Brother UK Cycling Podcast

Road cycling podcast focused on the UK domestic scene hosted by Timothy John and Phil Jones. Featuring interviews with team managers, riders and stakeholders in the sport.

Welcome to the first episode of the new Brother UK Cycling podcast. Co-hosts Timothy John and Phil Jones, the Managing Director of Brother UK, talk to Dean Downing, a legend of the British road scene. Dean is the former British circuit race and madison champion and is now among the sport’s most sought-after coaches. In part one, Dean talks about the early phases of his career. He begins by describing a happy childhood spent in the Yorkshire mining village of Thurcroft, where he and his brother Russell were taught how to race by their father, Ken Downing. Dean then discusses moving to London to pursue a career in construction management and later to Belgium to begin racing full-time. He describes winning the British madison title with Russell and representing Great Britain in the same event at rounds of the 2003/04 UCI Track World Cup and the 2004 World Championships. He describes forming lifelong friendships through cycling from Australia to Flanders and reveals how he discovered training with power data late in his career. Dean explains how this revelation now helps him to coach the new generation of British professionals. Dean, Phil and Tim are joined by Larry Hickmott, founder and editor of VeloUK.net and unofficially the hardest working man in UK cycling. Larry shares his memories of Dean’s career and offers insights from his hard-earned position at the heart of the domestic sport.   Please note, this episode was recorded before UK Government measures to enforce social distancing. Brother UK strongly endorses the government’s advice and urges listeners to this podcast to #stayhomesavelives.

Episode two of the Brother UK Cycling Podcast continues a fascinating conversation with Dean Downing, the former British Circuit Race Champion and British Madison Champion and now a sought-after coach.  Dean shares more stories from his riding career, including his most cherished victory, and offers his thoughts on the challenges faced by the domestic road scene: the structural and financial issues that have caused long-term instability, distinct from the recent slew of race cancellations caused by the coronavirus pandemic.  He describes the influence of former team manager John Herety on his development as a rider and later as a sports director. He reveals the mental challenge of recovering from a hit-and-run accident at the very start of his second career as a coach, manager and brand ambassador.  Co-hosts Timothy John and Phil Jones, the Managing Director of Brother UK, are joined by Larry Hickmott, the founder and editor of VeloUK.net, for this fascinating conversation with one of the most successful domestic riders of the last fifteen years.  Please note, this episode was recorded before UK Government measures to enforce social distancing. Brother UK strongly endorses the government’s advice and urges listeners to this podcast to #stayhomesavelives.

The UK's elite road race scene is built on talent, dedication and enormous reserves of goodwill. In the third episode of the new Brother UK Cycling Podcast co-hosts Timothy John and Phil Jones talk to three people with first-hand experience of the value of family and community support.     Team Brother UK-OnForm's manager Simon Howes and his partner Michelle Jenner join us to describe long weekends (at bike races), sun-soaked getaways (at training camps), and the delicate art of preparing a casserole amid an enormous kit delivery.   Welsh hill climb champion Rebecca Richardson, a Brother UK-sponsored athlete and member of Team Brother UK-OnForm, is a single parent, business owner and elite rider. She talks frankly about an athlete's need for positive voices and the value of logistical and emotional support from her parents and the cycling community, as well as financial support from Brother UK.   Plus, Phil and Simon lift the lid on the reincarnation of the Brother UK-Tifosi women's team as CAMS-Tifosi - a privileged insight into the mechanics of sponsorship from Brother UK's Managing Director and the General Manager of CAMS-Tifosi and Team Brother UK-OnForm.    Please note, this episode was recorded before UK Government measures to enforce social distancing. Brother UK strongly endorses the government's advice and urges listeners to this podcast to #stayhomesavelives.

Hill climbing is arguably the hardest discipline in cycling - an event in which the riders literally race to collapse. It is a brutal and compelling spectacle for the thousands of spectators who line the hill at events like Monsal Head, but the inner battle waged by the competitors is equally demanding. In this fourth episode of the Brother UK Cycling Podcast, co-hosts Timothy John and Phil Jones, the Managing Director of Brother UK, sit down with two of Britain's most successful hill climbers: Adam Kenway (Vitus Pro Cycling Team, p/b Brother UK) and Rebecca Richardson (Team Brother UK-OnForm).  Adam is a former British hill climb champion and twice a winner at Monsal Head - arguably the discipline's most prestigious event. Rebecca is the Welsh hill climb champion, the reigning women's champion at Monsal Head and a podium finisher at last year's British championships.  Equipment, tactics, pacing strategy and the willingness to 'go deep' in pursuit of success, even if it means engaging inner demons, are among the topics covered in this fascinating conversation with two riders who have mastered a discipline that is outwardly simple and inwardly complex.  Please note, this episode was recorded before UK Government measures to enforce social distancing. Brother UK strongly endorses the government's advice and urges listeners to this podcast to #stayhomesavelives. 

E-racing has become cycling’s most popular discipline since the introduction of Covid-mandated lockdowns. Cyclists using so-called ‘smart’ trainers compete online in digital worlds. Watts transmitted from real-world riders power avatars around virtual courses. Exhausting races force indoor cyclists to ‘go deep’ for success. E-cycling is fundamentally an athletic endeavour and, therefore, the most credible e-sport. E-racing has filled the competitive void created by race cancellations. Professional cyclists have embraced platforms like Zwift and RGT Cycling. Further, race organisers have reimagined real-world events as digital competitions. The Virtual Tour de France is the biggest to date. The Skoda V Women’s Tour represents a further, significant example. This episode features expert witnesses from professional cycling’s new frontier. Riders, race organisers, technical partners and major sponsors offer insights. E-racing represents more than a digital fix to Covid-mandated cancellations. It has potential to address the sport’s endemic commercial weaknesses. We explore online racing’s full significance with commentary from five informed observers. Phil Jones MBE is the Managing Director of Brother UK. He has made the company British road racing’s leading sponsor. His passion for the sport is balanced by commercial expertise. Return on investment is an essential requirement of Brother’s sponsorships. Phil’s observations on e-racing’s vast commercial potential offer real insight. Peter Hodges is the Sweetspot Group’s PR and Communications Director. He was one of four people there who worked throughout lockdown. Their efforts delivered the Skoda V Women’s Tour. Peter shares experiences from building a world-class e-race from scratch. His insights include observations on e-racing’s more youthful demographic. Leah Dixon triumphed in the inaugural Skoda V Women’s Tour. Her Virtual Tour de France debut was highly successful, too. Leah and her Tibco-Silicon Valley Bank squad dominated the race. She reveals the critical role e-racing played in her development, and she describes the genuine emotions that accompany virtual victories. Chris Snook is Senior PR Manager for market leader Zwift. The game-changing e-racing platform powered the Virtual Tour de France. Chris reveals the demands of rendering cycling’s biggest event digitally. New ‘worlds’ created for the race included a virtual Champs-Élysées. Chris, a former racer, also reflects on e-racing’s commercial potential. Anna Henderson is the British U23 road and time-trial champion. She is a professional cyclist who races for Team Sunweb. Anna’s performance in the Virtual Tour de France was impressive. She reflects on e-racing’s comparative value to a professional team focussed on road racing. And she shares insights on e-racing as a collaborative endeavour. Timothy John is a journalist, presenter, producer and brand consultant. He co-hosts the Brother UK Cycling Podcast with Phil Jones. Tim has covered cycling as editor of RoadCyclingUK.com and Rouleur.cc. His editorial and commercial experience afford him an holistic view. He explores the e-racing phenomenon as an impartial observer.

Domestic road racing faced challenging circumstances even before the pandemic, including folding teams and races, a broken economic model, and a shortage of young volunteers willing to replace or even assist the sport’s ageing nucleus of race organisers. In the first instalment of a two-part investigation into the commercial and organisational machinery that supports the British road scene, we focus on race organisation and the domestic calendar. Our examination is supported by the testimony of five expert witnesses: Erick Rowsell, Phil Jones, Jonathan Durling, Larry Hickmott and Peter Harrison. Join co-hosts Timothy John and Phil Jones MBE, the Managing Director of Brother UK, for a mature, even-handed consideration of the domestic sport’s most significant challenges and the methods by which they might be overcome. Erick Rowsell’s exclusive revelation that British Cycling will hold a National Road Series in 2021 is one of many insights uncovered.

In this second instalment of our in-depth investigation of elite British domestic road racing, we turn our attention to the teams and riders: the managers, volunteers and athletes attempting to recover from a year without racing and fighting for survival after years of declining investment.    Our six expert witnesses speak with authority on the sporting, commercial, economic and administrative challenges of reviving a sport decimated by the coronavirus lockdown and struggling to regain the glory of an golden era still within recent memory.    Harry Tanfield has found a route back to the UCI WorldTour with Team Assos-Qhubeka, but reveals his disappointment at being told by Ag2r-La Mondiale in the weeks approaching his Grand Tour debut at the 2020 La Vuelta Espana that his services would not be required for 2021. A rider whose experience encompasses the Chorley Grand Prix and Ghent-Wevelgem, Harry offers his insights into the differences between domestic and WorldTour racing.   Like Harry, Sophie Wright graduated to the top-tier of professional cycling from a Brother UK-sponsored team in 2019. Like Harry, her first WorldTour employer (Cervélo-Bigla, later Équipe Paule Ka) folded. Unlike Harry, she had already signed a two-year deal with another suitor (ALE-BTC Ljubljana). Sophie shares her experience of the instability of a cycling career and her insights into the tactical gulf that separates domestic and professional racing.    Rebecca Durrell received no contract offers from UCI Women’s WorldTour teams when she succeeded Sophie as National Road Series champion, despite her formidable talent and further accolades, including the British Elite Circuit Race title. Becks reflects on the shifting requirements of top-tier teams, the value of domestic racing as a proving ground for a professional career, and impending motherhood.    British Cycling’s Elite Road Racing Manager, Erick Rowsell, competed in the biggest races at home and abroad during eight years as a professional rider. In this episode, Erick calls for fewer and better British-registered, UCI Continental teams and describes the intended benefits of British Cycling’s new Elite Development Team status.    Phil Jones MBE, Brother UK’s Managing Director and this podcast’s co-host, offers a forensic analysis of the wider economic factors affecting cycling teams and an invaluable guide to the business of winning sponsorship from corporate backers. Phil also considers the comparative value of brand exposure and cycling’s values proposition, describing how the sport offers another angle on Brother UK’s aim to help its people and partners achieve growth and success.    And Matt Hallam, the owner and manager of the Brother UK-sponsored Crimson Performance-Orientation Marketing team, shares the secrets of his impressive ability to attract new sponsors and further investment, even in a year with no racing, and lifts the lid on his ultimate ambition for a team founded to grant racing opportunities to riders in North West England but which now has more ambitious goals.

In this episode, co-hosts Timothy John and Phil Jones, the Managing Director of Brother UK, are joined by regular contributor Larry Hickmott, the founder and editor of VeloUK.net, to talk through several of the issues raised in our in-depth investigation of elite British domestic road racing, The Way Ahead.  Tim, Phil and Larry listen to clips taken from parts one and two of episode six and offer their perspectives on plans to restructure elite domestic road racing in three tiers, British Cycling’s new Elite Development Team status and the feasibility of introducing a minimum wage to elite domestic road racing.  Phil offers a forensic analysis of the commercial landscape in which the sport must fight for survival and shares valuable insights into Brother UK’s sponsorship goals, ranging from the power of association with the sporting values embodied by our teams to the advantages and limitations of television coverage in a new media age.  Larry brings insights from his work at VeloUK, including a recent interview with Giles Pidcock, father of new British superstar Tom Pidcock, and shares the wealth of knowledge gained from 21 years spent covering the domestic scene, including the last period in which it functioned with a dedicated category for domestic pros.  Tim, formerly the editor of RoadCyclingUK and Rouleur.cc, asks why the domestic scene, with its proven fund of riding talent and compelling races like the Lincoln GP, CiCLE Classic and Beaumont Trophy, isn’t more respected, and asks if more could be done by British Cycling to advocate for its National Road Series with professional cycling’s power brokers. Enjoy insights too from pre-recorded interviews with Erick Rowsell, British Cycling’s Elite Road Racing Manager, and Sophie Wright, a Brother Cycling graduate to the WorldTour, now racing as a paid professional with Alé-BTC Ljubljana.

Episode Eight of the Brother UK Cycling Podcast examines management. Co-hosts Timothy John and Phil Jones lead an insightful discussion. The guests are the managers of our three sponsored teams. We examine the challenges of leadership in sport and business. And we consider the rewards, too: personal, professional and sporting. Simon Howes is the experienced manager of Team Brother UK-OnForm. Ian Watson, aka Coach Watto, manages the Brother UK-LDN squad. Matt Hallam is rider-manager at Brother UK-sponsored Crimson Performance-Orientation Marketing. The trio reflects on the demands of cycle team management. We hear how their challenges are magnified by systemic instability. Phil describes the challenges cycling faces from the wider economy. He explains how the Covid lockdown will affect sponsorship budgets. And he again urges cycling to develop new revenue streams. Further, Phil offers parallels from his extensive study of leadership. His insights include Professor Nassim Nicholas Taleb’s “black swan” theory. Tim questions the three managers on a range of topics. These include British Cycling’s plans for the National Road Series. He explores the potential benefits of app-based, on-demand television coverage. He asks the managers to describe character traits for leadership. And he explores the importance of maintaining a positive attitude.   Ian describes why “communication, communication, communication” is his lockdown mantra. Matt explains why resilience is essential in cycling and business. Simon shares his efforts to overcome the post-Brexit “90-day rule”. He describes the travel restrictions now faced by British athletes. And he reveals how he and British Cycling can help.    Listen now to enjoy an honest, insightful and revealing discussion. Discover the parallels between business leadership and cycle team management. Hear Phil and our managers describe their strategies for success. Discover techniques for managing top performers and essential support staff. And learn about Brother UK’s support for its sponsored teams.

In episode nine of the Brother UK Cycling Podcast, co-hosts Timothy John and Phil Jones MBE, the Managing Director of Brother UK, are joined by members of a Brother UK-sponsored cycling team in a hurry. The elite Crimson Performance-Orientation Marketing squad are planning to make 2021 a season to remember.   Guests Matt Hallam, the team’s founder and owner, manager and rider, marquee signing Joey Walker, the reigning British Circuit Race Champion, and Melissa Greaves, rider and assistant manager of the Crimson Performance-Orientation Marketing team’s women’s squad, join Tim and Phil to discuss management, sponsorship, content, racing, Cumbria, Manchester and more.   Matt describes how his vision for the team has expanded since its foundation in 2018, his embrace of content and identity, attracting blue chip backers like Brother UK, Porsche and Rapha, and identifying and acquiring talented riders. Additionally, he shares the story behind the team’s “Dare To Dream” launch video.   Joey offers insights into his life as a professional cyclist, including support from accomplished father Chris, the disappointment of riding for teams that later folded, including Madison and Vitus, the attraction of a berth with Crimson Performance-Orientation Marketing, and his ambitions to enjoy success and longevity on the domestic scene.   Melissa describes how her role in the Crimson Performance-Orientation Marketing team’s women’s squad has expanded from rider to assistant manager, and explains how the skills behind the diverse job roles enjoyed by its team members – everything from medical doctor to sheep farmer – pays dividends in the heat of a race.   Listen now to enjoy a detailed but light-hearted conversation with the people at the heart of one of British cycle sport’s fastest-growing teams, and learn how leadership, dedication and a sense of “positive friction” are as essential to success in the elite domestic peloton as in a major business.

Rebecca Richardson is the special guest in this tenth edition of the Brother UK Cycling Podcast. Rebecca’s hill climb prowess has made her a familiar face to Brother Cycling’s followers (she’s the reigning Welsh hill climb champion, after all). Now, she’s added another string to her bow: setting endurance records. Rebecca joins co-hosts Timothy John and Phil Jones, the Managing Director of Brother UK, to discuss her new women’s record for the Brecon Beacons Circuit: a gruelling, 104-mile loop with 6,500ft of climbing. Rebecca completed the course – which includes an ascent of Black Mountain – at an average speed of 20.7mph. Rebecca reveals the genesis of her attempt: a quest for renewed motivation in the depths of lockdown. She describes her preparation, equipment choices, nutrition strategy and liaisons with the Road Records Association: an institution whose history can be traced to its foundation in 1888. Revealingly, she describes her fears and satisfaction, too.  Phil shares his emotional response to the demands of his #TOB1DA challenge: a feat that saw him ride the entire course of the 2018 Tour of Britain, one day ahead of the race. He gets geeky with Rebecca, too, quizzing her on data and equipment in a “techy time out”. Tim offers insights into drivetrain friction from his work with one of the leading lubricant brands and, with Rebecca, explores the importance of adventure, the challenges of pacing and the similarities between cycling’s hill climb and endurance communities. He even shares his difficulty in pronouncing the name of Welsh village, Bwlch! Listen now to enjoy a lively conversation that covers a range of topics, from the technical requirements of Rebecca's record-setting ride to its emotional demands. From aerodynamics to pre-ride anxiety, gear selection to roadside support, this episode explores every aspect of a gruelling cycling challenge that demanded speed and endurance.

The eleventh edition of the Brother UK Cycling Podcast celebrates the return to national road racing after an absence of more than a year with the 2021 Women’s CiCLE Classic. Brother UK will have an unmissable presence at this superb race with three sponsored teams in the peloton and the Neutral Service p/b Brother UK in-race support crews in the race convoy.    Co-hosts Timothy John and Phil Jones, the Managing Director of Brother UK, share their experiences, insights and excitement as a journalist and sponsor respectively. Both have had the privilege of riding shotgun in a Neutral Service p/b Brother UK support vehicle, and both pay handsome tribute to the volunteer crews facing their busiest weekend of the year.    Colin Clews, the founder and race director of the CiCLE Classic in all its forms (men’s, women’s and juniors), offers a fascinating view from inside the race: its foundation, its budget, its benefactor, and a route that beguiles as many as it exhausts. He reveals a unique feature of this year’s parcours: a route through Owston that no previous edition of the race has followed.    Sian Botteley of Team Brother UK-OnForm offers a view from behind the handlebars. Despite finishing in the top 10 of the 2017 edition of the Women’s CiCLE Classic, her unique perspective comes from local knowledge rather than experience of the race: its celebrated country lanes are her home training roads. Sian talks adrenaline, concentration, endurance and excitement in her illuminating contribution to this episode.   Tony Barry is the manager of the Neutral Service p/b Brother UK in-race support crews. Formerly a rider, Team GB road manager and board member at British Cycling, there’s little about elite bike racing that Tony doesn’t know. He offers facts, figures, insights, memories and more from his service at previous editions of the CiCLE Classic.    Larry Hickmott is officially the founder and editor of VeloUK.net and, unofficially, the hardest working man in cycling. Despite covering countless editions of the men’s CiCLE Classic, 2021 will see his first visit to the women’s race. He talks course recces and the advantage of local knowledge, while revealing the best viewpoints from which to capture memorable images of Britain’s most photogenic bike race.    Enjoy this latest episode of the Brother UK Cycling Podcast, and catch up with our earlier editions on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts and Spotify. Just search “Brother UK Cycling Podcast”, subscribe, and leave your feedback.  

The Brother UK-sponsored Tour Series is Britain's biggest circuit racing series. It's brought adrenaline-fuelled racing to town-centre circuits the length and breadth of the country since 2009. Many household names gained prominence at the Tour Series, including Anna Henderson, the Brother Cycling 'graduate' now winning races in the UCI Women's WorldTour. Our guests for this investigative edition could scarcely be more qualified to comment. Joey Walker, a rider for Brother UK-sponsored Crimson Performance-Orientation Marketing, is the reigning British Circuit Race Champion. So too is Rebecca Durrell, who won the women's title while riding for Team Brother UK-Tifosi p/b OnForm, now CAMS-Basso. Rebecca and Joey share insights gained from their experience at the pinnacle of the sport. They lift the lid on start line nerves, riding on the limit of crashing, managing the logistical and tactical demands of the Tour Series and sharing the sensation of victory with crowds of several thousand people. Mark Botteley offers a manager's viewpoint. He describes the challenges his young riders are likely to face in the 2021 Tour Series, describes the tactical options for a squad long on potential but short on experience, and calls for elite domestic road racing to embrace the Covid-inspired opportunity to restructure.  Peter Hodges is the Communications Director at SweetSpot Group, the Tour Series organisers, and a man who has witnessed an astonishing 102 of the 107 rounds held by the competition since 2009. He describes its challenges, successes and plans for the future, and even shares memories of his favourite venues. Phil Jones is the Managing Director of Brother UK and this podcast's co-host. As the leader of a major business and sponsor of the Tour Series, Phil is keenly aware of its economic challenges. He offers a positive vision for continued partnerships between the race and local authorities as councils seek new ways to revive town centres decimated by lockdown.  Part one of this eleventh episode of the Brother UK Cycling Podcast offers everything you need to know about Britain's best-loved crit series, from pre-race anxiety to post-race recovery, physical exhaustion to emotional exhilaration. Check out part two for a discussion of the issues featuring co-hosts Tim and Phil and Larry Hickmott, the editor of Brother UK-sponsored VeloUK.net.

The Tour Series is Britain’s best-loved series of city centre circuit races. Since 2009, it’s granted an early opportunity to blossoming British talent. Brother UK has sponsored The Tour Series since 2014 and served as Official Print and Results Partner since 2016. We proudly sponsor the Brother Fastest Lap competition, too.  This episode is the second instalment of a two-part preview of the 2021 Tour Series. Co-hosts Timothy John and Phil Jones, the Managing Director of Brother UK, are joined by Larry Hickmott, the editor of VeloUK.net. The trio discuss key points from part one: a documentary-style examination of crit racing, also available from this platform.  Reigning British Circuit Race Champions Joey Walker and Rebecca Durrell shared insights in our investigative episode. Tim reflects on Joey’s revelation that elite riders must always race on the very limit of crashing, such is the speed and intensity of top-level crit races like those featured in The Tour Series. Phil offers his first impressions of all-action crit racing (“flat out from the gun and hold on till the line”) and a more detailed analysis based on the huge “situational awareness” that a rider must have to process the position of rivals, team-mates and instructions received while passing the pits. Larry considers the star performers of the season-to-date and reflects that The Tour Series will represent a first coming together. He identifies Lucy Lee and Dani Shrosbree of Team Brother UK-LDN, Team Breeze and the Brother UK-sponsored Crimson Performance men’s squad among those to watch when The Tour Series begins.  A condensed, week-long campaign represents The Tour Series’ return from its Covid-enforced absence last year. Councils have traditionally invested in hosting rounds. Many now face budget shortfalls, following austerity and a public health crisis. Phil argues that the need to reinvigorate town centres offers race organisers a new selling point.  Larry reports on the huge crowds who attended the recent National Circuit Series events in Otley and Ilkley. He reflects on public desire for enjoyment and events after a series of lockdowns. Covid, he concedes, continues to present elite cycle sport with an uncertain future, in the short-term at least.  Tim argues that this September’s Tour of Britain will represent a valuable barometer of public opinion. Britain’s national tour has its “grand départ” on the Cornish riviera in September. The willingness or otherwise of crowds to gather in towns like Penzance to greet the race will be revealing, Tim maintains. The trio considers the roster of top performers who have established reputations at The Tour Series. Alice and Hannah Barnes, Graham Briggs, Ed Clancy, Dean Downing, Grace and Lucy Garner, Anna Henderson and Tom Pidcock are just some who used its town centre circuit races as a springboard to stardom.  Listen now to enjoy insights from Tim, Larry and Phil and whet your appetite for the return of The Tour Series. Don’t forget to check out part one of this episode for insights from Joey Walker (Crimson Performance-Orientation Marketing), Rebecca Durrell (CAMS-Basso), Peter Hodges (SweetSpot) and Mark Botteley (Team Brother UK-OnForm). 

This episode of the Brother UK Cycling Podcast offers an in-depth preview of the 2021 Tour of Britain. Its documentary-style investigation features an impressive cast of expert witnesses. Riders, sponsors, route planners, neutral service providers and journalists combine to provide a thought-provoking prelude to the latest edition of Britain’s biggest bike race.  Phil Jones, the Managing Director of Brother UK and the podcast’s co-host, describes the detailed planning required of the Neutral Service p/b Brother UK in-race support crews in stepping up from top-tier domestic racing to supporting the world’s best riders. He offers insights into the race’s commercial impact, too.  Route Director Andy Hawes describes the vast logistical challenge of creating a 1310-kilometre route with 19,000 metres of climbing. He offers insights too on the intense demands of his in-race role as Moto Regulator, riding pillion on the penultimate motorbike ahead of the peloton as its last line of defence.  Harry Tanfield rides for UCI WorldTour squad Team Qhubeka-NextHash. The 26-year-old has ridden the Tour of Britain twice: making his debut in 2017 for a Brother UK-sponsored domestic team and returning in 2019 as a fully-fledged professional. His insights on the differing agendas of top-tier and third-tier teams are fascinating.  Larry Hickmott is the founder and editor of VeloUK.net and has covered every edition of the Tour of Britain since it relaunched in 2004. Larry shares insights from discussions on the route of this year’s race with riders and managers and offers his hopes for the selection of Britain’s brightest talents.  Co-host Timothy John has been the editor of RoadCyclingUK.com and Rouleur.cc and is now a consultant. A journalist by training, he interviews each of the guests and presents and produces the episode. As a writer covering professional cycling since 2012, he has witnessed several editions of the Tour of Britain.

This episode previews The Women’s Tour: a top-tier stage race, widely considered the most well-organised in the women’s sport. Brother UK has sponsored the event since its inception in 2014 and served as Official Print and Results Partner since 2016. This year, the Neutral Service p/b Brother UK in-race support crews will take their place proudly in the race convoy. Phil Jones, the Managing Director of Brother UK and the podcast’s co-host, describes the logistical and operational challenge in preparing our neutral service support for a race with a diverse array of technical requirements. Phil shares his experiences from inside a neutral service vehicle at the recent Tour of Britain, too.  Sophie Wright is a professional cyclist with the Alé BTC Ljubljana squad: an Italian-registered team competing at the sport’s highest level. As a ‘graduate’ of a Brother UK-sponsored domestic squad, Sophie is well-placed to comment on the race’s appeal to visiting superstars and homegrown talent.  Mick Bennett is the Race Director of The Tour of Britain and The Women’s Tour. A former Commonwealth champion and Olympic medallist, he has spent a lifetime in the sport, most of it at the helm of Britain’s biggest races. His insights on the myriad challenges faced in staging a world-class bike race are well worth hearing.  Becky Storrie is a young woman in a hurry. Signed in mid-season by CAMS-Basso from the Brother UK-OnForm development team, she will make her stage race debut at The Women’s Tour, testing her legs over six days alongside the newly-crowned world road race and time-trial champions. Becky’s honest and insightful comments on such a daunting opportunity offer an invaluable insight.  Co-host Timothy John has been the editor of RoadCyclingUK.com and Rouleur.cc and is now a consultant. A journalist by training, he interviews each of the guests and presents and produces the episode. As a writer covering professional cycling since 2012, he has witnessed several editions of The Women’s Tour. 

This special edition of the Brother UK Cycling Podcast previews the 2021 National Hill Climb Championships. Winnats Pass, a savagely beautiful climb at the heart of the Derbyshire Peak District, will host the championships for the first time in 40 years. This year, a female athlete will be crowned national champion on its slopes for the first time. Brother UK will proudly serve #Winnats21 as an event sponsor.  This episode contains insights from eight expert witnesses, including the Brother UK-sponsored athletes Adam Kenway and Rebecca Richardson. Adam was crowned British champion in 2016 and has finished on the podium on four other occasions. Rebecca is the three-time and reigning Welsh hill climb champion. Both have won the prestigious Monsal Head hill climb.  Event organiser (and rider) Nick Latimer has worked on staging this year’s championships for two years, regularly engaging with Castleton Parish Council and other authorities to secure the essential road closure. Additionally, he has secured sponsorship from Brother UK and others to help meet event costs and donate to local good causes. Mechanic Rick Bailey offers fascinating insights into the hill climb community's unique approach to cycling technology. Photographer Tony Wood speaks in glowing terms about Winnats’ scenic qualities, while journalist Larry Hickmott offers his views on the value of hill climbing as domestic cycling’s ‘feel good’ scene. He offers a rundown of the pre-race favourites, too.  Jack Young, the newly-crowned Shropshire junior hill climb champion and a young rider with autism, celebrates hill climbing’s inclusivity. And Phil Jones MBE, Brother UK’s Managing Director and the podcast’s co-host, offers his views on a range of topics, from Brother UK’s sponsorship of the event to the congruency achieved by top-class athletes like Rebecca.  The episode is presented and produced by Timothy John, a journalist and consultant. 

In episode 17 of the Brother UK Cycling Podcast, co-hosts Timothy John and Phil Jones, the Managing Director of Brother UK, look ahead to the 2022 season, paying particular attention to the Tour Series, the Lincoln Grand Prix and the Women's Tour.  In 2022, Brother UK will again be at the side of elite British road racing, maintaining its vital financial support in the form of sponsorships for the Brother UK-Orientation Marketing and Brother UK-LDN teams, the televised Women's Tour and Tour of Britain races, hill climb specialists Adam Kenway and Rebecca Richardson, and the Neutral Service p/b Brother UK in- race support crews. Phil and Tim dissect a thrilling return to Guisborough for Britain's best-loved crit series with a pair of enthralling races. Phil shares his insights on how the winning teams used the formation lap to their advantage, while Tim celebrates the latest generation of female crit riders and an electrifying, if short-lived, Tour Series debut for Grace Lister of Brother UK-Orientation Marketing.  The 65th edition of the Lincoln Grand Prix, arguably the only 'monument' on the domestic calendar, offers another rich subject. The presence of both Brother UK-sponsored teams and the Neutral Service p/b Brother UK in-race support crews make it a relevant topic for discussion on the Brother UK Cycling Podcast. Wider issues, however, like its fight for funding and its position at the very pinnacle of the domestic calendar, provide additional avenues for debate.  Phil lifts the lid on Brother UK's ambitious goals for sponsorship of the Green Zones at this year's Women's Tour and Tour of Britain. Next month, the Women's Tour peloton will pass the gates of Brother Industries on stage four from Wrexham to Welshpool. Our refurbishing and remanufacturing centre in Ruabon is a zero-carbon and zero-waste-to-landfill facility. Can Brother UK make the Women's Tour and Tour of Britain's Green Zones zero-waste-to-landfill facilities too?  Structural issues also feature in Tim and Phil's discussion. The pair set the encouraging emergence of high-quality National B races like the Peaks2Day and Capernwray Road Race alongside more challenging developments, notably the Women's CiCLE Classic's resort to crowdfunding to ensure this year's edition goes ahead. Phil celebrates the contributions of individuals determined to see the race survive, but warns that the sport must now rebuild if its most cherished races are to achieve long-term sustainability.  Enjoy this lively and informed discussion between Brother UK's leader and an experienced cycling journalist

Co-hosts Timothy John and Phil Jones, the Managing Director of Brother UK, use episode 18 of the Brother UK Cycling Podcast to look back on the recent Tour Series, look ahead to the 2022 Women’s Tour, share more information on Brother UK’s Green Zone sponsorship at the Women’s Tour and Tour of Britain, and celebrate a second national title in three months for Brother UK - Orientation Marketing. Additionally, the episode includes clips from new interviews with Sammie Stuart (Brother UK - Cycle Team LDN) and Jo Tindley (Pro-Noctis - Rotor - Redchillli Bikes p/b Heidi Kjeldsen), in which each rider reflects on their Tour Series success: a competition in which Sammie won two rounds, and Jo led her squad to overall victory in the team competition. The pair also fought a season-long duel in the Freewheel sprints competition. The Brother UK-sponsored Women’s Tour begins in Colchester on Monday June 6 and finishes in Oxford a week later. A world-class field will also contain the best British riders, including the British road race champion Pfeiffer Georgi (Team DSM) and British time-trial champion Anna Henderson (Jumbo-Visma), who began her career on a Brother UK-sponsored team. Phil and Tim discuss the race’s stellar line-up and gruelling parlours. On stage four, the peloton will roll past the Brother Industries’ zero carbon, zero waste to landfill recycling facility in Ruabon. Tim and Phil use this happy coincidence as a springboard to discuss Brother UK’s sponsorship of the Green Zones: in-race sectors where riders can dispose of gel wrappers. Tim shares the technical process Enval, the race’s recycling partner, will use to recycle the wrappers, while Phil describes Brother UK’s sustainability agenda. Brother UK – Orientation Marketing is a development team, but few would guess from its recent results, including two national titles. Our hosts discuss the success of manager Mark Botteley’s junior and senior women’s teams and the pathway it offers to professional careers via its connection to the UCI-registered CAMS-Basso squad. Listen now on the Brother UK website or via any of the leading podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts and Spotify.