For the past month, Dylan has been over in Belgium racing bikes with the Cannibal Team, one of the top European development squads. He’s already picked up a few podium finishes, which is extremely impressive for someone doing their first stint of European racing. Do we take some credit for his rapid development? Maybe. Here we ask him a couple questions as he prepares for some of the biggest races of his life.
- What’s your new team like? Dylan: It's really good. They are very supportive and I get along with all my teammates. It's the full Belgium experience.
- What do you think your role is on your new team? Do they see you as a sprinter, climber, GC guy? Dylan: I am the sprinter of the team but I will fill other roles based on the race.
- Where in Belgium have you been staying? Do you like it there? Best part about that city? Dylan: I've been living just outside of Leuven. It's really cool. l like how they sell bread everywhere. There’s a little velodrome for kids in the market. The best part of the city is the french fries with mayonnaise.
- We saw that you crashed pretty bad on your Supersix. What bike are you racing now? Dylan: Well I had to race a Cannondale CAAD 13 with aluminum wheels and a 105 groupset for a month. However, I just got the Astana Premiere Tech team bike to ride until worlds.
- Did you rub it in everyone else's faces when you were doing well on your dad’s Caad13? Dylan: Yes I looked to second place and said "look at this" as I pointed to my bike.
- Is racing in Belgium harder than Midweek? Dylan: Yes, the juniors don't have any sense of risk vs reward so they will quite literally do anything for 50€ and a bouquet of flowers for the win. (Editor's note: I asked this question because two years ago, Dylan went up to Nate Brown at GMSR, who had just come back from the Tour de France where he wore the Polka Dot jersey, and asked “is this race harder than the Tour de France?)
- What’s been your favourite race over there so far? Dylan: Any race that turns into a bunch sprint. I have pretty much won every bunch sprint that I’ve contested.
- Have you found any creeks to go to the bottom of with a huge rock on your chest? Dylan: Sadly, no. The creeks here are made of mud so you can't find a big rock. (Editor's note: Dylan is known to sink to the bottom of creeks and pile rocks on his chest. Judge him accordingly).
- You’re still underage, but if you had to guess which Belgian beer is better between Stella and Hoegaarden, which would it be? Dylan: I haven't tried them all but Stella is what all the locals drink. (Editor's note: “I haven’t tried them *all*)
- Have you found any new “marginal gains” strategies? (backstory: Dylan once told me that he drains his Garmin battery so that it’s “lighter”) Dylan: Well, if you have a pair of aero socks, you shouldn't wash them because it ruins the aero fibers.
- Future races coming up? Big targets for the rest of the year? Dylan: I'm going to a big UCI race in Hungary with many countries attending. And then I’m going to Egypt for track worlds, then hopefully back to Leuven for UCI road worlds.
