Last Updated on April 29, 2023
I can remember sitting with a warm can of ale watching Wiggins romp to victory in the 2012 Tour de France and wondering what would amuse me next. Next up on ITV4 was ‘The Cycle Show‘ (which we like!) and guesting that night were a few cyclists who had done very well in a certain worldwide competition that involved rings in the logo, the type of organisation that would shit on the heads of nobodies like those you know and love here at Velo Balls for daring to mention their trademarked name. When asked by the presenter why there wasn’t a world-leading UK ladies cycling team the guests didn’t reply ‘dunno’ or any other weak palliatives, no; not at all. One of the guests made it clear the research had been done, the figures were worked out and a challenge was thrown down to anyone watching that only £30,000 was needed to start a new women’s cycle team (I could have gotten that figure wrong).
At the time I remember thinking the figure seemed a bit low; I had limited experience of the sorts of sponsorship deals large companies ‘invest’ in, but I did have experience of the sort of figures bandied about to sponsor events and nothingnesses that ordinary folk would find about as fascinating as a slide show on the mating habits of telegraph poles in Wolverhampton. Sadly I didn’t have the readies to fund this theoretical new team myself, but I can remember thinking ‘fuck, I hope some fucker does’. I swear a lot in the privacy of my own home. I don’t consider it an issue.
SO, when the news broke that Wiggle and Honda had picked up the baton and run with it, and had actually started the team that some of the best women cyclists in Britain had requested then I was pleased. So now that we’re here, all this time later with Wiggle Team Honda kicking so much ass I feel good. I have no reason to feel good at all; I’m still some lardass sitting watching crap on Eurosport, but you know what? Sometimes the planets align and good things happen to those who make them happen.
This post was sponsored by half a bottle of red wine from Morrisons.
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