Sam Bennett says he came close to jacking in the sport this summer but decided instead to redouble his efforts and his now secured a two-year pro deal (Photo: Stevie McKenna)
By Brian Canty
Ireland’s newest professional rider, Sam Bennett has revealed his delight at having signed for Pro Continental outfit NetApp-Endura. The Carrick-on-Suir sprinter, who turned 23 years this week, rode his last race for the An Post Chainreaction on Tuesday in Belgium and paid the team an emotional farewell and glowing tribute before leaving.
“I’m absolutely delighted,” beamed Bennett today. "Now the hard work begins.”
With five teams folding from the ProTour and Pro Continental ranks at the end of this year, Bennett knew it was always going to be hard to move up a level but he was confident he would do so, given his stunning season.
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“I had to get a few results to make it happen and they (NetApp-Endura) came looking for me then after the Tour of Britain.”
“After Britain there was a bit of interest from some teams and after the Worlds I flew to Berlin and had a meeting with the team management. There were a few other riders there too. They made an offer and it was good.”
“There were a few teams in for me but then a few collapsed. But I wanted NetApp-Endura.”
What impressed the 2013 Tour of Britain stage winner and double An Post Rás stage winner, was their lead-out train; something he knows he can profit from.
“They have a great set-up with a very good lead-out train and they were looking for another sprinter and I think I might have fitted the bill. So hopefully I might get a few opportunities. At the moment I haven’t really spoken to them about what I’ll be doing.”
The wins he has garnered this year have been of the highest class, and he was always confident he had done enough to move up.
“I always wanted to do more. I wanted to do a good job in the Worlds but that didn’t happen," he said of the elite men's race in Florence last month when crashes and mechanicals saw the four riders on the Irish team abandon.
"I’m disappointed the season has come to and end actually. I would have liked it to be a bit longer because my form came a bit late. But I can’t complain because the season was a great success."
"The Tour of Britain was a big target for me. And to be able to pull it off the way I did was a great confidence booster because I didn’t think I could be going so well for something I targeted from so far out.”
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Bennett revealed that he had a very low point in the mid-season, but things started to change come August.
“In July I was at home and I wasn’t feeling the best and I was debating whether I could go on and race or would I stop. But then I realised after a week that there was absolutely nothing else in the world I want to do and I wasn’t prepared to let the dream go."
"So I started training like a lunatic, put the head down and worked as hard as possible to get into the best condition I could possibly get and it paid off.
"I knew it had to happen for me this year. I’m not getting any younger. I knew I could do it but trying to get the results... Everything clicked in August for me. I’m not saying it was easy but when I clicked, the form just came and so did the results. Things just fell into place.”
The form was a product of the commitment he showed in training.
“It was just so structured and I was so committed to it. I knew what I had to do and wasn’t going to let anything stop me. But there’s a few people I must thank because it wasn’t all about me."
“I definitely want to thank everyone at An Post, so many of them work behind the scenes that it’s hard to mention everyone. But they know who they are, especially Kurt Bogaerts who always believed in me even though we’ve had hard times. He even took me on the team when I had tendonitis and there was no other team there for me."
"He saw something in me and worked with me, doing everything he could to get me to this level and I want to say a special thanks. There have been more people behind the scenes who have helped me with sponsorship, they know who they are, and definitely my friends and family and my girlfriend for all their support.”
He said he will be sad to leave a team that felt more like his family.
“Definitely, it will be sad for me. It was my home away from home and they were like my family. It will be sad to leave this place. We give out about each other all year but when it’s time to go we get a bit emotional. But it’s been a great few years.”
Bennett will now take a two-week break before ramping up his training again for next year.
“In other years I haven’t had such a good winter but I really want to work hard now. It’s a two-year contract. Some guys have this idea that the first year is a holiday and then they get results but I want to hit the ground running and hit the pro scene hard and be the best I can be.
"NetApp-Endura want to keep moving up and want to be at WorldTour in a few years. They’re definitely on the up and I hope to be a part of it.”
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