On the 27th November we gathered at The Naval and Military Club, (aka The In & Out) for the season finale, celebrating BDOVELO’s tenth season.
We were joined by Jon Dutton OBE and Andy Cook from British Cycling, who were quizzed by Lucy Choules and Steve Watts about the future of cycling in the UK: what was happening to increase cycling participation, rescue the domestic cycling scene and plans for the grand depart of the Tour de France in 2027. They provided a fascinating insight, although kept details of the Tour routes firmly under wraps! We are very grateful to them for giving up their time to join us.
We also had the pleasure of hearing from Joss Lowden and Dan Bingham, ex-pros and former UCI World Hour record holders; both with hugely impressive palmares. The couple shared stories of their respective journeys on the road and the track, covering national, european, world and olympic competitions.
The insights into the lives of a cycling couple operating at the pinnacle of the sport were fascinating. “Juggling” a new born with altitude training and preparation for the Oympics…. “Breaking into” the Manchester velodrome to prepare for the Hour Record…. And what it’s like living with an aerodynamicist who is driven to go fast, whether on a bike or in F1. In an aside, Joss noted that it wasn’t long after she met Dan that she realised he had her card marked for the hour record.
Dan shared what he could about his current role as Head of Engineering at Red Bull BORA hansgrohe. And with Remco Evenepoel joining the team for 2026, there was the obvious question about a future challenge of the Hour record. I think it is fair to suggest that both Dan and Joss might still have an itch that needs scratching and neither ruled out the potential of another crack at the record! Dan has run the numbers and it’s possible….. We will be watching with interest and wish them well if they ultimately decide to go for it.
Since its inception, BDOVELO has been a proud supporter of Action Medical Research, helping them to fund vital research for sick and vulnerable babies and children. The raffle on the night raised another £860 for the charity; a big thank you to everyone who bought tickets.
Over the last ten years, at BDOVELO we have had the pleasure of hearing from some fantastic speakers, and to mark the occasion we have compiled a list in acknowledgement. Hopefully we haven’t missed anyone - do let us know if you think we have!
BDOVELO, was founded by Chris Grove back in 2015, and the evening was an opportunity to thank him for his stewardship over the last decade. Thank you to Chris Roberts for the highly amusing AI-generated video (“a word from Chris Grove”) and to Grahame Jones and Richard Best who had arranged gifts to mark the occasion. Chris is standing down as the chair of BDOVELO and says he is looking forward to an “arm chair” ride in the peloton at future events, released from the shackles of responsibility.
Pictures from the night are available to view here.
BDOVELO remains in good hands with Nick Poulter, Steve Watts, Natasha Hole and Lucy Choules steering the peloton into 2026. Plans for next season will be announced in due course, so watch this space.
A final thank you to Rory and Jonathan from Swi Cycling for bringing along a sexy bike for us to ogle. And if you’re looking for a decent stocking filler this Christmas, we can very much recommend Dan Bigham’s book - Start at the End: How Reverse-Engineering Can Lead to Success, available at all good book stores (and Amazon).