Rider diary with… Max Poole

Hey up guys,

I thought it would be nice to check in and let you know a little bit about my first two and a half years at Team DSM and my first months in the Men’s program riding in the WorldTour.

When looking at where I started last year to where I am now, I feel like I have made some really good progress. The team did a really good job supporting me along the way and I have learned a lot tactically with understanding the races, how they differ, and also how to race as a team. I have also made big steps physically, which is obviously quite an important part of cycling! But also learned a lot off the bike, which makes the difference on the bike.

As a new member of the Men’s program, I enjoyed the Team Camp at the beginning of the year, however, it didn’t feel much different from last year when I was there with the Development program. The atmosphere was really good with all the guys and I think we have a really good group and team spirit. We all have each other’s back which is really nice. From the WorldTour team, I already knew some guys from last year as I already raced with Romain Bardet for example, but I also saw a lot of new faces. As a GC rider, I definitely look up to someone like Romain Bardet. I learned a lot by doing quite some races with him, but there are also some guys who are still young but already have quite some experience. They also help me a lot, despite their specialisation might be for a different type of parcours. I’ve set my goal for this year which is to keep developing myself both on and off the bike. I can learn so much from the WorldTour races too and I’ll also try to do my first Grand Tour at the end of the year with the Vuelta.

First race as WorldTour rider

We had two good Team Camps before I started my year in France at the Tour des Alpes Maritimes et du Var. The form was okay, but I was still getting in shape for the first racing block of the year. Obviously, it was my first race as WorldTour rider which was special, so I tried to enjoy it as well. It was a nice race to start the season with as we had a strong team there and in the end quite a solid race.

In Alps, the team did a good job and had a great fighting spirit, also considering that for most of the guys, this wasn’t really their type of racing. It was my first real experience as a GC rider in a stage race, something which gave me some confidence as well. To win the white jersey was quite special as it was my first one as a professional rider! We planned to follow the guy who was the closest to me; not only to win the white jersey but also to practice for the future, wherein I maybe have to fight for a leader’s jersey. It felt quite special to wear the jersey as people notice you a lot more and it also gives you some stature I think. In the end, it was nice to give something back to guys who worked really hard.

Climbing with the best of the WorldTour

At the end of April, I went to Switzerland for my first WorldTour stage race at the Tour de Romandie. I think I was both nervous and excited as it was my first race at that level. It was all  kind of unknown, but also knew how the level would be. Hard! So, there were some nerves for sure, but I was also excited to race with a strong team. In the individual time trial of stage three, I took my first top ten classification which was quite unexpected as I didn’t feel really good when I started. I am very happy with this result, especially because it was a time trial. As we were racing stage four, we were in the nice position to have three guys in a good spot for the GC so we could really use that and play with it. In the finale, I had the legs to follow the chasing group, but also before that, we played it very well. We made the race, Oscar set the pace, and we thought to set up early for an attack with Romain to go for the stage, but the others didn’t really give us the space. I could save a bit of energy then and just followed to see what I could do towards the finish. In the end I was fourth which was nice and the way we rode was really strong. J

Tour of Hongrie

After Romandie, I didn’t feel more pressure for Hongorie, it was just another goal. We had a really young – but also strong – team there as we managed to have another double top ten with Oscar Onley and me on the GC. Oscar and I have a really good connection and we know each other very well as we raced a lot together last year in the Development program. Within the race, we don’t need to talk loads to let each other know what we are thinking in hectic moments. He showed to be a really strong climber and has a really good kick on the shorter climbs, so I think we complement each other very well. I think we can react to any scenario – at least one of us – which is pretty unique and quite valuable. We were gutted that the last stage was cancelled as we had the goal to get back on the podium for the GC, but the organisation made this decision for the right reason.

If I compare the first race of the season to the most recent one, I feel like I have made some good progress. I had a setback with the broken ribs, which took some time, then went to Tenerife for a good High Altitude Camp before coming back to racing. I tried really hard to push myself as hard as I could – and was quite disappointed to miss some races due to my injury – but I’ve come back to a good level now.

Looking ahead

Next up for me is Critérium du Dauphiné which will be a tough race. We can expect a high level and hard racing and I am for sure interested to see how the shape is after the last couple of months. I am really excited to go racing there and see what we can do!

Looking ahead to the rest of the year I would like to keep developing my GC qualities on the bike, but that will take time. There are so many little things that matter in a stage race, things that you can only learn by experience. The more races I do, the more I will learn!

Hope to see you guys on the road!

Max