Having spent three years racing in Belgium – some of it interrupted by illness – Belfast man Peter Hawkins signed for UK pro team IG Sigma Sport for 2012 and hasn’t looked back. With a string of wins on Irish roads and a strong ride in the An Post Rás under his belt, his form has taken him to fourth overall in the British Premier Calendar. Enjoying travelling with the team and having captured his best form for years, he tells us here how he’s very much looking forward to the Tour of Britain.
Home, there really is no place like it. As much as travelling and riding new races this year has been fun, returning home has always been a joy. Relaxation just isn’t the same anywhere else. I got back from a stage race in Sweden last Sunday and I’m off to Belgium on Tuesday. Such has been the way of it this year, making time at home a bit of a novelty. But I can honestly say that despite every cramped hotel room and pre-dawn trip to the airport I’ve had my most enjoyable season to date.
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Riding with Team IG-Sigma Sport this year has been a very different experience to the last three seasons which I spent in Belgium. The level of support I’ve received from the team has been far higher. And the variation in the races has been terrific. In terms of level of competition, there isn’t much in it which is a credit to the British scene considering how hard Belgian racing is.
The UK scene is healthier than it has been since the 80’s, if not ever. There are six UCI Continental registered teams all with at least twelve riders, the majority of them full-time. The teams all have some kind of professional backup and sponsors who care about the outcome of any important race. This means that at any Premier Calendar or top level crit is serious business and you need to be on it to compete.
This has all come about because the amount of interest in cycling in Britain is at an all time high. The World Road Race Champion, the Tour de France champion and the holders of almost all of the Olympic titles on the track are British.
You can really feel the buzz around the races with great crowds out to watch, many of whom have just caught the cycling bug. I’ve been approached by lots of people who show a real interest in the sport and a genuine knowledge of it. More than, “Oh so you want to be like Lance Armstrong” of just a few years ago. I was even upgraded (with my bike) to first class on a train by a ticket inspector who it turned out was planning to watch my race that evening.
The scene is more buoyant than ever. There is however a disparity between the number of professionally run teams and the number of races for them to ride. There are crits aplenty but very few top level road races and apart from the Tour of Britain only one stage race of note.
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There are a few reasons for this; police cover is hard to come by and expensive in the UK. Sponsors also seem to be more inclined to be associated with teams rather than races and the plain fact is that organising a race is a lot of work.
Also, criterium racing is easier for spectators to follow and easier to televise. This seems a shame as I think that there’s an opportunity being missed to bring road racing to a British public who more than ever seem to be open to it.
It also makes it harder for riders develop and use British racing as a pathway to bigger things on the Continent. Hopefully the incredible summer that British cycling has had will help to turn the situation around. The announcement of a UCI 1.1 level race starting in London next summer is definitely a positive step.
From a personal standpoint I've been quite pleased with how I've been riding. I was confident that I'd be competitive but if I'm really honest fourth overall in the Premier Calendar and a second place in one round is more than I was expecting.
After losing the best part of a year to illness a few years ago and taking some time to get back to my previous level, I feel like I'm now finally getting back to where I should be. I've kept training hard all year so I think I'll have an even better base to build on for next season. I think it also shows that there’s talent in Ireland and all it takes is for guys to come over and give it a shot and they might surprise themselves.
As I mentioned, there’s been a lot of travelling back and forth from Ireland to Britain and beyond. I’ve been lucky to have some very kind friends and team mates who have put me up for periods of the year and I’m extremely grateful for this. IG-Sigma Sport has been a fantastic place to be with a super team of guys, a good programme and genuinely world class equipment. And there’s still a month to go before the season ends with the small matter of the Tour of Britain to contend with. I expect it to be crazy. Can’t wait!
Cheers,
Peter
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