Ma
Behind the Helmet
Watt next, Stevo?
Having worked his way through the ranks of competitive cycling, Steve Saunders is now a respected coach and trainer, and has been influential in promoting the Wattbike, the indoor bike trainer that delivers performance insights for every rider, through his Johannesburg-based company, EMT – Equipment Motivated Training. – BY KYLE DEELEY
MA: Who is responsible for your skills on a bike? SS: I’ d say I have the basic skills for racing, to manoeuvre in a bunch or avoid crashes in races, developed through participation in track racing, road racing and mountain biking. Most importantly, it was thanks to watching people better than me in each of those areas. Always strive to improve!
MA: What would you say is the coolest thing you can do on a bike? SS: I have just learnt to wheelie my road bike, but I still don’ t have the confidence to do it with cleats on. Other than that, normal abilities like track standing in the traffic or flicking objects out of the road with my back wheel.
MA: Was riding competitively a big focus for you growing up? SS: I was just out having fun racing friends, but yes, the competition was important in driving me to improve. Competition is a hard master, though, as it often beats you down. My advice is, never stay down!
MA: What is your favourite cycling memory? SS: A race win a teammate took in Mossel Bay at the Tour De Eden many years ago. It was a very tough run in with many teams jostling for position from about 20km out, but I managed to pilot Bill Moore to take the win in a crazy sprint.
MA: Any crazy crashes in your years of riding? SS: In 1998 on a training camp with the Minolta team, I overcooked a corner on the way down Robbers Pass into Pilgrims Rest. The back tyre burst and I slid across the road and under the back of a truck. The truck’ s wheels crushed my bike, helmet and glasses and I just managed to get myself out of the way, but ended up with massive facial injuries and a few broken ribs. It taught me that taking risks is not always worth it, but I did learn that a lot of people cared, as I had an incredible number of visitors the two weeks spent in hospital.
MA: If you could have one cycling-related poster on your wall, who would be in it?
SS: Eddie Merckx or another one of the classic 60s / 70s / 80s riders. It would be a black and white picture from a race like Paris Roubaix, probably reflecting grit and determination. That era may be criticised for drug-taking, but it produced some incredibly tough athletes.
MA: How does all your experience on the bike impact what you do now? SS: Having raced for over 25 years, I have built up a big network of people who know me and trust me. Since work is mostly about your networks and relationships, I can honestly say I owe my livelihood to cycling.
MA: Has the Wattbike ethos changed your own way of training? SS: Wattbike( Eddie Fletcher Sport Science and the rest of the team) and their methodology focus on consistent improvement in performance, looking at the biomechanics of cycling. I now make sure I get two sessions a week on the Wattbike and it has made a crazy difference to my cycling efficiency.
MA: What is the most exciting place your job has taken you to? SS: I was extremely impressed by the UCI WCC centre in Aigle, Switzerland – the environment, the mountains, the facilities, the people and what they have achieved, plus a lovely sense of tradition. Meeting Fred Magnin was a privilege, too. I must say that Wattbike was the reason I got the opportunity, and they let me ride the 200m wooden velodrome, which I wouldn’ t get off of until they switched off the lights!
MA: What are your thoughts around cycling in SA, with more youngsters making the leap to go ride in Europe?
SS: These jumps are mostly though the interest of private companies or individuals and I feel that the governmental bodies have lost control of how the sport should be getting directed. Mass participation is the Russian roulette selection system for youngsters to get noticed. Club ethos exists, but there seems to be very little opportunity. Having said that, organisations like the UCI World Cycling Centre( WCC) and JP Van Zyl are doing a great job overall, but they need to be placed on top of the mass participation events to give youngsters a constructive mechanism to access proper coaching and development opportunities.
MA: Do you have any advice for those looking to enter the cycling world?
SS: Take in information from all spheres, but do not get caught in any one dogma. The skills cross-over between the different aspects of cycling will make you a much better cyclist, so I say to roadies to try mountain biking, to mountain bikers try road racing, and to all, try track cycling.
Images: Courtesy Steve Saunders
42 ISSUE 94 MAY 2017 / www. modernathlete. co. za