myself, enters the strange and beguiling world of pro cycling a vast number of questions arise. Why is the yellow jersey yellow? What makes a good domestique? Who is lé patron?
For me, the largest theme amongst those was the astonishing number of riders that compete in World Tour races and their suitability for the days challenges. I found myself surveying the huge array of riders in the peloton and identifying who was in the frame for the podium on that particular stage or one day race, or, who was using it for training for a race later in the season. Herein lay the strangest characteristic of road cycling that I have never quite fully managed to understand. Who is actually racing?
The most obvious example to analyse this phenomenon is the 2012 year of Bradley Wiggins. 2012 saw him entering races purely to win and in the process utilised a ‘riding to win’ philosophy unlike no other rider in recent history. Wins at Paris-Nice, the Tour of Romandy and the Dauphine were all used as a stepping stone to July and the Tour de France. In the process he quashed the notion that riders who were in form in June for the Dauphine, would flop at the Tour whilst also becoming the first rider to win the above races all in one season.
As Team Sky supremo Dave Brailsford and sports scientist Tim Kerrison consistently presented the media they were always 100% racing to win. Yet this approach hid an even more refined method. Racing only at specific times throughout the year, freeing up more time for training camps, often at altitude and at specific points during the season, ensured that Wiggins was in control of what he achieved on the bike. Indeed Kerrison noted that Wiggins was attempting to be at 95-97% performance all year, at all races he entered.
Wiggins’ story is an obvious one, yet a look into the past, particularly in 2010 when he rode the Giro as preparation for the Tour, reveals that for him racing as preparation or training didn’t cut it like it did in 2009 as he finished 4th (now 3rd) in the Tour de France. Racing to win was now his de facto method of participation. Ultimately he trained to race and as riders are getting closer and closer in terms of their abilities without the skewness of doping, will racing yourself fit provide success?
Perhaps the answer is, that like many other facets of pro cycling that continue to fascinate me, training techniques, depend on the rider and his/her idiosyncratic body and their particular end goal: one day race, a weeklong stage event or one of the grand tours. The traditional build up to the World Championships in September of every year of many a pro cyclist involves entering the Vuelta in order to gain race fitness to be at top form for the Worlds. In 2012, 11 out of the top 30 finishers in Valkenburg rode the Vuelta and of the top 10, 6 of them including podium finisher Alejandro Valverde and winner Philippe Gilbert had finished the Spanish grand tour mostly in the mid to lower field (with the exception of Valverde) in the general classification. Clearly riding the Vuelta this year was extremely tough with numerous summit finishes, not suitable for a sprinters World Championships course like we saw in Copenhagen in 2011 but highly correlated to the hilly challenging nature of the Limburg parcours.
Whilst Team Sky’s spreadsheet, clinical training style is somewhat in stark contrast to the time-honoured training ‘by feel’ which Thomas Voeckler is the greatest proponent of, there must be room for both of them in today’s cycling world. With the 2013 World Tour cycling season now at 271 days long, starting in January with the Tour Down Under and finishing with the Tour of Beijing in late October, there is perhaps now sufficient scope for more riders to reach their peak at more specific times throughout the year.
Ultimately I am sure there remains no consensus on the ideal training and racing partnership and I’m sure there will never be. Yet, this is precisely the reason why I love cycling, its mystique, its complexities and its variety. Here’s to the 2013 season!
by Paul Harris | Jan 9, 2013
GB’s sprint team came away relatively empty handed, but it wasn’t through lack of effort.
National Madison Championships and Revolution 39 report.
Revolution 39 landed at the National Velodrome at Manchester on Saturday – the National Madison championships made an understated start to proceedings, run during the afternoon before the main event, with a surprisingly sparse crowd privileged to be present to witness some absolutely corking race action, the stadium maybe halfway full for the afternoon programme.
First on track was the qualifying time trial for the Revolution Sprint – Francois Pervis took pole on 10.130, a full tenth quicker than Robert Fostermann, Callum Skinner and Michael D’Almeida, with Philip Hindes a smidge off the pace down in eighth. The opening race of the day was the DHL Future Stars Girls Madison, a knock-out battle straight from the off, but Sky Procycling took the upper hand, putting themselves into a dominant position by winning the first sprint ahead of howies and Raleigh GAC. Sky took the second ahead of howies again this time with Rudy Project taking third, but already an ominous pattern had started to form – Maxgear Racing and FACE made a break but Sky went with them, howies crossing the gap to make a group of four, and with four laps to go FACE made one last big effort to break free but the pack shut them down and it was left to Sky to celebrate their overall victory by nicking the final sprint on the line.
British National Madison Championships 2013
Second race of the evening was the National Madison Championship, a 50km slugfest, and it was a battle from the off right the way to the line. Pete Kennaugh and Adam Blythe took the first sprint ahead of Russ Downing and Jonny McEvoy with George Atkins and Jon Mould right on their heels to set the pattern for the major players right from the pistol, but Atkins and Mould threw down the gauntlet with four laps to go to the second sprint – Kennaugh and Blythe went with them, but couldn’t close the gap, with Russell Hampton and Evan Oliphant third, and Downing and McEvoy back in fourth. The lead pair then made a break, putting a lap on the whole field bar Downing and McEvoy who had to work heroically to close the gap, sprint three being comparatively uncontested after the previous 20 laps of effort, Kennaugh/Blythe leading Atkins/Mould and Downing/McEvoy over the line after the catch. Ryan and Paul Whatmough made an effort to muscle in on the action by going early for the fourth sprint, but Kennaugh/Blythe and Downing/McEvoy went with them, Downing/McEvoy edging it on the line. By the halfway sprint five, the leading three teams were fully two laps up on the rest, but James McCallum and Michael Nicholson managed to grab one back with just over a hundred laps to go, Atkins/Mould and Kennaugh/Blythe separated by just 2 points at the halfway mark, 19 to 17, with Downing/McEvoy battling to stay in contention on 13. Kennaugh/Blythe made an opportunistic move as Downing/McEvoy switched but Atkins/Mould charged with just a lap left and managed to hold on ahead of
Adam Blythe and Pete Kennaugh reflect on second place in the National Madison Championship – ©Paul Harris
Kennaugh/Blythe and Downing/McEvoy, which put the two leading pairs on dead level terms. Kennaugh/Blythe launched an attack with 74 laps to go but Downing/McEvoy and Atkins/Mould managed to just tag along, dropping the pack but unable to make another lap up, and they were all back together with 65 laps left to run – four laps later Kennaugh/Blythe launched an assault on sprint seven but Atkins/Mould clung on and countered, edging it on the line to take the lead by two points, Downing/McEvoy then launching a doomed break to try and get on terms. With just three sprints left, Kennaugh/Blythe seemed to catch the others on the hop and took sprint eight with comparative ease to put the two leading teams on level pegging once more, with Downing/McEvoy and Hampton/Oliphant breaking opportunistically with 26 to go to try to get into the mix – the break ultimately failed but they took the penultimate sprint which meant that, with just the final sprint to go, Atkins/Mould led Kennaugh/Blythe by a solitary point. As the laps wound down, Kennaugh/Blythe made a late break that failed, and the pack was all together as they reached the final stages. Atkins/Mould took a very early leadout and it looked as though they might have bitten off a little more than they could chew with Kennaugh charging like a missile down the back stretch but with terrifyingly brave timing, Mould switched perfectly with Atkins on the final turn, driving across the line bare inches ahead of Kennaugh to take the first British National Championships of the 2013 season. It was an absolute belter of a race, and for the whole hour you never knew who the ultimate victors would be.
As the dust settled from the Madison, the sprint stars came out to play in round 1 of the Revolution Sprint. With just the winners to go through, Pervis had too much for Kian Emadi and Craig MacLean to win heat 1, whilst Forstermann just did what he had to in heat 2 to cross the line ahead of John Paul and Louis Oliva. Callum Skinner rode 10.755 to beat Hindes by half a length ahead of Julien Palma in the third, and D’Almeida cruised home in heat four ahead of Matts Crampton and Rotherham.
Race three on the programme was the DHL Future Stars Boys Madison, which put the first crash of the evening into the books in the opening laps. Once everyone was dusted down and the race got back underway, it was IG Sigmasport who took the first sprint ahead of Rudy Project RT, NetApp Endura, Rapha Condor Sharp and WD40 – IG Sigmasport then attempted a break but the pack worked to close them back down, before four teams went toe to toe for the second sprint, IG Sigmasport taking a second win ahead of Rudy Project RT, NetApp Endura and WD40. With four laps to go, Sportscover made a break, but IG Sigmasport were right there on a watching brief, Sportscover taking the final win and IG Sigmasport sealing a comfortable overall victory. Rudy’s brace of seconds was enough for the second step of the podium, whilst the hitherto-pointless Sportscover’s last-gasp win gave them bronze.
If you could squat 700kg, you’d need bottom bracket bracing like this. Robert Forstermann’s steed quivers in fear. ©Paul Harris
Revolution 39
The DHL Future Stars Boys Madison concluded the afternoon session, and there was an hour or so to catch your breath before the action resumed for the evening – and in contrast, if there had been a few empty seats during the National Madison Championships, there was not a single free space in the house when it came to Revolution 39. Proceedings kicked off in suitably flamboyant fashion with the Sprint semi finals – semi one was a French civil war, Pervis going head to head with D’Almeida – the pair put on a trackstand demonstration on the back straight before battle was commenced, former World Champion D’Almeida leading into the bell but Pervis had gas in the tank to ride around the outside and edge it on the line. Semi two saw Callum Skinner, riding for Great Britain A, go up against another former World Champion, the imposing Robert Forstermann – the race saw Skinner lead out from the bell with the man with thunder in his legs right on Skinner’s shoulder, but if Forstermann had thunder, Skinner had lightning – and lightning was the quicker, the 20 year old Scot holding off Forstermann for the whole lap, taking the win and lifting the crowd to their feet. As a way to kick off the main event, it would have been hard to better.
Next up was the Elite Flying Lap, the first Championship event with the results going towards the overall team contest. Evan Oliphant was up first for Raleigh GAC, clocking a 14.765, followed by Jonny McEvoy (NetApp Endura) and Jacob Scott (Sportscover) who both failed to improve. FACE Partnership’s Tristan Marquet took the lead with a 13.912, but Ross Edgar was next up for IG Sigmasport and smashed it with a 13.541. A string of contenders did their best to top Edgar’s time – Adam Blythe (WD40), Adam Duggleby (MaxGear Racing), Franco Marvulli (Howies), Peter Kennaugh (Sky Procycling), Jasper De Buyst (Rouleur) – but it wasn’t until Marcel Kalz took to the track for the penultimate run that there was any movement at the head of the table, Kalz’s 13.798 enough to relegate Marquet to third. However, with Ed Clancy going last, there was always going to be more to the story – the Rapha Condor Sharp JLT man demolished the opposition with a 13.160 to bolster the leading Championship Team’s title assault.
Sim Parrott’s audio interview with Ed Clancy coming shortly
Event 3 in the evening programme was the DHL Future Stars Girls 6 Lap Dash. After a couple of cagey laps to start, things started to heat up, Lauren O’Brien (NetApp-Endura) and Grace Garner (Sky Procyling) jumping the pack to take a slender lead at the halfway point. With two laps to go, the pack had dragged them back, Jessica Roberts (Raleigh-GAC) leading Garner and Lucy Shaw (Rudy Project RT) over the line at the bell, but as they sprinted for the line, it was Garner who had the gas left to take the win ahead of Paige Millward (IG Sigmasport) and Shaw.
Callum Skinner beats Robert Forstemann in the Revolution Sprint… No thighs in this tongue in cheek picture – ©Chris Maher
Next up was the Revolution Sprint Losers Handicap Race – a fast-paced 6 lap battle of wits, with a pack of 7 riders there was no place for the normal sprinter’s stalking, it was all go from the off. Julien Palma led Hindes over the line first time round, the pair of them joined by Crampton as they tried to make a bit of a gap, but the pack were never going to let that develop. Kian Emadi tried another break at the halfway mark but again got reeled in, and as they headed into the last lap, Matts Crampton and Rotherham were at the head of the field and travelling fast. Matt Rotherham it was who had kept the most in reserve, taking the win by a length or more ahead of Crampton and Hindes.
The capacity crowd was then treated to the sight of top-class athletes beating themselves into the ground in the next championship event, the Elite Devil Takes The Hindmost or Elimination Race and it’s often called. With no place to hide, this brutal event (complete with sound effects) was compelling viewing all the way through, but as it drew into the final stages, it seemed Ed Clancy was on the cusp of being knocked out. For maybe the last six or eight laps, the Yorkshireman was amongst the scrabblers at the back fighting to stay in, but time after time he seemed to have just enough in the tank to squirt in front of some other unfortunate as they crossed the line. The last five standing were Clancy, Adam Blythe, Jon Mould (howies), Franco Marvulli (howies) and George Atkins (WD40), and you never knew who would go next. Atkins was first to tumble, followed by Blythe, then Mould to leave Clancy up against Marvulli for what looked to be a desperate final dash to the line, but the Olympic gold medallist had the gas left to ride away from multiple world champion Marvulli on the run in.
Next up was the DHL Future Stars Boys Points Race – Thomas Rotherham took the win for Maxgear Racing ahead of Sportcover’s Levi Moody and Gabriel Cullaigh of NetApp Endura.
Event seven was the first round of the Keirin. Heat 1 saw the on-form Pervis take the win ahead of Oliva and Crampton, with Emadi ahead of a Philip Hindes showing signs of not being fully on his game. Heat 2 was another collective victory for Team GB against The Man With Thunder In His Legs (©Hugh Porter), Rotherham beating Forstermann, Palma, Skinner, D’Almeida and MacLean, and yet again the crowd were cheering to the rafters – the affable German is a popular character, and it should be taken as a sign of the respect given to him that victories against him were so rousingly received.
The next event was the third championship event of the evening, the first round of the Elite Madison 1km Time Trial. Evan Oliphant and Russell Hampton were up first for Raleigh GAC, clocking a benchmark four laps in 61.677, but Downing and McEvoy eclipsed that for NetApp-Endura with a 60.415. Sportscover were unable to better that, but the FACE Partnership’s Tristan Marquet and Moreno De Pauw topped the leaderboard next with a blistering 58.184. IG Sigmasport and WD40 took a tilt at it, the FACE duo remained unbeaten to head the table before the rest of the teams took to the track in the second part of the event.
The DHL Future Stars Girls Scratch Race saw a second win of the evening for Grace Garner, the Sky Procycling youngster beating Jessica Roberts (Raleigh GAC) and Lucy Shaw (Rudy Project RT) to the line.
Pete Kennaugh’s ride in the points race was world class, the Team Sky rider putting two laps on the whole field. – ©Paul Harris
As we headed into the second half of the evening’s programme, the Elite Championship Points Race awaited –it looked an inviting prospect with the likes of Edgar, Clancy and Marvulli in the mix, but Pete Kennaugh came out determined to spoil the party. Kennaugh took the first sprint ahead of Downing and Tom Murray, then dug out blind and made a break, and inside 20 laps, the Sky man had put a lap on the field to the huge cheers of the crowd. Adam Yates took the next sprint but Kennaugh was right there in second ahead of Marvulli – the third sprint was between Clancy and Jasper De Buyst (Rouleur), and you wondered whether the effort had taken enough out of Kennaugh for it to become a race, but then a streak of black touched with blue left the pack again and with thirteen laps to go, Kennaugh had put a second lap into the rest. He even found the legs to lead into the final lap, but couldn’t quite hold off Adam Yates (Maxgear) for the finish, Yate’s five points just enough to stop Kennaugh from scoring double anyone else. Even so, at 28 points to Yates’ 15 and Downing’s 13, it was an incredible display in front of an appreciative audience.
The Revolution Sprint Final was our next show, Callum Skinner taking on Francois Pervis – Skinner led out a tense start, the Frenchman stalking all the way but as they took the final bell Skinner had put the hammer down and won himself the slightest of gaps. Pervis wasn’t going to gift it to him, however, and began to slowly work his way around the outside but it was deadly close and impossible to split the pair of them as they crossed the line to tumultuous applause. The riders had finished one warm down lap and were halfway around another before the picture came up on the big screen – Pervis had taken it by a whisker.
Event 12 was the DHL Future Stars Boys 6 Lap Dash – the pack was three and four abreast heading into the bell, but Tom Rotherham (Maxgear) took the long way round to lead into the final stretch to win going away from Jake Kelly (Rudy Project RT) and Joe Truman (Rouleur).
LtoR: Madison TT: Robert Bengsch & Marcel Kalz of Rudy Project RT blitz the opposition with a sub 50second ride, just shy of the all time champion pairing of Sir Chris Hoy & Arnaud Tournant who set a time of 54.549 in Revolution 20 – ©Chris Maher
We then had the final half of the Elite Championship Madison 1km TT. Clancy and James Macallum were out for Rapha-Condor, their 58.364 putting them into third. Maxgear were unable to make an impression on the riders who had gone before, but Marvulli and Mould managed to put howies into fourth. Sky were next up with Kennaugh and Martin Irvine, and they just managed to top FACE with a 57.934 to set the crowd off once more – Rouleur’s Murray and De Buyst put themselves into seventh overall, and we were left with just Robert Bengsch and Marcel Kalz to go for Rudy Project RT before another Sky win could be celebrated. However, no-one had told Bengsch and Kalz…. The two Germans absolutely tore up the track to clock an astonishing 54.922 to put themselves three seconds ahead of the rest. I’ll say that again – three seconds. The crowd went absolutely ballistic, Hugh Porter (exemplary as ever driving the microphone) almost had a fit, and if there was an award for ride of the night, this might just have been it.
Sim Parrott’s interview with Martin Irvine coming shortly
Next up was the DHL Future Stars Girls Points Race. Grace Garner took the first sprint by a mile, but the next was a tussle between Sophie and Emily Capewell (both of WD40), Sophie coming out on top. The third was a photo with Emily Haycox (howies), Garner and Lucy Shaw (Rudy Project RT) in that order, before Shaw edged the sprint to the line ahead of Henrietta Colbourne (Sportscover) to take victory by a point from Garner, with Haycox in third.
We then had the Team Sprint event – with four teams entered, they would compete in pairs with the fastest times taking the win. An All Stars team of Forstermann, Crampton and Dave Daniel lined up in the first heat against Great Britain B, Oliva, Rotherham and Paul, and it was a comfortable win for the visitors in 46.067. Heat two saw Pervis, D’Almeida and Palma as a strong French squad take on Great Britain A in the form of Hindes, Skinner and Emadi – GB A looked strong and it was in the balance, the crowd were hopeful of a home win, but the French rode an incredible final lap to take the heat and the overall in 45.012 in front of an appreciative crowd and a whisker ahead of GB A on 45.037 for second overall.
DHL Future Stars Scratch Race winner Team Sky’s Joel Partington – ©Chris Maher (www.chrismaher.co.uk)
The Scratch Race was the final event of the evening for the DHL Future Stars Boys, and like all of the Future Stars races it went to the wire, Joel Partington (Sky Procycling) edging Thomas Rotherham and Joe Evans (Rudy Project RT) to the line.
Next up was the day’s last Championship event, the Elite 10km Scratch Race – newly-crowned British Madison champion Jon Mould was out of the blocks early with Madison runner-up Adam Blythe trying to make a break, but after a long night’s racing they struggled to make it stick and when Jacob Scott tried to bridge the gap, he took the pack with him and the break closed down – Scott tried to push on, but was unable to make more than ten or fifteen lengths before being forced to concede to the inevitable. Early breaks contained, the pace dropped for a few laps before Downing and McEvoy injected some pace, making themselves some space with about five and a half K to go, Oliphant jumped away from the pack with 25 laps to run and managed to bridge the gap, the trio then managing to make a lap on the bunch. As Oliphant was bridging to the leading duo, Marquet and Duggleby also put in a shift to drop the bunch – it was hard going and Duggleby was himself dropped before they could bridge, but Marquet made it eventually to put four riders a lap ahead. Kennaugh tried to make a last-ditch attempt to put himself on the lead lap with 13 laps to go but couldn’t make it stick, but Kalz and Yates did manage to make it across at the death. The pack was all together for the last four laps and it was Marquet who took the honours after a fine ride.
NettApp Endura’s Russell Downing leads the bunch midway in the Championship Scratch Race. – ©Chris Maher (www.chrismaher.co.uk)
All that remained was for the last two Keirin events. The ironically-titled “minor” final was fought out between Hindes, D’Almeida, Skinner and Emadi. Emadi led Skinner and D’Almeida – the veteran of the field at 25! – into the final bell as Hindes trailed but Skinner had the power left to sweep round and take the win ahead of Emadi, the young Brits taking a quality scalp in the Frenchman. With the three GB A riders in the B final, it was left to the B riders to defend home honour in the final against France and the thundering German thighs of Forstermann – Forstermann it was who led early doors with Crampton, flying under the false flag of the All Stars instead of Union colours, holding a watching brief and even laying back with three laps to run in order to give himself running room, Pervis and Palma of France hanging back behind Rotherham and Oliva, but as they came to the bell, Pervis launched a ferocious attack past the charging Rotherham as Forstermann rallied around the outside, and it was the Frenchman who had his wheel in front, denying Fostermann and Rotherham at the line. As finales go, you couldn’t have written it to be much more of a spectacle.
Raleigh GAC’s Jessica Roberts & Sportcovers Levi Moody take over the DHL Future Star Champions Jersey at Revolution 39 – ©Chris Maher
With the conclusion of the racing for the evening, all there was left was to tot up the points. Sky Procycling took the championship win on the evening, three points ahead of WD40 who were just another two ahead of howies, which leaves Rapha Condor JLT still at the head of the series table, a healthy 25 points clear of Rudy Project RT who are themselves 20 points ahead of Rouleur in third. In the DHL Future Stars Girls table, Jessica Roberts holds a 15 point advantage over Emily Haycox, and 48 points over third placed Emily Nelson, whilst in the Boys Levi Moody is fully 22 points clear of Tristan Robbins, with Thomas Rotherham 39 points off the head of the table in third. In the Elite class, Ed Clancy holds sway on 88 points after round 3, John Dibben some 28 points in arrears in second and Marcel Kalz in third on 45.
The series leaves Manchester now to head north for the fourth and final round at the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome on the 2nd of February. If the response of the crowd is anything to go by, sold out in Manchester for the third time this series, if you’re a fan of cycling and you can make your way there, you’d be a fool not to go…
Don’t forget to enter our howies Revolution Series T-Shirt Competition by clicking here.
You can catch the highlights show on ITV4 at 20:00hrs on Wednesday 09/01/2013 and afterwards on ITV Player in the UK, for those outside the UK you can watch an edited highlights show on the Revolution Series website and YouTube channel.
You can download the full event results in PDF format by clicking here.
Revolution Series 10, Round 4 is on 2nd February at The Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome in Glasgow.
To find out more about the series and to grab one of the few remaining tickets left for the Finale of the season at the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome in Glasgow visit: www.cyclingrevolution.com
British Cycling National Madison Championship 2013 50km (200 Laps) – Race time: 59:16.510
1 George Atkins (USN) / Jon Mould (UK Youth) 36pts
2 Adam Blythe (BMC) / Peter Kennaugh (Sky Pro Cycling) 33pts
3 Russ Downing (NetApp-Endura) / Jonny McEvoy (NetApp-Endura) 25pts
4 James McCallum (Rapha Condor JLT) / Michael Nicolson (unattached) 6pts -1Lap
5 Russell Hampton (Raleigh) / Evan Oliphant (Raleigh) 7pts -2Laps
6 Adam Lewis (Wolverhampton Wheelers) / William Rudgard (Wolverhampton Wheelers) 0pts -3Laps
7 Peter Williams (IG Sigmasport) / Tom Murray (IG Sigmasport) 1pt -4Laps
8 Stephen Bradbury (Tomacc) / Jack Kirk (VC Hyerois) 0pts -6Laps
9 Ryan Whatmough (Shepherds Cycles) / Paul Whatmough (Shepherds Cycles) 0pts -10Laps
10 Jack Cracknell (V-Sprint Racing) / James Locker (V-Sprint Racing) DNF
Future Stars Madison Girls 15000m – Race Time: 20:09.486
1 Team Sky 12pts
2 howies 8pts
3 Maxgear Racing 4pts
4 FACE Partnership 0pts
5 Rouleur 1pts
6 Sportscover 0pts
7 Rudy Project RT 3pts -1Lap
8 Raleigh-GAC 2pts -1Lap
9 IG Sigmasport 0pts -1Lap
10 Rahpa Condor Sharp JLT 0pts -1Lap
11 NetApp-Endura 0pts -1Lap
12 WD40 0pts -2Laps
Future Stars Madison Girls 15000m – Race Time: 14:52.973
1 IG Sigmasport 13pts
2 Rudy Project RT 6pts
3 Sportscover 5pts
4 NetApp-Endura 5pts
5 howies 2pts
6 WD40 1pts
7 Rapha Condor Sharp 1pts
8 Team Sky 2pts 0pts -1Lap
9 Raleigh-GAC 0pts -1Lap
10 FACE Partnership 0pts -2Laps
11 Rouleur 0pts -2Laps
12 Maxgear Racing 0pts -4Laps
Revolution Series
Elite Championship Standings after Round 3
1 Rapha Condor Sharp JLT 160
2 Rudy Project RT 135
3 Rouleur 125
4 Sky Procycling 122
5 howies 110
6 Maxgear 103
7 WD40 100
8 FACE 84
9 NetApp-Endura 72
10 IG-Sigma Sport 70
11 Sportscover 57
12 Raleigh-GAC 32
1 Ed CLANCY Rapha Condor Sharp 88
2 John DIBBEN Rouleur 50
3 Marcel KALZ Rudy Project RT 45
4 Simon YATES Maxgear Racing 44
5 Russell DOWNING NetApp Endura 40
6 Andy TENNANT Rapha Condor Sharp 40
DHL Future Stars Championship Standings after Round 3
1 howies 586
2 Sky Procycling 559
3 IG-Sigma Sport 536
4 Rudy Project RT 535
5 Raleigh-GAC 512
6 Sportscover 485
7 FACE Partnership 478
8 Rapha Condor Sharp 462
9 Maxgear Racing 435
10 WD40 434
11 NetApp Endura 409
12 Rouleur 402
Future Stars Girls After Round 3
1 Jessica ROBERTS Raleigh GAC 197
2 Emily HAYCOX Howies 182
3 Emily NELSON IG Sigmasport 149
4 Grace GARNER Sky Procycling 148
5 Lauren O’Brien NetApp Endura 126
6 Victoria KINRADE Rouleur 123
Future Stars Boys After Round 3
1 Levi MOODY Sportscover 206
2 Tristan ROBBINS Howies 184
3 Thomas ROTHERHAM Maxgear Racing 167
4 Joe EVANS Rudy Project RT 162
5 Jake KELLY Rudy Project RT 140
6 Maximilian STEADMAN IG Sigmasport 139
Race Results Revolution 39
Elite Mens Flying Lap
1 CLANCY Ed Rapha Condor Sharp 13.160
2 EDGAR Ross IG Sigmasport 13.541
3 KALZ Marcel Rudy Project RT 13.798
4 MARGUET Tristan FACE Partnership 13.912
5 DE BUYST Jasper Rouleur 14.090
6 BLYTHE Adam WD40 14.397
Elite Mens 1km Madison Time Trial
1 RUDY PROJECT RT 54.922
2 TEAM SKY 57.934
3 FACE PARTNERSHIP 58.184
4 WD40 58.264
5 RAPHA-CONDOR-SHARP Rapha Condor Sharp 58.364
6 HOWIES 58.745
Elite Mens Points Race
1 KENNAUGH Peter Sky Procycling
2 YATES Adam Maxgear Racing
3 DOWNING Russell NetApp Endura
4 MARVULLI Franco howies
5 OLIPHANT Evan Raleigh-GAC
6 BLYTHE Adam WD40
Elite Mens Devil Elimination Race
1 CLANCY Ed Rapha Condor Sharp JLT
2 MARVULLI Franco howies
3 MOULD Jon howies
4 BLYTHE Adam WD40
5 ATKINS George WD40
6 YATES Adam Maxgear Racing
Elite Mens Scratch Race
1 MARGUET Tristan FACE Partnership
2 IRVINE Martin Team Sky
3 OLIPHANT Evan Raleigh-GAC
4 MCEVOY Jonny NetApp Endura
5 KALZ Marcel Rudy Project RT
6 YATES Adam Maxgear Racing
DHL Future Stars Girls
Points Race
1 SHAW Lucy Rudy Project RT
2 GARNER Grace Sky Procycling
3 HAYCOX Emily howies
4 CAPEWELL Sophie WD40
5 COLBOURNE Henrietta Sportscover
6 ROBERTS Jessica Raleigh GAC
6 Lap Dash
1 GARNER Grace Sky Procycling
2 MILLWARD Paige IG Sigmasport
3 SHAW Lucy Rudy Project RT
4 HAYCOX Emily howies
5 DENTUS Abbie FACE Partnership
6 KINRADE Victoria Rouleur
Scratch Race
1 GARNER Grace Sky Procycling
2 ROBERTS Jessica Raleigh GAC
3 SHAW Lucy Rudy Project RT
4 BROUGHTON Charlotte Sky Procycling
5 HAYCOX Emily howies
6 DENTUS Abbie FACE Partnership
DHL Future Stars Boys
Scratch Race
1 PARTINGTON Joel Sky Procycling
2 ROTHERHAM Tom Maxgear Racing
3 EVANS Joe Rudy Project RT
4 BAILLIE Karl Sky Procycling
5 MOODY Levi Sportscover
6 CULLAIGH Gabriel NetApp Endura
6 Lap Dash
1 ROTHERHAM Tom Maxgear Racing
2 KELLY Jake Rudy Project RT
3 TRUMAN Joe Rouleur
4 MOODY Levi Sportscover
5 HOLT Joe IG Sigmasport
6 STEADMAN Maximilian IG Sigmasport
Points Race
1 ROTHERHAM Tom Maxgear Racing
2 MOODY Levi Sportscover
3 CULLAIGH Gabriel NetApp Endura
4 KELLY Jake Rudy Project RT
5 EVANS Joe Rudy Project RT
6 ROBBINS Tristan Howies
Revolution Sprint Events
Sprint 200m – Time: 10:662
1 PERVIS Francois France
2 SKINNER Callum Great Britain A
Keirin 200m Time: 10:536
1 PERVIS Francois France
2 FORSTERMANN Robert All Stars
3 ROTHERHAM Matt Great Britain B
4 OLIVIA Louis Great Britain B
5 CRAMPTON Matt All Stars
6 PALMA Julien France
Team Sprint Heats
Heat 1
1 All Stars (Forstermann, Crampton & Daniel) 46.067
2 Great Britain B (Oliva, Rotherham & Paul) 46.415
Heat 2
1 France (Pervis, D’Almeida & Palma) 45.012
2 Great Britain A (Hindes, Skinner & Emadi) 45.037
by Nick Dey | Jan 9, 2013
The Castle Ride 2007 – Action Medical Research: My very first cycling event and a journey into the unknown.
Here’s hoping to break the 6 hour barrier in 2013!
The Castle Ride was a brilliantly organised event and my thanks must go to Mike Trott and all the team at Action Medical Research for their very thorough and thoughtful planning and I must admit to approaching the event with great trepidation as I’d been rather ill over the previous weekend and had, as a result, missed almost a weeks training.
The Map shows the six castles en route. A simply wonderful 103 miles.
Having received advice ranging from ‘don’t ride when ill from Sue and John (runners extraordinaire),’ go for it, it’s not a race (typical PE teacher talk, Mr. Dainton!),’ and ‘you must be bloody mad! (my mum)’ I decided to indeed go for it and packed my bag with my poshest Lycra (10//2 if any fashionistas are reading, vintage 1995 – rather foolish of me in light of recent events!) and as many energy bars & gels as I could carry.
Team Barnes-Bulllen-Dey (sponsored by Gregg’s pies and the legendary Tour of Britain stage winner, London to Holyhead champion and bastion of all knowledge two-wheeled, Alan Perkins, who gave me some Jelly Belly beans – I assume no sarcasm was intended, Alan) left N E London thanks to domestique #1 Keith Bullen (Winner: Le Tour de Tesco, 1959, The Giro d’Pizza Express, 2007) who provided luxurious ‘white van’ transport (complete with school chair) for which I was very grateful. With domestique #2 David Barnes (Winner Le Grand Stag night and runner up in the classic ‘Paris-cafe in Paris’; who provided the stale whiff of fine wine and stale granite-esque brownies, along with a plethora of mumbled promises about a future embracing only temperance, study and more than four hours sleep, safely strapped into the passenger seat, we made our way through the emerging buildings of East London and onwards towards the more refined airs and graces of Tonbridge castle.
It was now 6 a.m on a Sunday morning and I was not impressed and just a little grumpy, although this silly emotion was loosing the battle with that of a growing sense of excitement!
Having arrived in Tonbridge and changing into our sexy Lycra in a car park, to the cheers – or should that be shocked-jeers – of many a morning shopper (in our defence… it was very cold!), Team Bulllen-Dey, with a green-hued David in tow, headed for the start line and event registration. Little did we anticipate what David would do today, despite his condition.
The level of organisation and the splendour of the medieval castle walls and grounds proved only to enhance the positive emotions of the morning. We were itching to get going and we didn’t have to hang around for long. What an amazingly
Castle 2007 start – ©Nick Dey
What a magnificent setting from which to start a sportive.
About twenty five cyclists, from the gathered five hundred or so, set off in a group at around 7.30 a.m. Keith is in yellow, I’m looking down. The plan was to take it easy, to do a pleasant 25 km/h until we had warmed-up and had more of an idea what to expect. So much for the plan. We averaged over 40 km/h for the first eight kilometers!Psychologists, please comment here on the male ego! This was 8 a.m and not only was I bitter and twisted about being dragged from my bed, but now I was also unduly fatigued (a phrase my old PE teacher instilled in us when we actually meant… totally knackered!) We still had a daunting 95 miles to go!
The first hill …
A sharp right led us onto a seemingly endless incline that caught out a few, myself included. David had long since vanished into the distance (so much for the late night!), and Condor-Keith was battling to stay with the mighty ’06 Madone 5.5! Foolishly I decided to ‘have a go’ at the hill. Predictably I was found, a few kilometers later (having thought the hill was a few hundred meters long) slumped twitching over the Bontrager bars about 20 meters short of the summit! My entire body seemed to be bursting with lactic acid and I’m sure I could taste iron and blood. My lungs had long since vacated their cage and only photosynthesis kept me going!
The next 40 miles were not too pleasant as my body struggled to recover from the minds misplaced, and definitely unrealistic, enthusiasm – four months light training through the gentle, but beautiful & cafe laden lanes of Essex do not a Bradley Wiggins make! David, like the good domestique he is, was found waiting for his elders by a field full of gently swaying corn, basking in the sunshine of a glorious morn, sipping from his designer bidon – The swine (one hell of a rider though!) We cycled together for twenty-or-so miles in a peloton of ever changing dimensions and met and chatted to several cyclists about life, the charity, Le Tour and the road ahead. A pleasant morning it made for all concerned. Thanks for the draft to the chap from Sevenoaks (Dulwich CC?) whose wife went to the School I now teach at (Forest, small world) and whose advice probably got us, or at least me, through the event. He left me for dead up the hills though and I didn’t see him again. The route seemed to get better and better as the sun rose high. Some of the scenery was stunning and he roads seemed almost devoid of traffic. Bliss – if it wasn’t for the burning lungs and legs!
Campag Chaos …With each pedal stroke inducing spasms of pain and discomfort Keith and I were focused only on luncheon and Michelin-starred recuperation (OK, the food wasn’t that good. but it was close and never has plate of tuna pasta been more gratefully received). Unfortunately about 10 miles short of the fine Tavern whence luncheon was based; restorative pasta, banana’s and peace, KB’s Campag top of the range set up decided to trap his chain between hub and cassette. Interestingly my sexy shimano Dura-Ace 9700 was performing perfectly, as, of course, I expected it would! With the aid of a very kind motorcycle steward and protected by a deliberately parked, and thus cyclist friendly, ambulance we spent a good half an hour with the Italian beastie before we could resume. Thanks to the steward and to the Ambulance crew for their vital help. After about two miles it was decided that I ‘race’ ahead and meet David at the lunch stop. Keith assured me that he, and his beloved Condor/Campag would be OK. He was.
Until …
You don’t want to fall off here – not with everyone watching!David, who’d arrived about an hour earlier, and I were dining heartily when we saw a cloud of dust and heard the clatter of bike, body and road, right in front of the gathered throngs of Castle riders. An ‘unnamed’ cyclist had taken a slapstick tumble whilst coming to a stop… Was that a Condor bike? Isn’t that the dreaded Campag? Who was this mysterious rider? Thankfully nothing more than pride was bruised and about twenty minutes later we resumed our adventure.
Unexpected fun …
The next fifty miles were a distinct pleasure. I’d be very grateful if anyone could explain why I only managed to average a painful 20-23 km/h for the first 50 miles and then an easy, pleasant even, 31 k/h for the next 50, despite the unfriendly undulations? I’m at a loss. I can only put it down to fuel, rest, a gentle stretch and a grupetto going at a pace I could cope with. David, once again, vanished into the distance (to his credit he always asked for permission – not that we would, indeed could, ever say no) and Keith and I decided it would be best to go at our own pace. it made for solitary bit-and-bit along some roads but it also made for a splendid afternoons cycling. Tagging along and playing hopscotch with small groups and individuals we were rarely passed and I owe a debt of gratitude to the gentleman who urged me along for the final undulating 20 miles, without his support, dragging me up the climbs at a pace far greater than I would have managed alone, my average for the final 50 would surely have plummeted. I’m afraid I didn’t catch his name so if he’s reading this … I thank you Sir (you should become a teacher – inspiring stuff.) A big thanks to Helen and Oly from AMR, whom I met at an isolated feed station and whose encouragement was far more important than all the sweets on offer, and also to all the folk who gave up their time to run the event. Special thanks go to the Halford’s mechanics for a free tune up. How wonderful it was to collect our first ever endurance medals and to avail ourselves of the free sports massage in the grounds of Tonbridge Castle.
What a way to end a glorious day.
Castle Route
This image is courtesy of Keith Bullen and his funky Garmin-Memory Map duo. It is the actual route Keith followed – we did a slightly shorter one as we didn’t get lost – did you enjoy the extra hill KB!!!
If Garmin or Memory-Map are reading this then sponsorship would make my life a little more fun, I’ll even add your logo and link!!! Cheers Keith.
Should anyone ever read this then I most heartily recommend the Castle Ride for a superb days cycling.
Can’t wait until next year.
UPDATE…
It is the one event I miss most now I spend most of the year in Deutschland.
The Castle Ride 100 today:
SALE 20% off entry fee for limited period. Use voucher code SALE! Offer ends January.
One of the most popular bike rides in the South East, the Castle Ride 100 attracts 1,000 riders on this must do event. The North Downs offer up some big climbs including the mile long climb of Hollingbourne Hill along the way. Quiet lanes make the route through England’s garden a real joy to ride even though this is a tough one.
With a
choice of 100km or a tougher 100-mile route, you’ll have a great day in the saddle with the Action Medical Research team. Whether you are an experienced rider aiming to get a fast time or a rider aiming to make a day of it and take in the sights, this ride is for you.
Expect excellent feed stations manned by friendly volunteers and a buffet style lunch mid-way through the ride that you will find hard to tear yourself away from! Riders will be supported by first class medical support, mechanical services and a sweep vehicle.
Many riders have experienced a RIDE 100 event, and thoroughly enjoyed the social atmosphere and return to enjoy the unique experience that we offer. Make 2013 the year that you take part in a RIDE 100 sportive! You won’t be disappointed.
Still not convinced? Perhaps knight of the realm can encourage you to register?
www.action.org.uk/castle_ride_100/routes
If you’ve enjoyed this post and have a few pennies to spare please would you consider sponsoring me for my 2013 fundraising for Action Medical Research.
www.action.org.uk/sponsor/nkdey
It WILL make a difference.
by Annie Simpson | Jan 2, 2013
Annie Simpson – Image © Bart Hazen
First of all Happy New Year! I hope you all brought in the new year in style, instead of a big bowl of pasta and an early night like me. We were in Belgium you see, we being the Hope Factory Racing Womens Cyclo-cross Team, or also known as Adela Carter and myself. We also had our pit crew, team chef, driver & souigner with us, all otherwise known as Lucy, who also put together flawless logistics for the whole trip (Thank you!) . So 3 races, in 5 days, Bredene, Diegem & Baal….. Here are a few things we learnt.
- No race in the UK could prepare you for the carnage of Belgium. Sections of the courses that would be deemed too dangerous or too flooded in the UK were instead surrounded by beer tents and made a spectacle of. During the Sven Nys GP I’m sure it was luck that I kept rubber side down as rarely did I feel in control of the bike as it sailed down streams of liquid mud, but I was definitely in more control with disc brakes than others around me. After experiencing this race I feel like I now have an insight into what it would feel like to be in the trenches in a warzone, sounds extreme but the mud was really that bad.
- Finding where to sign on for the race is a mission in itself! We found ourselves on numerous wild goose chases due to some definite language barriers, but signing on venues were eventually found in a back room of a bar, a castle-like
Annie Simpson – Image © Bart Hazen
building and a porta-cabin (such obvious locations). Locating the sign on was only half the battle, the next test was making your way from parking (which was miles away because we were women and campervan-less) to sign on or indeed the startline without being clothe lined by a brolly, running over a small child or just getting generally wiped out by the large crowds. I’d love to know the stats on rider-spectator collisions as it must be high, people are everywhere and usually falling about drunk.
- If you want people to stare in Belgium take a Cyclo-cross bike with disk brakes to the pits with a female pit crew! It caused no end of fascination!
- The start of a Junior boys race is carnage from the back row (yes, we did race against junior boys), but there is not as much devastation as starting the race from the back of an Elite Women’s field. At Diegem Superprestige I have never seen so many bodies on the ground in the space of 300m. At one point I dropped down off a bridge to just see bikes piled in the middle of the course but no bodies, and I’m still not sure where those bodies went!
- You can never have too much kit when racing cross in Belgium, and in hind-sight I didn’t have anywhere near enough. Two pairs of shoes and ample pairs of socks is a must to avoid starting every race with the beginnings of trench foot like I did. Multiple layers are needed to try reduce teeth chattering on the startline and zippy-off leg warmers were a life saver! Basically everything you take to the race will get mud on it, even if you didn’t wear it, it will still some how get mud on it.
Euro Cross – Annie Simpson – Image © Bart Hazen
The trip was eye-opening but definitely enjoyable. Despite not being happy with my personal performances I took a lot of experience away from the trip and it was great to witness some quality rides for the UK from domestic based riders like Adela and the legendary Louise Robinson alongside the established euro pro Brits. I think in GP Sven Nys British women took home 2nd, 4th, 5th, 11th & 13th! And with results like that what a race we are in for at the National CX Champs in Bradford on 13th January and I look forward to being a part of it! Well done to all the other fellow Brits who were out racing over the New Year period especially Jake Womersley & Abby-Mae Parkinson both showing themselves to be GB’s cross stars of the future, I’d put money on it!!
Right I better set about sorting out the post race aftermath in the back of my car. I hope the washing machine is ready for a hammering as I have a bag of horror waiting to be cleaned!
Thanks for reading and thank you to Bart Hazen for the Photos (@Bartoli84)
Annie (@LittleSimo)
by Jody Cundy MBE | Dec 29, 2012
UCI Para-Cycling Track World Championships Los Angeles, USA – ©Christina Kelkel
It’s almost over. All the hype and build up to 2012, the Olympics, the Paralympics, and here we are about to head into 2013.
What a year for sport, and amazing to have played a small part in it!
Back in February my season kicked off in sunny Los Angeles, where I was racing at the Para-Cycling World Track Championships.
They turned out to be an interesting championship, in the Team Sprint riding with Darren Kenny and Sarah Storey we suffered our first defeat since 2006, taking silver behind the Chinese, who had found an amazing man 1 that really did make the difference to their team. In the 4km Pursuit, qualifying was interesting, as there was an official standing on the track in the back straight! Cue a restart, and I managed to post the 3rd quickest time. In the Bronze medal final I tried to learn from my pacing issues in qualifying. However after the 1st kilometre I could see my opponent and decided to chase him downrather than doing a full 4km. After 5 3Ž4 laps I’d caught and over taken Roberto Alcaide from Spain to take the Bronze medal.
In the kilo I managed to maintain my unbeaten record to take the 1km title in 1:06.001. Not my best ride, actually the first time I’ve won at the worlds without breaking the WR, but still it was good enough to take my 5th consecutive world title and the coveted rainbow bands. So LA turned out to be a mixed bag of results, but I did get a full set of medals!
After the worlds it was back to training and preparations for the London Paralympics. Another visit to Majorca for another 10day training camp kick started the final cycle off. It ended with me heading to the Tower of London for a bit of modelling and showing off the Adidas kit that all the GB athletes would be racing in at the home games.
In between all the training, with the build-up to the games I ended up doing quite a bit of publicity, the most fun was the 3 part Sainsbury’s short films, and the Paralympic promo video for Channel4. Some of the shots in the films were pretty cool, and due to the way they were filmed, they gave you an insight into track cycling that you just don’t normally see.
Para-Cycling Track at London 2012 Paralympic Games – ©Christina Kelkel
With the year flying by, the Olympics came and went, and before you knew it, I was at the holding camp in Newport, putting the final touches to my preparations for London. Things were looking good, as I PB’d in pretty much every session on the holding camp, just one little hiccup was a crash on day 2, but I survived with just a friction burn on my hip and elbow. A massive relief considering I hit the deck at 75kph!
Then it was time to race, with the kilo up first I was ready to go, with all my competitors going before me I was feeling really confident as I stepped on the track, especially as the fastest time was still half a second slower than my Beijing winning time and still some 9/10ths of a second slower than my WR, and I was going faster than ever now. I just needed to race at my best and that was it, unfortunately it all started to go wrong in a big way! I made my start just as I have countless times in training, however something was wrong, the gate held me, the next thing I know I’m wheel spinning and going sideways. Not ideal. So I stuck my hand up, and called for a mishap, pulled off the track and got ready to take to the start again. However that was it, I was unfairly denied a 2nd start, and that was it, a big fat DNF next to me name, and what followed wasn’t my proudest moment, but it will go down in Paralympic history in the same way as John McEnroe’s outburst at Wimbledon in 1981.
I basically threw all the toys out of my pram at anybody who would listen, in denial that I wouldn’t be defending my kilo title, and was removed from the velodrome. Knowing I was out of order I wanted to apologise, and try to put things right, at least to all the kids that had witnessed my foul mouthed tirade. So a little later I came back out to apologise to everyone in the crowd, then to the sponsors and governing bodies and organisers in a press conference and media scrum. Then finally I headed back to the village as I had to compose myself and come back and race the 4km pursuit the following day.
With the crowd behind me I ripped around the velodrome in qualifying to a new British Record, and 3rd best time. In the final I made short work of my opponent and took Bronze with an overtake in 51Ž4 laps. I covered the first 1km quicker than the winning time from the previous day. Considering the disappointment the day before, and the fact I hadn’t focussed on the pursuit as I placed all my eggs in the kilo basket, a bronze medal really did feel like winning gold. Having watched the footage back, it looks like I started the tiniest of fraction too early hence the gate held me when I pulled forward. Unfortunately though, the false start wasn’t called by the commissaires, so I didn’t get the immediate restart the rules state.
London will always be memorable for me for some amazing highs and some equally amazing lows, but I’m glad I can say I was there and I won a medal in front of the best and noisiest crowd anyone can ask for.
My racing year finished with a few more races on the track, a bronze medal in the Team Sprint at nationals, a 2nd place in the flying lap at the Revolution track series, and in my final race of 2012, a win in the 10mile scratch race in the final round of the MRTL Premier Division track league.
2013 will be a really important year for training, as I plan my revenge in Rio. On the way to 2016 I have also set myself the ambitious target of riding for England at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in 2014. So the hard work starts again, and my motivation is sky high.
Thanks to all my family, friends and supporters and all my sponsors!
See you in 2013, and happy cycling.
by Sam Jackson | Dec 24, 2012
Alex riding Ster ZLM Toer – ©Copyright Kevin Kempf
I caught up with new Movistar signing Alex Dowsett and he kindly answered a few questions.
Off-Season
What is a typical off-season for Alex Dowsett?
I’ll spend 3-5 weeks where the only bike I may look at is my mountain bike, it’s good to step away from it all to refresh the body and mind, during this period there’ll usually be a holiday of some sort and a bit more partying than usual. Then when it’s time to start training I’ll do one week lightly building up the hours then into the long base mileage, so 4-6 hour rides daily looking to get 25-30 hours a week. As the season draws nearer the hours drop down a little and intensity is added through intervals.
Is that fairly standard in terms of what other pro cyclists do?
Yes that’s a fairly bog standard off season, some guys might do work in the gym, I’ve been experimenting with it a little and I know the Scandinavians may do a lot of x-country skiing as that uses the same muscle groups.
Has your off-season this year been markedly different as you face your move to Movistar for 2013?
Only with adding in Gym work into my programme
Movistar
What was the main reason for your move to ride for Movistar next season?
Opportunities, Sky is a fantastic team but I realised very quickly that with there being so many brilliant GC riders there and the fact that experience counts for a lot when getting into the big races I needed to step away to gain this experience, Movistar is a fantastic outfit that has produced some great riders and promised to give me opportunities in the bigger races.
What will your main role be at Movistar and does that differ from your role at Team Sky?
It doesn’t differ too much, I can time trial well so that will be a big focus, I have GC aspirations in races like Eneco Tour and will be supported by the team in these and in the mountainous tours I will be a domestique and maybe go for individual time trial stages.
Have you noticed any great cultural differences in the running of Movistar so far in comparison with Team Sky?
There are a lot more similarities than I thought there would be, all the big cycling teams operate in a highly efficient way
As pro cycling teams are so cosmopolitan nowadays, is there any great language barrier to overcome in terms of Team Sky being ‘British’ and Movistar ‘Spanish’?
There is, the team is keen to learn English as that’s the way the sport is going but I do need to learn Spanish, I’m having 3 lessons a week, it’s hard to get my head round that a noun, i.e. something like a bike can be masculine or feminine and the verb has to change accordingly!
You were well known when riding for Team Sky that you often remained based in Essex. Does your move to Movistar affect that?
Nope, I’m an Essex boy through and through, I race best when I’m happy and I’m happy here in Essex. I do understand the values of training abroad so ahead of grand tours I will get myself into some mountains for sure.
2013 & the Future
After your excellent result in the World Championships Time Trial, was there an increase in interest from teams in acquiring your services for 2013?
Cycling is big business but a small World, it was common knowledge that Movistar were in for me, other teams approached us as well but we followed protocol by speaking with SKY then making a decision.
What is your main objective for 2013 and which races are you most looking forward to?
Doing a Grand tour and the classics initially, the rough plan is for me to do Roubaix and Flanders and then the Giro. I’d like to retain my National Time Trial title but it will be harder given that it’s being moved in line with the National RR so Wiggo and Froome might be there. I’d like to win a tour, something like Ster Electro, Eneco, Circuit de la Sarthe, basically a hard tour with minimal mountains and with a decent TT in it.
Alex Dowsett Austrailian Pursuit – ©Copyright Chris Dando @Cycling Shorts.
Could you see yourself ever consider crossing over to track cycling, perhaps for an Olympic Games?
Maybe, I was hitting fairly good numbers in 2010 training for European champs but I couldn’t get myself off the start line quick enough, I can see there being more chance that I’ll be on the road for Rio
If you could pick one race to win in your career, which would it be and why?
Olympic and World TT championships, I love my time trialling and that’s the ultimate win.
Yourself
What impact did riding for Trek-Livestrong have on your career, and how would you say it has helped you in terms of you career development?
The GB academy was great and prepared me for the Trek-Livestrong experience, I entered there as one of the most disciplined riders. The GB academy presented us to pro teams as the complete package.
I also learnt how to win races and the importance of enjoying what I’m doing.
Do you see yourself as solely a time-triallist specialist, a discipline in which you have obviously had a great deal of success?
No, it’s obviously a key ingredient to my success but I’ve won road races, I think I can be a solid all rounder.
What would you say has been your career highlight so far?
8th in the World TT Championships
What is your favourite race to participate in as a rider?
I got a real kick out of the World Team Time trial championships, we didn’t do great but was a buzz nonetheless
Who are your best friends, or who do you talk to the most, in the peloton?
Mostly the lads my age, Ben King, Jesse Sergent, Taylor Phinney, Michael Matthews etc. We’re all going through roughly the same thing so we can relate to each other a lot.
What is your favourite place in the world to ride a bike?
I loved training in Switzerland, just getting lost in the hills, I want to head back this summer with a Mountain bike though! I have a ride at home I enjoy, its simply blue egg (my regular café) and back, it’s flat quiet roads and 2 hours total, I like having somewhere to aim for on a ride.
Could you ever see yourself doing a ‘Wiggo’ and going from being an outstanding rider against the clock to being a Grand Tour contender?
Yes.
For more on Alex check out Anna’s chat with Alex by clicking here.
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