After an unlucky start to the 2014 season, Peter Hawkins is confident his form will return ahead of the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow next month.
By Gerard Cromwell
It’s been an up and down start to the year for Belfast man Peter Hawkins.
The British-based Madison Genesis pro got the season off to a great start with second place on the opening stage of the Tour of the Reservoir in the UK behind teammate Alex Peters.
He then looked likely to take over the lead in the British Cycling Elite Road Series during round two, until a crash derailed his plans.
“I was in a leading group of five in the Cycle Wiltshire Grand Prix, which is the next event in the series,” he says.
“I touched a wheel with about a lap and a half to go and that took me out of it. It was pretty disappointing.
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"A podium was looking probable and the win was possible. I came down pretty hard and lost quite a bit of skin. I was quite bashed up for a few days and didn’t sleep well for a couple of weeks before the Rás.”
A decent early start on the An Post Rás fell asunder when the stomach bug that swept the peloton finally hit Hawkins with three days to go.
“I was feeling quite good, stayed in contention the first few days and finished well up on day two.
"The team was really looking strong, with all of us in the top 15 or 20 and I think I was 10th in Caherciveen. But the day after that, into Clonakilty, I just had a really bad day.
"I got dropped on one of the climbs and at that point just thought I was on a bad day. But then I started feeling sick and had diarrhoea later on and knew I had the bug.
"I got to the finish the next day because there was a chance we could have taken the lead and I wanted to be there if the team needed me. But I knew the next morning that things weren’t improving and continuing in the race was a bad idea.”
Hawkins going up the road on the two-day Tour of the Reservoir in March, where he finished 2nd on the opening stage and 2nd overall (Photo: Larry Hickmott - VeloUK.net)
Thinking he had recovered from his Rás sickness, Hawkins went to the Tour of the Fjords in Norway the following Wednesday. But he quickly found he wasn’t much better and abandoned after day one.
“I was hoping I’d be able to ride myself in but again, on day one, I had no power and was left behind on a couple of the climbs. My body just wasn’t ready for it and to continue racing would have put things off even longer.
"It was pretty frustrating to stop two big races I had been looking forward to. But I’ve had a really good rest since then and raced in the London Nocturne on Saturday night and felt quite strong.
"It was the first crit I’ve done and I felt quite pleased with how I rode so that’s a good indication that I haven’t lost too much. And I’m definitely healthy again and I’m focussed on the rest of the year.”
Hawkins got good news regarding the rest of his year this week when it was announced that he would ride the Commonwealth Games road race for Northern Ireland in Glasgow in July.
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Peter Hawkins is no stranger to gaining selection for major events, seen here riding the An Post Rás on the national team in 2012.
“It’s something I’ve been targeting for a long time,” he admits.
“To be able to represent Northern Ireland will be a great experience and to have the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow is about as close to home as you can get without having it in Ireland.
"I’m really looking forward to it. I think the route should suit me fairly well, it’s quite technical and it’s quite a long race as well. There are a few little short hills on it and it was used as the British national championships last year.
"I’ve have had a chat with some of the guys on the team who have ridden that. Hopefully it’s something that I can build towards for the whole summer.”
Although he says he prefers the aggressive nature of the Irish domestic races to some of the smaller UK events, Hawkins is now based outside London and has a busy summer ahead of him, with his Madison Genesis squad tackling both the elite road series and the elite circuit series.
“It should be all good preparation for the Commonwealth Games," he says.
"The whole team has been doing really well. I haven’t been involved in the Tour Series because I’ve been doing stage races but the crit guys are going well.
"Tobyn Horton won Canary Wharf and the London Nocturne. Alex (Peters) was second in the Rás. Liam (Holohan) won a stage, so there’s a lot of strength in depth in the team and things are really well run.
"It’s a bit different from last year, because you’ve got to fight to even make the team for a lot of the big races whereas that wasn’t really the case with Sigma," he said referring to his squad of 2012 and last year.
"I’m living just where it becomes a bit quieter and closer to Surrey and the roads I train on were used for the Olympics and Ride London. There are good hills and a fair bit of variety. It’s a bit busier than home but you get used to it.
"I mostly train by myself. That’s how it was at home and that’s how it was in Belgium. I just find that I work better on my own.
"You’ve got to be working hard to be on the start line with Madison Genesis. You’ve got to be on top of your game and that brings everyone on.”
Next up for Hawkins is the 2.1 ranked Beaumont Trophy in Northumberland, a week before the national road race championships in Mullingar at the end of June.
“I’m going to ride that and then come home for the nationals. I don’t really know how my form is at the minute.
"I’ve had good form earlier on but just had a bit of bad luck so hopefully with a few weeks of working hard again I should be strong.”
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