Elite Roster 2025

Ascent Elite Roster 2025

Ben Forestell

DOB: October 31st, 1995

Years on Ascent: Rookie

Favourite Race: Anything that's against Styba

Best Mid-Ride Snack: Pizzle

Most Notable KOM: Deez Banks to 141

If you could only have one metric on your cycling computer, it would be: Time of day so I could see how late I am to the group ride.

Go to race strategy: Ride like a donkey on the front until you drop yourself out of the break (As seen in photo above).

Michael Styba

DOB: November 15th, 1994

Years on Ascent: Rookie

Favourite Race: One where I don't crash, or that doesn't have descents.

Best Mid-Ride Snack: Whatever is the cheapest

Most Notable KOM: Sydenham Hill Climb (Editors Note: Not the real one, ha ha he wishes).

Favourite Workout: Whatever they tell me to do at Steel City Cycles

Newest Component On My Bike: Marketplace second-hand inner tube that was listed as "light-use, sat in garage for past decade."

Josiah Butt

DOB: November 22nd, 1995

Years on Ascent: Rookie

Zwift Listed Weight vs Real Life Weight: +/- 20lbs.

Role On the Team: Bruiser/Enforcer

Most Notable KOM: The Cramerberg

What You're Most Looking Forward To This Year: Defecting from the team halfway through the year, quitting my job, pursuing 2028 Olympics in the Keirin.

Nick Menegon

DOB: December 6th, 2001

Years on Ascent: 2

Favourite Race: Charlevoix

Best Mid-Ride Snack: Whatever is the cheapest, or beefsticks, or fuzzy peaches by the handful.

Most Notable KOM: Whichever Jeremy is most salty about.

Result in Your First Cycling Race: It was a track race - I think I got lapped 3 times and came dead last. Dylan Bibic won (of course)

Worst Cycling Advice You've Been Given: You can never be TOO lean (yes you can)

Connor Willson

DOB: February 14th, 1996

Years on Ascent: 3

Favourite Race: Anything dirty.

Your Greatest Cycling Achievement: Convincing Ascent to bring me on last year.

Most Notable KOM: Sideroad 12 DH. For some reason Strava does not recognize my blistering time of 2 minutes and 30 seconds. Not often I go fast down hill, so whoever flagged me, I hope you see this.

Rank Them- RR, crit, TT, gravel, cyclocross: Gravel, road race, cyclocross, TT, ____

Worst Cycling Advice You've Ever Been Given: Follow Jeremy Rae's wheel.

Jeremy Rae

DOB: May 19th, 1991

Years on Ascent: 6

First Club Ride You Ever Went On: St. Catharines Cycling Club. Ben Perry showed up. I got dropped early and often.

Most Notable KOM: I can't divulge this information for fear that Derek Gee will poach that too.

Dream Race to Win: Midweek Crit. Steve McKee understands.

Most Important Pre-Race Ritual: Listening to Mike's nervous rambling.

Result In Your First Cycling Race: Small race outside of Buffalo. Missed the clip-in on the start line and fell over, race got re-started. Was ridiculed by the race director. The field then let me ride away from them because they thought I was a hazard.

Ian Manning

DOB: September 23rd, 1986.

Years on Ascent: 7

Favourite Race: Rochester Twilight.

First Club Ride You Ever Went On: Newmarket Eagles 99-00?

Most Notable KOM: Fat man sprint, obviously.

Dream Race to Win: It's been a long time so to be honest I'd take anything.

Worst Cycling Advice You've Ever Been Given: More along the lines of funniest. "If you want to be fat, you eat cow. If you want to be strong, you eat bull. But if you want to be fast, you eat cheetah!"

Mike Little

DOB: April 23rd, 2005.

Years on Ascent: 9

Favourite Race: Midweek worlds.

What's a tip you'd give a beginner on leg shaving: You'll get over the shame.

Best Mid-Ride Snack: Beef chili.

Dream Race to Win: Ossington Crit

Most Notable KOM: I don't have it anymore. (Editors note: Mike has a KOM for 1 lap around the "Durand" circuit which may only be superseded in importance by the Midweek 1 Lap KOM.)