September 11, 2009 (Rolla, Missouri) Interview with Andrew Pinfold
We caught up with Canada’s Andrew Pinfold (OUCH Presented by Maxxis) in the town of St. James before the start of Stage 4 at the Tour of Missouri. The crowds were out in full force once again with the people queuing up for autographs from all of the riders, not just the stars.

Andrew, what’s your impression of the race so far?
Andrew Pinfold: It has been a mixed bag as far as my own results but it’s a good race so far, pretty hard.

Not your type of course?
AP: No, usually it would be one that suits me but I had a bit of bad luck the first day, then a bit of a mechanical on day 2, and on the following day I just didn’t have it. But John Murphy and I are starting to creep forward so hopefully we find the elusive podium that we’re looking for.

How about today – do you feel good about it?
AP: Well I hope so. I think it’s probably going to be a lot different than yesterday. There’s a different team in yellow and apparently Cavendish is not starting today so Columbia shouldn’t have any interest in a bunch sprint. It could make for some aggressive racing and maybe a breakaway just might work today.

As a Canadian, what is your impression of Planet Energy’s participation in this race?
AP: I think it is good. They are following in the footsteps of Symmetrics and it is great to see a Canadian team doing really well. The legacy that Symmetrics started a few years ago has definitely continued on and I am glad to see them racing well here.

Because the Tour of Missouri is at end of a long season are you feeling the affects of that?
AP: No, I am feeling pretty good, pretty motivated. This race has certainly been a highlight on my calendar so I am really excited to be here.

How have you found the crowds here?
AP: They are great! We are in a rural area and the school kids are out and to be honest nobody is living there. When you get into the towns, the crowds are terrific!

Is the plan today to try and get someone into a break up the road?
AP: Well we are going to try and be aggressive. I think it will be on everybody’s playbook today.

Have you seen any wildlife during the race – there’s evidence along the side of the road as well?
AP: Yes we’ve seen some – fortunately none have been ON the road as I remember there was a bad crash the first year from a collision with one. But there are definitely armadillo along the way.

Your projections as to the rest of the race, looking towards the time trial in Sedalia?
AP: It is going to be interesting as it certainly is a long time trial. There are about a dozen guys who have a legitimate shot at it at that distance. Most of the teams will try to distance themselves from the likes of Michael Rogers (Columbia-HTC) and Gustav Larsson (Saxo Bank).

Jonathon Vaughters thought that Canada offers a pool of hard-working cyclists with potential similar to Australia. If you were to pick any cyclist, who is on your radar?
AP: Well any of my younger Symmetrics teammates. Two of them are here; Will Routley (Jelly Belly Cycling) and Ryan Anderson (Kelly Benefit Strategies) are the big talents that could progress in this sport. Certainly there is a lot of talent out of Quebec, there always is and there are some riders in B.C. that are up coming as there is a great program there. Having a professional team in Canada is paramount. Symmetrics just proved that many of the riders were able to find job on pro teams in a tough market and we are talking quality teams. I think it speaks that there are good riders in Canada but there is a need for a professional team to get exposure and have good racing and Steve Bauer will carry that on. I am sure that the young riders on that team are so far ahead of where I was. I mean when I was young, you had to go race on an American team or head to France to race, such as Michael Barry did, as there were few opportunities to race at home. Now they can stay in Canada and develop.

Do you think there’s a place in Canada for a major stage race or is it more suited to the development of a “classics” style race?
AP: We’ve had big stage races such as the Tour Trans-Canada but it only lasted a year. It just takes so much financial support. Certainly in Quebec they could do it and there going to have two Pro Tour races next year in southern Ontario. Canada is a cycling-friendly nation and people are more educated about cycling than they’ve ever been, so I think there’s opportunity for a big stage race.

Do you remember your first bicycle?
AP: Yeah, it was a little yellow bike that got ran over in front of the house. It was a really nice bike!

Who is your role model in cycling?
AP: Certainly Steve Bauer when I was starting out and now my friends like Svein Tuft help out. The nice thing about the riders who came from Symmetrics is that we were more like family than just a team.

Thanks for your time and good like here and with the rest of the season.
AP: Thanks

Pinfold headed off to the sign in, stopping to sign a few autographs along the way – he finished 109th on stage 4.