Every twenty minutes or so, a scratched up and sweating Tom Pidcock arrives back at the mechanic’s van that’s parked on a roadside.

The backdrop is a glimmering Catalan lake, the sun’s rays bouncing off its waters with as much energy as Pidcock does with his mountain bike off the surrounding rocky trails. When he arrives back after another test loop, his coach Kurt Bogaerts, is always the first to his side, asking him how the bike is feeling. Discussing in great depth the functionality of the suspension, how rigid the wheels feel, how grippy the tyres are. 
 
The next few days this cycle of discussion, ride, return, discussion runs continuously on a loop. With every bit of new information that Pidcock relays to Bogaerts you watch him ponder, have further discussions with the mechanics, get on the phone to the bike parts manufacturers and have further discussions with them. It’s intense work, Bogaerts’ brain slowly becoming fatigued in unison with Pidcock’s legs; the two have proven over the last few years to be a winning combination. 
 
Success with young riders is Bogaerts forte, he has a knack for seeking out talent and helping it flourish and reach its potential, and has worked alongside one of the most successful cyclists of all time, Sean Kelly. “I was a cyclist myself, and then I stopped because of an injury in my back, after that I started the academy, together with Sean Kelly, and we built it up into a continental team, An Post-Chain Reaction; I spent 12 years there.” 
 
Since joining forces with Pidcock back in 2018, the two have worked together closely, seeing Pidcock take wins at high profile road races such as the junior Paris-Roubaix and Tour d’Alsace, as well as podiuming at the junior World Championships in his home area of Yorkshire. Bogaerts has been instrumental in helping Pidcock arrive at those start lines in top form, both physically and mentally. The latter being something that Bogaerts spends time on, adamant that this part of the process needs just as much attention as the physical; he’s seen the pressure on young athletes and the effect it has. “For example, in cyclocross in the pits there would be five mechanics, and when Tom was back in the camper post race he’d look out the window and say, ‘All these people are here for me and I didn’t perform,’” Bogaerts explains. “So I would say to him: “As long as you can look yourself in the mirror and say that you did the maximum you could, you don’t need to feel guilty, these people are out there because they want to be here”. 

Bogaerts talks about the athletes he’s worked with, with such sincerity and genuine concern for their wellbeing and in return Pidcock displays nothing but respect for his trainer. 
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Kurt Bogaerts

Kurt Bogaerts

From the outside, you see a team that’s won the biggest races for so many years, but once you’re inside the team, there’s a lot of smart people, and there’s a real enthusiasm to work together.
It’s down to this bond and taking heed of Bogaerts' advice that Pidcock has taken his time to make the step up to WorldTour. “The higher the level becomes, the bigger the team, then they can see it as a real weight on their shoulders,” Bogaerts says. “With Tom we worked a lot on that, and I tried to support him, we waited longer than other people of his generation to make that step up.”
 
That decision on when to step up hasn’t just been one for Pidcock to take time deliberating over, it’s a decision that Bogaerts has also spent time contemplating whether it was the right move for him as well. He admits to taking time to sign the contract.
 
“I don’t have the ambition to make my own team again, so it’s a challenge for me too coming into the team, that’s a big thing for me. It’s such a big team. From the outside, you see a team that’s won the biggest races for so many years, but once you’re inside the team, there’s a lot of smart people, and there’s a real enthusiasm to work together. It’s a nice feeling, you really see people caring for each other. It’s definitely a bit different to what I thought it was going to be,” Bogaerts explains.     
 
He enters the team with a blank page, as of yet there is no defined role, it’s his to sculpt and explore where he can add the most value. Whether through coaching riders, helping the sports directors on race, or like the days spent in Catalunya with Pidcock, looking at equipment testing and development. “There’s a lot already working well, but there are always opportunities to explore different ways where something might be able to function better. It keeps coming back to this word ‘adventure’, I feel like I have an exciting one ahead of me,” Bogaerts says.  
 
The INEOS Grenadiers are pleased you signed that contract, and decided to take your next adventure with us.