Paul is our basic supervisor right here at Merlin in addition to a member of The Merlin Cycles Rivington Brewing Co. Racing Group. On the weekend, his end result from the UCI Gravel World Collection spherical at The Gralloch, Scotland put him right into a qualifying place prepared for the world championships within the Netherlands this October. However what’s actually behind his love for using? We sat down with him to seek out out.
What bought you into using?
I used to be drawn to the liberty biking gave me — the power to only head out and discover. My dad additionally had an previous race bike hanging within the storage that I used to admire. I wasn’t sufficiently big to journey it on the time, nevertheless it positively sparked one thing.
Favorite bike you’ve had?
Positively my first correct racing bike. I bear in mind each element: it was a blue Reynolds 531c body, full Campagnolo Mirage groupset, and Mavic CXP33 rims. I completely liked that bike — I rode hundreds of miles on it and it actually cemented my ardour for the game.
Dream place to journey?
Belgium, no doubt. The quick, punchy climbs swimsuit my using type completely, and the post-ride beer choices aren’t unhealthy both!
What’s the hardest journey you’ve been on?
That will be the UCI Gravel Race in Turnhout earlier this yr. I went in barely underprepared, considering the flat terrain would make it simpler — I couldn’t have been extra fallacious. It turned out to be brutally exhausting however an ideal expertise all the identical.
Your largest achievement on the bike?
One in every of my proudest moments was inserting third within the North West Junior Street Race Championships over 20 years in the past. I shared the rostrum with none apart from Mark Cavendish and future WorldTour rider Matt Brammeier — a fairly particular reminiscence!
To seek out out extra about our employees riders right here at Merlin, observe our ‘Get to Know Merlin’s Employees’ weblog sequence.
