Rayner riders reflect on their year
The Dave Rayner Fund is rightly acclaimed for supporting tomorrow’s star riders. Paul Knott caught up with some of this year’s current crop competing for the fund’s Rider of the Year
Ross Lamb — United Cycling Team
One of many riders who made Belgium his home over the past year was Ross Lamb, who clubbed together with Adam Lewis, Calvert Churchill, Andy Leigh and Tom Bracegirdle to make a Dave Rayner Fund hub in Leuven.
“We’ve got a rota going on with the cooking, which is lucky because I’m terrible at it,” says Lamb. “So if one of us isn’t racing then we are always coming home to hot food, which is pretty cool.”
This close-knit environment helped Lamb settle in quickly and brought success with a third-place finish at the Memorial Van Coningsloo, his first major Uci-level result. He even produced impressive results without knowing it, “There is this season-long competition called the Topcompetitie and I was seventh at the end of the season. I only did four of the nine rounds, which was pretty cool and a bit of a surprise. It’s mainly for the team prize, but because of our individual performances we finished second overall, which was an amazing result for us as it proved we were one of the best amateur teams in Belgium. I don’t think many can argue with that because we’ve got a lot of guys moving on from the team this year.”
Lamb is one of those riders moving on to Belgian continental outfit T.palm for the 2018 season. However a muchneeded off-season lies ahead after being thrown in at the deep end upon his arrival in Belgium in February.
“The team manager came to meet us on the first night we arrived and said ‘oh yeah there’s a race tomorrow, no pressure you don’t have to do it. But you do have to do it…’ They call it a practice race, which is something you can only have in Belgium! I managed to end up finishing fourth because I attacked with some other riders at the start and never saw the pack again,” he says.
Racing abroad requires picking up the native tongue quite quickly, not only for racing tactics in the heat of the moment, but also for holding your own against any abuse that may come your way. He says: “There was one race where Adam [Lewis] and I ended up constantly attacking and this one guy was like ‘Ah dikke pruimen’, and I responded ‘I can understand you and I’m not fat!’”
Chris Lawless — Axeon-hagens Bermans
Perhaps one of the biggest success stories to come out of the Dave Rayner Fund in 2017 is that of Chris Lawless. The former Jlt-condor rider joined the UCI Continental-level Axeon-hagens Bermans team this year that is renowned for developing riders into stars of the future. This reputation was one of the main reasons Lawless was attracted to the Continental American outfit, “They are some of the best staff I’ve ever worked with and they don’t have an ulterior motive, their goal is to help riders turn pro because that's what gives the team the best publicity,” explains Lawless. “The team missed some races so a lot of riders could race for their national teams instead of racing for them, purely because they thought it would be better for the rider's development. So it’s a good place to be as a young racer.”
This opportunity to race for the national team allowed Lawless to put in strong performances and top-10 finishes on home soil at the Tour de Yorkshire and Tour of Britain. Greater success was to come at the Nationals where Lawless finished second in the senior road race and fourth in the under-23 time trial. These results, added to overseas success, were the high points in an impressive year. “The win at the ZLM Tour [fivestage race held in the Netherlands] was one of the main highlights because it’s part of the Nations Cup, which is the highest calibre of race at under-23 level,” says Lawless. “The stage win at the Tour de Beauce was also great, because it is
always good to get your hands in the air.”
Add in a stage victory at the prestigious Tour de L’avenir, and it was clear that Lawless had the ability and experience to take the next step in 2018. There is perhaps no bigger challenge than a move to one of the biggest teams in the sport, Team Sky.
“It’s going to be a big step up and the hard work starts now, but it’s going to be worth it when I pull that jersey on for the first time and realise I’m riding for the biggest team in the world,” he says.
The Wigan man isn’t worried about the opportunities or team roles that he will be assigned on his new team, with the signings of fellow young riders Kristoffer Halvorsen, Egan Bernal and Pavel Sivakov proving to him that Team Sky are building for the future.
“They’ve said to all the young riders they don’t want them to just settle into riding on the front or coasting through as a neo-pro. They want us to develop into big riders, and I think the signings they’ve made are looking towards the future and developing the riders into whatever they feel is best for them,” he explains.
Adam Lewis — United Cycling Team
One of the most experienced riders on the Dave Rayner Fund is Adam Lewis, who has been supported for the past four seasons. His 2017 highlight was an appearance at the Liègebastogne-liège under-23 race.
“I targeted it at the start of the year and really wanted to do well so it was really great to have the opportunity. At the start of the race it was three degrees, raining and absolutely horrible. Unfortunately the race didn’t go exactly how I planned [56th place finish] but it was still a really fantastic experience. I think it was the longest race I’ve done and the calibre of the field was also pretty high as well,” he added.
After the high of Liège, Lewis’s season somewhat stagnated due to a broken scaphoid bone in June which led to four weeks training on the turbo, while fellow riders enjoyed the warmest part of the short Belgian summer. However, the hard work was worthwhile with a comeback victory at a 1.2 kermesse in Borgloon.
Lewis himself is highly appreciative of all the support he has received from the Dave Rayner Fund, not only financially but also logistically.
“Two years ago I was left without a team when it folded at the end of the season. But Joscelin Ryan [Dave Rayner Fund rider liaison] helped me out. She recommended a place and I’ve been there ever since. Both Joscelin and Tim Harris are based only five kilometres away, and if you need to go round and have a chat they are always happy to listen, whenever they aren’t busy working on the Tour of Britain or Tim is away delivering chairs as a man with a van.”
“If you wanted to race a remote corner of Kazakhstan and can prove it’s not a jolly, the Fund’s support is there”
Leon Gledhill — Team Mike’s Bikes
Encouraging cyclists to head abroad and encounter new experiences is one of the main aims of the Dave Rayner Fund. Making the move across the Atlantic Ocean isn’t the customary path that many riders take. However, experiencing the Sacramento cycling scene is something Leon Gledhill was intrigued to do.
“I just wanted to do something a bit different really. I always saw Belgium not as an easy path, but rather the place most people go from England,” he says.
Heading stateside not only meant a complete change in culture but also a move away from the traditional European racing scene. “I started racing back in January, with a good mix of oneday, criteriums and stage races,” he recalls. “There are about nine Continental teams over there, so you knew every race was going to be hard and you couldn’t rely on a good time trial as it was a lot of climbing, which doesn’t really suit me. However, I still managed to get round.”
This wasn’t to say Gledhill’s time on the west coast of America was unsuccessful.
“I was the youngest rider on the team, but I liked the fact there were ex-pros in the mix helping me out”
He garnered multiple podium finishes throughout the year as well as victory at Sequoia Cycling Classic. However, a lack of clarity with visas and being out of the European racing scene, led to Gledhill making the tricky decision to return to Europe early to search for a new team in 2018.
“Racing in America is a little bit of a bubble, there are a couple of South American teams who come up to race on the American Tour but it is predominantly US riders. If you get on a pro team there, you just race there and don’t really go to Europe. So it was a case of being a climber here or going back to Europe,” he explains.
The tough choice ultimately paid off for Gledhill, as he was able to find himself a new home in the shape of the Belgian Renohomes United Cycling Team in 2018.
“I wouldn’t take that opportunity back because I got a good calendar in and met some really good guys. I just don’t think it was for me in the end, with the style of rider I am,” he says.
James Wilkinson — Vetrapro
One of the more inexperienced riders to try their luck in mainland Europe this past year is James Wilkinson, riding for the Vetrapro team in Belgium. Based in Laarne, Wilkinson fully immersed himself into the Belgian racing environment, being just one of two non-belgian riders on the team
“The team has been around for a while, and I was probably the youngest rider in the team, but I liked the fact that there were ex-pros in the mix who were helping me out as I was quite inexperienced,” he says.
One of these riders was Davy Commeyne, a former pro who has vast high-level experience with multiple appearances at Liègebastogne-liège, Flèche Wallone and the Tour of Flanders. Tapping into his experience will be crucial for Wilkinson’s development.
“I haven’t really worked out what type of rider I am yet, I’ve only been doing this for a few years so I’ll just have to see what happens for the next season where I’ll be riding for Vetrapro again, and then I’ll maybe look to do something else the year after that.”
Continued growth both on a personal level and in future race results is the next step for Wilkinson, who will look to expand upon the small taste of success he has gained so far. “This year I was trying to get some top 10s and find myself in the moves, which did happen more than last year,” he says. “I also managed to come second in a kermesse.”