Sadler takes stage 5 of the 2012 Junior Tour ahead of strongmen Cormac Clarke and Ryan Mullen
Having represented Ireland for the first time in 2012 and taken a stage win in the Junior Tour, Jack Sadler has just revealed he has signed for the UK-based Bike Treks Racing Team.
The squad is a development team made up of junior and U23 panels sponsored by the retail outfit Bike Treks. It is based in Ambleside in the Lake District close to Sadler’s home in Ulverston.
He joins the line-up from the Mountivation team he was with this year and is transferring along with double Gorey Three Day stage winner in 2012 Matt Flynn.
Sadler will race the early months of 2013 with the team before taking up a ride with the DCM Voelseur Junior Team in Belgium.
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“I see this as the next stepping stone in my career to go on to race abroad in the near future,” he said of his plans to race some of next year in Belgium.
British-born Sadler enjoyed a strong year as a first year junior in 2012, breaking into the Irish international set up. And he is hopeful of continuing that progression next year.
He says while he is determined to use his second year in the junior ranks to continue enjoying his cycling and to learn, he has a number of clear goals to work for.
He wants to make the Ireland team for the World and European Road Race Championships and to ride on the national team at the Junior Tour and Junior World Track Championships in Glasgow. He is also hopeful of winning the National Championships and gaining his first win on the Continent.
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He said his biggest disappointment of the season just gone was not gaining selection for the World Championships.
“It finished in a bunch sprint and I could of got up the Cauberg,” he told stickybottle.
However, he said being part of the international set-up this year had give him “some fantastic opportunities” in the shape of training camps in Ireland and being part of the line-up that was based in Holland for a month of racing in Europe in the run up to the European Championships.
“Without a doubt that was the highlight of the year for me; representing my country in my first international UCI race,” he said of the month based in Zeeland.
He also cited his win on stage 5 of the Junior Tour as a day that will linger in his memory.
“Me and my dad looked at the race programme early in the year and knew it was the one to go for. We videoed the last five kilometres a couple of days before and checked the finish out several times in the team car. And having a team meeting the morning of the stage, everything was in place. Everything went superbly on the day and it was the best win of my career so far.”
“I’ve just started my winter training for the season. I’ll be concentrating on getting stronger and improving my climbing to be able to get the finish next year with fresher legs. Nearer the racing season I’ll work on my speed training behind the motorbike with my Dad, doing 50mph sprints.”
“I’ve developed physically later than my peers. My career so far has been progressive although I have won more than 130 races since I started racing in 2005. I recently got some great advice from Sean Kelly and understand my time as a junior has to be progressive and not to be too serious until it matters.”
Twitter - @Jack_Sadler
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