As the season comes to a close, there is no better place to put our team to the test than in the mecca of the sport—Belgium. For the month of September, we were based in the small town of Maria-Aalter, just outside Ghent. This trip was not just about finishing the season, it was about gaining experience at the highest level in the sport of cycling.

Over the course of our block, we competed in 14 different races across Belgium and France, going bar to bar with some of the best riders in the world—Tim de Clercq, Arnaud De Lie, Yves Lampaert, Arnaud Démare, and Biniam Girmay, to name a few. Our primary goal was to gain invaluable experience, and with the guidance of our seasoned team captains, Conn McDunphy, Cian Keogh, and Adam Lewis, we made significant strides with each race.

The main focus of each race was simple: FIGHT. In these races, you have to fight from the neutral in order to make the splits that are created almost immediately. If you sit back and wait for the race to come to you, your race will be over before you can have a chance to understand what just happened. It is almost hard to put into words how these races are raced. Finishing a Pro K is an accomplishment in itself and takes everything you’ve got. Because the competition is at such a high level, the team had to make adjustments, showing up to the startline first to ensure we were on the back of the bumper as soon as we hit KM 0 to give yourself a chance to make it to the 2h mark where the race would typically go from absolute insanity to just normal insanity and be able to make it to the finish line.

There are a couple people who made this block successful and without whom, we wouldn’t have had nearly as much success. Sian Bottley, Adam’s girlfriend, took on the role of soigneur and was a huge part of our team. Infusing her positive energy and ensuring we were well-fed and hydrated during races. She also offered an outside perspective of her experiences racing in Belgium which helped keep spirits high when it wasn’t always easy.

Despite being the underdogs with a modest budget, we embraced the challenge of racing against the World Tour competition. Arriving at the start line alongside teams with flashy buses and multiple support vehicles was a stark reminder of our underdog status. We rolled up in an Enterprise rental van and a friend’s VW Golf, but despite that we rocked up to the startline ready for a fight!

Racing in those pelotons was an exhilarating experience. The pace was unlike anything we had raced in, there’s a horsepower in the bunch that you just don’t feel in races where you are the “top dog.” Some of the standout moments included competing in Paris-Chauny, one of the most prestigious one-day races on the French calendar, and the ride that we had at the Omloop van het Houtland, in which Adam Lewis got into the all day breakaway, getting caught in the final 6km.

Throughout the month, we raced bar to bar with the best in the world, proving to ourselves that we belong at this level. Each race came with a mix of challenge and inspiration, fueling our ambition for next year.

Now, as we transition into the winter months, our team is more eager than ever to apply what we’ve learned this season. We are excited to prepare for 2025, ready to chase new successes and embrace the opportunities ahead.

Here’s to the next chapter in our cycling journey! #racetothehorizon