Roger Aiken came within 51 seconds of winning the 2013 An Post Rás, above, and was one of the stars of the race, constantly attacking. The Team ASEA man got sick midway through the race last year but is back this season, though he’s a little unsure about his form (Photo courtesy of Brendan Slattery)
By Brian Canty
Roger Aiken has admitted he’s not in the form he was when he almost won the An Post Rás back in 2013 but is hopeful he can ride his way into some good condition to contend again in a couple of weeks.
The Team ASEA rider bagged his second win at the Tour of Ulster last weekend when he attacked the break with two kilometres to go and managed to hold them off to the finish.
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He didn’t challenge for the leader's pink jersey but said he “probably wasn’t good enough to” anyway.
“It was a good weekend for the team, two stage wins so we’re happy with that,” he said.
“I was probably not good enough to win overall but you never know.
“I was in the chase group on Saturday but then the race was stopped so it would’ve been interesting to see how that developed.
"I had Bryan (McCrystal) up the road and I was going across to him but the race was stopped.”
Monday’s final stage was won by the Banbridge man who ironically, didn’t feel too good at the start.
“I started to come into it as the race went on; it’s the kind of circuit that suits me with sharp, short climbs.
Taking the final stage of the Tour of Ulster last Monday having attacked the breakaway in the closing kilometres and holding them off all the way (Photo: Jerry Rafferty)
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“I’m not sure if the race slowed down or I got better but I was able to feel more comfortable as the race went on.
“I attacked when I did because I didn’t fancy myself in the sprint, so I used that hill with 2 kilometres to go for an attack.
“Obviously with Damien there in the group it played into our hands,” he said in reference to Aquablue wing man Damien Shaw.
Winning gave him confidence but as regards the An Post Rás he said that race is “a level up again”.
“It’ll be like the race we did in England. I was just hanging on by the skin of my teeth there,” he recalled of the CicleClassic.
“Maybe as the Rás goes on you might find your legs and a bit of speed, I usually come around after a few days.
“It was a hard race though,” he recalled of that English event known as the Paris-Roubaix of the UK.
“I was racing from the back and the bunch was getting smaller. I got dropped a few times but I was able to get back on.
“It was one of the biggest bunches that ever came to the finish so I’m not sure if it was overly hard for the top guys. But I found it very hard.”
Asked where he was in relation to his form two years ago he said: “It’s hard to say, I’m a couple of kilos heavier than I was and I don’t feel as strong on the bike.
“I played a lot with my position and I’ve struggled to find something l’m comfortable with but I’ve a week of training to get done and hopefully I’ll get a bit stronger.”
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