Sam Bennett with Philip Deignan in Oman. The Carrick man's team mates say his kick, fearless approach and willingness to take chances should bring very big wins.
By Brian Canty
One of Sam Bennett’s crucial lead-out men, Zak Dempster, has lifted the lid on what goes on inside the final kilometres of a race when the Irishman is the team’s protected rider.
Dempster’s job is an unenviable one; muscling his way towards the front of the race when a bunch sprint is imminent.
It’s a job made tougher by the fact so many other teams are trying to do the same thing.
It’s a dangerous place to be at the best of times but the Australian says he relishes looking after his Bora-Argon 18 teammate in those final moments.
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“I look after Sam, I’m one of the last guys with him usually,” explained Demspter.
“With our team last year we didn’t have a train like Lotto-Belisol or HTC Highroad had in the past.
Zak Dempster is pretty fast in a sprint himself, but says with Bennett's abilities very big wins may just be down the road for Bora-Argon 18.
“So usually we’d try and get Vossy (Paul) to drop us off pretty early; like with 10k to go and then I’ll try to look after Sam.”
By “looking after” Bennett, Dempster must pick and weave his way as close to the front as possible with his man locked onto his wheel before ‘peeling off’ to one side, allowing Bennett a clear shot at the sprint.
“The good thing with Sam is he’s a little bit crazy so it’s a bit easier,” laughed Dempster, who along with Kiwi Shane Archbold, are slowly becoming a force to be reckoned with in terms of lead-outs.
“Sam’s willing to take risks and he’s not scared of anyone – it’d be a lot harder if he was,” added Dempster.
“With Sam we kind of freestyle through the head of the race a bit and if I can get him into the top five with 500metres to go it’s ideal.
“I always try to get him towards the front early and then we come back into the trains and sit on the wheels if we need to.”
Bennett, left, takes the final stage of the An Post Rás in 2013. In third place is Shane Archbold, the Kiwi who has moved to Bora-Argon 18 as part of the team's efforts to build a lead-out train for Bennett. They know each other well from An Post-Chainreaction.
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It’s often a lot easier said than done, however, what with the likes of Lotto-Belisol’s established leadout train for Andre Greipel and Giant Alpecin’s equivalent for Marcel Kittel.
But following last Friday’s historic win for Bennett and the team at the Tour of Qatar, Bora–Argon 18 is gaining a bit of a reputation.
“To do the job right I think you need guys who can hold a top end for a long time,” said Dempster.
“My strengths are from 30 seconds up to 5 minutes. I’m not pumping out 1500 watts; I won’t get anywhere near Sam in a sprint.
“I think Shane Archbold has a pretty awesome 10 second to 1-minute power in him as well and we can mash that together pretty well to good effect.
“But getting to the front with Sam on my wheel is the hard part,” continued Dempster.
“I think I’ve a pretty good eye for navigating my way up through the bunch, spotting gaps and going through but it’s no good unless Sam is on my wheel.
Bennett winning the final stage in Qatar the week before last; a massive win for him so early in the season.
“If I go through a gap it’s important that Sam is there with me; it’s not me pedalling off.
“I try to go through a gap, go softer on the pedals once I’m through and leave a small gap to the left so Sam can get through.
“We have a good relationship and get on really well; he trusts me and I trust him.
“This year we’ll be together for pretty much every race and I’m really looking forward to the next couple of years working together.
“I really think we can attain some big successes. It’s really motivating.
“I think last year it would have been awesome to have Sam behind me because I was floating really well through the bunch during the Tour.
“And he’d have followed me pretty well. I was shooting for top 10s but I think we can do more with Sam this year.”
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