FROM SAN REMO TO THE STONES: PITHIE HEADS FOR THE COBBLES

After a delayed start to his European series, Laurence kicked things off on the weekend at Milan San Remo. We kick this ep off with a quick voice note from him live from the hotel room, and man, with the weather those boys had right at the start, I can tell you I’m glad I’m not a rider anymore.

I caught up with Laurence after the race to get his insight into how things played out and how his race went. If you’ve not caught up with San Remo yet, go and get yourself up to speed - but safe to say, it wasn’t an easy day for any of the riders, let alone our man Pithie. I won’t spoil the result, but hearing how Laurence’s team got around him, and his ‘never say die’ attitude, was super cool.

Of course, San Remo is just the kick off for Pithie’s Spring. Next up, he’s off to Belgium - the home of the classics - for De Panne, E3, and Gent Wevelgem; three absolutely massive races that lead up to The Tour of Flanders at the start of April. Oh man, these are some of my absolute favourite races. The Belgian fans, the chaos in the bunch; in a messed-up way, I kinda miss it - so I can’t wait to hear how Laurence finds them. Laurence had a great ride at Wevelgem in 2024, so we spoke about what his expectations are for these first races back in Belgium to find out if he’s doing anything this time around. Of course, aside from the racing, it’s good to hear the young gun is still looking forward to getting familiar with a few Belgian beers and really soaking in the culture; that’s something I’m particularly jealous of.

Finally, I spoke to one of Red Bull Bora Hansgrohe’s sports directors - another Kiwi, ‘The Flying Mullet’ himself; Shane Archbold. He gave me some great background on Laurence, what it’s like working with him, the mechanics behind his transfer to Bora from FDJ, and what he’s capable of this season. Shane’s a good mate, and a real good judge of character, so it was great to hear that Laurence has really fit in with the team and found his feet within the structure straight away, so he can focus on trying to win some of the biggest races in the world.

Right guys, enjoy this episode. Our next catch-up with Pithie will come next week after he, with a bit of luck, has just won the E3 and Wevelgem double…don’t let me down, Laurence.