December 23, 2010 (Langley, BC) – Known as one of the world’s best time trialists, 2008 Road Worlds ITT silver medalist, Svein Tuft, is one of only three Canadian men to have won a medal at the road world cycling championships. The other two men on this elite list are Steve Bauer (silver medal at the 1984 Olympics and subsequent bronze medal at the 1984 road world championships) and Guillaum Boivin (bronze medal at the U23 Road Worlds this year).

Now that Tuft has signed with Team SpiderTech p/b C10, Canada’s first Professional Continental cycling team, the three have been united in what Boivin referred to as a “hat trick” for SpiderTech as Tuft and Boivin will race under Bauer’s direction.

We caught up with Tuft at his home in Langley BC about his recent signing with SpiderTech, which comes in the wake of Pegasus Sports losing out on its UCI Pro Continental Licence. Tuft told us about how this move aligns with his career and season goals, and reunites him with some team mates from his days with BC-based Symmetrics.

Congratulations! A lot of Canadian cycling fans will be excited to see you on the SpiderTech roster.
Svein Tuft: Thank-you! I’m pretty excited myself – it feels like it’s where I should be.

So you and Steve Bauer spoke about the possibility of you signing with Spider tech in the summer – did that get left pretty much as a standing offer?
ST: You know, my whole thing since I started is seeing the sport develop here. When I was part of Symmetrics we made great steps with developing guys, and now with SpiderTech, a UCI team from Canada doing great work developing riders… well, I’ve always been excited about what Steve’s been doing. For me, there’s got to be more than just winning races – it’s more exciting to be part of a cause and something that’s growing. We left it [our discussions in the summer] as eventually SpiderTech is where I want to be. And fortunately the offer was still there when the timing came around!

Were you surprised at how this came about with Pegasus losing out on its UCI Pro Continental licence?
ST: Yeah – we had already been through a camp and had started planning for the next year, and the way they were talking and projecting things we were on track for a good season. I was pretty shocked when I heard the financial backer was lost. But, I was lucky to have a great place to go to, and it’s funny – I was just talking with my new team mate (also my old team mate) – Zach Bell, about how some of us are all back together.

Racing for SpiderTech – there’s a bit of a Symmetrics Big Chill in the works – that’s got to bring back fond memories.
ST: We’re all so excited about racing together – we were part of that time together with Symmetrics – and now some of us can do it again. All that’s missing is Christian Meier, Andrew Pinfold, and Marsh Cooper. One of the things about joining a new team is that there are all these things to learn about everyone and how guys deal with each other, and so it’s comforting knowing what I’m getting into to. Pretty exciting for sure!

How will this change racing for you this season?
ST: It’s pretty cool in that sense – the early races in Belgium that I’ve been focusing on, Steve’s been invited to too as well – so much of it will be the same. I’ll still be doing the Classic stage races – Three Days of West Flanders and Three Days of De Panne. So it’s looking good for me – I haven’t had to change focus or step back from a program or anything like that.

Does this move put you into more of a leadership role than what you would have had with Pegasus?
ST: I think it’s similar – Pegasus wanted me to take on a leadership role on for some key events that I can do well at and the same holds true at SpiderTech. I get a lot of satisfaction out of helping guys learn something new if I can help them in any way – and I’ll get more of that with SpiderTech, which is another real bonus for me.

What are some of the key differences between racing at the pro level in North America that developing riders transitioning into Euro racing might find?
ST: I think it’s the rhythm of racing, the distances, and the courses – those are the real differences. Coming into the classics, I could be on my best form, but if I didn’t know the course I was done. Being unprepared for certain corners, cross winds, and other technical sections can end your day. It’s also the depth of the field: 80% of 200 guys in the race are at the level of the top guys in North America. Over there, the guys have 80 to 100 races each season with 200+km days. So when the things really get going, which happens after about 4.5-5 hours of racing, they can all go. Our races over here are over by then. We have multi-day stage races where you maybe race a prologue, a 100+km road race, a couple of criteriums, then another 100+km road race. Over there, you cover 1,000km in a five-day stage race. It has nothing to do with our capabilities – we just aren’t doing the distance.

How does this affect your career goals?
ST: You know, if we can continue this progression and development to become Canada’s first ProTour team – that’s my dream – something I’d be very content with doing. It’s more about the path you choose, and I’m just so lucky that this opportunity presented itself.

One of SpiderTech’s long term goals is to be competitive at the pro level – how long might it take a new team to reach that goal?
ST: One of the biggest things I’ve been a fan of with SpiderTech is the progression they’ve been making. It takes a while – a lot of teams just want to take their sponsorship and jump into the ProTour. I could see this team – since it’s been focusing so much on developing guys – I could see it happening within the next few years. Maybe quicker. I mean, I’m still an outsider to their program for now, but as far as the progression they’ve been making, that would be my guesstimate.

Thanks for your time and happy holidays!
ST: Thanks and wishing you the same.